Incendio

Chapter 41: The Order Of The Phoenix

Everyone was waiting for Harry to explain why he had returned. He was arguing that he couldn't tell us what he was doing there. Everyone had assumed it was to fight.

A small sort of Gazette meeting had formed around Samantha as the discussions continued. Ginny was practically sitting on her lap and Luna had perched herself on the arm of their chair.

"What's working for Potterwatch been like?" Ernie asked leaning on the back of the chair, "I bet bloody exciting."

"Traumatizing mostly." Samantha shrugged trying to get the more horrifying things out of her mind.

"I'd expect, sounded bloody horrible." Colin said with pride sitting at her and Ginny's feet. He looked at her the way Fred and George looked at Ginny, like a sister. She missed her real brother desperately, and prayed that she would not see him that evening.

"It would have been easier if I'd had my whole team with me." Samantha chuckled back looking at everyone. She felt reminiscent of when they would have their meetings and share their work. Her leg began to feel numb trying to share the chair with Ginny.

"That's a lovely thought." Luna said softly.

"Okay!" Harry's voice came booming through the room and everyone went silent. He explained that they were looking for something in the castle and it had something to do with Ravenclaw. Ginny volunteered that Luna could take Harry to the Ravenclaw common room and Luna jumped up quickly.

"Thank God for Luna." Ginny whispered to Samantha looking at Cho who had also volunteered to take Harry.

Samantha chuckled a little. 

"So what do we do while we wait?" Colin asked.

Samantha shrugged but looked over to the portrait hole where more people were climbing out. Remus and Kingsley both had climbed out now. They waved at Samantha and she waved back.

"Hey Ginny, my leg is asleep, mind if I stand up?" Samantha asked, her leg was tingling now.Ginny and her both stood for a moment out of the chair.

Some of the graduated Gryffindor Quidditch team emerged from the hole and Samantha recognized them. Fred, Lee and George were talking to all of them.

"Is that Wood?" Ginny asked looking over at the team.

Samantha nodded, "Yeah."

"I think I should go say hello to my old team mates." Ginny said walking over to them. Samantha considered going with them, but she didn't know everyone on the team very well.

"Oh Bloody Hell, Dennis shouldn't be here!" Colin exclaimed as his brother emerged from the Portrait Hole. "I'll be right back, I've got to send him home."

He and Ernie went to talk sense into the little fourteen year old.

Honestly, Samantha was just overwhelmed by everyone around her. She knew old faces, she knew new faces, it was insanity to be crammed into a small room with everyone. Samantha felt oddly alone for a moment in the room full of people. She wasn't quite a student anymore and she wasn't an Order Member either. She'd seen so many people in the last year, but she had also felt isolated. The isolation made her mind begin to race. They were probably going to fight in a real battle. A battle where every person in the room could die. She could die.

The thought resinated and floated in her mind for a moment. She'd faced the idea, but it had never been so prevalent before. Had she worked her whole life to die today? She couldn't have. She tried to shake the thought from her mind.

She saw Ginny's mum emerge from the hole and all of the Weasley's followed. She kept looking and waiting, hoping to maybe see her mother. Hoping that if it was the last hours of her life, she'd see her mother at least.