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À Tout le Monde (Set Me Free)	By : SpeedyTomato Category: Harry Potter > Threesomes/Moresomes Views: 74217 -:- Recommendations : 5 -:- Currently Reading : 10
Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter and make no money off this work of fanfiction.

Chapter List
- 30
- 31
- 32
Beta'd by the most wonderful, amazing and stupendous Tenchi. Woman, you are the best and love you for all you do for me!

With help from Lynn who works with me when it comes to flow, continuity and other issues.

Chapter 31

Rufus stood off to the side with the head goblin, watching several other goblins sort through the lists of contents from Bella’s vaults to determine where the cup might be located. Though he had a drawing of the cup, it wasn’t the best, so this might take time.

“How complicated will this end up, do you know?” Rufus asked Clamperteeth. He assumed it would end up involved, unfortunately. The bank hadn’t opened yet, so he hoped they could finish before they let in the customers. That way no one would suspect anything or know about him being there.

“It will depend,” the goblin told him honestly. “Mostly it had to do with where it is. The vaults still aren’t completely sorted, so we have to find the original one it was in then trace it from there. Once we have a bead on the item, its a simple task to get our hands on it. A quick summons will have it for you after that.”

Then he explained further, “Lord Black wants us to streamline his vaults. If we already found it through the sorting, it’ll be in his vault that contains items, not money. There is only one of those, so it’ll end up easy to find in there.”

“Good,” Rufus nodded. Then he added, “No one touch it. The item is extremely dangerous.”

“We won’t,” the goblin assured him, thankful for the warning. They didn’t know anything about the item, so one would probably have picked it up.

It pleased Rufus they seemed as though they were taking the warning seriously. Then he pressed on to another important matter. “Are all of you prepared for the hell we’re sure is coming? The loss of funds probably has the bank right in You-Know-Who’s sights.”

“We’re as ready as we can get,” Clamperteeth assured him in a determined tone. “We’ve put everything in place we can and implemented new procedures to protect ourselves the best we can.”

“If you need help with anything, get in contact with me,” Rufus told him as he kept an eye on what the other goblins were doing.

“We will,” Clamperteeth nodded, pleased the Minister took this seriously.

The goblin almost pressed on when Griphook came over. “Have you located the item?”

“We have, we think,” Griphook told him, looking determined. “It’s still in her original vault from what we can tell.”

“Let’s go then,” Clamperteeth said, motioning for Rufus to follow. This operation needed tended to quickly. While it was well known they would help the Ministry with the proper paperwork and within the laws of the land, he didn’t want it out there they were in this matter because of who it involved. Like most, he knew He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named had Gringotts in his sights anyway. Add in Bella? No, he didn’t want it out there and for it to make them a bigger target than they already were. Utmost secrecy and being circumspect—they needed to stay that way with these operations.

With a tired sigh, Rufus took a seat in the room down in the Department of Mysteries he had last met Albus in. As expected, Albus waited for him, sipping heavily sweetened tea. Rather than wait, he launched right in. “I have the cup,” he started. Before Albus could ask, he explained, “It’s in the custody of the DMLE. Some Unspeakables I trust implicitly are helping with detection spells. They also have the remains of the other Horcruxes to compare it to. However, from what I felt roiling off that—thing, I’m certain that’s what it is as well.”

“Good,” Albus told him, pleased. He then relaxed back with a tired groan and asked, “Anything else I need to know?”

“Yes,” Rufus told him, opening a file folder he brought down with him. Flipping through the papers in it, he found the one he needed then picked it up. After leaning back with a tired groan, he said, “I talked with the head of the Board after I finished with the cup. While I didn’t give up how I found out, I passed along the threat to Hogwarts. Starting tomorrow night, the DMLE will go in and layer on plenty. They are also taking on fortifying around the castle, beyond where the wards start. They’ll contact you today or tomorrow about what you can come up with to help. Toss in what you can when they give you the list of what we’ve done.”

“I will,” Albus assured him honestly with a nod. “Were they able to give you a blueprint of sorts of the castle?”

“They’ll messenger it over later today,” Rufus assured him. “It’s a self-updating map with charms on it. While he doesn’t know if it covers all the rooms, it does almost all of them. We’ll take a gander at it to see if there is a room or space we don’t know about, aside from the Chamber of Secrets, then go from there.” Then he asked, “Anything on your end?”

