A Different Kind of Story

A Strange New World

When Leo came too, he found himself lying on the floor, his head in Mama's lap. He could hear people yelling around him but it was all jumbled, like when your heads under water. He closed his eyes again, and tried to remember what he was doing. Mama and Papa had got him a tutor, James had shown up and hurt Bella. Then James left, and we came to Gringotts, he asked Snarltooth to see the statue…

Leo shot up, his eyes wide open… he had broken the statue!

"I'm sorry Ragnok! I didn't mean to break the statue, I just wanted to see it! Please I'll pay anything, just don't chop off my head!" Leo cried in gobbledegook, kneeling on the floor. 

Suddenly the entire room went quiet, as all eyes focused on the crying seven year old. Pernell knelt down beside her crying son, somewhat lost from the jumble of sounds coming from his mouth. She wrapped her arms around his shoulders and just held him while he cried.

The goblins spoke quickly and quietly in the corner, as another young man was starting to wake up two feet away. No one paid any attention to this second boy, as they were still trying to figure out what had happened. The boy didn't seem to mind, as his eyes locked into the small child crying in front of him. He sat up, and half wiggled, half crawled over to the boy.

"Why are you crying? Have you lost something?" The young man asked.

"I b-broke the statue! I didn't m-mean to b-but it was asking for something. I don't want to die yet, I'm only seven! I haven't even gotten married yet! Oh this will kill Sev and Viktor!" Leo cried in gobbledegook, startling the man.

"My your seven and already planning on marriage?" The man asked switching to gobbledegook. "Why if I had thought such things at your age, my papa would have taken me to a healer. But who would kill you for breaking a silly statue?"

At this point the entire room was staring wide eyed at the two boys, Bella was starting to get worried.

"I broke the statue of Merlin! It's the oldest statue, given to the goblins by Merlin himself as a gift!" Leo cried, finally looking up at the boy.

"Preposterous, Merlin never gave them a statue." The man scoffed, causing Harry to glare at the man, who tumbled back shocked.

"The statue and the protections guarding it were set up by Merlin himself! Chief Ragnok told me so when I broke the protections! Goblins never lie unless it benefits them monetarily!" Leo wasnow shouting in gobbledegook, causing the goblins to finally take notice of the scene unfolding.

 "I broke both, by goblin law I must be punished by the goblin nation. As this bank belongs not to wizards, but to the goblins, I fall under their laws." Leo said, then turned to Ragnok. "I only plead that you don't take my head, but I swear my loyalty to the nation, and will take any punishment given willingly."

"And if we decide to take your head anyway?" Ragnok asked, ignoring the other goblins' gasps, and glares.

"Then I ask to have a moment to write my goodbyes to my betrotheds, and say goodbye to my family." Leo said looking at the ground. The smile that appeared on Ragnok's face, had every human in the room terrified.

"Then I give your punishment to Snarltooth." Ragnok said, turning to the now beaming goblin. Leo nodded, still looking at the floor and walked over to the goblins. He knelt down in front of them, and waited for the punishment.

"Now wait just a moment!" Yelled the young man. A look of terror on his face as he stepped forward. "You cannot punish this child, as he said it was an accident!"

"He has accepted punishment, he takes responsibility. Snarltooth, take the young heir to the side room and let him write his letter." Ragnok said. A tear slipped down Leo's cheek as he looked back at his family, before he followed Snarltooth from the room.

"You would kill a child over a stupid statue?!?" The man roared.

"As the child said, the statue was left here for protection by Merlin himself. The wards around it were set by Merlin for the statue before it was delivered."

"That's a load of Giant dung!"

"And why is that?"

"Because I never visited this place! I left the statue in a small room at Gringotts. Gringots was the size of this entire room!" The man screamed in Ragnok's face.

"Are you claiming to be Merlin?"

"I claim nothing, I swear on mother magic I am Merlin Emrys!" A flash of light lit the room, confirming his statement, causing gasps to echo around the room.