Harry and Sirius turned around and looked at the fireplace. There in the flames, was the head of Arthur Weasley. The man looked like he was contemplating something. The two looked at each other, shrugged and turned back to the fireplace.
"What's up, Arthur?" Sirius asked, making the other man's face jerk up.
"We just finished an Order meeting," Mr. Weasley said, making Sirius scoff at the fact that none that were in Grimmuald Place had been called. "There was a lot discussed, we settled on a few things, but I can't tell you about them," he said, sheepishly, knowing that it was one of the reasons the others had left, and all this secret keeping was making him wary of Albus too.
"Figures," Sirius said, scoffing once more.
"Yes, well," the other man said. "I wanted first to make sure the kids were okay," Arthur said, looking at the man he had entrusted his children too.
"Yeah, they're good. We just finished a meeting ourselves. Don't worry," Sirius said quickly, "the younger kids weren't there, just Bill and the twins. Right now, I'm sure they are all either in bed, or heading to it," he stated with a grin. "Andi is keeping a good eye on them," he finished with a wink.
"Good, good. I'm happy to hear that. They aren't causing you any trouble, are they?" the worried father asked.
"No, they're all good kids," the dogman answered.
"Great, thanks. I'll make sure Molly knows that they are in good hands," Mr. Weasley said with a grin. "Right now, though, Albus asked me to get in touch with you," the redhead said, again looking like he was mulling something over.
"Oh, what does he want?" Black asked, trying to think of any reason the Headmaster would need him, when he made it clear he wasn't going to follow him anymore.
"Well, I must confess, it's Harry he wants to talk to," Arthur stated, glancing at said boy, who just looked confused.
"Me? What does he want from me?" Harry asked, shocked. Well, he could think of many things the old man might want, actually. Like sending him back to the Dursleys. That was not going to happen. Sirius' actions in making him his brother, would cause any plans the Headmaster had to fail.
"He wants Severus to teach you Occlumency," was the shocking answer.
"Oh, oh, I have to do this," Harry said, almost bouncing with excitement, grabbing Sirius' arm, yanking on the man's sleeve and making Arthur give him a queer look. "Come on, Sirius, this is going to be epic," the teen said, pulling his new brother's arm and almost dragging him to the fireplace.
"Settle down, Harry, they're not going anywhere. That and I have to tell Andi I'm leaving. Give me a moment, yeah," the other man said, pulling his arm free. He then called Kreacher and told him to tell Andi where they were going and that he'd be back soon.
With that done, the two went to the fireplace and Flooed to the Burrow. They stepped into the living room. Well, Harry tumbled, but righted himself as soon as he could. He glared at Sirius when the man laughed and looked around the familiar room. There they saw that Albus and Snape were waiting for them.
Arthur went and joined his wife on the other sofa, holding her arm to prevent her from going to the two men. He didn't like the look on her face and wanted to avoid an argument. She gave him a look and then settled to watch. They had had many long talks since they left Head Quarters, and she was put in her place by her husband. Still, she was a middle-aged woman, who had been running a household with an iron fist for an awfully long time. It would take a miracle to change her attitude completely.
"Headmaster," Harry said politely with a curt nod. "Mr. and Mrs. Weasley," he added, also nodding to them. "Snape," he said, trying to be outwardly respectful, but inside he was grinning like a loon. He couldn't wait to see their reaction.
Sirius followed suit, then stood by Harry.
"Harry, my boy, it is so good to see you," the old man said, his eyes twinkling, like always. "I see that living with Sirius has done you some good. I still feel…"
"Albus, not going to happen," was Sirius' immediate rebuttal, accompanied with a hard stare.
"Very well," the old man sighed.
"What did you want from me, Headmaster? Besides, trying to send me back to Durzkaban?" Harry asked, narrowing his eyes at the old man.
"Harry, I hope one day that you will trust me again. I am only looking out for you best interest," Albus stated, his eyes twinkling again.
"We'll see," the boy said, still watching the man's eyes twinkle, without actually looking in them. He wondered about that weird phenomenon. He didn't know anyone else's eyes that sparkled like that. Not even Dudley getting presents.
"Potter," Snape barked, getting up from the sofa he had be sitting on. He stalked towards the teen, stopping a few feet away, when Sirius imposed himself in front of his younger brother. "The Headmaster has decreed that I must teach you Occlumency. Much as I am loath to be around you for any period of time, I do agree that this is a must. You will do as I sa…"
"I'm sorry to interrupt, but I don't need lessons," Harry said, not sorry at all. He hated it when the man went on tirades. "Sirius taught me," he added with a smirk.
