35. The Kidnapping
Bill was coming home from another long day at work pulling his hood over his head hoping none of the Death Eaters noticed that he was Weasleys. Everything had changed so quickly and so horrendously but Bill couldn't do anything about it. No one could they were powerless in the face of their oppressors.
Harry, Ron and Hermione had disappeared and no one had heard anything of them since. Remus had gone around to Grimmauld Place and the homes he remembered visiting when Harry's father was alive. All of them except Grimmauld Place were warded up so tightly that even Remus who had been there before couldn't see or speak of them.
To Bill that meant either Harry was using them as safe houses for Muggleborns or he was hiding in one of the houses or both. Ron suspected it was at least the former because the hunts for Muggleborns of Hogwarts age had mostly turned up nothing. There were deaths of course but a lot less than there could have been if someone somewhere wasn't arranging protection for them.
Bill knew that Kingsley could account for some of the Muggleborns he had alerted as the Ministry fell. McGonagall didn't know who it was but was pleased that someone was protecting those she had taught for years. McGonagall had suggested that the person in question must have had access to Hogwarts school lists but she didn't know who would have access to them who would have saved their lives.
According to her everyone but the headmaster had their authorisation revoked for looking at the Book of Admittance. Bill felt physically sick at the idea of Snape – Dumbledore's murderer – being the headmaster of Hogwarts. A place that should have been safe for all students no matter their Blood Status.
And in just under a month Ginny was going to be heading back to Hogwarts. Bill was terrified for what was going to happen to his little sister. She was from a well-known blood traitor family with ties to "Undesirable Number One".
Personally Bill was glad that Ron was doing who knows what who knows where. At least he wasn't going to be going back to a Death Eater infested castle. Not that Ron would be having a picnic whatever it was they were doing on Dumbledore's orders.
Ron was travelling around with the most wanted man in the country and a Muggle-born. Not something that was conductive to your health and safety in Voldemort's Britain. Bill had heard of people who had been hiding Muggles or Muggleborns being dragged into the Ministry and never seen again.
If they were lucky they would end up in Azkaban. If not they would be dead. Bill dreaded to think what would happen to his youngest brother if he was caught with the Boy Who Lived. Not that it was Harry's fault only the horrific situation.
Still they hadn't heard anything. In this case no news was good news. If Harry had been captured and killed as he would be if he was ever caught Voldemort would shout it out across the nation. Harry was a symbol of hope and resistance with him dead a lot of the rebels would be subdued or at least that's what Voldemort would hope because he didn't understand that as long as there were people being oppressed the oppressed would fight back whether they had their saviour or not.
Bill was glad to be going home because at the moment he hated work. Bill had always loved working for the goblins but now the goblins had all but been enslaved by the Death Eaters. Bill didn't know what Voldemort had done to get the Goblin King to bow to his demanded because that was not Ragnok's normal stance.
At Gringotts there was a constant stifling feeling of hatred and fear bleeding into everything everyone did and said. Outside wasn't much better. Bill wondered if even the Death Eaters were revelling in winning the war.
For now Bill reminded himself but he couldn't feel the hope himself. The world was in ruins. Sometimes Bill wondered how they would ever rebuild from the mess that the world had been left in.
This was far worse than anything Bill had heard or remembered from the First Wizarding War. Bill knew it was because they didn't have Dumbledore. Without Dumbledore everything had just fallen apart.
Bill felt another surge of hated to the man Bill had thought to be their ally, their spy but had duped them all. Dumbledore had trusted the man but he had killed Dumbledore. Bill had never liked the man but neither had he ever questioned his loyalties.
'If you say or do anything I will not hesitate to kill you,'
Speak of the devil and he doth appear Bill thought grimly. Or in this case think of the devil. Bill would recognise that cold voice anywhere. The man had taught Bill for seven years at Hogwarts after all but this was a far cry from the innocence of the of his Hogwarts day.
