Galegold?

The teachers left the Galegold common room discouraged after finishing their talk with Aurelius about how their house would work for the moment. It was decided that they would do the same hours as the Gryffindor students until the number of students increased in the next few years.

Professor McGonagall was envious that Galegold had their own private Quidditch pitch to practice on. Not only was it indoors and incredibly large, but it could also change the weather to practice in all kinds of conditions, from regular to extreme weather like high winds.

Professor Flitwick passed by the Ravenclaw common room and stared at the small library before leaving with a sigh. It wasn't even a tenth of the size of the Galegold Library. It made sense since the Ravenclaw library was everything that was immediately teachable, usable, and actionable, but the Galegold library contained information obtained from all over the world. Granted, not necessarily all of it was worthwhile information and could require translation and experience to apply, but that was part of the joy of being a scholar. Research and development using various forms of information.

Pomona was excited about the gardens and orchards. There was so much surface area to work with and handy tools that automatically took care of the plants according to specifications. I could even adjust details like temperature, light, humidity, and soil content! She then looked at the little plants here and there in the Hufflepuff common room and felt that they were being neglected despite her diligence and care.

Severus looked into his dark lab and narrowed his eyes. The Galegold facilities were much more advanced and organized, and the lab's security measures and automated features were several layers higher. They could save so much labor and time.

Dumbledore left pensive with a new title: the head of the (temporary) Galegold house until he finds a teacher who can take over for a long time and fulfill their duties.

They couldn't give the position to someone like the defense against the dark arts teacher who changes yearly due to the stupid curse placed on the position. 'Damn you, Tom.'

Or a particular divination teacher, who might be scaring the students in the house with continual premonitions of their death. 'Why did I hire her again? Her premonitions are few and far between. So why didn't I pay her for her occasional services? Hmm perhaps Professor Vector? Arithmancy is a necessity for most new developments in spellcraft.'

This year, Aurelius was the only house member, so he was not burdened by it, and Minerva graciously agreed to carry out much of his duties.

Aurelius sighed in relief once everyone had left, and he opened his robes to let out Hermes, who had almost fallen asleep from waiting so long. Seeing the sparkling surroundings and the big silver egg, he got very excited, but he behaved himself. He was a niffler who understood the value of trade, so he had a whole collection to trade for shiny things. Aurelius took the first room he found in the men's dormitory and settled in quickly before changing and going to sleep. He slept comfortably in bed and got up early to go downstairs for breakfast. Then, he remembered that he was at Hogwarts and had to wait for breakfast to be served in the great hall.

Or he could visit the kitchens. He just had to find the picture of the pear and do some tickling. Looking at the clock full of visible gears on the common room wall, he decided to locate the classrooms before getting something to eat. After all, this was Hogwarts, and getting lost on his first day would be the norm. ...One hour later...

"That's all?" Aurelius was perplexed. "Whoever said it's easy to get lost in Hogwarts was an idiot. Granted, I get special privileges from being the heir, but I even tried the normal ways, which isn't rocket science."

Every time Aurelius had a destination in mind, a few steps ahead, some secret passage would reveal itself to him, which turned out to be a shortcut to his goal. Paintings that open, statues that move away, etc.

"Thank you, castle. Hmm, tempus, oh, it's breakfast time. I can grab a snack from the kitchen after breakfast. I guess I'll head down there then."

And sure enough, the big doors were open, and some teachers were eating. Hardly any of the students were awake yet, so his arrival earned a few additional glances of interest.

"A glass of strawberry juice, some whole grain cereal with whole milk, a buttered French muffin, scrambled eggs, and a piece of dark chocolate, please," I request after tapping twice on the table.

A few minutes later, the order was in front of him, and he ate.

The teachers were a little speechless at this preferential treatment. While the food was always varied, delicious, and charming, the house elves in the kitchen often had some fixed dishes, and even the professors accepted the food they offered each day without complaint. Partially, out of consideration for the substantial workload, but asking for something off the menu, so to speak, feels odd.

