Raven stepped onto the streets of Voronagrad, looking around and sighing wistfully. The sight of skyscrapers reaching up into the air was truly a sight to behold. Platforms extend outwards, allowing carriages to move to and fro.
A monorail poked through several buildings, its tracks weaving in a way that would have been deemed impossible by muggle engineers. Walking down the streets, he drifted towards several vendors peddling their wares. Eyeing the stall with glowing crystals, he walked closer to have a look, and was immediately greeted by an old hag smiling brightly.
"Welcome! Welcome! Anything catch your eye, mister…"
"White," Harry answered with a polite smile. "You have a lovely shop, miss."
"Greta. Thank you, I consider myself quite fortunate to have been granted a permit here. Why, our lives have changed much for the better. Without the loan, I couldn't have hoped to start this business!"
"Loan?" Raven asked curiously, causing the woman to chuckle.
"Yes, small business loans, I pay back in installments, but the interest rates are fair. This new government is wonderful, and and it's all thanks to the Raven."
"Who knows, you might meet him one day," Harry pondered mysteriously. "Perhaps you've spoken to him already. Perhaps I'm him."
Both shared a laugh, even if only Harry's contained a tinge of amusement.
"Can you tell me a bit about the crystals? I think I have a friend that might be interested in them."
"Ah, a young lady catch your eye, perhaps?" she asked shrewdly. He shook his head, laughing easily.
"More of a sister in arms, if you get my drift," he answered. "I was hoping to see if you had any more oriental wares."
"Oh I do! I do," she assured quickly, flipping several levers and causing the racks of shelves to rotate until a large selection of jade amulets, carved with varying levels of intricacy. He inspected several promising ones closely, yet couldn't find any that truly stood out. "Do you have a piece of jade? I would rather like to carve myself. Make the gift truly personal, you see."
"Oh, you're lucky! I've just had a shipment come in waiting to be carved. How big a piece do you want it?"
"Probably...a piece this big? Imperial Jade A," he drew a box in the air, causing her to frown, doing some mental calculations before nodding. "I can pay."
"I'll sell you eight of those for one hundred galleons."
"That's…" he did some mental calculations. Remarkably, he seemed to be getting a rather fair deal, assuming the materials were truly their promised quality. "A deal, though I'd like to inspect it before, of course. Do you also happen to have any tungsten?"
"Tungsten?" she giggled. "Prices are admittedly lower these days since a flood of them were released from stockpiles to be sold...how much do you want?"
"How much do you have?"
"Probably...in the region of ten kilos? I know a few friends who might wish to offload their supplies as well. I'll cut you a deal, buy five hundred and I'll sell at two galleons six sickles a kilo. The guild has about that much, though no one's buying recently."
"Two galleons two sickles and I'll buy any amount you can supply in the next six months," Raven promised. The hag's eyes gleamed, and she quickly agreed, lighting up a floo terminal and calling, "Jeweller's guild."
"Bathesda! Bethesda! Answer damnit!"
"Greta! What is it?"
"How much tungsten do we have in the guild?"
"Let me check...four hundred and eighteen kilos worth, why?"
"We have a buyer who'll take it all. Two galleons, two sickles a kilo."
"That's...great! Give me thirty minutes, I'll have the lot shrunk down and sent to you via owl," The woman on the floo quickly promised before turning it off. Amused, Raven knew he could have probably negotiated a lower rate, but frankly couldn't be bothered. He was rich beyond belief, what purpose would squeezing an honest merchant do?
"Excellent, and the Jade?"
"One moment...one moment," the hag waved off, opening a cabinet, pulling out a safe and inserting a series of numbers. "Ah, there we go."
Pulling out a silk sachet, she handed it to him. Carefully taking out each piece, he was surprised by the remarkable luster, almost translucent emerald. Inspecting each piece for flaws, even his trained eye could find none, and he nodded, handing over the galleons for the pieces.
"I'll be back in...a few hours for the tungsten. Again, if you can find anymore in that time, I'll happily buy it up."
"Of course, of course, anything in the alley you're looking for in particular?"
"A wand shop would be nice, I'd prefer to explore everything else on my own, see the sights, experience it first and all that."
