Chapter 1: The Dursleys'

Notes: I do not want to give too much away, but this story is a creature fic that includes slash, an evil Dumbledore, and an OC that is actually a well-known historical figure. I will add further notes in later chapters if anything else springs to mind. Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I assume that by reading this on the reader has clearly realized this is not my property. I happily admit I am torturing J.K.Rowling's characters through the use of my own plot line, but am making no money off of it. How tragic.

x+x+x+x+x Ok. On With the Story x+x+x+x+x

SLAM!

"Boy! Why aren't you making dinner?!"

Harry looked up at the furious Vernon that had just stormed into his room.

"I…but…you said this morning that you were all going out to eat and to stay in my room."

"That's no excuse. Get downstairs and make dinner!"

Harry scrambled off his bed and attempted to squeeze by his uncle Vernon without being yelled at for stalling. Vernon cuffed him over the head as he passed for his efforts. Harry winced, but continued down the stairs to the kitchen where his aunt Petunia was waiting. She told Harry that Dudley wanted fish and chips in a clipped tone and brusquely walked into the living room where Dudley was watching the telly. Harry grumbled under his breath, but got out the frozen fish and began cooking. When Harry was finished he grabbed a small plate of food and walked up to his room, calling to the Dursleys that dinner was done.

Harry sat at his desk and ate his meal, giving Hedwig small pieces of fish, and contemplated his summer. Tomorrow was his birthday and he'd be going to the Burrow to stay the rest of the summer. Harry thought about the fact that he was turning sixteen, but the idea only served to remind him that another year had passed and Voldemort was still out there plotting ways to kill him. The whole concept was rather depressing.

When he was finished with his meal, Harry set aside his plate and lay down on the small, creaking bed. Glancing at the clock on his nightstand, he figured seven was as good a time as any to go to bed. With that last thought he closed his eyes, the rustle of Hedwig's wings as she settled on her perch lulling him into a calm sleep.

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A jolt of pain shot up Harry's spine yanking him back to reality. The room was dark and the silence was quickly broken by his muffled screams of surprise and pain as Harry tried not to wake the Dursleys. Pain was radiating through his body as if the Cruciatus Curse was being held on him. He felt like his head was going to explode as pressure built in his forehead until something seemed to snap and the pressure vanished, leaving behind a heavy ache.

Harry struggled to glance up at the clock. It read 2:44 in a sickly green glow, mocking his agony. Falling back on the bed, he stared into the dark as the pain slowly receded from his extremities and moved up his arms and legs. As the pain moved and concentrated on his heart, Harry dimly realized how cold he suddenly felt. Slowly the pain concentrated on his heart and gave one final burst of energy before lightening.

As the torment dissipated Harry felt himself drift into unconsciousness; the exhaustion from the sudden onslaught was too strong to fight. The last thing he saw were the large staring eyes of Hedwig as she silently looked on.

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Harry was in a dimly lit room, a large fireplace being the only source of light. He stood there, stunned, and took in the forest green walls with dark mahogany paneling and the rich furnishings in confusion. Deciding he must be having some kind of dream he admired the subdued show of wealth in the room. He let his gaze continue to roam before settling on a lone high-backed chair in the middle of the room. The chair was dark green leather and faced away from him and towards the crackling fire.

Staring, Harry noticed that someone appeared to be sitting in the chair in enveloping black robes. The man, Harry assumed it was a man, remained unmoving and Harry realized the other occupant of the room had no idea he was present. Harry curiously watched as a pale aristocratic hand shifted on the left armrest. The hand slowly turned over, palm up, and flexed, as if the owner did not recognize the flawless appendage. The hand then returned to its previous position and a weary sigh was issued from the chair. Its occupant sounded tired and almost unsure, causing Harry to move forward, intent on knowing who was sitting.

As Harry shifted, a movement by the fire caught his attention. What he had thought was merely another shadow moved and he suddenly realized it was a large snake. Harry started at the sight and his eyes grew wide in understanding. He knew exactly who was in that seat.

Just as he was going to stride up to the large chair the scene began to change. Harry found the room swirling and shifting to become brighter and cluttered. The dark quiet atmosphere he was in melted away and became warm and almost annoyingly cheery.

When the room stabilized he quickly recognized the Headmaster's office. A series of clicks and whirs could be heard emitting from the various items around the room and Fawkes sat on his perch in the corner. With a smile on his face Harry directed his gaze to the other two occupants of the room. Seeing the hated Professor Severus Snape sitting in front of the headmaster's desk caused his smile to falter, but Harry moved his attention to the headmaster himself and paused. The headmaster did not appear pleased and Harry began to worry. What could have happened? What was wrong?

