Disclaimer: See Chapter 1

-oOo-

This time on Witch. Wizard. Gnome! : No one expects the Gnomish Inquisition

This will be a short six-part story. Enjoy.

-oOo-

August 11, 1995

Wiltshire, England

A photographer had caught the giant mugglish contraption as it had glided over Diagon Alley. Its shadow cast the alley and surrounding area into an unnatural darkness for late afternoon. She couldn't help but think that it looked like a giant, silver cigar that Lucius used to enjoy so much. She hated the stink of those things and hated seeing the unnatural thing that had invaded their world.

Looking down at the article, she let a slight crinkle to her mouth show her distaste of the thing.

-o-

Daily Prophet

GNOMES INVADE DIAGON ALLEY!

By Roger Wilco

Rumours had started to circulate around Diagon Alley that gnomes had been seen at Gringotts early in the day. This was odd in the sense that gnomes don't usually visit England, having been driven out by Wizengamot legislation in the mid-1800's when they attempted to challenge the goblins for the banking sector. For those that may remember, that led to the Goblin Insurrection of 1852. Thus, it was even more shocking when the gnomes were found to be inside Gringotts.

Crowds gathered as the giant thing approached Diagon Alley. A few Muggleborn were heard calling it an air plimpy. It seemed to be in violation of the Statute of Secrecy and several ministry laws, causing senior ministry officials and a contingent of Aurors to appear.

An argument broke out between the gnomes and the ministry officials, which only ended when gnomish automatons descended from the air plimpy. This almost started a fight until the ministry officials had the Aurors stand down. It would appear that the ICW has approved the gnomes to operate all the devises as they have been heavily enchanted to prevent muggles from seeing anything.

While all this was happening, it was almost missed that goblins had started to move vast amounts of crates and money backs into the alley. As some gnomes piloted the automatons to gather the piles, others guarded the steps of the bank, not allowing anyone in or out. Whispers and speculations were heard all about the alley as it was obvious that a large amount of wealth was being removed from the bank and taken by the gnomes. Given the large piles, it can only be speculated that many vaults were emptied. And given the reaction of the hostile goblins, they were not pleased by the transaction.

The Daily Prophet does not yet know what occurred, but the staff is determined to find out. It cannot be healthy for our economy to lose so much wealth at one time, not to mention who it is affecting…

-o-

Narcissa disliked the goblins. Seeing the mugglish things the gnomes used was even worse. She would need to talk to her friends in the Wizengamot about supporting more legislation to keep those filthy things from their world. The ICW can't overrule sovereign rule.

As she looked at the other pictures showing the automatons and some of the wealth being transferred, she stopped at a picture on the inside cover. Looking at the picture, she felt something niggling at the back of her mind. A memory from when she was young bubbled up as she saw a glass case with a set of armour and weapons. It was a set of armour adorned in furs and leather. The fur was rather distinctive. In her mind, the black and white picture became an orangey umber with black spots ringed by white. A spear about four feet long with a large dark metal head was to left side and a long, oval shaped shield with feathers on the top was to the right of the armour. Across the chest was a rod, wrapped in leather strips and with feathers dangling from one end.

She blinked a few times, knowing she had seen that before.

Trying to think back, she had a vague memory of happier times. Times when she was innocent. Times before Bellatrix had started to succumb to the Black madness that affected many of them. A time when she had three sisters. It was a time when her bigger sister, Andromeda, would let her sleep with her when Narcissa was young and had nightmares. It was a time before her beloved sister had become a blood traitor and broken their mother's heart. It was a time when the three of them were laughing as they played hide-and-seek in a large house…

It came to her.

She knew that set of armour.

She knew that rod was a magical focus for the tribal person that had once wielded it.

She could remember her grandfather telling her a tale of an expedition led by him to capture a diamond mine from some savages and how it had helped the Black family's fortune.

Her mouth went dry.

She knew which vault had been emptied.

She looked through the other pictures and the article. Given the number of bags, crates and other items that the gnomes had put into their air plimpy, she had the unsettling feeling that any vault associated with the Blacks had been emptied.

As her shock wore off, anger grew.

