The Economic Power He Knows Not: Year Four

The Quidditch World Cup is happening this summer, as is the Tri-Wizard Tournament. How will Harry cope with directing the biggest Magical Crafts and Arts sideshow the magical world has ever seen? On top of all that, he has to deal with the resurrection of the most feared Dark Lord in recent memory and finally showing the magical world that you shouldn't mess around with someone who knows the True Power of the Golden Rule!

(AN: I will not be using the mangled English that Fleur and Victor use in the books. Microsoft Word won't let me…)

Monday 4 July, 1994 Central Europe

Delores Umbridge was enjoying herself despite the fact that she was now a servant of the Dark Lord Voldemort. He recognized a kindred spirit and rewarded her with unparalleled freedom to act upon her more…vicious tendencies. She was currently extracting information out of a Ministry employee who was on vacation, one Bertha Jorkins from Magical Games and Sports. A little bit of the Cruciatus curse to remove any remnants of resistancefor starters followed by the usage of a Blood Quill and poor Bertha was spilling her secrets as well as her impure blood. If she survived this round maybe a bit of the Imperious curse and a hammer after lunch. So much fun and so little time…

Same day, Fourteen Kensington Drive "The Kennel", Crawley, London

Harry Potter was lying on his bed reading his latest issue of Magical Crafts and Art. Shelves lined two walls of his room, both filled with ceramic figures and dishware handmade by him. He had already completed his summer homework much to the delight of his girlfriend, Hermione Granger. The two of them had just spent the day roaming around Crawley's commercial district, watched a movie and had lunch together. All in all, in his mind, a perfect date for a couple of teenagers.

There was a loud crash and a bunch of swearing coming from outside his room in the hallway. Harry snorted softly, mentally shaking his head at the apparent clumsiness. He debated whether or not to go see what caused the noise but… 'Nah, if it was important, Sirius would've called for me.'

An hour later, he emerged from his room and headed downstairs to the kitchen to find something to snack on. Neenie intercepted him and told him in no uncertain terms that the kitchen was off-limits and that if he were hungry, to call her and she would get it.

"Fine. I'm just looking for something quick and simple. Sliced vegetables and a bit of dip would be good plus a bottle of Butterbeer." He groused, "I'll take it in my workshop."

Neenie disappeared and Harry heading out back. Upon entering, he found the sliced veggies and bottle of Butterbeer already waiting for him. He picked up a folder of pottery ideas and future projects from a shelf and idly began flipping through them trying to find inspiration. Maybe something with an Astronomy feel? A starry sky overlooking a valley? He let out a bit of a sigh. Sirius popped his head into the shop while he was musing and asked him if he was interested in visiting the Wizengamot Summer session tomorrow.

"Yeah, I think I should. I've been hearing rumors that the Dark wants to install another restriction against non-magical born children and their families. I want to find out the details and put in my thoughts. I've had more thoughts on my economic revolution plan because of it." He replied.

Sirius nodded, "I also want to let you know that I got tickets to the World Cup, box seats. You still want to go? I know that you aren't on the team at school but I thought the three of us could do a little bonding while we're there. Plus, it would give you a chance to scope out the international competition."

"They gonna have an artist section there?"

"Mm-hmm. From what I heard it will be mostly little kiosks and shops selling their crafts geared primarily towards Quidditch but I figured it would give you a bit of inspiration."

"Thanks Sirius, I appreciate that."

After Sirius left, he put away the folder and began working on a set of nesting bowls and plates. A dishware version of the solar system dancing in his mind…

Tuesday 5 July, 1994 Wizengamot Council Room, Ministry of Magic

Boredom followed by occasional bits of low-level interest. That was the best description Harry could give of the summer session for the Wizengamot. Fifty council members blustering on, talking about nothing while congratulating themselves about accomplishing nothing. It was enough to drive Harry to distraction and start thoughts about leaving early. The thing holding him back was this new bill to increase the restrictions against the non-magical born and their families and create a 'Muggleborn Regulatory Commission' to oversee it.

According to the wording of the bill, the victims…er, Muggleborns, would have to register themselves and present a card every time they purchased something from either Diagon Alley or Hogsmeade.

