Chapter Three

Harry rarely had chance to move about Muggle London or any type of muggle shopping area. Aunt Petunia either locked him in the car, or left him at home. The only good he could do was carry the bags. After spending three quarters of an hour searching for a shop that sold a simple hat, Harry couldn't help but be anything but extremely thankful to his aunt.

He thought he'd started out well enough. Only a few minutes after he had gotten of the Knight Bus, he had found a clothes shop. It had taken him ten minutes in there of searching before any assistants had shown up, and told him that they only sold the best. One look at Dudley 's rags on him had pretty much resulted in him being thrown out of the store.

The next shop he'd stopped in had been smaller, and more promising to his eye. He found out to his horror though it was a girls shop, and the only things anywhere near where he wanted were hair extensions and fake crowns.

Two shops on didn't really give much to go on either. On the shop he had actually had success, and found two caps, both were ridiculously high priced. He'd almost complained to the shop assistant. Who in their right mind would buy one of those caps when for the same price you could buy a whole new outfit? Even Harry wasn't that desperate for something to cover his head if he even had that amount of money on him.

At long last thankfully, he had come across a charity shop, much further out of his way than he liked. At least though, the kind old lady in the shop sold him the cap for a very reasonable amount of 50p. The cap was only a bit tatty and was completely night-time blue, inconspicuous enough in the wizarding world. Anyone looking at him would simply think him a muggle-born who hadn't quite grown out of old habits.

So, after his very off-putting detour around London, Harry finally lowered the cap to cover the greatest part of his face, and after taking a deep breath, pushed himself into the drab shadows of the Leaky Cauldron.

The moment the creak of the front door was heard, every head in the bar turned his way, but thankfully, unlike so many times before, they turned back to their business immediately. He heard the odd mutterings of stupid muggle-borns as he passed, but other than that, he had absolutely no complaints. No one stopped him, or even appeared to give him a second thought as he passed through. Less than thirty seconds later, he was opening the entrance to Diagon Alley, and really putting his simple disguise to his test.

Harry wasn't really sure what to think, when he found the alley deserted. Of course, it was early morning...very early. The shops he had visited had just been opening, and there were more than a few that hadn't been open at all. However, when he slowly began moving down the alley, he found none of the shops closed. The owners actually looked particularly bored whenever he managed to glimpse them. It gave him a horrid suspicion.

Quietly making his way up to Gringotts, he found to his relief it was open, if not sparsely occupied. There were only four goblins on duty. Glancing around twice, making sure that there was no one else with him, he quickly moved to the nearest goblin. If there was one thing he detested other than Voldemort, it was being in such an open space by himself. He felt like much too great a target.

"How may I help you?" He looked the goblin over, but failed to recognize him.

"I would like ask whether it is possible to make frequent withdrawals from my account without actually coming to Gringotts. I'm not sure if you're familiar with the idea of a Bank card..." The goblin reacted in such a manner Harry was worried he'd insulted him.

"Of course we are aware of what a Bank Card is sir! Knowing is our line of work. Now, yes, we do have such a variation on Bank Cards, but I'm afraid it's rather expensive..."

"How so?" The goblin looked him over once sharply, obviously not liking being interrupted. He reminded Harry a bit of Percy. Definitely took his work much too seriously.

"Well, the initial price of our withdrawal money pouch is 300 galleons, and to keep the pouch running, at least 50 galleons has to be spent within every two months, or we will withdraw the withstanding amount and use it as we see fit."

"You mean either I spend 50 galleons every two months, or you take that 50 galleons away from me?" The goblin looked rather amused at his audacity.

"Yes sir, that is it exactly. Now, I doubt your account will be able to sustain such an agreement, but if I could have your name, I will check." Harry hesitated a moment, and then glanced quickly around to make sure he was still alone.

"Harry Potter." The goblin snorted and opened his mouth, but very promptly shut it when Harry tilted his cap enough to reveal his scar.

"Oh...Mr. Potter, please forgive my manners..." Harry felt his eyes narrow. Definitely a Percy wannabe. Loved his job too much, and was not afraid of sucking up by any means.

"If you could check my account as you mentioned?" He couldn't tell for certain, but it seemed to him that the goblin actually blushed a bit before doing so. He wasn't even aware goblins could blush.

"Yes Mr. Potter. I happen to know that while your trust account, created by James Potter will not be sufficient for such an agreement for more than a few years, some of your other accounts have much more promising results." Harry blinked, pushing aside the fact he could spend 50 galleons a month for the next few years. There must have been more gold in his account than he knew.

"Other accounts?" The goblin looked at him in surprise.

"Well yes Mr. Potter." Harry waited, but the goblin didn't continue. Of course, something else he was supposed to know about his own life, which evidently yet again someone had forgotten to mention to him.

"Could you elaborate please. I wasn't aware of any other accounts." The goblin simply stared at him for a moment before seeming to compose himself.

"Of course Mr. Potter, but by all rights you should have been contacted about them. Naturally, you have access to the Potter Family vault, though that is slightly restricted as you are not yet of age. You can make withdrawals though, as long as you withdraw no greater than 500,000 galleons in one year. You have full access to both the trust funds set up by Albus Dumbledore, and by the Ministry of Magic. The account you are using at the moment is also being added to by a...Mr. Fred and George Weasley weekly." Harry blinked, and for a moment there was complete silence in his mind, just before he started swearing loudly to himself. When he gave them the money, he gave them it. He didn't want it back!

"Wait a sec...did you say other trust funds?" The goblin nodded, pulling a piece of parchment out from his desk. Harry had to wonder how he picked out the right one, and why it was there in the first place, considering the amount of paperwork Gringotts must carry, but then realized it must have been an enchanted draw.

