From a901197441a17b094455ac4dcdc7b349a42fef72 Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001
From: Julian Blake Kongslie
Date: Fri, 13 Jan 2012 23:37:23 -0800
Subject: About half of chapter 2, A Little Greed.

---
 novellas/a-little-greed/02-honor.mdwn | 229 ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
 1 file changed, 229 insertions(+)
 create mode 100644 novellas/a-little-greed/02-honor.mdwn

(limited to 'novellas/a-little-greed/02-honor.mdwn')

diff --git a/novellas/a-little-greed/02-honor.mdwn b/novellas/a-little-greed/02-honor.mdwn
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..ba1011a
--- /dev/null
+++ b/novellas/a-little-greed/02-honor.mdwn
@@ -0,0 +1,229 @@
+[[!meta title="Chapter 2: Honor"]]
+
+Harry was not a normal child.
+
+Sharpaxe had done all he could for the boy, but he would simply never be more
+than adequate as a fighter. He was fearless and cunning, true, and his height
+and reach did him credit, but his body fundamentally lacked the speed and
+strength of a true Goblin warrior. Against animals, certainly, he won far more
+often than he lost; the boy had acquired a handsome collection of trophies. But
+against his peers, his only hope was exploiting the environment and taking them
+by surprise.
+
+*Trickery,* that's what it was. He was good at it, but it wasn't the way battles
+should be fought. Goblins wore their intentions on their sleeves, and Harry was
+far more subtle than any other in his clan.
+
+There was an old Goblin saying, «Every father learns his son is not a Warlord.»
+Sharpaxe, perhaps, learned this somewhat earlier than most.
+
+In other ways, however, Harry was a unique delight to raise. Goblins lived their
+lives quickly, and Sharpaxe had feared that Harry would not be able to complete
+his education with his peers at the age of 8. But Harry was intelligent, and far
+more curious and inquisitive than any of his peers; he had easily risen to the
+challenge and excelled beyond any expectation.
+
+Under glamours to appear as a Goblin to the foolish wizards, he had already
+worked as a teller on the main floor of Gringotts, and spent time apprenticed
+several different departments. Sharpaxe held no doubt that he would make a fine
+foreman or subchief someday, responsible for millions of galleons in assets.
+With luck, and his longer lifespan, he could easily be a department Head. Harry
+would certainly bring honor and glory to his clan.
+
+<hr />
+
+Harry's inquisitive nature and cunning had already reaped dividends. At the age
+of 7, Harry and his classmates had been taken to see the execution of a
+criminal; some worthless thief named Lacksack who had been caught attempting to
+steal from a vault. Harry had interrupted the proceedings with what would be a
+defining question for the future of Goblin society, «It's wrong to kill him,
+when there is money to be made, isn't it?»
+
+Every eye turned to face Harry. Ragnok, presiding over the execution as was his
+duty, considered the young Human carefully. After a moment, he responded, «How
+can money be made from a thief? He has no honor, no value.»
+
+«We can make money by his lies.» An uproar swelled in response to this; money
+from lies? Unthinkable!
+
+Ragnok quieted the assembly shortly, and demanded simply, «Explain!»
+
+«We Goblins,» here Harry included himself, «do not lie. Our oaths are our honor.
+Everyone knows this. But the Wizards do not trust in honor, and demand our oaths
+be contracts with magic.»
+
+This was true. Amongst the Goblins, oaths were simple and direct; a common
+farewell was «On my honor, I have not lied to you today.» But by treaty, any
+oaths given to wizards in Britain must be sworn on blood and magic; every
+contract was presented with the oath, "I swear on my blood that I have not
+deceived you or I shall die within the hour; so mote it be." The magic of the
+oath would ensure its truth; either the Goblin who swore it was truthful, or
+they would die. Goblins universally resented such a slight against their honor;
+no Goblin would willingly be called Oathbreaker!
+
+Harry continued, «Lacksack's life is already forfeit. Instead of executing him,
+use him to present a false contract to a wealthy client. The lazy wizard will
+not read the contract, as they never do, Lacksack will swear on his blood, the
+wizard will sign, and Lacksack will be gone from the room before he dies. Goblin
+honor is retained; the oath is true, it is not our fault that the foolish wizard
+will assume Lacksack would not willingly die.»
