Chapter 62: The Archives
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Chapter 62: The Archives
Black Lake, Scotland, February 21st, 2006
Hermione shook her head with a smile. "I've seen more gold in one place, but only once." She nodded at the chest that Harry and Sirius had opened after pushing it into the lab.
"Oh?" Dumbledore looked honestly surprised. That didn't have to mean anything, of course, given his skills in misdirection and lying.
"I visited Harry's - my Harry's - vault in Gringotts when we needed money for our mission during the war," she said.
Ron resisted the sudden urge to whistle. That must have been a lot of gold. The other Harry was probably richer than Ron's friend. Perhaps even richer than Sirius.
"More than this? How much more? And what was the price for gold at the time?" Sirius asked.
"Sirius!" Harry hissed.
"What? I'm curious about whether I'm still the richest member of our family if we count our dimensional counterparts." The man grinned.
"Harry spent a lot of his gold on rebuilding Wizarding Britain," Hermione said. "That includes Sirius's fortune, which he inherited."
"He didn't give the gold away, did he?" Sirius, for all his usual casual stance towards his own wealth, looked shocked.
"You might call it long-term investing. But he won't get a return for several years - or at all, in some cases," Hermione told him.
"So, technically, he might be richer, but he's strapped for cash, and should he be forced to liquidate his investments, he'd take a huge loss?" Sirius asked.
"That sounds about right," Hermione agreed. "Some investments were more like donations, anyway."
"So that means I'm still the richest member of our extended family!" Sirius beamed.
"And the vainest as well," Harry said. "As if it mattered."
"Of course it matters!" Sirius shook his head. "Money matters. Influence matters. If Hermione's friends were rich enough, we wouldn't have to bribe the Ministry - they would've done it long ago."
"If Harry were that rich, he wouldn't have needed to bribe the Ministry; he could've paid for an alternative prison system himself."
That sounded like a bribe - indirectly, at least, since it would free up funds. On the other hand, Ron was pretty sure that wizarding Harry would've had the funds to abolish Azkaban, but had spent it on other things that needed funding.
"Well, it would have simplified matters. But we have to deal with the situation at hand, not the situation in which we'd like to be," Dumbledore said. "And that means handing over this 'investment' à fonds perdus' to the Ministry of Magic in a form they'll accept and which will mask its true origin."
"We're going to launder money, in other words," Ron said.
"Barely a week out of CI5, and we're already breaking the law." Harry grinned.
"Money laundering is actually not illegal in Wizarding Britain. And as long as it's not money stolen from goblins, it's not illegal in Gringotts, either," Hermione explained with a frown. "If we could trust the goblins not to sell us out, we could simply exchange the gold bars for specie - Galleons, gold coins minted by the goblins of Gringotts."
"You've explained that to us." Dumbledore shook his head. "I still find myself wondering what would have possessed British wizards to let goblins mint their coin and handle their banking. Then again, Britain keeps trusting the United States despite several rather impressive examples of how foolish that stance can be."
Ron wasn't about to discuss politics - and most of it rather ancient politics - with the old man. "But you said that we can't trust the goblins," he addressed Hermione.
"We can't." Hermione grimaced. "My friends and I committed the second successful break-in into Gringotts that we know of, and the goblins bear grudges."
"You robbed a bank?" Sirius gasped. "The bank of Wizarding Britain?"
"It was during the war. And we had no choice - Voldemort had stashed one of his Horcruxes in a vault there, and the goblins wouldn't cooperate. And it wasn't a robbery - we snuck in. We only had to fight our way out after we were discovered."
Harry snickered. "We're in the presence of a master criminal, gents!"
Dumbledore chuckled as well. "Needs must, Dr Granger - I understand that perfectly. However, it does present us with a slight problem."
"Yes. The goblins couldn't do anything against Harry and Ron, not with them being some of the most famous and most influential wizards after the war, and they officially pardoned all of us, but they would love to hurt me if they could do so without breaking any treaties or laws. And passing on information about suspected crimes…" She shrugged. "We'll have to launder the money so the goblins will be fooled."
Dumbledore's smile grew wider. "I love a good challenge."
Soho, London, Wizarding World, February 22nd, 2006
"Normally, we could simply acquire a piece of antique furniture, claim we found it in the attic, and use it to explain where the money came from," Dumbledore said after everyone had sat down in the cosy café in Soho he'd recommended - protected by a privacy charm Hermione had cast. "Unfortunately, the amount of money we need to convince the Ministry to do what is right and decent is too high for such a cover. We could use multiple pieces, but that would strain credibility."
"The Ministry wouldn't care," Hermione told them. "Nor would they notice. A number of their employees probably have entire suites of valuable furniture stashed in their attics of which they aren't aware. But we cannot risk underestimating the goblins. They handle the finances of Wizarding Britain, and they have ties to the muggle economy. They have to, to be able to exchange pounds for Galleons for muggleborns so they can shop in Diagon Alley."
"That alone wouldn't require close ties or in-depth experience with Britain's economy and financial system," Dumbledore retorted. "A single exchange of goods that have a value in both countries would suffice for the sort of sums needed to pay for school supplies. The numbers are just not that large. Even if every muggleborn were to work in Wizarding Britain but live amongst muggles, therefore needing a constant supply of pounds, that could be easily handled by selling precious metals."
Hermione frowned. "Yes, but Gringotts does have close ties to - or interests in, at least - the British economy. We found that out when we researched the bank for our…"
"Heist?" Ron asked with a grin.
"...our mission." Hermione pursed her lips. "We didn't take anything other than our objective, the possession of which was, in any case, illegal."
"And the goblins still hate you for it?" Harry looked surprised.
Hermione blushed. "We did cause considerable collateral damage when we fled the premises."
"What did you do?" Sirius asked. "Blow up their vaults?"
"We released a dragon the goblins were using as a guard," she replied. "Though that was also completely justified - they were keeping the poor thing chained up in the lowest level of the bank!"
She set a dragon loose in a bank… Ron chuckled. It seemed that Hermione was a little more like Luna than she wanted to admit.
"Further, we decided on using gold to transfer the money, not antiques or art, since it's generally more discreet," Dumbledore went on.
"Unless it's Nazi gold," Ron pointed out.
If the interruption annoyed the old man, he didn't show it. He smiled and nodded. "Indeed - we actually considered using that as a cover, hinting at having found a Nazi submarine which had been transporting gold. Alas, while quite entertaining, it would have provided the goblins with the opportunity to inform the British authorities about a possible crime, which would have almost certainly led to a thorough investigation of Dr Granger's finances. And since she was missing for seven years, that would certainly turn up a few discrepancies unless the Ministry of Magic were to intervene. And that would, most likely, be a little counter-productive."
"So, now that we know what we won't be using as a cover story, how about telling us what we'll actually be using? So we can start memorising the details?" Sirius cocked his head as he smiled, showing his teeth.
"Indeed!" Once again, Dumbledore remained unflappable. "We'll be using the opportunity to also deal with Mr Weasley's missing identity in this world."
Ron blinked. The old man couldn't mean…
"You want to break into the government's archives to create an identity for Ron and set him up with the gold?" Harry blurted out.
"Correct. I'm thinking of you being raised by a rich uncle who had shares in an African gold mine before he was forced to leave the continent for the mother country." Dumbledore smiled.
"That sounds oddly specific," Ron commented.
"It's a background my men used for a sting operation that needed to be kept off the official records. Seeing as our two worlds show remarkable parallels, I have no doubt that we can duplicate the feat and insert your and your late uncle's identities, with no one the wiser. All we need to do is to break into a few archives and one data centre." Dumbledore beamed at them.
Ron blinked. "First, the Kremlin and now Whitehall?"
"What's next, Buckingham Palace?" Harry quipped.
Dumbledore chuckled. "Fortunately, Her Majesty the Queen isn't involved in the day to day running of the country, so we won't be forced to intrude on her home."