"Yes. Albus Dumbledore set up one on Halloween Night, 16 years ago. The stated intention was for it to provide for your living costs while living with some allocated muggles. That vault contains only muggle currency, valid in Britain ." Harry didn't really know how to take this. Dumbledore had set up a vault for him the night his parents had died? Why'd he never mention it? And why didn't the Dursleys for that matter? He really couldn't see them passing up a great amount of money just because of their fear of wizardry. They were forever complaining about how much he cost them. Furthermore, why hadn't Dumbledore mentioned something over the years when he'd seen the state of his clothes? He would have given anything to know about his own stash of muggle money when he was younger. He used to absolutely hate wearing Dudley 's cast offs until he had finally just got used to it.

"Mr. Potter? I asked if you would like to know the amount in that vault?"

"What? Oh...of course."

"Albus Dumbledore specifically asked for no interest to be given to the account, so the amount now is the amount deposited, as I can see you have made no withdrawals over the years. As such, you have 250,000 pounds in that vault." Harry really needed to have words with Dumbledore when he saw him next, never mind the Dursleys. Oh he couldn't wait to tell them that they had a quarter of a million pounds that they missed their chance on!

"Why so much?"

"I believe it was meant to last 17 years, until you are expected to be able to move out of your residence with the muggles and become your own responsibility." Harry smiled evilly at that. He had more than a few plans how to say goodbye to the Dursleys. They would have to wait though, his interest was piped.

"And you mentioned a Ministry vault?" The goblin nodded and consulted his paper.

"Yes, created the same night. Though there is no reason, I remember it was a sum from the Ministry of Magic in response to your defeat of the Dark Lord. The vault was made public, so was added to from many different sources in the community, as a gesture of gratitude I take it. That vault isn't added to as much as it was when it was first created now, but there are the random deposits. It is also under the highest interest growth option we allow. Your family vault doesn't have such a high option. We only normally give the option to our own shareholders or by direct order from the Wizengamot. It seems you have some powerful friends Mr. Potter." Harry flushed, wondering if Dumbledore had done it. He knew he was Chief Warlock now, reinstated, but was he all those years ago as well? Maybe he could get Hermione to check into it.

"Perhaps. Is there anything else I should know about?"

"Wouldn't you like to know the amount in the Ministry vault Mr. Potter?" He let out a long breath. He really didn't think he was going to like this.

"I suppose I should know." The goblin consulted his parchment again for a moment.

"Currently, the vault contains 728,121,482 Galleons, 74 Sickles, and 542 Knuts, though due to the interest rates...are you alright Mr. Potter, you look rather pale." Pale was most definitely an understatement. Lord over Jesus Christ! 1000 Galleons had seemed much too much money last year! How much did he say? 728 something million? Harry suddenly felt horribly weak at the knees.

"Mr. Potter, are you quite alright?" Harry took a few deep breaths and forced himself to calm. Lord...not even the Malfoy's had that much if there was truth to the rumours.

"How much...how much did the Ministry deposit?" The goblin checked.

"100,000,000. They were most grateful for your actions. I believe they all but drained their remaining budget that year. The deposit of course was public knowledge, so there was another side to it of course. I believe that our present Minister had a very outspoken view on how much gratitude should be shown." Harry felt the hairs on his arms rising as anger surged through him at the mention of Fudge. If that poor excuse for a man had used him again for his own personal gain...

"Other than the money, there are a substantial amount of other items in that vault as well. There are a great many letters I believe, and then things ranging from Jewellery, potions, to lingerie. In fact, there was rather a dispute about whether or not to remove the lingerie because at the time they were sent, you were dreadfully underage." If Harry didn't know any better, he would say that the goblin in front of him was teasing him. He certainly didn't need to, he felt embarrassed enough as it is.

"I don't think I'll find any use for that." The goblin nodded.

"Very well sir, but if I may, you might find there are some very useful items in that vault. Some people were more thoughtful in their purchases." Harry watched him for a moment in confusion. It wasn't like a goblin to speak as such.

"Such as?" The goblin leaned forward as close as Stan Shunpike had done on the Knight Bus.

"There are a few magical items, which may not have been recognized for their true worth and potential. Some are luxury items that are extremely hard to come by, while others were made for the sole purpose of the fight against the Dark. You had some very important and powerful people looking out for you Mr. Potter. If you were to take my opinion into consideration, you really should take time as soon as possible to browse that vault." Harry wasn't exactly sure what to say to that, but if there was one thing that was said about goblins, it was that no one knew the worth of items more than they. He knew that such an offer a hint was not to be taken with the eyes closed.

"I may do that, but I wouldn't know..." The goblin most definitely had an ulterior motive.

"Of course Mr. Potter, you would need to be accompanied. While magic cannot be recorded in our vaults, you may find that the goblin brand of magic may reveal some things more easily than yours can." Harry frowned a bit at that, but after a long moment of though, nodded his agreement. What could it hurt? An expert to show him the necessary things would be helpful.

"Alright. Is it possible to go now or do you..." The goblin immediately leaped up and put a closed notice on his window. A second later he was at his side.

"Money makes time Mr. Potter; you would do well to understand that in business with Gringotts. Now, if you will follow me." Harry stared at the small figure, wondering what exactly he had got himself into. As he found himself towards the dreaded Gringotts carts, he had very little time to take into consideration what he was doing. His original plan was to get either a way to withdraw as stated earlier or a big sack of gold and be out of there as quickly as possible. It looked like his timetable was most definitely not going to be the one planned though.

