Chapter 814: Opening a Shop
Chapter 814: Opening a Shop
"I feel like I'm going crazy!"
Sirius Black threw the rag in his hand to the side and plopped down on a chair. They had been cleaning number 12, Grimmauld Place tirelessly for several days, putting in a lot of effort to remove the copious amounts of dust, cobwebs, and miscellaneous clutter.
However, not a single room had been thoroughly cleaned yet, and it was no easy task to make the place habitable.
Sometimes magic wasn't as practical as one would imagine, especially when dealing with a house that hadn't been cleaned in over a decade. Even with the help of enchanted rags, it was challenging to get things spotless, and stubborn mold required a lot of elbow grease to remove.
"Don't slack off, Sirius. If you want to bring Harry to live with us at Grimmauld Place, you need to make sure this place is properly cleaned up." Remus Lupin frowned at Sirius, who looked thoroughly exhausted. He had guessed that his friend's patience was wearing thin, as most wizards weren't adept at handling household chores and usually preferred to use magic to solve their problems.
"I will give Harry a new home, but you have to let me rest first!" Sirius poured himself a butterbeer and took a large gulp before changing the subject. "Have you returned the galleons to him?"
"Mr. Anderson has received the Third Grade Order of Merlin, so I assume he no longer needs me to help him test the Human Transformation Spell." Lupin sighed softly. "And from the start, I felt he was giving me too much."
"He was just sharing some of the five thousand galleons he got from you." Sirius finished his butterbeer and glared at a shadowy figure outside before using his wand to close the wooden door. "Of course, it's undeniable that he's very generous and talented to have obtained the Third Grade Order of Merlin at such a young age. I bet some people are furious about it!"
"I heard he also won the International Wizarding Chess Championship and the Magic School Potions Competition." Lupin was initially surprised to learn about these achievements. "That Mr. Anderson gives me the impression of a young Albus Dumbledore."
"Speaking of Harry, what about that clever young girl who was with him last time? Is she his girlfriend?" Sirius was evidently more interested in his godson's life.
"No, Harry and Hermione are probably just good friends." Lupin reminded him helplessly. "And they're only fourteen."
"I remember James started liking Lily when they were very young." Sirius reminisced. "I recall it was on the train. Well, you probably don't know, but we were in the same compartment, and later, James had some unpleasant conflict with Snape."
"Lily was in the same compartment as Snape, and I think that's when James took a liking to her."
"Then, as you know, whenever Lily was around, James' clever mind seemed to rust."
"He became silly and dumbfounded." Lupin added with a chuckle.
"Yes, just like that." Sirius had been reminiscing about his old friends a lot lately. "They're still young, but maybe when they grow up, they might get together."
"Maybe."
"By the way, how are your thoughts on opening a shop?" Sirius jumped to another topic.
"So, what kind of shop do you think we should open?" Lupin frowned as he brought up the topic of opening a shop. "Do you think your personality is really suited for running a business? And can we really make money from it? We can't keep running at a loss, can we?"
"Just share your thoughts." Sirius said nonchalantly.
"The last time I wrote to Albert, I mentioned the idea of opening a shop. He gave me two suggestions in his reply." Lupin poured himself a butterbeer.
"What suggestions?" Sirius asked curiously.
"Opening a restaurant in Hogsmeade, specializing in food, drinks, and sweets for Hogwarts students. The condition is that we are interested in various cuisines and have house-elves who are skilled in this area." Lupin forced a bitter laugh. "He thinks this could make us a lot of money and help solve most of our problems, although it would mean busy evenings."
"What's the second suggestion?" Sirius furrowed his brows. To be honest, he had no talent for cooking.
At the very least, Sirius hadn't used the kitchen in a long while.
"The second idea is to publish a magazine targeted at Hogwarts students." Lupin continued, "And establish our own radio station. He didn't go into specifics about the radio station, but Mr. Anderson mentioned that we might need it to spread our message in the future."
"What does that mean?" Sirius felt there was another implication in those words.
"I don't know." Lupin shook his head.
"So, which option do you prefer?" Sirius asked.