Ostensibly, it was implied that the Commission would be able to determine where the money was being spent and for any logistics that might be required but Harry thought there was a darker purpose. He couldn't understand why it was only the non-magically born and raised were the only ones required to register. To him, it struck of something similar to what the Nazis had done prior to the Second World War. This register could be used to isolate a certain segment of the population and control them by restricting goods and materials.

When the council broke up for lunch, Harry approached various members to try and dissuade those who were still thinking about voting for the proposed bill. He spotted Lucius Malfoy and approached him.

"Good afternoon, Lord Malfoy. I was wondering if I could have a moment of your time to discuss the details of this proposed bill?"

"Good afternoon, Mr. Potter. Please join me and we'll have lunch while we talk. What specifically was it about the bill that you didn't like?"

"It was the need to register and carry an identification card at all times. The items that needed to be included for the registration are a little unsettling as well. Blood status? Background? Why is that needed to enter a shop that sells something like books? Beeman's Odds and Ends store? It strikes me as nothing more than a way to segregate a segment of the population and if times get tough, for whatever reason, to restrict access."

"Well, I can see your confusion Mr. Potter and frankly, I'm not surprised. You see, there's only a finite amount of goods that can be manufactured and…"

Lucius expounded upon the idea of the bill, acting and sounding very condescending in his regards and thoughts of the non-magically born and raised. Despite the changes that had occurred over the past three years with the revival of the Old Magics, Rituals and the Arts Program, Harry began to get the idea that it was time to instigate the next segment of his economic revolution plan. Lord Malfoy may have changed his attitude a bit towards him and became less of an annoying personality but he was still at his core a member of the aristocracy and therefore believed everyone below him didn't matter. He was going to have to speak with Draco to get a 'behind the scenes' look at the situation. After lunch, he told Padfoot that he recommended voting against the bill and that he was going to head out and explore the Ministry a bit. Sirius agreed and reminded him to not try and leave the building for any reason.

Harry wandered through the different departments and ended up in the Atrium's Art Gallery. He perused through the different sculptures, paintings and kinetic art that were on display. His original piece, the 'Magic of Flight' that kick started the idea of a need for the gallery and the Arts Program at Hogwarts had been relocated from the Atrium center to a corner of the gallery. He smiled at a couple of kids were mesmerized by the patterns of color that changed as they moved their hands in front of the spotlights that were positioned in front of the sculpture.

The gallery director came up alongside and greeted him, "Mr. Potter. Good to see you this afternoon. Are you here for anything specific or just reminiscing?"

"Just reminiscing. It's fun to watch people as they wander through."

The director nodded in agreement then excused himself. Harry left the gallery and headed back to the Council chamber to await Sirius' departure. As he was sitting there, he pulled out his notebook and started sketching out ideas to discuss with his godfather and Remus in regards to the proposed bill and his economic revolution plan. By the time Sirius emerged from the chambers, Harry had filled up ten pages of notes. The two of them headed to the exit and went home.

Saturday 23 July, 1994 Harry's Workshop, Fourteen Kensington Drive "The Kennel

Harry was at his desk working on expanding his notes for the 'Economic Revolution Plan' when Hermione and Neville came in. He jerked in startlement when he felt a pair of gentle hands caress his shoulders and the scent of Hermione's shampoo fill his nostrils.

"Hermione! I'm sorry… were we supposed to be going somewhere?"

Hermione let out an amused laugh, "No, Harry. We were just worried about you since Neville and I hadn't heard from you in a while. Neville here suggested we storm the entrance to the shop in some sort of 'brave Viking method' but I managed to convince him otherwise."

Neville blushed red at the mention of his 'brave Viking method' idea and shook his head in mild exasperation.

"Honestly Hermione, I'm not that bad. What are you up to Harry?"

Harry grinned at his two best friends, "Working on a new project. Have you heard about this new 'Muggleborn Regulatory Commission' that was proposed a couple of weeks ago?" Neville and Hermione nodded, "It smacks completely out of the pages of what the Nazis did during the early part of the 1930s and throughout the Second World War. It's disgraceful and insulting. My plan is simple, gather all of the… I can't even use the name 'Muggleborn…' non-magically born and raised and their families for a meet and greet then discuss the Galleon Exchange Plan. The next step… actually this step should be accomplished before the gathering, is to compile a list and location where they could purchase everything their children would need for school supplies in the non-magical world. The next step would be to hand out the list and recommend that if the aristocracy wants to restrict the sale of magical goods then we should just utilize a method in which they have no control."

