Men of Steel

Chapter 2

When two goblins emerged from the silent crowd of warriors still surrounding the gaunt form of one Harry Potter, said Potter nearly giggled in hysterical relief. Silence had always calmed him, but as tense a silence as that which was present in the throne room set his nerve endings on fire.
"Thank you for coming so swiftly, Gargle, Dripfang. I find myself in need of both of your expertise."
Both goblins bowed lowly next to Harry who was starting to go numb from kneeling for so long. He had gone through more painful punishments, however, and he wouldn't let a little lack of circulation off him.
"Of course, your majesty," the goblins intoned in tandem. It was a little creepy to Harry, but he wouldn't say anything, out of courtesy.
"I demand this creature be cleansed. He reeks of warped magicks." Harry didn't dare visibly react, but internally he was offended. He hadn't done anything to his magic-it shouldn't have been warped at all.
The goblins did not hesitate upon receiving the Goblin King's orders. They stood up swiftly and both began taking several objects out of their moleskin pouches. Harry spied a clear crystal, a bowl, parchment, a quill, and a knife.
One goblin took the crystal and stepped closer to Harry, waving it around in slow, arcing movements as he approached. The crystal immediately lit up with a green that resembled the color of the Killing Curse. Harry shuddered as it only began to glow brighter when the crystal got closer and closer to his body.
The other goblin seemed to have enough of this however, as he tsked and grabbed the wickedly sharp knife and plain bowl. He walked past the crystal-holding goblin and placed the bowl on the ground next to Harry, who was sure his knee was starting to cave in from the pressure of kneeling on it for so long.
The goblin took Harry's hand and slashed the knife upon his palm before Harry could so much as flinch. And as his blood dripped into the bowl, Harry watched it with a blank stare. He had had his blood spilled too many times for the sight to cause him any real concern. It was only his hand, after all.
The goblin that had been holding the crystal came over to drop the parchment and quill into the bowl before waving a clawed, wrinkled hand in Harry's direction, and his hand tingled as the skin stitched itself back together. The other goblin then quickly released his hand in disgust, but Harry didn't say anything. Gently running a finger over his previously cut palm, Harry watched as the two goblins leaned over the bowl, which was now sparking and smoking.
The dazzling lights stopped after a few minutes to reveal the parchment now had written words on it. The goblins quickly read it over, and Harry didn't like the way they started talking to one another, shooting him dark glares and displeased scowls.
"Your majesty," one goblin said, the parchment outstretched in his hand with his head bowed. However, this time he did not kneel.
"You may approach, Gargle."
Harry watched in anticipation as Gargle climbed the stair and handed the parchment over to the Goblin King. It was only a moment before the goblin sat back with a twisted smile.
"What is a Kryptonian, boy?"
Harry balked at the strange word, but that feeling of dread came back tenfold. The Goblin King would not ask him such a question out of mere fancy. Trying to appease the powerful leader, Harry guessed, "A type of dark creature, your majesty?"
The goblin scoffed. "You wizards with your dark and light labels. There is no such thing." He stopped for a second to hand the parchment back to Gargle, who descended the steps to hand it to Harry with a sneer. The boy lightly clutched it, but kept his head down as the Goblin King continued, "However, how peculiar it is that you, 'the great Boy-Who-Lived', are not even a wizard, but this unknown creature."
Harry inhaled sharply as the meaning of the words the Goblin King spoke sunk into his mind. Quickly flipping the parchment over so that he could read it himself, Harry's eyes zeroed in on the words 'Race: Kryptonian'.
The young Potter's eyes widened as his brain stopped. He... wasn't human.
Dropping from one knee to sitting on his thin butt, Harry didn't even realize the warriors surge towards him as he curled his back over his lap, resting his head on his arms as his hands fisted, crinkling the parchment.
"Stand down."
The bloodthirsty warriors stopped immediately, spears and axes less than a foot away from the huddled being on the floor who hadn't so much as flinched at the sound of their pounding feet and the King's sharp command.
The throne room descended into near-silence as the Goblin King contemplated the disgusting, hyperventilating creature lying before him. The wizards' Boy-Who-Lived was a poor sight, but it seemed he truly did not know of his lack of humanity. The Goblin King decided to let the slight slide, seeing as the creature held the most profitable bank account in the British Branch. It would be a waste to lose all that money to the dastardly wixen.
"Raise your head, boy. I have more questions for you." The King paused until the Kryptonian's gaunt face was directed towards him. "Is it true that you have never responded to a single letter from your bank manager?"
"Yes, your majesty. I never received any letters."
The Goblin King sneered at the earnest expression on the boy's face. "You never received any letters? Despite the many times your manager has attempted to reach out to you? Am I to assume you do not receive any mail, whatsoever, boy?"
The expressive face staring at the King suddenly blanked, and the royal knew exactly what the answer was. Stupid boy...
"Dripfang, Gargle, go cleanse the boy. Hacksaw, take the full fine and cleansing fee out of the Potter vault. You all may be dismissed."
The goblins mentioned bowed from where they were standing around the room, before they began to move, the two goblins from earlier grabbing Harry by his arms and pulling him up from the ground. "Wait! Your majesty!" Harry tried to get his arms free from the goblins' vice-like grips, parchment crinkling further in his grip, but he was far too weak. "Please!"
The Goblin King sighed from his place on his throne before gesturing to the two marching goblins to halt. "What is it, boy?"
Harry quickly turned around to kneel as soon as the goblin's released his arms, and he dared not look at the Goblin King as he pleaded, "It is about my friends, your majesty. I dragged them into stealing the horcrux. Please, I beg of you, let me pay for their fines."
The Goblin King sneered at the pitiful creature. He was shaking from exertion and yet determinedly kneeling, begging to keep his pathetic friends alive.
"Hacksaw, take out the three full payments from the Potter vaults. Now get this sick excuse for a creature out of my sight!"
Harry sank to the floor, boneless in relief as he whispered his thanks. The moment was short-lived, however, as Gargle and Dripfang hoisted him up painfully and quickly dragged him from the throne room with little fanfare.