+
+A genuinely new idea to the Goblin mindset. There was little honor lost in lying
+to a wizard; they showed by their treaties and their laws that they had no honor
+themselves. The mechanics of the treaties would seem to prevent such deception,
+but Goblins knew a loophole when they saw one, and this was an interesting
+opportunity.
+
+Ragnok turned to Lacksack and pronounced, «You have shown yourself to be without
+honor. You have brought shame and disgrace to your family and your clan. This
+child offers you an opportunity to die a warrior's death in service to your
+Bank. Would you die this way?»
+
+The condemned needed little time to consider such an obvious question. «I would
+die a warrior's death, and bring what little honor I can back to my name.»
+
+«Then so be it. Lacksack, you are the first Liar of Gringotts. You are released
+to your family until a client is chosen for your task.»
+
+Harry was proud to have found profit for his Bank.
+
+<hr />
+
+Albus Dumbledore strode in to Gringotts bank early Saturday morning. He had to
+renew the loans Hogwarts established for its incoming underprivileged students
+and collect the various forms and monies needed to cover operating costs for the
+new term.
+
+The teller acknowledged his request to meet with Culthok, the Head of Hogwarts
+Accounts, and directed him to a conference room. Shortly thereafter, Albus was
+mildly surprised to see a Goblin he did not recognize enter with his documents.
+
+"Who are you? I was to meet with Culthok."
+
+"My apologies, but Culthok is unavailable today because of an internal matter in
+the Bank. I am Lacksack, and I am authorized to handle your needs today."
+
+"Very well, I assume everything is just as it was previously arranged last
+year?"
+
+Goblins were conservative when scouting unknown territory; the changes in the
+contract reflected this. A slight increase in interest rates on the loans, and a
+single fee duplicated. Nothing that could not be blamed on incompetence in
+transcription on Lacksack's part should the deception be caught.
+
+The briefest of scowls appeared on Lacksack's face, but he knew his duty to his
+Bank. He had failed once; never again. "Yes. Here are the contracts for you to
+sign. I swear on my blood that I have not deceived you or I shall die within the
+hour; so mote it be." A brief flash signaled magic's acceptance of the oath.
+
+Satisfied, Albus picked up the blood quill and signed each contract. Less than
+ten minutes later he left the bank, pleased that the Goblins had not complained
+about their lack of profit on the treaty-mandated Hogwarts loans. If only
+Culthok could be unavailable more often!
+
+Lacksack staggered as he exited the conference room, his blood already starting
+to boil in his veins. Ragnok awaited him in the office across the hall, and
+presented a goblet of fine screechnap wine, the traditional gift to a Goblin
+retiring from active duty in the bank. Lacksack drank, and sat to await his
+death. He had regained his honor; the first Liar had brought profit to his Bank.
+
+<hr />
+
+As Harry had predicted, the subtle changes were unnoticed, and Gringotts
+profited by the lie. A new weapon was added to their banking arsenal, to be used
+only with care and restraint lest it be discovered. Only the largest and most
+bureaucratically enfeebled clients were targeted, and only meager gains were
+sought. Even so, Gringotts profited. What few criminals there were in Goblin
+society soon found themselves in cells instead of bloody arenas, awaiting not
+execution but the opportunity to regain a little of their honor as Liars. None
+refused.
+
+Harry, too, profited. In thanks for his service to the Bank, a very small
+percentage of all Liar-derived profits was directed to his accounts. Sharpaxe
+was pleased to be able to reward his son this way. Harry had shown he could use
+his uniquely Human perspective to bring profit to the Bank; such behaviour
+should be encouraged.
+
+<hr />
+
+In other ways, Harry's curiosity was a burden on Sharpaxe. He deeply yearned to
+learn the arts of warding and wardbreaking, but Goblin cursebreakers found his
+magic unsuitable, and none of the Human cursebreakers were trusted with the
+knowledge of Harry's presence within the bank. There was little consensus on the
+nature of Harry's magic; it was known that wizards did not train their young
+until years later, so Sharpaxe could not say if Harry's inability to perform the
+Goblin wards was inherent to his species or merely a factor of age. Harry
+stubbornly persisted in his attempts; determined to learn one way or the other
+whether he could perform the magic he envied in his peers.
