That night, the moment that Snape had dreaded, came. They were all summoned to the great hall with their slaves for inspection. He called them to his office to prepare them. As they stood before him, he vanished their clothes. "I'm sorry. We are summoned before the Dark Lord and you must appear to be more abused than you are." To their surprise Snape struck them both in the face so they fell to the floor in pain. Then he waved his wand, and their bodies suddenly had the appearance of bruises on them. Ginevra was given a fake black eye and Hermione a split lip. "The Dark Lord may enter your mind. You must bring all this, and whatever else you can, to the front of your memories. Show him this abuse. It would help if you could project as much fear and pain as you can. Hopefully he will not probe deeper. All our lives may depend on it. You will not speak unless spoken to. If asked a question by our Lord you will answer quickly but without too much detail. You will not look up from the floor. When we get to the room you will kneel at my feet and play along with whatever I do. Do you understand? If I am killed… Merlin protect you."

The two of them answered in unison. "Yes, Master."

"Good. If luck is with us we will not be long, and I will remove the glamour when we get back." Another wave of his wand and a set of chains appeared around their necks with a long leash. "Stay in front of me." He took a moment to slide his mask on and calm himself. "Now, to the hall."

Despite the pleasant sight of their naked butts swinging seductively, it was the longest walk through the halls of Hogwarts he had ever taken. He was frightened for them. The Dark Lord was sure to enter their minds. When they arrived, the great hall was filled with Death Eaters and their slaves in various states of damage. Snape went to the head of the pack and they all waited for the bastard to show up.

It was a grizzly sight when he arrived. A body under a sheet was floating in front of him. Obviously a woman. As Voldemort walked in, he held a severed head in his left hand by its straight black hair. Severus recognized what was left of him as a lower-level Death Eater lieutenant.

There was absolute silence in the hall as Voldemort turned and began to speak. "Some of you apparently do not understand my instructions. So, I thought I would gather you together to make myself clear." He pulled the sheet off the body of the woman still floating in the air at shoulder height. A sixth year Ravenclaw. Her naked, bruised body looked to be broken and deformed. Voldemort's voice was deceptively sad as it rang out into the crowd. "I want you all to look at this poor, poor girl. ALL OF YOU! LOOK AT HER!" Snape yanked their chain so his slaves would obey their Lord. Hermione gasped in anguish. Melanie Wickham had been a bright, sweet girl. She took advantage of the permission granted and looked at the other slaves in the hall. Poppy was right, She and Ginevra had been treated better than any other slave. There were bruises and cuts and even burns on their bodies.

Voldemort sat in the headmaster's chair which was raised on a high dais. A table was set beside him. He sat the severed head he had carried on it, its empty eyes staring at the crowd. He stroked its hair as he sat. The body of the girl floated to the floor. "I told you all that if one of your girls died, you would pay the price. It appears my warning was unheeded." He stood for dramatic effect looking at the head. "He begged me to forgive him. He said the girl had committed suicide." The creature smiled so all his fangs showed. "DID I SAY THERE WOULD BE ANY EXCEPTIONS?"

The whole crowd answered together. "No Lord."

He sat back down in his chair. "Now, on to other business. SSSEVERUS!"

Snape hurried to the Dark Lord and bowed low before him, dragging his women behind him.

"What's this? Your slaves carry some rather severe marks on their beautiful bodies. Do you know how I feel about that?" Poppy had informed Him on what it takes to get a woman pregnant when she reported the abuse that she saw. He needed to be more precise in His instructions. Before Snape could answer he was hit with the cruciatus curse. He fell to the floor in obvious extreme pain as he shuttered and gasped.

When he was released, he staggered to standing and bowed again. "A little light discipline was required My Lord. I assure you it's not permanent and they are now polite and well trained to obey."