Before Bill could even move to pull his wand out Snape had Apparated them off the street. The sad thing was no one would do anything about this. Nobody could. Just another innocent being dragged off by a Death Eater which was all too common and worse still legal these days.
They arrived by what seemed to be a poisoned lake but considering Bill could detect there were some serious wards present thanks to all his years as a curse breaker Bill doubted that was the case. Bill didn't like that he was brought here instead of the Ministry of Magic. It meant that he or someone connected to him had done something more serious than the Outer Circle were allowed to handle.
Ron Bill thought. If Ron, Hermione and more importantly had been captured Voldemort would punish the whole Weasley family for conspiracy. They had after all helped hide the fact that Ron was off with Harry.
Much to Bill's surprise Snape dropped his wand and grabbed Bill's hand dragging him across the wards. Bill felt the tingle of the wards as they passed and new they were as dark as they come but because Bill was with someone who carried a dark mark presumably they had let him through. Bill was only relieved he hadn't seen the rest of his family yet.
Bill was surprised at how Muggle the house seemed. Not the kind of place Bill could picture a Muggle hating half-blood Dark Lord and his minions residing in. Or maybe that was why it was so useful.
'In,' Snape said.
Snape might no longer be pointing his wand at Bill but Bill knew he would be dead before he removed his wand from it's holster. Plus Bill feared that his family was there who could be being tortured at this moment. Bill would save the fight for when it was needed.
Bill did wonder what Snape was up to. The Death Eater hadn't divested Bill of his wands despite having ample time to do. Now they were here Snape was no longer holding Bill at wand point. What kind of wards were these that allowed Snape to be completely calm.
Again walking inside Bill was shocked to see the cream coloured walls of the hallway. Not at all Death Eater like. Bill wondered whose home this was originally. Who had they killed for this base? Was it a Muggle, Muggleborn or half-blood?
Entering the cream living room Bill was not surprised to see Ron, Hermione and Harry present. What Bill was surprised to see was them looking so comfortable. Hermione kneeling down by the coffee table scribbling notes on something with Harry and Ron on the sofa clearly planning something.
What was going on?
When they walked in three pairs of eyes turned to look at them. Bill noticed Harry's eyes go behind him but unlike the fear, hated and anger he expected when seeing his mentor's murderer green eyes lit up. Ron and Hermione didn't seem alarmed or threatened by having Severus Snape a known Death Eater in – their? – living room.
'Severus,' smiled Harry.
Then his eyes turned to Bill's taking in his face. Harry frowned at him. Not wondering why he was here. In fact Harry looked somewhat amused green eyes glinting with laughter. Bill had a sudden disturbing thought.
What if Harry had switched sides?
'Did you have to kidnap him?' asked Harry amused.
'Kidnap him!?' Ron choked.
'It would look suspicious if myself and a Weasley were seen to be conversing,' Snape said calmly. 'And I couldn't divulge the truth to him in the middle of Diagon Alley.'
Harry nodded, 'no,' he agreed.
'But you didn't need to kidnap him,' Ron scowled.
Ron wasn't acting like there was a Death Eater in the room. His brother was acting like it was Percy. Someone he didn't particular like nor trust but didn't hate him or think Snape was about to kill him. None of them even looked concerned at the Death Eater in the room currently removing his Death Eater garb.
'What the hell is going on!?' Bill demanded.
'Dumbledore's death wasn't as black and white as you thought,' Harry said quietly.
'Did he or did he not kill Dumbledore?' demanded Bill.
'Yes I did,' agreed Snape.
'Only because Dumbledore asked you to!' Harry snapped.
Harry glowered at Bill as though he was the one at fault not the Death Eater. Then Bill realised what Harry had said. Could it be true? Why would Dumbledore do that? Or was Snape tricking Harry like he had tricked Dumbledore all those years?
'How do you know that?' demanded Bill. 'Did he tell you that?'
'No Dumbledore did!' Harry shot back.
That wasn't what Bill was expecting at all. Dumbledore had told Harry that he had ordered his own death by the hands of his spy and Harry had done nothing. Why would Dumbledore do such a thing? To keep his spy.
