Song Suggestion: Kiki Rockwell- "Same Old Energy"

A/N: I'm posting the next chapter to BNW tomorrow. I suggest reading this before to understand one scene a little better.

Marcus is a literary foil to Draco in some ways. It's easy to compare them. However, Marcus was raised by Jean and his uncle, and his father was abusive and easy to hate. In contrast, Draco loved his father, and Lucius threw him just enough scraps of affection to string him along. Because of this, Draco's brainwashing is much harder to dismantle. Never fear, Draco's redemption will be shown throughout Part 3.

An Arrangement

Katie arrived by floo to the Flint castle. She looked around the empty hall. A long table slashed down the center that could fit about thirty people. Katie wrinkled her nose in distaste at all the stuffed magical creature heads lining the walls, some of them endangered.

Hermione was right. The place needed spruced up. She studied the giant concrete fireplace, noting a thick layer of dust on the surface. House elves worked hard, but when left to their own decisions, they often overdid one area and forgot the other. They functioned best with an overseer. Usually, that fell to the lady of the house in most pureblood homes. Taking care of an estate took a lot of knowledge on how to do it—knowledge Katie lacked.

She looked around in trepidation as a house elf popped into view with the normal grey sack, but he wore a set of glasses with the lens popped out, telling her he was a free elf.

"Hello, I'm looking for Hermione."

"Bipton will get the mistress right away."

The elf popped away and several minutes later, Hermione arrived with a giant smile.

"Katie! I'm so glad you decided to check it out."

"I don't know." Katie looked back at the dusty fireplace. "Wouldn't you want someone more experienced? I'm not sure I'll really know what to do here. I'm terrible at decorating and cleaning."

"That's fine, because you won't be doing either." Hermione dug into her purse. "I've already gotten a list of tasks, laid out in sequential order. Marcus' mother put it together long ago. You won't be decorating. We can hire someone else for that. I just need you to make notes in each room of things that need disposed of and make sure the elves follow the schedule, along with forcing them to take breaks. They'll try and trick you and say they just started cleaning, but they're lying, especially Bipton."

Katie nodded. She thought she could do that. She had a special soft spot for house elves after living with Kipper for so long. She missed the sweet elf. Zala told her the elf disappeared a day after the final battle, and it hurt her heart she never got to say goodbye.

"Does… Marcus know you're hiring me?"

Hermione gave a snort and shook her head.

"Not you specifically, but he does know I'm hiring someone. Don't worry about it. I don't think he'd care."

Katie only stared at her. Hermione was delusional if she thought Flint had ever changed. He only treated Hermione right because she was his sister. The goodwill would not extend to Katie, not with their history.

Marcus Flint scared her. He always did. She ignored him at Hogwarts for the most part, not paying him any attention even when he taunted her in the halls with his mouth full of jagged teeth. In her fourth year, he teased her less, but he stared more. One day after a game, he'd cornered her. No one else had been around, and Katie remembered gripping her wand just in case. Marcus had worn an odd expression, looking her up and down. She might have labeled it nervous.

"That little shove you gave me during the game was impressive… and illegal." He leaned against the wall, both hands in his pockets. The path was so narrow she'd have to slide past him to get by, so she stood still. "You almost pushed me off my broom."

"Is any move illegal if it's against a Slytherin? That's more fair than anything."

He gave her a grin, showing off his teeth. He'd be handsome without them. She shook her head in disgust, refusing to acknowledge she'd ever thought that.

"True," he said. "I was just surprised you'd be willing to compromise your self- righteous values."

He took a step forward, and she flinched backward. He paused with a grimace.

"You don't have to fear me. I don't hurt women."

She nearly laughed in his face, ignoring that statement completely.

"You've charmed bludgers to hit me."

"That's the game. Everything is fair on the fields. They were after your whole team, not just you. It's winning or losing. Anyway, your shove just made me think."

"Think of what?"

He looked her up and down again.

"It made me wonder if you'd compromise other values."

At first, she'd been confused, but it didn't take long to catch on.

Her whole body froze up in fear.

"Not for you."

He just raised his eyebrows.

"It's not uncommon," he answered.

"What?" She raised her wand a little, but Marcus didn't step closer.

"Arrangements like what I'm offering. Nearly all the men I know have them. I'm told in the muggle world there's shame attached to it, but it's accepted here. No one would look down on you."

"I'm only fifteen." It was the only thing she could think of in her shock.

"It wouldn't be for right now. I'm leaving at the end of the year. It would just be a mutual agreement for after Hogwarts."

"I don't think becoming a whore is in my after-school plans. Thanks, but no thanks."

He rolled his eyes.

"You wouldn't be a whore. No one is buying you off the street."

