Rita Skeeter: Behind Bill Weasley
Funnily enough, the activists annoyance was not the most interesting thing to happen at the Gnome Toss event. A big squabble involving famous Wizolympian Claudio Santos and none other then Bill and Fleur Weasley occurred. With a bit of investigative journalism on my behalf, I have discovered the whole backstory.
Bill Weasley, oldest son to Arthur and Molly Weasley, was said to in fact have a pen pal during his school days at Hogwarts. But why? People who see him now with his scars and wolfish tendencies may assume that he was always this way and chalk it up to him being lonely and rejected in his home and school life. Although hard to believe, it is said that he used to be quite the looker. He was in fact a prefect of Gryffindor House and Head Boy of Hogwarts. Also, he is one of seven children at home. What, then, drove our poor Mr. Weasley to crave even more companionship? Did he dislike his family; did he hate his Hogwarts peers? This is something I think we can easily assume. In fact, this pen pal was none other than the famous Brazilian Gnome Toss champion Claudio Santos. Reports say that Santos, a talented Beater in his school days at Castelobruxo, was forced to leave Quidditch by his family because of “anger issues” and the fact he kept “mortally wounding other players.” But luckily for Brazil, he has learned to take all of that aggression out on gnomes.
He and Bill Weasley were on regular talking terms for about a year’s time, sources say. They seemed to be right good chums. But then, when Santos asked Mr. Weasley if we would come visit him here in Brazil, he was outright rejected! Why would such a good friend ignore such a simple request? The Weasley family’s previously known poverty status comes into question when regarding the trip. But then again, records show them traveling all the way to Egypt to visit Bill just a few years later. Therefore, the family must be okay with blowing what little Galleons they have on lavish trips. Santos claims to have done nothing wrong to Weasley and rightfully so, sent him a cursed hat. This was around the same time Santos left his Quidditch at Castelobruxo because of angry outbursts at other players. Did this really have to do with other players, though? Or could Bill Weasley have been the cause of his anger? Could Bill Weasley cost us all a phenomenal Quidditch player?
At the Gnome Toss game, it seems that feuds were dragged up from the past. Fleur Weasley, a Gringotts employee, rushed onto the field halting gameplay. She harassed the now-star Gnome Toss champion and caused gameplay to halt. She was speaking rapid French, but a French supporter confided in me that her remarks where something you wouldn’t want your grandmother to hear. Other bystanders claim that Bill Weasley, now a Gringotts curse breaker, immediately came onto the field and attempted to restrain his wife and resolve the situation. From my angle that day, I’m not so sure. Bill must have recently confided the story to his wife and must have pointed Santos out to her from the crowd otherwise, how would she know it was his old correspondent? Fleur Weasley is in fact part Veela, and you know how hot Veela tempers run, and her husband must know this. That is why he must have told her to attack, therefore taking the blame off him and sabotaging Santos in the process. As anyone keeping up with the Wizolympics very well knows, four-time Galleon medal winner Claudio Santos ended up only coming in second place in the Gnome Toss. This could have been his fifth-year win! Did old grudges cause Mr. Weasley to sabotage one of the wizarding community’s most beloved sports? Who knows what the curse breaker is truly capable of?
