Harry entered Gringotts and went to the first available teller. After a while, he was allowed to enter the deeper parts of the bank to go to Barchoke's office. He knocked on the door, and upon hearing an invitation, he went inside.
"Harry, good to see you," Barchoke greeted him.
"Good morning, Barchoke," Harry replied, taking a seat.
"How can I help you, Harry? Your letter sounded like there was something big going on," his account manager asked.
Harry then explained the events that had transpired in the last few days, and needless to say, the older goblin was disgusted.
"What do you need?" Barchoke asked.
"First of all, I want to adopt Teddy this Saturday at Potter Manor, and I would like you to stand as a witness from Gringotts."
"I will be there," the goblin replied simply.
"Thank you. Second, I will give you a few tasks to do."
Barchoke took a parchment, and quill, and started writing.
"First: check any premises in Diagon Alley, Knockturn Alley, and Hogsmeade if there are any on sale. Second, I need a list of companies owned by Death Eaters. Every legal business that they own, I want to know. Third, a list of potential ventures I can invest in. It can be either an existing business or someone looking for a partner to create a new company. The last task for you is to check any business that has closed down in the last few years. What was the reason for closing, and is there any potential left there."
"Alright, Harry, I will do this, but it will take me quite some time. It will take me many hours to prepare everything, and I also have many other day-to-day tasks."
Harry then thought for a moment. He knew that asking to hire another goblin would insult Barchoke, so he had to try another route.
"Tell me, Barchoke, do you have kids?"
"I have two sons and three daughters. Why do you ask?"
"How old are your sons?"
"They became adults a few weeks ago."
"Then I have an offer for you. I know that in the future, your sons are supposed to take your duties when you retire. Is it possible for me to hire your sons right now? This way, you would have the help you massively need, and I will get my results way faster."
"I have to say, Harry, that you have surprised me. Never in history has any customer hired more than one goblin. But I understand where you are coming from, and I am not going to lie; I would like to work together with my sons."
"Then can you call them here? If they agree, we will be able to take care of that instantly."
Barchoke got up from his seat and walked over to his fireplace to make a floo call. After a brief conversation, he made room for his twin sons to come through. The two young goblins were almost identical to their father.
"Lord Potter, I would like to introduce you to my twin sons: Dragontooth and Dragonfang," Barchoke said respectfully.
"Good morning, gentlemen. I take it your father has informed you about my proposal?" Harry greeted them.
"Yes, Lord Potter, he has," Dragontooth replied. "We are honoured to receive this proposition from you, but we must admit we have zero experience in that kind of job. We were looking for someone to take us as apprentices so we could learn more."
"That's not a problem. In the short term, your task will be simple and won't require any specific knowledge. In the long term, I am confident that your father will teach you everything you need to know. You will be able to combine your apprenticeship with your actual job," Harry explained.
"In that case, Lord Potter, we will be proud to work for you," Dragonfang said eagerly.
"Very well. Your father will prepare the paperwork, and we will sign the official contracts next time I'm here," Harry said.
"Of course, Lord Potter. When do we start?" Dragonfang asked excitedly.
"Ask your boss," Harry replied with a smile.
"You have ten minutes to prepare yourselves. Go home, inform your mother, and come back here. And bring me a sandwich," Barchoke said, grinning. His sons wasted no time and ran back to their home.
"Good to see they're eager to work," Harry commented.
"That's because they're aware this is an incredible opportunity for them. It's hard to find a good apprenticeship when there are so many candidates. And being allowed to work with a close family member is also a rare thing. They're incredibly lucky to be in that position, and I will do my best to make sure they use this opportunity," Barchoke explained.
"I have no doubts about it, Barchoke. You're one of the very few who have earned my trust through hard work, so I am confident in our future cooperation," Harry said.
"Thank you, Harry," Barchoke replied. They spoke for a bit longer, then Harry left Gringotts for a meeting at the Greengrass office to finalize the purchase of land for Hogwarts Farm. After a brief meeting, Harry returned to the Manor to join his guests for lunch.
"Hello, everyone. How's your day going so far?" Harry greeted them.
