Chapter 485 - Ch: 5-7

Chapter 5

The Next Day, Part 2

Tuesday, 1st November 1994, at lunchtime

Potter Manor

Harry was eating lunch when Greyclay, the head elf of Potter Manor, handed Harry a letter that had just come from Gringotts.

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Dear Lord Potter,

This letter is to inform you of the results of Gringotts investigations of theft against your property, both inside and outside of your vaults.

Over the years, Gringotts has developed 994 ways to detect theft and to identify thieves; so Gringotts is confident that everything that was stolen from you has been recovered, or has been replaced with valuables of equal or greater value.

Gringotts punishes theft in two ways. The first is by a mandatory sentence of hard labour, either in our gold mine or in our iron mine. No matter how petty the theft, the minimum sentence is six months in a mine. The second way that Gringotts punishes theft is by stealing from the thief; every knut that was stolen from the victim is given back to the victim, plus ten percent of the stolen value is taken from the thief's vault or property and is transferred to the victim. When the thief does not have enough coinage to perform 110-percent restitution to the victim, Gringotts transfers property or valuables that belong to the thief, to the victim. Gringotts' first choice when choosing valuables to transfer is "Which valuable object would cause the thief the most misery if he lost this object?" If transferring all the thief's coinage and all of the thief's valuables to the victim still does not provide enough value for 110-percent restitution, the thief is executed with a heavy steel axe.

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Regarding Marion Guinevere Weasley née Prewett—

The Harry Potter stolen property recovered: not applicable.

G1 260 stolen x 110% = G1 386 to be recovered.

G874 was recovered from the personal vault of Marion Guinevere Weasley née Prewett and was transferred to the Potter family vault. The MGW personal vault was closed.

G512 was recovered from the Weasley family vault and was transferred to the Potter family vault.

The shortfall: not applicable.

The Marion Weasley valuables transferred to the Potter family vault: not applicable.

The shortfall after the transfer of valuables: none. The thief was not executed as punishment.

The sentence: five years of hard labour in the iron mine.

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Regarding Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore—

The Harry Potter stolen property recovered: the Potter family grimoire, seventeen other books, and the talking portrait of James Potter and Lily Potter. The recovered stolen property was placed in the Potter family vault. For the Potter family grimoire, we reactivated the allow-Potters-only espionage curse.

G646 836 stolen x 110% = G711 520 to be recovered.

G443 923 was recovered from fourteen personal vaults of Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore and was transferred to the Potter family vault. Fourteen APWBD personal vaults were closed.

G47 was recovered from the Dumbledore family vault and was transferred to the Potter family vault.

The shortfall: G267 550

The Albus Dumbledore valuables transferred to the Potter family vault: (1) the deed to the nonmagical holiday house in San José Obrero, Ibiza, Spain. Four bedrooms, 1 bathroom. The appraised value: G163 000 (2) the deed to the Dumbledore ancestral house near Launceston, Cornwall, England, UK. Five bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, potions lab, duelling room, blacksmith forge, house-elf (named Beekeeper). The appraised value: G214 000

NOTE: The selection of valuables to be transferred from the thief to the theft-victim is at the discretion of Gringotts. Gringotts gives neither the thief nor the theft-victim a voice about which valuables the thief forfeits to the theft-victim. The theft-victim is not required to repay the thief for the surplus value of the transferred valuables.

The shortfall after the transfer of valuables: none. The thief was not executed as punishment.

The sentence: seventy-five years of hard labour in the iron mine.

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Regards,

Axefrenzy, Potter account manager

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Harry grinned viciously. Not often did he catch a break, but this was one of those times. Not only had all the property and most of the money that Dumbledore had stolen from him been unstolen, but Harry had come out ahead on the deal.

Harry felt a desire then: to not only own on paper, these two houses that formerly belonged to the headmaster, but to actually live in these houses—if only for a few minutes.

"Dobby," Harry called. Pop—Dobby appeared, grinning.

"Beekeeper," Harry called.

Pop. A house-elf who was wearing a tea towel appeared. Beekeeper looked at Harry in confusion. "Young master is not a Dumbledore, you are not family to Dumbledore, but you are master to Beekeeper."

Dobby said excitedly to Beekeeper, "Beekeeper's master is Harry Potter. No master can be better for any elf than is Harry Potter!"

Harry handed the letter to his new house-elf. "Beekeeper, your former master stole from me, but the goblins caught him at it. Now the Dumbledore House doesn't belong to any Dumbledore anymore, it belongs to me."

Seconds later, on Ibiza Island in the Mediterranean

Harry had ordered Beekeeper to bring both himself and Dobby to the holiday house, so that in the future, Dobby would know the way to San José Obrero.

Now Harry told the two house-elves, Dobby and Beekeeper, to stay inside the holiday house, whilst he walked outside and looked about.

The first thing that Harry discovered after he walked out the front door was that there was a hotel across the street from his house. The second thing he discovered was that the street was lined with palm trees. When Harry turned about and looked at his house from the street, he discovered that the holiday house was completely covered with white-painted plaster, except for the tile roof, and the house had many big windows.

Harry figured out that if he walked towards where he heard seagulls, he could find the beach. Five minutes after Harry walked out his front door, his trainers were standing in wet, slanted sand as he watched waves roll in, just ahead.

Harry found the sound of the approaching waves to be soothing.

Harry was grinning. The Dursleys had several times visited Brighton but had never taken Harry with them; Harry had never seen the Atlantic Ocean or the English Channel. But now Harry was less than five feet away from the waters of the Mediterranean Sea, and he could come back here anytime he wanted!

Harry belatedly noticed the temperature. He had been outside for minutes now, wearing nothing over a long-sleeved shirt. Whilst his face and hands were a bit cool, the rest of his body was comfortable—which was amazing for early November! Had Harry been standing outside for several minutes in Scotland in daytime in November, he would have needed a heavy jumper, or even a coat. Harry smirked as he thought, Thank you, Dumbledore, for stealing from me.

Meanwhile, in Hogwarts SOW&W

Hermione was summoned from Charms class to the headmistress's office. Hermione guessed that the summons had something to do with Harry.

Sure enough, waiting for Hermione was not only the headmistress, but also Amelia Bones, Director of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement.

To the Director's right, a roll of parchment was floating in midair, with the end of the parchment stretched out flat. Above the stretched-out parchment, a quill hovered, ready to write.

Pleasantries were exchanged, then Madam Bones asked Hermione, "Do you know where Mr Potter is?"

Hermione replied, "Quote, 'someplace warm, dry and safe,' unquote. I'm citing his last letter to me."

Madam Bones said in a calm voice, "That isn't helpful. I ask again: do you know where Mr Potter is?"

Hermione replied, "I'm willing to swear that I don't know where Harry is. But if I did know where, I wouldn't tell you."

Professor McGonagall blurted, "Miss Granger!"

Hermione said, "Madam Bones, I'm sorry if this offends you. But Voldemort has tried to kill Harry three times already, and I think what happened last night was the start of Attempt Number Four. But last night, Harry did something that Voldemort didn't plan for, so Harry's safe—for now. But if I told you 'Here's where Harry is' and you chatted it about the DMLE, then I think Harry would be dead by sundown." Which in Scotland in early November, wasn't too long from now.

Then Hermione stared into the eyes of Madam Bones. "Also, ma'am, you're Minister Fudge's employee. The same Minister Fudge who ordered Sirius Black Kissed without ever bothering to find out if Sirius was guilty of anything."

Madam Bones said, "Believe me that I shall work my hardest to prevent Sirius Black being Kissed without a trial. But let's go back to something you said earlier: You talk about You-Know-Who as if he were alive."

"He is alive. Didn't Susan tell you? He was possessing Professor Quirrell in first year, till Harry accidentally killed him. In second year, a ghost of Voldemort possessed a girl, Ginny Weasley, until Harry got rid of the ghost. But Riddle doesn't stay dead—Harry occasionally gets a peek into Voldemort's thoughts for a few seconds."

Madam Bones shot Hermione a confused look. " Hold on, you were talking about You-Know-Who, but who is this 'Riddle'? A Muggle-born?"

Hermione said, "Voldemort's real name is Riddle. His father was a nonmagical aristocrat."

Professor McGonagall gasped. "You-Know-Who is Tom Marvolo Riddle? He was Head Boy, a few years ahead of me!"

Hermione asked the headmistress, "How is it that you don't know this? Did the headmaster at least mention that Riddle infested his diary with a horcrux? Harry told me he told Professor Dumbledore everything." Hermione turned back to face Madam Bones. "Again I ask, why didn't Susan tell you about Voldemort and Professor Quirrell?"

Professor McGonagall answered, "Miss Bones didn't know about You-Know-Who possessing Professor Quirrell because Albus didn't tell the students. I didn't know about You-Know-Who being Tom Marvolo Riddle because Albus didn't tell me."

Madam Bones asked Hermione, "About what happened last night—did Harry truly mean it, that he'd sacrifice his magic rather than compete? Could he be bluffing?"

Hermione glared at the older witch. "You know I'm Muggle-born, right? Last night after Harry's name was drawn, I wanted to screamwhen all these people kept saying, 'Harry, you must be in the Tournament or you'll lose your magic.' Honestly, that's their best argument? Being put at risk of death, not once but three times, is preferable to never wand-waving again, really? Deal with it—if Harry has to give up this world forever, he won't shed a tear. He never even heard of magic till his eleventh birthday—he'd have no problem with walking away from the magical world."

Professor McGonagall looked shocked. Madam Bones' face was unreadable.

Professor McGonagall asked, "Could he live in the Muggle world? Could he survive?"

