As a commercial newspaper, the Daily Prophet had responsibilities beyond simply serving as the Ministry of Magic’s mouthpiece.
It also needed sales.
And reporting on a Muggle family had already caused considerable dissatisfaction among many pure-blood wizards.
So if they wanted something big enough to bury the Gringotts incident— what options remained?
The Boy Who Lived, soon to begin school, had become their second choice.
But after dominating headlines for over half a month— readers eventually grew tired of even Harry Potter.
And media people without ethics?
They cared little about morals or rules.
Holding up his wand, Vincent pointed through the glass at the motionless beetle.
“Dear reporter friend…”
“It seems you’ve already secured a one-way ticket to Azkaban.”
If an illegal Animagus case became serious enough— the offender could even receive a personal kiss from an Azkaban guard.
Just imagining the scene felt horrifying enough for the four Waynes.
BANG BANG BANG—
The little beetle suddenly slammed itself into the glass even harder.
Rather than spend life in constant fear— it might as well gamble everything now.
Unfortunately—
Vincent and Eric had absolutely no intention of giving it a chance.
The instant Evelyn lifted the glass cover— both rifle stock and wand came crashing down upon its shell.
THUD!
SMACK!
The two impacts sounded as though something had shattered.
The nearly dying beetle trembled violently.
“It’s still alive?!”
Eric pointed his gun directly at its tiny head.
“If you don’t reveal your true form…”
“I’m shooting.”
Too distracted to marvel at the absurd sturdiness of alder wood, Vincent weighed his wand thoughtfully.
“Professor McGonagall said injuries received in Animagus form appear on corresponding body parts.”
His wand slowly pointed toward the left eye surrounded by strange markings.
“I would sincerely appreciate your cooperation.”
“Ahhh!
You people are too cruel!”
Evelyn walked over with a smile and crouched down nearby.
“I heard fried beetles taste pretty good.”
“How about we try some?”
The moment those words landed— the nearly dying insect abruptly spread its tiny wings.
“WHOO—!”
Captain Hoot descended from above and kicked it straight back down.
Vincent jumped in shock and instinctively flicked his wand.
CRACK—
Something sounded broken again.
Unable to bear it anymore, Evelyn squatted in a corner and tried persuading the stubborn beetle once more.
“You’ve seen it already.”
“My husband and son are very violent people.”
“If you still won’t cooperate…”
“I’ll have no choice but to deep fry little beetle pieces.”
Faced with endless combinations of soft and hard tactics— the beetle finally curled up as if surrendering.
Its body rapidly expanded into a glowing green sphere— before transforming into a human figure dressed in bright green.
Messy blonde hair.
Crooked glasses missing most of their jewels.
And wrinkled neon-green robes.
The moment Rita Skeeter appeared— she immediately found herself facing four pairs of vicious eyes.
“Good evening, members of the Wayne family.”
Despite looking utterly miserable, she still bowed with complete confidence.
“Don’t move.”
“Dear Miss Rita…”
“Before your trip to Azkaban, is there anything you’d like to say?”
Disarmed and seriously injured, Rita instantly produced a flattering smile.
“Little Mr.
Wayne!”
“I can guarantee your fame throughout the magical world will become unmatched!”
“Even crazy old Dumbledore and that idiot Minister Fudge would stand beneath you!”
“What about Harry Potter?”
Vincent raised an eyebrow.
“Or are you too scared to oppose the entire magical world?”
Dumbledore and Fudge were already controversial enough.
One more critic hardly mattered.
But Harry Potter?
The child every wizarding kid grew up hearing stories about?
Without powerful backing— criticizing him basically meant offending all of magical Britain.
Compared to Azkaban…
France next door suddenly seemed much more attractive.
Or maybe— pretend to surrender first…
“I’ll do it!”
“If there’s anyone you want smeared, I’ll become your most obedient little beetle!”
“Okay.”
“NO!” ×2
“WHOO!”
Eric’s expression darkened.
