Harry
I wasn't sure that going back at the school was what he had wanted, but Hermione had been very persuasive in the matter. We hadn't finished their schooling, and although they we were all known as those who helped save the world (Golden Trio) and would have been accepted into any job force they applied for, Hermione wanted to us to finish our schooling and earn our way in the wizarding world the proper way. Ron had rolled his eyes at that comment, but agreed with her.
So here hear we sat, in a compartment towards the back of Hogwarts Express, silent except for the turning of pages made by Hermione. She and Ron were of course holding hands and in Hermione's other hand was one of her favorite books, "Hogwarts A History". I had been more than a little shocked and thrilled when they finally got together. They had tried to keep it a secret from Molly but in the heat of the moment had locked lips before entering the newly restored (slightly bigger and put together) burrow.
It was the night of their return from Australia, Hermione had restored her parents memories -they weren't too happy with her at first even after she explained her reasoning- and brought them back to London, but not before they did a little bit of site seeing and enjoying the feeling of freedom after the war.
That was a fun experience to be a witness too, watching Ron's ears burn brightly and Hermione just stumble over her words for the first time since we had all became friends.
Molly was overjoyed to say the least.
"Hermione Dear, you look absolutely radiate! I trust the trip went well then?" Molly had commented after the initial shock and joy of witnessing their moment of passion. Hermione blushes and murmurs a quick "yes, thank you." While Ron's ears had been just as bright as his hair, before wrapping an arm around his mum and Hermione. I had somehow managed to squeeze past the three of them and step inside. Knowing full well that they may never let go.
Molly had been hugging everyone exceptionally tight and was almost too afraid to let go since the loss of Fred, George was never home, always at the shop. Molly had been upset at first until she understood that they all grieved a little differently.
I was worried for George, but I knew that he would eventually be okay. At the thought of George and Fred I felt the near constant ache of pain and guilt in the bottom of my stomach.
"Harry are you okay?" Hermione asked breaking my contemplation. I loo up from the ground completely unaware that I had stopped staring out the window.
"Hm?" I muse.
Hermione frowns.
"I asked if you were okay?" She's got that concerned look about her face and I just barely refrain from rolling my eyes at her.
"Yes I'm fine Hermione, why do you ask?" I lie smoothly, just as I have done for the past few months. The war had taken something from me, I wasn't sure what but I could feel a great huge emptiness. My world was completely dark.
"Are you sure, you had that look that you always get when you're in deep thought about something painful." She chose now to be observant. This time I really do roll my eyes, but before I can say anything, Ron butts in.
"Honestly Hermione, if he says he's okay, he's okay. Leave him alone, will you." Ron says, giving me an understanding look, and I nod slightly in his direction and turn to look out the window again. Hermione huffs out in annoyance, and mutters something about "boys," and goes back to reading.
The rest of the ride to Hogwarts is remotely silent until the sky begins to darken and the train starts to slow.
I get up to retrieve my robs from my trunk and pull them out and suddenly I'm hit with a wave of nausea and a mind-numbing headache, I'm dizzy and my gums ache. Instinctively I touch my forehead before realizing that it can't be the connection between Voldemort.
"Harry!" Hermione Exclaims loudly and I wince.
"Not so loud Mione, please." I say grasping my head.
"What's wrong is it you scar?" She asks, I feel her hands gingerly removing mine to replace them with hers and I can hear the frown in her voice.
"No it's not my scar, it's just a really bad headache, and I feel nauseous." I say, as another wave of it hits me.
"Do you think you could hold off until we reach the castle, we're almost there." Hermione says she's at my ear, as I have laid back down on the seats, my legs bent at the knees, I'm too tall to be laying down completely. A thought comes unbidden into my mind, when did I have a growth spurt? The thought is very unwelcome in my mind.
"I think so." I close my eyes as the small light that's in the compartment is now way too bright for me to even glance at.
"What do you think is wrong with him?" I hear Ron ask worriedly, I think Hermione shrugs but I'm not sure. Her response comes moment's later.
"I have no idea. . ."
When we reach the station I'm all but ready to get out of the tiny compartment, but Hermione holds me down and says we should wait until everyone has made it into the castle before she sends her patronus to Headmistress McGonagall, I groan out in pain. The headache seems to be getting worse and my stomach continues to turn.
