Day 3
He woke up from – something. Not a nightmare like yesterday morning and the day before yesterday and the day before and… well, he couldn't actually remember the last time he had slept without dreams. And being unconscious for one reason or another didn't count in his book.
He listened, but everything was quiet. The sun hadn't risen yet and even false dawn was still a few hours away. His room was dark, dark enough that he couldn't quite make out his hand in front of his eyes.
Why had he woken up? He was tired enough to sleep the sleep of the dead unless his nightmares or other external forces interrupted him. And his bed was comfortable and his room neither too hot nor too cold.
An involuntary shudder raced down his back, from something he couldn't feel. During the last four months, he had learned not to ignore such feelings because they usually meant that either a vampire was quite close, or that huge quantities of magic were being released. There had been one time when the Dark Lord had done some kind of ritual somewhere in the mansion Draco was… held at, and Draco had been feeling those strange shivers of magic for several hours. They had felt vile and disgusting, tinged with something he definitely didn't want to touch.
This tingling now was cleaner but more ferocious, filled with anticipation and restlessness, and some violence. During the last two days, Draco had become somewhat familiar with the feeling when being in either Asmodeus' or the vampire's presence. But that he was feeling it now meant that either one of them was very close to him, or that they were doing magic in large quantities.
Since neither Asmodeus nor the vampire stuck to regular schedules, those incidences could occur day and night; sometimes he had to wonder if Asmodeus slept at all. There certainly were enough locked rooms in the cottage he could hide inside without Draco being the wiser. So far, he hadn't seen very much of his human host during the two days he had been staying here, instead all the more of the vampire and his bat. The snake thankfully had stayed absent most of the time.
Draco had taken care to make himself as unobtrusive as possible, not wanting to draw even more of the vampire's attention. As it was, the vampire was feeding from him once or twice a day, sometimes inviting the bat, too. He didn't know what was worse, the vampire or his pet. The vampire because of the glee he got from scaring Draco, or the bat because wherever it was, its master wasn't far. If he hadn't seen the two together so often, he would have thought the vampire actually was a bat animagus.
The only time he felt almost comfortable in the vampire's presence was during their daily chess matches. The first day, Draco had left his room just in time for dinner, which had been as distasteful as his earlier lunch. Afterwards, the vampire had commanded him into the sitting room, and had demanded that Draco entertain him. Draco had been completely frozen in panic, not knowing what to do at all.
Thankfully, Asmodeus had just come out of his laboratory for some food and had suggested a game of chess. Asmodeus had stayed only long enough to conjure a chess set for the two of them, and then vanished once again. The vampire had smirked and moved the first pawn, taking no heed that white was supposed to start the game, not black. With the comment fresh in his ears that it better be a good game unless he wanted to provide other forms of entertainment, Draco had taken up the other side of the board.
To put it shortly, it had been war. After four hours of fighting with as much concentration as he could muster through his tired, sleep-deprived thoughts, Draco had had to surrender his king. The vampire had grinned evilly, but to Draco's surprise hadn't done anything else. Apparently, Draco had to have done something right because yesterday evening, the vampire had demanded another chess match with the comment that Asmodeus was crap at that game.
Draco supposed that had been a compliment.
The match had been even longer than the last one, and had taken until one in the morning. Draco had been completely exhausted. So why was he awake if the sun hadn't risen yet? He couldn't have slept more than a few hours, and for a change, he hadn't been having a nightmare.
Shuddering again, he suddenly realized that his room had lit up briefly. It was over so quickly that he wasn't sure if he had only imagined it. But then, more bursts of light came. Spell fire?
Alarmed, he got up and went to the window to see what was happening outside. Those flickers of light occurred quite randomly in various colors and intensities, from somewhere on the other side of the cottage. Sometimes, he thought he could hear howls or growls, but he wasn't sure.
Biting his lip, he tried to decide whether to go look for the origin of the lights. It sounded like a duel, or even a battle, and he didn't like not knowing what was going on. On the other hand, without a wand, he would be in mortal danger, not even able to defend himself. Finally, he struck a compromise with himself: he would go to the library that was opposite his room, and look out of the window there.
When exploring the cottage yesterday, the only floor with completely unlocked doors was the third one, the top one, because the only rooms there were his room and the library. On the second floor and in the basement, all doors had been locked, but on the first floor, only one had been – the potions laboratory, if he had guessed correctly. The other four led to the kitchen, the dining room, a small bathroom, and the sitting room respectively. He wondered what was behind all those locked doors, but he wasn't suicidal enough to try and find out.
Like a wraith, he slowly opened his door, taking care not to make a sound. In the hallway, everything was pitch-black and quiet, no sign of anything wrong or out of order. A few careful steps with his hand resting on the wall to guide his way, brought him to the door of the library, the only other door on this floor. It opened without sound, too, and everything was as dark as his room.
No, not quite. The flashes of light were more pronounced, and the growls and thumps were louder.
