The next day was somber, more so than the final days of the holiday. The Order had decided that the children would return to Hogwart's via the Express - it was necessary in such abnormal times to cling to normality when one could, after all. The Weaslys were anxious- no doubt they would be subject to looks of pity and with regards to a quarter of the school, mockery and sneers.
Nonetheless, eleven o'clock found all seven of them crowded into a compartment. "If you don't mind, think we'll just bugger off with you lot" George mumbled. Fred merely nodded, and the group sat in silence, Hermione reading, Ginny and Ron playing chess, and Harry lost in thought.
It had been a rather torturous two weeks, even with the company and atmosphere excluded. From having three good looking girls to choose from at whim to suddenly spending a fortnight with only the company of Ginny and Hermione...Harry was leaning towards recklessness. True, tonight he could once again do as he pleased...perhaps...but that was no longer the point.
Harry cursed inwardly, the whole point was to have the /power/, to have absolute control over his own destiny. Something as quick and simple as a quickie from Lavender may seem such a trivial thing to risk being discovered, but it was the /principle /of the thing, dammit!
With a loud puff of air, Harry stood up. "I'm gonna take a look around...stretch my legs - see how everyone else is doing." The group nodded, though surprise was clear on the younger three faces. Right, like you're the only people I bother to talk to.
Stretching as he left the carriage, Harry suddenly found himself undecided. He had wanted to get away, though now he had no idea where to go to. He couldn't visit Daphne - he'd made a risk on the first day of term, bur there was a line between Boldness and Stupidity he would not cross. /Yes...just as we're heading off to get our rocks off/, Harry mentally bit at himself.
Shrugging off his thoughts, he began to meander up the carriage, exchanging a nod with Ernie in the corridor and spending five minutes extracting himself from the Creevy's Christmas story.
Vowing once again to /Avada /the pair of them when he got the chance, Harry reached the final compartment of the carriage and looked through the window. He thought Parvati was inside, her long hair hiding her face as she lent against the window. Guess Lavender's here then...Deepen sleep, quickie with Lav...in and out and back to the circus. Harry shrugged, opening the door and stepping inside.
"Wuh?" Came a sleepy voice. Harry took a quick look around, noticing Lavender's absence before turning to Parvati. "Hey Par...Oh, hey Padma." Padma smiled, before yawning and throwing her hair back. "Hey Harry...looking for Parvati I take it."
Harry smiled, before shrugging his shoulders, taking a seat across from her. "Not particularly, just needed to stretch my legs and thought I'd see who's around." His face turned quizzical,"Curious though, but where is your sister?"
Padma tilted her head to the side, studying him for a moment. A second later, her sleep clouded brain responded to his question. "Don't know...guess her and Lavender decided to find someone a bit more talkative."
/So Lavender was here/, Harry thought to himself. Shame, Daphne was impossible to reach and Angelina would be in a gaggle of 6th and 7th years. Now Lavender was gone...he'd just have to wait until this evening...
As this thought was running through his head he looked back at Padma. Despite his and Ron's fiasco a year ago with the Patil sisters, he certainly could admit they were both attractive. His opinion seemed to be a general consensus, if talk in the Gryffindor 5thyear boys' dormitory was anything to go by. Smiling, he turned his attentions back to the girl across from him.
"Ah well...see them both later. Mind if I stay or do you want me to bugger off so you can sleep." Harry asked light heartedly.
Stifling another yawn, Padma answered, "Stay if you like, I'm awake now and it's good to have company."
Harry nodded, and asked, "So, how was Christmas...err do you celebrate that?"
Laughing at Harry's sudden embarrassment, Padma rolled her eyes, suppressing a giggle. "Really Harry, Ilive with Parvati...do you think she'd give up an excuse for new clothes?" The two shared a laugh, and Padma asked Harry about his own holiday.
"S'alright...you heard about Mr. Weasly I guess though..." Padma nodded, her expression turning grim. "So...wasn't the most merry holiday, but in an odd way...it was nice, having everyone really appreciate just what family means...never had that before..."
Harry stopped, noticing the odd expression on Padma's face. Whether is was at his overly sentimental attitude towards Mr. Weasly's death or his revelation of his own lack of family life he wasn't sure, and Harry was suddenly uneasy about the road this current conversation was on.
"Anyway...so the ministry's sending someone to Hogwarts. Any idea who?" Harry asked, moving towards more comfortable ground.
