ONE WAY OR ANOTHER

-CHAPTER TWELVE-

BETA: Greeneyes

INFO: www. livejournal. com /users/draycious

After he let Blade's office he had a couple of minutes to get down to the second floor to get to his physical defense class. It was a new subject for the year due to the threat of Voldemort looming over them like an enormous ominous shadow. The main purpose with the class was that they would learn to fight with martial arts instead of magic. Basically Raven translated it as 'kick and punch' class. Raven could already do such things but Blade insisted he'd take the class never the less. He pretended he couldn't fight at all, since he wasn't supposed to be able to defend himself. No one knew what he had been up to during the summer and he intended to keep it that way.

The class was of course related to DADA but since they had made the DADA class a couple of hours longer every week, Blade didn't have the time to teach both subjects. That's why Dumbledore had hired yet another new teacher. In fact, the whole staff was bigger then ever this year. Aurors were constantly guarding the castle, outside as well as inside. Almost every subject had two teachers just so that everyone could get more help than they normally would. The students could really feel the war now, compared to the previous year when everyone was denying Voldemorts resurrection.

Raven was quite thankful for the increased number of teachers since he wasn't very good in some subjects. He had the mind for his studies, he just didn't have the right amount of concentration in him since he always had to run about and stop Voldemort from doing harm.

"Harry, you've been daydreaming all day! Please concentrate!" Hermione begged him when he got smacked in the face by her fist in the martial art class.

"Ow! Hermione!" he said and held his nose, which was now bleeding. Blade had barely allowed him to participate in the class since his injuries were still healing, but Raven had been persistent. He didn't want to take extra lessons in martial arts, and he was sure the new Professor would assign extra lessons to him if he was absent.

"Is scarhead going to cry?" Malfoy said in a mocking voice. Draco was teamed up with Ron to the horror of everyone because they would likely kill each other some day.

"Do me a favor and shut up!" Raven snarled. Draco sighed and went over to him.

"Come here, let me see that!" he said roughly but he was surprisingly gentle when he pried Raven's hands off his nose. Draco picked up his wand and gently tapped it against Raven's nose. The pain disappeared and so did the blood.

"There you go, as good as new!" he said.

"Thank you Draco," Raven said gratefully. He really meant it. He was surprised Hermione hadn't helped him at once.

"No problem. After all, I'm a nice guy." Draco said cheekily. Ron snorted. Raven and Draco ignored his childish antics.

"Wanna team with me? Before I get knocked out by Hermione?" asked Raven and Hermione blushed.

"That or Mr. Evil, as you call him, is going to do you in real good. He's looking at you. We better get to work." Draco said and took his arm and led him away from Ron and Hermione. They both ignored the weird looks they got from their classmates. The rest of the lesson continued. No incident happened to either Raven or Draco. However, Ron and Hermione were another story.

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"Raven, may I have a word with you?" Raven was startled at the unexpected voice coming from behind him. He turned slightly.

"Uh... sure thing dad. What's up?"

"Let's talk about that in my chambers," said Severus and glared at the Gryffindor's nearest at the Gryffindor table. Hogwarts was in the middle of dinner. Raven got up silently and followed his father down to the dungeons. In Snape's chambers he sat down in the sofa which was visible for once. He couldn't see Remus anywhere but he suspected Remus was the one to keep the place clean.

"Dad…," he said and basically forced the word 'dad' out of his mouth even if no one could hear it in his voice or see it in his features. He was still not comfortable enough to use that title to a man he hadn't liked it very much before he found out the truth. "Where's Remus?" he continued when Snape looked at him.

"I don't know. He's probably on his way to dinner. Remus is not the one we're here do talk about." Raven waited silently. He had no idea what was going trough Snape's mind at the moment. It was always impossible to tell.

"I spoke to Blade about an hour ago. He told me the two of you are going on a check up tomorrow. Why didn't you tell me?" Snape asked seriously.

"I...err... Blade was supposed to tell you that, and he did," he lied quickly. It didn't seem like Snape could detect his lie.

"Why are you going with him?"

"He is my guardian." He frowned. "Well, sort of." he added.

"And I am your father! I am the one who's supposed to go you and you didn't even ask me if I wanted to!" Snape exploded. Frustration was written all over him and Raven shrank back into the sofa. He's hurt I didn't ask him to come with me, Raven thought.

