Insert Title Here
Disclaimer: Harry Potter belongs to JK Rowling.
Author's notes: I write this, because I've read several stories that revolve around Harry heading out into the world via a variety of different media, and well… I got ideas on how to do it better.
-o-o-o-
Bill Weasley frowned for a moment as he stared down at the cards in front of him, then at the terribly diminished stack of chips in front of him, before finally at the visibly smirking goblin sitting proudly in front of him. Then, he again glanced down at his cards, before he spoke. "You sure you want to do that?"
The figure simply snorted and sneered back at him as it puffed itself up. "What's the matter, wizard too hot for your tastes?"
The question wasn't whether or not he could win. It was more whether or not he was going to let his pride win out over his common sense. Winning that much, against ones superiors at Gringotts was suicide if you were a goblin, and career suicide if you were one of their human employees.
"Ha, a Weasley after all! Not enough of a spine to make a little gold!" The goblin sneered back at the man as it made to reach for the gold on the table.
"All in." Those two words cut off the goblin, making the creature freeze, then smirk as he leaned back into his seat as Bill pushed the remainder of his gold forward into the pile.
"Humph! As much of a fool as your father." The goblin spat back triumphantly as it matched his money. "And as much of a sucker!"
"That remains to be seen, now doesn't it." Bill shot back as he narrowed his eyes and stood up a little straighter as suddenly the goblin scowled as it was forced to look up at the tall wizard. "Or are you often in the habit of counting your winnings before you've actually won them?"
The room stilled as the goblin's eyes widened as a hiss of breath left the goblin's mouth as it glared back at the man, before almost viciously throwing down his cards with a snarl. "Does it look like I'm counting my winnings before I've won, boy?"
"Yeah, it does." Bill shot back at the goblin as he lay his own cards down for all to see.
The shocked hiss of surprise that left that left the mouths of those around him as they glanced from Bill's hand to the goblins before their audibly sucked in a breath.
"Wha, but… how…?" Shock flashed across the goblin's eyes before it immediately flushed and darkened as the implications of what he'd said earlier sunk in. "You… you…"
"Win." Bill supplied simply as he stared back at the goblin almost defiantly, even as he made no move to pull in his winnings.
"Impossible!" The goblin hissed out as he glared at the man. "You….!"
Wordlessly, Bill stood up, carefully and purposely removing his dragon hide jacket, turning it inside out for all to see before almost throwing it down on the table. His shirt followed in similar fashion a moment later, leaving him bare chested before them all. Then his wand fell onto the top of the small pile and he sat back down, arms crossed about his chest as he stared, steely eyed back at the goblin.
Its fingers twitched slightly as it stared back at the pile, the conflict visible in his eyes, before finally, reluctantly he looked away, muttering under his breath. The spell seemingly broken, Bill reached out, pulling her shirt once more over his chest, before his jacket and his wand followed suit. A moment later, he very, very carefully and quietly pulled back his winnings, then glanced around the table questioningly as he again took his seat.
When he watched the various other participants pulling their gold off the table, he nodded his head in acceptance. Pocketing his own, he slowly stood back up then nodded to the various players. Finally, his eyes came to rest on the still visibly seething form of his boss. There would be hell to pay for this, he was sure of it. That was what kept the smile from curling over his face as he watched the creature stew.
There would be hell to pay, but for now, he would savor the brief moment of victory he knew would be all too fleeting.
-o-o-o-
It was even more fleeting than he thought. He'd barely left the gathering, when he'd been approached by a sneering goblin who'd promptly stripped him of most of his security passes. Dropped down to a level beneath even most of the probationary hires Gringotts had hired fresh out of school.
He'd stood there, accepting it with a kind of stunned bewilderment. He hadn't expected the hammer to fall this fast, this hard. But still, he made no protest, gave no resistance. He would endure, and he would rise back up the ranks once more.
One measly hand of poker wasn't going to stop him.
That's what he told himself, three months later when he was shoveling dragon dung in the darkest depths of Gringotts, barely making enough to survive from one paycheck to the next. He continued to tell himself another three months after that, when he was oiling down the cart axles and gears. Another three, and he'd reached the point where he began to search out for other, more gainful employment.
