The Broken - Chapter Five - The Baron
Chapter Five - The Baron
Dear Lord Shrieking,
How are you? I hope you’ve been well since your last visit. The girls all miss you, especially Miss Tonks. I do believe you’ve inspired her to really shape up. She hasn’t gotten into trouble in almost three weeks now! It’s really a record for her.
In fact, I’m writing because of this. She’s doing well enough now to leave, and I believe that she will do wonderfully in the real world. I’m always afraid of my girls returning to their old ways, but I’m not as worried about her. I am enquiring to see if you knew of any positions for her. As always, I’d like her to be placed somewhere her background isn’t known or with someone who can be trusted with the information. Do let me know if any of your contacts need a maid or cook.
While I’m writing, I must say that I’m curious as to how you are getting along with your new musician. You seemed so pleased with him last month. I hope everything worked out as well as you wished.
I know it’s silly to say this when you’ll be visiting within the week, but do write back, especially if you find a place for Miss Tonks. I enjoy getting notes from you-they simply brighten this old broad’s day. Also, do take care of yourself. I know why you look so sickly when you come to visit, but I do wish you’d eat better. Surely, it would make things easier? What do I know though?
I’ll see you soon. Eat some pudding at supper. It’ll do you good.
Sincerely yours,
Dame Minerva McGonagall
~*~
My Dearest Dame,
I have been fine. More than fine, in fact. I’ve really taken a liking to “my” musician and we are quite... close. I shall miss him when I come to visit, even though I’ll only be gone for a few days. I wish I could bring him along, but I do not think he would be able to handle my secret. Few can, and I treasure those few, including you.
Have you been well? I worry that you are overworking yourself, caring for all the girls. If you ever need some time away from them, you are always welcome at the estate.
I would be delighted to take Miss Tonks into my own household. My cook is getting on in years, and I think an extra pair of hands would help her greatly. I shall come visit you after the full moon, instead of before, and pick her up. She was an entertaining girl, if I remember correctly, and I do believe she will fit into my household very well.
I’m afraid I must end this missive now, as I’ve dinner in a few minutes. I shall be certain to eat extra pudding as you've commanded.
Truly yours,
Baron Remus J. Lupin, Lord Shrieking
~*~
Remus pinched Sirius as he walked by, to obstensively help Miss Rede rise from her chair. She had come, along with her mother, to the small dinner only because of Remus’s agreement with Rede. He hadn’t wished to make her a part of the dinner, which was supposed to be a small intimate gathering of friends, but Sirius was pressured by his mother to bring Bertha Jorkins, his apparent potential wife, to the dinner. Miss Jorkins had spread news of the dinner to her friends, and the information had somehow made its way back to Rede, who had prodded Remus for an invitation.
Some days Remus wished he lived alone on a deserted island. Well, maybe not alone. He’d rather Severus was there with him, of course.
Sirius growled at him because of the pinch, and completely ignored the silent message Remus had been trying to convey. Dinner was just ending, and Remus was glad. Sirius had been in a horrid mood all evening, probably because his mother had forced him to invite Miss Jorkins.
They adjourned to the small parlour across the hall, and Remus was forced to suffer through Miss Rede and Miss Jorkins singing and playing the piano. Neither was horrible, but they weren’t good either. Normally, Remus and Sirius would commiserate over events like this, but Sirius was in a huge snit.
Finally, at nearly midnight, Remus said goodbye to the last of his guests. He walked back to the parlour and collapsed onto the settee next to Sirius, who was seemingly trying to drink himself into oblivion.
“You could have been a little less rude to Miss Jorkins.”
Sirius snorted. “Why would I want to be nice to that hag?” His words were slurring a bit.
Remus pinched the bridge of his nose and took a deep breath. “Sirius. I care for you, really I do, but she's a human being and your possible future wife. As such, I must side with her. She deserves your respect.”
Sirius glared at him. “Shut up. Don’t want to talk to you. I saw you makin’ cow-eyes at your violinist all night. Don’t say nothin’ to me, pervert.” He waved his glass around to make his point, the port in it splashing all over the settee and carpet.
