Harry woke up feeling pretty good. He had enjoyed a free day yesterday with plenty of sleep and good food. When he came downstairs, he saw that everyone except Ron was already there.
"Hello everyone," Harry greeted and sat down at the table.
Everyone welcomed him back, and soon he was engrossed in small talk.
"When are you leaving, Harry?" Hermione asked him.
"Right after breakfast. I need to go see Madam Pomfrey so she can change my bandages," he replied.
"And how long will you be gone?" asked Molly.
"I hope to be back by dinner."
"You think the meeting will be that long?" Bill sounded surprised.
"I do. Not only do I need to go through everything my parents left me, but I also inherited everything from the Blacks, as Sirius named me as his heir. And I recently found out that some people left me bequests in their wills, due to me becoming the 'Boy-Who-Lived'," Harry explained.
After finishing his meal, Harry said goodbye to everyone and left for Hogwarts. He found Madam Pomfrey, who checked his arm and gave him a clean bandage. He planned to visit Dora, but she was asleep, so he left Hogwarts and headed towards Gringotts.
Harry was happy to see that more and more people were visiting Diagon Alley every day. On his first patrol, there were only a handful of people, the next day was a bit better, but the alley was still half empty. But today, he saw tons of people, and it boosted his morale. Soon enough, he found himself in front of Gringotts, and after he entered, he was instantly welcomed by the goblins.
"Welcome, Lord Potter. My name is Bonecrusher, and my team and I are here to escort you to your meeting."
"Welcome, Bonecrusher. Lead the way, then." Harry followed the goblins.
The journey to Barchoke's office was not long, and soon enough, Harry found himself at the doors.
"We will leave you here, Lord Potter. We wish you success with your business," Bonecrusher said, and he left with his team.
Harry knocked on the door, and soon enough, Barchoke greeted him and invited him inside. After exchanging greetings and Harry telling him the story of how he was injured, they started to discuss his finances.
"I think we should start with the smallest part, so please tell me about bequests from other people. And please call me Harry, there is no reason for us to be formal."
"As you wish Harry. As I mentioned before, you have been named as an heir to a few very minor families. Additionally, you have been mentioned in the wills of several people. All of the bequests are monetary. So I suggest that you simply combine the wealth of these minor families and put it together with your Potter portfolio. As none of them were entitled to a seat in Wizengamot, no one will comment on that move."
Harry thought for a second and agreed to Barchoke's plan. After discussing a few minor details, they moved on to the next estate.
"Alright, now that we have handled all the little things, it's time to look into the matter of the Black fortune." Harry nodded at his account manager, allowing him to continue.
"But before that, you need to choose who will become the Black account manager. If you wish, I can take on that responsibility, or I can give you a list of available managers who are qualified for that role."
"I would like you to take on that job yourself. It will be easier for me to manage everything if I have one manager from Gringotts."
"Thank you for your trust. So let's begin. First of all, I need to ask you a few questions. Are you aware that you cannot combine the Potter and Black families and that you will need to have separate heirs for each title? Also, I don't want to interfere in your private life, but it would be wise for you to not wait to have an heir."
"Yes, I know that Potter and Black need to stay separate. As for having an heir, this problem is taken care of, as I plan to declare my godson Edward Lupin as my heir until I have children of my own. So you don't have to worry. We can freely work without having to be afraid for the future."
"Glad to hear that you are considering all possibilities. One more question if you'll allow it. Do you plan to blood-adopt your godson?" Barchoke inquired.
"I want to do partial blood adoption, so I could be seen as his third parent. Even though Teddy's father is dead, his mother is alive, and she can remarry in the future, so I don't want to close the door for any potential husband to blood-adopt my godson as his own." Harry explained.
"Very elegant plan, Harry. It will be well received in society that you are taking your role as godfather that seriously. But let's get back to finances. I have split my report into three separate parts. The first one contains a list of all properties that belong to the Black family. The second one has a list of enterprises that you own either fully or have some shares in. The third part contains the balance of your vaults and a list of people who owe you money. Unfortunately, that list is quite long. Due to the Black accounts being in limbo for so many years, many of the debtors decided to stop their payments that were due."
