Chapter 12: Letter in a bottle
The Easter holidays had arrived. Lucius Malfoy continued with his questioning, and he found himself surprised. Draco's answers were short and informative. He did not admit that Neville and his group were attempting NEWTs – he only expressed that Neville seemed to enjoy fencing, that Luna painted excessively and that Ronald enjoyed muggle exercising.
"Such an inappropriate choice of hobbies. Have there been any accidents at the school since the last petrification?" Lucius asked.
"No, but the castle is on edge. They are aware that something is on the loose. Perhaps father, when the accident arrives the Headmaster might be caught unaware?" Tom suggested smoothly, through Draco.
"Very well. What about that half-giant oaf?" Lucius asked.
"All I heard was that Lord Black threatened the Aurors with death, father. And that is a rumour I heard from the neutrals." Tom replied.
"Lord Black has become bold. That will have to be dealt with, in time." Lucius expressed, with disdain colouring his voice.
"Perhaps father. But historically, House Black was powerful and it always pursued its own agenda. Lord Aurelian Black acts no differently from Lord Arcturus Black. He just has thrown his lot in with the unclean, which is a disgrace. Why else did he cut mother out of what is rightfully hers?"
"That….is correct Draco. I see that you are paying attention. I had not considered that. Your mother had suggested to tread carefully, Draco."
"The Slytherin way is to fight which battles are necessary. I will be as bold as possible to suggest that you should leave Lord Black alone, for now."
Lucius Malfoy was looking at his son's face, and it seemed calm and calculating. He wondered where this suggestion was going. Draco continued:
"The Dark Lord will return father, and he will sweep away his opposition. Whatever minor talents are possessed by the others will not matter. I have been thinking about the last war. Lilly Potter was surely talented regardless of her contaminated blood. The brightest witch of her age – the grades suggest as much. After speaking with Scion Jugson, I came across a rather interesting piece of information….."
"Which is what son?" Lucius asked, with some warmth in his voice.
"The Dark Lord requires allegiance to magic itself. If you are truly talented and you are half-blood or even a muggleborn, the Dark Lord will welcome you. He requires allegiance to cultural values. On this basis, Godfather Severus was welcomed as a half-blood. And Lilly Potter was given the privileged of joining him, and she refused."
"I did not know this Draco. But it does make sense. We do want our culture protected. Yes, the Dark Lord would be within his right to decide who he could make an exception for – he needed powerful, talented people at his side. And the woman was powerful, we know this Draco."
"The Dark Lord is not…unreasonable. When the mudblood and her husband refused our offer, the Dark Lord snuffed the first two of them out that night, and his magic took a toll on the last Potter ten years later. They were ungrateful, father!"
"That is correct, Draco. I will consider this advice of yours. It makes sense. Good, you are learning. What of your friends? And your competitors?"
"I have decided that Pansy is a better choice for me father. Astoria is too far gone. She freely eats muggle fast food, as I believe it is called. I also heard other interesting about her hobbies."
"Tell me more, Draco?"
"Well, the rumour is that the new Indian mudblood healer cured her of her blood curse. She is well respected in France, partly because the hates magical English society – they were right not to give some muggleborn immigrant a job. She isn't Anglo-Saxon, she does not belong here…."
"I have heard much of her. She is talented but still a mudblood. Lord Black brags that she is his personal healer. If he was to die, she will be hunted down regardless of her innovations, when the Dark Lord returns. Even if she lives in France."
"Yes father, I agree. Astoria now spends her time with muggle tools as she builds contraptions that don't use magic. The rumour is that she likes explosives. Valerian Mistle tried to harass her, and she threw a device that coated him in a liquid that left him scratching his skin for a week. He had to buy all new robes."
"She builds muggle items? And Cyrus allows this? The Greengrasses are turning their back on our traditions!"
"They were there, Astoria and Lady Greengrass during the Diagon Alley attack. They were going to rape some unimportant muggle born witch and Astoria and Lady Greengrass was hiding in an alleyway. The Storm Lord as he is called came into the alleyway and butchered whoever was there, with a sword. So Astoria decided that she was throwing in her lot in with those silly Gryffs. She is all brawn now."
"What about her older sister, Daphne? I have heard rumours. She has taken an arrangement with a foreign Artificing Guild. She carries a betrothal ring?" Lucius asked.
"Yes. She continues to observe the traditions and she has always provided us with good information. But she is migrating, so it does not matter. To work in a Guild you must sacrifice your old identity. You give up your family, your title and everything else. Daphne Greengrass must complete all her NEWTS before year five or lose her magic. The Guild says magic demands sacrifice, and I agree father."
"Magic does demand great sacrifice. What about her friend Tracey Davis, Draco?"
"Tracey Davis is a bit surprising father. Because Daphne is undertaking such difficult challenges, she decided that she wasn't going to be left behind. Both of them are the first two students to write NEWTs exams directly. They hardly ever leave their dorms, and they are our front line talent for Slytherin house. The Triumvirate has given them an accommodation to be left alone."
