Chapter 57: Stealthy Harry
Dumbledore walked through the halls of Hogwarts, looking for Harry for a small talk. Just yesterday, the two young men had appeared before the ICW, explaining their research and inventions with irrefutable evidence. Now all that was left was for people to discuss it. It was already clear that this would be made public, but the ICW had to prepare the news to make it official and also publish the evidence itself. Only when that was ready would it spread throughout the wizarding world.
"Ah... Miss Granger," Albus called out to Hermione, who was walking alongside Ginny and a blonde girl.
"Miss Weasley, greetings. And to you too, Miss Lovegood."
"Greetings, Headmaster. How may I help you?" Hermione smiled slightly, and the other two girls greeted her, the second one much more animated.
"I wanted to ask if you knew where Harry is. I haven't been able to find him at Hogwarts, so I thought you might know where he'd gone."
Hermione turned a little pale at the question. She, of course, knew where he was. But just remembering it almost made her heart stop.
"He... went..."
"He went?" Dumbledore prompted slightly.
Hermione squeezed her eyes shut as she wrinkled her nose. "He went... toward London. More specifically, toward the Queen."
Dumbledore took a step back and placed his hand on his heart.
"That boy, if I don't die from something shocking he does, then it will be from the fear his actions cause me!" Dumbledore felt weak. The Queen! Of all people, Harry Potter went to the Queen!
"Harry probably wants to show the Queen about the existence of the Wrackspurts," Luna commented with a smile and a dreamy look.
Hermione frowned and opened her mouth; however, she immediately closed it. As a researcher, she simply couldn't say that these things were actually fake. After all, what if they really existed?
"W... may I ask... What exactly was it?"
"If I tell him, then he'll definitely have a heart attack, Headmaster. Besides, I think Harry already told him something about this; he mentioned talking to you."
"Yes, yes, he did! However, I never thought he'd do things so quickly!" Dumbledore thought it would take years for Harry to start what he wanted to do; he didn't think he'd do it just days later.
...
Elsewhere, inside an exquisite room with red carpets and antique-style walls lined with paintings and mirrors, a woman sat quietly sipping tea while looking out at the courtyard from the window in front of her.
"Mmm~... these biscuits are really delicious."
The woman, dignified and refined, paused with the cup near her lips. She lowered the cup slightly and blinked as she placed it on the small plate in her other hand. It didn't take long for her to look to her left, where a young man with black hair and beautiful green eyes stopped eating when the woman looked at him.
The two stared at each other without saying anything; Harry even kept popping a biscuit into his mouth while chewing silently before completely swallowing the portion in his hand. The sound of a gulp was heard throughout the room before he smiled.
"Good afternoon, Queen Victoria. It is an honor for me, Harry James Potter, of the noble House of Potter, to greet you on this wonderful day," Harry introduced himself formally as he stood and bowed slightly with his hand over his heart.
"This queen knows every noble house; but I've never heard of House Potter. So, you must be from the wizarding world?" Setting her teacup down on the saucer, she looked at Harry without much expression.
"You are correct, my lady. I belong to the wizarding world and am a graduate of Hogwarts. I came today so I could discuss a truly important matter and ask your opinion and permission."
"I have heard of said school. Unfortunately, even though I would have loved to get to know the wizarding world much better, it would be truly counterproductive without magic; it would only make things more complicated than they already could be," Queen Victoria said seriously.
"Generally, I'm only informed of a few things. The Prime Minister has the most contact with the wizarding world. But another wizarding minister was recently appointed, Mr. Potter? Perhaps this has something to do with that?"
"No," Harry replied. "Minister Ogden is actually a very good minister. The problem with the Dark Wizard Tom Marvolo Riddle, also known as Voldemort, was resolved almost without any casualties or problems. The topic I wish to present to you is the rise of magic in the world and the future."
Harry placed his hand in his pocket and took out a small object before enlarging it, revealing it to be a folder. He presented it to the Queen with respect and care.
"Please read this information. In the meantime, I will answer any questions you may have."
The Queen looked at the folder with some surprise. Once upon a time, she had been able to see magic herself, but that was when she was a child. Seeing it again was a welcome surprise. Seeing and witnessing magic brought her grace and a bit of happiness, almost as much as when she had eaten curry for the first time.
The Queen began to read slowly, not missing anything. Apparently, the young man in front of her wrote everything carefully in his own hand, so that she could understand the magical things without any problems. But she stopped when she read a few words.
"Is this really true? Can you make normal people, without magic, able to use it?" she asked, surprised.
"It's possible... I can do this and make it possible for non-magical people to use magic, and then, with proper training, they can continue to grow. The problem with this would be the more skeptical people or those who treat us cruelly or as if we weren't human."