Hermione said, "So long as he isn't forced to live with the Dursleys, yes. If he could be legally emancipated in the Muggle world, even better. Harry surviving amongst the Muggles, if he's a legal adult, is a sure bet."

Madam Bones said, "Especially since the money that two people stole from his vaults, has been put back."

Professor McGonagall looked sick. "It was Harry from whom Albus stole money?" She then muttered a Scots curse.

Madam Bones sighed. "Let's hope that things aren't so bad and Mr Potter doesn't lose his magic."

Hermione shook her head. "It might make no difference. Even if Harry still has magic after he forfeits the First Task, he wrote in his last letter, 'I still might not bother buying a replacement wand. I'm really soured on the magical world, Hermione.' "

"Merlin," Professor McGonagall sighed.

Madam Bones looked at Hermione. "You mentioned Sirius Black. What do you know about his alleged crimes?"

Hermione's questioning lasted for several more minutes, and covered several more topics. When Hermione was telling Director Bones what she knew about Harry's abuse by the Dursleys, Hermione noticed that Professor McGonagall's face was pale.

Meanwhile, Harry's new-houses exploration continues

From the holiday house in San José Obrero on Ibiza Island, Beekeeper popped Harry and Dobby back to England, just outside the ward-wall for Dumbledore House in Cornwall. Harry, whilst using the wand of Haroldus Cyrus Potter, claimed ownership of Dumbledore House.

Compared to Potter Manor or (what Harry had heard about) Malfoy Manor, Dumbledore House was smaller, and definitely unimpressive. On the other hand, compared to Number 4, Privet Drive, Dumbledore House was big—Harry knew that Vernon and Petunia would be sick with envy if they somehow could see this house.

A minute later, Harry walked in the front door, with Dobby and Beekeeper following. Just inside the front door was a square inlay in the floor of the foyer. In the upper-right corner of the inlay was a beehive, with bees flying about; in the middle of the square was a giant D.

"I greet you," said a voice to Harry. "Who are you?"

On the far side of the foyer, facing the front door, was a wall; on the wall was a portrait of a man who was wearing old-styled robes and a powdered wig. The portrait-man's right hand was holding a wand, which was pointed straight up.

The portrait-man continued, "You've the magic of Ownership about you, but I've never seen you before. Tsk, forgive me, I am Polonius Dumbledore, the House founder. Are you a Muggle-born? You're dressed like one."

Harry said, "Oh boy, this is awkward." Harry pulled the Gringotts letter from his pocket. "Founder Polonius Dumbledore, I am Lord Harry James Potter. So far as I know, I am not related to anyDumbledores, unless Albus is my seventeenth cousin or something. This letter explains what happened."

Harry then read aloud the relevant part of the Gringotts letter.

Polonius choked. "Albus lost Dumbledore House? That nancy-boy, long-bearded imbecile!"

"Also a thief, which is why I now own your house."

Polonius said mournfully, "This is now the end of the Dumbledore line. Neither Albus nor Aberforth have children, Ariana is dead, and now there is not even an ancestral house in the family."

"Sorry, sir."

"What are your plans for this house?"

"Truthfully, Founder Polonius, I haven't made any plans. Well, I have no quarrel with Aberforth Dumbledore, so I'm about to have Beekeeper gather the Dumbledore family grimoire and the family portraits, and turn them over to Aberforth. Erm, sir, would you like to go to Aberforth Dumbledore along with the other portraits, or stay here in your house, even though it's not your house anymore?"

Portrait-Polonius stared at Harry, looking surprised, then he said, "I ask to stay here if I may, young Lord Potter. Also, when you have Beekeeper stripping this house to give family things to Aberforth, may I ask you to give Aberforth the box of Dumbledore-family wands?"

"Sure, I can do that."

(Harry was even more generous than what Polonius Dumbledore asked for. Harry told Beekeeper to tell Aberforth that for the next twenty-four hours, Aberforth could ask for anything out of Dumbledore House, and Harry would not dispute it.)

Whilst Beekeeper was elf-popping portraits off the walls of Dumbledore House, Harry found the Dumbledore House Ward Ledger. In the Ward Ledger, Harry crossed out the name of Aberforth Dumbledore with one stroke, crossed out "Albus Dumbledore" with three thick strokes, then wrote-in "Sirius Black" under "Relatives."

The Dumbledore Ward Ledger had an extra category that the Potter Ward Ledger did not have. Besides "Relatives," "Friends," and "One-Time Visitors," the Dumbledore Ward Ledger also had a category for "House-Elves." Beekeeper's name already was written there; Harry added Dobby's and Greyclay's names to the Ward Ledger. When Harry asked Polonius about the extra "House-Elf" category, Polonius answered that Dumbledore House had anti-house-elf wards, whilst Potter Manor probably did not.

Whilst exploring Dumbledore House, Harry soon found a bedroom that he quickly figured out belonged to Albus Dumbledore. Harry saw three bags of sherbet lemons visible, also a big bowl that was filled with many Muggle chocolate candies. The bedroom's walls were painted yellow and teal, above a Chudley Cannons-orange carpet. When Harry dared to open the doors of the wardrobe, the colours of clothing that he saw inside, made his eyeballs hurt.

Albus Dumbledore's bedroom reeked of a strange smell that Harry did not like at all.

Ten minutes later, still at Dumbledore House

Beekeeper popped next to Harry; the house-elf was holding an enormous, gaudily framed portrait of Albus Dumbledore. The former headmaster was pictured in lavender robes and was sitting on his golden throne; Portrait-Albus looked asleep.

Beekeeper said, "Former master Aberforth does not want portrait of bad brother. Former master Aberforth says give back bad-brother portrait to Master Harry!"

Harry chuckled as he pulled out Haroldus Potter's wand. Seconds later, Harry had vanished Albus's portrait.

Meanwhile in the headmistress's office, HSOW&W

Something in a drawer of the headmistress's desk felt evil.

Not greatly evil, like an altar that was used only for human sacrifices, but weakly evil. Something in the headmaster's/headmistress's desk had a tinge of evil, but McGonagall felt it.

McGonagall opened each desk drawer, one at a time, and brought her right hand close to, but not touching, every object in every drawer. She soon found the weakly-evil thing—

A diary, with "T M Riddle" stamped on the front in gold. The front cover, and the edges of the diary's pages, all were covered with dried black ink. The front cover had a hole in it; the cover had been stabbed hard with something sharp.

McGonagall summoned a Hogwarts house-elf. The headmistress told the elf to don dragonhide gloves, for safety's sake, then to deliver Riddle's diary to the Department of Mysteries. The house-elf, Toffee, immediately did this.

McGonagall scowled. What was Albus thinking, keeping a horcrux-vessel of You-Know-Who's in a school full of children?

Chapter 6

The Next Day, Part 3

Soon afterwards, back at Potter Manor

Still Tuesday, 1st November, 1994, afternoon

When Harry returned to Potter Manor, after acquainting himself with his two new houses, he found another Gringotts letter waiting for him. This letter told him, thoroughly and without a manipulative old man's hidden agenda, about the wards currently set for Number 4, Privet Drive—

• flame-suppression for the house, if the house would catch fire or would be set on fire;

• warding against a particular magical person, whom the ward identified by the Hufflepuff Magical-Signature Text of MSUNRXZPFL;

• warding against all bad-intent magicals;

• warding against Apparition to inside the wards;

• warding against Portkeying to inside the wards;

• an alarm that Harry is away from the house at 6 p.m., when he was at the house at 6 a.m.;

• an alarm if Harry would die.

Harry figured that the "particular magical person" who was warded-against was Voldemort—So give a point to Dumbledore, who told the truth for once.

Then Harry read the end of the Gringotts letter, which described exactly how these wards on Number 4, Privet Drive were powered.

Harry became instantly furious.

"Dobby!" Harry yelled. "I need you to take me to Gringotts, right now!"

Minutes later, in Axefrenzy's office

"Explain this last part of the letter to me," Harry snarled, referring to the Gringotts letter that listed the wards on the Dursleys' house. Harry said to Axefrenzy, "It sure looks to me like the long-bearded wanker lied to me. Again."

Axefrenzy said calmly, "There are four ways for the master wardstone to get enough magic to do its jobs. Firstly, if the master wardstone is close enough to ley lines, the master wardstone can take power from the ley lines with no wizard or witch needing to do anything. But there are no ley lines near the house where your relatives live, because otherwise a magical lord would have built his house there, centuries ago."

Harry said, "Sure, I can see that."

"The second way to magically power the master wardstone is that when you have many magic-users in a building, all performing magic, the magic-users leak magic, and the master wardstone soaks up this magic. House-elves get their magic from human magicals' leaked magic. The Hogwarts Founders designed the wardstones for Hogwarts Castle to be huge, not only because the castle was near two ley lines, but also because hundreds of magical children would continually be leaking magic and the wardstones would be charging the castle wards from this magic."

Harry said, "That sort of ward-design wouldn't work at my relatives' house. There is only one magic-user who's ever there, me, and I'm forbidden to cast spells there till I'm seventeen."

Axefrenzy nodded. "The third way for the master wardstone to have enough magic is for a magical person, from time to time, to inject magic from his magical core into the wardstone till he or she almost is magically exhausted. Think of the master wardstone being like a pitcher—if you want water to pour out of the pitcher whenever you get thirsty, somebody has to keep refilling the pitcher with water."

Harry said, "Yeah, and we don't need this Gringotts letter to know that this is not how the Privet Drive wards are recharged. Because this kind of recharging would force Dumbledore to take time out of his busy schedule to recharge the wards. And whilst he's in the neighbourhood, to maybe even talk to me and to see how I'm doing? But Dumbles and me having conversations whilst he kneeled over the wardstone—these conversations neverhappened!"