Padma's face took on a sour expression. "In the prophet this morning they announced it formally, said it was out of protection the name was withheld so long." She grimaced. "Dad thinks it's utter rot - the woman they've selected for the post is Ms. Umbridge -rotten old cow. A few years ago she was on the board of International Cooperation...Dad thinks she blocked his post for Ambassador to the Deccan Sultanate just because mum is Half-blood."
The last of Padma's rant was fast-paced and high pitched, but Harry caught the most important points: The Patil's were influential - possibly on a global scale - and Umbridge posed apotentially enormous obstacle in the following term.
If his decision had not already been made, it would have been done so in a second.
"/Stupefy", /Harry whispered, slipping his wand into place from where it had been hiding in his sleeve. As soon as she crumbled, her face barely registering the shock, Harry cast asilencing and locking charm on the door. He had very little time; he could not afford any stupid mistakes like he had made with Lavender, the anger and savagery as with Angelina, nor the twisted games as he had enjoyed his first time with Daphne.
"/Ennervate." /Padma looked up, and before she could make any note as to her new situation, she found herself lost in a vibrant world of green...
For the first time, Harry ignored the thrumming pleasure across his scar. Instead, he focused, on Padma - more specifically her face. When he had awoken her, she had seemed confused, an instant later even that spark snuffed out as she fell to his gaze.
Now her face was like a blank slate, slowly being filled with devotion and obedience to him. It was rather hard to describe. She was /his/, her slavery was absolute. But as he'd noticed before, their emotions were not uniform, the overall product unique each time.
When he 'saw' the flash, he noticed the look of contentment on her face and cringed, praying this would be the only similarity to Lavender's induction.../well, perhaps one of two.../
"Padma, can you hear me?" Her eyes shifted into focus, the blank look disappearing from her face. With a nod, she looked up at him, then quickly looked down, not worthy of making eye contact without his expressed permission. Harry grinned, admiring his latest conquest.
"No time for pleasantries right now. Short and sweet - we'll talk later." She nodded again, though her hair had again fallen as a curtain over her face, and Harry was thus unable to tell how much she truly understood. She was a Ravenclaw though, surely that counted for something.
Without another word, Harry rearranged his robes before relieving himself from the constraints of his trousers. Padma moved her head up, keeping her eyes focused just below Harry's before drifting down to his growing member.
Harry watched as Padma sat passively, sitting perfectly still save for her face. Harry moved closer, relieved when her tongue shot out, wetting her lips. No point if she doesn't get something out of it to... Harry thought mockingly.
Still though, she made no move towards him, and Harry wondered if she knew what he expected her to do. He imagined so, it was impossible that she couldn't after associating with Parvati and Lavender. It was then that he realized her confusion was not all consuming- she knew exactly what she had to do, merely she didn't know how to do it...
Not important. And anyway, might be nice...having a tight mouth to simply fuck... a change. He wouldn't tolerate that lack of reaction in bed, but that was something he'd deal with later. Now, time was truly of the essence.
"Call it Gryffindor nobility, but let me do the work. Just keep your lips tight around my cock." Padma nodded, for the first time looking up at him. She was beautiful, long dark hair cascading down, deep brown eyes laid into skin with a light chocolate hue. Like jewelry.
Harry smile at the image. He was aking, surrounding himself with pretty things and lovely pleasures...speaking of which...
Harry thrust himself into Padma's mouth, enjoying the feel of her lips and her tongue on the underside of his erection. He pulled out, leaving only the head resting against her lips before pushing back in, attempting to reach the very back of her throat. She gagged, and Harry gave her a disapproving glare, disrupted from his first release in two weeks and first conquest of the new year.
For the first few minutes, Harry simply fucked Padma's mouth, the girl showing no response but to simply keep her lips fastened around him and keeping herself from gagging as he attacked her throat. Soon however, her own curiousness got the better of her, and she began to add her own touch - sucking softly and moving her tongue, exploring all parts of her master's length as it assaulted her fiercely.
Her sudden response fueled Harry's lust, driving him further on. He knew he could have held out longer - a feat of progress since his first time that left him with a foolishly large sense of accomplishment and pride - but his own stamina was not the limiting factor. His friends would begin to wonder, and anyway...Padma was not about to be entertaining anyone else any time soon.
On that happy thought, Harry came. The lack of warning and her own inexperience quickly caused Padma to have acoughing fit as she choked on the sperm that now filled her mouth.
