NOVEL NEXT Chapter 4: Wizarding Heritage
"Okay, that makes sense. I would offer you to come inside, Professor, but Petunia is there, and I am pretty sure she will throw a fit if a witch would come into her house. Witch is the correct term, is it? Or are female magicals called sorceresses?" Harry asked.
"No, witch is the correct term, and males are called wizards. Sorcerers and Sorceresses are a classification of how powerful a witch or wizard is," she explained, a mild curiosity arising from his use of Petunia's first name.
"I have an idea of how to give you a better impression of the wizarding world, so you can make your decision easier, Mr. Potter. There is a shopping district in London; it's called Diagon Alley. We could go there now. I will explain the things you are wondering about and get you some material to read," she suggested.
"How would I pay for that? You can be sure the Dursleys will never pay for anything like that. And how would we get there, Professor?" he asked, a hint of suspicion in his voice.
"Well, there is a traveling method called apparition that is taught to witches and wizards shortly before they become of age, which means seventeen years old. For younger witches and wizards, there are two methods. One is traveling by the Floo Network, a system of connected fireplaces where you state your destination and use Floo powder to activate the transport."
"The other is the Knight Bus. It can be called to every place as long as it is on land in England or Scotland. To call it, you just have to hold out your wand hand. For long-distance travel, like when you wanted to go to another country, you would have to get a portkey. They are charmed objects set on a specific destination, and when they activate, they will take you there instantly."
"Regarding your question about how to pay for this, well, you inherited the Potter estate from your parents. It will be held in trust until you come of age. For your school needs, there is a trust fund in your name at Gringotts, the wizarding bank," Professor McGonagall explained.
"Wait a moment, Professor McGonagall. The Potter estate? My parents were well-to-do? How come the Dursleys always complained then about me costing too much of their hard-earned money?" Harry interrupted.
"Of course they were. The Potters are one of the oldest wizarding families in England. You would have to ask your account manager at Gringotts if there had been transitions to your relatives for your care," Professor McGonagall answered.
Harry pondered the information. It seemed like his family held some influence in the wizarding society. He needed to find out more, especially about the exact amount of money at his disposal. He also wanted to investigate how his estate had been managed over the past ten years since his parents had died and learn more about their untimely demise. A drunken car crash seemed more improbable than ever.
"Okay, just let me clean my hands, then I will come," Harry said.
"Allow me, Mr. Potter," Professor McGonagall said, pointing her wand at his hands. "Scourgify," she uttered, and the dirt disappeared.
"That's a neat trick, Professor," Harry remarked.
"Thank you, Mr. Potter. Now, we will take the Knight Bus, as it is the method of traveling you will most likely use more often than others, as your home is not connected to the Floo network," she explained.
"That place is not my home. My seat of residence perhaps, but it has never been my home," Harry declared icily.
Professor McGonagall looked at him, wondering, then raised her wand, and another loud crack sounded. A purple triple-decker bus stopped in front of them.
"Hello, welcome to the Knight Bus, emergency…" a young man with pimples started saying.
"Stop it, Mr. Shunpike, we don't have much time," Professor McGonagall said.
"Ah, hello, Professor McGonagall. Escorting another Muggle-born to Diagon again?" the young man asked.
"Yes. Twice to Diagon Alley, please," Professor McGonagall said.
"One galleon and five sickles, Pr'fessor," he replied. Professor McGonagall handed over one gold coin and five silver coins.
'So the gold one is a galleon and the silver ones are called sickles.
This means the wizarding world has its own currency and probably an economic system. I need to find out as much as possible about this.
The power of each society always lies where the money is,' Harry thought.
Professor McGonagall led Harry upstairs and warned him that the ride wouldn't be very pleasant.
Then the bus lurched forward, and Harry understood the warning. The chair he had sat down on was thrown back by the rapid acceleration.
"Professor, I have a question. You said the Potters were an old wizarding family. Why was I raised by the Dursleys? Weren't there wizarding relatives that could have taken me in?" Harry asked.
"No, sadly not. Your father James was a single child, born late into the marriage of your grandparents Charlus and Dorea Potter.
Your mother Lily was a muggle-born witch, your aunt Petunia's sister.
Additionally, there was … a really bad civil war going on during the time you were born.
Many people died in the war. Your parents fought against the leader of the dark faction that wanted to rule over magical Britain and thought that people without magical heritage, like your mother, were not worthy to learn magic.
He was very powerful, and even today, people fear saying his name. Things were really bad until he was defeated on Halloween 1981.