"Good. As an officer in the Blues and Royals, I would be honour-bound to stop you," Sirius said with a grin. "The Treasury, though, has been known as the British Army's arch-enemy for centuries."
"Oh, indeed. I must confess that I'm looking forward to pulling one over that particular part of Her Majesty's Government."
Great, Ron thought.
City of Westminster, London, Wizarding World, February 23rd, 2006
"I think we're taking this a little too lightly," Ron said as he walked to the kitchen of the apartment they had rented near - but not too close - to their target. Far enough that it wouldn't trigger any flags in the system.
"How so?" Harry asked from where he was looking at the laptops on the dining table which showed the feeds from the cameras they had placed the night before - while invisible and on brooms.
"We did break into the Kremlin, but that was with the help of magic, in a world without magic. And we were still almost caught by Putin's guards," Ron explained. "This time? We're up against a government which knows about magic, at least at the highest levels, and in a world with thousands of wizards and witches - organised wizards and witches with countries of their own and a vested interest in policing magic."
"But we're not trying to kidnap the Prime Minister, and I don't think the clerks and guards in the archives are aware of magic," Harry replied. "Nor would they expect an attack."
"But they might be following procedures which were implemented with magic in mind. And the Ministry might be keeping an eye on the archives to prevent a wizard from amassing wealth by changing entries. Like what we're planning to do."
"We're not gaining anything other than a cover story for the money Dumbledore's donating," Harry retorted.
"But we could do so much more," Ron said.
His friend shrugged. "Only if we were aware of assets without an actual or known owner. Trying to take over a building owned by someone else would only draw attention to the attempt, and not even the government would be so foolish as to simply accept the results from the archives."
"Sirius would disagree," Ron told him.
"He's not unbiased." Harry snorted. "And Hermione confirmed that the building isn't under magical protection."
Hermione had checked - Ron had been there - but she hadn't checked inside the building. He couldn't shake his gut feeling that this wouldn't be as easy as the others expected. Too much could go wrong. "They might have some hidden alerts - or protections on the archives themselves." Or some magical guard-beasts or constructs.
"I actually don't really think that the wizards care much about the muggle government," Harry said. "Not after what we've heard."
"We still can't risk it," Ron replied.
"We won't. We're just going to add a few records, that's all. We won't even change any existing entries." Harry grinned. "You know that as long as nothing's missing, people are less likely to notice anything amiss."
Ron snorted. That was how they had once managed to infiltrate a drug-smuggling organisation - they had added more money to the stash they had discovered. Money they could trace. But still... "I guess I just worry that this is too good to be true." After all, he'd end up with a solid ID in this world, Hermione's world. He would have a paper trail, a history - a legal existence. He wouldn't have to fear being mistaken for this world's Ron any more - or be exposed as a double, should he run into trouble with the law.
"It isn't," Harry said, grinning more widely. "You'll have to pay taxes here and in our world."
Ron snorted. Of course his friend would know what Ron was thinking. "It won't be my money. Dumbledore will have to pay them."
"Then you'll owe him."
"Compared to what we already owe him? It'll be a drop in the ocean." Ron scoffed. He didn't like it, but it wasn't as if they had a better alternative. Which was pretty much how Dumbledore liked it, of course.
Harry grunted. "That's quite cavalier of you."
"I like to call it realistic. Or opportunistic." And Ron wasn't so naive as to really feel obligated to Dumbledore. The old man was using them, so it was perfectly fine to use him in return. "Anyway, focus on tracking the schedules of the guards." That was their task, after all.
Harry scoffed. "We won't be sneaking in during the day. What we need are the night schedules."
"You never know what you might need," Ron told him.
"Is that a quote from Moody or Hermione?"
"Arse."
Harry laughed but focused on the screens again. And Ron returned to studying the blueprints. He wasn't about to underestimate the muggle government here.
Despite his experiences in his own world.
Black Lake, Scotland, February 23rd, 2006
He was getting used to commuting to another world - and across all of Britain - Ron realised as he stepped through the portal into Hermione's lab. Or, rather, into the heavily guarded portal room - he could spot a gun emplacement, a sentry gun, as far as he could tell, that hadn't been there when he had left.
"Isn't that a little obvious?" Harry asked, looking at the light machine gun as well.
"It'll be hidden once they're done."
Ron whirled and had his gun out before he recognised the voice - Fred. Or George. No, he realised as he didn't see anyone, wizarding Fred or George. Unless this was the work of hidden microphones…
"Whoa! Don't shoot!"
"We're not your brothers! We're their innocent counterparts!"
Ron sighed as he holstered his gun. "Don't do that. We almost shot you. Unless you had cast a Shield Charm."
"Not yet," one of the still invisible wizards replied. "That was supposed to be the next test."
"Test?" Harry asked, frowning as he reholstered his own pistol.
The two wizards faded into view. "Testing the new sensors that were installed."
"Ah." Ron looked around, spotting a few more not-quite-perfectly-concealed additions to the room.
"Yes! Your Grindelwald is a firm believer in the idea that 'anything the Russians can do we can do better'," wizarding Fred said with a familiar grin, "and hasn't spared any expense to prove it true."
"He's had his people duplicate and improve on all the sensors from your Kremlin," wizarding George added. "So far, they're working well."
"We'll find a way to beat them, though," his brother boasted. "And then we'll help with finding a way to beat what beat them."
"Ah." Harry echoed Ron. "Did you add magical defences as well?"
"Protective enchantments?" wizarding George cocked his head. "We're still working on those - Hermione did a good job."
"Not a perfect job, mind you," his brother went on. "But she's not a Curse-Breaker."
"Neither are you," Ron said.
"No, but we've got a lot of experience with magical defences," wizarding Fred claimed. "We had to, in our line of business."
"And, essentially, wards are just a variant of protective charms," wizarding George told them.
"Wards?"
"Permanent magical defences. You can cast protective charms so that they'll last a long time, if you're good. Perhaps even forever, if you're Dumbledore. Our Dumbledore. Not that you could test that. But they won't grow more powerful with age, nor will they be particularly hard to dispel - for a decent Curse-Breaker," the wizard explained.
"Wards can be downright lethal, old boy," his brother added. "And that's the reason why we had so much trouble with the richer Death Eaters - they weren't actually that good with a wand, but their wards have had centuries to grow. Nasty business, that."
Ron could imagine. "Well, that isn't an option for us."
"But you can do the next best thing if you're clever and talented," wizarding George said.
"Which we are," the other twin added. "And handsome and charming, too!"
"Sure you are," Harry replied in a flat tone.
"Oi!"
Ron laughed. "Well, don't let us hold you up any longer. We've got a report to make and a break-in to plan."
"That won't please Ginny - well, this world's Ginny," wizarding Fred said.
"Ginny's here?" Harry frowned. "She's supposed to be training for her comeback on the tour."
"She probably finished training in London and then called Hermione or Luna for a lift here," Ron told him.
"Hermione," wizarding Fred confirmed. "She complained that Luna's cell phone wasn't working."
Probably because Luna was with her counterpart in their hidden magical habitat.
"And we haven't received cell phones that work in this world, yet," wizarding George said. "Though Luna's said she'll help us become untraceable."
That was a worrying smile. Very worrying.
"Do you know where Ginny is?" Harry asked.
"In the lounge, watching the telly," wizarding Fred told him. "Probably growing more and more annoyed with every moment you spend talking to us if she's anything like our sister. Which she seems to be."
"But don't worry, we'll explain to her that you were simply tired."
Harry rolled his eyes. "Perhaps you should watch some TV as well, if only to learn better jokes."
"Oi!"
Harry scoffed and left the room, and the twins turned towards Ron.
He held up a hand before they could start. "Hermione knows you. Any attempt to get me in trouble with her will backfire."
"That's a risk we're willing to take." Wizarding Fred grinned.
"Well, what about your work here?" Ron asked. "Think Grindelwald will be happy to hear you held up everyone because you wanted to prank people?"