Holding his breath, he tiptoed to the window, glancing carefully outside. What he saw made his breath freeze in his throat. Since it was completely dark outside, he only got glimpses of the two figures through the occasional spell-light, but he still recognized the strange animal that had sat on the couch during his first visit. Its black body melted completely into the night, only its glowing red eyes visible. It was attacking a humanoid figure, and he couldn't quite see who it was. He thought it was Asmodeus, but he wasn't quite sure. The dark hair and tall frame could have been the vampire's, too.
The two were fighting viciously, both of them using physical as well as magical attacks. The air was shivering from the spells tearing through it, either being evaded or dissipating against shields. Somehow, the creature's skin was quite magic resistant because, more than once, it batted spells out of the air with its wings. Draco wondered how they could see anything with the constant flashes blinding any nightvision they could have had, but that didn't seem to irritate them at all.
Suddenly, the creature exhaled a thick stream of fire, which the humanoid figure answered with a fire spell of its own, creating a wall of flames between them that was slowly setting the grass on fire. In the continued light, he recognized Asmodeus who was covered in grime and blood, with several scratches on his arms and legs bleeding sluggishly. In one hand, he held his wand, in the other one a dagger that was covered in strangely black blood. On the opposite side of the firewall the creature stood partially erect on its hind legs, both front claws holding thick knives, its wings spread for balance. Its gleaming black scales, too, were covered in dirt and grime. Neither man nor beast showed any signs of giving up.
Gradually, Draco realized that although they were keeping up their fire spells, they kept casting other nearly invisible spells at the same time, trying to get any advantage. Wandless magic, he breathed.
Suddenly, Asmodeus charged straight at the steadily growing wall of fire, canceling his own spell at the last second. Not having anything to fight against anymore, the creature's spell burned through the night air a few inches above Asmodeus' shoulder, who had thrown himself to the ground in a roll. Still blinded from the bright light of fire, Draco didn't see their next exchange, but he could hear clangs of metal against metal. Just when he had managed to blink away the spots in front of his eyes, a sudden burst of lightening ruined his nightvision once again. It thundered into the creature, which howled and jumped into the air. Asmodeus followed up with two more bolts of lightening, which the creature somehow managed to evade. It spit another glob of fire, and Asmodeus jumped to the side. The burning patches of grass were growing in number, enough to cast an eerie light on the fight.
Even before Asmodeus had both feet on the ground, the creature was already upon him, and once again, they were fighting in close quarters. Asmodeus was so quick that he seemed to dance around the creature, which had the advantage of reach and two additional limbs to fight with. And the creature knew how to use them. Buffeting Asmodeus around with the wind cast by its wings, the creature managed to keep the human unbalanced, always on the defensive. But Asmodeus seemed used to that mode of fighting, interspersing physical attacks with magical ones that, with such closeness between the two parties, were almost impossible to evade. Somehow, the creature managed though.
Suddenly, Asmodeus charged to the side of the creature, ducked under its forelegs and wings, grabbed onto the creature's neck spines, and somehow managed to vault himself onto the creature's back. Apparently having daggers slammed into scaly wings hurt the creature because it let lose a blood-curling roar, doing something Draco couldn't quite see. The result was Asmodeus jumping off as quickly as he had got on, flinging a few spells and metallic things at the creature in mid-flight. Landing on a shoulder, Asmodeus twisted his body and rolled away, on his feet again before Draco could blink.
Only then could Draco see that his right forearm was hanging at an unnatural angle, but apparently, Asmodeus didn't even realize the pain. He seemed to have cast a partial petrifying spell on it, because the bones and skin didn't move at all when he lifted the arm. The creature bared its fangs, and suddenly another wave of fire washed over the grass. Asmodeus didn't even hesitate but charged right through it, protected by either a shielding or freezing charm, Draco didn't know.
Using only his left arm, Asmodeus flung several knives at the creature, which batted them out of the air almost negligently. Apparently though, the blades only had been a distraction that Asmodeus used to get close to the creature, shooting concentrated lightening across its scales. It roared and swiped at Asmodeus, who for once didn't manage to get away fast enough. A wing slammed into his already broken forearm, finally making him scream in pain.
The creature whirled around, and although Asmodeus was already backing out of reach, it homed in on the sound. With inhuman strength, the creature slammed its fist into Asmodeus' midriff, somehow managing to circumvent all of Asmodeus' defenses. This resulted in Asmodeus doubling over, almost retching onto the grass, and the creature took advantage of the distraction. It brutally slammed itself into the man, grabbing his broken arm to disrupt conscious thought, and let gravity topple them over. Still in freefall, the creature wrapped itself around Asmodeus, immobilizing him with its body, clamping its maw around his throat and –
froze.
