Harry gave a small look of approval as the ICW delegates and the goblin sat down, hiding his true, less than charitable, feelings.
That was a task made more difficult while under the effects of the Crown of Glory, but he could manage. As long as he kept hold on the sliver of Dark that sat in his mind like a block of ice, his ego would be held in check. Pride was nothing in the face of Dark.
The girls did not have that advantage.
Luna was the least affected thanks to her complete lack of conceit. While a bit more opinionated when under the effects of the Crown of Glory, she was still more pleasant than most people were normally. She would be a calming influence, as always.
Dora was more problematic. As playful as she could be, she was also a proud witch with a wicked temper that had been Mad-Eye Moody's protégé and joined the Auror Corps on her own merit. Normally a very easy-going sort, she was quick to take offense and lash out at any disrespect shown to her while under the Crown of Glory, as the Indian ICW representative had learned.
The worst of the four, Fleur was a serious problem. Prideful and vain as all veela were, the Crown of Glory turned her into a proper nightmare. She could barely tolerate the thought that there were wizards and witches that did not fawn over her. He and Luna were sitting on either side of her, using their own auras to sooth her. The only thing keeping her from flying into a rage at the thought that she needed to be kept in check was the fact that she herself had agreed to this measure before the Crown of Glory was cast and the very pride that fed her outrage would not allow her to break her word.
With all the problems that the Crown of Glory caused, one would be forgiven for thinking that it was more trouble than it was worth. For day-to-day use they'd be right, but for special occasions it was worth it.
Harry could already see the effects of the spell taking root in the visitors.
One of the most basic functions of any remotely sentient creature was threat assessment. A subset of this function was the assessment of one's own species to determine social pecking order, mating potential and countless other things. Humans were no different from any other animal in this. The conscious mind could override these instinctive impressions of course, but they would always be there.
All of the delegates aside from Dumbledore and Boneflay were showing the signs of knowing that they were in the presence of superior examples of their own species, although they were trying to hide it. Their instinct would be to submit rather than to fight and that was no small thing even if it was subconscious. This was compunded by the purely animal attraction that inevitably also appeared in such situations. Even if all these people were far past the point of being influenced by their hormones to any significant degree, the instinctive search for a worthy mate wasn't something that could be turned off.
The German, Hildebrand, was the weakest of the group and had already lost the game. His friendly demeanour was poorly suited for resisting the Crown of Glory even if he wasn't a spineless worm like Fudge. Fear of Harry himself and attraction to the girls would make him pliable.
Nayar was stronger, but was off balance and uncertain of himself due to the rebuke he'd received. He would not be eager to make another blunder. Harry felt oddly grateful for the misoginy in India that had allowed that faux pas to happen. It wasn't as bad as in the mundane part of its culture, but it was there.
Bit of an odd situation actually. Harry's plans to travel there had been scuppered by Voldemort's resurrection, so he didn't have first-hand knowledge but some things were easy enough to deduce even from less reliable sources. While he had no real idea what the situation on gender equality had been among India's magical population before the arrival of the European wizards and their 'our way is the only way' attitude, he did know that the heavy-handed approach of the ICW war wizards had left a big mess in the ancient nation. Similar to what had happened in America, quite a bit of the mundane parts of India's culture had bled through while the new order was being established, including a condescending attitude towards women if that hadn't been part of things already. That attitude persisted to this day, although time had blunted it somewhat as the world slowly moved past that bit of idiocy.
Admittedly, there was also the off chance that Nayar genuinely hadn't meant to imply that the girls were in any way inferior to him. Harry was speaking for the group after all and he had implied that he was the primary authority on the island in order to perpetuate the lie that it was an ancient holding of House Black. Plus, the man was an experienced politician and should know better. It didn't really matter, as Dora and Fleur were both seething with resentment about that little deception already, even if they had agreed to it beforehand. They were pretty much looking for an excuse to be angry.
Auger would be a more of a problem. His extreme age was actually an advantage in this case. Not only was his libido likely to be close to dead, but very old people also tended to have a very condescending view of those much younger than them. The latter was a problem with the others as well, but much more so with the French wizard. Still, neither age nor lack of libido would allow Auger to escape the effects of the Crown of Glory.
Winters would be the one with which the most care had to be taken. She was a powerful witch, with a presence nearly as profound as that of Amelia Bones, a particularly impressive feat for a politician even if her talents were less combative. Harry could also easily tell that her skill in Occlumency was the best of the delegation save for Dumbledore's. It would be unwise to rely on the Crown of Glory alone to get what he wanted from her.
Fortunately she was American. All of them might be dressed in the same ornate ceremonial robes worn by senior members of the ICW, but there was an almost palpable distance between Winters and the others. That could and would be exploited.
Although the fact that she was American could have unforeseen problems..... That magical community was rather prudish and Harry got the feeling that Winters didn't approve of anything outside of a traditional, monogamous man-woman relationship. Still, she seemed smart enough to keep her opinions on that score to herself, so even if she was an uptight prude like he suspected she probably wouldn't let it affect her professionalism.
Boneflay was even more obviously a separate entity than Winters, but that was to be expected given that he was a goblin. The Crown of Glory wouldn't be effective on him, except maybe to broadcast that they were a dangerous threat if roused. Harry didn't know enough about the goblin psyche to really guess at any possible effects.
"So, what can Spellhaven do for the ICW?" Harry asked.
There was a brief, almost uncomfortable, pause before Dumbledore replied. "As you likely know, one of the ICW's duties is to mediate disputes between its constituents."
"Spellhaven is not an ICW constituent." Harry asserted calmly, undercutting whatever Dumbledore was about to say.
"Are you not a citizen of Magical Britain?" Hildebrand inquired in a tone of polite confusion.
Harry felt the two women flanking him bristle with indignant anger at the implication that only he mattered, even though that was the damn plan they had agreed to. He and Luna had to work hard to calm them down and it was likely that Hildebrand's sudden skittishness as he subconsciously registered the danger appeased them just as much if not more.
