AN: Before I begin, apologies for the bad ending, I literally ran out of ideas and decided to end it "nicely" instead of sexually...
Astrid Williams pulled all her red hair round right shoulder and twirled it round her fingers, looking around at the other girls in the dark room. She, along with other muggle-borns between sixteen and nineteen was imprisoned in the dungeons of Hogwarts, waiting to be sold to any witch or wizard in need of a servant. After Harry Potter had been defeated, and Lord Voldemort came into full power of the wizarding world, little things changed that people didn't expect at all. As education was 'on hold' to completely modify what was taught and by whom, Hogwarts castle served as a temporary prison for muggle-borns and blood traitors under twenty. To put the children to good use, it was decreed they be sold to whoever needed their services. Stories were passed round the girls' "prison" of men who bought girls for sex, instead of for servant duties.
Outside the room, footsteps and deep voices could be heard. The girls shushed each other and curled up, not wanting to be seen by whoever was going to assess them. The lock clicked and the door flew open. The only light available came from the ends of two wands. The faces of the wand owners couldn't be seen.
"It was a girl you wanted? Mr, uh-"
"-Jus' call me Scabior, an' yeah."
The first man who spoke stepped further into the room; "any age?"
"Not that bothered really, but I s'pose, more on the elder side, y'know?"
Suddenly a ball of light flew from the tip of the first man's wand to the chandelier above him, lighting the candles sat on it, illuminating the room dimly. All the girls were huddled up to each other, wearing the same grey, ragged dress. Their feet were bare and they were all dirty, with dark smudges on their faces, arms and legs.
"Right, if you're eighteen or nineteen, in that corner, now!"
Without hesitation the room burst into motion. The girls parted into two groups; one group sat huddled in one corner of the room, the other stood, backs against the wall.
"There's not many of these Mr Scabior, they're quite popular."
The buyer stepped further into the room and stood in front of the girls, an unmistakable smirk on his face; "it's jus' Scabior, an' I bet they are."
"So, any take your fancy?"
'Scabior' paced up and down the line once before standing next to the first man; "well, they all do, but them two in particular."
He pointed with his fore and middle finger at two girls in front of him. Astrid looked to her left at the girl stood next to her. She was just a little shorter than her, with short blonde hair in a bob. And she looked terrified.
"You two, stay there! The rest of you, sit down!"
The rest of the girls scurried over to the other girls and sat down. Astrid took in a sharp breath and stared at the stone wall in front of her. The blonde girl groped to her right before grabbing Astrid's hand. Astrid squeezed it tightly, trying to stay confident.
"So, it's just one right?"
Scabior nodded; "yeah, Yaxley told me to go buy myself a treat, on 'im."
"So, which one is it to be?"
Scabior looked the two girls over. Astrid remained strong, not looking at either men, distracting herself with thoughts of freedom and a world with no evil. The blonde however, had tears streaming down her cheeks, her lips were trembling, and she made an occasional squeak. Scabior grimaced.
"The ginger, I don't like 'em when they cry all the time."
"Ginger it is. You, Blondie, with the rest!"
The blonde let go of Astrid's hand and ran over to the other girls, nearly collapsing down on them. The man in charge of the transaction grabbed Astrid's arm roughly and pulled her out of the room. He dragged her all the way up and out of the dungeons and into an old classroom. All the chairs and tables were stacked up against the far wall, aside from one large desk, a chair behind it, and two in front.
"So, 'Scabior', we have a little paperwork to fill out."
"Really? Paperwork?"
"It's just like buying a dog or something, just standard release form."
Scabior sighed; "fine."
Astrid was forced over to one of the chairs, Scabior sat in the one next to hers and relaxed, looking arrogant. His right ankle was resting on his left leg, and his arms hung down into his lap and he looked around the room, chewing on his lip. The other man ran round the desk and looked about for a form.
"Ah, here we go, just, fill it in and she's yours."
Scabior grabbed the quill being handed to him and quickly ticked some boxes and scrawled his name.
"All done? Very good, she's all yours."
Scabior turned to Astrid and smirked; "'ello love."
Astrid finally got a look at her new master; a deep feeling of dread swept over her. Just one look at the man told her he didn't want her to sweep his floors. His brown hair was straggly and wild, with a red streak. His bizarre array of clothing was messy and dirty; he looked as if he had as much dirt on his face as she did. However the most unnerving aspect of him was his facial features. His mouth was always twisted into a suggestive smirk, and his eyes bore into her.
"Let's leave shall we?"
