As always, JKR owns everything canon.

The Heir Problem

Tuesday morning Harry was filing papers in the Ministry, when he met Neville in the atrium. Neville was passing out chocolate bars with pink bows tied on them. The wrappers were made up with birth announcement information, including that the little girl's name was 'Felicity.' Harry took a couple and dropped them in his pocket with an odd feeling, but felt saying something was imperative; "Congratulations, old bean, you're a family man now!" Neville was wearing a smile similar to the one he'd had at his own bonding.

"It's official - our Bonding has sealed! I've just been down to the Heir Office, and checked at the Registrar on the way. By the way, your Bond in still in the Pending file. When are you going to get busy and fill those Heir seats?" Neville was joking, not really serious nor paying much attention to Harry's face.

Harry gave his becoming-regular reply, "Ginny says there is plenty of time for children. We're still quite young." It was true, though his own birth had been not much more than a year after his parent's wedding, and Ginny's parents had three at this point. Neville's birth had also been when his parents were young, but that was wartime and people worried, rightfully. Many families that waited had died out completely for lack of a heir. Things were much different now, and families were producing more children, even from older couples. Longer lives meant child-bearing could continue for quite a while. Harry's father, James, had been born to older parents.

Neville wandered off toward the Floo, passing out chocolate to all he met. Harry stood still, thinking. He had better go home and read those Bonding Contracts. He really hadn't paid much attention to the details at the time, being bemused by the sight of Ginny in a slim white robe, flowers in her hair. He had signed in a daze.

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Reading those Contracts and the accompanying booklet was enlightening. They had married under the traditional Druidic forms, which were quite detailed: the Bonding was not complete without the Goddess blessing the union with children. Since he was a Lord to multiple Houses which had no other heirs, he had to have "an Heir for each, and a spare" before the bond would be complete. It was considered normal for the bride to be already expecting at the ceremony, as proof of the Bond. That put a whole new aspect on Bill's birth, thought Harry. Ginny probably already knew these details, being a pureblood.

He was Lord of four Houses, and voted four seats in the Wizagamont. That suggested their Bond required them to have five children, and three had to be boys. The Potter and Black titles were entailed to the male line, though Gryffindor and Slytherin would accept daughters. Teddy could inherit Black, even though his mother and Grandmother could not. Harry could 'get by' with one son, just as James had, but the bond would not formalize.

The golden globe of light that had surrounded them at the ceremony was not the bond forming, but simply a touch added by the Druids.

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Wednesday morning Ginny was up early and almost danced into his study. "I made the Harpies! I'll be gone all day, almost every day, for practices. I'll find out which broom I'll need today. I'll be playing Chaser, and backing up the Seeker slot. Tonight's dinner at the Lagoon just became a celebration!" Without waiting for an answer she darted back out, and soon Harry heard the main Floo roar.

He had the feeling this was sure to delay the possibility of children even further. At least she was happy and had something to keep her busy - something besides shopping. He packed up his papers and went to his morning with the Weasley brothers.

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"The computers and notebooks are taking off in popularity. We've started a 'hot spot' service, linking the WWW at popular tea shops and pubs, and they are a hit. The more people that have the portable computers, the better.

The electronics stores can't stay stocked. Radios and televisions that link to both muggle and wizard stations are flying off the shelves, creating more demand for the boys setting up the houses to the ley lines. We literally can't get them hooked up fast enough. We have to hire more muggle-born because the purebloods don't understand wiring."

George stopped talking and took a drink of water. All he had said was in the reports Harry had already read. Now he pulled out a small box, and Harry sat up. This looked to be the newest, most interesting development.

"This," George said with a grin, "is a Pocket Floo." He passed them out to each person in the office. Harry's was sleek black with silver trim, but the others were in vivid colors. In the corner of each was a tiny orange dot with the triple-W logo in magenta. "They are based on, and will connect to, the muggle phone systems, but they will also connect to any registered Floo or mirror phone. The wonders of Arithmancy make 'Molly Weasley Pocket' different from 'The Burrow', and either could be called by name or number. Let me demonstrate." He flipped his open with his thumb and called out "Harry Potter Pocket". The flat box in Harry's hand began to vibrate, the edges lit up, and a ringing sound filled the room. Ron leaned over and showed Harry how to open it, revealing George's face on the fire screen.

"In the boxes you will find instruction books on how to use them. We have set these up with our numbers and names, and you can add new numbers to your list. You can also call, or receive calls from, any other Floo or phone. At the moment you cannot put even small items through the Floo, but we hope that is just a bug we need to work out. These work fine for talking and will even record short messages. You can also send memos using the letter and number keys in the lower half. We'll be putting them up for sale in August through the present electronics stores. We hope to have all the staff equipped well before the release date, so they can practice and be ready to show purchasers what they can do. Since those are to be staff Floos, their service will be paid for by the company. The commercial version will work on a monthly subscription, with powder refill cards available in the shops. It will be expensive as we start, but we should be able to drop the prices quickly as we expand."

Harry spoke up, thinking fast. "I think we should NOT try to get these to accept objects. Call it a 'Safety Feature' instead of a bug. Can you imagine Mundungus on a 'shopping trip' with one?" Everyone winced.

"Second thought is privacy concerns. 'Harry Potter Pocket' is an invitation to every teenager to call me. I'm already pursued by reporters and random stalkers to the point I can't keep a Floo in my office. My elves have to answer the home Floo, and it's both unlisted and warded to the teeth. I won't take this Pocket Floo out of this room unless my number is unlisted, and changed to something not so obvious. I'll give the number to you, and staff that need to reach me, but that's all. I have to be hard to reach."