Remus grasped the glass, tugged it from Sirius’s hand, and sent it flying across the room. It hit the piano and shattered. Remus stared at the sparkling glass, afraid that if he looked at his friend, he would throw the man across the room too. He knew his inclinations were not normal, but he didn’t consider himself a pervert. It was more than that though. Remus could handle name-calling, but if Sirius had noticed Remus watching Severus through his drunken fog, the other dinner guests had probably noticed too. He hoped word didn't get back to Rede. His silly flirtations with Severus might end up costing them their lives.
Sirius looked at Remus was bleary eyes. “You're going to get in trouble. Your mum’s going to whip your arse.”
Remus sighed and stood. He grabbed Sirius's hands and pulled him up too. He staggered against Remus, steadying once Remus wrapped an arm around him.
“Your mum’s going to beat your arse like a horse. Haha! Arse and horse almost rhyme. Kinda. I’m a poet!”
Remus just tugged him up the stairs and ignored his rambling. His mother was dead. Sirius knew this, but he was no longer mentally stable. Remus wanted to hate him for the things he said when he was drunk, but he knew it wasn’t Sirius’s fault. Prison had destroyed him. If only Remus had known about Peter sooner... but the past was in the past.
He dropped Sirius off in one of the guest rooms and called Harry in to keep watch over him. It wouldn’t do for Sirius to toss up in the middle of the night and suffocate on his own sick. Then he headed for his own bedroom and the man who was waiting for him.
When he opened the door to his room, he was pleased to find Severus stretched out on his bed, wearing nothing but a smirk, just as Remus had ordered. The smirk fell when he caught sight of Remus.
“What is wrong?” Severus asked.
Remus shook his head and sat down on the edge of the bed to tug off his boots.
Severus frowned. Moving closer, he swiped his tongue along the ridge of Remus’s ear. Remus shuddered. “Tell me what’s wrong,” ordered Severus.
Remus leaned back against Severus. If it were anyone else, he would refuse, but he had grown close to the man in the two weeks since he’d first taken him to bed. He hadn’t spent a single night alone since then.
Severus bit Remus’s earlobe gently, and Remus capitulated. “All right. It’s Sirius.”
“The drunkard from dinner?” Severus’s tone was heavy with derision.
Remus pulled away from him and snapped, “He is a baron. Be respectful!”
At once, Remus regretted his words. Severus's gaze fell to the bedcover, and he straightened up, sitting gracefully on his heels with his back erect and his face turned down. “Yes, my lord.”
Remus wasn't positive, but he expected that Severus had been taken harshly by someone before, and more than once. He needed to be coaxed into having sex and usually let Remus do anything he wanted. Remus didn’t want to hurt him though. He could tell when Severus was uncomfortable because the man would lose the commanding tone that came naturally to him. Instead, he would speak in a soft, subservient voice and follow orders to the letter, regardless of how distasteful he seemed to find them. Remus liked submissive bed partners, but he did not like dismissive ones.
Apologetically, he captured Severus’s lips in a kiss. At first, Severus was unresponsive, but he slowly began to warm up to Remus. Remus pulled away and grinned at the glazed look of arousal on Severus’s face.
“I apologise for acting so inconsiderately, but please do speak kindly of Sirius. He is my oldest friend.” Remus began unbuttoning his dinner jacket. “He was once my dearest friend too, but I’m afraid the tortures of prison have taken his mind from him. He is no longer the man he once was.”
Severus wrinkled his nose, but began helping Remus remove his clothing. “May I ask how he found his way to prison?”
Remus gave him a smug look. “You may.”
Severus rolled his eyes and then pulled off Remus's shirt, pressing a kiss against his collarbone as he did. “How did he find his way to prison?”
Remus paused in removing his clothing to drape his arms over Severus's shoulders. Severus held him close as he spoke. “You know of the revolt in India against the rule of the British East India Company, I’m sure.”
Severus nodded.
