Disclaimer: I OWN HARRY POTTER! lawyers march in with pitchforks OKAY! I don't own Harry Potter! lawyers march off Gits. scowls after them
Warning: Might be a bit confusing as it switches from first person point of view to third person point of view frequently.
Cyfrgolledig atyn yr Dywyllwch
"Damned by the Darkness"
Chapter 7
The second Harry entered the entrance hall, no longer in the form of the wolf and at Marissa's side, he was confronted by the sight of several Aurors with their wands pointed at his heart.
"Harry James Potter, you are to turn yourself over to the Aurors immediately, as ordered by the Ministry of Magic," said what was apparently the leader of the group.
Harry scowled. He didn't need this right now. The transformation to the wolf (which he had deliberately made larger than normal) had taken a good portion of his energy. And the smell of Marissa's blood did not help.
But he couldn't flee. If he did, they would fire. And Marissa would die with him as she still stood at his side.
"Very well," he sighed.
Marissa turned to stare at him and was shoved back as two of the Auror's rushed forward. They grabbed Harry's arms in hard grips and jerked them behind his back, securing his wrists with what looked like twine. But Harry knew what it really was.
The intertwined hair of a Unicorn and Darcorn. The magic of the two creatures could hold a vampire of any species securely, effectively negating their powers as well. So long as they weren't taken by the bloodlust.
"I object to this!" said Marissa. "Sirs…he helped us defeat the Damned!"
The lead Auror – who had not been in the battle – sneered at her and said, "I saw nothing of this."
Marissa bristled and her upper lip curled. Her expression became suddenly reminiscent of her ancestor and Harry seriously began to wonder if all Snape's could scowl and sneer like that.
"Good sir," she purred in a silky tone, "I should warn you that your stupidity grates upon my senses."
The Auror arched an eyebrow imperiously.
"Meaning?"
"Meaning that I am very close to unleashing a hexing upon you that you would not soon forget," snapped Marissa, her eyes flashing.
"Madame, this is a dangerous vampire…"
"Dangerous, my foot! If it were not for him, Hogwarts would no longer have a population!"
"Even so, ma'am, the bad outstrips the good."
Marissa opened her mouth to say something else but Harry quickly interrupted her. He could smell the claw wounds on her shoulder beginning to turn, which was an effect of the Damned's claws. If it was not treated soon, she would become poisoned and die.
"Don't bother, Marissa," he said softly but firmly. "I will go along with these fools. You should get to the hospital wing. Now."
Marissa frowned at him then glanced at his eyes for a moment. She turned away with a shiver and walked off.
Harry knew why.
He also had another reason for wanting her gone. The smell of her blood was beginning to drive him mad and his eyes, as those of his kind did, had begun to flicker with the red that signaled bloodlust. This was not noticed by the Aurors.
"Harry!" shrieked a voice suddenly and the Aurors tried to grab a lithe form that slid past them. Briana threw herself onto Harry and hugged him tight enough to nearly crack one of his ribs.
"You're bleeding," she murmured after a moment.
"No," said Harry. "Kitten, get out of here."
"But…Harry…"
"Kitten," growled Harry, the bloodlust suddenly evident in his voice.
As Marissa had done, Briana looked up into his eyes. She shrank away from the redness and bloodlust that was taking over his usually gentle green eyes.
"Alright," she murmured, pulling away from him. She shoved an Auror who tried to grab her arm away and stalked off, leaving Harry alone in the entrance hall with the Auror's.
The moment she was gone, Harry let the last of his control slip. He had been holding the bloodlust back as well as he could until she was out of the vicinity. Now he released it.
Eyes blazing as red at the fires of Hell, he hissed, "You gentlemen came at the wrong time."
Every door leading off from the entrance hall slammed shut as he finished and the Auror's looked at each other nervously. Harry grinned a feral grin, fangs fully extended.
He then flipped in midair, got his arms in front of him in a simple move, and leapt at the lead Auror with a roar.
"What was that?" asked Nicole as a roar echoed through the school, even echoing down to the dungeons.
Briana didn't answer. She just pulled off her shirt, which was now stained with blood, and threw it into a corner.
"Bri?" said Nicole. "What's wrong?"
The redhead still did not answer – she just pulled a new shirt on.
Lyda approached her suddenly and said softly, "Briana?"