She had always accused the goblins of being greedy, stealing blighters, even though grandfather had taught her to treat them well because of the power they held guarding their wealth. Now, she felt the anger towards the gnomes stealing her family's wealth.

Getting up, she marched purposely towards Lucius's study. The fool had gotten himself killed almost two months ago and she was having a challenging time unravelling all his schemes and machinations. If she and Draco were lucky, they would have enough money left to live comfortably for the rest of their lives once she won her challenge for him to get his inheritance from her family and resolved all the poor investments and business deals her late husband had made.

She had mourned Lucius at first. Narcissa had loved the fool. Then she found out what he had done with the Malfoy wealth and her dowry, and that mourning soon turned to hate for the man. How had she been so blind for all these years? She had been taken in by his suave demeanour, and his fervour to see the purebloods rule over Britain. Now she was starting to rue the day she had begged her father and grandfather to sign that betrothal.

At one time she wanted to be a pampered princess. She wanted a dozen children. She wanted a grand mansion that was always filled with people that envied her. She had gotten two of her three wishes. Draco had been a small miracle after a half-dozen Healers had helped them conceive. No one knew why Lucius was so barren since his father had sired three sons, but she had to suspect now that it had to do with that damnable mark he had taken from his Master. No one that had taken the mark had sired more than one child, many having no children at all, and she knew the Blacks were not a barren family. No, every witch she knew with Black blood in her had two or more children. She had more than a dozen cousins at one time. Now, there was only one child left from her large family, and he didn't even have the Black name.

Throwing the doors open to the study, she stopped to see a small pile of letters on the desk. Scowling, she was sure it was more of the bastard's hair brained schemes come to roost and would undoubtedly cost her more galleons. How the man had managed to keep them afloat all these years was beyond her as three out of every four deals seemed to fall apart. He must have been doing other deals on the side or working in the black market as well, but he had been so secretive she didn't know who to talk to or what was going on. It didn't help that his two biggest business partners had died that night, and most of his other associates wouldn't talk with her.

As she sat at the desk, her heart started to sink as she saw three letters with Gringotts seals on the top of the pile. Those never boded well. With the pictures in the paper, she had no doubts she would like what they said even less than normal.

Her father had always said it was better to find out the damage to be able to figure out a path forward, so she grabbed the first envelope. After looking it over, she shut her eyes for a moment to calm herself. It wasn't as bad as she had feared. Three of their properties had been bought. She had lost the rent but made nearly twenty thousand galleons on the deal. It was part of her late husband's estate that she had been forced to sell off.

The second letter wasn't as pleasant. Two loans had been called in. With penalties because the investment was lost, she was down nearly eighteen thousand galleons. Given other news lately, being slightly ahead was a win. Just not the type she needed. Until recently, spending two thousand galleons in a month wouldn't have been a challenging thing to do.

The last letter had her turning white.

The regent to the current heir of the Blacks decided to close all vaults and accounts and call in any deal that was backed by their wealth. She couldn't understand. As far as she knew, Draco was the current heir. As she read down, her hand started to shake.

"This can't be! Aunt Walburga disowned him," she acidly remarked.

She started to feel bile rise in her throat. As she had feared from the paper, the trust vault left for Draco had been dissolved and her dowry was being recalled for violations to the betrothal contract.

Through her fear, a new rage at her late husband roiled in her. "I'm going to exhume his ashes and burn them again," she said in a cold fury.

She needed to get to Gringotts to understand what all this meant. She had been relying on Draco's trust vault from her grandfather to finish paying for Hogwarts and his other expenses. If the goblins recalled her dowry, then the Malfoy vault would be nearly empty.

Her fury at her late husband had their one remaining house elf scurrying to repair the damage she left behind as she blasted the door off the hinges as she left the study and stalked towards her room. "Tilly, I am going out. Get Draco up and fed. When I get back, we need to have a talk."

"Yes, Mistress Malfoy," the small elf squeaked as it tried to get the door back on its hinges before repairing it.

