Hey you all! I hope everyone had a great Christmas! :)
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WARNING: Dumbledore being a depraved POS in this chap, so warning for humiliation, dehumanization, and violence.
Everyone instantly turned silent when they entered the conference room, turning their heads to look at him. He was not surprised that none of the glances were friendly- instead, he was met with hostile, arrogant, and smug expressions. Dumbledore's expression was the worst- he was gloating, sitting in his chair like he owned it, and not even the two guards next to him seemed to make an impression to him.
Tom walked closer, feeling Gryffindor right behind him, and he knew the Founder would never allow Dumbledore to take this too far, but he had to admit that he was still feeling nervous.
"Kneel", Dumbledore's voice was spiteful, and Tom took a deep breath, knowing that this was it- he would be at the mercy of the former headmaster for an hour now. He had expected him to not waste any time with chit-chatting.
Tom pressed his lips together tightly- and knelt.
I am doing this for Dad.
His face started to burn when he heard the jeering and the whistling of the army members, but he managed to stay silent, his head bowed down, even when they started to taunt him.
"Look at that, the big bad Lord on his knees- where he belongs!"
"How many beatings did it take til you agreed to this?"
"Are you gonna cry now? Little crybaby? No one's here to help you!"
"You should be in Azkaban, bastard!"
"Feels like shit, eh? Not being able to do what you want anymore, spoiled brat!"
I am doing this for Dad.
"Enough", Gryffindor's voice was as sharp as a knife, cutting through the air, "if you cannot keep silent, you will have to leave- and by leave, I mean leave", he sounded dangerous, "I am not going to allow any of you to insult my boy, do you understand me?"
The mood in the room immediately shifted, and there were low murmurs of agreement, and some of the members even looked ashamed now. Dumbledore, on the other hand, was fuming. He was determined to humiliate the boy and cause another argument between him and Gryffindor, which he hoped would end with the family falling apart.
Either way, he was not going to let the boy win the bet. He was going to put him through hell, and as soon as he refused to obey, he could declare himself as the winner, and Slytherin would stay a cripple for the rest of his life, just how he had intended it in the first place.
"Crawl to the window, Voldemort", he spat out, and he saw the boy balling his hands into fists, but he obeyed.
"Good dog", he was mocking him, "let's play a game, shall we?"
He saw the boy stiffen at the word game, and his smile turned cruel. He would break him, and if it was the last thing he was going to do. He casually picked up a pencil from the table and threw it in the corner across from the window, "go fetch!"
The room fell dead silent. Even the dumbest member of the army understood where this was going now, and some of them started to look uncomfortable. Obviously, Dumbledore had not bothered to share this part with them- the part where he would dehumanize the boy, treating him like a dog.
Gryffindor shot him a look that was murderous, but he ignored him, giving all his attention to the boy who was slowly crawling after the pencil on his hands and knees. He watched him try to pick up the pencil with his hands, and started to cackle with amusement, "good dogs don't use their paws- their use their filthy snouts."
"You goddamn…"
"Anything you wish to tell me, Gryffindor?", he interrupted him sardonically, his eyes glinting with contempt, "one word from you and I will stop. Do you want me to stop?"
"No, I can handle it!", the brat had the nerve to say, his voice muffled by the pencil in his mouth, "it's okay, I can do it!"
"Since when do dogs talk? I want you to bark from now on, understand?"
Gryffindor looked ready to kill him at any second, and when the boy let out a hesitant bark, he had to laugh with glee. He was enjoying this, and he would make sure to keep the memories of Voldemort crawling around like a dog for the rest of his life.
He threw another pencil at the boy, "go fetch!"
The boy started to crawl again, and he was certain the hardwood floors were hurting his knees, but he did not protest. He kept throwing things across the room for the boy, making him crawl and bark, and he fetched everything, not slowing down at all.
Time to step up the game…
"Roll on your back, dog, and make sure you stretch your hind legs nice and wide", he ordered, his voice trembling with sadistic excitement.
The boy rolled over without a comment, stretching his legs.