"A wise choice," the hag nodded sagely, "the city truly is worth discovering. Do make sure to stay the night, the festivities are truly out of this world. Go down this sidestreet until you hit the man one, turn right and go three blocks straight, take a left turn at the big golden statue and go down another block and you should be at the wand maker's guild."
"Thank you," Harry inclined his head in acknowledgement, proceeding down the streets in the direction the hag had instructed. Along the way, he saw families of humans, goblins, vampires, veela, fae, druids and dozens more creatures all merrily going about their own business. Several guardians adorned in black trench coats patrolled the streets, clearly vigilant, yet still with a friendly smile on their faces, the emblem of the BMU proudly on their arms.
He passed by several quaint cafes, bustling with patrons, several book store and a gnome bank. Turning the corner, he reminisced fondly upon seeing the parliamentary building, a rising tower formed from three prongs holding a large glass orb on its pins. It had not been long ago that had handed over the keys to the new government, yet it still filled his heart with pride, knowing he had a small part to play in its creation.
The main street was bustling, filled with colourful signs luring guests into their shops. He spotted a particularly large building with a plaque reading 'The Continental Hotel' dwarfing most other buildings and taking the equivalent of roughly eight storefront.
Other shops selling goods of all types were present: flowers, potions, books, specialist equipment of all types, robes, herbs, alcohol, confectionary...and those were the signs he bothered reading. He found himself staring at the storefronts, often filled with large displays of the goods being offered.
"Moiseur, a massage?" a veela holding a sign in front of him offered. He declined with a polite shake of the head, and she nodded in acceptance, moving on to her next potential customer. Continuing down the main street, he couldn't help but be drawn into a particularly large yet relatively empty candy store. Wandering the shelves, he was greeted by candies of all shapes, sizes and colours. Some were even animated, wiggling or fluttering about in their see-through containers.
"Welcome to Wonka's, sir, finest purveyor of candies in the world! How can I help you today?"
"I'm admittedly clueless to all this," he chuckled, causing her to raise a questioning eyebrow. "Never had much sweets as a child, thought I'd change that."
She offered a sympathetic look, quickly grabbing several pieces of candies from various containers and putting them in a cup, handing it to him. "Well not on my watch! This one's on the house."
He ate through them, savouring the flavours. While strong for his taste, it was a far cry from the monotonous meals of borsh he had been accustomed to in the Fortress, and he could not deny there was a certain appeal to them. He particularly enjoyed a red globe that glittered while fizzing in his mouth before blasting out an explosion of juices, he shock something the girl giggled at before offering him a napkin sheepishly. "Give me a box of the...berrybooms, two packs of tonguenippers and six chocolate fountains."
"Excellent choice, that will be...four galleons and six sickles," she calculated, wrapping up his purchases. While internally surprised by the price, he happily paid, leaving an extra two sickles as a tip to the extremely grateful girl before leaving the store with several shrunken packages tucked safely in his pocket.
Continuing on his merry way, he passed by a fortune teller's store, and turned slightly to see the large golden fountain containing a stature his masked self, holding a torch while looking to the sky. Distinctly Soviet influenced, he couldn't help but chuckle at the detailing, which was disturbingly close to his proportions. Below the foot of the statue, fountains sprayed in an ornate pattern, jets of water moving to a softly playing tune. Taking several moments to merely admire the work, he continued on his way taking a left turn and wandering down this particular side alley before seeing the two wands crossed over, no doubt the insignia of the wandmakers' guild.
Stepping in, he could see long queues formed at the various counters, though one remained largely empty. As he walked closer, he could see why, this 'fast lane' requiring five galleons for access. Quickly paying the amount, he joined the queue, observing a small aristocratic family in front of him as the young child struggled to contain his excitement while his parents were torn between amusement and annoyance.
Their family was called up, leaving him in thoughtful silence as he observed the grand chamber, which had at least fifteen queues. He was surprised several lines consisted only of creatures of a particular race, and wondered if more resonant equipment was being supplied here. Seeing a goblin wielding his magically charged axe leaving with a grin, he confirmed this to be the case.
"Welcome," a soft voice intoned, beckoning him forward. Continuing down the small corridor, he gently opened the door in front of him and walked into the large booth, where a wizened old woman sat patiently. "Today you will be guided to seek an instrument of magic. Will it be a wand? A stave? Or something else entirely?"
