Sirius POV
The marble steps of Gringotts gleamed in the morning sun, but to me it felt like walking into a battlefield. The diary weighed heavily in my hand even through the iron and runes sealing the case. I could feel it humming with foul intent, like it wanted to wriggle free and crawl into some child's hands again.
Remus walked beside me, his jaw set tight. Neither of us spoke until the goblin guards waved us through the great bronze doors and down into the cooler shadows of the bank.
Griphook was waiting for us as we walked into his office. His gaze dropped instantly to the case. "You brought it."
"Not a minute later than I had to," I said, dropping the box onto the heavy stone table.
The goblins wasted no time in it's disposal. Runes flared along the table's edge as two curse-breakers stepped forward in heavily warded gloves. They opened the case and the stench of rot and old magic spilled out, acrid enough to make my throat burn.
The diary didn't look like much. Just worn black leather with edges fraying from use. But when the goblins began the cleansing ritual, it screamed.
Ink bled out of the pages dripping onto the stone before burning into smoke. Letters scrawled themselves across the open pages in Tom Riddle's neat hand only to shriek into flames and vanish. The cover writhed, buckled, and then burst into an oily smoke that formed twisted faces, until a final deep crack split it down the spine.
When it was over, only ash and charred leather scraps remained.
Remus exhaled slowly. I hadn't even realized he'd been holding his breath. My own fists ached from how tightly I'd curled them.
"One less piece of him," I muttered, though it felt more like grit on my tongue than a triumph.
Griphook gave a curt nod, brushing the ash aside as if it were no more than dust. "As expected, the soul shard was purged. That makes five." His eyes glinted, hard and knowing. "But there is another, the last one if our calculations are correct."
My gut twisted as I ticked them off in my head. Cinthy's scar, Hufflepuffs cup, Ravenclaws crown, Slytherin's Locket, and Riddle's Diary makes it five down. That left only one out there.
He slid a parchment map across the table. A single black mark pulsed over a ruin scrawled Little Hangleton.
"The Gaunt shack," he said. "Our trackers confirmed the presence of another shard present we believe it's the missing Gaunt ring. But it is shielded by ancient wards tied to the bloodline itself. Even our best curse-breakers would be slaughtered if we attempted brute force."
I leaned forward, my eyes narrowing as I asked. "So what's the play?"
Griphook steepled his long fingers. "We have already recalled one of our most skilled from Egypt for the task his name is William Weasley. He will lead the effort to break the wards and retrieve the artifact safely."
I glanced at Remus, who raised his brows as he met my eyes. We both knew what that meant. This meant there was another Weasley tied to our plans. Another chance to sound out the family for the Exodus.
"Good," I said at last. "The sooner we get that sixth one out of the ground, the better."
I was about to close the case when my thoughts snagged on the other shadow haunting me and putting Cinthy in danger. "There's another matter." My voice dropped due to the seriousness of the topic at hand. "The Basilisk."
Griphook's eyes narrowed as he said. "Go on."
"There's a bloody great snake slithering under Hogwarts," I snapped. "That diary controlled a young witch to kill the roosters at Hogwarts and the Basilisk they released had already petrified a cat. I'm not waiting until it sinks its fangs into my daughter or another student. That creature needs to be taken down."
Murmurs rippled among the goblins still in the room about the Basilisk venom. I knew it was worth more to them than just gold.
"The Board of Governors will pay for its removal," I added, voice sharp. "You and I both know they'd rather hire quietly through Gringotts than let the Ministry sniff around their school. But I'm not handing this one over to strangers. Newt Scamander and I will be part of the team."
One of the older goblins inclined his head. "You understand the risk? Basilisk venom is death itself so is its gaze. Containment requires goblin-forged vessels, and the harvesting rights will be ours."
"Fine," I said, though my jaw ached with the bite of the word. "Just make sure the thing is dead before it makes corpses out of any of the children."
Griphook's teeth flashed into something that was not quite a smile when he said. "Then it is agreed."
That night, back at Grimmauld, the mirror on my desk pulsed faintly. As Hyacinth's face filled the glass with the soft glow of a fire behind her.
"Dad?" she said with a questioning tone, her eyebrows pinching together.
"Princess," I said, and even after the day I'd had, the word steadied me. "How's my girl?"
She rolled her eyes faintly. "I'm about ready to hex Lockhart. He's scheduled some ridiculous dueling demonstration and I swear, all I wanted to do is flatten him."
That dragged a laugh out of me. "Careful with those thoughts Minerva might actually let you, but the last thing I need is you in detention."
Her smile lingered, but I saw the curiosity in her eyes. "Did you destroy it? The diary?"
"Gone," I said firmly. "The goblins burned it out of existence just like the rest of them."
Relief softened her shoulders, but I didn't let her bask in it for long. "Listen, there's more information you need to know. The goblins traced another shard. A ring, buried under the Gaunt shack. It's guarded with old wards though, it's nasty work. They're bringing in Bill Weasley to break it."
Her eyes lit with that same spark James used to get whenever we had a plan. "Bill, really? That's a brilliant idea."
"Don't get ahead of yourself. It'll be extremely dangerous. Then there's the Basilisk that's still running around Hogwarts. I brought it up at Gringotts, and they're preparing a hunt with Newt and me on the team."
Her face went pale, but she didn't argue. Not that she didn't want to, she just knew I wouldn't let this mission pass into someone else's hands. So, she just swallowed hard and nodded.
"I'll keep clearing the path for you, Cinthy, I promise" I said softly. "You just focus on staying safe. Let me handle the monsters."
Her smile wobbled, but it held. "Alright, Dad, I love you."
The mirror dimmed, and I sat back, the weight of ash, venom, and ghosts pressing in on me. But for the first time today, I felt like we were winning.