The cruciatus hit him again and he fell to his knees in agony. He was to be made an example of. If Voldemort would torture his second in command over a few bruises, the rest of them could expect much worse. The two women stayed behind him, also on their knees, their hands clasped in front of them, still looking only at the floor. He stood and came closer to Snape. Circling him. "I didn't ask for an excuse, Severus." He released Snape and turned to the women, now shaking in fear. As he came near them Hermione bent her face to the floor and Ginny followed. Their foreheads touching the ground. She knew Legilimency requires looking into your eyes. Not possible in the crouch they had taken. She held her breath hoping he would feel only of their fear and pain.

Their obeyance impressed him and he moved on doing nothing to them. "Why are none of these lovely ladies in the hall pregnant yet Severus? You are a potions master, are you not? Even your own slaves are still without child. Madam Pomfrey gives me a glowing report twice a week. Most of them should be as fertile as the Nile, and yet, nothing. I find it hard to believe you have had trouble with so simple a brew. And certainly, my followers have taken advantage of these angelic bodies." An evil twitter circled the room. "Well? SPEAK!"

Snape stayed on his knees with his head bowed. He couldn't have stood if he'd tried. "My Lord it is unclear why the potion has not taken effect. I have strengthened and tested it many times. My only conclusion is that there is some strong magic interfering with it. I have begun testing for spells and charms, but there are many possibilities, and it will take time."

Voldemort was unhappy with this answer. He grabbed Snape by the hair and pulled back, exposing his neck. A bony finger and sharp nail grazed across it, leaving a blood trail. Snape stayed very calm and still. "I want these girls pregnant in two weeks or I will kill them all and start over. Do I make myself clear?"

A gasp from the crowd showed how unexpected that statement was to them. The Dark Lord ignored them.

Voldemort released Snape. "Yes, my Lord."

The evil leader of the wizarding world pushed Snape to the floor and ground his foot into his neck. "You. Are. Dismissed." After Voldemort left the hall there was a collective sigh of relief. At least one good thing had come of it. The head on the table was a lesson learned. The women being abused would find their life a bit easier for a while.

Hemione and Ginny came to him to help. His eyes squeezed shut and he was convulsing badly. It would be some time before he could stand and hours before he could walk. Hermione laid his head in her lap tenderly brushing the hair from his eyes. He had been punished because of them. Ginny tried to pull his body flat, but as she did, his muscles only contracted back into a fetal position.

The hall was now empty except for the severed head which stared out at them. Hermione summoned Twinky for a blanket to try to make him more comfortable. She stood by them with big sad eyes whimpering. Snape took a deep breath as if to let them know he was still alive. He managed a few words. "House elf, take us home."

Hermione looked at Twinky. "Can you get us all back to his rooms?" The elf nodded enthusiastically. They all joined hands and were suddenly back in the tower. The elf quickly disappeared again, not willing to get too involved. Many house elves had paid a price for trying to help too much.

Ginny was frightened when Snapes seizers began again. "What do we do? If he dies…"

Hermione had dealt with the cruciatus before. She was unfazed as she removed her collar and chain. "Don't worry, he's not going to die. We need to get him into a hot tub. It will help his muscles relax. We're also going to need a pain potion and something to repair his nervous system. Snape has been through this before he must have something on hand. I think there is something in the bathroom cupboard. Come on. We'll have to drag him in there without our magic."

Hermione and Ginny both took an arm, removed his clothes, and got him in the very large tub. Hermione got in with him. She put on the tap as hot as she could stand it. Ginny found a pain potion in the cabinet and another marked Cruciatus. She poured both of them in his mouth. When he was stable, Hermione began to massage him. Starting at his feet and working her way up. The knots in his muscles were not easy to alleviate. The cruciatus could wrap you up in a ball for hours. As she got to his torso she pulled him forward, to get behind him and work on his back, his neck, then down his arms. She moved to start again as the seizures became tremors which gradually faded in the hot water. He seemed to revive a bit after that. Snape was embarrassed to be handled this way but was still weak as a kitten so there was very little he could do about it. The water felt good and the potions were kicking in. He focused on the two of them. "Why have you helped me? The doors were open, you could have escaped."