She pulled out a piece of wrapped cloth and unfurled it, revealing several woods, encouraging, "Feel. Do any call to you?"
Raven concentrated on his magic, reaching out with his aura as he hovered his hand over each, feeling minor resonance yet none he could truly appreciate. Sensing this, she swapped out the selection of woods for another, and ran his hands over the cores, frowning when two of the woods seemed to hum with equal intensity. Picking up one with each hand, he handed them to her. "These two."
"Fascinating...there has never been a dual caster since…"
"Grindelwald, I'm aware," Harry answered. Nodding mutedly, she stowed the other woods, before taking out a small trunk and placing it in front of him. He reached out with his aura, to his surprise, finding a strand of glittering hair resonating with him. Reaching out more, he frowned when he couldn't sense another, and waited for the second trunk.
Reaching in, he probed the magical projections of each item, but found none that harmoniously resonated, and shook his head, teaching into the third trunk, and smiled, pulling out a bottle of black mist.
"An...interesting selection. African blackwood and salmwood, devil's mist and angelic hair. An...interesting selection. Do you have a preference?"
"Blackwood with the mist, salmwood with the angelic hair," Harry answered after several moments of thoughts, feeling that it was the best course. He would have two extremely specialised wands, one light and one dark. The irony wasn't lost on himself. He sat patiently, hearing several bangs and feeling the chaotic magic occurring as the wands were being made.
Several hours later, she came out, looking none too pleased. He raised an eyebrow, inspecting the wands before instinctively musing, "They are incomplete."
"You can sense it," she queried, a modicum of respect forming in her eyes.
"I believe a bit of blood will do," Harry commented, causing her to nod stiffly and hold out a dish. "I trust the unused portions will be disposed of properly?"
"You have my word," the woman nodded, as though offended by the implications of the question, and took the two wands band to her working area, soaking them in the blood and channeling her magic through it, encouraging a melding of the components. When she returned, he didn't need to touch them to know they were perfect resonances, and taking each one in his hand brought him to a sense of completion.
"Thank you," he bowed, causing the woman to nod with a tight smile.
"It was a pleasure making your wand, sir. Simply walk back the way you came, you'll be directed to the salon, where you can purchase accessories and pay for the wands." Feeling the dismissal, he bowed once again, before leaving the room, continuing down the corridor and pushing through, entering a cosy, fireplace warmed saloon with dozens of people drinking, while in one corner, there was a large shop, on display several wand holsters, canes and other accessories to add to the wand. Stepping over there, he browsed the wand holsters, picking out two after trying several for size and design.
He passed by several additions, including 'tail ends' to the wand that included decorative charms and other strange tassels, reaching the cashier and ringing up his purchases.
"That will be fifty six galleons for the wand, seven for the two holsters," the clerk replied. Harry paid the man, receiving a receipt, and strapped on his holsters, placing his wands snugly in them and walking out back into the alley. He supposed that there were less prestigious wand makers for those unable to afford such a high price.
The smell of pastries wafted in the air, and he couldn't help but follow the scent past several shops, reaching a food cart selling sweet wraps.
"Welcome! Welcome! Care for Trdelník, my friend? Full satisfaction or your money back," the cheerful shopkeep offered, pointing to several round pastries coated in sugar. "Made with fresh walnuts, I pasted them this morning myself!"
"I'll take one," Harry agreed, handing over three sickles and receiving a wrapped pastry in return. Biting in it, he couldn't help but let out a satisfied hum, causing the man to beam. "This is delicious, tastes better than the one I got when visiting Hungary!"
"You're too kind, good sir. Have a wonderful day!" Offering a wave to the man, Harry slowly traced his way back, allowing himself to drift into a book store, this one rising twenty stories high into the sky, windows gleaming imperiously.
Stepping inside, he was surprised to see at least hundreds of racks of books with labels at the ends signalling what topics they were on. 'Household charms', 'Muggle Romance', and 'Fairytales' were the ones closest to him. Wandering in, he picked up a hamper before approaching a directory, consulting it to see that floors were split in general into subjects, and decided to head to the fifteenth floor on exotic magics and rare tomes and work his way down from there.
Ascending the staircase, he was surprised just how many patrons the bookstore had, visible through the glass staircase. As he arrived at the higher levels, the crowds finally began to thin out, though most rows had at least two to three separate groups of patrons looking at books.