-oOo-

August 12, 1995

Altdorf, Switzerland

Harry stepped outside the chalet that the ministry had provided him. Once he had been given asylum, it had been a few days before they could get him a portkey out of the United Kingdoms. In that time, Sirius had been able to join him. He felt bad the man was now in a prison awaiting a trial, but Harry had been able to see him a few times. The man looked much better, and the jail in Zurich was much nicer than what he heard about Azkaban. The only fact keeping Sirius sane in his new confinement was that he had a trial date set for September fifth, and he had been able to pass the regency of his house to Harry, who had used it to get both their wealth's' out of England.

Once outside, he took in a deep breath of the mountain air. The weather wasn't that much different from Scotland that first week or two they were back at school, meaning it was comfortable for him. The chalet was in a small wizarding enclave on the side of a mountain that overlooked the valley and town of Altdorf. All around him towered mountains of incredible height. He had never been around anything like it, but found he really enjoyed it.

Looking up slope, he could make out a castle at the edge of the enclave. The castle of Grenobles was much different than Hogwarts. Where Hogwarts had been a traditional Scottish castle made of grey stone, round towers, barbicans and long galleries, the castle of Grenobles was distinctly more German and practical in origin. Hogwarts was impressive, but it hadn't been made to withstand sieges, looking more fanciful than practical.

A few square towers surrounded a large central square tower. Buildings with slate roofs and white plastered walls dominated the centre of the outer walls and fortifications. At one time, it was the lord's castle of the valley, made to protect and project power to muggles. Now it was the seat of one of the top schools in Switzerland.

"Guten Morgen, Herr Potter. Heute ist ein schöner Tag," a man in a smart uniform greeted him. The Aurors uniform was more like a muggle police uniform with dark blue trousers, a belt with a few pouches, a baton, wand holster and an old fashion flintlock pistol. A dark-blue dyed dragon hide vest replaced what might have been a Kevlar vest.

"Guten Morgen," Harry replied. He had been assigned an Auror bodyguard while his asylum and citizenship application were still being processed. Knowing what was after him, he was happy to have the man. "How are you today, Auror Morgan?"

"Very good, sir."

His grumbling stomach let him know he hadn't eaten breakfast yet.

The man nodded towards a building. "Are you going for breakfast again at the Liedhogan?"

"Care to join me?" Harry offered.

"I'll just wait outside," Auror Morgan replied. Harry shrugged. He had offered the three different guards he had cycling through each time, but they had all declined. That was another difference. The Aurors here were much more professional than back in Britain.

After looking around, he headed towards the inn just inside the gates of the old walled settlement that was protected by the castle above them. Even though the wizards of Switzerland were much better integrated into the muggle world, a few settlements like this allowed areas of protection and places where magic could be used without fear.

As he made his way towards the inn, he noticed that a zeppelin was making its way over the lake at the far end of the valley. That had been a bit of a surprise. Every few days one of the large airships would dock at a tall metal tower outside the walls of the enclave that reminded him of the Eifel Tower. He had watched one on the first day he had been here and could only think of the activity of an old sailing ship.

Local crafts, crops and other trade were loaded as necessities and goods required by the local populous were unloaded. The gnomes operated a fleet of the giant blimps that flew between most of the surrounding countries. If the gnomes had a presence, the ships flew there. It explained why countries like the United Kingdoms didn't have such services, as the gnomes had been essentially banished. He also found it interesting that the countries the gnomes operated in, that goblins often didn't. He couldn't remember Binns talking about it, but Harry was sure there was a reason. He would have to find out why at some point.

He was hoping to get a letter saying that the transfer had gone well. He had contracted with the gnomes for four vaults in their main bank in Zurick and for them to handle his investments. He had been surprised to understand he had a portfolio. One in which he had instructed them to get him out of anything in Britain as soon as they could and invest where they thought appropriate. He felt the much friendlier people would manage his money well and had offered him rates that were half that of the goblins for the same services. He hoped that was a good sign that made better returns since the gnomes didn't seem to lack for wealth. The large zeppelin approaching Altdorf was proof of that. The dozens of robots the gnomes used when it docked was also a sign of their wealth and ingenuity.

