Written for the "Blood of the Enemy, Forcibly Taken" Challenge
A tall slender figure moved quietly through the expansive library he had been given access to. There were few private collections that could rival the Black and Malfoy holdings in terms of rare dark tomes, with the exception of the missing Potter library simply because of its age. The Notts, however, had come as close as they could with their limited means. While he would have preferred to be able to get back to the Black library, he was more than content using Theodore Nott Sr.'s library.
The reason he was here rather than using Lucius' library was simple: the Notts had much more interest in blood rituals than the Malfoys. The Malfoys were much more interested in causing pain in a matter that did not stain the carpets; the Notts had no such preoccupation. After all, blood was powerful, and magical blood was even more powerful. He saw spilling magical blood such a waste. Although sometimes his servants needed to learn a lesson, he no longer had the leeway to murder them needlessly. He hoped to accomplish his goals without spilling any more valuable pure blood. Or any magical blood, but his followers might take offense with the inclusion of half-bloods and mudbloods. Well tough.
He already felt like it was a waste to kill that 'spare'. Cedric Diggory, if he was remembering correctly. Although his priority had been on getting his body back and subjecting Potter to some measure of humiliation. Now that the ritual had been a success, he had been able to think. At first, his plan had been to lay low, to build his strength back up, break his more loyal followers out of Azkaban, acquire the full prophecy from the Department of Mysteries, and kill Dumbledore and Harry Potter. Not particularly in that order.
But now he had a much easier plan. Get Potter to acquire the prophecy for him.
The Dark Lord Voldemort had caught a flash of something disturbing and yet intriguing during one of his meditation sessions.
Flashes of a bright sun and a garden, flashes of red, of darkness, of a dusty old room filled with broken muggle objects. Further pressing revealed entire memories and images that were not his own. Two weeks of investigation led him to understand that there was something linking him with Potter.
And he could use it to his advantage. If he could mask his presence in Potter's mind he could influence the boy into doing his bidding. For that, he would need to do some research. The trick was to open the pathway to Potter's mind without allowing Potter to realize what was going on, or worse, try and make the connection work both ways.
The Malfoys had plenty of books on the Mind Arts, but a sudden inspiration and hunch about using Potter's blood in the rebirth ritual gave the Dark Lord the idea to see if the connection could be strengthened by their blood connection. It would be harder for Dumbledore to break, and harder for Potter or his handlers to figure out, since none of them were of the inclination to study the Dark Arts in such depth. He doubted even that dog, Sirius, had any useful knowledge on the subject, having abandoned his family's ways at such a young age.
It was such a waste of potential.
The Dark Lord stopped in a familiar section of the library. It was where he found the base theory for the Dark Mark. Of course he had taken his own notes, made his own adjustments so that the spell could not be duplicated. He pulled down a book, one of the older in the library.
"Of Masters and Servants"
This was useful. Perhaps he could modify a spell in this to force Potter to do what he needed the boy to do. A further walk down revealed a corner filled with even older books. Possibly the books Nott had bragged about having finally gotten out of a distant relative in Rome. Some of them were not books, but were collections of spell scrolls.
"Servi Velint"
That looked promising. He could use that on his current batch of Death Eaters as well, maybe turn them into more of the vision he saw them as all those years ago rather than the cowering weaklings he was forced to deal with now. He could only count on one hand the number of willing servants he had access to. He could not vouch for the sanity or usefulness of those who had spent the past few years in Azkaban.
Opening the book, being careful because of the age, the Dark Lord scanned the table of contents, refreshing his Latin along the way.
"Sanguinem Servorum"
Blood Slaves. That was getting closer to what he needed. The Dark Lord tucked the book into his stack and quickly looked at the other books, seeing a few that he liked the looks of and took that as well.
A few minutes later, in his heavily warded chamber within the Nott Estate he took out the books. As he read he grew excited. It was a feeling of finally being able to accomplish something he had been aiming to accomplish since he started.
He would win. He possessed the means to control Potter, to make Potter his slave.
He would use the Ancient Roman ritual of blood bonding slaves to make Potter his slave. It could be accomplished within the next month once he had Severus gather the proper ingredients for the ritual. Once that was done he would do the slow process of indoctrinating the boy, and turning him into a 'Servi Velint', a willing servant.
