Soul Searching/End Game
SS Chapter 5 - A Visit to Gringotts
By Chem Prof
Sirius’s will has been done in innumerable fanfics. Mine is not modeled after any of them, and I think I have managed to give it a slightly different twist. The goblins being friendly toward Harry is also common in fanfics, and again I hope I have come up with something unique. At least, it was relatively unique when it was first written!
Chapter 5, A Visit to Gringotts
Friday, June 20
“Harry, you look like a Malfoy!” Hermione giggled. Harry, who had been looking in the mirror in shock, managed an offended look before breaking into laughter himself. The two of them were trying out the hair coloring Emma had bought them and were just now seeing the results. Harry could not believe the difference in his appearance. While his hair wasn’t really as blonde as Malfoy’s, it was much lighter.
This, combined with his lack of glasses, and with his scar covered by the stage makeup Emma had obtained from her friend, he wasn’t sure he could even recognize himself. And Hermione … “And you look like Hannah Abbott,” he returned. The Hufflepuff girl in their year had beautiful waist length wavy blonde hair.
“You think so?” Hermione asked eagerly. In addition to the blonde coloring she had used a healthy amount of Sleakeasy potion. Since her hair was lighter than Harry’s to start with, her hair was even blonder now that his was. “Her hair is gorgeous!”
“So’s yours.” Harry replied. He was rewarded by a brilliant smile and a kiss on the cheek.
As Harry looked back into the mirror, he reflected that he and Hermione had changed in more than just their physical appearance. He had heard Hermione laugh more this past week than he normally did in an entire year. Whether it was just being home with her family and away from the pressures of studying or something else, she seemed to be a happier person. He liked her this way. He had also noticed that he was responding to this more cheerful Hermione and was laughing more himself.
-ooOoo-
The week had not gone exactly as planned, but they had accomplished most of their goals. At Harry’s eye-doctor appointment Tuesday the doctor had suggested laser corrective surgery. The permanence of such a solution appealed to Harry, so they had done the surgery Wednesday. Although the normal recovery period required no strenuous activities for 4 weeks (they assumed dueling would be considered strenuous!), a quick message to Madame Pomfrey via Dobby brought Harry a potion that had him as good as new by Friday. Hence they had postponed their lessons with Remus and Tonks until this afternoon.
Dan and Emma had made all their arrangements and would be leaving for Canada the following Saturday. While Harry had been having the eye surgery and recovering, Hermione and Emma had gone with the realtor to visit houses, and had picked out a nice one in Berkshire County, roughly equal distance from the Grangers in Oxfordshire and the Dursleys in Surrey. Once they had their disguises worked out she was going to dual apparate him over to see it and sign the final papers this morning. Emma would drive and meet them there. Once he knew exactly where it was he would be able to apparate to and from it himself.
Hermione had initially been reluctant for him to apparate alone since he didn’t have his license yet, but when he pointed out that he had successfully apparated Professor Dumbledore and himself from the cave to Hogsmeade, she had to admit that it was probably OK. That had lead to an eye-opening conversation about underage magic.
When Hermione had questioned how Harry was going to learn spells from Remus and practice dueling with Tonks without getting a notice from the Improper Use of Magic Office he had casually told her what he had learned from Dumbledore. The Department could detect spells when they were cast but not who cast them. If there was known to be an adult witch or wizard at the location where the spell was cast it was assumed to be OK.
Hermione had immediately realized the implications of this which Harry had not. The only underage witches and wizards who were being monitered were muggleborns! To Hermione this was yet another example of discrimination in the wizarding world against muggleborns.
Harry had to agree. It would certainly have been advantageous to be able to practice spells at home. He imagined that most wizarding families would let their children practice spells under their supervision, and also that most wizarding children managed to learn spells on their own. How else could you explain Ginny’s proficiency with a bat bogey hex or Fred and George’s wide knowledge of joke spells before they were of age?
And purebloods who supported Voldemort could teach their children dark spells, while muggleborns who were their main targets couldn’t learn to defend themselves. After about ten minutes of listening to Hermione rant about this injustice, Harry managed to assure her that he agreed with her, and without much effort was able to convince her that he could ignore the restriction from now on.
Yesterday they had successfully apparated into Fred and George’s back room and enjoyed some time catching up with them and Ron. Winky was working out well at the Weasley’s after some initial conflict in the kitchen. She and Molly had eventually worked out who would do what, and Molly was gradually letting her take over more and more tasks as she saw how good Winky was at running a household.
