Chapter 4 - Stark in the Desert

Harry Potter: Magical Avenger

Disclaimer:

I do not own the Harry Potter universe nor do I own the Marvel universe from which the Avengers and other characters came from. This work of fiction does not reflect the author's personal views and ideals nor does the author claim to know or represent the personal views and ideals of the owners of the characters used or of any real person portrayed in this work of fiction.

Author's Note:

I am sorry for not being able to upload this chapter earlier; my DSL got disconnected due to a storm.

Thank you to Angeldoctor for allowing me to use Arcane as Harry's codename, I kinda drew a blank on what to name him.

Monday May 19, 2008

"Listen to me Pepper, Tony is a very important man for the Pentagon, he has many friends there who will do whatever can be done to rescue and save Tony. Do you really think that the Pentagon will let their best weapons developer to be lost in the deserts of Afghanistan? Tony probably knows a lot of secrets, and these are secrets that the government will want to remain secret so they will do their best to retrieve Tony unharmed." Harry tried to reassure Pepper.

"Thanks, Harry. I needed to hear that. Rhodey did mention that the Pentagon brass is going nuts over there trying to locate, Tony."

"While I am a bit bitchy to Tony, even I can admit to the fact that very few people in the world deserve to have an ego like Tony has. That man child is simply one of the most brilliant minds in the world, please do not tell him that when he returns, he'll never let me live that down," Emma tried to cheer up the red head.

"You'll have your boss back shortly, Pepper. You'll think back to this moment and ask yourself why you were even worried in the first place." Natalie handed Pepper another tissue.

"I'll ask the pilots to take you to Los Angeles as soon as Nat, Emma, and I get off this plane. I don't want you riding commercial in the state you are in. Be strong, Pepper."

"Thanks, Harry. I hope you guys are right."

They all hugged Pepper before they deplaned at Teterborough. Once the plane refueled, it taxied off for California.

"I hope Tony gets rescued soon. Pepper will blame herself irrationally for going to Paris and she will be a wreck until she sees Tony again," said Harry while they got into the car with Natalie. Emma went to her car, she will be going home for a bit before proceeding to PHI.

"I hope so too. What you told her is true though, you can bet that the Pentagon will treat this as a high priority," agreed Natalie.

"Do you want to have some lunch first before I take you to your apartment?"

"I think I'll pass on the lunch for now. Just drop me off at my building and get to work. I know you have a lot to do."

"Work can wait, Nat."

"Harry, you have another gala to oversee in Tokyo this weekend and I'm sure that there are more paperwork you have to go through. I'll be fine."

"Okay. What are your plans for the week?"

"I have to go to a cousin's wedding in Colorado for a few days. He found out that I'm on vacation so he's been bugging me for a few days now." Yeah, Fury's been bugging me for a few days now, Natalie thought to herself.

"Do you need a date to this wedding? I can come with you if you want."

"Oh, Harry, trust me, you don't want to do that. I think I can survive a Colorado wedding on my own."

They drove in comfortable silence the rest of the way to Natalie's apartment. "Call me if you need anything, okay?"

"I will, Harry. I'll call you if I can make it to Tokyo with you and here's something to remember me by," she kissed Harry so passionately that Harry was a bit dazed. "Bye, Harry, I'll see you soon." She smirked as she wiped away her lipstick from Harry's lips and then walked away seductively since she knows Harry was still looking at her.

"You little minx." Harry thought to himself before driving home to rest from the long flight, smiling the whole time.

First Week of June 2008

The Tokyo gala was another great success. The presence of the Crown Prince of Japan and Prince William ensured that the paparazzi covered the event. Natalie was unable to come as she was still in Colorado which Harry understood to mean as on assignment for Shield so Emma accompanied Harry to the gala. Harry was currently on his plane to Stark Industries in Los Angeles to see how Pepper was doing, using the delivery of Potter Silk as an excuse. When Harry was met by Pepper in the lobby, he immediately gave her a hug and Pepper immediately burst into tears.

"How are you doing, Pepper?"

"I'm fine, Harry," she amended her statement at Harry's unbelieving look. "Okay, I'm not sleeping well and I cannot concentrate on my work. I'm just worried about Tony. It has been two weeks and he still hasn't been found."

Harry was torn. He had three choices; he could find and rescue Tony, he could find out where Tony is using magic the give his whereabouts to the government or he can leave Tony to his fate. He knew he could not live with the third option so he temporized while he tried to think things through. "Is there a place we can find something to ear nearby? The greasier, the better. We need comfort food right now."

"There's a diner two blocks from here."

"Great! Let's eat there."

He ordered a cheeseburger and some fries along with a vanilla milkshake. Pepper did not want to eat so he got her an order of fries and a chocolate milkshake. He knew Pepper can't resist nibbling on fries if there's some in easy reach and who doesn't like chocolate?

"Tell me more about Tony's disappearance. What is the Pentagon doing?"

"I've been in constant contact with Rhodey since his abduction. They had a few leads but they did not pan out. The last one was an ambush and luckily no one died."

"I see. Do you have any personal belongings of Tony? Something with his blood or even his sweat would be best."

"What are you going to do Harry?"

"I'll think of something but I need something of Tony's. Trust me, Pepper." Harry looked so serious Pepper answered him without asking more questions.

"Will semen on a bed cover be enough?" She answered while blushing a brilliant red.

"Sure that would be fine. I don't want to ask where you're getting it, do I?" Harry tried to keep his face neutral but he couldn't prevent a smile from showing.

"Stop teasing Harry! Happy, Tony's chauffeur said Tony went home with a reporter the night before he left. I was so excited to go to Paris that I forgot about an award being given to Tony in Vegas that Saturday night. Happy had done what I usually do whenever Tony wants to avoid his one night stands. They were late for their flight to Afghanistan so the sheets haven't been change yet. The lady who comes in thrice a week hasn't cleaned up yet because the house was sealed off by investigators."

"Let's go get his dirty linen then." While they were on their way to Tony's house, Harry called ahead to the pilots to tell them that he will be spending a few days in LA.

After getting the dirty linen, he dropped Pepper off at the Stark Industries building, promising to call her in a few days. "Pepper, please keep this thing between us secret. I promise to explain later."

"Okay. I promise."

Harry bought a world map and maps of Afghanistan and of the countries bordering it before teleporting to Elysium where he had the things he needed to scry Tony's location. He found the missing billionaire in a mountainous region of Afghanistan according to the map.

He wore his hooded armor and the bracers he made along with his new face mask. The basilisk skin armor has been heavily enchanted by Harry to adapt to almost any situation like being in the vacuum of space, the deeps of the ocean or in this case, the heat and sand of the desert. He packed potions in one of his armor's pockets and some food and drink in another. He was sure Tony will need those items later.

After willing himself to become invisible, he shadow traveled to the military hospital he used to work in. He cast a modified 'point me charm' to get Tony's general direction before launching himself up into the air and flying to Tony. Harry was glad he modified the charm to show a magical line visible only to the caster since he no longer used a wand that will 'point' him to the person or object he was looking for.

When he got to Tony's location, he saw that Stark has started the party without him so he sent a hail of blasting curses to the terrorists hiding from Tony. Harry just shook his head at the mayhem his friend has caused and he was not terribly surprised to find what he correctly assumed to be Tony in a metal full body armor shooting flames at his captors. He established a mental link with Tony.

'I gotta hand it to you, Tony; you really know how to heat things up. By the way, this is Harry, just think whatever you want to say to me and do not shout my name out loud. I'm flying invisibly on top of you.' Harry saw a sat phone on a table near one of the dead men. He figured Tony can use it so he summoned it and placed it into his pocket.

'Harry? What the hell are you doing here? How can you be flying above me and since when are you a telepath?'

'Pepper was worried about you. She can't sleep and focus so since I had a few hours with nothing to do, I figure I'll help her out. And yes, Tony, I can fly and I've always been a telepath.'

'Really? Pepper is worried sick about me?'

'I tell you I can fly and that I am a telepath yet all you take away from my previous statement is that Pepper is worried sick? I think if you weren't wearing that armor I'd see you smiling like a loon. Now do you want me to fly you out of here? There are a couple of trucks coming filled with more of your friends.'

'Nah, I have it under control. You're not the only one who can fly.'

'Go ahead and fly out of here, I'll follow you since you can't see me.'

Harry was amazed at the speed the Tony rose to the air. He was like the tomahawk missile Harry stole from the Navy. His amazement quickly turned into uncontrollable laughter as Tony's armor lost propulsion and face planted on the desert. Harry quickly landed next to Stark and fell over laughing. He felt Tony's embarrassment over the link and the colorful cursing that followed it so he turned off the mental link.

"The girls will love this memory of the great Tony Stark face planting in the desert. I was laughing so hard I nearly flubbed my landing!"

"Oh come on Harry! Emma and Pepper will never let me live that down. Whatever happened to us guys sticking together? I built the thing in a few days in a freaking cave! Give me a break!"

"Oh alright. I'll keep this as blackmail material. What is that on your chest?"

"This is my arc reactor, it powered the suit."

"Okay but why is it embedded in your chest?"

"I got hit with shrapnel and the man who saved my life used an electromagnet to keep it away from my ticket. But enough about me, are you a mutant?"

"You can say that, let's talk about it later. Are you hungry?"

"I could do with a nice cheeseburger. I don't suppose you have some with you huh?"

"I'm all out of burgers but how does a BLT and a Coke grab you?" He pulled out the food from his pockets and set out enough for the two of them. He also conjured two beach chairs and a big umbrella to shade them from the heat.

"You are a godsend!"

"So Tony, how do you plan on getting out of here?"

Tony had the nerve to be embarrassed. "I was kinda hoping that the satellites would pick up on the explosions and send out a few planes and helicopters and then they would see me."

"Isn't that wishful thinking?"

"Hey! I can only do so much okay?"

"Here, I stole it from the the terrorists." Harry handed over the purloined phone and a few healing potions. "Drink those potions then call your friend Rhodey. He should be able to track the signal."

"Can't you just fly us out of here? Don't think I forgot about the chairs and umbrella appearing out of thin air, the food was just my priority then."

"I want to limit my exposure to the government so I plan on going invisible and vanishing the furniture before the army gets here. Too many questions will be asked if they see me here with you so keep my involvement secret." Harry watched Tony grimace at the taste of the potions. "I know they taste bad but they're good for you."

"Fine. I actually feel better and I promise to keep your secrets but you have to let me tell Pepper. I look forward to your explanations later."

"Pepper is okay but only Pepper and no one else. I promised to give her an explanation anyway. We kinda took the bed sheet you used with the reporter so that I can scry your location."

"My bed sheet? Scry? You used my semen to track me? Do you have a special talent that lets you smell the semen of every man?"

"Ewww no! I used magic to find you but I needed something with your blood or sweat on it and was a good substitute for it."

"Oh come on! Magic? Really? Can't you find a better excuse?"

"Tony, I promise to tell you when we get back to the US but the fact is I am a wizard. Now go and call your military liaison, I wanna get out of here."

It took a few hours but eventually Tony got a helo ride to the US army base from there he got on his jet to the US. Harry watched all this while floating invisibly then he shadow travelled back to his hotel room for a quick shower before going to sleep, tired from the day's adventure.

The Next Day

Harry got up and ordered some breakfast. He showered and called Pepper while he waited for his food to arrive.

"Good morning, Pepper! It's me, Harry."

"Harry! I've been trying to get a hold of you since yesterday. They found Tony, he's alive!"