Bill felt angry at Dumbledore. Didn't Dumbledore know that without him the whole world was falling apart!? The world needed Dumbledore and Dumbledore had all but killed himself for a Death Eater – ex-Death Eater – or whatever Severus Snape was.
'Why the hell would he do that!?' demanded Bill. 'Look what's happened since his death! Look-'
'He was dying!' shouted Harry. 'If Severus hadn't killed Dumbledore he would have already been dead by now anyway!'
Bill was shocked at this. Bill didn't want to believe it but Bill remembered how tired Dumbledore had been constantly. Bill had believed it to be the pressures of the war, the Ministry and Hogwarts getting to him but this made sense.
'How?' whispered Bill.
'The Pestilentia curse,' Snape replied.
'But that's instantly deadly,' hissed Bill, 'soon as it reaches your heart.'
'Albus picked up a cursed object,' Snape explained. 'It started in his fingers.'
'Still it will only be days at the most,' Bill said.
'I managed to restrain it to his hand,' Snape replied.
'It wouldn't have lasted,' Bill said.
'A year at most,' agreed Snape. 'Albus did not want his death to be worthless so had me kill him instead to secure my place at the Dark Lord's right hand.'
'And he told you?' Bill inquired.
'After I mastered Occlumency in our lessons,' Harry agreed. 'I am glad. It gave us time to prepare for the fall of Dumbledore which was bound to lead to the fall of Hogwarts and the Ministry of Magic. I am sure you have noticed there has been a mass exodus of Muggleborns.'
'Won't You Know Who know?' asked Bill. 'You have access to the school lists.'
'Indeed,' agreed Snape, 'but as I am giving him the names he has no reason to suspect. He is more likely to believe that the Order has a spy who is giving them information on prospective raids than that the murderer of Albus Dumbledore is feeding Harry information.'
'That's why Remus couldn't get into your properties,' understood Bill. 'He couldn't even remember where they were.'
'It was more for Wormtail than Remus,' Harry replied.
Bill could understand that as Wormtail was sure to be quizzed on possible locations that Harry may be. By putting up so many wards it prevented Wormtail from revealing their location to anyone. Voldemort wouldn't even know where to start looking.
'How did you manage to get the wards set up so quickly?' asked Bill.
'We had time to prepare,' Harry repeated.
'You wouldn't have gained access to your properties until the day before the Ministry fell. There wouldn't have been enough time to put up the wards you have,' Bill said.
Even as Bill said it Bill realised the only way that Harry would have gained access to his properties before thirty-first of July. It occurred very rarely these days but Harry would have needed it to give him time to prepare. He would have had both Snape and Dumbledore to be his references.'
'Emancipation,' Bill said.
'Indeed,' agreed Snape.
'Bill,' Hermione said looking incredibly nervous.
She was not the only one either Ron's jaw was tense as he gave Bill a long look. Bill should have known that this wouldn't have just been revealed unless there was something they wanted from him something to do with what they were doing other than providing safe houses. Something to do with the mission Dumbledore had left to them which Snape must know.
Harry was once again staring at a blank faced Snape which Bill presumed was the spy's way of not letting anyone know that they needed him. Harry too seemed to be drawing support from Snape which Bill didn't understood he thought they hated each other. Bill knew that look from somewhere but couldn't pinpoint where exactly he had seen it before.
'We need your help,' Harry said.
Bill had figured as much. There was a lot that Bill knew about curse breaking so where did these four want into and why? Bill knew they weren't just trying to survive they were planning something but what?
For the first time since his wedding Bill felt hope for the future which was a sad statement in itself. Marriage was supposed to a new beginning but in this climate Bill felt nothing but despair. Bill didn't even know what Fleur who was fighting a war that was not hers thought.
'I figured as much,' Bill said.
'We need to break into Gringotts,' Harry said.
Whatever Bill had been expecting it wasn't that. Breaking into Gringotts was suicidal normally but with the Death Eaters in control it was doubly so. Bill stared at Harry thinking he had lost his mind which Bill was thinking was highly possible.