Scanning through the first few rows, he found nothing that caught his eye, though in the sixth he passed, he found a rather dusty looking tome in Greek that read 'chaos magic'. Intrigued, he picked it up, and opened the book, scanning the first few pages.
Pleasantly surprised, Harry inspected to see it was an original, for which replication charms apparently didn't work. He placed it in his hamper and continued searching. Alas, most of the books on this level seemed to be first editions of this or that, something he couldn't care less about, though there were several gems he didn't hesitate on taking off their cabinets and stowing. He picked up a few books on rare charms and magics from different parts of the world, before descending down a level below and nearly laughing at the irony when he read 'runes'.
For humour's sake, he browsed through the selection, impressed by the depths some would go into, though none truly enlightened or inspired him, causing Harry to soon descend again to the thirteenth level, titled 'history'.
Intrigued, he browsed through the selection, picking up a few on the Great War, some on the Americas and colonisation, two on african magics and some on ancient magical societies. He couldn't help but load on to several dozen books on the rise of magical China, Taiwan, and Japan, despite the small library worth of expensive tomes Jade had already gifted him.
Descending down a level, he found himself in the section on Magizoology. Picking out several introductory guides, he resolved to learn more about creatures, something he had definitely neglected beyond the basics of how to terminate most. His eyes almost lit up when he saw one in Russian entitled 'Evolution and Mutation after Chernobyl', which immediately went into his hamper.
Descending down a level, he picked up a beginner's guide on astronomy, suspecting he would need at least a foundational knowledge, before descending down another level, and smiled.
'Combat magic and duelling'. While Raven would be the first to believe he was adept at magical combat, that did not equate to success in wanded combat, nor even duelling, the latter of which would be likely used far more often. He happily selected out a self-updating book on international duelling regulations, several books on basic and advanced spells and several analysis books on famous duels and duellers. He found several pensieve memories bottles stored carefully in racks, and pulled a copy of each, stowing the thirty or so into his hamper, which's counter now read twenty seven galleons. He chuckled, supposing he was overspending a bit, but today was a day of indulgence. It was not always one went on their first shopping trip, afterall!
Descending another level, Harry observed the label 'Social Studies and Theory' and observed the directory, seeing the levels immediately below were 'Muggle Studies' and 'Sports'. Picking a few books to brush up, even if he suspected that culture training in the Union had prepared him sufficiently well for all aspects of economics, politics and international relations in both the muggle and magical world, he conceded to selecting a few more sports books, important for integrating himself in magical society.
Skipping the fiction section entirely, he reached the fifth level, which read herbology. Again, he selected a few books he knew he needed to read. He knew herbology would never truly captivate him, but perhaps he could at least have a basic understanding. Memorisaion was one of his strengths, afterall.
Continuing downwards, he found himself in the potions section, and it was here where he picked up large quantities of books, explaining the properties of ingredients, the reasons for processes and more. Well over twenty books placed inside later, her returned to the glass staircase and descended.
The third floor was dedicated to transfiguration, something that Raven had admittedly very limited training in. Battle transfiguration, which he practiced, was fundamentally different from mainstream transfiguration in that it focused on speed, while the mainstream focused on accuracy and scale. He suspected much time would be spent adapting to these new parameters.
On the second floor, dedicated wholly to charms, he forced down annoyance and selected books on all sorts of charms, ranging from the mundane to the outrageous. Few charms had much practical use in everyday life, the useful ones likely having been mentioned in texts in magical combat already. Still, it was part of the curriculum, and he would not allow himself to fall back in any subject.
Satisfied with his purchase of around seventy books, he approached the counter on the first floor and paid for his packages, arranging for them to be sent to his apartment downtown. Despite forking over eighty galleons, he was pleased with his purchase, and continued his leisurely journey, arriving at a clothing store that proudly announced the sale of Durmstrang and Koldovstoretz uniforms.
Entering, he waited patiently in a long queue until his turn was called, and he was ushered into one of several booths, where a tailor greeted him, "Welcome to Foron's Finest and Fittest, how may I help you today?"
"I want three sets of Durmstrang robes, two cloaks, and a set of dress robes. No enchantments?"
"Are you sure, sir? Enchantments here are very affordable, the best deals you're going to get."
