Dumbledore's Folly

"Want some help, Dromie?" asked Narcissa purring in anticipation. Even Bella, who was the eldest of the three, was looking at her sister questioningly.

"So long as the injuries aren't permanent or deadly, sure. It should be like old times again. Nymphadora seems to have forgotten she's to be upholding the law. Not breaking it when it suits her purposes. And stealing from a child simply because you think he doesn't know of the availability of what you're helping yourself to, is most definitely not upholding the law. I strongly doubt Harry even knows her name. She definitely hasn't earned this coin she's getting each month from his estate."

The three sisters tracked down one Nymphadora Tonks in her small apartment and gave her the fright of her life when they proceeded to ream her out royally for having stolen money from a little orphan boy for services rendered. Not even Dora's attempt to arrest Bella derailed the reaming she was undergoing.

Bella fingering her favorite knife, told her niece in no uncertain terms she wanted to know exactly what services Dora had rendered a little boy that would require a monthly payment for years and she'd better like the answer or little Dora was going to be very unhappy. "Was she really that desperate she had to go molesting little kids?," she asked her in her little girl voice that made her opponent shiver in fear. Because as far as Bella knew, Harry had only been eleven when Dora started getting paid for services rendered this was something Bella actually did want to know. The family line was well known for instability in it's members and if Dora was suffering from this particular problem then the family needed to keep an eye on her.

Narcissa, playing with an ornate ring she wore, told her, "if I even heard a whisper of someone treating my Draco like that they'd be dead the next time they ate or drank something. Do I need to have you over for dinner one night soon, Dora?" That the ring she was playing with was one created to hold the poison of choice for the wearer back in the day when such poisoning was commonplace, had only hammered her meaning home to all of them. The question had just put everything over the top for the young auror.

Everyone thought Bellatrix was the Black sister to watch out for but in this one perfect moment in time Nymphadora Tonks knew that wasn't true. The truth was Narcissa was the deadliest of them all simply because with her, you'd never see your death coming until you were gasping out your final breath. If you even knew she'd killed you then! And when you died, not one person would be able to offer even the slightest shred of proof she'd been the one who killed you. So not one of the four women in the room had any doubt that was anything but the cold hard truth.

Unfortunately, Dora, who preferred to be called by her last name only, had no idea what they were talking about since she didn't take any money from any little kids ever. Not for anything. She even brought out her own accounts ledger to prove it. The only money she got on a regular basis was her auror's paycheck and not a single knut more than it should be for her rank. It took time but she was finally able to convince her Mother and Aunts that she wasn't being paid out of the Black vaults for anything. But she was furious anyone would think she was. So as soon as the women had left her apartment she took her ledger and went to see her boss. She had a crime to report.

This, unknown to Harry, had caused a new investigation to be opened up in the Auror's division because Nymphadora Tonks didn't appreciate someone making her out to be a person who stole from orphans no matter what the cause or reasoning was. She was a law abiding girl and she had a particular soft spot for orphans due to the well-known story of Harry Potter and his orphan status. She'd gotten so outraged at the idea the goblins thought she was stealing from an orphan she'd forgotten all about arresting her Aunt.

So Amelia Bones and Rufus Scrimegour were both looking into the accusations as well. They'd both chewed the young auror a new one for failing to call for back-up to arrest the notorious Bellatrix LeStrange but had let it slide in reference to what the woman had shown up over.

The three Black sisters, who not only didn't care for the possibility that their estate had been stolen from and manipulated for years now but that someone was doing it because they knew it was to go to a child who wouldn't learn of their thievery for years yet if he ever did, were also looking into the matter because now they believed they knew this person was using others, unknowingly on their part, as a front for the theft. And that this person, or persons, had used their daughter/niece to enable at least a fraction of his or her theft made the crime even worse in their eyes. This person, or persons, was using family to steal from the rightful Lord of their family.

All three women were thinking the Dark Lord might be bad news but even he drew the line at ripping off children. Well, not really since he did claim their inheritances as his once he gained their parent as followers. But at least he also took in the displaced children and made sure they didn't go without once he took their family homes as his own. Sort of. This thief didn't appear to be planning to do that even. He or she was just flat-out stealing every copper knut and priceless artifact they could lay their hands on.

Meanwhile Dumbledore had yet to realize just how deep in the stew he'd fallen. He sauntered into the bank and presented both the letter he'd received on Harry's behalf informing Harry of the frozen nature of his accounts as well as why they'd been frozen and then the letter of authorization letter he'd coerced Harry into signing using a compulsion spell as well as a mild confundus spell so that he wouldn't remember the threats Dumbledore had leveled against him or what he'd read on the paperwork he'd signed if he had even understood all the big words and legal terms to begin with. Dumbledore truly believed Harry Potter was so simple-minded he bordered on being a totally idiot. Because that's what his bought and paid for spy, Hermione Granger, told him. It never occurred to him, she didn't know Harry Potter any better than he did.

What he didn't know was that since both those spells work on the mind of the victim, they were totally ineffective on Harry unless enough magic was powering them knock anyone else out for a week. The goblins had given Harry his heir rings, which Dumbledore hadn't noticed Harry was wearing, and those rings protected Harry from a wide variety of spells and potions meant to control a person as well. And that was in addition to Harry's own natural resistance to mind altering spells and potions. So even if Harry hadn't realized he was under attack and fought back on his own, his rings would've alerted him to the problem. If they didn't just negate the attack outright. But then, Dumbledore didn't know Harry had his rings now.

Sure, Harry would appear to fall under them in the beginning, allowing the caster to believe they were working so they wouldn't automatically increase the power of their spell casting but Harry was definitely the master of his own mind and he was far too stubborn to ever let anyone tell him what he believed. Too many years of not being able to control even the slightest aspect of his life outside the security of his own mind had made Harry fiercely determined to retain control over his own thoughts no matter who thought that right should belong to them.

Even Voldemort could've told Dumbledore Harry was the complete master of his own mind because he'd tried the Imperious Curse on Harry only to have him throw it off. Twice! And he could imperious anyone! If that curse wouldn't work, then no mere Confundus or Compulsion spell would. No matter how powerful the caster was. Strength of mind was more important than strength of magic when it came to the mind arts spells effectiveness. Not that Dumbledore would've listened since he never listened to anyone who wasn't singing his praises or telling him what he wanted to hear.

The goblin upon seeing the parchment with it's coded signature smiled nastily at Dumbledore. He'd been hoping he'd be the first to see this particular parchment. It was going to be a fun day at the bank today. He pressed a button under his counter and a very special goblin hurried into the lobby.

...

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