"Like this mangy mutt could teach anything," the greasy-haired man sneered, making Sirius glare.
Then that glare turned into to a smirk. "You can test them if you want," Sirius said, winking to Harry, who started choking, like he was holding a laugh.
"Yeah, I think I've got a grip on it. Sure, why not, go ahead," the teen said, after calming down, then looking the Potions Master in the eye.
Not hesitating for a moment, Snape lifted his wand, and snapped off the charm, then delved into Harry's mind.
This time Harry had one xenomorph larger than the rest of them; the others scurrying around like ants. With that larger one, as soon as he felt the intrusion, he had it superimpose itself over the whole of his mind. Making it look like it swallowed the sky. Then the image loomed over the very pale man.
The alien opened its mouth and a tinier head came shooting out. Snape, not expecting that, fell on his arse, and crab walked backwards out of the thing's way. His wand firmly grasped in his hand, but for the life of him, pun intended, he couldn't think of a single spell that would hurt… that. He didn't even think the Killing Curse would be effective.
Then the little head opened its mouth and screeched. The whole of Harry's mind shook with the sound. Snape felt the vibrations in his bones. Like getting hit with an over-powered tickling charm. Terrified, he dropped his wand and actually fainted, making Harry laugh in real life.
Snape was in the brat's mind for merely a second, that felt like hours, and then he woke up on the floor, shaking. Every muscle in his body was tensed in fight or flight mode. It took him a few seconds to realize he was not about to be eaten.
"Severus, are you okay?" Albus asked, as he and Molly helped the shaken man off the floor. "You just fell limp. Did something happen?" the old man asked as they guided Snape back to the sofa.
"I've never seen anything like what is in Potter's mind," Snape said in a shaky voice, rubbing his hand down his sweaty face. "It's is a creature that would terrorize anyone. Even the Dark Lord," he added as an afterthought. "I have no doubt the boy's mind is well protected."
"What creature?" Albus asked, thinking on what the man might have possibly seen that would have rattled him so.
"I have never seen anything more terrifying in my life. And I have come face to face with a werewolf," Snape answered. "I will reiterate, the boy's mind is protected."
"Are you sure?" Dumbledore asked, hoping that wasn't true. While he did need Harry to protect his mind, the insight given to the teen, judging from the few times Harry had dreamed/envisioned the scenes from Tom's eyes, were immeasurable.
Those gave them awareness on what Tom was thinking and doing. He was hoping that Severus could train the boy to block Tom yet see into the other man's mind. If the boy's mind was that well protected, then it was all for naught. Perhaps not, maybe he could still get Harry to spy on Tom.
"Harry, while I'm sure that you have strong protections, perhaps you could still attend these lessons," the old man asked, looking over his glasses with wise eyes.
"Not a bloody chance in hell," Harry said, shaking his head at the obvious ploy.
"Albus, I'm telling you that I can teach him nothing. I can't penetrate even surface memories. If you don't believe me, then check for yourself," Snape snapped, waving to Harry in a curt manner, as if daring the older man too. There was a small part of him that wanted to see what Albus would do when faced with that creature.
"No, I believe you, my boy, but there are still aspects of Occlumency that I'm sure young Harry does not realize," Dumbledore pressed.
"No, I'm not letting Snape get in my mind again," Harry said firmly, though he was still elated on Snape's reaction to his pets.
"Harry, you must realize that this is imperative…"
"No," was the answer, this time harsher.
"Why are you so keen on having Harry taught by Snape?" Sirius asked, both he and Harry still standing by the fireplace. They weren't staying long.
"Alas, it is not something I can reveal right now," Dumbledore said with a sigh. He knew that Sirius was very protective of the teen. He would not put it past the man to keep Harry as far away from Severus as possible. "There are simply some things that must remain secret. Harry is not old enough to understand."
"Then tell me," Sirius demanded, daring the man to say something stupid.
"I do not feel that you are emotionally stable enough," was the answer that they knew was coming. "After your childish behavior these last few days, I do not think that you can be trusted with vital information." The old man was shaking his head, like he was so disappointed in the other man.
"Yeah, that's what I thought. Harry, you done?" the dogman asked, looking at the younger man.
