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/01-pragmatism.mdwn |  10 +-
 novellas/a-little-greed/02-honor.mdwn      | 229 +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
 2 files changed, 234 insertions(+), 5 deletions(-)
 create mode 100644 novellas/a-little-greed/02-honor.mdwn

(limited to 'novellas')

diff --git a/novellas/a-little-greed/01-pragmatism.mdwn b/novellas/a-little-greed/01-pragmatism.mdwn
index 37411f7..abb4198 100644
--- a/novellas/a-little-greed/01-pragmatism.mdwn
+++ b/novellas/a-little-greed/01-pragmatism.mdwn
@@ -150,8 +150,8 @@ summon Sharpaxe, the current Head of the Potter Accounts. The active foreman
 noticed all this activity and called Steelgash from Potential Difficulties, who
 upon hearing the situation summoned Urgnok from Wizarding Relations to assist.
 Urgnok understood exactly who the Boy-Who-Lived was, and sent an urgent request
-for advice to Ragnok, supreme branch manager and effective head of Goblin
-government in Britain.
+for advice to Warlord Ragnok, supreme branch manager and effective head of
+Goblin government in Britain.
 
 Ragnok found himself faced with a plainly unacceptable situation. Less than a
 day after Dumbledore had strode into his bank and outright demanded that they
@@ -366,9 +366,9 @@ feel of the equipment as early as possible.
 Harry's last stop for the day was an examination by the Matriarch for any
 prophecies that entangled his fate. She was an ancient and hideous Goblin,
 blinded at an early age when she first showed signs of divinatory talent and
-locked away in a dark cave to focus on improving her focus. After many years of
-rituals and practice, she could feel the influence of the future on any brought
-before her within moments.
+locked away in a dark cave to improve her focus. After many years of rituals and
+practice, she could feel the influence of the future on any brought before her
+within moments.
 
 The blind Oracle passed her hand over Harry, her face locked in a growl of
 concentration. Long minutes passed, with the uneven smoke of torches coiling
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.
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