RITA SKEETER HAD caused a reconning inside Hogwarts. If everyone had been whispering about Estrella's parents' murder and Harry's name on the goblet before, well now there will even more whispers. There is nothing that society loved more than endless gossip. No matter how far from the truth it may be.

Estrella walked back to the Hufflepuff table yawning. When she had gotten back to the Hufflepuff common room after the Gryffindor's celebration, she had seen the party that her own house had done for Cedric. Everyone had congratulated him, and now where asking for endless stories about the his preparation for the task. Of course, he gave Estrella full-credit as well. Like always, he will give a humble reply, blushing furiously at all the questions and details they wanted.

Estrella was waiting patiently to congratulate him, but since it was almost impossible she decided to go back to her room. Just as if she was about to disappear for the night, Cedric had stopped her. So she took this chance to congratulate him.

Now she lay almost falling sleep on top of her food. She lent her head against her hand, eating her. However she stopped when she saw someone sit in front of her. She looked up expecting to see Cedric Diggory, but instead she was met with the curious eyes of a fifth year Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff. "So is it true?" they questioned her.

"I am sorry?" Estrella asked them all confused at them. They showed her the front page version of the newest issue of the Daily Prophet. In front was a picture of Hermione and Harry hugging at the first task of the Triwizard Tournament. "They are friends." She said to them.

The Ravenclaw then pointed at the following picture of Cedric. "Yes, that's Cedric from our house." Estrella said to her. Then she pointed at the text. Estrella took it carefully out of her hands, reading the headline....

The best new couple of the Hufflepuff House!

Champion Cedric Diggory has carefully excel up to this point. Not only has he gotten top marks on his OWLs the previous year, but has a tremendous history as his house' Quidditch Captain and Seeker. However, it seems that he is seeking more than the snitch!

The heartthrob of the school has taken the heart of the famous Estrella Velasquez. If you didn't know her, you would probably spotted her name being dropped this past summer. Daughter of the recently deceased Martin and Annabeth Velasquez, famous Aurors who were key in bringing down most of the You-Know-Who's followers.

Even if tragedy has stricken the Velasquez, things might be looking up for her. Maybe it might have been love at first sight, although some have rumored the two of them had fallen in love back at the Quidditch World Cup over the summer. In which Cedric swooped in to protect Estrella from the darkness.

United by tragedy and fear, the young wizards might be a force to recon with. But what about Harry Potter? Well it seems he has fallen in love with Hermione Granger, who is stealing hearts left and right. One thing is for sure, there is nothing like the feeling of being young and in love.

However with the rumors surfacing about the Velasquez's involvement with Sirius Black, will the couple withstand the pressure?

"That's all lies, I am afraid." Estrella said to them. "I am friends with him. That's it. So you can go and....blush and do all those look things you two do." Estrella said awkwardly to them. The two of them took their own copy and walked away giving Estrella jealous look.

She saw Cedric that a seat down quickly with his own copy of the Daily Prophet. "Apparently you saved me? How can I forget that?" Estrella sarcastically said.

However, he didn't replied with the usual chuckle. "I am really sorry. It's all lies, and you were dragged into this." Cedric said to her. She could see the complete guilt in his face.

Estrella shook her head. "You shouldn't clear things up with Rita. For what it looks like she loves making up a show and lies." Estrella said to him. Then she snorted as she read the line out loud. "it seems that he is seeking more than the snitch!" Estrella read out loud holding back a laugh. "I am not going to lie, this one was funny. She thought it through." She joked to him.

Then she leant on the table. "I know it's all lies. So all we can do is...?" She said to him.

"Set the record straight." Cedric said to her thinking along the same lines as her. "Still, doesn't make it right dragging your parents' name into this." Cedric said to her, hiding his anger well. However, she could see through his eyes how annoyed he was at it.

"We can drop the practicing if you want." Estrella noted, knowing that someone else would have ran away the opposite way to avoid the lies on the paper. However, Cedric wasn't anyone else.

He leant on the table with a bit of conspiracy look. "We can't let her win, now can we?" Cedric asked her. Estrella laughed at him, shaking her head.