"Now, how does a good doggie beg? Show me how you beg me", he demanded next, grabbing a biscuit from the table- the house elves always prepared tea and biscuits for those meetings- and holding it up, "you want the treat, doggie? Beg me for it."
That part seemed to have been the limit for the inner circle, as they started to openly voice their protest now. Even Jones had gotten pale, and no one seemed to enjoy the show anymore- no one except Dumbledore.
"This is not what we wanted, Dumbledore!"
"You're sick!"
"I am not agreeing to this any longer!"
"Stop this, I am done!"
"Freaking pervert!"
Dumbledore just grinned, "your opinion does not matter- you should be grateful I am letting you watch! This is exactly what they deserve! They all deserve to suffer!", he was screeching now, his eyes wild with insanity, "and they will suffer! They…"
"You are a sick piece of shit, Dumbledore", Gryffindor interrupted him, his voice low and dangerous, "my son won't do that. I am not allowing it."
"If he refuses, our deal is over", Dumbledore reminded him, "what's it going to be, doggie?"
What's it going to be, doggie?
Tom bit his lips, he was sore, his knees were hurting, and he was feeling quite sick- it had barely been twenty minutes, and the thought of enduring this for another forty minutes made him want to hide behind his Daddy.
Gryffindor walked over to him, "you don't have to do this, Tommy", he told him quietly, "we can find another way, you know that, right?"
"I know", his voice was quiet as well, "but I want to help Dad."
"You are alre…"
"Time's ticking, doggie", Dumbledore's spiteful voice interrupted them, "beg me- or I will never tell you the name of the poison."
Tom swallowed hard, but before he could get in the position Dumbledore wanted, someone else did- his Daddy.
He ignored the groans and murmurs of astonishment and shock when his Daddy knelt in front of Dumbledore, pushing up his legs, giving a quite realistic impression of a begging dog.
Dumbledore laughed, "you want to be my doggie now? You know the deal, Gryffindor. Your son is the one who needs to beg me, and your son is the one who will beg me."
"There's no rule against me supporting him, though", Gryffindor replied through clenched teeth, "so whatever you want him to do, I will do as well."
Dumbledore seemed taken aback for a moment, and when the boy crawled up next to the Founder, imitating his position, he snarled, "fine. I'll enjoy my two doggies then- let's hear you bark again."
"Woof-woof!", they barked simultaneously, the whole situation utterly ridiculous, and Dumbledore cackled, "not bad- you deserve a treat, doggies!", and then he broke the biscuit in two pieces, offering them the pieces on his wrinkled hand, "get your treat, little doggie", he ordered him, "come on, be a good doggie for your Master!"
Tom stared at the treat, bile rising in his mouth. Was he really doing that? Accepting a piece of biscuit from Dumbledore's hand?
I am doing this for Dad.
He closed his eyes, and then he hesitantly leaned forward, carefully taking the biscuit out of Dumbledore's open hand.
"Good doggie!", Dumbledore praised him, sounding somewhat breathless, and Tom realized with disgust that this was turning the former headmaster on.
Sick old bastard.
"Get your treat, big doggie", he said now, holding his hand out for Gryffindor, and Tom watched helplessly as his Daddy leaned forward, allowing Dumbledore to feed him. He knew Gryffindor was doing this for him, and it made him love him even more.
"Good doggie!", Dumbledore repeated, his eyes sparkling with arousal, "let's see how obedient my doggies are- roll over!"
They rolled.
"Crawl to the door!"
They crawled.
And then, distracted by his arousal, Dumbledore took it too far.
"Lift up your legs and mark your territory!"
There was a silence, and then Gryffindor got up, fixing him with a disgusted stare, "time's up, Dumbledore", his voice was icy, "my son did what you wanted- now it is time for you to do your part. I want the name of the poison, and I want it right now."
"I still got time!", Dumbledore hissed at him, seemingly unaffected, "all these interruptions from you don't count towards the hour!"
"Maybe you should have put that in the contract", Gryffindor replied, his voice hard, "it's over- accept it and tell me the name. My son is not going to perform another of your depraved fantasies, and he never will again."