"Dumbledore would be happy!"
That was why Ron hadn't mentioned the old spymaster, but rather his cranky German partner.
"But point taken. Now get lost! You're holding up an entire shift!"
Ron shook his head and left the portal room.
He found Hermione in her new laboratory in front of a whiteboard filled with various wordings, poring over several notebooks and loose sheets. "Hey!"
She looked up and blinked. "Oh. You're back already?"
"I feel so loved," he replied, chuckling.
She blushed in response even as she frowned at him. "I didn't mean it like that! I just realised that I lost track of time."
"Is that a good thing?" He stepped over to her desk and craned his neck, peering at the notes. They were all variations of the wording for the Fidelius Charm.
"It would be a good thing if I had made significant progress." She sighed.
He pointed at one of the sheets. "That sounds like it covers everything."
"Yes. It's also half a page. I can't cast the spell with such a long secret."
"Oh."
"I'll have to condense things. But even so…"
"...you'll have to make compromises," he finished for her.
"Yes." Another sigh had her slumping over.
He knew very well that she hated compromising on anything, but didn't mention it.
"Well, at least Operation: Official Identity looks like it'll happen on schedule," he said, carefully sitting down on the edge of her desk - he didn't need to get ink stains on another pair of trousers.
"Oh. You already got the guard schedule?" She tilted her head, looking at him.
"We'll have it tomorrow. The cameras are working fine." He shrugged. "If the floorplans and security systems are the same as in this world and there's no magical protection, we shouldn't have any trouble executing Dumbledore's plans."
"'If'," she said. "Otherwise, you'll be in trouble."
"I expect there to be trouble," he replied. "When do things ever go according to plan for us?"
She shook her head. "That's not a logical conclusion. Just because we've had some bad luck in the past doesn't mean it'll continue to plague us at every opportunity."
"That's the logical argument. But my gut disagrees."
"You mean Moody's training disagrees."
"That too." He nodded. "But yes, I'm still not as optimistic as Dumbledore." The old man was probably a little too affected by his sudden rejuvenation, in Ron's opinion. Living vicariously through others was a problem if said others were sent to break into government buildings using decades-old plans. On the other hand, the British government was slow to change anything without a pressing reason.
But in Hermione's world, the government knew about magic. Ron simply couldn't believe they wouldn't take at least some basic countermeasures.
"Well, neither am I," Hermione said. "So let's get ready for dinner. We can discuss things with Dumbledore then."
"I've compared the results from Mr Potter and Mr Weasley's reconnaissance, and I've confirmed that the building conforms in every significant way to its counterpart in our world," Dumbledore announced as he savoured a glass of port. "With the exception of potential magical security measures, of course."
"Of course." Harry smiled rather tensely.
"Don't worry," wizarding Fred said. "Leave the magic to us - we'll deal with it. You just focus on the muggle stuff."
"This isn't the same as infiltrating wizarding homes," Hermione told them with a sharp glare.
"We've also infiltrated the Ministry," wizarding George pointed out.
"That wasn't exactly a challenge," Hermione retorted. "The Ministry's security wasn't very good - even though it should've been."
"We've also studied your defences here," the wizard told her. "And I doubt that the muggle archives are as well protected as the portal."
"And those defences wouldn't stop us," his brother added.
"While I doubt that the government would spend as much money on the security of their archives as we are currently spending on this location, the Treasury has never been a bastion of common sense, and I cannot claim it would be impossible to encounter advanced sensors set up to detect magical intruders," Dumbledore said. "However, we will prepare for that eventuality - we shall proceed with the utmost caution."
"That'll require a little more preparation," Ron replied. "Especially if we're working with people who haven't worked with us before." And who had no experience with muggle tactics.
"I think that would be prudent, yes." Dumbledore nodded.
"And I think we should run a few exercises so Fred and George know how we work," Harry added.
Ron grinned. That was a great idea. "We'll start with taking you on our regular morning run."
"'Morning run'?" Wizarding Fred looked a lot less confident than before. As did his brother.
"We'll start easy - just one lap around the lake, I think," Harry said.
Ginny scowled. "I'll need at least two for a decent workout."
"They won't last two laps," Ron told her.
"Not without cheating and using magic," Hermione added.
"Oi!"
"I think they're taking the mickey," wizarding George said.
Ron's grin widened.
Black Lake, Scotland, February 24th, 2006
The twins started talking as soon as Ron entered the lounge.
"You're evil. Evil."
"You may look like a Weasley, but you're far too cruel to be one."
"Evil."
"Cruel."
Ron rolled his eyes. "You're getting repetitive," he told them as he took a seat at the table. Their reaction to the morning run had been amusing at first, but now it was merely annoying.
"So were you when we ran!"
He shrugged. "I wasn't aiming for originality."
"Besides, we were going easy on you," Ginny said as she entered, followed by Harry. Her hair was still a little wet - unlike the twins, who had apparated into the private areas of the laboratory to avoid tipping off the MI5 guards, the rest of their group had run back to the lab. "When we started doing this, we ran faster and for longer."
"'Faster and longer'?" Wizarding Fred perked up.
"Don't!" Hermione snapped as she joined Ron. "It's not as funny as you think."
Harry glared at the twin as well.
"Everyone's a critic," the wizard complained, crossing his arms and huffing.
"But not everyone's an out of shape slowpoke," Ginny retorted. "Even Hermione was faster than you when we started."
Ron saw Hermione briefly frowning at the indirect insult. "Now that we know that Fred and George won't win any track and field events, we should focus on the next part of the training and evaluation drill," she said as she grabbed the teapot to fill her cup - or mug, this time. She must be thirsty, Ron realised; The twins didn't know it, but today's run had been a little more challenging than usual.
"The next part?" wizarding George asked.
"Weapons training."
"Oh!" Suddenly, both wizards were beaming at them. "The fun part!"
"No, the dangerous part," Harry corrected them. "You don't have fun with guns."
"Not as a rookie, at least." Sirius must have overheard them on the way since he spoke just as he entered the lounge. "I could tell you stories of what happens when people fool around with guns…"
"Please do," Hermione told him. "It might impress upon them the consequences of failing to take firearms seriously. I don't hold out much hope, knowing them, but the possibility, however scant, remains."
Ron hoped she was mostly joking. Guns weren't toys.
"Oi!"
"Prove me wrong," she told them.
"We will!"
Sirius, of course, was smiling widely at the chance to finally repeat all the gruesome stories which everyone who knew him had grown tired of long ago. "So, this was shortly after the Argies had surrendered…"
"'Argies'?" wizarding Fred asked.
"The Argentinians. In the Falklands War," Sirius replied.
"'Falklands War'?"
The former officer sighed. "Alright. Short history lesson…"
Ron tuned him out and focused on eating breakfast. They had been running a bit more than usual, after all, and he had worked up an appetite.
After breakfast, the twins had seemed to have been at least a little sobered by Sirius's stories - which tended to change whenever he told them, but that was neither here nor there. But now, on the shores of the Black Lake, it was obvious that even the detailed - and, in Ron's opinion, completely made-up - tale of the soldier who had shot his own foot off hadn't made them take this seriously enough not to stare with open glee at the rifles Harry and Ron had brought with them.
He double-checked that the fire-control selector was limited to semi-automatic before clearing his throat. "So! You've learned how a gun works. Now let us demonstrate what one can do." He held his hand up as the twins reached for the gun. "We will demonstrate."
Perhaps blowing through a few trees would impress the wizards enough to handle the rifles with caution. Ron wasn't very optimistic, though - wizards generally didn't seem to take physical dangers as seriously as they should. Then again, they could heal most injuries easily. Most.
"Watch the tree there," he said as he grabbed the rifle. "We've installed a shot trap behind it." Hermione had conjured it up, which greatly facilitated training, of course. And would help to fool MI5.
He raised the rifle to his shoulder, aimed and started pulling the trigger, emptying half a magazine into the tree.