The Romans had a good thing going when they developed the blood bonding. Conquering tribes could select families to enslave. Each Head could bind a family to his own by using this ritual. Slaves of the same family would then be loyal to those of the binder's family. Reading further, he saw that it only applied to males. There was a different ritual to bind females through blood. But that made sense. These spells were written before Romans considered women more than just property. A woman would be seen as included in the 'deal' or as currency an owner could use to 'trade up'.
The blood bound servants could be released only by the caster or a direct descendant. It did not matter how powerful the wizard attempting to break the bond was. That was the strength with using blood.
Usually the ritual required the new master's blood and the blood from the eldest male in the family being bound. However, he didn't need Potter, because he had Potters blood already! It was rather brilliant.
The Dark Lord wondered why he had not thought to seek this type of servitude from his followers.
The answer was in the next paragraph, among the warnings. Problems of infertility and decreased magical strength were found when used on those of any magic to note. Not in the heirs who may be bound, but in the person whose blood was used to bind. That strength would add to the owner's, but it would severely limit that slave's usefulness as a magical slave. It was why the practice fell out of favor for binding pureblood slaves. There were other ways to bind a pureblood to servitude without damaging the family line. Although in this text they were referred to as pure wizards, which probably meant at the very least three of the four grandparents were magical.
He needed servants, but powerful ones. Magical blood was precious, magical heirs even more so.
So he would have to avoid damaging Potter. IF he was powerful, he would make a powerful servant. No use having such a powerful servant, one who was once loyal to Dumbledore, only to turn him into another Pettigrew because of the ritual. It meant that he would have to convert him to a willing bound servant quickly.
IT could be done. With Potter a blood servant, he could command the boy to do anything via the connection he had with him, and the boy would be forced to do so. He could then get one of his servants, perhaps Severus or that Malfoy boy, to give Potter a portkey once he was ready to become a willing servant.
Having Potter a willing servant, a marked Death Eater willing to do anything for him, thrilled the Dark Lord. Dumbledore would be devastated. His weapon, his 'chosen one', and the boy he planned on using against him; turned into the very thing he was supposed to be fighting. Sure, some of the steps he needed to take would be difficult, especially if he could not force the Ministry's hand. Perhaps Severus could be of some use when it came time to do the actual binding, but he would not rely so heavily on one man for his plan to succeed. Potter was too important.
Unless…
The Dark Lord smiled a rather sinister smile at that, and set to work.
Harry woke up, stifling another scream as he fought against the thin blanket he had become wrapped up in. Ever since that night in the graveyard, visions of being tied up against the gravestone and helpless to save Cedric haunted his dreams.
He knew that there was trouble brewing. Voldemort was back and nobody believed him! Worse, he was back at Privet Drive, locked up and unable to prepare himself to face him. Hedwig had been taken to the Burrow for 'protection' so now he couldn't even send letters out to Sirius
His relatives had not been happy to see him back, and the feeling was mutual. His back was still sore and weeping from his uncle taking his frustrations out on him. All because somehow it was his fault that the Crawford Account decided to go with a different company.
He settled into his bed, wincing as the thin mattress poked into his back. Aside from dreams about Cedric's death, his nights had only grown more confusing as the summer slowly moved on. Sometimes he would have dreams of figures in silver masks, bowing to him and telling him things. Most of it was about the Ministry, none of it useful. Hardly any of it made any sense.
Well, it wasn't like he could TELL anyone he was having strange dreams, without an owl that would stay for more than thirty seconds and all.
Still, Harry couldn't shake the feeling that something bad was going to happen. Something terrible. If he could only figure out what his dreams meant. Were they visions from Voldemort's mind? If so, how did they get in his dreams? Was it the fact that he took blood from him during that ritual?
The last one had been very disturbing. It had been about him, but the only feeling he had during the dream had been satisfaction about accomplishing some goal. The dream then morphed into a memory of Cedric's death.