It was then he discovered just how truly vengeful, and influential that goblin had been. No one would touch him. No one would even look at his applications, not once they saw the name attached to them. Bill Weasley had become a pariah no one wanted to touch. No one except Gringotts itself.
Despair struck, before finally, it gave way to a crazy, mad possibility that just might work.
-o-o-o-
"You know, this isn't going to work." Zachariah Greengrass noted almost blandly as he glanced over at the thoroughly determined look on Bill Weasley's face as the man poured over the roster in front of him. "There hasn't been a new permit issued in the better part of a century. Gringotts bought up most of them, and those it didn't… Good luck finding one that is willing to help you finding a new one."
"And what, you expect me to sit around, doing nothing as that damned goblin keeps ruining my life?" Bill growled back as he glared at the apathetic, older man. "I couldn't even go on the bloody family trip last year because I couldn't afford the time off!"
"You were the one that brought it on yourself." Zachariah pointed out in that same, almost bland tone as he wrote on a piece of parchment. "I suppose you might find one or two forgotten little permits for some minor sites, but nothing really worth the price of travel. Almost everything belongs exclusively to Gringotts these days. There hasn't been a free… 'gentlemanly explorer' in close to a century. The last that I recall mentioned died rather messily and his son refused to have anything to do with the business there after."
"Was the permit revoked?" Bill asked suddenly as his eyes sparked the light of desperation.
"I… am not sure." Zachariah admitted with a frown before sighing a bit as he shifted about and pulled out a book, before murmuring over it. "Open permits, non-Gringotts affiliated."
"… If you could do that to start off with, why the bloody hell have you been having me go through these boody things?" Bill stared back at the man, a spark of anger blossoming in his eyes.
"You didn't ask." There was a faint glint of amusement in Zachariah's eyes as he responded, before carefully running his finger down the page. "Hmm… Yes, it is still active. Seems to be one of the few full, hereditary permits left that Gringotts hasn't managed to get their hands on."
"Who?" There was that desperation again, flashing in those eyes as Zachariah glanced back at him and shrugged in response.
"I hardly think it matters. Even if he was so inclined the remaining heir is underage." Zachariah shrugged a bit as he began to close the book once more.
"Wait, did they ever repeal, um… what was it…" Frowning quickly, Bill pulled out one of the parchments before scanning down it, then pushing it aside for a number of others when he pulled it up triumphantly. "Section, umm…. 48 Subsection B? Or did they amend it?"
"Of the original statute?" Zachariah frowned a moment as he pulled out another book, muttering the clause name over it before cracking it open. As he continued to read, his eyes steadily grew wider and wider, until he looked up and stared back at Bill.
"Well? Is it still…?"
"It is." Zachariah stared at him, in sheer disbelief before he quickly sobered his features with a shake of his head. "But he'd have to go with you. And that's not that likely to happen considering who it is."
"He'd be exempt from the standard restrictions on his magic." Bill countered back before frowning a bit. "But, enough of all that, who is he then?"
"Harry Potter." Zachariah countered back with a consoling smile back at the man. "So, good luck getting him to… What's so funny?"
" HAHA! Harry…oh, it just bloody figures! HAHAHAHAHA!" Bill slowly wiped the tears from his eyes, before smirking even broader as he nodded his head back to Zachariah. "Oh, this… this is just… perfect!"
"Ah, do I need to contact St. Mungos to tell them you've gone round the bend?" Zachariah asked as he glanced apprehensively towards the documents littered around the man. "I've heard they've got some very accommodating rooms for those that have."
"No, not just yet… not just yet." Bill grinned back at the man, before pausing a moment, and frowning slightly. "Hum, still gotta find some sites…"
Looking at Bill oddly for a moment, the man finally shrugged his shoulders and glanced back at the first book. "Well, the Potters do have exclusive rights to a number of sites for the next… hmm… 30 years unless renewed? Should be listed with the permits and what not." There was a pause, before the man shook his head again. "Which you'll need if you're going to do anything."
"Well, the Ministry would have them on file, wouldn't they?" Bill answered back.