"The other darker Houses are talking about her academic performance. She surely represents what Slytherin should stand for, it is good that old blood and pure blood stands for something at least. Her sister Astoria is a disgrace, but I suppose every family had a bad apple."
Draco at this point decided not to mention that the Trio were also doing their NEWTS. If the news came to pass, he would complain that they had gotten secret accommodations from the Headmaster. As long as Neville Longbottom had surpassed him, he would never hear the end of his father's tirade. Riddle who was at the back of his head, and waiting to carry out his plans yelled, "Good. Keep what is necessary, to yourself…"
"The rumours are contradictory father. Some are saying that she used muggle methods to crack an unsolvable Arithmancy problem. She drinks Muggle coffee and openly says that it is great that muggles slave over their jobs to provide us options. All our wizarding tea is produced by a muggle company. Father the muggles are everywhere, but I don't want to stop drinking tea."
"That is fascinating. What else did she say Draco?"
"That all our canned food products that we eat come from Muggle groceries. I asked Dobby and he told me that this was true. Magicals do not manufacture such things."
Lucius was now silent.
"This has been informative. If such things are true, perhaps the girl is very perceptive. If the muggles do slave over the production of such things and our gold can purchase luxuries that is not a bad thing. Every society has its slaves, and it is an acceptable institution that has been here since the dawn of time. Why should we give up our conveniences? As long as we have magic, we can generate gold and we will purchase what we need. The muggles will continue to be our slaves, as far as I am concerned."
"I agree father. Muggles are poor and nasty in any case."
"Indeed they are Draco. What of your friends?"
"Blaise was worried for some time – he had not heard from his mother. He is alright now. She has gotten a new job, so he was pleased about that. Gregory and Vincent continue to support me and they often look for opportunities to put the blood traitors in their place. They like to pick on Susan Bones. Theodore was sick for a while but he is much better. He continues to stay by himself, and he is reading a lot these days.."
"So your allies are doing well. Susan Bones - yes her aunt, Amelia Bones is indeed a pest. She has been watching me rather murderously. Let your allies continue to put pressure on the girl." Lucius replied as Draco decided that he would not mention that Susan was outright stunning his allies. Once again, selective narratives were told.
"Besides those things that I have mentioned, there is nothing to note. The three stooges continue to be Dumbledore's favourites."
"Dumbledore won't always be around, he is an old man. You are dismissed, Draco. I am pleased with your…insights."
Harry was looking on and laughing – when the magicals were confronted with a hard truth, the story was changed to suit their needs. But one thing was for certain – the darker purebloods loved opulence and convenience. Harry would continue to provide it at a price. Harry asked Fred and George to hold the fort for a while, as he had something to do. As the mindless conversation ended, when Lucius Malfoy cleared out of the room, the drone continued to examine the boy. As Riddle passed his hand through Draco's head, some of his hair fell out.
"This boy's body is so weak. Now to leave a letter to myself," Riddle whispered through Draco's mouth. Fred and George who were on "Draco-iddle duty" looked on as Draco ransacked his father's study. After some time, he took a chest out of his father's desk and placed a note in it.
"No, my future self must know about these developments. It will be critical towards reclaiming my old power! I am unconquerable!" Riddle whispered. Fred and George wasted no time, as they saw the small note that was placed in the box and they called Harry immediately.
"Warlord Peverell?" Fred asked over the voice call.
"Gred and Forge, my minions of chaos! What happened over the last forty five minutes?" Harry responded brightly.
"We saw something, and we thought we could tell you about our next prank!" George replied.
By the time the evening had arrived, Harry had busted into Lucius Malfoy's study, opened the box and extracted the note. Lorna had composed a false message that would lead the Dark Lord astray, and had copied the handwriting. Harry and Hermione embedded Voldemort's Horcrux signature in the ink, as a final detail that would make the Dark Lord buy into the message.
This was a letter in a bottle, or more aptly a lie in a chest box.
The new note would explain that Lucius and Draco Malfoy could be trusted to provide accurate information. Rumours were not to be believed, and Lord Aurelian Black was suffering from a terminal disease that would claim his life soon. Sirius Black and Remus Lupin had left magical England, with the death of Harry Potter, and Hogwarts had no students that could pose a possible threat. The Guild was a party that would assist him with his ventures, as long as they were allowed to own the English magical market. He was about to undertake a dangerous mission to breed two hundred smaller basilisks. When he arrived for the final war, he could call the entire army forth to cleanse the castle. His final Horcrux would stay safe in the Chamber of Secrets, and the Storm Lord was not any the wiser about his plans.
Lucius would also be punished for his incompetence when the deception was made known.
"Sometimes I wonder if at this point, we are cheating. I mean we have violated their privacy, their plans, their economy and everything else?" Hermione wondered.
"They will never know, because I plan to give no monologues, and no grand gloating reveals. When I show up, it will be to kill first and then hold our silence on what we did to achieve our wins. We will never reveal that we spied, that we used illusions, and that the train and Hogwarts is bugged. That is our ace in the hole, even after the war is over." Harry explained.
