Immature love says: "I love you because I need you." Mature love says: "I need you because I love you."

--Erich Fromm

Prologue Part Three

The three walked in silence to Dumbledore's office.

As soon as the door opened, Remus snapped, "Harry, sit down."

Harry wisely decided to comply. He took a high-backed chair in front of the Headmaster's desk and waited for the other shoe to drop.

Remus held out the book to Albus, who adopted a pained expression as he surveyed it. He glanced at Harry, then opened the book, paging through it in silence for a few minutes. "Harry, is there anything you wish to tell us?" he asked in the gentle voice that could either soothe or madden.

"No… not really, Headmaster," Harry stammered.

"What's wrong, Albus?" Sirius asked.

"This is a book not written in English. First off is the matter of how Harry got this book, as it has never been a part of the Hogwarts' library. Second, it is written in a dialect used almost exclusively by a non-human creature. Therefore, the language is innate in only those not entirely human, or humans with a direct connection to one of those beings. I can read it because I am half elf. Remus can read it because he is a werewolf," Dumbledore explained.

Harry's heart sank, and he pressed himself back into the cushions. His only thought was, 'Oh, shit.'

"Factor in the detail that Harry and certain pieces of his clothing smell of blood, and we have a larger problem," Remus added threateningly.

Harry put his face in his hands. He decided to voice his solitary thought. "Shit."

Sirius knelt in front of him, trying to look him in the eye.

"I forgot how good Remus' sense of smell was…" Harry muttered. "Son of a bitch."

"Harry, what is going on?" Sirius asked gently, playing the role of good cop.

"Padfoot, this book is written in the common language of vampires." Remus spoke the damning words. "And I pray to all the gods that ever were that that blood is your own, Harry, because if not…"

"It's mine," Harry muttered, his breath tight in his chest. He removed his hands, to reveal tearful green eyes.

"Harry, please show us your arms," Sirius said.

Harry sank back further into the chair. "I…" he began.

Remus had taken to pacing behind Harry. "Harry, just do it," he snapped, earning a harsh look from Sirius.

Harry reluctantly revealed the marks on his arms. Sirius was livid but silent, Remus glared darkly and Albus sighed. "Are there more bruises?" the Headmaster asked.

Harry shook his head. "No more bruises. He saw them and he apologized. He promised never to do that again," Harry whispered.

"And the bites?"

Harry didn't meet anyone's eyes as he lowered his collar to reveal the bruise from two nights before and the bite from the previous night. Two perfect fang marks lay on a bruised patch of skin above his collarbone. He hadn't had time to do either healing spell on it. Finally, a single tear fell from each eye, either from mortification or the release of the emotional stress of lying to his family.

"Harry…" Sirius breathed as Harry replaced the collar of his shirt. "Why?"

"He needed someone, and I was the only one he trusted. I was having a nightmare and so I went for a walk. I met up with him in a hallway, and I had to help him."

"How long, Harry?" Dumbledore asked.

"November," Harry whispered.

"November?" Sirius asked, sitting in the chair next to Harry. He was trying to be supportive of his godson, but this was too much. There was only so much that he could understand and accept.

Harry nodded. "He was cursed by a gypsy after the fall of Voldemort. His entire family was cursed. The curses were to kick in on their next birthdays. It seems his birthday was in November, even though he was told it was June. His parents lied about his birthday because he was conceived out of wedlock."

Remus stopped pacing. "An Accursed vampire? Then he was dying when you found him?"

"Yes."

"Accursed?"

"As human as Harry is, until the amount of oxygen in their blood gets too low. Then they must consume human blood, and they are restored. They have extraordinarily long lives, as do their consorts. The vampires can go out in sunlight, but must still avoid garlic and crosses," Remus explained, professor mode kicking in. "They're rare, but still feared."

"Harry, has he ever drawn from another?" Dumbledore asked, concerned for the safety of his students.

"No."

"No, not to your knowledge, or you are certain?"

"No, I am certain. He has needed to draw every night for the past month, and I would know if he skipped for some reason. He has been drawing less, but that has more to do with the fact that he is less stressed than he was during term," Harry clarified.

"Drawing? How the hell are you so calm about his?" Sirius demanded.

"Sirius, it's okay," Harry said, trying to calm the Animagus. "I mean… yeah, it hurts… but once the bite's over, it's over, and the feeling of calm and peace is indescribable."

"You… you're okay with this?"

"He switches veins so that one doesn't become too knotted or sore. When he finishes, he usually waits with me until I feel better. He brews a blood restorative that's second to none. He makes me feel protected when we're together. Considering the fact that he does drink my blood, he's remarkably considerate about the entire thing."

"I take it that he is a seventh year, Harry?" Albus asked.

"Yes. Otherwise, he would have chosen someone else, in a lower year."

"Which House?" Remus asked, pressing more gently than he had previously. This caught Harry's attention and he eyed Remus warily, before realizing what the werewolf was trying to do.

"You just want to know who it is!" he said, looking at the others. "You know that we would have come forward if we didn't want it to be kept a secret. I can't help that you know, but I'll be damned if I'm going to tell you who he is."

"Harry…" Sirius began.

"No," he said forcefully, getting to his feet. "This isn't about you, or what you want. This isn't about the school. He doesn't pose a threat to anyone. This is instead about me and him." He stormed out of the office, slamming the door behind him.