After asking for breakfast from the inn owner, Harry sat in a booth where he could watch the zeppelin dock. As he watched the gnomes open the door and drop the long gangway into the cavernous interior, he was starting to think he had taken the wrong courses. To adopt muggle technology, and create new things, with runes and branches of technomancy not available at Hogwarts, had him intrigued. Auror Morgan had told him the gnomes were some of the foremost experts in technomancy, even if most of their inventions still used steam and looked more like a fanciful interpretation of what a Victorian muggle would have thought was possible. Even with that, the gnomes and other magicals around here used more modern technologies, like the television that was in the sitting room of the small chalet he was in. Once he had his approval, he was going to have to find his own place. One large enough for Sirius, and potentially Hermione, to stay at since Grenobles did not do boarding. All the students went home in the evenings and weekends, more like the muggle schools he had grown up with.

When he was done, Harry went outside to find Auror Morgan talking with an attractive woman in a dress and light jacket. In her hands was a folder. "Herr Potter, this is Frau Fetsch from the Department of Law."

Harry moved to shake her hand. "Good morning, Frau Fetsch. I was told you would be by later today."

She took his hand in a weak handshake. "Good morning, Herr Potter. I was trying to get an early start on all the paperwork that needs to be completed. Do you have anywhere we can talk in private."

"The chalet the consulate has given me is open," Harry offered.

Not long later he sat at the table in the small kitchen. Auror Morgan was standing at the doorway as the woman made a few piles of paperwork. Harry still loved magic. There was far more paper and parchment work than the thin folder could have held otherwise.

"To start with the easy stuff, this pile is your accepted petition for asylum and a residence permit for the canton of Uri. If you want to move to a different canton, then you will have to be responsible to register yourself and it will reset the requirements for applying for full citizenship without a petition from your new canton," the woman said.

Harry took the pile. "How long do I need to wait to apply for citizenship if I stay?"

"You can get a C permit after five years, and then apply for full citizenship," Frau Fetsch told him.

Harry looked through the documents. That was one thing Hermione had told him. He should always look at any form. She had also told him he should get a solicitor. It was something Mrs Granger had told him as well, but he didn't know where to get one yet. After making sure the information was correct as far as he could tell, he signed the documents.

"Do you have anything about my godfather?" Harry queried.

"We have assigned him a lawyer, an Herr Erouche from the public defenders. If you want to find a different attorney, you are welcome too." She searched through a pile of parchments. "Here is his information. I assume he will reach out to you soon."

Harry nodded, taking the paper.

"Next, I have your application to Grenobles. They have been unable to get a copy of your transcripts from Hogwarts. If you are amenable, the headmaster would like to schedule a series of exams and evaluations next week to determine your class level," Frau Fetsch told him.

Harry snorted. "Figures," he commented darkly.

"Excuse me?"

"Sorry, Frau Fetsch. I was afraid this might happen. If I can have the schedule, I'll do whatever is needed," Harry replied.

She nodded and handed him a few sheafs. "This is the schedule and what you are expected to be tested on."

Harry took them and gave a cursory glance. Given the way he had to learn the last few years, he didn't see any spells that caused him concern. He was worried about Runes and Artithmancy, considering he had never taken the courses before.

Looking at the schedule, he was determined to do well. Hermione would be joining him in the week after next and if he could show her high marks on the tests, he was sure she would be proud of him.

"Is there anything else, Frau Fetsch?"

"That is most of what I had. I would like to meet again next week to see how you are doing," she answered.

Harry nodded. "Thank you. I need to find a bookstore to revise for this."

She gave a smile. "Auror Morgan can help you find what you need."

-oOo-

August 13, 1995

London, England

"Dolores, get Creswell in here right now!" Fudge ordered. This thing with the goblins and gnomes had gone far enough and the last two days had been as bad of a headline as the one last week about the Boy-Who-Lived being missing and assumed dead by rogue dementors. He was being persecuted by the press, not to mention the daily protests in the lobby. He was desperately trying to hold onto his tenure as Minister of Magic but was finding it hard with three major debacles in the last two months.

The pink clad woman had bags under her eyes, having put in as many hours as he had in the last few weeks. "Cornelius, I really don't think we should cave to these demands. We need to find out whose gold the gnomes stole."

Fudge moved to the window. He was spinning his bowler hat in his hands. Below he could already see the gathering protestors. Dozens were holding signs as they congregated around the Statue of Brethren. The goblin on the statue was regarding the wizard in the way a creature should. It was not threatening rebellion.

