6

Chapter 6 - Interest

Harry wasn't sure what he thought he was doing. Flirting with Narcissa Black? "I would like to be yours," he muttered disparagingly to himself as he walked down Diagon Alley.

Ron would had an aneurysm he had been here.

Harry sighed, pulling his thoughts back together. He was glad that Dumbledore had given him an advance, probably more than was his monthly salary, but enough for him to buy a set of robes for himself and payback his debt with interest.

It wasn't as if there was no way to make money in the muggle world, with magic all things were possible. But the raids on the muggle world were a daily feature in the Prophet and he wouldn't risk being one of them with his luck. As unsafe as the wizarding world could, as faulty as the Hogwarts defenses were, the truth was this was their world.

And nowhere was truly safe.

Harry entered the bank, and was pleased to see the halls crowded. A goblin directed him to a seat and told him snidely, "Debt payers have to wait."

Harry smiled cordially, "Of course, I understand."

He took his seat, pulling out a book and began to read about Odysseus. He read part of Homer's poem for twenty minutes, letting the goblins get in their sneers and snickers.

But they were busy and the novelty of making a wizard wait on them lost their interest soon enough.

Carefully, Harry began to weave his spell. He spoke the Latin softly, imbuing the book he had found in a free pile outside a muggle book store.

He felt the click of the illusion take hold, and when he moved his hands, they appeared to still be holding up the book. He stood, an invisible ripple in the air, he looked down at his seat where his likeness sat reading.

He grinned, and put the spelled book down on the bench. He took a minute to stretch. One of the benefits of being an insomniac was having more time to do mundane things.

Like exercise.

This would be so much more fun than the first time.

Harry slipped through the crowd and waited to get onto a cart with single small witch and a goblin. He didn't get into the cart, rather hung on to the back of it.

This particular illusion should hold because he hadn't enchanted himself, he had enchanted the book. Even if the waterfall stole his invisibility, the moving image of him reading (set to a fifteen minute loop) would still remain.

The cart built speed, racing down the tracks, and Harry was not surprised to find his memory of the way to the Lestrange Vault sharp.

It had been three years, but who would forget the first day they used the Imperius Curse?

He jumped as the cart turned from the direction he needed to go. At such a high speed, his legs jolted him on impact and he lost his footing. He hugged the track, and hurried climbed back on to it, ignoring the stinging on his hands, he began running along one of the rails. Running, oddly, was easier than trying to walk it like a balance beam. As long as he kept his momentum going, he wouldn't fall, or that's what he told himself.

There was a dramatic uphill and he used a spell that was purely inspired by muggle superheroes.

Pointing his wand at the crest of the track thirty yards away, he said, "Filumo."

The tip of his Holy Wand shot out a steel wire that could hold thousands of pounds -his experimentation paying off. Taking a firm grip, he jumped, casting, "Indicium!" and the wire pulled him across the drop.

Harry laughed as the wind brushed his face.

He had missed this.

"Filumo," he cast again as a cart came tumbling toward him. He ducked under the track. His arm stretching as his body hung above the abyss. He was invisible but for the line of wire around one track that occupants of the cart paid no mind to.

Harry looked through his own body to the abyss below him. He wasn't the least bit daunted as he listened for anyone else coming over the sound of the water rushing downward.

Was this recklessly dangerous? Absolutely. But he didn't feel he was in any danger. He knew a million and two ways to break his fall if it came to that.

As he spun slightly he had another idea. He had originally planned to use a combination of a shield charm and aquamanta, but this… this might work better.

"Finite, Filimo!"

One thing movies don't really abide by is how fast gravity works, Harry had already plumited several feet by the time his wire caught just before the spray of the waterfall.

Like Tarzan, one of Teddy's favorite animated films, he swung through the waterfall. Harry thought the movie was a bit violent, but the music was good and Teddy seemed to appreciate that Tarzan had lost his parents just like they had.

Thief's Downfall worked just as it was supposed to, and it was lucky Harry had enough kinetic energy to not just make it through the fall but carry him a ways to the other side.

Unfortunately they also took the enchantment of his glasses, so it was through droplets of water he recast his wire charm, that thankfully caught the otherside of the tracks.

He was visible now, but it was dark and there was no one to see him.

Using his free hand he recast the charms on his glasses so he could see clearly, and took stock of his barings. He was still soaking wet and he wondered…

He used a drying spell with his hand, and his invisibility snapped back. Merlin, that arcic book of charms he had found and updated had been worth every hour.

