FOUR
Gringotts Bank, Diagon Alley
London, England
Harry, Hermione, Dan and Emma Granger, as well as Remus and Al walked purposely towards the large white building located at a convenient location in Diagon Alley.
Harry and Hermione are holding hands and leading the party. Both were wearing the casual clothes, in the case of Harry, this was a short-sleeved green dress shirt and black dress pants with a black belt and the same color leather shoes, while for Hermione, this was a light pink blouse and jeans with white rubber shoes.
Behind them are Dan and Emma, both wearing the same casual clothes as Harry and Hermione, which, for Dan's case was a blue short sleeved dress shirt, light brown slacks with brown belt and brown leather shoes, and for Emma, this was a light green blouse and jeans with white rubber shoes.
Due to the nature of their dress, since they are the only ones who are wearing what can be classified as 'muggle' in the alley, almost every person that they pass turns their attention towards them.
Bringing the rear of the party was a smiling Al and a worried looking Remus. Both were wearing muggle clothes that can be classified as acceptable in the magical world. Both men were wearing black greatcoats that reach up to their knees, and matching black dress pants.
In the case of Al, he was also wearing a sword, with a baldric that hung from his right shoulder to hid left hip from where what appears to be a goblin forged sword hung.
Remus, however, was a surprise. Harry and Hermione are used to seeing their professor wearing threadbare and patched-up clothes, but the clothes that he was wearing today, while not new looking, looks well kept.
The party was heading towards Gringotts so that Harry can take control of the fortunes of his family. After being told by Harry, Remus, Sirius and Al, Hermione and her parents have insisted that Harry should take control so as to stop the thefts from his family.
At the huge double doors that mark the main entrance to the Gringotts Bank, two goblins, both wearing armor and carrying long spears, bowed towards them. This was the first time that a goblin had bowed to Harry as he was visiting the bank, though he would admit that he had only visited the bank once, so it raised eyebrows.
He, however, did not deign to ask the goblins why they are bowing to him, because for all he knows, they, the goblins, might be bowing to someone else. a quick glance at Al confirmed that the battle wizard had sensed his anxiety in regards to that action and that the battle wizard would explain it as soon as he is able.
Upon entering the bank, Harry paused, he can see that the bank is busy, with almost all of the goblins behind the counters entertaining customers. He gazed across the hall, looking for a free goblin, and spotted one at the far end of the hall. Harry nudged Hermione lightly, diverting her attention towards the goblin who was free, and she nodded, but they had barely taken a step towards the free goblin when another one approached them.
This goblin bowed towards the party and then said, "Greetings, Harry Potter, I am Scarface, personal assistant to Senior Manager Grimfist"
Harry inclined his head slightly towards the Goblin. He might be asleep ninety five percent of the time when they were having History of Magic, but he is not stupid enough to forget his manners when dealing with a goblin. Looking at Scarface, Harry saw that the goblin was unarmed, but that does not mean that the goblin guards are not, and besides, it was common courtesy to return a greeting, "Greetings, Scarface" Harry replied, and he was followed in kind by his companion.
"It has been a long time Scarface" Al said, after he greeted the said goblin, he smiled towards the goblin, who grinned back, before asking, "I trust that you and yours are well?"
"Very well, my Lord Alvin" Scarface replied, the use of the honorific confusing everyone in the party save for Remus, who managed to snigger.
Al nodded, while Scarface turned his attention back towards Harry, "Harry Potter, Senior Manager Grimfist is waiting for us at his office, and he had sent me to guide you so that you may find his office faster, may I take you there?"
Beside Harry, Hermione gasped as the indications of what the goblin had said hit home. Harry turned towards her, intent on asking her for an explanation, but she shook her head and gave him a look that basically said 'I'll explain on the way there', so Harry was forced to look at the goblin and nodded.
Scarface led Harry, Hermione and their companions up three flights of stairs that are polished with marble, and past three halls that are as wide as the main hall on the ground floor of the bank, save that instead of counters, this hall has rooms. As they walked, Hermione told Harry, "Only the oldest and wealthiest of all families in the Magical world have their own account managers" she explained.
Behind them, Al added to the explanation, though his explanation was meant for the three Grangers and Harry, "The Potter family" he said, "is one of the wealthiest, if not the wealthiest, in the whole magical world"
By the time that they reached the office of the account manager, Harry and Hermione's parents are already well aware of the implications of meeting a senior manager.
Scarface knocked three times on the door before he opened it and respectfully allowed Harry and his companions' entry. Harry stepped into the office first, followed by Hermione, and then her parents. Remus and Al were last to enter, the latter exchanging some pleasantries with their guide goblin first.