For several moments, neither of them moved, and Draco became aware that he was gripping the windowsill painfully hard. The flickering fire played over their bodies, and slowly the creature raised its head again. Draco wasn't quite sure, but he didn't think he saw blood on its maw when it got off Asmodeus. The human rolled onto his side, gasping painfully, clutching his midsection with his left arm – the right one looked even worse than before – but he didn't look as if he had his throat torn out.
Draco exhaled the breath he hadn't been aware he had been holding.
He watched Asmodeus draw his wand, which miraculously had not been lost during battle, and cast several healing spells on himself left-handed. To reach the cuts on his legs, he had to sit up halfway, his face screwed in a grimace of pain, but it evidently didn't affect his casting ability because the cuts on his arms and legs were mending quickly. Something that apparently was a diagnostics spell followed, revealing that both bones in his right forearm were almost completely shattered where the creature had brutally grabbed him, and that he had some broken ribs and internal injuries from the punch to the stomach. Draco hissed in sympathy; that had to hurt like hell. He wondered how Asmodeus had still been able to fight with those wounds.
The creature had come closer to study the diagnostics charm, too, no sign of it attacking again. The two were talking a bit, with Asmodeus starting to sway more and more. Apparently having lost the argument, Asmodeus slumped back to the ground, and Draco could see the sweat on his forehead and the gritted teeth. The creature somehow summoned another wand from somewhere in the dark, aiming it at the man. One spell repaired the internal damage, the next one aligned all the bone splinters, and the final one fused them back together.
Draco watched Asmodeus barely hold in his screams, finally relaxing when the pain abated. Slowly the man sat up, once again talking to the creature. Both of them laughed at something, and then Asmodeus extinguished the burning grass with a wave of his hand. The meadow was once again as dark as night.
Shaking slightly from the fight he had witnessed, Draco let himself slide to the floor beneath the window. Dear Merlin, they had only been practicing! What would those two be like during a real fight? No wonder the vampire respected Asmodeus; the man was fighting not on a different level from Draco, but on an entirely different world.
Dimly he registered that the flashes of light had started once again, but Draco had too much to think about. Slowly, he made his way back into his room, creeping into his bed. It took a long time for his frozen feet to thaw again.
He had never seen a fight like that before; he didn't know of anybody who would be able to stand up to the creature like Asmodeus had. Certainly none of the regular Death Eaters. His father perhaps, but he had a feeling that even he might have trouble. Maybe a few others of the Inner Circle.
He wondered whether the strange creature would still be there tomorrow, and he winced at the thought that it might also want to feed on blood. But, on the other hand, it hadn't bitten Asmodeus, so perhaps it fed on somewhat more normal fare. But something with such huge jaws…
He wondered how the vampire would fare against the creature. Or Mariah. He had a niggling suspicion that Mariah was even stronger than the creature, making him pale anew. There was no way he was going to escape her service; with such power, she'd catch him without problem.
Ever since childhood, he'd heard stories about werewolves, vampires, and other creatures that had special fighting abilities, but he'd never quite believed them. Oh, yes, he had known that they were faster and stronger than humans, but he had never realized just how much better they were. It was a small miracle that not all humans were enslaved. But, on the other hand, if those stories from childhood were true, maybe there also were those humans that were magically very strong – sorcerers they were called. After having just seen Asmodeus fight …
He didn't quite know anymore what to think, not able to reach a conclusion, and not able to calm his thoughts enough to sleep again. Finally, when the first rays of the sun shone into his window, he sighed. The answers would be of no use to him, because he was much too weak and already enslaved. Getting up, he fatalistically chose one of the robes Mariah had bought for him, making his way downstairs. There was nothing he could do against them.
A quick glance out of the window of the sitting room revealed that either the creature had left, or that Asmodeus was fighting with it somewhere else. He wondered where the vampire was; perhaps he had cheered them on from the shadows. Maybe the vampire had left together with the creature?
The door opening suddenly answered that question.
Both Asmodeus and the vampire entered the room, laughing at something. Asmodeus didn't even look singed at the edges, no signs of his vicious duel with the creature. No blood flecks, no tears in his clothes, no pain. Not even exhausted, Draco noticed almost enviously. If Draco hadn't seen him fight the creature earlier, he wouldn't have believed it.
The vampire looked as immaculate as ever, too, eyes lighting up when he saw Draco. Despite his earlier fatalistic thoughts, Draco couldn't help the fear the vampire and his bat inspired in him, backing away as far as he could. And that seemed to play right into the vampire's hunting instincts, because he became even more ferocious, focusing completely on Draco with that unnerving hunger…
Asmodeus deliberately stepped in front of the vampire, shaking Draco out of his daze. Taking the opportunity, he started inching closer to the opening towards the dining room. The vampire threw himself onto the couch, growling dangerously, but he didn't attack. As soon as Asmodeus had turned towards the kitchen, however, Draco felt an invisible vice close around him, pick him up, and hurl him towards the couch.
