Thank you for your reviews of the last chapter, and in particular thanks to the many people who gave me opinions and ideas on punishments for Snape.
A few people seem to be convinced that the 'consequence' mentioned in the last chapter means something sexual! Did I really make it sound like that? I've already said this fic isn't slash and Harry cheating on his girlfriend would not go over well… sorry if this disappoints you! Lol.
You know, the web is sadly lacking in fics with Lucius as a slave. The few I've seen are either too dark for my tastes or extremely short… it's very sad. Anyone fancy writing one? Lol. Just a random thought.
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Snape froze.
Seventh year Potions had finished three minutes ago, and he had just yelled at the two students who had been talking to each other rather than leaving his classroom. Completely forgetting that one of them was his Master.
He forced himself to move, going down onto his knees and bowing his head almost to the floor. The ground felt rough on his knees. "I apologize, Master. I will take whatever punishment you choose to give me."
Harry sighed. "Well this is ironic. We were staying behind to talk to you about punishments. Um. Okay, we'll talk about it after lunch tomorrow instead. For now…" He paused. "Hermione… did you say the girl's toilets were flooding again? The ones with Moaning Myrtle?"
"Yes. Are you suggesting he clean them?"
"It should work I think." He glanced at Severus. "You can charm the doors to not allow anyone in. I don't want to humiliate you."
Well that was a relief at least. Although cleaning toilets with that annoying ghost no doubt present, cackling and probably forcing him to redo areas that he had already done, was hardly an appealing prospect. Of course, punishments weren't meant to sound appealing. "Yes, Master. Thank you Master."
"Okay. I don't care when you do it as long as it's today. Don't forget I want to see you tomorrow."
"Where do you want to meet me, Master?"
Harry paused, thought about it. Anywhere in Gryffindor Tower was definitely out of the question. Snape's quarters were a possibility, but they were personal, his sanctuary – maybe not the right place to discuss hurting him. "Do you know where the Room of Requirement is?"
"Yes, Master."
"There, then. Straight after lunch."
"As you wish, Master."
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Snape was not stupid enough to believe that he could get away with just banishing the water and muttering a few cleaning charms. So he settled for a mix of small-scale spells (unblocking blocked pipes for instance) and more muggle methods.
He was thankful for the spell on the door. In truth this was slightly humiliating anyway, but at least the only people who knew about it were Potter and Granger – and Moaning Myrtle, who was currently trying her best to make his task twenty times harder than it would otherwise have been. But it wasn't really difficult work, only monotonous, and monotony gave him a chance to think.
He was amazed by how mature Potter had become. In the weeks following Voldemort's death, they'd formed a truce; he had done his best to heal his master's wounds, whilst Potter had been - and still was - trying his hardest to get rid of the slave bond. He had even begun, in his most private thoughts, to occasionally think of his master as 'Harry'.
Okay, so there was no great friendship between them and never likely to be, but there was trust now, and an ability to work together that had never been present before his enslavement. He no longer saw Potter as his father, no longer blamed him for James' actions. And in return Harry no longer saw him as nothing more than a Death Eater, no longer labelled him as Dark.
And he knew, that when they came to discuss punishments on the morrow, Harry would not want to use physical pain. He had seen it in the hand caning Harry had given him, had known that Harry hated himself for it, had blamed himself and been far more disturbed by it than Severus himself had. In actuality, Snape would prefer corporal punishment, as long as it was not too harsh – at least it would be over quickly, and he was not unused to pain.
Myrtle dived into yet another toilet and he sighed with resignation as it overflowed.
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The following afternoon, Snape bowed low as Potter entered the Room of Requirement, which appeared on this occasion to be fairly empty, with light green walls, a soft carpet and two armchairs in the centre.
"Master."
"Hey Snape." Harry fidgeted somewhat, not particularly looking forward to this conversation. "Um… how did the cleaning go?"
"I came very close to casting serious hexes on Miss Myrtle, Master, ghost or no," said Snape, glowering at the memory.
"Yeah, she can be annoying… she once came to visit me in my bath, although I suppose she did end up helping me… anyway I'm babbling. Have you thought at all of what you want your punishments to be?"
He bowed his head. "Whatever you wish them to be, Master."
Sighing at the subservience, Harry continued, "Anyway, Hermione thinks you might prefer corporal punishment, but I'm not sure… am I being selfish? I know I don't to do it but it's you who has to suffer it and if it's easier for you than something else…"
"It is a punishment, Master. It is not supposed to be easy for me. However, it is supposed to be easy for you, and clearly the thought of physically harming me is not."
"Snape – I don't care what the slave bond says. I'm doing this for you, to save you from even more pain, and if I have to do something I don't like to accomplish that then I will. Just tell me – is that what you want? I mean if you'd prefer physical exercise, or anything else…"
Severus paused, considering what to say. "If you truly intend to follow my wishes Master, then I would prefer corporal punishment, yes. I am used to physical pain, it would punish me without too much humiliation involved. I… would prefer muggle methods to magical." He didn't specify why, but there was a reason; pain curses reminded him far too much of the punishments he had received from Voldemort.
"Okay, I'll, er, figure something out."
"I may be able to obtain a whip for you, Master, or some similar instrument."
"Oh." Harry didn't exactly know what to say to this.
"You will no doubt need practice in its usage. I can assist you with this." I have no wish to let you kill me by accident.
"Yeah, I suppose I will. Thanks." That means that you already know how to use one. I really don't think I want to know why.
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"I have managed to locate a copy of the book," said Dumbledore, smiling. "However, it is rare and valuable, and the owner does not wish to let it out of his sight, so he has agreed for us to go to his estate and look at it there."
"That's great!" exclaimed Hermione. Although she was focused on helping Snape, she couldn't help wondering what else was in the book for it to be so prized. Could there be anything else of use inside it?
After she spoke her thoughts out loud, the Headmaster looked thoughtful. "It's quite probable that there are lots of useful things in it, but most likely not ones that could actually help Professor Snape. From the title of the book, it sounds as if it is a journal of some kind; it could easily be someone's private diary. If it were to belong to somebody fairly famous, that could greatly increase its value.
"At any rate, I have set up an appointment with Mr. Fairfaxer for two o'clock on Saturday afternoon. Unfortunately he is not available to meet any sooner. I expect you and Severus will both wish to come, Harry, and Miss Granger is also welcome."
They nodded and left his office, thinking hopefully about the coming weekend.