Harry Potter and the Artificers Legacy
AN: Hello folks what is going on with all of you? This is an idea that has been stewing in my mind for way to long. It finally got to the point I couldn't take it anymore and had to put it out there. Artifice is put simply the creation and use of objects with magical properties and or origins. It's a branch of magic I find utterly fascinating and have long wanted to see a good Artificer Harry story. Of course lately I have gotten the urge to try and make one myself thus comes this work. I hope you all come to enjoy it and I can do it justice.
Disclaimer: Harry Potter and all associated characters, locations, events, and intellectual works are the legal property of J. K. Rowling, Bloomsburg Publishing, Arthur A. Levin Books, and Warner Bros. Pictures. Under the Copyright clause 107 (Fair Use) for the sake of parody, review, and nonprofit sharing I produce this work of fan made fiction which makes me no money and is done strictly for the sake of my own entertainment.
/
Harry sat up in his bed in the hospital wing of Hogwarts recovering after another recent brush with death this time in the form of a Thousand year old Basilisk. He was happy to have finally cleared his name and saved his friends sister from the clutches of that specter of course, he just wished it didn't leave him feeling like he had received third degree burns on his insides.
He quickly downed the cocktail of potions Madam Pompfrey had been feeding him at least one of which was supposed to numb the pain he was feeling. Casting his gaze around for something to distract him while the magical remedies took effect his eyes fell on a stack of magazines the first of which caught his attention. The title read Artificers Archive: Special Edition and had a moving picture of two people obviously twins with Messy black hair bent over a table tinkering with something or other he couldn't identify what, but what really made him curious was the caption reading.
'Honoring Mishra and Urza Potter, The twin gods of Artifice.' 'Potter? Could they be relatives of mine?' he wonders reaching over to pluck up the magazine. Opening to the first article he reads.
'In the long and winding history of Artifice few have ever met much less surpassed the staggering genius of the brothers Mishra and Urza (shown here unveiling the Silver golem Karn) who both innovated and revolutionized the field in a time of great turmoil. These brothers are famous for the creation of artifices that we still use to this day from the first invisibility cloak to the flying broom stick even rumors of having aided in the construction of Hogwarts itself! These brothers are considered the undisputed masters of Artifice even now centuries after their deaths.'
Harry was enthralled. Ancestors they may be but he now had a link to his family history. These brothers were his ancestors, people he shares blood with. Long curious about his family history he continues to read on about these twins and their accomplishments apparently doing enough in their lives to warrant an entire magazine about them and, he hoped, a lot more. By the time he had finished the magazine his second time through Harry had come to a decision. He would learn all he could about these Potter brothers and about Artifice that they were so famous for.
He was still trapped in the hospital wing for a few more days sadly but had managed to talk his friend Hermione into finding him some books on the subject that had now captured his attention. On the second day in a fit of insatiable curiosity she finally broke down and asked Harry what he was reading about.
"It's called Artifice Hermione. An Artificer is someone who practices the art of construction fine tuning and implementing items and artifacts of a magical nature. Everything from basic enchantments to living golems and more are products of Artificers." The bushy haired girl looked at him surprised.
"Harry I had no idea you were interested in something so complicated." She says truly impressed and happy her friend had finally found his desire to learn.
"It's not really that complicated to start with. From what I have read Artifice breaks down into three major categories. Alchemy, Enchanting, and Warding, each of which breaks down into sub categories for easier learning. Most modern Artificers Only learn a few of these branches and specialize in very specific artifacts like trunks, wands, robes, Etcetera. Master Artificers however are very rare. These are people who have learned all to use all of the fields together to create truly amazing constructions." The dark haired boy goes on to explain to his now flabbergasted friend.
"Harry, pardon me for saying this but, how did you learn all this?" She interrupts him truly curious. "I don't mean to sound mean but this is all quite advanced how do you even understand it? You have never struck me as that smart." She winces after saying that last part wishing she had chosen a better way of phrasing it but her friend seems unperturbed.
