to most that knew Josh, they would be surprsied by how he was on the day before Remembering Day. He was down by the lake, not joking around with his friends or studying. why, you might ask? well, the next day would be Remembering Day, and he was already thinking of what he had lost. he had lost his favourite Aunt, Scireina Harcroft Riven. which, ironically, was the point at which he learned no magic could bring back the dead. usually it was a pet dying that brought on that particular lesson, for him it was his aunt.

As time progressed, it was slowly getting closer to Remembering Day. Make that, Remembering Day was exactly one day away. On that day, the magical community would remember those that fell during the war. It was precisely that, that Meg could not conceive properly. Yes, she was a muggle-born, and was not aware of anyone in her family that was effected by the war that happened in the magical community. It was times like this, that she questioned if she even belonged in the magical community.

Meg sighed quietly to herself as she walked down to the lake. She was not exactly too fond of the celebrations and mourning that would commence in a day. In addition, she was suffering from a mild depression caused by her medications before coming to Hogwarts. Thus, she was not in her usual happy mood at the present time. Her depression never did last that long, and hopefully it did not do so now. As she neared the lake, she noticed that Josh Harcroft was there at the lake as well. "Hi Josh," she greeted him when she arrived in earshot of him.

Josh was so wrapped up in his thoughts, he didn't at first notice Megan Ruiz's approach. She was  a muggle-born friend of his, who never did like Remembering Day, since she never saw how it affected her. " Hello Meg.  thinking of remembering day, like I was?" Josh asked, the slight shake to his voice betraying his emotions about the day.

Meg pushed a piece of her brunette hair out of her eyes, as she looked down at the lake. This Remembering Day will definitely prove to her how much she did not truly belong to the magical community. However, she did have something else on her mind for the current Remembering Day ceremonies. This year, she chose to be involved in a part of the Remembering Day activities, as a part of the Student Art Booth. No one else had seen her artwork before, since she was able to conceal it from others. But, she did choose to be involved with that, and thus, she would help with the mural painting that was scheduled to commence tomorrow. Even though she could not connect to these celebrations, she would at least have a part in the process of celebrating it for once in the now four years that she was at Hogwarts.

Yet, that did not seem to fix Meg's current slight depression. Yes, she was going to be committed to something to do with Hogwarts for once, but that did not change her overall feelings for the day. She looked over at Josh when he responded to her. She simply nodded to his question. Yes, she was thinking about Remembering Day. But, she could guarantee that her thoughts were far from what his were. After all, at least he was a part of the magical community from birth, unlike her. "Yes, I was. The circumstances this year are different, but the effect is still the same. Hopefully your thoughts aren't as negative as mine are?" she questioned.

" Actually, my thoughts are probably about as bad. I was thinking about my aunt, who died during the battle. same as on past Remembering Days. though, it does bring my thoughts around to my eldest cousin, Scirey, since she was kidnapped a couple of years back. I'm just glad we found her alive......" Josh said, he knew what Meg meant by the same effect. Since she wasn't around for remembering day, she felt she wasn't truly part of the magical community.

" Meg, you are part of the Magical Community regardless of if you were around for Remembering Day or not. Hell, I was 5 then, do you think I have clear memories of what happened? About all I can remember is being told by dad that Aunt Scireina was dead." Josh added, but he doubted that Meg would take much notice of what he said. He tried to convince her every year, but it hadn't worked yet.

Meg looked over at Josh, tilting her head slightly to the side as she looked at him. Yes, she knew that he had someone to remember on Remembering Day, which was what she failed to have. "I'm sorry about what happened. Thankfully no one else died. It could've been worse. Scirey was found alive, which is what you should concentrate more on. Instead of remembering the terrible fates you family were subjected to, why not concentrate on the good fortunes your family had? True, your aunt died, but at least your family stayed in tact, and that you are currently here. Scirey may have been kidnapped, but she is still alive and now with you and your family," she responded, trying to make Josh feel better. Certainly, that would not help her, but it would at least make one of them feel better. Thus, that would instantly make the situation a little less depressed.

Meg shook her head lightly at what Josh said. "I may be apart of the Magical Community now, but that does not necessarily mean that I think I belong here. I have done absolutely nothing that proves that I belong here," she responded, clearly having a lack of self-confidence at the moment. "But, isn't one of the points of Remembering Day to remember what happened before, and the mourn the losses of the time period? It is exactly that, that I fail to have. Even though you don't have a clear memory of it, you know it happened. I have nothing that connects me to the war," she responded with a slight nod. Yes, that was truly what she thought.

Josh gave a low chuckle. "Megan, that's what I do most of the year. It's just Remembering Day always brings back the memories," Josh said, replying to what Megan said about concentrating on the good fortune his family had.

"Megan, you will always belong in the magical community. The only requirement to belong in the Magical Community is to obey our laws. Yes, Remembering Day is partially to mourn those lost, but as the years go on, it becomes less and less about mourning the lost. It is about remembering why they fought, the unspeakable evil that was Lord Voldemort. Megan, the reason you have a place in the Magical Community is because of what happened that day in 1998. Voldemort would have barred you going to Hogwarts, even killed you. Why? Because he was a purist, he believed magic should be kept to the pure-bloods. Kind if ironic, given he was half-blood himself," Josh said, still trying to convince her.

