Chapter Two: Mirror, Mirror On the Wall
True to her word, Layla didn't let her relationship with Harry outside of class get in the way of her relationship with Harry in class. She acted her normal, eager self in class and was no warmer towards Harry than towards any other student in the class. Though one time, when she was handing out papers, Harry saw a slight smile on her pale face as she passed his desk.
"And Mr. Potter…" she said, handing him the paper with a wink. No one else seemed to have noticed.
However, needless to say, Harry's friends did notice his change in his attitude. And it would be lying to say they weren't suspicious.
"Why do you spend so much time with Professor Ferris?" Ron asked at breakfast one Saturday morning.
"Huh? Oh, yeah, well, she's given me detention."
"What? For what?" Hermione cried.
"Um, well, I wasn't really paying attention in class…" Harry gave a slight smile.
"What are you doing in your detention?"
"Working on a project."
"On what?"
"On vampyres."
"Vampyres!" Hermione squealed, excitedly. "A lot of people think that vampyres are hideous creatures that can't come out in the daylight. But really, daylight merely weakens them, it doesn't kill them. A lot of people are afraid of vampyres because they think if they feed off of you, they'll kill you. But they only kill you if they drink all of your blood. Usually, a vampire only kills when he wants to. Otherwise, it will just drink enough to sustain him until his next victim. The victim doesn't feel a thing, though he might be weak the next day."
"Fascinating…" Ron said, sarcastically.
"Yeah, yeah, Hermione, that's great." Harry muttered.
"What did you learn about vampyres, Harry?"
"Um… Contrary to popular belief, they cannot change into bats, but they don't have a reflection. Their senses are three times as sensitive as that of a human's. Like, they can hear sounds above and below a human's range and see things a mile away and things like that."
"That's all?" Hermione sounded disappointed.
"Well, I've learned more, but I should be going now. I was going to do some research in the library."
"I'll come with you and help you!" said Hermione eagerly.
"NO!" Harry shouted and Hermione was quite surprised. "I mean… no…"
"What's gotten into you?" Ron asked.
"Nothing!" Harry defended. "I just have to do this report on my own!"
"I thought you said it was a project?" said Hermione.
"Project, report, same thing!" Harry rolled his eyes. "Bye, guys. I'll see you later."
"Yeah…" Ron said as they watched him leave. He then turned to Hermione.
"Something's up with him."
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
"Layla…" Harry smiled when he saw the graceful woman. She walked toward him and locked the door to her classroom.
"I'm glad you came, Harry."
"I'm glad you wanted me to come." Layla grinned and gave him a soft kiss. "Their suspicious, though. Ron and Hermione." Layla frowned. She might have to dispose of them.
"Is that so?" she said, innocently. Harry nodded.
"They're wondering why I'm spending so much time with you."
"You're doing a project."
"I told them that. One on vampyres. But Hermione…"
"Don't worry about them," said Layla as she ran her hand through his messy black hair and softly touched his lips with hers. "Everything will be fine." Harry allowed himself to be taken away by the enchantress as she slowly and softly kissed him. Layla was unlike anyone else that Harry had ever kissed. She kissed him softly and gently, but not too soft. Just enough to leave you wanting more. And she was never too hard and she never moved too fast. She was very experienced, more experienced than Harry had suspected even a twenty-year-old to be.
Her hands slid slowly down his back and then back up to his shoulders as she began to remove his robes. Harry made no move to stop her, though he was surprised at what she was doing. But what shocked him even further was he found his hands doing the same thing to her robes. Layla's hands moved up Harry's white shirt. That's when Harry finally pulled away.
"What's wrong?" asked Layla, sounding concerned.
"I think this is moving a bit fast. We've only been together for a few weeks." Layla, nodded, understanding.
"I don't want to force you to do anything you don't want to do."
"God, you're beautiful…" Harry shook his head with a smile. Layla grinned and kissed him softly again.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
This went on for a few weeks more, on weekends and after school and Ron and Hermione were extremely suspicious. They thought he'd have finished his project by now.