"You may want to hold on Mr. Potter. The journey is not as light-hearted as the one to your normal vault." Harry chuckled quietly at that. Anyone would say the journey down to his normal vault was enough to make your dinner come back up a few times round. Light-hearted indeed! Harry could have sworn there was a part of the journey there that the cart actually went upside down for some reason.

Despite his amusement, Harry did as he was told and took a firm grip on the provided handrail, bracing himself as they began to move. He always enjoyed the carts. He supposed if he'd ever actually gone to an amusement park with the Dursleys, he would have loved the roller coasters.

"Oh, and Mr. Potter, if you happen to see a Dragon, safety procedure is simply duck." Harry blinked as the wind began whistling in his ears as they picked up speed.

"They're really here?" The goblin chuckled to himself.

"Of course they are Mr. Potter; they are one of our security measures. We specially breed Hungarian Horntails with another dragon, and have 50 of these inbreeds here, guarding the lower vaults. There has very rarely been a need for them, but I pity anyone who attempts to get through them unauthorised." Harry shuddered at the thought.

"What other dragon?"

"I'm afraid I'm not at liberty to say Mr. Potter. That is confidential." Harry shrugged gently to himself, stifling his yell as they suddenly seemed to plunge at 75 degrees. He very quickly made his hold a great deal firmer as his eyes began to water.

The journey down to his vault took an amazing ten minutes, opposed to the normal two. After Harry faced a 90 degrees drop, and what he thought to be several loop-the-loops in a row, he was rather inclined to change his opinions about enjoying the rides. He actually fell to his knees when they finally departed the cart, which seemed to amuse the goblin a great deal to his annoyance. He quickly climbed unsteadily to his feet, and forced his legs by pure will not to turn to jelly, despite how much they were begging to. Instead of giving into their command, he distracted himself and the goblin ran a finger down the side of the door as Griphook had done on his first visit here, and then something else which Harry was unable to see.

"Excuse me, but I still don't know you're name." The goblin turned his head in surprise, and then seemed to take a moment to compose himself.

"My apologies sir. My name is Giphook, though most of my own people call me Gip to stop confusion between my father and myself. I think you have met my father if you remember." Harry smiled a bit at the irony he had just been thinking about him.

"Yes, on my first trip here. Do you mind me calling you Gip?" Giphook stared again for a moment, but then slowly shook his head.

"Of course not sir. It will take just a moment longer to open your vault." Gip turned back to the door and appeared to be stroking some pattern into the door. Harry watched for a moment, and then stopped pretending he could understand what was happening. A minute later the sounds of a very great many locks moving could be heard, and then the vault slowly opened. Harry closed his eyes and prepared himself.

The very first thing he noticed was the size of the vault. It was vastly bigger than his normal one, and appeared to be about the size of the Great Hall. Filling all of this space was more gold than he had ever seen in his life, and ever was likely to see he knew.

The second thing to catch his attention, to his very great embarrassment, was a whole section devoted to lingerie. He had rather thought Gip joking when he had told him but...lord! Some even had cards on them. No doubt numbers or Floo Addresses. He shuddered to think that the people who had sent those had been what? 20 maybe 16 years ago? That would make them 36 at least...he couldn't stop the shudders of disgust.

"Mr. Potter? There is quite a lot to get through, other than the ladies garments." Harry felt himself choke on his blush, which seemed to satisfy Gip who walked laughing to a corner of the vault to consult a piece of parchment.

"I was just surprised I suppose..." Gip glanced over at him.

"I do not lie Mr. Potter. Now, would it please you if I seek out the things that will perhaps mostly benefit you? You could perhaps glance through some of that mail while I do so." Harry nodded vaguely, and then really wished he hadn't. The letters seemed to take up half of the vault, and it was obvious they had a compression spell on them as well. He dreaded to think how many were really there.

After a glance at a busy Gip, Harry sighed and resignedly moved over to the letters, knowing that he was going to embarrass himself a very great deal. Picking up the first conservative looking one he saw - a few had very graphic imagery on - he took his deep preparation breath. The contents amazed him.

Dear Harry,

I know you will be reading this letter before any others, because I took it upon myself to charm this letter. By the time you have read this, I am certain we will have already met, and hope that you will read my words and take them into very strong consideration.

I have no doubt, that by the time you read this, you will have a very great many letters stored for you. I can imagine the idea of reading all of them has not at all crossed your mind. However, I must strongly impress this upon you.

While you will most likely find the greatest deal of these letters simply filled with gratitude, and no doubt things such as marriage proposals, there are a number which you may find very useful indeed.

I know for a fact, that a close powerful friend of mine has written a letter for you, and has not done so in thanks. You will find that there are letters that offer services, promises of gifts that you will most definitely regret not knowing of. I have had some experience with these sort of letter's before, my dear Harry, and I will say that I am very grateful I was given such advice as this. I of course am not certain how much I will see of you, but will not be surprised in the least instance to see you in my office on more than one occasion at Hogwarts. For the sake of proving my point, one such letter that I speak of gave me instructions were to find my phoenix, Fawkes. I say find, but phoenixes are similar to the wand. They cannot be chosen. I received instructions on where Fawkes was born, and was given the chance to see if I was worthy to have him as my companion. To my everlasting delight, Fawkes chose me, and we have been great friends since.

Whether you are familiar with Fawkes or not, I do hope you take into consideration my warning. I have provided a charmed suitcase, which you will be able to locate with the help of a goblin guide who will accompany you to the vault. Simply open this suitcase and you will find all letters in this vault moved to that suitcase, to review at your leisure. The suitcase of course, will remain the same size and weight.

