Harry nodded stiffly but said nothing else. Conversing with the man in such a way made him feel very unclean.
Riddle returned the nod and headed for the door.
"I again thank you for your hospitality Lord Black" he stated with a bow. "Gentlemen, please join me in our usual place once you have concluded your business" he instructed firmly.
The three men that had accompanied bowed their compliance and a very thoughtful and angry Tom Riddle exited the house.
He had thought that convincing Arcturus Black would have been very easy but he had not been prepared for the teen in attendance, a foolish mistake on his part but a problem he could not have foreseen.
'I should have prepared for every possibility' he scolded himself before apparating away from Grimmauld Place.
(BREAK)
"Shall we get down to business then?" Malfoy questioned the still shocked room.
Arcturus growled angrily.
"And what if I refuse, or have the wards simply kill you?" he returned threateningly. "Then the life of your granddaughters and son would be forfeit" Malfoy returned smugly. "It is all in the contract that your son has already signed" he pointed out.
Arcturus shot a scathing look at his son who looked a little pale and fearful under the scrutiny he was facing.
"I regret the day that you were born into this world you little shit, I gave you everything and this is how you repay myself and your mother?" he asked rhetorically. "As of today your are not my son, you are a disgrace to this family" he spat.
Pollux shrugged.
"I have done what is best for us" he growled, pointing to himself and his children. "This family has become a joke under your leadership and I am tired of living in your shadow, I can make my own way and I will" he vowed. "Mr. Gaunt will be successful and I will be right up there with him" he declared proudly.
Arcturus simply shook his head at his son and turned to his granddaughters.
"I wish there was something I could do" he said sincerely. "This house will always be open to all of you should you need it and I am sorry it came to this, my wish was for you all to marry a man of your choice and your father has taken that from you, my hands are tied" he finished in defeat.
Harry sighed inwardly at the thoughts he himself was having.
"This is it" he mused. "This is what made Bellatrix and Narcissa what they are" he sighed sadly at the thought of the young blonde becoming what she undoubtedly would.
"I hope you bastards suffer for this" Arcturus ground out to the three men who would now take control of his granddaughters. "Just sign the contract Black" LeStrange demanded.
Arcturus swallowed deeply and picked up the blood quill that had been procured for the signing.
"Wait" Harry interrupted the proceedings, already chiding himself for what he was going to do, but he knew it was the right thing, he knew he had no choice in the matter unless he wanted things to be considerably worse.
"This is not your concern boy" LeStrange spat angrily.
"The buy out clause, what was it again?" Harry inquired.
"1.5 million Galleons and a duel with a champion of their choice" Arcturus sighed.
"But it is too late for that, we took the steps to ensure that it would not be a possibility" Malfoy added. It was Harry's turn to sigh.
"And no one of the name Black, or anyone married into the family can duel?" he inquired. "Exactly" Malfoy confirmed gleefully.
Harry shook his head in disbelief at his own conclusion.
He removed his shrunken trunk from his pocket, resized it and placed it on the table removing several large bags once he had done so.
"1.5 million Galleons" he explained, gesturing to the vast amount of gold. "I'll fight" he finished seriously.
The three men looked nothing short of furious at this unexpected obstacle.
"You are just a boy" Malfoy hissed angrily.
"I have the gold and I said I will do it, you can't change the contract now" Harry returned firmly. Arcturus looked at the boy in complete shock but was clearly proud of him.
"Harry" Dorea cut in weakly. "This isn't a duel that you would have at school" she explained unnecessarily.
"I know" Harry replied simply. "So take your money and piss off" he commanded the three men.
"You stupid boy, you should never have gotten yourself involved in this" Malfoy spat angrily. Harry just shrugged.
"I have a few terms for the duel" he stated. "As is your right" Malfoy conceded reluctantly. "There will be no spectators, it will be only myself and your champion present" he began. Malfoy narrowed his eyes but nodded his agreement. "We will both have only our wands, nothing else" Harry continued.
"Of course" Malfoy agreed.
"And I want two weeks minimum to prepare, along with the name of your champion" Harry concluded.
Malfoy nodded his agreement, though he was clearly not happy by how things were turning out.
"Done" he growled through gritted teeth. LeStrange chuckled darkly.
"It's your funeral Potter, you are only delaying the inevitable" he said confidently.
Harry just shook his head at the man.
"Come gentlemen" Malfoy implored. "We have other things to attend to, Lord Black, until next time" he bade farewell. "The name of your man" Harry stated questioningly as they reached the door.
Malfoy smirked smugly.
"Antonin Dolohov" he answered simply eliciting a gasp from the gathered Black family members before the trio exited the house.
"Harry what have you done?" Dorea choked.
Before Harry could answer he was confronted by an apoplectic Pollux.
"You stupid bastard" he screamed as he prodded the teen firmly in the chest. "You have just ruined all of the hard work I have put in".
Harry ploughed his fist into the man's sternum, grabbed him by the throat and pushed him firmly against the wall.
"No you prick, I just saved your daughters lives" he whispered dangerously. "I promise you now, if you try and do something so fucking idiotic again your father will be the least of your worries, understand?" he asked dangerously.
.
.
.
👓☕️Consider supporting me and enhance your reading experience with the ready-to-read PDFs I have on my Ko-fi.☕️👓
🎯https://ko-fi.com/cmrowling🎯