Harry sighed, wiping sweat from his forehead. He was hot and thirsty, but knew that he would not be able to solve either of those problems tonight. He couldn't have water after 8 because then he'd have to 'use the bathroom and disturb decent people trying to sleep'. Nevermind that Dudley stayed up till 3 in the morning every night doing Merlin knew what in his room. Until midnight it sounded like one of his video games, but after that…
Harry sighed again, quietly. He would have to be awake soon anyway. Might as well make some use of it. Among Dudley's abandoned 'things' were books. One of those books happened to be 'World of Plants', probably from Marge or some family friend who thought Dudley would be into that type of thing. Brilliant part was, half of the plants in the book had magical properties, so he could at least study for Herbology and Potions during his exile. Heck, Harry would gladly re-read his entire Potions syllabus if it gave him something to do other than to wallow in pain at night.
Now that was a depressing thought. Potions or Death.
To distract from that disturbing train of thought, Harry pulled the book from its place and sat under a moonbeam.
"Anise was believed by the Ancients to be good for warding off sleeplessness and nightmares."
Harry almost laughed. He wished he had some now. He wondered if they put anise in Dreamless Sleep Potion, or if there was a stronger ingredient used instead.
Great, he was turning into Hermione.
But was that so bad? Taking out a stub of a pencil he had managed to rescue, Harry found a sheet of paper in one of Dudley's abandoned notebooks (of which there were many) and wrote the question down. He would do anything to keep the nightmares away.
Even if he ended up with Potions research.
The Dark Lord looked upon his servants. He still missed having Bellatrix and some of his more powerful servants in the mix, but these few had their usefulness.
"What news of the Ministry, Lucius?"
"The rumors of your return continue to circulate, but Minister Fudge and Delores Umbridge are also working to discredit Potter and Dumbledore. I have been able to find out that she wishes to get Potter expelled. How she means to do this I am unsure."
That would not do! He needed Potter at Hogwarts for his plan to work. "NO! Potter must not be expelled. Continue to deny my return, work against Dumbledore, but I have plans for Potter and he must be able to maintain his status as a student at Hogwarts in order for that to happen. If Potter is expelled than he will be taken away by Dumbledore. I need him where we can keep tabs on him until we are ready to move against Dumbledore."
Lucius nodded. "Yes, My Lord. What would you have me to do?"
The Dark Lord thought for a moment. "They wish to discredit Potter and Dumbledore? They claim that Potter is mentally unstable? Have them call into question Dumbledore's training of the young man. He is an orphan whose parents were both magical. His father was a pureblood. Have them question his home life. He lives with muggles, does he not, Severus?"
Severus froze. "Yes, my Lord. He does. They no doubt spoil him, treat him like a prince."
The Dark Lord frowned. "Now Severus, I merely asked if he lived with muggles. I did not ask for your opinion on how they treat him. In any case he would not have been raised in a magical environment. Find a way to bring that up, Lucius. Make the issue about Dumbledore hiding Potter away in some hole every summer rather than out socializing with the proper sorts of wizards his age. Make it seem as though his claims that I have risen are mere cries for help to an outer world, hoping that someone will read the signs for what they are and return him to his rightful place in society."
"Question why, after all these years, and with the threat gone, why would Potter not seek attention, in grander and grander displays, when he is a prisoner of the Headmaster. He attends Hogwarts under Dumbledore's watchful eye, is returned to a muggle prison every summer, and is only released when Dumbledore sees fit. When he is in public he is only seen in the company of Dumbledore loyalists. Do everything you must to undermine Dumbledore, and make it seem as though Potter is a victim. Dumbledore is a powerful wizard, and Potter is a mere boy, raised by muggles and thus ignorant of all the ways Dumbledore can twist his very thoughts and actions."
Lucius was nodding. Even he could see the benefit to this. Dumbledore was already a person non grata in the Ministry. Making it seem as though he was taking advantage of an orphan would throw the sheep in the Ministry into a frenzy.
"Yes, My Lord."
"Good. You all may go. Severus, please stay a moment."
"Yes, My Lord."
"What news of the Order? Has Dumbledore reformed it yet?"
Severus nodded. "Yes. He wished to use the Black House, but the mutt has refused him. He has made other accommodations, but I am unable to share them."
The Dark Lord nodded. He suspected that Dumbledore would do something like that.
"I understand that you are my spy, my eyes within Dumbledore's circle. He trusts you. But can I trust you?"
"Yes, My Lord. I am loyal only to you."