Briana looked at the tawny-haired girl then at her dark-haired friend and began to cry. Nicole rushed forward with a worried expression on her face and wrapped her friend in a hug.
"Bri, what's wrong? Please talk to me."
"Its Harry," whispered Briana, clutching at Nicole's shirt. Her tears stained her cheeks as she continued, "He's – he's killing them."
Nicole blinked and hissed, "He said vampires didn't kill!"
"They don't," said Lyda softly. "Unless they are completely drained of energy. Then they must replenish that energy by draining a body dry. It's the only way."
"Oh Merlin," breathed Nicole. She then reached up a hand to brush at Briana's tears. "Bri?"
"What?" choked Briana.
"Why are your tears pink?"
Briana froze and Lyda moved forward suddenly, reaching out to grasp the redhead's chin. She turned her head towards her and hissed angrily as she did. Nicole gasped.
"You are vampire blooded," hissed Lyda as she studied Briana's eyes, which were leaking tears of blood.
Briana only nodded.
"How?" asked Nicole. "He…Harry didn't…"
"No!" exclaimed Briana, shoving herself away from her friend. "How dare you think that?!" She brushed her sleeve across her face and it came away scarlet.
"Well, your crying blood for one thing," replied Nicole snippily.
Briana scowled for a moment before her shoulders slumped and she whispered, "It was the only way."
"What was the only way?" asked Lyda.
"When I was seven," began Briana, "I was bitten by a snake. The Healer said I was going to die but Harry…Harry saved me by giving me some of his blood."
"He what?!" yelled Lyda.
"He couldn't let me die!" yelled Briana. "Don't you understand? He wouldn't let me die!"
She collapsed into a heap on the floor as Nicole and Lyda looked nervously at each other.
Twelve minutes after all the doors leading into the entrance hall had slammed shut, one of them opened. Bloody footsteps were tread in the direction of the dungeons and on into the Slytherin dormitories. They continued on to the door that lead to the sixth year girl's dorm. Nicole and Lyda stepped in front of Briana as Harry stepped through the door, his shirt and pants stained with fresh blood. There was a handprint on one of his cheeks.
He started towards them and Nicole growled, "Don't you come a step closer."
Harry stopped and said, "Nicole…"
"Don't," she spat. "You killed people!"
Harry closed his eyes and turned his face away.
"I have killed people before, child, and I will kill many more before my life is finished. That," he threw a hand back towards the general direction of the entrance hall, "was not deliberate, no matter what you may think."
"You needn't have killed them!"
Harry's eyes flashed red as he roared, "Would you rather I'd have killed all of you?"
Nicole paled to a shade of pasty white.
"Y-you wouldn't have."
"I assure you, I would have. My energy was completely drained during the battle. I had to replenish it by feeding." Harry stared straight into her eyes as he finished, "And I would rather kill an Auror than one of you."
"It was still wrong," whispered Lyda.
"I know," breathed Harry. He then peered at the crumpled form behind them and whispered, "Kitten?"
"Harry…" murmured Briana, lifting her head. Harry saw her bloody tears and his face crumpled.
"Oh no…"
He staggered forward, pushing Nicole and Lyda aside as he swept the girl up into his arms. Briana ignored the blood that was yet again staining her clothes and clung to him as he clutched her close.
"Something's wrong, isn't it?" asked Lyda. "Even when a little bit of the Blood, she shouldn't be crying blood."
Harry shook his head and said, "I don't know. I don't know." He buried his face in Briana's hair and whispered, "Oh, kitten, what have I done to you? What have I done?"
"You've done something you shouldn't have, boy."
At the sound of the new voice, Lyda and Nicole whirled around. A pale woman with long, dark hair that flowed behind her like smoke was walking towards them. The bottom of her white dress was stained red, which showed that she had passed through the entrance hall.
"Maedry," whispered Harry, closing his eyes. "What are you doing here?"
"Mischa has a new fledgling among the Aurors. He told her of your…shall we say, folly?"
"Which one?"
"The one where you have yet again come to this school!" growled Maedry, stalking towards him with long strides. She knelt down beside him and sighed heavily. "I told you to forget this place."
Harry whipped his head around to face her, lips pulled back from partially extended fangs.
"I can't!" he snarled. "You know that."
Maedry smiled in an oddly serene sort of way and reached out to brush dark hair away from Harry's face.
