165) Exams and Business
Exams had arrived, and it was evident not only in the classrooms but also in the common rooms.
I knew that, being in Slytherin, I would face discrimination, but it seems that psychological pressure encourages offensive behaviors. Of course, no one dared to confront me directly; I had a loyal group of girls and teenagers who had my back if any student tried anything against me. I earned the appreciation of many, not only with the creation of the lair and the nest but also with the classes I gave. While elitism may prevail in Slytherin, loyalty exists here too.
Many here no longer even paid attention to my last name. In fact, I believe they didn't even consider me a Weasley. Some said that I was the Weasley my family could have been if they hadn't strayed from traditions. It was curious; the girls I helped spread the word, and older girls jumped to my defense when some boy opposed me, although not physically. One thing to acknowledge about Slytherin is that they have a poison tongue.
There were only a few who still openly opposed me; Draco would be one, for example, but he had learned his lesson when Tracy, Pansy, and Millicent showered him with curses that I may or may not have taught them. Anyway, like some others, they only attacked from the shadows with moderately intelligent comments. I ignored them most of the time because of how busy I was, remembering the beginning of this year when I returned insults... I don't know if I should feel nostalgic or embarrassed about it.
Anyway, if we ignore that, the rest is too simple. We had exams, but nothing out of the ordinary. I would even say that in the various classes we have, few pose a genuinely challenging task. Well, maybe it's due to my ability and adult experience that I don't notice the complexity these exams may have for children.
Subject after subject, exam after exam. It was slightly amusing to return to this stressful time but without feeling stressed myself. I think, besides me, the only one who was equally calm was Gemma. Gemma had already set aside her study, feeling it was useless to worry... but we had a way to ensure she didn't fare too badly.
My abilities have many uses, and [Message] was useful for cheating on written exams. Gemma only had to send me the question, and I and my group of clones, locked in the Room of Requirement, surrounded by books, would find it for her if she didn't know it herself. Yes, it was cheating, but I couldn't let my dear sperm sack fail like that.
As for practical subjects, well, that was more challenging to help her with, and all I could do was give her all the food with the effects that I thought would help her before the exam.
The issue of my clones was a problem for the professors, actually. They didn't know if I could use them to cheat, so during my exams, they asked me to bring all the clones into the classroom to make sure. They themselves didn't believe much in this method, but I think they didn't care that much. I was a very capable student, perhaps too much for some. My ability was not something to question, and the professors knew it; I had achieved more in my first year than many other students throughout their time at Hogwarts, so they weren't too strict with me.
Except for me and Gemma, the others were going through the common stress of these exams, but even with that, the professors noticed the anomalies. This year, there was a general improvement within the female student group, especially among the younger years. It was particularly noteworthy, and they couldn't ignore it because, although it's not rare to see some good performances, when they accumulate in such a way in so many different areas, it's time to ask questions.
The girls in general responded truthfully, as it wasn't a secret; the answer was me. The professors learned about my classes and contributions to studying, to the point that more than one took their time to call me in personally and ask me what I expected for my future, if I was interested in teaching and such. I even received an invitation to be a teaching assistant to gain experience and lay the foundation for my path as a professor... I responded with a resounding no. No school would pay enough for me to become a teacher. I've suffered those days, and although I like to teach and help, I don't like it taking up my entire schedule, so I politely rejected their wishes. I'm the kind of teacher who shows up once a week.
Many professors were disappointed and kept insisting; they had high expectations for me, well, more than before. Despite that, there were also professors who didn't even bother to look at me a second time, or rather, one professor. For some reason, Snape hasn't stopped giving me a nasty look lately. It feels like he's about to remember something at any moment and looks at me with murderous intentions. It's not like I fucked his mother... oh, wait...
Anyway, everything ended after several exams, with History of Magic being the last one. Now there was only one week left until the results were known.
...
Right now, I was sitting on my bed, with Gemma lying next to me, giving me a blowjob. She was focused on her task while I enjoyed it and contemplated the actions of my clones in different areas.
One of them was Tenebrius, who, along with Tonks, who had more or less forgiven me, was negotiating the purchase of a property between Diagon Alley and Knockturn Alley. Andromeda was also with us; we invited her to get her out of the house, as she had isolated herself from the outside world lately. Plus, her opinion might be useful in this.
She was curious about why we wanted to buy this place, as it didn't have the structure of a house but rather a large store. Well, for a wizard, that wasn't a significant problem, but it still seemed odd to her, at least until we explained that this wouldn't be the purchase of a residence but the future location of our business, our venture.
