Disclaimer: This story is based on the characters and worlds which were created by and belong to J.K. Rowling

A/N: So, we set off on the journey of Albus' third year. I hope you enjoy it

1:Prologue

The rain thudded down as the goblin stood in the narrow, tree lined street. He stood off to one side, doing his best to stay under the oberhanging canopy of the great ash trees which lined the narrow roadway. Seeing as this was the only building in sight, the goblin presumed that he must be in the right place. He continued along the street which was lit only by the glow of the setting sun. The building was run down and shabby in appearance except for the door which, the goblin guessed, was made of metal and painted black. Curling his long fingers into a fist he knocked loudly on the door and the sound he made confirmed his suspicions. It was indeed a metal door. He wondered why they would have such a new door which stood out. He waited a few moments and the door swung open. A middle aged man with a wrinkled face and thinning grey black hair stood before him. His black robes billowed from the slight wind outside and he showed the goblin inside. The narrow hallway was lined with six doors, three on either side and a seventh one at the end. It was as poor in appearance as the exterior of the house. A staircase to the goblin's right wound its way up through the building. A quick glance towards the top was brought to an end by the man's voice. "Welcome, Mr Grogue" the man's voice wasn't as expected. It was relatively high pitched and he spoke with a slight stutter. "Mr Malfoy is waiting in the parlour. Follow me" the man walked straight down the hallway and through the door at the end. This room was like walking into a completely different building. A huge chandelier hung from the ceiling, the walls were covered in shelves which were almost overflowing with books. Small portraits in frames sat in front of the bottom row of books. A fire was roaring in the grate to Grogue's left. Three high backed chairs were placed in the room, two of them facing the other one which was divided by an elegant table of a marble base and a glass top. Lucius Malfoy rose from his chair and shook Grogue's hand.

"Mr Grogue, I, we, appreciate you travelling to here" Lucius said kindly, his mouth curving into a smile.

"It was really no problem, Mr Malfoy" the goblin replied taking the seat the middle aged man had gestured for him to sit into.

"This is my associate Jonathan Perch." Lucius said pointing at the man who had answered the door. They both sat and Lucius continued to smile. "Now, I'm sure you have an idea of why I summoned you here this evening"

"I would like you to clarify exactly what you need."

"I require your services" Lucius replied.

"You know that I no longer work at Gringotts" Grogue replied. "I no longer offer the services you have previously availed of"

"No, you are mistaken. We require the other service you offer. I know exactly what you are capable of, you're the best at it and the price is irrelevant to me. You know the extent of my wealth even if I did give much of it to my son"

"I do, Mr Malfoy. What, exactly, do you require me to do?" Grogue asked, sitting forward slightly in his chair. Lucius made the same movement and put his hand inside the chest area of his robes.

"I have taken the time to draw up this contract. It outlines exactly what we want you to do, the time frame, everything. The contract is magically binding. Breaking it can result in many different consequences, the worst scenario is death" Grogue sat back in his chair and began to read quickly. He put the roll of parchment back onto the table, beside the quill and bottle of ink.

"Everything seems in order to me. I have, however, one thing to add. If you or any of your associates knowingly interferes with my work, the contract is rendered null and void."

"That seems fair" Lucius said and the goblin clicked his fingers and what he had just said appeared on the roll of parchment. Grogue picked up the quill, dipped it in the ink and lingered over the parchment for a moment before signing.

"And this," Grogue said withdrawing a small card from inside his robes, "is my price." He dropped the card on the table in front of Lucius Malfoy. Lucius picked it up and simply nodded his head.

"Very well" Lucius said. "Remember the terms of the contract you sign. You will report to us monthly from the start of your work"

"That is no problem. I will begin my preparation as soon as I return to my place of residence. I must tell you, however, that I will not be able to start at the date you have listed. I have another job to work until two months after that. I hope that that doesn't bother you."

"Well, if you're as good as everyone says you are, then two months less than you could have shouldn't pose a problem to you. I expect you'll do everything we need in the shorter time frame." Lucius replied.

"It should be no problem but I can tell you now, my abilities aren't limitless. I can only do everything to the best of my abilities" the goblin replied.

"Very well. Would you mind showing yourself out, we have business to attend to immediately" Lucius said

"No problem at all" Grogue replied unhappily but did a very good job hiding his displeasure. The goblin hobbled his way out of the room and closed the door but paused as he shut it. Lucius Malfoy and Perch made no attempt to keep their voices down and Grogue decided to linger a little longer. In his long history of acquaintance with the Malfoy family, they've always been an interesting bunch. Although he never questioned his clients, he often wondered the motive behind it. Nonetheless, he always did as he was asked.

"Yes, yes" he heard Lucius Malfoy say "He is working on it as we speak"

"How long will it take him?" Perch asked.

"He's no closer than he was the last time you two spoke. He left me in charge of recruiting as well as getting Grogue on board. He is working on it but he is finding it difficult. I'm not sure but I have given him all the clues I could. He insisted upon taking this task himself and I'm not so sure about how long it will take."

"Very well. I think that he should bring someone with him but Parker is a very stubborn man."

"Indeed, he continues to plot ways to get the Potter boy even when there are other tasks at hand. But, hopefully the Dark Lord may rise again"

"Exactly. He seems to be obsessed with the Potter boy" Perch said.

"He is. The Potter boy has got the best of him twice, he's a vengeful person. He won't forget about young Albus Potter until he has silenced him forever. Anyway, let us continue our business" Grogue heard the shuffling of feet inside the room and quickly made his way out the front door. Darkness had fallen completely when Grogue emerged from the building. The rain continued to fall and Grogue quickly began his return journey.


Michael Parker was unknown outside of the United Kingdom and Ireland his trip was made much easier by this fact. He walked with the Resurrection Stone securely tucked in his pocket. Unsure of the exact location of what he was looking for, he couldn't Apparate. His journey had lasted for longer than he had expected but he should have known that his search was not going to be easy. He had talked to many of the natives and none of them could corroborate the stories he had heard but that didn't bother him. He knew it was here, somewhere in this country but where exactly he wasn't sure. He knew it was located deep in a forest but in a country that was dense with forestry, it made his task all the more difficult. He had so far searched one forest, the largest of the country but to no avail. He couldn't say that he was one hundred percent sure that he searched every square meter of the forest but he did most of it, enough to know that what he sought after wasn't there. He knew that finding it would be much easier than it had been to locate the Resurrection Stone mostly because of the size difference. The difficult part was locating the correct forest.

He was soon to begin his search of the second woodland, the next largest but first, he would have to return to his headquarters in the country. This task was not one to be carried out by one man but by several men so, as the leader of an ever growing number of men who agreed with his ideals, he would bring one or two more whom he could fully trust for only a small number, five or six, knew of his exact plan. These were the people closest to him and he didn't feel the need to tell anyone else. The people who knew were the ones who had come to him when he needed them most, they were the only people he could trust. The others who followed him were there to do his bidding. They were the sacrificial lambs.

Parker walked the narrow pathway to the dilapidated looking building. He stormed through the door and into the parlour where Lucius Malfoy and Perch stood talking still.

"This is no job for one man."

"We've been trying to tell you that" Lucius Malfoy said. "But you didn't listen to us. At least you realised sooner rather than later" Parker went on as if he hadn't heard what Lucius had said.

"Perch and Nott, wherever he is, are coming with me. You know what we're trying to do. Lucius, you're in charge here until we get back I'm not sure how long this will take." Parker ordered. "We're out of here in the morning"