Chapter 3
That night, in the Gryphandor dormitory, all of the other girls fought for the place farthest from me. Some even hung slices of garlic bread above their beds, which only succeeded in stinking up the room. I would have told them garlic didn't hurt me, but then they'd try to stake me or something. I figured I'd let them have their little bit of comfort.
"Just so you know, I don't drink human blood. Gran only lets me drink animal blood."
"What's the difference?" one of the girls demanded.
"None, actually. Blood is blood. Sure, types taste differently, but that's really only in humans. Or so I've heard. I've never actually fed on human blood."
"And you talk about drinking blood like it's not that big of a deal."
"Well I'm sure that to you, eating isn't that big of a deal. Feeding is to vampires as eating is to humans. Not that different."
None of the girls had any reply for that, so they all lay down and went to sleep. I crept out of bed, pulled out a piece of parchment, a small bottle of ink and a quill. I wrote a short note to my grandmother.
Gran,
I don't like Hogwarts. All of the other kids think I'm some kind of demon. They believe all of those really horrible stereotypes about us. Even now, some of the girls in the dormitory have hung garlic bread above their heads so I don't bite them. Can I please come home? Seriously, only two people in the whole school seem to not condemn me, and that's Dumbledore and Harry Potter.
Why didn't you tell me Harry Potter was my age? He doesn't even act famous. He's the nicest human I've ever met, but he should be the worst.
Write back soon. PLEASE let me come home.
Lenny
I gave the note to my owl, Midnight, and opened the window for her to fly out. The cool night air felt good on my skin. I glanced quickly back at the other girls, who were all asleep. I laughed quietly as I jumped out of the window, allowing my bat like wings to materialize and spread wide.
The next morning, I made my way to my first class, transfiguration. I was one of the first in the class, except for that little snob Hermione. I was not pleased to find that I had to sit next to Hermione; I was sure, though, that I could put her arrogance to rest once we started practicing magic. I had read all of my textbooks multiple times before and had studied magic in theory since I was two. After all, vampires have to use magic to transform themselves.
Aside from Harry and Ron arriving late, which was fairly awkward, nothing about the class stood out.
I eagerly awaited the mail and Gran's reply and was annoyed that there was a delay and the mail wouldn't arrive until lunch. While I sipped my daily ration of animal blood, I hoped desperately that she would understand my point of view and take me out of Hogwarts. When Midnight dropped the envelope on my plate, I could barely contain myself, tearing it apart and reading it in a hurry. My excitement disappeared when I read the first word of her letter.
Lenny,
No. You're not coming home and that's that. If you're going to get along in the wizarding world, you have to get along in school. They only think those things about you because they do not know you. Once they learn who you really are, they'll like you.
Besides, you've already made a friend. And I didn't tell you about Harry Potter because I don't want you to be one of those crazed idiots annoying him constantly. You have a lot in common. You should pursue this friendship. Hagrid told me that he is a very nice boy, and you have more in common than you know. You'll be fine, sweetie. Trust me. Just give it a chance. In a few months, you'll thank me.
With love,
Gran
I wanted to tear it to shreds. I almost did, but I just folded it neatly and tucked into my pocket. I put my face into my hands, trying not to cry. I was about to jump up and run to the bathroom when someone sat down beside me. I held my breath, waiting for the person to laugh at me.
"What's wrong?" Harry asked.
I looked up at him. "Nothing you'd care about."
"Well, I'm over here, aren't I? If I didn't care, I wouldn't ask."
I hesitated for a moment. "My gran won't let me go home."
"Why would you want to go home? This place is great."
"Not for me. Everyone's scared of me. They all hate me."
"You seem nice enough. Once they get to know you, they won't hate you."
"You say that like you don't."
"Hate you?"
"Yeah."
"I don't. You haven't done anything to me to make me hate you. You seem like a decent person."
"But I'm a vampire."
"You mean a person that has to live on a liquid diet?"
I smiled. "Thanks… friend?"
"You're welcome. Things will work out in the end. You'll see." He hurried off to his next class.