By the fireplace in the Gryffindor Common Room, Fred, George, and Lee Jordan had gathered together to rest, warm themselves, and pass the time. They chatted idly about trivial nonsense.
Leaning against an armchair, George flipped through recent issues of the Daily Prophet. After finding and carefully reading Rita Skeeter's articles, he said to Fred and Lee Jordan, who were playing cards beside him, "I suddenly kind of like Rita Skeeter lately."
"Don't tell me you've actually fallen for her." Fred grinned teasingly. "She's practically old enough to be your mother."
"I meant her articles."
George continued leafing through the newspaper, reading the latest front-page news. He felt that there seemed to be quite a lot of information in it. Although Sirius had already dropped plenty of Heavy News some time ago, the latest issue of the Defence Guide had yet to come out. For now, they could only see what other major news the Daily Prophet would report—and look for news of Ludo Bagman's misfortunes.
Ludo Bagman had nearly taken every Galleon from their pockets. If not for Albert, their dream would have ended before it had even begun.
Fred and George had never forgotten that grudge.
"That woman's articles are still as sharp as ever. Anyone she sets her sights on is bound to have a terrible time."
Lee Jordan had also read Rita Skeeter's articles in the Daily Prophet over the past few days. He had to admit there was a reason her reports were popular, even though most of them were utter nonsense.
Still, everyone loved gossip.
"Sirius is really bold. What he did last time is definitely going to cause him big trouble." George continued turning pages, searching for more news about Bagman.
After Rita Skeeter exposed Ludo Bagman's scandal with astonishing efficiency, the former