"Isn't that exactly what you offered?"

He looked frustrated.

"Not really. I'd be more of a benefactor. I mean, I guess you could see it that way at first, but maybe we'd become…" He shook his head. "So, what do you think?"

Her heart had beat hard in fear, wondering if he knew she was a muggleborn. No one else did. Would he use the information as blackmail?

"Gross."

He grimaced and looked away, having the audacity to look a little hurt.

"I know you haven't considered me in that way, but I'd make sure it was mutually beneficial. You could leave if I don't please you, but I'd like for you to give me a chance. I'd spoil you. And I'd never force you, if that's something you're worried about. If you don't enjoy it, I'd stop, just… well, I don't know." He almost looked as if he was blushing, as if suddenly aware of what he offered. "Really, we wouldn't have to do anything at all."

She wondered what he meant by spoil. Would he pay her? Give her gifts? Just the thought disgusted her.

"What exactly would be the point, if I wasn't required to do things with you?"

He shrugged his broad shoulders, hands in his pockets. He took a step back, hunching forward a little as if suddenly self-conscious.

"I only mean we wouldn't need to do anything physical. Not unless you wanted to. We could just go to dinner and… talk."

"Talk?" Katie had never been so confused. It was almost like he was asking to be friends… with benefits. "Like a date?" He gave a nod. Both his cheeks were bright red. She'd never seen a Slytherin blush before. "You want to pay me… to date me? And you'd never want anything in return?"

"Well, I can't lie and say I'd never want it."

There it was. The true goal. He just wanted a convenient fuck in the end. Right now, he was just trying to dress it up nice to sell it to her. Katie shivered in disgust.

"If I ever did compromise any of my values, it would be for someone I loved, or at the very least, someone I was attracted to." She raised her wand. "Nothing about you is appealing. You're repulsive. So get out of my way, or I'll be sure to tell Dumbledore you're harassing me."

Marcus' face dropped in a snarl at the name, anger so intense she felt it in the air.

"Tell that duplicitous wizard—"

"Leave me alone."

He straightened and untucked his hands.

"Wish granted." He made to turn around, but he paused. "Though, if you ever change your mind, I'm sure you could find me. Someday you might need to compromise your values, and I wouldn't turn you away or make you feel bad for it. I'd really… ah, never mind. Forget I said anything."

Katie's whole face twisted in disgust as the boy turned and walked down the hallway. It wouldn't be the last sexual offer from the Slytherins, so common place she'd almost forgotten Marcus' offer in the scheme of things. Many others would drop taunting hints that she could suck them off for a few galleons, or she could ride their cocks like she does her broom. She ignored them all, focused on the game.

When she got fired from Gringotts after the muggleborn law passed, Adrian Pucey chased her down. They'd worked together for a year and only rarely spoke, so when he grabbed her arm, she had turned in shock.

"You were fired?" He asked.

She nodded.

"What are you going to do?"

"I don't know. It happened five minutes ago."

He sucked in a breath.

"I could help you."

"That's sweet of you, but I think I just need time to think."

"Of course," he said, taking his hand off her arm. "It's just… if you're worried about somewhere to stay, you could come to my place. I don't have as much money as someone like Malfoy, but it's enough to take care of you. We could make an agreement. I'd give you what you need…" His eyes flicked to her and then travelled her body. "And you can give me what I want."

He looked at her intently, until she understood he offered the same thing Flint did—a little mistress he could come home to. By this point, she understood how common it was in their world, especially in the rich, old families. They often married to keep fortunes intact for allies in political spheres. The only women they were allowed to choose were their mistresses. She refused to be someone's consolation prize.

Pucey didn't want to help her. He was probably ecstatic she got fired, so he could swoop in as some twisted savior. She clenched her hand into a fist.

"Not even if it was the last option."

It was shocking how fast he got angry. One second, he shuffled around nervous. The next he snarled in her face, hand on her upper arm. She placed her wand at his heart, and they stared at each other. He backed down first, straightening his robes.

"I'll give you a moment to think about it."

"I make it a point to stay away from Slytherins, if I can. This just reminded me why. Take your hand off me."

He did as she asked.

"No Slytherins? That's your moral line? As if you haven't sold your body before. I know you were at one of the revels. How did you survive it, hm? Who were you given to? Probably got fucked daily in chains somewhere. You must have enjoyed it, or at least put on quite the show, if he kept you alive so long. My bed will be much softer, I promise."

Katie had been so thrown off guard she just stood there, frozen, eyes wide. How many people knew about the revel? It gave her a panicky feeling. A deep shame entered her. Even if it was for survival, it made her feel a little dirty. Her expression gave away the truth, and Pucey grinned, as if he won.