For now Harry, adue. I will not know when you read this letter, though if anything is true of your resemblance to your father, I guess it will be before your seventeenth birthday, when you will be officially told of this vault, and your family vault. Why then you might ask? I rather thought it'd be nice to let the very delightable interest growth set in on the vaults to give you something to spend and celebrate when you come of age.

Until we undoubtedly meet again

Albus Dumbledore

Harry stared at the letter in his hand for a long moment before slowly shaking his head. Dumbledore most definitely turned up at the most unexpected times. To his surprise, he didn't feel as angry as he thought he would do when he found the reason he hadn't been informed of his extra vaults. If the letter was proof of anything, Dumbledore seemed to simply want Harry to enjoy his life. Disappointing it had turned out like it did, but at least he had that interest at heart.

He glanced up at the mountain of letters as he tucked away Dumbledore's letter, and placed it in his pocket. He most definitely was going to read even this amount of mail, if hidden away in its depths was a letter than told him where to find a phoenix. If there was one thing he admired more than most about Dumbledore, it was Fawkes and their relationship.

With that decision made, he quickly looked around for the mentioned suitcase. Almost as if it knew he was looking for it and appeared, he found it right at his feet, where he was sure it wasn't a moment ago. So much for needing Gip to find it for him. He picked it up and looked it over, finding it quite plain, except for two initials - AD. He gave him his own suitcase? Harry smiled a bit, and stored a reminder to write a letter of thanks when he decided to tell everyone about his vaults.

He glanced worriedly at the tower of letters, and then at the suitcase. He had a bad feeling about holding the suitcase open. If it was anything like the summoning charm, the force of that many letters soaring into the suitcase while he was holding it would crush him completely. He carefully undid the clasps, and then put it on the floor again. Inching away, he looked around and finally pulled what looked like a Comet in perfect condition from a pile. Wondering vaguely who he had to thank, he tentatively nudged the suitcase open, and then shrank back, fully expecting pandemonium to strike. To his surprise, and embarrassment though, all that happened was there was a small pop, and the letters were simply gone. There was a small click following, telling him that the suitcase had closed itself, and he began to feel very sheepish. He placed the Comet back down and walked back over to the suitcase, noticing there was now a note on it.

Dear Harry,

Thank you for taking my advice. Now, after I am sure you are returning from prodding this suitcase open with a broomstick or the sort, I assure you, it is perfectly safe to hold the suitcase while it takes the letters.

Harry snorted, feeling his blush darken. Why couldn't he have said that in the first place!

Now, simply open the suitcase at your leisure, and there will be four letters picked at random from the total number. If you read these four, and either dispose or keep them, and close the suitcase, when next opened, there will be four more letters awaiting your attention.

A note to the wise. Many people will have completely forgotten to expect a reply to these letters, and some won't even expect one. I would advise only to reply to those that particularly catch your interest, otherwise you will be there forever. If you cannot stand this, and feel you should reply to everyone as I did, I suggest you charm a written list of all the people you want to thank for the letter, but have no real further reason to say anything to, and then compose a letter that is suitable to send to all of these people. Using the list as the recipients address, you may send the same message to all of those people and save a great deal of time. Though, it may be very tiring for the owls in your area.

I wish you the very best of luck with your letters. If you have any concerns about anything said in the letters, or have anything you would like to ask me, do not hesitate to do so.

Albus Dumbledore

Harry shook his head. Dumbledore really thought ahead too much he decided, although his advice was very welcome. Glancing over and finding Gip still moving about at work, he sat himself down in a rocking chair someone appeared to have sent, and carefully opened the case, deciding he might as well get started. As the note had said, there were four letters awaiting him, thankfully none of the graphic scene ones. He glanced the first one over, before finding nothing remarkable and opening it.

Harry Potter,

My thanks

Hingard Membu

Harry stared for a moment before smiling. Perhaps this wouldn't be as hard as he thought. He put the letter to one side, the one he decided to not reply to.

Harry Potter,

You have given us back our light, and have rid us of the dark. When you grow old enough to read this, know that I, and my family will never turn away from you if you are in need.

Jonathon Blutsberg

Harry frowned a bit at this one. Most definitely not what he was expecting. Well...the saving part, he didn't seem to be able to get away from that. The offer of help though...he put that in a new, separate pile before continuing.

My Dearest Harry,

You've saved us; I'm going to save myself for you. Send me an owl.

Jennifer Green

Harry quickly put that in the ignore pile. Lord he hoped the poor girl didn't really do that...in fact, maybe he should write back and tell her not to bother...a lot more tactfully of course. He didn't want to ruin her life. After a moments though he changed the pile to a replying one.

Harry,

I'm not a writer, I don't write letters. I get you won't be reading this till your something like seventeen even if you do ever read it. Just want to say thanks mate, and if you ever want a Butterbeer at my pub, it's on the house for the rest of your life.

Henry Bowright

Thestral Wings Pub Owner

Harry had absolutely no idea where that pub was, but he decided that it would be a very good idea to keep the letter close. Butterbeer had to be the best drink ever invented. Surprised he had already got through four letters; he closed the suitcase, and after a few moments of waiting, then reopened it, chuckling when he saw four more letters in place. He loved magic.

Dear Harry,

This is my first letter. My mummy helped me. You are five now, my mummy said. I am four. I like you. You were really brave. Mummy says I might even meet you one day, becas we will both go to Hogwert's. I hope so. I want you to meet Lily. She is my teddy. Mummy says Lily was your mummy's name. I think it is beautiful. Lily is very nice. She thinks you are really brave too. Lily and me want to be brave with you. Mummy tells us stories at bed time. Our fathorite is yours. She tells us how you bet the baddy even though you were smaller than me! She said that you will be our champion, and you will always sav the prinsess. Can Lily and me be your prinsess once please? We would love it so much! Our brothers don't play much with us, they say naughty words and mum sends them away.