“Sirius’s father was invested in the company and had moved his family there. His mother hated it and claimed it was no fit place for aristocracy. Sirius thought it was a grand adventure. He and his servant, a half-Indian half-British boy named Peter, spent much of their time amongst the natives.
“I lived there too, at that time, and met Sirius and Peter during one of their exploratory expeditions. I was also friends with a boy named James, who was a commoner from Britain. His father was a high ranking official in the East India Company, along with mine, so we met through them.”
Remus paused then, the memories of that time still painful to think of. Severus held him until he was ready to continue.
“The four of us played together even though we were of differing social statures. One’s place in British society mattered little in the wilds of India. It was when the Indians began to gather together to battle the Company that things fell apart.”
He stopped and began stripping off his trousers. Severus watched, but did not help, giving Remus time to pull himself together. When he was finally naked, Severus pulled him to the bed, but simply laid down next to him, not initiating any kind of contact.
Remus took a shuddering breath and began again.
“A dark shaman called the Indian people to battle. We did not know it then, but he was a half-British half-Indian boy who had been shunned by his British father. His name was Thomas Riddle. His mother died and he was raised by people of his village who mistreated him. It warped his mind, they say, and turned him evil.”
Severus snorted. “Many people suffer terrible tragedies and do not grow to be evil.”
Remus shrugged. “No matter. He found a great number of people like himself who were suffering greatly and took advantage of that. He led the uprising against the company with the help of knowledge provided by Peter.”
Severus sucked in his breath. “Your friend?”
“Yes. He tricked us all though, by coming forward just after the attacks with accusations against Sirius. We were made to believe that Sirius was the one who had provided the information to Riddle. So many were killed or injured in that battle: my father and James died, my mother was gravely hurt. It seemed right at the time to lock him away.”
“So, Sirius was innocent, but jailed, and the true perpetrator walked free?” Severus sounded almost disbelieving, but it was the truth.
Remus had not wanted to believe that Sirius was capable of such treachery. After all, he had fancied himself madly in love with Sirius. At the same time, he had not wanted to doubt the half-Indian boy he had called a friend. It had taken him years and many, many pounds paid to private investigators to get to the bottom of everything. Knowing the truth had hurt, but it hurt far less than the lie had. “Peter remained free in India and Sirius spent ten years slowly losing his mind in a British jail.”
Severus let out a low whistle. “That must have been hard for you to face.”
He had no idea what the repercussions of the uprising had meant for Remus. “It was,” he said simply. As much as he wished to be open with his lover, Remus knew that it was too dangerous to tell him the whole truth. Remus's secret endangered others. It also left Remus open to pain, something he had dealt with more than enough already.
Severus seemed to understand that Remus did not want to talk anymore. Now was the time to focus on the present.
He began to run his tongue along Remus's ear, tickling it. Remus edged away from the tongue and turned his head, pulling Severus into a kiss. Severus's hands wandered along his body, bringing him to attention.
“Uhm,” he hummed. “I want you on top tonight, love.”
Severus was shocked, if his dropped jaw and wide eyes were anything to go by. “I’ve never... I mean, we’ve never done it like that before.”
Remus leered. “I doubt you've done many of the things we have done together before.”
Severus looked away and a light flush suffused the bridge of his nose. “No,” he said.
Remus grinned and pulled Severus on top of him. “It won’t be that different though. I’ll still be the one inside.”
Severus peered down at him blankly. “But how...?” His eyes widened comically. “Oh!” He smirked. “Oh.”
Remus chuckled softly. “Oh, yes indeed.” He pulled Severus down to kiss him.
~*~
Dame McGonagall glared at him from beneath a broad-rimmed tartan bonnet. Remus was always amused by her blatant shows of her Scottish heritage. “Lord Shrieking, are you to tell me that you cannot spare even time for tea?”
“Indeed. My... visit with Bishop Dumbledore was especially stressful. I long for my own bed.” He smiled sweetly, hoping to earn her forgiveness. Most times he stayed for hours during his visits, sharing tea and gossip with the woman who had been a bit of a second mother to him after his own died, but that day he wished to be home.
