Shadows of Slytherin Book 1

Dani

In a secluded room somewhere in the castle, Harry and I are sitting next to each other when suddenly, a tall woman appears in a puff of smoke. We immediately stand. She has short blonde hair that falls just above her shoulders, pointed glasses, and wears red lipstick that contrasts with her pale skin.

"Look at what we have here, five beautiful Triwizard champions!" She walks over to us and shakes each of our hands.

"My name is Rita Skeeter, and I write for the Daily Prophet. But I'm sure you already knew that, didn't you?"

As I glance over at the others, I can see that they're just as stunned as I am. 

Rita looks around with a wide smile and says, "It's you we don't know, you're the news. What secrets hide behind those rosy cheeks?" She takes a hold of Fleur's cheeks, pinching them slightly, causing her to flinch. 

"What mysteries lie beneath those muscles?" She winks at Victor as she grabs onto his bulging arm. He stands there, looking uncomfortable. 

"Is there bravery under those curls?" She takes my hair in her hands, twirling a piece around her fingers. I give her a death glare.

"In short," she continues, "what makes a champion tick? I, myself, and my readers want to know. So, who's feeling up to sharing?" She looks around the room and all of us stand silent. Her eyes fall onto me, "Shall we start with the youngest? Lovely." She takes hold of my arm, and I shoot a pleading look back at the group. Cedric and Harry snicker, and I roll my eyes as Rita drags me into a broom closet.

Rita made herself comfortable on a small chair and looked around with satisfaction. "Cozy, isn't it?" she remarked with a twinkle in her eye.

I couldn't help but snort at her comment. "It's a broom closet, Rita."

Rita merely waved my comment away. "Now, now, there is no time to be grumpy. We're here to talk about you, Danielle," she said, taking a deep breath and smiling.

I shifted uncomfortably on my feet, feeling trapped in the small space with her. I knew what she was after – a juicy scoop to print in the Daily Prophet. But I had nothing to share that was of interest. 

Rita leaned forward, her eyes shining with anticipation. "Tell me, Danielle. What do you think sets you apart from the other champions?"

I looked at her annoyingly "I don't know, Rita. Maybe it's the fact that I'm the only Slytherin? Or better yet, my name was put in the Goblet without my knowledge?"

Rita nodded thoughtfully, tapping her chin with her finger. "Interesting, interesting. But there must be more to it than that. What about your family? Any secrets hidden there?"

I shook my head firmly. "No, Rita. My family is just an ordinary family. There's nothing remarkable about them."

Rita's eyes narrowed as if she didn't believe me. "Come now, Danielle. Everyone has secrets. Are you sure there's nothing you want to share with me?"

I glared at her, feeling my temper rising. "I'm sure, Rita. And even if there were, I wouldn't tell you. I don't trust you or your tabloid newspaper."

Rita shrugged nonchalantly, but I could see a flash of annoyance in her eyes. "Suit yourself, Danielle. But you should know that the public is hungry for any information about the Triwizard champions. And I'm sure they'd be very interested in hearing from you."

I become irritated at her insinuation but held my tongue. I knew better than to let her get to me. Instead, I waited patiently for her to finish her questions, eager to escape the claustrophobic broom closet and be anywhere else.

Rita seemed to sense my unease and leaned back in her chair, "Very well, Danielle. I won't push you any further. But mark my words, there's a reason why they chose you as one of the champions. There's something special about you, and I intend to find out what it is."