Getting into Gringotts wasn't an easy feat…
At least, that was Harry's opinion after a month of testing and experimenting with the bank's defences.
The goblins were notorious for their cruelty and apathy towards humans, especially. That, paired with their talent in creating impenetrable wards, made breaking into the magical bank a challenge many would consider impossible.
Harry had even caught a whiff of something about dragons.
Thankfully, nothing was perfect, and if anyone could find flaws in the goblins' defences, it was Harry.
Day and night, Harry stood outside the bank under his invisibility cloak, sometimes on his broomstick, and meticulously concentrated his evolved senses on different parts of the wards.
The results were enlightening.
Harry found a few weak spots spread throughout the outer wards of the bank that could be exploited to enter the building unnoticed, with the most significant being above the huge chandelier in the main hall.
However, he wasn't going to be taking advantage of them—he had found an even simpler way to get in.
There wasn't much point in scouting just the outer defences of the bank, and then successfully entering unexplored territory. That's why Harry and his dogfather started visiting the bank every other day with the excuse of going to the Black vault.
During these excursions with Sirius, they walked as slowly as possible so Harry could scan and check as much of the wards as possible. This had the hilarious effect, according to Sirius, of angering their current goblin guide, who would pester them to walk faster. Of course, they never complied, and after their second time, every goblin knew about the slow walk whenever the Black heir came to the bank.
Harry was pretty sure that if they kept it up, the goblins would have captured Sirius and may just have offered him to the Ministry.
They weren't dumb enough to anger the goblins for no reason, though.
During their first visit to the vault, Harry gave their goblin guide a hundred galleons and asked him about the Lestrange vault. The confounded creature happily told them that the other family's possessions were situated just a few vaults behind.
In their visits, the duo would go inside the Black vault, and Harry would sit and meditate while using his sensory abilities to explore the wards and tunnels that spread around them.
He had managed to map a good portion of that part of the underground network, including the location of the Lestrange vault.
Each meditation session allowed him to delve deeper, and upon extensive research on wards and curse-breaking, Harry and Sirius created a portkey that would bypass all of the bank's wards and deliver them to the Black vault.
Fleur helped them when asked, but was otherwise preoccupied with her own things. The fact that those things appeared after their little argument didn't go unnoticed.
Overall, they found a mostly safe way to get into Gringotts unnoticed, and Harry was confident that their plan would work. All that was left was to decide when they would make their move.
During the month, he didn't forget to appear at Hogwarts every now and then, keeping an eye on Voldemort.
The Dark Lord was oddly silent and definitely planning something.
Harry didn't know whether he kept contact with the Death Eaters, but he steadily passed laws against muggleborns in Dumbledore's stead.
The Light faction was absolutely flabbergasted, and many of its members questioned the esteemed headmaster's sanity. However, Voldemort managed to convince them with carefully crafted speeches and, most likely, magic.
Of course, the Dark were thrilled and didn't even pause to vote, while the Grey were simply bewildered.
Harry knew he needed to act soon, before Voldemort's damage became too bad to reverse.
"Damnation," he cursed and focused on the task at hand. Now wasn't the time to dwell on politics.
Harry was currently just a block away from Gringotts, standing at a deserted alleyway with Sirius and Fleur.
He was wearing the Black family's creepy ring again, and with Sirius' help, he transformed into what Bellatrix Lestrange née Black looked like in Azkaban.
Sirius was standing next to him in his usual robes, while Fleur had stayed under a concealment charm to avoid being recognised.
Harry, or Bellatrix, stood tall and exuded a predatory presence. She looked like she was ready to pounce on anything that dared to draw her ire. Despite that, she was gaunt and hollow-cheeked. Her long, thick black hair was let wild but not dishevelled, and she wore dark and elegant robes.
If he were somehow spotted, the disguise could prove invaluable.
Harry just hoped he wouldn't somehow manage to bump into Neville. Knowing his luck, there was always a possibility of that happening…
'Merlin, that would be awkward.'
They had gone over the plan multiple times—get in, find the cup, store it, and get out without being detected.
"Ready?" Sirius asked.
Though not visibly tense, his voice betrayed his inner turmoil.
Harry nodded, feeling an all-too-familiar weight settle in his stomach.
Curse him and the situations he found himself in. Why did the world hate him so much?
"Okay. Let's do this," he said and grabbed a key that was hanging on his neck. Bellatrix didn't wear clothes with pockets…
"See you in ten," Sirius said.
Harry shared a glance with his godfather and nodded.
He also looked at where Fleur was supposed to be and said, "I love you."
Not waiting for a reply, Harry said the portkey's password and felt a tug on his navel.
"Toujours Pur."
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Chapter 131: It's Finally Over