Chapter 20: The Weight of Expulsion
Daphne turned and said "If he gets expelled, he is banished from the magical world AND becomes emancipated at the same time to fend for himself."
He sat there dumbly for a minute before she added "If he is banished from our world, he's granted status as an adult and gets control of the Potter holdings. I would bet that if he does, he takes his fortune and leaves."
Malfoy said "So, he leaves with whatever pitiful amount his family left him. Big deal."
Blaise Zabini laughed. "Malfoy, did you ever do your studies on other houses when you were younger?"
Draco pulled himself up haughtily. "I am a Malfoy. Why should I concern myself with lesser houses?"
That statement did more harm to his alliances than any other he could make. Blaise sneered "Your family may be wealthy but the Potters are an ancient family. They and several others could probably buy your father ten times over and still have enough to live off comfortably for the rest of their lives."
Daphne Greengrass was an extremely intelligent young lady and had studied the family lines extensively. She had done this to find a suitable future husband from her classmates. The lines that ended with Harry Potter were numerous and powerful. Before coming to Hogwarts, he had been at the top of her list until he fell in with the Weasleys. She was mentally rearranging her list once again to place him at the top. It was time to start making overtures in his direction just as she had planned in first year.
Draco's mouth closed quickly as the others glared at him. Snape took in the scene before him and knew that he had done what he could for them. The rest would be up to them. A quick glance towards Daphne showed him that the wheels in her head were turning and she would soon be approaching Harry. Severus thought the match would be a good one. She would teach him control while he taught her passion. Her family was staunchly neutral which would be a good fit for Harry. His only problem with it was the nagging suspicion that Harry wasn't as alone as everyone thought. He certainly hoped that as the case as he turned and walked out of the common room.
END FLASHBACK
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Bearclaw was sitting in his office writing what was probably the twentieth letter to the Heir of the Potters in as many days. He reflected back on the night he was summoned to Ragnok's office which had him reliving the meeting in his dreams. The thing that had Bearclaw confused was the reaction to the news. He knew that the Potters were a wealthy and respected family but the loss of those accounts shouldn't have made Ragnok react as he did. The only thing that had saved his head was the paperwork that showed Albus Dumbledore had blocked the young Potter from everything except his trust vault. Ragnok then concentrated on Mr. Potter's treatment at the hands of Bearclaw.
With the threat of the loss of the Potter holdings hanging over him, Bearclaw knew that Ragnok would not take it lying down and he had his worst fears revealed. After the initial tirade, Ragnok turned to an aid and nodded his head. Before Bearclaw's eyes, his whole family was brought into the chamber in chains and was stood before him as he knelt in front of Ragnok. Ragnok's eyes fell upon his sister who was Bearclaw's wife. She looked at him pleadingly and received a nod from Ragnok.
In the Goblin language, she coldly asked "What have you done to put us at my brother's mercy husband?"
Ragnok knew that it would not be his sister's blood that was spilt today. He grew up with her and couldn't think of a more suitable punishment than to have to listen to her scorn every night when Bearclaw came home from work. The fact that she was Ragnok's sister meant that Bearclaw couldn't touch her if he valued his own life.
Ragnok stepped in front of the most promising of Bearclaw's sons and even though it hurt him to do so, his sword flashed and the young Goblin fell to the floor. He finally turned to Bearclaw and growled "Your actions today required a blood payment. Know this, your head remains attached to your neck as long as the Potter accounts remain at Gringotts. The moment they disappear, so do your life and your children will be forced to endure the shame of being your children for the rest of their lives."
With a wave of his hand, Bearclaw and the rest of his family were roughly shoved out of the chamber. Ragnok sat back down on his throne and began to ponder whether it would be a violation of the treaty with the Ministry to kill a manipulative old man.
While he was going to let Bearclaw flounder along for a while, he would not rely solely on the account manager to fix this mess. He thought back to Griphook and how Mr. Potter had been satisfied with him. He might just call on Griphook to act as a go between for him and Mr. Potter until they could meet face to face.
He knew that one way or another; Bearclaw's fate had already been decided as he would either be dead or replaced. The Goblin chief was privy to a lot more information than even some of the highest ranking Goblins. Even though Bearclaw was over the Potter accounts, there was ancient information that could not be shared until the heir was aware of it.
When it did happen, he knew that the loss of the Potter accounts would be disastrous for them because he knew just how many accounts were secretly tied to the Potter vaults. Ragnok also knew that the loss of the Potter accounts would destroy Gringotts and if that happened, the nation would see his head lying on the floor next to Bearclaw's.
Bearclaw shook his head to clear the events of that night. He would then finish his apology to Mr. Potter along with a request to return so that they could discuss the matter in more detail. He even hinted that they might find a way to circumvent the restrictions. Little did he know that the letters were never received by Harry.
When Harry was a baby, Dumbledore placed a mail redirection ward on Privet Drive that would only allow the letters he deemed were safe to fall into Harry's hands which were none. When Harry came to Hogwarts, he added another such ward to the castle that he ingeniously tied to Harry. He had modified them to allow the Weasleys and Miss Granger to write him and even this year allowed Remus and Sirius to write him after an oath not to reveal anything to Harry. If anyone else were to write him, too much might be revealed and Albus couldn't have that.
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