"Depends on who you ask," Dan replied.
"What do you mean?" Harry asked.
"We spent the whole morning listening to the ladies' plan for the Saturday ceremony," Hermione's dad explained.
"I don't envy you then," Harry laughed.
"Luckily for them, they behaved themselves and refrained from complaining too much," Andromeda chimed in.
"Andi, honey, I worked as a hotel manager. The ability to stay quiet when necessary and stop myself from commenting is a must-have," Ted replied.
"Believe me, being a dentist is no different in that matter," Emma laughed. All of them were in far better moods than yesterday.
"What about you, Harry? How was your morning?" Hermione asked.
"Pretty good. I've done everything I needed to do, and it took me far less time than I thought," Harry explained.
"Do you have any plans for the rest of the day?" Emma asked.
"Yes. In about two hours, I will have a few guests for a meeting, so I will be unavailable," Harry replied.
"Anyone I know?" Hermione asked.
"Yup, Neville and Susan. Besides them, I will be hosting Cyrus Greengrass and his daughter, Daphne," Harry said.
"Oh great, I will not have to send them an invitation," Andromeda smiled.
"What do you mean?" asked Harry, surprised.
"Well, Hermione suggested that you may like to invite a few of your friends, and she mentioned Susan and Neville amongst them. As for the Greengrass Family, Ophelia is my best friend, and she would unalive me had I not invited her," Teddy's grandmother explained.
"Very well then. If anyone will need me, I will be in my office."
"To be honest, Harry, I was hoping to talk to you," said a nervous Hermione.
"Sure, Mione," Harry replied, and they entered his office.
"So Mione, what is going on?"
"Honestly, I would like to ask you for advice." Harry nodded at her, so she could continue.
"It is about Ron. I am not sure if I see a future with him."
"Why not?" Harry asked.
"Harry, we both know him too well. I have no doubts that he would like us to become a copy of his parents' marriage, with me giving him lots of kids and being a housewife."
"To give him credit, it is how many marriages in the Wizarding World look like."
"I am not saying that it is something wrong, just that it is not what I want for me."
"Don't worry, I get it. The only thing I can tell you is to talk honestly with him."
"And you think that he will understand me?" she asked a bit sarcastically.
"He probably won't," agreed Harry. "But it is the only way to go forward. And the more you wait, the harder it will be."
"I know that," she replied teary-eyed. "But I also know what his reaction will be, and I am scared that it will ruin our friendship." She cried softly.
"Go there and talk to him. And do it now. Hermione, no matter how long you think about it, by the end of the day everything is in his hands. If he will be able to compromise somehow with you, that's brilliant. If not, you still can be friends with each other. And if he is unreasonable, and you will not speak to each other again, then it is his loss. You have the right to decide about your future, and he, as your potential husband, can support you or get lost."
"Thanks, Harry," she hugged him tightly, and after a moment, she left his office to talk with Ron. Harry then went back to work for a bit. He was doing that for some time until Mimsy informed him that Neville and Susan were there. He then left his office to welcome his guests.
"Lady Bones, Lord Longbottom, welcome to Potter Manor," he welcomed them formally, though with a smile on his face that told them it was more for the joke than the seriousness of the situation.
"Lord Potter, thank you for your invitation," bowed Neville, with a teasing smile as well.
"Are we waiting for someone else?" asked Susan, breaking their mock formality, and hugging Harry for a welcome.
"Yeah, we are waiting for Cyrus Greengrass, and his daughter Daphne" Harry replied, seriously.
Neville and Susan quickly realized that the meeting was going to be far more serious than they had anticipated. They discussed what they had been doing for the last few days when they heard the Floo activate once again. After a brief moment, Cyrus and Daphne arrived. After exchanging initial greetings, Harry invited them into his office to talk freely.
"Alright Harry, what's going on?" Cyrus asked.
Harry proceeded to tell them everything about St. Mungo's and the events of yesterday with Teddy.
"And now for the reason I invited you here: you are my closest allies in the Wizengamot, and I thought you should be aware of my next steps."