Tom had gotten up as well, his knees burning, "it's over?", he asked, "I…I really did it?"
"It's over", Gryffindor confirmed, even though technically Dumbledore had another twenty minutes or so left, "you made me proud, Tommy. You made the whole family proud."
"I still got time!", Dumbledore repeated, "I demand…"
"Listen up, you sick bastard", Gryffindor interrupted him, and Dumbledore instantly fell silent at his tone, "you wanted to humiliate my boy and myself, and you did- and I am not willing to take this any further. Clearly you have no morals at all, and if you really think my son is doing another thing for you after what you just wanted to make him do, you are out of your mind."
"The contract…"
"Forget about the contract- and start thinking about the rest of your life, Dumbledore", he casually took out his wand, "you know, while I was researching a cure for Salazar, I found many other interesting poisons- and I feel like trying one on you now", and before Dumbledore could argue, the spell hit him- and then everything turned black.
As dumb as his name, Dumbledore thought he was dead for a second- but then he realized that he could still move, and think. He could not hear or see or smell though, and when he moved his mouth, no sound came out. He was trapped in his own mind, and there was only silence around him, silence and darkness. He screamed, and scrambled to move, but he could not see, could not hear- and if this was how the rest of his life was supposed to be, he'd rather be dead.
"Changed your mind, Dumbledore?", he could hear and see again, and he blinked at Gryffindor, who was standing in front of him, his eyes hard and unforgiving.
"I intended to play this fair- but I am not letting you take out your sadistic proclivities on my son", he sounded fierce, "and I am willing to use every forbidden spell I know at this point to get the information I want- and if you die in the process, so be it."
Raw fear gripped him when he saw the look of pure hatred on Gryffindor's face, and he realized that he had taken this too far.
"I might…remember the name of the…poison", he stuttered, "let's make another deal, I'll…"
"Here's a deal for you, Dumbledore- you tell me, or I use that spell on you again until you are ready to tell me", Gryffindor interrupted him, his voice menacing, "if you are willing to let Salazar suffer, I am willing to let you suffer as well- just in a worse way."
He looked around frantically, hoping for someone from the inner circle to step forward and defend him, but even Jones, his loyal companion, turned away with a look of disgust on his face.
"I don't want…"
"Crucio", Gryffindor sounded completely casual, and no one from his inner circle made a sound of protest when Dumbledore went to the floor, screaming in agony.
And then Gryffindor used the other spell again, and now Dumbledore was blind, deaf, mute, and in blinding pain, and he kept tossing on the floor, trying to stop the agony, but there was no escape.
Eventually, Gryffindor ended both spells, and when we was able to see again, he noticed he was bleeding.
"St…op…you…stop…or I won't…"
"You are done making demands, Dumbledore. Give me the name of the poison. My patience is not endless."
"Fine…it's…Irving…grass…", he coughed up some blood, "picked at midnight at a full moon."
"Bullshit!", he lifted his wand again, and Dumbledore cackled before he started to scream again. Gryffindor thought he was going to tell him- well, he was not. He'd rather die.
"I…I think I might be able to help", he saw Jones stepping forward, and if he were not rolling on the ground in agony, he would have told his supposed friend a thing or two about loyalty.
Gryffindor gave him a hard stare, "don't let me stop you, Jones."
"I…don't know the exact name, but…I do know that he found the poison in a book- he lied when he told you he invented it", Jones stammered. He had enjoyed the deal with Dumbledore at first, arranging the bet for money and a promised job at the Ministry, but this show today had disgusted him. He could sneer at Voldemort on his knees, but Voldemort forced to pretend being a dog had been too much.
"I don't know the name of the book, either, but I am sure he got it from the Department of Restricted Literature at the Ministry", Jones went on, and Dumbledore screamed louder, not in agony but in fury.
"What makes you think that?", Gryffindor asked him, ignoring Dumbledore. He had not been searching that certain department yet since he had been sure that Dumbledore had gotten his literature from the Restricted Section at Hogwarts, which he had searched frantically.
