Incendio

-August 29th, 2004

Samantha Fyre nervously felt a twitch in her hand as she sat at her desk, it wasn't an unfamiliar twitch. It was one she knew as well as an old friend. It was a twitch she'd picked up after the war. She didn't want to admit that five years later, but she still had the twitch when she was nervous. Here she was, nervous and trying to hide it. She adjusted her suit jacket, hoping to look more professional and composed than she felt. She had to be perceived as a strong minded individual. A mature one at that, not that she wouldn't be seen as anything else to a young Hogwarts student.

She was the bloody Editor-In-Chief of the Daily Prophet after all. What could she be nervous about? It may have been that for the first time in her career, she was the one being interviewed. She began rolling through her mind what questions could be asked of her in this upcoming interview. She'd agreed to it, only because she remembered being a young journalist. She held a special place in her heart for the Hogwarts Gazette, the paper she had established during her school years, and decided it would only be appropriate she interview with it's newest Editor-In-Chief.

"Miss Fyre." Her secretary called in. "I have a Mr. Albert Blythe for you."

She stood up from her chair to welcome the boy. She observed that he couldn't have been more than fourteen. His slightly short stature reminded her of a boy she once knew, one she wasn't soon to forget either. He shook her hand with a mature confidence.

She watched young Albert's eyes dart around tiny room, she assumed he would find the room anything but remarkable. She kept her office simple. Only a few shelves holding files, a window with maroon curtains and a small mahogany desk. On the desk sat a typewriter and the upcoming edition of the Prophet. The only visible magic was a tiny pink pygmy puff, bouncing and rolling from shelf to shelf.

"Thank you Gerta." Samantha motioned to her secretary, to excuse her.

"Miss Fyre, glad to make your acquaintance. " Young Albert reached out his hand.

She replied quickly, "Same to you as well Mr. Blythe." Samantha shook his hand before sitting back down to her desk.

"I was very excited to hear you would let me interview with you." Albert said as he shifted nervously in the chair that seemed almost too big for him.

"I was very eager to meet the editor continuing on the Gazette's legacy. It's something very dear to my heart." Samantha expressed genuinely. The Gazette had been her whole world at one time. "Do you all still uphold the code?"

Albert sat up a little straighter. "Yes, we still stand for unbiased truth with no sensationalism."

Samantha wanted to laugh, but decided it wouldn't seem very mature of her. She had written the standard herself. At the beginning of Gazette meetings everyone would stand and vow the code together. "Excellent. Is this for the first issue of the year?"

Albert nodded. "Yes, the Headmistress suggested it."

"McGonagall was always one of my favorites." Samantha nodded, remembering the strict but generous nature of her old professor.

"She's alright I guess. As headmistresses go I mean." Albert's eyes rolled slightly. Samantha realized that not everyone appreciated McGonagall's strictness, especially not a young boy. He stopped himself, grimacing. "I'm sorry, I'm still working on the unbiased rule." Albert apologized tilting his head.

"As long as you remain unbiased in your writing, you are allowed personal opinion. We are human after all." Samantha shrugged and smiled. "It's a balance."

"Who's your favorite teacher then?" Samantha asked with a chuckle.

"Professor Longbottom." Albert said quickly.

Samantha smiled, remembering her years growing up with Neville. He'd come a long way from being the unremarkable boy she remembered."Did you know he was also on the Gazette?"

"Professor Longbottom?" Albert's genuine surprise played through his eyes.

"Ask him about it sometime." Samantha suggested remembering how he ended up on the Gazette and thinking it would be a much better story coming from him. "Might even be a good article."

"Thank you mam." He smiled.

"What house are you in Albert?" Samantha asked, genuinely curious.

"Ravenclaw." He shifted his shoulders proudly.

"Very respectable house." She said, "I was in Gryffindor. What year are you going into tomorrow?"

"Fourth year mam." He said, confirming Samantha's suspicion.

"You are the same year I was when I became the Editor-in-Chief." Samantha reminisced.

"The same year as the Triwizard Tournament correct?" Albert asked with a twinkle in his eye. Samantha was impressed by his enthusiasm.

She nodded, "I really matured as a writer during that time. Now I do believe I've asked you enough questions Mr. Blythe. I apologize, I fear the journalist in me has taken over, I'm not used to being the one interviewed."

Albert blurted out before reaching into his robes and pulling out a small notepad and quill, "I have plenty to ask you."

"I assumed you did." Samantha almost laughed again, letting herself smile a touch more.

He started off with a simple enough question, "How do you spell your name, just so I have it right?"

She listed off her name and it's proper spelling.

"Samantha is a nice name. Did you know that in the muggle world, they have a show about a witch named Samantha?" He asked, reminding her how children could often speak their minds more frequently than adults.

"I did know that." Samantha smiled. "I'm named for her."

"Truly?" He asked with raised eyebrows.

"Yes, my father is a muggle and he introduced television to my mother. She's not entirely a fan, but she enjoys the occasional diversion. That show in particular was a favorite." Samantha smiled a little. Her mother would probably find it interesting that particular antidote had been brought up.

"I'm muggle born myself, and it isn't everyday I can talk about muggle things." Albert chuckled heartily.

"I understand." Samantha nodded, she knew how the muggleborns had been treated in the past. Although they weren't treated to the same brutal prejudices, it was still a too common part of society.

"It's not every day the Minister of Magic personally suggests a candidate." Albert changed subjects and began scribbling notes.

"I was flattered when he did." She said, remembering how Kingsley had insisted she take the job.

"You were also the youngest witch or wizard to ever be chosen as Editor-In-Chief," Albert started nervously.

Samantha knew that she still felt young, still inexperienced, but she put on a brave face. "Yes, I was twenty-one. The youngest editor by a long shot."

"How long did you work here before that?" Albert continued as he scribbled with his little quill fluttering.

"A few years, I had a higher position even when I started. Real life experiences often lend themselves to elevation." Samantha began feeling her arm twitch again. She held it back, no she couldn't show this poor boy the cracks in her exterior. She forever felt guilty from the circumstances leading to her position.

"You were given the job after the war, when the Prophet was being revitalized right?" Albert asked, little hesitation or boundaries in his inflection.

Samantha paused, she hated thinking about the war. "Kingsley, Minister Shacklebolt wanted the Prophet to get away from that nasty reputation Cuffe established. That we favored the Ministry. Of course, there is the whole issue with the Death Eaters running things. Nasty business." Samantha shuttered slightly. "As a child, my biggest dream was to work here and as an adult it became my duty to reform it."

"How have your experiences qualified you to be that person?" He asked, and Samantha realized he could be an exceptional journalist someday. It was a profoundly leading question that normally only mature interviewers would have lead up to.

The question had also stung like a knife straight into her beating heart. How could she explain? The years of writing, observing, reporting, the horrible things she had endured, how could that be put into a few sentences? Samantha was never one to embellish, so she decided to stick with the truth.