"Welcome to Gringotts, Mr. Potter, Mr. Rossi," Ragnok greeted Harry and Dave.
The Rossi name was simply one that Dave had taken for this generation, as it was much better than his original surname, which was hard to pronounce and also so unusual people often looked at him strangely when he told them what it was. It was simply easier to take a more common surname every few decades. It was one of the major reasons that Dave and his partner had agreed to leave Sosanna with the Evanses, because their surname was perfectly common and wouldn't be questioned while if she had gone to Hogwarts under her original surname the headmaster would have been bound to question her about it, whether or not it was any of his business. Dumbledore would've at least strongly suspected that his daughter was not human if he had heard her original surname.
Dave was sure Dumbledore knew by this point that Lily had not been human or at least suspected if he had questioned Petunia when Harry had disappeared and therefore, her son wouldn't be either, but they'd have to wait and see if he was correct. The first move was the headmaster's. So long as he left Dave's grandson alone then he wouldn't have to teach the old man a lesson and that lesson would not be pleasant, though he certainly intended to lecture him about responsibly.
"Thank you, sir," Harry said politely, bowing slightly. "I am pleased to meet you."
"Please, be seated, we have much to discuss," Ragnok offered, pleased that such a young lad was offering him such respect without being condensing. No, it was quite sincere. This was one of the very few wizards that had manners and treated goblins politely. If all magicals did the same, then things would be much better between the goblin nation and the wizarding world, not so tense.
Both Dave and Harry did as Ragnok commanded and sat down in the two chairs in front of his massive desk
"My grandfather has informed me that you are willing to ally with me," Harry began, sitting back looking casually relaxed, even if on the inside he was very nervous. Harry looked completely human at the moment, as he had transformed as soon as he and his grandfather had arrived by portal. Dave also no longer looked like an elven princeling with the pointed ears and slanted eyes, the color a vivid silver. Now his ears were round like those of a normal humans and his eyes were a dark brown to match his black hair, which had mysteriously become shorter to where it stopped above the nape of his neck.
"Your grandfather was correct, Mr. Potter," Ragnok said.
"If you would call me Harry I would appreciate it, sir," Harry said. "I'm not one for formality unless it is absolutely necessary and if we are going to be allies and I prefer to be addressed by my first name."
"Very well," Ragnok said pleased that Harry was allowing him to show familiarity.
Most lords here in Britain would never have allowed a goblin to address them so familiarly and would have been insulted if a goblin or anybody below them in rank had done so, even the leader of the goblin nation. "The goblins know that you will be the one to defeat the evil one and that you will need help to do so. This is why we are willing to provide you with any training you require and we'll also fight alongside you when the time comes if necessary. We're hoping that Voldemort can be defeated without it going to open warfare, but know that is not likely."
"What do you expect in return?" Harry asked, although his grandfather had already said that all they wanted was somebody who was popular enough to try to change the British wizarding worlds opinion of the goblin nation.
Harry had been told, that the goblins were treated with more respect in other countries and it was only in England that the magical population was so disdainful and distrustful of them, but then, the British population was so inbred or at least the purebloods were it was no wonder.
"As we told Mr. Rossi we expect you to try to give our profile a more positive outlook than it is currently. This tension between the goblin nation and the British wizarding world is not only very bad for business, I fear there will be more goblin rebellions if things don't improve. That there hasn't been a rebellion for centuries does not mean that there can't and likely will be one in the future, perhaps the very near future. Both of our people are stubborn and hate doesn't just run in humans as a lot of goblins hate magicals just as much and would love to kill them by the hundreds, even thousands if they could get the support they need. I'm hoping to change both peoples opinions of each other so that tension will at least die down considerably. I'm sure that neither one of us wants hundreds of people to die if that happens to be a goblin rebellion sometime during the war if there is one."
"I think it's more likely to happen after the war, as the wizarding world is rebuilding and let down their guard thinking that the war is over. I'm certainly hoping that we can prevent an all out war, but I also know there are no guarantees," Dave said. "I'd just rather finish Voldemort off before he becomes corporeal, because according to my information he's nothing more than a wraith right now."
"Can I ask what you got this information?" Ragnok asked intrigued.
"There is a pool in the otherworld that shows what is needed," Harry explained looking at Dave who nodded slightly giving him permission. "It can show the past, the future or even the present. Granddad and I saw how Voldemort came to be and the lengths he went to to render himself basically immortal."