"That has no bearing on this discussion." He replied, keeping his own feelings tightly leashed. It was time for some lies. "This island was claimed by House Black in the early years of the 15th century, long before the founding of either the British Ministry of Magic or the Wizengamot. It was never part of Magical Britain's domain or that of any other, be it mundane or magical."
"But the Blacks are British magical nobility and one of the founding pillars of the British Ministry of Magic and the Wizengamot." Hildebrand said with a frown. "Surely that makes Spellhaven beholden to the British Ministry of Magic?"
"I am afraid not." Dumbledore of all people countered. "The wording of the agreement specifically stated that only lands held on the British Isles would be part of Magical Britain's domain. Several other families have or used to have similar private retreats outside of Britain."
Harry knew that. It was the whole reason they were using this lie. He sometimes wondered how much of the world was hidden under privacy spells. Quite a lot of these old private retreats had been on the mainland and seized when the local wizards had formed their own governments, but some of them were probably still out there. Might be an interesting little mini quest to track these places down and take them for himself one day.
"A vacation home is one thing, but we are talking about hundreds of witches and wizards here." Auger protested.
"I fail to see how the number of residents matters." Harry replied with a careless shrug.
"It matters because all of those people are citizens of other magical nations and are now living permanently on your island." The French wizard insisted. "They cannot be left in some undefined legal limbo, so it is important that we determine under whose jurisdiction Spellhaven falls."
"That much is simple; it falls under our jurisdiction." Harry replied firmly.
His decision to say 'our' instead of 'my' as had been his first impulse was met with firm agreement by the girls and their combined conviction left Auger too intimidated to reply.
"Then it is your intention to declare the island of Spellhaven an independent magical realm?" Winters leaned forward slightly in her seat as she broke in, her ice-blue eyes gleaming with triumph.
Harry stared the American witch in the eye, wishing that he could drag her off somewhere and fuck that look off her face. Not even for her physical appeal, although Winters did look exceptional for a woman of her age, but simply for the pleasure of asserting his superiority over her.
Even though he was consciously aware that the desires currently percolating in his head were way past the border of socially acceptable behavior, he was finding it hard to care. One of the pitfalls of using a spell that made you feel like the most important thing ever when you already had a very low capacity for empathy. These impulses were familiar, they had been developing and evolving ever since the first time he had taken a knife to his flesh and permanently altered how his body worked. His testosterone levels, which he was sure were already obscenely high normally, must be completely through the roof right now.
Dora's hand tightened painfully on his own and her magic bristled dangerously against his senses. It irritated him to do so, but he complied with the warning and turned his thoughts elsewhere. All four of them had sworn that they would heed such warnings, their first experiment with the Crown of Glory demonstrating clearly that they couldn't trust their own judgement while under its effects.
Still, at least he had the satisfaction of seeing the sudden nervousness in the American witch's eyes.
But it was time to answer the question, not silently gloat. "Yes, that is exactly our intention."
It was a shame really. Harry had not wanted to do this, but politicians were always obsessed with a little thing called 'legitimacy', at least in public. It was such a stupid thing to his thinking, but giving Spellhaven status as a legitimate magical realm in its own right would make it more difficult for anyone looking to mount some kind of crusade against it.
Now it was just a matter of convincing this bunch that it was for the best, which was looking doable if the reactions from his guests were anything to go by....
Auger and Hildebrand more than a little displeased, Dumbledore was doing his serene omniscent act and Boneflay merely looked annoyed and impatient, which was the default setting for goblins from what he knew of them. Winters and even Nayar, on the other hand, were looking a bit smug. Definitely plotting something.
"This is absurd." Auger grumbled once he'd recovered the use of his wits. "Are we to allow anyone with a bit of land to their name to declare themselves an independent country now?"
"You don't have the authority to allow or deny anything in this matter." Harry retorted, his limited supply of patience exhausted by the French wizard's constant attempts at asserting some kind of authority over Spellhaven.
The very old man recoiled at the sharp rebuke and Harry knew that he had blundered even if that had been very satisfying. Narcissa had lectured him more than once that the one who initiated hostility was often the one on the losing end of a dipomatic discussion. Damage control it was then.
"Would you like to know why Spellhaven was made?" He asked.
They all looked varying levels of interested, except the goblin, who still looked grumpy and impatient.
"I don't like modern magical society, not in Britain and not anywhere else." He began. "All the bureaucracy, the laws, the regulations..... I can't help but wonder, why are you trying so hard to take the magic out of magic?"
Now they all looked baffled, clearly not understanding what he was getting at. Typical politicians, although there was a glimmer of understanding and worry in Dumbledore's eyes.
"What do you mean?" Auger inquired, actually contriving to sound a bit offended. "We have always worked to preserve the magical world."
Clueless idiot missed the point completely, but Harry supposed that it was only to be expected. Old people were notoriously inflexible, even in their thoughts. Perhaps especially in their thoughts.
"Tell me why politicians impose so many restrictions on magic." Harry near-commanded, catching himself barely in time to make it seem at least vaguely like a request.
"To protect people." Auger said with a small frown, clearly unsure where this was going. "Some magics are harmful or simply not safe to use."
"Magic is not meant to be safe." Harry replied with an annoyed sigh. "Magic is meant to be a thing of wonder and mystery that can and should kill you if approached carelessly. It should reward the exceptional, not give the mediocre an underserved sense of importance. Attempting to regulate it has created a society that treats magic like a commodity."
"What does this have to do with why you've created Spellhaven." Winters asked before anyone could offer a protest.
"It's quite simple really." Harry answered calmly. "I want you to know that I understand that the ultimate duty of government is ostensibly to protect the citizens under their purview and that lawmakers feel obligated to restrict the use of anything dangerous in pursuit of this goal. I understand that the average person craves stability and safety. I understand that powerful wizards and witches are a threat to that stability."
He paused for dramatic effect, momentarily reveling in their literally spellbound attention.
"I understand it, but I don't respect it. In my opinion, people could do with being a little less safe and a little more self-reliant. What is the point of even having magic if all the possibilities it offers are being controlled by petty bureaucrats? The magical world has become stagnant and dull because wizards that know nothing of magic are trying to control it. I will not be controlled."
Another dramatic pause and his audience was somewhat alarmed now. Excellent.