"I'm going to the library," he told them one weekend. Hermione took it on her own authority to follow. Ron completely supported this action.
"He might need help," he said.
Hermione silently followed Harry as he walked down the halls and up or down a staircase. Finally, he led her to the Defense classroom.
"But he said he was going to the library…" she muttered. He knocked on the door and it opened, revealing a beautiful looking Layla Ferris. Hermione frowned as Harry entered the room. She waited a few minutes, thinking he might just be picking up a few things or having a brief word with Professor Ferris. But after about ten minutes, he hadn't come out.
Hermione frowned and she approached the classroom. She knocked but received no reply. Her frown deepened as she knocked again.
"Professor Ferris?" she called. After a few seconds, she heard Ferris's voice.
"Yes?"
"Could I come in?"
"No, Hermione, don't!" Ferris cried, rather hastily. There was some noise inside. Wanting to end this, Hermione decided to open the door. As she did, she both heard and saw Harry fall off of Ferris's desk. Hermione gasped at the scene before her.
Layla Ferris stood there, by her desk, the strap of her blue dress falling off her shoulders. She was staring at Hermione, a mixture of worry, fear and anger in her expression. Hermione noticed her discarded robe on the floor. Hermione's eyes widened with surprise when she noticed that Harry wasn't wearing his robe either… Or his shirt.
"Ow!" Harry cried, rubbing his neck as he tried to get up off the floor. As he pulled his hand away, he realized it was bleeding. "Must have scratched my neck when I… Layla?" Harry's back was too Hermione and he hadn't realized that she'd entered the room. But at the sight of his Professor's face, he knew she was there. Harry's body tensed. He didn't want to look at Hermione. His face drained of color.
"Yes, Hermione?" Ferris said, the fear and anger disappearing from her eyes as she gave her student a smile as if it were a normal day and Hermione had just raised her hand to ask a question. Hermione gaped.
"You… You… You're…" Finally, Harry turned his head to his best friend.
"Hermione, it's not what you think. She was showing me… A defense technique. Against a vampire. It required me to lay down and pretend I was sleeping so—"
"WITH YOUR SHIRT OFF?" Hermione screamed.
"Um… Yeah."
"Oh Harry…" Hermione closed her eyes and shook her head in disgusted disappointment. "This is… This is… It's so beneath you!"
"I know. But Hermione, you don't understand."
"I understand perfectly." Hermione turned to leave. "I'm going to get Dumbledore."
"No, Hermione, listen!" Harry scrambled to his feet and ran out of the room after Hermione. "Hermione, wait!" he caught up with her in the hall. "Listen, please." Hermione finally stopped walking and turned to face him, but then she looked away.
"I can't even look you in the eye, Harry! She's your teacher, your TEACHER!"
"Hermione, have you ever been so attracted to someone and they were so attracted to you but there was little you could do about it for some reason or another? It's not really that disgusting. If she wasn't my teacher, you wouldn't be acting like this."
"YES I WOULD!" Hermione screamed. "Yes I WOULD! Because it's gross! She's so much older than you, Harry!"
"She's only three years older than I am. She's twenty!"
"Still, she's your TEACHER!"
"Forget about that fact, Hermione!" Harry grabbed her by the shoulders and forced her to look at him. He had a pleading look in his eye. "Promise me you won't tell anyone about this. Please, Hermione, not a soul! You'll ruin me!"
"Harry…" Hermione's mouth was open and she was on the verge of tears. She slowly shook her head. "I have to tell someone. It's against school rules!"
"Which is exactly why you CAN'T tell anyone! She'll be fired and I could be suspended or even expelled!"
"But…" Hermione didn't know what to do.
"Please, Hermione!" Harry was begging her, "Please! You're my best friend!" At those words, Hermione gave a little sob. Finally, she nodded.
"OK," she said. "I won't tell anyone." Hermione gasped as Harry pulled her into a friendly embrace.
"Thank you, Hermione, THANK YOU!" he said. When he let her go, he ran back to the Defense classroom without a second thought. Hermione let out a deep sigh.