"See, I told you that you had nothing to worry about. When will he be back stateside?"

"He'll be arriving in a few hours. Are you still in LA?"

"I checked into a hotel yesterday after I dropped you off."

"Good, come with me to get Tony from the airport. I'm at the office right now, come here in an hour then we'll go together, okay?"

"Sure but won't there be other people Tony would like to see? I might just be in the way."

"Tony doesn't have any family left Harry and he told me to bring you with me to the airport when I talked to him earlier. I'm sure we can all fit into a limo. It'll just be me, you and Tony. Happy will be driving so there'll be plenty of space."

"Okay then, see you in an hour."

Harry ate his breakfast and called the concierge for a car to take him to Pepper's office. While he was on the way over, he called Emma and Nat to catch up. He confirmed that Tony has indeed been rescued and he'll be arriving in a couple of hours. He also told them that he'll be joining Pepper at the airport to welcome him home so the girls asked him to give their best to Tony though Emma told Harry to slap Tony upside the head for worrying Pepper so much.

Apparently, Tony's plane will be arriving soon so Pepper and Happy were waiting for him in the office lobby, ready to get to the airport. They made it with a quarter of an hour to spare and they were on the tarmac by the car when the plane landed.

"Hey! Looks like I have quite a crowd waiting for me huh?" Tony quipped. There were just the three of them waiting.

"Glad you made it back, boss," greeted Happy with a hug.

"I'm glad you're back, Tony. You have a ton of work to do." Pepper hugged him tightly.

"Gee, thanks for reminding me about the paperwork, Pepper. I think I deserve some time off from my captivity."

"Hey, Tony, how's it hanging?" Harry delivered Emma's request.

"Oww! What was that for? I'm still recovering!"

"Emma sends her regards and asked me to smack you for worrying Pepper."

"She is really a warm person," Tony said jokingly. "Now I want some cheeseburgers and a beer then please call a press conference in an hour, Pepper."

"A press conference? What for?" asked Pepper though she was already reaching for her mobile phone.

"I realized a few things over there and I want to make a few changes in how the company does business," said Tony with a forced smile. Pepper moved over to the other side of the limo to get some quiet while she called the press though she kept her eyes on Tony and Harry.

"I don't want to pry but what kind of changes are you talking about?" Harry asked the billionaire who took a deep breath before answering him.

"I plan to stop making weapons entirely and maybe look into the arc reactor technology to be the new focus of Stark Enterprises. Harry, I saw my weapons in the hands of those terrorists, hell, I was blown up by one of my own weapons by them. They had a whole stock pile of Stark missiles and guns." They were both silent for a few minutes before Harry replied.

"I think you are correct in what you are thinking of doing. Sustainable energy is the future," said Harry.

"I know but I can hear the but coming."

"Yes, there is a but. Instead of pulling out of the defense business all together, I think you should make it a gradual withdrawal. Stop manufacturing missiles and other bombs that can cause too much damage but continue to make fire arms like rifles and hand guns for the military, you know, the small scale stuff. There are a lot of soldiers relying on the edge your weapons give them to fight the good fight. Focus on how to give them good armor and improve secure communications; help them survive the war. If there are a lot of your weapons in the hands of the terrorists, do a quiet internal audit and tighten your control over who gets to buy the weapons. Remember, you will need funding to develop things that you can shift your company's focus on."

"Hmm. Maybe you're right. I will be doing the soldiers a disservice by leaving them hanging like that."

"See, who says you can't teach an old dog new tricks?" Harry joked to lighten up the mood.

"Armors huh? You just want me to buy more of your silks," Tony smirked.

"Sure, you will be buying more silks but at least it help the front line guys survive."

"You still owe Pepper and I an explanation, I did not forget that part."

"Yeah yeah, we'll do that after getting your cheeseburgers and press conference. You do know that your stocks will fall a bit when you announce your plans right? Your board of directors will be pissed."

"Let them be pissed. I own fifty one percent of the corporation; they can't do anything about it."

"All I'm saying is to play nice with them a bit. This is why I will never go public with my companies, having a board will just cause a lot of headaches."

When they arrived at the Stark Industries building, the press conference was already set up. Obediah Stane, a friend of Tony's dad and a pseudo uncle for Tony, was waiting for them. As part of Harry's in this reality, he scanned the surface thoughts of individuals he met with. He was surprised at the emotions and thoughts he got from the man. Behind the veneer of the kind uncle, Obie, as he was introduced by Tony, he got greed and a disturbing thought that kept repeating over and over again in the man's mind,

'This should be my time, my time to wield power and not Stark's. He should have never been found!'

Stane was so focused in this line of thought that he was unknowingly blocking Harry's subtle telepathy. He resolved to warn Stark and Pepper later in private. Tony stuck to what they talked about in the car and even said that he was going to fulfill his active contracts with the government before Stark Enterprises moved on to other lines of business. At the press conference's end, the press got the message Tony was saying; Stark Enterprises was no longer in the business of creating large scale weapons of destruction like missiles and bombs. The Jericho missile was to be scrapped along with the plans on how they were made and the current prototypes, dismantled.

An hour after the conference, Pepper, Harry and Tony were in Tony's home having some dinner.

"Now that we have finished with our lunch, I think it's time that Harry gave us the explanation he promised us," said Tony.

"Okay, I am a wizard who can wield magic from a different reality with several mutant powers that emerged when I arrived in this reality." He then gave the two his, by now, standard demonstration using some of his gifts. "I feel like having some gelato, do you guys want some?" He stood up and held their hands before teleporting them to an alley next to a gelato shop near the Colosseum in Rome.

"So, now do you believe me?" Harry had a small smile while he took another spoonful of his gelato.

"I'm convinced so you used the filthy bed sheet we got from the house and used your magic to locate Tony?"

"Yes, I did, and I have to apologize for not doing so earlier. I believed that you were going to be rescued by the military quickly. I got distracted by my business and before I knew it, two weeks has gone by. I know it's a lame excuse but that's what happened. Sorry, guys."

"There's nothing to forgive, Harry. In some ways, I am glad things happened they did. I got my eyes opened regarding the damage being done by the illegally obtained weapons and I got to make my arc reactor."

"Same here. None of it was your fault. You did not abduct Tony or held him prisoner. I'm just glad he's alive."

"Now Harry we get to the important part, would you let me test some of your powers? I refuse to believe that science cannot explain your powers; after all any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic."

"Quoting Arthur C. Clarke now?" Harry smiled at Tony's inquisitiveness.

"Fine I admit, I'm a fan. So, you can give me some time to test your magic, right?"

"I will have to think about it Tony. Before I even allow you to do so, there will be very strict rules you have to follow, if you do not, I'll be forced to erase it from your mind. In my long life, I try to refrain from doing so but make no mistake, I will obliviate you if I have to." Harry said seriously. "The information I have just told you about my story is protected by magic. You will not be able to share it with anyone else in any way, shape or form. You can only discuss it with me or people who already know it. Eavesdroppers who try to listen in will just hear buzzing."

"You're killing me man! I promise to try and not pester you about it but please consider it. Luckily, I have something that should hold my attention for now," Tony smirked meaningfully.

"You will build a better version of the thing you used to escape?" asked Harry.

"Yep, this will be fun, imagine having your own personal airplane and security system in such a small package. I'll be a super hero."

"Better you than me, Tony." commented Harry.

"Tony, what about the shrapnel still in your chest? You have to go to a hospital and get checked out!" Pepper reminded her boss.

"I can get them out, Tony. Tomorrow if you want." Harry volunteered.

"Let them be for a while. They're not going anywhere and I have plenty of things to do," said the stubborn genius. "I got checked out by the doctors in Ramstein Air Force base in Germany. They said I'm fine."

"Oh come on Tony. If you don't want an operation, at least have a check up and make sure you are not in any immediate danger," pleaded Pepper.

"I agree with Pepper, go see a doctor. I wouldn't force you to have the fragments removed but you have to get a check up," said Harry. He figured Tony will come around, he's just being stubborn.

"Okay, okay. I have a physical in the next few days; let me get a few days of rest first."

"Okay but I will schedule the physical, if I let you do it, you will wait for next year to do it," Pepper knew how Tony's mind worked so she will head him off the pass. Harry knew it too so he laughed at Tony who looked like a kid who got caught with his hand in the cookie jar.

"You know me too well, Pepper. Schedule it for next week, okay?"

Harry turned serious once more. "I have to tell you guys something that you will probably dismiss. I just want to say, here and now, that I tried to warn you. Your father's friend Obie is a bad guy. I routinely use my telepathy to get a 'read' the surface thoughts of people I get into contact with me. What I got from him was disturbing and here it is verbatim:

"This should be my time, my time to wield power and not Stark's. He should have never been found!"

"I've said my piece so do what you will with it," said Harry.

"Obie wouldn't betray me. He's been a friend of the Starks for a long time," Stark defended his father's friend.

"I think Obie is just a bit jealous of Tony. He got a taste of power when Tony was too young to take over the company but he had to give it up when Tony turned 21. Jealous, yes, but I don't think he means Tony any harm," said Pepper.

"Hey, I just said what I got from him earlier. Anyway, are you guys ready to go? I'm buying a few pints of the gelato to take home with me as presents to Natalie and Emma."

"I want some of the Strawberry and some of the Chocolate, Tony." Pepper batted her eyes at her boss.

"Okay but I'm getting some Vanilla and Caramel too."

Harry teleported them back to Tony's house and said his goodbyes to Tony and Pepper. Before he went back to sleep that night in his hotel room, he made a mental note to give them both a portkey ring like the ones he gave the Queen and the PM.

Shield HQ NYC

Fury was reading reports on Tony Stark's rescue and there were some inconsistencies. Tony was rescued by the military three hours after he got away from the cave. He did not receive treatment in Afghanistan but he got checked out in Germany and according to his doctors, Stark was fine. He does question the results from the tests in Germany. According to the report, there were traces of Potter's medicine in Stark's system when none was given to Stark at the base in Afghanistan. This means he ingested the drugs before he was rescued. While that was weird, the next inconsistency really takes the cake.

Shield has quite a few satellites trained on the hotspots of the world and they also piggy backed on the satellites of many countries. It should not come as a surprise that when unknown explosions were reported in Afghanistan, Shield found out about it. So when Fury found the inconsistency with the PHM meds in Tony's body, he got the satellite images within the time of the explosion sent to him. He could not believe what he saw so he had two of his satellite imagery experts to report to his office and interpret the images. The experts were both puzzled why the director wanted them to look at a picture of two men sitting on chairs under a beach umbrella; they were both dismissed without knowing the answer to their own question. Both men in the picture had dark hair and were clearly Caucasian. The question plaguing Fury's mind is who was the man with Stark in the desert? Did he give PHM meds to Stark while in the dessert and where did the man along with his furnitures go when the military came for Stark?

He lifted his phone and told his secretary to page Agent Coulson. He needs to know who the mystery man is.

PHI Manhattan

Harry brought Emma's gelato with him when he came to the office the day he came back to NYC. He had another business he wanted to get into and he wanted Emma's advice.

"Good morning, Emma. How are you today?"

"The day has been good so far. Now what's this I hear about you taking Tony and Pepper out for desert and why didn't I get to come with?"

"Oh, remember when I took you to Paris to get some croissants? It's sort of like that." Harry explained what happened yesterday and the revelations he did.

"Harry, not that I'm saying you were wrong to help Anthony but please next time be careful about your secrets. If you get outed before PHI is well established it may jeopardize our goals."