He saw the hole to the old vaults he needed to get to.

And swung himself over to the wall, abandoning the tracks all together.

This worked out in his favor as he made his way around the rocky clefts deeper into the earth. He ended up being above the dragon.

"Lumous," he said softly, casting the dimmest of lights.

The poor thing lay curled in on itself, it's white scales gleaming by the faint light Harry was casting.

"Dragon," he hissed. Harry had learned that his Parseltongue skills came from Voldemort's Horcrux, but having grown up with garter snakes while pulling weeds, he knew the language well enough.

The dragon looked up werilly, as if it were waking from a dream rather than alerted to an intruder.

"Hello?" it hissed back, though it did not at all sound like a snake.

"Hello," Harry greeted, "I'm here to get you out."

It looked up toward him, it's opaque eyes looking monstrous in the dark, "Speaker or Serpent? I cannot see you."

"I'm a wizard."

"Speaker, why would you help me?" It was if it's words got clearer, whether because it was waking up or because dragons could speak Parseltongue but wasn't their mother language, he didn't know.

"Because nothing and no one should be imprisoned for the greed of another." And then he added, "Also, it would please me to piss off the goblins."

The dragon stood, "I would like to eat them."

"If I free you, I would prefer you not eat people. They might try to slay you. If you don't hurt anyone, wizards and witches will come to take you to a dragon reserve."

"Would you have me trade one prison for another?"

"Would you stay here? Would you trade the skies for your pride? I will not be the one to slay you, but I do not have the power to protect you either."

"I don't need your protection, Speaker, I need you to break these chains."

"Will you eat me?"

"No, I swear it on the skies above, I will not harm you or your kin if you free me."

That was good enough for him. "What's your name?"

The dragon raised its head to where he was, it inhaled, creating a rush of air, "Simon."

It didn't ask for his name in return and Harry felt that names meant little to this creature. "I'm going to step onto your nose, then onto your neck, from there I will use my magic to break the chains."

Simon the Dragon waited.

And Harry did just as he had said, a thrill going through him as he was able to be this close to such a magnificent creature.

The chains fell to the ground with a clattered that echoed through the cave. Simon let out a bellowing, deafening roar.

It ran toward the mouth of the cave began scaling the walls.

Screams and alarms went off.

Harry regretted that he couldn't just fly away with Simon, but he needed his alibi. So with regret, he jumped off the dragon, rolling to break his impact once they reached the ground floor.

Harry sprinted through the crowd not looking back at the beautiful scaled dragon racing toward his freedom.

Harry didn't care that he bumped into people, it didn't break the enchantment and everyone was bumping into everyone else, and nobody noticed the invisible man.

Using a quick cleaning charm over himself, Harry picked up his tattered poetry book and returned to his seat. He broke the enchantment, and calmly stood, walking over to one of the tellers who had stayed at his post, looking toward the mayhem in confusion and shock.

Gringotts had never been robbed before.

Harry placed the small bag of galleons on the counter. The goblin's eyes focused on him, then looked over his shoulder to where he had been sitting.

He wasn't the only goblin glaring and gaping at Harry. They knew, they all knew, he was the one behind this, but they had also been watching him, making him wait to be seen.

They were his alibi.

"Here's the loan, with your due interest."

The sound of glass shattering, a victorious roar, and screaming proceeded Harry as he exited the bank, smiling broadly.

"Daddy, can we go see Regina now?" Teddy asked again.

"Tomorrow, Teddy, Hagrid is going to watch you for my first day of classes, You can see your kitten then."

Teddy grinned and swung Harry's hand as they walked into the Great Hall, none of the students were here yet and Harry was certain that he would need to get his son to bed before the feast was over.

Most of the other professors were already seated, Harry was seated between Flitwick and Hagrid, Teddy on his lap.

"Hagrid!" Teddy enthused. Hagrid scooped up him up out of Harry's arms, and Teddy asked, "Kittens?"

And Hagrid grinned, launching into a detailed description of what had happened over the last month from the kittens fighting to what they had started to eat outside of their mother's milk.

Flitwick greeted Harry with an extended hand, "You must be, Henry Peverell, the new Defence Against the Darks professor. My name is Filius Flitwick, I teach Charms."

Harry shook his hand, and said, "Please call me Rell, and this is my son Teddy."

"Hi!" Teddy said before returning to interrogating Hagrid about his kitten.