"And again, you'd need the boy for anything like that."
"Well, we'll just have to see what I can do, won't we?" Bill suddenly set his lips in a determined look before walking purposely out of the archive room.
It was only once the man had moved well past the door's threshold that Zachariah blinked and frowned. "… He could have at least cleaned up."
-o-o-o-
"Ah, if it isn't our prodigal eldest brother, returned back to his humble home at last!"
Bill wasn't sure which of the twins that was greeting him upon his arrival at the Burrow but he couldn't help but twitched slightly as the other picked up where the other left off before he could make a comment.
"Indeed it is, oh brother mine! And looking so very determined! Makes one wonder just what it is he might be here for, doesn't it?"
When his wand was suddenly in his hand, both twins blinked slightly as Bill smiled, sweetly at the pair. "Now, before I begin, I want to remind you lot who's the one that doesn't have to worry about Underage Magic restrictions. Do I need to go any further, or shall I remind you both why I was Head Boy?"
"I do believe our esteemed eldest brother has a point." One of the twins noted as they looked warily back down the length of the wand.
"I think he has a nasty curse or two, too." The second agreed quickly.
"Good." The wand was gone and suddenly Bill was all smiles as he slung an arm over each of their shoulders. "Because I need a bit of help from my two favorite mischief makers."
"Who would-"
"-That be?"
"Funny." Bill smirked a bit, even as he tightened his grip on their necks. "Now, are you two going to help out your big brother or not?"
"What do-"
"-You need?"
"What can you tell me about Harry Potter?"
-o-o-o-
Bill stood on the sidewalk, a disillusionment charm cast over his form as he watched Number 4 Privet Drive with a kind of wariness. He'd watched, just a few minutes earlier as a horse-faced woman, a walrus-like man and a child that could only be their disturbing off spring had piled into one of those muggle contraptions his father was so fond of, then zoom off down the road. All without a single sign of Harry Potter himself.
The whole while, he'd been studying the house, his eyes glowing a particular shade of white as the wards written about the property lit up with a warm, pulsing series of glows and symbols. They seemed benign enough, concealment and redirection more than anything, as well as a number of protections against those meaning harm to the family within. On top of that, there was a notification ward lined almost invisibly around the edges of the property line.
Bypassing just that one particular ward, and doing so only temporarily would be simple enough, as long as he didn't trigger any of the others. The way it was designed, as long as they held no ill intent towards the family inside, a skilled cursebreaker could enter and leave the property undetected. Fortunately, while a bit rusty, he was indeed such a cursebreaker.
Moving his wand in a few, precise motions, he smiled as the notification ward quivered a moment, then went still and inactive. At least temporarily.
For a moment, he stared at the door, consideration, before quietly walking up to it, and with a silent unlocking spell, carefully entered the home. For a moment, he stood there, just inside the door, studying the home. With a twitch, he couldn't help but make a quick face of displeasure. "Well, this is just… Ugh."
Shaking his head he looked around, for a moment, before carefully speaking up a bit louder than before. "Um… Harry?"
There was a quite thud upstairs, before a tentative voice warily called out. "… Who's there?"
"It's Bill. Bill Weasley. Ron, Fred and George's brother?" He couldn't help but feel a little silly at this as he glanced around. "Could you come out?"
"… Not really." There was a bit of bitterness in that muffled voice he was gathering came from upstairs. "They locked the door."
"Err. Which door was it then?" Bill immediately bit down on the surge of temper that wanted to break into his mind. Tripping the wards would be a bad, bad idea in this particular case.
"Upstairs, the one with all the locks on the door. Can't miss it." Harry's muffled response came back as Bill unconsciously nodded his head then quickly bounded up the waiting stairs until he searched around and located the door in question.
Moving up to it, he tapped his wand against the door with one, tap, and a burst of magic forced the locks to all click open. Pausing the moment before he took hold of the door, he shifted about nervously. "Err… you wanna come out, or should I come in?"
Slowly, the door was pulled back, as Harry carefully peaked out around its edge to glance up at the red headed figure on front of him. Feeling suddenly self conscious, Bill half lifted his hand up. "Lo, it's, err, nice to finally meet you?"