"Okay, let's start with the properties. How many of them are under the Black name, where are they, and in what condition are they?" Harry asked.
"Overall, the Blacks own 18 properties located all over the world. Of those 18, only three are in Britain. Additionally, you now own 12 premises in Knockturn Alley and 4 in Diagon Alley. Here is a detailed list of locations. But there is a little problem. One of the properties in Britain is under the Fidelius charm, and we have no idea where it is or what condition it's in. Also, I could not find who is the secret keeper."
"The headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix may be found at Number Twelve, Grimmauld Place, London," Harry replied, revealing the secret to him.
"I am glad that you are the secret keeper. It would be very hard to take control of that house if you had not been the keeper," Barchoke replied, relieved. "So getting back on track. There are two more houses in Britain. One of them is a property in Wales, near Cardiff. It's a little castle that served as a vacation house for centuries. I don't know in what condition it is, but from what I know, there should be a group of house elves that live on that property. The second house is a more complicated matter, as for the last 20 years, the main inhabitants were the Malfoys."
"What? But why?" Harry asked, surprised.
"As you know, Narcissa was born a Black. When she was marrying Lucius, he was still the heir Malfoy as Abraxas was alive. So she requested that they could use that property as their home. And even after Abraxas's death, they decided to stay in this house."
"That will change soon, but let's stay out of it for now. What can you tell me about the other properties?"
"Ten of them are located in Europe, to be more precise in France, Spain, Italy, Greece, and Germany, with two houses for each country. Two are in Africa: one in Turkey and one in Egypt. One is located in the USA, with the last two being in Asia - one in Japan and one in China. They were supposed to be rental vacation houses, but as there was no one to manage them, they remain empty."
Harry took a moment to think before formulating a plan. He knew that managing these properties could wait. If they had been left alone for so many years, a few days wouldn't make much of a difference. However, there was one thing he wanted to take care of immediately.
"I'll look at this list later and decide what to do with them. But there's one thing I need your help with. I want to hire a team of cursebreakers from Gringotts."
"That's certainly possible, but what do you need them for?"
"I want them to take care of Malfoy Manor. I've been there, and that place is far from being habitable. I need them to take care of all the dark artifacts, curses, and traps that are placed all over the house."
"Wise move, Harry. But before that, you should contact the DMLE. They might want to search the premises."
"You're right. I hadn't thought of that. I'll visit them straight after this meeting. Do you have any questions at this point?"
"Not at the moment. Now, tell me about Black's investments."
"As I mentioned before, you have several premises in Diagon and Knockturn. About half of them in Knockturn and all in Diagon are occupied, but none of the tenants is paying you rent. Luckily, you'll be able to go after them so they can pay you back. Other than that, your investments are mostly abroad. You own two mines in South Africa, three greenhouses in the Amazon, and six habitats for magical creatures that live in that particular area. They're located on all continents besides Antarctica. To be more precise, one is in India, one in the USA, one in Brazil, one in Egypt, one in Poland, and one in Australia. As for local investments, you're a co-owner of an acromantula silk farm with the Malfoys, have a 40% stake in Nimbus Company, 10% in the Daily Prophet, and 5% in Flourish and Boots, as well as 5% in Diagon Alley Apothecary."
Even though Harry knew that the Blacks were a wealthy family, it had only just hit him that he was a multimillionaire. And that was only the Black fortune. The Potter fortune should be about the same size. He was excited about being that rich for a few reasons. First, being financially free was something he had wanted since he could understand what money was. Living with the Dursleys and having only second-hand things had only intensified his desire for independence. He was also happy because he knew that this money would allow his children to have a better childhood than he did. And last but not least, he knew that this fortune would help him immensely in his task of changing Britain.
After a brief moment, Harry cleared his thoughts and allowed Barchoke to continue as they still had much to discuss.
"Moving on to Black family liquid assets, all the vaults contain 18,758,731 galleons. You'll need to decide if you want to leave the money as it is, or if you want to invest a portion of that. If you choose the second option, I'll prepare a list of potential business partners and their ideas for you to choose from."
Harry knew he wanted to invest more of that money, so he gave his account manager the go-ahead to prepare a list.