"He…he let it slip that the book he found the spell in was smelling like some fruit- and I know that they use some air fresheners at the Department of Restricted Literature to keep the books from getting too dusty", Jones explained, "they smell like oranges. I never…told Dumbledore that, though."
"That might actually be very helpful information", Gryffindor told him, and then he looked at the other members of the inner circle, "I want you to bring me all of the books related to poison from that department- and you better hurry."
There was a rush of eagerness, every member of the army desperately wanted to proof to the Founder that they were still worthy of being in his inner circle, and they all scrambled to the door, ready to apparate. Dumbledore was still rolling around in agony, and his screams had turned into screeches, so Gryffindor lifted his wand and casted a quick Silencio spell on the former headmaster.
After that, he walked over to his boy who had been watching the whole scene silently.
"How are you feeling, Tommy?"
The boy shrugged, "I…okay I guess", he hung his head, "we…I did not do my part of the deal, though…he still had time."
"It does not matter. He was abusing you, Tommy, using you to play out his sick fantasies. I had to put a stop to that. I could not bear to watch you being handled like that any longer."
Tom slowly lifted his head again, staring at him like he saw him for the first time, "and…why not?"
Gryffindor blinked, surprised by the question, since the answer was so obvious, "because he was hurting you, baby bear, and that hurts me as well."
"Cause you love me?", he sounded so young, standing in front of him with his tousled hair, and Gryffindor pulled him into a hug, "yes, because I love you, Tommy", he still felt like there was something else the boy needed to hear, "and because you are my son, Tommy. My boy."
"Your…son?", his voice cracked, and now he knew what the boy had been wanting to hear, and he gently picked him up and held him tight, "yes, my wonderful, wild, brave son", he told him softly, "Daddy loves you very much, Tommy."
The boy let out a sob, snuggling closer, "you…you're my Daddy", it was whispered, "can…I…I was not sure if…it's okay if I…", he struggled with getting the words out, but Gryffindor suddenly understood.
It looked like he had been wrong by thinking Tom did not want to call him Daddy- he had wanted it, but he had not been sure if he wanted the boy to call him that.
"It would make me very happy if you call me Daddy", he said quietly, "I've been waiting for you to say it, and when you called Salazar Dad, but kept calling me Sir…I…I thought you did not want to call me Daddy."
"I do! I wanna call you Daddy real bad!", the boy blurted out, going back to his way of speaking before he had started to correct him on that, "I just thought it would make you mad cause you always said I'm your boy…but not your son."
"That's the same thing, baby bear- I should have explained that", Gryffindor sounded regretful, "I'm sorry, Tommy."
"It's okay…Daddy", and now the boy was grinning from ear to ear, a happy glint in his eyes, "I'd never thought I would call you that eventually, and like it. Life's crazy sometimes, Daddy."
He had to laugh, "it sure is, Tommy", he gave him a kiss on his forehead, "now, I think it's time for a bath and some snuggles for you, hmm?"
"Yes, Daddy", he replied happily, "and I want some food!"
"I would like some food", he corrected automatically, "let's go and see what the house elves can do for us- I am hungry as well."
"How about some hamburgers, Daddy?", the boy suggested, a cheeky grin on his face, "they are better than you think, promise!"
He started to squeal when Gryffindor started to tickle him, and seconds later, he was laughing so hard he was afraid he would pee in his pants, "kay…no…hamburgers…stop, Daddy!"
Gryffindor stopped, "how about some bacon instead?", he asked teasingly, and Tom snickered, "that's breakfast food, Daddy. It's dinnertime now."
"Is that so? I think my boy can have whatever he wants for dinner tonight- even breakfast food."
"Can I share my bacon with Bacon?"
"You may, Tommy."
They smiled at each other, not knowing and not caring that for Dumbledore, who was still under the Silencio spell after Gryffindor had ended the Crucio spell with a wave of his hand, their little banter had been more horrific than any torture spell of the world.
It was obvious that Gryffindor and the brat loved each other- his plan to cause another argument between them had backfired since Gryffindor had simply refused to let Voldemort be part of his little fantasy any longer.
