Incendio

Prologue: The Editor-In-Chief of The Daily Prophet

-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 six years later, but, 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 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 suggested, "It's a balance."