"We are proper evil now, aren't we? We are Magical Big Brother?" Hermione wondered.
"Sometimes? We aren't after the normies though. Somebody has to do Robin Hood's job?" Harry laughed.
"We can work with that. Maybe we should victimise the Purebloods – the blood supremacist types always complain that we are here to break down their society. How about we don't take the blame without committing the deeds?" Hermione grinned.
"I think that is fair enough. We might as well give them something to be properly scared about. They want the boogieman? They shall have us then!" Harry smiled.
When Hogwarts resumed school in mid-April, Neville and the rest were taking a morning run, and saw an entire flock of spiders leaving the school. Neville wanted to investigate, and he decided that this could be their first "unofficial" mission that they could handle by themselves. The five of them were fully decked in medium nano-laminate armour and packing their full complement of guns, shields and melee weapons. Percy and Penny offered to manage the communications as they had skipped out on the exercise. They were having breakfast as they monitored the displays for any possible issues. It was Saturday and there was no need to go rushing off to classes.
"We can afford a little stroll. Percy, keep an eye on us?" Ronald asked as Daphne re-tuned all the muscle weaves.
"Will do. Good luck." Percy replied as he and Penny got busy.
Neville and the rest began their run, deeper into the forest.
The muscle weave made running easy, and they could run much faster with the powered assistance. As they explored, half hour later they ran into a centaur that sometimes took a morning stroll with them.
"Hail, Neville and friends!"
"Hail Aegion."
"You are wandering off the running track, young Lords and Ladies. Do you know where you are going?" the centaur asked.
"Tracey over here suspects that we are going right into Acromantula territory. However, we have enough equipment so we should be fine. We aren't going to provoke them, we want to have a chat?" Neville replied.
"Very well. Understand that it is dangerous. But if you believe you are equipped, you can proceed. You might be able to outrun them in any case?" the centaur laughed.
"I hope so too. But thanks for looking out for us. How are things at the hearth?" Neville asked.
"Much improvement has been made. The women are weaving cloth, and Firenze has become popular with coffee and marijuana. He had a talent for crops. We are slowly making progress. We regularly train with the new weapons. Soon we will all own clothes."
"Good to hear. Luna can help you with some of the designs if you might be interested in seeing how different cultures across the world utilize the cloth. We will be off?" Neville replied.
"Be well, Neville and friends!" Ageion replied.
Two hours later, the group were now approaching the hollow. Spiders of all different sizes were moving en masse towards an indented area that possessed fairly large tree trunks. Ronald was putting on a brave face, but he was not pleased at all.
"Hey, you alright?" Neville asked.
"Nope. But I can manage. I still hate spiders." Ronald replied.
The group was now looking at a tunnel structure that took them deeper into the earth. As they walked through, they suddenly made a turn and found themselves in a far older and dreary part of the forbidden forest. The tap roots were many metres thick and they undulated, twisted and entangled each other in massive structures. Now there seemed to be a fair amount of small shrieks and screams from far off.
"There were always rumours of an Acromantula colony in England. I think web collectors often skirt around this area to get the webs." Tracey replied.
"So our shiny uniforms come from this?" Luna asked as an idea popped into her head.
"Hagrid….?" a deep boomy baritone voice replied.
There was now a heavy thud as some large spider legs began to peek over the small inclination.
"is that you…?" the creature continued. Now the acromantula was in full view of the five students.
"No. but we are his friends." Neville replied.
"Hagrid has never sent men into our hollow before…."
"Of course, he would not do that. I figure you would prefer to eat us. We did see the couple hundred of your children on the way, and I can tell that we are being surrounded….."
"Yet you came? Why then?"
"We wanted to know about the spider trail. They have been fleeing the castle."
"There is a monster that lives in the castle. It was born there. We do not speak its name!"
"Well, the jackets we are wearing right now are made from its hide. It was killed. There is an artefact that is mocking the presence of the creature's eggs. We are drawing the perpetrator out to deal with him. We are aware that Hagrid was wrongly incarcerated, fifty years ago. And we know who was responsible. A personal possession of the Dark Lord himself is causing all of this all over again." Neville explained.
"What…..are your names…..?" the gigantic spider asked as his many eyes scanned the group carefully.
"Neville Longbottom. Luna Lovegood. Ronald Weasley. Tracey Davis. Daphne Greengrass." Neville replied as he introduced the group confidently.
"My name is…Aragog."
"I can see your younglings are on the way down. However, we currently wear powerful armour that protects us from physical harm. And we have weapons. We could exterminate the whole lot of you, but I have a better idea…." Luna replied, as if she had been struck by a sudden idea. The hundreds of small spiders suddenly paused, as they smelled the jackets. They knew that the boy had not lied. Suddenly there were clicking noises, as Aragog seemed to examine the circumstances.