He yelped in panic, struggling to get away from the spell, realizing to his horror that the vampire was summoning him wandlessly. Before he could react, the vampire already was at his throat, clamping iron fingers around his neck. And then, the terrifying relaxation of being fed on spread through his body, stopping all his struggles at the source.
"You get his blood all over the carpet, you're cleaning it up," Asmodeus frowned. In his relaxed haze, Draco only heard his voice as background noise, not very important. "You're like a toddler, you know, can't trust you with anything."
The lick the vampire gave Draco's throat when he removed his fangs was almost enjoyable. For the moment, he felt the vampire's voice more like a rumble against his skin, not the actual words he was saying. "I'm wounded, mortally wounded. It's a vampire's job to torture mortals, that's why we exist."
But the words were rapidly becoming clearer now that the vampire had stopped feeding. And together with them, the horror rose again. From the corner of his eye, he saw something small and black descend onto him, the vampire's cold fingers securely clamped around his neck. Small claws were digging into his shoulder, and another set of fangs, smaller than the vampire's, lodged itself in his throat. Draco hated the bat feeding on him more than the vampire, because the bat was no more than a small animal.
"You really are a repulsive creature."
Asmodeus' words made him flinch. Although they were probably meant for the vampire, those words could also refer to Draco's situation – he had never seen either vampire or bat drink from Asmodeus' neck. Draco was too weak, not fighting enough, merely letting them feed on him. Asmodeus, on the contrary, could meet them face to face, not in the least afraid of them.
Caught in his self-recriminations, he barely realized Asmodeus leaving the room to go upstairs.
"Mhm, your blood is starting to taste a lot better, but I think you could do with a little more carbohydrates in your diet. And a little bit more blood sugar. Have you eaten yet?"
With the hand still clamped around his neck, it was impossible to shake his head, so he stuttered a hesitant 'no'.
Jumping up like stung by a bee, the vampire declared: "Then I'm going to show you what real pancakes are!"
Draco was completely perplexed by the vampire's sudden burst of joviality. Apparently, the vampire had forgotten that he'd set Draco on a strict diet only two days ago, where pancakes were absolutely forbidden. But Draco wasn't going to complain; he didn't like all those vegetables at all. However, he hadn't seen any vampire eat solid food yet – could vampires cook at all? At least something that was even remotely palatable?
The vampire had already left for the kitchen, taking his bat with him. As soon as he heard him making noise in the kitchen, Draco relaxed somewhat. It was nice to know where the vampire was for the moment, not having to fear being pounced upon at the most surprising instances, and not having to fear being watched.
Draco decided to use the opportunity and got onto the couch, since the floor was quite hard. In the two days he'd been at the cottage, Draco had realized that both the vampire and his bat were somewhat obsessed over that couch, claiming it for themselves whenever they were in the room. But now that they were in the kitchen, and probably occupied for some time, Draco wanted to see what was so special about that couch.
Well, at least it was comfortable, he thought, his eyes getting heavier by the second. Since his dreams had been filled with nightmares, and he had spent several hours first watching Asmodeus fight and then thinking about that fight, he hadn't slept very much. And the noise from the kitchen meant that he was currently safe from the vampire, and it was warm in here, and it was starting to smell very good…
A thunderclap woke him up, and a strangely charred smell reached him over the baking pancakes. Outside, the weather was very nice, the sun shining its warming rays onto the couch he was stretched out on. The thunderclap couldn't have come from outside. What had happened?
From the kitchen, he could hear Asmodeus and the vampire argue.
"That's disgusting," Asmodeus said.
"Have you ever tried blood syrup?"
Draco made a face – apparently, vampires were not to be trusted alone in kitchens. And apparently, Asmodeus shared Draco's opinion.
"No. Aside from the horrible taste, I don't want any diseases."
"The donor was healthy."
"Yeah, right, people who willingly give their blood to vampires are always healthy."
Draco's snicker died in his throat. There were people who willingly let vampires feed on them? Just what would make them trust the vampire enough to be sure they wouldn't be killed? Vampires were so much stronger than humans; a simple twist of their hands, and they could snap necks. And they couldn't always control their bloodlust, sometimes draining their donors dry even if they didn't mean to.
Draco shuddered. So far, he had been lucky, but that could change at the drop of a hat.
"That's my spot." Draco's head swerved to the opening that connected the sitting room to the dining room. The vampire had somehow managed to sneak up on him and was standing there menacingly. "Get off."
From behind the vampire, Draco could hear Asmodeus snicker in the kitchen, but he didn't quite see what was so funny. The vampire looked utterly incensed, starting to growl in a way that made Draco's bones ache and his blood leave his face.
Hastily, he scrambled off the couch, deciding that a little bit of hunger wouldn't kill him, but staying in that room definitely would. He didn't care how undignified he seemed, tripping over his feet like that, but fear propelled him on. With half a mind, he was waiting for a spell to either hit him in the back or summon him towards the vampire, but he escaped unharmed.