Luckily for him, the woman was a softy at heart. “I’m sorry to hear that.” She was a shrewd softy though. “And I’m certain you also wish to return to your musician.”
Remus sighed. “Why do I even bother to try lying to you, Dame?”
“I do not know. However, we were not expecting you so soon. Miss Tonks has not packed. Do come in and have a cup of tea while you wait for her to ready herself.” McGonagall smirked and Remus didn’t blame her. She had outwitted him again.
He allowed himself to be ushered to a small drawing room for tea and scones. They lingered for a while, far longer than Remus felt was necessary for the girl to pack her bags. He knew she wouldn't have many things. Minerva cared for her girls deeply, but she didn't have the money to provide them with anything beyond the necessities.
At last, the door opened and a girl with pink hair peeked her head inside. McGonagall broke off her sentence to say, “Do come in, Miss Tonks, and greet Lord Shrieking.”
Remus had met her once before in passing when she served tea to McGonagall and him, but her hair still shocked him. On closer examination, it was obviously a strawberry-blonde, but from a distance, it always appeared to be pink.
She entered the room and sank into a curtsy, pitching forward as she attempted to rise. Landing on Remus’s lap, she began to apologise immediately. “My lord, please, forgive me. That was terribly clumsy of me. My legs they just-”
“Miss Tonks! We do not call attention to our limbs!” McGonagall’s voice was stern, but not harsh.
Miss Tonks blanched and pulled herself together. “Yes, ma’am.” She stood and brushed herself off. “I just came to let you know that I’m ready.”
McGonagall sighed and stood. She hugged the girl. “I will miss you, my dear.”
Miss Tonks hugged her back. “I’ll miss you too, ma’am.”
McGonagall tsked at her. “Madam, Miss Tonks, refer to those of greater social stature than you as madam.”
Miss Tonks grinned. “But, my lady, I like ma’am better.” McGonagall looked to protest, but Miss Tonks cut her off. “It reminds me of mum.”
“Oh!” McGonagall gave her a weak smile. “Go say your goodbyes, my dear one.” Her lips trembled and it was obvious that she was fighting tears.
Miss Tonks nodded and fled, knocking over a small table in her haste. Remus turned away from McGonagall to give her a chance to regain her poise, covering up his action by setting the table back into its place.
McGonagall sniffed once, but her voice was strong when she said, “Miss Tonks is a strong-willed girl, but one needs to be if they want to survive in that business. She carries her past with her more than the others do. It’s been difficult for her to learn the rules of society, but I believe with time no one will be able to discern her roots.”
“She will be fine. I will keep watch over her,” promised Remus.
McGonagall nodded. “See that you do.”
~*~
Remus took his promises seriously. When they arrived back at the estate, he showed Miss Tonks around and introduced her to all of his servants, including Severus, who chose to accompany them for much of the tour.
The servants all took to Miss Tonks, greeting her and offering to help her. Remus was pleased. He ended the tour in the kitchen, passing Miss Tonks off into the cook’s hands. Miss Tonks sent him a plaintive look when Mrs. Longbottom began listing all of her tasks, but Remus ignored it in favour of following Severus up to his room.
As soon as Remus closed the door behind him, Severus slammed him up against it. Remus moaned his kiss, letting Severus take the lead for once. He was still worn out from the trip, and it was nice to see Severus being assertive. Severus abandoned the kiss in favour of ripping open Remus's waistcoat and shirt and sucking marks onto his skin.
“I missed you,” Remus said. Severus responded by sucking on Remus's collarbone, dangerously close to where people would be able to see. “But I brought you a present.”
Severus released Remus's neck with a tiny pop. “A present? For me?”
Grinning devilishly, Remus admitted, “Well, it’s actually for both of us.” He glanced around the room and located his bag. Harry must have brought it up. “In fact, I think we should use it now.”
“Now?” asked Severus.
Remus didn’t reply. Instead, he handed the gift to Severus wordlessly.
Severus blinked repeatedly. “You bought me a corset?” He held the corset out from his body, dangling it by its laces. The dark green satin shimmered as it swung in and out of the sunlight.