With leverage this strong— why would they ever need to worry about her obedience?
“Honey, the jewels on her glasses are fake.”
“Dad, she’s obviously trying to fool us first and think later.”
“Whoo—whoo whoo whoo.”
Captain Hoot shook its head dramatically and even managed to express pure contempt in a strangely human way.
Eric was absolutely certain that look had been aimed at him.
What?
So he liked appearances a little and happened to possess a tiny bit of cunning and confidence.
“We are a respectable family.”
Eric straightened his face and declared with righteous dignity:
“We settle this publicly!
This absolutely must be handled publicly!”
Completely exposed, Rita froze on the spot.
Even if there was a future Hogwarts student in this family— how were these Muggle parents so difficult to manipulate?
After tasting fame, shouldn’t the Wayne family be chasing after it enthusiastically?
Viwwoo—Viwwoo—
Distant police sirens suddenly broke the silence.
Azkaban?
Muggle police station?
Rita wanted neither.
“Mr.
Wayne, I can guarantee—”
“Wait.”
Vincent’s expression suddenly turned hesitant.
If they wanted a method that prevented her from betraying them, the obvious choice was an Unbreakable Vow.
But that required two wizards— plus a witness.
Professor McGonagall…
No.
She’d probably drag Rita straight to Azkaban.
And besides— how would a future first-year student know how that vow even worked?
“Miss Rita.”
“You already know what kind of people our family are, right?”
Demons.
Absolute demons. The source of this chapter is g.com.
Forcing out a smile, Rita immediately flattered:
“I know.”
“You’re all incredibly wonderful people.”
Excellent eyesight.
The four pairs of Wayne eyes suddenly looked unusually “friendly.”
“Ahem.”
Eric cleared his throat.
“Miss Rita…”
“Let us begin your exclusive interview.”
Vincent pocketed both wands and signaled for her to use the bathroom to clean herself up first.
By the time Kyle arrived in his police car, Evelyn had already prepared five cups of tea.
“Old friend, got guests?”
“Yep.”
Eric calmly introduced the elegant-looking Rita seated opposite him.
“Rita Skeeter.”
“A reporter friend I just met.”
Kyle glanced toward the woman.
Her hair was somewhat messy, but her smile remained graceful and composed.
Aside from the strange clothing— she honestly looked better than the girls from those clubs…
“Sorry.”
Kyle leaned toward Eric and lowered his voice.
“My brother…”
“You know a beauty like this and didn’t tell me immediately?”
“Don’t get any ideas.”
“You won’t survive it.”
Kyle leaned backward, eyes drifting downward.
“Alright.”
“So what was that gunshot earlier?”
“Please don’t tell me it was another accidental discharge.”
Eric smiled and shook his head.
“Miss Rita happened to be very interested in firearms.”
“And somehow…”
“She accidentally caused a misfire.”
“Really?”
“Really.”
The moment business concluded, Kyle instantly changed faces.
“Oh!
Vincent!”
“I heard you got into Westminster!”
“I always knew you could do it!”
“No.”
“I transferred.”
Lazily slouching against the sofa, Vincent added:
“My new school isn’t in London.”
“I’ll only be home during holidays.”
Ever since childhood, Vincent had possessed absolutely zero favorable feelings toward this severely overweight police chief.
Last year, for his tenth birthday— this man had actually gifted him several adult magazines.
Kyle wisely stopped pushing the topic.
Instead, he turned and gave Rita what he believed was his most handsome smile.
“Miss.”
“May I ask which newspaper you work for?”
Suppressing overwhelming disgust, Rita returned what she considered her friendliest smile.
“The Daily Prophet.”
“It’s only a small and insignificant paper.”
In Rita’s eyes, Kyle looked exactly like a wart-covered boar— minus the tumors.
Disgusting.
Absolutely disgusting.
Being captured by Muggles was humiliating enough.
But now— a pig had actually taken a liking to her.
This unremarkable little building…
was practically a demon’s nest.