"Listen, I'm sorry for getting angry. At any rate, I'll treat you better than that Death Eater, whoever he was. The only thing I'll require is one shag a day. Thirty minutes of your time, sometimes a little more. And I'm not into anything weird. Really, it's nothing at all for what you'll get in return. I'd give you a generous allowance to shop for whatever you want. I'm not expecting feelings. It would be a transaction. No one would have to know either."

She just stared at him, blinking, a little in shock at what just occurred.

"Still no. If I wanted to be a whore, I'd go to someone with more power, better looks, and more money. So go fuck yourself."

She walked away, not willing to turn around and see his anger. It took several months of searching for a job before her incredulous thoughts at the offer dimmed enough she considered it. She'd starve if she couldn't work. Katie grew up in the muggle world, but she really didn't know how to function in it. The education she received at Hogwarts worked great in the wizarding world but was useless elsewhere. Her father had his own family, and her step mum hated her, and her own mum struggled with providing for her little sister. She refused to be a burden on other people. She'd rather be a whore. Luckily, The Leaky Cauldron hired her before she did anything desperate.

Her attention came back to Flint castle, hating it instantly. It stood for everything that hurt her. But she had no other options. She needed this job.

An image of a silver mask and green eyes flashed behind her eyes. If she concentrated, she could feel his soft lips, her name groaned into her neck. With the thought came grief and pain. But dead men couldn't protect her from anything. She was alone now, her Death Eater gone long ago.

She looked forward to working at the castle just as much as she looked forward to seeing Marcus again.

Katie

Hermione brought her around the castle, and Katie sighed in relief when she didn't see Marcus. From what she implied, he rarely came home, which is what she preferred. The memory of the offer brought a blush to her cheeks, afraid he'd taunt her for her desperation if he got the chance, like Pucey did when he visited The Leaky Cauldron. Maybe he'd fire her, angry over her long-ago rejection. Maybe he'd even extend the offer again. She couldn't lie that between the two she'd choose Marcus. The benefits he could give her extended beyond money and gifts, almost as wealthy as Malfoy. And he lived in a fucking castle, no matter how dusty. Not to mention, he hadn't tried to humiliate her yet, not like Pucey did. Marcus just grabbed her wrist, leaving a bloody handprint she could still feel if she concentrated.

Could she be willing to do something like that? Years ago, she wouldn't. But today, she was creature of survival. She understood women who traded sex for safety on a deep level. The word whore demoralized women with little choices, said by men who forced them into the position. And other women participated in the insults, happy men didn't treat them the same.

Katie shook her head, back to the tour.

Hermione looked out one of the windows.

"Hold up," she said. "My son is about to jump in the pond, and I don't think the elf will stop him. I'm not sure what creatures are in it. Please, go ahead and look around. I'll find you when I solve this."

Hermione hurried off, and Katie did what she suggested. She walked along the stone halls, feeling a little like Hogwarts without the charm, just cold and desolate. Nothing warm lived here.

When she got to the bottom level, a door opened down the hallway behind her. Katie twisted, thinking to see Hermione, but instead Marcus stepped out of the great room, brushing soot off his clothes. He wore a dark cloak, billowing behind him, hair combed in the same attractive way that he had it at The Leaky Cauldron.

"What the fuck are you doing here?"

Something about the statement, the way he said it, and the way he stood, felt like Deja Vu. It itched her brain in a weird way, attempting to make some connection.

"Her—Hermione hired me to help run the castle." She hated how her voice stuttered, displaying her nerves.

He looked demonic from this angle, hidden in the dark.

"You aren't working here."

Katie clenched her fists.

"I've already accepted. If you want to fire me, you can discuss that with Hermione, though if I were you, I'd do that with caution. She'd probably be angry with you."

Marcus gave a noise of frustration.

"Bloody hell," he said. "The universe hates me. Fine, work here. Scrub my floors like a slave. Order the elves as if you're the fucking lady. Do what you wish. I'm done attempting to stop Gryffindors from doing things that will harm them."

"Harm me?" Katie narrowed her own eyes when he didn't answer, just kept his face in the shadows. He made no sense. "The only person capable of harming me here is you."

"Exactly." He turned and walked away, cloak billowing behind him, looking like some medieval lord.

She waited where she stood, turning the conversation over in her head. Did he just threaten her? Hermione arrived a little later, ignorant to the tumultuous emotions crashing through her.

"So, what do you think?"

Hermione's face looked so kind, so hopeful, and a deep fury rose in Katie. She'd take the job, specifically because Marcus didn't want her to. Fuck him and everything he believed.

"I think I could do it."

"Great," Hermione said. "You start Monday. I promise it won't be hard at all."

Hermione was wrong, but Katie was done letting Purebloods push her around.