"I will want one ready for Ginny's Birthday in August, on a fully paid account. Get me the contract paper asap. Can the phone be in the Harpy colors, as she just signed with them? Can we add extra charms, such as a tracking charm so she won't lose it, or a cushioning charm so it won't break, or waterproofing?" Arthur laughed, knowing how Ginny would lose small items and just buy new rather than look for the originals.

Ron answered the last thought first, "The recharge cards are still necessary, because they have the Floo powder in them. You'll see the slot on the side to insert one when the screen indicates the powder is low. Even a house elf could do it. We can arrange subscriptions for cards for both your phones to simply be delivered every month. Yes, we can add more charms, including all of those. Those might be good 'Safety Features' to offer. Yes, you can pick the colors when you order the Floo, and we plan to offer all team colors. Teams will get a profit-share.

Changing your name or number, or setting up a new one as needed, is really pretty easy. I can do it right now." He took Harry's phone, opened it, and tapped out a number. "This is the customer service number that is in you book. It's computerized already, so we just work through the menus," suiting actions to words, "There's no need to change the actual number, since only we have it so far, but we'll change your call ... And now we choose the new name... Do you have a preference?"

"Harry thought and offered, "Dobby's Friend?"

"Easy," said Ron, tapping the entry. "I made it unlisted, too, so only people who know the arithmancy code can dial it directly. 'Harry Potter Pocket' no longer works as the call. Just saying 'Dobby's Friend' will only work if they already have the actual number in their contact list."

This sounded good to Harry, so he dropped the Floo, with the instruction book and the box of attachments, into his case. "You know I'll probably call you a dozen times while I learn to use this, right?"

George laughed, "I think we had better plan for all of us to call each other several times so we can all learn it. Ron invented it, and he's still the only one who understands it!"

Everyone either changed Harry's contact name, or passed their Floo to someone who could.

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Ginny came home about 5, windblown and sweaty in training clothes. She told Harry, "Wear your dark blue robes tonight," and went straight to her rooms. Harry went to his side of the suite and found Dobby, ever-efficient, had already brought out the proper robes. After a quick shower he combed his damp but still rebellious hair back and clipped it tightly at his neck. He was ready to go in a few minutes more. This left him with about three hours to wait for Ginny to be ready. He went to his study and turned on the wireless news channel. He pulled out the instruction book for his Pocket Floo and began working through it, referring steadily to the buttons inside the Floo case. He memorized his number carefully, entered several muggle numbers he already had, and sent a text message to Hermione's cell: "Hermione, this is 'Dobby's Friend', and this is my new, unlisted Pocket Floo number. If you enter it in your cell this way (not my name) you should be able to call or text me. As a company exec, you will be receiving your own new Floo soon."

In about 15 minutes the Floo lit up. Harry opened it to see his friend. "Harry, this is wonderful! You really are bringing the wizard world into the modern age! A Floo interfacing with phones is a great idea! I can hardly wait to get my own!" They chatted briefly - Hermione and her parents were still on their trip, and were now visiting cousins in France.

Ginny appeared at about 8:15, her hair in lavish curls tumbling over a breath-taking tight scarlet gown with a high open collar. It was backless, which would shock the Society matrons, and the panels of the long skirt revealed as slit almost fully up on every seam. She had a sheer golden underskirt, which peeked through the slits as she walked. Her golden slippers were barely there, fishnets with twinkling gems caught in the nodes. Harry was sure she would be a sensation on the society pages this week. He offered her his arm, and took them to the front of the Lagoon.

The Lagoon faced on Possible Alley, just past Gringotts Corner. Its wide front was plain brick, curving in from the alley in an arched walkway. This walkway was carpeted in blue and green, with high grass awnings supported by tropical trees. A gold strip of carpet leading to the doors was roped off, and you had to show reservation cards to enter. Attendants lined the inside of the roped area, keeping the crowds back. Outside of the ropes it was almost solid with reporters and photographers. Harry paced the length stoically; but Ginny was enjoying every moment. She was smiling at everyone, waving at her favorite photographers.

The interior was high (it was a converted factory), with a draped ceiling. Hanging between the tables were sheer, floor-to-ceiling veils in pastel shades, weighted with small glass fishing floats, giving a misty effect to the room without obstructing your view. There were lighted fountains instead of room lights. They were quickly shown to a central table on the slightly raised 'loft' area that ran around three sides. All of the walls showed an ever-changing sunset view of real lagoons around the world. These views were following the real sunset, so the room was awash in color. There was a slightly spicy sea-scented breeze circling the room, swirling the veils.

Knowing this menu, Harry quickly ordered the pineapple grilled Ocean Perch with rice, and a white wine, for both of them. Ginny was already looking at her mail (Harry wondered where she had carried it.) She looked up long enough to add "And some Russian Osetra." Harry was waiting for this, and looked at the waiter.

The man, cued in, drew himself up in a huff. "Miss, this is a seafood restaurant. We do not serve freshwater products." He picked up his menus and stalked off without waiting for her to add anything more. Ginny looked wide-eyed at Harry, who was having a hard time concealing his amusement as he mentally doubled the tip. Their waiter re-appeared with the meals quickly, and they ate quietly. Ginny actually ate hers without further attention to her mail.

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