Flitwick smiled, "I think teacher meetings will be more enjoyable this year."

Harry grinned, "Teddy makes most rooms brighter."

"Do you have much teaching experience?"

"Some, I've been working at a daycare the last two years so this will be an adjustment."

"Daycare?" Flitwick asked interestedly, "Muggle, I presume."

"Yes, Teddy needed to be around people and overprotective parent that I, taking a job there seemed like the best option."

"Most parents simply reach out to other magical parents."

"I was a librarian before Teddy, a bit of a loner."

Students began to enter and the noise level increased.

Teddy seemed to grow uneasy with the number of unfamiliar children and reached for Harry, Hagrid passed him over with a smile.

Teddy immediately buried his face in Harry's chest as more and more children entered the Great Hall, three seats down on Flitwick's side, Albus said, "Is he alright?"

Harry nodded even though he too was worried as he rubbed Teddy's back. He was hoping to have Teddy in his classes within a heavily warded corner of his classroom, but if he was this uncomfortable around the other students, he might have to find another option.

The idea being apart from his son for most of the day saddened him.

"They are louder than they usually are," Madame Pomfrey remarked on the other side of Albus.

"Well, it isn't every week someone breaks into Gringotts and releases a dragon on London," Slughorn said beside Pomfrey.

Teddy tilted his head to look at his father, he didn't say anything but he gave Harry a secret grin, that Harry returned.

Harry spotted his parents and Sirius, it was somewhat surreal to them. But a part of him warmed to see them alive.

Where there was life, there was hope.

The Sorting started, and Harry recognized only a handful of names.

Dumbledore stood and gave his greetings before introducing Harry, "And this year Professor Peverell along with his son, Teddy will be joining us, Professor Peverell will be teaching Defense Against the Dark Arts."

"So what's he like?" James asked Remus.

"He's really nice, a bit quiet but-"

"But what?" James prodded.

"I think he's really powerful. He acts super laid back but he's… well, he's very good at wandless magic."

"Do you think it was because he wasn't formally trained?" Sirius asked. "Most of our textbooks are rubbish at describing wand movements."

"Maybe, but I tell you this, we shouldn't try to pull pranks in his class," Remus warned.

"Because he's your uncle?" James asked.

"Because he has Teddy with him and he's-" Remus cut himself off.

"He's what?" James prodded again.

Remus straightened, "Because he's a good person and doesn't deserve us goofing off, besides I don't think you'd like what he'd come up with for detentions."

"What makes you say that?" Sirius asked, tilting his head.

Remus shrugged, "I just have this feeling."

"Sounds like a challenge to me," Peter said.

James and Sirius grinned, and Remus sighed heavily.

Narcissa knocked on the door to her father's study, "Papa? May I speak with you?"

Cygnus Black put his book down and waved her in. She took a seat across from, sitting on the edge of the chair, back straight.

He reached a hand out to her and gave hers a little squeeze, "What is it, my dear?"

"In school, you said you were friends with Madame Pomfrey, correct?"

He nodded, "I was. Poppy and I are still cordial. Why?"

"I was thinking, perhaps, of returning to Hogwarts."

"Narcissa, you've graduated."

"I know, but I was wondering if perhaps you could ask if Madame Pomfrey would take me on as an apprentice. I do not wish to work at St. Mungo's, but I also want to make more of myself. The healer arts are respectable."

"That they are, and I would be happy to reach out to Poppy on your behalf. But my dear, I must ask, what does your fiancé say to this?"

Narcissa looked away.

"Narcissa," Cygnus said, "you are a witch who owes no man anything, but I had thought you were discussing dates for the wedding. An apprenticeship would mean work, time away. Perhaps all you will be doing is brewing potions, but you will be under Poppy's authority for at least a year. She will not accept you otherwise."

She nodded, "Lucius broke off the engagement."

Cygnus went very still. "When?" he asked flatly.

"A few weeks ago."

She couldn't tell if he was furious or pleased.

Neither could he. "Have you told your mother?"

"Of course not."

"Good, we will tell her the night before you leave so she will not send you a howler and will be glad to see the back of you."

Narcissa stood and bent to kiss his cheek, "Thank you, Papa."

As she was headed for the door, he asked, "Narcissa, this sudden desire to go to Hogwarts, it wouldn't have anything to Mr. Peverell, would it?"

Her face was an icy, polite mask, "Of course not, Papa."

He nodded, and after she left, he returned to his book, softly smiling to himself