A Few Weeks Later
*****Friday 29 April 1988*****
"Sirius Black acquitted of all charges." That's what the headline for the Daily Prophet read. The entire trial of Sirius Black was broadcast live all over the world. Three representatives from the ICW presided over the hearing. Clearly showing the Ministry was incapable of handling their shit. Not only the circumstances in which the the trial was conducted but the statements made by Sirius and Edward Tonks, were a slap in the face for the Ministry. The outcry from the half-bloods and muggle-born was loud and violent. A lot of business that forced them to work for subpar pay in shitty conditions were destroyed and their owners grievously harmed. It didn't go as far as killings yet. But the rage was there and the spark was already lit. The incompetence of the Ministry only added fuel to the fire.
Any Ministry employee who in the past had abused their power was lynched on sight. St. Mungo's was running out of room to house all the incoming patients. The healers oaths kept the medical wizards and witches from denying treatment but that didn't mean the treatment was a walk in the park either. The potions and medications were delayed by days. There was actually a legitimate reason for this, the sudden influx of patients, caught the hospital unawares. This didn't mean the healers were in any hurry to help the patients. Some patients succumbed to their injuries and died. There were no charges filed. The aurors had no clear evidence. The dead weren't going to be giving any statements. The case would be thrown out of court for lack of substantial evidence.
Another thing that happened was the people using my name to publish nonsensical stories were retiring. More than half their wealth was to be put into the Potter vaults. Basically the lack of permission and no attempt to pay royalties from using my name, meant that all sales were subject to a royalty fees and the accumulated fees were also charged interest. Due to the immaculate bookkeeping of publishing houses and Gringotts, we knew exactly how much to charge the half-baked authors.
Monetary and legal matters were being resolved in the magical world. The normal world was a bit more problematic.
See the Goblin Nation had agreed to heal me from the maladies and afflictions I was suffering due to my malnourishment and effects of spells and wards placed on me. Why did I at this time not go to St. Mungo's? Simple, records. All who enter the premises are automatically recorded by the wards. Erasing someone from the ledger was more trouble than just going somewhere else. Dealing with the Goblin Nation wasn't any better. Mr. Bloodsinger was sympathetic to my plight as I was a child. But a wizard child. He took everything possible that he could. He was an excellent negotiator. He stayed on the line without crossing it. Just in terms of money he was charging 5 million galleons. Which I assumes was several time what it would cost anywhere else. Along with a pledge to continue banking with Gringotts. That was actually mutually beneficial. They would keep my wealth safe and secure, well as secure as goblinly possible. I would pay a fee of 100 galleons a month, in turn any document not signed in the presence of my solicitor and account manager would be non-binding. Their curse breakers would ensure no harm would come to me due to breach of contract. The downside was, I would need to personally come to Gringotts to withdraw any sum over 1000 galleons.
In order to ease my financial burden I also invested in the stock market from Gringotts. Hadrian Potter was a very wealthy boy. He would grow into the second richest wizard to ever live. After Merlin of course. Just Excalibur alone was worth the British Isles. Nevermind the countless other artifacts and books known and rumored to be in his possession. The man was so powerful that his name rang across creation.
*****Myrddin Wyllt, Hell*****
Hell's head janitor sneezed.
'Who is it this time'
He waved his hand and the face of a scrawny young boy in one of the worlds he lived in was shown.
'Very well boy, if you can find it, my legacy is yours.'
He waved his hand again and went back to ordering more cleaning supplies. Hellhound slobber is very difficult to get out of the silk curtains.
*****Back to Damien/Harry*****
The cost of healing and secrecy was not all that high for Heir Potter. For Harry Potter it would have taken a few years to come up with the amount. In which time most things would have been resolved. All in all it would all be settled in a few months. Sirius was being rehabilitated in St. Mungo's, the timeframe provided was 8-10 months. It would take a similar amount of time to get me sorted out, healing would take about 2 months, while getting established as Heir Potter will take a bit longer.
Amelia had setup a 24 hour guard on Sirius. All hit-wizards and unspeakables. The 4 unspeakables were very well versed in wards and dark magic. There had been a warning issued to them that Augustus Rookwood was a spy for Voldemort. His head was sent to Amelia the next day, along with a report of everything he and therefore the dark lord knew. There was also a Certificate of Authenticity from the Head Unspeakable, witnessed by his deputy and the 4 unspeakables on guard duty. The 4 volunteered to guard Sirius as a form of repentance for the oversight of their order.
The Unspeakables weren't some shady organization who plotted and schemed in the shadows. Although it may seem as such due to the nature of their work. They were first and foremost researchers and inventors. They were also possibly the best versed wizards and witches in what normal people would consider dark magic. It fell to the Unspeakables to develop counters to the dark curses, hexes, jinxes and spells. A lot of knowledge was stored in the Vaults. They were actually responsible for releasing new information after thoroughly, investigating how it would impact the Statute of Secrecy. The organization was basically at the forefront of forbidden and restricted magic.
Their recruiting methods were kept to themselves. Some people invented a device that used an obscure magic. Some used magic in new ways and made new spells, that encroached on the realms of restricted magic. Some were simply recruited to be assistants due to their skill set.
