The Will of Gil (Gilderoy Lockhart SI)

"Wow, way to hurt my feelings, Andromeda. I was just trying to be nice and friendly, keeping our employer and employee relationship healthy, Andromeda. Androm- you know what, your name is too big, and I can't keep saying it all the time? Do you have a nickname or something?" I question because, honestly, her name is nine letters long, and I can't stop thinking sci-fi thoughts when I hear it. Set course for the Andromeda Galaxy, phasers to thrust or whatever. That is the wrong setting; we are in a fantasy world.

"Haah... yeah, I do. It is Dromeda." Andromeda sighs but relents and answers my question. She has been under my jurisdiction for the last few days, and she has been all business, with no time for fun or games, which is boring for me as well. So I decided to try and break that professional mask of hers, so I began just being very annoying in general and trying to tease her. I don't really have much to do here after all, and I have to get my kicks somehow.

"Andromeda? How is that your nickname? A nickname is supposed to be something short you call someone, so you can save time and so you can be in the nick of time for something else, hence, a nickname. Whoever gave you this nickname only knocked off a single letter. They must be pretty stupid." Honestly, there are way better options, Drom, Meda, Med, And, and Romeda.

"That would be my husband." She says dryly, her face still a picture of perfect calm. I kind of stuck my foot in my mouth just then, but who cares? We are locked into a contract now, and she won't be escaping me that easily. So I can act however I want, and she can't leave. What a nice feeling, such a sense of freedom. Is this why people get married and lock it down?

"Well, he must not be the sharpest tool in the shed then. But he must be doing something right if he managed to bag a stone-cold beauty like you. What was it? Is he strong and muscular? Is he rich? Does he have a big-"

"Let's get on with our first order of business. The possible investments we can do, and if we should." She interrupts me before I can finish that last one and tries to move on to actual business. I have been flirting and hitting on her lately since she is already locked in and can't run away, and I need to work on my own skills, and she makes for a pretty good whetstone to build up my own confidence. She mostly ignores my flirting, and I don't really go too far, and I don't push into creepy territory, so she hasn't complained about it yet.

Since her husband was mentioned, I decided to take a few digs at the lucky bastard and try and get Andromeda to break character, which she does. Surprisingly though, it wasn't so she could rush to defend her husband or anything, but when I was about to talk about genitals that she interrupted me. So I guess talking about genitals in the workplace is taking it too far, man am I glad there are no such laws for workplace harassment in the wizarding world.

"Right, so... What do we have today, Andi." Of course, I am expecting a lot since she always goes above and beyond, the hardworking woman that she is. I don't know why but Andromeda came into this job full of zeal and put forth all of her effort to get results. I was honestly a little surprised, I was fully expecting to maybe have to do some slight manipulations and deceptions to motivate her, but it was unneeded.

"Andi?" She questions, and I take a moment to look at her confusedly before my own brain catches up with my mouth and I realise what I said. My mouth did the work before my brain did and gave her a nickname, so I don't have to keep saying Andromeda. So I can call her Andi from now on, and this way, if there is ever a moment I need to express how serious I am with her, I can use her full name. I need that kind of leverage as her lazy boss.

"Yeah, don't get me wrong, Dromeda is a nice name because it belongs to a beautiful woman like you. But I prefer Andi, short and sweet. Do you like it, or do you have a problem with it? Either way, I am going to use it. It makes my life easier." I say, confirming the nickname. Andi will henceforth be referred to as Andi because I can't be bothered to keep saying the full name. I can only imagine how annoyed I would be if I had to write her name repeatedly as well.

"It is fine. Now, I went and investigated all the businesses we could invest in, and right now, we are only going to be capable of getting scraps. Large chunks of the various big and profitable businesses are all bought up and owned by the many pure-blood families, with the Malfoys having healthy chunks in most of them. Right now, we are able to buy up the tiny pieces of the business that people like the Malfoys won't buy since they are so little, plus the current owners of those small shares are selling them for an exorbitant amount." She informs, righting the glasses on her face and taking a seat in front of my desk.

"Alright, yes. But, did you do what I asked you to?" I already expected this sort of situation since the purebloods already have a monopoly on the entire wizarding world, and all that is left is scraps. However, there are no absolutes in this world, so I had to check, and even if they do have a tight grasp on these businesses now, that doesn't mean they will forever. Right now, I am more focused on the task I gave Andi.

"Right, I took a look at the broom industry like you wanted me to. There are currently several companies, including the Cleansweep Broom Company, the Comet Trading Company, Flyte and Barker and the Nimbus Racing Broom Company. " I nod, gesturing for her to continue on.

