A/N: Chapter posted 16/10/2023
Welcoming Feast
Harry and his friends had spent a wonderful, relaxed Sunday.
Harry and Ron, together with Draco, Greg, and the twins had gone to the Quidditch pitch. They had decided on two teams, made of Ron, Fred, and Draco (Team Orange – with Draco insisting on keeping his blond hair colour, thank you very much) and Greg, George, and Harry (Team Mischief (George)) and then Harry and Draco had tried to catch the snitch, while the other four whacked bludgers at them and each other. It was great fun.
Hermione and Vince had gone to the library and had just as much fun. They looked up all they could find on magical travel regarding different magical beings and creatures, and Hermione started reading up on house-elves. But then it got really entertaining when Madam Pince appeared at one point and emptied the inbox. It apparently had been stuffed with much more books than she had expected. She found ten copies of Hogwarts a History and many others, which had been checked out by Ravenclaws lately. And since she asked Hermione and Greg about them, the two gleefully told her of the conversation at the dinner table a few evenings ago.
"Are you saying, the students of Ravenclaw only checked them out to deprive students of another House?" She asked, looking quite angry.
"We don't know. But I find it telling that two lone Ravenclaws must've returned all of these books all by themselves after this conversation and Flitwick looking angry. How did they have access to the books? Didn't any of the ones who had checked them out take them home over the break? Or did you leave before the train did when the Yule break started?" Vince said.
"Certainly not. I always put the library to rights first."
"Well, then, either Professor Flitwick or one or both of the seventh-year Ravenclaws returned them, right?" Hermione said helpfully. Gleefully clutching one of the copies of Hogwarts a History.
Madam Prince huffed, "Why, I never…"
"Professor Flitwick thought it would be a good idea to keep one copy in the library when we have more than one copy of it. Do you think that's doable?" Hermione asked innocently.
"It's certainly doable; I've asked to be allowed to do that for years! But Headmaster Dumbledore always vetoed it. And he certainly will again," the normally so severe and stiff woman looked a little dejected now and Hermione and Greg shared a wide-eyed look.
"Uh, Madam Pince. There've been… uh… some developments? You might want to ask your fellow staff members about them. We've got to go!" Hermione grabbed Vince's hand and pulled him out of the library quickly. One arm still clutching the book she had yet to check out. (She remedied that the next day.)
Hermione recounted that conversation in the common room later, where they all met before going down to the Welcoming Feast.
Percy, who had spent the day with his little sister, was as incensed as Madam Pince had been. He just hoped Professor Flitwick would put a stop to it.
Harry remarked that the Ravenclaws had clearly demonstrated that they were no Slytherins, as Snape had implied, because they had shown their hand by stupidly returning all the books in question, and moreso, with only two house members present before the rest of them returned.
"They need pranking!" the twins decided.
Even Hermione and Percy agreed.
Ginny, who was standing at the window, looking out, exclaimed, "The train is coming!"
That got them moving. They rushed to their dorms, pulled on their robes, and thundered down all the steps to the ground floor.
The twins had the great idea of casting the counter-spell at any portrait they saw, with some rather startling surprises. Some beautiful women and men became very common-looking, and others gained some beauty, which led to some startled exclamations when they saw one another.
It was great fun and soon Harry and Ron joined in, leaving much oil-painted chaos in their wake.
Ron's wand had already proved that it could handle the spell. At least nothing untoward happened when he cast it. And even Harry's rather lacklustre wand cast the counter perfectly.
They quickly sat at the Gryffindor table that had reappeared again and waited for their schoolmates.
At the staff table, all teachers had taken a seat as well. The golden throne had made no reappearance and they left the headmaster's space empty for now. The Malfoys were sitting together at one end of the table. The place where Lockhart had been sitting next to Snape had been left empty as well.
Madam Pince and Flitwick were talking animatedly, and Madam Pince even smiled once! The only one clearly unhappy was McGonagall next to Flitwick.
Then they could hear growing levels of noise coming closer and soon the mass of students spilled into the Hall with great cheer.
Greetings and looks were exchanged as everyone tried to see if anyone else had changed in appearance.
The greatest brouhaha came from the normally very put-together and well-behaved Slytherin table.
Harry and his friend craned their neck to get a good look. It seemed that many of the boys were looking much better now. Especially the older quidditch players like Flint, Derrick, and Bole.