They found themselves in an ornately furnished and tastefully decorated office that looked more like a conference hall than an office. The main furniture in the office was not a desk, as Harry had suspected, but rather, a large oblong shaped table with eighteen seats, including one at the head of the table.
Before the door was even closed, another goblin was already making his way towards them, and as soon as he had reached the proper distance, the goblin bowed, "Mr. Potter" the goblin said as he recovered from his bow and inclined his head in respect as a reply to the bow that Harry had given him, "Welcome to my office, I am Senior Manager Grimfist" he gave them all a grin, which, as he is a goblin, would probably intimidate people more than anything else, before he motioned for Harry to take the seat at the head of the table.
Harry did so, though he insisted that Hermione sit at his right hand side. This did not anger Grimfist, more, the goblin looked as if he had expected that that would be the case. Since Hermione was already seated at the right hand of Harry, her parents took the seats beside hers, and both Remus and Al sat beside them, leaving the entire left hand side of Harry devoid of life.
This, however, seemed to be what was really supposed to happen, because Grimfist took a seat on Harry's left hand side after asking for the permission to do so, and once he was seated, three other goblins entered the office from a different door behind Grimfist.
These three goblins all bowed, first, towards Harry, who stood as he received the bow, surprising all goblins inside the office, and then towards Grimfist before they asked, and were given permission, to take their seats beside Grimfist.
As soon as everyone was seated, Grimfist turned towards Harry and asked, "Where would you like to begin, Mr. Potter?"
Harry nodded, he glanced at Hermione, an indication that he had no idea what he is supposed to say, before turning back towards Grimfist, "In all honesty, Senior Manager" he began, "I have no idea"
Grimfist blinked, he looked surprised, and then he nodded, but before he can say anything, Al cut in, "With respect, Senior Manager, perhaps, it would be better if we begin with the Will of Lord James and Lady Lily"
Grimfist sadly shook his head, "Alas, Lord Alvin" he began, "That would indeed be the correct procedure, but the Wizengamot had sealed the Last Will and Testament of Lord and Lady Potter, and no amount of persuasion from our part would convince them to unseal it" he looked dejected as he added, "More, the Chief Warlock had used this move in an attempt to get all the Potter vaults under his control, but I tell you that hens would play the flute first before that happens"
"Back up, back up" Harry said, interrupting the conversation, he looked at Grimfist and clarified, "Dumbledore sealed my parents will and then used it to control the money?" when Grimfist nodded, Harry added, "I know that he has been stealing from me, but I did not know that" he said the last towards his two guardians who have accompanied him, Remus and Al.
Remus apologized, "I am sorry, Harry" he began, he looked angry, though he was controlling it, better than Al, in fact, as he added, "We did not know that the Chief Manipulator sealed your parents will," he looked disturbed as he added, "We know that Lily and James would never allow you to be raised with the Dursley's, but we did not know that he sealed the will"
"We owe those bastards one visit Remus" Al suddenly said, everyone in the table, save for Remus and, surprisingly, Dan, cringed at the tone that the battle wizard had used. Even Grimfist and his assistants did, and they are goblins, "I intend to repay them for the 'kindness' that they have shown the Potter heir for fifteen years"
"As long as you include me in that get together, I would have no comments against it" Hermione suddenly said, and everyone looked at her as she did, and then cringed once more. She was glowing white, and everyone in the table, even her parents, can sense her anger as she said that. If the goblins were inclined to offer insurances to muggles, then they would be avoiding the Dursley's now.
"Okay people" Emma said, placating everyone in the table, "Why don't we all calm down for a few moments and get back to the topic at hand?" she suggested pleasantly, but everyone in the table can hear the tone in her voice that she would not take kindly to anyone who would ignore her suggestion.
Hermione nodded, as did Al, though in the case of the latter, a full five seconds had passed first as he calmed himself.