"Obviously, I don't fit in with the way things are done in this day and age. I tried politics back in Britain and found myself contemplating if becoming a dark lord was really such a bad idea. Because I am not an idiot, it was easy to deduce that it was, in fact, a bad idea and wouldn't get me what I want anyway, which brings us to Spellhaven."
That should serve as sufficient warning that provoking him would have unpleasant consequences. Dumbledore was certainly looking amusingly worried.
"Instead of complaining impotently or attempting to conquer a country to force my views on, the idea of Spellhaven was conceived. When we found this island, it was little more than a barren, uninhabitable hunk of volcanic rock that House Black had apparently deemed worthless and forgotten about centuries ago, but the four of us saw the potential in it. Our business ventures were growing at an exponential rate, so much so that we were running into logistical issues with the number of employees and their families suddenly in our care. Not only that, but we were also having more trouble abiding by Magical Britain's laws by the day. A large private island was an ideal solution to both problems. The immmigration requests from others came as a surprise, but we had no cause to refuse them."
Harry paused again and briefly ran his eyes over the delegates. "In short, Spellhaven was made to accomodate our growing business empire and more importantly, to remove ourselves from a society that would have branded me at the very least a dark wizard before long."
"Was it really so terrible, Harry?" Dumbledore asked softly.
"Yes." He answered simply. "You of all people should know what it's like to be a powerful wizard surrounded by mediocrity. Spellhaven is our sanctuary just like Hogwarts is yours and outside interference would run counter to its purpose."
Harry had initially wanted to avoid making these sorts of implied threats, but no matter how he looked at it, they'd never be left in peace without them. Politicians were simply too dumb to leave well enough alone. That was also one of the reasons why the Crown of Glory was being used.
Once again, he had the full support and agreement of all three girls. Their combined strength smothered the room, causing Dumbledore's eye to go wide and the others to suddenly give off the impression of frightened deer.
"Albus, what does he mean?" Hildebrand asked, his tone hushed, wary and confused.
"It is difficult for the powerful to accept the authority of others." Dumbledore answered softly and looked over at the four of them. "Some cannot tolerate it at all."
And that really was the crux of it. Harry had never been able to fit in with his classmates in Hogwarts because he was so much more than them and he knew it. He couldn't conform to a society of wizards and witches content to wallow in their mediocrity when he could literally feel how inferior they were to him.
That was part of the price that the powerful paid for their strength. It was so very hard pretend you weren't chafed by the limitations that the fearful, the weak and the ignorant would place on you and it kept getting harder as your strength grew while everyone else stayed stagnant.
Harry didn't believe that power corrupted so much as it liberated, but a person that felt free to act without fear of consequences was no less frightening than a corrupt one.
Magic exacerbated the problem exponentially. After all, why should a powerful wizard conform if he felt strong enough to challenge the government all by himself? Harry had seen it in himself, in the way he felt less and less need to be subtle when he could simply command and be obeyed instead. He had seen it in his girls as they shrugged off the limitations of society and it was beautiful to watch happen.
But it was a problem. A flock of sheep could never rest easy with a pack of wolves among them, even if the wolves weren't hungry.
Dumbledore had experienced it decades ago. People had feared him as much as they revered him and dealt with it by heaping all sorts of honors and responsibilities on him, desperately trying to make him one of 'them'. The sheep probably didn't even realise what they were doing, probably didn't even realise that they were afraid. Nowadays the old man spent his time hiding in Hogwarts and only leaving it when he really had to.
Better to make their own place in the world than wait for it all to go pear-shaped. Most dark lords or dark ladies weren't psychopaths, but simply wizards and witches that had outgrown the system they were born into. True, they usually broke the law or went against social norms, but so what? It was a good bet that less than a quarter of history's dark lords were actually psychos like Voldemort, with the others just labeled that way to justify getting rid of them when they started doing their own thing.
He was brought out of his brief period of wool-gathering when Auger spoke up again.
"What about your seats on the British Wizengamot and the lordship of the Potter and Black families?" he asked. "You cannot be part of Magical Britain's judicial system if your loyalties are to Spellhaven."
That was almost true.
"If the Ministry of Magic and the Wizengamot require me to choose between the two, then the Houses of Potter and Black will go into dormancy until one of my descendants decides to take up their mantle again."
Harry didn't really expect that to happen. Fudge and the worms in the Wizengamot would probably enjoy the reflected glory too much unless he started using those positions as leverage to make Magical Britain act in Spellhaven's benefit.
Auger looked unhappy at the reply but grundgingly conceded defeat. "I suppose we could acknowledge Spellhaven as a separate entity under the ICW and its guidelines."
Harry's temper flared again. The old fucker clearly had selective hearing.
"What makes you think we want to be part of the ICW?" He asked as neutrally as he could manage, but the room temperature still plummeted noticeably.
"But..." Auger spluttered, either from surprise at the rebuttal or from the effects of the Crown of Glory.
"Harry, the ICW would not infringe on how you run things on Spellhaven." Dumbledore came to the rescue. "it is merely an organisation that promotes cooperation between the world's magical nations. Surely you agree that it is better to work together than to isolate ourselves?"
Harry pretended to think it over. In truth, he'd known that he couldn't just tell the ICW to fuck off and leave them alone. Spellhaven didn't exist in a vacuum and he couldn't act like it did, not without causing himself an unacceptable amount of trouble later on at any rate.
But he had to be obstinate about it to make it clear that the ICW would have no say in Spellhaven's internal affairs, which was no doubt what Hildebrand and Auger – and probably the goblin too now that he thought about it – wanted. Unlike its mundane counterpart, the UN, the ICW had a lot more power over its constituents. Not official power, but it could exert significant pressure indirectly.
"Before anything more is said on this matter, I will remind you once more why Spellhaven was made – a place where magic may be practiced without the constraints of law. There are no restriction on what kind of magic may be used here, up to and including the Unforgivables or anything else that might be deemed illegal elsewhere. Similarly, there is no such thing as illegal enchantments or banned magical items. Anything may be made and sold here. Anyone stirring trouble or doing harm to the people living here will be dealt with, but for the harm itself and not because of the means that were used to do it. Any dabbling in things that could cause harm to more than just the dabbler will be monitored of course, but we will not protect people from their own carelessness. On this point, we will not be moved."
