Chapter 21

Yesterday saw the funeral of Quidditch star Lawrence Matthews who was killed Friday night by You-Know-Who. His funeral as was expected was attended by many of the sports top players in their bids to say goodbye to the fallen star.

The funeral itself was simple with words being spoken by Matthews parents Roberta and Victor, sister Megan, fiancée Lily Evans and team mate Gideon Prewett. The speeches were simple and eloquent and fitting the image of the player. But I can now exclusively report that things behind the scenes weren't as fitting.

The fiancée of the star who was due to marry him the day after his death arrived on the arm of another man and not just any man either but that of a young Auror James Potter. Potter and Evans were old school peers and have known to have dated in the past. When Ryan and Michelle Potter were killed four years back so was the pairs romance or was it really?

This reporter believes that Potter is more than the grieving woman's friend but a secret lover. These pictures show the pair on several occasions out and about together including one taken on Sunday in Hogsmeade where it can clearly be seen that they are holding hands.

As for the family of Matthews they too seem to have their doubts about the woman their son had chosen to marry. Before the coffin entered the church Roberta was ordering the woman to leave claiming she had no right to be there. Why is this then? Could it be that Roberta discovered the truth about the affair as I myself did?

The burial of the star too showed a lack of respect from the fiancée who did not even attend it. While his friends and family were saying their last goodbyes she was absent as was Potter so what were the pair up to at this point? I shall leave that to you to decide.

Rita Skeeter

Lily slammed the paper downonto the table causing her mother to jump slightly. She couldn't believe what that creature had written in there. Yes she and James had a past but that was all it was a past. He'd been there helping her through a tough time because Albus had made him.

The pictures well they were something else. Yes so she was holding his hand but he was dragging her away from Snape. And the photo of them hugging, she'd hugged so many men over the last few days did that mean she was sleeping with them too?

Surprisingly the thing that upset her the most was the use of the pictures of her and Larry before their wedding that had been taken for the Quidditch Monthly magazine. She hadn't been told that they were releasing the pictures to the paper and she didn't want to see them, they were a memory of what should have been but didn't.

"Lily are you okay?"

"Filthy little tart with all her lies"

"What? Lily?"

"Nothing mum don't worry I'm fine."

She picked up her spoon and lowered it into the cornflakes taking a bite as she turned the page and read an article about the numbers of people now fearing their safety in their everyday life. If a Quidditch star was murdered why not them?

"Oh this is utter rubbish, they're scare mongering."

"What's that Lily?"

"Nothing mum, I'm just going to go to work."

She stood up looking down at herself she would do and disappearing left the house. She looked around the atrium and followed a crowd of people into the lift. They were all staring at her as if she had three heads or something then she heard a voice.

"Lily what are you doing here?"

"Oh hi Carly. I've decided to come back to work."

"You're on holidays this week though."

"Yeah but my honeymoon isn't going well and I just want to get back to normal."

She nodded and looked around at everyone staring.

"What?"

"Don't worry about them Lily they're all just nosey berks. I mean just because the prophet has been doing a hate campaign on you."

"A what?"

"He hasn't been showing you the articles as he?"

"He's actually been getting them. I'll kill him."

"Oh don't. Maybe he was trying to protect you. Remus did say he's been really annoyed by it all."

"He's annoyed what the hell have they been saying about me?"

"Maybe I shouldn't be the one –"

The lifts had opened on their floor and Lily dashed out and headed into the main offices. She found James stood with Fabian and Frank Longbottom seemingly lost in conversation. She didn't care though and ignoring the looks she stormed over to him and grabbed his robe from behind causing him to turn.

"What haven't you told me?"

"Oh that I used the last of your shampoo. But I got some more. I was going to bring it round later."

"Don't be funny Potter what haven't you told me?"

"Potter? Lily is everything alright?"

"I'm having an affair with you! They have pictures of you holding my hand! What haven't you told me?"

His face went from a joking look to deadly serious as he looked around the room.

"I don't think now is the time."

"Well what a pity because I do!"

"Okay fine they've reported that I've been staying with you since the murder –"

"But you have because Albus said you had to."

"Yes but they left that bit out. They've printed photos of umm well me asleep in your bed –"

"How the hell did they get those?"

"I don't know. But they're making it out that something happened between us. Not that I was sleeping there because your floor was uncomfortable."

She could see there was something else and gave him a look that made Frank and Fabian both cringe.

"You're hiding something aren't you?"

Everyone in the offices had become extremely silent and James was looking at the floor. He mumbled something and Lily looked around, his eyes came to hers and he shook his head picking up a paper from Saturday and threw it into her hands. Her eyes widened as she read it.

Quidditch star killed while fiancée kisses another man.

Today we can reveal that Lawrence Matthews the chaser for the Appleby Arrows was murdered late last night. For unknown reasons he was captured by You-Know-Who and held hostage in the flat of his fiancée Lily Evans.

However while this was going on Evans was in work at the Auror offices in the ministry along with old flame James Potter. The two had been left alone barely five minutes before they could be found kissing, as you can see from the picture below. Would they have gone further than that? I am sure they would have if it wasn't for a colleague entering the room at that time.

The question now is how long has the affair between Evans and Potter been going on. I am sure that it has been happening for a while and that she has been playing with Matthews' heart.

As for what will happen now well it would be guessed that Evans' will play the true grieving fiancée and yet no. When she discovered the body of the Quidditch star she flung herself once more into the arms of Potter probably with joy that they could now be together since he was out of the picture.

Lily looked at the picture it was there in black and white for everyone to see her lips pressed against James' and before she had pulled away. No wonder Roberta hadn't wanted her at the funeral she thought that she was going to brake Larry's heart.

"You can't be serious, I wasn't cheating on Larry. I can't believe they wrote this, who did write it?"

She looked down and saw the name Rita Skeeter and felt her blood boil. James though was looking over her shoulder and then stepped forward.

"Lily everyone knows that you weren't cheating on Larry. I think the more pressing question is how they got a reporter in here and we didn't notice."

"Well let's see why wouldn't we have seen? Oh maybe it was because you were too busy trying to break me and Larry up while I was too busy trying to convince you that I was going to marry him."

"No Lily this is important. When you left there wasn't a reporter here, there wasn't even one here when Stuart came in so how did they get that photo."

"I don't care James. I have to go see Roberta and sort this mess out!"

"Lily precious I wouldn't bother she's still mourning. Come with Uncle Eddie and we'll have a nice cup of tea and work out the rotas for you to start back."

With a last look at James she followed Eddie into the Healer section and sat down to listen to what she had missed.