I hope i write this letter wright. Mummy helped me with the big words but she says she thinks I shuld write it by me. I hope you like it. Lily says hi to. I hope we met and we can play.

Love

Virginia Weasley

Not for the first time in his life, Harry didn't know really how to react. He couldn't stop smiling, but he also felt infinitely sad. He doubted very much the Chamber of Secrets had been the sort of game a four year old Ginny had meant. Other than that though, the letter was so sweet. He could almost imagine Mrs. Weasley helping her...though he wasn't too sure he was keen on her bedtime stories. He also felt most honoured he had received her first letter, which considering was very good. He knew he hadn't paid Ginny the attention she deserved over the years, but he knew she was intelligent, if not as obvious as it as Hermione. He knew for a fact she was up to their level in charms, and she was extremely good at Defence Against the Dark Arts despite her age. She had outpaced the fifth years and above quite easily in the DA meetings.

He placed her letter along with Dumbledore's in his pocket. If nothing else, he had great teasing material. He doubted very much somehow that he would use it as such.

He reached for the next letter, but Gip's voice cut through his thoughts.

"Mr. Potter, I have finished." Harry glanced over and smiled.

"It's Harry Gip. What've you found?" Harry slowly moved over to the short goblin, smiling as he saw how excited he seemed to be.

"I was right sir, there are a lot of things here of great worth. I thought though, with the upcoming second war on the rise, Mr. Potter would find use for some of the more...magical items, rather than valuable ones?" Harry nodded.

"Most definitely. I need all the help I can get."

"As I suspected. I have taken the liberty of separating that which you might find useful from everything else." Harry nodded.

"Thank you. Erm...if you could show me?" There was a hint of a smile on Gip's face.

"Of course sir. You'll find you're standing next to the item I felt may interest you most." Harry jumped, and then looked down as prompted.

"It's a trunk." He said flatly. Gip smiled clearly this time.

"Yes, I am aware of that sir. The magical qualities of this trunk are what gave me reason to show it to you."

"Magical qualities? You mean...fireproof?" Gip laughed.

"Well yes, that, among others. You were sent this by a Mr. Unga Satchel, who was the leading expert in trunks and assortments before his death, shortly after the Dark Lord was defeated for the first time. This is stated to be his life's work." Harry felt his cheeks flush again, before he became serious. Someone had left him there life's work, when they didn't even know him.

"Why?" Gip glanced up, surprisingly understanding.

"I believe he thought you may one day need it."

"Need it?" Gip watched him in amusement.

"You should always understand your action before you take it Mr. Potter. Shall I tell you of the qualities of this trunk before you degrade it?" Harry winced.

"Sorry. Go on."

"First and foremost, yes, this trunk is fireproof..." Harry laughed.

"Alright, I'm guilty enough, I get the point!" Gip nodded before gathering himself up in a more business like fashion.

"Other than being fireproof, the trunk is charmed to be a constant weight, that weight depending on how much you can handle easily. It is also damage proof to an extent it has survived every situation the creator was able to think of, and every curse missing only the Unforgivables, which of course, couldn't legally be cast. It also has a built in shrinking and transfiguration charm, which allows it to turn into a ring, which of course in turn, will make it the correct weight of a ring."

"Quite a trunk." Gip glanced at him over his piece of parchment.

"I haven't finished. That is only the outside qualities. Those, along with a built in emergency portkey which can be activated while the trunk is a trunk, or a ring. The portkey can both portkey people, or itself to a set location. It is very secure, using voice recognition, and magical signatures to identify whoever is using it. It also keeps a log of these people; so on the occasion someone does actually manage to get into it without permission, that person will immediately be identified. Apparently that charm is automatically updated at the same time something records magical signatures in the Ministry."

"Alright, very impressive trunk. Is there more?" Gip nodded.

"There is a whole book, but I can give you a summary. While in the form of a ring, the trunks protective qualities can be called upon in a form similar to the Protego Shield Charm, which as said, covers all curses tried. I wouldn't advise testing how stable this shield is though, considering the strength of some particular curses. I believe that is basically it for the outside appearances. Inside the trunk is another matter though."

"Does it have more than one compartment?" Gip nodded.

"Apparently there are an infinite number of compartments, which may be added as when acquired. Each compartment is also subject to an expansion charm that automatically activates to allow whatever amounts you are putting into a compartment to fit. You can place limits on the expansion charm - in fact, it is recommended you do so. The instructions are in the book I mentioned." Harry nodded, knowing he was definitely glad he had listened to Gip now. This would save him an awful lot of trouble.

"Does it have a room in it?" Gip glanced at him.

"That is the one thing this trunk is lacking sir. It appeared the creator rather expected you not to live in it." Harry smiled a bit.

"I think I'll have to study that book in depth."

"Yes. I am sure you will also be happy to note that you can assign self-packing charms to separate compartments, which will obviously be very helpful considering the disorder of today's youth." Harry almost became indignant before he saw the smile playing on Gip's lips as he glanced the parchment over again. He wondered how rare it was to find a goblin who would actually speak so easily on such a level with a human. He couldn't see it being at all a common occurrence.

"As impressive as you have mentioned Gip the trunk is, I think we should move onto the other items before we run out of daylight." True, Harry had almost spent forty minutes in his vault, and with a further ten in the entrance, it was quickly coming up to an hour he had been in Gringotts. He had rather hoped he would have been finished with the entire alley by that time.

