"You should've seen the defiant look on the editor's face," Sirius laughed harder. When he had gone to the office the man had stood his ground and told Sirius that the article was factual and would be printed as such. He then told the Animagus that he really didn't want to work for a crooked politician. Sirius assured him that he was one of the good guys and would try and stay out of the spotlight from now on. That mollified the editor, for now.
"Still you need to be more careful, Padfoot. I would hate to see you lose your position in the government," the werewolf reprimanded.
"I'll be as careful as I can be," he promised.
"Still it's good that we have such honest reporters. We'll need that if anything starts to go wrong," Hydrus said, glad that they made those employees take that vow.
They talked about the article and how they were going to be more cautious until bedtime. When they finally went to bed, Hydrus was still waiting for the other shoe to drop. There had only been a few minor setbacks and each of those was taken care of with ease. He knew now that Dolores wasn't the one watching him, so it must be someone else he offended.
With so many changes, the Ministry was in an uproar. However, there was little to be done, since they had to go with public opinion. The one time they tried to get The Times banned, the community protested so loud they had to drop it. No longer were the crowds easily swayed. The old fogies of the Wizengamot were in a pickle. They had always just made laws and the sheep would follow. Now with their stories being printed in a reputable paper, they had to change their ways or step down.
There were still the Pure-bloods that tried to buy the votes, but Hydrus's little stash was much more than they could beat. With his accounts in Sweden the money was untraceable. Since the Black accounts were massive no one questioned where Sirius's 'donations' came from.
The relations with the goblins weren't going so well, since most magicals refused to give up goblin made items. The greedy bastards (in Hydrus's opinion) refused to listen to the talks. Some in the Ministry were afraid that a new rebellion would start if they kept trying. So that project was put on hold.
Skeeter was nowhere to be found, the detectives came up blank. After graduating she simply vanished. Hydrus knew when she would start with the Prophet, but he had little else on her history. So now he was in a quandary as to what to do about her. He knew he would take her out of the public as soon as he could and hope that a more vicious reporter didn't take her place. If that happened he had no problem snatching someone else. With The Times now outselling the Daily Prophet and the Quibbler, and magicals thinking for themselves, maybe he would just let her bury herself.
Then the thought came to him, She's a spy! She's probably working on blackmail material as we speak. If Pettigrew can live his life as a rat, Skeeter can do the same as a bug. But how to find her? She hasn't killed anyone, so setting ghosts on her won't work. While she's rather distinctive, she's still just a bug. Something he was going to have to tell his detectives.
He had told them that she was an Animagus, and a water beetle, but they were looking for a woman. Now they would have to set sights on an insect, and wasn't that going to be fun. He'd point them in the direction of the Ministry, if she was looking for blackmail that's where she'd be, or in the politicians' homes. It was a good thing that they were under a Fidelius and Sirius made sure only to mention the other two men in passing in his talks with others. He'd have to put Animagus Revealing Charms on the businesses so she can't sneak in.
So the next day, the older men of the house set about doing just that. They put the charm on the newspaper office, Hydrus's store and Remus's bookstore, just in case. Sirius whenever he talked to a fellow politician, made sure to cast the charm on the room they were in. They weren't going to take any chances on this particular woman. The Master of Death tried to call her parents, but no one came, so they must still be alive.
....
Can't wait to read ahead by more than 60 exciting premium chapters.
Then Join my p*atreon right now.
Link: p#atreon.com/InfinityWeaver (Remove the #)
Free members can unlock 2 chapters.