To be honest, Sirius didn't like either of the suggestions, but if they were going to open a shop, he knew he would have to make some compromises to help his old friend find a suitable job.
Lupin shook his head again without saying a word. He didn't think Sirius was cut out for either of those jobs; his old friend probably just wanted to invest some money to help him get started.
"We can discuss it with him later." Sirius said, "That guy doesn't hold any prejudice against you."
At that moment, a snowy white owl flew in through the window.
"It's a letter from Harry." Sirius immediately recognized Hedwig, who had been corresponding with them regularly every few days.
"What does the letter say?" Lupin asked.
"Harry asked when I'm going to pick him up, and he mentioned that the Weasleys invited him to the Quidditch World Cup."
Sirius looked around at their surroundings and sighed softly. "I suddenly feel like I'm a terrible godfather."
"Don't say that. You're just not used to the role yet." Lupin comforted him gently.
"No, I've messed everything up." Sirius was disheartened. "I should figure out a way to get a few tickets for the Quidditch World Cup first. I'll need two, three, or five tickets, and I'll have to invite Harry's friends. I also haven't properly thanked Crookshanks yet."
"Mr. Anderson said he didn't need them anymore. He mentioned in his letter that a friend had given him several tickets for the Quidditch World Cup."
"Lupin suddenly remembered something and said, "He seemed to guess that I was helping you with the cleaning, so he asked me to tell you about it."
"Forget it, let's figure out how many tickets we need first, then we'll get the Quidditch World Cup tickets." Sirius looked at Lupin and said, "We can go and watch the World Cup early, anyway, it's still a long time until the full moon, don't refuse, otherwise I'll feel bad about asking you to help me clean this house."
"Alright." Lupin hesitated for a moment and could only accept Black's kindness.
...
"How did the recruitment go? Was it smooth sailing?" Mrs. Weasley looked at her son with anticipation.
"It went well. I've joined the Department of International Magical Cooperation at the Ministry of Magic and have earned Mr. Crouch's favor." Percy proudly announced the good news to everyone.
With his impressive resume, there were quite a few departments in the Ministry of Magic that were willing to hire him. In the end, Percy chose to trust Albert's judgment and joined the Department of International Magical Cooperation.
Of course, Percy's decision wasn't made blindly. Bartemius "Barty" Crouch, the head of the Department of International Magical Law Enforcement, was a very capable man who liked to get things done, and working under someone like him would offer greater opportunities for promotion.
As expected, Mr. Crouch soon took notice of Percy's impressive resume and selected him to be his assistant, even though he couldn't quite remember his name.
"That's wonderful, I'm so proud of you." Mrs. Weasley was very pleased.
"Oh, congratulations, Percy. May your life be forever filled with the excitement of office work." Fred and George, one on each side, patted Percy's shoulders forcefully to express their congratulations.
"Shut up." Percy said impatiently.
"If only you two could make my life as worry-free as Percy does."
Mrs. Weasley glared at Fred and George, the sources of her constant worries. Their O.W.Ls results had been a huge disappointment to her, as they had barely passed five subjects each.
"What's so great about working at the Ministry of Magic?" Fred scoffed, "Even Albert doesn't want to work there."
"He's him, and you're you." Mrs. Weasley said irritably.
"He's a genius, a master of prophecy, whose insights are always spot on. If the Ministry of Magic was that great, why wouldn't Albert want to work there?" Fred retorted, "George and I don't want to work at the Ministry, and we don't want to spend our lives stuck in a boring office either."
"Don't you dare talk back!" Mrs. Weasley said, hands on her hips as she glared at her sons.
"Actually, a lot of people say that if Albert were to join the Ministry of Magic after graduation, he'd become the Minister of Magic within a decade." George interjected, "But he just doesn't want to join, and he even prophesied that the Ministry of Magic will collapse in a few years."
"Who prophesied that the Ministry of Magic will collapse?" Ginny, who had just come downstairs, asked as she looked at Mrs. Weasley, "Mom, have Charlie and Bill mentioned when they'll be coming back?"
