~Chapter Fourteen: Owned~
Harry James Potter huffed. He was bored stiff and there was nothing to do when one was all alone deep inside enemy territory. Well, Harry sighed, they weren't really enemies any longer. No, since the Dark Lord had claimed him he couldn't say with any confidence that they were enemies. They certainly weren't friends or even allies but he rather doubted those titles mattered to his master. Harry belonged to him and that was all that concerned him for the moment.
That night after the claiming had been horrendous. He'd had to end to the amount of possessiveness that both Draco and the Dark Lord gave him. Lucius and Severus were fine but he'd been hammered. Hours later their little celebration had dwindled and the three he'd wanted to remain left. Harry had immediately claimed tiredness and returned to his room. There was only so much one could take of the Dark Lord before they started to feel their ire grow.
Upon waking, he'd had nothing better to do than stare at the ceiling and that was where he remained. He had no idea what was expected of him. He'd been told that as an Elemental, he would remain at Riddle Manor but that didn't explain what he would be doing. Would he be spending his time wandering the halls? Would he be allowed outside to visit the garden? What about the library or would he have to spend his entire time surrounded by Death Eaters and the Dark Lord? Would Severus or even Draco be permitted to visit? He wished he knew.
Sluggishly he got out of bed and wandered over to the cupboard to find something to wear. Once he opened the door to accomplish that simple task he discovered that it was far from simple. The cupboard, which he had assumed was small, was a walk in wardrobe that already had numerous shirts, pants and robes hanging from the impressive walls lining both sides of the wardrobe. He almost tripped backwards at the sheer amount of clothing inside. Now something that should have been an easy task had turned out to be monumental.
There was everything in there from formal robes to casual wear. Numerous pair of shoes lined the bottom of the wardrobe all different styles and highly expensive. He had sets of boxers and briefs and even pyjamas and other night clothes. It was a little overwhelming to enter and he wasn't positive whether he'd even bother with some of these clothes. Honestly who needed several sets of formal wear if they only wore casual?
Harry sighed this was ridiculous. Sure he knew that his master would look after him however he had thought that as he would provide for his health and nothing more. Apparently that assumption had been wrong as well. He would have to make a list and show them to Severus when he returned to Hogwarts. At least then they could update those stupid books. Honestly the elementals had evolved since then as had the bonds and requirements.
Reaching into the wardrobe he carefully took out a long sleeved green cotton shirt and black pants before grabbing a plain black robe all of which fit him perfectly. As elegant as they looked there were far worse items in the wardrobe and probably more expensive. None of those he was going to touch until he absolutely had a reason to. Something told him that Draco had also helped with his new clothing and with the Slytherin money available to the Dark Lord after the first Claiming he guessed that price definitely wasn't a problem for anyone.
Back to the problem at hand... how to get out of the room without going to the Dark Lord for the answer to his boredom…
Attempting to get around that little rule of not going to anyone else was becoming rather annoying. Harry had no idea. If there was one thing that was absolute however it was his desire to make sure he never went to the Dark Lord for a single thing especially if that one thing was insignificant. He couldn't ask for help either because everyone here worked for his master.
It was also unlikely that he would be permitted to get up and simply walk around either. The Dark Lord would probably have warded the door to alert him when Harry left. This was highly likely considering the Dark Lord had taken to escorting him everywhere when possible. How did he get around that? How could he leave this room without going to the Dark Lord?
What if Harry decided to send someone to call the Dark Lord? That way he wouldn't be leaving without informing the Dark Lord yet he would be going to someone else beforehand. Besides he'd only been ordered not to call anyone within the Dark Lord's service; so that left anyone solely connected to him. House elves were his only option.
Any of the house elves in his service would obtain the world for him. Dobby and Winky however wouldn't do well against a dark wizard of any kind what with their past masters. One had served the Malfoys and the other had served Crouch, two groups that were close to the Dark Lord… that left Kreacher. Well that was a no brainer then.
"Kreacher!"
With a small pop Kreacher appeared without any trouble into the room. Seeing his master sitting regally on the black sofa he immediately bowed. His master was finally looking like the young lord that he should be. Lady Black would be most pleased to hear that someone was taking care of the young lord even if it wasn't someone from the Black family. This person was a good influence on the young lord unlike those idiots currently residing within Grimmauld.
"What is it that master desires from Kreacher?"