Axefrenzy gave Harry a grim look. "The last way to charge a wardstone magically is to continually power the wardstone from a particular magical person's magical core, this person being identified by his magical blood. This is the case for the wards on your relatives' house, and our ward-experts have identified whom the blood keys to: you."

Harry asked carefully, "But for me, whose blood the wards are tied to, the drain on my magical power happens all the time, right? And no matter where I am, right? I don't have to be anywhere near Privet Drive to be charging the wards there, right?"

Axefrenzy said, "You are correct on all counts."

"And my mother, Lily Evans Potter, has nothing to do with whatever magic keeps those wards strong? Like, say, keeping the anti-Voldemort ward strong?"

"Exactly."

"So one more time, to revise: Right now, whilst I sit in this chair in Gringotts, my magical core is powering the wards at Privet Drive."

"Yes."

"At the cost of some of my magical strength."

"Yes."

"There is nothing new, special or unique about how the wards are set up."

"Correct."

Harry said, "That lying, manipulative, long-bearded tosser!"

Five minutes later

The goblin healer stood in Axefrenzy's office. With a steady gaze, the goblin female gave Harry the bad news—

She confirmed that it was Harry's blood that the Privet Drive wardstone matched for where to take magic from; so yes, there was a magical tap on Harry's magical core to power the wards for his relatives' house.

And oh, by the way, Harry had a 1981 infant-block on his magical power that should have been removed when he first came to Hogwarts, but never was removed. Also by the way, Harry had a second block on his magic, placed in 1991.

And oh, by the way, Harry's famous scar had a little piece of Voldemort's soul in it.

"Take it out," Harry said, when the basics of horcruxes were explained to him. "I don't care what it costs, dig the bloody thing out of my scar!"

That evening, before dinner, in Hogwarts SOW&W

Before Hermione went to the Great Hall to eat dinner, she went to the Owlery to owl-post a letter to Harry—

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I love you, Harry. Before I write you anything else, I want you to know I love you.

I have lots of hot news to share—call me Lavender, or Parvati! First off, Amelia Bones, the head of the DMLE, came to Hogwarts this morning. For some reason, she sent Madam Pomfrey to Saint Mungo's—as a patient! Sirius's cousin, Andromeda Tonks, is now the temporary Healer in the hospital wing.

Amelia Bones arrested Professor Dumbledore for ?, but he was released less than an hour later. As soon as the headmaster returned to Hogwarts, he rushed off to Gringotts—not even Professor McGonagall knows why. But then the goblins arrested the headmaster for something, tried him, and sentenced him to the goblin mines. Professor McGonagall now is Headmistress. The first thing she did was to transfigure the golden throne that Professor Dumbledore always sat on, into something much plainer.

As soon as Headmistress McGonagall announced that Professor Dumbledore now was Prisoner Dumbledore and that she now was headmistress, Professor Snape resigned "immediately." Oh, you should have heard the cheering from the Hogwarts students! All of the other professors looked relieved.

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Hermione described Neville during lunch defending Harry in front of the entire student body, even leading a show of hands of who thought Harry had told the truth about the Goblet. (Every student except Ron, Hermione reported.) Then, Hermione wrote, Neville did a brave thing: He admitted to everyone that he was ashamed of not running outside in support after Harry had left, as Hermione and Luna had done.

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Luna Lovegood told me an interesting rumour she heard in her common room after lunch. Supposedly Draco offered some seventh-year Ravenclaws lots of galleons to make magical badges that said, "I support Cedric Diggory"—but then the badges would switch to a second message, "Potter is a coward." Luna told me that the Ravenclaws refused to be involved with binning Harry. Draco raised the price, but the seventh-year Ravenclaws still refused.

The reason I mention this is because of what happened in the corridor outside the Potions classroom this afternoon, before class. The Slytherin half of the class was arguing with each other, but lowly. Then out of the blue, Blaise Zabini yelled, "Draco, it's not Potter who is the coward in this school!"

This started a loud argument between Draco, Blaise and Daphne Greengrass. All we Gryffindors laughed when Daphne stuck her nose way high in the air and said, haughtily enough to out-Draco Draco, "My father, Cyrus Greengrass, is a Lord Head of House. So beware, child, if you make me cry, my father shall hex you till you're hospitalised." Tracey Davis, Daphne's friend, was laughing like a fool during Daphne's performance. During all this, Draco's face turned Weasley red.

Speaking of Weasley, Ron is now shunned by the entire school. Even the twins and Ginny never speak to him now, unless they have to. The main reason Ron is shunned is that he still won't admit he was wrong about you putting in your name. Every student in Hogwarts thinks Ron is the main reason you left the school, and Gryffindors also are mad at Ron because we won't have any easy wins on the Quidditch pitch anymore.

Everyone wants to know what has happened to you. I read your letter out loud in the Great Hall, and everyone was listening—all four Houses, the professors, the foreign students, and even Draco!

Amelia Bones came back to Hogwarts this afternoon, to ask me where you were. I told her that I wouldn't tell even if I knew. Madam Bones was fine with this answer, but Headmistress McGonagall was shocked that Hermione Granger didn't roll over for an authority figure. I told them that Tom Marvolo Riddle had become Lord Voldemort (neither witch knew that those two were connected), and I was questioned about your home life. I think Madam Bones wanted to invent five new curses this afternoon, just so she could cast those curses on the Dursleys.

So that's all the news from here. Have you told your godfather about all this? What does he think of you snapping your wand and leaving Hogwarts?

When Harry read the end of Hermione's letter, he slapped his forehead. "I've forgotten to write to Sirius! Everything will be front-page news in the Daily Prophet tomorrow morning, and Sirius will have kittens if I haven't explained myself ahead of time."

Harry added, "I also need to write Hermione back."

A half-hour later, in a cave near Hogsmeade

Sirius Black was laughing, as he had not laughed since October of 1981.

Oh, he wasn't laughing at the part of Harry's letter that described how Dumbledore had tried to force Harry into the Triwizard Tournament—this part of the letter made Sirius frightened and angry. But after Dumbledore's tomfoolery, Harry had done something truly courageous: He had snapped his own wand and had walked away. Sometime after this, Dumbledore, who always thought he was more clever than everyone else, somehow had gotten himself arrested by the goblins (for stealing from Harry!), and now Harry owned two of Dumbledore's houses. Harry's description of Dumbledore's bedroom was hilarious! Sirius cackled.

Harry also had written that he soon would be living in Potter Manor, which needed repairs but was getting them. Within a week, Harry claimed, both the Potter Manor building and the Potter Manor wards would be repaired, by house-elves and by goblins—then Harry invited Sirius to come live with him.

Sirius's most treasured memories in his entire life were the times he had spent in Potter Manor during hols, during his Hogwarts years. Charlus and Dorea Potter had treated teen-Sirius with kindness and respect, whilst Sirius's real parents had treated him with loathing; so the idea of Sirius now being invited back to Potter Manor was delightful!

If Sirius could hook up again with his old girlfriend Amy, life would be damned near perfect.

Meanwhile in Hogwarts, in the Gryffindor common room

Pop. A Hogwarts house-elf appeared to George (and to Fred) Weasley and said, "Headmistress Kitty wants all four of you Wheezies to come to her office."

George began, "Any idea what—"

"—this is about?" Fred finished.

"No. Come now, Headmistress Kitty is waiting," the house-elf said, then popped away.

George asked a female prefect to fetch Ginny (who was in her dorm room), and told Ron to end his chess game. When all four Weasley students were gathered in the common room, they walked out of the portrait hole and headed towards Headmistress McGonagall's office.

During their walk, the redheads were quiet, because they worried that they were in trouble—even worse, none of them could guess what all four of them were in trouble for.

In the headmistress's office was McGonagall, as the Weasley children expected—but also in the room was the children's father, Arthur Weasley.

McGonagall said, "Arthur, you have my permission to put up a Silencing Charm, so that neither the portraits nor I can hear what you and the children have to say."

After Arthur Weasley put up the Silencing Charm, his face turned grim. "Children, your mother stole money from Harry Potter's vault, the goblins arrested her, and she's been sentenced to the goblin mines for five years."

Ron exploded. "Five years? After Mum did Potter a favour and bought his school supplies for him, so he wouldn't have to?"

Fred held up a hand to silence Ron. "How much money do the goblins say Mum stole from Harry?"

Arthur pulled a parchment from his robes and unfolded it. "The amount your mother stole was 1 260 galleons. Some of that G1 260 she put into a vault that I didn't know about; some of that G1 260 she spent. Last year and this year, she made many trips to Diagon Alley, charging things to Harry's vault key. The last purchase she made, using Harry's key, was on 5th September."

George whistled. "Mum can't claim she needed the key only to buy Harry's school supplies, when she was spending his money on the fifth day of term."

Ron crossed his arms. "Potter could afford it, and our family always needs money. It's no big deal."

Arthur stared into his children's eyes. "When the goblins went to your mother's personal vault to take back the money she'd stolen, there wasn't enough. So the goblins took G512 out of the family vault. That's over half the money that was in this vault before, so money is tight now, children. Your mother stealing from Harry Potter, and being caught, is not only a shame and a disgrace for our family, it's a disaster."

"Yeah, and it's all Potter's fault!" said Ron. "If he hadn't told the goblins to arrest Mum, we wouldn't be in trouble."

Arthur said, "I've no reason to believe that Harry knew about any of this till it was all over."

Ron's ears were red. "It doesn't matter. Potter's rich. He doesn't need the money as much as we do!"

Arthur snapped, "Weasleys do not steal. Period. We especially do not steal from someone who trusted us."

