"More evidence and better witnesses are exactly what will be required now to ensure Lord Malfoy is prosecuted and convicted. It's also the reason why he hasn't even been arrested yet," she lectured, answering Harry's question as Sirius gave an exasperated sigh.
...
"But Mr. Pettigrew has confirmed that there were plans in place to kill Harry this upcoming Valentine's Day with poisoned chocolate frogs, plans which Lord Malfoy was aware of and helped devise," the Head of Law Enforcement explained to the two of them.
"What I want to do is fake Harry's death within the school. Once your death is 'confirmed,' Mr. Pettigrew will meet with Lord Malfoy for his 'payment.'
I'll have a dozen or so Aurors of unimpeachable character there at the ready to arrest him after witnessing the exchange, along with a Daily Prophet reporter or two as witnesses. In short, it'll be a trap; with Malfoy caught in the act, there is no way that he will be able to escape justice."
"How utterly devious of you," Harry noted thoughtfully to himself, as his mind started to process the different possible scenarios and how best he could profit from this unique opportunity...
"I'm not the Head of Magical Law Enforcement for nothing," she defended, taking Harry's reply the wrong way.
"So what do you want us to agree to then? I'm certainly not going to agree to Harry being poisoned," Sirius expressed defensively.
"I have to admit, I'm not at all fond of that idea either," Harry said calmly.
"Of course not," Madam Bones defended. "What I propose is a body swap. An Auror will swap places with you at school and will fake your death publicly in the Great Hall, whilst you will be safely hidden away somewhere else. As far as the rest of the world will be concerned, you'll be dead... murdered while at school..."
"Won't you need the headmaster's assistance for this plot to take place and actually succeed?" Sirius probed, pointing out a possible flaw in the plan.
"He has already agreed to the idea," she voiced with a smug smirk.
"What about the bat?" Sirius asked.
"The bat? Oh, you mean Professor Snape," Madam Bones replied with a grin. "The headmaster and I have come up with plans to deal with Professor Snape."
"What type of plans? How is the headmaster going to ensure that Severus doesn't go running to Lucius with the truth?" Sirius asked.
Madam Bones' grin grew wider at the question. "By appealing to the man's self interest... Mr. Pettigrew told me quite a bit about Severus' time in the Death Eaters, enough to ensure a long prison sentence if he fails to cooperate. I also have a batch of polyjuice already brewed and an Auror willing to impersonate Professor Snape for a couple of weeks so that no questions are asked. If he refuses to accept the situation, I very much plan on questioning Snape at length and possibly finding more evidence of his guilt and any others that he's aware of."
"Sounds like a solid plan," Harry admitted after thinking over the many details.
"So, will you agree to the plan?" Madam Bones asked.
"As long as I'm in no real danger, I see no reason why I shouldn't agree. Lucius is a very real threat to me after all; if this plan brings him down, then I'll play my part, even if it does mess up my plans for Valentine's Day," he explained evenly, choosing to ignore Sirius' broad grin. Sometimes he really wondered between the two of them who the real child was.
"I agree as well. You have my permission as Harry's magical guardian to continue," Sirius voiced. "But I want to be kept fully informed about the situation."
"Of course, that's perfectly reasonable," she replied. She released a sigh of relief at their agreement with her plan, before looking back at the pair intently. "There is another important matter I wish to discuss with the pair of you."
"What would that be?" Sirius asked on their behalf.
"Ancient law states that in cases involving crimes of this magnitude, specifically the assassination or attempted assassination of the Lord and/or heir of an Ancient and Noble House, that the lands, titles, and belongings of the aggressor and his co-conspirators can be seized in compensation for the crimes committed.
If we are successful in bringing Lord Malfoy to justice, due to Harry's status as the dual heir of two Ancient and Noble Houses, up to 40% of the aggressor's wealth can be seized and given to him in compensation.
The remaining 60% would then be auctioned off by the Ministry of Magic. The culpable party's family seats in the Wizengamot can also be taken by the victim," Madam Bones explained, sparking Harry's renewed interest. Sirius gave Harry a look as well.
"So what you are saying is that the Potter and Black families could become even wealthier," Sirius stated.
"Yes, but I did not tell you this to fill your heads with dreams of Malfoy gold. Your lawyers would have told you this eventually anyway. I told you this so that we could come to an agreement before any of this became a reality," Madam Bones voiced formally.
"What type of deal?" Harry asked, butting in on his godfather.
"The Malfoy Dragon Reserve is the Ministry's sole supplier of dragon products, including dragon hide body armour, which is what my department is most concerned with. I would like you to consider taking the Malfoy Dragon Reserve as part of your compensation, on the understanding that you would give favourable rates to the Aurors after the change in ownership, rather than ridiculously overcharging the Ministry, like is being done right now.
At the current price levels I simply can't afford to properly equip my people with the protective gear they need to survive an encounter with a dark wizard. And ultimately I want a reliable source of dragon hide, without having another family with possible dark leanings getting a hold of it who would use it as leverage with my department," Madam Bones explained.
"I don't understand. Why not just change suppliers?" Harry asked, since it was the easiest and simplest solution to the issue.
"Magically binding contract. If broken, the Ministry of Magic has to pay Lord Malfoy compensation for the loss of business for the remainder of the contract, which would bankrupt the Ministry and likely result in my own dismissal, leaving the department open to some less capable and more flexible-minded person to replace me, if you get my drift," she explained.
"Please don't take this the wrong way, but why did you sign it then?" Harry asked.
"I didn't. One of Malfoy's bought-and-paid-for stooges brokered the deal on the previous Minister's behalf," she explained with a hint of bitterness.
"I see no reason why we can't assist you in this. You are an ally after all," Sirius agreed with a carefree smile.
"I'm fine with it as well, including providing dragon hide armour to the department at more reasonable prices," Harry agreed easily, since it would keep him on good terms with the Head of Magical Law Enforcement and offer him greater influence within the Ministry as a whole for a long time to come. Those two things were incredibly valuable given his long-term goals.
"Out of curiosity, what would the scale of compensation be if I was Lord Potter at the time this next assassination attempt took place?" Sirius looked at him again in astonishment. "Rather than merely Heir Potter?"
The look Sirius sent wasn't missed by Madam Bones, but she answered his question nonetheless. "Closer to 50% in that case, 20% for being the Heir of Black and 30% for being the Lord Potter, but you would have to be Lord Potter at the time of the attacks, not afterwards. If, however, you did become Lord Potter today, then by Thursday such an attack on your person could be seen as valid," she offered. "But you should ask Andy and Ted about the finer details; they are your lawyers after all."
"I think I'll do that, Madame," Harry muttered, whilst pondering what the scale of compensation would be if he finally took up the title of Lord Potter and publicly disclosed being the Lord Peverell on top of his other titles. In any case, if this worked out, a lot of gold was coming his way. You could say a lot about the Malfoys, but you couldn't deny the fact that they were obscenely rich and had a number of prime business assets to their name in Britain and abroad.
"Let's return to the matter at hand," Madam Bones offered. "You were here to register as an animagus, were you not?" This prompted the pair to nod back in confirmation. "So shouldn't you be registering with the Ministry's records office?"
"Of course. It slipped our minds with all the heavy discussion," Sirius offered back, as Sirius got out of his seat.
"So what type of tiger are you then, Mr. Potter? For identification purposes, you are required to state what sub-species you believe you are on the paperwork, rather than just something vague like 'a tiger,'" she enquired.
"I believe I am a Siberian tiger; that's what my gut is telling me anyways, but I haven't confirmed it yet," he voiced as his inner beast stirred in silent confirmation of the information.
...
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