"However, one of the problems it has, that while it is always incredibly accurate, it doesn't always work like you hope it will. Your need must be really great in order for it to show you what you need to know and still there are certain things it cannot show," Dave said
"So did it show you how to defeat him if he manages to come back from being a wraith?" Ragnok asked.
"No, because the future is very changeable," Dave said. "It only gave us clues as to how to defeat Voldemort with a minimum of bloodshed, but the future changes with every action we take so we're going to have to be very careful."
"So it's useful, but does not necessarily give you a solution to our current problem," Ragnok said.
"Unfortunately accurate," Harry said soberly, something a ten year old should never be.
"I don't think we need to be too concerned for a few more years," Dave said thoughtfully. "I don't think that there's going to be a possibility of war at least until Harry's a few years older. 15 or 16 was the impression I got. Harry is already powerful considering he has both his father's and mother's magic, which are completely different from each other. He just needs time to learn everything he can in order to defeat Voldemort who has many more decades of experience then he does. He also needs time to grow into his power."
Ragnok nodded at this in respect, as he agreed that there was no use panicking when Voldemort wouldn't return for at least five years and they might be lucky and have a little longer to prepare.
"So if I may ask how did Voldemort render himself immortal?"
"He created these objects when he placed pieces of his soul, although the pool wasn't too clear on that," Harry said.
"He created Horcruxes?" Ragnok asked horrified.
"If that is what they are called in this world, as the sídhe call them something very different," Dave said. "Harry's right, that the pool wasn't very clear. I suspect that is because they are very Dark Magic. Sometimes the pool has trouble showing things that involve such evil, either because there are strong protections on the objects that are at least partially blocking it or because the pool wants us to figure it out ourselves. The pool is nearly sentient and has been part of my territory for a long as I've been there. Still, we got the gist of it and from what we can tell there are four. There were actually five, because one of them resided in Harry and I had it removed as soon as I knew about it."
"Which is what made us go to the pool in the first place as granddad recognized the Horcrux for what it was, when he sensed the Dark Magic that resided within my scar that was supposedly where the Killing Curse struck," Harry said.
"I don't like to depend on it, because it's not always reliable, but sometimes it does help immensely and we needed to know if there were other Horcruxes and if possible where they were located," Dave explained.
"If I may," requested Ragnok, as he stared intensely at Harry scar and Harry nodded slightly giving permission.
Ragnok did some kind of complicated gesture in seemed pleased with what he found. "Yes, there was very Dark Magic in your scar, but it's gone now and only residue remains. Whatever procedure you used to remove the Horcrux removed all of it, except for that. Dark Magic tends to linger on the person that has been attacked by it, even once the curse is removed."
"The Dark Magic will fade over time, as the Horcrux was just removed a few months ago and I'm sad to say that I didn't notice before then. Believe me, I will be having words with Albus Dumbledore, as he's the one that either never noticed or didn't care to have it removed because he had plans for my grandson. I tend to think it's the latter, because from everything I know about him he's too wise to miss something so obvious, especially since the Killing Curse isn't supposed to leave a mark on it's victim," said Dave.
"The magicals probably don't have a way to remove it without killing the person in question," Ragnok suggested.
"Probably," Dave agreed with contempt in his tone, "and of course, from what I've heard of Dumbledore, he is so sure of his own power and knowledge that if he doesn't know of a way to remove something from a person then it supposedly can't be done, so I'm sure he didn't bother to check with the goblins or any of the other species. I'm sure he intended for Harry to die at some point, probably while facing Voldemort."
"That sounds like Dumbledore," Ragnok snorted. It was clear that Ragnok had no respect for the ancient and supposedly wise headmaster, but then actions often spoke for themselves and none of them in the room were impressed with Albus Dumbledore.
"I see we share the same opinion," Dave smiled slightly.
"We do indeed," Ragnok agreed.
"I think Dumbledore is so impressed with his own importance that he refuses to delegate some of his responsibilities, so of course, he misses the obvious solution a lot of times because he has too much on his plate," Dave said. "He has three different positions all of which are supposedly full-time yet he thought he had the time to be Harry's guardian as well."
"I take it you disagreed with that," Ragnok suggested with an evil expression.