Remus had known he would not be grateful of the gift, but he expected that Severus would grow to like it with time. “Trust me,” Remus said. “It is a very pleasurable article of clothing.”
“What do you mean? It’s a piece of women’s clothing. What’s so pleasurable about that?”
Remus reached out for the corset and Severus handed it back to him. He undid the busk clasps. “Well, for one thing, properly tightening a corset requires someone else’s help.” He smirked at Severus. “And once it’s tightened, you’ll find it a bit more difficult to breathe. If we tighten it enough, you’ll feel a bit dizzy... a very interesting feeling to have when you’re in the midst of sex.”
Looking intrigued, Severus gave a curt nod. “All right. I’ll try it, but I want to be able to back out if the situation becomes too uncomfortable.”
“Of course!” Remus was pleased that Severus was agreeing to this. He had been afraid it would be too far out of his comfort zone to even consider it. “Choose a word that you would not normally use in the bedroom, and if you say it, I will end things immediately.”
“Why can’t I just say ‘no’ or ‘stop’?” Severus asked.
“How many times have you said no or stop in the past few weeks and meant exactly the opposite?” Remus was amused to see Severus actually consider it.
“Sirius,” said Severus suddenly.
Severus and Sirius had been together? He’d said it to Sirius and Sirius hadn’t stopped? Remus recoiled. “What? You and Sirius? What... when?”
Severus rolled his eyes. “Never. ‘Sirius’ is my safe word. I will never say that man's name in conjunction with sex.” He cast a steely gaze at Remus. “And you shouldn’t either.”
Remus laughed, utterly relieved. Something about the thought of Sirius and Severus together had filled him with pain. “All right. Sirius it is. Now... strip.”
Severus did as he was told. Once he was naked, he took the corset back from Remus and fastened the busk. It hung on his body loosely, the laces not yet tight enough to shape it to his body.
Severus reached back to begin tightening the laces, but Remus smacked his hand away. “I’ll do it,” he said, in the same tone that a young child would shout “mine!”
Severus shivered and grabbed onto a bedpost to hold himself steady as Remus tugged on the laces. It took a while. Remus would cinch the corset as tightly as he could, and then Severus would gasp for breath for a moment. They would pause to let Severus get accustomed to the tightness, and then Remus would again the pull the laces even tighter. They used the time to discuss what had happened on the estate while Remus was away.
“I wish I hadn’t had to go.” Remus licked a stripe up the back of Severus’s neck. “I wish I could stay with you always.” He laid a kiss on his shoulder as he finished knotting the corset laces.
The corset shaped Severus’s body into an almost feminine shape, though it was too large near the bust and hips. Remus resolved to have a corset made just for Severus in the future.
“Why did you go?” Severus asked, turning to face Remus.
Remus ignored the question, pretending he hadn’t heard. He slipped off his clothing, wincing when he noticed his shirt was missing buttons from Severus’s rough handling.
“Why did you go?” Severus repeated.
Remus sighed. “Like I told you before I left, I wanted to go visit my friend, Bishop Dumbledore.”
Severus studied him, as if weighing Remus’s words. Remus felt his stomach begin to flutter. Had Severus discovered his secret? Even the servants didn’t know-how could he have figured it out?
“And where did Miss Tonks come from?” Severus asked.
Remus wanted to growl at him. What business was it of his where Remus chose to go? “My friend Dame McGonagall helps downtrodden young women find a place in society. She informed me that she had finished training Miss Tonks and that she needed a place for her to work. I offered her a job here.”
Severus was too astute for his own good. “You are speaking of the Dame McGonagall who runs a house for saving soiled doves, are you not?”
Remus nodded tersely. “Yes.”
Severus sneered. “So, you brought yourself home a prostitute.”
None of McGonagall's girls deserved that name, at least not anymore. Remus reached out and slapped him before he realised what he was doing. Severus’s hand snapped to the side, but he didn’t turn back to look at Remus.
“Sirius,” Severus said quietly.
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