"You mean away from the Dursleys?"Harry asked, looking from one to the other, hopes rising for the first time."You mean never going back?"
"We mean never ever going back," Lichfield agreed.
"WOOHOO!" Harry's great cry went up as out ofhis robes came his bulging hand-me-downs and they too followed his cheer up tothe ceiling before coming back down onto two very disturbed Gringottsemployees.
"He's certainly taking this well," Barchokesaid as he scooted Harry's trousers off his precious files.
"It's always so difficult giving bad news,"Lichfield lamented with a dramatic shake of his head, a hand pressed to hisheart.
"Hang on," Harry said, coming back to theground again. "My trunk, all my stuff for school, it's still there. Won'tI have to goback?"
Barchoke's eyes went wide, but not for the reason hethought.
"Our security!" the goblin cried with a shockedstare at his empty snow globe. "Everyone quiet, quiet!" In a blur,files were flipped and drawers drawn as the distressed goblin searched forsomething. "Now where did I put that thing? I just had it."
Harry turned to ask the old wizard beside him for answersbut Lichfield already had one gnarled finger to his lips and another ready forpoking.
"Aha!" the goblin cried, holding up a shinyslender tuning fork. "Here's the little doxie."
With two fingers daintily holding the shiny silverinstrument, the Overseer tapped his desk and touched the other end to the clearglobe. Expecting the dancing couple to appear again Harry was kind ofdisappointed when purple dinosaur and a small group of children showed up andstarted silently singing and dancing around.
"I usually have it set on salsa dancing," thegoblin said.
"-Very disconcerting for anyone trying to listenin," Lichfield interrupted. "Way too active and energetic for mostpeople's tastes - a bit like him once you get to know him," the oldwarlock said with a thumb pointed towards the Overseer.
"You're one to talk," the goblin groused."The only one who can stand you is me, and Gotts knows how I put up withyou. Must have the patience of a smith of old," he ended stuffily.
"And for a flighty little doxie that's sayingsomething."
Barchoke shot him a look.
"So what is that?" Harry asked, hoping tocorral the adults into acting their age.
"It's called a Concealer," Lichfield explained."Anyone trying to listen in will only hear whatever's going on inside thatorb."
"And if they heard any of that last bit this will really annoy them," thegoblin said as he studied the globe. "You think someone brokethrough?"
"I think his trousers turned it off."
"No throwing trousers!" the goblin orderedHarry.
"Oh yes, just shirtswill be fine," Lichfield said sarcastically as he handed Harry'shand-me-downs back to him.
Harry expected some sort of comeback from the Overseerbut Barchoke had a finger to his lips, brow furrowed in serious thought."His things, his things," the goblin muttered. "What do we doabout his things?"Suddenly his eyes popped and out from a drawer came a very big book that hethrew on the desk with a bang. The goblin muttered to himself as he flippedthrough section after section of tiny text.
Lichfield sat back in his chair.
"He'll find it," Lester said. "He alwaysfinds it when he gets like this. It may not be exactly what you think - buthe'll find it," the old stump said confidently as Harry wondered what 'it'could be.
"Aha!" the goblin cried pointing to a specificline of very tiny text. "You, Mr. Potter, are a wizard, are you not?"
"Er- Yes," Harry said curiously.
"And, although you cannot be said to own the domicile inquestion, it remains, technically speaking, your residence - until furthernotice. Is that not the case?" Barchoke said with a smile, lights dancingin his eyes.
Harry looked over at the old wizard next to him.Lichfield was already nodding his head.
"Yes."
"And the objects in question may be said to belongto you?"
"I guess so."
"Well then," the goblin said happily. "Allthat needs to be done is to fill out this form here," out of one drawer came the form inquestion, "as to the address and location of the residence, as well as ageneral description of what is to be retrieved-." And another drawer wasopened and similar-looking form soon joined the first. "And then on this form we place the sameinformation as to the objects to be withdrawn-"
Harry wondered about the difference as an almost cacklingBarchoke scooted the available quill and ink set closer to Harry.
"And then, under Banking Order 659, Section Q,Subsection B, Gringotts can retrieve your property from your residence todeposit into your vault and then withdraw your property from your vault anddeliver it to the new location that is considered your residence at that time. And take that Unauthorized TransitStricture!" Barchoke shouted in triumph.
Harry looked over at the old stump.
"Yep. Didn't see that one coming," Lichfieldsaid.
Harry shook his head and went about filling out the formsin front of him.
"Go ahead and list anything the Dursleys let you useon a regular basis," Lichfield advised. "As long as you canreasonably say you believe they gave them to you, you should be covered. Ifthey don't like it, let them go complain their authorities that goblins stoletheir furniture and see what good that'll do them."
Harry shrugged and went ahead and listed the desk, bed,wardrobe, and clothes he used along with detailed instructions to find what hehad hidden under the invisibility cloak. He may never plan on wearing theclothes again, but throwing them sure felt nice. It was only when he got to theend of the second form, where it asked for the location of the residence whereeverything would be delivered that Harry ran into a stumbling block.
"Where should I say my residence is?" Harryasked.
"Huh," Lichfield grunted. "The LeakyCauldron is out. Unless you stayed there a month it couldn't legally beconsidered a residence, and by then you'd be on your way back to school. Wehaven't had a chance yet to go through your file and see if you have any vacantproperties suitable for living in."
Barchoke's triumphant face fell.
"What about the place in Godric's Hollow?" theOverseer asked.
"The Ministry turned it into a damn monument,"the Litigator said tersely. Harry instantly wanted to ask about it, butcertainly didn't want to ask him right then when it brought out that kind ofmood.
"Is there nowhere in the wizarding world you canstay at in the mean time?" Barchoke asked. "Staying with Lester or Iwould seem rather biased and the muggle world just won't do for us atall."
"Both would work against you," Lester nodded toHarry.
.....
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