Her blonde hair shone in an unsettling manner in the darkness. Radish earrings swinging rather wildly, in contrast to her serene appearance, the young witch skipped past the oddly placed rubbish bins and let herself in through the door of the Shrieking Shack.
The place had always been a meeting place for all sorts of witches and wizards: school students planning mischief; or those seeking to conceal something; even some particularly avid students seeking a few hours of peace and quiet. And, of course, there were always those adventurous souls who believed it was haunted and wanted to see for themselves or to prove their bravery in the face of a bet.
At one point in time, not many years ago, those gathered inside had been all of these things. Now, however�it was immediately obvious why they were here, why they needed this.
As soon as she had entered the room at least two wands had been whipped out � and then hastily placed back in their owners� pockets with sheepish grins or rueful shakes of the head. The girl looked around and recognized many faces. Neville Longbottom was seated in a shadowy corner, his foot tapping a mercilessly impatient beat. An alert, well-trained soldier, so unlike himself.
Hermione was wringing her hands like a drowning person who is trying to calculate their chances of survival. Beside her Ron was moody and obsessively protective; his eyes scanning the room rapidly, back and forth. The absence of Harry told his own story rather adequately.
In fact, the only person who had not seemed to change, other than Luna herself, was Dean Thomas. It would be impossible to recognize any oddness in his behavior unless you knew him and knew that he had not drawn, painted, or sketched a single thing since the end of the War.
Luna�s arrival completed the number. Well, at least those who would show up were here already. Many, like Harry had not and would not come. Luna pulled out the newspaper clipping and placed it on a table in the center of the room and they all gathered around. This was why they were all here. This was the wake up call.
Distinguished Auror Found Killed by Own Wand
The man who rid the Wizarding World of some of Voldemort�s most brutal Death Eaters was found dead yesterday. The weapon used to cast the Killing Curse had been his own, and no signs of a break in were found. Family members are shocked and appalled by the suggestion that�
�So,� Hermione said, �We all know we�re here because we need to find a solution to bring our own lives back to normal after��
�And I suppose your research has led you to a perfect one, Granger? Do tell.� The speaker�s friend elbowed him in the ribs. There were a few brief seconds of awkwardness as everyone in the room turned their attention to the two Slytherins before turning back to Hermione.
Hermione reddened. �Actually, the Muggles have done a lot of research into this area, but I didn�t have any suggestions.�
Ron groaned.
�Look,� Seamus spoke up, �I�m going to make it clear from the beginning that if this is some stupid �help session� where we all admit our feelings and pretend like we�re going to help each other through a tough time then I�m leaving.�
�Actually,� Luna said before his comment could steer the meeting off track, �I had something in mind that involved the exact opposite. We all know why we�re here. We�ve all been made aware of the things we aren�t good at, but we also know what we are good at.�
There was a general murmur of consent as she went on. �Because of the War we were forced to become good at certain�skills that are no longer required. We�re being expected to just settle back and enjoy life now.�
�Since when have we done what�s expected of us?� Hermione chimed in, catching on.
Luna smiled and continued. �So we go out and find the place where we fit, we create a place for ourselves.�
�Maybe we�ll settle down when we�re old and grey, maybe earlier,� Ron said with a huge boyish grin, �But we do it in our own time on our own terms.�
Dean was frowning. He waved a hand for attention. �Hang on,� he said, �Are you suggesting we become like mercenaries?� His voice was dangerous.
�No,� Luna said, �I�m saying we go out into the world, find people who genuinely need our help and then do what we did here.�
�I hate to break it to you, Lovegood,� the thinner Slytherin that had silenced his friend before spoke up, �But you sound almost as arrogant as certain Dark Wizards. Who told you anybody wants your help?�
�Which is why our first mission will be to observe and report our findings,� Hermione said, �We should all agree on that before we leave here.�
The Slytherin nodded his head in a gesture reminiscent of an aristocrat.
�And the Quibbler is ready to publish our doings and findings as soon as we bring them back,� Luna said, �Even if we learn that there is no work for us to do the reports will be an achievement in and of themselves.�
