FOR SERVICES RENDERED

A/N By the way this chapter has a cliffie, so if you are bothered about those you might want to wait I should hopefully have the next chapter up tomorrow. Thanks for all the reviews. The good news is that I have a beta so hopefully the glaring errors in the story should fixed, thanks for continuing to read *hugs* Luciex






They were sitting on the grass, watching the others circling overhead on school brooms. Ron said that if you could fly a school broom you could fly anything.

Draco had headed off for the library with Neville, because Neville did not fly, ever, and Draco could hardly practice with Gryffindors: even if he did do just about everything else with them these days.

Farid thought that Hermione would probably have rather gone to the library but instead she had stayed to talk to him. Farid had been up in the air for more than an hour himself, and then he had landed so that each of the others could have a try of his Firebolt. But now they were practicing team moves and so Farid was sitting out for a while.

“Are you happy?” Farid she asked.

Farid’s heart sank. He liked this girl with the curly hair and shy smile, he really did, she had befriended him and defended him and because of her he had made lots of other friends. She was teaching him to read and write his own name and he thought that he was probably growing to love her. But she did fuss! And no one, other than Master had ever fussed over Farid so he was not quite sure how to react, he tried a tentative.

“Jes?”

“But are you really happy? Does…does Professor Snape treat you well Farid?”

“Er..Jes?”

“But how would you know? You have had such a terrible life, you would think that what we knew to be dreadful cruelty was okay and you would not complain, would you Farid? Because you are so loyal.”

She had lost him completely with that last sentence. Farid was very good at keeping up with the conversation these days but Hermione came up with some really strange comments sometimes and he really did not know how to answer that one, so he just said.

“Sorry?”

Hermione humfed.

“Farid,” she said, taking his hand in hers, “Yesterday we all got a huge shock. Do you understand?” And when he nodded “The worst thing was finding out that you are a slave.

There are no slaves in this world Farid, because slavery is wrong.” She looked at him to see if he were still following what she was saying, and seeing his close regard she continued. “Professor Snape can be a bit…..” She bit her lip, obviously deciding what to say next until finally deciding on, “Grumpy.”

Farid started to laugh

Hermione looked a bit grumpy herself then, but he gave her a hug and smiled his apology at her. Nobody seemed to understand how he felt about his master. But he really liked this girl so he thought he would try and explain.

“Che is grumpy. Sometimes he get cross and I not know vhy. But is also kind, and che try wery mooch to make me chappy.”

Hermione opened her mouth to speak, but Farid held up a hand to stop her.

“Pleas Chermione, let me say. I know vat dyou say about slave. Boot I am slave, there is spell, strong spell that bind me,” He looked down at his hands held loosely in his lap and thought for a moment before continuing. “Spell cannot be broke, I zink. Master vant try, che vant me free, boot this might not be able?”

I is more free wis zis master than ezer. Never before could I go outside, or zit on chair or choose clothes, or vear clothes. Master let me fly, che buy me broom, che let me chave friends and zit viz dyou on ze grass in ze sun. Zis is much freedom for me. I lof chim, wery mooch and jes I is chappy.”

He looked up at her now to see that her eyes were filled with tears. He took the cotton handkerchief that Master always made him carry out of his pocket and reached over to the girl, smiling at her kindly he gently dabbed at her eyes.
“Jon’t cry Chermione, I is chappy.”

“But what happened to you Farid, should not have happened, you should have been looked after and loved not…not,” She broke off for a moment obviously upset, “He has sex with you!”

Farid nearly laughed again, but she was so upset that he swallowed his mirth.

“I know, Chermione, I vish zings had been not like zis? But zey are and I moost live zis vay.” Then with a smug smile on his face he said, “Master is wery, wery good at sex!”
Hermione gasped, and then she went bright red, and then she said.

“Well he certainly has been a lot less grumpy in class since you came along.”

Then they both began to laugh. Eventually Hermione moved closer to him and she whispered.

“Do you ever seduce him?”

Farid looked a bit puzzled, “Vat is seduce?”

“You know,” Hermione said giving him a pointed look, “if he does not feel like…em…you know”

Farid smiled, he thought these English children were very sweet. He knew so little about their world and thankfully he thought they had little real idea of his. Did he know how to seduce a man indeed! He had seen Hermione, looking longingly after Ron, and had seen them kissing once or twice but he wondered if they had got much further than that, he thought maybe not.

“Oh jes, I is wery good at seduce, dyou vant seduce Ron?”

Hermione went bright red again, but she nodded, rather shyly

“I vill tell dyou, but dyou moost tell me zomezing.” She looked at him eagerly

“Yes what?” She asked

“Is his hair zat colour all ozer?”

Hermione’s jaw dropped open and she went if possible even redder. Then she realised from Farid’s sparkling eyes that he was teasing her and she started to laugh


Severus was not laughing however.

He and Black had been arguing with each other for the last 45 minutes. The trouble was they hated each other: always had, always would. Lupin sat with his head in his hands and even Albus looked grey and sad.