"I still can't believe Kingsley could do that. I understand that as Minister, he has to make compromises, but he simply allowed them to do what they wanted," Susan said bitterly.
"That's why I have decided to stop caring about the Ministry," said Harry.
"What do you mean?" asked Cyrus.
"I'll explain. During the first war, my grandfather liquidated every Potter investment in Britain. All that was left was a few properties abroad and Potter Manor. I had decided some time ago to invest a big chunk of the Potter wealth, but I was waiting for the Ministry to make moves. Their biggest problems now are unemployment and a destroyed economy. I wanted to support them so I could follow their recovery plans, and Kingsley knew about that. But in light of recent events, I've decided to forgo that plan. In the upcoming weeks, I'll start a big campaign that will give people jobs and help boost the economy."
"And this will upset the Ministry," said Cyrus.
"Yes. After what happened, I realized that the so-called 'light side' is too weak to defeat the dark. They're too afraid to truly stand up against them. If we allow the Ministry to continue down this path, a new Dark Lord will rise in a few years."
"Harry, I support you, but don't you think you should give them a chance to rehabilitate themselves?" asked Cyrus.
"I can't give them that chance. The Ministry is only part of the problem. This whole thing happened because some members put pressure on Kingsley. They did it to test me. Not many people know me, so they had to gather information. Using the Ministry was the perfect way for them to get everything they needed without risking anything. They knew that if I retaliated, the Ministry would take the blame."
"Harry's right. He needs to respond, otherwise he'll put himself and everyone close to him in danger," agreed Cyrus.
"What's your plan?" asked Neville.
"First of all, the St. Mungo's problem. I plan to make the Lily Potter Foundation a permanent arrangement. I'll create an orphanage under the foundation, so those kids will have a safe place to live."
"Will the Ministry allow that?" asked Neville.
"They have no choice. They declared publicly that they didn't have a budget to pay for those kids. "When I take charge, it will be their responsibility to express gratitude towards me." Public opinion would destroy them if they tried to stop this project."
"You're right. They'll praise you for your generosity, then they'll cut this topic off completely," said Cyrus.
"Number two: unemployment problem. Here, the matter is even simpler. Everyone who's looking for a job and comes to me will have a choice. Option one: create their own company with me as a partner. Let's be honest, you can't find a branch of the economy that survived the war unscathed. The potential to open new enterprises is endless, so I want to use that. Option two is simply finding them a job in one of my companies. I can understand that many of them will choose the more stable option, as they would want to get back on their feet. And I have a lot of vacancies at the moment. A few dozen of my properties are unused and in need of repair. The orphanage will need a lot of staff to be hired. Hogwarts needs quite a few workers. Finally, I plan to buy out businesses from Death Eaters. Many of the Death Eater families that weren't Death Eaters themselves will want to leave the country, so they'll try to liquidate their wealth. And due to them wanting to do this fast, they'll sell everything way below value."
"Impressive idea with buying Death Eaters' businesses," said Cyrus.
"The last problem is muggle-borns who live in the castle. However, I have a plan to invest in the real estate market in the muggle world. Once I have some properties, I will allow them to stay there for some time, free of charge," explained Harry.
"Costly, but an efficient idea," commented Neville.
"True, but I am prepared to take losses initially. It will take a few years before I make any monetary profit," added Harry.
"Can you afford all of it, Harry?" asked Susan.
"Budget is not a problem for me," replied Harry.
"You will need to hire someone to help you, otherwise you will break in a week," warned Susan.
"I know, and I have a few ideas on that," said Harry.
"How can we help you with all of that, Harry?" asked Cyrus.
"Keep your eyes open. If you hear any gossip that can be useful for me, let me know. Just be careful, as they might try to make moves against you," said Harry.
"Do you think that they will physically attack you?" asked Cyrus.
"I have no doubts that they will try. There are still a few Death Eaters missing, so I think that when I announce everything, someone will come up with that idea," replied Harry.
"Then be careful, Harry," said Susan.
"Don't worry, I will," assured Harry. They discussed a few more ideas before leaving the manor, leaving Harry to his plan.