"If I tell…" she whispered. "It'll ruin you. But if I don't, it'll ruin me." She couldn't stand by and even think of the possibility of one of her favorite teachers having an affair with her best friend. It was just too much to think about.
Had Hermione looked closer when she'd opened that door to that classroom, she would have noticed that Professor Ferris's eyes weren't their normal blue. They were a bright yellow. And had Hermione examined the bleeding spot on Harry's neck, she would have found two holes, not one scratch.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
"It's OK, Layla!" Harry grinned at her as he entered the room. "She won't tell."
"You have her word on that?" Layla asked. "You trust her?"
"Of course I trust her, she's my best friend."
"Very well," said Layla. She didn't trust Hermione. In fact, Layla thought, the only time she would trust Hermione was when she was dead. "I trust you, Harry." Layla approached him to kiss him again, but he backed away.
"Can't today just be one of those days where we just talk? I mean, our relationship, it's not just sexual, is it?"
"Of course it isn't!" said Layla. "But we talk in class and after class sometimes. The time we have together is limited." Harry nodded.
"I guess I understand."
"Besides, I thought this is what you wanted."
"Well, I do, but…" Harry frowned. "Well, Layla, I guess… I think I love you. I mean really. I love you, Layla…" As Harry said this, Layla had begun to kiss his neck.
"Mm…" she muttered in reply. There, she found the wound and her eyes flashed yellow once again as she bared her teeth. She drank some more before she decided to close the wound. Just as the drop of her blood fell onto the wound, Harry pulled away instantly and his hand flew to the side of his neck.
"What's wrong?" asked Layla, as innocently as she could. But Harry was staring past Layla. She spun around and saw a mirror hanging on the opposite wall. As she looked at it, she saw Harry and him rubbing his bleeding neck. The look on his face was that of shock and terror.
Layla turned back to Harry instantly, a look of desperation on her face. Because the moment Harry saw that mirror, the moment he knew…
Vampyres have no reflections.
True to her word, Layla didn't let her relationship with Harry outside of class get in the way of her relationship with Harry in class. She acted her normal, eager self in class and was no warmer towards Harry than towards any other student in the class. Though one time, when she was handing out papers, Harry saw a slight smile on her pale face as she passed his desk.
"And Mr. Potter…" she said, handing him the paper with a wink. No one else seemed to have noticed.
However, needless to say, Harry's friends did notice his change in his attitude. And it would be lying to say they weren't suspicious.
"Why do you spend so much time with Professor Ferris?" Ron asked at breakfast one Saturday morning.
"Huh? Oh, yeah, well, she's given me detention."
"What? For what?" Hermione cried.
"Um, well, I wasn't really paying attention in class…" Harry gave a slight smile.
"What are you doing in your detention?"
"Working on a project."
"On what?"
"On vampyres."
"Vampyres!" Hermione squealed, excitedly. "A lot of people think that vampyres are hideous creatures that can't come out in the daylight. But really, daylight merely weakens them, it doesn't kill them. A lot of people are afraid of vampyres because they think if they feed off of you, they'll kill you. But they only kill you if they drink all of your blood. Usually, a vampire only kills when he wants to. Otherwise, it will just drink enough to sustain him until his next victim. The victim doesn't feel a thing, though he might be weak the next day."
"Fascinating…" Ron said, sarcastically.
"Yeah, yeah, Hermione, that's great." Harry muttered.
"What did you learn about vampyres, Harry?"
"Um… Contrary to popular belief, they cannot change into bats, but they don't have a reflection. Their senses are three times as sensitive as that of a human's. Like, they can hear sounds above and below a human's range and see things a mile away and things like that."
"That's all?" Hermione sounded disappointed.
"Well, I've learned more, but I should be going now. I was going to do some research in the library."
"I'll come with you and help you!" said Hermione eagerly.
"NO!" Harry shouted and Hermione was quite surprised. "I mean… no…"
"What's gotten into you?" Ron asked.