"I know and I'm sorry, okay? Here open your present," he gave Emma a spoon and her pints of perfectly preserved gelato. "Eat while I tell you of a new line of business I want to get into, well two businesses actually and a question on ethics in stocks. The first one is an idea the elves want to do and it is not that big of a deal but the second is a bit more complicated."

"Wow, fresh and authentic Italian gelato and talking about money, you really know the way to a girl's heart. Go on, I'll listen as I eat."

"I am already thinking of saying yes to the request of the elves but I want to run it by you since you're the expert here. They want to open a restaurant here in New York. As you know, the elves were originally cursed as a whole to be subservient to wizards. The elves that came with me are bound to my family though I gave them the freedom to do what they want but they are happiest when they serve people. Some came to me and very shyly requested that they be allowed to open a restaurant here so they can serve others. I can see no harm in the request so I am inclined to grant it. What do you think?"

"I am not entirely knowledgeable about the restaurant business but I do know that you will need a lot of permits to operate an establishment like that. What about their identity papers? Do they even have papers?"

"They have the necessary paperwork and they are all US citizens. I learned a lot from my days in the UN and I have covertly gotten all the elves their own set of legal birth certificates, driver's licenses, high school diplomas and social security. Don't ask how I did it as it is too complicated and tedious but they are fool proof."

"What about the permits and licenses for the restaurant?"

"The permits for the restaurant will be child's play if I use compulsion charms and a bit of telepathy. I know the 'it's a slippery slope' and the 'the road to hell is paved with good intentions' thing but I am willing to use my powers to open my businesses. It's not like I'm doing anything illegal, besides I am paying my taxes like a good US citizen should."

"I never said anything about using your powers, Harry; I know you would not abuse it. I say let them operate a restaurant if they want but I would suggest opening one in Washington DC, not in Manhattan."

"I do not have a problem with that but why there?"

"Restaurants are prime places for doing business and people also tend to think that whatever they are talking about at their table will not be overheard in a restaurant. They also ignore the waiters. You can ask the elves if they are willing to gather information for you because if the restaurant becomes as successful as your luxury store business, many powerful politicians will eat there just to be seen there."

"I never thought of that and that option will be a good source of inside information to further our cause. The only problem is the name, they wanted to use Harry's but I already used it for my luxury stores. Anyway, that can be solved easily enough."

"Okay, so that's problem one solved. What is problem two?"

"I have a lot of precious metals at my disposal and I have been selling some to augment the income of the Harry's stores while we wait for the government approval for our medicines. I use my powers to disguise myself and sell gold and platinum to different private mints, pawnshops and other cash for gold places I can find. The price I get is very low compared to price the mints get for the same amount of gold after they stamp it and give a certificate to prove their gold's quality and authenticity. Lately, I've been thinking why should I not get the licenses to mint and sell my own gold to the market. Do you think this is a doable venture?"

"Just how much do you have? Are you using the same source for the jewelries sold at Harry's?"

"Let's just say I wouldn't run out of precious gems and metals anytime soon and yes, the elves use the same source to create the works of art I sell at Harry's."

"The permits and trustworthy workers for the mint will not be a problem for you along with the security. The main problem I can see here will be manager. Do you hire one or will you use one of the elves to manage it? If you use an elf to manage it, the problem is how well they can perform at their job because it will mean a lot of paperwork. If you hire an expert to manage it, he will ask a lot of questions you are not prepared to answer. I can't see you using telepathy to avoid those questions from being asked."

"I can see your point; the manager can be a problem."

"What if we use the elves as employees and hire a manager to oversee the operations? It will work like this, we transact business like a normal mint, we can have some of the elves sell gold to the mint under disguises and fake IDs so the manager will not question where we get the gold we mint. The money the elves receive from the sale of the gold can be used to buy stuff in the Harry's stores. We get to keep the money and the stuff they get from the stores can just be repackaged and resold later."

"Harry, my dear, I love how devious your mind is sometimes and I am glad that you are a good person. What would have happened if you are working for world domination?" Emma wondered out loud.

"I do try and think things through before acting if I have the chance. Anyway, where should I set up the mint?"

"The financial districts of either NYC or London would be good. The Potter name is steadily gaining recognition so I'd suggest using it for the mint and for the restaurant."

"I think I'd set it up in the building next to Harry's here in New York. It will be expensive to rent the building but they should look great together and Harry's would give Potter's Private Mint legitimacy. What do you think?"

"I think we need to buy the building where 'Harry's' is located. We can get better security that way and we can move the executive offices of PHI there. There would also be additional space for any businesses you plan to start in the future."

"Buy the building? Won't that drain my bank account?"

"Buying the building should be easy. All we need to do is file for a loan which would be approved easily without even using using our abilities."

"Won't that cost me more money? What with the interest and all?"

"True you will be charged interest for the loan but taking a loan would not wipe out your cash reserves. The loan would be for about twenty tears on paper but when we get approval from the FDA, we would be selling the meds like hot cakes and don't forget that governments would buy them from us in bulk which means large chunks of money. We can pay off the loan long before the terms which would mean less money lost on interest."

"Okay, you sold me. I'll let you handle the negotiations on the loan and talking to the owner of the building."

"I can handle it, at least it gives me something to do; even I can be bored to death dealing with prospective buyers for PHM's meds. So what is this question about stocks?"

"Regardless of how well Tony's people does damage control, Stark Industries' stocks will take a huge hit and I plan to my share of their stocks. How much of a hit would it take?"

"Honestly, it will fall by more than seventy percent in value. It has already fallen by quite a bit since Anthony's abduction, about thirty percent. With his announcement yesterday, it has already dropped another twenty percent and I estimate it will fall further before the week is out. MSNBC and Bloomberg are really hammering them and there are reports of Anthony suffering from PTSD."

"Well, if you take the long view, this just should be a rather big bump in the road. The arc reactor technology that Tony is developing and the new armors he plans to sell to the military along with the new consumer electronics like laptops and phones should make SI profitable again."

"That will mean a lot of money, Harry. His twenty billion dollar company would be worth only six billion dollars if the stocks fall by seventy percent. One percent of six billion is still sixty million. Buying even five percent more would cost you roughly three hundred million dollars. Can you afford to spend that much more money? The building we plan to buy costs about $120 million, I might get the loan at six percent interest for a twenty year loan, which would mean about $530,000 a month in mortgage payments. How much is your liquid assets?"

"I used to have about $280 million in cash before I started the businesses. I already spent about fifty million on the jet because I paid in cash. About two million on the marketing and cheques for the guests' charities, and another two million total for the commercial spaces used by the store. I placed five million on PHI's corporate account the day I hired you and I estimate another million for the restaurant in DC along with maybe $300,000 worth of equipment for the mint. If we buy the building, the monthly costs for the corporation would be around $900,000 for the mortgage and salaries."

"Harry, I know this is your money and I know this is your corporation but in my opinion you cannot afford to buy more stocks in SI. I am already thinking of changing my mind on purchasing the building we just agreed to buy."

"No, we buy the building. It's a good investment and the area is not really affected by the recession. Do you think we can get a discount if we pay in cash?"

"I can get about $3 to 5 million less on the asking price if we pay in cash. Buying the building in cash would be more prudent than buying SI stocks."

"Okay I won't buy stocks anymore. Go ahead and buy the building. That would decrease the operating costs of the company. Good thing we already got paid $2.5 million for the Potter Silks."

"You really should have let me squeeze Tony on the silks."

"I know and I am sorry for not listening to you. When the time comes for us to negotiate with the governments, I promise, I'll give you free reign on it."

"Good because we need a lot of money if we plan to realize our goals."

By the end of the June 2008, Harry owned the twenty five story building on the corner of Manhattan's 5th Avenue and East 79th Street for an undisclosed amount and all the current tenants were given three months to vacate the premises.

"Hey, Emma, could you come to my office? I have something to show you." Harry said over the phone.

"Sure, Harry, give me a minute."

Emma entered Harry's office and saw him poring over some blue prints. "What is it Harry?"

"I wanted your opinions on these plans," he showed her the plans for the apartment.

"Wow apartments like these on a prime location would fetch a good price."

"Would you like one?" asked Harry.

"What do you mean? I already have a place here in New York."

"I will be converting the top five floors of the building into residences. The top two floors will be my new home while each of the other three floors will be divided into four large apartments. The apartments will have two bedrooms, two and a half baths, an office study, along with a kitchen dining room connected to the living room. One of the apartments has your name on it."

"I don't know what to say. Thanks, Harry."

"You're welcome and you do not have say anything, consider it a perk of the job. The tenants of the floors were persuaded to leave early, I gave them all a free month long stay in my guest houses in Napa so the elves will start construction in three days. Dobby is coordinating the construction an he says it will all be done in a week. I have my penthouse already listed and the realtor said it should fetch at least a million more than what I paid for it in the first place due to the improvements I had done."

"And how are the plans for the restaurant going?"

"Pretty well actually. The elves got a good deal on the lease, Winky arranged it, and she used my realtor to make the deal. The building is just a few blocks from the Capitol. Permits have been taken care of so they're just waiting for the credit card companies to install their equipment and for the repairs to be finished. They expect to open in three weeks."

"What kind of cuisine are they doing? You never told me."

"They will be doing an eat all you can buffet so it will be a mix of cuisines from different countries. Winky said they will offer five star quality food for fast food prices. All organic ingredients and so no chemicals and preservatives. Drinks like coffee, tea, juices, shakes and beer are free but you can also order spirits from the Potter vineyards, they will be priced like the spirits in the Harry's shops. I only disagreed with Winky's strict no soda rules but I got them to relax it a bit so that customers can bring their own soda if they want but they would not be serving sodas at the drink stations. The best thing is that they will be open all day, every day. The elves all want to work there so I doubt there will be a shortage of crew."

"What are you doing for promotion?"

"I already ordered the company I used to promote the galas to place ads on the papers, internet, radio and TV a week before they open."

"Will that be enough to get people's attention?"

"Trust me, it will grab their attention. They will open on a weekend and they will be dishing out free food and drinks the entire weekend."

Emma just laughed at the stunt the elves' ideas. "Yeah, they will get the people's attention all right. Your competitors will hate you though."

"They can hate all they want but they won't be able to deny the quality of the food the elves will be serving."

"How big is the place they leased?"

"Its a four story building. They can seat about 300 people at time. Parking will be their biggest problem so I told them no valet parking. There's no delivery or take out. If they want the food, they can come on over. No exemptions."

"It will be an unpopular decision but I can see the logic in that."

"Anyway, Nat is coming over for dinner later. Do you want to join us? Winky wanted to try out part of the buffet so we'll be her critics."

"I'd love to but my dear old dad had to see me for some reason."

"Okay, see you tomorrow."

While Harry was walking to Natalie's apartment, he went over the plans he had for the corporation's future like he did in the last two weeks or so.

When he first started out, he thought it was going to be easy, he had rapid expansion plans that he wanted to implement as soon as possible. Granted, he will not be paying much in the way of labor in the production of the goods but he was quickly finding out that even the considerable amount of liquid capital he had can vanish rather quickly. Emma had also drummed into his head that he needed to take at least a quarter the profits and put it in the bank for a rainy day. She also emphasized that he needed to become one of the financial leaders and not just a billionaire if he wanted to change the world. It looks like he has to scale down the expansion to fewer cities in the first five years, instead of two compounds a year, it will be one. He can live with that, figured slow and steady will be his motto instead of fast and loose. Before he knew it, he was already at Natalie's, knocking on the door.

