IngloriousMe
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Ready-Set-Action (II) [Chapter 124]
🕑 Added 2023-04-07 12:39:04 +0000 UTC~~Headmaster’s Office, Ilvermorny~~
“Harry… I can still call you that, right?” Carlson asked with a winning smile on his face as he leaned forward on the table. Harry simply shrugged his shoulders dismissively as he didn’t mind if everyone kept calling him ‘Harry’, in fact, he would prefer that instead of every random person using his given name to call him. “Alright, Harry, you know you are putting me in a tough spot, aren’t you?” Carlson asked with a deep frown. The winning smile on his face was gone, only to be replaced by a deep frown.
“Yes, I know and that is why I am here, talking with you. I could have disappeared into the wind without telling you anything” Harry explained coolly, making Carlson openly scowl at Harry.
“I have never seen you act like this… Masterful deceit, I would say” Carlson growled bitterly. If he wasn’t being put into this spot by Harry, then he would have praised the boy, but he was being put into a very difficult spot by Harry, and if the boy went forward with his plan then it would be Carlson who would be raked over the coals. “Were you really hiding your true personality all this time?” Carlson asked warily, making Harry smile softly.
“You are a smart man, Headmaster, I am sure that you have already worked it out” Harry stated softly, making Carlson scowl. Now, he was sure that Harry was hiding his true personality all this time. “As for why? That is quite a complicated question with no simple answer… The best answer I can give you is that I wasn’t strong enough to make a stand, but that’s not the case anymore…” Harry added as he could guess the next question Carlson was planning to ask.
Carlson narrowed his eyes on Harry… Was the boy reading his Mind? No, that wasn’t the case, Carlson decided. He realized that the boy was simply able to guess what he was thinking. So, now that he had the answer to the question he wanted to ask, he decided to ponder those words. After pondering for a few seconds, he finally realized what the boy was trying to say and to be honest, he was completely bewildered. He couldn’t believe what Harry was trying to say.
“You seriously can’t expect me to believe-” Carlson scoffed at Harry, but he froze when Harry released a tiny fraction of his Magic, making Carlson choke under the pressure. Everyone was not equal when it came to their Magical prowess, Carlson was quite aware of this fact, but to feel this amount of power rolling off from a 14 year old surprised him to his very core. Satisfied with the desired effect, Harry finally reeled back his Magic, and the thick pressure disappeared.
“Do you believe me now?” Harry asked coolly. He wasn’t worried about Carlson telling the others about this as he knew very well what type of man Carlson Kent was… The man was basically an opportunist. Carlson gulped nervously before nodding his head. “How about this? You help me and I help you back in return?” Harry suggested and Carlson simply raised his eyebrows in question as he didn’t trust his voice to not tremble.
“I know you are planning to run for President, I can help you there… If I support your campaign, you know you will win” Harry offered and Carlson had to admit, that was exactly what he wanted. “And I am not asking you to do something illegal… I simply need you to sign these papers so that I can take my EAGLEs early and I am completely fine if you don’t. Having your permission will simply make everything process much smoother for me” Harry said as he slid the papers toward Carlson.
Carlson pursed his lips as he started to ponder his options… Harry was right. Even without his permission, Harry would be able to take his EAGLEs early and nobody would be able to stop him as the Department wasn’t under anyone’s purview except for the Minister of Education, but with his permission, the process will become much faster and smoother for Harry… Either way, Harry will have the right to carry his Wand even if decides to discontinue his education after taking his EAGLEs. Now, he could either help Harry and get his support during the election campaign, or he could sit on the sidelines…
After pondering for a couple of minutes, Carlson finally grabbed the papers and picked up the quill from the table. He knew that there would be some political backlash… He knew that the Britishers weren't going to give up so easily. After all, this was probably their best opportunity to get Harry Potter back, but he was sure that he would be able to weather the backlash even though his image was going to take a hit, and he always wanted to take Dumbledore down by a peg or two, so it wasn’t all that bad.
“I just hope you keep your side of your bargain” Carlson stated while staring at Harry. His voice trembled a bit and he hated that, but it needed to be said.
“You don’t have to worry about that Headmaster… I am a man of my word and you have helped me quite a bit since I came here… I am not going to forget that” Harry assured the man and he didn’t have any plans to betray the man as having a good relationship with the future President of MACUSA was a good thing. The man nodded his head in understanding and started to sign the papers after checking them.
“There you have it” Carlson finished signing the papers and handed them over to Harry. He simply accepted the papers and gave the man a grateful nod. “Well, good luck, I guess” The man added as Harry started to stand up.
“Thank you, Headmaster” Harry said before finally leaving the man’s office. After leaving the office, Harry closed his eyes for a bit in concentration as he told Jacklyn and Himera to meet him outside the school in an hour through their Mark before he resumed heading toward his dorms…
<Line Break>
~~Timeskip~~ (A few hours later)
“The way you treated Dumbledore and the others was hilarious!” Jacklyn blurted out as she started to pat Harry’s shoulders while laughing.
“I am glad that you appreciate” Harry commented dryly.
“Well, I would have loved to see that too…” Himera sighed, looking somewhat disappointed. She was looking quite different from the way she looked barely two months ago. The left side of her face was completely healed and instead of sporting a fake right eye, her right eye was completely healed. Currently, there was only one scar marrying her face. The scar was on her right cheek running down to her chin and she decided to keep this scar as a trophy of the nightmare she lived through. It was only last week when he healed her eye and it was the most complex thing he ever healed…
“Hmm… I will see if I can find a Pensieve” Harry mumbled while rubbing his chin.
“I don’t know what that is, but what now, boss?” Himera asked with an unsure look on her face.
Harry quickly gave her a short explanation about what a Pensieve was before he finally started to explain why he summoned the two of them here. “I have a task for the two of you. Jacklyn, I need you to visit the nearest branch of the Guild and post a request for information on who hired the mercenaries to kill me during the Quidditch World Cup and Himera, I need you to visit Britain and find anything you can about the Gaunt Family” Harry revealed, making Himera nod her head in understanding while Jacklyn inclined her head with a frown.
While Himera wasn’t from Britain, she was quite familiar with Wizarding Britain and there were a lot of people in Knockturn Alley who would happily sell her information in exchange for a bit of gold…
“Are you sure? I mean I am quite sure that they are not going to sell me that information” Jacklyn pointed out while frowning. He could have used Hans Muller, but unfortunately, the man didn’t through his Legilimecy practice, so Harry decided to feed him to the man-eating slugs around Jacklyn’s house. He was sure that the slugs appreciated the treat.
“I know, but when I start ripping them apart, nobody would be able to say that I didn’t ask nicely” Harry pointed out with a feral grin on his face, making Jacklyn nod her head with a similar type of grin on her face. “And what about you?” Jacklyn asked curiously.
“I was able to get the Headmaster to sign the papers for me” Harry revealed with a grin. Now, he was no longer enrolled in Ilvermorny. “I will need to visit the Department of Education to submit my forms and get the dates for my EAGLEs, and after that, I will be making my way into Austria… There is someone I need to meet before making my next move” Harry added with a grin, making both Jacklyn and Himera raise their eyebrows at him…
