Echo | Harry Potter - George Weasley

Chapter 47: The Gryffindor Glory Team

Squished between Harry and the other champions, Shaye tried her best to plaster a happy smile across her face. She and Harry were standing side by side in between Cedric and Krum, and in front of them, Fleur was posed on a chair. The cameraman counted down from three and as he snapped the picture, the blinding flash from the camera burned the students' eyes and the thick plume of smoke made them cough.

Out of the smoke stepped a woman with snow-white skin, short and curly blonde hair, thin glasses perched upon the brim of her nose, and bright red lipstick. Her coat was olive green with black fur details and Shaye could already tell she was going to be a handful to deal with just based on her appearance.

"What a charismatic quintet." The woman eyed the five well-dressed students in front of her. "Hello. I'm Rita Skeeter," she introduced herself and shook everyone's hand. "I write for the Daily Prophet. But, of course, you know that, don't you? It's you we don't know. You're the juicy news. What quirks lurk beneath those rosy cheeks? What mysteries do the muscles mask? Does courage lie beneath those curls? In short, what makes a champion tick? Me, myself, and I want to know. Not to mention my rabid readers. So, who's feeling up to sharing?"

Everyone's expression twisted into a mixture of discomfort and nerves. When all five Triwizard champions had been told they would be subjected to some press coverage over the course of the tournament, they had thought that sounded reasonable. What didn't sound reasonable, however, was a photo shoot that took up the majority of their morning followed by some prying questions from a nosy reporter.

When no one volunteered, Rita picked for herself. "Shall we start with the youngest ones?" She grabbed Shaye and Harry by the back of their robes. "Lovely."

Without having any say in the matter, Shaye and Harry were dragged into a nearby broom cupboard that was barely large enough to fit the three of them inside. "This is cozy." Rita beamed.

Harry shook his head. "It's a broom cupboard."

"You should feel right at home, then," Rita said as she gestured for Shaye and Harry to have a seat on the window ledge. "Don't mind if I use a Quick-Quotes Quill, do you?"

Shaye had no idea what that was. "No?" she answered.

With that, Rita sat down on a bucket in front of the two Gryffindor students. Beside her, a quill and pad of paper were floating in mid-air. "So, tell me, you two. Here you sit, mere students of twelve." The quill scribbled fanatically as she spoke.

"We're fourteen," Harry told her.

Rita brushed Harry's correction off before continuing. "About to compete against three students, not only vastly more emotionally mature than yourselves, but who have mastered spells that you wouldn't attempt in your dizziest daydreams. Concerned?"

"I don't know," Harry responded. "I haven't really thought about it."

"I suppose it helps that we get to compete together," Shaye said. "Although everyone else seems to think it's unfair."

"Ah, yes, a Triwizard Tournament first. The Gryffindor Glory Team." Rita seemed proud of her on-the-spot title. "But, of course, you are no ordinary students of twelve."

"Fourteen," Harry corrected again.

"Your story's legend." Rita looked to Harry and then Shaye. "And the rumour mill never stops turning in regard to your sister, does it? Do you think it was the trauma of your past that made you so keen to enter such a dangerous tournament?"

Shaye shook her head. "We didn't enter."

"Of course you didn't. Everyone loves a couple of rebels." Rita winked before turning to her quill. "Scratch that last. So, tell me, do you think the strain of competing together will strengthen or weaken your relationship outside of the tournament? Trouble in paradise? Everyone loves a torrid romance gone awry."