"I had to ask." Estrella quietly said. Then her eyes darted to Hermione who was furiously waving her way. Cedric turned around as well, which caused Hermione to awkwardly wave back at him. He replied as well. "The question is how popular are you to the point they knew we met at the Quidditch World Cup?" She asked him, picking up her stuff.

Cedric wore a guilty look as he looked up to her. "Well, that might have been my fault. The first interview she asked if I knew you. I said, yes. Mentioned how we met, and that's it. Because we did." Cedric answered her.

Estrella shook her head. "It's not your fault she is a liar." Estrella said. The two of them remained in silence until she saw Lavender Brown walk up to Harry. She gave him a charming smile before giggle at him. Harry just gave her a polite nod back. Then she saw the Patil Twins pass next to him as her, wearing the same love struck look.

At this point Cedric had noticed her glare, and followed it. He snorted, seeing the scene and then Estrella's reaction. "Got a question for you?" Cedric asked her.

"Yeah?" Estrella replied, looking out for the upcoming students who were trying to get Harry's attention. Cedric held back the smile that was creeping in his face.

"You like Potter." Cedric said carefully. It was more like an statement than question. He didn't know if he needed to bring it up at all. Estrella's eyes moved to Cedric who couldn't contain the smile. "I wouldn't say a single thing. I promise." He said, raising his hand for her to accept the vow. "Although, the glare you are sending it makes it a bit obvious." He pointed out.

Estrella laughed at him, shaking her head. "Maybe..." Estrella admitted to him. Cedric's smile widen at the confession.

He rose from his seat, and nodded towards the trio on the Gryffindor table. He sent her a knowing look, which caused her to look down in embarrassment. "Meet you at lunch like usual?" She said not looking up.

"Yes." Cedric said to her. Estrella gathered herself before switching tables.

The other members of the Golden Quartet had already sat down. It didn't took long for her to notice the furious state Hermione was in. Just as in queue, some fellow Gryffindor stopped right next to Harry's left. She was about to speak, but Estrella cut her off by standing in front of her.

Harry then turned seeing Estrella standing over his shoulder. But before she could say anything else Harry stepped in. "It's all lies!" He blurted out. Hermione face palmed. "All of it, it's lies. I am not with Hermione." He said to her quickly, nudging Ron to move so she could seat.

Ron passed some food to Estrella as she sat down between the two boys. "I know." Estrella said calmly, which was complete opposite to Harry. She eyed Lavender Brown who walked up to Harry again. She was about to say something to Harry, but Estrella drew her attention to her. "I know because we are always together." Estrella said loudly so Lavender could hear.

Ron stopped eating, turning to face the brunette. She never used that tone before, both Hermione and him knew the reason behind it. Hermione even stopped being as angry as before as she heard Estrella's emphasis on 'together'.

Harry on the other hand didn't notice the reason. But it did seemed strange that she would pronounce it like that. "Yeah." Harry said agreeing with her.

The red-headed friend held a giant smirk, seeing the clearly defensive Estrella look at Lavender from over her shoulder. "Need something?" She asked casually said. Lavender, frowned at her, watching the brunette before tempting to speak with Harry.

"I need to speak with Harry." She said to her, sending her a smirk herself.

Harry looked completly confused on why she would. "Yeah?" He said to her, his voice wavering with uncertainty. Ron chuckled next to Estrella.

"You were so brave with the dragon. The way you caught the egg. It was..." She said dreamily to him. Estrella held back a laugh with Ron.

Harry moved on his seat. "Thanks?" He replied to her. This caused Estrella to lean closer to Harry to help him out.

"She has it for you." Estrella whispered to him. Harry didn't dare to move, knowing how close she was to him. Then she pulled back, just to see at Ron covering the face with his hand. He had seen Harry's reaction to Estrella, which wasn't helping. "What's so funny?" She said to Ron, seeing his body shake while a muffled laugh escaped him.

Lavender coughed, getting Harry's attention that had clearly been on Estrella. "Will you like to go to Hogsmeade?" Lavender asked him sending him a wink.

Harry looked down at his plate. "Umm..No, thank you." He kindly said. Lavender walked off with a defeated explanation. Ron chuckled loudly, not being able to contain it anymore. Hermione smacked the Daily Prophet in his head.

