Harry's tone remained casual. "Then your name will turn up on my original contract and I will take you to court for theft of noble family secrets."
Dean grimaced.
"What if we slip up by accident?" Sophie asked meekly.
"The contract contains a compulsion clause. It is possible to break if you really try, but it will stop you from accidentally blurting out the secrets." Justin raised his hand again. "How much quicker do you expect this new method to be?"
"I expect you to reach the level of someone like Draco Malfoy in three months… rather than three years."
Justin's eyes widened.
Kevin looked between the contract and Harry. "What about Hermione?"
Lord Slytherin's voice grinned. "Hermione is a demon who has been using the original Slytherin method, continuously, for three years. You will never catch her."
Hermione felt herself blushing.
Silence settled on the group for a moment. Justin held up a clenched fist. "Well, I for one, have no desire to be left behind. I'll join."
"Me too," Kevin said.
Sophie hesitated for just a moment before adding. "I'm in too."
The group turned to look at Dean, who was still looking at the contract with wary eyes. "You know, I'll probably be skinned alive if my house mates ever find out about this."
Kevin grinned and thumped him on the back. "Then you're lucky the contract stops you telling, yeah?"
"The method really works best with equal numbers, Mister Thomas," Lord Slytherin broke in. "You'd be doing your friends a service, if nothing else." Dean looked down at the contract in his hands again. He looked back up. "Oh, alright, I'm in."
Sophie, clapped.
Justin,
and
Kevin
cheered
and
Lord Slytherin sat in his chair, only a slight nod showing his feelings.
Hermione complete.
just
beamed.
Phase
two,
A week later, Harry, dressed as Lord Slytherin, appeared outside a beautiful Tudor house in the Suffolk countryside, white walled, wood beamed, clay roofed. It certainly didn't look like the house of an old dark, pureblood family — if anything, it suggested a more light attitude with the dozens of flowerbeds of every colour leading from the front gate to the door.
Harry pushed his wand into the wards around the building, and magically knocked. It was time to get the first of two charms needed for the Granger's new toy.
The wards granted him entrance. He walked up to the front door, idly fingering the pair of devices in his pocket. His vassals had really done a wonderful job. He'd tried on one of the ear pieces before leaving and it fitted like a glove. Its range would be short, what with the tiny mirror and similarly tiny runes, but to get around the patent laws and to persuade the two families to grant him their magic… it was worth it. Certainly until Alex arrived next year with the other half of the original.
The door opened and he was greeted by a curtsying dark-skinned lady wearing what were obviously her very best robes. "Lord Slytherin, we welcome you to our humble home."
"Mrs. Harper," Harry offered his hand, took hers in his, and knelt down slightly to it, "A pleasure."
Mrs Harper smiled brightly. "Please come this way. My husband is in the drawing room."
Upon arriving at their destination, Harry was pretty sure that the 'drawing room' was actually a small dining room. Four indents in the carpet suggested a large table, hastily removed.
"Lord Slytherin." Mister Peregrine Harper rose from the small sofa and the two men shook hands. "I understand you're interested in a certain spell of ours?" They sat, Mrs Harper settling herself beside her husband.
"Yes," Harry said. "The mirror hearing spell, and, if possible, I'd like to set up a contract for it."
Peregrine Harper smiled. "We do have a few contracts open on that spell. Talking mirrors are still quite popular, Merlin himself only knows why though."
"I'm sure I could make it worth your while." "I'm sure you could. Might I ask why you're interested in the spell though?" "Something one of my people is working on for an internal project."
Peregrine flashed a grin. "No, then. No worries. It's not as though you'd be able to make communication mirrors or anything what with Lestrange holding the patent rights and rune clusters."
"Well, quite."
"And Bell would rather go bankrupt than help a chap out."
Harry titled his head slightly. "They're still angry about the whole house thing then?" Peregrine smirked. "I swear, you repossess one little house and you don't hear the end of it for the next three hundred years." Harry looked around. "It's a nice house." Mrs. Harper beamed.
"So," Harry continued, "what are your other spell contracts paying for an application?"
"Ah," Peregrine leaned back slightly, "Straight to price hmm? You know, sometimes I wonder if gold is really the answer to all our world's problems."
Behind his mask, Harry raised a single eyebrow. "Oh?"
"Yes, man of my age, getting on in life and all that, young Hobby will be off to Hogwarts next year. Have you seen a picture of our son?"
Harry shook his head and Mrs Harper handed him a wizarding photo of a vaguely familiar dark-skinned boy with hair so short he was almost bald, trying to look as stoic and dignified as he could while holding a nimbus 2000 broomstick. Harry had a suspicion he knew where this was going. Everything about the Harpers screamed, 'social climbers,' even for a Dark non-noble family. "I'm going to guess the most important thing in life is the future of your family?"
"Exactly, Lord Slytherin. Exactly." Peregrine made a pointed jabbing motion with his fingers.
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