Scowling, Harry grabbed her hair."No pet, drink it all...wouldn't want to think you're unappreciative of my gift."She nodded, even as she tried to prevent a cough, and forcefully swallowed. She was still dribbling from the mouth, but Harry could admit it was a good effort. Not that he'd tell her.
"Bad show. Here I thought you'd be polite and thank me proper." She looked up again, her face splendid in its sorrow. "I'm...I'm sorry" she whispered. "Doesn't do much good, does it?" Harry snarled. "And still not even a simple 'Thank you'."
Inside, Harry danced - how he'd missed these games! Aiding Voldemort (though the latter didn't know it) in Mr. Weasly's downfall had left Harry on a high that he had been forced to squash throughout Christmas. Now, he could regain a small iota of that pleasure.
"Thank you Harry." Padma's quiet admission brought Harry out of his revelry. "Thank you for what?" Harry asked, as if admonishing a small child. "Thank you for...for letting me..." She stopped, her cheeks flushing a darker brown.
"Well, well, well." Harry sneered."Can go down on a bloke but can't say the words aloud. Afraid of what that might say about you?" She was trembling now, and Harry realized he needed to show restraint - awkward questions might be asked if her twin found her crying without cause.
Pausing to reign control over himself, Harry began anew, in a soft, coaxing voice. "Thank you for letting me suck you cock, Master." He looked at Padma, silently demanding her to repeat the phrase. "Thank you...thank you for letting me suck your cock." She looked down, totally humiliated. "Master" Harry pressed. "Master", Padma repeated.
Harry smiled. "See Padma, that wasn't so hard, now was it." She nodded. "Look at me...I don't like it when you look away - makes me think I can't trust you." Instantly, she locked her eyes with his.
"You know Padma, we can do more, much more. I could mark you - make you mine forever. Would you like that?" For the first time, her face lost its passive aura, and breathlessly, passionately she whispered, "Yes! Please Harry, yes."
Harry chuckled, how much he loved this. "One thing then. Just one little test, and you'll get your wish." Her eyes conveyed a silent promise, a desire to do anything for the right to bear his mark.
"If you want me to give my mark to you...you have to give something to me." There was no pause. "Anything."
"I have some work that I need to take care of first. But when I call you, I'll expect your gift to me. For one betrayal, you can be happy forever." Again, she nodded - uncaring of the ominous use of 'betrayal'.
Harry's eye gleamed with wickedness as he stood up, heading for the door. "When the time comes, you'll give me what I've already taken from you - your will. All you have to do is give me Parvati. Is that fair pet, you're slavery in exchange for your sister's freedom?"
Padma did not hesitate. Such asmall price to be his forever. It was not a question worth asking...though she dared not tell him that. She nodded fervently, an awed "Yes" escaping her throat.
With a cold laugh, Harry turned around, leaving the compartment, not pausing to contemplate the depths of his cruelty.
The rest of the train ride was quite dull in comparison, and Harry spent the remaining hours reflecting on what he had done. In addition to her own attractive qualities and her family's influence, Padma could and would act as Harry's eyes and ears within the Ravenclaw nest. At some point he supposed he would capture Cho - his old crush from last year held a large influence in her house, but more importantly she had committed the most gravest of sins against Harry.
She had said no.
Patience...patience. The only house still untouched by Harry's presence was Hufflepuff, though he saw no reason at the moment to penetrate it. He would wait, indulge Hermione through the fledgling Defense Group, and see if any were worthy. Susan Bones was a rather plain girl in all aspects, though he knew her aunt was a key figure in the wizarding government - what exactly he would need to find out.
Hannah Abbot...attractive enough, Harry supposed, but he already had one blonde fucktoy...did he truly want another who served no other purpose? Decisions, decisions. No wonder Voldemort just boils it all down to 'Crucio', Harry smirked.
Dinner that evening was hectic, aminiature version of the first of term. Students flocked between the house tables, eager to exchange stories and compare gifts. Harry looked up towards the Professor's table...Snape seemed committed to sneering for the year, Slughorn had a greedy look in his eye - though perhaps he was simply hungry...
He saw her. A short, squat.../thing/wearing robes of a very unprofessional shade of pink. In an instant he remembered - this woman had been at his trial, had sat enraptured by Fudge's declarations. He remembered the murderous look in her eye when he swore his oath and by the way she now turned to meet his gaze - she remembered as well.
Harry turned away. Perhaps I'll put Mad Eye's gift to use after all. Harry had been more amused than anything else when Moody had presented him with a flask identical to his own for Christmas, but now he was thankful he had brought it with him...though he wouldn't hesitate to learn potion and poison revealing charms.