And then Jones had betrayed him- telling Gryffindor that he had found the poison in a book at the Ministry was the worst thing that he could have told him. It would not take the Founder longer than a couple of hours to figure out which poison he had used.
He now feared Gryffindor's wrath- he was certain that as soon as he had cured Slytherin, he would take revenge, and he could consider himself lucky if it only involved some Crucios. Furthermore, he had already been sentenced to a life in Azkaban, and spending his last years rotting in a dark, cold cell all by himself was not something he was looking forward to. Jones and Godfrey had been the last loyal allies he had had, and with them gone, he had no one.
And for the first time, Dumbledore was terrified.
Gryffindor did not care, of course- he had instructed the wardens who had been watching him since they got here to never leave him out of sight, and then he had used a Stupor on him, immobilizing him, and then he had walked off with his boy- not even bothering to look at him again.
I will get you, Gryffindor!
The Founder really did not care about Dumbledore, not that he ever had. He went to find the rest of his family, and then they all had dinner with Salazar in his room, telling him the good news about the book, and after that, he gave Tom and Sirius a bath.
When his boys were snuggled into bed, sleeping peacefully, he went back to the conference room where the inner circle was waiting, piles of books around them. They had already started their research, busying themselves in the pages, each of them determined to find the poison. Dumbledore was still under the Stupor spell, his eyes moving like crazy, but no one took any notice of him.
"How many books and how far are you?", Gryffindor asked, not bothering to waste time with any small talk, and he stepped closer to the table, Aurelius right behind him. His oldest had been adamant about helping with the research, and he had had no reason to tell him no.
"There are…twenty-three books, Sir, we already finished one of them", Jones told him, his tone submissive. He knew he was going to be in big trouble once this was over, and he was trying to at least make things right now.
"Get the rest of the inner circle- I want everyone to study every page right now. I've wasted enough time playing mind games", Gryffindor told them, and Smith and Huntington, who also felt quite guilty about the role they had played in the bet, immediately jumped up to get the other members.
Aurelius had already grabbed a book, and even the two wardens who were watching Dumbledore joined in and helped finding the poison. Soon, the conference room was full of army members carefully reading every poison spell in every book, and Gryffindor was, too.
An hour went by without anyone having much success, as the spells pointed out did not match, and in the end, it was Aurelius who found the correct poison.
"Dad?", he tried to hide the tremble from his voice, but failed, excitement taking over, "I think…I think I found it."
"Let me see, son", Godric was instantly by his side, scanning the page in front of him, and then, he started to smile. The smile grew until he was practically beaming, and Aurelius had to smile, too- knowing that he had done that to his Dad.
"The Olynya Poison", he whispered, silently reading the page, "and…there's a cure- a ridiculously easy one, too. I think…I think I might be able to cure your father right away."
There were murmurs of stunning shock across the room, and Dumbledore's eyes were rolling so much they were technically white, and then Aurelius read the part about the cure as well, his whole body trembling now.
"Really, Dad? Right now?"
"Yes, right now- he has been waiting long enough", Gryffindor replied, and then he addressed his inner circle, "you all can leave- we will have another meeting in three days, same time, same place. I will let you know how to proceed with each and every one of you then", his expression hardened when he fixed his gaze on Jones, Smith, and Huntington, "take Dumbledore back to the Ministry for now- and watch him closely. He will not evade his punishment by taking the coward's way out and killing himself", that he said to the wardens who nodded dutifully, "I will see you in three days."
There were some murmurs of agreement, and then they hastily left- Dumbledore got dragged up, and they did not take the Stupor off him, afraid he might go completely crazy on them now- since he had nothing to lose anymore.
"Let's go, Aurelius", Gryffindor took the book in which his oldest boy had found the spell, and smiled at him, "you made me proud today, my boy- you found the poison and the cure for your Daddy. You saved him."
Aurelius blinked back the tears, emotions overwhelming him, "I…I just want us to be a family again, Dad."