"Damn it, Dolores. The people want to know what is happening. Creswell is the Goblin Laison and handles all these little blighters. Get him in here and get me Scrimgeour. I want those people out of the atrium," Fudge demanded. With a reproachful look from the woman for being used as a gopher, she left his office. Cornelius turned to look out at the atrium again, his bowler hat turning faster in his hands.

Nothing had gone right since that night of the last task of the Triwizard Tournament. The boy had won the tournament after claiming there had been an unplanned addition to the task. Dumbledore was claiming Lord Thingy had come back, but Potter wasn't saying. Worse was the scene found in a graveyard in Little Hangleton by the Department of Underage Magical Use. When a team had reported there after the sensors had detected a lot of magic by some unknown underage person, they had found a blood bath. Six dead purebloods, three others that were injured enough that two of them were still in St Mungo's, and a cracked stone cauldron that had the Unspeakables all excited. Croaker was putting in more requests for funds daily and he didn't have the power to stop whatever they were doing.

Looking for a scapegoat, he had worked with the Daily Prophet to leak that Potter had been the one responsible for the massacre and Dumbledore was a senile old man. There was no way Lord Thingy was back!

Bones had been ordered not to say anything and shut down her investigation. She had fought him. The argument had ended with her handing in her resignation. Scrimgeour was much more pliable and had issued the report that the people had been massacred, but it was unknown by whom. He had demanded for Scrimgeour to name Potter, but they said they couldn't identify magical signatures. Something about budget cuts in the past. He blew off the comment to have him focus on who killed his allies. He needed the citizens to believe it had been Potter. But instead of focusing on that, most of the public were focusing on the death of Diggory and Krum inside the maze.

Given that every underaged witch or wizard was at Hogwarts, except for Harry Potter that night, there could be no other that could have ambushed and killed those fine, upstanding citizens. He disregarded the education board reports that only about forty percent of underage wizards attended the school. He also disregarded the reports that Hogwarts had severely fallen behind many ICW standards, which was why most parents either home-schooled or sent their children out of country. Dumbledore and his pureblood backers… uhm, allies… said it was the best school, so it had to be.

With all this unwelcome news, he needed to cast the blame elsewhere, but Potter was now out of the running with him missing and his family kissed by creatures the ministry was supposed to have command over.

He was brought out of his fuming by shouting outside his door. He heard Dolores yelling and rolled his eyes. What was the woman doing this time?

Looking down, he was thankful the windows of his office blocked out sound as it looked like the protestors had started to chant something. The noise outside his office grew. When he heard a muffled explosion, he dove for his desk. It was probably a good thing he did as only a few seconds later the door to his office was thrown off its hinges. It spun through the room, made a cracking noise as it hit his solid old English oak desk then smashed through the magically reinforced windows. The chanting stopped as people screamed.

"Don't kill her!" someone shouted from the receiving area.

"I am the undersecretary…" Dolores's scream was cut off. The receiving area grew quiet as the disturbance in the atrium was in full swing. A second later someone shouted, "Clear!"

"Clear!" a few more responded.

He moved to peer over his desk. Dolores was slumped against the door frame to his office. There was blood on her left arm. Three Aurors were approaching the clearly stunned woman with wands drawn. One of them cast another stunner as another started to summon her wand and other items off her.

Shakily he stood up. "What is the meaning of this?"

"Minister, stay down. We are unsure if the danger is over," one of the Aurors told him.

He bristled. This was beyond the pale. "I am Cornelius Fudge, Minister of Magic. I demand you tell me what is going on."

"Dolores Umbridge is under arrest for suspicion of murder and attempted murder."

"What… she isn't… you can't… Where is Scrimgeour!" he ordered.

The grizzled man came into view. "Morning Minister. I'll have this door and your window repaired in a few."

"Scrimgeour, what is going on! Dolores didn't do anything," he told the man.

"Get her out of here," Scrimgeour said as he stepped into the office. Ropes were now binding her. One of the Aurors levitated her.

"What is going on," he demanded once more.

Scrimgeour sat in one of the chairs before his desk. "I am making an arrest in the Potter case, like you directed me too."