The twins weren't impressed, though, even if they didn't say so - he could tell from their expressions; his own brothers had taught him that.
Well, Harry and Ron weren't done, yet. "Now, let's look how long it takes to go through a Shield Charm."
Hermione flicked her wand, and a shimmering field of magical energy appeared in front of the tree.
It took the rest of the magazine to shatter it, but the twins finally looked suitably impressed that they could begin teaching them basic firearms safety.
"Hah! Every shot a hit! Score!"
"That was luck, Fred!"
"Fred? I'm George!"
"I thought I was George?"
"No, today I'm Fred."
Ron sighed and rolled his eyes. After an hour on the improvised shooting range, the twins were scoring decently - for beginners. Which meant they were getting cocky again. "Alright," he said. "Now let's get the laser tag gear and see how you do in the field. Without you being able to shoot yourself - or us - by mistake."
"Oi! We wouldn't do that!"
"We fought in the war!"
"But you've never handled guns in the field," Harry replied. "Let's get you suited up."
"What's this 'laser tag' anyway?"
"It's called Ausbildungsgerät Duellsimulator, in German," Ron explained. "It lets you shoot rays of light at each other instead of bullets, and records and reports when you hit someone."
"It's great for exercises," Harry added with a grin.
"So we're forming teams?" wizarding Fred asked. "Like for Quidditch?"
"Yes," Hermione told him. "And I'll be the referee, to ensure you don't use magic to cheat."
Ron took note of how the faces of the twins fell slightly in response to this. Really, had they expected anything else? "First, it'll be you two against me and Harry," he told them. "Later, we'll switch the teams up."
"Alright!"
"Well, that went… as expected," Harry said an hour later, back in the warm laboratory's lounge.
"Fred and George died five times each - and once they shot each other by mistake," Hermione said, looking through the records on her computer.
"That's because you cheated!" wizarding Fred protested. "You used smoke bombs."
"Only magic wasn't allowed," Ron told him. "Everything else was perfectly fine."
"That's not fair! We didn't know about all our options!" wizarding George added - a little more vehemently than usual, Ron noted.
"Exactly," Harry said with a smirk, "and it's best to learn in training that you are out of your depth rather than in the field. You won't know everything muggles can do."
"So… how common are smoke bombs?"
"Less common than flashbangs," Ron replied, "but not very rare. If the police are called in and encounter the kind of resistance we can put up, they'll call reinforcements, who will come with such grenades."
"And they'll bring assault rifles as well," Harry added. "Anyway, you now know about crossfire and that you really need to check your target before you shoot."
"And that you're cheaters!" wizarding George repeated. "You used some muggle flying machines to track us!"
"Yes, we did." Ron grinned. "Just to show that you can't underestimate the muggle defences of the archives."
"We couldn't use magic or we'd have easily fooled your machines!"
"Could you?" Harry shook his head. "You were surrounded by snow, and we were using thermographic cameras. Even if you had disillusioned yourselves, we could've tracked the heat leaving your bodies."
"And melting the snow," Ron added. "Though you did erase your tracks quite competently."
"Thank you. But those tricks won't work inside a building!"
"That depends on how sensitive the camera resolution is. And how easily your surroundings absorb heat," Hermione added. "It wasn't a problem when we were infiltrating the Kremlin since we were shrunk to a size that was too small to trigger any sensors and were disillusioned. But we won't be doing the same thing here."
"Why not? If it works…" Wizarding Fred shrugged.
"It's also quite dangerous," she replied. "All sorts of insects and other animals are a threat. And if there are magical defences, we'd have to unshrink anyway."
"Right, I'd rather not be eaten by a spider," wizarding George said.
"Yes. It would make a terrible story," his brother agreed. "Now if it were an Acromantula…"
Ron cleared his throat. He really didn't want to think or talk about giant spiders killing people. Not even his brothers' counterparts. "So… now that you know a little more about guns, remember: Don't get in front of a gun. Stay behind us and let us shoot whatever needs to be shot."
"We can do that. I think." Wizarding Fred nodded.
"Unless Aurors start apparating behind us," his brother added. "Then it gets confusing."
"If Aurors arrive, we'll retreat," Hermione said.
"Standard Auror procedure is to cast Anti-Apparition Jinxes first thing," wizarding Geroge pointed out.
"We won't apparate," Ron told him. "We have two escape routes according to Dumbledore's plan."
"But getting away will be a little tricky," Harry said. "We'll be making liberal use of smoke grenades and flashbangs."
"No spells?"
"No spells that the average wizard wouldn't be able to cast - that might cause suspicion to fall on us. That's also why we will all be in disguise," Hermione added. "Muggle disguises."
"Oh! Neat!"
City of Westminster, London, Wizarding World, February 27th, 2006
"It looks deserted, according to our cameras," Harry reported.
"It's Sunday. Only people like Percy would be working in the Ministry," Ron replied.
"Our Percy would live in the Ministry if his wife let him," wizarding Fred said, chuckling.
Ron joined in, briefly laughing. His brother had actually stayed the night in his office a few times. Then he checked his watch. "Let's get ready; our window of opportunity is approaching quickly."
Fortunately, they were already in disguise, with wigs hiding their red hair and padded overalls hiding the shape of their bodies. Four men - the expected group of cleaning men for this weekend. According to the data in the government systems, of course, which had already been carefully manipulated by Luna.
Ten minutes later, they pulled up to the entrance of the underground parking lot for the government buildings in the area. The codes Luna had given them worked, and the bored-looking guard just waved them through after a cursory check of their documents. With their special gear and weapons shrunk and hidden thanks to Hermione, the metal detectors didn't sound the alarm either.
And then they were inside the building. According to their surveillance, the lift wasn't covered - but that was no reason to assume they would have privacy there. Not that they needed privacy - the plan was quite simple, after all.
Walk in, make your way to the archives, replace a certain file and adjust the electronic files. Nothing that should pose problems for a dedicated team.
Until, in a maintenance tunnel leading to the archives, Fred suddenly yelled: "Don't move! There's magic ahead!"
Ron froze, as did Harry. The two wizards passed them, wands flashing.
"Yes," wizarding George confirmed. "A detection spell, I think."
"I think you're right."
"Of course I am."
Ron rolled his eyes. "Get rid of it, please."
"Already working on it!" wizarding George replied. "This shouldn't take long."
"This can't take long," Ron told him. "We've only got two hours until the guards next make their rounds."
"Don't rush us; if that spell is linked to older spells, or even wards…"
Ron winced - he could imagine the destruction. But they were here for a reason, and he wouldn't let anything stop them.
"Who would've thought Hermione Granger, teacher's pet extraordinaire, would stoop to stealing school records?"
She scowled at Ron. "First, we're not stealing any records - we're merely copying them."
"Well, isn't that theft of intellectual property?" Harry asked.
She sniffed. "School records aren't intellectual property." Well, not in the muggle world.
"But they're not meant to be public," Harry said.
"This is an emergency," she retorted. "We need to see Tom Riddle's school records." The boy whose diary they had found - and lost again - was at the centre of this whole affair.
Besides, she was curious what the school's records would say about her - and how she matched up to someone who had received a special commendation from the school, and who had apparently created a unique magic item while he was still a student.
"Let's go," she whispered.
"Let's check if there's anyone around, first," Harry corrected her.
"Yes," Ron added. "Wouldn't want you to curse Neville again."
"That was one time!" she hissed. And Neville had deserved it, trying to stop them from doing what was right.
Harry disappeared under his Invisibility Cloak and snuck down the stairs to the common room - she heard some of the steps creak. She really needed to learn a silencing charm and the Disillusionment Charm; she didn't like to depend on Harry's heirloom for such things.
But first, they needed the records. She checked if the magical camera she had acquired was in working order - it was - before Harry returned.
"The coast is clear!" he whispered.
A minute later, they were in the hallway outside their dorm, making their way towards the dungeons of Hogwarts. Where the archives were supposed to be.