"So you Neville….you do not lie. You and your friends do wear the skin of the great beast. What is your idea, girl?"
"Your webs. You can provide me with the best silk that you can make. We will provide a machine that will collect it. You on the other hand get access to any type of livestock that you want. Pigs? Cattle? Sheep? I get to make large sums of money, you and your children get prime meat. Consistently, and as much as you need." Luna explained.
"I could eat you now. What would stop me?" Aragog asked.
"We can apparate. There are no wards here. You will find that we are no average children. But if you want me to take out our assault rifles and empty rounds into you? Fine by me. Or perhaps you want an intimate introduction to guns?" Neville replied, as he and the rest of the gang took out their weapons, and took the safeties off. Now Aragog's eyes twitched as the bright laser beams were painted all over him.
"Was the creature in the castle, killed with your muggle weapons? Did you…shoot the beast with your…..guns?" Aragog asked cautiously.
"Shot in the head. But by a friend, not us. Well look at that, you have heard of guns. You might be brighter than the rest of the idiots at the castle! Ha!" Neville replied.
"I travelled in people's pockets for many years. I have seen much. I know of the machine empire that the non-magicals have made. Terrible forms of war they wage! The level cities at a time! I was there when the Germans were building their empire seventy years ago, before I travelled to England! We live here in the forest because it is safe.
"You were probably much smaller at the time of World War II?" Ronald asked.
"I was the size of a common house spider. But I could listen. I know that the non-magicals have advanced much. Understand this. You are the only men who will ever leave this place alive, besides Hagrid."
"Wrong again. Our friend will arrange to collect your webs and he will provide you with your choice of animals. Do not anger him - you will find he is not tolerant of threats. Why eat us here, right now when the deal that I offer will provide you with nourishment for many years? And I don't think there are enough of us to really feed your hundreds of children. Some would have to do without?" Luna answered confidently.
There were clicking noises as all the spiders seemed to communicate with each other.
"You are very observant. There is not enough for all of us. The creatures of the forest avoid us. We will consider your deal, if only because we have no choice." Aragog replied.
"This was actually fun. Anyway Aragog, the creature is dead. The magical signature is counterfeit. Our friend will come by to provide you with what you need, sometime."
ZAP!
Aragog was annoyed, but when he saw the weapons and the jacket he understood that it was not a good idea to attack the visitors. To wear the skin of your dreaded enemy? No, they were dangerous! When the group had just disappeared, he realised that he and his children would have been never been able to catch them. He found the claims interesting – In any case, if the person who arrived to cut a deal with him was that powerful, he would see for himself.
The entire group was now in the apartment, and Aragog who had been wondering what cattle tasted like, considered the possible arrangement. Percy and Penny were holding their faces of apprehension – it was not every day that your brother and his friends scared an Acromantula into compliance. Ronald and the rest had an elevated heart rate during the encounter, but Neville and Daphne had flat vitals. Luna decided to inform Harry of their neighbourhood friendly escapade.
"Harry?" Luna asked.
"Hullo!" Harry replied.
"I have a majority project that I am interested in overseeing. Acromantula silk. We organised for you to speak to Aragog, Hagrid's secret fifteen foot Acromantula that lives in the Forbidden forest." Luna replied. There was a small pause, as Harry looked at the camera footage from the light armour, up to three minutes ago as the rest waited. "What the flying fuck" was heard from Hermione and the rest of the people at the manor, as Harry and Hermione worked up a reasonable plan.
"Hey, that wasn't a bad idea. I will have a chat with our eight legged….friend? I am glad you have a portfolio now. Hermione and I will look at developing the fabric and the machinery and we will take five per cent each. The rest is yours." Harry replied.
"Thanks. I haven't been worrying about money. I plan to marry Neville and I will grow what he has, through investments. But I would love to leave a nice nest egg for daddy? This is a labour of love. I want to get the best quality cloth for my new designs?" Luna replied. The rest looked at Neville, and he just shook his shoulder to indicate that he agreed with the plans. Suddenly there was full on laughter as everybody shook their heads. Even Harry was laughing.
"Hey, she knows what she wants? Fine by me!" Daphne giggled as she watched Ronald. Ronald winked at her, and then said, "Hagrid has a really terrible idea of a pet. The man flat out owns monsters. Absolutely mental, that guy!"
The group got ready for their revision period while Daphne worked with Fred and George to roll out the "Mario Kart Package."
During the last week of April, Hermione and Harry were invited to a personal meeting with the Dean of Imperial College. The news was getting around – they were the two geniuses who were topping all the exams, and they were almost halfway through their Bachelor's programs. At this rate, they could finish their programs in one-third of the time, which was no small achievement.
"I was initially concerned until I saw the grades. Are both of you gifted? Genius level I.Q.?" The Dean asked.
"No, we have trouble like everybody else. We are not geniuses, but we might be high I.Q. Maybe about 140ish for the both of us, although we never got it tested. Our memory is impressive. We aren't completely eidetic but probably halfway there?" Hermione suggested.