Snape looked into the cup of tea he was holding and wearily spoke, "I don't know how much longer I have. He's starting to suspect."

Dumbledore steepled his hands and focused his attention on Snape, "How much longer?"

"I don't know," Snape grumbled in frustration. "Currently he is only speculative, but if I don't give him something soon he will," Snape paused, "get rid of me, to put it nicely."

Dumbledore stood up restlessly and walked over to Fawkes' perch, lightly petting the phoenix.

"Is there nothing that I can tell him?" Snape seemed to plead. "There must be some useless fact to appease him." As Dumbledore continued to remain silent Snape pressed further, "Albus, tell me what to do."

"Silence! You must continue as you are doing. There is nothing I can give you and I will not loose my only spy on Voldemort because he has cold feet."

The harsh words from the headmaster caused both Harry and Snape to start with surprise. Harry watched Dumbledore tensely. He saw Snape shakily place his cold tea on a side table and look back to the headmaster.

Dumbledore sighed and turned back to his visitor, a false twinkle returned to his eye, "Just do what you can, Severus. I will let you know if anything develops."

Snape stood slowly and bowed his head. "Yes, sir."

As Snape turned to leave the office the scene slowly faded away and Harry again found himself in a strikingly new environment.

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Harry was in a large stone room that was hard to imagine ever being pleasant or welcoming, even in its prime. It was dim; shadows wrestled and crawled across the floor and up the walls. The dank atmosphere overwhelmed the feeble attempts of a timid fire in the oversized fireplace on the far wall and a threadbare rug did nothing to retain any heat. A single chair was pulled close to the fire and in the chair Harry was startled to see a man peering directly back at him. He black shoulder-length hair framed a thin face with a straight nose. His bold green eyes bore into Harry and felt cold and threatening.

"I've been waiting for you," the man stated in a deep emotionless tone. "I have sat here waiting for a very long time."

Harry stared at the man in surprise. "You can see me?" he asked incredulously.

"Of course I can see you." The man stood up. "I've been expecting you."

"Why? Who are you?"

"All in good time, young man. There is much to discuss and we have such little time." As he spoke the man slowly made his way to stand in front of Harry. "Such as a vision or two perhaps. Hmm?"

"How did you know?" Harry asked defensively stepping back. He had no idea where he was and he was beginning to notice just how menacing the man appeared. He wasn't particularly tall, but he made up for any lack of height in mere presence.

The man gave a cold grin. "It is to be expected. All young vampires get them."

"What?" Harry asked in confusion. The statement caused him to forget whom he was talking to for a moment. "You must have made a mistake. I'm a wizard. Not a vampire." He gave an uncomfortable laugh. "Where did you get that idea?"

"Hm. Yes, you should probably be enlightened. It seems that no one else has taken the liberty." The man paused in thought before continuing. "Did no one tell you what to expect on your sixteenth birthday?"

"No. Should something happen?"

"Sixteen is the time in which your magic fully matures. In most wizards their birthday passes by without notice, but in some more powerful, like you, there is a momentary magical surge."

"Is that what all that pain was?" Harry questioned.

"No, that was your dormant vampirism taking hold. It has been passed down for centuries in your mother's family, but you were the first wizard strong enough to activate it."

"I still don't know if I believe this. It's all far fetched." Harry interrupted.

The man looked down his nose at Harry. "If you stop interrupting I will explain in detail. Your impatience is growing tiresome."

Harry closed his mouth with a snap. This man eerily reminded him of Snape and he didn't like it.

The man continued to study Harry for a moment before nodding to himself. "Very well. Now do remain silent." Glancing over Harry's shoulder he moved to a large window Harry hadn't noticed before and stared into the night sky. Looking over the man's shoulder, Harry saw they must be in a tower and far from any sign of civilization.

"Long ago," the man continued, "there was a man born to rule this country. He was a strong leader and ruthless in destroying his opponents. The political system then was harsh and war was always a threat." Glancing at Harry he quietly continued, "This man held a semblance of peace for some years, but eventually it ended as all things do. People grew dissatisfied. Opponents sensed weakness. And he fell." He paused and sighed. "The man had a wife whom was with child at the time. As he was being besieged in his fortress, his wife threw herself from one of the towers into the river; presumably she would rather have her body rot and be eaten by the fish than be forced into captivity. He was devastated by the loss of his wife and was soon defeated. However, he was not killed. He was held prisoner and eventually made his way up the ranks of his conquerors," pausing briefly he continued, "Then he inexplicably found himself in charge of a small army defending newly acquired land against a force that easily overwhelmed his own. They fought proudly, but in the end it was all the same. As he lay there on the battlefield he prepared himself for death, but it never came. As night fell a woman slunk onto the bloody field." Turning to Harry he gave a cold grin. "The wife was a vampire all along. He never knew what she was before her supposed death, but knowing what would have happened to her all those years ago, she escaped by jumping into the river. She hid away and brought up their child, waiting for her husband to be returned to her. She waited until his time in politics was over and took him from that bloody field, turning him into a vampire like herself.

