On the last Saturday of July, inside a spacious courtyard of the Parliament building, the Prime Minister and several ministers stood at a distance on the arcade, silently observing a small, short man suspended in mid-air. The man held a small hammer with a long handle, and everyone's attention was focused on the dark head of the hammer as it slowly approached the crystal bottle.
For days, scientists had tried various methods to study the internal structure of the bottle without breaking it, only to find that direct observation was the most reliable. The more precise the measuring instruments, the more significant the deviations appeared.
Today was the deadline for releasing the landscape within the bottle, and a maintenance worker bravely took on the task of breaking the bottle.
A bead of sweat rolled down his cheek into his neck. The short man stared straight at the ground, estimating the distance. "Stop!" he suddenly shouted, and the rope holding him stopped abruptly, causing him to sway slightly. But his eyes remained fixed on the crystal bottle.
He swallowed nervously, psyching himself up for the task. The bottom of the crystal bottle was fitted with a metal base designed to prevent it from tipping over or any accidents. His only job was to break the outer wall of the bottle, as rehearsed.
The metal hammerhead fell, and a crisp shattering sound silenced the courtyard.
"Pull me back!" the man yelled. He was closest to the action and thus had the clearest view—if you discount the numerous cameras around—seeing spiderweb-like fine lines spreading across the bottle, followed by each line glowing white.
The courtyard's workers snapped to action, quickly pulling on the ropes. The short man was dragged backward, but his gaze remained fixed on the center of the area, where the crystal shards turned into light. Reflected in his pupils was a palm-sized, lifelike garden that began to stretch out. First, soft, tender green grass expanded outwards, faster than his retreat, crossing over his suspended ankles in a blink and landing him on the soft grass as his feet touched the ground.
Saplings sprouted rapidly from near to far, and within seconds, the area turned lush green. A branch hung down, and the man, in a daze, plucked a leaf and stuffed it into his mouth. The fresh sap and bitterness overwhelmed his taste buds, and his eyes widened in shock.
Half a minute later, everything settled into silence.The Prime Minister and ministers approached, joined by a few curious workers. No one stopped them, and all were mesmerized by the golden fountain before them, its babbling sound seemingly flowing into their ears. The fountain's center showcased several ice or crystal sculptures, they weren't sure which, but they felt a faint coolness as they drew closer, and even their breath seemed moistened. Birds flew into the cerulean sky.
In awe, they watched in silence for a moment before the Prime Minister declared, "Let's hold a press conference."
The next morning, Madame Bones, accompanied by representatives from various factions of the wizarding world, including a few humanoid magical creatures, entered the Parliament building. The guards at the door did their best not to show surprise, acting as if half-goblins and centaurs were the norm and not worth a second glance (thankfully, there were no giants in the group). Felix watched them enter before the door closed behind them. Meanwhile, several Muggles hiding nearby suddenly remembered urgent matters, hastily driving home with their banners and shotguns, causing no stir.
A quarter of an hour later, Felix passed through the iron gate, pausing momentarily at the magical fountain before proceeding along the corridor to the left, where a flag fluttered atop the Victoria Tower. Ascending the stone steps, which housed important parliamentary documents, he heard voices echoing.
"Welcome, representatives from the Pan-Magical Alliance's UK branch and the Ministry of Magic, led by Madame Amelia Bones..."
Felix smiled slightly. The Pan-Magical Alliance being mentioned first, and the 'UK branch' in particular, was profoundly significant. Although there was currently only one 'branch,' and not even a hint of a headquarters, that was inconsequential. What mattered was that wizards had a reason to maintain relative independence, free from non-magical governmental control.
Why such complexity? Why promote integration between wizards and non-wizards while ensuring wizards' relative independence? The reasons are manifold, but simply put, wizards would not tolerate being governed by a stronger non-magical authority. Madame Umbridge's proposals, seen by Felix in the Ministry, perhaps inspired by the non-magical world, sought similar control as seen in the Muggle government.
In other words, to the simple societal structure of the wizarding community, every Muggle government is essentially an Umbridge.
The understanding and expectations between wizards and non-wizards regarding rulers are vastly different; forcing them together would inevitably lead to issues. Reaching this stage in less than a month was already smooth sailing. While things seemed to be progressing well, Felix actively
avoided most pitfalls.
Foreseeing potential issues and making early arrangements, Felix waited for the right moment and people to give a nudge, then observed quietly. As long as things didn't veer off course, who did the work was just a detail. This wasn't just Felix's crisis to manage but the entire wizarding world's.
Did Dumbledore publicly do anything during the First Wizarding War? No, he stayed at Hogwarts. But behind the scenes, he founded the Order of the Phoenix to secretly counter Voldemort, preventing him from wreaking havoc in the Ministry. That was sufficient; was he expected to patrol like a regular Auror?
Like Felix, who just averted a potential crisis at the negotiation table, he wouldn't boast about it. He had more important tasks at hand.
As time passed, Felix emerged from a stone chamber, thoughtful.
Yesterday afternoon, the Prime Minister held a press conference, announcing the negotiation schedule and confirming rumors of ancient wizarding ruins on the moon.