"The Cleansweep Broom Company was formed by Bob, Bill and Barnaby Ollerton in 1926 when they made their first model, the Cleansweep One, which was produced in large quantities and was an instant hit. They have stayed strong through the years, and they have just recently created the Cleansweep Ten. Then we have the Comet Trading Company, which was formed by Randolph Keitch and Basil Horton in 1929 when they made the Comet 140, and their latest broom is the Comet 260." She says, informing me of the current competition if I were to enter this market, no doubt trying to dissuade me from it since it was already so saturated. However, I have the gift of knowledge, and I know there is an opening in the broom market. I just need to find it.

"Yes, interesting as that may be, are there any opportunities. We are looking to expand and to make more money. Remember, this doesn't just benefit me. The more we make a year, the more you earn." I needed some kind of incentive more than just a stable wage every year, so I made it so that aside from her salary, she gets paid five percent of our yearly profit at the end of the year. It should be good motivation for her to try and gain us a lot of Galleons.

"I believe that we can only make the correct decision and investment with the proper information, so shut up and listen and then you can make an informed decision. Now, these were the foremost broom companies along with Universal Broom Ltd until 1967, when the Nimbus Racing Broom Company was founded. It was created by Devlin Whitehorn, and the arrival of the Nimbus 1000 galvanised the racing broom market with its revolutionary design. Ever since then, the market has been dominated by Nimbus, and if we were to get involved, then they would be our main competition, and Devlin Whitehorn is known to be a ruthless businessman with a mean streak." Yes, the Nimbus was the ultimate broom and the first broom Harry Potter ever got, but he soon got a better one, didn't he.

"Yes, I know. But no matter what industry we enter, we are always going to be picking fights with guys bigger than us. So we might as well go in with full force and ready for a fight. So, what are our options?" With the background information given and our number one competitor outlined, it is now time to decide where we will invest and begin our point of attack to eventually corner the market.

"Right now, we have the option of buying tiny shares in the Cleansweep Broom Company and the Comet Trading Company. However, the Nimbus Racing Broom Company is not selling since the shares are predominantly under Devlin Whitehorn, and the rest are in the hands of people he trusts. I do not recommend buying into these companies, they are not worth the amount that is being asked, and we honestly wouldn't be earning much with such a tiny portion of the pie." Well, investing in those companies wasn't my goal in the first place. Why only have a single piece of the pie when you can own it all and then eat it too.

"Is there anything we can buy fully, or at least get a healthy portion of? And what about individuals we can invest in? I told you to search for any competent broom makers that might be looking to strike out on their own and make their own new broom." I am looking for a specific name, not the name of a man but the name of the broom. If I can find that broom, then I can make a successful broom company, but I have to find it this year, or the opportunity will pass me by.

"Well, we do have Universal Brooms Ltd, Ellerby and Spudmore and Flyte and Bark that are looking for investment or complete purchase, but there are problems with both. And several individuals have come forth hoping for sponsorship so they can develop their new broom designs. However, idiots are a dime a dozen, and it would be a hard press to find someone with a viable design." So, hmm, three different broom companies are either looking for investment or are being sold entirely. No doubt they each have their problems, but working with a foundation will be helpful and save me a lot of stress in the long run when I finally find exactly what I am looking for.

"Tell me about these three companies, and what are our options? Also, which do you think is the best opportunity?" I ask, wanting her opinion. To be honest, I want to get to the point where I can trust in her abilities and judgement enough that I can stop paying so much attention here and return to my studies. I may have done all of the Hogwarts curricula, but there are many more esoteric magics out there that are waiting to be learnt, and I can still improve.

"First of all, Universal Brooms Ltd is no longer a functioning business. They used to be popular with their Shooting Star broom, which they released in 1955, but since then, they have had nothing but losses and eventually went out of business in 1978. However, while most of their properties and buildings have been bought out, one factory is still held that hasn't been bought due to superstition since there is apparently a poltergeist there." She pauses here. A poltergeist, huh? Don't think I have ever heard of one other than Peeves.

"Then there is Flyte and Bark, and while this company is still in business, it is arguably the most dangerous possible venture and most recent. This company was just established last year by a bunch of pureblood rich guys who have more money than sense, and they created the Twigger 90 broom to rival the Nimbus Broom Company. But they got quite lax with the safety and focused on making it better than the Nimbus. Because of that, the broom is very expensive and also has an unfortunate tendency to warp uncontrollably. They have lost a lot of money on this and are looking for investors. Unfortunately, I think they are trying to sell it off and make it someone else's problem." Hmm, a broom that can warp, but it is not a controllable factor, and it is too expensive. Not something I can use right now, but maybe in the future, when I have the cash to waste, I can buy in and try to improve upon it.

"Okay, now tell me about Ellerby and Spudmore." The previous two companies had significant issues, such as one being shut down and the other having serious expenditure problems. So I wonder what is wrong with Ellerby and Spudmore.

"Well, I say a company, but that isn't really accurate. They have no holdings, no products and no properties. It is basically just a single man holding onto the company name."

"...What?"

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