"Hey, Nat. Ready to go?" He kissed her on the lips in greeting.

"Sure, let me get my coat and we'll be off."

They walked holding hands in silence for a bit but when they were alone in the elevator to Harry's apartment, Nat couldn't help but ask why he down in the dumps.

"Harry, what's wrong?" She forced him to face her.

"It's nothing Nat, let's just go have dinner. I'm sorry for being a git."

"Fine. We'll talk during dinner."

Winky served their food quickly before going back to the restaurant in DC. She got the feeling that the two needed to talk.

A few minutes into their dinner, Natalie couldn't stop herself anymore. "Harry, please talk to me. You've been gloomy since the week you told me that you were buying the building and its been more than two weeks. What's wrong?"

"Nothing, Nat. I'm fine. How's your day been?"

"My day was okay, Harry, thank you for asking, but you're not getting away that easily. Come on, you're usually so laid back and smiling and fun but lately you've been broody." She got out of her chair and sat on Harry's lap. "I don't like seeing you sad. Maybe talking will help."

"Okay I'll talk you know I can't resist your womanly wiles. It's actually a pretty good interrogation technique." She really is an expert, Harry thought to himself, not that I'm complaining. I know she is genuinely concerned but in the back of my mind, well, I really hate secrets.

"I'll keep that in mind. Now spill." Oh, Harry, you don't know how your words, hit me sometimes.

"I'm just frustrated at how little progress I've had in the past months. While I know that the luxury stores are a big hit and the sales are through the roof but my real pride and joy still hasn't even taken off yet. It would really help a lot of people and I'm really frustrated that I can't sell them to the general public yet."

"I know but you have to be patient. Great things comes to those who wait and all that. It may sound like a stupid platitude but it's just how it is."

"I know that, Nat, and I hate that I can't help but feel this way. This past month, Emma has been instructing me on how the business world works and it's funny, and not in a good way, that in order for me to be taken seriously and have real influence to affect people's lives, I have to act and behave like the pompous windbags that I hate."

"Emma has been tutoring you huh? You know, she is a very intelligent and beautiful woman, should I be jealous that you're spending too much time with her?" She asked half jokingly.

"It's not like that, Nat. She is very knowledgeable in how that world works and she is giving me an unvarnished look at the financial world. I'm glad I have her on my team."

"I was only kidding, Harry, though she does have beautiful soft looking lips and such a wonderful pair of legs that seem to go on and on."

"Nat, should I be jealous?" He asked with a smile.

"Well, Harry, I must confess that I do not think being male or female should matter in a relationship between two people." Nat said seriously while blushing furiously.

"Are you trying to tell me something, dear?" Harry was really interested now in the way the conversation is going, he's a guy, so sue him.

"I'm telling you that I'm bisexual, Harry and that I've had relationships before with both men and women, and both sexes have their pros and cons. I like to think of myself as a very open minded person."

"Oh, do tell me more." He couldn't keep the smile from forming on his face.

"Harry, you are such a guy. I bet you're imagining naughty things right now."

"Well now that you mentioned it." Harry's smile grew bigger.

"Fine. Feminists and monogamists will hate me for this but I think men and women are intensely sexual beings and that monogamy is not really practical nor is it in our genes. I can't see myself involved with more than one guy but maybe a guy and a girl is fine so long as they all like one another."

"Well, call me old fashioned but I can't see myself in a relationship with another guy. I'd be the first to promote same sex relationships but I'm just not into guys."

"Anyway, so much about that. We were talking about your moodiness these past weeks."

"Well, like I said earlier, Emma has been invaluable in teaching me the ropes about business. She has also made me aware that my rapid expansion plans for compounds was doable but not practical. I recognize the fact that money makes the world go around but she's telling me that if I aim to help more people, I have to be close to the top if not the top of the financial world. To do that, I have to be more profit driven than I was originally thinking."

"How did you want to do things before Emma came?"

"I originally planned to keep little if any of the profits from PHM, I planned to spend it all back in building my compounds. It turns out that I would help more people if I scale down a bit, get filthy rich first before doing it that way and the sad part is she's right. I'm burning through my liquid assets quicker than I make money, I'm still rich don't get me wrong, but I'm far from where I have to be."

"Well she does have a point; money does make the world go around."

"Yeah and I," the ringing of his mobile phone interrupted Harry. He could hear Pepper panicking on the other side and he's having trouble understanding her from her rambling and the explosions in the background.

"Whoa, slow down Pepper, what's happening?"

"It's Tony and Stane. We should have listened to you. Stane was the one who tried to have Tony killed. Tony is fighting him right now wearing his new metal armor that he's been working on. Apparently, Stane found the old armor Tony built in the desert and Stane built a bigger and stronger armor from the old one. You've got to help him Harry; I don't think Tony can defeat him.

"Oh hell. I'll be there in a minute, wait, where are you?"

"We're at the SI compound. I'm here with these guys from Shield but Stane took most of them out."

"Give me a minute and I'll be there."

Nat was confused about why Pepper was calling Harry for help when Harry was in New York and they were in LA.

Harry took a deep breath and faced Natalie. Here goes nothing, he thought to himself. I'm gonna rip Stane's arm out when I see him.

"Nat, I did not want you to find out this way but maybe it is for the best. I know you're Natasha Romanoff from Shield and that you were originally sent by Fury to spy on me. I just want you to know that I really care for you and that I am not lying when I say that I am not using you nor am I toying with you. Tony is in trouble so I'm going to help him out." He went to his room and got out his battle suit, a switching spell later, he was ready for battle. He got two Glocks from a drawer and handed them to Natasha along with their holsters. He also took out some dragon hide armor he had made for Natasha and magically placed on her.

"I am sorry to be abrupt but I need you to help Pepper while I help Tony. We'll discuss things later. Don't worry about me because I can handle myself. Oh, and those guns are enchanted, it will not run out of bullets."

Natasha just nodded silently and put her game face on. Lives were at risk so questions can wait.

"Ready to go? This will be a bit disconcerting a bit so hold on tight." He held her hand and teleported to Stark's offices. When they arrived, he gave her his phone and a kiss for luck. "Go find Pepper."

"Okay. We have a lot to talk about later but for now keep your head focused, Harry. Don't get killed because I plan kill you later." She gave him another kiss before running into the building with the phone on her ear.

Harry flew into the air and saw the two armored men fighting; one was a huge but plain clearly meant for battle while the other was slimmer and more sophisticated, the flamboyant colors clearly showed who was piloting it.

He formed another mental connection with Tony and said, 'Tony its Harry. You know the drill; don't tell him who I am, just in case we capture him alive. I will attack from the back invisibly at first.'

'Okay, Harry thanks for coming. The bastard took my upgraded reactor and used it to power his own armor. I'm using my old arc reactor so it's less powerful.'

Harry sent three blasting curses in quick succession at Stane's back which sent Stane falling to the street on top of a car.

"Who attacked me from behind like a coward?!" Stane shouted.

"I did you greedy old bastard. I was having dinner with my girl and things were getting interesting when you have to interrupt it by being an ass." Harry shimmered into being before sending a stunner at Stane, hoping to short out his armor and end the fight quickly. Too bad Stane's armor was modified to be hardened from EMP and electronic interference.

Harry transfigured two destroyed cars into silver back gorillas that kept Stane busy for a few seconds until they died from bullets shot at them by Stane.

"You think you can help Stark? I'll kill both of you then I'll get Pepper and your girl." He shouted at Harry before shooting a missile at him and picking up a car with a family in them. "Here Tony, catch this!" Stane threw the car at Tony.

Harry was able to use telekineses to erect a shield that absorbed the blast Harry mentally grabbed the car from Tony and set it to a safe location. He did this to the occupied cars in the area before flying back into the fight. He saw Tony get thrown into an empty bus so Harry flew in and sent a large fireball at Stane that he knew would not kill Stane. Tony has recovered by this time so he blasted Stane with a repulsor blast from his chest. 'Harry, I'm low on power. The blast took a lot out of me. Try and get the civilians out of here.'

Tony took off in a vertical climb with Stane giving chase so Harry got the nosy civilians to hide inside one of the buildings using his telepathy. After doing so, he followed the two armored men to the sky but he saw Stane fall to the ground quickly and Tony's armor was sputtering due to lack of power. Harry remembered Tony's epic face plant so he flew to Tony and grabbed hold to him while laughing and flying him to the ground.

'Tony, hold on. I don't want you face planting again, this time on concrete.'

'Oh man, you have to bring that up now?' Tony couldn't help but laugh as well, remembering the memory.

Unfortunately, Stane survived the fall and attacked Tony again, sending him flying to the rooftop of the arc reactor building.

"You think you can defeat me that easily? I am stronger than you!"

'He's mad, Tony, he won't stop until he's dead.'

'I know.'

"Stane, surrender now."

"Surrender? Now when I have you just where I want you?" Stane launched a pair of missles at Harry and tried to follow Tony on top o the building but Harry just avoided the missiles before grabbing some of the protruding metal parts of Stane's armor. Stane broke out of Harry's grip and was able to fly up to the roof top.

"Last chance Stane. Surrender or die." Harry was getting tired of playing and wanted to let loose a bit.

"I'll die before I go to prison," Stane tried to launch missiles at the Tony and Harry. "This should all be mine!"

'Tony, does his armor work like yours? Power in the middle of the chest?'

'Yeah, the bastard said it was my Ninth Symphony.'

They were on one side of the glass riof while Stane was on the other. Harry hovered over to the middle and taunted Stane.

'I'll lure him then I'll remove the reactor from his chest get ready to catch it.'

"So old man, you said you wanted to kill me? What's taking you so long? Too old and slow?" Harry really wanted to irritate the bald man.

Stane opened the top part of the armor; it seemed Harry damaged some of the internal systems.

"You punk!" Stane launched himself over to Harry who gripped one of Stane's shoulders while he punched the covering of the chest area to get at the reactor. He has it unscrewed but Stane's struggling form made it hard; the reactor was connected only by its wires.

Stane connected with an uppercut that temporarily dazed Harry. He was forced to let go of his hold on Stane's shoulder to protect his face and the bald man fell powerless as the arc reactor got wrenched from him. Once Harry regained his bearings, he threw the small reactor to Stark.

Stane's huge armor broke the glass ceiling and he fell into the big arc reactor powering Stark Industries which then overloaded. Harry summoned Stane to him while he used an energy shield to contain the back lash of electricity.

"Tony, shut off the big arc reactor! It's getting hard to contain it."

Tony jumped down to the central console and shut off the reactor though it took a few seconds before the electricity dissipated.

Harry and Tony were met by Pepper and Natasha along with Agent Coulson who, it turned out, was trapped inside the reactor's control room. They all went to Stane's unmoving form; Tony turned him over, only to see the lifeless body of Obediah Stane. There was a thin metal protruding from his forehead, probably a part of the reactor which hit him when he fell.

"Harry, we all saw what happened; Stane brought this all to himself. It's not your fault," Pepper consoled Harry. "We should have listened to you earlier then maybe this would not have happened."

"I know, Pepper. He was mad with his greed and delusions of grandeur." Harry turned to Tony who was crouched over Stane's body.

"I'm fine. He wanted to gain control over the company so bad I can't believe he actually tried to kill me and also said that he was the one responsible over my parent's death. My parents treated him like a brother yet he betrayed them."

"Director Fury will want to talk to all of you tomorrow. We have a lot to do to prevent leaks to the media."

"Where's the director right now?" Natasha asked Coulson.