"We always were- but now, we will be a very happy and blessed family again", his Dad replied while they were walking down the hallway, "I have all of the ingredients stocked in my cabinet- why don't you get your little brothers, and then we all meet in your Dad's room? I won't be taking long."
"Yes, Dad", he was smiling, excited to tell Sirius and Tom the great news. His brothers were sleeping, cuddled close to each other when he opened the door and silently walked over to the bed, and Tom was hugging Bagel, smiling in his sleep.
Sweet boys.
"Time to wake up, boys", he told them in a low voice, gently lifting Sirius up first who sleepily blinked at him, reminding him of a baby owl, "Re…lius? Al…ready…morning?"
He had to laugh, "no, but there's something you boys need to see- we found the cure", that made Sirius sit up straight, and Tom rubbed his eyes, blinking, "what…happened?"
"We found the cure for Daddy", he told them softly, "and Dad has the ingredients- he will be able to cure him tonight."
"Like…right now?", Sirius asked, his voice cracking.
"Yes, baby boy, that's why I am here to get you."
Tom already scrambled to his feet, still holding Bagel, "wanna get Bacon, too! He'll be so happy!", he attempted to walk over to a peacefully dreaming Bacon, but Aurelius stopped him, "another time, Tommy. Bacon would be too much for Daddy right now. Let's go, boys", he held out both hands to each of his brothers, and they both automatically took them.
They went down the mostly dark hallway, and the boys were staying close to him, nervous and excited. Even though they had a thousand thoughts going through their minds, they did not talk- and soon as they got to Salazar's room, Aurelius praised them for it, proud of their behavior.
They quietly entered the room, and Godric was already there, preparing the potion that would hopefully cure Salazar.
Salazar was sitting in his bed, glowing with pride at his family for relentlessly working on making him better. He could not wait until he could run around outside with his boys again, and the thought of not being forced to sleep so much made him want to cry with happiness.
"It's ready", Gryffindor eventually announced, holding up a vial, "you…you have to drink all of it, and…the effect should be…immediate", his voice was cracking, too. Months and months he had been hoping and praying for this moment- and now it was time.
Time to be a happy family again.
He handed his partner the vial, and then everyone was staring at Salazar with bated breath- waiting for the potion to take effect. Salazar coughed, and then he started to groan, his body twitching in his bed. Sirius came running to hold him, and soon they were all gathered around him, keeping him safe.
"My…legs…they are…tingling", Salazar was gasping now, and then he coughed again, "and…my…feet…everything is…tingling…"
"That's a good sign", Godric hurried to tell him, "that means it is working. Are you in any pain?"
"Not…really…it just feels…a little strange", he suddenly had to laugh, "I am not…used to feel…so much anymore."
"It will soon be normal again", Godric told him, filling a glass with water and offering it to his partner, "drink this. You need to stay hydrated."
Salazar drank the water, and he kept shifting around in the bed- and then he very carefully tried to lift up one leg- and everyone stared in wonder when he was able to lift it all the way up.
"Try to walk now, Dad!", Tom urged him, and Salazar laughed again, "I am not sure if I can walk yet, Tommy- but I will try. You boys might need to help me at first, my body is not used to these movements anymore."
"We'll help!", Sirius assured him, and then they all helped Salazar to stand up, and Godric had to blink back tears when he saw his partner tentatively taking his first step- after almost three months.
"I can feel my legs and my feet again", Salazar sounded as awestruck as everyone was feeling, "the potion has worked, I…", he was unable to finish his sentence, emotions overwhelming him, and he did not bother to try to hide his tears.
"You did it, my love- you cured me", he leaned over and kissed his partner, and Godric smiled, tears in his eyes, "we all did it- for you. We love you."
"I love you, too", Salazar replied, his voice hoarse and thick with emotions, "I love you all so much- you and our three wonderful, amazing boys."
And they all hugged each other, smiling, and Tom looked at his Dad, and his Daddy, and his brothers, and he had never been happier.
We are a family.
first part of the HEA ;) and in the next chap, dumbles will get his punishment, which will be...intense.
I would love some feedback!
xoxo,
Antonie :)