“I talked with the head elf and gave him the basic description of the diadem. He said they’ll start hunting. There was a room mentioned, something about a come and go room. I don’t know what he means by that name, so I’ll let them see what they can find,” Albus explained. “I met with most of the ghosts last night and they don’t have any information. The Grey Lady wasn’t around, so I’ll talk to her tonight to see what she might know.”

“Any help will give me a hand, Albus,” Rufus told him honestly. “I have too much to do to take on all this alone.”

“This I know well,” Albus assured him with a placating motion. “I’ll do all I can to help.” Then he explained, “I have a letter off to Harry to see what he can remember of the Chamber and how to open it. If there is anything down there he can remember and how he opened it, we might manage. Either we can or I can send some elves down to investigate for us.”

“Might be safer for an elf, honestly,” Rufus told him with a tired sigh. “I know the basilisk is gone, but we don’t know if there is another down there or what else might lurk around in the place.”

“Let me see what Harry says before we plan,” Albus nodded. “If he says there’s nothing, I’ll have a couple of elves pop down to double-check then we can press on from there.”

“I met with the head of the Magical Creature department,” Rufus told him, changing to the next topic as he didn’t see anything else which needed added to the other part. “They will start on a plan to capture Nagini. I’ve not told them what we suspect she is, but gave them your findings on how to destroy a Horcrux, telling them to use the venom to destroy her. I’ve been assured they’ll start hunting her or find a way to capture the snake if she’s around. Something. Give them time. Even if they capture her, they’ll ensure they can house her in some way if needed. Either way, we’ll have her.”

“Just so she’s out of the equation,” Albus nodded. “I might have a way if it comes down to it.” Then he explained about the sword and how it ended up infused with basilisk venom. “It might work, though I’m unsure.”

“Tonight, late, I’ll come with Kingsley and Tonks to pick it up from you so we can test it,” Rufus told him, making a note of it. “I’ll ensure its returned to the school after the war ends.”

“If it does work, and you may want to test it on the cup, this is a way you can tend to the others. I’m certain you can find daggers, swords, something, and infuse it with the venom. It’s far safer than using the venom itself.”

“Something I’ll turn over to Unspeakables,” Rufus agreed, planning to do so.

“I had something mentioned to me which might help all of us, Rufus,” Albus then told him, settling back after popping a lemon sherbert in his mouth. “It’ll just take some influence from you and possibly leaning on someone to get them moving how you want.”

“What do you have in mind?” Rufus inquired, highly curious. Oh, he had no problem leaning on anyone to get what he wanted, but needed to know what Albus meant then dissect what agenda he might have with it.

“We need a paper to report the truth in a way the Prophet isn’t,” Albus groaned, shaking his head sadly. “They are helping nothing and most who read it aren’t taking so much seriously because of their reporting. The suggestion mentioned to me involves having another paper step up and report this the right way, laying it all out there so the masses know how serious the situation is. Doing so can only help all of us.”

Rufus thought over the suggestion seriously, pondering it hard before giving a slow nod. “I agree. We just don’t have another daily, Albus. And I don’t know who I could persuade to start a newspaper. It would take not only time, but a lot of money to kick it off. We don’t have the time it would take.”

“Very true,” Albus conceded with a slow nod. “However, we have plenty of weekly papers which could easily convert to a daily. The Quibbler is out, of course, as it’s nothing more than a straight up tabloid, despite how it helped a couple of years ago. Witch Weekly is out as well. They don’t have the sort of staff we need. The Soothsayer, though, is perfect. They have the sort of staff we could use. While they generally lean towards the business end of the spectrum, they do other stories. It wouldn’t take much to have them shift to this area.”

“Not a bad idea,” Rufus admitted as he thought it over. He knew the owner and thought he could persuade the man to change over if he laid it out right. “It’s just the capital to shift them.”

“The Ministry is well-known for giving not only tax breaks, but low-interest loans to established businesses to expand. It wouldn’t look odd for you to sign one for them. There are plenty of areas you can encourage them with, Rufus.” Then he lowered his voice and added, “We need the help, Rufus. Until the public faces this head on, we have bigger problems coming.”

“Oh yes,” Rufus agreed, mind honing in on how he could manage this part without overstepping legal lines. While he’d manage, it’d just take a delicate dance.