As Harry had hoped, this had freed up Ron to spend his days at Weasley Wizarding Wheezes and elsewhere in Diagon Alley, where he was gathering information as well as identifying items that would be useful when they started their search. Ron’s eyes lit up when Harry told him his budget was unlimited and to buy whatever he thought they needed.
Fred and George had come back when the shop was empty to tell them they had figured out the charm for the mirrors, and just needed a couple drops of blood from Harry, Hermione, and Ron. The twins did James and Sirius one better by making these mirrors three-way. Harry would be able to call either Hermione or Ron on his and the others could do the same.
-ooOoo-
Harry finally finished the stage makeup with Emma’s help, and was happy to see that his scar was now completely invisible. Harry now had blonde hair, no scar, and no glasses while Hermione now had straight, slightly wavy blonde hair and wore glasses. Emma took them to the house they rented and they filled out the paperwork.
Jack and Jane Farmer, fresh out of school and newly married, now had a house which was generously being provided by the bride’s well-to-do parents. Harry quickly realized that he needed to get a driver’s license to be a muggle, but fortunately Hermione had hers and they put everything in her name. At the questioning look from the rental agent, Hermione smoothly explained that she went by her middle name (who wouldn’t with a first name like Hermione?) and that she hadn’t had a chance to get her license changed to her married name yet.
The house was perfect for them. Hermione had narrowed the choices down to one on Turnbull Court and one on Sunset Lane, but picked the one on Turnbull Court because it seemed more ‘realistic’, as she put it. Emma assured them that she would pick out furniture and have it delivered the next week, so that it would be ready for them by the time she and Dan left for Canada.
It had a spacious family room with a fireplace and lots of built in bookshelves. (Harry gave Hermione a smirk when her eyes lit up upon the revelation of this feature. She responded with a punch to his arm.) Directly adjacent was a well-equipped kitchen that had room for a table and chairs. There were three bedrooms and a den that could be furnished with a desk and a convertible sofa. Harry envisioned one wall of the living room with a large map on it, and asked Emma to see if she could find one.
There was no yard to speak of, but they planned on spending as little time outside as possible. After some thought, they decided that when they moved in they would take evening walks around the neighborhood holding hands and shop at the nearby market together a few times to establish their presence as young newlyweds who mostly kept to themselves.
From the living room Harry and Hermione apparated to the Granger garden, then apparated back. Emma just shook her head as the two disappeared with a soft pop then reappeared ten seconds later. They all decided to go out for lunch to celebrate before going back to the Grangers.
-ooOoo-
Remus and Tonks arrived at 1:00, but their plans for the afternoon were derailed when Dobby appeared a few minutes later with a message that Bill had finally set up the meeting with the Goblins. It would be at 2:00 and he had sent a portkey that would take them directly into a conference room at the bank.
Since they had some time to kill, Harry and Hermione decided it was a good opportunity to share a little more with Remus and Tonks. First, Harry decided to find out what they already knew.
“Did Professor Dumbledore tell the Order about what he was doing last year?”
Remus and Tonks shared a glance, then Remus said, “You know I can’t tell you about Order business.”
Harry’s frustrations with being kept in the dark resurfaced with a vengeance. “Cut the crap! I’m the one who has to defeat Voldemort. How the hell am I supposed to do it if you people treat me like a kid and keep me in the dark?” Hermione looked at him nervously as the dishes in a nearby china cabinet rattled.
The adults stared at him in disbelief. This time Tonks spoke first, “What are you going on about? Sure, you’ve fought You-Know-Who before but …”
“Say his name! How can you fight someone if you’re too afraid of him to even say his name?”
This time Hermione moved closer and grabbed his arm and put her other hand on his shoulder to help him calm down. She surprised the others, however by agreeing with him. “You two have no idea what’s really going on. Let’s all put our cards on the table and try to work together.”
While Harry was used to Hermione in bossy mode, the other two had not previously experienced it. They had slightly dazed looks on their faces as she smoothly took charge and moved them over to the couches and sat everyone down, then turned briskly toward Harry and said, “You first. The prophecy.”
If Remus and Tonks had been dazed before, they were positively stunned now. Remus felt a crushing blow that literally took his breath away as he realized why his best friends had died, and the awesome burden that had been imposed on their son. When he could speak he stammered, “You’ve known about this for a year? How have you managed to keep your sanity?”
Harry looked at him, then turned to Hermione and took her hand. “Good friends, I guess.” He managed a weak smile and she moved closer and put her arm around him. Remus and Tonks looked at each other and came to a silent agreement. Never again would they think of these two as children. Then realization hit them.