"Now then" Grimfist said, "Sealing the will had some unexpected pleasant consequences, at least, for our point of view" he grinned as he looked at Harry and explained, "We do not know what your parents had written in their will, and I am afraid that I never had the pleasure of meeting your father and mother, but from the words of my predecessor, we goblins believe them to be kind and caring, more, they treated is with respect and are preferred clients of our bank, so we believe that they had left behind some monetary considerations for their friends"
"So basically, since you do not know what is written, the will can be disregarded" Hermione concluded, she looked at Harry and explained, "it means that all the contents of those vaults would go to Harry regardless of what his parents had said"
Grimfist nodded, "That is correct" he replied, "Of course, it would be advisable to retrieve the will so that we may see it, and so that we can honor it, but not necessary for Mr. Potter to become Lord Potter"
Al nodded, he looked at Harry and said, "Since you are the last of the Potters, it all belongs to you" he explained, and then he elaborated, "For the sake of explanation, let us say that your father and mother designated someone else to be Lord Potter, because of the fact that the will is sealed and cannot be read, their wish is disregarded, forcing the law to designate the next Lord Potter, and that would be you"
Grimfist nodded, "And the best part is, even if the will, no matter how improbable it is, named someone other than you, Mr. Potter" he looked at Harry, "it would not matter, the law of succession is ironclad"
"May I say something?" Dan asked, and when permission was given, Dan said, "I think that we are thinking too much about being sneaky here, because I think that Harry's parents would have left everything to him"
"I agree with those sentiments" Remus added, he looked at Harry and said, "There is no one else whom James would have left everything he had to, and while I also agree with the assessment of Master Grimfist, that there are several bequests in those will, I am sure that they are of small consequence"
Harry nodded, "Very well" he said, he looked at Grimfist and asked, "Master Grimfist, exactly what are my inheritances?"
Grimfist grinned again, he motioned to the three other goblins and said, "I have invited Account Managers Scartooth, Griphook, and Grayback to this meeting because they are the ones who are more familiar with these accounts Mr. Potter" at the look on the face of Hermione, Grimfist thought to explain, "My function as Senior Manager of the Potter accounts is to supervise the three main vaults and the seven minor vaults that have the name Potter written on them"
Hermione blinked, "Three?" she asked, and when Grimfist nodded, she complained, "but goblin banking law states that families may only have one main vault"
"Yes, families with the same name may only have one vault" Grimfist clarified, he did not look angry that Hermione knows the goblin banking law, more, he looked pleasantly surprised that she does, "But the three vaults we are talking about here only has the name Potter written on them, they are not Potter vaults per se, but rather, the Potter family is the only living heir to them all"
Harry and Hermione looked at Al and Remus, both figuring out that the two men should know about this since they are the ones who are managing the Potter estate in the absence of Harry, but one look at both men confirmed that they have no idea what the hell was being talked about.
"I am sorry Harry" Al said, "but as I told you, I am not privy to the financial capital of the Potter family," he smiled and said, "the only Potter capital I am aware of is their military capability"
"You are telling me that Harry here has his own army?" Dan asked, surprised.
Al shook his head, "Not much of an army if we would use that term" he admitted, "Just a few men and women who are stationed all around the world, mostly protecting Potter land in other countries, and a few more, around seven hundred people, give or take" he sighed and added, "I am, nominally, commander of that force, but even I do not know where my people are, I know their names and numbers, and I know how to contact them, not their location"
Grimfist smiled at that, "Contact to these different men and women are handled by Gringotts, Mr. Granger, so Lord Alvin has to contact us first" he said.
Harry nodded, "May I know the names of these vaults that I have?" Harry asked, he looked in fascination as the three goblins withdrew a box each in response to the question and pushed all three boxes towards him.
"the family rings in these boxes would recognize you as the heir" Grimfist said, he opened the first box and said, "This is the Potter family ring, and I think that this is the one that you should try first"
Harry nodded, he studied the ring and found it beautiful yet simple. There was only one stone in it, a white sparkling diamond, but at the center of the diamond was a shield that Harry instantly recognized as the same shield as the one that hangs on the living room of Potter manor, the shield of the coat-of-arms of the Potter family. Tiny engravings surround the diamond on the outside and upon closer examination, Harry saw that they are the same words that are written on the family crest.
Harry tried on the ring, and it fitted easily. Grimfist looked, for some reason, disappointed when nothing else happened. He was about to open his mouth to say something when the ring suddenly glowed, emitting a light that surrounded Harry for a few moments, and then, something else happened, the light suddenly surrounded Hermione as well, but in her case, she was also suddenly wearing a ring which was an exact copy of the ring that Harry now wore, except that the diamond was smaller.
A surprised Grimfist looked at Harry, and then at Hermione, and then back at Harry before realizing that the young Lord Potter has no idea what the hell is happening, so he looked at his two guardians, Remus and Al, with a questioning look.
Both Remus and Al were surprised as well, but they looked as if they were half-expecting what had happened. Al was the first one to get over the shock of what had happened and looked at Grimfist, "We were half-expecting this, yes" he admitted, "but not this early, certainly not like this"
"Can someone please explain what is going on" Emma demanded, she would have demanded that from her daughter, since she was certain that she would get more answers from her, but the problem was, Hermione was staring at Harry, while Harry was staring at her, and it was pretty clear that both of them are not going to be answering any questions anytime soon.