"Of course. Another item that may catch your interest is in the red box to your right. It is a wand-holder, which only allows the wand to be drawn by yourself, and is resistant to summoning and disarming charms. You should also note that it is worn on the forearm, and once mastered, will become both invisible and lose solid state - as in it will not be felt if you are checked for a wand-holder - at a single thought. It also allows extremely fast draws at a thought, which I would most strongly advise you to practice at, as it could be a very grate advantage in a duel." Harry's interest was definitely caught as he carefully opened the surprisingly plain box, to find what appeared to be a dragon skin wand-holder. Other than its material, nothing looked particularly special about it. After examining it for a moment, he drew back his sleeve and then clumsily strapped it onto his forearm with the provided straps, glad when he found it magically adjusted for his rather skinny attributes. Testing his arm reflex and finding it only slightly weird, he smiled and replaced the lid to the box, finding that Gip had already opened his trunk for him. He gave a smile of gratitude as he placed the box within, and then the suitcase, before drawing back and glancing down at the wand-holder. He stared at it for a moment, and then it slowly faded out of view. Letting out a small breath of effort, he watched as it completely disappeared and smiled, deciding to keep his wand somewhere he could reach it with much more confidence for the moment.

"What else do you have for me Gip?" Gip, who had been watching his performance with the holder, smiled and nodded behind where the holder box had just been.

"In the parcel, I believe you will find a watch. This watch has a built in shield charm as the trunk, which is pressure activated. It also has a multiple portkey function, which is extremely rare, and only masters of the field create these. There is a possibility of twelve destinations. The portkeys are activated by voice command and touch, and I would suggest you use a codename for a specific location, other than risking a chance of being followed. Other than that, it tells the time, has a powerful light charm, and an advanced, if not miniature version of a Foe Glass. If an enemy who means to kill you, not simply harm you, comes into the same 50 metre radius of you, then the watch will heat your wrist to warn you. There are some lesser other functions as well, which you can explore at your own leisure. I will put the instruction manual with the book." Harry nodded as he unwrapped the parcel, surprised to find what appeared to be a simple golden watch. He looked it over for a long time, but couldn't find any signs of magic. With more than a bit of confusion he slipped it on, vowing to himself to read these instruction manuals. As Gip said, these items seemed very useful in the least.

"These will most definitely come in useful, thank you Gip." Gip nodded and glanced around for a moment.

"You will notice a wand case to your left. This wand was anomalously given, and was meant to be a spare for you. The only statement taken was that the last of a family line wished to pass it on before his natural death, which occurred the same day he deposited this. I would suggest that you put this wand in your holder, so that you have a back up." Harry nodded his agreement, carefully taking the wand from its box. It was simple enough, in fact, plainer than most wands. Simple black wood. Despite his appearance though, upon contact he felt a familiar surge that told him that the wand would perform admirably should he ever find himself in need of it. With a few moments of hard thought, he managed to make his wand-holder visible enough to deposit the wand in it, and then quickly disappear. To his surprise he could still feel the gentle warmth the power of the wand gave off against his forearm, even if he couldn't see it.

"I seem to have a great many people leaving me legacies." Gip nodded.

"Understandably, the wizarding community named you their champion before you could walk. It is only fitting that they armed their champion with the best," Harry felt his embarrassment, coupled with his anger, rising again, but Gip luckily didn't give him chance to rise.

"Now behind that box there, you will find some battle robes that are charmed to remain light, repel most light hexes and curses, and that are self cleaning and airing. They will not tear, and do not stain. Their design is changeable with a thought for covert work, so you can have them as your Hogwarts robes if you so wish. They can also only be removed by yourself, or someone you trust implacably. One suspicion about that person will make sure that they will not be able to remove the clothing. Oh, and no one can remove anything from the pockets either under the same guidelines." Harry stared at into the bag were the pure white robes were lying completely inconspicuously. Why on earth didn't they sell things like this in the shops? They'd make an absolute fortune!

"You have also been given a pouch that gives a never-ending supply of any sandwich of your choice, and water. That is just behind you. As with the robes, that has a note from the depositor you will want to take into consideration. Beyond that, there is an earring in the form of a baby dragon fang which allows you to hear what a person is saying should you focus on them, even if they are only just in your range of sight. If you hand them to me I will place them in your trunk for your further review. The last items I thought you might find interesting are a wealth of books that have been sent to you, dealing with all subjects ranging from Defence Against Dark Arts, to household cleaning charms. I believe you have your own small library Mr. Potter. All the books are scattered about, but I have taken the liberty of reading through your trunk manual, and have found if you simply tap your wand on your open trunk and say 'Pack Books', then all the books in this room will become automatically packed. Of course, to automatically pack on other occasions, you will have to be much more specific on what you mean to pack; otherwise all books in the room, not just yours, will be packed." Harry felt he was almost working on autopilot as Gip led him to his trunk and put in the stated items before prompting him to draw his wand. An earring...Mrs. Weasley was going to love that. He'd always liked Bill's earring, but he'd never actually considered getting one himself. The magical quality though was something he didn't want to miss out on. He'd have to study it in more depth.

"Pack Books!" There were loud popping noises throughout the vault, and to his relief, Harry saw the number of books Apparating, or so it appeared, straight into his trunk, and a great number that was as well. Gip certainly hadn't been joking when he mentioned that he would have his own personally library. It didn't look like that trip to Flourish & Blotts would be necessary after all.

"Wait a moment. Would there be books that might be helpful in my family vault? I can imagine a great deal of rare ones there." Gip paused for a moment in closing the trunk.

"Yes, there are a number of books there sir."