Tonks was the first to voice the objection. “Harry, what you’re doing this summer. You can’t possibly think you can hunt him down and take him on all by yourself! You wouldn’t stand a chance.”
“Calm down, we’re not going to take him on yet,” Harry reassured them. “You’re right, we have to get a lot better at fighting first. That’s what we need you two for. But there’s something else we’re working on, that has to be done first, and it has to be done in secret.”
At that, the older two relaxed a bit. Hermione took over again and this time had them relay what the Order had been working on. She quickly established that 1) it had nothing to do with their immediate problem and 2) the Order didn’t have the faintest idea what Dumbledore and Harry had been doing.
In one respect that was good news, in that they were more likely to keep the whole thing secret. There was the nagging worry, though, about how much Snape knew, especially when Harry revealed that he had been the one to help Dumbledore survive the destruction of the ring.
The other two’s eyes widened when Hermione cast a silencing charm on the room before Harry told the next part. He outlined what Voldemort had done, touched only briefly on the reasoning and deduction that had gone into this discovery, and told in detail of the ill-fated search for the locket, ending with the part they knew only too well, Dumbledore’s death. Finally he related the trio’s frustration with their inability to figure out who RAB was.
“Well,” Remus mused. There are a lot of wizard surnames that begin with B. Borgan and Burke, Bagnold, Bulstrode, Bones …”
“Black,” offered Tonks, thinking of her own family. Then she and Remus turned to stare at one another. “You don’t think?” she gasped.
“What was his middle name?”
“Antares”
Harry felt like shaking someone. “What?!” he shouted. Hermione was ready to do the same. Tonks turned to them.
“Sorry. Sirius’ brother, Regulus. His initials were RAB.”
“Wait!” Hermione shouted, “Didn’t Sirius say he was a Death Eater who Voldemort killed because he tried to back out?”
“Yeah,” Harry countered. “So how could it be him if Voldemort killed him?”
“What if he was having second thoughts anyway, then he found out about the Horcrux, and that threw him so badly it made him decide to get out, and he went after the Horcrux for revenge, and managed to come back and hide it before Voldemort found him and killed him?”
Hermione had blurted out that line of reasoning so fast that it took Harry a while to follow it. ‘I’m glad she’s on my side!’ he thought.
Just as he thought he had that one down she took off again. “Where could he have hidden it? What about Grimmauld Place? Remember that locket we found last year when we were cleaning? Oh Harry, what if it’s still there?!” She was bouncing up and down the way she did when she had an important answer in class while she was saying this, and finished by throwing herself at him and wrapping her arms around his neck, and staring wide-eyed at him from about six inches away.
Given that the only two things he could do in this position were to kiss her or push her away, Harry decided on the latter and gently began to disengage himself while trying to absorb what she had just said. Hermione suddenly realized how close she was and backed away, looking embarrassed and beginning to stammer an apology. Harry just shook his head, smiling at her enthusiasm. He reached out and gave her hand a little squeeze. Finally he turned to Remus.
“How do we get into Grimmauld Place?”
“I think we may find that out at our meeting with the goblins. Since it’s almost 2:00 now, let’s get ready to go.”
They prepared themselves and gathered around the portkey, and promptly at 2:00 felt the familiar tug behind the navel and found themselves in a conference room at Gringotts. Harry looked up and saw several goblins and Bill Weasley. One of the goblins looked familiar.
“Hello Bill,” Harry said, reaching out to shake hands. “Hello Griphook.” He didn’t know if it was proper etiquette to shake hands with a goblin so he kept his hands at his sides.
A look of surprise flashed across the goblin’s face and he looked for an instant over at one of the other goblins, who from the way he stood Harry surmised was in charge, before turning his attention back to Harry. “Hello Harry Potter,” Griphook said. “How is it that you know my name?”
“You took me to my vault the first time I came to Gringotts six years ago,” replied Harry.
“I am surprised that you remember me from so long ago,” responded Griphook evenly.
“Well, it was a memorable experience for me,” answered Harry. “It was my first time in the wizarding world.”
The goblins shared a long look and Harry wondered if he had said something wrong. Then the head goblin spoke up. “Mr. Weasley, would you be kind enough to introduce everyone else?” Bill performed the introductions. The goblin in charge was named Ragnok, and he quickly took control of the meeting. Harry, Hermione, Remus, and Tonks were seated on one side of the table; Bill, Griphook, Ragnok, and Bantic were seated on the other side.
