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"Very well, Madam," Griphook said, inspecting the wand before handing it back to Veratia. "We'll set off now—"
Veratia took the wand and, without a word, cast the Imperius Curse on Griphook.
Griphook paused, casting a puzzled glance at Veratia.
Veratia said nothing, only nodding.
Understanding her signal, Griphook, as he turned to leave, discreetly kicked a hidden red button.
The moment they boarded the cart, a piercing alarm blared through the Gringotts lobby.
Harry, oblivious to this, only noticed the whooshing sound of wind rushing past as the cart sped forward.
Griphook seemed to hesitate several times, clearly wanting to speak but holding back. Why had Veratia ordered him to trigger the alarm? Did someone actually want to get caught?
Merlin's beard, this was… baffling.
They pressed on, soon arriving at a waterfall.
"This is the Thief's Downfall," Griphook explained to the pair. "The water is enchanted to dispel all spells and concealments, even washing away Polyjuice Potion and the effects of the Imperius Curse. No intruder can sneak into the vaults—and that includes both of you."
As they passed through the cascading water, they reverted to their true forms: Veratia and Harry.
"How much farther?" Harry asked.
"We're almost there," Griphook replied.
No sooner had he spoken than they rounded a corner, arriving at the deepest part of the vaults.
This was likely among Gringotts' most secure vaults, for here, chained in the darkness, was an enormous dragon.
Confined underground for too long, the dragon's scales had turned pale and loose. Its eyes were a murky pink, its hind legs shackled with heavy chains anchored to massive stakes driven deep into the stone floor.
Its spiked wings, folded tightly against its body, would have filled the entire chamber if spread. The dragon turned its grotesque head toward them, letting out a roar that made the stones tremble.
"Its eyes are weak," Griphook said, breathless. "But that makes it even more savage. Still, we have ways to control it…"
Before Griphook could finish, the dragon opened its jaws and unleashed a torrent of fire.
Harry raised his hand, and a powerful jet of water burst from his wand's tip, not only repelling the flames but dousing the dragon's face.
The force of the water was immense, jerking the dragon's head back sharply.
"Stupefy!"
A thick, scarlet spell shot from Harry's wand, striking the dragon's head.
With a muffled groan, the beast collapsed to the ground with a thud.
"Perhaps we have a simpler method, don't we?" Harry said, stowing his wand.
Griphook shuddered. A wizard capable of stunning an adult dragon with a single Stunning Spell…
That was downright terrifying!
As everyone knew, most magical creatures had high resistance to spells, and a dragon's spell resistance was among the highest in the world.
To knock out a dragon so effortlessly with a Stunning Spell spoke to a level of magical power almost unimaginable.
Griphook pulled something from his pocket, slipped it onto his hand, and placed it against the vault door.
The door rumbled open, vanishing to reveal a cavernous chamber.
Inside, from floor to ceiling, were piles of gold coins, golden goblets, silver armor, pelts of strange creatures with spines or drooping wings, potions in jeweled vials, and a skull still wearing a crown.
"What are you looking for?" Griphook asked, pulling out an inventory list. "I can tell you what's inside… but be careful…"
Before he could finish, Harry reached for the crowned skull.
Suddenly, the skull multiplied, producing over twenty identical copies that swarmed around Harry.
At the same time, the skulls grew scorching hot, nearly burning him.
Thankfully, Harry released it quickly. The skulls clattered to the ground, continuing to multiply.
"They're enchanted with the Gemino Curse and the Flagrante Curse," Griphook added. "Anything you touch will burn and multiply, but the copies are worthless. If you keep touching the treasures, you'll eventually be crushed by the gold!"
"Could we use a spell to dispel these enchantments?" Harry asked, glancing at Griphook.
"Perhaps, but I wouldn't know how," Griphook admitted honestly.
Harry nodded, drawing Rodolphus's wand and thrusting it into the ground.
"Finite!"
A brilliant golden light erupted in the vault, followed by coils of black smoke rising from the treasures.
The black smoke coalesced into a ferocious dragon, lunging toward Harry.
But the golden light transformed into a radiant unicorn, lowering its head and charging at the smoky dragon with fearless gallops.
The dragon stood no chance. The golden unicorn pierced it with its horn, riddling it with transparent holes until it let out a silent wail and dissolved into a wisp of black smoke, vanishing within the vault.
"I never imagined such a solution," Griphook remarked, awestruck. "The Gemino and Flagrante Curses are typically used to protect high-value vaults like this one."
"So why doesn't my vault have this protection?" Veratia asked, her eyes narrowing at Griphook.
"Because you haven't paid the five-hundred-Galleon annual fee, Miss Grindelwald," Griphook replied, unfazed.
Veratia fell silent.
No way around it—her frugal Viennese roots ran deep. She couldn't bear to waste a single Knut.