Some of the older Slytherin girls looked a little more common now. Much in contrast to it were some of the younger years. Pansy's nose wasn't so pug-like anymore, and the biggest transformation had happened to Millicent Bulstrode (next to Vince and Greg). Trolls didn't seem to be part of their genealogy after all, as Ron said wonderingly, which earned him a Hermione elbow in his side.
Colin, who had rushed to sit next to Harry (much to Harry's consternation, at last at first), started talking a mile a minute, "Hiya Harry! Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! Did you see all the changes in the Slytherins? Isn't it awesome? We were so surprised when we got the newspaper for FREE that day! And it was the one with my pictures in it. Did you see them?"
"Yes, they were great. How did the papers get them anyway?"
"Oh, that was the best! Professor Snape came by and asked if they could have them! And he helped with all the copyright issues and such! He'll even teach me a spell to do it myself! And he came with us to Diagon Alley, and they opened a vault for me and now I'll get paid if my pictures get published and there's so much money in it already! We looked yesterday because the papers all over the world printed them! Can you imagine? MY photographs were printed in Japan!
"Wow!"
"Right!? And he dispelled all the accidental magic at our home. Now the toilet doesn't fart anymore when you sit on it, sadly... But Mum is really happy about it! And he sent me a book with the ins and outs of publishing stuff. You really must read it too! They are breaking the law, publishing things about you. At least, I think so."
Colin gasped for breath and Harry felt a little breathless just from listening. *1
"That would be great, thanks, Colin!" Harry said thankfully and Colin beamed.
"Oh, and I'm sorry for always being in your face and snapping pictures! Mum sat me down and explained how annoying that is!"
Harry chuckled and nodded, "Yeah, that was quite a bother, but apology accepted if you agree to ask in the future."
"Will do," Colin said cheerfully.
"So, you won't... like sell my picture to the papers without asking?" Harry might've worried about it after the incident with Lockhart and Colin asking for a photograph that first time.
"Oh no! Don't worry! I would need your and your guardian's permission. But I can sell pictures of things like quidditch matches if all of the faces of the players are unrecognisable. Especially the ones of teenagers and such."
"That sounds great!"
Colin beamed again and then stuffed his face with the dinner that had appeared rather unnoticed by the chattering and now-eating students. No one had really noticed that Dumbledore hadn't opened the feast like he normally would.
"So, how did you get contracts with the publishers set up?" Hermine, who had listened in, asked. "Did Professor Snape do that as well?"
"Oh no. He said that this wasn't his… uh… exercise or something? No, after my parents opened a vault for me with Professor Snape's help, he asked for a goblin who specialised in all matters of publishing. Like laws, money, and taxes. I'm paying taxes now; can you believe it? That's why you really should read the book, Harry. Not that they want to collect the taxes for the books about you at some point in the future!"
Harry went pale and said shakily, "I'll ask Professor Snape too, I think."
(Hermione mouthed the word "expertise.")
"Yes! McGonagall is useless anyway!" Colin exclaimed. "She was visiting with Professor Snape but ran when mum asked her about our safety procedures and if Dean's parents had been informed about him getting stunned!"
Even at the staff table, they heard the boy's high-pitched exclamation. Not that anyone showed any sign that they had.
Dean leaned forward and waved to Colin who cheered when seeing the boy.
"Mum was really chuffed, that I can tell you, and no. No one had informed her. Only that I would be staying at Hogwarts over the break. No explanation," Dean told him. "Good to know someone worried about that at least."
"Maybe the parents of the Muggle-born students should exchange numbers," Hermione mused. "I think my parents feel a little alone with a magical daughter and all."
Colin nodded emphatically, "My mum would like that too, I think. She was so happy when Professor Snape got rid of all the magic! But I said that already…"
"Yes, but it was such a huge pile of information, it's all right to repeat some," Harry said, grinning at Colin.
Thus the P.M.C. group got started. (Parents of Magical Child(ren)) *2
The noise at the tables died down a little and everyone got busy eating.
Only when its level started to go up again, the man, who was obviously Draco Malfoy's dad, stood up and addressed the student body, "Good evening, students of Hogwarts. My name is Lucius Malfoy and until recently, I've been a governor of this fine institution. So, first and foremost I want to tell you, that the cause for a cat, a ghost, and a student being petrified has been found and removed and the petrified beings were revived."