He pulled himself to his feet and grabbed her by the wrist. Since her capture three months earlier, she'd been fed very little, and lost a lot of body weight. Before, she was an average sized girl, with meat on her bones and a little spare. Now she was very underweight; her body had used up all its fatty reserves and left her with bone, Scabior could have wrapped his pinky and thumb round her wrist twice. Scabior dragged her out of the castle before apparating. They both arrived on the garden path of a small run-down cottage. The stone of the cottage was brown and dirty, it looked like it was falling apart. The roof had shingles missing and the chimney pots were crooked. The green paint was chipping off the window's shutters which were hanging on to the wall for all they were worth. The garden was also overgrown and full of weeds. Before Astrid could note anything else about the house, she was dragged up the path to the old front door. Scabior stuck his wand into the lock and pushed the door open. Inside was a completely different world. The house was tidy, well-kept and looked like a Lord lived there. It was well lit and everything looked antique.
"Don't let the outside fool you, it's a way to keep unwanted muggles away... Now your room..."
Without letting go of her wrist once, he dragged Astrid up the stairs and along the landing to the end door. He pushed it open. Inside was a four poster bed with what looked like silk sheets. The carpets, curtains and bedsheets were a deep shade of purple, and all the wooden furniture was dark mahogany. Scabior turned to Astrid and smirked.
"I'm goin' to treat you like a princess. There's a change of clothes in the wardrobe, meet me downstairs once you're changed, we're having someone round for dinner."
Astrid nodded and stood in her confusion as Scabior winked and left, closing the door behind him. She shuffled over to the wardrobe and pulled the mirrored door open. Inside was a selection of dresses, in different styles and colours. She pulled out a simple red dress and lay it on the bed before going over to the chest of drawers. She pulled open a drawer, but it was empty. Sighing, she shut it and went back over to the bed. The moment she turned her back there was an odd noise coming from the chest of drawers. She turned back and pulled the drawer open again. It was suddenly full of underwear and other necessary clothing. Astrid shook her head, grabbed a few things and set about getting changed. Everything fit her perfectly, making her a little sceptical. When she was ready she quietly crept downstairs. Voices could be heard in a different room, she followed them through to the dining room. Scabior smirked when he saw her.
"Ah yes, Yaxley, this is the young girl."
"So this is what I bought, quite pretty isn't she, what's her name?"
The two men walked over to her, backing her into the corner. They both had suspicious smirks on their faces.
"I'm not sure, what's your name love?"
Astrid opened her mouth but no sound came out.
"Come on love, don't be afraid, what's your name?"
"Uh, Astrid," she finally managed. Scabior nodded.
"Very nice, so, what do you think?"
Yaxley nodded; "very nice indeed, so, what're you going to use her for?"
Scabior put his arm round Yaxley and led him off, talking in hushed voices. Astrid looked around at the grandeur of the dining room, wondering how he came to live in a place like this. Suddenly something began tugging on her dress. She looked down and found a small house elf holding a silver tray with a glass of red wine on it.
"Here's your wine Miss."
"Oh, thank you."
"Are your clothes ok?"
"They're fine... You are?..."
"Tippy, Miss, I'm your house-elf."
Astrid smiled; "oh, uh, pleased to meet you."
Tippy squealed; "nice to meet you too Miss, if you need anything, just call me, I'll be there. Anyway, I must go help the other elves in the kitchen-"
"-There are more of you?"
"Only three, me, Natter - he's the master's elf - and Wally."
"Oh, so-"
"-Sorry Miss, I really have to go."
With a small pop, she was gone. Astrid sighed and looked at her glass of wine. If was a deep shade of red and looked quite inviting.
"Hey Astrid, come 'ere a minute."
Astrid held her head high and walked over. Scabior slid his arm round her waist and pulled her closer to him. Yaxley smirked and walked off, out of the dining room.
"I need to talk to you... Don't say anythin' unless asked, be polite, do whatever I say, when I say it, and never leave the house. Follow those rules, and you'll have no problem. I've given you everything, and I can take it all away, so do not, cross me. Understand?"
Astrid nodded. Scabior smirked.
"Good, now drink up, don't worry, everything's ok."
Astrid looked down at her glass and raised it to her lips. Before she could drink any, Scabior grabbed her by the chin gently and pulled her closer to kiss her cheek. Astrid closed her eyes and took a large sip of her wine. Scabior squeezed her shoulder and walked off to meet someone who'd just walked in. After having another look around, she sat down at the table, staring at her wine glass. Around her, three men were stood talking quietly; she still hadn't been introduced to the new-comer. Her wine glass was nearly empty when she was joined at the table.
"What's for dinner Scabior?" Yaxley asked, pulling his chair in.
"Lamb I believe."
"Very good, very good indeed."
