"Naturally, I came for you."
Hela's face flushed slightly. "What are you talking about?"
"Hela, let's not talk about how you met Grindelwald. But please don't interfere in Grindelwald's own affairs. Unless you can save his life the moment he gets killed, please don't meddle."
Hela stared at Garfield with a dark face and asked, "Is that all?"
Garfield nodded. "That's right. That's all."
Hela lowered her head and pointed outside the manor. "I understand. You can leave now."
Garfield glanced at Hela, who had her head down. He sensed that something was wrong with her mood.
He scratched his cat head and asked with concern, "Hela, are you alright? Are you feeling unwell? Should I call my godmother?"
"No need. Just go. Or I'll beat you to a pulp."
With her utterly impatient and irritable demeanor, Garfield decided it was best to leave first. Before leaving, he specifically asked a maid to fetch Frigga.
Garfield opened the portal and left. Hela kept her head down until Frigga approached.
Gently embracing her daughter, Frigga soothed Hela tenderly. "Don't think so much. Men are always busy with their careers. They often don't pay attention to small details."
"As a woman, you need to learn to comfort yourself."
Hela didn't look up. She let Frigga hold her.
✦••┈┈••✦••┈┈••✦
Garfield opened the portal again and returned to the Leaky Cauldron. He greeted the busy Dumbledore, Flitwick, and McGonagall.
Then he told Dumbledore his news. "Old Bee, I've already met with Hela and her mother. The matter is settled."
"As for what she thinks, I can't guarantee. I need to go back first. You all continue with your work. I'll come back in a few days, or around August."
Dumbledore stopped his work. He knew that according to Garfield, he had done his best.
What Hela would do depended on her.
Garfield told Old Tom, "McGonagall and Flitwick will also be treated for free from now on."
"Hogwarts students will enjoy a twenty percent discount. Students who haven't yet enrolled and their families will also get the same discount."
"You are truly generous, my king," Old Tom complimented Garfield.
The moment Garfield opened the portal, he thought of something else. Discounts alone weren't enough. He could do something more.
He reminded Old Tom, "Give those impoverished students an additional grant. Ten Galleons. Increase it by one Galleon every three years, up to a maximum of thirty."
"Yes, my king. You are truly wise."
To hell with wisdom. Garfield was increasingly disgusted with that word.
✦••┈┈••✦••┈┈••✦
Back in New York, Garfield went straight out of his shop and changed the name of his Highclaw and Exorcism Shop once again.
The new name was Highclaw Odd Jobs Shop.
Our main business scope includes gold jewelry, exorcism tools, magic contracts, professional nuclear submarine repair, recycling of used aircraft carriers and space shuttles, nuclear reactor overhaul, missile engine cleaning and oil changes, refueling of unmanned reconnaissance aircraft, space shuttle maintenance and filter changes, annual inspection of space stations in outer space, installation of faster than light engines on various missile models, space satellite surface cleaning for rust removal and dust prevention, wholesale of J 10, F 22, F 35, B 2 bombers, hydrogen bombs, atomic bombs, neutron bombs, DF, Topol, and Minuteman missiles.
We also offer fully intelligent war robots, laser guns, laser swords, proton guns, small anti ship nuclear grenades and nuclear missiles, star destroyers, hyperspace fighters, Death Stars, and Transformers, including Decepticons and Autobots.
We provide atomic colliders and support for capturing antimatter atoms and wormhole repair technology. Bulk discounts and group purchase offers are available. Special items are excluded from flash sales.
We offer a seven day return policy, a fifteen day exchange policy, and a one year warranty. Official invoices available. Guaranteed reputation.
This long string of text wasn't directly displayed. It only appeared after you qualified to enter the store.
What customers wanted depended on their specific needs.
Having settled this, Garfield went back inside. Baima and Queenie were already home. Naturally, they greeted Garfield with loving hugs.
Kisses, hugs, and piggyback rides only exist in novels. Queenie gave Garfield a stern scolding, basically saying he had disappeared again.
Dinner was naturally delicious. The whole family gathered together, enjoying their first dinner in years.
This time, Mary Amister was there, but Godzilla was gone.
The family included Garfield, Queenie, Baima, Lilith, Vivienne, Lin, Izuna, the two bears, and the ninja cat, ninja dog, and slug who resided at the house.
Unlike traditional people living in America, Garfield's family had a very complicated background. Some worshipped the Sage of Six Paths.
Some worshipped Merlin. Some followed the Force.
And Garfield had Odin, the Ancient One, and Death hanging over his head. Not to mention Lilith and Vivienne were now demons under Pandora's control.
Dinner prayers were useless here.
Dinner was lavish, encompassing both Chinese and Western dishes. There was plenty of meat and vegetables.
There was even a whole roasted lamb.
With such a rich variety of dishes, especially considering the modern day bears, ended up wiping their plates clean with bread, leaving them dripping with sauce.
This saved a lot of water used for washing dishes.
After dinner, Queenie used kitchen magic to clean the dishes herself. Then she carried Garfield and pulled Baima along for their usual outdoor walk.
Years had passed since they had last returned.
New York was still the same old mess, incredibly dangerous at night, with gunshots emanating from who knows where.
This was all due to Prohibition. According to legend, Prohibition caused the value of alcohol to multiply several times.
Some wealthy families secretly sold it and made a fortune, giving rise to many legendary tales.
The saying "Gunfights every day in Free America" truly lived up to its name.
Garfield had walked for half an hour, and gunshots had rung out in at least five places.
Their first stop was to find Steve Rogers, America's number one weakling. At this time, Steve Rogers had only been with Garfield for less than two years.
He had spent most of his time being bullied by some bad students at school and lying in a hospital bed receiving IV drips. Bucky, his best friend, was there to help him and stay by his bedside.
Best friends are for life.
Watching Steve and Bucky from the rooftop, Garfield felt this was the life he knew.
On his way home, he saw two dead men and ran into Roy Bauer, the Underworld Police Department's patrol officer. Everything was so ordinary.
The next morning, Garfield decided to go to a certain island nation to retrieve his own gleaming golden brick.