"Not a problem anymore," George said, whilst smirking at Ron.

Fred said, "I'm not sure if Harry trusts the rest of us—"

"—but he clearly no longer trusts Ron," George said.

Arthur, looking confused, asked, "Why does Harry no longer trust Ron?"

George, Fred and Ginny explained all about yesterday's disaster with the Goblet of Fire drawing, Ron several times loudly calling Harry a cheater and a liar, then Harry rebuking Ron, snapping his own wand, yelling "Fuck you all," and walking out.

In short, three of the four Weasley children informed their father about news he had not heard; whilst Ron whined, complained and slandered Harry—

"Potter cheated somehow, he got the Goblet of Fire to pick his name. That isn't something a good person does, is it? But then he lied to me and he wouldn't tell me how he did it. I'm his best mate, and he refused to tell me how he'd fooled the Goblet. I'm his best mate—I'm entitled to know!"

"The tosser told everyone, 'I love you, Hermione.' Then they kissed. How dare he! He knew I fancied Hermione—and besides, Potter is only a halfblood."

"Potter told everyone that I wasn't his friend anymore! He didn't wait for my apology, he didn't ask for my apology, he just wrote me off! He publicly humiliated me!"

Eventually Arthur said, "Be quiet, Ron. I've heard enough."

Ron scowled. "But Dad—"

"I. Said. Be. Quiet!"

Several minutes passed whilst none of the five redheads spoke.

Eventually Arthur said, "Molly is a disgrace to the family. But for reasons that have nothing to do with my feelings for your mother, I've chosen not to speak a divorce declaration against her. In years past, she has taken advantage of this, and taken advantage of my easy nature—usually I'm not a forceful man. The result? Now she's a prisoner in a goblin mine, and my family is in crisis.

"Ronald, you are just as much a disgrace to the family as is your mother, and it is clear that you have learnt your values—or rather, your lack of values—from your mother instead of from me. I'm convinced that in the future, you'll find other ways to act disgracefully—serious ways. Which the Weasley family no longer can afford."

George noted that Ron's ears were flaming-red now, and Ron was scowling. Amazingly, Ron said nothing.

Arthur Weasley continued, "Ginevra, you have some of your brother's bad attitudes—you see Harry Potter as a doll, or perhaps a bank, rather than as a wizard who deserves honour and respect. I've heard you explain at dinner why you deserve to marry Harry Potter, who clearly cares for Miss Granger but doesn't care for you. But you're not yet lost, Ginevra, whilst Ronald is already lost. What I do now, my daughter, I do to shock you and to make you think."

Arthur drew his wand and pointed it straight up. "As Head of House Weasley, I call family judgement upon my son Ronald Bilius Weasley. I cast him out, I cast him out, I cast him out. I call back his Weasley family magic and I vanish his Weasley name. So mote it be."

For an instant, both father and son glowed with brilliant white light. Then Ron screamed, and dropped to his knees. Since George's eyes now were above the head of Ronald Bilius No-Name, George quickly noticed something about Ron's hair—

Ron's hair now was brown, a little darker than Hermione's, with no redness in the hair.

Arthur waved his wand then, cancelling the Silencing Charm.

As Arthur put his wand back in his forearm-holster, he locked eyes with Ginny. "Ginevra, learn from this. Don't give me reason to do this to you someday."

As Ron stood up, he scowled at his former father. "If you feel so hot about punishing someone, you should've punished Potter. Because he publicly humiliated me last night!" Ron shoved Fred aside and stomped out of the headmistress's office.

Now George noticed McGonagall. She hadn't heard what the Weasley family had said, because of the Silencing Charm, but she had been able to see the two bright flashes when Arthur Weasley had invoked family magic. As Ron hurried out the door, the headmistress was staring in shock at his hair.

8 p.m. at Gringotts

The ritual to remove Harry's forehead-horcrux took four hours, Harry was charged twenty thousand galleons—twice the cost of a new Firebolt—and Harry was in agony the entire time. But when the ritual was finished, Harry's lightning-bolt scar was only a scar.

The mail-owl-redirect spell took ten minutes and was done at no charge, since the removal of this spell was good for Gringotts and for Harry both.

Then Harry spent another two thousand galleons, and another half-hour of his life, to get both of the blocks on his magical core removed. This caused more agony.

However, when Harry left Gringotts, the Privet Drive blood-wards still were marked with Harry's blood. Tomorrow, Harry had a plan how to fix this—and wouldn't Mr Twinkle-Eyes be surprised!

Harry wrote a quick note to Hermione (his second to her of the day), explaining about horcruxes, and updating Hermione that today the horcrux in Harry's scar had been removed. Harry asked Hermione not to read this note aloud, so that the horcrux-less scar would remain their secret.

At the bottom of this note to Hermione, Harry wrote, "P.S. I love you."

Chapter 7

Wizarding Britain Finds Out

Early the next morning

Wednesday, 2nd November, 1994

In the blue-and-silver bedroom, Dumbledore House

Harry woke up in a quiet, tastefully coloured bedroom in Dumbledore House—a house which had belonged to Albus Dumbledore till yesterday.

Unlike the fourth-year boys' dorm in Gryffindor, Harry did not awaken to the sound of Ron's and Seamus's snoring. Unlike Dumbledore House's master bedroom, the blue-and-silver bedroom did not smell awful, and this bedroom was not decorated in an eyeball-stomping colour scheme.

In Dumbledore House, four of the five bedrooms shared one bathroom. Sleepy Harry stumbled out of the blue-and-silver bedroom, along the corridor and into this bathroom. Harry took a shower—which is to say, he stood in a converted claw-foot bathtub.

As Harry cleaned himself, he snorted at the irony of his location. In a week, Potter Manor would have its roof and walls repaired, and its wards up—in a week, Harry would move into Potter Manor and spend the rest of his life there. But right now, Harry was sure he was being hunted—by Amelia Bones, if nobody else—and right now, Potter Manor offered Harry no protection. On the other hand, not only did Dumbledore House today protect Harry by means of walls and wards, but Dumbledore House offered a unique bit of protection in that nobody—not even Prisoner Dumbledore in the goblin mines—expected Harry to spend even a minute in Dumbledore House.

After Harry shaved and dressed, he walked downstairs to the kitchen, to eat the full breakfast that Beekeeper and Dobby had cooked for him.

Harry had eaten almost all of his breakfast when he realised that, unlike at Hogwarts, his meal had not been interrupted by a hundred owls flying in, each carrying a copy of the Daily Prophet.

Harry was startled to realise that the last time he had seen a Prophet was two days ago, Halloween morning.

Harry thought, By now the newspaper will have reported that I refused the Triwizard Tournament and I quit Hogwarts. Maybe this time I'll get fair news coverage? Nah, probably not.

Meanwhile, throughout Wizarding Britain

This morning, of all the thousands of wizards and witches who subscribed to the Daily Prophet—or who could borrow a copy, or who could steal a copy—there was only one topic to discuss: the Page-1 news story that was under a three-line headline—

POTTER, AGE 14, CHOSEN FOR TWT

SAID NO, SNAPPED OWN WAND, WALKED OUT

THREATENED TO GO MUGGLE, HAS DISAPPEARED

The only place where the Daily Prophet news about Harry Potter was not fervently discussed was in the Great Hall of Hogwarts— because Harry walking out of Hogwarts was day-and-a-half old news.

In the Great Hall

Lavender Brown giggled. "I can't believe the Prophet printed Harry saying 'Fuck you all.' "

Parvati tapped a paragraph on the front page of the Prophet and read to Hermione, "DMLE Director Bones said, 'We are treating Harry Potter being chosen by the Goblet of Fire as a murder plot. Our investigation is complicated by the fact that we wish to interview Mr Potter in person, but we have been unable to find him.' " Then Lavender asked Hermione, "What do you think of that?"

Hermione said, "I can think of one way to find Harry right now—"

"What? Tell me, tell me!"

"—but no way will I say it here, where Susan Bones might overhear."

From two tables away, Hermione heard Susan Bones say, "Thanks, Granger, create more work for Auntie, why don't you?" But Susan was smiling as she said it.

Speaking of Amelia Bones

The Director of the DMLE was summoned to Cornelius Fudge's office. A copy of this morning's Daily Prophet lay on top of his desk.

"Amelia," said Fudge, who was looking especially pompous, "I order you to find Harry Potter and return him to Hogwarts."

Amelia calmly asked, "Why?"

"He's called the honesty of the entire Triwizard Tournament into question! Also, erm, erm"—Fudge was visibly struggling to invent an excuse—"he's left school without permission."

"He leaving school without permission is a matter between him and Hogwarts. Since I think someone at Hogwarts plotted murder against Harry Potter, and the person or persons unknown is still at Hogwarts, then I would be putting Potter in deadly danger if I'd return him to the school. I would be violating Unbreakable Vows if I did such a thing."

"How about you track him down and make a polite request that he return to Hogwarts?"

"Because nobody would hear a 'polite request' from the DMLE as anything other than 'Do as we say or we'll throw your arse in Azkaban.' Harry Potter certainly would hear the 'polite request' as a veiled threat, given his background."

"Merlin, Amelia, just find the boy and return him to Hogwarts! Do you have any idea what the international press is saying about us?"

It was time to get formal. Amelia said, "Minister Fudge, I refuse to take Harry James Potter into custody, and I refuse to deliver him to Hogwarts. I refuse to use any Aurors other than myself to track down the location of Harry James Potter, because I am convinced that if anyone but me in the DMLE should discover the location of Harry James Potter, that he would be in danger. Also, looking for Harry James Potter in Muggle Britain would be a complete waste of departmental resources."

