Incendio

Epilogue: The Annual Hogwarts Gazette Alumni Party

August 31st, 2004.

Every year on August 31st, all Hogwarts Gazette Alumni would meet for drinks in honor of the first meeting which had normally been held on the train. Any alumni of the Hogwarts Gazette were welcome, new graduates, old graduates, and their families of course. No matter how brief, if they had been on the Gazette, they were welcome. They would meet in Diagon Alley, at The Leakey Cauldron. Samantha paid for it every year. Free food and drinks for everyone invited. She rarely found excuses to use her absorbent salary, so she went a bit overboard every year. Samantha practically ran up the alley to the pub, she was running slightly late. Rain had begun to drizzle and she could hear thunder rolling in.

Her day at the office had really run over. She had just enough time to make sure the Prophet was putting the papers to bed on time and change clothing. She hated seeing her friends while dressed in her stuffy Editor-In-Chief clothing. She wanted to look like her normal self, throwing on a black sundress and a long gray sweater. She would have some personal deadlines and drafts to read over later, but it could wait. This was the one night of the year that she allowed herself a bit of true respite.

It was raining down the dark alleyway as she passed her mother's old store. Her mother was closing for the night and waved at her as she ran past. Her sweater flew behind her in the wind and rain.

She fixed her hair which had fallen out of it's bun on her rainy run over. The curls had fallen around her face and she was sure she looked a right mess. She opened the door and was happy to have a chance to see her old friends.

She didn't have time to see who was there yet because she was immediately greeted by a little boy running right into her arms.

"There's my beautiful Godson!" Samantha exclaimed as she swung six year old Colin Horner around. "You have become so incredibly big!"

"I missed you Aunt Beautiful." Colin giggled, his little curls falling around his face and mixing with the curls around her face.

"I missed you too." Samantha nudged her nose against his.

Genevieve followed close behind, she was pregnant again, but now, it was on her time. "He's not being a total menace is he?"

"No." Samantha giggled before tapping Colin on the nose.

"Good, because this one is." Genevieve tapped on her stomach.

Samantha laughed, "Takes after their father then I suppose?"

"Oh of course they do." Genevieve rolled her eyes. "He sends his best, by the way. His intern got sick and couldn't cover the show tonight."

"It's alright, I see enough of that tosser." Samantha chuckled before spinning little Colin around and putting him down. Lee had his own show on the WWN and was also the appointed contact between the Prophet and the station. They met for lunch once a week to discuss work. "He told me you two came up with names for the next little one, but he won't tell me what they are."

Genevieve rolled her eyes again, "That's just like him. You'd think after five years of marriage I'd be used to his ways."

Samantha shrugged, "I tried to warn you."

Genevieve laughed, "I'd better still keep it a secret, wouldn't want to set him into one of his moods."

"Tried to warn you about those too." Samantha laughed. She pulled her hands behind her back, they were really shaking now after seeing little Colin. Genevieve didn't have any names picked out originally, but when she heard of Colin's passing, she couldn't help but choose that name in his honor. She said it was a way to stick it to her blood family, naming their desired pureblooded grandchild after a muggle-born who had died fighting Voldemort.