"Welcome back to you all,"Dumbledore's voice suddenly echoed throughout the hall.
"No doubt you have all seen the news these last weeks have brought." Dumbledore's face became somber and mutterings flittered between all four tables. "In these times, the Ministry has seen fit -" "Hmph hmm" Dumbledore was interrupted by a breathy noise coming from the Ministry appointee.
Everyone froze - no one had ever interrupted Dumbledore, and certainly not in such an obvious way. Dumbledore's face contained a brief flickering of his own surprise, before he regained his composure and bowed slightly towards her, indicating she ought continue.
"Thank you, Headmaster," she continued in her breathy tone. "The Minister has sent me to Hogwarts to ensure the safety of all those here to learn. I have no doubt we shall get along just fine" she continued in that same half-simpering tone.
"It's a coup..." whispered Hermione.
Harry rolled his eyes, does anything get past the girl...when Ron asked, his mouth overflowing with food,"Whasha Koot?"
"A /coup/, Ron...Honestly"Hermione began to go into full lecture mode, "It means the ministry is trying to take over the school."
Those who heard turned towards Hermione, expressions ranging from a shock at the obviousness of her statement to shock from the implications.
"Dunno...seems fairly reasonable to me." Dean countered.
"That's Umbridge - nasty is too good a word for her." This from Parvati, unknowingly reinforcing her sister's claims.
Seamus shrugged, "Whole world's gone down the shite'r - no reason this'll be any different." A chorus of nods indicated that Seamus' suggestion was the most aptly put.
Mutterings and hushed whispers about the new state of affairs continued throughout the evening, leaving Harry glad when everyone finally went to bed. Umbridge, Fudge, Hermione - they were all irrelevant. What mattered, the only thing that mattered was his own success.
/Hopefully/, he thought with asmile as he drifted towards a peaceful sleep, success for me will end gruesomely for them. Twats the lot.
The next week proved to be far more hectic than Harry had hoped. It seemed Umbridge - High Inquisitor Umbridge and she insisted on being called - was using her position to sit in upon classes. This in itself was not so strange, but it seemed to Harry that she had apenchant to following his schedule specifically whenever she could.
He thus had no chance to speak to Daphne, a fact that troubled him more than he'd expected. Flint was also unavailable, but that mattered little as he had no use for her right now - ugly fuck proved useless in the one thing she had to do. Unfair, but true in its own way.
Thankfully, by the end of the week she seemed to be winding down, though Harry guessed it was only a matter of time before she took some action against Hagrid - the sight of the half-giant immediately sent waves of nausea and revulsion across her face. It would have been funny if it wasn't so pathetically blatant.
Feeling out of sight for the first time since returning to Hogwarts, Harry snuck down towards the dungeons, heading to his Potions tutorial. He had sent message to Daphne earlier - she would meet him a quarter hour before he was required.
Harry swore inwardly, remembering the hassle and effort he had put into stealing Filch's supplies, only to come up empty. How the twins managed to swipe that bloody map out of that steaming pile of crap... Course, the map may very well be charmed to naturally move towards trouble, and no source could be as appealing as the twins.
Thinking about the box of documents at Grimmauld, Harry's hand subconsciously reached into his pocket, touching the picture that rested there. He had charmed it - placed it under a glamour so as to appear like a remarkably dull Herbology paper - and had since kept it on his person at all times. It was...a goal perhaps? To forge a group from within his peers that could be as dangerous as those that preceded him.
His murmurings were interrupted by soft footsteps, an image of green and gold slinking into the room. "Harry" came the soft voice, said with such tones of devotion that Harry began to harden, long before he actually focused upon her image.
"Hey Daph...long time." With a shared smirk, Harry pulled her into his embrace, mouths renewing their violent ritual; to taste and feel her once more. Harry drew her nearer, squeezing her firm butt through her robes while the other hand traced her breast.
With a giggle, she pulled away, looking him straight in the eye. "Why here Harry? Why not our room?"
Good, she was learning well - she maintained a level of confidence and independence without disrupting his own dominance. Success.
"Can't go near the room right now -not till we know just how the rules of changed."
Daphne nodded, clearly unhappy about the disruption but understanding its necessity. "I want us to make the rules, not follow them" she finally responded with a pout.
Harry chuckled, "All in good time. For now though...There's a book in Slughorn's office. I want it - it's a 6thyear potions textbook but something's wrong with it - don't know what."