Fudge sighed. "So you're not going to budge on this?"

"I'll resign first. Better to lose my job than to lose both my magic and my life."

"Fudge," said Fudge.

Cornelius toyed with the idea of sacking Amelia and tasking the new head of the DMLE with dragging Harry Potter back to Hogwarts. But then Cornelius remembered that—

Firstly, at the moment, Amelia enjoyed a better reputation in Wizarding Britain than Cornelius did. In a worst-case scenario, Cornelius would fail a no-confidence vote in the Wizengamot.

Secondly, hirings and promotions in the DMLE, as elsewhere in the Ministry, favoured Purebloods over Halfbloods and favoured Halfbloods over Muggle-borns. If Harry Potter indeed had moved into the Muggle world, even a hundred Pureblood Aurors would have no idea how to find him.

Cornelius toyed with the idea of Imperius-ing some Muggle Aurors and ordering them to hunt down Harry Potter. But then he remembered that he, Fudge, would be sentenced to life in Azkaban if news of this would break.

Fudge! thought Fudge.

In Riddle Manor

Peter Pettigrew had just read aloud, to the ugly homunculus of Voldemort, everything that this morning's Daily Prophet had to say about Harry Potter. The rat-man's throat now was dry, because the Prophet had much to say about Potter today.

"The boy is a coward!" Voldemort yelled in the homunculus's high-pitched voice.

"Definitely a coward," Peter agreed. Peter did not mention that he had no room to talk—he stayed with the ugly-baby Dark Lord only because Peter was terrified of what would happen if he ran away.

Voldemort said, "Harry Potter proves himself to be a worthless boy, but it must be Harry whose blood we take in the ritual. Bugger!"

Peter had to work hard not to grin at hearing that profanity come from someone with the voice of a toddler.

Voldemort continued, "Wormtail, go now to Hogwarts, infiltrate as a rat, find Barty and order him to find Harry Potter. Then hurry back before I need my nappy changed!"

Back in the Great Hall, Hogwarts SOW&W

Hermione was sitting at the Gryffindor table, forking up eggs and talking with Neville and Parvati, when she heard a familiar (and unwanted) male voice behind her—

"Oh my, look who's not a redhead anymore."

Ron snarled, "Shut it, Malfoy. I don't need to hear from you."

Ron was sitting between the Gryffindor fifth-years and the third-years, but he was not in any other way part of the fourth-year Gryffindor group. The bench-seats to either side of Ron and in front of him were all empty. Also, Gryffindors excluded Ron from their conversations—except for Lavender to rudely ask Ron how he had been cast out of the Weasley family. So it was no surprise to Hermione that Ron had been scowling since the first moment that Hermione had seen him this morning.

Hermione was burning with curiosity why Ron was no longer a Weasley; but Hermione had let Lavender Brown ask Ron the tactless question. But Lavender's asking had achieved nothing—George, Fred and Ginny all had been tight-lipped, the same as no-longer-redheaded Ron.

Now, seconds after Draco Malfoy's own rude words, Hermione glanced over her shoulder. It was no surprise that the bookends—Crabbe and Goyle—were standing to the left and right of the talking ferret.

"So," Draco purred, "even your own blood-traitor father recognised how much a disgrace you are, Not-Weasley. The Prophet says that your own mother, 'Howler Molly,' was arrested by the goblins for theft. Did you steal too, but not get caught?"

"Shut your mouth, you slimy snake!"

"Poor Ronald No-Name," said Draco, oozing fake sympathy. "You had it all planned out: You planned to get rich and famous as Potter's 'best mate,' didn't you? A new shapely bird every week, and carrying the key to a fat vault by the time you were twenty. But then the Goblet spit out Potter's name, and you just had to run your mouth, didn't you? Right here in the Great Hall, in front of hundreds, you called Potter a cheater and you called him a liar—such a loyal 'best mate' you were, hm? But for once, Scarhead called you out. He called you a 'lazy, envious, redhead slob,' didn't he? Then Potter said, 'In case you haven't figured it out, Weasley, you're no longer my friend, "best" or otherwise.' Your future is pretty much bollocksed now, and it's your own fault. You know this, don't you, Not-Weasley?"

Hermione noticed that not only were Ron's ears red, but so was his face. Yet for whatever reason, Ron did not speak.

Instead, Ron put down his fork, and let his hands drop below the table—which put Ron's right hand near the pocket of his robes.

Hermione made herself speak calmly: "Ron, you know he's trying to make you lose your temper, right? Stay calm."

Ron shot Hermione a look that said Why are you telling me this? Do you think I'm stupid? Then Ron turned his angry but silent face back towards Draco.

Draco said, "One day Granger might be a famous book author"—Hermione gave Draco a startled look—"and Longbottom might be a famous herbologist, but what is your future, Not-Weasley?"

Draco answered his own question: "Your future is sweeping floors and vanishing dustbins, that's it! You wanted to play professional Quidditch? You won't even get a job as the Bludgers-polisher for the Chudley Cannons." Draco laughed scornfully.

Ron, whilst Draco was laughing, jumped up; Ron pointed his wand at Draco. "You die! Avada—"

Three male voices spoke at the same time: "Reducto!"/"Diffindo!"/"Kedavra!"

Crabbe's spell missed Ron. Goyle's spell did not miss Ron—the top half of Ron's head was sliced off. Draco silently dropped.

One second later

Hermione jumped up and yelled, "Don't anybody move! Crabbe and Goyle, Gryffindors, nobody move, don't anyone do anything stupid!"

Then Hermione turned towards the Head Table. "Headmistress, Healer Tonks, you two are needed here."

As McGonagall and Healer Tonks were rushing towards the fourth-year-Gryffindors part of the room, Hermione turned towards the Hufflepuff table and looked for the fourth-year redhead there. "Susan, please tell your aunt that we need Aurors now. Ron and Draco are dead."

Hundreds of students gasped.

Now Hermione could take the time to look about. Crabbe and Goyle looked worried, whilst most of the Gryffindors looked angry. George and Fred looked unsure, but Ginny looked murderous. Two Gryffindor firstie girls were holding each other and were sobbing. Hermione looked down at Draco, intending to give the corpse only a glance—but then Hermione saw something that startled her.

When McGonagall and Healer Tonks were gathered near unmoving Draco, Hermione said, "Headmistress, look for Draco's wand. I think it's still in his pocket."

Headmistress McGonagall squatted down and checked Draco's pockets. Sure enough, she found Draco's wand in a pocket of his robes. "What does this mean?" the headmistress wondered.

Hermione took a deep breath, to calm herself, because she knew what would happen next. "What Draco's wand in his pocket means, Headmistress, is that Gregory Goyle was defending a friend when he killed Ron; Goyle did not commit murder."

"You traitor!" Ginny snapped.

At the Slytherin table, Daphne Greengrass stood up and said, "Did I hear you right, Granger? A snake kills a lion and you're defendinghim?"

Hermione turned to face Daphne, who was on the other side of the room. "I'm defending him, yes, because of what I just saw. Ron started his spellcasting first, and he AK'd Draco. Draco didn't have his wand out, but Crabbe and Goyle did. Defending a friend or family member isn't considered murder if you kill the attacker."

George and Fred stood up then, and the Great Hall went silent. The Weasley twins walked over to where Hermione, Crabbe, Goyle, and McGonagall were standing. (Healer Tonks was on the other side of the Gryffindor table now, examining Ron's sliced-in-half head.)

The twins asked Hermione, "Which one of them—"

"—cast the fatal spell?"

Hermione gestured towards Goyle. "He did."

This time, the twins did not do Twinspeak. Instead, Fred put his hand on George's shoulder and looked solemnly at Goyle, as George spoke—

"We've two more years here. We prank people, it's what we do, and we love to prank Slytherins. So you will be pranked; deal with it. But"—here George paused, as if he was groping for the words to say—"we won't prank you because of this. Hermione says you did nothing wrong, and we trust her. Our wanker of a brother brought this on himself."

Ginny, however, glared at Crabbe and Goyle and said, "The twins don't speak for me. You two can expect trouble from me."

Fred sighed. "Ginny, Ron murdered Draco because Draco said Ron would never get a job with the Cannons."

Without another word, the Weasley twins walked back to their seats.

Right after this, Amelia Bones and six Aurors burst into the Great Hall.

Half an hour later, in Dumbledore House

After breakfast, Harry walked up the stairs and walked to the entrance door to Albus's bedroom. Harry conjured a clothespin, put it on his nose to pinch his nostrils shut, opened the door, and walked into the former headmaster's former bedroom.

Harry walked over to the wardrobe, opened it, and looked at the wizard robes inside. For the first time in his life, Harry regretted having full colour vision.

Fifteen minutes later, in Gringotts UK's iron mine

An amplified goblin voice yelled from the mine elevator, "Prisoner Dumbledore, come here."

Albus Dumbledore put down his mining pick and walked towards the mine elevator—or rather, he waddled towards the mine elevator. The magic-suppressing fetters that he wore were made up of an ankle-cuff around each of his legs, and a fifteen-inch chain. So it was his choice whether he minced through the mine tunnel or he waddled through the mine tunnel. Either way, he could not move quickly through the mine tunnel.

By the mine elevator, the lights were a little brighter, so Albus could see who was waiting for him. Instead of the normal two goblin guards by the elevator, he saw three goblins—also two wizards and a chubby woman wearing prisoner overalls. Considering how little the goblins feed us, Albus thought, if she's heavyset, she must be a new prisoner like me.

Seconds later, Albus's theory was confirmed when he saw that the female prisoner-miner was Molly Weasley. Just then, Albus heard a goblin say, "Return to work, Prisoner Weasley."

