Chương 38: Chapter - 38 : Lines in the Sand part - 3
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(P).(A).(T).(R).(E).(O).(N)
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The twins sheepishly approached their eldest brother and head of house, having never seen McGonagall so angry before - not even at them. "Sorry Harry, Ron's always had a wicked temper. We'll bring Bill up to speed on what the problem is here."
Neville headed off with them to the Gryffindor table while the Ravenclaw trio sat at their normal spots. It was a smirking Rodger who once more dispelled any lingering awkwardness. "I'll say this for you Harry, things are never dull when you're around."
There was real sincerity in Harry's voice as he answered. "Roger, you have no idea how much I'm wishing for a couple of dull months. You know the kind of thing, no one firing curses at you, no trolls needing slain and my name not plastered all over the papers. Is that really too much to ask?"
The older Ravenclaw was now laughing at that. "For you Harry, probably."
Cho was still getting teased by her friends over her first attempt to talk to Harry. There was something she really needed to know though so risked it again. "Harry, do you think your tutor will be teaching any of the other year groups?"
Harry thought for a moment before replying. "I doubt it Cho, Gringotts curse-breakers are some of the most highly trained and specialised workers they have. The bank will certainly have tasks for him the rest of the week. For Mr Weasley to even gain entry to that program makes him pretty special, I can't believe my father managed to get a curse-breaker as a defence tutor."
Cho couldn't hide her disappointment. "I can't believe he's a Weasley, none of the rest of them look like that."
One of the seventh year girls soon put Cho straight. "His younger brother Charlie was Gryffindor Quiditch Captain. A brilliant seeker and the hottest thing I've ever seen sitting on a broom." Her flushed cheeks left no one in any doubt exactly what she meant by hot.
With a comedic sense of timing that had half the Ravenclaw table doing spit-takes, Padma couldn't resist commenting. "I wonder if Ronald was dropped on his head as a baby?"
As everyone was laughing, Hermione had a thought. "I wonder if the prat will be so quick to use that foul curse again after experiencing it first hand?"
Padma agreed but also thought this was a golden opportunity to tease her friend some more. "I couldn't help noticing you looked pretty pleased to see our new defence tutor too?"
"Oh absolutely Padma. Did you see the way the rest of the witches in here reacted? If they're all drooling over Professor Weasley, perhaps they'll leave Harry alone."
Hermione's answer may have somewhat shocked Padma but it brought the first genuine smile to Harry's face since the Prophet had been delivered this morning.
-oOoOo-
The same issue of the wizarding newspaper was lying on Ragnok's desk, both goblins present having already read it.
"Well Barchoke, the game is now afoot. We will soon discover if your son is as profitable an option as we hoped."
"I have every confidence in him director, he will do us proud."
"He'll need to, otherwise Gringotts could soon find itself embroiled in a war."
"With respect Director, we both know without my son's intervention that outcome is inevitable. Should the dark one return, the ministry would soon fall to him. His gaze would then turn in our direction, and our kin have fought wars rather than bow to better wizards than that self-proclaimed lord, Voldemort. A war against we goblins would be used to cement his hold on the magical community, they wouldn't dare oppose him with a 'goblin rebellion' then in progress."
"I am well aware of this Barchoke, it was my main reason for accepting your plan for the prophesied child. Unlike you, I can't afford to show any sentiment on Crow's behalf. Despite his tender age, he is a goblin warrior on a mission and we have to remember that. Goblins are barred by treaty from directly interfering in the affairs of wizards. If the ministry should take the view that we have broken that treaty, then there could be a war."
Barchoke attempted to sound more confident than he was. "That outcome would require the ministry acknowledging Harry Potter is now a goblin, something they will never do."
"They are far more likely to attempt to wrestle control of your son away from you, are you certain that all the loopholes in that scenario are covered?"
"Yes director. If things start proceeding in that direction, Harry has the power to close that avenue of attack off permanently. That will be an unfortunate occurrence but not the disaster the ministry gaining control of him would be. We've effectively shut Dumbledore out but then the old wizard's actions were easy to predict."
"That is exactly my point Barchoke. It's very difficult to predict what that idiot Fudge will do because it depends on who has the minister's ear at the time."
This was what had the father so worried. "We hope to take away the minister's biggest influence next, and release the fox amongst the chickens to add more confusion. It sounded good when we planned it, sitting here while everything is out-with my control is not easy."
Ragnok could see the apprehension in the senior accounts manager, torment about the child he had raised as his own. "You can be proud of your son Barchoke, we both know he will do his best. Curse-breaker Wesley's presence is also a welcome boost. There is genuine animosity there between the Weasleys and one of the main antagonists. He should be another asset on site for us."
Barchoke knew all this and agreed with everything the director said, he also knew that both of them were left hoping that Harry's best was good enough. He was after all only eleven.
-oOoOo-
Albus was finding it hard to believe that an eleven year old wizard was causing him so much trouble. He currently had the Minister of Magic, the head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement and Lucius Malfoy, a member of the Hogwarts board of governors, asking questions that he really had no answers for. Well, no answers that they wanted to hear.
The minister demanded to know when Hogwarts began accepting goblins as students.
"I was denying the boy access to Hogwarts as Harry Crow but the castle over-ruled me, making him a Hogwarts champion before passing over the sword of Gryffindor."
Cornelius was not impressed with that answer. "I find it hard to believe that a stone building could possibly do something like that..."
The sorting hat was on its usual shelf in the Hogwarts Headmaster's office. It wouldn't normally speak between sorting ceremonies but was quick to spring to the defence of the Hogwarts Champion. "...and I find it hard to believe the boy who used to wet himself every time one of his professors asked him a question ended up Minister of Magic. Tell me young Cornelius, have you recovered from your little problem?"
The hat's intervention brought every one up sharply, though Amelia Bones had a few follow-up questions for Dumbledore. "Would the Sword of Gryffindor be the goblin blade in question that brought down a troll? While we're on the subject, where did this incident take place?" Her niece Susan had written home with some fanciful story that Amelia had dismissed as the infamous Hogwarts rumour mill working overtime.
Cornelius was not renowned as a patient wizard and had recovered from the hat's jibe. His patience was especially stretched due to being bombarded with owls demanding answers, answers the Minister of Magic fully intended to get here today. "Enough of this Dumbledore, I'm a busy man. Let's get the lad up here and see what he's got to say for himself."
Albus was loath to admit he couldn't do something, particularly inside Hogwarts. He didn't have any other options though but to speak the truth. "I'm sorry Cornelius, I can't do that. For Harry to be in this office, his father must be present too. This is goblin law and there's nothing we can do about it."
"So, the rumours are true. Albus Dumbledore is barred from Gringotts and persona non grata amongst the goblins?" Lucius couldn't quite hide his delight at the humbling of the headmaster.
The minister though hadn't traveled to Hogwarts only to be denied by a technicality. "Can I assume that you can be in a classroom with the boy, with present company of course?"
Again Albus didn't have any other answers or alternatives so they all ended trooping off down to the defence classroom.
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