"I'm sorry dad but it's Blade who decides," he said and blamed it all on Blade. Perhaps it was a weak thing to do but at the moment he didn't care. Why give Snape any more reasons to yell at him?

"I'm going with you anyhow and I'm going to have a talk with Blade," Severus spoke angrily. Raven's eyes widened and he thought quickly to prevent that from happening without sounding suspicious.

"Dad, please stay home. It's not worth it to go up against the U.S. Ministry. Just don't start a fight. You'll know my results from the hospital. Perhaps you can go with me in the future but not right now."

"There's got to be something that I can do to stop U.S.A. WWM from interfering with our lives. I'll go and speak to Remus about it. We can probably find something in the law for our benefit. You may go tomorrow but note that I want a full length report about it." Snape said and looked him in the eye to show he meant it.

"Yes dad."

"I'll see you tomorrow. Stay here if you want," he said and slammed the door. Raven stayed seated for a few minutes before he walked quickly out of the chambers. He had to find Blade. He was probably in his chambers.

"Raven! What are you doing here?" said a surprised Blade when Raven stormed in. Then Raven proceeded to tell Blade everything that his dad had said.

"Not good," Blade said to himself. Then he looked up. "It doesn't matter. They can research every paragraph existing in both muggle and wizarding law. We've already made sure there is nothing that can stop us."

"So we've got everything covered?"

"Indeed, and no mistakes or overlooked wormholes or something close to that," Blade told him. Then he got a slightly mischievous look on his face. "But we won't tell them that. Let Snape and Lupin find that out for themselves. It's good if they're preoccupied with research, it puts their mind off things."

"Such as every time we disappear!" Raven exclaimed. "God that's clever!" he smiled.

"Yes it is," Blade admitted. He looked pretty pleased with himself, even if he wasn't the one who had done all the good work, yet he overlooked that little fact. They worked for him, didn't they?

"I'm going to bed now. I'll see you in the morning," Raven said with a yawn. Blade nodded at him.

"Good night Raven."

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Raven waltzed out of the hospital the next morning with Blade in tow. The doctors had said he was healing in a remarkable speed and that he'd be back in business in another three weeks if he continued to heal in the way that he did now.

"Are you ready to apparate?" Blade asked him.

"As ready as I'll ever be," he said and they disappeared. He didn't particularly like traveling in magical ways.

They ended up in the middle of a dark forest. They had to walk 10 minutes to reach the main gates. It usually only took them five minutes but they walked slowly so raven's injured ribs wouldn't act up. They passed a few magical wards on their way. They couldn't see them but they felt them. There was an extreme and almost impossible powerful force behind the wards. It was impressive work, and Raven was sure Bill Weasley would find it interesting. They continued walking until a big castle emerged in front of their eyes. It was huge, had high towers and was beautiful. Yet it wasn't an ordinary castle, it wasn't light nor made of grey stone. It was black.

"Finally home. At last!" Raven burst out. An increasing feeling of happiness filled him. When he first saw Hogwarts he has thought that was his home, but he had been mistaken back then. He belonged to another castle, the one in front of him. Blade nodded and agreed that this was their home. They walked into the entrance hall and then they met another entity.

"You bloody idiot! Why do you always have to be such a sick fuck?" a man screamed.

"Me? You were the one who drained her!" the other man screamed back.

"Because you started it!" Blade and Raven stopped on a distance and watched them have a verbal fight, which they had no difficulty hearing what so ever. They exchanged amused looks.

"Welcome home," said a man's voice behind them and they jumped. They hadn't heard anyone coming.

"Rafael!" said Blade and hugged him tightly. Raven hugged him too but more loosely.

"What are they fighting about this time?" Raven asked and nodded towards the two men further away from them.

"Midnight and Fire? It's has something to do with draining a muggle, I think. They were in Moscow before sunrise." Rafael said and rolled his eyes. The fights between Midnight and Fire were legendary in the castle, and the pair of them were notorious because of their fighting.

"Nothing unusual then. God, you vampires, you're always doing something stupid!" Raven said and laughed. Rafael glared at him for that remark ignored it otherwise and led them to their rooms. They didn't interrupt Midnight and Fire; they were better off leaving them alone.

"Where's master?" Raven asked and looked around as if he expected their Master to jump out in front of them any second.

"Out running his business," Rafael said after he had placed Blade in the room he usually stayed in. Rafael must have noticed Raven's crestfallen look because he gave him a rare smile.

"He'll be back in time for dinner," he said comfortingly.