Five hundred Galleons a year? That was worse than a Cruciatus Curse!
What? You say my vault has over two million Galleons, so I can afford it?
No! Every Galleon counts! Every single one! Those were hard-earned savings, not to be squandered!
"We need to find a portrait and a ring," Harry said to Griphook. "You know, the portrait of Ominis Gaunt."
Griphook glanced at the list and shook his head regretfully. "I'm sorry, Mr. Potter, but there's no portrait of Mr. Gaunt here, nor any ring. The list doesn't mention them."
Harry looked up at the towering piles of treasure.
To his surprise, at the very top gleamed the Sword of Gryffindor.
"Is that the Sword of Gryffindor?" Harry asked, pointing.
Griphook hesitated before nodding. "It seems so. At least, that's what the inventory says."
"That's not right," Harry said, turning to Veratia. "I remember pulling the Sword of Gryffindor from the Sorting Hat during my Sorting. Why would there be another one here?"
"Obviously, this one's a fake," Veratia replied. "If the real sword could be drawn from the Sorting Hat, then this one can't possibly be genuine."
"Oh, and one more thing," Griphook added. "There's another relic from a Hogwarts founder here… Hufflepuff's Cup, according to the list."
"Hufflepuff's Cup?" Both Harry and Veratia perked up with interest.
A relic from a Hogwarts founder? How could they not be intrigued?
Hufflepuff's Cup, crafted by Helga Hufflepuff herself, had two finely wrought golden handles and intricate engravings symbolizing her house. It possessed unique and powerful magic.
It had once been used in Hogwarts' early days to assist house-elves in transporting magical food, stored in Hufflepuff House until Helga Hufflepuff's passing.
"Let me check," Griphook said, scanning the list. After a thorough search, he retrieved a golden cup from the pile.
"Wait! Put it down!" Veratia shouted urgently. "It's cursed with Dark Magic!"
Griphook, startled, set the cup down, glancing between it and Veratia in confusion.
"Oh, I forgot to mention, Miss Grindelwald," Griphook said with a smile. "This glove I'm wearing protects against Dark Magic curses. It's an alchemical creation of Gringotts goblins. After all, we serve Dark Wizards too, and everyone knows what they hide in their vaults. Our ancestors crafted these gloves to shield us from accidental curses."
"I see," Harry said, nodding in understanding.
He turned back to the cup, then glanced at Veratia.
"It's cursed with Dark Magic?" he asked.
"It certainly looks that way, Harry," Veratia said, frowning at the cup. "There's something deeply malevolent about it…"
A sudden spark of intuition hit Harry, his instincts kicking in.
"Could it be one of Voldemort's Horcruxes?" he ventured.
"It's very possible," Veratia nodded gravely.
"Then I'll store it in my pouch for now," Harry said. "It's Hufflepuff's Cup, after all. It'd be a shame to destroy it with Fiendfyre…"
"You're right," Veratia agreed. "It's a founder's relic. But what about the Basilisk in your pouch? What if the Horcrux influences it?"
"Oh, good point," Harry said, realizing the risk.
"Put it in here instead," Veratia said, producing a small bag and carefully placing the cup inside.
After securing it, she added, "Let's keep looking. I have a feeling there might be more of Voldemort's Horcruxes here. This seems too easy."
They cross-referenced Griphook's list, casting Revelio to search the vault, but found no other Horcruxes.
"A cunning rabbit always has at least three burrows, Veratia," Harry said after their fruitless search. "In my opinion, Voldemort's the craftiest rabbit of all. He'd never put all his eggs in one basket. Maybe Marvolo Gaunt's ring is hidden somewhere else."
"Agreed," Veratia said, nodding. "Since there are no other Horcruxes here, let's head back to Hogwarts. Do you have any Polyjuice Potion left?"
"A bit," Harry replied, puzzled. "But we're leaving. Why would we need it?"
"Oh," Veratia said, running a hand through her hair. "We've got to keep up appearances, don't we? Play the part to the end."
With that, she nudged Harry out of the Lestrange vault.
Griphook opened his mouth to speak several times but, catching Veratia's sharp gaze, swallowed his words.
They didn't need to pass through the Thief's Downfall on the way out. In the cart, Harry and Veratia drank the remaining Polyjuice Potion, transforming back into the Lestranges.
They reached the Gringotts lobby, only to find the atmosphere tense and wrong.
"What's going on?" Harry asked, stepping out of the cart.
Before anyone could answer, Griphook bolted.
Veratia stepped down, chuckling. "To keep up the act, I had Griphook trigger the alarm. If I'm not mistaken, the place is crawling with Aurors by now."
As if on cue, a voice boomed from outside.
"You fugitives inside! You're surrounded! I advise you to lower your wands and surrender immediately!"
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