A/N: After reading some amazing writings by all the Potterheads here, I finally decided to publish something of my own. So, here it is. It is my first ever story. And I am just winging it. So, be patient and kind. Although constructive criticism is always welcomed. hope you like it. And if you do, please review.

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter. Only JKR does. I just own the characters that I created.

WARNING: I plan to go very much off canon with some of the details. But they are not as major as you'd imagine. I think.

HOGWARTS HERALD: DRAFT

28th September 2022

Sports Section, Page 6

WEASLEY OR POTTER?

Quidditch season is upon us, and it is about to begin with a bang! There is a lot of speculation (and some harmless betting) going around Hogwarts as to what will happen in this Gryffindor Vs Slytherin match next week, not solely due to the commonly known Quidditch rivalry between the two old houses that has been going on since decades, but also due to two very prominent names newly appointed as captains of the respective teams.

As we all know, Gryffindor took an embarrassing nose dive last year in this cutthroat race to Quidditch Cup after their beloved captain of three years, James Potter, departed from Hogwarts to join Puddlemore United as their latest seeker. James possessed a keen strategic mind for the game and was known as one of the toughest captain Gryffindor had seen in many years. The last year has been tough on Gryffindor, under the reign of Arnold McFee, a brilliant chaser in his own right, albeit a lax captain, as rumored around Hogwarts. However, this year Gryffindor may have a ray of hope with captainship handed over to Rose Weasley, who has played the position of Keeper for the team since last three years. Our sources confirm that this sixth year prefect is a vast improvement on McFee as a captain. However, Weasley has been rumored to show her own errors of judgement. Her team comprises of a surprising amount of ladies. Roxanne Weasley once again holds her position as the Seeker, Helena Abbott-Longbottom and Irene Colbert as two of the Chasers and Catrina Ralfe as one of the Beaters, which leaves only Fred Weasley as the second Beater and McFee as the third Chaser. Doesn't Gryffindor possess better male players or is there a political agenda to this subtle sexism? Considering the fact that Weasley is the daughter of the first female Minister of Magic, the latter is a significant possibility. It is no secret that Minister Weasley has fought many a hard won wars with the Ministry for house elf rights and muggle fraternization policies. I wouldn't be surprised if Rose inherited a bit of a radical streak from our Madam Minister. Perhaps Weasley means to take the words 'girl power' reach a whole another level. In the end, only Weasley can answer this question truthfully.

McFee, when asked about his opinion on the transformation of Gryffindor team, he had a few peculiar things to say: "Rose Weasley maybe a brilliant Keeper...(but) captainship is a whole another scenario. Leadership is not hereditary...I will always give my best to this team, but I hope (she) knows what she is doing."

But looking on the opposite side, we have Albus Potter, who seems to be walking on his brothers' footsteps, running a tight ship with tough practices and endless hours of strategies and drills on the Quidditch Pitch with his teammates. Potter has played the Seeker position on the Slytherin team since his First Year, the first player to have had that opportunity since Harry Potter, one of the most well known wizards of history, and also his father. Captainship seems to be a birthright of Potters, as Al Potter is the fourth Potter to have earned the honour in the last fifty years of Hogwarts History. The Middle Potter (as nicknamed by Hogwarts population) although a fine Seeker in his own right, has big shoes to fill in that context. Will he be able to do that? His teammates seem to think so.

We had the opportunity to get some latest news out of some of the tightlipped players of Slytherin team this week. Roman Nott, one of the best Beaters on the pitch right now, seemed quite positive: "Potter is alright. A bit of a slave driver. But that is exactly what we need right now with stakes this high."

There were a few accusations of showing favouritism in the Slytherin tryouts by their rookie captain, seeing as how his team comprises of several of his band of best friends, including the Nott twins Roman and Barthlomew (Beater), Scorpius Malfoy (Keeper) and Coraline Humphrey(Chaser). It was firmly denied by one of his housemates, saying, "Albus is not like that. He knows Quidditch better than most, and (is) loyal to his team." A complaint about this was filed to Sylvain Provost, Head of Slytherin House. But it is unknown how the matter is being handled.

There is already a lot of buzz going around with these famous names (also cousins) connected with the first game this year. Expectations are higher than usual and the excitement is palpable. However, only time will tell what becomes of these rookie captains and their teams.

-Terrence Macmillan, Sports Editor.

Only on closer look would one be able to tell that Rose Weasley was having a sudden surge of anger at that very moment, in the middle of the library, shaking slightly, clutching the wretched draft copy of Herald in her hands. It was no secret that the Herald had been on her case since the moment she set foot in Hogwarts. The school paper had started a decade ago to give Hogwarts students an opportunity to hone their capabilities as future journalists. It was a good effort on the teachers' part, but in reality it was nothing but an official memo of Hogwarts gossip, in Rose's opinion. But then again, she wasn't a fan of newspapers in general. Aversion of newspaper came naturally with being the progeny of a war hero and a war hero turned Minister of Magic.