"I would like to be sure. Your mark, Severus."
Severus rolled up the sleeves to his robes, revealing the Dark Mark, which twisted and almost glowed in the presence of its maker.
"Though servant thou may be. Do you pledge your magic to being a loyal servant?"
The Dark Lord saw the hesitation on Severus' face, and dove into his mind. There he saw flashes of red hair, of green eyes, of Potter broken, bloodied, half-carrying the unconscious body of a younger redhaired girl. He saw Potter defiant, defending the werewolf and the dog. He knew that Snape's loyalty issues were not because of anything Dumbledore had one, but because of Potter, and more likely, his mudbood Evans.
"I see. Stand up Severus."
"Yes, My Lord."
"Your loyalty is not true to me. You serve me, but only out of duty. You would ally yourself against me if you felt that you could best serve the memory of that girl. As much as you despised the father, you love the mother, and you see enough of her in him to make him your priority."
"My Lord, I…"
"Do not lie Severus. I am preparing to be lenient. She died protecting the boy. I gave her the chance to step aside and she would not. She begged that I kill her rather than attempt to kill the boy. But alas, what is done is done. She is dead. Would she have mourned you, had it been you who died at the hands of Dumbledore?"
Severus looked conflicted. The Dark Lord pressed on.
"Do not let your love for her cloud your judgment. Do not allow Dumbledore's empty promises of ultimate redemption obscure the truth. I held up my end of the bargain we had, Severus. I attempted to spare her life. In the end she was in my way. I do not hesitate when it comes to threats, nor should any other witch or wizard. If you are not a threat to me, I am not a threat to you. Can you say the same of Dumbledore? Has he held up his end of your bargain with him? Has he always looked out for your best interest, or do others always come first?"
Snape simply looked at the Dark Lord. HIs eyes reflected an inner conflict, turmoil.
"I say no. From when you first started at Hogwarts, I surmise, the fact that you were a Slytherin, from a dark house and a dark family, he saw no good in you. He saw only how he could use you, how he could twist your pain for his use. And then what? Once he has no further use for you, say, if I banish you with the threat to have you killed should you be found in my presence again. What then? Would he keep you at that school, teaching students raised to judge you based on your past and not your merits?"
"You see, Severus. I have offered you much more than that. And I offer you the chance now to take advantage of my generosity. Declare loyalty to me. Fealty. Prove to me that I am your one true master. Do not let Dumbledore's empty promises sway you."
Severus kneeled again, presenting his marked arm. "My Lord"
The Dark Lord nodded appreciatively, and whispered the spell of willful bondage. He could feel the bond between Severus' mark and him strengthen.
"Rise. Severus. You will not speak of this conversation to anyone. You will go and acquire these ingredients as quickly as you can. The ritual must be done before the end of the summer. If Dumbledore asks you about what I have been doing, mention that I have been keeping a 'low profile', and have issued orders to undermine him at the Ministry. Mention nothing about Potter. It would be best to keep them both surprised. Although from what my other sources have gathered, Dumbledore is doing quite the job for me in keeping the boy isolated from his peers. It will be easier to get to him, that way."
"Yes, My Lord." was Severus' reply.
"Oh, and Severus? I have plans for Potter. Don't antagonize him. It could come out very poorly for you in the end if you do."
Snape was much more efficient than the Dark Lord had given him credit. It was like having the Old Severus back, the one who had served him before the mudblood and Dumbledore got in the way. The ritual did not require ingredients that needed to be gathered at select times, but some ingredients were quite rare and Snape could have chosen to 'delay'. Instead he followed the instructions, including the modifications that had been made. The modified ritual, which allowed for the subjugation of a person who shared the same blood as the binder, was similar in most other ways except for the actual ritual layout and a few ingredients particular to an obidens puer potion.
He would still be able to release Potter at any point, but there was actually less risk of damage to Potter's magic as long as the binding didn't stay on beyond the teen's 16th birthday.
The Dark Lord prepared himself mentally and physically for the ritual. The potions were ready, the ritual circle was ready, and Potter was ready.