Harry once again enjoyed the full support of his girls and together they made any protest from the delegation die stillborn, their combined strength far too great to be contested.
"That sounds fair." Winters said while Hildebrand and Auger were furiously thinking of a way to respond that didn't involve actually crossing the line in the sand he'd just drawn. "And I am certain that my counterpart from South America will agree."
"Spellhaven is of your making and the ICW has no right to dictate how you run it." Nayar added with a smile.
"I find myself in agreement with my colleagues." Dumbledore said, ignoring the betrayed looks from Auger and Hildebrand. "Much as I worry about the results your policies might bring, it cannot be denied that this is your place and the people are here of their own free will. Do you perhaps already have someone in mind to represent Spellhaven in the ICW?"
Will wonders never cease, Dumbledore had learned how to tone down the condescension? Maybe the chewing out he'd received the last time he'd been on Spellhaven had gotten through to him.
"I do." Harry nodded. "Narcissa Black has proven herself well suited to the task and is trusted to act as our voice."
Narcissa would be thrilled by the appointment no doubt, even if 'Mugwump Black' sounded unforgivably stupid. She had acquited herself well back in Britain, handling the vast majority of the background maneuvering that he didn't have the patience for, as well as handling the fallout of their departure from that country.
But her skills had been a bit under-utilised lately. Spellhaven required much less politicking than Britain and Harry knew that Narcissa missed playing those games. Giving her a position where she could do her thing on the international stage should be right up her alley and she'd be looking out for his interests while doing it.
Yes, Narcissa was a good choice for the job. Inexperienced in international politics, but she undoubtedly had more raw talent for it then he ever would. She'd learn quickly and had access to enough money to buy herself a tutor or assisstant if she felt the need. Harry was kind of looking forward to fucking her in one of those silly ornate robes.
"Very well." Dumbledore nodded. "Then all that remains is for you to sign the ICW charter."
"And here we encounter a problem." Harry said mildly. "You see, signing the ICW charter as it is now would immediately infringe on Spellhaven's internal affairs and violate the terms of the agreement we just made."
"How so?" Dumbledore asked cordially.
"The treaty signed in 1726 between the Goblin Nation and the International Confederation of Wizards is part of the charter and stipulates that the Goblin Nation will maintain a branch of Gringotts Bank in every ICW member nation, both as a financial institution and as an embassy. "
Harry paused for a moment, taking note of Boneflay's rising fury. Oh yes, the silly little midget knew what was coming.
"Goblins maintain that any land upon which a branch of Gringotts sits is sovereign territory of the Goblin Nation. This is unacceptable. All land on Spellhaven belongs to us and we will not give even a fistful of it to the goblins."
"Harry, embassies are necessary for maintaining diplomatic contact between nations." Dumbledore attempted to mediate before Boneflay could say something rash.
"Embassies do not require the land they sit on to be given over to the guest nation." Winters torpedoed the Supreme Mugwump's efforts.
"That would subject my people to the laws of wizards!" Boneflay retorted. "No goblin will ever tolerate that."
"Then stay in your holes and stop bothering us." Winters shot back.
"Watch yourself, witch." The goblin growled threateningly.
"Negotiator Boneflay." Harry said so coldly that a literal chill breeze passed through the room. "I will remind you that Mugwump Winters is a guest in our home and we are obligated to protect her from both harm and insult. Mind your tone."
"Typical wizard." Boneflay said bitterly. "You say nothing when she insults my people but jump to her defense in an instant."
"It was you who refused our hospitality." Harry shot him down icily. "Do not complain about not having it now."
"Perhaps we should get back to the matter at hand?" Dumbledore suggested diplomatically, clearly wanting to move past this.
"Yes, we should." Harry nodded. "In addition to not allowing a goblin presence on the island, we will also not give Gringotts Bank exclusive rights to the management of Spellhaven's finances."
"You may say that, but you are still citizens of Magical Britain and Magical France." Boneflay interjected with a malicious grin.
"What's your point?" Harry asked in a bored tone that clearly projected just how few shits he gave.
"You are still bound by treaty to conduct your finances exclusively through Gringotts, a treaty that you have been violating for months now." The goblin growled.
"Untrue. All of our business ventures are based on Spellhaven, which is not bound by that treaty and therefore cannot be in violation of it."
"That is nothing but a technicality!" Boneflay snapped.
"What is a treaty if not a list of technicalities?" Harry responded whimsically, enjoying the cement mixer sound of fury that the goblin made in response.
"Perhaps we could make some kind of compromise?" Hildebrand asked hopefully.
Harry was fed up with this conversation.
"That I am even entertaining the idea of associating Spellhaven with the ICW is already a compromise and it took a great deal of effort to convince me to do even that much." He said firmly. "I have named my terms and will not be swayed from them. Either accept them or do not."
"Lord Potter has shown nothing but grace and honor in removing himself from a situation that he knew would eventually put him at odds with his homeland's laws." Winters spoke up after a moment. "The magi of North and South America will accept those terms."
"As will the wizards and witches of India." Nayar added.
Harry acknowledged their support with a nod. Of course, he didn't delude himself into thinking that they were supporting his position because they thought it was the right thing to do. No, they were doing it because it would benefit their respective nations.
What a pain..... . He wished he could just kill them all and be done with it. Yet more proof that most dark lords simply had enough of dealing with other people's shit rather than being 'evil'.
Maybe a few years or decades down the line, he'd have a good excuse to destroy the ICW?
The thought of casting Abi-Dalzim's Horrid Wilting in a room full of politicians cheered him up.
Auger and Hildebrand looked uncomfortable, but didn't seem eager to voice their opposition. Score one for the Crown of Glory.
"We will of course need to bring this before the full assembly of mugwumps before a decision is made." Dumbledore sounded tired.
"Gringotts will never support this!" Boneflay snarled and stomped out of the room.
Fucking goblins.
"Before you go, there is one more thing I feel I should mention." Harry said before the others could get up.
