Hello all! So...it's been a while. I'm not dead. This story isn't either. I swear. There was just...a lot of things that happened, and my mental health was not okay. But! I'm getting back into it, ever so slowly. And once again, classes are starting up for me in about a week, so I can't promise frequent updates, but the next one should be sooner than 8 months this time. So, little bit of fluff, new character introduction - I actually have huge plans for them too so I'm excited to finally have them written out into existence. I really hope you guys like them too. But you guys have waited long enough for this chapter, so I'll shut up and let you read!


For a moment I thought the only thing I'd have to really worry about for the rest of the year was the trial and the O.W.L.S. But on my birthday that was ruined. Cedric insisted on celebrating with me in some way, something I eventually relented to under the condition that it didn't interfere with my birthday dinner with my father and Harry. Adrian and Graham jumped on the chance to celebrate, telling me they'd waited long enough for someone to convince me. So for lunch my three favorite boys dragged me down to have a picnic by the Black Lake, casting about twenty different warming charms to melt the snow and keep us comfortable. Despite any protests I might have had, it was actually fun.

I was sat leaning against a tree when Cedric stood and started rummaging through his bag, which brought another wave of protests from my lips "No, Ced, you didn't."

Adrian and Graham laughed as he frowned at me "Am I not allowed to give my girlfriend a birthday present?"

"We could have told you how she'd react to that, Diggory."

"Second year she threw the book I got her at my face."

Graham raised his eyebrows at Adrian "No wonder you told me not to try in third year."

I rolled my eyes at them "I did warn you I would the day you said you were going to buy me a gift."

Cedric coughed, lifting a silver locket into the air for me to see "Please don't throw this at me."

My eyes went wide when he opened it, a picture of us together on our first date sitting comfortably inside. It caught me slipping on a patch of ice, frantically grabbing at Cedric's arm in a panic. His face had this small, dopey smile on it, and despite my obvious terror at possibly falling on my backside there was clearly a nervous blush on my cheeks. I couldn't even think of who would have taken the picture, but it was something I couldn't help cherishing already "Ced, this is just- when did anyone have the chance to take this?"

He grinned at me, relief flooding his expression "Wayne's mum sent it with him at the beginning of the year, told him she wanted more memories of him and his friends. I didn't even know he took it until Christmas when he sent it to me."

I knew Adrian and Graham would give me hell for it, but I couldn't deny Cedric a genuine reaction just to save face in front of my best friends. So I threw myself at him, hugging him tightly and whispering quietly to him "It's perfect, I love it."

His arms wound around my waist "Happy birthday, Van."

Graham cleared his throat, forcing me back with a wild blush spreading over my face. He, of course, smirked teasingly the whole way through his words "And how do you plan on topping that for your anniversary tomorrow?"

My glare shut him up in a heartbeat "Watch it Graham, or I won't go easy on your next girlfriend."

He shuddered "Right, got it. Let's not get angry just yet."

"Although, we've got a gift for you too."

Honestly, that just had me dumbfounded. Adrian hadn't tried to give me a gift since second year, and Graham took his warning to heart too "Since when?"

They exchanged a look, Graham turning to rummage through his own bag shortly after "Since we found this." He tossed a book to land in front of me, a bookmark sticking out of its pages "Go on, open it. That page took forever."

I eyed them both skeptically before picking up the book, flipping it open to the marked page. I caught the parchment just as it slid out, and looking at the writing in the book, I understood why it was there instantly. It was a Dragonian text. Fully Dragonian text. Even the books with Dragonian spells in them had some English here and there, but a run through the pages in this thing gave no sign of a single word in English. I unfolded the parchment, scanning through it easily and feeling my heart jump up into my throat as I did.

Healing of the Core. A simple title for the steps written down, but nothing about this looked simple. There were two potions that went into this, instructions I'm sure were on the next few pages of the book, an extremely complex spell, a measurement of how much magic had to be put into the spell, some weird, archaic steps, and one very obnoxious half potion, half salve thing that had to be made. In the translation was a small little blurb stating that this was created through trial and error, and would repair damage to the magical core of victims of the stripping spell.

There was a tiny flicker of hope running through my veins now "Is this?"

Adrian and Graham both nodded vigorously "That would be one very complicated way to maybe save your life."

Cedric's sharp inhale was loud in my ears "How long would it take to do?"

The smiles on my friends' faces fell "That's the thing. We've got the spell, ritual, potion, whatever you want to call it. But we don't have the power to make it happen."

"What do you mean?"

I sighed, frowning at the foreign text "There's only one man alive who can perform it, right?" They nodded solemnly "He won't do it. That's the problem. He'd rather have me dead."

His face fell, his arm reaching out to pull me close "Then how do we make it happen?"

I shook my head, knowing I could find a way to make it work "We start digging for options. Just, let's keep this between us, yeah? I don't need anyone thinking things that aren't set in stone."