With a shake of his head, Rufus changed tracks and began to fill Albus in on plans for planting Aurors in the park by Grimmauld Place. Since the Order was in and out, the man needed made aware they were there. It wasn’t a big deal, but he planned a full on assault on any Death Eaters he could get his hands on.

Albus listened intently, nodding as he did, taking it all in. Then he gave suggestions. Since Rufus had listened to so many of his hints, he would give plenty more. It could only help all of them as the war pressed on.

Though doing far better, what they were asking him had Harry stressed. These questions weren’t as easy to answer as others because it involved discussing other areas. With a shaky sigh, Harry’s head dropped forward and he tried to focus, breathing deeply to hold off the rising panic. A shaking sigh slipping out when Sirius asked if he was fine, Harry nodded then told him, tone slightly strangled, “Give me a minute, please.”

“Take all the time you need,” Sirius told him, arm slipping around Harry’s shoulders, giving him a reassuring squeeze. You could easily see this was harder than most things for Harry, so he wouldn’t push. Best to let Harry deal with it his way. He would just keep what he was dealing with under control while they waited.

Remus made sure to put the parchment and quill aside then slid up to sit by Harry, slipping an arm around him. “What’s the issue? Can you tell us? If you put it out there, we might be able to help alleviate it.”

“It’s—hard,” Harry grumbled, eyes shut as he took deep breaths. “And I can feel that Sirius is upset.” Upset wasn’t the right word, exactly, but it was as close as he could get to what he felt through the bond. “It’s harder describing something like this because of the pull.”

“I’m not upset, Harry,” Sirius assured him. “And what I’m feeling isn’t being upset.”

“What are you feeling?” Remus asked, hoping if Sirius laid it out that Harry would calm down.

“Just something like Harry, I think; frustrated with so much,” Sirius explained, giving Harry a slight squeeze. “It’s with the situation, not directed at anyone. The pull from the bond is hard to deal with, what’s behind it.” Now understanding what Remus intended, he added, softening his voice, “It’s not directed at you, Harry, just the situation. The bond pulls at us in different ways and leads to frustration. Don’t let it bother you more than you have to.” He didn’t realize Harry could feel what he was dealing with this much. Him feeling it didn’t help anything.

“I’m trying,” Harry told him, feeling better hearing it wasn’t directed at him though he realistically knew it. With a sigh, he leaned more heavily against Sirius, trying to get himself together so he could press on. Not being able to get out what they both wanted wouldn’t help what he was dealing with either as it was something Sirius wanted him to do.

“How about if we start slowly,” Remus suggested. “We’ll ask questions and have you start describing what you saw in chronological order from the bathroom down.”

“Might work,” Harry agreed with a slow nod after thinking it over.

“Let’s start with the bathroom then,” Sirius told him, picking up at the most logical place to kick this off. “Include all the details you can.”

With another nod, Harry then began to describe where the entrance was and how he gained admittance.

Remus took notes of what Harry said, planning to condense it for the letter to Albus. He hoped that by the time they finished, Harry would grow more comfortable and it would end up easier for him. When they finished, while he composed the letter to Albus, he would have Sirius spend time alone with Harry to work on the issue.

“We’re improving, Harry,” Sirius told him with a pleased grin. Ensconced in the bedroom alone for a while to not only relax, but have him talk to Harry for a time to assure him about some areas.

With a smile, Harry nodded, holding on to Sirius, head resting on his shoulder. “It’s growing easier,” he admitted.

“Easier is good,” Sirius agreed with a grin. “For both of us,” he added, rubbing Harry’s back softly. “I’m having problems just like you are. What you felt earlier is part of mine.”

“What I felt—it’s hard to deal with,” Harry admitted softly, shaking his head.

“I know,” Sirius grumbled, leaning his head against Harry’s. “I don’t want it to, but, can’t help it.” Then he lowered and softened his voice, adding, “It’s not you, Harry. I swear. It’s the bond pulling at me like it is you, just the opposite way. There’s nothing I can do to stop you from feeling it, though I wish I could.”

“I understand,” Harry told him with a bare nod. “All too well,” he then added sourly, pulling a face.

“Figured you did,” Sirius sighed. “It’s not you and I don’t want you thinking it is. Might be hard because of your role in the bond, but it’s not you. And I sure as hell am not letting it get the better of me. You have my promise there, Harry. We’ll manage, though it won’t end up easy. Just means we have to find a way to deal with the frustration.”