"They wrote to say that they'll probably be back in August." Mrs. Weasley turned to Fred and George and asked, "If you two don't want to work at the Ministry, what do you plan to do in the future?"
"We want to open a joke shop." Fred and George said in unison, "That's our dream. We decided a long time ago that we'd open a joke shop after graduation, so you and Dad don't have to worry about us."
"Are you trying to make me go crazy?" Mrs. Weasley shouted.
"What's wrong with opening a shop?" Fred and George complained, "We have our own dreams, our own wishes, and our own vision for our lives. We don't want to work at the Ministry, we don't want a boring life, and we want to decide our own future."
"I'd like to see how you plan to open a shop." Mrs. Weasley stormed off in anger.
"Don't worry, once we start making money, Mom will naturally stop opposing our idea." Fred noticed Ginny's gaze and shrugged, "To use Albert's words, we'll use facts and galleons to shut her up."
"This is a very realistic issue. Mom just has a more rigid way of thinking, believing that a job at the Ministry of Magic offers more stability." George said self-deprecatingly, "Who would refuse a better life? Not to mention, the Ministry of Magic is on the verge of collapse anyway."
"Who made the prophecy that the Ministry of Magic will collapse?" Ginny asked again.
"Of course, it was Albert." Fred and George replied together.
"Is he really that good at prophecy?" Ginny asked, as she had also heard this rumor.
"Of course, if you want to make money, the upcoming Quidditch World Cup is a great opportunity. Albert has agreed to help predict the outcome of the final match, and we can definitely make a fortune if we bet on it." Fred said with a mischievous smile.
"Don't forget to include me." Ron, who had just come downstairs, said to the twins.
"No gambling." Mrs. Weasley glared at her sons in annoyance.
"Mom, this is a great opportunity to make money. Albert has never lost a bet." Ron complained, "You don't know how much Fred and George have earned by following his predictions."
"No. Gambling. Allowed!" Mrs. Weasley warned.
"This isn't gambling, it's a surefire way to make money." Ron mumbled.
"What did you say?"
Mrs. Weasley glared at her son, frustrated that none of them ever seemed to make things easy for her.
"Nothing, by the way, Mom, Harry just wrote to me and he seems to be having some trouble." Ron quickly changed the subject, deciding to let Fred and George include him in their betting plans later.
"What kind of trouble?" Mrs. Weasley's attention was successfully diverted to Harry's issue.
"Well, Harry's uncle's son wants to lose weight, so the whole family is going on a diet. Can you help prepare some food for Harry so he doesn't go hungry?"
"Oh, that's no problem. I'll make some meat pies for Harry tonight." Mrs. Weasley walked away.
"Dieting?"
Fred and George exchanged strange looks, "Albert always wants his cat to lose weight, but it just keeps getting fatter."
"Tom is pretty cute." Ginny had petted Tom as well. She looked up at Fred and George and asked, "By the way, when do you plan to open your shop? You'll definitely need a lot of money for that, right?"
"They already have a small fortune," Ron said sourly. "Harry mentioned to me that Albert shared ten percent of what he got from Black with them."
"Ten percent... how much is that?" Ginny asked curiously.
"Five hundred galleons."
"Say that again?" Percy's eyes nearly popped out of his head.
"Five hundred galleons each," George said with a grin. "So, we don't have to worry about the funds for opening the shop at all."
"How is that possible?" Percy mumbled, "Why would Black give Albert five thousand galleons?"
"Why not? Albert had his eyes on Black for a while, planning to capture him and claim the bounty. After investigating, we found some discrepancies and suspected that Black might be innocent, so we didn't make a move when he broke into Hogwarts," George glanced at Mrs. Weasley, who was eavesdropping on their conversation, and continued, "By the way, Albert probably knew about Black's break-in beforehand, given his talent for prophecy. It's just that Black is a bag of gold in his eyes."
"So, you mean Albert already knew about Black's break-in into Hogwarts?" Percy asked incredulously.
"Of course, Albert is a Seer. Predicting when Sirius Black would show up is child's play for him. In Albert's eyes, Black is nothing but a bag of gold," Fred said proudly.