"He is still in our New York HQ," answered Coulson.

"Call him and tell him to wait in his office, I'll pick him up," said Harry to Coulson before turning to Natasha. "I know I promised to talk but let's hold off until I can get Fury here that way I only have to explain once. Are you okay?"

"I'm okay. I was not in any particular danger though it was a bit dicey in the end." She kissed him on the lips and whispered, "Are you really okay? I know it's hard but Stane had it coming."

"I'm really fine, Nat. I'm not exactly a virgin when it comes to blood shed."

"Good. You know that Fury will grill you and Stark over what happened here along with the story on your powers and abilities."

"He can ask and I'll try to answer his questions but I'm not going to tell him everything. I'll take Coulson with me back to New York." He faced the agent, "Are you ready?"

"The director is in his office," replied Coulson.

Harry walked over to the agent and held on to his wrist. "Relax, Agent Coulson. This won't hurt a bit." He smiled at the others before teleporting to Shield.

They reappeared in Fury's outer office. Agent Coulson knocked twice before entering. "Director, Harry Potter is here to bring us to Stark's building."

"I do not know how you got here quickly but let's go." Harry just held on to their arms before teleporting them back to LA.

"Is there some place we can sit and talk?" Harry asked Pepper and Stark.

"Let's go to the conference room," answered Tony.

Harry conjured a large black piece of cloth then levitated it to drape over the body of Stane and his armor. They all walked over to the conference room after a quiet thank you from Stark.

After the door of the conference room closed behind Harry, he walked over to a seat opposite the three Shield agents. "I suppose you all have questions but please hold on to them until after I finish my story and the demonstration you will all ask for. We never finished our dinner so I'll have some food served before I begin."

He called over Winky and Dobby to have some sandwiches and drinks served. Dobby left some wine and scotch along with the food, he was sure they would need it.

"The information I will be telling you three is a secret protected by a magical spell which will not let any of you to share my story in any way, shape or form without my explicit permission but you can discuss it with anyone in that already knows it."

"I cannot agree to that, Mr. Potter. My organization will need documentation for its files," objected Fury.

"Whether Shield needs this for its files or not is not my problem. It will be your choice if you want to hear of it or not."

"I can have you thrown in jail for that Potter," growled Fury.

"Sure, you can try but you will not be able to hold me, many men and women has tried to arrest me due to trumped up charges like you are implying. In the few hundred years I have existed, none has yet succeeded and I come from a more advanced Earth. You can hear my story or not, it makes no difference to me." In the end, Fury stayed in his seat.

"I come from the year 2474 and I am now 496 years old..." Harry told his life story and gave the standard demonstration. "I suppose you have questions. I am willing to answer what I can."

"How long have you known that I am a Shield agent?" Natasha asked quickly.

"I saw you during your surveillance on the X-Men, so I already knew who you were when you met me in the gala in Manhattan."

"What does this mean for us?"

"Nothing has really changed. I am still Harry and you are still Nat. I have been as honest as I can with you and I am glad that you now know most of my secrets." Natasha nodded and looked like she was contemplating things.

"If you two are quite finished with your love life, I have questions," Fury glared at Harry and Natasha, which was impressive, considering he only has one eye. "What are your real plans?"

"Right now, aside from living a life, establishing my corporations, and helping the less fortunate; my long term plans are to bring about a peaceful and equal coexistence between the human races. I will not seek this goal using violence but I will not be idly stand by when lives, metahumans or not, are threatened."

"And are we supposed to just trust you to live up to your word of honor?"

"You should and you can ask our mutual friend, Dr. Stephen Strange about the magical oath I am about to make," said Harry before he made his oath.

"I, Harry James Potter, of my own free will do I give this solemn oath to Nicholas Fury, on my life and magic, that I will not use my abilities to willingly harm any living being without just cause or provocation. This I swear on my life and magic. So mote it be." A soft golden glow engulfed Harry and Fury for a few seconds before vanishing.

"What was that, Harry?" asked Natasha.

"It was a magical oath, Nat. I will die and lose my magic if I violate it," replied Harry. "I would have also lost both if I did not mean what I said."

"I will ask Stephen about it later. Mr. Stark and Mr. Potter, I have a proposition for you both. Shield has plans to create a team much like the X-Men that will defend Earth against threats that the world's military are simply ill equipped to defend against called the Avengers Initiative. I want you both on it."

"What do we get if we sign up for this?" asked Tony. He was willing to do it but he wanted to know what perks he can get from Fury just to irritate the man.

"Shield will do its best to protect you from the world's governments that will seek to use you or yours," replied Fury.

"I have already promised Dr. Strange my help against threats against Earth. This will not be new so I can agree to that. We will not be at Shield's beck and call to do its dirty work and we will only step in if the situation is really bad," said Harry.

"Hey, if Harry's okay with it, then you can count me in," said Tony.

"Oh and director? If you have further requests regarding meds from PHM, you will need to contact Emma Frost. She is the president and COO of Potter Holdings Inc. I turned over the day to day operations to her and she will be responsible for contracts negotiation."

"I feel sorry for you already, Fury. Good luck dealing with Emma Frost, she gives me the heebie jeebies." Tony shuddered.

"Very well. I will contact you both if the need ever arises." Fury looked at Natasha and said "You can stop the surveillance on Potter; you do not need to keep seeing him."

Harry waited for Natasha's response and he was glad he did. "Director, I will be continuing my involvement with Harry Potter for the foreseeable future on a more regular and personal basis. It will not interfere with my work with Shield," Natasha said seriously and a bit challenging as if she is daring him to say no.

Harry took a pen lying on the conference room table and whispered 'portus' before handing it to Fury. "Director, by saying the words 'I support the freedom of information act' anyone touching this pen will be transported to your outer office." Harry smirked at Fury who looked like he would rather spend hours on a plane than say those words. Everyone laughed at the Harry's joke, even Coulson gave a small smile.

"I'll be back in a bit. I'll try to minimize the damage done and work off some excess magic left from the fight." He said with a smile and teleported away.

Harry returned after almost ten minutes, grinning like a kid. "I repaired most destruction we caused earlier and you should have seen the wonder from people's faces when the rubble reformed from the destroyed pavement and building walls. It should minimize the charges you might receive in the coming days."

"Thanks for reminding me, Harry. Coulson came up with the stupid excuse that my armor was actually my bodyguard. I'm to hold a press conference tomorrow and say that lame excuse."

"Tony, after what people saw tonight, people will not really care about what statement you make. They would just assume correctly that it is a government cover up," replied Harry which received nods from the two women in the room. "If you and Pepper don't mind, I think Nat and I still have some talking to do."

After they said their goodbyes, Harry and Nat returned to Harry's apartment, Harry got an email from the Sorcerer Supreme.

'Harry, Nicholas gave me a call a few minutes ago asking about the oath you made. I gave him the ramifications of your oath and he seemed satisfied for now. I hope you have more patience in dealing with him, he's a paranoid man but he's a good guy like you. I hope you like the code name I gave you.'

"Great, now I have another epithet attached to my name," Harry said. Nat looked at him questioningly so Harry handed her his Blackberry.

"I just hope it's better than 'the boy who lived' or 'the man who conquered,' I hated those names."

"Well hopefully it will be better than those names."

"I hope so." Harry was cutting two portions from a chocolate cake Winky wanted them to sample.

"Harry, I want to talk about us."

"I'm glad that you don't hate me for concealing those facts, Nat."

"I can't say that I'm not hurt but considering that I haven't really been the picture of honesty, I'm willing to start over if you are."

"I am, Nat. I have trouble sleeping for a few nights because of it. I know you can't tell me everything but I would appreciate anything you want to share."

"My past is not something I am proud of and I am worried that you will not want to see me anymore. Harry, there is a darkness in me and my ledger is overflowing with red from the lives I have taken. It is why I joined Shield, I wanted to use the skills I have to a good cause, hoping it could redeem me."

"I too do not have a lily white past, Nat and I have done things I am not proud. The nightmares still visit me from time to time. I have tried my best to atone for them and it is one of the reasons why I want my company to succeed. I have grown to like Natalie Rushman but I think I will love Natasha Romanoff more. If you can accept me, then please do not doubt that I too can do the same."

Harry led her to the library which seemed to expand after Harry waved his hands. It grew more than thrice its usual size. He went to one of the shelves and took out a thick leather bound book.

"This is a very accurate book about the first 250 years of my life. A good friend of mine wrote it so what you read will be the truth."

'Harry Potter : the Reluctant Hero by Luna Lovegood'

"Luna Lovegood?"

"She is one of my best friends and she was a year behind me in school. Yes that is her real name and no, I do not know if she 'loves good' but from what her husband Neville said to me once, she is very creative." Harry said with a laugh, remembering how drunk they were that night so long ago.

"I'll read it later. For now, take me to bed, Hero."

=== insert lemon scene here ===

Harry woke up with a smile on his face and a naked Natasha asleep on his chest, their first time was a bit frenzied but what followed was a slow and tender. They fell asleep just as the first rays of the sun touched Manhattan.

A quick 'tempus' charm told him it was a few minutes past one PM. He levitated his lover carefully and he extricated himself from the messy bed.

He he switched on his bedroom TV while drinking his fresh orange juice from the food Winky has prepared for them and he smiled a bit at the headlines on CNN.

'Iron Man and Arcane defeat Killer Robot in LA'

'Tony Stark: I am Iron Man'

The story Shield concocted and leaked to the media said Obediah Stane was murdered by the robot the media named 'Ironmonger.' Iron Man, who was later revealed as Tony Stark, and a still unknown Arcane stopped the rampaging Ironmonger from killing many civilians. The origin of the Ironmonger is still being investigated.

"He certainly has a flair for the dramatics," said a now awake and laughing Natasha who was watching Tony declare 'I am Iron Man' in his press conference.

"I imagine Fury is having kittens over this development," said Harry who cast his modified breath freshening charm at both of them before greeting Natasha with a kiss.

"Minty," she commented after the kiss.

"Wizards had a spell that cleanses the breath but does not clean the teeth and mouth so I modified it to do both, and I call it my 'toothbrush' charm. The flavor dissipates within a minute or so."

"What are you doing today?"

"Nothing, apparently. I was going to oversee the delivery and installation of the equipment for the mint but Dobby left a note saying he'll take care of it. You?"

"I usually exercise when I wake up but I think we both got enough 'exercise' earlier," she smirked.

"I have a gift for you," Harry went to his closet and got a small gift wrapped box. He noticed Natasha's panicked look and connected the dots. "Calm down, it's not that kind of a present," Harry was laughing as he enlarged the box to its normal size.

Natasha threw a pillow at Harry before unwrapping the gift. "I was worried there for a second, you ass. Thanks for the gift." She gave a questioning look at Harry so he explained. "What is this made of?"

"They're made from basilisk hide and scales. A basilisk is a very rare magical creature that can kill with its stare and has the most potent venom in my world. Their hide and scales are extremely magic resistant and they can stop bullets and shrapnel easily. I also lined it with Potter Silk so it will be comfortable and even more durable. Since they are magically resistant, it took a lot of time and power to enchant them. They are temperature regulating and self cleaning, extremely durable and cushioned against impact. They are also fire and water proof. The hood and mask, if you wear them, will protect you from the disorientation of bright lights and loud explosions along with filtering airborne contaminants and protecting your identity of course. You need to put a drop of your blood on each of the components of the armor so that only you and I can remove it and I can only do so because I made it."

"You are such a thoughtful boyfriend; you know I'd appreciate this gift better than jewelry."