"Would you be willing to take on postgraduate research as undergraduates? We are always on the lookout for people. You have the capability." the Dean insisted.
"Sadly for us, no. We have some family issues. In any case, we are young. We are only sixteen, we have time. You will be seeing us around for a couple of years yet. After the personal issues are taken care of, we might end up living here for a bit?" Harry joked as the Dean smiled.
"If you do finish the Bachelor's program early, would you consider your master's specialisations?" the Dean asked.
"Sure. The question is if we can squeeze the Phds in. I am aware they can be several years long. We are hoping to come up with something groundbreaking but easily defensible for our thesis to speed through that."
"Oh, that I would like to see. The improved Solar Cell chemistry has been quite a stir, Ms Granger. Companies are coming forward and they want to purchase the optimisations. We also like your generatively designed motors, Mr Peverell. Very compact and light. The inbuilt cooling is really something. BAC Mono want one for an experimental electric vehicle."
"Oh, I will have to speak to them. We like to cause trouble, but only the good kind!" Harry replied.
"Well, that will be all. I am looking forward to hearing great things from both of you!" the Dean replied as both of them left the office.
While Harry and Hermione were having a chat with the University officials, a year five Slytherin, along with a year three Hufflepuff were now approaching the Ravenclaw wing.
"Hey, you lassie! Looking for the auditions?"
"Sure. Clara Jones on the violin. And you are...?"
"Antoc Marchbanks. Bass guitar. "
"Nice to meet you. Oh, look there are people in that room there…."
When both of the students entered the room, they were dead surprised to see the band practice roaring along. Ronald with his seven string guitar was riffing out to Nightwish's Romanticide, as Neville continued with the palm mutes. Tracey was blasting the double pedals on the drums and Luna was on the keyboard. The trio were already known for being talented at magic. But to see everyone, including there two front line snakes in the gang? Antoc realised that contrary to misleading comments made by others, their two most popular snakes in the junior years were friends with the other houses.
Antoc who loved Nightwish, fell in as he saw a spare bass guitar amp and speaker setup. He wondered how they had gotten the electrical equipment to work in Hogwarts, but that soon passed from his mind. As he set the Ampeg amp to his favourite settings and began to grind the strings. Tracey who recognised the Slytherin gave him a nod, as Ronald's baritone voice took the place usually reserved for Tarja Turunen's soprano voice. Clara who was unsure how to play violin for the song sat down and listened to the music while Daphne Greengrass continued to scribble Arithmancy on the empty blackboard. When the song was finished, Neville and Ronald gave the new Slytherin a high five.
"Who would have taught that the four of you are musically talented too! Davis, you have been holding out on us!" Antoc replied.
"Look who is talking! The quiet guy who hangs out in the corner of the common room is throwing down today. I didn't know you were so nasty on the bass! Nice! Maybe that chick you were eyeing up, tell her you're a Slytherin in a band!"
"You know…...maybe I should eh? How did you get these Guitar amps to work in Hogwarts?" Antoc asked.
"Guild did a custom job. It cost a lot, but worth it. Offered to sign us as they think we are fantastic? As soon as we have something we go live on the slates." Neville laughed.
"Hello Clara. I didn't take you for the heavy metal type." Ronald laughed.
"Classically trained, but I wanted to experiment I guess? Who would have thought that you sing so well eh? The girls have been looking for you all over! Wait till they hear that winning voice!" she replied.
"Yeah, I generally hide from them. Classically trained? We have some bands that will work well with you. Here listen to…..." Ronald replied as he handed over the dataslate, headphones and even provided the sheet music via Guitar Pro tabs – Harry had gotten these programs specially cast to Ronald's data slate.
It seemed that Clara's real talent was an intrinsic grasp of pitch. After listening to the songs a couple of times she commented:
"Oh, I like this one. The Haunting by Kamelot? This is an amazing song. I will have to play a bit loud not to get drowned by the rest of you. Maybe Luna you can use the lefty to keep the string section thick? Fill in on the cellos?"
"Let me load up a patch. I will split the keyboard and see what I can do?" Luna replied.
"You guys know Lacuna Coil's Our Truth?" Antoc asked.
"We do, but we never learnt it. I am not sure how I might manage to sing Christina's pieces. We can learn that for the next practice? I guess you want to trash the bass out on that one?" Ronald suggested.
"Hell yes. Maybe as your voice is deep, you can try to sing an octave lower? And if you can manage Tightrope?" Antoc asked.
"Your wish is our command?" Neville joked.
The evening proceeded as Clara just fell into a lot of the Gothic and Symphonic metal tracks easily. Antoc played well for any of the Finnish bands that were his favourites, but he made some minor mistakes with the new songs. Some of the other songs were from Delain, Sirenia, Entwine, Theatre of Tragedy, and Kamelot and the music suited the eternal British rain that was beating against the windows.
"Right – so now Neville is going to take the lead with the Death Metal growls. Which three are we doing?" Ronald asked.