They all looked at him curiously.
"No doubt you are all aware of Britain's little Dark Lord problem recently." He said, getting bemused nods from everyone except Dumbledore. "After we gave him a bloody nose back in August, Voldemort has been recruiting heavily across various locales all over Europe. I have so far spied his followers in several locations across Europe."
"How?" Auger asked with a faintly accusatory tone.
"I have my ways." Harry replied unhelpfully. "My point is that he will eventually stop recruiting and restart his attempts to conquer the world. Since we are to be allies, we are offering to take care of Voldemort for the ICW."
The original plan may have been to essentially blackmail the ICW with the threat of Voldemort, but blackmail only worked as long as you had it. Frame it as one ally helping another though.....well, it wouldn't look good if you turned on someone that handled a dark lord for you now would it?
Of course, none of them would believe that he was actually doing it out of the goodness of his heart, but that didn't matter. It was all about appearances.
Fucking politics.
"That is most gracious of you." Dumbledore said with a commendably straight face. The old man knew better than anyone that he wasn't doing it for free. "What can the ICW do to help you in this?"
"Mostly we'd just need official sanction to act within the borders of whatever country Voldemort and his minions are in." Harry answered.
"Is that really necessary?" Auger asked skeptically. "Surely our Aurors could handle it."
Harry resisted the urge to snort. Fleur and Dora didn't.
At a certain level of power, even weight of numbers didn't work anymore. There were only so many wizards that could fight together against one without getting in each other's way.
"No, Gaston, I am afraid that the Aurors could not match the likes of Voldemort." Dumbledore answered solemnly. "Even I am not certain if I could win against him now. Harry may be the only wizard currently alive that is able to defeat him."
With the Crown of Glory inflating his ego, Harry merely nodded at this. It sounded like the truth, even though he was intellectually aware that he was likely not on even footing with Voldemort as far as combat was concerned.
"I will pass it along to my government." Auger said a bit stiffly.
The others said much the same and then got up.
Winters and Nayar both requested to speak further on matters of trade at a later date during the walk outside, which Harry knew was going to be the manner of payment for their support. That was fine, it wasn't like money was going to be an issue for much longer with a Philosopher's Stone in the near future.
Once they were all gone, the four of them dispersed without so much as looking at each other.
They had learned their lesson about that the first time they'd used the Crown of Glory. It was manageable as long as they had an outside enemy to focus on, but without it...well, Harry and Fleur had both been hatching plans on fucking the other three into submission whether they were willing or not, which would have spurred Dora into potentially lethal retaliation.
Luna had doused them all with freezing cold water and shooed them off, which had probably saved their relationship and maybe even a few lives.
After that near disaster, they had all agreed to find their own ways to blow off steam while the Crown of Glory's side-effects wore off.
Harry was fortunate in that he knew a woman that wouldn't mind if he was more forceful than normal. Indeed, she actually enjoyed it.
XXXXX
Septima braced herself on shaky arms as Harry thrust into her arse with an almost violent energy. Her breath came in pants and her whole body glowed with a sheen of sweat that gave mute testimony to her exhaustion. The only thing keeping her from collapsing face first into the bed was the collar around her neck, the chain of which was pulled taught in Harry's fist and had no give in it.
He had stormed into her office earlier in the day with the kind of look on his face that instantly had her gushing like a fountain. When he'd wordlessly grabbed her and apparated them to a bedroom, she'd already been halfway to orgasm.
That was an indeterminate number of hours ago and Harry had since then used her body like he owned it. Septima had enjoyed every second of it of course, but she didn't know if she could take much more of this.
"Are you dozing off down there, slut?" Harry demanded, punctuating his question with a hard slap to her left buttock.
Septima cried out at the sudden stinging pain.
Another slap came when she didn't answer immediately. "I asked you a question!"
"No!" Septima quickly assured, even though the pain felt good. She was far too tired to be deliberately disobedient in the hopes of getting punished some more.
"Then why does it feel like I'm fucking a cave back here?" Another slap accompanied the question. "I told you to keep your arse clenched tight!"
"I'm sorry. I can't!" Septima cried out apologetically. She really wanted to obey, but she was shaking with just the effort of staying on her elbows and knees, nevermind keeping her bowels clenched so that Harry could properly enjoy her.
The chain of her collar was pulled, forcing her upright on her knees. The collar was enchanted to distribute the force evenly around its circumference, so instead of digging into her throat, it merely tightened for the most part even as she was dragged back. Her vision swam as her breathing and blood flow was restricted.
Then Harry stuck the middle and ring finger of his left hand into her soaking sex and used the new handhold to keep her upright so that he didn't lose access to her arse.
"I didn't ask if you can, I told you to do it." He said directly into her ear, now penetrating both of her holes.
Septima obeyed without thought, struggling to clench her pelvic muscles as hard as she could despite the way her body was shaking from exhaustion. She was feeling quite loopy from both the rapid approach of another orgasm at the rough treatment and the constricting effects of the collar.
"That's better." Harry grunted into her ear, increasing the pace of his thrusting. "Just keep that up."
Knowing that he was close and wanting to experience release with him, Septima pinched her own nipples harshly and gave a shudddering cry as the pain set off her orgasm. The sensation was made even better when Harry grunted in pleasure and started filling up her bowels with his seed.
The fingers were removed and the collar loosened around her neck, sending a disorienting rush of blood to her brain and allowing Septima to collapse with a gasp of relief. She paid no mind to Harry's manhood as it easily slipped out of her ravaged anus, and dearly hoped that he didn't want to go again, because she was done.
Two fingers were pressed against her mouth and Septima started sucking on them automatically, tasting both herself and a trace of one of Harry's previous releases on them.
Once they were clean, he separated from her and laid down on the bed, tugging gently on her collar as he did so. Knowing what that meant, Septima smiled tiredly and turned to clean his member with her mouth. The submissive post-coital ritual marked the end of playtime and she performed it with more enthusiasm than usual, eager to get some rest.
"You alright?" Harry asked when she settled against him after finishing.