Just when he felt safe, about to start climbing the stairs, a hand caught his arm. Draco whirled around, shrinking back, and almost managed to tug his arm free. In response, the grip tightened, and he was dragged back towards the sitting room.
Finally he realized that it was not the vampire who had caught him but Asmodeus. What was Asmodeus going to do with him? The man – sorcerer? – was still smiling, not a nasty, predatory smile, but an amused one, and Draco didn't know what to make of it. Draco almost recoiled physically when he saw the vampire stretched out across the whole length of the couch, head propped up by a hand, teeth bared ferally.
Asmodeus dragged Draco further into the room, not heeding his resistance. "Actually it's my couch," the man commented when he sat Draco into an armchair. "And Draco, the last time he tried to chase me off, I found that the threat of a castration spell can be an excellent deterrent."
A castration spell? Well, if he had a wand, he would do more than just threaten. And if he were as strong as Asmodeus. But as it was, he couldn't help but tremble slightly at the sight of the man leaving for the kitchen once again, the vampire looking after Asmodeus angrily.
The vampire turned back towards Draco, his gaze so intense that his eyes seemed to be glowing. "Don't you dare think of that," he growled, and Draco shrunk as far back into the armchair as possible. "Now, come here. I think it's time you learned some proper manners. Your education is lacking severely."
Trembling, Draco got up, not wanting to anger the vampire unnecessarily. The vampire motioned for him to come closer to the couch until his knees almost touched it.
"First lesson: Slaves are not allowed on any furniture as long as their master is present. You will kneel in easy reach of my hands, on the floor. If I'm especially generous, I will allow you to sit on a pillow. Understood?"
Draco nodded jerkily and stiffly sank to his knees. The vampire reached out for him, and drew him closer so that Draco was forced to slump against the couch. The position was quite uncomfortable, but he didn't dare move because a cold hand was carding through his hair.
"That's better. Now, since I have already fed on you today, we will skip lesson two and go straight for lesson – "
"Daray!!!" an infernal roar reverberated from the kitchen, and the vampire started snickering. "If you ever want to see your flying mouse again, you'd better come and get that squeaky menace out of my kitchen right NOW, and if it EVER decides to drop something in my pancake batter again, you will get it back deep fried, you hear me!?!"
The vampire wheezed with laughter, barely staying upright on the couch, and Draco privately thought it was a pity that vampires couldn't die from lack of breath. The vampire certainly would have asphyxiated otherwise.
A sudden thunderclap shook the cottage and a black blur whizzed into the sitting room, screeching in the highest tones, nesting in the vampire's hair. The picture looked so ridiculous, the bat completely messing up the vampire's neatly combed hair, that Draco had to bite back his laughter.
"Lesson three," the vampire growled at Draco, his hand clenched tightly around Draco's head, "never, ever laugh at your master!"
Turning his head towards the kitchen, he roared back. "If you have harmed ONE hair on Satan's head with your infernal electricity, I will show you a whole new meaning to pain!"
"You and what army?" came the shouted answer. "And Draco, if you're not completely disgusted yet, breakfast is ready!"
Draco anxiously looked at the vampire who was still growling slightly, but fortunately not at Draco. Had Asmodeus been the cause of the thunder? Draco had seen him use it outside earlier this morning, but to use it in the kitchen? Either Asmodeus had superb control over that spell, or he was slightly off his rocker. Draco was beginning to think that the truth lay somewhere in between. Living with a vampire couldn't be healthy.
Since Draco was kneeling so close to the vampire, it would be impossible to escape without drawing the vampire's attention, but even the possibility of having to eat pancakes with something dropped into them began to sound better than staying in the sitting room. Holding his breath, he got up. Before he had gotten to his feet though, the vampire was already gripping his arm tightly, almost hissing.
"And just where do you think you're going?"
Draco froze, barely managing to stutter, "B-b-breakfast"
The vampire growled. "Lesson four. Always ask before doing something. Politely. Now, where are you going?"
Nodding quickly, Draco stumbled over the words, too scared to feel humiliated. "M-may I go to b-breakfast?"
The iron grip released him, and Draco fled the room even before he heard the vampire's honey-tinged answer of "Oh, why yes, certainly." To his surprise, the kitchen didn't look the slightest bit singed, but Asmodeus was frowning harshly at the splatters of pancake batter on the kitchen counter. Draco anxiously stood in the doorway, not quite daring to enter the room, but not wanting to be caught by the vampire, either.
Asmodeus turned towards him, the frown leaving his face. "Ah, there you are. Don't worry, I already fished the spoon out again, and the first batch has escaped completely unharmed. And since I've apparently come just in time, the maple syrup's still unbloody."
Hesitatingly, Draco asked, "The b-bat dropped a spoon into the batter?"
Absently, Asmodeus nodded, already glaring at the spills again. "Yeah, and the next time I see it, I'm going to skin it!"