"Draconian's The Last Hour of Ancient Sunlight, Insomnium's Down With the Sun and Mortemia's The One I Once Was," Neville replied.
Luna loaded up the choirs and the other piano patches as Tracey changed the sound of her drumkit to match the new bands. Antoc had a good time with the Insomnium, and immensely enjoyed Morten Veland's genius.
Hours passed easily, as they were having fun.
At the end of the practice, one thing became clear – while they did not have any original material, they were far heavier than what Wizarding England considered rowdy. The Weird Sisters were just a punk band and they were beloved in Wizarding England. Certain issues like the availability of high-gain amps along with the lack of electrical power and shielding had stopped them from incorporating ear-slamming high-gain guitar tones. That had not stopped this bunch of musicians.
"I love your guitars. Seven String, multi-scale. The Guild made the amps for you too? The tones are fucking heavy, man." Antoc replied.
"That one is a friend. He happens to be a signal analysis engineer. And he also knows magic. You will notice all our other gear is standard stuff, it has been shielded against magic, with the exception our amps." Neville replied.
"Damn, could he do something for me? For bass?" Antoc asked.
"Whatever you want. You just tell him what tones you want and he will get them organised. Or tell us actually, and we will tell him. And no cost involved, we happen to be rich!" Neville joked.
"Sweeet. Did he do the drum kit too? It sounds like the real deal. I like the floaty bits?" Antoc asked.
"Feels great too, on the sticks. Anyway, that was a pretty good session. Four hours went by quickly. Antoc you were fantastic. Clara I think you can honestly play anything on that violin."
"Thanks, Neville. I play well for solo performances, but I always wanted to be cool with the instrument. I feel wicked now!" she laughed.
"Maybe we will have to get some Irish music to get the best usage out of her!" Luna laughed.
"Hey, Seamus would probably love that! Before the Dawn for the next practice. Deadsong is our friend's favourite, we can get both of our vocal styles in?" Neville replied.
"Oh yes. And we should do the Amorphis. Silent Waters. That song is….important to him. Fifteen years by Leverage. I want to experiment with some of the French Bands too." Ronald wondered.
"Sidilarsen's..… A qui je nuis me pardonne and La morale de la fable might be really good ones? Good guitar riffs to jam out to?" Neville suggested.
The two new band members who were not aware that the group spoke French - They were wondering what type of madness they had gotten into and decided to play along. Singing in a language that was not your own was quite an accomplishment.
It was now early May and the Hogwarts academic year was beginning to come to a close.
Harry redesigned and manufactured two hundred band new Medi-bracelets with the new emitter matrix, along with Daphne's algorithm. There was also onboard diagnostics that allowed healers to compare magical signatures so that curses or cast spells could be identified, based on what was left behind on tissue. Hermione had also added some of the newer runic arrays that would attempt to do critical repairs on the human body until a healer could fine-tune the process. All of the discoveries that had come from the combat systems and the magical radar systems filtered down into the medical applications. Even the enhanced poison removal was also present.
Priya had shown up with the new equipment in France one morning, as she explained the new functionality. They could now check blood pressure, blood sugar, run basic blood tests, perform oxygen sensing and provide basic brain and spinal diagnostics. Along with the enhanced expert system that could identify curses and combat spell damage, the few people who knew Harry and Hermione were sure that they had some recent breakthroughs.
"They work quickly, don't they?" Camilla asked.
"Yes. Hermione's illusions are three dimensional now. We can get a projection of the area, live. Magical signatures, onboard biosensors, the whole deal. See?"
"So this is some of the new stuff we saw last year?" Safiya asked.
"Yes, Safi. All the innovations are now in this version. Far more power efficient. New emitter matrix, power crystals, all the nice bits." Priya answered.
"What will be doing with the previous versions?" Gris asked.
"Oh, I like this one. Harry is going to engrave, Donated to St. Mungo's by Life-worker Priya V. Singh, Order of Merlin, First Class on every single bracelet. St Mungo's will be forced to accept it, and then they will have to see my name everyday. Oh, it is petty revenge but it feels good anyway….."
The entire group laughed, as they realised that this was a pretty good idea, particularly to annoy the pureblood supremacist types.
Later that week when Priya had shown up at St. Mungo's she did not bother to spend more than five minutes. She explained who she was, and was quite clear on the fact that Wizarding England had not given her an opportunity, and she was giving away her older bracelets because the English clinics were poorly funded, understaffed, and in a mess. She explained that she blamed the politicians of the day and that the French were sorted.
"So yes, you can have these. I understand you could only afford five bracelets. So this one hundred of them. Have fun?" she replied as she apparated out of the hospital. The staff who had always been strapped for resources were only too happy to receive the items. That same night there were rumours all over the compound.
"Look, if the French treat their people with respect and the pay is better, we better leave?" one of the healers wondered.
"What about the people here?" another asked.
"When they get our facilities and pay sorted out, we can come back. There are research opportunities and if we get better working conditions, why stay here?" a nurse suggested.
