Bonds of Affection

The following morning, Harry and Severus were barely awake when the first sound of attack shook the decrepit castle. Tremor went through the walls, and Harry felt the bed and the floor underneath them shift slightly.



Severus shot up to his feet, just as the door opened, and Lucius strode in.



“Severus, come,” he snapped. “We are under attack.”



Severus adjusted his clothing and threw on his robe in haste. Harry continued to lie in bed quietly, pretending to be half-asleep. Lucius, however, would have none of it.



“On the floor, duckling,” Lucius said, pointing his wand at him. “Put your collar on.”



Harry bit his lip, but complied without argument. The collar locked on its own, and he was now chained to the foot of the bed, still stark naked, without any means of escaping the room, and warning the Order that Nagini was not here, that they had to call off the attack.



Then, as if him being secured to the foot of the bed was not enough, Lucius locked the door behind them, as he and Severus left.



Harry growled in utter frustration. He did not even have a wand... Harry was quite certain that Severus still had it on his person. Harry took a deep breath and calmed himself as much as he could. He attempted to move the bed – but, of course, it was bolted to the floor. He examined the links of the chain, one by one, looking for weakness, finding none. He even reached back to the lock on his collar, and tried to open it – but it was sealed seamlessly, and Harry swore again. Eventually, he managed to reach for the pile of his clothes on the side of the bed, and dressed himself, while listening to the noise coming from outside.



The roar of attack was getting louder and nearer. It appeared that the defenses of the Castle were buckling. Eventually, a wave resonated through the walls and the floor, and Harry guessed that the perimeter had been breached. He sat on the floor and waited. He did not have to wait long.



Only a minute later or so, the door to his room opened with a blast. Harry lifted his eyes and saw Bellatrix Lestrange, standing over him, pointing her wand at him.



“Ready to go?” she asked smugly, her voice harsh and unpleasant, as ever.



Harry stared at her in disbelief.



“Harry, for the love of God!” Bellatrix exclaimed. Harry watched, with his eyes wide open, as a strand of her black hair changed color – to white, pink, purple, and then back to black.



“Tonks!” Harry whispered. “Listen to me, you have to call off the attack. Nagini isn\'t here.”



“What!” She almost jumped at the news. “Fine - as soon as I get you out.” Her wand pointed at his collar, but he covered it with his hands.



“No! I can\'t come!” Harry insisted. “I need to stay with Voldemort, until he brings me to where Nagini is.”



She hesitated momentarily, but then shook her head. “Harry, you are coming with me. Albus ordered – said no matter how anything else goes, get you out of here.”



Harry almost spat in disgust. “Why? So that I could die in three weeks, and become a living zombie? Without ever having a chance to destroy Nagini and Voldemort? Come on!”



She looked at him suspiciously. “Three weeks... Harry, what are you talking about?”



“I drank something that will kill me in less than three weeks,” Harry hissed. “It will wipe my mind. You didn\'t know?”



From the incredulous look on her face, it was obvious that Dumbledore hadn\'t bothered to mention that detail to her; and she was having difficulty believing him.



“I am not lying! Look into my mind, if you want to,” Harry offered. “I don\'t care. But please... don\'t take me back now. Look... Remus died destroying one of the Horcruxes... don\'t let his death be for nothing Please?”



She hovered over him, gazing at him thoughtfully. “Harry,” she asked softly. “How will we know – when...”



“When Voldemort finally sees fit to bring his remaining Horcruxes together, and Nagini is with me?” Harry completed the sentence for her. “I am not sure. But I\'ll send a message somehow. Or maybe I will kill Nagini myself. Trust me. Just go. Please?”



“God help us all if I am making a mistake,” Tonks whispered. “Are you sure about this?”



Harry nodded. “Get out, please, call off the attack, before our people die for nothing.”



She swore quietly and fled the room, leaving Harry alone. He sat in silence and listened. A few minutes later, he heard the sounds of the Order retreating in haste. He breathed a sigh of relief. Once more, he waited. Not even half an hour later, Severus and Lucius came to gather him. The adrenaline rush from the nearness of attack, and his argument with Tonks had faded, leaving Harry slightly dazed, and disoriented. His back and backside were still aching from last night, and he shifted on the floor painfully.



“We need to evacuate,” Lucius said in a harsh voice. “This place is no longer safe, now that the Order knows we are here.”



“You certainly have the knack for stating the obvious,” Severus said dryly.



“Amazing how they found us,” Lucius mused, undeterred. “Also amazing how they left right away – almost as if they realized that something they were looking for, was not here. Any ideas, Severus?”



Severus shrugged. “I don\'t suppose one of Draco\'s friends...”



“Don\'t be an idiot,” Lucius snapped. “Draco did not know this location until I Apparated him here. No, I think it is something else. I am willing to make a bet that someone has tagged your little duckling. I am guessing, tracking charms,” Lucius\' gaze was fixed on Harry\'s face, and then, Lucius pointed his wand at Harry, uttering a Legilimency spell. Harry summoned all of his Occlumency skills, and fought back furiously.



Lucius growled. “Tell him to stop resisting me!” he demanded. “What the hell is wrong with your slave?”



Severus shook his head, a disdainful expression on his face.



“My slave is trained to resist others trying to enter his mind, unless I explicitly tell him he must permit it. A reasonable precaution, don\'t you think?”



Lucius spat on the floor. “Tell him to open his mind to me.”



“Let go of him, Lucius,” Severus said contemptuously, placing his hand on Lucius\' wand, causing him to lower it. “Your Legilimency skills are so pitiful, you couldn\'t read the mind of a bitch in heat. Let me.”



Severus pointed his own wand at Harry, and uttered Legilimency spell. Harry relaxed into his touch and gazed at him trustingly.



The tracking spells must come off, Harry heard Severus\' voice in his mind. Lucius had guessed.



Can\'t you just remove some of them, and keep one or two? Harry asked.



No, Severus said. They function as a unit. Once placed, they interlock and become inseparable.



I understand.



He understood all to well. Without the tracking spell, there would be no way for the Order to locate him, once he found Nagini.



“You were right, Lucius,” Severus said grudgingly, lowering his wand. “Dumbledore\'s tracking spell. I will remove it now.”



Lucius chuckled. “I\'d better do it myself.” His wand pointing at Harry he uttered an incantation that Harry was not familiar with. The sensation that followed them was unnerving – it was as if an invisible layer of something that had been previously attached to Harry\'s very skin was rent from his body with a sharp sensation. His vision blurred, he saw a glow of energy hover before his eyes, and then, vanish.



“Impressive,” Lucius said very quietly. “That was quite the tag. Tracking spells this deep require the person\'s consent...” Lucius shook his head with disapproval. “And I can see from the amount of energy that the tag is fresh. No more than four or five weeks old. Meaning, that he got it after he drank the potion. For your sake, Severus, I hope there is a good explanation.”



Severus sighed deeply. “I am sad to say, there is. It appears that soon after drinking the potion, before the slave-bond was fully set, Harry went to Dumbledore, who had convinced him to permit this... tagging. Subsequently, the old bastard Oblivated Harry, ensuring that he would never feel the guilt of his wrongdoing, or make a confession. The memory is going to begin returning now, that I have removed the blocks...”



Lucius chuckled quietly. “I almost – almost pity him. This is the ultimate betrayal of the Master, you know; nearly causing your death. The slave-bond will require a punishment that will have to be nearly.... lethal. It seems that we will need to ... brutalize the tender teenage flesh once more.”



Harry bowed his head, staring at the floor under his feet. He felt a tremor go through his entire body.



“Not we, Lucius,” Severus said impassively. “Just me. I\'ve told you before, your touch means nothing to the bond. The punishment will have to be at my hand.” As if to demonstrate, he placed his hand on the back of Harry\'s neck, who bowed his head even lower, and whispered, in a barely audible voice:



“Your hand, Master.”



... To Be Continued ...