Harry frowned. He wasn't quite used to the idea that Kreacher belonged to him when his godfather had an even greater right to the house. However he couldn't do much about that. There was only so much one could do with what they were given. Kreacher wanted to obey him and since he was truthfully next in line he could. It was that simple.
"I want you to find the Dark Lord and inform him that I'm awake and enquiring what I shall be doing this morning."
Kreacher nodded and popped away to deliver his master's message. He wasn't afraid of what would happen should he not be speaking to this person as he wasn't his master and couldn't harm him. Only his master could do that and he knew that master would never.
Harry just smirked. This plan was fool proof. Not only had he not left the room without the Dark Lord's say so, he hadn't called anyone to him, as ordered. The Dark Lord couldn't punish him for calling on his own house elf. This way he was both following the Dark Lord's order and going against him. Sometimes having the cunning of a Slytherin helped excellently with his problems. Maybe he should have begun to pay attention to it earlier.
Kracher popped back moments later looking completely calm as if he hadn't just gone to see the Dark Lord.
"Is there being anything else master desires?" he asked bowing.
The Dark Lord swept into the room to see the house elf bowing before his elemental. Harry's smirk only grew wider at the frown on his master's face. Navigating around the Dark Lord's orders was too easy at the moment though he knew that it would begin to get harder as he realized what Harry was attempting to do.
"No that should be all thank you."
You couldn't ignore the smugness coming from Harry. Kreacher however did a remarkable job merely popping away without another word. He was used to the odd manners his master showed him. Silence descended upon them as they stared at each other.
"You didn't say that I couldn't use my own house elves. It's your own fault for not predicting that I wouldn't have my own even if that one does technically belong to the House of Black which I'm not closely related to."
Voldemort growled. Harry was still trying to escape his control. He was still trying to defy him even when he really had no other viable option. Why couldn't the Gryffindor just give in and allow him to rule? Was it so hard? Obviously it was considering the amount of control he had over him now.
"Come we shall go to the Dining Room for breakfast."
As soon as Harry had stood from the couch he found himself in the arms of his master and being directed towards that dining room from where ever they currently were. When had the Dark Lord even gotten close enough to hold him? However he knew why. The Dark Lord wanted to attempt to regain control on this issue. Physically dragging him around was probably as close as the Dark Lord could currently get.
Breakfast was a silent affair. Harry could tell that the Dark Lord was angry with his little stunt before even if he hid it beneath a mask of coldness. They were the only two people seated at the table though there were other places set. Harry assumed that the others Death Eaters in the manor remained up late and slept in much longer than Harry was allowed. He really didn't care though because he knew if he remained up late like them he would witness things he'd rather not see. Besides, even if he did complain his thoughts would easily be ignored.
While buttering his toast, Harry noticed he was seated to the left of the man which frustrated him beyond belief. It was a permanent placing as well. Why did he have to sit next to the Dark Lord? Couldn't he have a nice placement near the end of the table?
The way everything was set the Dark Lord's elementals would be on his left and his most trusted on his right. That way he would only have those he trusted implicitly by his side while the less trustworthy were near the bottom and out of reach should they attempt something. Harry couldn't help but wonder who the Lord's right hand man was. Lucius? Or perhaps it was Severus? That however would remain a secret to him until everyone was sitting together.
"What am I supposed to do today?" Harry asked breaking the silence.
"I am too busy this morning to remain around you ("Unfortunately" Harry muttered sarcastically which was ignored) so you shall have to busy yourself in the library since you will not know the way around the manor. I shall find time this afternoon to spend some time with you young one. It is about time I discovered why you were one of my elementals."
"Can I contact some of my friends then via floo?"
The Dark Lord's harsh glare was levelled on him.
"No you will not use the floo to contact your friends. I will not have others learn of this address and where they can locate my base of operation. I do not need Dumbledore's Order storming my home in an attempt to retrieve you from where you truly belong in the future. You will not use any of the owls in the owlery to contact your friends either since your letters won't gain access through the wards. Under no circumstances are you to annoy my followers either. They have jobs to do that I rely on regardless of whether they are incompetent fools or not. As such you also will not venture outside the walls of the manor either or enter the kitchens to annoy my house elves. Do you understand?"
Oh Harry understood alright. He understood that apart from library he wasn't really allowed anywhere else. His room was available but he'd already spent a decent amount of time couped up there and he wasn't about to repeat that experience. Instead of voicing his thoughts though he simple nodded his head and continued eating not really tasting anything the house elves had cooked.