Up till now, Albus had ignored the two wizards by the mine elevator; but after Molly walked back into the mine tunnel, Albus saw the two wizards clearly. One of the wizards was an angry Bill Weasley, who had something draped over his shoulder. The other wizard was a young man with a daring fashion sense—wait, the other wizard was Harry Potter! A Harry Potter who was wearing lemon-yellow robes with fluffy, slow-moving clouds on them; robes that were identical to robes that Albus once had worn proudly.

Albus caught both Harry and Mr Weasley looking at Albus's face in surprise. Right after the goblins had sentenced Albus to the mines, the goblins had cut off all of Albus's hair and all of his beard.

Now, as bald and clean-shaven Albus waddled close to the two wizards, and as the chain-part of his fetters rattled and clanked, Albus put on a smile and said, "Harry, my boy."

Harry said, "You forget yourself, thief."

Then Harry looked at the goblin who was standing next to him, and said, "Battlecry, can you do something about his light that is shining in my eyes? It's blinding me."

Whenever the prisoner-miners entered the mines for the day, a goblin sticky-charmed a magical cold-torch to each prisoner's forehead. Albus had such a torch on his forehead now, and the bright light was making Harry's face glow and his eyes squint.

The goblin named Battlecry casually waved a hand; Harry's face stopped glowing.

Meanwhile, Bill Weasley was saying to Albus, "Prisoner Dumbledore, I just had an interesting conversation with my mother. She used Harry's key and spent money from Harry's vault, and that's how she wound up here—getting calluses on her hands, and getting filthy, and never eating enough. Want to know something? I say she deserves this, even though she's my mother, because she's a thief who got caught. But just now I asked her: How did she get Harry's key? She got the key from you. So I owe you, Prisoner Dumbledore, for tempting my mother."

Dumbledore ignored Bill. "Harry, it's good to see you again. I applaud your bold fashion choice."

Harry sneered. "Oh, you mean the robes? Funny thing about that—the deeds to two houses showed up in the Potter family vault, and I, being a curious lad, checked out both properties. The bigger house came with an eager house-elf, an ancestral portrait named Polonius who's angry at you right now, and the master bedroom has a wardrobe in which many fabulous wizard robes are stored. As for the other house, Ibiza is wonderful this time of year."

"Harry, my boy, I'm willing to overlook the fact that the value of my gold that the goblins gave you, plus the value of the two deeds that the goblins gave you, is worth much more than the gold I divertedfrom your vault."

Harry replied harshly, "Amazing. You stole from me, and now you're also trying to imply I owe you because the goblins punished you too harshly?"

"Harry, did you come here to gloat about being awarded Dumbledore House? I'm disappointed in you."

Harry said to Mr Weasley, "Hear that, Bill? Oi, I've disappointed the thief. Let's do what we came for. Battlecry, if you would?"

Standing next to Harry and Mr Weasley was a goblin who was not one of the two goblin guards; this goblin had turned off Albus's magical cold-torch. Now this goblin gestured towards Albus, and Albus blacked out.

Sometime later

Albus was lying on the filthy floor of the mine tunnel. He discovered that standing up was tricky when he was wearing fetters that limited his feet to being no more than fifteen inches apart.

Harry and Mr Weasley both were smirking at Albus, as if they knew a secret that Albus did not know.

Albus said, "What has happened to me? I feel strange."

Fourteen-year-old Harry adopted a grandfatherly face and said, "Albus, my boy, you have enough miseries in your life as a prisoner-miner; I do you a kindness by sparing you knowledge of unpleasant facts."

No matter what Albus said, neither Harry nor Mr Weasley were persuaded to tell Albus what had happened whilst Albus had been goblin-Stupefied.

Albus noticed that draped over Mr Weasley's shoulder was a set of prisoner-miner fetters, like what Albus himself wore. Albus wondered why Mr Weasley had those, and how those fetters on Mr Weasley's shoulders tied in with the secret that Albus was not being told.

Harry had been enraged when the latest letter from Axefrenzy had told Harry two things—

Firstly, that Dumbledore's claim, that the Privet Drive wards needed for Harry to live with the Dursleys for a certain amount of time every year, in order to "recharge" the wards, was a bloody lie. Secondly, the letter stated that the Privet Drive wards were vampirish, draining off some of Harry's magical strength.

However Harry, as much as he hated his Muggle relatives, did not want the Dursleys to be tortured and killed by evil wizards. So simply cutting the connexion between Harry's magical core and the Privet Drive wards was not an option.

Instead, Harry and Bill Weasley (whilst Disillusioned) had injected some magical power into the Privet Drive wards, then they had travelled to Gringotts to pay a visit to Dumbledore in the goblin mines.

Once Dumbledore had been goblin-Stunned, a sample of his blood had been taken by Bill. Bill had Portkeyed back to Privet Drive, had broken the link between Harry's blood on the wardstone and the Privet Drive wards, had Scourgify'd Harry's blood on the wardstone, had dripped Dumbledore's blood on the wardstone, then Bill had made a link between Dumbledore's blood on the wardstone, and the Privet Drive wards. After this, Bill had Portkeyed back to Harry in the goblins' iron mine. Then still-Stunned Dumbledore's magic-blocking fetters had been removed by Battlecry, and replacement fetters had been snapped on. Bill casually had laid the old, magic-blocking fetters on his shoulder. Once all these things had been done, Dumbledore had been goblin-Rennervated.

The new fetters that Dumbledore now was wearing still had a goblin anti-unlock charm on them and a goblin anti-vanish charm on them. But the new fetters did not have a goblin magic-suppression charm on them.

None of the three people who now were staring at Dumbledore's face, told him that it was his magical strength, not Harry's, that now was powering the Privet Drive wards. Nor was Dumbledore told that not only was some of his magical strength being tapped for the Privet Drive wards, but all of his magical strength was being diverted.

From now till the minute Dumbledore died, the wardstone at Number 4, Privet Drive would drain him magically dry. All for the Greater Good, of course.

After Dumbledore was revived, he evidently realised that something had been done to him whilst he had been goblin-Stunned, then he spent several minutes trying to coax the secret from Harry.

Harry ignored Dumbledore's politely-phrased demand for information. Instead, Harry glanced at Bill Weasley and said, "It's time to leave, I think. After all, the iron ore down here won't mine itself."

Harry, Bill and Battlecry had not taken even one step towards the mine elevator when Dumbledore called out, "Harry, wait!"

Harry took another step towards the elevator.

"Harry, Voldemort is alive, and one day he'll come back, and only you can defeat him, and there are dark secrets that you need to know, which only I can tell you!"

Harry turned-about only partway; only Harry's head, turned to the side, faced Dumbledore. Harry said in a bored voice, "Have you forgotten that by sundown on the 24th, I could be a Squib for the rest of my life? If I turn Squib, I don't think even Merlin knew any hidden knowledge that would help me defeat Voldemort."

"Harry, you need my help!"

"Let me guess, old man, what you want in return for your 'help': If I can get the goblins to release you, and I spend every moment that I'm not in school, living with the Dursleys and accepting their abuse, then you will spare the time to share your bountiful knowledge and wisdom with me—"

"Yes, Harry, that's—"

"Minus, of course, whatever you hold back from telling me for quote, my own good, unquote."

"Harry, you're only fourteen, a mere youth, and—"

Harry laughed. "I'm going with Plan B." Harry pulled a Gringotts letter from the pocket of his robes. "This letter says that if you'd gone on a spree with my money, so that you couldn't pay back everything you'd stolen from me, the goblins would have executed you immediately. As it is, a seventy-five-year sentence here means the goblins will work you to death sooner or later, but it's not officially a death sentence. Follow me so far?"

Confused-looking Dumbledore nodded.

"Before I came down today, I asked Axefrenzy, 'How bad are the mines for prisoners who are sentenced here?' He told me that only 50 percent of prisoners survive five years down here, and only 40 percent survive six years."

Dumbledore gulped.

"Merlin," said Bill, "so Mum has only a fifty-fifty chance of walking out of here?"

Harry slapped Bill's shoulder. "Sorry, Bill." Then Harry turned back to Dumbledore, and Harry's voice turned cold. "Here's Plan B: I talk to the goblins about your sentence, asking them to reduce it from seventy-five years to six, but your sentence also would include a conditional stay of execution. Any time in the next six years, if I sent Gringotts a note saying 'Axe the wanker's neck,' you would die that day."

Bill said, "That sounds complicated. Why do it this way?"

"Because, Bill, if I don't do it this way, Albus here would continue his bullshit mind games, deciding what to tell me, and when, and how much to say, and deciding whether what he told me would be 100-percent truth. The only way I'll ever get information that is complete, and that I can trust, from this manipulative old fart is if he knows he'll lose everything by pissing me off."

Dumbledore said, "Harry, that you could even imagine asking the goblins to execute me—you are turning Dark."

"So you're telling me 'no' then? You choose to work until you die, down here in the dark, and if I kill Voldemort forever, none of the credit goes to you? Fine."

Harry again turned to walk into the mine elevator.

Dumbledore said, "Reduce my time to one year, not six years."

Harry laughed. "Do you think you're in position to bargain, PrisonerDumbledore? My offer, take it or leave it."

"Fine, fine, I agree! A six-year prison sentence with a conditional stay of execution, if you'll visit me and listen to me."

Dumbledore and Harry made an appointment for 8:30 p.m. on 23rd November, the night before the First Task. Harry would listen to whatever Dumbledore had to tell him, Harry would ask questions, then he would leave at nine o'clock. (Harry suspected that spending half an hour with Albus Dumbledore was going to be a complete waste of Harry's time.)