Severus wanted to talk to them about Farid, tell them about the slavery bond. He was not going to tell it all, not by any means but he thought Lupin might be sympathetic at least. He knew Farid still looked young, which in many people’s eyes probably made him a corrupter of the innocent. He had not missed the look that Lupin had given him earlier when he had seen Farid in his silk pajamas, but really, what did they think he and the boy got up to?

He wanted to talk to them, but the direction things were moving in right now he was likely “do a Ron” and hit Black, and then throw them all out with nothing resolved.
Finally it was Lupin that stopped the row this time he stood up and just shouted at them both.

“Enough, both of you. That is enough!”

Severus thought the shock of the seemingly mild mannered werewolf shouting at them was what finally stopped Black’s tirade. He was delighted but because quite frankly he had had enough of the animagus’s slights and crude comments. As time went on Severus felt more and more worried about what was going to happen to him and Farid.

He loved the boy, truly loved him.

It had taken a while for this whole slavery thing to sink in. It had not seemed real at first, almost like a game, a lovely, lovely game and he had had a lot of fun. They both had he thought.

Then he had done his best to try and get Farid socialized, or at least start the process, he wanted him to learn to be the man he always should have been. Not the trained, submissive creature that Yusuf had tried to produce; because the boy had such fire inside him, such life, such emotional strength. He wanted to see more of that strength.

But the bond was working on him too negating those feelings. Part of him did want to subjugate the boy, own him, have him kneel at his feet. That scared him and all these conflicting emotions? They were tearing him apart.

And now of course there was this new revelation of Farid’s. Bound to him forever. How on earth was he going to deal with that?

He was quite freaked out by it if he told the truth. What had happened to Farid was beyond cruel; it was dreadful, awful, obscene. How in the hell did Severus start to make things better? How in the hell could he at least begin to help Farid understand freedom if nothing else? He didn’t think he could do it on his own he needed help. But Severus had never been very good at asking for help had he?

Black was speaking again now so Severus dragged himself out of his thoughts to listen.

“…..ive him to me or Remus, if you can’t release him. We wouldn’t just use him for sex!”

“You don’t know what it was like.” Severus was speaking in a monotone, he didn’t care what Black said any longer; this whole situation had gone beyond petty threats and arguments. Old hatreds had to be put aside, for Farid’s sake. Perhaps because he was speaking so quietly Black stopped his ranting and finally listened and for the next short while, apart from the sound of Severus’s voice as his tale unwound and the occasional horrified gasp from his listeners the rooms were completely silent.

“Yusuf, the Master Vampire took us to the stables to show me where the slaves were trained, it is a cold dark cellar that smells of despair. They kept him in a tiny cage for weeks, and finally when he was broken down enough they took him out and trained him. Trained him to please his owners in anyway they wished and believe me you do not wish to know what that training entailed.

Farid told you yesterday that he had never sat on a chair, or been allowed to feed himself. That was true. All that he told you was true. Everything. His whole life was regulated, his every decision made by his master. He truly believes that he has had more freedom with me than anyone else in his life, and the really awful thing is he is right. That’s why he attached himself to me in the way he did I think. Because I hurt him less than anyone else ever had.

Then when I continued to treat him like a human being, he fell in love. I saw it in his eyes, just because I gave him a bath, and soothed the wounds that I had caused.”

“What wounds, Severus?” Someone. Lupin? Asked urgently.

“They gave me a potion. They made him give it to me. It was a lust potion, it made me rape him.”

Black gasped loudly at that but he said no more. Someone must have stilled him.

“I never thought I would rape anyone, I never thought I had it in me to do that to another human being. But I will never forget that morning afterwards. I had been in a frenzy and I hurt him so much!” Severus had tears running down his cheeks now; he was trying hard not to sob. Albus pushed a glass of water into his hands and he took a sip before continuing.

“He lay there in my bed. He looked so fragile and I had raped him, hurt him. It wasn’t till later that I discovered that I owned him. Yusuf told me. The rape was the claiming. That’s the only way the bond can be passed on.”

He looked directly into Black’s eyes now and held his gaze.

“I could give him to you, or Albus or Lupin. But then you would have to rape him just as I did. That is the only way to transfer the bond. To claim him, forcibly and Yusuf told me that, other than this method, this claiming such a bond cannot be broken. Ever.

I don’t think I believed it, it seemed so ridiculous, so cruel. But last night Farid showed me the bond it is there. It does exist. So it is up to me to care for him, to protect him for as long as I live. Because I cannot have him go though such pain again.”

The three other men stared at him, horror struck. Severus saw something he had never thought to see in their eyes. Sympathy.

“Oh Severus…” Albus began, but he got no further because just at that moment the door to the chambers was flung open. It was charmed to only allow himself or Farid inside without permission so the fact that Hermione came through made Severus leap to his feet with worry, she was followed directly behind by Ron and in his arms he held Farid.

Severus was at his side before anyone else even moved.

“What’s going on Weasley? You said you’d take care of him!”

I…we…did…but..”

Farid spoke, causing Severus to look down at him in Ron’s arms. His scar had opened and was pouring blood. It was in his hair and running in rivulets down his cheeks.

“CHe knows Masteerr. Woldemort knows!”

Then Severus’s world exploded with white, hot, pain. Pain that was pulsing, pouring through the mark on his arm and he could not help himself. He screamed in agony.