Slightly relieved that the something was nothing worse, Draco carefully sat down at the small table. With a wave of his hand – without a wand, Draco noted – Asmodeus cleaned up the mess and placed a plate filled with pancakes in front of Draco.
"Here you go. I hope you like wholemeal pancakes. That's what Daray was making."
Curiously inspecting his food, Draco tried a small piece since he had never had wholemeal pancakes before. They tasted – harsher, not as soft as regular pancakes. But since more syrup drowned out the slightly bitter aftertaste, Draco decided that they weren't bad. Definitely better than beans and lentils.
Asmodeus didn't even sit down to eat, wolfing down his pancakes while watching those still in the pan. As soon as the last of the batter was spread in the pan, he quickly waved his wand to clean the bowl, sending all ingredients flying back where they had come from.
"How good are you at herbology?"
Draco finished the last of his pancakes, swallowing quickly. "I- I know most of the standard p-potions ingredients, and can harvest them."
"Good. Come with me."
Asmodeus waved his wand again, and their plates and the pan were cleaned. The rest of the pancakes they hadn't eaten, he put on a separate plate, and seeing Draco's curious look he commented. "For Daray."
Since when could vampires eat solid food?
"Oh, they can eat food, but it's not so much for nourishment than for enjoyment. And no, you didn't say that out loud, it was written all over your face."
Coloring slightly, Draco looked away. Was he that easy to read?
"Daray," Asmodeus called towards the sitting room, "your pancakes are done. If you want to stop sulking, you can even pour your blood on them as long as you don't put it into the syrup bottle itself. And please clean up after yourself, I don't want my kitchen looking like a slaughter house."
There was no answer from the sitting room, but Asmodeus flinched slightly, calling out again. "Draco and I are going to the greenhouses." This time, Asmodeus' features only tightened a bit as he shrugged and left the room. "Suit yourself. Come, Draco."
Observing the strange, one-sided conversation, Draco concluded that the vampire had used telepathy to answer Asmodeus directly. And if the vampire's telepathic voice was as strong as Mariah's, it would explain that flinch.
Obediently following Asmodeus out of the house, Draco shivered in the cool morning air. Wet dew covered the grass, but the sun was starting to make serious headway with it. Today, the unicorns and thestrals were quite far away, farther out than usual. Had the battle that night scared them away? Looking around, Draco found it curious to find no signs of a struggle. None of the grass looked burned, no up-turned earth, nothing. And Draco was quite sure that this was where Asmodeus had been fighting a few hours earlier.
All of a sudden, Draco felt himself incapacitated with nerve-wracking pain. With a scream, his legs collapsed out from beneath him, making him writhe on the ground in agony. A thick pressure on his mind made thinking almost impossible, quickly turning into a crushing force. Something inside him burned hideously and he screamed, not knowing how to turn it off. Dimly, he felt Asmodeus hurry back to his side and drag him back towards the cottage.
After seemingly a small eternity, the pain wore off. Inhaling deeply, he shook off the last of his agony. He knew that he wouldn't find any injuries beyond what he had done to himself with his thrashing. He had already experienced that kind of pain once, when Mariah had showed him what would happen if he dared to leave her boundaries without permission. It wasn't quite as all-consuming as the Cruciatus but of nearly equal intensity. And it didn't leave the twitchy feeling of the most popular pain curses, merely a bone-deep ache that would go away in the space of minutes.
Sitting up cautiously, he caught sight of Asmodeus crouching to his right, watching him steadily. "Sorry," the sorcerer said, "I forgot that Mariah tied you only to the inner set of my bloodwards. I can't detect any lasting injuries, but do you still hurt?"
Exhaling shakily, Draco shook his head. "N-No. But – the greenhouses…"
He trailed off, not wanting to actually voice his fear. Asmodeus apparently caught on, nodding calmingly. "If you still want to come with me to the greenhouses, I can try and temporarily extend the inner bloodwards. I'm not a hundred percent sure it will work, but I can't see any reason at the moment why it shouldn't."
Draco hesitated. He was not keen on experiencing that kind of pain again, but he was even less keen on spending time any more time than absolutely necessary inside the cottage with an angry vampire always nearby. He hated being used as a practice dummy for the vampire's wandless spells. With Asmodeus at least, he was reasonably safe. Finally, he nodded.
Asmodeus got up without comment and moved a few steps away to where Draco assumed the inner edge of the wards began. Drawing a knife from seemingly out of nowhere, the sorcerer unflinchingly sliced deeply into his own palms. Immediately blood began to well up, dripping steadily to the ground. And like with Mariah, strange golden lines appeared on Asmodeus' skin, those focused along his palms, his wrists, his throat and his temples. He didn't know how far they extended beneath the clothing because the glow wasn't strong enough to shine through. Slowly, Draco became aware of the ground starting to glow in the same golden hue where the blood met it, spreading slowly from there in a line that encircled the cottage.
