Chapter 15: The Set-Up
Harry tapped his fingers on the table rhythmically. The ticking of the mantel clock they'd taken from Grimmauld was starting to drive him a bit mad.
"Ron… this was a terrible plan," he muttered darkly.
"You're only saying that cause I wouldn't let you go,'' Ron argued, even as he watched the clock with almost obsessively unblinking eyes.
"I should have gone!" Harry argued.
"Harry we've been over this," Hermione repeated for the thousandth time. "It would have been way too dangerous if you went along."
"I could have gone instead of someone!" Harry argued.
"Would it make you feel better if you heard the plan again?" Ron offered. Harry huffed. He'd heard the plan a thousand times. But he supposed it was better than sitting in silence doing nothing.
"Sure."
"Alright," Ron began before a grin bloomed over his face. He was getting quite a sick amount of joy about it all. "this is the plan."
Dudley Dursley arrives at Gringotts at 12:00.
He walks right up to the checkpoint.
And passes the entrance with flying colours.
"You assume." Harry piped up anxiously.
"We've been over this." Ron huffed. "The only people who know what Dudley looks like are people in our year. He's never been photographed for The Prophet before, so no one will recognize him! It'll be fine."
"Yeah but what about the next part?!" Harry cried.
He crosses the atrium, goes to the last desk on the left and says.
"Hi," Dudley said, looking smart in the robes Hermione had altered for him an hour earlier. "I'm here for my appointment." The goblin behind the desk blinked in confusion.
"I'm sorry?" He rasped. Dudley continued to smile.
"My appointment. For 12:15. I know I'm a bit early. If you need me to wait, that's fine."
"I'm sorry sir but I don't know anything about any appointments." The goblin said blandly. Dudley blinked before a frown formed.
"What? But I planned this months ago! I have investors waiting for your bank's response!" The goblin blinked.
"In-investors?" He stuttered worriedly.
"Yes! Now can you please find whoever it is I'm supposed to be meeting?"
"Umm." The goblin began before he began rapidly shifting his papers, black eyes glimmering with panic.
"I hate that part of the plan," Harry muttered worriedly. "I hate it more than all the rest."
"Why?"
"Because he's literally supposed to draw as much attention to himself as possible!" Harry complained.
"This is ridiculous!" Dudley shrieked. "I organized this meeting 2 whole months ago! If you can't manage a measly appointment schedule, what makes you think I'd want you to manage my clients' hedge funds! Where is your supervisor! We need to have strong words I think!" Security was walking up to him with a raised eyebrow.
"Everything alright sir?" The burly one on the left asked.
"Just trying to find a goblin that KNOWS HOW TO DO ITS JOB!" Dudley shouted after the goblin, who was currently scurrying away in a panic, trailing several pages and scrolls behind him.
"Yes, well that's the point!" Ron argued. "Because unbeknownst to security,"
Sirius Black walks into Gringotts at 12:20, wearing a suitable disguise, closely followed by Susan Bones, hiding under the invisibility cloak.
He marches straight through security and passes the head desk without anyone being the wiser.
And then
"Ehi! Voi!" The man crowed with a thick Italian accent to the nearest teller. The goblin was currently craning his neck to watch as Dudley continued to pitch a fit, now with the very irritated security trying to calm him down. He'd just threatened to sue them for touching his robes. Sirius lifted his fingers to his mouth and whistled. The goblin jumped and turned around. Then he pointed at himself with confusion. "Sí! You! Andiamo gia!" He barked. The goblin hopped off his chair with a grumble.
"What seems to be the matter, sir?"
"I've been waiting around for a cart for ten minutes now!" Sirius complained. "I would like to go to my cousin's vault, grab the thing she gave to me in trust and leave! Is that too much to ask!"
"Someone will be with you shortly." The goblin offered.
"That's what they said ten minutes ago cervello di formaggio! Just take me down to the vault!"
"Alright sir, please call down!" The goblin said with a whimper. He looked around for someone he could call to rescue him, but they were all wrapped up in the other belligerent client, who thankfully wasn't threatening to sue anymore, but was threatening to contact his ministry client and have them shut down for negligence. He huffed. "Very well sir, follow me."
"You know I didn't even know Sirius could speak italian," Harry muttered with a shake of his head.
"His Italian sounded better than his french," Hermione argued. "It seemed more plausible."
"Regardless, you have an insane amount of confidence in Dudley's ability to cause a scene," Harry complained weakly.
"Please!" Ron countered, "back when you thought you'd be going you said that Dudley's part was the only part of the plan that was foolproof!
"Yeah but he's got to keep them distracted for Sirius and Susan to get in and out."
"I think he'll manage." Ron insisted, ", especially with the ace we made up our sleeve."
"Okay, this is ridiculous!" Dudley cried with a huff, "how could you lose an appointment this important?! Especially one that was 2 months in the making! You know what?! I'm sick of this! Where is the bank manager!"
"He's… not here at the moment." The Senior accountant that had been dragged over, along with a couple of head consultants and a pr rep.
"What do you mean he's not here?!" Dudley asked incredulously. The goblin shifted on his feet nervously.
"He received an all-expenses-paid vacation to a goblin retreat in Lichtenstein." The man finally muttered. Dudley scoffed.
"Oh well, that's brilliant!"
"How did you manage that anyway?" Harry asked with a hint of awe in his voice. He had to admit, that part of the plan was impressive.
"I called in a favour," Ron said smugly.
Four days before a man in a maintenance suit is polishing the floors.
As he walks past the bank manager's desk he drops the voucher on the top of the man's receiving pile and goes back to work, a mischievous grin on his face.
