Howler king
Harry listened to the howler Molly Weasley sent to his best friend Hermione Granger over Rita Skeeter's spiteful article.
"Tell me these things are illegal?" he asked.
"Unfortunately not," said Hermione, fighting tears.
"So anyone can pour unfounded abuse on anyone else using these?" asked Harry. "She sent these to her own sons before, but can she send them to anyone?"
"Unfortunately, yes," said Hermione.
"Well, now!" said Harry. Suddenly he was putting several things together. "I need to talk to Dobby."
The first person to get a howler was Molly Weasley.
HOW DARE YOU BE SO JUDGEMENTAL AND CRUEL TO A LITTLE GIRL! HERMIONE GRANGER IS ONLY A YEAR ABOVE YOUR OWN DAUGHTER, HOW WOULD YOU LIKE EMMA GRANGER CALLING HER THE FILTHY NAMES YOU THINK APPROPRIATE? I USED TO THINK YOU CARING BUT I THINK FOR ANYONE TO KNOW ALL THOSE WORDS YOU MUST BE ONE! DO NOT EXPECT ME TO EVER VISIT AGAIN! AND IF YOU DO NOT SEND AN APOLOGY TO HERMIONE, YOU WILL RECEIVE A HOWLER FROM ME DAILY UNTIL YOU DO, AND IF YOU RESPOND TO ME WITH A HOWLER, YOU WILL FIND I CAN ESCALATE, AND SEND HOWLERS OF COMPLAINT TO YOUR HUSBAND AT WORK.
The next person to get a howler was Rita Skeeter.
YOU FILTHY MUCK-RAKING HAG, IF YOU THINK YOU CAN GET AWAY WITH TELLING LIES ABOUT MY FRIENDS, YOU CAN THINK AGAIN. BELIEVE ME IF YOU DON'T STOP THIS I WILL BE SENDING HOWLERS RANDOMLY EVERY DAY OR SEVERAL TIMES A DAY UNTIL I HAVE SO DISRUPTED YOUR WORK YOU WON'T HAVE A JOB.
Fudge and had received three howlers by the time thirty or so owls swept in first thing in the morning at breakfast.
He had been called an incompetent arsewipe.
Dobby was having great fun using the muggle tape recorder Harry had sent him to get to keep sending out pre-recorded messages.
The ones with red envelopes targeted Dumbledore, Sprout, Snape, McGonagall, Ron, Pansy, Draco, Justin, Ernie and sundry others.
The ones to the teachers basically said the same thing – that Harry was beyond disappointed that they had not seen fit to protect him from being entered against his will in a dangerous competition nor did they protect him from bullying by those who didn't believe him.
The ones to the Slytherin and Hufflepuff basically said that they stank so strong that a skunk would be ashamed.
Ron's was just a repetition over and over of 'you stupid jealous bastard'
"Mr. Potter!" said Dumbledore. "That was not funny!"
"You didn't see me laughing about your failure to protect me either," said Harry. "I'm disappointed in you all, and I've made arrangements for you all to get one every day until you find a way of getting me out of this bloody competition, and stop those bloody badges!"
"Mr. Potter, language!" said McGonagall.
"Oh, it's ok for people to swear at me but not for me to use an expletive? Well forget it because you'll be getting your daily howler too," said Harry.
"Mr. Potter, you cannot send daily howlers if you are not given the opportunity to do so," said Dumbledore, genially.
"Believe that if you like," said Harry. "I bought a thousand and found a way to pre-record them so all my agent has to do is mail them. Until I choose to stop them."
A psychotic house elf, able to respond to things like return howlers from Molly so that Arthur received seven howlers about his wife in one day, and Dumbledore started getting howlers hourly while Harry Potter was confined in the sick bay incommunicado meant that the problem was escalating.
Amelia Bones turned up to investigate, and was horrified when Harry said he refused to talk to the relative of a little bully.
She assured him she meant him no harm, and a lot of things came out in the interview, including that Harry was afraid that there would be no safeguards on his friend Hermione if she were used as a hostage, or her parents' permission sought. One of the aurors who came with her found an owl trying to give a howler to a beetle.
And a rather confused owl presented the supposed Mad-eye Moody with a howler to Mr. Crouch.
Then the competition went to hell in a handbasket.