"Um, yeah... What're you doing here? Did something happen to Ron, or...?" There was a sudden hesitation in Harry's voice as if he was about to say something else, before quickly thinking better of it.
"Oh, no, nothing like that!" Bill quickly shook his head and raised his hands with a shake of his head. "Everything's fine as far as I can tell."
"Then, um, no offense, but why're you here?" There was a note of slight wariness in Harry's voice as he eyed the man carefully.
"Well, to be perfectly honest? I need your help with something." Bill answered back with a half grin on his lips.
Harry's emerald eyes blinked, then blinked again, before he simply stared back at Bill, mouth half hung open as he responded. "Me? What could I help you with?"
"Well, you see..." He paused there, before grimacing visibly. "It's a long story, revolving around how I did something I really, really shouldn't have, which got me into a bit of a sticky wicket."
"What'd you do?" That wariness was back in Harry's voice as his fingers suddenly gripped tightly on the door. "And what's it got to do with me?"
"I beat one of the higher ups in Gringotts in poker." Bill paused there, before grimacing visibly. "Well, it's more he kept insulting me and I turned it around on him and well... Not only did I beat him, I... embarrassed him." There was another pause, before the grimace grew further. "A lot."
"... Embarrassed him?" Harry's brow furrowed in confusion as he looked back up at Bill. "What's that got to do with...?"
"I made him kinda look like a fool." Bill paused a moment, before wincing a bit. "Ok, I made him really look like a fool. I called him on some stuff... and well... yeah."
Harry opened his mouth to continue only to have Bill shake his head and continue. "He's got a lot of pull in Gringotts, and because of it, a lot of pull everywhere else..."
As a look of dawning realization flashed across Harry's eyes, again uncertainty rose in his eyes. "Then what do you need me for?"
"I can't get work, anywhere in England. They've got me completely black listed. I can't even go to work for myself because I have no real reputation of my own." Bill shrugged a bit, before continuing. "So, I was hoping..."
"Um, Bill, I can't really hire you for anything, I mean, I don't really have that kind of..." Harry quickly shook his head as he shifted nervously about as he cut the man off before he could really continue.
Bill blinked at that, staring at the boy before quickly shaking his head. "You do, actually, but that's not what I wanted to ask you for."
"I... do?" Harry blinked slightly as he stared back at Bill. "I mean, I know I have a good bit in my trust vault, but..."
"Harry, your grandparents were quite savvy when it came to business. Your dad had enough money to never have to work a day in his life and still have plenty to support his family." Bill shook his head a bit before quickly continuing. "But that's not what I wanted to talk to you about."
He grimaced again then before quickly correcting himself. "Though, might need a bit of money to get this going."
"Really?" Harry stared back at him a moment, before the rest of his words registered. "If not that, then what? Get what going?"
"Well, Ron's told you I'm a cursebreaker, right?" Bill offered up as he arched a brow back at Harry.
"Yeah..." Harry agreed before frowning a bit. "What's a cursebreaker, anyway?"
Bill blinked slightly at that, before quickly shaking his head as he replied, "Right, ok, basically a lot of old tombs and ruins are protected by curse wards to prevent people from raiding them. What I do is figure out how to work around them and/or break them so what's inside can be got nice and safe."
"Oh. Ok." Harry nodded his head a moment before blinking back at Bill. "So what does that have to do with something I can help you with?"
"Well, back when it was a lot more popular, the Ministry gave out certain... 'Gentlemanly Explorer' permits." Seeing Harry's look of incomprehension Bill grinned a bit back at him. "Basically permits for people to be independent curse breakers. A lot more personal risk, but a lot bigger personal reward."
"Um, ok..." Seeing that Harry wasn't sure where he was going with it, Bill nodded his head in understanding before continuing.
"Gringotts has bought up most of them, and has basically leaned on every one who still has one to have nothing to do with me." Bill paused a bit, before taking a deep breath. "All except for one."
The gears visibly ground in Harry's head as he worked through what Bill had told him. "But... How could I have one? I mean..."