"It's alright Hermione really I know what you mean. Honestly I was surprised how much sense it made to me when I started reading it. I think I might just have found that thing that I'm good at is all. I'm not offended so you don't have to worry; I honestly agree I'm not that smart it's just that for some reason this all makes total sense to me. Even potions, my worst subject, seem to make perfect sense when I think of it as a branch of Artifice." He stops his ramblings before getting carried away and looks to his friend. "I just wish there was a way to study more of it in school. You know what I mean?"
Nodding her head Hermione suddenly remembers her original purpose for visiting Harry. "Oh that reminds me Professor McGonagall asked me to bring you this." She passes him a slip of parchment. "As third years we are allowed to sign up for several electives next year. I'm still deciding myself but maybe you can find something of use to you. According to the Professor several new courses are being offered next year that haven't been available in Hogwarts for decades. Just think of what we could learn!" She finishes getting very excited at the prospect of new things to fill her mind with and Harry looks over the list and sees quite a few classes that could help him in his new goal.
'Prospective third years are to designate up to four elective classes they would like to participate in for their remaining at Hogwarts. The following classes are available to all students.
Transmutation with Professor Elric- Learn the basics of Transmutation and alchemical arrays and their application.
Ancient Runes with Professor Babbling- Learn the ancient Runes and the methods by which they may be transcribed and utilized
Arthimancy with Professor Vector- Learn the subtle sciences behind the makeup and crafting of spells and enchantments
Care of Magical Creatures with Professor Hagrid- Learn all about the different magical creatures and how to treat them
Muggle Studies with Professor Burbage- Learn the confusing ways of Muggles including their curious use of electricity
Arcane Smithy with Professor Tsurugi- Learn the ancient techniques for making and shaping magically reactive metals
Spell Binding with Professor Scarlet- Learn the secrets of weaving together magical effects and binding them to objects
Divination with Professor Trawlney- Learn to open your mind's eye to the truths of the future.
'Other more advanced courses are available to older students'
Pausing looking at the choices Harry lamented his current limitations.
"Well this is annoying." He remarks catching his bushy haired friend's attention.
"What's the matter Harry?" She asks leaning over to look at his paper.
"I can't decide what to drop." He says. "Other than Muggle studies and Divination I want to take them all." He laments sadly. "Well I guess Care is not that important." He says crossing through it too. Hermione looks over the ones he is debating and is struck by an idea. Grinning broadly she turns catches her friend's attention.
"Well how about this Harry. You take Smithy and Transmutation and I'll take Arthimancy and Binding and we can share Runes and Care. You give me your notes from the two courses I don't take and I'll give you the notes from the two you don't take. Then it can be like were both taking all six!" Harry considers her proposal for a moment he would personally rather take the classes himself but what she was proposing did sound like the next best thing. Nodding happily he extends his hand to shake with her.
"You have a deal!" She ignores his hand and hugs him excitedly marking off her chosen courses and taking Harry's now marked paper she gathers her things and moves to the door.
"This is gonna be so great! I'll get these to Professor McGonagall right away. I'll be back in a few moments." She hurries out of the room with a skip in her step and Harry just chuckles shaking his head.
The last few days of the year were fairly uneventful. A bit more reading on Harry's part and catching up with what he had missed and before anyone knew it; it was time to get back onto the train and head home. Harry could only hope he would be able to make this summer productive.
As he was making his way to the Dursley's car however he realized that just like last year they were likely to lock up all his "freakishness" again leaving him in a bad place study wise so thinking quickly he slipped back away from his Muggle family and disappeared around the corner. The 3 mile walk to the Leaky Cauldron was annoying to say the least people constantly starring at the strange boy pushing a trolley full of the oddest things through the city but when he finally managed to disappear into the wizards' pub he was happy to find that no one was paying him any more mind. He quickly approached old Tom and rented a room for the summer allowing him to settle in and do his homework for the summer.
A few days into the summer Harry made the decision to seek out more knowledge on his family and set out for Diagon Alley to purchase books on artificers and inquire at the bank about any information left behind. His first stop was of course going to have to be Gringotts his pockets running light as they were. His entrance through the gleaming gilded doors of the large goblin bank was met once again by the familiar sight of many wizards being lead around by the goblin staff. As he made his way to an unoccupied window he noticed the goblin teller had his head down and his rather large nose buried in what looked to be an account book.