"There's a thin hidden blade on each sleeve about seven inches long. They're made from enchanted wood so it would not show on metal detectors but they're as sharp as razors. There is also a small unbreakable vial containing ten drops of phoenix tears hidden in a concealed pocket located on the waist. A single tear can heal most wounds and five drops will heal the deepest wounds. It can also act as a universal antidote to poisons. But here is my real gift and no it is still not an engagement ring."

He gave her a platinum ring covered in runes with a few rubies embedded in it. "This ring is also heavily enchanted. It will heat up if what you are about to eat or drink is poisoned and it will also erect a temporary shield that can withstand three direct hits from an RPG but I will have to charge it again after that. The ring will also act as an emergency portkey if you say the word 'portus' or it will send you to a secure facility if you are dying. Once again, if you put a drop of your blood on it, only you and I can remove it. It will also turn invisible with a mental command after you bond it to you."

"Invisibility? If you can do that to the ring, why didn't you use it on the armors? I am just curious."

"Call it one of magic's quirks; I actually tried that a long time ago. It only works on small items for some reason and I gave up on how to modify the runic array. And unless I placed a big gem on each piece of your armor, it would not sustain the active magic used for that effect."

"Oh well. I still love the gifts, Harry. Now since we do not have anything to do today, let's go back to bed, I want to show you my appreciation," with that Natasha dragged Harry back to bed.

Two hours later, after their shared bath to conserve water, he received a call from Emma.

"Good afternoon Emma! How are you this beautiful summer afternoon?"

"My, my, you sound chipper this afternoon. It looks like Mira was telling the truth; she said Master Harry and Mistress Natasha are busy when I asked her this morning."

"Yeah, sorry about that."

"Don't worry about it. Dobby handled the men who delivered and installed the equipment for the mint. I also got a call from Director Nicholas Fury of the Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement and Logistics Division otherwise known as Shield requesting samples of Potter Silk. I told him that we are in an exclusive contract with Stark Industries. He was a bit upset at that so I told him that if he can convince Anthony to allow it, we will be happy to sell him as much as he wants."

"You are a devious woman, Emma. I bet Tony will be overjoyed when Fury pesters him for that and Fury will be pissed at having to ask permission like a kid. You really love getting under people's skin, don't you?"

"A girl has to have her fun, Harry. What about the thing on the news?"

"I'll tell you that story tomorrow. I keep forgetting to give you a secure communications mirror. We'll talk about that tomorrow too. It is one of the products I might introduce."

"Okay. See you tomorrow then, and congratulations," Emma laughed before ending the call.

"Who was that?" asked Natasha.

"Emma called to update me on what happened today and to needle me a bit for finally, well, you know," replied Harry sheepishly.

"What?"

"I did not say anything but apparently Mira told Emma that Master Harry and Mistress Nat are busy when she asked Mira where I was."

"Harry, its fine. It's just sex, no need to be embarrassed about it."

"Just sex huh?" Harry pretended to be hurt.

"Oh, stop it, you know what I mean," Natasha slapped Harry's arm lightly.

Natasha read the book on Harry while they ate dinner. She was horrified at how Harry was treated by people and proud of how he overcame many obstacles to become the man he is today. The rest of the evening was spent telling each other their life story which was a very cathartic experience for them.

Natasha had to report to work the next day so she left after a prolonged goodbye and Harry was very excited to share the communications mirror idea to Emma. Natasha was very taken with the idea which had a very high impact in her line of work; after all, secure communications can make or break an organization, especially in times of war. The Allied forces being able to read the supposed to be secure Enigma ciphers during World War II is a case in point.

"Good morning, lover boy!"

"I'm going to be needled for that, am I?"

"Oh, lighten up, Harry, I'm just happy for you. What happened in LA the other day?"

"I warned Tony and Pepper that Obediah Stane was up to no good but they trusted the man. When they finally wised up, it was too late. Stane tried to kill Tony using a prototype armored suit based on the one Tony used to escape from his captors. Stane took Tony's new arc reactor to power his own armored suit. Luckily, Pepper did not throw away the old one as Tony instructed her. Long story short, I helped Tony defeat Stane and I had to finally reveal my story to Shield. I gave a magical oath to not harm living beings without provocation or just cause to get Fury off my arse and told Fury to ask Stephen Strange what the oath entails so I am now apparently code named 'Arcane' which was suggested to Fury by Dr. Strange since they cannot use my name for their files since the secret is magically protected."

"And you since finally came clean to Natasha and I assume she also came clean to you, you were able to move past that barrier to have sex for the first time?"

"Yes, Emma, you are right," said Harry with a sigh.

"Okay, moving on, what's this you mentioned about a mirror?"

"I gave the Queen and the PM a mirror keyed to mine for secure communications. Here's your own mirror," he gave her one of the mirrors he had made. "All you need to do is to say my name at the mirror while holding it to call me."

"Do you know the possibilities of this, Harry?" Emma was positively bursting with excitement as her mind explored the various application of this possible new product.

"I do, which is why I mentioned it to you. This has never been mass produced in my reality because wizards are lazy. They used fire to communicate; I'll explain it to you some time. The mirrors are usually made pairs that can only communicate with one another other but I was able to tweak it to respond to many mirrors by calling out the name I want to call. I can try and tweak it again to see if I can use the letters A to Z and the number 0 to 9 as unique phone numbers that the mirrors can use to connect."

"If you can get that to work, it will be a gold mine for the company."

"I know and I can rig it to dissolve into dust if anyone tries to tamper with it. It will need something to power it which would be good for us since it will provide us with a continuing source of income instead of just a one off purchase. I can use crystals like batteries to power it and they would need to bring it back to us for replacement crystals every few months."

"We can sell portable ones for about $300 and bigger ones for the house or the office at $500. Crystal recharge would be about $50. Does it have a limited range?"

"I never tested it but it worked perfectly when I was in Hong Kong to call a friend in London in my old reality."

"Good. No monthly fees or long distance charges and no electricity needed. Just a one time purchase for the unit and a small periodic fee to recharge a crystal."

"i just hope I can make it work," replied Harry.

"I have faith that you can figure it out, Harry."

"Thanks for the trust; I promise to do my best. However, there is also one more project I want to undertake and this will be done using the Elysium banner. It has the potential to uplift the lives of many."

"What is it? I feel nervous at what you plan to do next."

"It's nothing dangerous. I plan to have the elves make four water towers spread out per town in the areas without potable water and each tower will provide all the safe drinking water they will ever need using runes. The container and release valve itself will be will be formed as one without rivets or screws using magic and enchanted to be unbreakable so no one can open it. The ward stone which will power it from the earth's magic will be inside the container, therefore unreachable. What do you think?"

"I think it is be a great idea Harry. I would suggest an additional security measure though. Maybe you can put a qualifier on who can approach and open or close the valves."

"Hmm, we can do that. Only those who do not seek to misuse or abuse the privilege can operate the valves and they must do it of their own free will, no coercion will work."

"That would be a good safeguard. Have the lawyers under retainer issue a statement on how they can use the water towers and add a clause that if the towers are misused or tampered with in anyway not consistent with the goal of providing water to the public, the towers will be reclaimed."

"Do we really need that clause? It seems threatening to me."

"Harry those places are under the rule of dictators and despots. They only understand violence as a deterrent. I am sure you will have to take away some before they will learn to follow the rules."

"Okay, I see your point. I'll have the elves start on it and I will work on modifying the mirrors."

The weeks flew by for Harry and the elves. News reports started to come in about the water towers which appeared overnight in many of the poorest places on Earth. Each tower had a few leaflets that were spread out by the elves while the townspeople were asleep. They did this so everyone will know how the towers are to be used and so that the governments could no claim that they built the towers. Harry and Emma have no doubts that some officials would try and claim credit. Harry did have a few towers reclaimed to show the seriousness of their words. They quickly learned not to mess with the towers. Harry also help fuel rumors about the towers originally put forward by some 'experts' that the towers had advanced technology that takes moisture from the air and converts it water. The Harry, Emma and Nat along with the elves laughed at the propensity of human nature to grasp at straws in order to have something to believe in.

Third Week of July 2008

"How are you doing with the mirrors, luv?" asked Natasha.

"I'm making slow progress but I believe I'm on the right track. In the meantime, we can still use the ones we currently have. Tony is just frustrated that he might have competition for his mobile phones. It will definitely affect the sales of his phones but the phones still have the advantage of having other conveniences like mobile internet that the mirrors will not have."

"I see. Emma told me she has told me how she plan to market and sell the mirrors. She and the lawyers have been busy drafting end user contracts to safeguard the corporation especially about product tampering and experimentation."

"Yeah she promised me that they will be iron clad. I've already figured out how to detect tampering and how to disintegrate the mirrors into sand due to tampering."

"I laughed so hard when she said she plans to use the tagline, 'It works great, just like magic!' On your ads. She really has a great sense of humor."

"I know. I am working on the mirrors but now is the day we can move in to the newly finished residences. I'm giving Emma one of the apartments to use for free and I want to ask you to move into one too."

"I know you only mean well Harry, but we've only know each other for a few months. I do not think it's the right time to move in together."

"As much as I want that, I agree that it's too early for that step but I still want you to live in one of the apartments so that I know you are safe. The wards will keep us all safe from almost any harm."

"Oh alright. I see your point. A lot of people may think that I am a tough girl and they are correct, I am a very strong person but sometimes it feels nice to be cared for, you know?"

"I know. I had the same problem when I was young. The people who took it upon themselves to plan out my live did mot take into account what I wanted. They thought they were protecting me."

"I know and this is why I do not complain much. You are not trying to control me, you just point out your opinions but you let me make my decisions in the end."

Emma and Natasha moved into two of the 23rd floor's apartments while Harry moved into the penthouse. The penthouse had two floors. The first floor, used for visitors, held the rooms any guests can enter like the library, a ballroom, a formal dining room with attached kitchen along with two sitting rooms, an entertainment room and four toilets. Emma and Natasha with the help of Dobby and Winky decorated the place to showcase the understated wealth of the owner. They did give in to Emma's demands of gold fixtures, all embedded with precious stones, like faucets and door knobs. They were the only things you can call overly ostentatious, the rest were very tasteful. Emma's only answer was that they need to shock and awe the guests first, they can charm them later.

However, to open the doorway to the second floor, you must be told the secret of the Fidelius protected door and be keyed in to the blood wards. The second floor was greatly expanded with ten guest suites and it contained magical rooms like a potions and alchemy room, a room for enchanting, a dueling room, a ritual room and an infirmary but the finest addition was a Room of Requirement where the thirty elven rune masters spent almost a week engraving and the triple checking every little thing.

Harry had to give out a liter of his blood for each of the seven fist sized diamonds that needed to soak for seven days. The diamonds would then be embedded into the middle of the RoR's floor in a circular formation before Harry charges them. When he did charge them, Harry was unconscious for three days, Nat and Emma were extremely worried so when Harry woke up, they both took an ear before they shouted at him for worrying them so much.

It turned out that he overcharged the diamonds that they were all glowing brightly and that excess power was luckily shunted off into the main ward stone in the basement. Even with that precaution, the diamonds were creaking as if they were going to crack. The elves were awed at the power Harry unleashed that night.

Harry just grinned like a loon an told them that he overcharged it because, according to the founders, the initial charge of the diamonds was directly proportional to how good the room would work out. Harry showed them how to use the room and they momentarily forgot how mad they were at Harry. They were currently on a beach like the ones in Tahiti. The sun light felt real as did the sand and the waves which was even salty.