"Later, Albert reached an agreement with someone to help restore Black's reputation, and Black paid him a substantial amount of galleons as a reward," George said matter-of-factly. "Otherwise, how could Sirius Black have gotten off so easily?"
"So, you guys are rich now, too?" Ginny was equally shocked by Albert's generosity, as he had given them a thousand galleons without a second thought.
"I'm counting on you for my dress, then." Ron pleaded with his hands clasped, "Who knows what a second-hand dress would look like."
"We wanted to buy you a new one, but that pile of galleons is in Albert's vault, intended as the startup fund for our joke shop," George shrugged, a helpless expression on his face. "You can bet on the Quidditch World Cup final with us, and making enough money for a dress will be a piece of cake."
"He's really good to you guys." Ron said enviously.
"Albert calls it making galleons together, and there's always more galleons to be made," George replied.
"By the way, Ron, have you talked to Harry about going to the Quidditch World Cup together?" Ginny asked.
"I'm not sure about that. Harry might be going to the tournament with his godfather, Sirius," Ron spread his hands, indicating his uncertainty. "I think it's more likely that Harry will go with his godfather, and he said he'd contact me in a couple of days."
"What about Hermione?" Ginny asked, as she had a good relationship with Hermione.
"Not sure about that either. Harry mentioned he might invite Hermione and me, and they seem to plan on attending more than one match," Ron shook his head.
"That would be amazing if we could watch matches for most of the summer break," Fred and George said.
"How's the job search going, Percy?" Just then, the kitchen door opened, and Mr. Weasley walked in, carrying a briefcase.
"I've successfully landed a position in the Department of International Magical Cooperation at the Ministry of Magic. I'll have about a month to familiarize myself with the work there before officially starting," Percy said absentmindedly.
"That's fantastic!" Mr. Weasley was genuinely happy for his son.
"Dad, Fred and I don't want to work at the Ministry. We plan to open a joke shop after graduation," George suddenly announced.
"Oh, a shop?" Mr. Weasley fell silent. He couldn't help his sons with this.
"Don't worry about the money. We've got it covered," George, aware of his father's silence, continued, "We hope you can help us convince Mom."
"Where did you get the money?" Mr. Weasley asked.
"It's from Sirius Black's successful restoration of his reputation. Ron already told you about it, and your expression says it all," George said, and Mr. Weasley's face indeed displayed a range of emotions.
"You've grown up," Mr. Weasley said complexly. "Since Albert believes in you and is willing to help, I won't stand in your way. I'll talk to your mother and help convince her."
"I agree," Mrs. Weasley, still angry, said, "Even if I don't, what can I do? You've grown up and can make your own decisions."
"No, to use Albert's words, this is called economic independence, and personal independence follows," George breathed a sigh of relief, grateful for Albert's effective strategy.
"By the way, Dad, why wasn't Albert's achievement of becoming a Third-Grade Order of Merlin published in the newspaper?" Fred asked during dinner, suddenly remembering something. "Also, the Third-Grade Order of Merlin medal the Ministry sent him was plated with gold."
"What do you mean, plated?" Ron asked curiously.
"The medal. Albert mentioned it in his letter a couple of days ago," George added, "I remember he also complained about the golden crucible being plated."
"Well, I'm not quite sure about that," Mr. Weasley said awkwardly. He had heard about this but knew that Fudge had deliberately suppressed the news of Albert's award because some pure-bloods didn't want people to know that a minor wizard had achieved the Third-Grade Order of Merlin.
In their words, it was to 'protect' the underage wizard.
Mr. Weasley himself was quite astonished when he first heard the news from someone else.
"I think Albert has good reasons to dislike the Ministry. Remember how they withheld his Youth Representative Award?" Fred said.
"The Wisengamot British Youth Representative Award," George supplied.
"Yeah, that one," Fred confirmed.
"Really? You mean the Wisengamot British Youth Representative Award?" Mr. Weasley was very surprised, as he knew exactly what that implied.
"Of course, it's true. Albert's friend from Wisengamot told him, and we've all seen the letter," Fred said.
(End of Chapter)
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