Suddenly, food appeared on the table, in the same way it did at Hogwarts. Astrid had to restrain herself, this was the first bit of real food she'd seen since she'd been stripped of her human rights. Scabior noticed her eyeing up the food and smirked.
"Well everyone, tuck in."
Astrid slowly began helping herself, refusing to take a bite first. Soon, everyone was eating in silence, like it was a mundane daily task, but Astrid still couldn't fathom the situation she was in.
After the food and conversation - which she didn't participate in - they all retired to the living room, which she was yet to see. Just like the rest of the house, it was very grand and well decorated. Yaxley and the other man who she still hadn't been introduced to sat in the two armchairs by the fire. Scabior sat on the sofa opposite the fire and two armchairs; noticing Astrid stood in the doorway, smirked and patted the space next to him. Astrid perched herself on the edge of the sofa, holding on to her refilled glass of wine. Scabior leant forward and slipped his arm round her waist. He leant closer to her.
"Relax, sit back," he whispered, pulling her back. She sat properly and looked at the fire and nothing else. Scabior squeezed her knee and left his hand on her leg, occasionally stroking it. The three men around her gulped down their wine, glass after glass, and their conversation quickly became nonsensical. Astrid noticed Scabior hadn't said much in their current conversation and glanced up at him. He was looking down at her smirking.
"You ok love?"
Astrid nodded. His smirk got bigger.
"Good, want more wine?"
She shook her head. Scabior raised his hand and stroked her cheek.
"You're quite beautiful you know love."
Astrid looked down at her lap again, but Scabior pulled her face to look at him.
"Don't be shy... Or is it these fellas? I can get rid of 'em if you like."
She shook her head and looked at her lap again. Scabior sighed and stroked her leg before rejoining the conversation.
After another couple of hours, the two men decided to leave, leaving Astrid alone with her new owner. Scabior returned from seeing his guests to the door and grinned wickedly at Astrid.
"We're finally alone love."
She nodded and looked down at her lap. Scabior walked over and slid up to her.
"Finish your drink so you can put the glass down."
She did as she was told, quickly drinking the little bit of wine left and put the glass down on the small table next to the sofa. Scabior took her hands and made her look at him. They sat in an awkward silence, staring into each others' eyes.
"So, are you all right?" he asked.
"Um...Yes..."
"Good... So... This is awkward huh?"
Astrid nodded; "a little."
"Any questions to ask me?"
Astrid looked at him confoundedly; "what?"
"Well, you know, about this arrangement?"
"...What's with this arrangement?"
Scabior laughed and began stroking her hands with his thumbs; "it's nothin' perverse love, it's just my own little quirk, if you want to call it that. Can you grab me that?"
He pointed to a small silver ornament on the mantelpiece. She got up and took it, going back to him. Instead of letting her sit next to him, he pulled her onto his knee and took the item from her hand.
"You see, when I was a Snatcher, I'd take some stuff from people's 'ouses. Valuable stuff you know. I took this one day, and was playin' with it when it opened," he pressed a bump on the item and it opened, revealing two pictures of a smiling family. "I was goin' to chuck it when I found out it was worthless, but it got me thinkin'... They 'ad each other, a proper family, and I just wanted to look after something. Now why not a cat, I hear you say..."
He looked expectantly at Astrid. She rolled her eyes.
"Why not a cat?"
Scabior smirked; "thanks for playin' along. Because, I hate cats, and they're borin'. You can't do anythin' with them, I wanted someone I can talk to, do things with, look after properly, someone damaged."
"And I'm damaged?"
"You were stolen from your family, their either dead or in prison, and you were imprisoned yourself for two months with other girls going through the same thing... You're damaged love."
Astrid looked down at her lap, feeling sorry not just for herself, but for Scabior too, who was deeper than she'd imagined. He put the silver picture frame down and stroked Astrid's cheek, pulling her face to look at his. He smiled warmly and stared into her eyes.
"You'll be all right with me."
She nodded and smiled meekly. Scabior leant forward and kissed her softly. Before reacting, several thoughts ran through Astrid's head; the main one being her emotional reaction to this kiss. If he'd done this instantly upon bring her home, she'd have struggled and pushed him away. But now she had a brief bio on him, she was confused. In what context did he want to look after her? And the gentility of the kiss confused her further. If it were hard and forceful, she'd know exactly what his intentions were, but with this kiss it was her choice to kiss back or not. What did he want from her? She pulled away and looked at him. He looked back innocently, waiting for a decision from her. When she showed no sign of disgust he leant forward again and kissed her. He raised his hands and cupped her face, waiting for some response from her. Astrid eventually succumbed and relaxed into his hold. Scabior instantly pulled away and looked into her eyes. He stroked her cheek and smiled meekly.
"I'm glad you're all mine."
