Chapter 10

Harry felt woozy when the trio landed back on the estate. He swayed slightly as Kit and Kai immediately moved up to the buildings many stairs. A shadow drifted at the top of the stairs. As it moved into the light, Harry could make out the features of Yu. She seemed to be worrying over something as she descended the stairs to meet Kaiulani and Kit in the middle. Whispers started up but the volume of their conversation slowly grew so that Harry could hear them.

"How dare you take him off the estate without telling me!" Yu seemed to be saying, though some of the words were still too quiet for Harry to hear. Kit's voice, on the other hand, was quite a bit louder and the young wizard could hear him perfectly.

"How dare I? He's my descendant. I have any right to take him where I please."

"Not if you are keeping him under my roof and he is staying with us for any period of time. You may be his ancestor and my second, but I still make the rules." Yu shot back, her voice becoming more audible, Harry understanding all of it this time. Kit looked livid.

"This is absurd! He isn't even sure that he will be staying!" Kit yelled. Other members of the coven were now starting to look out of various windows in the mansion. Dmitry was even watching the scene from the large doorway entrance to the mansion with a grin that surprised Harry.

"Well, if he isn't staying, then you can do whatever you will with him…AFTER he leaves. Until then you will tell me when, where, and for how long you will be gone. And if I should decide that you are to inform me when he uses the loo, then you will inform me, no arguments. I will not have you putting him, yourself, or anyone else in this coven in danger by leaving and drawing attention to us. And since Harry seems to be targeted by Guy Fuchs, you will be attacked if you are followed. I have a responsibility to this coven, not just you and your ancestors." Yu yelled, though it seemed restrained, as if she really didn't want to be yelling or there was another reason for her anger. But the conversation or argument depending on how you looked at it was over as Yu swept up the stairs, not even glancing at Dmitry as she glided past him and disappeared into the mansion.

Kit stood frozen in his place as he stared at the spot that Yu had just vacated. Dmitry was still smiling as were the other vampires that had been watching the conversation happen, though they probably could undoubtedly hear the conversation with their super hearing.

Kai was then carrying both of the smaller coolers up the stairs that led to the mansion and both Dmitry and another vampire that Harry didn't know yet came to collect the other, much larger cooler. The boy suspected that just one of the vampires could have easily carried by themselves but didn't want to risk dropping their precious supply of blood. Kai came out again, cooler-less and called down to Harry,

"Harry, come on back inside. Yu will have a fit if you're outside alone and I'd rather like to keep my head attached to my body if you don't mind." Of course she knew that Kit was still out there, but he wasn't going to be much use for a while.

Sighing, Harry picked up his groceries and headed past Kit and up the stairs. Kai took them from Harry despite his protests. She led him into what Harry assumed was the kitchen area. There was a fridge and everything. Both Kai and Harry began putting away their purchases. They had just finished when Kit had walked in looking quite sullen.

"Harry, you must make a decision soon." Kit whispered. Harry could barely here what his ancestor was saying though he did end up catching it. Suddenly Harry was feeling very claustrophobic. He turned and left the room, Kit telling Kai to stay where she was. This was Harry's decision.

The boy wandered about the mansion until he found a particularly empty room. There were a few boxes and tools inside but it was otherwise completely devoid of any signs that people lived or spent time in it. Harry sat on a box for what felt like hours though in reality it was probably only 10 minutes at most.

There was a creak in the floorboards as someone else entered the room. Harry didn't move to look at first. He had assumed that Kaiulani would come after him, trying to comfort him. But it wasn't Kai's voice that spoke a moment later. It was a male's voice that the boy didn't recognize. The young wizard spun around on his box to look at the man or most likely vampire.

"Hello, I am Eugène Nielen Marais. You can just call me Eugène." The man said. He had a kind, almost poetic voice and darker skin. His eyes twinkled with something that Harry thought he recognized as amusement but what was funny about this situation. There was probably some sort of vampire joke going around about him. Just his luck; not only was he probably the laughing stock of the wizarding world but now the laughing stock of a vampire coven. Why did these things happen to him?

"Nice to meet you. I'm Har—"

"Harry Potter. I know."

"Of course you do." Harry mumbled, turning back around to face the wall opposite of the vampire. He wasn't in the mood to be meeting a new person at the moment, but apparently he had no choice. This Eugène wasn't going anywhere else. Maybe Harry had holed up in the vampire's lair so to speak.

"You seem rather down. Has Kit upset you? He tends to do that when he thinks he's helping." Eugène said with an understanding voice. The black-haired boy rolled his eyes and didn't reply. There was some shuffling behind him and one of the other boxes suddenly appeared beside him with Eugène sitting on it next to him.

"Don't be mad at Kit. It may be hard to believe, and some of the others still refute this but, he cares for you as his own son. It's been like this for as long as I've known the man. Since he never got to fully raise his own boys, he wants to be there for his descendants. I believe he also made contact with your father, James was it? Yes, I think it was the summer before his final year. He and his friend Sirius spent a few weeks with us when Kit saved them from some angry trolls who had wandered into Godric's Hollow." Eugène said, trying to placate Harry.

Harry didn't really pay attention to Eugène until the mention of his father and godfather. His father and godfather had met Kit and the coven? Why hadn't anyone told him that? The boy tried not to act interested in the hope that the vampire would go away but he felt that he should reply somehow.

"You're quite perceptive." Harry remarked, not really expecting an answer though he did receive one.

"Well, I was a lawyer once upon a time. That and a poet, naturalist, and writer," The vampire chuckled, "Time also has an uncanny way of making you notice things that humans and beings with a shorter lifespans don't."

Harry inwardly sighed. It seemed like the vampire wasn't going to leave. If he was going to stay here he might as well have an actual conversation with the man.

"What was my father like? And Sirius?" Harry asked, finally turning to the vampire sitting next to him. Strangely enough he felt very safe in this vampire's presence. Maybe it had something to do with the man being a lawyer, which was an oxymoron.

"James and Sirius had a lot of growing up to do when they came to us. Kit offered them the same thing he offered you. They stayed for a while, but chose to return to school. I believe they left here more men then when they arrived. I'm proud of them in a way. While we never contacted either of the boys again, we've kept an eye on them as best we could." Eugène's tone saddened a bit and Harry bet that he could guess that the vampire was regretting not being able to save James and Lily Potter, but he didn't comment.

Silence fell over the two for a moment. Harry was thinking about his father and Sirius and how they had had the same opportunity and he had. Did he want to follow their path, or his own? Finally, Harry had his decision made.

"Thank you, Sir. You've helped a great deal." Harry said, standing up. Eugène stood as well and Harry offered his hand which the vampire shook.

"I do not know why you are thanking me, but you are most welcome, my boy." The man said with a smile. As Harry left the room Eugène followed him to the doorway with a knowing smile on his face. He may not have been able to read minds, but he understood how the human mind worked. It was how he had survived as a lawyer.

X.x.X

Harry wandered the mansion looking for Kit. He hadn't found him in the kitchen where he had left him and the vampire wasn't in his room. Yu, if she was in her room, wasn't answering. The boy looked all over the mansion before finally deciding that he was going to risk Yu's anger to go outside to find Kit. If he found him, Harry wouldn't be alone. If he didn't, well then he would have to figure something out.

The young wizard finally found Kit where Harry had been attacked not long ago. The vampire looked tired, old, and pensive. Harry walked up to stand beside him.

"Kit, I've decided."

The vampire looked up, a guarded look on his face.

"And?"

"I'm staying."