"Nothing!" Harry defended. "I just have to do this report on my own!"
"I thought you said it was a project?" said Hermione.
"Project, report, same thing!" Harry rolled his eyes. "Bye, guys. I'll see you later."
"Yeah…" Ron said as they watched him leave. He then turned to Hermione.
"Something's up with him."
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
"Layla…" Harry smiled when he saw the graceful woman. She walked toward him and locked the door to her classroom.
"I'm glad you came, Harry."
"I'm glad you wanted me to come." Layla grinned and gave him a soft kiss. "Their suspicious, though. Ron and Hermione." Layla frowned. She might have to dispose of them.
"Is that so?" she said, innocently. Harry nodded.
"They're wondering why I'm spending so much time with you."
"You're doing a project."
"I told them that. One on vampyres. But Hermione…"
"Don't worry about them," said Layla as she ran her hand through his messy black hair and softly touched his lips with hers. "Everything will be fine." Harry allowed himself to be taken away by the enchantress as she slowly and softly kissed him. Layla was unlike anyone else that Harry had ever kissed. She kissed him softly and gently, but not too soft. Just enough to leave you wanting more. And she was never too hard and she never moved too fast. She was very experienced, more experienced than Harry had suspected even a twenty-year-old to be.
Her hands slid slowly down his back and then back up to his shoulders as she began to remove his robes. Harry made no move to stop her, though he was surprised at what she was doing. But what shocked him even further was he found his hands doing the same thing to her robes. Layla's hands moved up Harry's white shirt. That's when Harry finally pulled away.
"What's wrong?" asked Layla, sounding concerned.
"I think this is moving a bit fast. We've only been together for a few weeks." Layla, nodded, understanding.
"I don't want to force you to do anything you don't want to do."
"God, you're beautiful…" Harry shook his head with a smile. Layla grinned and kissed him softly again.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
This went on for a few weeks more, on weekends and after school and Ron and Hermione were extremely suspicious. They thought he'd have finished his project by now.
"I'm going to the library," he told them one weekend. Hermione took it on her own authority to follow. Ron completely supported this action.
"He might need help," he said.
Hermione silently followed Harry as he walked down the halls and up or down a staircase. Finally, he led her to the Defense classroom.
"But he said he was going to the library…" she muttered. He knocked on the door and it opened, revealing a beautiful looking Layla Ferris. Hermione frowned as Harry entered the room. She waited a few minutes, thinking he might just be picking up a few things or having a brief word with Professor Ferris. But after about ten minutes, he hadn't come out.
Hermione frowned and she approached the classroom. She knocked but received no reply. Her frown deepened as she knocked again.
"Professor Ferris?" she called. After a few seconds, she heard Ferris's voice.
"Yes?"
"Could I come in?"
"No, Hermione, don't!" Ferris cried, rather hastily. There was some noise inside. Wanting to end this, Hermione decided to open the door. As she did, she both heard and saw Harry fall off of Ferris's desk. Hermione gasped at the scene before her.
Layla Ferris stood there, by her desk, the strap of her blue dress falling off her shoulders. She was staring at Hermione, a mixture of worry, fear and anger in her expression. Hermione noticed her discarded robe on the floor. Hermione's eyes widened with surprise when she noticed that Harry wasn't wearing his robe either… Or his shirt.
"Ow!" Harry cried, rubbing his neck as he tried to get up off the floor. As he pulled his hand away, he realized it was bleeding. "Must have scratched my neck when I… Layla?" Harry's back was too Hermione and he hadn't realized that she'd entered the room. But at the sight of his Professor's face, he knew she was there. Harry's body tensed. He didn't want to look at Hermione. His face drained of color.
"Yes, Hermione?" Ferris said, the fear and anger disappearing from her eyes as she gave her student a smile as if it were a normal day and Hermione had just raised her hand to ask a question. Hermione gaped.
"You… You… You're…" Finally, Harry turned his head to his best friend.
