Lily paced the Gryffindor common room, anxiously wondering if anyone would adhere to their stipulated meeting time at half-past midnight. Lily had been seated there since the clock struck twelve, mostly pacing, not quite knowing what she had even called the meeting for.

She had been thinking quite a lot about the Order of the Phoenix since her conversation with Marlene that snowy day in Cokeworth. It was strange that a cause could strike up so much determination in Lily. Alright, she was definitely a slightly above-average student when school was concerned, but she had never been as interested in learning spells- spells that wouldn’t even be really useful for class work or for their N.E.W.Ts, as she was now.

Lily attributed this sudden interest to the fact that she was intimately involved in the cause that she wanted to fight for; after all, she was muggle-born. If anything, people like her would be the first casualties of war. That was why she had taken Marlene up on her suggestion that perhaps they should start meeting, a small group of students, to gather information on what exactly they were up against.

She watched the glowing embers in the fireplace as she eventually sank into a large chair. It was then that she heard footsteps approaching her from behind.