"They lived happily for many years and their son grew into a fine boy. He was only part vampire, as he was conceived while the man was still human. Eventually the boy went off to marry a young girl he had met and they lived happily and both passed away after long lives and many children.

"In each of these children the vampiric gene remained, but less pronounced. Over time the gene was forced into dormancy and remained so until now." The man turned to face Harry completely. "Your mother's family has traveled a long way and has had many challenges as muggles, but the time has finally come for the vampire to return."

Harry just stood there, too flabbergasted to speak for a moment. Shaking himself he asked, "So why did it stay dormant for so long? And why was there so much pain?"

The man grinned that cold smile; Harry could see unusually sharp teeth. "It stayed dormant because it needed a surge of magic to push it to the surface. Although there were those like your mother, who were magical, they were not powerful enough to produce such a surge. As to the pain, that was the destruction of your humanity. You still have a soul, a body, and your mind, but you are simply not human any longer. Your vampirism manifested and destroyed all traces of your humanity; resulting in excruciating pain, I would imagine."

Harry was stunned. "Oh."

"Yes, 'oh' sums it up nicely. I have been watching your family for many years from this castle, waiting for another vampire to emerge. The wait was much longer than I had anticipated."

"Why didn't you come out earlier? Why watch us from the middle of nowhere?"

"Your family did not need me. They were mostly muggles anyway, and would not have accepted what I told them. You, though, I believe will need me quite a bit."

Harry sighed. "Yeah, I guess you could say that. With Voldemort I'll take all the help I can get." Harry paused, thinking about the odd visions he had earlier.

The man, noticing his silence, continued, "I would imagine your vision would be enlightening on that subject. Every young vampire is gifted with a vision, sometimes two, to guide them in their long life. Sometimes an older vampire can also train to harness the power of visions. They were how I kept track of your family over the centuries."

Harry looked up at him in trepidation but gave a slight nod. Maybe this man could shed some light on what these meant. He proceeded to describe the visions to the man in detail, expanding on certain things when asked. When he was done he looked up questioningly.

"So. What do you think they mean?"

"I believe they are showing you a different facet of this war. A friend, a foe, and a…companion."

"Well, Dumbledore is my friend, Voldemort is obviously my foe, but that would mean…" Harry trailed off then snapped his eyes back to the man. "No way. It's impossible." His voice got increasingly panicked and rushed. "There is no way that could happen. I won't."

The man glared steadily at Harry. "Relax child. Things are not as they seem, and you do not have to act on a vision. I merely state that I believe this Snape would be a good companion. There is more to him than I think you wish to see. As for the other two, I'm not so sure you understand what they are either. When you saw Voldemort what did you feel?"

"Hate obviously." Harry immediately answered then paused. "Well. Not really. I guess I felt kinda sad for him."

"Yes. And what about Dumbledore?"

Harry thought for a moment. "He made me nervous, like there was something about him that I never knew before."

"That is what these visions are for," the man replied in an authoritative voice. "They are to show you what you did not know before. I advise you to study Dumbledore more before trusting him with anything. Do not tell him you are a vampire, though. That would only prove catastrophic. Do try to speak with Snape. I feel he can be trusted."

Harry looked put out. "I'll try, but he hates me."

"Love and hate are such fickle emotions"

Harry glared. "Humph."

The man gave a quiet chuckle and looked back out the window. "It is time that you returned."

"What? But there is so much more I need to know!"

"I know. We will have time for that later. When you get back you will have to find a host to drink from. Spend some time getting used to your strengths and how you feel throughout the day. Do not worry about the sun or any of that ridiculous hearsay." The man paused and mused to himself, "If only we could find a willing unicorn. That would ensure your lifelike appearance."

"I could check the forbidden forest when I get back to Hogwarts."

"That will have to do."

Harry started as the room began to sway in front of him.

Noticing his action the man continued, "You're waking up. I will see you soon enough."

"Wait! I don't even know your name."

The man smirked. "All in good time."

With that parting statement the room faded and Harry opened his eyes to the early light of dawn.

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A.N. - So there you have the first chapter of my first fanfic. I hope you enjoy the story and forgive me for my inexperience in writing. Sorry for the overuse of italics by the way. It won't be happening again. I wanted to make a distinction between reality and dreamscapes though. I thought of making that last section without italics, but that would imply Harry was talking to the stranger in a corporal body, which isn't true. It's just his mind being projected somewhere else. I hope that makes sense.