Wow! There are no words to describe how delighted I am by the response to the two intro's to this story so far. Thank you so much to everyone who has reviewed, and all those who have added this story to their alert list. It's people like you who inspire writers to try harder and work better. A few people have remarked on my lack of dialogue and the length of my paragraphs, and from this chapter onwards dialogue will become part of the story, I am also working to try and reduce my paragraph length but that is a work in progress! I'll aim, as always, to have the next chapter posted in the next 24 hours, and hope you all enjoy the story to come!
Disclaimer: Like every other fanfiction writer I would love to be able to say I own these characters, but unfortunatly I don't. Instead I use them only with the permission of the copywrite holders and mean no offense by my manipulation of them. I use these characters only for my enjoyment and the enjoyment of others and make no profit from this venture.
Chapter two:
"Mr Potter, how kind of you to finally grace us with your presence." Harry had only been inside the bank a few short minutes and he was already feeling slightly uncomfortable, though he assumed this was largely just the effect of the goblins on normal humans. It came, he assumed, from the fact that they weren't humans although they were trusted with a lot of human affairs. He hadn't had much dealings with them to date but from his limited experience they saw themselves as a nation above humans and often treated them with contempt. Swallowing the snappy remark rising to the tip of his tongue Harry forced himself to remember that to date the goblins had done him no real wrong, and to greet them like he would any of the many business associates of Vernon Dursley he had been forced to play butler too over the years. He might not have enjoyed much of his childhood but it had most certainly instilled in him the knowledge of politeness and, if not respect for his elders then most surely self preservation when dealing with unsavory characters.
"It is nice to finally meet your acquaintance, I just apologize that it has taken so long for you to be able to contact me. I hope that during our meeting you will be able to shed some light on why this is, and answer some questions I have if you are so willing. I of course understand if the lack of contact from me has put myself in low standing with your nation but would like the chance to rectify this situation as soon as possible." He bowed his head in what he hoped would be seen as a sign of respect while secretly watching from under lowered lids to try and gauge any type of response from the creature he was dealing with. When non was forthcoming however he gave up the charade and instead settled for making eye contact, wondering to himself if he had maybe committed some faux pas through either his actions or his words. It wouldn't do to offend the creatures who dealt with his finances and could also be the most reliable source of information he had, and he found himself making a mental note to attempt some research into goblin culture and the way he should behave around them. In hindsight this might have been a good idea before attending his meeting, but he was all too aware that he didn't currently have any books in his possession that could help him anyway, so there wasn't much he could have done. He found himself gaining a slight appreciation for Hermione's attitude to studying, realizing that she could probably have handled this initial communication a lot better than he felt he was doing. A slight cough brought him back out of his thoughts and into reality where he found the goblin he had been speaking to looking at him with something between distaste and slight interest.
"Very well Mr Potter, we shall have to see if your words live up to your actions. If you would care to follow me the manager of your accounts is waiting in one of our private rooms to conclude your affairs."
After what felt like hours, though in reality it was only a few minutes, Harry found himself in front of a pair of carved oak doors somewhere in the bowels of Gringotts bank, an area he had never seen before though he doubted he had seen more than a tiny fraction of what the bank had to offer. He had expected to leave the main foyer by the same way he normally accessed his faults, but instead had been led through a door at the opposite side of the room, before walking quickly through many winding corridors and pathways, each lined with more nondescript doors than Harry cared to count. He had considered questioning their uses, but instead decided against it, not wanting to anger his Goblin companion, and also realizing that there was probably a lot more work done in the bank than just people coming too and from their faults. After all, a bank dealt with many issues, and in a world like his there were probably a lot more sensitive things stored in the banks than in the Muggle world. He had never heard tell of personally owned vaults inside the muggle banking system, which stood to reason that there was often a lot more stored in people's accounts here at Gringotts than just money. As he waited to enter the doors he found himself wondering about his own vault, how come it had only contained money since there were clearly other uses for the bank. There was no point in wondering about things though, as the doors were opening in front of him, and Harry knew that he was finally going to get a chance to have a least some of his questions answered at last.
