Disclaimer:
Harry Potter and all of its characters belong to J.K Rowling.
I own nothing but the original characters I make.
"Dialogue"
'Thoughts'
-Author notes-
Chapter 303: The Sentence
"Criminal charges?!" Dumbledore exclaimed.
"What did I just say about not being interrupted? I honestly expected better from you, Mister Dumbledore." The judge frowned.
"My apologies… please, continue. What did Harry do, exactly?"
"As I was about to begin saying…" He put a piece of parchment on the table.
"Mister Potter arrived at Gringotts at eleven A.M., and requested access to the Potter vault, along with his two guests." The goblin judge gave Daphne and Xenos a passing glance.
"Right after arriving at the vault area, Mister Potter ignored the guide's warnings and tried to open the Peverell vault instead. This, of course, triggered the safety measures put in place to protect the vaults from thieves. In this case… since those were some of the oldest and most secure ones… three nundus were released to deal with the intruders."
"Merlin! Three nundus?!" Dumbledore's hands landed on the table with a lot of force. His eyes moved to Daphne and Xenos.
"They were very scary," Daphne said.
Xenos nodded.
"I thought my end was near…"
"And these nundus…" Dumbledore could already guess the answer as he looked at Harry, who just shrugged at him.
"It was self-defense," he stated, without going into details.
The judge decided to continue.
"Yes, the three security beasts were slain by Mister Potter. But this is not the most serious charge…."
"Oh…" Dumbledore made a worried face.
"Mister Potter then proceeded to completely destroy the Peverell ancient vault gate, built by our ancestors by means that have been lost in time to us. A unique and irreplaceable piece…"
"I was just trying to open it," Harry said.
"I was not done yet!" The judge threw him a venomous glare.
"In the process of destroying this invaluable gate, he also caused tremendous damage to the chamber it was in…"
"Those are just rock walls, come on!" Harry complained.
"And!..." The judge raised his finger.
"He half-destroyed the Slytherin vault gate!"
"Is that the one I hit?" He recalled seeing something breaking behind him.
"The Slytherin vault?!" Daphne almost jumped from her seat before glancing at him.
"Harry! How could you?. Do you have something against my house?"
"I didn't hit that one on purpose!" He said back.
"Although… if one vault was going to be damaged, I'm glad it was that one." He whispered the last part.
"These are very serious charges, Mister Potter." The Commander goblin raised his voice and spoke in a stern tone.
"Yes, Harry. Be more respectful," Dumbledore told him.
"Fine, let's get down to business," Harry said.
"How much?..."
"Pardon?…" The judge raised an eyebrow.
"How much do I have to pay to fix this?" he asked.
"Money?! You think you can fix this with money?!" The Commander slammed his fist on the table.
"I thought I made it very clear that those vault gates are priceless and irreplaceable. As for the three nundus… those would be prohibitively expensive to replace, not to mention difficult. We can't just go to the nearest pet shop and ask for a nundu, can we?" The judge explained.
"And… what kind of compensation would be necessary to fix this?" Dumbledore asked with tact.
"Ten years of forced labor in our mines, and three million galleons!" The goblin judge declared.
"What did you say?" Daphne's eyes opened like plates.
"That's outrageous! He is only fourteen." Dumbledore.
"According to the law written by your Ministry, the minimum age for forced labor on wizards is… thirteen." The judge corrected him.
"That must be an outdated law…" Dumbledore considered it.
"No matter, the law is the law."
"There has to be something else. A different punishment." Xenos said.
"This was never meant to be a negotiation. I am merely stating his punishment…" The judge glanced at the Commander and this nodded.
The goblin guards around the room grasped their spears.
The tension became palpable. Just one wrong move and they would be attacked.
Harry, on the other hand, looked very relaxed.
"I have a counter offer."
"I already stated that this is not a negotiation… Mister Potter. If you behave yourself, I may allow you to say goodbye to your parents before taking you to the mines." The judge gave him a cruel smirk.
Dumbledore, Daphne, and Xenos were all looking towards Harry with worried faces.
They weren't really worried about Harry being arrested. They were worried about what his response was going to be.
Dumbledore was the one who worried the most. He had a better idea than the majority, about how dangerous the goblin nation was.
The majority of the population didn't consider them a big threat because they only saw the few goblins who worked on the surface. But deep beneath, there was an endless series of tunnels that led everywhere in the British Isles.
There were even rumors of massive cities hidden underneath, filled with thousands upon thousands of goblins getting ready for the next war.
Just the idea of going to war with these creatures again made his blood run cold.
And with Voldemort working in the background to take over the country… this was the last thing they needed.
Dumbledore was about to open his mouth and request to speak with Harry alone. They must discuss the best course of action.
But Harry spoke before he had a chance.
"I want a trial by combat," he said with a straight face.
"Harry?…" Daphne was confused.
"What are you talking about?"
"Trial by combat, you say?…" The goblin commander had a grave expression on his face.
The judge was doing the same.
"Harry, where did you hear that? There is n-"
Daphne was interrupted by the voice of the goblin judge.
"How did you learn about our trial by combat?!"
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