"Let us do some investigation, and we can see if we can leave this hellscape!" another replied.
The news did not take long to reach the darker Purebloods, and it had caused vexation. However, the darker houses understood that anybody who interfered with Lord Black's private healer would be in trouble – and worse yet there were no records of her parents or any addresses either. Ved and Amba were at the new flat on the Peverell property, and they had sold their old house. The Death Eaters were perplexed when the woman was a ghost. The discussion between Jugson, Malfada Hopkirk and Lucius Malfoy did not go as planned. The dinner at Malfoy Manor that evening had been humbling for Lucius.
"No record in the Muggle system, she was scrubbed and she covered her tracks. She could be living anywhere. Please be careful with Lord Black. He will not hesitate to harm you husband if you make the wrong move!" Narcissa explained to Lucius.
"You seem to approve of his actions wife?" Lucis asked, with venom in his voice.
"I do not husband. But I am a Black. And power is our way. With enough power, the wrong side can become the right side. That is why power reigns supreme. That is not us anymore."
Lucius scowled, as he realised that the woman was right, as usual.
Remus had been doing quite well with the new werewolf potion and he had not relapsed, as he continued to stockpile tablets and appliances. Broom sales had slowed down now that the European market had saturated. Harry was now selling upgrade kits and accessories instead of building new brooms. The idea was to eventually get the wizarding world up to three hundred mph gradually. Harry would create new products between the performance gap of his existing products to meet projected targets. Lorna and Sirius who managed the brooms had bought over Ellerby&Spudmore, Cleansweep and Comet. Now there were only two other broom competitors and the rumour was that they could not understand where the runes for the broom were located or how the turbines or thrust assemblies worked. These companies generally preferred to hand carve their brooms, and they could not understand how the broom handles and other pieces were produced with such high quality, in large amounts.
Too bad Wizards didn't understand CNC machines. The stripped-out RuneOs also helped with setting up adjustable settings and none of the other brooms could control its properties.
The Asian markets were something else. Harry could not make enough brooms as the Rudra sold quite well in India. There were millions of people who wanted the brooms and the sixty thousand brooms that were being produced via automation every month were hardly enough. Harry had even implemented a ticket system where people could only buy one at a time, to avoid mass purchases for speculation.
"Maybe we can open up the broom business to the public, for employment. I can train them. The bulk of your money comes from the tunnel project in any case?" Remus suggested.
"I am going to acquire a couple of old Diagon Alley properties, build a factory and employ people. Who is going to buy me over? Although I will need a business cover. Maybe I can pretend to be a subcontracted company?" Harry wondered.
"As long as the charming and the runes application are done here at the manor, you won't lose anything by having the physical items made elsewhere," Remus suggested.
"Ah fuck it, I am going to do that. I want to corner the foreign markets. Yeah, I am going to talk to Lorna and see what we can do." Harry replied.
It was now the third week of May.
Neville and the rest continued with past paper questions and practical drills, particularly in the Defense classes. Ronald and Daphne took over the Potions instructions. Neville and Daphne also handled the Transfiguration. OWLS and NEWTS usually occurred from the 10th of June onwards, and it was not uncommon for the rest of the school to leave if their exams finished early. The timetable was not set in stone – Rather it depended on how many students chose particular subjects, whether they were clashes, and if theory exams for OWLS and NEWTS could be written at the same time. Hogwarts was a place that valued their quirks and students usually depended on live updates from their head of House to keep track of things. For people who possessed magic, Hogwarts was a place where nothing was organised, except the food. All types of odd random things could happen, and it seemed that Wizards did not worry about such things. Harry and Hermione quickly rectified the situation by designing a calendar that was filled as dates were announced. That combined with alerts on the dataslate made it easy for students to prepare adequately.
"You alright Nevie?" Luna asked.
"Sure. We are good for those exams. Draco-iddle has not made his move yet." Neville.
"Give it until the end of the month. He knows the school term is closing." Daphne replied.
Harry had followed up on the offer pitched by Luna. When he appeared in the alcove with Hermione one morning, Aragog was cordial as he realised that he did not want to mess with the visitors.
"Well, this item here - just spin your web into it and it will convert it to a thread. The thread is apparated, and you can pick what livestock you want, by pressing the buttons. It will appear right at this flagpost over there. We have pigs, sheep, goats, and cattle. The magic will hold the animal and prevent them from escaping. We will stay until you are satisfied with the results." Harry explained.
"Very well…." Aragog replied as some of the older spiders came forward and took the devices up, and carried them away. Harry and Hermione stayed until a pig was summoned, after about fifteen minutes of work. Harry then took a look at the thread as he realised that this was far stronger than the other webs he had touched on the way to Aragog's hollow.
"The quality of the thread is something else. I might be able to weave other things into the substance. I do hope that your new source of food pleases you. We partnered with a magical megafarm in Italy to supply the animals."
"You did not lie to us. We find this arrangement…acceptable. My children say that the pig is delicious. What else…..do you want…..Storm-Lord and Storm-Priestess?"