Potter was currently in Ministry Protective Custody following Lucius' rather brilliant power play involving Potter, Fudge and Dumbledore. By insinuating that Potter only believed himself to be in danger because Dumbledore insisted there was danger, Lucius called into question Dumbledore's sanity. By hinting to the Minister that the way to prove Dumbledore wrong was to remove Potter from his 'protective care', Lucius was able to undermine Dumbledore while still making it look like he supported Fudge.
An unexpected boon happened when a group of Ministry officials went to visit Potter in his muggle home to 'verify the safety of said home' only to find the boy half-starved, beaten and behind a door with over a dozen locks on it. Now Fudge was a hero for 'rescuing' the 'boy-hero' and Lucius had built up more political clout than ever before. Dumbledore was no longer allowed to speak to Potter or on his behalf, and Potter was living with the family of one of his followers. Sure, Elisabeth Rosier Belby was married to a rather neutral and unremarkable man, but she held the beliefs of her family just as fanatically as Evan did.
Plus, she was a healer. As soon as the idea the Potter be taken to a healer happened, Lucius swept in and recommended that the boy be given a private healer because of his 'status'. Elisabeth Belby was recommended, and Potter was quickly taken to her home.
Now Potter was in a magically-induced coma, for his own safety and to help him heal from his injuries. The sun had set. It was time to begin.
This particular ritual area was a circular stone table with a hollowed out indentation where potions could be poured in. There were holes around the entire perimeter where rune pillars could be placed in any pattern depending on the ritual. Surrounding the platform were three bowls on short pillars, where charging potions could be placed to protect the person or persons conducting the ritual. Tonight it was set up with a rune pillar at each of the Five Points, with a large bowl resting in the indentation in the centre. Inside the bowl was the ornate potion that he had brewed, not even trusting Severus with the delicate task.
The Dark Lord lit the first bundle of herbs: Sandalwood, Hyssop, Galangal and Myrrh. He selected these because they would make the consecration strongest. If he was going to bless his circle he was going to do it properly.
"I consecrate this circle and this space for the Act that shall take place in this space."
He passed the bundle around the table three times, repeating that same line, before breaking the bundle into three and placing it in the three bowls outside the circle. He picked up the silver knife that had been sitting over the bubbling chalice and sliced his left hand, and held his hand over the chalice.
"Blood is shed, so that it may be bound."
The blood dripped into the bowl, causing the potion within to stop bubbling. As the colour changed to the right shade of purple Voldemort withdrew his hand. He healed it and pricked his middle finger. Touching each rune pillar in the prescribed order, he spoke again.
"I set myself as binder, so that they who must be bound have a Master to bind them."
The runes absorbed his blood and began to glow. The Dark Lord then took the second bundle, the bundle of binding, and stirred the potion, watching as the bundle dissolved and the potion turned fluorescent. While doing this, he spoke.
"I bind one of my blood to me for his protection. May he be protected by this Act under my service."
After stirring the required 12 times, the bundle vanished into the potion and it began to smoke again. The Dark Lord picked up the bowl and poured it into the indentation, where the potion immediately began to bubble and roil.
"I bind Harry James Potter by blood to my service. I bind his magic to my purpose; I bind his will to my own. I sever any bindings that may be on him and take precedence over him by virtue of his blood shed for this Act. We are of the same blood; bind him in obedience to me. I set myself as his Master, and he as my Servant, so mote it be."
The potion flashed white and worked its way out to the runes. The rune stones absorbed the potion and there was another flash of purple light, followed by several flashes of multi-colored light. He felt compelled to touch the glowing potion with his finger, and he used the finger he had recently pricked, touching it to the surface of the potion.
The Dark Lord felt an odd sensation, and looked down to see that along his middle left finger there was a stylized M surrounded by a glowing green band. ON each side of the M there were two snake heads, fangs bared and enclosing shields. On the left shield was a depiction of his Dark Mark, on the right was the symbol of the Slytherin Family. The design on his finger vanished, but the potion continued to glow brighter and brighter until there was a final flash.
Sitting in the now-empty basin was a silver band, carved with his Dark Mark on one side, and the same seal of Slytherin on the other side. Picking it up he saw that the band glowed green at his touch, and the band on his finger reappeared. It was featherlight, and inside was the inscription Sanguinem Servorum.