Ragnok began, “There are two official reasons for this meeting. You have been named as the primary beneficiary of the will of Sirius Black. We also need to discuss the Potter trust, which will come under your control on the day of your majority. I believe that this will occur on July 31 this year?” Harry nodded, and Ragnok continued. “We will begin with the will of Sirius Black.”
Ragnok motioned to an enormous stack of parchment and said, “The actual will would be far too difficult to read. I have prepared a summary for you if that is acceptable.” Harry nodded again.
“Mr. Black wished to leave the entire Black estate to you. However, there were certain stipulations in the Black family trust that prevented this. If you were not the heir, it would have then passed to the other living Blacks, the three sisters Andromeda, Narcissa, and Bellatrix. As only one of them, Narcissa Black Malfoy, has a male offspring, he would inherit the Black family titles.” He turned to Tonks. “You are Andromeda’s only child and Bellatrix has no children, is that correct?” Tonks answered in the affirmative.
Ragnok continued, “Mr. Black wished to prevent this. He took several unusual steps which resulted in the will being contested. Only recently has it been resolved by the Court of Inheritance.” He looked up at Harry. “We want to assure you that it does not normally take Gringotts a year to settle an estate, but our hands were tied in this matter.”
Harry felt that a response was expected. “Of course. I understand. I’m sure you did the best you could. Thank you for all your work on this. I really appreciate it.”
Ragnok had a startled expression on his face briefly before he continued, “It is our pleasure Mr. Potter. Please allow me to continue.”
“First, Sirius Black formally adopted you in May of last year. That covered the restriction that only a Black could inherit the estate. Second, since you are still a minor, you were required to have a Black as guardian until your seventeenth birthday. Mr. Black formally appointed Ms. Tonks here to fill that role.”
Harry gaped at Tonks. Trying to head off another eruption of Mount Potter she reached out and took his hand and said in a low voice, “I was aware of some of this. I’ll explain as much as I can later.” She smiled at him reassuringly. “Why do you think I spent so much time hanging around you during the last year?”
Harry leaned back to reflect. Tonks had been at the Burrow when he arrived last summer. She had been the one who had saved him on the Hogwarts Express last September. She had been in Hogsmeade the entire school year and he had met her unexpectedly in the castle several times.
Ragnok regained their attention. “The Black family trust required that all of the Blacks receive a portion of the estate. Mr. Black’s will states that 100,000 galleons each will go to Andromeda Black Tonks, Narcissa Black Malfoy, and Bellatrix Black Lestrange. He further stipulates that 50,000 galleons of each of these sums will be held in trust and go directly to their children on the age of their majority. Since Ms. Tonks is already of age, she will receive this immediately. Draco Malfoy is due to receive his at the end of this month.”
At this point Ragnok actually smiled. “An additional stipulation was made on these amounts, however. No money was to be disbursed to any members of the Black family who had outstanding criminal charges against them until those charges were cleared up. Gringotts is required to hold these funds in trust until such time.”
He turned to Tonks again. “Ms. Tonks, you are an Auror, I believe. Is it likely that the charges against Mrs. Lestrange will be cleared up any time soon?” Tonks merely shook her head, but had a broad smile. “And are there any charges pending against any other individuals mentioned?”
“As it turns out, charges have recently been filed against Draco Malfoy,” she responded.
“So,” Ragnok concluded, “We will be disbursing 50,000 galleons to Andromeda Tonks, 50,000 galleons to Nymphadora Tonks, and 50,000 galleons to Narcissa Malfoy. 100,000 galleons will be held here at Gringotts in the names of Bellatrix Lestrange and Draco Malfoy. The remainder of the estate goes to you, Mr. Potter, with the exception of several personal items that Mr. Black left to other individuals.”
He looked at the others. “These individuals include Mr. Lupin and Ms. Granger, as well as a few others.” He handed them each a document, and handed Harry an envelope as well. “Mr. Potter, the estate includes several properties and the contents of the Black vault. Given the nature of the Black family, we believe it would be advisable for you to have one of our curse breakers examine the vault thoroughly. Would Mr. Weasley here be acceptable to you for this purpose?”
At Harry’s indication that this was acceptable he continued, “If you wish to visit your vault before you leave, Griphook here is at your service. In fact, your holdings make you one of our preferred customers, so Griphook will immediately be available to attend to your needs whenever you visit Gringotts.”
Harry was curious. “About how much are we talking about?”