"As I mentioned before, the list of your debtors is quite long. While enterprises that you are the sole owner of have been successful due to their competent managers, businesses that you only own a part of have stopped their payments to you long ago. The same can be said about your tenants who reside in your premises at Diagon and Knockturn. The only business that paid its share for years was Flourish and Boots. You need to decide what to do with them."
Harry was not surprised that they had stopped their payments, and during his preparation for that meeting, he came up with a plan.
"Please inform my debtors that Lord Black is back, and he wants to get his money back. Give them two choices: First, they pay me back in cash but add a 10% interest for their dishonesty. The other option is to give me a part of their business as compensation. Whichever they choose is fine by me. And feel free to inform them that I inherited this title. This should influence them to make a decision faster."
Barchoke smiled when he heard Harry's plan. He wanted to suggest the same thing to him. He was glad that the young lord had a good mind for being a business owner.
"Very well, Harry. I will do that first thing on Monday. One question, if they ask for a meeting with you, what do you want me to reply?"
"Tell them to send me an owl, and I will meet them. I would like to know what excuse they will have."
Barchoke smiled once again approvingly and moved on to the next topic.
"Now that we've finished discussing the Black estate, we can move on to the Potters. First of all, the Potter fortune structure is far different from the Blacks. Like them, you own some properties in Europe, seven to be precise, and they were also supposed to serve as vacation houses for rent. But they are not located in hot places with access to the sea. All of them are mountain properties. You own properties in Austria, Switzerland, France, and Norway. They are all currently vacant. Here in Britain, you own two properties. One is a cottage in Godric's Hollow, which has been mostly untouched since 1981. The only thing that was added there was a monument raised by the people to express their gratitude for your parents' sacrifice. The other one is Potter Manor, which has been sealed since 1979 after your grandparents died. It should be in good condition as I met the house elves that reside there."
"While I was aware of the monument in Godric's Hollow, as I had been there a few months ago, I had no idea that I had an ancestral house," Harry said, surprised and hurt. He was hurt that no one had mentioned it before.
"You do, and it's a beautiful place. When your grandparents were alive, they frequently organized balls there, and those events were highly anticipated in society. Not only were they wonderfully organized, but only the most important people were invited."
Harry motioned for Barchoke to continue, deciding to think about it later.
"Now I know that you will be surprised, but the Potter family does not own any businesses, and the only enterprise you are a part of in Magical Britain is Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes, of which you own 33%."
"What? How did that happen?" Harry exclaimed, surprised.
"In late 1970, many of the Potter businesses were predicted to stop bringing in any profit. With the raging war that your family was a part of, the perspective was not too bright. So your grandfather decided to sell everything in Britain and only kept rental properties outside of Britain. He planned to start investing after the war, but sadly, he never got that opportunity."
Harry realized why his grandfather had made that decision, but after a second, he caught up on something from Barchoke's words.
"You said that we don't own any shares in magical Britain. Does it mean that I have something in the Muggle world?"
"Yes, you do. Your grandfather decided that at the urging of your mother. She showed him the potential the Muggle world had, and he followed her plan. But I don't have any details on it as I don't know how the stock market works in the Muggle world. I will give you the contact info for the brokerage house that your family used. And I expect there to be several investments as for the last 20 years they invested 100% of the money your grandpa had put there. It was almost 20 million Muggle pounds."
"Every time I find out more about my mom and her ideas, the more I regret that I never got to meet her. She had to be an exceptional witch," Harry said regretfully.
"She was, Harry. I met her a few times, and she impressed me with her intellect and empathy."
"As much as I would love to hear more about that, I think we should carry on as it is getting late."
"Yes, it is, but thankfully we are close to the end. Talking about the Potter estate, all you need to know is your vault balance, which is 37,093,827 galleons. An amount much higher than the Blacks, but they own a few very profitable investments, so overall, they are very close to each other."
"But I plan to change that by investing quite a lot. So please let me know when your list of potential investments will be ready. In the meantime, I need to hire someone to help me manage the practical side of the businesses, as well as some lawyers."
"Glad to know that you realize that. While I can help you with the financial part of your estates, I can't help you with day-to-day managing or with writing up contracts. So hiring a lawyer and a right hand is a very good idea. Have you thought about candidates?"