"I want them to do them myself for a project," Raven answered, causing the man to let out an 'ah'. "Before you ask, I trust you on the dress robes."
"Surprisingly few are willing to trust, sir," the man chuckled humorously, pulling out a measuring tape and taking several measurements. "Budget?"
"Nothing too outrageous, in the range of thirty galleons for the dress robes," he answered, causing the man to nod thoughtfully.
"Can you do thirty five? I've got some fine vicuña that came in from the Americas. Extremely comfortable and stylish. A lovely shade of brown."
"That sounds...very tempting," he admitted, feeling the material the man handed for him to test. "I'll take it, but I want another robe in traditional black as well. What materials would you have for that, and how much?"
"Dragon's silk, imported from China. Very soft and durable, perfect for enchantments as well. If you take the vicuña I'll do it at cost, around ten galleons, undershirt, pants and everything."
"Excellent, I do believe we have a deal," he agreed, causing the man to nod happy and shake Harry's proffered hand. "That brings the total to...fifty two galleons seven sickles?"
"Yep," the man nodded happily, holding a hand up just as Harry was about to pull out his wallet, "say, you're interested in enchanting, right? I could sell you a piece of unenchanted demiguise material. It'll cost a pretty knut, but you seem to be doing well for yourself."
"How much do you have?"
"I can probably get you...two full cloak's worth. A three hundred galleons for them." At Harry's surprised look, the man chuckled, "This stuff is rare, and enchanting it does bring a pretty premium, you see?"
"I'll take them both, but do you have any already enchanted?"
"I'll check," he picked up a ledger and scrolled through it before nodding. "A single cloak left, we sold the other eight last week. The Ministry wanted them and paid a pretty premium for them. Five hundred galleons."
"I'll take it," he quickly agreed, knowing how rare any invisibility cloak was. Jade had been unable to procure one for herself despite being the minister's daughter when demiguises were from China, counting out the galleons and handing it over, making sure to add fifteen on the top for the man's services.
"Much obliged, sir," the man bowed his head, before quickly setting to work on cutting the material and making it into a robe. Harry watched fascinated as several enchanted tools automated much of the process, expediting the process. By the time an aide had walked into the stall handing over the standard Durmstrang robes and cloaks, the tailor had finished with both dress robes and was near completion of the second set of pants. Observing the process until its completion, he happily took the shrunken down packages and waved goodbye to the tailor before leaving the bustling store and entering back into the alley.
He noticed the sun starting to set, and to his amusement, fairies began dancing atop the streets, their lights illuminating the streets. Eyeing a small grocer, he entered it and bought a cup of berries, walking out and whistling, attracting several fairies' attentions and waving the cup of fruit.
With high pitched squeals, several dived towards him, hovering in front of him with their wings fluttering as he handed them each a strawberry, which they munched on with speed that should not have been possible for creatures barely bigger than the fruit they devoured. Licking their lips, they giggled, offering a cheerful wave before flying back up to resume their dancing.
"I want to feed the fairies too!" he heard a girl beside him complain to two pained looking parents. Seeing their robes were slightly haggard, he smiled pleasantly, interrupting an imminent denial, offering the cup to the girl.
"You can have my cup, I'm in a rush so I can't feed all the fairies. But you have to promise, you'll go around and feed them all, okay?"
"Pinky promise," the girl swore, holding her pinky out. Amused, Raven reciprocated, watching the girl run off being chased by his father. The mother remained at his side, fumbling for her money pouch.
"There's no need for that ma'am, I assure you."
"Nonsense, good sir, I can't in good conscience accept it for free!"
"Blessed are both who give and who receive. I would like to think, that the world would be a better place if we all cared more for each other. I've lived with nothing before; how can I in good conscience not share my newfound wealth?"
"Thank you," the woman offered profusely, shaking his hand before running off to catch up with his family. Amused by the interaction, he was surprised that he didn't feel any pang of jealousy, merely joy at seeing such innocence flutter in the world.
Continuing down the alley and back to the hag's stall, he saw her visibly breathe a sigh of relief and grin, waving at him. Returning it, he went up, apologising, "That took longer than expected, my apologies."
"Nonsense, nonsense, young men like you have the world ahead of them, old hags like me are in no rush."
"Regardless, you still have my apologies, do you have the materials?"