The students cheered and Dean was stared at by many.
"Enough with the ogling, students. It's rather unbecoming." The refined man scolded lightly and even some of the teachers blushed. They had never thought to admonish the students when they behaved like that, always thinking it was the job of the parents to do so. However, they were the role models the children saw most of the year after the age of eleven, one or two now realised.
"As many of you have noticed by now," Mr Malfoy went on, "Headmaster Dumbledore is not here, and I'm afraid that I must inform you that he retired very suddenly just yesterday."
The noise level rose quite high at this news, as only a few students had known, and Dumbledore had been a teacher when their Grandparents had been at school. He had been an institution.
After a minute Mr Malfoy sent whistling sparks into the air and the students quietened down again.
"Yes, we were as surprised as you are."
The children sniggered.
"There was quite some deliberation and debate in which all the current heads of houses declined the headmaster's job. In the end, they asked me, and I accepted."
Woosh. The noise level roared up again.
After another minute Mr Malfoy continued talking and everyone quietened down immediately. "I only agreed to take on the mantle until the end of the school year so we all can see if it's a workable solution. Additionally, I said yes, because my wife had already accepted the post of Matron of the Hospital Wing. After all, Madam Pomfrey resigned the same day as well. Even if we don't think those two resignations were connected."
Everyone knew that despite Headmaster Malfoy's words, by tomorrow morning rumours would have Albus and Poppy eloping to Gretna Green or something like that. The Slytherins on the staff found it a good distraction from all the changes that were announced.
"Yet another change occurred, when Professor McGonagall retired as Head of Gryffindor and as Deputy Headmistress."
The students had gotten too exhausted to react, but the Gretna Green rumour got spiced up later with the addition of 'Minerva, the jilted lover.'
"Professor Flitwick has agreed to serve as the deputy for now and we'll see how that works out with his Head of House duties. So, that leaves us with the Defence Against the Dark Arts post. We do not know what Mr Dumbledore had planned in this regard and until now no one has stepped forward, so we are looking for a new Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher, preferably a Gryffindor.
"Last but not least, I assume you all have seen the free papers on the 29th of December, am I right?"
A loud "yes!" rose from the four house tables.
"Very well, if someone has missed it, please educate yourself. There should be plenty of copies around. And to show that I've cleared myself of the influences of the original spell I'll cast the counter onto myself in front of you and anyone who wants to, may copy me. Here I go. Redianormalis."
"Redianormalis," came out of many mouths when the children cast the spell onto themselves. All Muggle-born who were not of age, and many of the others as well, as only their parents had done the casting as of yet.
"Splendid," Headmaster Malfoy said. "Now, one last thing. As we are still running around and getting everything ready for this term with all of the changes, school will start on Tuesday, and therefore you'll have another day of holidays tomorrow." The last part of the sentence was drowned out by cheers, but Headmaster Malfoy didn't seem to mind.
Later in the staffroom, Severus sat with his friends and colleagues and tried to decompress, while Narcissa was berating Lucius for forgetting to mention to the students that one of the reasons for the day off was the medical scans of all the fifth- and seventh-years she had planned.
Lucius looked apologetic enough to Narcissa, and so she relented and said, "Oh well, it's done now. Then maybe I'll spend some more time in the Files Room and start on Tuesday."
Severus thought of something they had talked about and said, "Pomona, are you still in contact with Mr Miller?"
"I am, he's such a dear! But he has a hard time finding a job, he wrote to me just before Yule. I hope it will get better, now that the counter-spell is working its way through the Ministry. Why do you ask, Severus?"
"Well, we were talking about getting some help for Irma as we've opened a new source for books that will soon come to the library and Irma would be swamped even more then. Mr Miller seems to be the perfect candidate if Irma agrees."
"Irma agrees!" Irma agreed from within her wingback chair, which dwarfed her a little.
"Very good," Lucius clapped his hands and added, "Get me his address by tomorrow morning, please, Pomona. I just hope no one snatches him up now that they are in their right minds."
"Like you are?" McGonagall groused.
"Exactly! It was like a fog lifting from my brain," Lucius answered as if he hadn't noted the derision in her voice.