Black Lake, Scotland, February 21st, 2006
Hermione shook her head with a smile. "I've seen more gold in one place, but only once." She nodded at the chest that Harry and Sirius had opened after pushing it into the lab.
"Oh?" Dumbledore looked honestly surprised. That didn't have to mean anything, of course, given his skills in misdirection and lying.
"I visited Harry's - my Harry's - vault in Gringotts when we needed money for our mission during the war," she said.
Ron resisted the sudden urge to whistle. That must have been a lot of gold. The other Harry was probably richer than Ron's friend. Perhaps even richer than Sirius.
"More than this? How much more? And what was the price for gold at the time?" Sirius asked.
"Sirius!" Harry hissed.
"What? I'm curious about whether I'm still the richest member of our family if we count our dimensional counterparts." The man grinned.
"Harry spent a lot of his gold on rebuilding Wizarding Britain," Hermione said. "That includes Sirius's fortune, which he inherited."
"He didn't give the gold away, did he?" Sirius, for all his usual casual stance towards his own wealth, looked shocked.
"You might call it long-term investing. But he won't get a return for several years - or at all, in some cases," Hermione told him.
"So, technically, he might be richer, but he's strapped for cash, and should he be forced to liquidate his investments, he'd take a huge loss?" Sirius asked.
"That sounds about right," Hermione agreed. "Some investments were more like donations, anyway."
"So that means I'm still the richest member of our extended family!" Sirius beamed.
"And the vainest as well," Harry said. "As if it mattered."
"Of course it matters!" Sirius shook his head. "Money matters. Influence matters. If Hermione's friends were rich enough, we wouldn't have to bribe the Ministry - they would've done it long ago."
"If Harry were that rich, he wouldn't have needed to bribe the Ministry; he could've paid for an alternative prison system himself."
That sounded like a bribe - indirectly, at least, since it would free up funds. On the other hand, Ron was pretty sure that wizarding Harry would've had the funds to abolish Azkaban, but had spent it on other things that needed funding.
"Well, it would have simplified matters. But we have to deal with the situation at hand, not the situation in which we'd like to be," Dumbledore said. "And that means handing over this 'investment' à fonds perdus' to the Ministry of Magic in a form they'll accept and which will mask its true origin."
"We're going to launder money, in other words," Ron said.
"Barely a week out of CI5, and we're already breaking the law." Harry grinned.
"Money laundering is actually not illegal in Wizarding Britain. And as long as it's not money stolen from goblins, it's not illegal in Gringotts, either," Hermione explained with a frown. "If we could trust the goblins not to sell us out, we could simply exchange the gold bars for specie - Galleons, gold coins minted by the goblins of Gringotts."
"You've explained that to us." Dumbledore shook his head. "I still find myself wondering what would have possessed British wizards to let goblins mint their coin and handle their banking. Then again, Britain keeps trusting the United States despite several rather impressive examples of how foolish that stance can be."
Ron wasn't about to discuss politics - and most of it rather ancient politics - with the old man. "But you said that we can't trust the goblins," he addressed Hermione.
"We can't." Hermione grimaced. "My friends and I committed the second successful break-in into Gringotts that we know of, and the goblins bear grudges."
"You robbed a bank?" Sirius gasped. "The bank of Wizarding Britain?"
"It was during the war. And we had no choice - Voldemort had stashed one of his Horcruxes in a vault there, and the goblins wouldn't cooperate. And it wasn't a robbery - we snuck in. We only had to fight our way out after we were discovered."
Harry snickered. "We're in the presence of a master criminal, gents!"
Dumbledore chuckled as well. "Needs must, Dr Granger - I understand that perfectly. However, it does present us with a slight problem."
"Yes. The goblins couldn't do anything against Harry and Ron, not with them being some of the most famous and most influential wizards after the war, and they officially pardoned all of us, but they would love to hurt me if they could do so without breaking any treaties or laws. And passing on information about suspected crimes…" She shrugged. "We'll have to launder the money so the goblins will be fooled."
Dumbledore's smile grew wider. "I love a good challenge."
*****
Soho, London, Wizarding World, February 22nd, 2006
"Normally, we could simply acquire a piece of antique furniture, claim we found it in the attic, and use it to explain where the money came from," Dumbledore said after everyone had sat down in the cosy café in Soho he'd recommended - protected by a privacy charm Hermione had cast. "Unfortunately, the amount of money we need to convince the Ministry to do what is right and decent is too high for such a cover. We could use multiple pieces, but that would strain credibility."
"The Ministry wouldn't care," Hermione told them. "Nor would they notice. A number of their employees probably have entire suites of valuable furniture stashed in their attics of which they aren't aware. But we cannot risk underestimating the goblins. They handle the finances of Wizarding Britain, and they have ties to the muggle economy. They have to, to be able to exchange pounds for Galleons for muggleborns so they can shop in Diagon Alley."
"That alone wouldn't require close ties or in-depth experience with Britain's economy and financial system," Dumbledore retorted. "A single exchange of goods that have a value in both countries would suffice for the sort of sums needed to pay for school supplies. The numbers are just not that large. Even if every muggleborn were to work in Wizarding Britain but live amongst muggles, therefore needing a constant supply of pounds, that could be easily handled by selling precious metals."
Hermione frowned. "Yes, but Gringotts does have close ties to - or interests in, at least - the British economy. We found that out when we researched the bank for our…"
"Heist?" Ron asked with a grin.
"...our mission." Hermione pursed her lips. "We didn't take anything other than our objective, the possession of which was, in any case, illegal."
"And the goblins still hate you for it?" Harry looked surprised.
Hermione blushed. "We did cause considerable collateral damage when we fled the premises."
"What did you do?" Sirius asked. "Blow up their vaults?"
"We released a dragon the goblins were using as a guard," she replied. "Though that was also completely justified - they were keeping the poor thing chained up in the lowest level of the bank!"
She set a dragon loose in a bank… Ron chuckled. It seemed that Hermione was a little more like Luna than she wanted to admit.
"Further, we decided on using gold to transfer the money, not antiques or art, since it's generally more discreet," Dumbledore went on.
"Unless it's Nazi gold," Ron pointed out.
If the interruption annoyed the old man, he didn't show it. He smiled and nodded. "Indeed - we actually considered using that as a cover, hinting at having found a Nazi submarine which had been transporting gold. Alas, while quite entertaining, it would have provided the goblins with the opportunity to inform the British authorities about a possible crime, which would have almost certainly led to a thorough investigation of Dr Granger's finances. And since she was missing for seven years, that would certainly turn up a few discrepancies unless the Ministry of Magic were to intervene. And that would, most likely, be a little counter-productive."
"So, now that we know what we won't be using as a cover story, how about telling us what we'll actually be using? So we can start memorising the details?" Sirius cocked his head as he smiled, showing his teeth.
"Indeed!" Once again, Dumbledore remained unflappable. "We'll be using the opportunity to also deal with Mr Weasley's missing identity in this world."
Ron blinked. The old man couldn't mean…
"You want to break into the government's archives to create an identity for Ron and set him up with the gold?" Harry blurted out.
"Correct. I'm thinking of you being raised by a rich uncle who had shares in an African gold mine before he was forced to leave the continent for the mother country." Dumbledore smiled.
"That sounds oddly specific," Ron commented.
"It's a background my men used for a sting operation that needed to be kept off the official records. Seeing as our two worlds show remarkable parallels, I have no doubt that we can duplicate the feat and insert your and your late uncle's identities, with no one the wiser. All we need to do is to break into a few archives and one data centre." Dumbledore beamed at them.
Ron blinked. "First, the Kremlin and now Whitehall?"
"What's next, Buckingham Palace?" Harry quipped.
Dumbledore chuckled. "Fortunately, Her Majesty the Queen isn't involved in the day to day running of the country, so we won't be forced to intrude on her home."
"Good. As an officer in the Blues and Royals, I would be honour-bound to stop you," Sirius said with a grin. "The Treasury, though, has been known as the British Army's arch-enemy for centuries."
