Katie sat in her room looking at the long list of ideas she had come up with for Harry's crazy project. It had been three days since her conversation with him and since then, her mind had been racing. Could it actually be done? Would people accept it? Was Harry completely insane? These were the things that filled her mind.
While she struggled with
her thoughts for the third day in a row, he moblie rang. It was a number she had not seen before.
"Hello," she said with a tone more like a question.
"Hey Katie. It's Harry. I told you I would get a mobile. Save this number."
"As soon as we hang up. So what's going on?"
"Are you available this afternoon?"
"Yeah. I've got a whole day of doing nothing planned."
"Great. Meet me at the Leaky at one this afternoon. We have a meeting to attend."
"I take it your idea intrigues him."
"More than intrigues. This isn't a meeting to see if we can pull this off. This is a meeting to discuss all the business aspects of everything. This is actually going to happen."
"I can't believe it. Who are we meeting with?"
"Lord Greengrass and Lord Davis, my account manager Goldfang from Gringotts, Daphne Greengrass, and Tracy Davis. Those two may be more excited than we are about this."
"So what should I wear. I don't exactly have nice robes."
"Don't need robes. Just wear something nice. Something professional if you've got it."
"What are you wearing?"
"Slacks, button down shirt, sport coat, and nice dress shoes."
"I think I have something I can use. So the Leaky at one?"
"Leaky at one. I'll see you there."
Katie hung up the phone and looked at the time. It was already ten in the morning. She had to hurry. She rushed into her closet and looked through here entire wardrobe. She had a lot of cute dresses and regular everyday clothes, but nothing that she could see that was professional. She found a pair of black slacks and a nice dark blue blouse that looked professional enough. She had a simple pair of black pumps that would go well with the outfit. Now all she had to do was style her hair. That is what took her most of her available time. Katie argued with herself for almost an hour about how to wear her hair. After losing many arguments with herself, she finally settled on just wearing it down.
"All that time just to do nothing with it," sighed Katie.
After a shower and getting dressed, Katie apparated just outside the Leaky Cauldron on the Diagon Alley side of the pub. She walked in with five minutes to spare and found Harry sitting at the bar drinking a pint. Katie looked him over and was impressed. Harry cleaned up nicely. His hair was long, but not outrageous, sitting just above his shoulders. It was not styled in the usual Potter uncontrolled style. It was combed back and looked tame. Harry's suit was black with a grey shirt. His shoes were clean and shined. And she noticed that he was missing his trademark glasses.
"Looking good Lord Potter," said Katie as she walked up to him. Harry turned to her and did not even hide that he was looking her over.
"You as well Ms. Bell. We really need to stop the mandatory robe crap. They hide way too much," Harry said with a grin.
"That they do. So how do I look?"
"Beautiful and professional. Now, Daphne and Tracy may want to give you advice because that is what they do. It's because of Tracy that I am in this suit."
"She has good taste then. And where are your glasses?"
"Only need them for reading now. It's a long story that we don't have time for today, but ask me again later and I will explain it. It is complicated. Now, are we ready to change the world?"
"Lead the way," said Katie, pointing to the Floo. The two walked over and Harry grabbed a pinch of Floo Powder.
"Greengrass Manor," said Harry. He threw the powder into the fireplace, allowing the green flames to burst up. A soft voice came through the fire.
"Who is it?"
"It is Harry Potter and Katie Bell ready to come through for our meeting with Lord Greengrass, Astoria," said Harry.
"Come on through I guess," said the younger Greengrass daughter. Katie went through first followed by Harry. Both came through without falling flat on their faces, which was a first for Harry.
"You finally figured it out," said Astoria with a grin. Harry looked around and noticed that the furniture had been moved out of the way of the Floo.
"And just as you learned to clear my landing path," replied Harry with a smile. "Astoria, this is Katie Bell. Katie, this is Astoria Greengrass. Watch out, she is trouble."
"Not always," retorted Astoria. "Daddy is in sitting room with Lord Davis, your account manager Master Goldfang, Daphne, and Tracy. If you will follow me."
The two followed the little blonde through the house. Greengrass Manor was big, but not ridiculously big. It had a formal dining room, a rather large library, a ball room, and the usual studies and 6 bedrooms. The art on the wall was spectacular. It was a mix of muggle and magical. The floors made of marble.
"Introducing Lord Harry Potter-Black of the Ancient and Most Noble Houses of Potter and Black, and his guest, Ms. Katie Bell," said Astoria as she walked into the sitting room.