'What the hell is so important that you'd need to break into Gringotts!?' demanded Bill.
Harry and Snape shared a look that to Bill looked like they were having a whole conversation with their eyes. Bill waited for one of them to say something to explain this insanity. Bill had seen what the goblins did to thieves and what the Death Eaters did to anybody for sport.
'Have you ever heard of Horcruxes?' asked Harry.
Bill paled at the question. Bill had encountered a Horcrux of an old pharaoh in Egypt. The team had destroyed it in the end but it had killed the rest of the team. Bill had survived by mere fluke but had spent the next six months on sick leave he had been so badly injured.
And a sixteen year old boy was asking about them. A sixteen year old boy was prophesised enemies with a Dark Lord who had returned from the dead! That must be how he had survived which was horrific.
'That's how He survived?' Bill whispered.
'Yes,' agreed Harry.
'One of his Horcruxes is in Bellatrix Lestrange's vault,' Hermione said quietly.
'One of?' Bill said. 'How many has he made?'
Splitting your soul once was horrific enough. Splitting your soul anymore was monstrous and Lestrange had one. No wondered they wanted to break into Gringotts but Bill didn't think that would be needed.
'Six,' Ron said grimly.
Six that meant Voldemort had split his soul seven times! Seven? Bill knew he was looking nauseous as he dropped into the coach opposite Ron and Harry. Bill had seen a lot of evil but none that compared to the monstrosity that Voldemort had done.
'Three have been destroyed,' Hermione said. 'Do you remember the diary?' asked Hermione timidly.
Ron and Harry both looked incredulously at their friend. Bill had been in Egypt when his sister was presumed dead so didn't find out until the family holiday in Egypt which had been partly to raise Ginny's spirits. Bill could never forget what had almost happened.
How close they had come to loosing Ginny. There was a reason why Ron hated to see Ginny with any guy. There was a reason why mum was crying every day because Ginny had to go to a Hogwarts controlled by Voldemort.
'How can we ever forget,' Ron glared. 'Ginny almost died!'
'That was a Horcrux,' Harry said before an argument could start.
'Albus found the ring,' sighed Snape. 'The cursed object.'
'We found Slytherin's locket in Grimmauld Place Professor Dumbledore and Professor Snape destroyed it,' Harry continued. 'Professor Snape extracted the location of Hufflepuff's cup from Bellatrix's mind.'
Bill frowned at Harry's words. In his temper Harry had called Snape "Severus" but now he was calm he was calling him professor as if he was trying to pretend they weren't as close as they obviously was. The way they could communicate without words and trusted each other impeccably was testament to that fact.
'He seems to have a thing about the founders' objects,' Bill said causing Ron to grown.
'Not the founders,' Harry said. 'Hogwarts. Tom Riddle who would become the Dark Lord was a lonely orphan.'
'Orphanages at that time were abusive places,' added Snape.
'Exactly,' agreed Harry. 'For a lonely frightened child Tom gained acceptance at Hogwarts. The first and the only place that he ever felt was home. The founders are just a representation of that fact especially Slytherin as a half-blood with no known magical family in Slytherin Riddle would have craved for acceptance from his peers who would have treated him as if he were a Mudblood.
'Even Gringotts is the greatest sign of wealth and affluence in magical society. To a young poor orphan reliant on charity it would be everything that he wanted. Having the Cup placed in a Pure-Blood vault would be symbolic of the fact he had achieved his goals.'
Bill stared at Harry who had spoken about Voldemort with such Bill didn't know but the word that came to mind was understanding. Looking at Ron who was groaning this wasn't the first time Harry had said something like this. Bill wondered where the understanding of Voldemort's situation came from.
'You really understand him,' Bill said.
'You have no idea,' Ron groaned.
'So what are the final two?' asked Bill.
'Nagini,' Snape said. 'The Dark Lord's familiar,' explained Snape at Bill's blank look.