"Oh, yeah, that was great. I never have to worry about this slimy git getting into my mind ever again. Take that as a warning to you too, old man," Harry said, his grin wide enough to split his face. "For all you say you care, the shite that you just spouted makes me think much less of you. So much for gaining my trust," he said with a derisive snort.
"Do not disrespect the Headmaster in my house," Molly shouted. She had been against Sirius coming here, but Albus insisted. For all their talks, she was still upset that Arthur wanted the children to stay at the man's house. And nothing she said would dissuade him.
"Sorry, Mrs. Weasley. I'll wait until he's not here, and then… talk to him," Harry said with a shrug.
"Come on, let's get out of here," Sirius said, grabbing some Floo powder. "Arthur, Molly, Albus, Snape," he said, nodding to each. Then he threw the powder in the fireplace and all but shoved Harry through, calling out the address. He wasn't worried about yelling it out, anyone who didn't know wouldn't hear. It was the nature of the charm to prevent that.
When they emerged, Harry fell to the floor laughing his arse off. He held his stomach and curled into a ball; he was laughing so hard. Tears were pouring down his face as he fought for breath. He couldn't wait until someone did that again. Maybe he'd set up a few different scenarios.
"Come on, chuckles, let's get you to bed. We have a lot to do tomorrow morning. I want to leave when Bill does. After Gringotts, you can come back here. I don't need you at the Ministry. Maybe you can ask Tonks to take you kids to a movie. I'm sure the Weasleys would enjoy that," Sirius said, pulling Harry off the floor, who had finally gotten control over himself.
"That sound good. I didn't think I'd be leaving the house the whole summer," the teen said, still giggling, but starting towards his room. The image of Snape fainting was just too funny.
"Yeah, just make sure you grab some money while we're at the bank. I don't want you stuck in London, or somewhere, without a way back. While I'm sure Tonks can Apparate you guys one at a time, it would be too risky," the other man said, following his brother up the stairs.
"I will," was all Harry said.
They finished the journey to their rooms, and both did their nightly routines, and quickly fell asleep. Harry with a huge grin, remembering what he had done to Snape. The man was sure to have nightmares, unless he took Dreamless Sleep.
The next morning saw everyone at the kitchen table discussing what was going to happen that day. Sirius and Harry took great pleasure on relating what had gone on at the Burrow, which caused almost every to break out in laughter. Harry didn't go into detail about what was in his head, but he did say that it was protected and once the twins taught them the Occlumency they could compare notes.
Then they told the other kids what they had discuss last night, getting approval from everyone seventeen and under, as well as Tonks. The Weasleys were ecstatic about going to muggle London to see a movie. They knew what they were, other muggleborns talked about them all the time, but they had never seen one.
Sirius got up to Floo his lawyer and get some advice. He made sure to tell Harry to get ready to leave in a half an hour. He had planned on calling him last night, but the… request from Albus delayed that.
Ted and Andi got up to go to their jobs, and Tonks stayed with the teens. Remus headed to the library, which Sirius opened to everyone, to see if he could find a different way to kill horcruxes. Not that he didn't trust Bill's way, but more options were better.
Moody decided it was time to face Albus and Snape. Harry had regaled them about what he had done the night before, and Alastor wanted to get the talk out of the way. He really didn't like what those two were up to. There was no good reason for the old man to insist that Harry learn something he already knew.
Sirius finished with his call and came back to the kitchen. Seeing that Harry was ready, he and Bill went to the Floo. Harry followed, dragging his feet. While he wanted to get out of the house, he really didn't want to talk to the goblins. He wasn't even sure why he was tagging along. Sirius was his guardian; he should be handling this.
"Come on, Harry, don't dawdle. We need to go," Sirius said, grabbing his arm and dragging him the rest of the way. "You really do need to be there," he finished, throwing the Floo powder in the flames.
"Fine," Harry said, then called out the address to the Leaky Cauldron and stepped in. He, as usual, came out arse over teakettle. Bill just laughed, and picked him up
"I'm going to get Andi to teach you how to Floo," Sirius said, stepping out of the fireplace.
Harry just grumbled under his breath. Something about it not being his fault.
"Alright, off we go," Sirius said, ignoring the nasty looks he was getting, while Harry paid no attention to the contemplative looks thrown at him. He knew the article would stir things up a bit, and now people were confused about what to believe. He toyed with the thought of doing another one, but other than Riddle being back, he wasn't sure what topic to discuss.
Bill was looking at the two, back at the crowds, and marveling about how they could ignore all the looks directed at them. The three made their way to the bank and were soon climbing the marble step. Other than the looks the trio were receiving, they made it to their destination unmolested.
