adored by him | *under editing*

seventh year × part two

A soft breeze blew through the cottage window whilst Nadia absent-mindedly traced the small wound on her neck where Bellatrix's knife was, not too long ago.

She omitted a long, deep sigh and pushed herself up from the comfort of her bed and headed to the kitchen.

As Bill filled the kettle, Luna gently tapped the wind chime which dangled from the door frame. "It's beautiful here."

Nadia silently agreed, taking a seat at the table. Bill smiled. "It was our aunt's. We used to come here as kids. The Order uses it as a safe house now -- well, what's left of us at least."

Nadia pondered this as Luna tapped the wind chime again. "Muggles think these keep evil away. But they're wrong..."

Bill studied her curiously when Harry, Ron and Hermione appeared in the doorway.

Hermione smiled sympathetically at Nadia before gesturing for her to join them. Nadia nodded and rose from the table.

"I need to talk to the goblin." Harry said.

Bill nodded obediently and lead the quartet to one of the rooms. He knocked and gently pushed open the door, making way for the group to head into the room where the goblin resided.

They waited for Bill to withdraw before Harry spoke up. "How are you?"

"Alive." The goblin grunted.

"You probably don't remember--"

"That I showed you to your vault the first time you visited Gringotts? Even amongst goblins, you are famous, Harry Potter." He then nodded to the window. "You buried the elf. I saw you."

"Yes." Harry said.

"And brought me here." The goblin studied him curiously. "You are a very unusual wizard."

Harry ignored his comment and pressed on with what he wanted to find out. "Why did you leave Gringotts?"

"Soon the Death Eaters will control it. That is unacceptable to me."

"So you're on our side then?" Ron asked.

The goblin looked to him. "This is a wizard's war. I take no side."

Ron shrunk back slightly as the goblin turned back to Harry.

"I need to get inside Gringotts, into one of the vaults." Harry demanded.

"Impossible."

"Alone, yes. With you...no." He bargained.

The goblin stared impassively at him, sitting silent. His dark eyes then shifted to the Sword of Gryffindor leaning against the wall. "How did you come by this sword?"

"It's complicated." Harry dismissed. "Why did Bellatrix Lestrange think it should be in her vault at Gringotts?"

"It's complicated." The goblin repeated Harry's words. They stared at eachother, as though testing one another.

Finally, Harry spoke. "The Sword presented itself to us in a moment of need. We didn't steal it."

The goblin nodded, thinking this through. Then, "There is a Sword in Madam Lestrange's vault identical to this one, but it is a fake. It was placed there this past summer."

Harry creased his eyebrows. "And she never suspected?"

"The replica is very convincing. Only a goblin would recognise that this is the true Sword of Gryffindor."

"Who put it there? The fake?" Nadia questioned, her throat a little dry from not talking these past few days.

"It was not my place to ask, nor did I desire to. There are more than a few curious things in the vaults at Gringotts." The goblin smirked.