Cornelius's mouth moved a few times. "But Dolores! I'll just have to pardon her for whatever she did."

Scrimgeour leaned forward in his seat. "I wouldn't recommend that."

"What do you mean?" Cornelius had lost some of his key allies and couldn't afford to lose more.

"I am trying to fend off an insurrection in the Auror office. Six aurors have handed in their resignation since you sacked Amelia last week and twenty more are threatening it. If I don't deliver some real justice, you will not have an Auror force left in a week," Scrimgeour told him.

Cornelius scoffed. "It's only twenty Aurors. Just increase the recruiting."

The look Scrimgeour gave him had Cornelius fidgeting with his hat. "Minister, do you know how many Aurors are left after the cuts to the department over the last decade?"

"Hundreds. Why bother me with these details? Release Dolores. We can't have any more controversy right now," Cornelius ordered.

There was a pregnant pause before Scrimgeour stood up. "If you order me to do this, Minister, I will hand in my resignation as well. For your information, in nineteen-eighty-one, when You-Know-Who was defeated, we had two-hundred and fourteen Aurors. In nineteen-eighty-four, when you implemented the first cuts, we had two-hundred and fifty-six as we were building up to our full levels of three-hundred and fifty. As of today, there are forty-six Aurors with only three in the training program. You figure out what will happen if you lose half your force."

Cornelius mouth opened and closed like a fish for a moment. "Surely not. You must mean there are two-hundred and forty-six."

Scrimgeour shook his head. "Forty-six. I had fifty-two before Bones walked out. Due to recent laws and budgetary restraints, I can only bring the force up to fifty. Good day, minister. I have a case to prepare."

Cornelius swallowed. "At least get rid of the people in the atrium!" he yelled after Scrimgeour. A chant had started again about hanging him.

"Can't. I have half my force in Diagon trying to keep the goblins from rebelling," Scrimgeour yelled back. "Hello, Creswell."

A middle-aged man looked into the office. "What happened here?"

Cornelius scowled. "What is it, Creswell?"

"Another missive from the goblins. They are demanding to meet with you," the man replied.

"Not right now. You deal with it," Cornelius ordered.

"I recommend you meet with them, minister. It has something to do with the gnomes. They are also getting rather testy with the wizards demanding they take back all the eviction notices that were sent out yesterday," Creswell said.

Cornelius looked at him stupidly. "What eviction notices?"

"Didn't you read the report I gave your secretary last night?"

"Dolores handles all that."

Creswell sighed. "That explains why the goblins are so upset then. Minister, you need to meet with the goblins. Fifteen businesses in Diagon Alley, including the Daily Prophet and Flourish and Blotts received notices of eviction effective the end of this month. More than two dozen apartments are also affected. Hogsmeade has almost as many eviction notices. People are upset and I think Undersecretary Dolores told the goblins to stop bothering people and get back to business or the ministry would step in to stop them."

He couldn't stop the groan that escaped his lips. "Merlin. She didn't?"

Creswell put a folder on his desk. "The letter given to me today was just short of a declaration of war."

"But… but… how? Who?"

"I'm not sure, but I think it had something to do with the gnomes," Creswell told him. "My counterpart in Gringotts says the goblins are calling it an inquisition and witch hunt with how the gnomes are digging through things."

Cornelius's really bad summer and day just became much worse.

-oOo-

The same day…

Hogwarts, Scotland

Ten days. It had been ten days since Harry disappeared. Once again Albus was trying to get the blood tracker to work, but it would just keep spinning. That was all it ever did now. Spin. At one time the arrow would point in the direction of the boy, but now it wouldn't.

Frustrated, he swept his hand across his desk, sending the blood tracker and other instruments flying to the floor. He violently pushed himself away from his desk, sending his chair falling backwards and crashing to the floor before he started to pace his office.

"Where in Merlin's name has that boy gotten to?" he asked his silent office.

Typically, Fawkes would be trilling his soothing song to keep him from getting this upset, but the bird had gone through a burning several days ago and was still too young to do much. He was also happy he had silenced the paintings. The last thing he needed was another jab from Phineas Black about losing his pawn. Harry wasn't a pawn. He was the boy that would defeat Tom. Albus was doing all he could to guide the boy in the direction he needed to go.