"See? I overcharged the diamonds so that the room would be able to replicate what we ask for as much as possible."

"How do we use the room? Do we just ask for something?"

"The one who created the room is the only one who can request things. What did you want?"

"Bathing suits!" The two women replied in chorus. Harry just laughed and pointed a few feet behind them. There was a changing room filled with many things needed for a beach trip. Towels and swim suits for men and women even a few toys and life savers.

A few minutes later Harry's jaws dropped when he saw the blonde and the redhead bombshells in the skimpiest bikini he could imagine.

"Aren't you going to join us, Harry?" Natasha smirked at the obviously excited Harry who ran to the cabana and just switched his clothes with a pair of trunks.

They all had a few hours of fun in the sun right at the heart of the Upper Eastside.

First Saturday of August 2008

Harry and the two women were sharing breakfast when Harry got a call on his mobile.

"Good morning, Jean. What's going on?"

"I'm embarrassed to ask but you mentioned in one of your emails that you had extra rooms in your new building and that I'm welcome to stay there, right? Well, I'd like to take you up on your offer."

"Of course, you can stay here. When do you plan to come here?"

"Will now be too soon? I'm in my car in front of your new building."

"Well, that was quick," Harry laughed a bit. "Give me a minute and have Dobby assist you. He'll arranged to have your car parked in either the third or fourth floor parking lot. Do you have your things with you?"

"I did not bring much aside from a few changes of clothes with me nor did I bring anything paid for by Xavier. I plan on asking Emma and Natasha if one of them can help me shop for clothes and furniture."

"Don't worry about those things. We can easily arrange to have it taken care of. We'll meet you and Dobby on the first floor of my house. See you in a bit, Jean."

"Thanks, Harry."

Harry went back from the window and told the two ladies what the call was about. "That was Jean on the phone. Apparently, she needs a place to stay and she is going to take me up on her offer to live here. Dobby is on his way down to help her park and carry a few of her things."

"I wonder what happened," commented Natasha.

"I'm sure Xavier or Summers got on her nerves again though this seems serious as she actually moved out of the mansion," answered Harry.

"Whatever happened, she will be telling us later," added Emma.

"I'm coming down to the public rooms to meet her, I need to key her in to the wards and give her the secret about this floor. Do you want to come?"

"We'll go, we haven't started breakfast anyway that way she can tell us her story while we eat," said Natasha. "I like Jean though I've only met her twice."

"So do I. She's feisty so she'll fit right in with Nat and me," agreed Emma with a smirk at Harry.

Harry groaned at that statement of Emma. "I'm going to be triple teamed, aren't I?"

The two ladies just laughed and led the way to the stairs to the public rooms.

Jean and Dobby arrived a few seconds after the three residents of the Potter Tower arrived in the foyer.

"Jean, how are you?" asked Emma.

"I'm fine, all things considered and I am happy to have a roof over my head. I thought I might have to stay in a hotel while I searched for an apartment."

"You do not have to worry about that. Harry has a soft spot for beautiful strong willed women," said Natasha.

"Okay let's get upstairs. Jean, the door to my private rooms is located inside the library," Jean suddenly saw a door appear beside the library's fireplace; "The door is protected by the same magic protecting my story and powers. I have added you to the buildings and the residences' wards earlier. Had you been an enemy, you would be naked and without a stitch of clothing on in the middle of Times Square, and that is only a warning."

Jean shuddered at the mental picture she got. "Good thing I'm not an infiltrator then."

Dobby added another place on the breakfast table for Jean before withdrawing. She was glad she hadn't eaten yet as the food looked amazing.

Emma noticed the expression on Jean's face so she commented, "The elves insist on feeding us like royalty so eat up, they might get offended if we don't at least have a plate every morning. I've taken to joining these two in their morning exercise routine and Natasha is giving me lessons on some hand to hand combat. Harry joins us sometimes but it's mainly to ogle us in our sweaty exercise clothing," Emma timed her delivery of the last line just as Harry was drinking his orange juice. The three girls laughed when Harry choked a bit on the juice.

"I am not ogling anyone! I just have a very healthy and justified admiration for the female form. Can anyone blame me for looking at two very attractive women?" Protested Harry weakly.

"Oh hush, Harry, you know I like you looking at my body. I work hard for it so I think I deserve the admiring looks you give me," Emma said while batting her eyelashes at her boss.

"Nat! Aren't you going to defend me?"

"Harry, you are a physically and magically powerful man and an extremely strong mutant. I hardly think you need defending from Emma, besides, she's right. She is very sexy and it would be a lie to say otherwise."

"But aren't girlfriends supposed to be jealous of other women?" Harry was confused.

"If I did not find her attractive and I was not confident of your love, I might be. Be glad that is not the case, because I can be a real bitch when I am crossed," Natasha smiled sweetly. She noticed Jean did not know how to react to the by play going on. "Emma, let's keep the flirting and teasing Harry down a notch, we might scare Jean."

"Okay, I'd get used to it if I were you. It's all in good fun and Harry is just so easy," Emma said before taking a bite of her eggs Benedict.

"Well this is certainly less depressing than Scott's puppy routine," replied Jean. "He follows me around the mansion that I got so sick of it and Xavier's holier than thou attitude. He still hasn't apologized for anything he did. Maybe needling Harry will be good for me and I'd like to learn unarmed combat too."

"Good, you can join us tomorrow. But do tell on why you left the mansion," said Emma.

"Scott has been pestering me more frequently to give him another chance. I tried to make a relationship work with him years before but I just cannot see us together again. It makes me wonder why I even went out with him. He's good looking and has a good body but his outlook in life is so different than mine. Xavier has also been on my case ever since Harry and I freed the Phoenix force. He is always observing me and questioning my choices during our training sessions. I can accept criticism well, and Logan can attest to that. He gives me tips on what I can do better and I try to incorporate it in training. However, Xavier is so condescending in his after training critiques. I don't know, maybe it's just me but I've noticed that he sometimes probes my mental defenses. I have been practicing like Harry told me and I think I've made some progress. By the way, I have the books with me, Harry."

"Mental defenses? What's that?" Natasha asked. She was very interested in this new information.

"Is that why I can't read you, Jean? I tried it just now so I can see what you were talking about and I think only a brute force attack is the only way I can read you," Emma was similarly interested.

"I gave a few pointers to help Jean control her powers better when the Phoenix was still trying to escape. I let her borrow a few books, one on meditation and a book on the mind arts practiced by the magicals in my reality. I can offer the same to you two if you want but it is a very personal experience so I want you to be sure. Learning the mind arts will also help you with your emotional control and memory retention. This was made for witches and wizards but it has been proven to provide at least a moderate shield that can resist passive mental intrusions."

"I think that would be a great asset in my line of work so I'll try it," said Natasha.

"If I can learn to erect a shield like Jean's, I will be willing to spend time learning it. We still have a lot of free time right now so I think it would be best if I learn as soon as possible," said Emma.

"I'll give you copies of the books Jean used this afternoon. Since it is a Saturday, why don't you two help Jean and the elves with furnishing her apartment and shopping for clothes. I'd also like to hire you as a consultant. Emma mentioned she needed someone to act as liaison with the FDA and other the other governments' health departments."

"That's right, you mentioned you liked medical research and you do have an MD from Johns Hopkins so don't think of it as a hand out. You'd be doing Harry and I a favor, no offense meant to present company, but those clinicians are so boring. You will be responsible for getting two more doctors or a related field to liaise with the governments doing tests on the medicines we are waiting their approval on."

"Wow. I get a job and a place to live, in just a few hours. Thanks so much," said Jean.

"Enough of this mushy stuff. Go on and get your clothes and furniture shopping done in the store and pick which apartment you want in the girls' floor. Dobby will introduce you to the elves who run those departments."

Jean looked like she was going to protest so Emma took her hand and dragged her to the stairs while being followed by Natasha. "Don't worry about it. The elves will be happy to have things to do and the clothes are to die for."

He just laughed at Emma's antics. He reviewed the past few weeks and he is happy with the way things are going ever since he accepted what Emma told him about the reality of the business world.

His luxury stores continue to have good sales and the private mint he recently opened was attracting some good buzz from the players in the precious metals business.

Winky's restaurant, called Buffet 101, opened a week to the delight of foodies in Washington DC. Harry and Emma attended the opening and they were bowled over by the long line of people waiting for free food. The top floor of the was not going to be open to the public like they originally planned, instead, Harry added a ten room residence. The rooms resembled a nice hotel room. It had a queen sized bed, a bathroom, a sitting room with an entertainment system, and internet access. Being so close to Capitol Hill made it an ideal place to stay in for his employees.

The news he got last night from the PM was just the cherry on the cake. The pastes and creams were about to be approved for public use this coming week so Emma and Harry were going to be spending the next few weeks there starting on Monday. Unfortunately, Natasha had to go on a mission for Shield and she will not be able to join them.

Harry has already worked out a preliminary price list for the products for Emma to review and comment on.

Multiple Use (10 or more) Pastes & Creams

-Pimple Remover Cream $250
-Blemish Remover Cream $250
-Bruise Removal Paste $ 250
-Burn Cream $50
-Abrasions and Minor Cuts $50
-Deep Wound Treatment Paste $50

All potions are packaged in a single dose bottle

-Lung Renewal Potion $200
-Nerve treatment /
Anti-paralysis Potion $200
-Bone Regeneration Potion $200
-Skin Regeneration Potion $200
-Muscle Regeneration Potion $200
-Blood Replenishing Potion $100

Potions listed above may require a regimen of more than one dose, depending on the severity of the case.

-Hangover Potion $25
-Nutrition Potion $25
-Cold Cure Potion $25
-Cough Cure Potion $25
-No Drowse Pain Relief Potion $25
-Calming Potion $25
-Sleeping Potion $25
-Flushing Potion $25

He was extremely grateful to Emma's foresight because she's already recruited thirty doctors, trained by elven healers, to conduct product demonstration and seminars in hospitals and clinics. Another batch of thirty doctors were currently in training to augment the first group because their market research predicted very high demands once the meds were given government approval.

She has also lined up a few models for the media blitz they plan to do as soon as approval for the pastes and creams is announced. Emma had given him the task of picking the 'face' of PHI, not just PHM. He remembered their conversation from last night.

'Emma, i just received great news from across the pond! The creams and pastes have been given approval by the UK government and they want us there on Monday for the public announcement.'

'That is wonderful news, Harry! It would also dovetail nicely with the plans we have.'

'Plans? What plans?'

'I'm sorry. I was going talk to you about it later but I suppose this is as good a time as any. Part of the preparations I had for the expected launch of new PHI products is to find a good face for our company. I had originally planned to screen models with telepathy to see it they fit our needs. We cannot afford a scandal that would involve our main product endorser, and trust me, if she has hidden bones in the closet, our rivals would make sure that they will be exposed with maximum negative impact. Remember, PHM is our flagship project, we have to be picky, so we cannot just have the marketing people pick one out, we will have limited time in the future to devote to putting out public relations fires. You can scan the models for us while I meet with the PM's representatives, looking at beautiful women is not really a hard task.'

'I can do that, it just feels wrong to go mucking about in someone's thoughts, you know?'

'You would only be scanning the surface thoughts, Harry, not their entire lives. I have ginned up a list of questions to help you for the interviews, it should be enough to bring up the information we need. You are not exactly going to shout their secrets from the tallest buildings anyway.'