"Not really. Do you have any suggestions?"
"As for managers, the choice must be yours, as you need to be able to build a good, trusting relationship. But I can give you a few names of lawyers who are known for their level of professionalism and will serve you well."
"I would be grateful for that. Last question for you - what is the balance of Hogwarts' vaults?"
"Thanks to opening the original vault, Hogwarts has 1,402,880 galleons. You can make some very good changes with that money."
"That's the plan, Barchoke. Is there anything else you have for me?"
"No, we are done for today."
Harry then stood up, said goodbye to Barchoke, and left Gringotts.
Even though he was hungry and tired, Harry decided to visit the Ministry first to inform Robards about Malfoy Manor. He used the Floo from the Leaky Cauldron and soon found himself in the Department of Magical Law Enforcement (DMLE). There, he met Parvati Patil, who was working as a secretary for Robards.
"Hi Harry, what brings you here?" she greeted him warmly.
"Hi Parvati, I need to speak to Robards. Is he inside?" Harry asked.
"He is and he has a meeting with the Master Aurors there. Is it something important?" Parvati replied.
"Yes, it is," Harry said.
"Technically, he ordered to send away anyone who is looking for him, but I can ask him as it is coming from you," Parvati said.
"I would be grateful," Harry smiled at her. She nodded her head, stood up, knocked on Robards' door, and went inside.
"I am sorry, Director, but Harry Potter is here looking for you. He said he has some important information for you," Parvati said.
"Send him in," Robards replied.
Parvati signaled Harry that he could come in and showed him inside.
"Hello, everyone," Harry greeted them.
"Hello, Potter," they replied.
"What brings you here?" Proudfoot asked.
"I was at Gringotts, where I found out that I am the owner of Malfoy Manor. I am planning to send curse-breakers there soon, so I wanted to ask if you want to take a look there first," Harry said.
"HECK YES, WE WANT TO!" they all replied at once.
"Will you be able to come there tomorrow to let us in?" The director asked excitedly.
"If you want to go there tomorrow, it will need to be in the morning, as at noon, I am meeting the Muggle Prime Minister," Harry said.
"9 A.M. sharp then. By Merlin's beard, before you came in, we were talking about raiding the Manor as we are sure we can find tons of evidence there. And you are giving us keys on a silver platter. I am so glad that you came to us before letting curse-breakers in, as they would surely destroy the evidence," Robards said.
"You are welcome. So if we have a date, then I am leaving as I am knackered. Bye, everyone!" Harry said and left for the Burrow.
He arrived at the Burrow just in time for dinner, which Molly was starting to serve.
"Harry dear, glad to see you! Sit down and eat." Molly greeted him.
Harry greeted everyone and loaded himself a full plate as he hadn't had lunch.
"Jeez Harry, you need to be hungry," Hermione pointed out.
"I am. I had not eaten lunch," Harry explained.
"How was your meeting? Had you managed to take care of everything?" Hermione asked curiously.
"I do, and even did something more. You see, I found out that Malfoy Manor is, in fact, a Black Manor, and I inherited it from Sirius. So after the meeting, I went to DMLE and told them that if they wanted to look there for evidence, I could let them in. When Robards heard that, I thought he would jump from his desk and hug me to death," Harry said.
"I can understand that. I spoke to Kingsley today about it, and he told me that they want to raid the Manor but are afraid of taking any casualties as this place is very heavily warded. So a way to let them in safely is a godsend for them," Hermione said.
"I am meeting them tomorrow at 9 A.M. to let them in before we leave for a meeting with the Muggle Minister," Harry added.
"Will you ever slow down, Harry? You need to rest a bit. You have had such a hard year, and now for the last week, you have been working almost the whole time," Molly said, worried about him.
"I will be fine, Molly. And I hope that next week things will calm down a bit," Harry said.
"I hope so too," Molly said.
After dinner, Harry decided to go outside and take a look at the reports he got from Barchoke. He read more about his rental properties and decided to wait to make any plans until he hired someone to help him. Then he took a clean parchment and wrote down his ideas on how to improve Hogwarts. He worked until supper, and after the meal, he went to sleep to prepare for the next long day tomorrow.