Shortly after that conversation Harry found himself wandering around the hallways disregarding the library that his master had subtly ordered him to be searching instead. As if he was going to listen to that bastard after spending only a day together. He was only ordered not to floo his friends. That couldn't be ignored though. Now however he realized that the library probably would have been more exciting than endless hallways with no portraits. If he got lost which he was certain that he was he wouldn't be able to find his way back.
Half an hour later and he was still wandering around without a clue as to where he was. Sure after the first few minutes he had thought it was a blast wandering around the Dark Lord's headquarters when he could easily relay the information. Yet it had lost its excitement as he realized most doors were locked and a simple "alohamora" wouldn't open it. That's when he'd gotten bored and realized he was lost. He had tried to accidently run into a few Death Eaters who he knew were wandering around knowing where they were going. That didn't turn out so well when they would turn a corner and disappear. Harry guessed that there were secret passageways throughout the building so even if it were stormed everyone would be able to make it out with relative ease.
The first person he actually recognized since they were all wearing the usual Death Eater robes was Wormtail. At the time he was positive that he would murder the rat but he needed instructions on how to find the library or something that he could actually find from where he was. That planned failed since once spotted Wormtail transformed and scurried away through a crack in the wall.
In pure frustration his Earth elemental began to manifest. The entire building began to shake during his wrath and so much that he didn't even realize that people had gathered at a distance to view is power. The candles that hung around the sides of the corridor to illuminate a path were rattling and the bricks in the walls seemed to shift ominously creating cracks in the work. His abilities as an elemental were phenomenal. Never had the Death Eaters witnessed something so grand not even from there master before he was defeated.
Now however the Dark Lord controlled these abilities that mere children wielded. He was after all their master. They weren't entirely sure whether that was a good thing or not considering his most loyal servants had been replaced by mere children one of which had the urge to kill their master but couldn't. Many Death Eaters were jealous of the sudden change and others were counting it as a blessing. Suddenly the ceiling began to crumble and everyone scuttled further back. They really didn't want to get caught in falling rubble it would simply anger their master at their own failure to protect themselves.
"Stop Harry."
At the sudden order from the cold voice everything ceased to move. Harry blinked what had interrupted him? He'd been enjoying ruining the Dark Lord's headquarters as his frustration at being lost had manifested into sheer power. Slowly he turned around to face his master who was grinning like a Cheshire cat, a scary look on his half formed snake-face.
"Ah little one you possess so much potential. You cause so much destruction with simply your emotions. Along with you and the other three elementals this war shall be easily won by the Dark side. The light shall fall and then we shall continue to rule until the end of time."
What had he meant til the end of time? Harry had heard rumours from the Order members especially Dumbledore that the Dark Lord had somehow created a way to become immortal which was concerning for him. The entire wizarding world believed that he was to defeat someone that was immortal. If that wasn't a feat in itself Harry didn't know what was anymore. Why couldn't the adults handle it like they normally did in the muggle world? Oh right because the wizarding world couldn't think for themselves. He'd forgotten about that.
Harry tensed when his master moved closer and wrapped an arm easily around his slim waist bringing him into a half hug. He wasn't particularly use to these actions between two people and he certainly didn't believe that the Dark Lord of all people would be the one he would first experience them with. It was bizarre and surreal and completely wrong. He would never discuss his feelings about this with someone else.
The Death Eaters swiftly dispersed under the glare turned in their direction. It was obvious to them that their master wanted nothing to do with them at the moment after that display of absolute raw power.
"Come now young one I shall spend some time with you."
Holding Harry so he couldn't slip out of his grasp Voldemort gracefully swept towards a room seemingly at random however upon further investigation he realized it was probably the Dark Lord's personal study. Once inside, his master motioned for him to sit before the fire also where Nagini was currently resting to keep warm. Voldemort took the seat opposite him. Frankly the entire thing unnerved him. He still had trouble understanding how he could keep so calm around the person who had murdered his parents.
"Now my pet we shall have a little discussion about what you know."
Harry gulped. There were many things that he knew that he shouldn't tell the Dark Lord not that it would be able to stop him. The only reprieve would be his inability to tell his master where the Order of the Phoenix headquarters was located due to the Fidelius charm surrounding the property. Instead of actually voicing his thoughts aloud he simply sat waiting for Voldemort to begin the conversation. If it was going to happen, better to get it over with.