The news of wizards landing on the moon fascinated those unfamiliar with magic, akin to stepping into a myth. It was equally astonishing to ordinary wizards—when the news was announced, representatives at the Ministry from various countries eagerly sought confirmation. Madame Bones deflected their inquiries until Felix's successful return from the moon, at which point the information was relayed back to their respective magical governments through observers.
The British wizarding newspapers were the first to be influenced, speaking of the matter in tones of awe. Even Rita Skeeter took a half-day off to publish an enthusiastic article in The Daily Prophet, which Felix Harp found odd, though Ms. Bones was quite pleased. "Public confidence has soared, with firm belief we can overcome this adversity," she declared.
Felix just clicked his tongue, saying nothing. But then, turning true to his Slytherin alumni nature, he gathered the pure-blood family members who had nominally pledged allegiance to him. Felix had almost forgotten about them.
In the early days of the post-war era, these folks were uneasy, unsure of how far the purges would go. Amelia Bones's stance seemed to hint at uprooting some of the more obstinate pure-blood families (though she never intended to do so). At this time, not wanting to become marginalized, Lucius and Selwyn (now dubbed 'Selwyn the Serpent' through rumors for betraying his Death Eater comrades to escape punishment) rallied some of the fallen pure-blood families and proactively offered their loyalty to Felix, who in return promised not to implicate the innocent or punish families, thus stabilizing the volatile situation.
Now was the time to use them.
At Malfoy Manor, Felix met with these individuals. The setting was somewhat awkward since Snape was also pulled into this, sitting in a living room where Death Eater meetings were once held, with Felix in Voldemort's chair, surrounded by dim light and a blazing fireplace, almost as if Voldemort had returned. Some newcomers were so taken aback upon entering that they almost greeted the Dark Lord.
Snape sat right next to Felix, enabling communication through the Pensieve, which led to some secretive exchanges of glances. Thus, Felix learned of Snape's status among the Death Eaters, thinking to himself that Voldemort must have deeply regretted misjudging him.
All in all, the meeting went poorly, with Snape casting wary glances as if fearing Felix would command an assault on the Ministry of Magic. Fortunately, the pure-blood families demonstrated their heritage, hesitating only slightly before presenting contracts signed with other magical races.
These contracts, dating back centuries and still in effect, played a significant role in persuading the non-wizarding magical races within Britain to join the Pan-Magical Alliance.
An interesting episode occurred during the meeting. A pure-blood wizard, tremblingly addressing him as 'Your Excellency,' inquired about the factuality of the moon landing. Upon receiving a positive response, he beamed and suggested establishing a wizarding base on the moon.
"Our cause will be invincible!" he exclaimed, with many echoing his sentiment.
Cause? What cause? Felix was puzzled but seriously considered the proposal. Although relations between wizards and Muggles hadn't deteriorated to the point of retreating to the moon, the idea of a lunar base appealed to him, like the deep chambers beneath the castle at school, an excellent hideout; and the magic required seemed manageable.
Indeed, creating several spaces similar to the ones beneath Mr. Scamander's house, combined with Professor Burbage's plant magic, could sustain tens of thousands of wizards in space for years.
The only requirement was regular maintenance.
But again, the situation hadn't deteriorated to that point, and Felix hoped it never would.
...
Regarding the moon landing, Ms. Bones helped promote it via broadcast in Britain. Those close enough could inquire directly from Felix, but international wizards were left stunned by the news.
Even with Felix's previous miraculous feats, foreign Ministries of Magic remained skeptical. Felix's approach was similar to Dumbledore's in his youth, turning all doubts into firm belief through letters, academic articles, and hosting wizards from all over for discussions, albeit Felix had less time.
Predictably, Felix's focus would shift abroad, facing more complex issues: prime ministers, government officials, public opinion, military deterrence, economic incentives... Many countries' Ministries of Magic hadn't solved these. The International Confederation of Wizards was on the brink of collapse.
The only commendable aspect was the long-standing adherence to the Statute of Secrecy, instinctively keeping the wizarding population hidden, from which Vita Rosier, Felix learned valuable, non-public information. Some situations were more severe than they appeared.
While wizards chose to hide, minor conflicts occurred daily.
Different strategies were required for different environments. Once the negotiation outcomes were known, if successful, ministers from various countries' Ministries of Magic would rush to learn details, marking the beginning of the next phase.
Felix, while browsing through files and archives in the Victoria Tower, confirmed the focal issues for both sides of the negotiations: wizarding autonomy, joint enforcement with Muggles, cooperation between magic and science, trade, and exchanges between civilian organizations...
One file caught his attention.
It was covered in clippings and analysis reports, including letters from Hogwarts students and the latest magical incidents worldwide, such as Grindelwald's movements. Felix blinked in
surprise at finding two somewhat familiar faces:
A girl from Sorbonne who had given him directions in Paris; a pianist with injured fingers. According to the analysis, they seemed to have recognized him, mentioned it to those around them, and were then monitored by government agents.
Felix noted their addresses—they were all in Britain, perhaps to closely encounter magic or simply for tourism? It was indeed bustling recently... But this also reminded Felix of his non-wizard friends, like Jim and Rebecca. It would be best to consult them if he didn't want his identity investigated; he could use magic to conceal the secret.
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