'I know, I'm sorry. I know I sometimes have these conscience attacks but I'm glad I still have them. Anyway, I'll do it but you'll have to tell Nat that this was your idea.'

'Okay,' Emma replied simply with an enigmatic smile.

He was taken out of his reverie with the voices of Natasha, Emma and Jean. He decided to greet them and see how things went.

"Hello ladies, how did your day go?"

"Emma and Nat took me all over your store and got me a lot of clothes. We went over to their floor and they took me to one of your apartments. I hope you don't mind, I took the one overlooking Central Park," replied Jean.

"Natasha didn't take that one because she rarely stays in her apartment, I don't know why she didn't just move in with Harry," Emma mock whispered to Jean.

"It is too early to move in, Emma, and the reason I rarely spend time in my apartment is that I want to spend the time I have in NYC with Harry, I'm just lucky things have been slow at work the last couple of months. Long periods of relative quiet almost never happens and it's disconcerting in a way," replied Natasha.

"Why is that?" asked Jean.

"Well, a long period of peace is usually followed by a crisis, at least in my experience," answered Natasha.

"It has not been too quiet, Nat. We did have an episode with Tony Stark," reminded Harry.

"I know but I still have this feeling, Harry."

"Whatever it is, we'll deal with it together. It's no use trying to borrow trouble," said Harry.

"If there's trouble brewing, you know I'm here to help," said jean sincerely.

"I know I'm not at proficient at combat like the three of you but I'm no slouch either. I'm getting pretty good at Kravmaga, right Nat?" Emma joined in.

"Thanks for your offer, Emma, Jean but I do not want you to be involved as much as possible. I know you two can handle yourselves but I'd rather the eyes of the world not be on you guys," said Harry.

"He is not rejecting your help girls, he's just being his normal noble self and we like him that way, don't we?" Natasha said.

"I do not know about Jean but I certainly like Harry," Emma grinned meaningfully.

"Emma, remember what we talked about. He is not yet ready," said Natasha.

"What am I not ready for?" Harry asked, confused at the sudden turn of events.

"See?" Natasha pointed out to Emma. "It's nothing Harry. I'll tell you about it tomorrow before you leave for England," Natasha said to his lover.

"Okay. Jean, I'll leave you to these two lovely ladies. I'll go back to the library and work on the mirror," Harry said, giving Natasha a kiss on the cheek before walking away. "Remember, we promised Winky we'll have dinner at the restaurant later."

"Okay, what was that all about?" Jean asked the two women while they walked to the elevator in the public part of Harry's penthouse.

"We'll tell you later maybe you might be interested. I know I am," said Emma.

"Emma!" exclaimed Natasha.

"Nat, we both know Jean likes Harry and I think Harry has a soft spot for her too, besides, Jean is hot!"

"Hey! I'm right here! And Emma, Harry is a great guy but I know he's with Natasha. You don't have to worry about anything, I promise," said Jean seriously. They were now in Jean's apartment. "Wow, the elves did a great job! I only told Tully that I wanted something simple and understated when she asked me how I wanted the room to look like," Jean tried to change the subject.

"Jean, I know that Harry will never be unfaithful to me, he's a nice guy and I also know you are not that kind of girl. Don't worry about it," Natasha reassured Jean.

"Good, I do not have that many female friends and I don't want to lose any of you," replied Jean, relieved.

"Harry is a special man, I can see why you and Emma like him and I don't have a problem with that. I am secure in the fact that Harry loves me. I just want him to be happy so if having more girlfriends will make him happy, it's okay with me," said Natasha.

"You're okay with that?" Jean was unsure where this conversation was going.

"Nat and I are both bisexual, we like each other but she loves Harry. I think I do too. We are not doing anything behind his back so relax," said Emma.

"Harry came from a culture where he could have more than one wife because he is the last remaining heir of a few ancient and noble wizarding families. I read about it from a book in his library and we confirmed it with Dobby and Winky," explained Natasha. "I consider myself a physically fit person and my body has been altered to be near the peak of human performance but I don't think I can wear Harry out in bed. He is not complaining and I think he's happy and satisfied though that is not my only reason. I have a problem, Jean, the experiments done to me in Russia has rendered me sterile so I cannot give Harry any children. He is okay with it but I think he should get to experience fatherhood, he is such a loving and kind man that i have no doubts that he will be a great father," confided Natasha.

"I approached Natasha a few weeks ago to let her know that i liked Harry but I do not want her to be jealous or suspicious. I knew it has begun to show though I mostly try to pass it off as harmless flirting so I thought that it will be better to get it out in the open instead of her finding out about it later. To my surprise, she showed me the books about Harry's world, what she found out from elves and her problem. I think I agree with her that this way, we all get what we want. A chance at happiness with a great guy who deserves it," said Emma.

"Are you offering to let me join you two?" asked a gobsmacked Jean.

"No, we just want you to be aware of the situation but if you ever think that you are falling in love with Harry, we want you to know that we're okay with it," answered Natasha. "So, who wants a glass of wine? I know I do."

Emma and Jean both raised a hand; they knew they had a very long conversation ahead of them.

Unaware of the important conversation the three women were having about him, Harry went on with his research on how to make the mirror comms work for the masses.

He was getting nowhere so he got dressed and teleported over to his office in Harry's London. He keeps forgetting to place portals connecting the four luxury stores to each other, since neither he nor elves have a problem teleporting or in the elves' case, popping from store to store. Now, he needed to do so because Emma needed an easy way to and from their building in NYC to the other cities without his aid, his personal office in each of the Harry's stores would act as their airport for now.

Harry has already created a reusable portkey keychain for himself, Natasha and Emma that would take them to a warded area beside the hangar in Teterborough, Harry's penthouse in Manhattan and the locked section in the back of the jet. Harry instructed the pilots that he wants them to call him on his mobile instead of using the plane's system to announce when they are about to land, the pilots were used to the eccentricities of their employer so they did not suspect anything.

Evening the next day

Harry and Natasha were alone on the roof deck of Potter Building; Natasha was snuggled into Harry's arms when he said, "What's on your mind? You've been quiet ever since we finished dinner earlier."

"I read a few books about your old world some time ago," she replied.

"Okay. What did you learn from those books?"

"I learned a few things about ancient and noble families like the Potters and the Blacks."

"I see. Pureblood families put a lot of stock on genealogy and stuff like that."

"Yes and I read how the heads of the families had more than one wife if they are the heads of more than one family. How many families are you currently head of?"

"I am the head of the Potter, Black, and Gryffindor families," replied Harry.

"So technically you can have at least three wives and three consorts."

"That is technically true, Nat, but I never really believed in all that rot. Are you worried about me and more women?"

"No, love, I am not worried about that but I want you to be happy and I know you've always wanted a family of your own. I think you should consider getting more women," Natasha looked seriously into Harry's eyes as she said this.

"Nat, I do not need more women. I have you. If you are worried about children, I've told you when you first mentioned what those scientists in the Red Room did to you can be undone. There are a lot of magical treatments that can help you just as there are a lot of things modern medicine can do for you. If all that fails, we can adopt."

"I know that Harry and I promise that if we ever reach that point when we want children, we can try all those options. I have no doubt in my mind that you are serious when you said those things do not matter to you but they matter to me, it matters that you have children that are of your own flesh and blood. You will be a great father, Harry."

And that's when it all clicked in Harry's mind. "This is what you and Emma have been talking about. You want me to be her boyfriend too? I don't know whether to be happy that you care so much about me that you are okay with sharing me with other women or that I should be saddened that you are talking to another woman and offering me to her." He got up and walked to railing of the roof deck and stared over the park.

"I did not offer you to her, Harry. She came to me about her feelings about you, to reassure me that while she may flirt with you, she will not do anything that will jeopardize our relationship. I admit that I shared what I learned from the books and from the elves about your previous reality. She and I like each other but we both love you. I think Jean is also similarly attracted to you."

"Jean is in on this too?"

"We talked about it yesterday while we were arranging her apartment."

"I don't know what to say," said Harry as he embraced Natasha.

"You don't have to say anything, Harry. Please don't hate us for talking about the possibilities, we only want you to be happy. You have so much love in you, Harry, and we think there is enough of your love for us," tears fell from her eyes that moved Harry.

"Nat, I'm not mad at the three of you, I was just a bit surprised. I love you, Nat, and I promise to talk to them. Now moving on to important stuff, you like Emma? Should I be worried that I might walk in on you two kissing but come to think of it, that is not such a bad idea," Harry joked to cheer her up.

Natasha smiled and wiped her tears away. "Yes we like each other that way, we are both bi, love. But I love you and I think she is beginning to love you too. I cannot say I blame her. My boyfriend is what every woman wants in a man."

"I know, it is so hard to be perfect like me," he replied in a snooty and lofty tone. She slapped his chest lightly.

"Watch it, buddy," Natasha mocked glared him. "Seriously, Harry, promise me you'll think about it?"

"I promise. I'll think about it a lot. Especially when I'm alone, in my bed," Harry smirked and wiggled his eyebrows at her suggestively. She just laughed and sighed internally, glad that the conversation did not become something bad.

Monday August 4, 2008
10 Downing Street, London

"Good morning, Harry, Miss Frost," greeted Prime Minister Gordon Brown.

"Good morning, Prime Minister," Emma greeted the leader back.

"Good morning, Sir," said Harry.

"I am pleased to tell you both that Her Majesty's government has given their approval for PHM's pastes and creams," said the PM. "However that is not all. As you know, while the Queen and I did wish to have your products approved as soon as possible, we cannot appear to be influencing the health experts in any way to expedite their approval. We did however ask that they be given a fast track so that the public can benefit as soon as possible. Our efforts has since borne fruit with the pastes but two of your liquid potions has also been approved as they are, in the opinion of the medical experts consulted, most useful. They have approved the sale of the bone regeneration potion and the blood replenishing potion and both have been deemed safe for public consumption." The PM could see the surprise on both their faces. "Her Majesty wishes for me to tell you, Harry, that this is payback for surprising her in the London gala a few months back."

"I see. Please tell Her Majesty that this is a very welcome surprise," Harry said with a smile. "I should have known that the Queen would get me back for the stunt with the jewels. Her counterpart in my old reality had a similar sense of humor."

"I am very glad that we already have a few doctors already trained to give demonstrations on how to use these products," said a thoughtful Emma, already pondering the possibilities this surprise has opened up.

"Congratulations, Harry. This is but the start of your climb to the top," Gordon shook Harry's hands.

"Oh, I hope so, Gordon. I hope so," said Harry. "I am also working on bringing the communications mirror to masses. I still have a few hurdles to overcome but I think the goal is within reach."

"When that happens, PHI will really be taking the business world by storm. Cheap and secure communications for everyone. No long distance charges and recurring fees aside from the recharging the crystals powering the device every two months or so," said Emma with a smile on her face.

"You plan on mass producing the mirror that you gave me? It would undoubtedly give the mobile phone manufacturers and service providers stiff competition. The military and government contracts alone would bring you hundreds of millions. Will it work the same way as the one I currently have? Just call out a name and you will be connected?"

"It would not be possible, I'm afraid. It is actually one of the hurdles I mentioned. There are too many John Smiths and other similar names for different individuals. I am thinking of using a twelve digit combination of letters and numbers, it should be enough for the world's population."

"I see, I do hope you figure it out soon. Anyway, the announcement tomorrow should give the media something to talk about and maybe build up your company brand so that when your main medicines are approved, it will be accepted by the public quickly," said the PM.

The meeting broke up soon after that, everyone had a job to do.