The meeting with his account manager was like nothing he had ever even thought to expect. Despite constantly telling himself that Goblins weren't human, he had still expected something along the lines of a Muggle banker, with all the stiffness and trappings that came with it, all the aversion to answering questions and general slimeyness that he had heard his uncle Vernon complaining about for so long. A goblin meeting, it appeared, was completely different however. After the initial stiffness and greetings had taken place, Harry had expected the rest of the meeting to continue along the same way, official documents to be read through and signed and a sense of wary discontent between the two. It hadn't taken long after the formalities had been exchanged for Harry to completely change what was more than likely an already planned direction, all it took was a few simple sentences, spoken without unnecessary flare, to get his point across and make the goblin see the need to help the young man in front of him.
"Before we get down to any type of business, I have a few questions I need to ask, if that's okay? I know it's probably not the way things are done but I do need to understand some basic things so I know what to do in the future or how to respond to things. Plus, I think there's too many gaps in my knowledge to be able to really be any benifit in this meeting right now."
It seemed to be the right thing to say as Harry saw a brief flicker of respect come from the Goblin facing him.
"Ask your questions, and then we will continue based on what we have established." came the curt reply, and Harry signed. It seemed Goblins were slow to show any respect outside of the odd glances, and he wondered how he hadn't noticed this before. Probably because he had never paid them much notice, if he was honest. To him, like most of the magical world they were just bankers, in charge of finances but not deserving of much notice. Reminding himself yet again to do a lot more research into goblin lives and traditions, he composed himself before beginning to speak.
"Firstly, I guess, I should thank you for even getting in contact with me. I didn't know that I was supposed to get any post from Gringotts since I've never received anything in the past, so it was a bit of a shock to get your letter. I hope we can work to discover where my mail has been being directed to, because being completely honest with you sir, I don't like the idea of someone else having access to my account information. I don't know much about the way Gringotts works since I grew up in a Muggle home but if your system is anything like what I'm used to peoples banking correspondance are normally personal and not meant for others to read in case they contain sensitive information." he paused for a second to get his breath, but after a nod from the goblin continued with his speach.
"Your letter brought up a lot of questions about who I could trust and who has been plaing around with my possessions, I don't have much due to my upbringing and the idea that someone has been playing with what I do have horrifies and disgusts me. After all, I'm more than happy to share what I have with my friends, so why would someone actively take from me, when I don't believe myself to be selfish in nature and always spend what I have on my friends anyway. There's also the question of my parents Will. What was contained in it, what it means for me and why was I never made aware of its existence before now?! If possible, I would like the chance to read it as soon as possible, as I've never had much knowledge of my parents and never had the chance to read more than a single letter penned by my mothers hand to someone she believed to be a friend."
The goblin had been listening closely as the young man spoke and although it didn't show on his face he had already gauged his own opinions of the man. His people were a proud race and he had been told to treat the man with caution, as his lack of contact had been seen as a direct insult on their nation, but from listening and watching the man he could see nothing but truthed etched across his features. Despite what they had been led to believe by their intelligence within the ministry and their other contacts in the Wizarding world, here was a man who was nothing like what he had been told to expect. Quiet and non assuming, truth and confusion seemed to spill forth from the young Potters eyes and heart, and it made the goblin furious that this young man had been treated the way he had. Upon hearing the last statement Harry gave he felt rage bubbling up from his heart, a rage released normally only in defense of his kin, and he swore then on his magic and his family to help the young man to the best of his abilities.
"Well Mr Potter, it seems we have a lot more issues than I first thought. We will of course read your parents will, together and during this meeting if you are agreeable, and will strive as a nation to help you right the wrongs against you. My name is Gripknock, I am your account manager and from this point on it is my primary business to help you fix what has been done against you."
Another chapter down, the next one should hopefully be up within the next 24 hours, depending on how tired I am and how my writing goes although I'm starting work on it right away. This chapter didn't say much but introduced us to the goblins and put Harry into position to start his meeting with them. Originally I planned to put the whole meeting into one chapter, but this seemed like a relivent place to stop. Next chapter will include the Will, and a few revelations contained therein which will effect the future of the story and where my plot goes! Keep reading, keep reviewing, and I'll see you all on the next page!