And it was true. It was like a wind had blown his brain free of cobwebs sticking to stupid power games and prejudices.
"I heard from a lot of my brethren how easy thinking was now and how they were starting to question everything that had been taught to them. I can understand that some of you are not trusting all of this right now. Some of us fought on different sides of the last war, after all. So, only time will tell if this newfound attitude is permanent."
Many of the teachers present nodded. They felt a little better now that Malfoy had addressed the elephant in the room.
"Remember, I will only be here until summer. Only if all of us like this arrangement will my wife and I stay here. Even our son has a voice in it."
"So, tell me, Headmaster, what kind of books will be coming my way, as you put it?"
"All kinds. Old tomes and new textbooks. Some in multiple editions, some as rare as them being the only copy left in this world. So, a real mixed bag. Oh, and magazines too. You'll need to sort through them and take anything you want for the library. The rest will be offered first to the teachers of Hogwarts and then to the Unspeakables and if there's anything left, we'll sell them."
"That sounds amazing. What subjects are they on?"
"I think all subjects, possibly. I even saw Muggle literature."
Someone scoffed.
"I wouldn't discount those," Lucius said. I'll read some first before I make up my mind as should anyone."
Charity Burbage smiled happily and agreed, "I'll do so as well. I might learn something."
Severus internally facepalmed. That woman needed to learn the subject she taught! He thought back on all the letters he had read, with people voicing their anger about how outdated the subject was and how they had not managed to navigate the Muggle world without sticking out like a sore thumb. He didn't envy Lucius the task of talking to her.
"From whom did you get all the money for the books? Hogwarts has none left for such frivolities as Muggle literature," McGonagall put her foot in.
"Oh, they were donated in a sense. Don't worry, it didn't cost us a Knut."
"Well, the assistant for Irma sure will."
"That's true," Lucius said peaceably, "but I found some unused revenues that will pay for it. And it will pay for even more. I need to look at the finances first, but I think we can hire more people and update some of the equipment. So, I ask you to think big. Write down anything you need or wish for and prioritise it."
"Even a teacher's assistant or a Head of House?" Filius asked.
"Even that. You might not get it, but I'll do my best to find a way to meet your needs," Lucius said. "And if I don't know about it, you certainly will never get it. The assistant for Madam Pince is an exception and not the rule."
Most of the teachers present were not used to this easy-going openness. They were more used to endless waffling and getting placated. Maybe Malfoy wouldn't be as bad as they had feared.
"Will you move into the headmaster's office?" Babbling asked and Lucius nodded, "Yes. Why shouldn't I?"
There could be little said to that other than, 'But it's Albus' office.'
"Oh, do you want to see the note he left on his desk?" Lucius asked and held out a small piece of parchment, which was snatched immediately by Burbage who read it and then scoffed, "That's it?" she asked Filius.
"Yes, that was what I found. I called for Minerva, Pomona, and Severus at once," Filius answered.
"I still wonder what caused him to quit like this. Hogwarts was his life, his home. He always said that he wanted to stay headmaster until he died," Vector said, looking quite baffled. "And then he leaves for a few days, only informing Minerva that she's needed at Hogwarts but not why, and then he retires like this. It's quite inconceivable."
"Do you think something untoward has happened and he was forced out of his job?" Lucius asked. "Maybe I should inform the Aurors after all."
Minerva scoffed, "Don't pretend you aren't behind this!"
Lucius stood up rather abruptly and raised his wand while the rest looked at him with uncertainty on their faces.
"I swear on my magic that I did not knowingly cause Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore to retire or quit his job nor did I knowingly cause someone else to do so in any way or form. Expecto Patronum."
A spectral magpie flew a round in the staff room, did a somersault, and dissolved much to Narcissa's delight, "You did it! After such a long time!"
Most of the teachers were appeased now.
All but McGonagall, who just couldn't believe that Malfoy had changed so much. He said 'knowingly', maybe he had someone obliviate him after causing Albus to retire?
Lucius knew that he couldn't convince everyone. He saw the doubt in McGonagall's eyes and had to admit that he wouldn't have believed her either if the tables were turned and she had sworn to always follow the Dark Lord or something equally absurd like that. He could only keep doing what he did and hope it was enough.
Soon after most of the teachers retired, Severus cast a hidden Muffliato, and said, "I disguised our talking, who knows who might be listening in, otherwise."