"Nothing else really. If you can stay within the area and leave the Centaurs and other creatures alone that would be great?" Harry suggested.
"We only leave the hollow, if we cannot find food. The creatures that used to nourish us are long gone. We will…..provide you with thread for cloth….and we will dine on all manner of beasts."
"That works for us," Harry replied as a cow and a pig appeared. It seemed that the two hundred devices were making their way quickly around the colony.
"Many of my children died from starvation. My wife was the only Acromantula in England. She lived in this hollow and was barren. When she laid her last eggs, she died. She made me promise that I would look after her children….."
"Well, I don't think they will want for anything now?" Hermione asked.
"No Priestess."
"There is the possibility that this colony will expand greatly. I would suggest looking into underground tunnels so that you don't have any run-ins with the locals. Understand that if you start to eat people, it won't end well for you. You will find that I fear nothing…." Harry replied casually.
"We…..understand. You are both unusual. Battle…..makes your body anticipate the kill. You are more like us than you realise. We do not like to interact with others. We are best left alone. If you were to assist with the tunnels, we will leave all humans alone. There will be no need for conflict…..if we have enough food. We would be willing to produce as much thread as you require…." Aragog explained.
"Then we are settled. I have been fair and I have never broken my word with the Centaurs and the Goblins. I believe you are sentient, and you deserve a choice to choose your fate…." Harry reiterated.
''This is agreeable. We will not harm anyone else. You have my word. Farewell Storm-Lord, and Storm-Priestess."
By the time the night had arrived, the entire colony was assembled as the two hundred hundred livestock animals were slowly dissolved into nothing within the webbed sacs. Harry and Hermione were explaining to Madam Malkin that they had managed to get Hagrid's pet monster to willingly produce the best thread.
"Oh, Luna was smart about that one!" Madam Malkin replied.
"She was. Come by for a tour of the mansion sometime. In any case, I have a project where I want to weave some cutting-edge materials into the cloth. Integrated shields, power sources and finally, maximum style. And yes, we want you to manage the sewing of our clothes, with the new material."
"Why don't we go right now? I have been in this store for too long, and I keep postponing a visit to your place. Let me see what it is both of you get up to?" Madam Malkin laughed.
Harry attached a transporter to the seamstress and teleported her to the Workshop where music was blaring. Crookshanks was sleeping on Dafodill and Grace was watching car racing on the shop television. The Thunderbolt-II was being upgraded with some new attachments and Harry and Hermione took the woman on a tour of all the items they had developed. Daffodil was surprised but stretched like a cat and gave a polite wave.
"So you have a pet dragon?" Madam Malkin asked.
"Not a pet. She is my child, I guess?" Hermione replied passionately, as Daffodil enjoyed the head scratches. Grace had flown over and sat on Madam Malkin's shoulder as she looked at the manufacturing areas and the new weapons that were being prototyped. She even had a look at Raphael's new temporary prosthetics, which were being finished. Finally, the seamstress was very pleased to meet Sirius and Remus. She even managed to remember Lorna.
"Well, now things make a lot of sense. You have no idea how much you are like your mother, Harry!"
"Oh, that comment pleases me to no end!" he blushed.
"And you Sirius! You were a well known womaniser. It is good to see that you have matured and that you are firm about what your godson needs. Remus, the few times I have seen you…..you were haggard. You look better now."
"In the beginning, Harry and Hermione provided whatever I needed, which included Wolfsbane, and a place to stay along with income. My magic changed enough and the beast was tamed. I had an opportunity to exercise, have a good meal and do something intellectually fulfilling." Remus laughed.
"That was good for you, wasn't it? By Hecate, you are positively huge! You have grown much even from the last time I saw you!" Madam Malkin explained.
"Yes, I have put on a lot of muscles. Hermione is trialling a new potion which is a replacement for Wolfsbane. It is called Skaði. For the past ten weeks, I have had no werewolf transformations, and I remain human while the full moon is out. However, the potion is not a permanent cure. But if it works out, being a werewolf won't be an issue anymore. It works for three months at a time, I believe."
"That is great news! I guess these two are on the way to changing the world, aren't they Remus?" Madam Malkin laughed.
"They have already done that. But they won't stop, anytime soon. The magical words need genius Harry and genius Hermione?" Remus laughed.
The rest of the afternoon was spent as Madam Malkin suggested which materials were best woven into separate pieces of cloth. Then they could be combined into functional pieces that carried out different jobs. The majority of an undergarment could consist of titanium nanowire embedded silk, and the scarf, jacket or other items could better project shields if they were woven with the new emitter matrix core.
For the woman, the application of Harry's wandless Transfiguration along with Hermione's ability to conjure live illusions was one of the best evenings of magic she had experienced. Lilly had passed, but her son and his family – they would win. At least that is what Madam Malkin thought to herself. She considered that the binding oath was not too much to ask – no they were going to change everything.
Like mother, like son.