Seconds later, in the mine elevator

In silence, Bill, Harry and Battlecry were riding in the creaking elevator as it rose. Suddenly Harry recalled what Dumbledore had yelled minutes ago: "Harry, Voldemort is alive, and one day he'll come back."

Harry had a realisation: Dumbledore expects Voldemort and me to fight, again and again, until either I kill Voldemort forever or he kills me. But for whatever reason, Dumbledore wants it to be I, not Voldemort, who dies.

Once Harry realised this, so many events of his life, most of them shitty, suddenly made sense: being put with the Dursleys, meeting the Weasley family in Kings Cross Station, being sent back to the Dursleys, the first-year farce of the third-floor corridor, being shunned in second year as the "Heir of Slytherin" and no professor speaking up, Sirius Black never being given a trial even though he was innocent, Dumbledore doing nothing to keep Harry out of the Triwizard Tournament two days ago, and more.

By the time that Bill and Battlecry stepped out of the mine elevator at the top, Harry was angry enough that he wanted to ride the elevator back down, find Dumbledore, and spell-curse the manipulative old man into goo.

But Harry did not indulge this urge; one minute later, he was walking into the Gringotts lobby, intending to wait in queue for a teller.

Whilst waiting for a teller, Harry realised something else: The one good thing in Harry's life was the one thing that Dumbledore had not planned: Harry and Hermione becoming friends. With Hermione in Harry's life, Harry no longer was lonely but was happy instead; Harry was stronger. Harry thought, No wonder Dumbledore left Hermione petrified for months!

Harry decided that as soon as he would return to Dumbledore House, he would write Hermione a love letter.

When Harry was at the teller cage, he asked to speak briefly with his account manager, Axefrenzy.

When Harry was face-to-face with Axefrenzy, Harry said, "When Dumbledore was stealing from my vault, your records stated he was making monthly withdrawals from one of his vaults of two hundred galleons, converting the money to a thousand pounds in cash notes, and sending that money to my uncle, Vernon Dursley. My question: How is Gringotts sure this money went to Vernon Dursley?"

Axefrenzy replied, "Let me find out."

For five minutes, Axefrenzy conjured parchments and looked at them. Then he replied, "The payments were made from Albus Dumbledore's vault 1469, now closed. The Muggle money was sent to the Muggle on the first day of the month, beginning on 1st November, 1981. How the money was sent was by using the Nation's 'money-banish' spell, for which Vault 1469 was charged two galleons each time. The ledger notes include the name of the intended recipient, Vernon G. Dursley, and the Nation-format map coordinates where the Muggle money was sent to."

Harry asked, "Can you please show me on a map of Great Britain, where the money went, even though I'm sure I already know where?"

Axefrenzy conjured a floating map of Great Britain. A red dot on the map showed that the cash went to Little Whinging, in Surrey.

Harry asked, "Could you please enlarge this, so I can see what street and house the money was sent to?"

The map of Great Britain transformed into a map of Little Whinging. The red dot covered—no surprise—Number 4, Privet Drive.

Axefrenzy said, "I can tell you what room of the house it went to, if you want."

Axefrenzy conjured a floating map of the house's first floor, above a floating map of the house's ground floor. The destination of the cash turned out to be the guest bedroom on the ground floor, which was next to the sitting room. The guest bedroom never was used except when Aunt Marge came to visit.

Harry said to Axefrenzy, "Uncle Vernon was sent a thousand pounds a month for my care, none of which he spent on me, and this money came from my trust vault. But not only did Uncle Vernon cheat me, I'm certain that Uncle Vernon never told Inland Revenue"—Her Majesty's tax collectors—"about the cash he magically received."

Axefrenzy smiled at Harry, and that smile showed teeth. "If Mr Dursley hasn't told Inland Revenue about his cash payments, someone else should tell them."

Harry matched Axefrenzy's predator smile with one of his own. "Do you know any Muggle-borns or Squibs over at Inland Revenue, who enjoy catching tax-cheaters as much as goblins enjoy catching thieves?"

At lunchtime, in the Great Hall of Hogwarts

Hermione had just walked in, and as usual was headed towards the middle of the Gryffindor table.

"Granger! Granger!" a girl's voice yelled—not from the Gryffindor table.

Hermione looked about. At the Slytherin table, Daphne Greengrass was standing up and was beckoning to Hermione. Once Hermione and the Slytherin girl made eye contact, Daphne said, "Granger, I invite you to come eat with us Slytherins."

The entire Hogwarts-students part of the Great Hall went shocked-silent; only Beauxbatons and Durmstrang students continued talking.

The whiny voice of Pansy Parkinson snapped, "Are you a blood-traitor, Greengrass? Granger is a m—"

Daphne snapped back, "She spoke up for Crabbe and Goyle when nobody expected it. Frankly, I'd rather talk to Granger than to an inbred cow like you."

Hermione said, "Thank you, Miss Greengrass, I accept your invitation."

Hermione braced herself against Ron's expected shouting tirade about "slimy snakes"—then Hermione realised that there would be no such tirade, because Ron was dead.

As Hermione came close to the Slytherin table, Crabbe and Goyle stood up and bowed towards her. Before sitting back down on the bench, the two large Slytherin boys moved apart, creating a place for Hermione to sit.

In so doing, Crabbe's hips bumped against Pansy's shoulder. When Pansy didn't take the hint to move down the bench, Daphne growled, "Were you raised in a Muggle barn, Parkinson? Make room for our guest or I'll hex you!"

Pansy glared at Hermione but slid away, and Hermione took a seat—the only red-robed person amongst a table-full of green robes.

Hermione said politely, "Thank you for inviting me here, Miss Greengrass."

Daphne said, "Please, call me Daphne."

Hermione smiled at Daphne, then said, "All of you fourth-year Slytherins except for Miss Parkinson may call me Hermione."

Pansy muttered, "Like I'd want to be friendly with you."

Gregory Goyle said to Hermione, "The law-wizard that my Da hired, told me that because Weasley—"

"Not-Weasley," Pansy corrected.

"—because Not-Weasley was a Pureblood—"

"A blood-traitor Pureblood," Pansy corrected again.

"Parkinson, shut up!" Goyle yelled. "Anyway, Hermione, the law-wizard told me that for killing the redhead, I coulda been Kissed. But because of what you said, they let Crabbe and me go back to Hogwarts after less than an hour. The Aurors said that what I did was just—erm, was just—"

"Justifiable?" Hermione prompted.

Goyle nodded. "So for me and Crabbe, no charges, no trial. I'm glad. A trial in the Wizengamot, in front of my Da, and his friends, and Lord Malfoy? That'd be scary!"

Daphne said, "Why'd you speak up, Hermione? This is what I can't figure out. If Malfoy had killed No-Name, then, say, Longbottom and Finnegan had killed Malfoy right afterwards—"

Hermione said, "There was no 'right afterwards' this morning. Ron started to cast the AK on Draco. Crabbe and Goyle cursed Ron at the same time that Ron finished his curse on Draco. Crabbe's curse missed; Goyle's curse hit. Ron and Draco died in the same second."

Millicent Bulstrode said, "Thank you for explaining this. We couldn't see a thing from where we were."

Blaise Zabini huffed. "But why did you defend two Slytherins? Two Slytherins who went everywhere with Malfoy?"

Hermione said, "The honest answer? Because I knew that if Harry had been sitting where I'd been sitting and he'd seen what I'd seen, he would've spoken up for Crabbe and Goyle. Even if afterwards, everyone else in Gryffindor hexed Harry badly enough to send him to Saint Mungo's! Harry is all about doing what is right, not what is easy—sometime, I need to tell you how Harry ended the danger in the Chamber of Secrets at the end of second year. Anyway, Harry would've spoken up for Crabbe and Goyle, I love Harry, I don't want ever to disappoint him, so I spoke up for Crabbe and Goyle."

Daphne said, "How did Harry stop the 'Heir of Slytherin,' 'Chamber of Secrets' attacks? The professors said only that the attacks had been stopped, not how they'd been stopped."

Millicent looked down the table at the first- and second-year Slytherins. "Two years ago, that was a scary year! People were getting turned into stone statues, and nobody knew how it was happening, or when it would happen again, or to whom. Nobody had any idea how to prevent themselves from turning into statues—even seventh-years felt helpless. At first the other three Houses were blaming us, because the attacks were being made by someone calling himself 'the Heir of Slytherin.' "

"True," said Hermione, "until the school discovered that Harry was a Parselmouth. Then voilà, it was Harry whom everyone blamed as the Heir of Slytherin. By the way, I was one of the students who was petrified."

Hermione then told the tale of Harry's battle to the death against the sixty-foot basilisk in the Chamber of Secrets, all to save the life of "the Voldemort-possessed Hogwarts student"—Hermione refused to divulge the student's name—who was someone whom "Harry barely knew."

Hermione, in telling Harry's intrepid tale to the Slytherins, slipped-in the fact that Voldemort's real name was Tom Marvolo Riddle; Hermione used fire-writing to demonstrate the anagram-trick. The Slytherins quickly noticed that Riddle was not a wizarding-family name; Hermione kept silent as the students in green realised that Voldemort could not be a Pureblood.

Hermione finished her tale this way: "Many of you clearly don't believe me. If any of you ever see Harry again, ask him to show you his right arm. The scar that the basilisk fang left on his arm is huge, and Harry is alive only because Fawkes the phoenix shed tears on the fang-bite."

Pansy spoke only once more during the meal; Daphne, Millicent and Blaise told Pansy to shut up. Soon Hermione was relaxed enough that she actually was discussing Ancient Runes with Daphne and Blaise.