"If you feel the need to puke I transfigured one of my quills into a bucket." Bless Hermione and her clever mind, because as soon as she finishes her sentence I turn my head and retch into the bucket. I have had nothing to eat so it's a dry heave and it burns my throat.
"The train is almost empty," Ron says concern etched into his voice. I groan again and turn my head up towards the ceiling, eyes clamped shut, and hands on my stomach.
We wait for what seems like an eternity before Hermione says the spell for her patronus. I can sense the power behind the spell and it makes me want to throw up again, but I hold it back. Not wanting my throat to burn again.
There's more waiting, and finally when I feel like I can at least open my eyes again McGonagall has arrived inside the train, right outside our door.
"Harry?" She's instantly alert and concern is also evident in her voice. I must look terrible.
"We don't know what happen, one minute he was fine and then the next he was in terrible pain. He threw up once but it seemed like forever before he stopped. He has a really bad headache and says that the light is way too bright for his senses." Hermione is breathing in a gulp of air having said that in just one go.
"We need to get him to Madam Pomfrey," the Headmistress says clearly not likely the way things seem to be going.
"Can you walk Mr. Potter?" She asks.
I want to say yes, but the words don't come and I only shake my head. Defeat evident on my face.
"Not to worry, dear. Hermione cast a levitation spell and we'll get him there as soon as we can." McGonagall is back to the authoritative voice, but concern lies underneath it.
"Yes Headmistress." Hermione does as she's told and casts the spell, I feel nothing, but I know I'm moving.
I don't know how much time has passed but once I'm in the infirmary I nearly pass out from the tone of lights in the room.
"Oh dear, class hasn't even been in session yet and he's already injured. What did you do now Mr. Potter?" Pomfrey's voice is light and open, and for a moment I'm happy to hear that, that hasn't disappeared, even after the war.
"Not now Poppy, he's showing signs of a late transformation. I need to speak to Albus to make sure, but please help him as best as you can first." McGonagall is tense, and I can tell that there is a slight jump in her heartbeat. Odd. When had I been able to hear heartbeats?
"Set him over there dear, I'll check over him and make sure he is comfortable. You two should join the feast. I'll alert either of you when we have discovered what is going on with Mr. Potter." Pomfrey say's and obediently though slightly unsure Hermione and Ron leave. Their footsteps fading away as they walk back down into the great hall.
"Madam Pomfrey do you mind turning down the lights?" I ask tired of keeping my eyes closed, "Maybe it'll help with this headache." I muse out loud.
"Of course, I'll get you a potion for that headache it should clear it right up." Pomfrey whisks away and I hear rustling around in her office, and soon she'd right beside me. I open my eyes and take the potion she has holding out in front of me, and the minute it's all gone I feel the effects of it. My headache is gone, but the nausea and the dizziness, along with my gums aching is still there, though not entirely prominent.
"Better?" She asks noticing my relief surely.
I nod.
"Right, if you don't mind laying back down, I just need to do a once over and then we wait for the information McGonagall needed to retrieve." Pomfrey waves her wand over my body and gasps, and I'm instantly more alert.
"What is it? Was I cursed or something?" I ask nervously. I can Pomfrey wants to tell me what she found, but she says nothing. Instead she's staring at whatever she found.
"We will wait for the Headmistress." And she walks away.
I'm way more alert now.
McGonagall
"Are you certain Albus?" I ask warily. Poor Harry he never seems to catch a break.
"Oh I'm quite certain Minerva, that gene runs all through out the Potter's bloodline, I was sure that it had skipped over our dear Harry as he had not shown any signs. Usually they show up when they reach their age to attend Hogwarts, 11, yet he had not. I even ran the tests myself, nothing."
"Could it be a fluke?" I ask and Albus just grins in that knowing way, if he was here I would do something about that damn look. "Albus this is serious, this year was supposed to be a year of relaxing for the students. Nothing funny." I sit perplexed. How did this happen?"
"Minerva, I'm fully aware of the situation at hand but you are just going to have to tell him and let him decide on what he does with the information, sometimes when one goes through something as drastic as a war it can wake a near dormant gene in ones bloodline." Albus says and disappears into one of the many picture frames. I groan out load, and sigh. He has a point at least, the crazy old kook that he is. Rolling my eyes, I sigh again and stand up.