"If you had seen what shape Harry was in when I finally located him, then you would have agreed that Dumbledore was not living up to his responsibilities when it came to my grandson. He was wearing clothes that were much too big for him from his overgrown cousin who was already looking like a pumpkin," Dave gestured, putting both his hands on either side of his belly and making a big circle. "I hate to think what he's going to look like once he's grown, if he's already so much overweight at this point. Harry was also severely malnourished and I have no doubt that he never would have reached his full height if I hadn't found him when I did because malnutrition at such a young age has very detrimental effects on the body and the brain. Now, while magic might protect you from some of the effects of malnutrition it can't protect you from everything. His organs at least would've been considerably weakened, though luckily, that kind of thing is correctible with the correct potions. Still, malnutrition can have a serious effect on the mental processes as well because the child is not getting enough food to be able to develop the brain properly. It's really a good thing that Harry is half sídh as well, because he survived in much better shape than if he had been completely human, even a magical human."
"My aunt just gives Dudley anything he wants and doesn't deny him a damn thing," Harry added. "He was already becoming quite spoiled when granddad finally found me and I have no doubt that he's even more spoiled now. She doesn't seem to understand that she's doing her son a great deal of harm and at some point probably when he's still young he'll have a heart attack or stroke due to being so obese."
Now, most ten year olds wouldn't have understood that being so overweight was not a good thing, but he had been educated in many things while he had lived with his granddad and grandmother who spoiled him, but not so much that he became as spoiled as Dudley who liked to bully the other children of the neighborhood. No, unlike Dudley, Harry appreciated everything that was done for him whether that was his grandmother baking cookies or his granddad just taking the time to teach him things, but then considering he was no longer abused in anyway and was showed that he was loved it was no wonder that Harry appreciated his new circumstances.
"I've come to understand that some people just aren't fit to be parents and the Dursleys definitely fall into that category," Harry said his expression serious and sober. "I have no idea if I would have survived very much longer under their supposed care and even if I had I have no doubt that I would've had a hard time seeing my own self worth, because by that time in my life I likely would've been so beaten down that I would have believed everything I was told, which might've been Dumbledore's intention in the first place, for all I know. I have no doubt that I would've been so grateful to get out from under the Dursleys care for most of the year when it was time to go to Hogwarts that I likely would have been way too accommodating instead of thinking for myself."
"He also would've been socially inapt at the very least," Dave added. "Children can be very cruel to someone that doesn't fit in. His social skills would've been very poor if he had remained under the Dursleys guardianship, because it was clear just from the time I spent talking to him that they didn't care about Harry at all and he was just an unwanted burden. I shudder to think what he would've been like by the time he was able to get out from under them for most of the year."
"Well, the sídhe are known for rescuing unwanted children," Ragnok suggested, "whether or not they are related."
"That's true," Dave agreed. "I've been thinking about rescuing Dudley, because no matter what is believed most children are not born bad. Dudley needs proper discipline and soon or it won't be surprising if he ends up behind bars later in life."
"Dudley's not the brightest, but he could be reasonably intelligent and have a good career if he applied himself to his studies," Harry said. "If we can get him out from under the thumb of his parents then he might be smarter than I believe him to be. He's been spoiled from the minute he was born and it's no wonder he thinks that he can get away with anything and that his parents will always be able to get him out of trouble," Harry said
"Eventually though, he's going to do something that his parents aren't going be able payoff whoever it was that Dudley beat up or put in the hospital, because in a lot of ways the Muggle world is very similar to the magical one and there are powerful people out there that could make sure Dudley pays for his crime. Someone in a powerful position, as Dudley could beat up the wrong type of person."
"Someone's son, daughter nephew or niece, someone who has a lot of money or power," Ragnok suggested.
"That's exactly what I'm saying," Dave agreed, gravely. "It is obvious that his parents aren't teaching him right from wrong and he likely doesn't realize that he can get himself in trouble by beating up someone that his parents won't be able to threaten into silence or payoff. If Dudley's lucky it will happen before he reaches 18 so that he'll end up in juvenile detention, unless of course they try him as an adult at 16 or 17, which is possible depending on the nature of the crime and influence of the people involved."
"Juvenile detention from what I know is bad, but prison would be much worse, as Dudley might believe he's tough, but there is always someone tougher and meaner in prison and he could find himself severely injured or worse. Dudley may learn something if he did end up in juvie hall as it's called. A lot of would be criminals straighten up and never commit another crime, but then, a lot also do not," Harry said. "I don't really know Dudley well enough to predict which way he would go."
"Unlike with Azkaban criminals are allowed out into the prison yard to interact with each other and they also have things like auto shop and other classes to teach would be criminals basic skills for when they are released. Personally, I think this is the more humane way of keeping prisoners, then never releasing them from their cells like they do at Azkaban," Dave said.