Hermione then realised why she could eat at the Slytherin table and be relaxed: Without Draco provoking the Gryffindors and stirring up the Slytherins, without Ron insulting the Slytherins and insulting Hermione herself, without Snape's bullying and blatant favouritism, without Headmaster Dumbledore's misguided refusal to punish bullies—

For the first time since Hermione had walked into her first Potions class, Hogwarts felt to her like a school, not a war zone.

Eventually lunch ended, and all the fourth-years at the Slytherin table stood up to leave. Hermione smiled at Daphne and said, "At dinner tonight, why don't we reverse this? For dinner, I invite you to eat with us Gryffindors."

Daphne gave Hermione a quite un-Ice-Queen-ish, genuine smile. "That would be lovely."

Five hours later

At the beginning of dinnertime, in the Great Hall

Slytherins who entered the Great Hall usually entered by one set of double doors. Tonight, the Weasley twins stood by those same doors, just inside the Great Hall.

As Slytherins entered, the twins smiled at them and bowed, as if completely unaware that the Green House and the Red House were bitter rivals.

This happened for several minutes, until Daphne Greengrass and Tracey Davis walked in.

After the twins smiled and bowed towards both girls, the Twinspeak began—

"Miss Greengrass, we are here—"

"—to escort you through the dangerous and uncharted—"

"—Great Hall, to meet and to dine with—"

"—the beautiful and charming genius—"

"—Miss Hermione Granger of New House Granger."

The twins moved to either side of Daphne and each offered her an elbow. Then the three magical teens began to move.

The twins marched, with knees lifted high and with George calling cadence. The turns that the marching twins made were all crisp right angles.

The Durmstrang students began to clap along with George's cadence. Quickly the Beauxbatons students added their own clapping, as did Hogwarts students from all four houses.

The twins' path took the three students to passing in front of the entire High Table. Daphne grinned at the professors, who grinned back. Seconds after they marched past the High Table, the twins made a crisp right turn, and Daphne was marched between the Gryffindor and Ravenclaw tables.

When the three came alongside both Hermione and an empty space on the bench next to Hermione, George called, "DE-tail HALT!"

The twins stopped marching, stomped their feet twice, then stepped sideways away from Daphne. Together the twins saluted the Slytherin beauty, grinning all the while. As Daphne was taking her seat next to Hermione, the twins marched back to the sixth-years part of the Gryffindor table, with George again calling cadence.

During the meal, the fourth-year Gryffindors were perfect hosts to Daphne. Neither Daphne nor Hermione were embarrassed by other Gryffindors, even for a second.

There was a reason for this. Everyone in Gryffindor knew that the twins' most embarrassing pranks were reserved for "Slytherin gits" and "Gryffindor gits." Everyone in Gryffindor also knew that the twins highly approved of Harry and Hermione. The twins having made it quite clear, just now, that Hermione's guest Daphne was not a "Slytherin git," the twins also had made it just as clear that any Lions who made Hermione frown tonight would be pranked unmercifully. Thus all the Gryffindor fourth-years behaved.

During dinner, Hermione received two letters from Harry. One letter was marked on the outside, in red, "Do not read this aloud." As Daphne smirked, blushing Hermione shoved this letter into her pocket.

Hermione read Harry's other letter aloud. Harry described his encounter with Dumbledore in the goblin mine, what Dumbledore looked like, and how Dumbledore acted. (Hermione noticed that Headmistress McGonagall cringed during the letter-reading.) Hermione noticed that Harry did not mention in the letter where he was living, nor how he had travelled from that place to Gringotts in Diagon Alley.

After Hermione read Harry's letter, Daphne commented, " 'Leader of the Light,' my arse."

Meanwhile, in a house in Little Whinging, Surrey

Normal Englishman Vernon Dursley and his normal wife Petunia had just sat down to dinner when—

Pop.

—a three-foot-tall creature with giant, pointed ears and billiard-ball-sized eyes appeared by Vernon's chair. As Petunia screamed, the creature glared at Vernon.

"The Great Harry Potter wrote you a letter," said the creature. The creature thrust the envelope towards Vernon.

Vernon thundered, "What? I have no interest in reading anything the freak might write. Now leave this place!"

Vernon, with a sideways wave of his mighty arm, knocked the creature to the kitchen floor.

The creature did not speak a word or make a gesture; but abruptly Vernon's arms were pulled together so that his arms crossed. Then chains with padlocks appeared, wrapped about those arms. Vernon not only could not discipline the creature again, now Vernon could not even eat his dinner without Petunia's help.

With Vernon now unable to prevent anything, the creature walked up to Vernon and lay the envelope on Vernon's blubbery lap. "Have a bad evening," the creature said.

Pop. The creature disappeared; as did the chains and padlocks that bound Vernon's arms.

Vernon slid out of his chair whilst holding his nephew's letter. Vernon intended to bin the letter unopened.

"Vernon!" said Petunia. "Harry has never written us a letter before. I think—I think you should read it."

With the request coming from Petunia, not Petunia's freaky nephew or that nephew's freaky creature, Vernon opened the envelope and began to read the letter.

An action he soon came to regret.

.

Oi, walrus!

You know the thousand pounds in notes that you expected to appear in the guest bedroom at the start of the month? I bet you're wondering why it hasn't shown up. It's because Dumbledore now is a prisoner in the goblin mines, he was stealing that money (and a lot more money besides) from my money-vault, and when I found this out, I put a stop to it. Too bad, so sad, I guess you'll have to make do with only your Grunnings salary now!

Let me be honest, fatso. When I found out that a thousand pounds a month was going from my money-vault into your pocket, and you had not ever spent even a farthing of that money on me—for five minutes, I plotted to kill you magically.

But I decided not to kill you. Aren't I kind? So other than a thousand pounds a month no longer going into your pocket, you have no worries, right?

Not so. Today I talked to a man at Inland Revenue named Ian McManus. Like my mum and like my girlfriend, Mr McManus is a magical person with nonmagical parents. He has both a magical education (he completed all seven years at Hogwarts) and a nonmagical education (he has a degree in accounting from Saint Stephen's College). My point is, he knows about magic, and I gave him magically-written documentation that shows you being sent £1 000 every month. Then I told Mr McManus, "I'm sure that my uncle never reported this money." Ten minutes later, Mr McManus told me, "You're right. He didn't."

So, uncle, expect to be audited—and by someone who knows exactly what to look for.

Right now I'm sure you're thinking that you'll take the easy approach: threaten Mr McManus that you'll out him as a "freak" unless he drops the investigation. Or maybe you'll pack up and run away—to elsewhere in the Isles, to France, or to the States, Canada or Australia.

You wouldn't get away. No matter where in the world you fled, once I went looking for you, I'd find you—and furthermore, I'd find you in seconds.

I mentioned that I decided not to kill you, but I do have the power to see you dead. If I went to the Department of Magical Law Enforcement (DMLE) and told them that you, Vernon, had starved me, beaten me badly enough to break bones, and whipped me, you'd be arrested by magical constables for abuse of a magical child. Then I'd tell them that Aunt Petunia hit me on the head with a frying pan. I'd also tell them about all the beatings I'd received from Dudley. All three of you would be tried in the magical court, and all three of you would be sentenced to Azkaban (the magical prison). What is Azkaban like? Imagine the most horrid of Her Majesty's prisons, but with Dementors. Dementors are awful creatures that nonmagical people can't see, and they suck out your soul. If the Dementors are blocked from sucking out your soul, you feel both biting cold and hopeless, joyless clinical depression, for as long as the Dementors are near. Now imagine being near dozens of Dementors, nonstop, for years.

Unless your sentence in Azkaban is a wrist-slap, life in Azkaban is so harsh that everyone who is sent to Azkaban dies there, and they die years before they would've died otherwise. Vernon, I promise you that if you three get put on trial in magical court, I will do my utmost to make sure that you Dursleys' sentences are not wrist-slaps.

What am I trying to say? If you don't try to blackmail Mr McManus and if you don't try to leave Privet Drive, IF YOU TAKE YOUR MEDICINE, I in turn won't talk to the DMLE and you won't be arrested by magical constables. Going to a nonmagical British prison for breaking the tax laws won't be pleasant for you, Vernon, but maybe Inland Revenue won't go after Petunia, and I'm sure Inland Revenue won't bother Dudley at all.

But if you disregard my warning and you act foolishly, all three of you will die in Azkaban Prison, ten years from now at the latest. Furthermore, after all three of you die, you'll be buried amongst wizard criminals—I love the irony.

I'd tell you "Choose wisely," but honestly, I'm hoping you won't. Because, fatso, you truly deserve to die—and I won't shed any tears if my shrew aunt and my whale cousin die too.

One more thing: I won't say how much I have in my money-vaults, but I'm richer than you. If you and Aunt Petunia had been nice to me as I grew up, I would have been generous to you two during your retirement years. But no, you two chose treatment of me that was so bad, it was criminal—and so every good thing that the three of you ever have had in your lives, I'm determined to see destroyed.

The next afternoon

Thursday, 3rd November, 1994

Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry had a small cemetery in the courtyard, for students or professors who died on school grounds and who had no family. In a thousand years, only five people had been buried there.

Ronald Bilius No-Name became the sixth person buried there, on a cold, grey day.

Headmistress McGonagall transfigured a coffin for Ron, then she officiated at the brief funeral. After Headmistress McGonagall's funeral service, Professor Flitwick magically buried the coffin in the courtyard.

The only mourners to attend were a few Gryffindor students: the three Weasley children, Seamus Finnegan, Dean Thomas and Hermione Granger. No one wept. After Professor Flitwick covered the coffin with dirt and stone, everyone went back inside.