Barchoke seemed to ponder that last bit.
"So you're saying I can be Harry to my friends and Harold to everyone else."
"It's about the same as saying Harry Potter or Mr. Potter," Lichfield said. "It all depends on mood and context, and how you want them to think of you."
"I gathered that part," he said.
"We do do that, don't we?" Barchoke remarked. "I never realized that before."
"It's the benefits of an outsider's perspective," Lichfield remarked.
"No wonder I was like that when we first came in here," Barchoke remarked to himself.
"What were you like before I got here?" Lester asked.
"I don't want you to make fun of me," the goblin said.
"I always make fun of you-."
Harry tuned them out and continued to write.
'I, Harold James Potter, do hereby Seal my Account with blood and magic.'
Harry sat back and looked at the vellum. Nothing happened. Part of him had been expecting fireworks, or trumpets, or for it to be whisked away in a puff of smoke - instead all he heard was-
"I'm lucky you don't carry me down the hall wearing a bonnet!"
"What?" Harry asked.
For the first time today both adults blushed. They had obviously forgotten he was there.
"Nothing, nothing," Barchoke said with a wave as he tried to put that particular outburst behind him. "Now you seal it with magic."
"But I can't do that," Harry said. "I thought you did. I can't do magic outside of Hogwarts."
The Overseer looked at Lichfield like Harry had just said he wanted to grow up to be the dancing purple dinosaur.
"There was an anti-muggle panic back in the late 40's. Everyone went mad thinking they'd drop Atopic Bombs on us."
"You mean atomic bombs?" Harry corrected.
"Why, what do they do?" Lichfield asked evenly.
"They blow up a city the size of London in about half a second."
Barchoke and the Litigator shared a look, as if wondering why anyone would be mad enough to make such a thing in the first place.
"And here was me wondering what the big deal was about a little bit of skin rash," Lichfield deadpanned. "Now I'm glad they passed those laws. Not that you could really enforce them."
Barchoke still looked lost, anything not banking related obviously not his forte.
"They set up a Trace program and a magical detection web," the warlock said. "The I.C.W. had been pushing hard for it for years. Then they tagged every underage witch and wizard up and down the country. Now they tag kids when they're born in our world or when they first use magic in theirs."
"I don't remember that happening," Harry said.
"Maybe because you were born in our world," Lichfield reminded him. "If you were born in on the muggle side they may have done it while you were at school, or they could have just Obliviated you, I suppose. They would've approached your family around then, to let them know about the wizarding world and what to expect in the future. The idea was to give the parents several years to get used to the idea of their kids being magical before telling the kids themselves."
"So this Trace actively stops him from doing magic?" Barchoke asked.
"No, it's just a convoluted baby minder," Lichfield continued. "Any magic goes off around him while he's underage and the Ministry will be made aware of it. If he's a Hogwarts student and not in a recognized wizarding area they'll assume he did it and send him a warning."
"So what's the hold up?" Barchoke asked. "He's in Gringotts Bank, in the middle of Diagon Alley, with a goblin and a wizard with one foot in the grave. Even if they thought it iffy there's more than enough reasonable doubt to get him out of any official sanction. You've done magic around him so if they were going to come after him they'd be beating the door down already!"
"Exactly," Lichfield agreed. "You're fine, Harry. Don't worry. There should be an exception for cases like this for it to square with the older banking laws, but even if there's not, this would just serve as a case to establish it anyway. As long as there are other wizarding people around you, especially if one's of age, or if you're in a wizarding home for example, then you're in the clear. They tell you you can't do it but what they mean is they don't want you to."
"Did you just tell him it's fine to do something illegal?" the Overseer asked, eyes momentarily hardening.
.....
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