"Would it be possible to collect those as well?" Gip hesitated for a moment before nodding.

"If you would permit, I could quickly take your trunk and pack your books for you from that vault. I think perhaps it would be better for you to wait another time to visit your family vault. It is rather...overwhelming in concerns to this one." Harry glanced around this vault and then nodded, understanding that he would most likely be in for a very great shock when he went to his family vault.

"Alright. Can I browse around here while I wait for your return?"

"Of course sir. I won't be long. "

"Harry Gip, remember? I'm just Harry." Gip smiled and nodded, before with a sharp click of his fingers, hurrying out towards the cart, with his trunk floating along behind him. Harry watched until he heard the familiar sound of the cart in motion, and then immediately headed over to what had caught his eye. Without hesitation he placed the tatty blue cap he had bough on the floor, and swung the black cloak around him, pulling up the hood. As he had suspected, as he turned to look in a provided long mirror, there were concealment charms for beneath the hood. He smiled to himself and closed the cloak around him, affectively cutting out any chance of anyone recognizing him at all. He was a bit concerned about his appearance being similar to a Death Eater, minus the mask of course, and the fact that his hood was larger. In fact, it had more a resemblance to a Dementor in truth. That thought really did make him shudder.

Deciding the pros of the cloak outweighed the cons, he glanced around, overlooking the massive luxurious four poster bed and other furniture with a bit of amusement, before settling his gaze on a portrait. The stunning women it was portraying was watching him carefully, her light blue eyes piercing him to such an extent he was sure no amount of concealment charms could hide his appearance from her. Long blond hair fell in lavish curls around her, and that, coupled with the simple white dress she was wearing, gave him the impression he was looking at someone who had lived a long, long time ago. Her whole image spoke of nature and power that was unlike anything he had seen even in the depths of Hogwarts.

"Hello?" The woman's eyes twinkled for a moment in a manner very reminiscent of Dumbledore. Slowly she moved, uncurling it appear, though she did not move forwards or backwards. In fact, the action seemed to involvement very little movement. Still though, he had the impression if she was sat on a chair, she would have sat forwards.

"You see me, Harry Potter?" Harry was about to ask how she knew he was before he caught himself. Even though his 'fame' was widespread, he didn't think portraits knew of him in the manner.

"Yes. Shouldn't I?" A beautiful smile light up the portrait as the women leaned forward, her eyes dancing over him.

"It is normally a case of whether you are able. My previous owners were unable to see me. They were a poor family, and so deposited me thinking me simply a pretty picture frame here." Harry noted with some interest she didn't have any venom in her voice when she spoke of that. He could only imagine how he would feel being pushed to aside as if he had no worth other than face value. That seemed painfully too familiar actually.

"Why couldn't they see you?" The women smiled kindly at him.

"Only a select few wizards and witches can see my portrait. You may have noticed that a great deal of portraits are constantly asleep? Well, I was drawn with a counter charm to this. As years pass I will not fall asleep, but as payment for this, I am only recognized by few." Harry nodded, remembering Hermione rambling on in their first year about how portraits gradually fell into an eternal sleep due to their age. It normally took a few hundred years, or was it thousand? He couldn't really remember, but a good deal of the older portraits in the castle very rarely showed any signs of life other than an occasional snore.

"How can I see you then if others can't?"

"There are a number of possibilities. One, you may be a descendant of mine. Two, your magical power is great enough to overcome the charms subconsciously. Three, you have a counter-charm placed upon you allowing you to see me. Finally, you could be descended from someone who was put under the counter-charm, and the magic has stayed in you. Those are the reasons that were decided in my day. Whether or not you have more in this time, I do not know." Harry frowned gently. He knew the Potter's were a very old and very powerful family, so it was a strong possibility someone along the line had been placed under this counter-charm.

"You do not appear to be one of my descendants; there is no physical similarity at all that I can see. I would think it would be the second option, due to your defeat of Tom Riddle in your younger years."

"Tom Riddle? You know his real name?" The lady looked rather disgusted for a moment.

"Yes, I know his birth name. I also happen to know his other alias. He thought himself to great to remain named after a simple muggle." Now Harry was really beginning to be surprised. He knew that very few people were aware of Voldemort's background.

"How did you know he had a muggle father?" The lady let out a soft sigh.

"My last family was poor, but very well informed. Other than that, I am sure you are aware that many of us are not restricted to our own frames? While I unfortunately have been locked in here for just short of fifteen years, I rarely stay. I have only one other portrait but that is situated in a much better position than this, and I am able to move into neighbouring portraits there."

"Where is your other portrait?" The lady looked him over for a long moment.

" Hogwarts Castle of Witchcraft and Wizardry." Harry looked at her sharply.

"I've never seen you there before." The women sighed.

"The room I am in hasn't been visited in very many years." He frowned a bit at that, but the noise of a returning cart struck through his thoughts.

"Can Gip see you?" The women shook her head, watching him again.

"Are you going to take me away from here?" Harry chewed on his lip for a moment.

"I suppose you'll be able to fit in the trunk..."

"I have all of your books sir. There were an even greater number in your family vault. I see you have found other things to your liking as well?" Harry nodded, pulling his eyes away from the portrait. When he glanced back, the woman was gone.

"Yeah...can I take this portrait as well please?"

"Of course sir, I will put it in the trunk for you." With some quick snaps of fingers, Harry found his object of attention soaring into the trunk. Shaking himself almost out of a daze, he glanced around quickly, knowing he would be leaving very soon.

"I don't suppose there would be any potions supplies? It looks like everything I came to Diagon Alley for I already have except those...oh, and something to disguise Hedwig with if that's possible...have to check with Eeylops Owl..."

