Great story. I like your snarky sarcastic Harry, and the fact that this has a definite effect on canon. I will say I am wondering if Hermione survived the troll without Harry.
On the rant about the Daily Prophet. Historically, most newspapers/broadsheets were opinionated rags very much like the Daily Prophet. 'Unbiased' or 'balanced' journalism didn't arise until around the turn of the 19th century and the creation of the wire services like AP. Before then, there was usually a newspaper for every political party in every city, hence newspaper names like the 'Press-Democrat'. The problem with the Daily Prophet is that there is no serious opposition paper - the Quibbler doesn't count. There ought to have been one that was just as anti-Fudge as the Prophet was pro-Fudge. But, biased partisan newspapers would fit very well, if properly done, into the anachronistic, old-fashioned magical society described by Rowling.
All this being said, I don't think she was planning on making that historical allusion, which, of course, means that the Prophet should have upheld modern journalistic standards. I'm interested to see how you view in the impact of the unbiased paper in your story.