+
+At the very late (by Goblin standards) age of 9, Harry was rewarded for his
+diligence by his first non-accidental magic. It was a weak anti-theft ward,
+pitiful by Gringotts standards, but true Goblin magic nonetheless. Harry had
+some 6 years to make up in his practical education in magic, but with the theory
+already behind him, he made rapid progress. Harry was ecstatic; he would not be
+some weakling wand-waver, but could wield magic on his own power alone!
+
+Harry was also a dutiful student of politics. He understood his role in the
+Goblin nation: assist the reputation of Gringotts with his fame, grow to be an
+asset by becoming fully-trained as both a Goblin and a Wizard, assume his
+position as the Potter of Potter, claim his seat on the Wizengamot, and become a
+voice for the Goblins in government. Along the way, he was to collect allies
+and, if possible, additional proxy votes or other forms of political power.
+
+Unfortunately, Harry himself could not be present at Wizengamot meetings; he was
+too recognizable even without his scar glamour, and any attempt to more
+completely disguise his appearance risked detection by the Ministry wards.
+Harry's education would have to be completed by proxy; a muggle-born witch,
+dissatisfied with her job opportunities and selected on the basis of being
+unlikely to betray the Bank, was hired to dress as a reporter and sit in on as
+many Wizengamot sessions and Ministry meetings as she could, then extract her
+memories of the events at Gringotts. She knew she was something like a spy, of
+course, but the material she was collecting was technically public knowledge and
+the Goblins both paid well and never insulted her parentage.
+
+Eventually, other sources were acquired for Harry to consume. A promising new
+cursebreaker, one William Weasley, was asked to describe before a panel of young
+Goblins (including one under very heavy glamours who asked the most remarkably
+astute questions) everything he knew about the Ministry and the Ancient and
+Noble Houses. Bill enjoyed the experience completely, and agreed to talk to his
+old neighbors Xenophilius Lovegood and Daedelus Diggory about coming in to do
+the same, all in the name of interspecies relations, of course.
+
+Harry spent many hours in the Potter family vaults, reading the lore and
+journals of his family. His mother's wand, recovered from the wreckage at
+Godric's Hollow, was found to be an acceptable match and allowed him to begin
+his wizarding studies early; Harry resented learning wand-magic, but was no less
+skilled for all that, and reluctantly agreed that he was a better asset knowing
+both true magic and wand-waving.
+
+Memories donated by human cursebreakers proved to be excellent teaching aides.
+
+<hr />
+
+While the Goblins wished to maintain Harry's persona as mythically isolated from
+the wizarding world, it was still desirable to fan his fame with occasional
+Potter sightings. As the story spread by Albus Dumbledore was that Harry was
+safely hidden in the nonmagical world, Sharpaxe generally encouraged Harry to
+explore nonmagical London, as long as he was suitably far from Diagon Alley.
+
+Harry greatly enjoyed the Star Wars and Indiana Jones films, which he saw many
+times. He watched Labyrinth once, and the resulting anger-induced accidental
+magic very nearly burned down the theatre.
+
+<hr />
+
+> I'd like to add a few more things to this chapter.
+>
+> * Something about Goblin food.
+> * Some mention of Goldknife the healer.
+> * Name a few Goblin peers of Harry's age.
+> * More description of the environs of the mines.
+> * Maybe introduce some of the attempts to gain more political power for Harry.
+> * Parseltongue.
+> * Another profit-making scheme of Harry's.
+> * Mention Dumbledore holding the Potter vote's proxy?
+> * Harry working as a Teller, interaction with Malfoys?
+>
+> My goal length needs some 1500-1600 words. I suspect with these I can fill it
+> to that length; I'd like this chapter to be the complete raised-as-a-Goblin
+> chapter so I can dive straight into Hogwarts stuff with chapter 3.
-- 
cgit v1.2.3