"It was nice of the order to actually pay for the vacation," Hermione remarked.
"Bill said he deserved it. Man's been working in the same position for almost eighty years. Only ever takes one day off a year." Ron argued with a shrug. Then he shook his head. "Now it takes five minutes to head down to the lower levels. Assuming there are no stops for side trips"
Sirius black arrives at the Lestrange vault between 12:25 - 12:30
"Andiamo!" Sirius barked. "I haven't got all day." The goblin nervously caught up to the wizard. Suddenly the cart behind them gave a loud squeal. Bother men turned back to see nothing, though Sirius's eye twitched. "Damn squeaky cart." He complains. The goblin nodded and lead the man to the vault he wanted. As Sirius stepped inside he frowned and turned back to the goblin with a scowl. "Do you mind?"
"Ah!" The goblin muttered, clenching his folded hands. "I'll go wait by the cart sir."
"Thank you!" Sirius barked. Finally, the goblin disappeared. And suddenly the floating head of Susan Bones manifested beside Sirius.
"Ten minutes!" She hissed. Sirius nodded and the pair began to search.
"I take it back," Harry murmured. "This is my least favourite part of the plan. Ten minutes is way too long for something to not go wrong."
"Yeah but we agreed, even when you were part of the plan, that ten minutes was the least we could give. We have no idea what the vault looks like, so idea where the cup might be, and no idea what obstacles might be in front of it." Ron argued. Harry ran his finger through his hair.
"I know. But it just seems too risky."
"It's not risky." Ron insisted.
At 12: 35- 12:40 then get back on the cart.
The goblin grit his teeth in irritation. The wizards had been so emboldened lately. Damn Rognak for his insistence on allowing this dark wizard to encroach on their territory. Decades, even years, ago such insolence would have led to war! It should have led to that again! Put the fear of bankruptcy into those bastards. They'd fall in line right quick.
"Hey!" Two goblins in conductor uniforms cried out. "What are you doing down here?!"
"I could ask the same thing!" The goblin snapped. "Why weren't you answering calls! Because of your laziness, I had to take a client all the way down here!"
"There were no calls." The one on the left said with a frown.
"We haven't gotten a call down here for hours now. That's why we ran maintenance on line three."
"What?" The teller began with confusion, "no, the customer said he'd been waiting for…" the goblin slowly trailed off, black eyes flickering with fear and then that cold emotion melting into rage.
"Have you found it yet?!" Sirius hissed.
"Keep your pants on!" Susan hissed back in frustration. It was kinda hard to find something with someone constantly nagging you in the ear about it!"
"There!" Sirius suddenly cried. Susan followed his finger and grinned. She turned into a bird, using her powerful wings to dodge the other artifacts and clutched the cup in her talons. She gave a surprised shriek as it burned her but she held her grip tight.
"Is everything alright in there sir?" The goblin shouted from the cart.
"Fine! Opened a damned cursed book by mistake!" The man complained. Susan flew back down and dropped the cup with a clatter before changing back.
"It burned me!" She complained and gingerly hopped from foot to foot. She could still feel the hot metal on the bottom of her feet. Sirius leaned down and picked it up.
"It's a blood curse. As soon as I picked it up it should have nullified." He explained. Sure enough, he handed it to Susan with no more adverse effects. Susan nodded and pulled the cloak over her head again.
At 12:45-12:50, they're back at the atrium and crossing it, while security is still being distracted by Dudley's tantrum.
Sirius stepped out of the vault to see the goblin talking to two others, both wearing conductor outfits. He froze as they all looked over at him with narrowing eyes. Suddenly the vault door closed. Sirius whipped around horror etching onto his face.
"THIEVES!" The teller suddenly screeched. An alarm started ringing loudly All around them, echoing through the caverns.
Dudley looked up as the bells started wailing.
"Oh, what's happening now?!" He demanded.
"THIEVES!" An aid suddenly shrieked. "THIEVES IN THE LOWER LEVELS!"
"Lock down the bank!" A senior aid cried, "no one gets in or out!"
"Oh you've got to be kidding me?!" Dudley wailed in utter frustration.
"Which means!" Ron began with a triumphant crescendo staring at his watch and rising to his feet. "That at 1 o'clock! Dudley will finish his business, meet Sirius and Susan at the meet-up point, They'll apparate and return… now!" He cried, pointing at the tent flap with glee but still watching his watch as it struck 1:01.
Utter silence followed.
He frowned and looked from his watch to flap then to the mantel clock, still ticking away. He picked it up and shook it lightly before looking back to the tent flap, still holding the clock. Suddenly the colour drained from his face, as his watch struck 1:02.
"Uh oh."
A/N: Happy Easter to all those who celebrate it!
Sorry it's a bit late, I've had a very busy weekend.
LaViolaViolaRosa: Writing Draco for that chapter was a joy and a half
chao-hellsing: I took a lot of inspiration for Bella the cow from videos about cows being loveable puppies. (look up cow zoomies, it is so so worth it)
ILoveGeorgeEads: thank you so much! Draco did turn out great.
Aslan's Princess: truthfully, Anthony inserted himself way more into this story than I had originally planned.
sure, when I decided he'd be part of the motley crew I did decide to have him and Hermione get married.
but originally he was just going to be at Hogwarts.
I am so glad I changed my mind.
Draco, however, was always going to end up living with Petunia.
She is the only one who is so perfectly equipped to smooth out his rough edges,
Mostly because she's been there herself.
So she knows the steps to take.
And as you can see, their plan was an extremely sensible one.
One of Ron's best in fact!
It just...
Didn't quite work out as planned. ;)
See you next week,
Keep on reading!
-TTC