They all agreed, allowing the glimmer of hope to sit in our hearts. I had a few reasons to keep it secret, but most of all I didn't want my father going mad trying to save me if there was a large chance he couldn't. It wasn't worth putting him through double the grief. We tried not to let the thought of research encroach on our time together, choosing to make my birthday a day of celebration. It was strange for me, but I vowed to make sure I celebrated their birthdays this year in return for celebrating mine. It was the least I could do for them.

My regular birthday dinner was the same as most years, but Harry joined in on the jokes between my father and I this time around. It was the best present I could've gotten from the two of them. The little family I had was merging together, even if none of us would admit it to anyone. Harry made a point of noticing my shiny new locket and announcing it to my father, bringing around a new wave of protectiveness from him. I was lucky he'd never seen Cedric kiss me, or my boyfriend would have been used in multiple potions by now.

Harry was happy to escort me back to the common room after dinner, joining Nott and Malfoy on the sofa while I joined my friends. We still had some free time left, and we were content to spend it playing a game or two of exploding snap. Unfortunately, the night didn't end as sweetly as we would have liked. I hadn't had the chance to fall asleep yet, the possible cure occupying my mind far more than I expected it to. Lillian had to come rushing into our room, frantically circling to each of us to get us out of bed. Once everyone was down in the common room we were given the worst news. Sirius Black had attacked a Gryffindor in his bed, the shredded curtains being – to everyone's relief – the only damage. The next day news spread quickly of the new security at Gryffindor tower, and soon there were plenty of lions jeering at my house in the halls. It took a little longer than it should have for any of us to learn why, but Cedric's friends were kind enough to explain it to me.

"They're doing what?"

Patrick winced at my tone, pulling back a bit at my anger "The Gryffindors are talking about finding some way to announce to the world that Harry Potter is a Slytherin so that Black won't attack them anymore."

I had to scoff at the idea, but I was more irate for Harry's sake than anything else "It's not our fault that he got the passwords for the next week. Did you hear the howler that Longbottom got?"

Wayne shook his head at me as Cedric rubbed my shoulder to calm me down "We don't blame anyone in your house. Besides, security's been increased tenfold, everything with the Gryffindors should blow over soon."

I couldn't help the slightly childish pout that took over my face "It better. I've been itching for a good fight all year and they're just giving me an excuse."

Even I wasn't sure where the violence was coming from. I had a temper, sure. And maybe I had pent up a lot of rage throughout my life, but in my defense, I was treated horribly. A grudge was the least dangerous thing I could take from that. But something had me close to snapping point a few times this year, and it was my flat out statement of wanting a fight that made me notice. It was a little disturbing. There were so many things at play this year that I'd started losing track of it all. The trial, Lupin, Black, my classes and therefore my O.W.L.S. getting ruined, the dementors. All of which led to one big glaring problem that I've been ignoring.

I'm violently angry. There's no sugarcoating it. I'm lucky I can reign in my temper half the time, let alone refrain from attacking someone in the halls for looking at me wrong. Yeah, sure Vanessa, you only have to worry about the trial and your O.W.L.S. this year. If only. I had to face things – even if I can't be saved, I still have a lot to do. I don't even know where to start with the problems I've been having. There was no chance I could get back into Charms, and Defense was almost out of reach. Lupin was a bag I didn't want to touch if I could avoid it, and Black was dangerous in more than one way. How was I supposed to cope with my increasingly violent tendencies when I couldn't even handle half my problems?

I had to stop walking as the thought ran through my head. When I'd felt like I was losing control I went for a run through the Forbidden Forest. It might be even more risky, considering the dementors and Black, but it was effective then. Maybe it would be effective now. I would just have to make sure to avoid going for a run on the night of a full moon. Lupin without the wolfsbane would be easy compared to a basilisk, but Lupin with the wolfsbane was a good way to have my life ruined. If he knew who I was he could tell the whole world. I couldn't risk it.

I parted from Cedric and his friends in a bit of a distracted state. The idea to go for a run through the Forbidden Forest again was probably as stupid as it sounded in my head, but I wanted a way to organize my thoughts and calm myself. The full moon was already past for this month, so if I went that night I ran no risk of running into Lupin. It was more the dementors and Black I would have to watch for, and other creatures that preyed on humans. My mind was easily made up after I rationalized it, so I finished up my day and went to bed with the rest of the girls. I waited an hour for them to fall asleep, and once I was sure I pulled myself out of bed and quietly made my way to the entrance hall.

I made sure I was well within the forest's borders before I started the transformation, content to leave any hesitation from it in the wind. I tried to maintain some sense of time while I ran this time, but it was much more fun if I didn't think, if I just let go. So I did. I let go of all of my problems and just focused on the feeling of the wind in my hair, the chill sinking into my bones, and the sounds of the night. The smell of the centaurs carried in the air around me, giving me ample time to veer away from them. I caught a whiff of what vaguely reminded me of Lupin, giving me the chance to assume that was a werewolf.