Beside her, Amelia Claufield was hissing at Lily Potter, to which the younger girl replied with an eye roll and a huff. Lorcan Scamander stayed quiet, buried in his Divination homework. Although he knew that his peace wouldn't last. Lily Potter was notorious that way. She made noise wherever she went.

"Are you out of your bloody mind, Lily?! We decided not to show this to her!"

"Oh, please. Do you think she won't find out when this comes out? Don't be naïve, Amelia. Everybody reads the Herald these days."

"SEXIST!" Rose whisper-yelled (which only she could do), finally coming out of her haze of anger.

"Quiet in the library, please!" came Madam Leroy's stern voice from the Recreational Reading section.

"He says that I put more girls on the team, and I am the sexist!" Rose said, with a bit more whispering and a bit less yelling.

At this, Lorcan shut his book with a bang and glared at his friends, who in his opinion, were being ridiculous.

Amelia looked at him with quiet apology, and said, "It doesn't matter what he says, Rose. You are captain for a reason. I'm sure you-"

"Macmillan is an idiot, Rosie." Lily interrupted Amelia with an air of finality. "He is an idiot with a quill, and he has made it his mission to create gossip. Not the good kind, either."

Lorcan snorted incredulously. When is gossip ever good?

Lily threw him a filthy look. "Did you need something, Scamander?"

"Some quiet would be good." Lorcan said, raising his right eyebrow.

But Rose was on a roll now. "Well, he shouldn't! I didn't do anything, Lily! I have been doing a way better job than that git McFee. And I have done everything in my power to-"

"Maybe you should worry more about the match instead of the article." Amelia said, giving Lily an accusing glare as if to tell her what a bad idea it was to show Rose this draft.

"Look. If you want, I can talk to Malfoy about not printing this. He is the editor, and he kind of tolerates me because of Albus. He might listen." Lily said. "He probably doesn't even know what Macmillan wrote."

"Oh, please. Of course Malfoy knows. He knows everything. Speaking of which, does Albus know what his dearest friend is printing behind his back?" Rose ground out.

"I haven't got to Al yet. And believe me. Scorpius doesn't know about this. He likes to stay away from the Sports section. Says it will be a 'conflict of interest' or something. And besides, you're always vilifying poor Scorpius. He isn't that bad."

"Well, poor Scorpius is getting his stupid arse kicked, that much I can tell you," Rose said with earnest determination.

Leroy chose that particular moment to appear at their table out of nowhere, "I have had enough of your noise this evening!," she yelled. "This is not your common room. If you are so determined to talk, you may get out of my library."

"But Madam Le-"

"Out, Weasley! All of you!" Then as an afterthought, "You may stay if you wish, ."

"Well, talk about favouritism!" Lily fumed. "What that old bat did was worse than what they are accusing Albus of doing!"

"It isn't a secret that everyone loves Lorcan, Lil." Rose said.

"I can't believe she kicked us out. I have never been kicked out of anywhere before. Never." Amelia was still in shock as they walked towards Gryffindor Tower.

"Hah. You poor darling. Welcome to the club." Chorused the other two.

"Remember how we got kicked out of that muggle ice cream shop when we went to France? It was wicked..."

Thus, Lily went on describing the various misadventures with her cousins. But Rose was lost in her own thoughts. She was still processing the whole article fiasco. One would imagine that she should have been used to being splashed on newspapers by now. It came with being a Potter or a Weasley. But she wasn't as skilled as Lily, who had the ability to spin things around in her favour, one of the reasons why the latter had a definite future in journalism. It still bothered Rose every time she read her name mentioned anywhere in Daily Prophet or Witch Weekly. That was why she was one of the very few students who didn't get the Prophet at all. Rose knew that it was the coward's way of handling a situation, but she never claimed to be brave anyway, no matter which house she was in. If there was anything major happening in the world, she would hear it from her mother's advisors, seeing as how it was "essential that she kept her opinions to herself" on any subject to avoid controversy. It wasn't a secret that the media in the magical world was as brutal as it is in the muggle world. And they were always hungry to know what Rose wore to her mother's gala, where she spent her summers, who her friends were, updates on her dating life, how many OWLs did she get, what she thought about the latest inquisition against the Goblins, whether she was in favour of helping muggles control the global warming situation or not and what not.

No, thank you. Rose Weasley was quite happy not knowing about the everyday happenings of the world, not stating her own thoughts. It helped her keep her peace of mind. Macmillan was threatening that peace and she needed to do something about it.