"Really Astoria," said Lord Greengrass. "Why do you insist on doing that every time he comes over?"
"Because it annoys him," said Astoria with a grin. She walked out of the room while Harry and Katie found their seats on a couch.
"Do either of you care for something to drink," asked Lord Greengrass. "Water, wine, whiskey?"
"Water would do nice, Lord Greengrass" said Katie.
"None of that Lord crap in my house. I agree with Harry. It gets old quick. Call me Richard." Katie nodded in understanding.
"And call me Alex," said Lord Davis. "After all, we are trying to create changes here today."
"Exactly. And I'll save the whiskey for if this meeting goes well," said Harry. "Water will be fine for now."
A few moments later, the Greengrass house elf delivered the requested waters.
"Now that everyone is settled, let's get down to the reason we are here," said Richard. "Harry, the floor is yours."
"Thank you. Everyone in here knows why we are here. It has been discussed on individual levels, but not in a group. I want to bring change to our world. Change for the good and better. Not just change to force change. The wizarding world in the UK is stuck so far in the past, the muggles would be dumbfounded if they stumbled into Diagon Alley. Most muggle borns and muggle raised children are dumbfounded. One of the biggest issues we face are the pureblooded bigots and those so focused on keeping everything as it has been for centuries. I understand tradition, but some things that people say are traditional are really just a way to hold on to the past. Take robes for instance. I can understand wearing them in school and at Wizengamot sessions. Outside of those places, what is the point of wearing something that is not functional?"
"Not a damn thing," said Alex. "I'd be all for getting rid of them in the Mot as well."
"You should never see anyone in law enforcement wear them. They are more of a danger to the aurors than possibly the threat they are trying to engage. If I had been wearing robes during the last year, I would have died at least ten times. But for us to be able to bring change, we have to show those whose minds may be willing to change that there is a better alternative. That's what I want to do with the new alley. Introduce new ideas to our world."
"How would this alley bring change," asked Goldfang?
"By letting the witches and wizards of our generation and even the generation of Alex and Richard see that our world could be so much more if we make it so," said Katie. "We are the generations that fought a war against bigotry and hate. We are not a generation to just accept what is as what will always be."
"Well said Katie," said Richard. "Very well said. Alex and I have looked into what Harry wants to do, and there is nothing stopping him from pulling this off. But you all need to know what this will require to make happen."
"We have to work for it," said Tracy. "Harry fought and had to work to bring peace. And before you say anything, we know you didn't do it alone."
Harry just held up his hands as if to say "I didn't say anything". Everyone knew that he hated that it seemed like it was only him who was being praised.
"Goldfang, how much would it cost to by the entire alley, buildings and all," asked Harry?
"With some negotiations, I think I could get it for you around 17,000 galleons," said the goblin while looking like he was crunching very large numbers in his head.
"So a drop in the bucket for me," said Harry. "Good. Now the next part is what do we want to put in this alley to start with. We already know the restaurant I want to open. Fine dining with a very diverse menu. I like Katie's idea of a café and the nightclub as well. Daphne and Tracy would of course have their shop selling their clothing line. What else?"
"Before you get into all of this talk about what you want to place in the alley, you need to figure out the business model of how you are going to fund all of these grand ideas without having Harry as the one liable for it all," said Alex.
"I would recommend starting a corporation that then can be used to split each part of the plan," said Goldfang. "One part of the corporation will be for investing in the various businesses. The other will be for overseeing all the businesses that Harry will outright own. If you start any charities, then you can place them under the corporation as well."
"I feel we are going to need to find some people that are much smarter than us for that," said Daphne.
"We have financial planners at Gringotts. Goblins and witches and wizards who have incredible understanding of what I am proposing. You could also look into muggle borns who left the magical world and educated themselves in such things."
"So that will be step one. Alex, you are a solicitor, correct," asked Harry?
"I am, and I have a feeling I just gained a very wealthy client and will have to quit my current practice to focus on his needs. I think it will be rather lucrative for me," Alex replied with a large grin.
"So, before we move any further, why don't we end this meeting for now," said Richard. "I say we get the property bought first. Nothing else can happen if we don't do that. Alex, you can work with Harry on getting any legal documents needed to start hiring the financial and legal departments. While we are getting all of this set up, Harry, I want you and the others to see if you can find others to help support this idea. School mates. Families of friends. Use the connections you have made over the years. Also think about what other ideas you would want to see in the alley."