Ragnok responded, “I did not wish to presume to discuss the value of your holdings with others present. Are you comfortable with these people hearing this information?”
Harry said simply, “I am.”
“The total value of the estate varies due to fluctuating property values. However, the approximate value, subtracting the 300,000 galleons previously mentioned, is 1,700,000 galleons. Here is a document summarizing your Black holdings.” He showed Harry a much thicker document than he had given the others, but handed it to Tonks. “For the next six weeks, until you come of age, Ms. Tonks will need to approve any actions you wish to take with your holdings.”
He then gave a sealed envelope to Harry, which contained a letter from Sirius. Harry put it away to read later. Ragnok continued, “All of your properties are protected by ancient Black Family charms and curses. No one has been able to enter any of them since Mr. Black was killed. Here are instructions for you to claim the houses and set the wards to admit as many or as few as you desire.”
Ragnok continued, “Bantic here has been managing the Black estate for a number of years. You may review the information I have given you and decide whether to have him continue in this capacity.”
Harry turned to Remus and Tonks. “Did Sirius have any problems with how the estate was being managed?”
“No,” Remus replied, “I seem to recall that he was impressed that his instructions were followed even though he was an escaped prisoner.” Tonks confirmed this.
“Then I think we should keep him on, don’t you?” Harry said to Tonks. She agreed. He turned to Bantic and said, “Would you be willing to continue managing my estate?”
Bantic replied slowly, “You are asking me to continue without examining my record?”
“Yes, I figure if Sirius could trust you I can trust you.”
The goblins stared at Harry again. The word trust was not one that wizards used in describing goblins. They looked at each other and seemed to come to an agreement. Ragnok suddenly turned to another stack of papers.
“Our second matter of official business is the Potter trust. We felt that you should be aware of the extent of the Potter holdings so that you may begin to make appropriate decisions when you assume control in six weeks. These documents,” and here he indicated a stack about 5 times as high as the pile from the Black estate “contain this information.”
“Is the Potter trust as big as the Black estate?”
“The Potter trust is approximately five times the size of the Black trust. Therefore it is worth approximately 10,000,000 Galleons.”
Harry noticed the shocked expressions on his friends’ faces, and noted that even Bill was stunned at this revelation.
Harry asked, “Can Bantic manage the Potter trust as well?”
Bantic swallowed hard. Harry was certain he had never seen a goblin gulp before. At a nod from Ragnok, Bantic responded, “It would be my pleasure, Mr. Potter.”
Harry was curious about another thing. “How is the Potter trust related to the vault I have now?”
“Your current vault is a subsidiary trust vault. The Potter trust document states that minors are to receive 1,000 Galleons per year up until the time they begin schooling, then 5,000 Galleons per year during the time they are in school. Your current vault contains that money. Since it had not been accessed previously, on the day you first visited Gringotts it contained 11,000 Galleons. It now contains nearly 40,000 Galleons.”
“Can I ask another question? I have had trouble in recent years getting to Diagon Alley to get money from Gringotts. Is there another way I could take money out of my vault? For example, could I send Dobby with my key to Griphook and have him get the gold from my vault and give it to Dobby to bring back to me?”
The goblins were no longer attempting to hide their amazement. When did a wizard ever trust both an elf and a goblin to handle his vault key and his gold? “Certainly, if that is your wish.”
“Thank you. May I do so now?” Harry inquired. Griphook agreed.
“Dobby!” Harry called, and immediately the house elf appeared, enthusiastic as always. Harry gave him his vault key and asked him and Griphook to take 30,000 Galleons from his vault, convert 10,000 of it to Pounds, and take it to the Grangers’ house.
When that was taken care of, Harry turned to Ragnok and said, “Before we go down to see the vault, you said there were two official reasons that I was asked here today. Is there another ‘unofficial’ reason?”
Ragnok smiled at him for the second time that day. Bill would later comment that he thought that had never happened before. “You are correct, Mr. Potter. We have some questions for you and some information as well.” He paused, looking around at the others. “Would you excuse us temporarily?” The other goblins and Bill got up to leave the room. Harry reached out to grab Hermione’s hand as she rose and turned to Ragnok. “May she stay?”
Ragnok considered him carefully. “As you wish.”
When everyone had left the room, Ragnok looked directly at Harry and asked, “Mr. Potter, would you say that you had unusual friends?”
Harry exchanged a nervous glance with Hermione. What was he getting into now?
-xox-XOX-XOX-xox-
A/N Sorry about the cliffhanger. I needed a place to break off and the next section is pretty long.