It had been less than a month since his sixth year at Hogwarts had started, and already Scorpius was buckling under all the pressure. He didn't like it one bit. As if being a prefect and a Qudditch player wasn't enough, he was compelled to handle the position of the chief editor of Hogwarts Herald, thanks to the headmistress. It had come as a note with his Hogwarts Letter, from Professor Longbottom, who handled any Herald related decisions, albeit a little reluctantly:

Dear ,

I am happy to inform you that you have earned the position of the Chief Editor of Hogwarts Herald this year. I am quite certain that you will perform your duties satisfactorily. Please do not hesitate to write to me if you have any questions.

Regards,

Neville Longbottom.

His mother, who was the chief catalyst in making Scorpius apply for the position in the first place, was beyond ecstatic. "I am quite certain that nobody deserves this position more than you do." Astoria had gushed then. "I am so proud of you, my dear." His father had smiled in quiet approval. And their reaction was reason enough for Scorpius to buck up and add this to his already towering responsibilities.

But that was then. He didn't know that Sixth year was going to be so tough. He had imagined it to be a buffer between OWLs and NEWTs. But instead, with all the homework piling up, Prefect duties, Quidditch and the wretched Herald, he was going positively mad.

This wasn't the moment to worry himself with all of that. If he kept this up, it was only a matter of time that his captain will notice that his head really wasn't in the practice. Albus was already yelling at someone for some time now. It was pretty common during practice. Albus was always yelling these days. The only thing that ever extricated an apparent display of intense emotion from an otherwise passive and introvert Albus, was Quidditch. The fact that he was overshadowed by his brother's Quidditch prowess didn't help the matter much, either. He was constantly in the effort of trying to prove that he was better than James and that was his only flaw; his only flaw in failing to realize that unlike Scorpius, he really didn't need to prove anything to anyone. Unlike Scorpius, he had a father who was a hero, untainted by the shame of wrongdoings in his past. Scorpius, who had endured unpleasant whispers and filthy looks in the streets and in the school, because he was the heir to a prominent Death Eater dynasty.

It was only a moment later when Scorpius realized that the recipient of these particular yells was him.

"WHAT?"

"I SAID, BUCK- OH, NEVER MIND! JUST BE HERE, SCORP!"

"I AM, YOU DOLT!"

But Albus never responded because he was rapidly descending his broom to the ground level, towards a figure with a mane of long flaming hair that kept on flying in their face. Scorpius ignored this, knowing that it was one of Al's pack of cousins. They had a habit of turning up during practices from time to time, particularly the younger ones. Albus was sort of the family listener. Whenever anyone was in need of some furious venting and some advice, Albus was the person they'd seek out. And much to Scorpius' astonishment, Albus loved it. But as Scorpius drove closer to the pair, he realized that it wasn't Lily, or Molly, or Lucy for that matter. It was Rose.

Of course, it was her.

And her public display of anger had gathered quite an audience as a few of their teammates were now on the ground huddled not too far from the Human Hippogriff and poor Albus. Albus seemed to have realized that at the exact same moment as Scorpius, because he was now dragging Rose toward the door to the locker rooms.

After a moment of speculation, Scorpius decided to follow the two of them. This situation called for Albus being rescued by his best mate.

"This is demeaning, Al. Not to mention untrue!" Rose was whispering and waving a peace of parchment in Al's face furiously.

"Look, Rosie. I'll talk to Scorp if you want me to. But its honestly not-"

"Don't. Don't say it is not that bad," Rose said. "I think its even worse from your perspective. And your friend-"

"His friend what, Weasley?" Scorpius said, finally deciding to chip in. "What is going on here?"

"Malfoy," After recovering from the surprise, Rose acknowledged him with a cool gaze, and went, "I never thought I'll ever say this, but I was actually looking for you."

Albus muttered something in exasperation as Weasley thrust the same parchment that she had been clutching like it were the Devil's creation in his face. She had always been a rather feisty bird, Rose Weasley. It was a prerogative for redheads to be in possession of violent temper, but this one took it to a whole another level. Funny thing was, if you asked anybody else except Scorpius about Rose's disposition, you would hear all things good, like how compassionate she was, how respectful she was to her teachers, how quiet she was. To him, she had always been loud. Blaringly loud. In appearance, and in personality as well. Just like she was screaming one thing or other in his face at that very moment, her cornflower blue eyes wide and wild. Apparently the wind was in favour of her temper tantrum, because it was blowing her hair all wild around her head, like a halo of an angry goddess. Yes, a goddess. Scorpius may think of Rose Weasley as a horrid bitch with anger issues, but he never said that she wasn't a beautiful bitch. It was a complete waste of beauty, if you asked him. But Scorpius being who he was, had never actually reciprocated with these insults whenever Rose had done the same to him. He saw all that beneath him. And that was the difference between Albus and Scorpius. The former chose quiet as a medium for the other person to speak, while the latter chose quiet as a form of dismissal towards unnecessary conversations. Even now, when Rose was yelling, he stood there quietly, waiting for her to run her course.