"I think you are going to need a name for the corporation and the alley," said Katie.
"Golden Light for the corporation and Phoenix Alley," said Harry. "I'm not dead set on the corporation name, but Phoenix Alley describes what we are doing. Out of the ashes of a war came something new and wonderful."
"We will definitely have to work on the corporation name. For now we will just list it as HPB Inc.,"said Goldfang. "That will allow us to get everything moving. Harry, if you will meet with me tomorrow at Gringotts, I believe we need to discuss how much you are wanting to transfer into this new venture."
"How does ten in the morning sound," asked Harry?
"I will see you at ten. Ladies and Gentlemen, I look forward to our next meeting and seeing the change you propose."
Everyone said goodbye to Goldfang and then split off into smaller groups to discuss their next steps. Harry met with Alex and Richard first while the girls discussed ideas for businesses and who they knew that may be helpful to making this dream a reality. After setting up meetings with Alex and Richard, Harry joined the girls who had a long list of parchment in front of them.
"So what have you three been doing," asked Harry as he joined the ladies?
"We have a few ideas of people that might be either willing to open businesses in the alley, or who may be beneficial to bring on to help promote and who may have ideas on other businesses," said Katie. "And these two have been telling me how they are going to completely rework my look."
"I think your look is just fine," said Harry.
"It's not that it is bad," said Daphne. "We just want her to be the best dressed Katie Bell possible."
"I'm not going to argue with them. I know it would be a lost cause," said Katie.
"So, there is a lot that needs to be discussed over the next week or so. One thing that just got brought to my attention is that I need to bring you all on to staff. I have no say in the matter, I have to be the CEO. Lucky me."
"This is your company. This is your idea. It is your money," began Tracy. "No one should be telling you what to do."
"That's what Richard said. However, he did say that I need to surround myself with advisors and consultants. That is where he thinks you three will be good to start. Once we get moving and get a better understanding of what we will be doing, we can reevaluate positions and how we want to move forward. I may be the CEO of this new thing, but I still want to oversee my restaurant. Daphne, Tracy, I know the two of you will want to run your shop. Katie, you have some ideas I know you would like to oversee."
"I say we focus on getting ideas for what we want to do for the initial opening of the alley," said Katie. "We don't need to have it filled. We just need to show that it is different and exciting."
"One position we will need to fill quickly will be a publicity officer," said Daphne. "Word of mouth is good, but we need to get everyone thinking about Phoenix Alley. That means reviews of the shops, interviews, things of that nature."
"And Daphne and I know just the guy for the job," said Tracy. "Do you remember Blaise Zambini?"
"Italian. Was never part of Malfoys minions. Always dressed good."
"That him. He actually loves spending time in muggle areas. He is huge into culture and everything fancy. He also knows a lot of people because of his mother's business. She is a professional event planner."
"Then I say set up a meeting, but after we get all this other stuff taken care of first. Anyone else?"
"Granger," said Daphne. "She is brilliant and is muggle born. She will have more opinions about this stuff than all of us."
"I agree," said Katie. "The one issue with Hermione is that you will have to keep her in check. She can sometimes go wild with an idea, but lose track of the bigger picture."
"I can keep her reigned in," said Harry. "We can meet with her around the same time we meet with Blaise. Now, for some fun news. Alex gave me an idea that sounds perfect for me, and I know the three of you will love it. We need to do some research."
"How is research supposed to be fun," asked Katie, not sure what Harry's ideas of fun were.
"I want Phoenix Alley to be diverse and worldly. I want all kinds of cultures to be represented, and I want to know what kinds of places people would like to go to. To do that, once we get the alley bought and staff hired to handle everything when we are ready to start building, we will be going on a four month research trip, all over the world."
The sound that came next had Harry wishing he had his golden egg from the TriWizard Tournament with him to open it. The sound from the egg would have been less painful on his ears. After getting the girls to stop destroying his eardrums, he told them to start looking into other people who may be able to help them make the most out of their new company. Harry had to prepare himself for the busiest month of his life. He was going to be running his own corporation, and he was like a fish out of water. He had no idea how he was going to do it, but damn it, he was going to make it work.
Chapter two done. Hooray! Who knew that Quarantine would provide so much free time? So, the next chapter will focus on peoples roles in the company and new additions to the team. Plus, Harry has an idea to just piss off the old men's club in the Mot.