Daphne nodded but refrained from commenting. Harry continued, "I'll keep the professor busy in the room while you..." he stopped, pulling his invisibility cloak out from beneath his robes,"Will take this and find the damned book..." Pausing, his face took on a scowl as he once again recalled his last fiasco. "Can't be anymore useless that last time," he ended with a growl.
Daphne caught the cloak that he half-handed, half-hurled at her, slipping underneath it and then following Harry out as he continued his trek to the potions lab.
"Ah, Harry! Wonderful to see you again! How were your holidays?" Slughorn bellowed the moment Harry entered the room/ "Fine professor, if not a bit rattling with the news, how about yourself?" Professor Slughorn's smile faltered.
"Ah yes...stayed in the castle...thought I'd get ahead...but let me thank you once more for the most thoughtful gift. Crystallized pineapple is my favorite you know."
Harry smirked, ignoring the professor's change of topic and once more marveling at the straight forwardness of the man in front of him even as he slithered away from a more uncomfortable subject.
"Sir" Harry paused, lowering his voice. "I wondered if perhaps I might talk to you in private..." "Indeed my boy, by all means we are quite alone."
/Not as alone as you think, /Harry thought with a smile. "Yes sir...but what I have to talk about is really quite...confidential. I have complete trust in you sir, but with all the fuss and bother...I'd appreciate a few privacy charms."
Slughorn nodded slowly, appreciating the potential news he was about to be privy to. "Of course my boy"he chuckled deeply, "no problem at all." With a lazy wave of his wand, he set up the privacy charms - making the room's conversation totally private. In doing so, he also sealed off all sounds that might escape, including those that might come from his own office - convenient, as Daphne was preparing to rummage...
"Sir, I've been wondering about Occlumency - I've read about it and have tried to practice it, butit's been rather difficult...I thought you might have some advice."
"You've come to the right person then!" Slughorn remarked with a toothy grin. "I myself am quite capable in the art myself - can't have anyone popping in your head after you've been an honorary emissary to the North American Confederation of Magic now can you?"
Harry laughed, not quite sure what was so hilarious but obviously Slughorn thought something was. "Yes...yes my boy- I'll give you a few pointers, got a slight ability at Legilimancy...oh now now!" Slughorn soothed, seeing Harry's horrified expression, "no need to poke about in that head of yours just yet - make sure you've got the idea before Ieven think of snooping about." Slughorn continued, pleased as Harry's discomfort subsided.
"Well sir," Harry picked up the conversation. "I've been trying to clear my mind, and picturing a defense of some sort..." Harry was cut off by a snicker from the rotund professor.
"Harry my boy...I'm afraid it's not so simple. The art of Occlumency is just that - hiding, not defending. Imagine for instance if you-know-who tried to look into your mind only to find aphysical shield - what do you think he would do."
Harry paused, before appreciating the profoundness of the comment. "He'd keep hammering away sir - if he knew Iwas hiding something - which he would if I had a shield - he'd either Cruciome to make me lose focus or simply hammer away..."
Slughorn nodded, pleased at the boy's astuteness. "Take no offense my young friend, but you would not survive the ordeal. Even if you somehow managed to keep the memories hidden, you would no doubt lose any sense of sanity in the process."
Harry shuddered, such unpleasant possibilities floating through his mind. "I see that sir, but my book did mention shields in the mind and I thought..." Harry paused, leaving his question open.
"Shields are used to introduce the art, to give the apprentice a model to cling to. In truth, they work well enough if the casual snooper comes against you for a mere moment...but I doubt such an individual is your concern?" Slughorn added with a touch of sympathy and Harry nodded wearily.
"Right then, so the trick to remember is that the mind is not physical...you cannot go through your memories, organizing them into files then placing them under lock and key. The skilled Occlumens rather has complete control over his mind - he thinks of nothing unless he specifically wants to recall it. Surely at times, your mind wonders...unconsciously thinking about thoughts or ideas you keep to yourself?"
Harry nodded, realizing where this conversation was headed. "Such errant thoughts will easily spring to the surface when the Legilimancer attempts to break into your head. More often than not, information is divulged almost immediately when one frantically recalls all the things they need to hide, accidentally bringing those very things to the surface."
"And thus, a good Occlumens will command his mind to invest no part of itself to such precious thoughts when under attack. A great Occlumens will be able to create images - fantasies or dreams if you will - so realistic that they might fool the intruder."