On an unspoken sign, Asmodeus suddenly started moving with his arms spread apart, still bleeding freely, towards one of the greenhouses. The golden glow followed him wherever his blood hit, and Draco was mesmerized. Besides the golden glow, a cloud of magic seemed to surround Asmodeus, making his hair wave slightly in the wind. It was strong, very strong, and Draco knew that if that power was turned against him, he'd be in serious trouble.
Finally Asmodeus stopped once again, with the golden glow spreading along the lines where the greenhouse's bloodwards had to be. Then, all of Asmodeus started to glow golden, too, and Draco felt completely awed by the magic rippling off Asmodeus.
It felt at least as strong as Dumbledore's.
At long last the glow subsided and he could see Asmodeus heal his palms quickly, take a vial from his belt, and gulp down its contents. Walking back the same way he had taken before, Asmodeus seemed almost energized although he was still pale from bloodloss.
"Come. Stay close to me, the corridor I've warded off is invisible and only extend the width of my arms."
Draco immediately got up, following only two steps behind. At the boundary of the cottage wards, Asmodeus stopped briefly. "Do you feel any pain yet?"
Draco shook his head and took a further step. Still nothing. He exhaled slowly, only now realizing how tense he had been.
Asmodeus nodded. "Good. Now, follow me, I can feel where the wards are."
Draco soon found himself standing in front of the greenhouse, with Asmodeus turning back towards him. "I hope you know the drill: don't touch anything you don't know, ask if you're not sure and, for Merlin's sake, try not to get poisoned. I have many antidotes on hand, but not for everything in there. The spring peas are ready to be harvested, and I need Calojurn bark, Aescolapius leaves, Dittany roots, Flutterby Bush leaves, and Heartsworth blossoms. Anything you don't know how to get?"
Draco shook his head, thinking of what kind of potion Asmodeus was trying to make. Calojurn bark was good against burns and blisters, Heartsworth blossoms to calm, and Flutterby leaves to energize. The rest were standard ingredients for healing potions. "Do you intend to make an Aescolapius solution from the leaves?"
Asmodeus looked pleased. "Yes. Since you already seem to know what I'm making, you can go ahead and collect the Aescolapius leaves. Here is a pair of Dragonhide gloves, a pair of scissors, and a bowl of water."
Draco watched Asmodeus conjure the bowl and scissors, and summon the Dragonhide gloves. A quick Aguamenti later, and the bowl was half-ways filled with water for the Aescolapius leaves. As soon as they were cut, those leaves had to be stored in water, since in fresh air they tended to lose most of their potency within the first ten minutes after harvest. The water would conserve those healing agents.
Handing them to Draco, Asmodeus finally opened the door to the greenhouse. Stepping inside, Draco was immediately encased in a cool breeze since none of the plants liked the hot weather they were having outside. Something smelled quite pungently, and looking downwards he immediately recognized the source. Bobotuber was growing left and right of the path, and Draco was not very keen on making its acquaintance.
Hurrying after Asmodeus, he took in the many different green, red, and brownish-yellow plants, mentally marking the most dangerous ones. All of them were plants that preferred a cool and damp climate, which the greenhouse simulated adequately. He even saw a dark corner with Devil's Snare. Fortunately, they were moving away from it.
Asmodeus halted in front of a Flutterby Bush, conjuring a pair of scissors of his own. "The Aescolapius flowers are over there, next to the Snapdragons. And the spring peas are on the other side of the Aescolapius flowers. If you want to harvest them first, here's another bowl. Oh, and if anything's wrong, just call or scream, or whatever."
Nodding, Draco moved into the direction Asmodeus had pointed. He quickly found the snapdragons, which were snapping at him viciously. In the beginning, he had wondered why Asmodeus had handed him the Dragonhide gloves, but considering he'd have to work right next to the aggressive snapdragons, they were a god-sent. He swore that this breed even had tiny sharp teeth.
Placing his bowl of water on the ground, a safe distance from both snapdragons and spring peas, he decided to start on the spring peas first. Spring peas were named not after the season, but because when they were ripe, the peas tended to spring out of their pods when jostled too much. Since he was not in the mood to get pelted by peas left and right, it would be better to start on them first.
Hefting the thankfully lidded bowl, he got to work.
When Asmodeus called to him for a break, he was sweating despite the constant cool breeze. Spring peas were annoyingly springy, and he hadn't even gotten to the Aescolapius leaves yet. Still, he was thankful for the offered cup of water, downing it thirstily. Asmodeus wordlessly refilled it, and Draco drank deeply from it once again. From somewhere, Asmodeus conjured sandwiches, and the two of them ate silently.
"Are you done with the Aescolapius leaves?"
Shaking his head, Draco noted the bowls filled with the other ingredients standing next to Asmodeus. "I'm still working on the s-spring peas."
"Then I'm going to help you with the Aescolapius leaves."