"Every society is different," Ragnok said and Dave nodded. "We deal with our criminals quite harshly depending on the offence."
"I'm aware of this," Dave agreed with a respectful nod. "But I don't think the wizarding world is aware at how detrimental keeping the prisoners in their cells all the time really is. It's not only detrimental mentally, but physically as well. The human body needs exercise at regular intervals and also to see things besides four walls.
"The prisoners the ones that are released would be in much better shape if the British magical government would adopt this policy, but then, I know that they're stuck at least a couple hundred years in the past. I've always felt that the Dementors should be eradicated, because I have no doubt that they'll go over the Voldemort's side if given the opportunity and really, they don't do the prisoners mental processes any good."
"So what are you going to do to the Dursleys for their abuse?" Ragnok asked, knowing sídhe could be very vengeful, but then so could goblins, so he understood the mindset very well.
"I have plans," Dave said with a devious smirk. "Even Harry understands my need to get back at the Dursleys for the way he was treated. I only put it off until now because he was more important and I didn't want Dumbledore to try to reverse what I did, as you know he is bound to have paid the Dursleys a visit right after I took Harry back to Tír na nÓg with me.
"I know goblins are aware that our kind has a soft spot for children and those that are abused in some way are often stolen away from those that won't take care of them properly. Alright, technically, Dudley isn't being abused in a way that the authorities would recognize, but he's headed for a life of crime if his behavior isn't corrected soon and to me that is abuse. I know that many of the sídhe would agree with me on that, because we know how being spoiled too much can affect someone."
"It gives an exaggerated sense of their own importance which often gets them into trouble," said Ragnok, as he was well aware of how even the Muggle world worked.
"His parents aren't important or rich enough to always get him out of trouble and even if they were that would just reinforce the lesson that he has a right to take whatever he wants, which would eventually land him in prison or worse," Dave said. "I'm hoping that the spoiling his parents have been doing can be corrected, though since he is 10 like Harry, it's possible that he's to set in his ways to change without really wanting to. I wish I had taken him at the same time, but that just wasn't possible, as it was more important to get Harry out of Dumbledore's clutches and also away from where he was being abused."
"Especially since he's been being spoiled since the day he was born," Harry said.
"Well, you can only try," Ragnok said.
"Us sídhe have ways," Dave said mysteriously. "He'll be punished appropriately for anything he does wrong, but we'll never go overboard, as that would only reinforce his bad behavior and make him feel vindicated."
"So about these Horcruxes," Ragnok said getting the conversation back on track, though he would certainly be interested in learning how things went with Dudley Dursley.
"They appear to be items from the founders of Hogwarts, as we did get that much," Harry said. "We're going to have to do some research though, because none of the items was very clear, which is one of the reasons I've agreed to go to Hogwarts as I've heard they have one of the largest libraries in existence."
"There's probably also a library at Potter Manor but Harry doesn't have access to that right now," Dave added. "I'm guessing that he'll have access to it once he is 17, though I'll have to see the will before I know for sure."
"There should be a copy here at Gringotts," Ragnok said. "It is common practice for pureblood families to not only file a copy with the Ministry of Magic, but also here at Gringotts in case something happens to the original. It might even be in the Potter vault."
"It might be," Harry agreed gravely.
"As for these items of the founders we'll keep you informed," Harry promised. "There is bound to be some record of the items that the founders owned."
"You might ask the portrait of Godric Gryffindor," Ragnok suggested.
"You have a portrait of one of the founders?" Harry asked in astonishment.
"Godric was a known friend of the goblin nation as was Rowena Ravenclaw and Helga Hufflepuff," Ragnok explained. "Basically, all of them, except for Salazar Slytherin who was always standoffish. Godric though, was closer than the other two and my ancestors were so impressed with his sense of honor that they forged him a magnificent blade known as the Sword of Gryffindor. Goblins value honor above nearly everything, except perhaps for integrity."
"So he left a magical portrait with the goblin nation, so that you could ask him for advice," Dave suggested.
"We do consult him from time to time," Ragnok said. "I'm sure he will be happy to speak with you, but I'll check first. Actually, it's very possible that you Harry are some kind of descendent because Godric Gryffindor looks very similar to yourself, though of course, it's not exact. I thought the same thing of James Potter the one time I met him and also his father Charlus. You could very well be the many times great-grandson of the founders of Hogwarts."
"Or it could just be a coincidence," Dave said.
