"THERE'S German this afternoon – I'll need you to do that." Thirteen-year-old Megan Prosser looks at her slave expectantly.
"That's OK, I'm doing A-level German," smiles Alan Cousins, 17.
"And I've got a really girly bag," adds Megan Day, 13, "you will need to carry that around for me."
"OK," shrugs Alan.
"I've got Spanish on the top floor of A-block and I'll need a piggyback to get there," grins 13-year-old Jamie Tipp.
Alan grimaces: "That's four floors up! Well, OK."
Alan and his sixth form colleagues are getting their full instructions for the day having been bought by a form of younger children as slaves. The sixth formers are dressed as characters from The Matrix movie and have been paid £320 to do whatever the younger pupils bid.
The annual slave auction is an age old tradition at Boswells School. The climax of the school's sixth form charity week, it sees pupils aged from 11 to 13 use the cash they have raised in the preceding few weeks to bid for their chosen crew of sixth formers to follow them around for the day doing whatever they have bid them to do.
The much-anticipated day begins with the slave auction in the school's theatre.
Each slave crew picks a theme and dresses up, taking to the stage in turn to perform a song and dance, offering sweets and incentives such as the use of a car to collect McDonalds at lunch time, in a bid to achieve the highest bid.
Dan Struthers explained: "We chose The Matrix as we really like the film. We're chuffed we got £320 – we would have been happy with £100."
Fresh from having just been bought for £320, four girls dressed as characters from The Lion King, reflect on their duties for the day.
Megan Waterman, 17, said: "We are prepared. We know there will be bag carrying, note taking, a bit of homework. We have to do wha they want."
Another six girls are dressed as Oompa Loompas and Willy Wonka. They are disappointed in only achieving £70 but admit not having a car to fetch fast food is a drawback.
Cassie Heasley, 17, shrugs. "It's a fun day. We have been looking forward to it, probably for several years as you remember bidding for the slaves when you were in Years Seven and Eight."
The whole process is overseen by head of Year Seven Joe Torpey, who as tradition dictates has hired a Roman Emperor's costume for the day in order to undertake his duties as slave auctioneer.
He said: "This started longer ago than I care to remember. I love it when I'm up there running the auction. Today was a particularly good one – the timing was perfect. And the fundraising was great – they have collected more than £3,000."
In reality no cash changes hands with the funds raised going straight to the charity's coffers, which this year is for Springfield toddler Indie Smith who has Atypical Haemolytic-Uraemic Syndrome (aHUS), a condition which stops blood reaching her kidneys, causing sickness, diarrhoea and convulsions. Her family need to raise cash to fund drugs which improve her quality of life.
The two Megans are among the year's top fundrasiers.
Megan Prosser added:: "We went down to Lockside Wharf and offered to wash people's cars. One man gave us £20 to wash his Porsche and another just gave us £10 when he heard what we were raising money for.
"We collected more than £100 in less than two hours. We also ran a tuck shop, a sponsored silence and a cake sale – it all added up."
Back outside negotiations are still under way as to slave duty.
"We don't have a car," admits another of the Matrix team Alec Tyson, 16, "but we did bring our bikes in today, so we can fetch takeaways for your lunch."
"That's good," says Ben Carroll, 13. "We want you to do everything for us. You will be glad to go home at the end of the day."