"I'd love to be able to show this to the whole world, but I know it would cause some problems!" Harry said with conviction, but also a little worried.
"This magical engineering and research university... What is its true purpose?"
"It's like it says there, in the document. For the preservation, research, and advancement of magic and its future generations. I'm not even worried about the money to build buildings or buy land; I can get that. No, it's better to say I already own it. That's not a problem at all."
"Is anyone else involved with this research/proposal?"
"My trusted friend, Hermione Granger. She helped me with other research that proposes a dimension of information by which magic works and can be performed. Right now, the International Confederation of Wizarding Nations is preparing to release that information to the public, as well as the ritual to enable people who can't use magic to do so," Harry replied.
"I didn't want anyone else to know about this, because it might be upsetting."
"..." the queen looked at the document patiently, pondering many things.
"I think you should start slowly. There are people who would welcome this with open arms; what it needs to do is show the world, or at least this country, how beneficial magic can be, as well as its dangers."
"What do you have in mind?" Harry asked respectfully. He knew the queen had something in mind if she offered him this idea.
"What percentage do you have in mind for all this to work?"
"In this country as a start?.... 70%..." Harry replied. "There are already many families who know about the magical world through their children who attend or attended Hogwarts. In a few months, that number will grow once again. However small the number of new families who discover this, it will be an increase. These families wouldn't be completely opposed to being able to use magic to see how their children learn or live their lives in the near future."
"That already leaves us with a high percentage. Besides, the Prime Minister knows this, as do many around the world in similar positions. Magic... or rather, spiritual energy, helps a person's soul, strengthening it. This makes someone live longer and less susceptible to many non-magical illnesses. Of course, they could get sick from magical things, but normal illnesses would gradually disappear; this will happen as more people decide to undergo the ritual."
"Science could take a huge step forward if it can be combined with magic, which would lead to new discoveries." New jobs would surely emerge... in short, people's quality of life could substantially increase from what it is now."
"Looking at all these positive points, the 70% isn't a percentage I imagined. It's reality. The other 30% isn't there because of the problems that could arise with people who don't accept this. And, of all those people, the ones I'm most worried about are those who belong to the Judeo-Christian religions."
Harry finished speaking while rubbing his forehead: "I don't want another witch hunt scenario to exist, even when those women were mocking those idiots."
"Mocking?" The Queen raised an eyebrow, a little perplexed. Though she was surprised by the analysis of the young man in front of her.
"There was a woman who allowed herself to be captured seven times, disguising herself and letting herself be burned while using a flame-freezing spell. In the end, she escaped and returned for the same reason. And just like her, there were many others."
"Though the worst of all cases remains the one in Salem. That... 'trial'... was simply horrendous, and two of the judges were actually trackers seeking revenge," Harry sighed a little as he shook his head.
"The evidence here, in this document, and everything you showed me in it, I approve. But even if I do, you still have to have the approval of other people. I'm still the Queen, but I don't make the decisions for this country."
"Just as the Acts of Parliament state: The Queen is impartial and never makes public comments on politics; but she may encourage and warn the Prime Minister," she said seriously, looking Harry in the eye.
"Of course, I'm aware of this. My plan was to come to you first, then go to the Prime Minister and present this. The only thing I could ask is that this matter be discussed seriously between Her Majesty and the Prime Minister, and then present this to Parliament."
"Then... it's possible..." The Queen nodded. "But I want you to do something first..."
Harry raised his eyebrows, showing curiosity, and then his expression changed to disbelief when the Queen spoke to him about his request.
When Harry left four hours later, he was a little surprised. But now he had to do something that might be more complicated. The Queen of his country was someone who had seen magic, so she was more open to the subject. She herself had even wished she could use magic in her childhood.
Now, the next person Harry had to visit was someone he had little knowledge of, someone who might be kind, but whose magic might go against her beliefs.
When Harry used Apparition, he was seen by one of the men who allowed travel between countries through magic. This was one of the many Apparition or Portkey transport points around the world. From this point, he would travel to another city in the country he had arrived in.
When Harry arrived after a few minutes where he wanted to go, he sighed a little.
He rolled up the sleeves of his coat and said two words: "Abscondere Morte."
He had discovered a few more little secrets about his cloak, which was now his coat. Now that it was at its full potential, the former cloak, now coat, had the same effects, but it didn't have to wrap itself around Harry's entire body; just putting on his coat would suffice.
When he Apparated into a room, a man with short white hair looked at him with obvious surprise.
Harry smiled at him as he bowed, showing respect and introducing himself.
"Good afternoon, Your Holiness. My name is Harry James Potter. I would like to speak to you about an important matter."
The Pope stood up and looked curiously at Harry Potter.
"Are you by any chance a wizard, young friend?"
That question alone completely threw Harry, who looked at him with a stunned expression.
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