"Hermione, it's not what you think. She was showing me… A defense technique. Against a vampire. It required me to lay down and pretend I was sleeping so—"
"WITH YOUR SHIRT OFF?" Hermione screamed.
"Um… Yeah."
"Oh Harry…" Hermione closed her eyes and shook her head in disgusted disappointment. "This is… This is… It's so beneath you!"
"I know. But Hermione, you don't understand."
"I understand perfectly." Hermione turned to leave. "I'm going to get Dumbledore."
"No, Hermione, listen!" Harry scrambled to his feet and ran out of the room after Hermione. "Hermione, wait!" he caught up with her in the hall. "Listen, please." Hermione finally stopped walking and turned to face him, but then she looked away.
"I can't even look you in the eye, Harry! She's your teacher, your TEACHER!"
"Hermione, have you ever been so attracted to someone and they were so attracted to you but there was little you could do about it for some reason or another? It's not really that disgusting. If she wasn't my teacher, you wouldn't be acting like this."
"YES I WOULD!" Hermione screamed. "Yes I WOULD! Because it's gross! She's so much older than you, Harry!"
"She's only three years older than I am. She's twenty!"
"Still, she's your TEACHER!"
"Forget about that fact, Hermione!" Harry grabbed her by the shoulders and forced her to look at him. He had a pleading look in his eye. "Promise me you won't tell anyone about this. Please, Hermione, not a soul! You'll ruin me!"
"Harry…" Hermione's mouth was open and she was on the verge of tears. She slowly shook her head. "I have to tell someone. It's against school rules!"
"Which is exactly why you CAN'T tell anyone! She'll be fired and I could be suspended or even expelled!"
"But…" Hermione didn't know what to do.
"Please, Hermione!" Harry was begging her, "Please! You're my best friend!" At those words, Hermione gave a little sob. Finally, she nodded.
"OK," she said. "I won't tell anyone." Hermione gasped as Harry pulled her into a friendly embrace.
"Thank you, Hermione, THANK YOU!" he said. When he let her go, he ran back to the Defense classroom without a second thought. Hermione let out a deep sigh.
"If I tell…" she whispered. "It'll ruin you. But if I don't, it'll ruin me." She couldn't stand by and even think of the possibility of one of her favorite teachers having an affair with her best friend. It was just too much to think about.
Had Hermione looked closer when she'd opened that door to that classroom, she would have noticed that Professor Ferris's eyes weren't their normal blue. They were a bright yellow. And had Hermione examined the bleeding spot on Harry's neck, she would have found two holes, not one scratch.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
"It's OK, Layla!" Harry grinned at her as he entered the room. "She won't tell."
"You have her word on that?" Layla asked. "You trust her?"
"Of course I trust her, she's my best friend."
"Very well," said Layla. She didn't trust Hermione. In fact, Layla thought, the only time she would trust Hermione was when she was dead. "I trust you, Harry." Layla approached him to kiss him again, but he backed away.
"Can't today just be one of those days where we just talk? I mean, our relationship, it's not just sexual, is it?"
"Of course it isn't!" said Layla. "But we talk in class and after class sometimes. The time we have together is limited." Harry nodded.
"I guess I understand."
"Besides, I thought this is what you wanted."
"Well, I do, but…" Harry frowned. "Well, Layla, I guess… I think I love you. I mean really. I love you, Layla…" As Harry said this, Layla had begun to kiss his neck.
"Mm…" she muttered in reply. There, she found the wound and her eyes flashed yellow once again as she bared her teeth. She drank some more before she decided to close the wound. Just as the drop of her blood fell onto the wound, Harry pulled away instantly and his hand flew to the side of his neck.
"What's wrong?" asked Layla, as innocently as she could. But Harry was staring past Layla. She spun around and saw a mirror hanging on the opposite wall. As she looked at it, she saw Harry and him rubbing his bleeding neck. The look on his face was that of shock and terror.
Layla turned back to Harry instantly, a look of desperation on her face. Because the moment Harry saw that mirror, the moment he knew…
Vampyres have no reflections.