"Oh, indeed. I must confess that I'm looking forward to pulling one over that particular part of Her Majesty's Government."
Great, Ron thought.
*****
City of Westminster, London, Wizarding World, February 23rd, 2006
"I think we're taking this a little too lightly," Ron said as he walked to the kitchen of the apartment they had rented near - but not too close - to their target. Far enough that it wouldn't trigger any flags in the system.
"How so?" Harry asked from where he was looking at the laptops on the dining table which showed the feeds from the cameras they had placed the night before - while invisible and on brooms.
"We did break into the Kremlin, but that was with the help of magic, in a world without magic. And we were still almost caught by Putin's guards," Ron explained. "This time? We're up against a government which knows about magic, at least at the highest levels, and in a world with thousands of wizards and witches - organised wizards and witches with countries of their own and a vested interest in policing magic."
"But we're not trying to kidnap the Prime Minister, and I don't think the clerks and guards in the archives are aware of magic," Harry replied. "Nor would they expect an attack."
"But they might be following procedures which were implemented with magic in mind. And the Ministry might be keeping an eye on the archives to prevent a wizard from amassing wealth by changing entries. Like what we're planning to do."
"We're not gaining anything other than a cover story for the money Dumbledore's donating," Harry retorted.
"But we could do so much more," Ron said.
His friend shrugged. "Only if we were aware of assets without an actual or known owner. Trying to take over a building owned by someone else would only draw attention to the attempt, and not even the government would be so foolish as to simply accept the results from the archives."
"Sirius would disagree," Ron told him.
"He's not unbiased." Harry snorted. "And Hermione confirmed that the building isn't under magical protection."
Hermione had checked - Ron had been there - but she hadn't checked inside the building. He couldn't shake his gut feeling that this wouldn't be as easy as the others expected. Too much could go wrong. "They might have some hidden alerts - or protections on the archives themselves." Or some magical guard-beasts or constructs.
"I actually don't really think that the wizards care much about the muggle government," Harry said. "Not after what we've heard."
"We still can't risk it," Ron replied.
"We won't. We're just going to add a few records, that's all. We won't even change any existing entries." Harry grinned. "You know that as long as nothing's missing, people are less likely to notice anything amiss."
Ron snorted. That was how they had once managed to infiltrate a drug-smuggling organisation - they had added more money to the stash they had discovered. Money they could trace. But still... "I guess I just worry that this is too good to be true." After all, he'd end up with a solid ID in this world, Hermione's world. He would have a paper trail, a history - a legal existence. He wouldn't have to fear being mistaken for this world's Ron any more - or be exposed as a double, should he run into trouble with the law.
"It isn't," Harry said, grinning more widely. "You'll have to pay taxes here and in our world."
Ron snorted. Of course his friend would know what Ron was thinking. "It won't be my money. Dumbledore will have to pay them."
"Then you'll owe him."
"Compared to what we already owe him? It'll be a drop in the ocean." Ron scoffed. He didn't like it, but it wasn't as if they had a better alternative. Which was pretty much how Dumbledore liked it, of course.
Harry grunted. "That's quite cavalier of you."
"I like to call it realistic. Or opportunistic." And Ron wasn't so naive as to really feel obligated to Dumbledore. The old man was using them, so it was perfectly fine to use him in return. "Anyway, focus on tracking the schedules of the guards." That was their task, after all.
Harry scoffed. "We won't be sneaking in during the day. What we need are the night schedules."
"You never know what you might need," Ron told him.
"Is that a quote from Moody or Hermione?"
"Arse."
Harry laughed but focused on the screens again. And Ron returned to studying the blueprints. He wasn't about to underestimate the muggle government here.
Despite his experiences in his own world.
*****
Black Lake, Scotland, February 23rd, 2006
He was getting used to commuting to another world - and across all of Britain - Ron realised as he stepped through the portal into Hermione's lab. Or, rather, into the heavily guarded portal room - he could spot a gun emplacement, a sentry gun, as far as he could tell, that hadn't been there when he had left.
"Isn't that a little obvious?" Harry asked, looking at the light machine gun as well.
"It'll be hidden once they're done."
Ron whirled and had his gun out before he recognised the voice - Fred. Or George. No, he realised as he didn't see anyone, wizarding Fred or George. Unless this was the work of hidden microphones…
"Whoa! Don't shoot!"
"We're not your brothers! We're their innocent counterparts!"
Ron sighed as he holstered his gun. "Don't do that. We almost shot you. Unless you had cast a Shield Charm."
"Not yet," one of the still invisible wizards replied. "That was supposed to be the next test."
"Test?" Harry asked, frowning as he reholstered his own pistol.
The two wizards faded into view. "Testing the new sensors that were installed."
"Ah." Ron looked around, spotting a few more not-quite-perfectly-concealed additions to the room.
"Yes! Your Grindelwald is a firm believer in the idea that 'anything the Russians can do we can do better'," wizarding Fred said with a familiar grin, "and hasn't spared any expense to prove it true."
"He's had his people duplicate and improve on all the sensors from your Kremlin," wizarding George added. "So far, they're working well."
"We'll find a way to beat them, though," his brother boasted. "And then we'll help with finding a way to beat what beat them."
"Ah." Harry echoed Ron. "Did you add magical defences as well?"
"Protective enchantments?" wizarding George cocked his head. "We're still working on those - Hermione did a good job."
"Not a perfect job, mind you," his brother went on. "But she's not a Curse-Breaker."
"Neither are you," Ron said.
"No, but we've got a lot of experience with magical defences," wizarding Fred claimed. "We had to, in our line of business."
"And, essentially, wards are just a variant of protective charms," wizarding George told them.
"Wards?"
"Permanent magical defences. You can cast protective charms so that they'll last a long time, if you're good. Perhaps even forever, if you're Dumbledore. Our Dumbledore. Not that you could test that. But they won't grow more powerful with age, nor will they be particularly hard to dispel - for a decent Curse-Breaker," the wizard explained.
"Wards can be downright lethal, old boy," his brother added. "And that's the reason why we had so much trouble with the richer Death Eaters - they weren't actually that good with a wand, but their wards have had centuries to grow. Nasty business, that."
Ron could imagine. "Well, that isn't an option for us."
"But you can do the next best thing if you're clever and talented," wizarding George said.
"Which we are," the other twin added. "And handsome and charming, too!"
"Sure you are," Harry replied in a flat tone.
"Oi!"
Ron laughed. "Well, don't let us hold you up any longer. We've got a report to make and a break-in to plan."
"That won't please Ginny - well, this world's Ginny," wizarding Fred said.
"Ginny's here?" Harry frowned. "She's supposed to be training for her comeback on the tour."
"She probably finished training in London and then called Hermione or Luna for a lift here," Ron told him.
"Hermione," wizarding Fred confirmed. "She complained that Luna's cell phone wasn't working."
Probably because Luna was with her counterpart in their hidden magical habitat.
"And we haven't received cell phones that work in this world, yet," wizarding George said. "Though Luna's said she'll help us become untraceable."
That was a worrying smile. Very worrying.
"Do you know where Ginny is?" Harry asked.
"In the lounge, watching the telly," wizarding Fred told him. "Probably growing more and more annoyed with every moment you spend talking to us if she's anything like our sister. Which she seems to be."
"But don't worry, we'll explain to her that you were simply tired."
Harry rolled his eyes. "Perhaps you should watch some TV as well, if only to learn better jokes."
"Oi!"
Harry scoffed and left the room, and the twins turned towards Ron.
He held up a hand before they could start. "Hermione knows you. Any attempt to get me in trouble with her will backfire."
"That's a risk we're willing to take." Wizarding Fred grinned.
"Well, what about your work here?" Ron asked. "Think Grindelwald will be happy to hear you held up everyone because you wanted to prank people?"
"Dumbledore would be happy!"