"Oh, my poor wizard-child. I knew I never should have changed you."
"Then why did you?"
"If I had not," said Maedry, "would you have been able to defeat Voldemort?"
Harry looked away from her, burying his face in Briana's hair. "No," he murmured after a moment.
"There. Now…about this child here."
Harry looked up with a vicious expression on his face and his arms tightened about Briana.
"You will not harm her!"
"Of course not," purred Maedry. "She is of our blood now."
Harry scowled and added, "And you won't bring her across."
"My son…she is already coming across."
"What?" exclaimed Nicole and Lyda at once.
"What are you talking about?" continued Nicole. "Bri's not turning!"
"Oh, but she is," said Maedry, touching the scarlet locks of Briana's hair. "The vampire blood my dear son gave her nine years ago has been dormant for so long. And now…with his return here, it has awakened. It is changing her."
Harry felt as though he'd been kicked in the stomach.
"No…oh God, no. I – I'm the cause of this." He gave his sire a horrified glance. "I'm the reason this is happening to her?"
Maedry nodded and Harry let out a dog-like keen, burying his face in Briana's hair again. He kissed her forehead gently then threw himself away from her, blood tears welling in his eyes.
"I'm sorry," he murmured before he turned and ran. Lyda started to go after him but Maedry shook her head.
"Do not go after him, child. This event has…cut him deeply. He meant no harm to the childling when he gave her his blood."
"How do we know that?" asked Nicole softly but accusingly.
Maedry smiled and looked after Harry with a mother's pride on her face.
"He has a good soul, my Harry," she said. "What he did then was what he thought was best."
"But it wasn't," whispered Briana. She looked up at the ancient vampiress and whimpered, her cheeks streaked scarlet from the Auror blood off Harry's shirt and her own blood tears. "I should have died. That snake bite should have killed me."
"Oh, childling," murmured Maedry, swooping over to the girl and scooping her up into her arms. "Yes, perhaps you should have died that day. But you did not."
"What's going to happen to me?" asked Briana.
"If we leave now, Harry and I, the vampire blood in you will go dormant again. The changes that have already taken place will remain but no more. It is our presence that activates the blood within you."
"You mean…I won't be able to see Harry anymore."
Maedry shook her head slowly and new tears welled in Briana's eyes.
"No!" she cried, banging on the vampiress' chest. "I don't want to lose him again!"
"Then you will continue to change until you become one of us – Harry's only fledgling."
"I don't want that life," murmured Briana.
Maedry smiled.
"Neither did he, my dear. I forced the vampire blood upon him. I saw strength within him and a need…a great need for the blood." She shook her head before continuing. "I did not know he was the one destined to defeat Voldemort until I bit him. That is why I felt he needed the blood."
"But…Harry wouldn't want that for me."
"No," said Maedry, smiling gently. "He would not wish such a life on you."
"I know," whispered Briana. She turned her sky-colored eyes on the vampiress and continued, "But I don't want to lose him again. He's my friend."
"And you his, child. But we must leave. You must understand."
"I do. I just don't want it."
"Oh, I know, child," murmured Maedry, pulling Briana into a tight embrace. She ran her hands over the scarlet locks of hair cascading down the teenager's back and continued, "I can sense what you feel for Harry and it pains me to tear you from him but it must be. At least…for a while."
"What do you mean?" asked Lyda, taking a step forward.
Maedry smiled a secretive smile and replied, "You will find out in time, young one." She then pressed a kiss against Briana's forehead and whispered, "Sleep, sweet child. And may it be a peaceful one."
As Briana fell limp in the vampiress' arms, Nicole asked, "What happens now?"
"As I said, Harry and I will leave. The three of you will finish out your years here and move on with your lives." As Maedry said this, she had picked Briana up and laid her on the closest bed (which was the redhead's).
"She'll never move on," said Lyda.
Maedry smiled gently over her shoulder at the part-vampire then brushed a lock of hair from Briana's face before stepping back.
"I know. Keep her well, childling's. Good faith, friendship, and luck be with you."
With those words, the vampiress was gone. There was no puff of smoke or shimmering of her form. She just…ceased to be there.
Lyda and Nicole looked at each other for a long moment then sat down on either side of Briana, ready to console their friend the moment she awoke.
The rest of the year was going to be a long one.