"It could be," Ragnok agreed. "Still, the one way to know for sure is to do a blood test. It's always been believed that the Gryffindor line died out hundreds of years ago, but it's quite possible that they were simply subsumed into another family line."
"It would be really neat to be related to one of the four founders," Harry said his green eyes sparking with excitement.
"Don't get excited, as it might be just coincidence that you look like Godric," Dave warned his grandson. "I don't want you to get your hopes up only for it them to be false."
Harry nodded obediently, but still couldn't help the excitement is sparkling in his eyes.
Ragnok thought the boy was handling the idea of possibly being related to one of the four founders of Hogwarts very well considering he was not even a teenager. He was showing much maturity, so Ragnok had a feeling that he was going enjoy working with Harry as well as his grandfather. The sídhe were rarely seen outside Tír na nÓg at least in their true forms and Ragnok was proud to say that it was usually the goblins that saw them, even if that was in disguise.
"Tell me how do you feel about confronting Dumbledore," Dave asked suddenly changing the subject.
"Why?" Ragnok asked with a fierce grin telling both men in his office that he would take great pleasure in getting one over on the headmaster.
"Well, we suspect that some people saw us entering Gringotts and might have recognized me," Harry explained with a rather malicious grin. "From all the research we've done and from the information granddad has collected on his trips back here a lot of people would report my reappearance to the headmaster. If that is the case, I'm sure he'll be waiting either in the lobby or possibly just outside the entrance in the alley."
"We suspect that he'll try and regain control of my grandson," Dave explained. "The headmaster is used to being able to control any situation. He might or might not suspect that I'm not human, but we think he probably does if he questioned Petunia like we're nearly positive he did when Harry disappeared from Little Whinging."
"Well, Gringotts is considered sovereign soil, so if he starts an incident inside our doors then we can ban him from our bank entirely and that's only if he doesn't lose his head by trying to kidnap Harry or injure anyone within the bank. He won't want that, as we are the only wizarding bank in the wizarding world, so I suspect he'll probably wait for you outside our doors. If that happens there's not much we can do, without causing a serious incident. However, it he just wants to talk then I can offer you a meeting room here inside Gringotts, as he won't dare try anything as that would make him lose his life. Dumbledore is not stupid, just arrogant, one of the many things I dislike about him."
"From what I heard he thinks his opinion is the only one that matters and he really doesn't listen to anyone else," Dave said. "I've never met the man, though I suspect I'm going to very shortly and my opinion might change, but somehow I doubt it."
"I think I'll stick around to see if Dumbledore is stupid enough to be waiting in the lobby," said Ragnok his glee at the thought of that, barely contained. Normally, he wouldn't have showed his emotions so openly, but he knew he could trust this David Rossi who was an elven princeling and he suspected that the Potters would become friends of the goblin nation for many generations.
"Hopefully, you will get your wish, my friend," Dave said companionably. "We have to go back to the lobby to get a cart to visit Harry's trust vault anyway, so we shall soon see whether or not the headmaster is waiting for us. If he is, he cannot kidnap Harry in Gringotts because the goblins would have his head before he could get more than a few steps. If all he wants to do is talk then we'll accept your generous offer of a meeting room for as long as we need it."
"We can control to a certain extent what happens in the bank, but outside these walls we have no control so you need to be on your guard," Ragnok warned.
"I know this is not my first battle," Dave said and his eyes suddenly turned to a glistening silver for a few seconds before returning to their current brown shade. "I have been in more battles than you can imagine. If Dumbledore tries anything, well, at the least, he's going to get his dignity stomped on and at worst he's going to end up with serious injuries. I won't kill him, because he's not evil, at least I don't believe so. I think that he's just very misguided and full of his own arrogance, pride, self-importance and hubris."
Ragnok grinned at Dave's words and it was not a nice expression on the goblin's face. The expression told the other two that he was looking forward to said confrontation. "I now really hope he is waiting in the lobby so that I can watch."
"You might still get your wish, my friend, even if he isn't waiting in the lobby," Dave suggested.
"I really hope so," Ragnok grinned again before his expression returned to normal. "It would bring great honor to me if I got one over on the headmaster, because even he doesn't treat us with respect that any sentient being deserves and Dumbledore should know better."
Harry said nothing simply followed the two older men out of the office, not really looking forward to the possibility of the coming confrontation, but he would not back down and be anybody's tool, which was likely what Dumbledore wanted.
~~~Dave and Harry~~~