"I believe you will find that your watch has a mechanism similar to that of Fire Talking, only you will not have a fire, only a projection of the person you are speaking to. I believe you would appear in the fireplace of whomever you are talking to...but I am not sure. That is new technology. You will have to read the instruction manual." Harry nodded.

"I will do. Have you noted any potion materials while you were looking around?" Gip moved over to the wealth of parchments he had gathered before.

"Yes sir, there are a few items relating to potions...what specifically are you looking for?" Harry hesitated for a small moment, wondering himself.

"I'll be looking into making some potions for my own personal use, some that most likely won't be taught in school." Gip glanced at the list again.

"Then I would suggest the full cauldron set provided by a Mr. Teaspoon, which is in a pure silver suitcase, and there is a trunk somewhere marked HPA, for Harry Potter's Apothecary, in which the entire contents of an Apothecary were emptied into. Is that to you liking?" Harry nodded a bit weakly. All of this and he hadn't even spent any money yet, and it didn't look like he would need to at all now.

"Yes thanks. If I look for the suitcase, and you look for the trunk? You have a sharper eye than I do." Gip nodded and immediately moved in search of the trunk, while Harry chuckled quietly to himself and reached for the silver suitcase which had evidently been hidden behind the portrait of the lovely lady he had just put in his trunk. He placed it into the trunk and then set of to help Gip, finding though he had little need of assistance. He moved the trunk over, and placed it beside his own, looking between the two.

"Perhaps it would be better if you shrank this trunk before putting it into your trunk." Harry glanced at him for a long moment.

"I'm not allowed to do magic outside of school..."

"Magic cannot be recorded in Gringotts Harry, the Ministry will not hear of it." Harry chewed on his lower lip for a moment before nodding and drawing his wand. With a quick flick, and plenty of concentration, the trunk was soon palm-sized and stored away.

"Very good. Is there anything else you can see that you might want, or are we done for the day?" Harry looked slowly around, trying to look past the elegant and elaborate furniture and simple packages. He raced through what he had planned on buying for the day and then finally shrugged gently.

"I can't really think of anything. Anymore suggestions?" Gip glanced around himself for a long moment.

"None come to mind. Do you still wish to purchase our gold pouch? Consequently, since you live with Muggles, you may also draw out different types of Muggle currency - the order will automatically convert your gold into the requested amount." Harry smiled.

"That would be very useful and oh...are their stationary supplies here by any chance? I would rather like to simply head straight back now I seem to have everything I came for." Gip smiled.

"There are numerous stationary supplies. There are normal ones, exotic quills and the such, and enchanted inks. There are also pairs of enchanted parchments that allow a message to be written on one piece, and that message will immediately appear on the second piece. Simple in itself, but a very complex charm so the cost of such communication is very high - you mentioned a need for more privacy?" Harry chuckled.

"You're fulfilling all my needs Gip. How many pairs of that parchment are there?" Gip opened a suitcase to his right and ruffled through.

"Ten pairs sir, along with instructions." Harry smiled.

"Right then, with those as well that'll be everything wrapped up. Would you mind if I Owled you in future about any...questions I might have about my accounts or such? It is much easier than coming all the way to London . Any advice you could give me as well would be greatly appreciated." Gip frowned a bit.

"It is frowned upon by my superiors..."

"How about if I pay you to personally oversee my vaults?" Gip's eyes widened.

"That...that would appease them si...Harry." Harry smiled at his surprise.

"Well then, take ten percent more than the customary wage you would get for working in Gringotts, and there we are."

"Are you sure...Harry? It would be a great honour..." Harry groaned quietly. He rather thought Gip was more independent than Dobby.

"I'm sure Gip; you've made a very good impression on me once you lightened up a bit. Your help has saved me a great deal of trouble." Gip smiled and looked at the floor, apparently shy all of a sudden.

"Thank you Harry."

"You're more than welcome. Now, how do I turn this trunk into a ring?" Gip glanced at his sheets of parchment.

"Simply place your hand on it and say 'Dominia Regal'...I believe it is a password of a sort. To turn it back, 'Dominia Regalius'." Harry mouthed the words to himself enough times to ensure that he could remember them, and then followed his given instructions, rather pleased with himself when he felt the plain golden ring's weight in his hand, just heavy enough to account as a man's ring. He slipped it on his finger, feeling it magically adjust to fit him, and then drew his robes around him again.

"Thanks Gip. Shall we get going?" Gip nodded and slowly led the way out of the vault. As they were climbing into the cart, he paused though.

"Just in case you're interested, that cloak can't be removed without your permission either, the same as your robes. It also has many of the same qualities, and the strongest concealment charms in creation. Oh yes...and I do believe that it has a camouflage ability in relation to shadows - you appear to become the shadow itself and so disappear in a sense." Harry glanced at the cloak with renewed interest. He had an idea he couldn't have found himself better prepared against the up and coming war if he had spent all the gold in that vault.

"I'm very glad you told me about this vault. Make that fifteen percent greater than the customary wage actually. Is that alright with you?" He noted with amusement that Gip was trying very unsuccessfully to hide a massive grin.

"Most certainly Harry. I am very thankful. Many of my colleagues will be most jealous." Harry laughed as they began to move, remembering to secure himself for the eventful ride back.

"Keep up the good work and I'll increase it to twenty before this time next year." He saw Gip's face shine, and had to wonder for a moment just how much gold he was giving away. He hardly cared considering the amounts he had, but it made him wonder just how much the goblins earned that worked at the bank. Pushing the thought aside as it might offend Gip, he settled down and braced himself as they began a very steep climb.