"More than alright." Septima groaned, streatching out her tired limbs. Her whole body ached and hurt in all the right ways and there was a steady trickle of Harry's warm seed oozing out of her arse. It didn't get much better. "What is going on with you lately? This is the third time in the past two weeks that you've fucked me like you had something to prove and it was even worse this time. If this keeps up I'll end up permanently bowlegged."
Harry had always been so wonderfully dominant and overpowering, but these last three times she had seriously questioned if he would heed the safeword if she used it. Strangely enough, his unusual aggression would gradually bleed off while he was fucking her until he was back to normal.
"Let's just say that you've been the beneficiary of some magical experimentation." Harry chuckled.
Septima didn't ask, knowing that he wouldn't elaborate, and they lapsed into silence. The only sound was the occasional clink of her collar's chain as Harry absently tugged on it, which made her smile.
She loved the collar and lived in a mix of dread and eager anticipation of the day that Harry would order her to wear it in public. He hadn't so far, which was both a relief and a disappointment.
"I hear you've got yourself an admirer." Harry said casually a few minutes later.
Septima wasn't at all surprised that he knew about the man that had become sweet on her recently. He seemed to know everything these days.
"Mhm." Was her only reply, too pleasantly lethargic to really bother thinking of the mid-thirties wizard trying to woo her.
"Not interested?" Harry chuckled again.
"He's nice enough, I suppose."
"But?"
"But nice is boring."
She'd had a nice boyfriend once. A Hufflepuff in the same year as her. He'd been so awkward and shy when he'd asked her to go to Hogsmeade with him in their seventh year and she'd been so flattered that someone had actually asked bookish, unnoticeable Septima Vector for a date.....
Their relationship had been very.....safe, with not much drama or excitement. It hadn't been passionate or in hindsight even all that deep. If he hadn't been killed by Death Eaters, they'd probably have naturally progressed towards marriage simply because that was how things were done.
A husband and children would have been nice, but life was messy and stressful and Septima had never felt more relaxed or free than when she relinquished control to Harry. Marriage to a man that couldn't give her that would always have been mediocre at best, even if she never realised what she actually wanted. She felt a bit guilty sometimes for thinking that those Death Eaters had done her a favor.
"You never know, he might have hidden depths." Harry said idly.
Septima raised her head to look into his brilliant emerald eyes. "Are you trying to get rid of me, Harry?" She asked, keeping her tone light even though she was actually worried.
"Not at all." He replied, giving her collar a slightly harder tug. "I'm just saying that you don't have to hold back from exploring other possibilities on my account."
Reassured, she laid her head back on his chest and chuckled. "Even if I wanted to give him a chance, I doubt he'd be fine with me being your mistress while we were getting to know each other."
"Yes, that could be awkward." Harry was also amused.
Septima chuckled again. Talk about understating it.
"Did you ever have any trouble from your girls over having mistresses?" She asked curiously after a few seconds of silence.
"Not really." He replied lightly, absently tugging on her collar again. "Luna doesn't have a jealous bone in her body and Fleur is a veela, they don't consider sex any more scandalous than hugging. As for Dora....well, she wasn't exactly happy about it, but she came into the relationship late and didn't really have any room to complain."
"Strange that she would get into a relationship like that in the first place then." Septima commented.
"Fleur spent quite a while softening her up before she did. Besides, you know that no woman can resist once they've had a taste of my magic cock." He declared pompously.
Septima dissolved into helpless giggles at the ridiculous statement. Although it was indeed a very impressive piece of male endowment.....
Alright, so maybe there was some truth to Harry's words.
"Do you think your girlfriends would mind if you gave me another taste then?" She asked suggestively, already sliding down his body.
"Not at all, they're doing their own thing right now actually....."
XXXXX
Luna walked through the forest, hand in hand with Marae.
It was always nice to spend time with the towering dryad after wearing the Crown of Glory. She was much less aggravating than humans.
Luna didn't like feeling aggravated, by her lovers least of all.
A fairy landed on one of Marae's leaking breasts and drank some of her nectar before buzzing off in a distinctly inebriated fashion.
Luna giggled at the sight and the forest giggled with her as Marae shared her amusement.
XXXXX
Tonks breathed in deep of the thin air, floating above the clouds without the aid of a broom or flying carpet.
Harry had reverse engineered Voldemort's flying spell some time ago and taught it to them.
Harry and his endless supply of magic tricks, some amazing and some horrible.
The Crown of Glory was definitely horrible.
Tonks had spent nearly two hours beating the stuffing out of a punching bag to vent her aggression. Then she'd called up one of those veela masseusses that were always so eager to come over. That had been nice and relaxing, as had getting her peach eaten by the same masseusse afterwards.
Now she was here, watching the sunset from above the clouds, more than six thousand meters above sea level. Good thing she was a witch and had warming charms, or it would have been bloody cold up here.
She was starting to see why Harry liked coming either up here or standing at the top of his tower. It was very peaceful and detached from the world.
XXXXX
Fleur sighed contently, snuggling up to her sister. Gabrielle was twelve years old now and had started puberty. Puberty for a veela meant sex with an older, more experienced veela to get the hang of her nature and awoken instincts.
Fleur had insisted that she would be the one to teach Gabby, even if the custom was usually to let someone outside the immediate family do it as a way of fostering friendships.
Having a young, biddable bed partner had been exactly what Fleur needed to shake off the Crown of Glory's less pleasant effects. She still had the occasional flash of dread at how close they had come to ruining everything because of that horrible spell.
In some ways, Fleur resented the ICW even more than Harry did because of that. The four of them had carved out this slice of paradise for themselves, what business did a bunch of greedy politicians have trying to stick their noses into it, forcing them to go that far to defend it?
If Harry ever decided that the ICW needed to burn, Fleur would be the first to set it on fire.
"Fleur?" Gabrielle spoke up, fidgeting a little.
"Yes, what is it?" Fleur asked, shifting her young sister around so that they could look at each other.
"Do you think Harry would have sex with me?" She asked nervously.
Fleur had been expecting this. Gabby had gotten over the scare Harry had given her when he'd killed Lucius Malfoy and was now experiencing the typical veela reaction to a powerful wizard.