“That’s not easy either,” Harry admitted softly.

“No, it’s not,” Sirius agreed. “For either of us,” he added. “We’ll manage, don’t worry. Will just take work, nothing more.”

“It’s so hard,” Harry sighed, clinging a bit tighter to Sirius. While not stressed out like he was earlier or with other discussions, it still wasn’t easy to talk about such matters.

“On all of us,” Sirius assured him, giving Harry a reassuring squeeze. “We just have it the worst because of the bond. It even affects Remus. Thankfully not as badly as we are. Since he’s not, he’s able to see matters clearer, something we need. It’s given us plenty of help. Not to mention he has common sense and the ability to come up with an approach that helps. If he didn’t, we’d have plenty more problems than we do.”

“True,” Harry chuckled softly and unevenly. “He’s helped plenty.”

“More than either of us realize,” Sirius agreed. Then he chuckled and told Harry, “Since we moved, we have to start all over with the porn hunt. We know he has them and hadn’t found the main stash in Grimmauld Place. This one—all new places to hide them, so we have to get on it before we end up blindsided by him pulling out something strange on us.”

Harry grinned, shoulders starting to shake then chuckled. “We do,” he said snorting softly. “We ended up distracted in the hunt, so need to get back on it.”

“We do!” Sirius grinned. “Not sure where to start either since we’re just getting used to the house, which means there are plenty of new hiding places I bet he used. And that means we have our work cut out for us discovering them.”

Harry actually laughed at that and nodded. “It’s something we might need to start when he’s busy tending to whatever.”

“We’ll plan for it,” Sirius snorted, grin growing. “Give us something to keep ourselves occupied while he’s doing whatever. With as sneaky as he is, we need stay careful or he’ll end up distracting us.”

“Exactly,” Harry agreed, pressing tighter to Sirius, eyes going shut. He was a tad tired from so much and felt better, so he wanted to take a nap.

Though he noticed Harry was tired, Sirius pressed on, joking more about what they would do. Knowing Harry the way he did, he assumed he would fall asleep soon. Once Harry did, he would move them to the bed. With the stress Harry and he were dealing with, falling asleep like this would help both of them. Just so it did, he didn’t care and would go with it.

Remus closed the door quietly after glancing at the two on the bed, careful not to wake Harry. Coming over to the bed, he slipped his robes off then slipped into the bed, curling up to Harry’s backside. “Both of you doing better?” He asked Sirius, who glanced at him.

“Yeah,” Sirius nodded. “We talked for a time and he relaxed. Did me as well.”

“Might work in the future with some of this,” Remus told him, pleased it helped.

“Going to do so as it can’t hurt,” Sirius assured him. “That and going back to some of what we used to, like joking around. The more we push back to what was normal, the more it might help. It’s something I’m doing as well.”

“Indeed,” Remus smiled, pleased that part would return since he missed it a great deal, more than he thought he would.

“We’ll manage,” Sirius said. It was also for himself as well, to calm what he was dealing with.

“Just don’t push too much,” Remus schooled. “That or try to move too fast with it. Doing so might cause a backlash with one of you. Just lead in a little at a time.”

“Something I’ll remember,” Sirius told him, planning to do so. “We’ll manage.”

“We will,” Remus agreed. “Might have some faltering, but we’ll achieve it in the end.”

“Sooner than later, hopefully,” Sirius sighed, eyes sliding shut. He, too, was tired, wanting to sleep.

“It’s far better than what it was, Sirius. Keep that in mind,” Remus said, curling up tighter to Harry, slipping an arm over to where he could touch Sirius as well.

“Will agree there as well,” Sirius admitted, not opening his eyes. “It’s made it easier on all of us, thankfully.”

“Sleep,” Remus told him, lifting up, leaning over Harry then giving Sirius a kiss. “We’ll work more on the whole problem later.”

“Sleep is good,” Sirius sighed, smiling at the kiss. Then, with a sigh, he let himself relax, planning to sleep for some time.

With a smile, Remus watched Sirius drift away, waiting for him to start breathing deeply. When Sirius had, he kissed Harry softly then shut his own eyes. While he had plenty to do, he was content to stay with the two of them until they woke. Sighing softly, he smiled more. Yes, this was good, for all of them.
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À Tout le Monde (Set Me Free)