"Ronald! That's not nice!" Hermione said, delivering two more hits to his head. This broke him into a stronger set of laughs.

"Mate who knew fighting a dragon will give you more attention." Ron said in between laugh.

Estrella however, didn't laugh. She felt a slight anger towards the students who were crushing on Harry. She didn't blame them though. Harry was kind, and one of the nicest people at Hogwarts. But the fact that they hadn't noticed him before all of this, just left her with a bitter taste.

"You got to admit that is funny, Ella." Ron said finally calmly down.

"I don't think it's funny that it took him almost being eaten by a dragon to make him attractive. They are ignorant." Estrella said bitterly to them.

Harry turned to her once more. "I am not interested on them." Harry admitted to her. He wanted to set the record straight as quick as possible with her. Hermione hide behind the copy of the Daily Prophet, watching the conversation unfold between the two of them.

"Well good...because apparently all they want is fame. They are stupid if they can't see past that." Estrella replied to him quietly. Harry smiled at her words. "You should be with someone who loves you, not because of your name but because of your heart. Sure your eyes do help a bit, but what's the point of being with someone if they are unbearable?" Estrella explained to him.

"Do you think I am unbearable?" Harry asked her curiously.

Estrella shook her head wildly. "No. You are not. You are the complete opposite. You very lovable." She said with hesitation. Harry chuckled at her and looked down at the table. The two of them were blushing furiously.

"Too bad I already have my eyes on someone." He commented. He didn't were he had gotten the courage to say it. Estrella turned to look at him, and blushed thinking back at Ron's words on the tournament.

On the other hand Ron had gasped at Harry's words. He wasn't expecting that. His eyes darted between his two friends, waiting for the next line. Estrella gave a shy smile to Harry. "Well, so do I..." She said to him in return. Ron remained silent, waiting for her next comment, but were quickly broken by Pansy Parkinson who waltzed into the scene. Out of all the moments they had encountered her, Ron had never wanted to hex her even more.

"Well, dear Velazquez. I think Diggory is a better upgrade than Potter. I knew you can do better." Pansy said to them.

Estrella frowned, turning to her. "You wouldn't know, especially with your kind of taste." Estrella said to her with a small smile. "Has Malfoy said yes to Hogsmeade?" She asked her, knowing she was hitting a nerve.

Then the brunette looked at the Slytherin table. She was quick to spot that Draco had already been looking at her. "I mean, even Malfoy is far beyond your league I am afraid. He can do better than your toxic behavior." Estrella said to her. Then she turned back to Draco Malfoy and waved.

Pansy walk away from the table, leaving an amused Estrella behind. "I think you are quite the catch." Estrella said to Harry, causing him to choke on his drink.

Then she looked at the Weasley Twins that were down the table. "Forge, Gred." She called out to them, confusing some people around them. But the two of them looked up to their favorite person in the whole world. "You got some Dungbombs?" She asked them.

The two of them smirked, moving so they could come closer to her. "How many do you need?" Fred asked her, while George looked for them.

Hermione gasped at the two. "You carry them with you?" she questioned them. The Twins just laughed, handling two to Estrella. The brunette smirked, raising from the Gryffindor seat.

"What is she doing?" Hermione questioned them.

Ron sent her a look. "Bless whoever is their target." Ron said to her.

"Why?" She asked him in a hurry.

"Because she got the look." Ron said smiling at Hermione. All of them watched as she walked to the Slytherin table. Then when Pansy wasn't looking dropped the two Dungbombs in her bag and walked to where Draco Malfoy sat.

To everyone else it seemed as she had just casually came to speak with Malfoy, not pranking Pansy. Ron laughed at the scene, high fiving Harry who was proud of Estrella. "Hi Malfoy?" Estrella said casually to him.

Draco looked up to her confused. "What you doing here?" He asked her.

Estrella shrugged, flicking her wand behind her. Then she muttered 'Reducto' under her breath. The Dungbombs exploded inside Pansy's bag. She shrieked at the smell coming from her, and everyone else ran off.

