Having picked up on the goblin's love of procedures andfiles, anything he found fascinating would probably have him stuck in thisoffice for what felt like another week.
"Just the basics will be fine," Harry saidquickly.
"Oh, well, it's pretty straight forward then,"the goblin said. "Take today, for instance. We have a large transfer fromyour account to a do-gooder charity, a wizarding institution, and large phonyinvestments into muggle companies."
"Why would they give money to a charity?" Harryasked. "I thought he'd keep it all."
"Same here, but that's what has Lichfield thinkingthis guardian is some high society type. Someone who likes to be seen doinggood works - all the while they're stealing from a child to do it."
The Overseer checked his files again.
"Something called the - The Hogwarts Hopefuls,"the goblin said. "We've never even heard of them," the goblinexplained. "Probably some program set up to help graduating students findjobs. I'll never understand this human thing of doing something for nothing.That stops now. They'll just have to get jobs on their own," the Overseersaid definitively.
"Is there anything that ties to Hogwartsdirectly?" Harry asked, already thinking he knew the answer.
"Yes, but this one's not so uncommon," thegoblin said. "At least it didn't use to be. Another large transfer was duefor the Hogwarts Operational Fund."
Barchoke noticed the confused look on Harry's face.
"It's the account that handles the day-to-dayspending for the school. They seem to be the biggest beneficiary from theTransfer Orders that were supposed to be processed today."
"And why would Hogwarts need all that money?"Harry said harshly, his anger at the Headmaster seeping through into his tone.
"At this point in the year, they shouldn't need itat all," the goblin said.
"Yeah, why would a school need money during thesummer?"
"Oh, no. It's not that," the Overseer said."It's that today is the first day of the school year."
"Wait, no it's not," Harry said.
"Yes it is," the goblin said confused.
"No, it's not,"Harry said stubbornly.
"Yes, it is," the goblinsaid just as stubbornly back.
"Term doesn't begin until September the first,"Harry declared.
"Aha!" the goblin said triumphantly. "Theterm doesn't begin until September, but the fiscal year starts today," hesaid with a grin. "Their account should be flowing with gold at themoment, so why would this guardian donate to the Beggar's Circuit?"
"The Beggar's Circuit?"
"That's what your grandfather called it,"Barchoke explained. "If Hogwarts goes over budget and needs extra cash,the Headmaster will go around to rich old alumni to try and shake a littlemoney out of them. Apparently this guardian of yours thinks you're really generous."
Harry had always wondered what the Headmaster actuallydid for the school. Apparently, before he started stealing from his account, hehad actually served a purpose.
"Just how generous does he think I am?" Harryasked hotly.
"Take this transfer here for example," Barchokesaid, holding up a piece of parchment. "To put it in terms you'dunderstand, these Hopefuls were going to get enough gold to pay for twenty oneyears of tuition."
"Twenty one-!"
"Years," the goblin repeated.
"I'm paying for twenty one people to go to school?That's enough for me and half my class!" Harry exclaimed, dreading thethought he was paying for the likes of Malfoy.
"It's more than that when you consider yourschooling was paid for in full before you were born," the goblin laughed.
"Wait, you mean I really did have my name downbefore I was born?" Harry asked.
"A really good investment strategy on yourgrandfather's part," Barchoke nodded. "Pay for it in bulk now so ifthe price goes up it doesn't affect you. I've recommended the same be done toeveryone I oversee. Most have seen the logic of doing it at least once."
"So what is Hogwarts doing with all thismoney?" Harry asked, his love for the castle waning by the minute.
"Honestly, I couldn't say," the goblin toldhim.
"And why not?"
"Because I don't know," Barchoke held up hishands. "I oversee Hereditary Accounts. As long as they seem to make moneyand the Account-Holder doesn't complain, I can't look into things. Hogwarts,however, is a completely separate department unto itself. All staffed byhumans," he finished with a grumble.
"A humanOverseer?" Harry asked, rather confused at the concept.
"Just the one," Barchoke explained. "Abouta hundred years ago a particularly loathsome Headmaster, we call Phineas theFoul, refused to have anything to do with goblins and threatened to haveHogwarts to do all its banking itself. Rather than fight him on it, the GrandOverseer at the time decided to set Hogwarts up as a separate department andman it by humans to placate him."
"That's awful," Harry said.
"Well, that's Phineas-," the Overseer stopped,his eyes popping. "My apologies, I didn't mean to offend you," hesaid to Harry.
"Why would that offend me?" Harry askedconfused. "He sounds like a racist old git."
"Yes, but he also happens to be your grandmother'sgrandfather," Barchoke explained.
At that moment Harry could have heard a pin drop.
"Oh," Harry said. He had never thought any ofhis family could've been so bad as to be called Foul. 'Then again, ' Harry thoughtto himself, 'the Dursleys arecertainly foul and they're a lot closer to me than some grandmother'sgrandfather. '
"So," Harry said to get things going again."How do you know they're phony muggle investments?"
"Because we can't invest in the muggle world,"the Overseer said simply.
"Wait - Really?"
"You have any idea what would happen if wizardinggold flooded the world market?" Barchoke asked. "It'd be worse thanwhat happened six hundred years ago. We'd be lucky if things took a hundredyears to work itself out! Gropegold probably thought he was being clever by notexchanging the Galleons for Pounds. That much of an exchange would have gottenhim caught for sure. We'll track it down. If there's one thing Gringotts isgood at it's following the money."
Harry looked back out to the view of both magical andmuggle London.
"Then how can you stand to look out there?"Harry asked. "There must be hundreds of businesses in London alone youcould be investing in."
"Exactly," Barchoke said. "We built thisbank up so high to give every goblin in management a view of what's been deniedus. That's the price that comes from overplaying your hand. That's why we'rebeing cautious."
Harry stared out the curved window again for a while,wondering what it'd be like to see another world day-after-day and never beable to touch it. To be locked inside one building and one street. 'It'd be like being back in the cupboardunder the stairs, ' Harry thought. 'Only to look out the grate and see Hogwarts, knowing I'llnever be able to get there. '
Barchoke cleared his throat and Harry turned back to him.
.....
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