That was why Ron hadn't mentioned the old spymaster, but rather his cranky German partner.
"But point taken. Now get lost! You're holding up an entire shift!"
Ron shook his head and left the portal room.
*****
He found Hermione in her new laboratory in front of a whiteboard filled with various wordings, poring over several notebooks and loose sheets. "Hey!"
She looked up and blinked. "Oh. You're back already?"
"I feel so loved," he replied, chuckling.
She blushed in response even as she frowned at him. "I didn't mean it like that! I just realised that I lost track of time."
"Is that a good thing?" He stepped over to her desk and craned his neck, peering at the notes. They were all variations of the wording for the Fidelius Charm.
"It would be a good thing if I had made significant progress." She sighed.
He pointed at one of the sheets. "That sounds like it covers everything."
"Yes. It's also half a page. I can't cast the spell with such a long secret."
"Oh."
"I'll have to condense things. But even so…"
"...you'll have to make compromises," he finished for her.
"Yes." Another sigh had her slumping over.
He knew very well that she hated compromising on anything, but didn't mention it.
"Well, at least Operation: Official Identity looks like it'll happen on schedule," he said, carefully sitting down on the edge of her desk - he didn't need to get ink stains on another pair of trousers.
"Oh. You already got the guard schedule?" She tilted her head, looking at him.
"We'll have it tomorrow. The cameras are working fine." He shrugged. "If the floorplans and security systems are the same as in this world and there's no magical protection, we shouldn't have any trouble executing Dumbledore's plans."
"'If'," she said. "Otherwise, you'll be in trouble."
"I expect there to be trouble," he replied. "When do things ever go according to plan for us?"
She shook her head. "That's not a logical conclusion. Just because we've had some bad luck in the past doesn't mean it'll continue to plague us at every opportunity."
"That's the logical argument. But my gut disagrees."
"You mean Moody's training disagrees."
"That too." He nodded. "But yes, I'm still not as optimistic as Dumbledore." The old man was probably a little too affected by his sudden rejuvenation, in Ron's opinion. Living vicariously through others was a problem if said others were sent to break into government buildings using decades-old plans. On the other hand, the British government was slow to change anything without a pressing reason.
But in Hermione's world, the government knew about magic. Ron simply couldn't believe they wouldn't take at least some basic countermeasures.
"Well, neither am I," Hermione said. "So let's get ready for dinner. We can discuss things with Dumbledore then."
*****
"I've compared the results from Mr Potter and Mr Weasley's reconnaissance, and I've confirmed that the building conforms in every significant way to its counterpart in our world," Dumbledore announced as he savoured a glass of port. "With the exception of potential magical security measures, of course."
"Of course." Harry smiled rather tensely.
"Don't worry," wizarding Fred said. "Leave the magic to us - we'll deal with it. You just focus on the muggle stuff."
"This isn't the same as infiltrating wizarding homes," Hermione told them with a sharp glare.
"We've also infiltrated the Ministry," wizarding George pointed out.
"That wasn't exactly a challenge," Hermione retorted. "The Ministry's security wasn't very good - even though it should've been."
"We've also studied your defences here," the wizard told her. "And I doubt that the muggle archives are as well protected as the portal."
"And those defences wouldn't stop us," his brother added.
"While I doubt that the government would spend as much money on the security of their archives as we are currently spending on this location, the Treasury has never been a bastion of common sense, and I cannot claim it would be impossible to encounter advanced sensors set up to detect magical intruders," Dumbledore said. "However, we will prepare for that eventuality - we shall proceed with the utmost caution."
"That'll require a little more preparation," Ron replied. "Especially if we're working with people who haven't worked with us before." And who had no experience with muggle tactics.
"I think that would be prudent, yes." Dumbledore nodded.
"And I think we should run a few exercises so Fred and George know how we work," Harry added.
Ron grinned. That was a great idea. "We'll start with taking you on our regular morning run."
"'Morning run'?" Wizarding Fred looked a lot less confident than before. As did his brother.
"We'll start easy - just one lap around the lake, I think," Harry said.
Ginny scowled. "I'll need at least two for a decent workout."
"They won't last two laps," Ron told her.
"Not without cheating and using magic," Hermione added.
"Oi!"
"I think they're taking the mickey," wizarding George said.
Ron's grin widened.
*****
Black Lake, Scotland, February 24th, 2006
The twins started talking as soon as Ron entered the lounge.
"You're evil. Evil."
"You may look like a Weasley, but you're far too cruel to be one."
"Evil."
"Cruel."
Ron rolled his eyes. "You're getting repetitive," he told them as he took a seat at the table. Their reaction to the morning run had been amusing at first, but now it was merely annoying.
"So were you when we ran!"
He shrugged. "I wasn't aiming for originality."
"Besides, we were going easy on you," Ginny said as she entered, followed by Harry. Her hair was still a little wet - unlike the twins, who had apparated into the private areas of the laboratory to avoid tipping off the MI5 guards, the rest of their group had run back to the lab. "When we started doing this, we ran faster and for longer."
"'Faster and longer'?" Wizarding Fred perked up.
"Don't!" Hermione snapped as she joined Ron. "It's not as funny as you think."
Harry glared at the twin as well.
"Everyone's a critic," the wizard complained, crossing his arms and huffing.
"But not everyone's an out of shape slowpoke," Ginny retorted. "Even Hermione was faster than you when we started."
Ron saw Hermione briefly frowning at the indirect insult. "Now that we know that Fred and George won't win any track and field events, we should focus on the next part of the training and evaluation drill," she said as she grabbed the teapot to fill her cup - or mug, this time. She must be thirsty, Ron realised; The twins didn't know it, but today's run had been a little more challenging than usual.
"The next part?" wizarding George asked.
"Weapons training."
"Oh!" Suddenly, both wizards were beaming at them. "The fun part!"
"No, the dangerous part," Harry corrected them. "You don't have fun with guns."
"Not as a rookie, at least." Sirius must have overheard them on the way since he spoke just as he entered the lounge. "I could tell you stories of what happens when people fool around with guns…"
"Please do," Hermione told him. "It might impress upon them the consequences of failing to take firearms seriously. I don't hold out much hope, knowing them, but the possibility, however scant, remains."
Ron hoped she was mostly joking. Guns weren't toys.
"Oi!"
"Prove me wrong," she told them.
"We will!"
Sirius, of course, was smiling widely at the chance to finally repeat all the gruesome stories which everyone who knew him had grown tired of long ago. "So, this was shortly after the Argies had surrendered…"
"'Argies'?" wizarding Fred asked.
"The Argentinians. In the Falklands War," Sirius replied.
"'Falklands War'?"
The former officer sighed. "Alright. Short history lesson…"
Ron tuned him out and focused on eating breakfast. They had been running a bit more than usual, after all, and he had worked up an appetite.
*****
After breakfast, the twins had seemed to have been at least a little sobered by Sirius's stories - which tended to change whenever he told them, but that was neither here nor there. But now, on the shores of the Black Lake, it was obvious that even the detailed - and, in Ron's opinion, completely made-up - tale of the soldier who had shot his own foot off hadn't made them take this seriously enough not to stare with open glee at the rifles Harry and Ron had brought with them.
He double-checked that the fire-control selector was limited to semi-automatic before clearing his throat. "So! You've learned how a gun works. Now let us demonstrate what one can do." He held his hand up as the twins reached for the gun. "We will demonstrate."
Perhaps blowing through a few trees would impress the wizards enough to handle the rifles with caution. Ron wasn't very optimistic, though - wizards generally didn't seem to take physical dangers as seriously as they should. Then again, they could heal most injuries easily. Most.
"Watch the tree there," he said as he grabbed the rifle. "We've installed a shot trap behind it." Hermione had conjured it up, which greatly facilitated training, of course. And would help to fool MI5.
He raised the rifle to his shoulder, aimed and started pulling the trigger, emptying half a magazine into the tree.