"That could have gone better," Albus remarked.

"What do we do now?" Sirius asked.

"We keep trying. The two of them might not realize how dangerous this is," Remus said.

Less than 5 minutes later, Harry was still absolutely furious and passed Ron and Hermione in the hallway.

"Harry, what is it?"

"You just had to say something, didn't you?" he growled.

"What?"

"Well, allow me to give you a brief synopsis of the past half hour. Remus is pissed off at me, Sirius wants to get my head examined, and Dumbledore is not going to leave me alone until he has what he thinks is the whole story, knowing how much I usually hold back," he said, stopping in front of them.

"What story?" Hermione asked.

"Why don't you go ask them?" he demanded venomously. "I'm absolutely certain that they would be willing to tell you, since you were the ones who brought it to their attention."

Harry turned and walked away, headed to the room in the North Tower. After giving the password, he lit the hearth and sat on the sofa. Things were definitely getting out of hand. Three people knew for a fact that he was a consort, and another two would know before the day was out. They just didn't know the vampire's name, a secret that Harry would fight to protect. Dumbledore would be forced to expel the vampire if the news ever broke, and that meant that Harry would have to leave too, despite whatever protests his family would give.

The teen cast his eyes to the blazing fire, which crackled in the quiet room, sending red-orange sparks up the flue. He hadn't remembered being this cold before, not in a room with a fire. Grabbing a blanket, he noticed the bottle of blood restorative on the table where the vampire had left it. Harry smiled and drank it. He must have forgotten it in the morning, when he raced out of the room and into the waiting arms of the others. Harry curled up under the blanket, kicked off his shoes and sighed.

Less than 10 minutes later, the blonde burst through the door. "What is it?" he asked startled as he walked to the couch. "Merlin, I thought you were in big trouble from what I was reading. I'd never heard you swear so much in one sitting."

"We are in trouble. Dumbledore knows I'm a consort, but he doesn't know who my master is," Harry said, sitting up.

Icy shivers ran down the vampire's spine and he sat on the couch. "This is bad. Very, very bad."

"Look, it's what? Six months until we graduate. We can manage if we're careful," Harry said, covering both of them with the blanket. "Besides, I'm in trouble all the time."

"Six months? Holy shit, Harry. In this place, six months is five months and 30 days too long to keep a secret. We are so screwed."

Harry embraced the vampire. "All we have to do is be careful. No more accidental bruises, no more forgetting to heal bites. Potions every time you feed and no revealing any of our abilities to anyone but us."

"I haven't told anyone about us, Harry," the vampire said, a bit hurt by the statement.

"Oh, love, I didn't mean anything by it," Harry replied.

The vampire leaned back a bit and stared into the fire. "Harry, please tell me you aren't lying to protect my feelings. I'm not worth that right now."

"Why not?"

"Because I don't think that now is the time for logical thought, my beloved."

Harry frowned in thought. "Is there any other kind of thought?"

"Yes, love," the blonde said, drawing Harry close. "There is."

Remus left Albus' office to find Ron and Hermione waiting nearby. They were startled by his appearance, meaning that they had been taking advantage of their solitude. No wonder Harry was distancing himself from them. "Professor Lupin!" Hermione squeaked.

"Hermione, you can call me Remus. I haven't been your professor for 3 ½ years," Remus said quietly, trying to trace Harry's scent.

"Remus, what's wrong with Harry? He wouldn't tell us. He told us to ask you," Ron said.

Remus sighed. "I wish he'd have said something to you. I hate having to think about it, much less explain it. But what could we have expected, after he stormed out like that?"

"What do you mean?"

"Well, we did back him into a corner." Remus rubbed his forehead, before drawing his wand and casting a silencing bubble around the three of them.

"What is it?" Ron asked, impatiently.

"Hermione, you remember our studies in your third year about Accursed vampires?"

Hermione froze. "You don't mean…"

"No. Harry is not an Accursed. Think of another possibility," Remus said, calmingly.

"He's a… blood consort?" she said, her face going ashen. "Oh my God!"

"Ron, any idea what we're talking about?" Remus asked as he saw Ron looking at the both of them in a cloud of confusion.

Ron shook his head.

"Honestly, Ron!" Hermione muttered. "Blood consorts are servants of Accursed vampires who are the vampire's primary source of food, but remain unaffected by the bites."

"What?!?" Ron asked, the reality of the statement sinking in.

"He won't tell us who the vampire is, but apparently, he is a student as well. Harry has been consort to this vampire for nearly a month now," Remus explained.

"I don't understand. Why?" Hermione asked.

Reasons that Remus would never say aloud in polite conversations flashed through his mind and he fought to not say them. "Well, it appears that Harry is doing this as a mission of mercy. The vampire was dying at the time, but the arrangement could be permanent. At least, it is Harry's intention to continue until graduation."

"You mean he's actually allowing a bloody vampire to bite him?" Ron asked incredulously.

"Yes, Ron. And if he reacted that way to us for asking, you should be cautious about what you say to him about it, okay?" Remus asked, breaking the charm and walking away.

The three looked troubled, as if consumed from the inside out trying to cope with Harry's decision.

Ch4. Making up with friends, but keeping secrets. Maybe a visit to Hogsmeade. We'll see.