"Good. I wish to speak to him," Raven said suddenly feeling considerably happier.

"I suppose he's eager to see you as well."

"I Hope so..." Raven murmured while he entered the room he usually stayed in. He immediately walked over to the wardrobe and hunted through it for more suitable clothes to put on. The wardrobe always provided the user with a suitable outfit for the proper occasion. It was a magical wardrobe, special and disgustingly expensive.

"I'll leave you to your business. Make sure to attend dinner at six o'clock and go to lunch at one o'clock if you wish."

"Thanks Rafael."

"No problem young Raven," Rafael said softly and with a little bow he left the room quietly.

Raven looked at the clock and decided that he had time enough to take a bath in the rich, exclusive and expensive bathroom. It was very luxurious with a big tub; everything was made in marble and gold. The walls were dark-blue with green plants and there were different kinds of functions on the tub. Bubble bath was one of the many options. It was cozy in the bathroom; it provided an intimate feeling without making the room feel too small.

That sort of thing was hard to manage. He loved the whole atmosphere in the castle. It may be dark and almost gloomy, but it wasn't scary or neglected. Everything was in top shape and the atmosphere was warm and comforting for the mind. He loved it.

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After the bath he wrapped himself in a big, black and fluffy towel which covered all of his body. After that done he sat down in a chair and wrote a letter to his father.

Dear Severus,

I'm visiting Master together with Blade. I trust you to keep that piece of information to yourself.

I went to the doctors and they said I'll be fine if I continue to heal like I do now. They also said I shouldn't worry about anything, but I'm still grounded from Quidditch and lifting things. I just want you to know that I'm fine. Say hi to Remus for me.

Love,

Cercis (Raven)

Happy with his constellation he sealed the parchment with a special crest made for the castle. He sent the letter off with a black eagle that also belonged to the fortress. He got up on his feet and went over to his wardrobe. Since it was only lunch he settled for some clothes from Dolce and Gabbana with shoes from Gucci and a scent from Boss. He also put on a necklace from Prada, specially made. He just loved this place! Nothing was cut in on, everything was luxurious and yet no one bragged about it. After living with the Dursley's for all these years it was almost hard for him to comprehend what he got. Well, you can imagine.

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"Wow Raven! You look good!"

"Thanks Blade," said Raven when he sat down at the lunch table. Blade had chosen pants from Zansez and a T-shirt with a dragon on from Unique.

"I can hear that you're not fighting anymore," said Raven to Midnight and Fire who sat near him.

"So what have you been up to?" Midnight asked him after he had nodded to the previous comment.

"Just some minor operations and such," he answered. Midnight's black and blue eyes stared at him.

"No way man! Operation? What happened?!" asked Fire. He too with his orange, yellow and red eyes wide open.

"I wouldn't look so excited if I were you. It was nothing special, there are no juicy details," said Raven but told them his tale never the less. Blade decided to add a few comments to spice things up.

"You know, he was drugged during the operation, right?" said Blade after Raven's story was told.

"Yeah. So?" Rafael asked.

"We were allowed to sit in the waiting room to wait for him to wake up. When he woke up but he wasn't aware of his surroundings since he was drugged. He woke up earlier than expected. I don't even think he remembers anything about that…" Blade said and looked at Raven who shook his head, confused. He had no idea where this was going. "Anyway, there was this pretty nurse, Ana- something. She asked him if he believed in love at first sight. Guess what he answered!"

"No idea," shrugged Midnight.

"No clue," said Fire. Both Raven and Rafael shook their head in negative. When Blade grinned Raven suspected he had said something impossible sappy.

"Oh c'mon man! You're killing me!" Fire urged and sat on the edge of his seat. He was easily excited over something, and he never did anything half way. If he was happy he was 100 percent happy, if he was depressed he was 100 percent depressed and so on. He was very intense with his emotions, and very temperamental. If you didn't know how to handle Fire you might think he was a bit too much, but when you told him a story he was the ideal listener, he was a real good audience.

"Ok then. He said: 'Love at first sight may be all right, but it might be wise to take a second look'." Everyone laughed albeit Raven was laughing a little bit out of relief. He wasn't sure he would ever be able to live it down if he had said something embarrassing.

"No way! You just made that up! I'd never say that!" Raven laughed.

"But you did," Blade said and stuck his tongue out.

"Now that's rich," said Midnight. "I wonder where you got it from."