The goblins at the doors bowed to the group and soon they were inside. Bill broke off from the two and headed to talk to his boss. He really hoped that the goblin could help them. He had brought the vial as proof, with Sirius' permission. He even was giving the go-ahead to tell his boss where it came from.
Making his way to the back of the bank, he came to the correct door, and knocked on it.
"Enter," came the answer from inside.
Bill opened the door and came inside. He made it way to the front of the metal desk and stood at quasi-attention.
"What can I do for you today, Curse-Breaker Weasley?" the goblin asked, setting down his quill. He waved his hand for the man in front of him to take a seat. "I thought you were on light duty until the war was over."
"I am, but I found out something that Gringotts needs to know," Bill said, rubbing his sweaty hands on his pants. Not that he was scared of his boss, but he didn't know how the goblin would react to what he found.
"Oh?" came the inquisitive reply. The still unnamed goblin leaned forward on his desk and folded his hands together.
"Yeah, umm," the redhead replied, pulling the vial out of his pocket. "Horcruxes, as in plural. This is a remnant of one that came out of Harry Potter." He placed the vial on the desk and sat back.
Bill was not completely surprised at his boss's reaction. While he hadn't been sure, he did know they hated soul magic.
The goblin stood up fast enough to knock his chair against the wall. The goblin's face was twisted with a snarl as he glared at the vial on his desk.
"Whose?"
"Voldemort's."
"Why did you bring that evil to the bank?"
"I wanted proof of what I said. Like I said, this is just the leftovers of one. However, judging from the spell on another one we have…," he paused, took a deep breath and, "there's one here at the bank," Bill said as calmly as he could, knowing that the first reaction was going to pale in comparison to this one.
Next came a lot of cursing in gobbledegook, while the goblin threw things around the room. None of them came close to hitting Bill, but the man made sure to sit very still, just in case.
"Sharpclaw," Bill said, holding up his hands to try and calm his boss. "I think that one of the Death Eaters has it in their vault. I know Sirius Black is here, and he can get into any vault belonging to his family. We have a plan to collect all of these… items and destroy them," he said, quickly and calmly.
Sharpclaw came from around his desk and moved to the door. He opened it and started shouting down the hall. A few heads popped out of other offices and one goblin took off running. Sharpclaw shouted some more and a few more goblins shot off the other direction. With that done, Sharpclaw closed the door, with a loud bang, and went back to his chair.
"Even with Black here, we need to talk to Ragnok," the goblin said with a sigh. He shouldn't have exploded like that, but to learn that something so vile was in the bank… Anyway, they knew how to handle cases like these, it just took a bit of work. And lots of paperwork, dammit.
"Okay," was all Bill said, as he settled in a chair.
Meanwhile, Sirius and Harry asked for Harry's account manager, while also asking if the Black manager would join them. They were led to a room, that had a dark wooden table with six chairs. They took two on the right side and waited.
They didn't have to wait long until they were joined by two well-dressed goblins. Each holding a ledger.
"Greetings, Lord Black, Mr. Potter," the first goblin said, sitting across from them with the other goblins. "I am Spikepoint, I will be handling the Potter account. With me is Sliphook, he, of course, will be handling the Black account."
"What happened to my old account manager?" Sirius wanted to know.
"He's dead," was all the answer they got. Truthfully, he had been executed for not getting Sirius a trial. The dead goblin had been taking payments from Malfoy to keep evidence from the Ministry. Among other things.
By doing this, it kept the vault from being used, and if found out then Gringotts could be charged with accessory in Line Theft. No matter what type of stealing was happening, the most goblins abhorred thieves. Sure, every now and then a goblin would do something stupid, but they were usually found out, and their whole family suffered for ages. After all, if they bred one thief, who knows how many untrustworthy goblins came from that clan.
"Okay, so how does my account look? I know it hasn't seen an activity since Grandfather died," Sirius said, pulling the ledger to him, when the goblin waved him to do so. "Wait, what in Merlin's name is this?" he almost shouted, seeing many withdrawals from the last few years.
"It seems your late account manager was giving out… loans," Sliphook said with a wary look. "We will be calling them all in, once you give us the go-ahead."
"Hell yes, I want them called in," Sirius said, still looking over his finances. It wasn't as bad as it could have been, but there was about a quarter of his wealth lent out to Death Eaters. Some as close as a month ago. He closed the book and looked at Sliphook. "With penalties and interest," he stated firmly.
