Winter came and went, but Hermione remained patient. She had the Ring and the Diadem, and only the Diary posed a serious problem. Lucius Malfoy already had possession of it, and she could always get Vici to bring her, but she was completely unsure what his wards consisted of. Sure, it allowed house elves through, but what about Hermione? Would they detect her? She’d rather not set off any alarms at all, seeing as she would still have to break into Gringott’s and probably not catch Voldemort’s attention any more than necessary.