When the gargoyle over the door announced, "Minerva McGonagall," Albus stopped and took a breath. He quickly righted his chair and moved to the window. It was better for him to appear in control. He didn't need his staff more agitated than they already were.

When the door opened, Minerva immediately said, "Albus, its Grenobles again."

He closed his eyes to keep his temper in. "What does the headmaster want this time?"

"It's not directly from them. Grizelda has forwarded a complaint to her about not receiving several transcripts and other requested information," she told him.

"I have made it very clear that Harry Potter will not be attending," Albus said, unable to keep some of his irritation out of his voice.

"If we don't find the boy then he won't be attending Hogwarts either," she snapped at him. Minerva had been quite vocal in her anger at him and Mundungus for allowing all this to happen.

"We are doing everything we can to locate Harry, Minerva. Every available Order member is out there," he replied.

"Potter should never have been left with Muggles to begin with, Albus. They had no way to protect him from something like this," she retorted.

He took in a long breath and let it out. "The wards that I established around his relatives house should have kept any dark creature or Death Eater from approaching the house. I don't understand why the wards didn't work."

"And the rumours that there was evidence of abuse in the house?" she questioned.

He sighed. He knew that Harry was having a hard life. It was a sacrifice that was needed to be made to keep him alive. He had just assumed that it was a hard love. "I do not believe Petunia would have been abusive to her nephew. You yourself said she spoiled her own child."

"Her own child yes. Nymphadora said they found a blood-stained mattress in the ground floor closet, multiple locks on the door to his room and a cat flap. That does not sound like spoiling," she angrily remarked.

He let out a sigh. Not for the first time Albus was speculating that Harry had run. "Has anyone been able to find miss Granger yet?"

"As far as we know she and her parents are still on vacation. We don't know where they went. She didn't tell Mister Weasley," she said.

"Very good. If you would leave me to continue my own search for Harry," he said.

"Albus, you have to respond to Grenobles. I can't send another mail refusing the information they are asking for," she replied.

"Very well. I will contact the headmaster," he replied.

"We need to find Potter. I can't stand to lose another Gryffindor this year," she remarked.

He was about to blow her off, but something about her tone caught his attention. "What do you mean another Gryffindor?"

"I have told you many times, Miss Granger applied to Grenobles. I received her official withdrawal from Hogwarts last week when students were to return their acceptance for the fall term," she said, sounding exasperated.

He blinked at her a few times. He had been so concerned with finding Harry, and not believing that he would actually leave England, that he had not put it together. "It is Harry's records that Grenobles is requesting, correct?"

"Yes, but I sent them Granger's and Longbottom's transcripts as well. I have had to send out twenty-three students' information to other schools this summer. I gave you the list of the eight that have already withdrawn."

"Yes. I believe you did," he said distractedly. If Granger had withdrawn and she was going elsewhere, what would the odds be that Harry would follow her. "Did Miss Granger apply to any other schools?"

"I do not know. Only Grenobles has reached out to me, but she did request a copy of her own. It is possible she copied it and sent it elsewhere," she replied.

"And did any other schools request Harry's transcripts?" he asked.

Her lips pursed. "No."

"Did you give him a copy?"

"No. You wouldn't sign off on the request," she said. "Albus, you aren't thinking that Potter found a way to get to Grenobles?"

He had a pensive look. "I am unsure, but it could be possible. I will contact the headmaster right away."

Minerva looked ready to leave this time but was caught off guard as a silvery lynx burst into the office. A deep man's voice echoed out from the Patronus. "Assistance needed immediately in Diagon Alley. A fight between goblins and wizards at Gringotts."

Minerva paled.

Albus felt a chill go through him. "Call up the Order. I will be in Diagon Alley."

"Albus, if there is bloodshed…"

"I know, Minerva. Get the Order. Meet at Headquarters. I will call if I need assistance, otherwise I will come as soon as I can," he ordered. He wanted to call out to Fawkes, but the small, still featherless chick just stared at him. He didn't remember it taking this long before for Fawkes to grow back.

-oOo-

Next time on Witch. Wizard. Gnome!: When the landslide comes rolling down…