Andromeda was surprised by it because she didn't know much about our plans regarding it, but she also accepted it easily after recalling our situation. She knew that by eliminating her husband's killers, I had ruined my reputation and the achievements I had gained. I had lost even my Order of Merlin; it would be impossible for me or her daughter to become Aurors again, and we would have to find another source of income. She felt terrible about it; she didn't blame me for what happened, but she did feel guilty for the consequences caused by avenging her husband's death.
She became sentimental and even offered to pay for the place as a wedding gift, probably using her savings. I quickly rejected it, preventing her from taking the smallest Knut, repeating that I had enough money for this and to support our family, including her. Andromeda knew I had some wealth, as she always saw a bit of it, but she never knew where it came from, so she believed it was a family inheritance. She saw me firm, and she gave up wanting to pay for the place, but she told that she would be a good mother-in-law and would help in any way she could, especially by allowing Tonks to work freely without having to think about their future children... she would take care of them. In reality, we saw it as a kind of hint; perhaps loneliness had fostered her desire to be a grandmother. Tonks had to embarrass herself and come to my side to hit me a bit and take out her frustration for something she knew wasn't my fault, but she would blame me anyway.
Speaking of money, I was also managing my income. The Room of Requirement was empty; yes, I sold everything I had, which was a good income, but now that source of income was exhausted, and I couldn't get more from there. In a way, I knew it was temporary and would only work at the beginning; selling lost items provided income, but it was never very high.
My other sources of income were the werewolves, but they weren't a stable source, especially at this moment. Yes, the income was constant, but there weren't always prey to hunt. Lupin and his people had to investigate places to find prey, make sure not to cause problems, go there, and almost clear the place, only to start again. There were periods where they barely found any creatures, but others where they hunted tons and filled my pockets.
The werewolves felt very good about this job; they had good pay, could work discreetly without being pointed out, and could afford the Wolfsbane potions that were previously a problem. Many were grateful and worked harmoniously, but some weeds also appeared. Lupin informed me that some of the werewolves were not satisfied with the deal. They knew about the merchant and believed that the part they received was too little when I did nothing. They planned to stop working for me and start their own business with the merchant, not realizing that it was impossible. Remus opposed them, being loyal to those who helped him, and I didn't mistreat them either; I didn't force them to do anything. After failing to convince them, he kicked that scum out of the group.
After being expelled, they persisted with the idea of stealing the business, but soon realized they couldn't. Although they knew where Lupin went to sell the merchandise, they never found the merchant. They even followed Lupin several times, but they were still unable to make contact with the merchant. So, they tried to return to the business, but it was no longer possible; no one trusted them anymore.
In the end, it resulted in those idiots attacking Lupin and triggering a battle. Unfortunately, Lupin used to go alone to deliveries and was at a disadvantage, but he was still a great wizard who knew how to defend himself. Remus ended up badly injured, but still managed to drive away the rebellious werewolves for the time being. When this was revealed, many were angry, including Tonks and me. We sent Lupin to St. Mungo's to recover while leaving the operations to his second in command, a man in his late 40s, bearded and robust.
Some knew about the rogues in the group, so we had information about the situation. There was a possibility that these rebellious werewolves would cause problems again, possibly join Fenrir Greyback and attack us again. I even suspected that they would reveal the operations of our werewolf group to the ministry, something we tried to avoid, so things changed a bit. I ordered that the group could no longer act individually, not even for meetings with the merchant, something Lupin's situation taught us. They would also change their work areas; working here was no longer safe for the aforementioned reasons. Perhaps moving to another country wouldn't be a bad idea; anyway, few werewolves were so attached to this place due to their condition, and if they could continue living as well as now, few would resist the change.
So, I had another source of income reduced to some extent, leaving the production of the [Feudo] itself as a secure income. The farms produced consistently without problems or repercussions, making them reliable. I had to contemplate whether I should spend my current funds on building more or save them for emergencies. I also considered trying to resume my deal with the centaurs at this time; it would be good since with the merchant, the more you sell of the same product, the less you get. At least this way, I would have more variety for sale.
Enjoying Gemma's blowjob, I thought I should try to focus on high-income sources, not things like the Room of Requirement. Andra could reopen her brothel; it's a good attraction for nobles if done well and also a good source of information. I could also negotiate with the goblins, but it's dangerous if I attract their attention... maybe my idea of establishing a buying-selling circuit between the merchant and businesses worldwide isn't so bad; I would keep the benefits of that exchange, but it would require a lot of trustworthy people... maybe Eileen... Andromeda...?
I kept thinking like that until something happened, and no, I didn't climax; it was something else; it was Hermione looking for me or at least one of my clones.