"Dan, Emma" Al said, looking at the two parents, he sighed and then said, "You just witnessed something that I never thought I would witness," he glanced at Harry and Hermione, both of whom were still staring at each other as if there was no one else in the room but the two of them, though by now, they are also smiling at each other, "A soul-bond marriage"
"Back up, Al" Dan suddenly said, he glanced at his princess and Harry, and admitted, at least to himself, that he had never seen a couple so obviously made for each other, before turning his attention back towards his friend and saying, "You're telling me that my daughter is now married?"
Al nodded, he watched as Dan started to get angry, but he, Al, smiled and said, "I know what you reaction would be, Dan" he said, "but please, let me explain" Dan nodded, and Al continued, "You've already witnessed the light that came from them when they shared their first kiss, I would have bet that they were married that time, but this is the first proof that we have"
Grimfist thought to rejoin the conversation before Dan Granger started shouting at the top of his lungs, something that, even though there are silencing and privacy charms surrounding the office, he is sure he would not want to witness, and said, "The magic of the Potter family ring recognized Lord Potter" he indicated Harry, "but it took sometime because the ring also detected that Lord Potter now has two souls inhabiting his body, and the magic looked for the owner of that part of the soul, and found your daughter"
"Basically" Remus said, looking at Dan, "Harry has a part of his soul in Hermione, and your daughter has a part of hers in Harry," he looked at Dan and Emma, his gaze boring straight into their eyes, though there was nothing hostile in his gaze, "This is what it means to be soul-bound"
At that moment, both Harry and Hermione dropped their gaze from each other, though it was clear that they did not do so because of embarrassment, more, they are giving off indications that they would want nothing more but to continue what they were doing and stare at each other. Harry turned towards the two other boxes that were in front of him, and he opened one of them without even moving.
"Such control" Al suddenly commented, looking at Harry as he opened the box using wandless magic, he smiled and said, "Not even Lord James, or Lord Charles, could have done that, and that box he opened, that was the Peverell family, not someone who would just bow"
Harry looked at Al, but Al shook his head and motioned for Harry to try on the ring. Harry studied the ring and saw that, unlike the Potter ring, this one was much more extravagant with no less than five small diamonds and eight rubies. Harry had a hard time wearing this one ring, it seemed as if there was an invisible barrier that is preventing him from wearing the ring, but after a few moments, he was able to wear the ring and in an instant, a light surrounded him.
Since the Peverell family was not his main family, everyone assumed that the light would only engulf Harry, so everyone inside the room who understood pureblood politics, even the goblins, were rendered mute when the same light engulfed Hermione and a smaller version of the Peverell family ring appeared on her hand as well.
"Okay" Dan said after the light subsided, this time, Harry and Hermione did not stop time to look at each other, "I think that we can do without being reminded that my princess is now married every time" he looked at Al and Remus, saw the shocked expressions on their face, and then at the goblins, where he also registered the same shock, before he looked back at Al and Remus, "I take it that that is not supposed to happen then"
As usual, it was Al who recovered first, "yes" he admitted, he looked at Hermione and saw that she was now wearing two rings and shook his head in disbelief before looking back at Dan and Emma and explaining, "The Potter family ring recognizing Hermione as the next Lady Potter was half-expected, but the Peverell Ring?" he asked, and then he shook his head again, "Never before has a woman been made lady of two Ancient and Noble Houses at the same time, traditionally, lords of two ancient and noble families may have two wives"
"I guess that this means that Harry would rather only have Hermione by his side" Emma commented dryly.
To her surprise, Remus, and then Al, nodded, "Taking into consideration that light we saw when they first kissed? I guess that we should not be surprised when the third ring recognizes Hermione as well" Remus said.
Harry nodded, he smiled at the girl who apparently is now his wife, and then opened the third box, this time manually. The ring resting inside the box called to him, not as compelling as the Potter family ring, but certainly more than the Peverell ring. Harry gently picked the ring and studied it, the ring itself appeared to be made of gold and there was only one stone in it, a ruby.
Harry easily wore the ring and was surrounded by a nimbus of golden-white light. Expecting Hermione to be surrounded by the same light, everyone turned their attention towards her, but was disappointed when she appeared fine. As the white light surrounding Harry dissipated, everyone assumed that for this one family, Hermione would not be the lady as well.
Suddenly, Hermione was surrounded by a golden nimbus of light as well, though it was subtly different from the one that had surrounded Harry. Within a few moments, Hermione was wearing a third ring, but it was different from the one that Harry was wearing.