"-think that your little editor position gives you the right to slander people, then I think you have got the job description in a thoroughly wrong sense!"

"I get that you are upset, Rose. But you are overreacting now," Albus said with a sigh.

"No, Albus," Scorpius said calmly, as he skimmed through the parchment, which was apparently the Sports page for the next edition of the blasted Herald. "Let her finish."

Rose breathed in deeply, as if to abate her anger, threw a glare at Albus, and then started quietly, yet firmly, "Look. I am aware that you didn't write this. Lily told me that it was Macmillan. And you should know better than giving him anything to write. I don't know where you came up with the idea of asking people like him and Skeeter to write for your precious paper."

Scorpius didn't, either. But he chose to ignore that little jibe of Rose's, and read on. Rose remained surprisingly quiet through it.

"Lily?" Scorpius said at last, raising his eyebrows at Albus, then said to Rose, "What Lily needs to understand is that it is her job to keep it to herself and not show it around to her parade of cousins when she pleases," Then quickly added, "No offense, Albus."

"None taken," Albus snorted.

"And what you need to understand is that I do not handle the Sports page due to conflict of interest. I am sure you understand such a concept. Or perhaps you don't. Regardless, I don't see what the problem here is."

"What the- what the problem is?" Lily said incredulously. "Are you bleeding daft, Malfoy? Did you hear anything I just said?"

"Yes, your displeasure is quite loud and clear. But tell me, what makes you think that what's written here is anything but petty gossip? I thought you would be immune to such things by now."

Rose fumed quietly.

"Why are you really offended by this? Are you actually nursing a feminist cause hidden inside your fuzzy little heart? Is that why you chose the players you did?"

"Okay. That's enough, Scorpius. Don't go there." Albus said warningly.

"Of course, not," Rose said. "I would never sabotage my team for my own kicks. What kind of a person do you think I am?"

"I don't think of it at all. But that's not what we are talking about here," Scorpius continued calmly. "What I am trying to make you understand is, if it isn't true, it shouldn't bother you. I thought you were above everything petty and mortal."

Rose chose to ignore that little jibe. "So, are you saying that you won't make MacMillan take it down?"

"I didn't-"

"Because that means, you don't care about Albus, either," Rose said with a sardonic smile on her face, "What happened to you and your passionate claims of friendship?"

At this, an angry red seemed to seep into Scorpius' otherwise pale face, funnily enough matching his skin to Rose's. But before he could verbalize his anger, Albus beat him to it.

"That's it! I've had it with you two! Rose, you are being a drama queen. If you had ever tried to pay even a little bit of attention to what they usually write in the herald, you would know that nobody care a whit about what Macmillan writes. He is more of a joke." Scorpius nodded appreciatively and started to something, but Albus cut him off with, "And you! What has gotten into you, mate? You were goading her! I expect at least one of you to behave like the good people I know you are! I am tired of being in the middle of your little playground spat! Why do you hate each other so much?"

Rose and Scorpius were looking at a pacing Albus with awe now. None of them said anything for a minute.

Then Scorpius decided to break the silence with, "Is that a rhetorical question?"

"This really isn't the time, man," Albus said with a resigned expression. "Look, I have to go. Supper must have started by now and Quidditch makes me hungry," and left with a, "Bye, Rosie."

But Rose didn't say anything. In fact, she hadn't said anything at all during Al's monologue. That was uncharacteristic of her, according to Scorpius. But at that moment, Rose Weasley's uncharacteristic behavior was the least of his problems. He needed to get to Albus and apologize as soon as he could. An Angry Albus was bad, but an angry and disappointed Albus was worse. It made Scorpius feel like he had felt when he had broken his mother's favourite vase with a quaffle as a child.

"Are you bloody mental, Malfoy?" Rose screeched suddenly.

Alas, all good things must come to an end. Even a quiet Rose. Scorpius thought.

"'Rhetorical question'? Really?What is wrong with you?"

"Look, it's an inside joke, alright? I thought it would cheer him up!"

"Well it didn't, did it?" Rose spat. Then added, "God! I have never seen him so angry before! I mean, he's Albus!"

Well. Apparently Weasley had reached the same conclusion. But she still had some venting left to do, as she apparently continued with, "It's all my fault. I should never have come here. I don't even care about the stinking Herald."

"No, it isn't."

As if she had forgotten about Scorpius' presence, she looked at him with astonishment, "What isn't?"

"It's not your fault, Weasley. At least not entirely. I provoked you, too."

Rose looked even more surprised at this. Malfoy was not known for accepting his mistakes. But before she could say anything, the door banged open, and in came the Nott boys followed by Humphrey and the boy Rose liked to call The Buzz Cut.

"Well, this isn't the love fest I was expecting it to be," came the gravelly voice of who Rose thought was probably Bartholomew Nott. "Seriously, you two. Do something about your sexual tension."