Post by Lance Ulrich on Jan 27, 2011 14:31:20 GMT -8
Monday, August 8, 2011
11 a.m.
Perhaps most people would be excited if their father was offering them a gift and seemed rather excited about it, but Lance Ulrich was more than a little apprehensive, and it wasn't entirely due to the fact that lately parents had been pairing their children off right and left. It was more the fact that his father was excited. Then again, ever since the incident at the gala a few nights ago, he'd been treating him in slightly higher regard. He'd even told him he'd done a nice job. Lance wasn't used to any of this treatment from his father, who had always been all business and fairly distant.
Regardless of his doubts regarding whether he'd really like the "gift" or not, Lance had woken up, showered, dressed, and otherwise readied himself for the day and was ready half an hour ahead of time. It was still a surprise and a gift, after all, even if he had his doubts. His father hardly knew him. This should be interesting, he supposed. As soon as his father had Vaughn, his favored slave, beckon him downstairs, Lance came down, bid his father good morning, and hardly said a word as he let his father apparate them to wherever it was they were going.
When they arrived about half a mile from Puxley, he was a little confused. Had his father arranged a meeting with Lord Williams or what? True, he didn't know he was a Death Eater, but still. How was a meeting with Williams a gift? Still, he followed him up the path and followed protocol at the front desk along with his father and waited before a guard approached and lead them somewhere. Ok, they were definitely not going to Williams' office. Where were they going? Had his father gone daft? Was this positivity all a charade? He had betrayed Lance's mother, given her over to slavery. What would prevent him from doing that to him? But what was his cause?
Lance took a deep breath as he walked, calming as he saw a line of slaves. "Choose one. Think of it as a belated graduation gift or a reward for good behavior," his father said with a wink, and Lance glanced at him. Well, this was going to be just great. All the slaves were female. What, did his father think his "lack" of a girlfriend (for no one knew about him and Lily outside of the few at Hogwarts last year who had seen them) meant he wasn't getting any? Or what? He was thoroughly confused now, but what did it matter? He had to choose one. So, clasping his hands behind his back, he began his way down the line, slowly observing each slave he passed. Some of them looked far too young to be in this place, but that wasn't his business. The law wasn't discriminate when it came to age and enforcement of the blood status laws.
As he reached the middle of the line, he caught sight of a girl he remembered from Hogwarts. A year below him, always rejected him....only reason he really remembered her, truthfully. "You there," he said. "Tell me, have you ever harmed a master?" He'd heard some stories of slaves being turned over to Puxley for this very reason. It was structured, and the guards weren't afraid to put a slave in his place to see the slave paid for his crimes. Truth was, though, he had no other idea what to say to her. What did one ask a slave? How did one choose a slave? This was new to him; never mind his father had brought home a few slaves since it was instated.
((Yeah, title's lame, but I suck at them, lol.))