"I will ask, but I can't make any promises." Fleur said. "You know how silly humans are about sex."
If it was just Harry, he could probably be reasoned with and convinced that there was nothing wrong with sleeping with a twelve-year-old veela as long as he was gentle about it. Nymmie though.....
Well, the metamorphmagus was less reasonable and more emotional about these things, not to mention attached to her little foibles. She would protest.
Still, she wouldn't trade any of her human lovers for anything, no matter how silly they could be.
XXXXX
Things settled down a bit after the meeting with the ICW delegation. Sort of.
The news that Harry Potter was permanently and officially moving out of Britain was met with a general sense of disbelief, loss, indignation and some fear from the magical population of that country. Fudge was especially filled with fear at having his most powerful supporter suddenly strike out on his own.
Amelia Bones was one of the rare few that was relieved. While he had done a great deal of good from her perspective and even gave her a measure of revenge for the murder of her family, he had still been a loose cannon that she had no real way of containing.
His terms for entry into the ICW were accepted after a solid week of arguing, largely due to the support of Dumbledore and several others that thought to benefit from the newly established realm. The representative from the Goblin Nation kicked up a huge fuss about it, but didn't achieve much as the goblins had no actual vote on the matter. Relations between goblins and wizards did sour further though.
Narcissa was named to the Council of Mugwumps, much to her pleasure. It was still a damn stupid name as far as Harry was concerned, but she was happy with it.
Dumbledore showed up again a day after that was done, to talk about the fight against Voldemort. As was usual for the old wizard, he wanted to keep the damage as low as possible.
Harry agreed with him about keeping the damage as low as possible, but his method of doing that was by causing so much damage to the other side that it wouldn't be capable of doing any of its own.
Dumbledore wasn't particularly happy about that plan, but couldn't dispute that it would be better for Voldemort and the Death Eaters to be hurt rather than non-combatants, nor could was he allowed to forget that it wasn't for him to decide how the war would be pursued. That was why he eventually relented and used his considerable political influence to get Harry and the girls the sanction to act against the Dark Lord anywhere.
That took weeks of negotiation to achieve and the end result was more tame than Harry would have liked. They needed to inform the head of the DMLE in the relevant country, had to be accompanied by a force of local Aurors on any raids, had limits on how much force they could use and worst of all, could not unilaterally take custody of everyone they captured, aside from the British Death Eaters.
Harry wasn't happy about that, but at least Bellatrix was still his if anyone caught her. Not that he knew where she was.
In preparation for the renewal of hostilities, Harry spent much of his energy during that time searching for targets. In addition to Romania, he had detected a Death Eater presence in Bulgaria, Spain, Italy and Poland.
The time inevitably came to act on that information...
XXXXX
June 3rd, 2018.
"All four of us going on the same raid would be complete overkill." Dora was saying as she peered at the large world map that had various photographs and notes pinned to it. "Any one of us could probably take one of these by ourselves."
Harry frowned, but nodded all the same. He was reluctant to have them split up because then he would not be there with them if something went wrong, but there was no denying that it would be a waste of resources to have all of them go to the same place.
"Luna shouldn't go anyhwere by herself at least." He said.
"Agreed." Both Fleur and Dora said in unison. All of them felt quite protective of their youngest lover.
Luna merely blinked, offering no protest. She knew that she wasn't aggressive enough to go alone and would in fact prefer to play a defensive support role in any fighting.
Of course, 'alone' in this case meant 'away from the others' as opposed to actually alone. The local Aurors and the Raven Host would still be present regardless.
"Is Etal coming with us?" She asked instead.
"Unless he shows up soon, I think we can assume he won't." Harry replied wryly. The quetzalcoatl had been AWOL for weeks now. Nothing unusual about that, as he had a tendency to go where the wind took him for a while before coming back to Spellhaven to laze about until the next time he got struck with wanderlust.
"Alright, so who wants which?" Dora asked, bringing the conversation back on track.
"I'll take Dolohov in Romania." Harry said.
"Spain should be nice this time of year." Fleur said with a smirk.
"Luna and I will take the one in Poland then."
Harry nodded in acknowledgement even though he would feel more comfortable keeping the girls close. They were powerful witches and didn't need coddling. He would still insist on them going together if not for the necessity of making a simultaneus strike to take maximum advantage of the initiative.
"Now we just need to divide up the Raven Host among the other locations....." That was fortunately not a problem. Even though they numbered only nine at this point, Dora assured him that they were better combat trained and equipped than Aurors. That would make sense, as their training was focused exclusively on combat.
XXXXX
June 4th, 2018. Spellhaven, Potter Cháteau.
The Raven Host was an odd group. Three male werewolves and one female, two veela and three wizards. All of them fighters by inclination, geared up in expensive dragon hide armor and looking ready to do some damage.
They might be few in number, but they were skilled. Certainly far more skilled than Voldemort's horde of thugs. Harry was sure that they would be more than equal to the task of fighting any Death Eaters as long as they weren't severely outnumbered.
He just hoped that the local Aurors didn't give them any crap. Ideally, either he or one of the girls would be there with them to lend an extra touch of authority, but they couldn't be everywhere at once.
He was just about to start handing out portkeys to the designated locations when an unwelcome interruption occured.
"Harry, could I talk to you before you go?" Narcissa hesitantly asked from the doorway.
Harry took one look at her and resisted the urge to sigh. Pale face, trembling voice, wavering expression, wringing hands...the blonde witch was barely holding it together and he had a good idea as to the cause.
"I'll be back in a second." He said to the group, getting nods from the Raven Host and knowing looks from his girls.
They were barely out of the room when Narcissa threw her arms around him and buried her face in his basilisk hide covered chest.
"I'm sorry, Cissy." Harry said as he returned the desperate hug. And he was sorry, for her grief if not for her idiot offspring.
The Kinfinder spell used with Narcissa's blood was how they had gotten the location in Italy. The spell had given out inconclusive answers for some time, indicating anti-scrying magics, but now Draco had left those protections and returned to Italy. He wasn't doing anything obviously nefarious, but he'd long since learned from the prisoners taken at Malfoy Manor who they had to thank for Voldemort's resurrection.
