Like a python who spirals its sleek body around its prey and strangles it to death, Rita Skeeter's elaborate blonde mob of curls was twined and disheveled around her own neck. If you were to pull her hair, the forty-something witch would no doubtfully howl from a strangling herself. Such fantasies were unfortunately out of ones reach.
Sadie Fawcett shook her head out from her troubling thoughts and focused on the rather grisly woman in front of her. It had been a little over twenty minutes now she had been told to sit on one of her families neighbours Xenophilius Lovegood 's cluttered couch. Twenty minutes she had been waiting for a cup of tea to arrive and for Reeta Skeeter to stop looking at her like a prized possession.
"The dark hair is manageable, with a wave of my wand I can have you an attractive blonde like me in no time" Rita's eager smile only grew more as she lifted a strand of Sadies hair with her wand, "but this face… so young, sixteen did you say? well I'm afraid there's nothing I can help you with there. Your nose is slightly enlarged and those eyes… theres no life in them, grey is such a boring colour."
"I'm here to write, not to be scrutinized by a repulsive hag like yourself," Sadie spat, swatting away the wand that was about to poke her eye out.
The laugh of Rita Skeeter resembled a woman from muggle film Sadie had watched, Cruella de Vil was the antagonist and her laugh was as cruel as her name. If Sadie had to portray the ex-daily prophet writer in a book, she'd damn well make sure she was the most despised antagonist ever to be written to date.
"Oh the fire of a young soul, hold on to that Sally and you'll end up just like me."
"It's Sadie," she corrected the hag.
"You said your idea of an article was to expose those death eaters who have not already been thrown in Azkaban," her laugh bounced off the walls of the small room, "my dear that is what Auras are for and they even get paid for it."
Sadie glared in disdain at Rita, one minute the woman was praising her for her career choices and the next she was belittling her at every chance she could get.
"My idea is not to just expose them, I want to write about every horrifying tragedy they have caused to the families of the wizarding world," Sadie spat.
She was determined to open up the eyes of all wizards and witches to the terrible things that had happened since the return of he-who-must-not-be-named. The daily prophet though telling some truths of what was really happening, it only tasted the cherry on top of a cake and not the real ingredients inside. She planned on digging up every bit of information she could, no matter what it took. It was here the so called help of Rita Skeeter came in. Sadie had heard the talents the other witch possessed to gain a grimy but truthful story, even if she did twist the truth to her liking to sound more appealable.
Rita moved to sit next to her on the two seated sofa, "now dear you reached out for my help and not the other way around. If we were to write something a little more juicy than what your initial idea enlisted, then I believe it'll definitely be more than a just another one of the Quibblers simpleminded articles," there was now a certain glee to Rita's eye that Sadie wasn't all sure about.
"What do you have in mind?" she asked.
"Well lets just keep it simple and say in the likes of my talent I'm able to go places, see and hear things I mustn't. For this I have reason to believe the young son of Lucius Malfoy, Draco, may now be a death eater an-"
"Draco Malfoy.. a death eater?" Sadie's voice broke into laughter, "Merlins beard, I know journalists twist the truth, but this is crazy. Draco is a coward at best, but a death eater? no, it's impossible," she shook her head and still Rita remained even more serious. "You're actually serious, aren't you?"
"Extremely," It was the first time today that Rita had given a one worded reply, even more it was the first time Sadie had experienced a sliver of excitement from anything she had said.
"Then we need proof, a solid story… witnesses to expose him," Sadie exclaimed, her incitement getting the better of her.
With a sly smile pulling at the edges of her lips, Rita clasped her hands together in refinement. "That is where you come in with your rosy cheeks and.. that nose," she began to explain, "This is your sixth year coming up, yes? As it is Draco's. You will befriend him-"
"you mean alienate him?"
"-And grow close to him," Rita grinned, as if she hadn't heard the other witches interruption, "once trust has been established then the truths behind how and why he become a death eater will become revealed. Together we shall expose the young wizard and write the years juiciest article. I can even assure you the daily prophet will be buying it off us."
In Sadies mind the whole plan resembled much of a conspiracy theory. It was wrong in more ways than one and something she knew could change her in ways she did not want. Since a young age she had always been quite unruly and not the obedient type. She enjoyed attempting to fly her fathers comet 260 broom, which as slow and cheap as it was still managed to have Sadie falling off every try she took. Even growing up with best friend and neighbour Cedric Diggory, the two were the cause of alot mischief about the small village of Ottery St Catchpole. It reminded her of the time the two had tried to place her name in the goblet of fire during her fourth year. Cedric being seventeen was able to enter and at a mere age of fourteen she could not, yet there was no harm in trying. Upon the dare set by Cedric, she entered the age circle attempting to place her name in the goblet by using an age potion. The plan only backfired and had her growing a beard as long as Dumbledores himself. It was a memory like no other and one she forever planned to cherish.
The memory of Cedric was hot as burning coal in her heart and still burned bright two years since his death. She knew death eaters were to blame. They were to blame for a lot of the scandals that surrounded her families life as well. The Fawcett's had once been a respected pure blood family, even looked upto, yet now they lived life in fear, destroyed by the incidents that had took place over the past decades. That was why her determination to write this article hit so close to home. Conspiracy theory or not, she would go through with it.
"How exactly do I befriend Draco Malfoy anyway?" she questioned, "he isn't exactly the friendliest of people."
Rita, too busy pimping herself in the mirror ahead of her, had to be nudged to even get her attention, "well there's a number of ways; you devote yourself to you-know-who and appeal to him that way, which I take it from the ugly look on your face is a no… or you could tempt him, they do say a way to wizard's heart is through his robes," she gave Sadie a knowing look which disturbed her slightly, "you can be a bright young witch and I'm quite sure with some guidance you'll have young Malfoy hook, line and sinker."
"Tea anyone," after a long wait for a simple beverage, Mr Lovegood finally appeared with a tray of tea and biscuits. However Sadie had a nagging feeling the alienation of one Draco Malfoy would take a lot longer.