For 16 Galleons

Chapter 7

A couple of weeks after 'the poop-head' incident, Mr. Bell left Malfoy Manor. Harry had learned everything he could up to that point. Everything else would be taught as the need arose, or so Mr. Bell had explained. Harry had done his absolute best over the months that followed to prove that he deserved the trust all the grown ups were showing him. He was far from perfect but he learned quickly to serve his young master and things went fairly smoothly. There was the occasional fight since Draco would apparently never get completely over being stuck up and Harry could only take so much before lashing out. The boys would be punished, Harry would sneak biscuits from the kitchen and the boys would share a book in front of the fire. Later, after they went to bed, one of them would sneak into the other one's bed and they would comfort each other after the trauma of the day. The next day things would return to normal.

Harry learned from Draco that Master Malfoy worked for the Minister of Magic, a man called the Great Lord Voldemort. Draco said his father had been something called a 'Death Eater' years ago and was now one of the Great Lord's closest advisors. He didn't really know what his father did exactly. The boys only knew that Master Malfoy spent a great deal of time at the Ministry and that whatever he did was very important. Draco was very proud of that and pointed out to Harry that the Malfoys were one of the most important and rich families in the country. Harry thought Draco was too big for his britches.

Harry thought that the stories Draco told him about the Great Lord must be made up. Draco had told him that Lord Voldemort was kind of like a spirit and lived on the back of the head of someone named Wormtail. He knew better than to call Master Draco a liar, though. He'd done that once. Draco had bit him during that fight and had not got in very much trouble for it. When Master Malfoy found out the cause of the fight, he had Mr. Arieta use a switch on Harry's backside. He hadn't been able to sneak any biscuits that evening, either. At least Draco had let him cuddle while he sniffled that night. The two of them had an unspoken agreement; no matter how mad they got at each other, they were still best friends.

Harry saw a bit more of Mistress Malfoy than Master Malfoy. She would occasionally visit Draco and see how he was doing. During those visits, Harry would sit quietly out of the way and pay attention in case his master needed anything. The mistress of the house rarely gave Harry a second glance, which was fine with him. A few times, Draco and his mother had gone shopping. Harry had been allowed to go along on the last two trips.

The place where they shopped was amazing. Everyone was a witch or wizard. The strangest shops lined the streets and Harry would have loved to wander for days. However, he was expected to carry some of Master Draco's packages and assist in any way he was told. He followed Mistress Malfoy's slave's example and everyone seemed happy with his behaviour. Mistress Malfoy even bought him a few sets of robes of his own. She said she didn't want anyone saying that the Malfoys didn't take good care of their slaves.

On the second trip, Draco managed to talk his mother into buying Harry a practice broom of his own so that he would have someone to fly with. It took quite a bit of negotiation and the threat of a public tantrum but Draco got his way. The broom was a used one of an older model than his master's but Harry didn't give a whit. He could fly with Draco now!

Almost a year later, the boys found themselves preparing for Draco's 8^th birthday party. Harry wasn't sure at first what his master had to be excited about. Draco got anything he wanted as soon as he asked all the time. He knew that several children Draco's age were coming over for the party but didn't see that as a good thing. In Harry's experience, groups of other people's friends usually meant pain and harassment for him. However, Draco promised that none of the other children would be allowed to hurt Harry while they were here. Harry was expected to serve Draco as usual, help keep the wrapping papers picked and put the opened presents away. Master Draco had also promised to let Harry have some birthday cake.

The morning of the party, Harry helped his master get dressed in his new robes and tried to make himself look presentable. He didn't want to embarrass the Malfoys. Master Draco went down to the front hall to meet his guests and was joined by his mother and father. When they entered, Master and Mistress Malfoy looked both boys over critically before the guests began to arrive. Everyone had finally given up on trying to tame Harry's hair. They just looked at it and sighed.

The first guests to arrive were a couple of large boys Draco referred to as Greg and Vince. Directly after them came a boy named Blaise and another named Marcus. Not long after them came a girl named Millicent, a boy named Cedric, a set of twins named Parvati and Padma and finally a girl named Pansy. Both Pansy and Blaise had slaves with them. Pansy's was a short red haired girl named Sally-Ann and Blaise had a skinny boy with very dark skin named Dean. Harry had never seen a boy with almost black skin before and apparently some of the guests hadn't either. Everyone thought Dean was very exotic and had to touch his skin and hair and tell Blaise how cool his slave was. Blaise looked on with pride and kept his arm around Dean's shoulder while showing him off. Harry felt very plain and worried that Draco would want to replace him, especially when he heard Mistress Malfoy say that Dean made a lovely contrast to her pale son. Dean kept his eyes downcast and didn't comment or flinch while the whole mess was going on.

The children then went to one of the back gardens and began to play. Harry, like the other slaves, was standing off to the side watching his master play and wishing he could play, too. He was bored and a little bit worried. He looked at the other two slaves and figured it wouldn't hurt to try and talk to them. They introduced themselves a bit shyly to each other and Harry asked the first question that popped into his head.

"So, have you always been a slave?" he asked to both of them.

"Oh, yes, I have," replied Dean, looking at him oddly.

"Me too," said Sally-Ann. "Mistress Pansy said that you weren't found 'til you were seven. Is that really true?"