It was a safe bet that the Dark Lord would talk for most of the conversation. Voldemort always enjoyed speaking about anything especially if it related to him, say plans for his resurrection or how he came to coercer Ginny. He waffled on and allowed Harry time to think of a plan of simply or allow someone else to come to his aid. That wouldn't be the case this time but it would grant him time to think of a response.
"I must admit that I am curious as to why you have appeared as my Earth elemental. When I initially began to read upon them for one of Slytherin's books I originally believed that they would be all of my Slytherins or that they would be sympathetic to my cause. However you have proven that theory to be false young one. Then I began to think what else could they have in common with me? That was when it came to me. You see I now believe that each of my elementals share a part of my mentality."
Voldemort laced his fingers before him as he gauged Harry's reaction. Like a true Slytherin Harry didn't allow any of his emotions to be displayed on his face. That would be giving the Dark Lord exactly what he desired and Harry wouldn't have it. Voldemort didn't need to know whether he was correct or not. The books had explained a lot more to Harry than Voldemort obviously knew and he wasn't about to jeopardize the only leverage he had even though most of what was in them was outdated.
"Draco has a dispassionate side against all things muggle or muggle related including mudbloods and blood traitors."
Harry had a feeling those words were used on purpose to rouse his anger yet his face remained apathetic. He was already apathetic when it came to Dumbledore, Ron and Hermione so it really didn't bother him as much as his master would have liked to see. What was beginning to get to him however, were those silly nicknames. "Young one" and "pet" weren't names he wanted to be called ever.
"Yet that doesn't include magical creatures. Draco believes that they are abominations however I find them useful especially when the ministry doesn't. Within Draco it was relatively easy to pinpoint the similarities between us as he has grown up with these beliefs. You however I find myself lost. I do not know what similarities there are between us and I must admit I find it rather irritating young one. Do you know what they could be?"
Harry froze. Of course he knew what there one similarity was. He'd learnt it accidently one day when Dumbledore was attempting once again to give him an insight into the mind of the Dark Lord. He'd only been in his second year but ever since then Dumbledore had slowly been feeding him pieces of a puzzle.
There was no way that he was going to get out of this conversation regardless of how much he and the Dark Lord despised speaking of their pasts. However he was grateful that they weren't talking about the Order. That would have been rather difficult to explain in the end. Yet he desperately didn't want to talk about the one thing he tried to forget on every occasion.
"So what do you think little one? What is our similarity?"
He could feel the force of the order. Since it wasn't something huge like murder he allowed it to influence him slightly. Harry mumbled under his breath.
"What was that pet I didn't quite hear you?"
"I said our... our childhood."
Voldemort sat back contemplating what had just been said. His past wasn't something openly discussed mainly because he hadn't told anyone about it at all so how did Harry know? He was careful in his youth to be the best and yet leave no trace behind. Something must have been missed for his Elemental to know this. More importantly though, how were they similar?
"Our childhood, hmm... how did you discover anything about my childhood?" His tone of voice was cold and devoid of emotion this wasn't a topic he wanted to be discussing at all.
Harry shivered but replied.
"Dumbledore told me parts of it though some of it came from your diary. I think he was attempting to sway me as to why you turned ah... evil but it only drew more comparisons between the two of us."
Harry shuffled nervously. He really didn't like where this was going…
"Hmm... that wouldn't surprise me; the old coot shouldn't meddle in other people's affairs. Now tell me, how was your childhood similar to mine?"
Harry paused in his explanation but he could feel the pull of the order and could do nothing to avert it.
"Well after you killed my parents," Harry levelled the Dark Lord with a glare, "Dumbledore sent Hagrid to pick me up, stupid idea if you tell me he could have squashed me... anyway Dumbledore decided to leave me with my closest living relatives which happened to be my mother's sister."
"I don't see how that is as terrible as my time spent at the orphanage considering they were family." Voldemort interrupted sneering.
Harry returned with a glare.
"Would you wait until I'm finished before you start comparing? Continuing, he left me on the doorstep of their house without even considering how they felt about magic. All he left for an explanation was a note telling them my name, date of birth, how my parents were killed and that they were the closest family members I had left. Actually I believe he said they were the only family I had left. Honestly that was one of the worst mistakes he could have made. For the next few years I grew up with muggles that decided they could stomp the magic out of a person."
Harry rolled his eyes at the memory.