Fred and George wore proud smiles at they watched the entire scene unfold. Draco did noticed what she did, but didn't say a thing. "Just came to say, that whatever you are reading the Daily Prophet is a lie." Estrella said to him.

"Why are you telling me this?" He asked both annoyed and confused.

"Because me and Cedric are telling everyone." She said before waving a goodbye at him. She took her seat back with Harry who didn't stop staring at her.

"You are absolutely amazing." He said as he smiled at her. Estrella laughed at him, ignoring the screams from Pansy. However, she didn't know that that Hufflepuff's prefect had seen her, but would not be ratting her out. Because everyone knew that Pansy deserved what she got.

Hermione shook her head, slamming the Daily Prophet back into the table. "You can't..." She began but gave up. She laid her head against the newspaper in shame.

"What is it?" Estrella asked her.

Hermione sat up and showed her the front cover of the Daily Prophet. "I saw it." Estrella said to him. Harry passed Estrella some toast, and then her favorite jam. She thanked him as she continued to look at Hermione. "What is it?" She asked again.

The witch began to read out loud the article. "Miss Granger, a plain but ambitious girl, seems to be developing a task for famous wizards. Her latest prey, sources report, is none other than the Bulgarian bonbon, Viktor Krum. No word yet on how Harry Potter's taking this latest emotional blow." Hermione read out.

Estrella held back a laugh. "Too bad I already interested in someone else." Harry said to them. Estrella smiled brightly at him.

"Who might that be?" Estrella casually asked him before taking a bite of her toast. Harry was about to reply but was cut off by some younger Gryffindor staring at him. Estrella turned to look at the kid, and gave him a kind smile. "Hi, how you doing?" She asked him.

The kid smiled back and nodded to the parcel he had in his hands. "Parcel for Mr. Weasley." He said to him.

"That's me." Estrella joked, and Ron grunted a reply. He turned as well looking at Colin Creevey.

"Don't listen to her. Thank you Colin." Ron said, sending an amused look to Estrella. The brunette just smiled back at him before going back to her toast. But the boy didn't leave, instead he kept staring at Harry.

Ron motioned him to walk away but he didn't. Ron sighed looking up at the young boy. "Not now, later." He mumbled.

Both Estrella and Harry looked at him confused. "I told him I will get Harry's autograph." He shyly said to them. Estrella chuckled at him, while Harry just politely waved goodbye at Colin.

Ron opened the parcel. "Oh look, mum sent me something" He said with excitement, but stopped when he saw the contents. Ron sighed, raising the dress robe to his chest as he looked at it.

"Well it does match your eyes." Harry said to him. Estrella giggle with him as Ron panicked. Harry reached around Estrella, looking through the box. "Is there a bonnet?" Harry asked before finding it. "Aha!" Harry said, lifting it up to his friend. The smile didn't waver.

Ron sighed looking down at Harry. "You look wonderful." Estrella kindly said to him, which caused Harry to laugh even more.

Ron shook his head, walking towards his sister. "Ginny, these must be for you." He said to her.

Ginny looked appalled at the statement. "I am not wearing that. It's ghastly." Ginny said to him.

Harry couldn't control his laughter. She looked over her shoulder at Harry. "Give him a break." She whispered to him.

"It's too good of an opportunity." Harry whispered back to her. Ron smacked him on the back as he as he passed.

Hermione sighed, picking up the letter that Ron forgot to open. Then she let out a small laugh of her own. "They are not for Ginny. They are for you." Hermione said to him. Then she looked up with a small smirk. "They are dress robes" She said to him.

"Dress robes? For what?" Ron asked her curiously.

"The Yule Ball..." Ella answered.

"A what? A ball?" Ron asked her in pure shock. "How do you know?" He asked her.

"Well, Mrs. Weasley did warn me beforehand so I could get my dress...and Professor Dumbledore might have mentioned it once or twice." Estrella said to him.

Ron sat back down in defeat. "Do we have to dance? And dress robes? How could nobody say anything?" Ron asked out loud.

"Because you don't listen." Hermione softly said. Estrella and Harry shifted so they could laugh between the two of them without earning a disapproving look from Ron.