"I managed to do you one better. The guild reached out with contacts in Russia and Germany, if you want, I've got two tons worth of tungsten." Harry let out a whistle, causing the hag to chuckle, blushing slightly. Quickly pouring out the agreed upon amount, he left a hefty bonus that caused the hag to insist he take several more crystals with him, before cheerfully waving him goodbye.
Continuing down the other side of the alley, he found a small Italian restaurant, and entered, amused to see several lixes manning the counter, wearing nets and protective clothing to prevent their fur from dropping into the food. Sitting down at an empty table, a menu popped in front of him.
While he knew from culture lessons of the various foods, he admitted that he had never actually tasted risotto among other things, and ordered a serving of truffle and mushroom risotto, along with a small serving of lasagna and a plate meatballs.
Sitting in the booth, waiting for his food, idly listening into conversations while enjoying the aroma of the air, he couldn't help but reflect how fast things had changed. It had been scarcely a week since the Union's fall, and yet here he was, living a completely different life. It was sobering.
When the food arrived, he happily dug in, finding that while the risotto was a tad undercooked and thus slightly too firm, but the meatballs had a hearty, almost overwhelming taste and the lasagna was done to perfection.
He ate slowly, savouring each bite of the food until he was finished. Already slightly full, he nevertheless could not help but look at the desert menu, and ordered a scoop of fresh gelato as well as a tiramisu. He was pleased to see that the food arrived expediently once again, and both tasted exquisite. When he finished, he paid a happy three sickle tip on top of the sixteen he owed for the meal, and left with a full stomach.
Disapparating with a pop, he returned to his comfortable downtown apartment's balcony, which had a scenic view of the entire capital. Setting down his purchases, he sat on a couch and pulled out a book on charms, beginning to read.
Author Note:
We finally get to explore a bit of Voronagrad. It's probably the stark contrast to the cosy, medieval feeling of Diagon Alley, being built from the ground up so recent in history. We also get to see Harry just being a teenager for once, which is...certainly odd for this story, no? We'll be heading to Durmstrang next chapter, so be prepared for a whirlwind with that.
Before we go on, I wanted to thank you all for the incredible support this story has recieved thus far! Over 800 visitors and 3500 views in 8 days! I'm honestly humbled that so many of you deigned to read my work, hopefully you're all enjoying it as much as I am writing it. I definitely plan on continuing the story long into the future, with at least Harry's three years at Durmstrang, one year at Hogwarts for the tournament and possibly a bit of politics beyond that. I can't see the war in Britain concluding neatly by the end of Harry's final year, and I want to at some point make the conflict somewhat global and explore more of the magical world outside the UK. I'm making a pact with you right now we're going to see a war with Harry commanding it at least several battles. Hopefully this will come to fruition, I'm definitely far more invested in this story than any I've written prior, and by your reception is seems the crowd agrees. Onto the state of things: I've plotted out his first year at Durmstrang, and I'm hoping we're going to complete that before the end of July, though we'll see.
An excellent point brought up Dragonhitter, who asks whether Harry's identity as Harry White might expose him given Dumbledore's suspicions. While I doubt anyone can truly know our favourite General's intentions, I will say that Harry will not be exposed until at least his year at Hogwarts. This was going to be hinted at in the next chapter with an ICW meeting featuring Dumbledore dealing with the formation of the BMU and fall of the Iron Curtain exposing the Magical Soviet Union for its weakness. That, along with the chaos in the muggle world with the fall of the Soviet Union which will also create problems with magical enclaves in Eastern Europe means Dumbledore will be far to busy to be investigating Harrys' disappearence for the time. At Hogwarts though? Well...let's just say it's more likely than unlikely with this universe's Dumbledore. Thank you for the wonderful observation, knowing someone is looking closely at my story really warms my heart!
As always, favourite, follow, share and comment, even if just to say hi. What might take five seconds for you definitely brightens my day, for the past several my parents have gone spare when I randomly start grinning after checking my phone at random times of the day to see follower and favourite notifications. Don't like something? Tell me! This is a journey as much for me as it is for you, and I'm constantly looking to improve. Speculate on plot elements, characters, plot etc.! I'd love to read your theories on how you think the story might or should go! If you're stuck on what to comment, here's a question: what subjects do you want to see explored in Durmstrang? Until next time, toodles!