It was a fun little guessing game, but it probably wasn't the time to be playing games with my sense of smell. The goblins respected me, but only because I gave them reason to, and the centaurs were kind once, but that doesn't not guarantee they will be again. The werewolf I caught the scent of might not be transformed tonight either, but they could very well be as dangerous as Fenrir Greyback. And then there was the creature I hadn't considered – vampires. We'd discussed them in Defense briefly in my third year, but Quirrel's act was quite difficult to pay attention too, and that month had been particularly bad for his parasitic friend's scent. It left me wholly unprepared for my first real encounter with one, and even more unprepared for the knowledge there'd be one so close to Hogwarts.

I barely noticed him at first, as caught up in my run as I was, but the sight of someone running in tandem with me was enough to stop me in my tracks abruptly. He skidded to a stop before turning to face me, a grin showing off his fangs and curdling my blood "What's the matter, Desertores? Were we not having fun?"

I couldn't help taking a small step back, even as his arms opened in a surrender. The faint smell of blood clung to him, pinging the alarm bells in my head. Still, curiosity got the better of me "Who are you?"

He simply smiled again, dropping his arms to his sides and leaning against the nearest tree "Dimitry."

I eyed him, palming at my wand up my sleeve "What do you want?"

His eyes flashed a deadly crimson "I wanted to see you for myself, little dragon. Your kind is a curiosity in itself, but after the rumors I couldn't resist."

"My kind?"

"You are Dragonian, are you not? Or are you just another budding animagus with a reptilian form?"

It probably shouldn't have calmed me, but his casual manner was enough to placate my fear "Definitely Dragonian, and by the looks of it, you're a vampire."

His grin returned with a sadistic twist, but I was starting to think that was just the fangs "I am indeed. You're not frightened are you?"

I couldn't help eyeing him more curiously than before "You can probably smell the answer to that. Do my teeth look just as frightening as your fangs?"

The laugh that barked out of him was infectious and warm "I suppose they might be to anyone who doesn't see them regularly." He stepped closer to me, taking a lock of my hair in his hand and sniffing at me before speaking again "I've told you my name, now you tell me yours."

My hand pressed against his chest to give me some distance "Vanessa."

His head tilted "No last name?"

I rolled my eyes, twitching my ear at the sound of a dog's howl "Not until I get one from you, Dimitry."

The centaurs' scent drifted closer to us, and Dimitry's hackles seemed to spike. It was understandable, given their histories, but his speed was a little surprising. He was quick to grab my wrist and pull me along behind him as he shot off into the forest "It's a fair trade then, little dragon, but you'll have to earn the right to my last name."

I almost struggled to keep up with him, even with the extra help of the transformation, and my breathing grew heavy within a few minutes of our running "How long are we going to do this?"

"What, running?"

"Does it look like we're doing anything else?!"

He laughed, a sort of cackle escaping his throat when an arrow barely missed his head "Until we lose them, though they'll probably let you go with only a little torture!"

"I'm sorry, what?! I didn't sign up to be hunted by centaurs!"

"Shouldn't have been seen with a vampire then!"

It wasn't funny. It wasn't. This wasn't a funny situation. I was running from a herd of centaurs with a bloody vampire that I could barely keep up with. Why was he laughing? Shouldn't he want to fight them? Why didn't I branch away from him so I could get away? Why the hell was I laughing right along with a vampire? Was I mad? I shouldn't even be out in the forest, let alone consorting with dangerous magical creatures that the Ministry would have locked away at the first drop of blood. Better question, why was it that a vampire was here looking for me in the first place? But none of that mattered. I was having a hard time breathing, my legs were aching, and my eyes were burning from the speed, but it was one of the most exhilarating feelings I'd ever had.

So exhilarating, in fact, that I almost protested when Dimitry pulled me to a stop and clamped a hand over my mouth. The sound of hooves grew closer, until they were thundering and the backs of the centaurs were rushing past and away from us. When it was over we waited another minute, and then I clawed at his arm to let me breathe. He let me go with a hiss, clutching his arm as I coughed desperately "Did you have to use your claws?"

Another cough forced itself out of me before I could respond "I was a little more focused on getting air into my lungs, thank you very much! Of all the ways I could die, suffocating is not one I would choose!"

He stared at me solemnly, a knowing look in his eye "And what would you choose then?"

Well, he certainly knew how to shake me to my bones "What's that supposed to mean?"

"You reek of it." He shrugged, glancing over his shoulder "I should be on my way before they come back. Come out here more often, I'll find you."

I didn't get the chance to stop him, or even call out. He disappeared fast enough to make me struggle to track him, letting me know just how slow I was to him. Still, I'd wanted to clear my head by running, and it's exactly what I'd gotten. It was easy enough to know I would be doing it again, despite the risks. The dementors hadn't bothered me that night, so it was safe to say they didn't come to the forest all the time. I stood there for only a few more minutes before I took off in the direction of Hogwarts, finding my way much easier this time than I had the first. Dawn was only just beginning to break when I entered the castle, which meant I wasn't going to have much sleep before my first class, but it was strangely worth the tired feeling.