Draco fucking Malfoy and the surprise addition of an old.....'aquintance', the assassin from the second task of the Tri-Wizard tournament. Seeing that man's face in his captives' memories had been an unwelcome surprise. Adrastia could probably tell him a thing or two about the assassin, but he hadn't asked because the woman would have no doubt made him pay for it in some way.
He could probably buy her loyalty, or at least make it unpalatable for her to betray him, with the Elixir of Life, but that was a damn big secret to be sharing with someone like Adrastia.
"I know I can't protect my son from the choices he makes anymore." The blonde witch began tremulously. "And I know that he chose to make himself your enemy, but..." She had to pause to take a deep breath before she could continue, and even then it was in a broken whisper. "But I'd like to at least talk to him one more time. Please."
Harry resisted the urge to curse the name of Draco Malfoy. Why did that idiot have to be such an idiot?
"They're supposed to capture him anyway, but I'll tell them again." He said with a sigh. He'd already been planning to kill the little blond idiot quickly after he was done interrogating him, solely for Narcissa's sake. He could agree to this much, even if he thought it a bad idea.
"Thank you." She said, squeezing tighter for a moment before letting go and giving him a watery smile.
Harry resisted the urge to let out another sigh. What a stupid situation, and all because Draco was too proud to let things go, just like his father.
XXXXX
Romania.
Antonin Dolohov had been honored by the trust and faith implied in being given the mission to seek out potential Death Eaters in Romania. That didn't make it any less boring however and he'd been itching for a good fight or even a raid on some filthy muggles.
That was why he'd been almost happy when the house he was living in was attacked. Finally, some excitement.
Even seeing Potter of all people stalk towards him didn't manage to put a dent in his enthusiasm. Dolohov had always had a rather high opinion of his own skills. Admittedly not without reason, as he was one of Voldemort's strongest fighters and had defeated powerful wizards such as Gideon and Fabian Prewett in the past.
But it quickly became clear to him that he was not going to be winning this one. Potter's powerful magic lent him a dread presence akin to the Dark Lord himself, his defensive spells were as solid as a mountain and his offensive ones fearsome strong.
The would-be Death Eaters that had been with him had already been defeated by what looked like Aurors, but he couldn't help them. He couldn't even help himself.
"What's wrong, Dolohov?" His young opponent asked mockingly. "Why do I hear your strength failing? Has your courage deserted you already? Fight! Cling to life! The only path to your survival lies beyond my corpse."
Dolohov's features twisted in anger at the realisation that he was being toyed with. With a vicious slash of his wand, he let loose with one of his favorite spells, a lash of purple fire that attacked the internal organs. He followed it up immediately by banishing a heavy couch at his opponent.
Potter dismissed the purple flame with an almost negligent wave of his hand and swept aside the heavy projectile as if it was no more dangerous than a beach ball, something that was heavily disputed by the way the house shuddered as the couch hit the wall.
But Dolohov hadn't really expected to get a hit in with those two attacks. No, they were distractions so that he'd have time to cast a silent Killing Curse.
The green beam of death flew towards his enemy....
...and missed as Potter avoided it by simply leaning sideways, as if he'd known exactly what was coming and where it was going.
Dolohov barely got a shield up in time to defend against the retaliatory attack. It was a simple bludgening hex, it should have been easily blocked, but there was so much force behind it that the veteran Death Eater felt his will buckle under the strain.
Only a handful of spells from Potter and he was already on the edge of magical exhaustion. No wonder the Dark Lord had cautioned them not to fight him alone.
He had no time to bring up another shield before a whip of crackling lightning wrapped itself around him, stinging against his skin.
"You fail." Potter declared, a a grim smile on his scarred face.
A surge of power went through the whip and Dolohov lost consciousness via electrocution.
XXXXX
Harry looked at his captive thoughtfully. He had used Dolohov to test his prowess against someone that was genuinely trying to kill him instead of the harmless spars with his girls.
It was good to know that he had passed beyond the level where even adept wizards were a threat in direct combat, but the journey wasn't over. It would never be over.
XXXXX
Later that evening. Spellhaven.
Unfortunately, Harry's success in capturing Dolohov proved to be the exception rather than the rule. Aside from him, only Fleur had succeeded in capturing her target, all the other raids had failed, their targets fled before they even arrived.
"The ministries are compromised." Harry said with a scowl. "It's the only way they could have been warned that we were coming."
This was why he hated dealing with governments.
"But how?" Dora asked in frustration. "They had less than a day of warning and we only told the heads of the DMLE."
"They might have a Fudge problem." Luna suggested idly.
"Luna's probably on to something." Harry sighed in defeat. "If any of their ministers of magic are half as stupid and greedy as Fudge, it would have been easy to arrange. Not to mention that they're probably still sulking about Spellhaven muscling in on their profits."
"Don't forget that they weren't very cooperative either." Fleur added.
That was unfortunately also true. The local Aurors had been downright cliché in their reactions to outsiders.
"So what are we going to do now?" Dora asked.
"I don't know." Harry's scowl returned, deeper and harsher. "If we keep playing by the rules we might find ourselves walking into an ambush one day, but if we don't and get caught the ICW will get pissy."
That fantasy of walking into the ICW council chamber and casting Abi-Dalzim's Horrid Wilting while it was in use was sounding more and more appealing.
Wouldn't do anything except brand him a threat to the entire magical world, but it sure would be satisfying.
"Maybe we could do both?" The metamorphmagus suggested. "Do secret raids on the more important targets and only announce the ones that don't matter if we fail?"
"I think we might have to." Harry sighed. What a pain….
XXXXX
When Voldemort heard that his nemesis had struck again, he had mixed feelings on the matter. On the one hand, Potter had yet again somehow managed to sniff out his servants even though they were taking painstaking care to keep a low profile. On the other, the bribes, threats and promises given to the local authorities had been enough to warn them ahead of time in three of five cases.
Either way, the Dark Lord knew that he would need to retaliate soon, or else have his minions think him weak.
Fortunately, he had been intending to strike soon either way. Potter's birthday would be the best time. He might even interrupt another orgy.