Nodding silently, Draco took up his lidded bowl and went at the spring peas again. Asmodeus took the water bowl he had carefully placed out of the way, and started gathering the leaves. Only after a while did Draco realize that Asmodeus wasn't wearing any gloves while working next to the snapdragons. Seeing another snapdragon about to bite Asmodeus' hand, he just barely held in his shout of surprise when the snapdragon collided with something less than an inch off Asmodeus' hand. A wandless shield!
Returning to his spring peas, both of them finished their tasks approximately at the same time. Asmodeus was carrying most of the bowls, floating them in front of him with wandless magic on their return trip to the cottage. To Draco's surprise, it already was late afternoon when they returned. He helped Asmodeus carry the ingredients inside, for the first time seeing the door left of the staircase unlocked. As he had thought, it opened to a potions laboratory, not as fancy as the one in the Slytherin dungeons but still quite elaborately set up.
A large stone workbench stretched across about half the room, shelves with ingredients lining the walls to both sides. There were two stools, both of them placed under the workbench. On the other side of the room, there were shelves with clean beakers, vials, cauldrons, stirring rods, and everything else one needed to make a potion. If the potions laboratory was on the ground floor though, what was behind those two locked doors in the basement?
"Leave the spring peas on the table," Asmodeus instructed. After a long glance at Draco, he continued. "Perhaps you can help me prepare the potions tomorrow."
Nodding slowly, Draco recognized the dismissal for what it was, quietly closing the door to the potions laboratory behind him. Inwardly still exhilarated at the opportunity to once again brew some potions, he failed to notice the vampire sneaking up on him.
"And just where have you been all day long," the vampire growled menacingly into his ear, placing an icy cold hand on his shoulder.
Draco went completely still, elation suddenly gone in favor of fear. "O-outside in the g-g-greenhouse – "
"Have I allowed you to go to the greenhouse?"
"B-b-but – " Draco stuttered confused.
"But nothing. Repeat lesson four to me."
Frantically, Draco tried to remember what the vampire had said this morning. "A-always ask?"
"That is right," the vampire purred, "slaves are to ask their masters before doing anything. And have you asked me if you can go to the greenhouse?"
"N-no – " Draco was shaking by now, cold sweat breaking out over his whole body. He thought Asmodeus had told the vampire...
"So you admit that you have disobeyed your master?" Before Draco could answer, the vampire growled. "And disobedient slaves have to be punished. If you scream, I will only extend your punishment."
Biting the inside of his cheek, Draco nearly screamed nonetheless when sharp fangs sunk into his neck. Contrary to all the other times the vampire had fed on him, the pain didn't abate, staying a constant, bone-jarring pressure. Slowly, Draco clawed one of his hands into his thigh, the different pain helping somewhat to divert his attention from the panic rising in his throat. Just when he thought he couldn't endure it any longer, the vampire withdrew his fangs and licked the wounds closed.
Gasping for breath, Draco would have collapsed to the floor if it hadn't been for the vampire holding him upright.
"Do you remember your lesson now?"
"Y-yes," Draco nodded hastily, trembling on his whole body.
"Good. Now that you've already spent the whole morning with Rahkesh, I want your company. Follow me."
Almost hyperventilating, Draco tried not to think of what the vampire meant. To his relief, the vampire didn't go upstairs but went into the sitting room where he immediately sprawled across the whole length of the couch. Remembering the rest of his 'lessons', Draco reluctantly knelt next to the couch, and the vampire purred.
"You learn quickly, mortal. It is almost a pity; I think I will have to find more reasons to punish you. Your pain and fear taste so sweet."
Patting Draco's shivering head, the vampire gathered a newspaper from the couch table and proceeded to read it. After several minutes of the vampire's attention being focused elsewhere, Draco's terror gradually receded. Another few minutes later, boredom began to set in, only startled out of it when the vampire turned a page.
Finally gathering enough courage, Draco asked. "M-m-may I fetch one of my b-books to read?"
Eyes lowered submissively to the floor, he nonetheless felt the vampire's gaze on him. After half an eternity, which he spent trying not to fidget under the stare, the curt reply came. "You may."
Trying not to fall over his half-asleep legs, Draco hurried upstairs to his room to get one of the potions texts he had started on. Asmodeus had provided him with a surprising variety of books on all kinds of subjects, and he hadn't even made a dent into them. Hurrying back to the vampire, this time cursing the pins and needles feeling in his legs, Draco settled back against the couch more comfortably than before.
When no comment came from the vampire, Draco slowly relaxed and opened the book. It was the first time ever since his capture that he almost forgot the presence of a vampire in the room outside of a chess match.
A/N: I'm not going to cover every day, so you shouldn't wonder where Day Two went – if nothing special happens that can't be covered by a simple flash-back, I won't write a whole chapter. But it will be a rare occurence when I skip more than one day. You shouldn't get used to the chapter length though - the next ones will be considerably shorter.
And thanks to those who have reviewd so far!