"It will be done," the vicious goblin said, writing a note.
"Now that that's done, I want to write out a will," Lord Black stated, his teeth clenched.
"Right away," the goblin agreed, tapping his long finger on the table, making some parchment appear. "We can write it out here, but you will need your lawyer to validate it," he said, poised to begin writing.
Sirius waved him off and started dictating what he wanted. He made sure that Harry was the primary recipient, while leaving some to the others that he trusted. He made sure that the adoption was well documented in the will, with notations that proof could be found with his lawyer, and a copy in his vault. He would take this and that proof with him when he went to the ministry, where Waters would meet him.
Meanwhile, Harry and Spikepoint were going over his finances. There was nothing unusual in his books, though there had been many attempts over the years for people claiming to be a Potter to get control. There were also quite a few inheritances, that Harry had no idea why. He didn't know these people, so why did they leave him money and house and stuff?
When he asked, it was explained to him that they left it to the Boy-Who-Lived.
"Can you put all that in a separate vault?" Harry asked, making some plans on what to do with that money.
"Not a problem," the goblin said, tapping his finger on the desk and getting the correct forms.
They all went over everything, though Harry did try to protest that he didn't need as much money as Sirius made him withdraw.
"Harry, you are taking six other people out for entertainment, you will need all of that," Sirius said, pushing the bag to the teen. It was full of galleons and pounds. They were standing in the lobby and were drawing a bit of attention, not that either of them cared.
The reason Harry was protesting, was that it had come from Sirius' vault.
After a few minutes of pushing the bag back and forth, Harry finally snatched it and shoved it in his pocket. "Fine," he snapped, glaring at his brother's grin.
At that moment, a goblin came up to Sirius. "Lord Black, you are needed," he said.
"Right, give me a moment," the man said politely then turned back to Harry. "Will you be okay getting back to the house?" he asked, only a tiny bit worried. It was only to the Leaky Cauldron.
Harry rolled his eyes. "Yes," he said, once again glaring at the man.
"Okay, go straight to the Cauldron and Floo home. While I'm sure you will be fine in muggle London, I'm not so sure here. Remember, there have been a lot of rumors about you lately. And… someone is trying to kill you. Make that two someone's," Sirius said, rubbing his goatee, wondering if he should walk Harry to the Floo.
"He can use our Floo," the goblin said, looking at Harry. He didn't want to wait while Lord Black escorted the boy to the pub.
"I can?" Harry said, surprised.
"Yes, so come this way," the goblin all but snarled at being questioned. Then he turned sharply and led the way.
Once Harry was back home, Sirius followed the goblin to where the others were meeting. He got to the room and noted Bill and two goblins. One dressed like an adventurer, the other like royalty. He cautiously made his way to Bill.
"Lord Black, be know to Ragnok, King of the Goblins," Sharpclaw said, bowing to his king.
"Oh, um, greetings, Ragnok," Sirius said, sketching his own bow.
The king waved him off and gestured for him to sit next to Bill. "We only need you to give us permission to search the vaults of all those in your family," the king started, pulling out a parchment. "This is a contract, stating that we will not take anything from the vaults unless it is what we are searching for. I have already sighed it, it needs your signature," he said, pushing the contract to Sirius.
Sirius took it and looked it over. It was a quite simple contract, saying just what Ragnok said it would. Bellatrix's and Narcissa's personal vaults would be searched. If the horcrux wasn't in those vaults, they'd have to come up with another plan. Seeing that there was no fine print, he grabbed a quill and signed it, then pushed it back.
"Good," the king said, then started shouting orders to those outside the door. "We are finished, unless you two have something else to tell us," he said, looking at the two humans.
"No, that's all we needed," Bill said, getting up and bowing, while Sirius copied him.
"We will destroy any of the vile things we find. Good day," the king said in obvious dismissal.
The two wasted no time in leaving, soon they were in the lobby of Gringotts. Then the two men headed out of the bank.
"What are you going to do now?" Sirius asked Bill as they stood at the bottom of the marble stairs. He was glancing around Diagon Alley, and was just smiling at everyone, creeping them out.
"I'm going back to the house. I still have some research to do. You?" the curse-breaker asked, heading towards the Cauldron.
"I'm going to the ministry to raise hell," Sirius answered with his bark-like laugh.
"Have fun," Bill said, chuckling along with him.
"Oh, I will," the dogman said a wicked smile playing over his face.
To that, Bill had no doubt.