"Excuse me." Harry starts attempting to get the creature's attention and failing. He leans closer and tries again raising his voice slightly to be more audible over the din of the crowded lobby. "Excuse me could I have a moment of your time?" Finally hearing his customer the goblin looks up and quickly recognized the young Potter. Grinning toothily he marks and closes his book before leaning forward slightly and bringing his long fingered hands together.
"Ah hello Mr. Potter my name is Shatterscale. I assume you are here for the Will reading?" The goblin said with false cordiality his words throwing Harry off.
"Will reading?" He asks surprised. "Whose will is being read?" The goblin shuffles through some papers for a moment before finding the right one.
"That would be your recently passed grandfather lord Charlus Potter. Did your guardian not inform you of the reading?" The budding Artifice shakes his head and the Goblin grumbles under his breath. "According to our records he is here right now in the reading representing you. We best hurry if we want to get there before the will is unveiled." The Goblin hops down from his stool and leads Harry off to the side towards a set of carts pointing not towards the vaults like last time but to the back of the Bank where Harry guessed the legal matters were handled.
Speeding off like usual in the carts was somewhat unsettling but after his time playing Quidditch Harry was more than able to handle it and after a minute of jerking around corners at almost literal break neck speeds the cart rapidly decelerated and they stopped outside a rather modest looking office door. The little goblin leads Harry inside and he found himself in a room holding only three other people, a Man in a suit, a young looking house elf and Headmaster Dumbledore.
"Headmaster?" Harry spoke up surprised to see the man here. Looking back at the dark haired young man the professor blinks surprised and stands to greet him.
"Harry my boy what are you doing here?" He asks thinking quickly trying to figure out what was going on. "Shouldn't you be home with your family right now? I'm sure your family is worried sick about you." He gets up and moves over to check on the young Potter.
"They're just fine Headmaster but what's going on here?" He waves the older wizard off looking around the office. "I was here to take out some money to go shopping and I hear about a will reading. I'm completely lost." He aged headmaster sighs sadly.
"I was hoping to tell you about this later what with the events of the last month but I suppose you will learn it soon enough. Your grandfather, James' father passed on a few days ago. We are here to receive his final will and testament." He pats the boy on the shoulder. "I was planning to take the burden for you for now and help you sort through it all at a better time." Harry was about to respond when the small goblin at the front of the room beckons to them.
"While I am certain you both have much to discuss we are running low on time and the Will must be read now so if you would be so kind as to take a seat." The goblin motioned sharply to the few chairs that occupied the room and the two nodded taking seats next to one another. As they sat down the goblin removed the sheet from a portrait that upon having the base of the frame tapped sprang to life.
"I Lord Charlus Potter the second being of sound body and mind to hereby declare this my last will and testament to be enacted in full upon my death. Being that my wife and son have both superseded my own passage into death it stands that my sole inheritor of all my worldly possessions as well as my Official Title and all the rights, responsibilities, and privileges." The portrait began addressing the room while not actually seeming to take notice of the occupants. "As with tradition Harry will not be eligible for full lordship until his sixteenth birthday however He will granted access to both the full contents of the family vaults in Gringotts as well as Potter Manor and the outlying properties. Harry if your there then listen to me closely." The image in the portrait leans forward seriously. "Being a lord is not all fun and games there is a very big responsibility not just to the people you represent but to the family you head. As the new Lord Potter it is up to you to lead and guide the family to greater wealth and prosperity in whatever way you see fit. You're a Potter that means you can do anything you want so long as you are willing to work for it. I wish I could have been there to help you grow up Harry I'm sorry I never got to know you. I hope you can accept an old man's apology. It's all yours now my boy make of it what you will." As the image leans back to its original posture all motion stops and it returns to being a simple motionless portrait.
"Everything?" Harry tilt's his head confused. "What does he mean by everything?" The goblin at the front approaches the boy with a rather simple looking ledger thumbing through it himself.
"The Potter family was one of the Most Noble and Ancient houses in England. This is of course more a statement of history rather than actual titles. While the family was quite wealthy and influential they have never truly sat at the top of the board so to speak." The goblin hands the book to the boy opened to the front page. "In terms of liquid assets the Potter fortune sits comfortably at an estimated twelve million galleons rounded down of course. In terms of properties there is the ancestral Potter Manor and outlying lands upon claiming your lordship you will also be held responsible for the town that resides upon your Manor's land. The property your parents inhabited at Godric's hollow has been reclaimed by the city and converted into a memorial site. There is also a modes vacation home in the Caribbean."