"Um, yeah, Master Draco bought me almost a year ago."

"You lived with Muggles until then, right?" she asked.

"Yeah, I did."

Both children looked at him excitedly and moved closer to him. "Is it true that Muggles live in caves and eat raw meat?" Sally-Ann asked.

Dean laughed. "Of course not silly, they live in tiny flats and smoke lots of fags and laze around in front of the telly all the time."

"Huh? Where did you hear that crap?" Harry asked them.

"From Master Blaise's "Martin the Mad Muggle" comic."

Harry shook his head. "They live in houses, not as big as this one," he said, looking over his shoulder at the Manor, "and cook their food just like we do. Some of them smoke fags but not all of them. I think you may be right about the telly, though. Uncle Vernon used to lay on the couch every night and watch it."

The three of them quickly huddled together and found themselves big eyed and laughing while comparing Harry's childhood to their own. Harry told them all about cars, the telly, cookers and other things. They told him what it was like to grow up in a slave crèche. By the time their masters had gathered around the table of presents, Harry felt like he had two new friends, and perhaps, the day wasn't as bad as he had thought it would be.

As soon as his mother told him he could, Draco started ripping through wrapping paper, tossing it everywhere and Harry had to scramble to keep it picked up. He caught Draco smirking at him and throwing one piece deliberately in the other direction. Harry scowled and Draco laughed. Harry was cross with his master for the teasing but, after opening each present, Draco showed it to Harry and they whispered a few secret comments to each other about the gifts.

Afterwards, the guests and Draco began playing with a few of the gifts and some of Draco's toys that had been brought out for the party. Harry was watching and feeling pretty happy even if he couldn't join the games. Suddenly he realized someone was standing right next to him.

"So you're Draco's slave?" sniped the girl called Pansy.

"Yes, Miss, I am. Is there anything I can do for you?" He hoped there wasn't because he wasn't sure what he should do for someone who wasn't his master and had her own slave.

"At least you're polite and know your place."

"Thank you, Miss," he replied.

"I'm Pansy Parkinson. I'm Draco's fiancée."

"I'm pleased to meet you, Miss Parkinson," he said as he gave a small bow and wondered what the heck a fiancée was.

"Draco seems awfully friendly to you."

Harry felt a bit confused. "Master Draco bought me to be his best friend, Miss Parkinson."

Pansy sniffed, "You know, of course, that when I marry Draco he will have to get rid of you. I don't like you."

Just then Mr. Arieta floated out a huge birthday cake with little figures of knights and dragons racing back and forth across it. Draco and his guests all gathered around the table and climbed onto chairs. Draco blew out the candles and refused to tell anyone what his wish had been, no matter how much they teased him. Harry stood just behind his master's chair and thought about what Pansy had told him. He felt a little better when Draco gave him a piece of cake.

Hours later, the guests had left and Harry was putting away his master's new things while Draco rattled on and on about each of his guests. He didn't seem impressed with any of them.

Finally Harry scuffed his toe and worked up the courage to broach the subject of Dean. "So, um, what do you think of Blaise' slave? He's pretty cool."

"Huh? Oh, I suppose so. He's not as cool as you, though."

Harry felt like he had just been given his own birthday present. He grinned and said, "You mean you don't want to trade me for him?"

"What? No way," he said and grinned back at Harry.

Then Harry asked, "What's a fiancée, Master Draco?"

"A fiancée? That's the girl a boy is supposed to marry when he grows up."

"You're supposed to marry Miss Pansy when you grow up?"

"I think so. Pansy said we are and I asked Mother and Father about it. They said they were still 'negotiating' it, whatever that means."

"Will you get rid of me when you marry her? She said she would make you," asked Harry, pouting.

"Make me? She can't make me do anything," announced Draco defiantly. "Besides, you're my best friend. I'm keeping you forever. She doesn't even know how to play sword fight. All girls want to do is talk about clothes and dolls. That's no fun."

Harry grinned at his master, feeling much better about his place in the world. They grabbed the new set of swords Draco had got and raced up and down the hallway, threatening the 'scurvy' portraits until the occupants finally fled their frames.

When they had settled down again in Draco's room again, Harry asked, "What happens when you get married?"

"Um, I think I have to kiss her in front of everybody and then we go home and she has babies."

"Really? That's gross. I'm glad I don't have to marry a fiancée."

Draco sighed deeply. "I wish I didn't either. Hey, maybe Mother and Father will let you be my fiancée! It would be a lot more fun to marry you than some dumb girl."

Harry giggled. "Then you would have to kiss me in front of everyone. Boys don't kiss boys." Suddenly he scowled. "I don't want to have babies."

"Stupid. Only girls can have babies," Draco said in his know-it-all voice. "And I can kiss whoever I want." With that he leaned over and smashed his lips to Harry's. His nose smeared Harry's glasses and he pulled away with a 'Mwa' sound. Both boys looked at each other for a minute, making odd faces.

"That was weird," Harry said.

"Yep. I don't get it. The gardener and the upstairs maid seemed to really like it when I saw them in the hallway that time."

"Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon always made a lot of noise when they kissed. Kind of like it hurt or something."

"Maybe it's different when you're a grown up?"

Harry shrugged his shoulders and they rushed off to resume their sword fight against the evil pirates that had invaded the front stairway.

To be continued.