Meg looked over at Josh as he responded to her. "Oh, so you mourn for these few days then? While you do have the right to mourn, why develop specific days to mourn?" she asked simply to him. She knew that it was a losing battle for her to continue to ask him about his way of mourning. However, she continued to press on about it. After all, she was still his friend, and only looked to help him.

Meg nodded to what Josh said. "Yes, I have thought extensively on that. I do consider it blessed that I am able to be here right now. If Voldemort prevailed, I probably would've been subjected to slavery, rather than killed. From what I read, Voldemort seemed to enjoy torturing muggles. I cannot have a specific appreciation for that, since I know no one that died to help secure me the right to be here. My parents were only muggles when that happened, and thus would have no idea about it. I've lived separate from the magical community until four years ago. Therefore, I have really nothing that proves that I have a right to be here," she responded with a small shrug. Yes, she may be stubborn, since she tended to think so lowly of herself. However, that was what she thought to be true.

"It's the fact that Remembering day reminds me of Aunt Scireina's death that causes me to mourn for a few days around Remembering Day, not that the day is specifically for mourning," Josh said, his voice holding a fair amount of tension. He hated it when people said things like that.

"Meg, you're forgetting Muggle deaths. Those would be very hard to find out, since they are covered up so well. When the bridge snapped, that was Lord Voldemort. The hurricane in the west country. The giants. Chances are that you do know someone who died, and don't realise it," Josh said in reply, and then turned to look out over the lake. “It depends on where you live, the chances really. Ottery St Catchpole, Godric's Hollow, there are others too. Those are all towns with hidden wizarding populations, which give a high chance of knowing someone who died," Josh added.

Meg thought for a few seconds before fully responding to Josh. She believed that after everything that was already said, it was basically as if they just went in a full circle. Yes, it appeared to her as if they were right back when they first saw each other a few minutes ago. She slightly tilted her head to one side. "If you don't mind me asking, when during the war did you Aunt die?" she asked him, straying from the point of the conversation a bit. She was just a bit curious, that if he knew when his Aunt died. After all, that was what the conversation was about, correct?

Meg shrugged to what Josh said. When she researched about the whole subject, she did read about muggle deaths. However, she had no knowledge of anyone dying in her family during the time period of the magical war. "I have no knowledge of anyone in my family dying during the time of the war. Um, Josh, I don't live in those areas. I live in Brighton, England. And, I'm not aware of any wizards in Brighton," she responded to him with a firm nod.

" She died during the Battle of Hogwarts. fought to the last, but was finally overwhelmed and killed. This the day after we had been attacked by Snatchers and the Snatchers comprehensively defeated." Josh replied, his voice having lost most of the tension " though according to Dad, it looked like the Death eaters paid a high price to take my Aunt out." Josh added.

Josh laughed out loud when Megan said no wizarding families lived in Brighton. Getting his laughing under control, he said "Megan, Brighton does have wizarding families. All the major cities do, though London has the most. I live only about 45 minutes away from Brighton."

Meg looked over at Josh, and nodded. "I see. She must've fought bravely against the Death Eaters. If I understood correctly, the Death Eaters were not necessarily the smartest people out there. They must not have thought that one through then," she responded to him.

Meg looked confused to Josh's laughter. She was unaware of any wizards living in proximity to her. When she first got her letter, it took a while before her and her family understood everything thanks to some Hogwarts Officials. Besides, she had yet to meet any wizards or witches around Brighton. "Again, I'm not aware of any, nor have I met any as of yet. If there are any there, I certainly do not know them," she responded to him with a nod.

" She did fight bravely. As for the Death Eaters, I would call them idiots, but that would be an insult to idiots. When they attacked Harcroft Manor, half of them Apparated over the River Thames." Josh said, trying to keep himself from laughing out loud, and not entirely succeeding. " That was 10 years ago today, you know." Josh added.

" you're forgetting the Statute of Secrecy. Most wizards these days dress quite well as muggles. We don't wear robes outside Hogwarts unless we know we're only going to magical destinations by magical transport. So yeah, you probably have met them, just not known they were wizards." Josh said, it seemed they had reached an impasse. Still, they were pretty muhc off the topic of if Meg fitted in the Magical Community.

"Yes, some of the things they did seem stupid, especially the Snatchers. Weren't they just gangs of thugs yearning to be Death Eaters?" Meg asked Josh. When Josh mentioned Apparation over the Thames River, she looked a bit confused. "Um, what does the Thames River have to deal with where you live?" she questioned.

Meg looked over at Josh with a small smile on her face. "I do know about that. I dress the same way wherever I am personally, but I am aware of the Secrecy Statue. Well, if any of them are, I definitely don't know," she responded with a nod. Their discussion was turning off topic.

"Not all of them. Some Snatchers were low-level DEs that didn't rate the Dark Mark. The bunch that attacked Harcroft Manor were definitely low-level DEs, even had DE robes on." Josh said, then thought about how to answer Meg's question about the Thames river.  " The River Thames runs past the grounds of Harcroft Manor at one point, and if you try to Apparate onto the grounds during wartime, unless you know one specific apparition point, you get dumped in the Thames. During peacetime, you can Apparate anywhere on the grounds. But during wartime, only close friends and family can Apparate to Harcroft Manor. I would tell you where the point is, but it changes every war. It's been in a small forest on the grounds, our broomshed, even inside the manor a couple times." Josh said, smiling rather evilly when he described the wartime anti-apparition wards.