The only time there was any discrepancy was when some hungry student sneaked into the kitchens, but they always served them something simple to happily satiate them so that nothing goes to waste if it's not all finished. Since when can students request whatever they want to eat?

The professors seemed to forget that house elves are not loyal to Dumbledore but to Hogwarts. And since Aurelius is an heir to a founder and son of the owner, he has more authority in their eyes than the headmaster. So, preparing a special or off-the-charts meal for him was a great honor and pleasure for them.

As Aurelius munched on the soft French muffin, his new owl swept in from the top of the large dining room and approached him with a rolled-up piece of paper in his talons. Aurelius requested a small plate of meat and bread for his owl and began reading the Daily Prophet, which he subscribed to when he went to Diagon Alley to keep up with the trends in the wizarding world.

Sure, the paper was politically controlled and took bribes, not to mention most of it was exaggerations and lies, but he could always glean some useful information between the lines. Also, the headline was interesting.

A NEW HOUSE IS RISING AT HOGWARTS! WHAT IS THE ORIGIN OF GALEGOLD?

Wow, the news has leaked almost as fast as Ron can put food in his mouth. Aurelius suddenly wondered what would have happened if he had been at another wizarding school.

'What if he founded his own school of magic? With a futuristic style! Hogwarts holds the title of the best wizarding school in Britain, which is empty in his opinion when it is the only one in Britain.'

"Hmm, actually, the idea of founding a school might be interesting. His mother founded a school. He can do it, too. But in Britain? The laws and the local Ministry are too terrible, biased, and narrow-minded; I would need to find a nice place for that."

"When summer arrives, I should go to Gringotts to request a blood lineage test and verify the finances and property of the Galegold family. If my memories are correct, I should have a large fortune, among other things, at my disposal. I should also inspect the castle for a few more days, looking for the caches my mother left with some treasures."

"Hello, toad girl." Aurelius looked up from the journal to see the young Gryffindor staring at him with dark bags under her eyes. "A sleepless night? You should probably get the dreamless sleep potion."

'Mmm, that reminds me that I have to check if there was a potion to cure eyesight. If there isn't one, this could have a lot of business potential. After all, I have an excellent potions master to consult, who has a certain potions book with his personal notes in it for students, access to a fully equipped laboratory, and redheaded twins who would be happy to supply him with some ingredients, and an orchard to grow my ingredients in large quantities.'

'Oh, another idea. Games. Perhaps he could turn some muggle games into a magical version to earn more money. For example, I coul-'

"Who is Cyprah Galegold?" Hermione asked, interrupting the other party's thoughts as she sat across from him at the table and stared at him. "I've spent the early morning in the library looking for information on the Galegold family, but there wasn't even a whisper of it in books on Hogwarts history.

"That would be my biological mother. As for finding information on my family, you won't hear a whisper of my family except perhaps about my mother during that time period. I'd be somewhat surprised if it was mentioned. She was big contributor, but she was also out of the castle most of the time." Aurelius replied with a shrug as he took a sip of his juice.

He knocked on the table twice, and another breakfast identical to his appeared in front of Hermione.

"How did you do that?" she asked, pleasantly surprised.

"I'll tell you a secret..." he looked around carefully and leaned into whisper so no one else would hear, "the castle listens, so just ask. It may or may not respond, but it's worth an attempt."

"Umm, can I perhaps get a bowl of diced fruit?" she asked feeling somewhat stupid.

She waited for a few seconds.

"Nothing happened." she said somewhat anxious, but disappointed.

"Give it a minute.", the partial metamorphmagus told her.

Forty seconds later, a bowl of various diced fruits appears in front of her.

Let Hermione discover house elves in her first year? Nope, I'm not opening that can of worms any time soon. Hmm maybe later in the year if she mellows out.