"I agree, it is rich" said Rafael before he drank some coke from his glass. Vampires could eat just about anything if they wanted to, but they had to drink blood to survive in the long run. Blood was also preferred above anything else.

"Say, where's Ancius?" Raven asked.

"Ancius? That's what I'd like to know!" Rafael growled. It was known that Rafael found it impossible to keep tabs on his brother Ancius.

"I think he's out chasing females again," Blade informed them.

"Oh really? It won't surprise me if he is. He's impossible! I hope Master gives him a word or two."

"Isn't that awfully harsh?" Fire asked as if he had experience in one of Master's 'talks'. Come to think of it he probably did.

"Oh yeah? It would sure help!" Rafael argued.

"For a week," Midnight murmured and Rafael glared at him.

Raven enjoyed their bickering. It was other than the usual boring ones Hermione and Ron would provide. Those guys were fun. Yet again it proved that vampires were funny yet dangerous. Not dangerous to him mind you. Why were they no danger to him? Because he was one of them.

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Before dinner he dressed up in a black outfit. He was happy but nervous at the same time at the prospect of meeting Master. He knew his emotions were running rampant and just playing with him. He had nothing to fear because Master would never hurt him.

"You look good tonight. Like always," Rafael said to him when he sat down at the table. The only light source in the hall came from the many crown chandeliers with candles hanging down from the roof. It was half dark, the lights were pretty dim and cast a feint yellow light in the room. Big shadows were playing on the walls as the candles fought to survive the wind seeping through he window cracks.

"Thank you," he smiled and smoothed his pants nervously.

"Nervous?" Midnight asked him at once. He nodded slightly. He saw no point in denying it.

They were sitting in a hall bigger than the Great hall in Hogwarts at a table, the head table, above every other one. There were a lot of tables in the hall so sitting at the main one was a real privilege. Raven couldn't even count all of the tables, there were too many of them. Every occupant of the tables had their eyes up on them. He fidgeted slightly in his chair.

By all means, he knew most of them, but it was still a bit unnerving to know that he was one of the weakest in the room.

Why?

Because he was human.

"He's coming. Can you feel his presence?" Midnight whispered to him.

"Yeah," Raven said shortly. He was kind of tense and didn't really want to talk at the moment. The Master entered with a big bang coming from the front doors. Tall and broad, he paused in the door for a moment. The light illuminated through from behind him, and it created an impressive illusion of the Master being impossible tall and powerful.

He looked surprised when he spotted Raven at the head table. The hall was silent while Master walked over to his high chair which was located in the middle of the table.

When he was seated he looked to his right and nodded to Rafael, then he continued to nod at the next one seated beside Rafael which was Fire and next after that, Blade.

After he was done greeting the right side of the table he nodded to Raven on his left, one step more sat Midnight and after that he nodded to Ancius who had arrived while Raven was up changing in his room.

It was still deadly silent in the room after the greeting ceremonies were over. Everyone waited for the Master to speak. He put his fingertips together just like Rafael had done earlier. The Master's long black robes had silver linings and his cape was a dark blood-red with velvet on the inside. Raven was very impressed by his look.

"Welcome Raven and Blade. I didn't expect you yet but I'm of course glad you could join us." the Master spoke.

Everyone knew that wasn't all he had to say. Raven lowered his gaze and bowed his head slightly in thanks and respect to the Master. Raven knew that Blade did the same without even having to look. It was an unwritten rule for visitors to do such a thing to their host in the upper class in the wizarding world.

"I can see everyone is here tonight, even our dear Ancius found his way to us... interesting." he said and the hall exchanged amused glances with each other when Ancious looked sheepishly at the Master. Everyone listened with rapt attention as their Master continued his speech. "Well, I can only raise my glass to you and yet again wish our guests welcome!"

The Master held his glass high up in the air. It was a crystal glass and its blood red liquid was reflecting the glass when the light from the candlelight's hit it. It was enticing to see it, and Raven almost wished he could drink from the glass even if he knew it was real blood in it.

"Welcome!" Master said to Raven and Blade.

"Welcome!" everyone in the hall repeated. Raven and Blade drank their share. They were the only ones who drank red wine. Everyone one else drank blood. That fact didn't bother them the slightest.

"It's good to have you here Raven," said Master to them when the hall had turned their attention towards their food and drinks.

"I would like to personally thank you for letting us come and stay here, Count Dracula," Raven responded formally.