The goblin skips over a few pages for Harry and points to a small list. "The Potters also hold a handful of patents on commonly distributed Artifices such as enchanted trunks, magical robes and the like which offer a fairly steady income." The goblin closes the book and passes it to Harry. "These are of course only the assets that Gringotts is aware of I advise consulting any ledgers or documents you find at your late grandfathers manor. Now if that is all you have to ask it would be best if this room were vacated immediately so that it may be cleaned and prepared for any other business." Both wizards are shooed out hastily by the little creature and Harry just stairs at the book in his hands before turning to his Headmaster.
"I'm going to need to talk to you Headmaster Dumbledore." The aged wizard nods having been about to say the same thing.
"Of course my boy I'm sure we can get a private place to discuss this sad business over at the cauldron. Come with me." Harry follows his Headmaster and interjects his thoughts.
"I actually already have a room booked that we can use. I've been staying there a few days now." Dumbledore looks surprised at the child's ingenuity and as they reach the pub follows the boy to his room. As the door shuts behind them the old wizard locks the door and places several privacy wards around the room before sitting at the small desk in the room while Harry takes a seat on the bed.
"Now I'm sure you have quite a few questions my boy I will do my best to be as helpful as possible however there are just some matters to which I am not privy." Harry nods and collects his thoughts for a moment before he begins with probably the most unpleasant of questions.
"Why couldn't I have been left with my grandfather?" The aged headmaster sighs sadly and looks to Harry sympathetically having expected that question at some point.
"I'm sorry Harry, Charlus would have been a fine option and in fact I had been planning on moving you to his custody after all the legal work following your parents passing was dealt with. Sadly the grief of losing his children, because he did see your mother as his own was too much for him. He was after all quite old even by my standards and heartache of that level can take its toll on even the most vivacious youngster. By the time the Funeral was done and all arrangements had been made Charlus was far too ill to care for you." The old wizard's shoulders sag sadly knowing that he could not truly comfort the child and Harry hung his head for a few seconds before asking his next question.
"Can I go see the Manor Please? I want to see where my family lived." Dumbledore perked up somewhat at this question.
"Of course you can my boy it is yours after all. I will make the preparations and we can leave within the week." The headmaster begins making plans for the visit hoping the boy will be able to connect to his family even if only just.
"One last question Headmaster," Dumbledore is somewhat unsure what more the boy could ask but was ready to answer. "Can I not go back to the Dursley's this summer?" Confused the old wizard presses further.
"Why on earth not my boy surely you miss them by now." Dumbledore insists only for Harry to shake his head furiously.
"No! I don't want to see those horrible people again. Headmaster I'm tired of it all." The older man puts a hand on the boys shoulder.
"What do you mean Harry? What are you tired of?" The dark haired boy sobs quietly and after a moment begins to break down laying it all out for the Headmaster the insults, the beatings, the starvation, the humiliation, the neglect, all of it. By the end of it the old wizard was green with guilt.
"I never knew." He mumbles hating himself for missing it all. "All this time I should have known oh Harry I'm so sorry for forcing that on you so young I…" he pauses unsure of what he can do. "I'll find someone else who can care for you perhaps Molly will take you in." He stops to think. "Maybe a nanny to look after you at the manor." The old wizard begins pacing back and forth trying to come up with a solution while the green eyed boy watches already becoming happy to be away from the Dursleys. "No no no that won't do you need a parents touch not a nanny. I'll just have to Owl Molly straight away. Harry," he turns back to the boy with a determined gleam in his old eye. "You will be staying here for the time being while I make arrangements with Mrs. Weasly to look after you till you are old enough to live on your own. This may delay our trip to your ancestral home but I promise we will be seeing it soon." Harry nods understandingly.
"I'm very sorry but I can't stay I need to have this all handled soon and I also have several obligations with the Wizengamot. I'll send someone over to check on you in the next few days. Do be careful please in the mean time." And with that the old wizard left the room and hurried to the floo to tend to his other duties.