The band was even prettier up close, with two small snakes around the outside, one whose tail formed a stylized S. Upon closer inspection Dark Lord saw that the S was actually doubled, and that the second snake's tail was almost directly behind it. Inside, on the side directly opposite the S and facing the phrase Sanguinem Sevorum were the heads of both snakes, whose fangs were bared as if ready to strike.
The band continued to warm and glow at his touch, and the Dark Lord could feel the magical connection between himself and the band, more than he could feel the connection between himself and his servants through the Dark Mark. He knew the connection would only strengthen once the band was placed on Potter's ankle.
The ritual had worked.
A few days later and Elisabeth had arranged for her husband and son to be out of the house completely. They could not be trusted, not with a matter as delicate as this.
"My Lord." Elisabeth bowed low as the Dark Lord crossed the threshold of the modest Tudor.
"Where is he?"
"In his own suite on the third floor." Elisabeth replied. The Dark Lord followed Elisabeth, wand trained on her back should she decide to cross him.
"Here, My Lord. He sleeps fitfully, but his health has been improving. The Ministry took most of his muggle clothes as evidence, and I have managed to heal most of the scars now, even the ones that should have been healed years ago once he started attending Hogwarts. Muggles are foul."
The Dark Lord took in the still too-skinny boy resting on the bed.
"Show me his left ankle."
Elisabeth bent to do just that, pulling the covers back and revealing the boy's feet, which were wrapped in muslin.
"His ankles had been badly broken several times and never quite healed properly. He will likely feel like a new person upon waking, with all of the lingering injuries and pain removed. Some of the injuries were so old I'm sure he's never known what it's like to not be in some pain."
The Dark Lord frowned. Was Dumbledore still so blind about the evils of Muggles?
"Thank You, Elisabeth. Continue to care for him. Unrwap his left ankle."
Elisabeth did as instructed. The Dark Lord bent over the ankle, taking out the silver band created by the ritual.
"I thus bind thee to me." The band opened and enclosed Potter's ankle.
The Dark Lord stepped back as Potter began to convulse. Flashes of light began going up from the band on his ankle, reaching all his other extremities in pulses that kept growing faster and faster.
Wind began rushing around the room as several large snapping sounds could be heard, and an unholy scream was ripped out of Potter's throat.
Elisabeth covered her ears and continued to watch Potter to make sure he would not come to any permanent harm, the Dark Lord was simply fascinated since there was no indication that this would happen according to his research. Perhaps there was more going on than he previously thought.
After what felt like ages, but was merely five minutes, Potter stopped screaming and the flashes stopped. The Dark Lord stepped in and observed the band disappearing into Potter's skin, faint puncture marks where the snake heads had been the only indication that anything had been there, and soon those faded as well. Touching the ankle again the design reappeared, with the two snakes now facing outward, mouths open and wrapped over his two shields: the Slytherin seal and his Dark Mark. Just like on his finger, they appeared to be holding the shields in their mouths. In between the two heads was the double S signifying Potter's position as a blood servant. The design glowed a faint green, and the symbol on his finger reappeared as well.
Satisfied, he stood up.
"Obliviate" The Dark Lord carefully removed the memory of his visit, planting the memory of a standard Ministry visit to check on a ward's health. He withdrew from her mind just as easily as he had slipped in.
"Wrap his ankle back up, and continue to bring him back to optimal health. You're doing a good job and the Ministry remembers those who do a good job."
"Yes sir." Elisabeth replied.
The Dark Lord left the boy in the Healer's care, satisfied that his plan was a success.
"Ah Lucius. How are young Mr. Malfoy's preparations going for the new school year?"
"Well, My Lord. He is eager to do his shopping. All have been instructed to fall in line. They are not to speak of your return in public, but will keep an eye out for potential followers."
"Good. Good." The Dark Lord replied. "Tell young Mr. Malfoy that he has a task, specially assigned by myself. Failure is not an option."
"Yes, my Lord. What will you have him to do?"
"Befriend Mr. Potter, and separate him from his blood traitors. If he can bring another into the fold who is worthy of us, so be it."
Lucius swallowed. That would be difficult for Draco to accomplish, but the Dark Lord would not be denied. If he thought the boy could be turned now that he was out of Dumbledore's control, he would help in any way.
"Yes, my Lord. It will be done."