"They're hereditary." Bill stated quickly with a slight grin curling over his lips for a moment, before it faltered slightly as he continued. "See... your great-grandfather made a lot of use of his... only, one time, he never came back. From what I can tell, that pretty much soured your grandfather on having anything to do with it, so..."
"Ok... So, what, you want me to sign something to let you use it?" Harry stared back at the man, a hint of a smile starting to curl uncertainly over his lips.
"If only it were that simple..." Bill grimaced slightly and shook his head. "I'm still a fully licensed curse breaker, but the way the permits are set up... The holder of the permit has to actually be physically present on the expedition."
"Wait, you want me to go with you?" Harry blinked, then blinked again as he stared back at Bill, his mouth hanging agape.
"Well, it's kind of necessary." Bill admitted before quickly following it up before Harry could respond. "I mean, you'd be completely safe, I'd take all the risks, and you'd just have to hang back and watch. The way the law's even set up, it'd be kind of like a work study program. You'd be able to use your magic, and I'd be able to teach you stuff and you'd learn all sorts of things about cursebreaking and..."
"So, you want me to go with you, I'd be able to use magic and I'd learn stuff?" Harry stared back at Bill, his expression slightly slack jawed in disbelief.
"Yeah... I know it's not much, but..." Bill paused a bit and winced slightly even as he forced a smile on his face. "I just... I wouldn't ask if I had any other choice. I'll make sure you're back in time for September 1st, and..."
"What do I need to do?" The look of eagerness on Harry's face started Bill as he blinked back at the boy, uncertain at first of how to respond.
"You... you know this is still really dangerous, right?" Bill frowned just a bit, a flash of worry written across his face. "I mean, even with my looking out for you, it'll be pretty dangerous."
"More dangerous than Voldemort?" Harry shot back, before blinking slightly as Bill flinched at the name, then shook his head slightly.
"Well, no, not more dangerous than You-Know-Who..." Bill admitted, before pausing a bit as he pressed his lips together and suddenly looked even more uncertain. "At least, I don't think anymore dangerous than him..."
"Works for me." Harry nodded his head quickly with a slight grin, before a frown suddenly hit his features. "Wait... Don't we need to get permission from my guardians for this?"
"Ordinarily, yeah." Bill agreed with a quiet nod of his head.
"Ordinarily?" Harry repeated back as his features screwed up with a look of incomprehension.
"Yeah, well you see, took me a while to get it all sorted out, but near as I can tell, as long as you've got someone to go with you that's licensed like me, since you don't have any immediate magical family, as far as the law's concerned, they don't have the 'comprehension' to make judgments on magical matters." Bill's rambling voice cut short after a moment, before he grinned sheepishly back at Harry. "That make sense?"
"... Not really?" There was a look of confused concentration on Harry's face as he visibly struggled to follow follow what Bill had said.
"As muggles, we can bypass 'em if I'm with you." Bill paused a moment, before shifting uncomfortably. "One of the 'conservative' bloc's little loopholes in play."
"Oh, Ok." Harry managed a slow grin on his lips.
"Well, we've gotta be a bit tricky about this." Bill answered back with a slight grin. "We don't want the goblins to get wise to us too soon..." He paused a moment, before his grin got just a little bit stronger on his lips. "Not to mention, I won't be able to step foot in England for a few years once my mum finds out."
"... She's not gonna like this, is she?" Harry froze there as he suddenly bit the inside of his lip, for the first time. "I mean... she's really, really not gonna like it..."
"Yup." Bill agreed with a wince and a nod of his own head. "I mean... She's a might bit... over protective." Another pause fill the uncomfortable air between the two of them before he continued. "Enough that well... Why do you think I got into curse breaking in Egypt and Charlie ran off to the dragon preserve in Romania?"
"Right." Harry agreed as he glanced back into his room for a moment, before looking back at Bill. "Can we... do this without her finding out?"
"That was the plan." Bill agreed with a slowly growing grin before quietly amending himself. "At least, not for a while."
"Ok, when do we leave then?" A weak, but growing grin spread over Harry's face as he smiled back at Bill.
"Well, I can get you to Diagon Alley, but, after that, it gets a bit tricky. Here's what you've gotta do..."
-o-o-o-