The twins weren't impressed, though, even if they didn't say so - he could tell from their expressions; his own brothers had taught him that.
Well, Harry and Ron weren't done, yet. "Now, let's look how long it takes to go through a Shield Charm."
Hermione flicked her wand, and a shimmering field of magical energy appeared in front of the tree.
It took the rest of the magazine to shatter it, but the twins finally looked suitably impressed that they could begin teaching them basic firearms safety.
*****
"Hah! Every shot a hit! Score!"
"That was luck, Fred!"
"Fred? I'm George!"
"I thought I was George?"
"No, today I'm Fred."
Ron sighed and rolled his eyes. After an hour on the improvised shooting range, the twins were scoring decently - for beginners. Which meant they were getting cocky again. "Alright," he said. "Now let's get the laser tag gear and see how you do in the field. Without you being able to shoot yourself - or us - by mistake."
"Oi! We wouldn't do that!"
"We fought in the war!"
"But you've never handled guns in the field," Harry replied. "Let's get you suited up."
"What's this 'laser tag' anyway?"
"It's called Ausbildungsgerät Duellsimulator, in German," Ron explained. "It lets you shoot rays of light at each other instead of bullets, and records and reports when you hit someone."
"It's great for exercises," Harry added with a grin.
"So we're forming teams?" wizarding Fred asked. "Like for Quidditch?"
"Yes," Hermione told him. "And I'll be the referee, to ensure you don't use magic to cheat."
Ron took note of how the faces of the twins fell slightly in response to this. Really, had they expected anything else? "First, it'll be you two against me and Harry," he told them. "Later, we'll switch the teams up."
"Alright!"
*****
"Well, that went… as expected," Harry said an hour later, back in the warm laboratory's lounge.
"Fred and George died five times each - and once they shot each other by mistake," Hermione said, looking through the records on her computer.
"That's because you cheated!" wizarding Fred protested. "You used smoke bombs."
"Only magic wasn't allowed," Ron told him. "Everything else was perfectly fine."
"That's not fair! We didn't know about all our options!" wizarding George added - a little more vehemently than usual, Ron noted.
"Exactly," Harry said with a smirk, "and it's best to learn in training that you are out of your depth rather than in the field. You won't know everything muggles can do."
"So… how common are smoke bombs?"
"Less common than flashbangs," Ron replied, "but not very rare. If the police are called in and encounter the kind of resistance we can put up, they'll call reinforcements, who will come with such grenades."
"And they'll bring assault rifles as well," Harry added. "Anyway, you now know about crossfire and that you really need to check your target before you shoot."
"And that you're cheaters!" wizarding George repeated. "You used some muggle flying machines to track us!"
"Yes, we did." Ron grinned. "Just to show that you can't underestimate the muggle defences of the archives."
"We couldn't use magic or we'd have easily fooled your machines!"
"Could you?" Harry shook his head. "You were surrounded by snow, and we were using thermographic cameras. Even if you had disillusioned yourselves, we could've tracked the heat leaving your bodies."
"And melting the snow," Ron added. "Though you did erase your tracks quite competently."
"Thank you. But those tricks won't work inside a building!"
"That depends on how sensitive the camera resolution is. And how easily your surroundings absorb heat," Hermione added. "It wasn't a problem when we were infiltrating the Kremlin since we were shrunk to a size that was too small to trigger any sensors and were disillusioned. But we won't be doing the same thing here."
"Why not? If it works…" Wizarding Fred shrugged.
"It's also quite dangerous," she replied. "All sorts of insects and other animals are a threat. And if there are magical defences, we'd have to unshrink anyway."
"Right, I'd rather not be eaten by a spider," wizarding George said.
"Yes. It would make a terrible story," his brother agreed. "Now if it were an Acromantula…"
Ron cleared his throat. He really didn't want to think or talk about giant spiders killing people. Not even his brothers' counterparts. "So… now that you know a little more about guns, remember: Don't get in front of a gun. Stay behind us and let us shoot whatever needs to be shot."
"We can do that. I think." Wizarding Fred nodded.
"Unless Aurors start apparating behind us," his brother added. "Then it gets confusing."
"If Aurors arrive, we'll retreat," Hermione said.
"Standard Auror procedure is to cast Anti-Apparition Jinxes first thing," wizarding Geroge pointed out.
"We won't apparate," Ron told him. "We have two escape routes according to Dumbledore's plan."
"But getting away will be a little tricky," Harry said. "We'll be making liberal use of smoke grenades and flashbangs."
"No spells?"
"No spells that the average wizard wouldn't be able to cast - that might cause suspicion to fall on us. That's also why we will all be in disguise," Hermione added. "Muggle disguises."
"Oh! Neat!"
*****
City of Westminster, London, Wizarding World, February 27th, 2006
"It looks deserted, according to our cameras," Harry reported.
"It's Sunday. Only people like Percy would be working in the Ministry," Ron replied.
"Our Percy would live in the Ministry if his wife let him," wizarding Fred said, chuckling.
Ron joined in, briefly laughing. His brother had actually stayed the night in his office a few times. Then he checked his watch. "Let's get ready; our window of opportunity is approaching quickly."
Fortunately, they were already in disguise, with wigs hiding their red hair and padded overalls hiding the shape of their bodies. Four men - the expected group of cleaning men for this weekend. According to the data in the government systems, of course, which had already been carefully manipulated by Luna.
Ten minutes later, they pulled up to the entrance of the underground parking lot for the government buildings in the area. The codes Luna had given them worked, and the bored-looking guard just waved them through after a cursory check of their documents. With their special gear and weapons shrunk and hidden thanks to Hermione, the metal detectors didn't sound the alarm either.
And then they were inside the building. According to their surveillance, the lift wasn't covered - but that was no reason to assume they would have privacy there. Not that they needed privacy - the plan was quite simple, after all.
Walk in, make your way to the archives, replace a certain file and adjust the electronic files. Nothing that should pose problems for a dedicated team.
Until, in a maintenance tunnel leading to the archives, Fred suddenly yelled: "Don't move! There's magic ahead!"
Ron froze, as did Harry. The two wizards passed them, wands flashing.
"Yes," wizarding George confirmed. "A detection spell, I think."
"I think you're right."
"Of course I am."
Ron rolled his eyes. "Get rid of it, please."
"Already working on it!" wizarding George replied. "This shouldn't take long."
"This can't take long," Ron told him. "We've only got two hours until the guards next make their rounds."
"Don't rush us; if that spell is linked to older spells, or even wards…"
Ron winced - he could imagine the destruction. But they were here for a reason, and he wouldn't let anything stop them.
*****
"Who would've thought Hermione Granger, teacher's pet extraordinaire, would stoop to stealing school records?"
She scowled at Ron. "First, we're not stealing any records - we're merely copying them."
"Well, isn't that theft of intellectual property?" Harry asked.
She sniffed. "School records aren't intellectual property." Well, not in the muggle world.
"But they're not meant to be public," Harry said.
"This is an emergency," she retorted. "We need to see Tom Riddle's school records." The boy whose diary they had found - and lost again - was at the centre of this whole affair.
Besides, she was curious what the school's records would say about her - and how she matched up to someone who had received a special commendation from the school, and who had apparently created a unique magic item while he was still a student.
"Let's go," she whispered.
"Let's check if there's anyone around, first," Harry corrected her.
"Yes," Ron added. "Wouldn't want you to curse Neville again."
"That was one time!" she hissed. And Neville had deserved it, trying to stop them from doing what was right.
Harry disappeared under his Invisibility Cloak and snuck down the stairs to the common room - she heard some of the steps creak. She really needed to learn a silencing charm and the Disillusionment Charm; she didn't like to depend on Harry's heirloom for such things.
But first, they needed the records. She checked if the magical camera she had acquired was in working order - it was - before Harry returned.
"The coast is clear!" he whispered.
A minute later, they were in the hallway outside their dorm, making their way towards the dungeons of Hogwarts. Where the archives were supposed to be.
*****
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