"I was always punished when I did accidental magic not that they told me what I was doing at the time. My first bit of magic was when I turned my teacher's hair blue after she angered me. I've apparated onto a school building, set a snake on my cousin, vanished glass and blown up my Aunt Marge. After the accidents began they treated me even more like scum. I had numerous chores that I had to do daily while my whale of a cousin sat and did absolutely nothing except shout for his parents when he did something I could be blamed for."
"The first time I even heard of magic, that wasn't in a simple fairy tale I stole from Dudley, was when Hagrid came to collect me after my uncle tried to stop the owls from finding us. I mean they had told me my parents had died in a car crash of all things rather than tell me the truth! Every summer I return to that hellhole and no one even cares what they do to me or how they treat me. My first hug came from Mrs Weasley, my new friend's mother, because Merlin help them if they ever touched me except to throw me in my cupboard. No they thought I would taint them!"
"I mean what did they believe that my 'freakishness' was contagious and that if they touched me or even showed the smallest amount of affection that they would catch it and die? Honestly they are the worst muggles that ever existed and I have to live them for two months until I can get out..." Harry trailed off in disbelief.
He had just ranted to the Dark Lord.
He had just ranted to the Dark Lord.
He had just ranted to the Dark Lord!
Harry twitched. What the hell was he thinking? Or maybe he just wasn't thinking at all... could he blame everything on the bond they shared while belonging to the Dark Lord who was still slightly insane? He didn't even want to imagine what the Dark Lord was even thinking at the moment he was so horrified. Would he get the Cruciatus for that? Somehow what he hadn't expected was the Dark Lord to be laughing at his discomfort.
"This is good news. You feel comfortable around me enough to express some of your feelings. That is a sign that the bond is growing between us. Now not only do I know why you were chosen to be my elemental I know that eventually you will feel comfortable around me greater now than before."
Harry was slightly disturbed at that. He couldn't help but wonder how close and comfortable Voldemort wanted Harry to be which slightly sickened him. Was it something like Draco who was like a child? Somehow Harry doubted that.
"Come child I believe that it is time for you to rest. I shall have one of my house elves bring you dinner."
With a small sigh Harry allowed the Dark Lord to drag him back to his room passing the numerous hallways to return. He wondered whether it was even possible to know directly where you were going in this twisted place. Perhaps he could ask Severus the next time he saw the man?
"I hope your first day here was... entertaining my young one." Voldemort commented lightly.
"It was rather eventful."
Really Harry had no idea what else to answer to that particular though. Well he actually had several things he could say but they weren't particularly savoury.
"Send your house elf to me if you have anything else you desire or come to see me. You know which I would prefer."
"You know which one I'm more inclined to choose." Harry shot back.
Voldemort narrowed his eyes slightly as he opened Harry's bedroom door. It was excellent that Harry had allowed him to hear about his past this afternoon however that stubborn streak was hard to remove from him. It was increasingly frustrating but Voldemort was ready for the challenge. He would slowly break down Harry's resistance and make him see that being closer to him wasn't a bad thing. Harry no longer needed to rely on those pathetic miscreants he calls friends or even the Order. All he would need was Voldemort and the other Elementals.
"Have a good night."
Harry nodded before releasing a long suffering sigh as the door finally closed.
He had done it. He had survived a day with Death Eaters and lived... he wasn't positive whether that was a worthy thing or not to believe considering the circumstances. Either which way he had done everything he once thought impossible. All he had to do was prepare for more days to come. Harry sighed and sat down on the couch waiting for his meal.
The meal arrived and he summoned Winky to check the food for any unwanted potions or spells. Sure he was comfortable staying in the rooms but he really didn't trust anyone to place something in his food to make him more obedient. However as it turned out the only potion the food was laced with was a simple Nutrient potion for his growth. That meant Voldemort was actually paying attention to his health. Did he actually listen to his rant?
Harry didn't know whether to be thankful or concerned. Who knew a Dark Lord had feelings that weren't fury or rage?
He had to wonder what everyone else was doing. Tomorrow would be Christmas and he had to spend the entire day with the Dark Lord and whoever he spent that time with. Could he even open any of his presents? Would he get presents here? So many questions and so few answers... Sure he could go across the hall and ask the Dark Lord himself but for some reason he knew that his master would simply laugh and usher him back to his room. He would be rather pleased that Harry had come to him for answers yet he wouldn't answer them not when he could wait a day for the answer.
Resigned to waiting, he finished his meal he took a quick bath before turning in for a night and only praying that tomorrow would be better.
More Inheritance is on its way. I've already started the next chapter ^.^
~MidnightEmber