'And the last one?' asked Bill.
'Ah,' Harry grimaced.
'You don't know,' Bill said.
'Dumbledore believed it to be an object of Ravenclaw's,' Harry said.
'The only object of Ravenclaw's that has been recorded is the Diadem of Ravenclaw,' Snape said.
'But that has been lost for a thousand years,' Bill said.
'And you see our problem,' Snape said.
'Do you know where it is?' asked Bill.
'Harry believes it's in Hogwarts,' Ron said.
'It was the first place he found a home and acceptance in,' Harry said quietly. 'He would have hidden it there. He had the chance to when he had a job interview as Defence professor.'
'But the diary-'began Bill.
'Was found there,' corrected Harry. 'It had been given to Lucius Malfoy for safe keeping at the end of the last war. Professor Snape will be searching for it at Hogwarts.'
'Now back to breaking into Gringotts,' Snape said.
'We can't do this alone,' Bill warned. 'I could grab it but the Lestrange vault is a High Security Vault to access them you need to go through thief's downfall and past the dragon. I could do that alone and discretely but to access it you need a goblin as it wouldn't be at all legal it would be neigh on impossible to convince one to go with me legally.
'The goblins will not help us. I don't know what Ragnok or the goblins as whole but very few are fighting back which is unusual in goblin-wizard relations. The only thing I can think is that the goblins are being blackmailed.'
'They are,' Snape said.
'You know?' asked Bill.
'They have Ragnok's queen,' Snape said.
Bill paled at the spy's words. Queen Amethyst was a national treasure for the goblins. She was more loved than her husband ever had been. If she had been kidnapped then it was no wonder that the goblins were going over on bended knee to do what Voldemort said.
'Is there any way to rescue her?' asked Harry.
'I will do my best,' Snape said.
'I hope you're not planning to blackmail king-'began Bill.
Harry sneered in a very Snape like fashion, 'of course not. What do you take me for? No I want to save her because she's been kidnapped but you are right it is necessary for us to save her if our plans should work.'
'What are you planning, Harry?' asked Bill.
'If we save Queen Amethyst how do you think King Ragnok would feel towards his blackmailers?' Harry asked.
Bill understood exactly what Harry was saying and he was right. Much of the way goblins were viewed was wrong and prejudiced but one thing they got right was the goblins need for revenge. Once the queen was free Ragnok would do everything in his power to destroy Voldemort.
'He'd want revenge,' Bill said.
'Exactly,' Harry said. 'When and if Professor Snape gets the Queen out of Riddle's grasp you can inform the King she is in a safe house of ours. Explain to him that we cannot get her to Gringotts without someone seeing and can he suggest anyway to get her to safety.
'I am sure we can arrange a suitable place for us to meet. I'd prefer it not here as us five are the only ones who know of this place. At the meeting we can bring the conversation round to vengeance and how to defeat Riddle. Hopefully the king will agree to either hand over the Cup or destroy it himself.'
Bill nodded, 'it might work but I'll have to be careful how I phrase it because his temper will be riled enough as it is without it being misconstrued to sound like I am holding her hostage.'
'I am sure with your experience you'll be able to manage,' Snape said drily.
'The second is at the meeting do not try and manipulate them into doing as you want,' Bill said. 'They will tell and they will not appreciate it.'
'What do you suggest then, Mr Weasley?' Snape said silkily.
'Tell them what you want bluntly,' Bill said. 'Just be careful not to sound like you only saved his Queen's life to get the Horcrux.'
Harry nodded, 'I can be blunt.'
Snape snorted, 'Gryffindors.'
'In this situation a Gryffindor attitude is needed above a Slytherin one,' Bill said grimly.
'Thank you Bill,' Harry said.
'I want You Know Who defeated just as much as you do,' Bill replied.
'Don't we all,' Snape said wistfully.
The five of descended into silence as Bill realised that the discussion was over. Bill needed to get back to his wife before the family declared him as dead. He explained that to the four who nodded their understanding as he left.