"The Ancient and Noble House of Gryffindor" Grimfist said, nodding towards Harry. The eyes of the goblin widened when he saw the ring that Hermione was wearing, and in awe-struck tones, he said, "the Ancient and Noble House of Ravenclaw" before chuckling as he said, "The Heir of Gryffindor and the Heir of Ravenclaw bonded together," he smiled, "Rowena Ravenclaw and Godric Gryffindor would have been pleased to know that their descendants are bonded"
"As they are bonded, Master Grimfist" Al added.
"Lord and Lady Potter" Grimfist said, he stood up, as did his fellow goblins, and said, "May we at Gringotts be the first to congratulate you on your bonding, marriage, and assumption of four Ancient and Noble Families, including two of Hogwarts" he smiled and explained, "As you are bonded, my Lord, my Lady, everything that is his is hers and everything that is hers is his" saying that, Grimfist and his fellow goblins placed their enclosed right fists over their left chest and bowed towards the two of them.
Dan and Emma voiced their congratulations as well, though it was more for the marriage. The two Granger parents realized that their daughter is so much in love with Harry that they have no choice but to approve of their marriage, though both are still planning on going through a ceremony.
Remus and Al were the last to give their congratulations.
"Now, Lord Potter" Grimfist said, "I take it that you would want to start with House Potter first?"
Harry nodded. The goblin that Harry recognized as Griphook stood up, bowed towards Harry and said, "Lord Potter, I am Griphook, account manager for the Potter family vaults" he withdrew from his person a portfolio and opened it, "As of our most recent audit, your family vault has twenty seven million six hundred eighteen thousand five hundred fifty three galleons, forty two sickles and three knuts in liquid capital, your family investments number slightly more than that, with a total of twenty eight million galleons in stocks, bonds and other investments."
Dan nearly fainted when Griphook mentioned the amount, and then he reminded himself that this is only one of Harry's accounts.
"The Potter family has property in all six continents, and Lord James, perhaps in jest, had asked us to prepare a property for him in the Arctic Circle." Griphook said, "You have manors in almost all Western European Countries and some in East Asia as well. There are five manors scattered across the United States and three in Canada"
"The Potter portfolio is easily your most profitable and biggest vault, Lord Potter" Gimfist said.
"Quite" Griphook agreed, he flipped the page and handed it to Harry, who saw a list. He read the title as 'Investments' followed by names and amounts. Most of the companies that Harry saw there were unknown to him, but he can see that most of them were made in the muggle world. He was also pleasantly surprised when he saw that he actually has sizable stocks in the muggle transportation community, including several in the car manufacturer Jaguar and the aircraft company Gulfstream.
"As to the deficiencies in the vault" Griphook continued, "We know that Albus Dumbledore and Molly Weasley were the ones who had taken the most, but there are others as well, including the two Weasley children, Ronald and Ginevra. In any case, we have counted the deficiency at ten million galleons, most of which went to the vault of Albus Dumbledore"
"What actions can Harry take?" Dan asked.
"I would not advise going through the ministry" Griphook replied instantly, "Albus Dumbledore, as Chief Warlock, can easily make his actions legal, so Gringotts would suggest that Lord Potter lock his vault, and at the same time, demand compensation through Gringotts"
"We will do so" Hermione said. Few had noticed that she and Harry have been looking at one another as this bit of news was delivered, and everyone missed Harry nodding when Griphook made the suggestion.
Griphook nodded and made a note in the portfolio. He was followed by Scartooth, who was the account manager for the Peverell Account, and Grayback, who is the account manager for the Gryffindor Account. Halfway to the discussion, they were joined by Longtooth, whom Grimfist introduced as the account manager for the Ravenclaw account.
After the meeting, Harry and Hermione found themselves as controlling a financial empire that was worth close to two hundred million galleons, several properties in all continents and the controlling stake of Hogwarts, making Harry and Hermione more powerful than the headmaster when it comes to the control of the school.
"Lastly, Lord and Lady Potter" Grimfist said, he produced ten keys and laid them at the table, "We know that you are currently staying at the Potter Manor in England, but we do not think that this is the best place for you," he indicated the keys, "these are keys to the different Potter manors located all around Western Europe and the one in New York."
Harry looked at Al and nodded. Since Al was the only one who had visited every single one of the Potter Manors, Harry left him in charge of picking one. The battle wizard picked one key and said, "This is the key to the Manor in the Rhine, I think that it would be best for us to move here" he smiled and said, "the Germany Ministry is not too keen when it comes to underage magic, and we need to train you properly Harry" his grin grew wider as he added, "And your lawyer, Anton Rosseu is supposed to be German"
Harry looked at Hermione and then at her parents. All three Granger's nodded, so Harry gave his permission, "Germany it is"
Hermione thanked Harry by throwing herself at him and kissing him.