Harry nodded, appreciating fully the sheer amount of will power and creativity and.../ duplicity /involved."Think through what I have said, and concentrate on fully removing thoughts from your conscience. Meditation may help - though I assume you already are?"Harry nodded again, "Yes sir - each evening."
Slughorn nodded, before concluding."Very well, remember what I have said but realize that the art is very difficult - there is a reason such a useful skill is so rare."
The two talked for a while longer, Harry asking various questions and hinting that perhaps he might move on from poisons and begin a general apprenticeship - leaning towards magics that were of a much darker hue than anything available in the Hogwarts curriculum.
Slughorn grew slightly weary, and Harry moved to a different subject, bringing up his mother once more. The combination succeeded in both lightening Slughorn's mood while providing Harry once again with a cover-all, and by the end of the night Slughorn had approved to teach Harry 'rigorous self-defense'.
Harry smiled and thanked the man, before heading back towards his dorm. He stopped once again in the room he had visited hours before. Waiting for him was a beaming Daphne.
"Get it pet?" Harry asked, his voice a mixture of excitement and approval. She nodded, removing a ratty textbook from beneath her robes. "Wasn't hard to miss- only one remotely interesting. If next year's class is as harmless as those books indicate..." She was cut off as once again Harry pulled her into a kiss that left them both panting for air.
"Idea...bloody great one - follow me." Harry whispered. Without a word, Daphne followed a step behind, the two finally arriving in the Defense Classroom.
"Can't shag you in our room, but Ican do the next best thing. Right on Snape's desk - great git won't have a clue why I'm so happy in class."
He broke off, eager to remove the clothes that separated him from Daphne. She said nothing but mirrored his movements, and it was not long before the two of them were naked, standing in between the rows of tables.
"Right Daph - lean back, time to try this standing up." Daphne grinned, leaning in and nibbling his earlobe before whispering, "you already are." Laughing at her childish innuendo, Harry muttered, but wasted no time in dragging and carrying the girl to Snape's desk, before she took control of herself, pressing herself flush against it's face before leaning backwards, her upper body sprawling over the surface, knocking down and scattering the rather spartan paraphernalia on Snape's desk.
With no hesitation, Harry pushed himself into her, taking himself almost to the hilt the first time. His own position gave him all the leverage he could want, and Daphne moaned with him as she felt herself filled with her master. She whimpered, unable to arch forward in her current state, earning a cold laugh from Harry.
Any further response he may have had was cut off in the pleasure of their reunion, all thoughts forgotten. Harry continued a motion of slow, agonizingly slow repetitions, enjoying the breaking of his forced-upon sabbatical.
Daphne hissed, the pleasure combined with her own inability to truly reciprocate driving her mad. Unable to match his furious tempo, she did the one thing still within her power - she squeezed, hard.
Harry's threshold was reached and crossed in that instant as his own pleasurable motions were suddenly attacked by the sudden tightening of Daphne's sex, squeezing him as if milking him of his seed. With a roar that he smothered into Daphne's golden breasts Harry came, moments later Daphne following behind him.
They lay there, on Snape's desk for another minute, before they stood up and examined themselves. Harry felt like dancing - fucking Daphne and snubbing Snape in the process - what could be sweeter?
Unwilling to end their passionate reunion but equally unwilling to be caught in such a compromising manner, they rushed through the enjoyment of a post-sex snog. Finished for the evening, Harry donned his cloak, trusting Daphne to return unnoticed to the snake pit.
Just as he left, he felt his mind falter, chastising him for thinking far too much with primal need to fuck than his more refined need to be cuttingly cruel. Unable to resist the siren's call, Harry turned around once more, saying with a slight smirk. "One more thing you ought to know Daph - I took Padma as my own a week ago."
Daphne snapped out of her bliss, attempting to clamp down on the murderous rage that began to storm within her. She would never begrudge her master anything - it was his right to take and keep what he wanted. But the girls themselves...that ditzy strumpet and the stressed-out bitch - she'd kill them in a heartbeat if Harry didn't specifically say no.
"I am pleased you are happy." She said carefully, not wanting to break the precious balance of her position. Harry smirked, leaving with a parting shot. "Good looking with brains to boot -won't be long before two becomes three - though I'm not sure just where she'll fit right yet."
She could not retort. True, it was his right - but more practically he was no longer present. With warm thoughts about what she would do to the petite Ravenclaw given half a chance, Daphne returned to the dungeons, a dangerous smile gracing her lips.