All unspeakables were allowed to leave, but once you learned of a whole new world, and could freely access and explore it, very few left. Most only left due to age, or a catastrophic accident. The mantle would be passed on to the senior assistant.
Due to the nature of their work, and their knowledge, they took a neutral stance in all matters. They were funded by the Ministry of their respective nation, but did not work for the Ministry as a vast majority of people believed. Their neutrality was strictly enforced. Personal matters were to immediately brought to the attention of the Head Unspeakable. If the situation was not resolved in 2 days, the individual was allowed to do whatever necessary to resolve to situation. This usually meant killing their aggressor and aggressor's family very violently.
For those in the know, there was an unspoken rule. "Do not ever aggrieve an unspeakable."
The best part, there was very little discrimination. The mix of backgrounds from all sort helped advance research and magic to new heights. The few cases of discrimination were usually against werewolves and vampires. Done by new 'pureblood' recruits. Those were quickly quelled, usually in a duel to the death. There were valid reasons for not having a certain group of people on the research team. For example you would request that no werewolves be involved in the research of the effects of moon cycles on potion ingredients. Which is valid, you can't have your assistant turn into a berserk monster when researching the effects of the full moon on a potion. Some cases muggleborns were excluded from the initial research due to bias. Peer review would heavily favor them, but sometimes the researcher wanted to replicate a muggle phenomenon purely with magic. To each their own.
It was honestly the best job for when I am much older. I still want to see the world. Meet new people without having to kill them after. The SAS had changed my outlook on travel. I have no idea on what I want to do, but if my eyesight can be restored, I want to take a shot at being a fighter pilot. I couldn't in my last life. I didn't meet the cutoff requirements.
Anyway, Sirius was in St. Mungo's and I was in the Leaky Cauldron. I was told to book a room there and not take any external potions for a few weeks. The flushing potions I did take were given to me by Soothsayer. He took his profession very seriously. More so with children. I met a few goblin children who were ill in the waiting room. Soothsayer prioritized them over someone with a broken ribcage. Best part the half dead goblin did not object.
Goblins are not that much different from humans. They prioritize their young to a ferocious degree. I can respect that. A casual conversation with Soothsayer ended up with me procuring, Ibuprofen, acetaminophen, and naproxen from the muggle world. They would do the research on their own. A few children with fevers and cold were given potions. Although fast acting, I wondered if they stressed the natural defenses of the body. I asked Soothsayer a question, and down the rabbit-hole we went.
In other news, I did a lot of reading and basic calisthenics in my room at the Leaky Cauldron. I found a very useful volume of books in the SHOP. Titled 'The Truth of Magic Vol. 1-5' It explained everything from the very basics of magic to higher theorized applications of magical phenomenon.
In volume 1, page 354, I found a very useful method to practice magic control, increase magical reserves and output, and reach higher magical maturities faster. It was an East Asian breathing technique. It had different names based on the culture practicing it. The fundamentals were the same however.
After the first display of accidental magic, the practitioner was to take deep breaths, hold, and exhale, while trying to manipulate their magic to flow throughout their body.
The funniest part was that the muggles called it cultivation. The Asian wizards didn't care too much. It was partially due to one of their more eccentric member traveling while being completely broke a few thousand years ago. He was in a bar, with no money for food or drink. He did however have a talent for storytelling. He told his experiences as fictional tales. As he would tell the story, other patrons would buy him food, drink, and even invite him to stay the night at their home, or simply give him money. Quickly realizing that the longer he made the story the more it would benefit him, he exaggerated actual magical practices to grand elaborate proportions. Raising ones power took hundreds or thousands of years, techniques/spells took years to develop and decades to master. Magical maturity involved getting struck by lightning. It was all very amusing to read. The man filled a need for entertainment was handsomely compensated. His name was immortalized as Confucius.
I was practicing the described technique. I would feel better due to the higher amount of oxygen in my blood but was having no luck feeling the magic within me, much less moving it. It's only been a few days since I spent 250,000 galleons on all 5 volumes. I'll give it some time. (A/N: Always assume he has the money.)
I have time until I am to go live with Sirius. Managing the Potter holding will also take a large amount of my time. I also have plans for certain individuals. I will offer some a chance at freedom, others I will have to eradicate from existence. Due to Dumbledore being my previous guardian, and now that guardianship transferring over to Sirius, I will have to hold off on some matters regarding loans. The royalty fees however are in Mr. Tonks' trust account, being held in escrow until the matter of guardianship is resolved.
My initial investment have made a bit of a loss, no matter, I am playing the long game. Losses are to be expected. It will work out in the end. I put in a few million pounds into Enron, I will pull out billions in September of 2000. I have also started a venture capital firm in the UK and America. I want a stake in some earmarked companies. Also I have reached out to companies in the adult industry. Sex will always sell. I used £100,000 to co-produce a film last week. Someone is willing to buyout my share for £250,000 as of yesterday. I don't know how or why, but money is money. I should have it in my account by tonight. The signing will happen through my muggle lawyer. I hired the man because he come highly recommended by rich philanderers and wastrels. He's gotten divorces in favour of the man. No possession, no alimony. Also he keeps his mouth shut, which is always beneficial in less...favourable endeavours.