Hermione could see where this was heading, "I understand Harry. Things are cheaper and easier to find except for some specialized ingredients and equipment in the non-magical world. If like you say, the non-magically born and raised were to suddenly stop purchasing things in Diagon Alley and Hogsmeade, there goes the economy. The aristocracy loses money and can no longer provide goods and services."

Neville looked thoughtful for a moment, as he knew that he was, in part, a member of the aristocracy, "What's the number count for non-magically born and raised versus the aristocracy?"

"About twenty to one." Harry replied.

Neville let out a low whistle, "Wow, that would seriously dent the economy if it were to happen! Then you have the lower income magicals that would also jump on board with this plan. I myself, would of course take part simply because I'm your friend and have no desire to be part of such an evil scheme."

Sirius and Remus came into the shop at the tail end of the conversation having already heard some of Harry's earlier comments over the past two weeks.

"Harry explaining his 'Economic Revolution Plan' to you two?" Asked Sirius, "I think it's a wonderfully Marauder-esque plan. When do you think we ought to begin?"

"It would have to wait until we see if the bill passes first." Remus began, "If it does then that would be the perfect time. The Galleon Exchange Plan would have to be implemented slowly since you don't want the Goblins or the aristocracy getting wind of it and introducing new laws against it."

Harry responded, "Before even that, I need to compile a listing of what and where things can be obtained cheaper and easier in the non-magical world. Problem areas would be things like textbooks. Plus, I want to include Headmistress McGonagall in this plan. She's helped out in so many ways over the past three years, she would be a great asset."

Neville and Hermione volunteered to compile the list of equipment and supplies while Sirius and Remus said they would talk to Minerva about the general scope of the whole thing.

That evening Harry wrote a letter to Headmistress McGonagall.

Dear Headmistress;

I hope that your summer is coming along nicely and wish to inform you of two things. One, my plans and discussion for the upcoming Tournament are progressing at a fair pace. I currently have two artists from each field ready to submit samples of their latest work for final approval as well as writing up seminars to hold open discussion of techniques as we discussed.

Second, it pains me to let you know that the Wizengamot has put forth a bill that would potentially restrict non-magically born and raised even further than they currently do. They are calling it the 'Muggleborn Regulatory Commission.' If you know anything about non-magical history, it smacks right out of the playbook from the Nazis of the Second World War! The bill proposes to force all non-magically born and raised to register themselves by name, background, blood status, etc. According to Lucius Malfoy, it was created to 'track the logistics of materials of who bought what and where.' Baloney!

My request to you is simple, do you know of any families that would be willing to donate old textbooks and equipment to be resold to current and incoming non-magically born and raised students? I'm putting together a list of where tools and equipment can be found cheaper and more readily found in the non-magical world. The most difficult would be textbooks and certain specialized equipment. If the aristocracy want to make it difficult to buy materials from this world, then we will simply take our money elsewhere!

If you have any other questions or would like to talk further about this, as Hermione mentioned that putting the entirety of my plan in this letter would be unwise, feel free to stop by Sirius' house (You know the Floo address?)

Sincerely yours,

Harry Potter

He scanned through the letter once more before putting it in an envelope and sending it off with Hedwig. He then turned back to the compilation list of tools and materials. He glanced briefly at the pen and paper he was using and let out a grunt of amusement. Here was a great way to show off how much easier and cheaper things could be if the magical world were to update its practices.

A box of ten pens and a ream of five hundred sheets of college-ruled paper could be bought for one and a half Galleons versus paying nearly five Galleons for a three-inch roll of parchment! Each pen didn't come saddled with the need to sharpen or be re-inked every so often, was easier to hold and a non-magically born student instinctively knew how to hold one. The lined paper made for neater essays, which would always be a big plus for him! The quills and ink were another burden for those entering the magical world. A decently priced set would set a student and their family back nearly ten Galleons for a single quill and a three ounce bottle of black ink. A box of ten pens in black ink could be bought for the equivalent of twenty-two Knuts!

He shook his head in exasperation. If the aristocracy wanted to restrict goods to the non-magicals then they were going to make them regret their actions. 'Welcome to the First Economic War, my Lords and Ladies. You'll soon realize that it's unwise to underestimate the masses.'