Lucius scanned for listening charms but found none but nodded anyway.
"I wish you would teach us the spell, Severus," Narcissa all but whined.
Severus smirked at her and then asked Lucius, "So how did your visit to Gringotts go?"
"Oh, fantastic. The goblins were debating on the merits of naming me 'friend of the horde', they were so happy when seeing the contents of the two trunks," Lucius grinned.
The other two laughed.
"And then the haggling started?" Narcissa asked.
"It did indeed. In the end, they agreed to find the owners of the heirlooms should they find any alive. They also insisted on the 250-year rule on extinct families. They have to because of the latest treaty."
"What is that rule," Severus asked.
"If a family dies out, their vaults have to be kept for 250 years by Gringotts. Only if no heir comes forward, and they can be a descendant of a long-forgotten Squib line for example, the vaults become the property of the Ministry with Gringotts getting five percent."
"Oh. Thank you. So, If I were the last of the Prince family?"
"Which you aren't, but if you were, you could claim their estate."
Severus nodded, "I see."
"Where was I? So, if the family of an heirloom died out less than 250 years ago, and there are vaults at Gringotts, they'll put the pieces of jewellery there. The older heirlooms of extinct families as well as anything else will be sold and the money goes into a vault in Hogwarts' name. I opened a new one for now until I've had a chance to look through the finances and who has access to them."
"So, what else did you agree on, what are they getting for their services?" Severus asked.
"Well, they get 3% and we get 1% each."
Severus raised an eyebrow.
"Finder's fee, naturally."
"Naturally," Severus repeated dryly, shaking his head in amusement. "And how many of the pieces of jewellery are heirlooms?"
"They estimated about a quarter. I might've kept some information to myself when I asked the Room for the trunks. I asked for trunks with multiple compartments and extension charms. So, there were a lot more pieces of jewellery than it looked from the outside," Lucius confessed and the other two chuckled. It was a very Slytherin move and much appreciated.
Lucius went on, "The goblins calculated that without the heirlooms, the worth is about 8 million just in raw materials of metals and stones. But many of the pieces are worth much more. Obviously, they cannot flood the market with it at once, and they'll sell the more common pieces in the Muggle market.– Severus? Are you well?"
Severus blinked and then shook his head a little, "No? I… when you said 1% each, who did you mean?"
"Well, the three of us. Who else?"
"So, I might get more than 80,000 Galleons in the future."
"Yes. Was it too little?" Lucius grinned at his friend, not being serious at all.
Severus shook his head again, bemused. Narcissa chuckled, and Lucius went on, "So, even with all the fees, Hogwarts will get at least 7.5 million. But please let us keep it between the three of us. It would foster corruption of the highest order if this got out. Governors are especially susceptible… hmm… at least they were before the counter…
"Gringotts and I will work out a plan to keep the money safe and make sure it only can be used for the school and scholarships and such. We might also be able to lower the tuition costs and raise the salaries. We'll see. But the lean days are over. We should be able to run the school with money earned through interest alone, for centuries if not millennia. – But setting up a failsafe system will take time and careful planning."
"Maybe only let them sell half of the treasure? At least in the Muggle world people often invest their money in pieces of jewellery. Hm, but we use gold here, not paper money… forget what I said," Severus huffed at himself much to the Malfoy couple's amusement.
"You're not wrong. I already agreed with Gringotts that they don't have to sell anything. They'll get their 3% anyway. Even if it's 'only' for the worth of the raw materials."
"Well, I'm curious if any Malfoy of Black family heirlooms will reappear soon. Also, what chaos it will cause when they are given back! How will they do that anyway?"
"We talked about it, but a Hogwarts house-elf came and got me for the feast. We might just put it in the vaults and pretend it's always been there, or send it anonymously via Gringotts. Or both. We'll see." Lucius yawned behind his hand and said, "I think we should retire. It was a long day."
The others nodded and called it a day.
*1 And me, the poor writer, got breathless while writing Colin, too. *g*
*2 PMC stands for so many things, what's one more?
A/N: Sorry for all the percentages. Normally I try to use fractions in my HP fanfiction, but in this case, it was just too bothersome. So, let's pretend the wizarding world works more with fractions and the goblins (and Unspeakables) with percentages. ?