I have to rely the news to Harry at some point, but I assume it should be sooner rather than later.
Harry
"I'm a what?" I'm sitting up, the movement making me dizzy again.
"You're a Velaire, it's a wizard born Vampire slash Veela," McGonagall said sitting down in the chair beside the bed, my head is reeling. I've never even heard of that.
"I've never even heard of that before." I say my musings a loud, hoping for an explanation, "A wizard born Vampire slash Veela," I elaborate. McGonagall nods in understanding.
"It's very rare but Albus assured me that that is what is going on with you. Your transformation has begun, over the course of the next few days you'll experience things that you have yet to comprehend. I suspect that the minute you tell Miss Granger, she'll do research. I know very little as we have not had a student in Hogwarts for a very long time. I'm thinking the 16th century." She says eyes glazed over a little in deep thought. It's a new side to the Headmistress that I haven't seen, and with the information I was just given I can understand.
"Why me and not my father?" I ask after a little bit of silence.
"It's not from your fathers bloodline, it's your mothers." Pomfrey spoke up then, I didn't know she was still in the room.
"Oh." I frown how could that be? She was a muggleborn wizard.
"I should worn you, that the changes you go through may be excruciating. Your body will definitely be different, and you wont need your glasses. Actually since the lights were bothering you, you may not need them at all now. That part may be done." McGonagall says suddenly, slightly nervous.
"Oh, okay." I take of my glasses and gasp, everything is so clear it takes me a moment for my eyes to refocus. I can see everything, little specks of dust and the aura of both witches in the room. The school itself looks slightly alight with magic, I smile amazed at how beautiful everything around me is and elated to know that I no longer have to wear my glasses.
"Well can you see?" Pomfrey asks concerned.
I smile and nod, too amazed to speak.
"Good!" She says happily.
"I need to go down to the feast, but Harry I would like you to stay in here, I can have a house elf bring up food and have Mr. Weasley and Miss Granger join you if you'd like. I'm sure you would like to tell them this exciting news." McGonagall stands up and is already almost to the door, when I respond.
"I'd like that, thank you Professor." I don't realize my slip up until her lips are a thin line. "Sorry, Headmistress." She nods curtly, and is out the door.
"Are you feeling Harry?" Madam Pomfrey asks me suddenly, concern still etched into her slightly wrinkled features.
I take a moment to assess my body and come to the conclusion that my headache is no longer there but my limbs ache, and my stomach is very empty.
I voice out my assessment and she smiles softly, " I'll summon a house elf then, you lay down and rest. I'm sure you'll be needing it." And she's gone again.
I sit and think about my situation, warily I sigh. There's always something going on, and I can never seem to catch a break. I'm sure Mione'll have a field day with this one, a rarity, I scoff and glance around once more. The castle is really beautiful it has this warm glow about the whole building and I wonder if it's always been there all along or if it's because of my inheritance of the Velaire.
It was little while later when Ron and Hermione came bouncing through the doors, both holding very similar looks of concern, and once more I was relieved to know that I had such amazing friends. I figured the Headmistress hadn't told them anything, as it was my news and they should hear it from me, but the moment I lock eyes on them I feel my nerves building.
"The Headmistress tells us that you have something you'd like to share with us, something about being a rarity. What does she mean by that?" Ron is the first to speak which shocks me because it's usually Hermione.
I look at them both and sigh, I guess its now or never.
"I'm a Velaire." I say and they both look confused.
"A What?" Both blurt out.
"A Velaire. It's a vampire veela hybrid of some sort. I have both bloodlines flowing through me, it's a very rare creature. McGonagall said that you, Hermione, might need to do some research to help me figure this all out. She doesn't know much about them, since they're so rare." I explain, Hermione's eye's light up instantly at the thought of something new to research.
"Of course Harry, anything to help you out. Is that why you're no longer wearing your glasses?" She asks observing my face and soft smile graces her features.
"I no longer need them to see, isn't that great!" I exclaim happily, I always hated those things.
"Of course Harry!" Hermione mirrors my happiness, and I take a chance to glance at Ron and he's looking at me curiously.
"Ron?" I ask softly, " You alright?"
"Hm, what, oh yeah." He stumbles out and I frown.
"What's wrong with you?"
"Why now?" He asks
I'm stumped with the answer because I have no idea, hopefully the research Hermione does can at least help a little bit.