Jon - I will reveal nothing about how or when Harry notices :P. I do love the idea of Harry teasing Vlad with garlic and getting sassy with his vampire friend.
As for moving over to Year Three, I'll write the last chapter of this and the first of that, then upload them at the same time so when people finish this they can get right to starting on Year Three. If that makes sense?
Krazy Katieness - I'm glad you ship the boys! They are a cute mix, I agree. And of course, I'm glad you also enjoy the story/plot. :D
-YDHP-
"There is a dozen students staying, and three of them are me, you and Ingrid. That whole chamber scare really empties a place out." Vlad nodded, stretched out on his bed reading about portkeys. "And Draco, which is good because I'm not happy about leaving Ingrid." Harry sipped at his drink, reading through some information on basilisks. "I know, but we aren't even going to be gone a whole day and they'll be fine in Snapes quarters with Nimmy. Who knows, they might even get along." "A Dracula and a Malfoy. Wouldn't that be something. Ew." Vlad shuddered, pushing the topic aside as they prepared for tomorrows adventure. "Mind you, he doesn't know you're vampires yet. Though he knows Bertrand is, he may work it out. Hermione did." "Hermione is secretly psychic, I'm sure of it."
Harry had to give his friend that, Hermiones intelligence and insight was frightening. She was home for the holidays, as were the Weasleys, they had been adamant to have their families back together. The closest thing Harry really had to family was Hogwarts, and Vlad. "So, do you think you can work with the port key to make sure Samael makes it in one piece?" "I think so. I'll be doped full of replenisher anyway, so I should be firing on all cylinders. Just make sure your big snake doesn't eat me." Harry chewed the head off his chocolate frog, then burst out laughing as he looked at the wizard card. "Relative of yours?" Vlad looked in confusion at the scribbled cartoon-like picture, then flipped the card over.
"Count Vlad Drakul (1390 - unknown) was a notorious vampire who inspired the author Bram Stoker to create his famous character Count Dracula. Drakul had a son, Vlad the Impaler, who presumably shared his father's notorious reputation."
Vlad started laughing, which confused Harry slightly. "This is based on my father. The dates about twenty years off, and it was his father who was Vlad Drakul, or Count Dracos - Vladimir the Dragon. That's who I was named after. Bram Stoker was hypnotized into some inaccuracies, helps us stay just under the radar but he was smart, remembered a lot. My father filled the spot of Vlad the Impaler, mostly because he did impale half of Wallachia. He's mellowed since then." Harry was now staring blankly at his friend - how was he not completely psychotic if that's who he came from? "Right. Well, you can keep the card if you like, maybe he will get a kick out of it." Vlad put the card in his trunk, thanking Harry and resuming his reading.
"What does Samael even eat? I mean, he hibernates for months at a time, and going by the skeletons in the chamber he lived off rats, but he has got to have one hell of a metabolism to be that big. And he's going to be alone a lot." "I don't actually know, I guess I'll ask him. Hold up." Harry hissed over at Lily, who was dozing on Neville's empty bed next to Phantom. "What does a basilisk eat?" "Small vertebrates. Rodents, mammals." Lily hissed sleepily, then coiled right back up and went to sleep. Rolling his eyes, Harry relayed the information back to Vlad. "I wonder if we can get hold of the Ministry creature classification. That would be the best source of info, unless anyone ever finds Herpo the Foul's work, or Salazar Slytherin's."
"Who's Herpo the Foul?" Vlad looked at Harry incredulously, then went back to his trunk and pulled out another Wizard card. "First guy ever to breed a basilisk. He was a parselmouth, and a lunatic. His basilisk was angry, aggressive but that could be down to the owner, Samael said basilisks are docile unless used for other purposes. And lived for nine hundred years, but Samael has to be over a thousand if Slytherin left him down there." "So you think he might die soon?" Vlad shrugged, putting the card back. "I don't know, there isn't a lot of information on them and Herpo bred the first. There's so many variables - how long Samael slept for, waiting. What kind of tests, food, environment - Herpo bred his in Greece."
They put their books away, then went down for lunch and followed Bertrand back to his quarters after. "Don't suppose you would know where we could get hold of Ministry Creature Classifications? You always seem to surprise us with your book access." Bertrand looked surprised at their blunt question, then rolled his eyes. "I do have a copy, as it happens. Not that I should, but, well, you know us vampires. Terrible for rule abiding." Vlad locked the door, keyed specifically only to Snape, Ingrid and Draco as they perused the book. "Class XXXXX. Unable to be controlled, domesticated, human killing. Basically the ultimate danger. But Samael is calm, and as close to domestic as a sixty foot snake can be. Not that I can exactly tell them that." Vlad was making notes from the book, particularly the other XXXXX classified animals to compare to.
"Manticores, pretty much all dragons, werewolves... That's odd, I wonder if the Ministry differentiates between born and bitten? Dementors, don't the Ministry use those as prison guards? So clearly they can at least be controlled." Vlad mostly chattered away to himself, leaving Harry to read more on Samael and his kind. The door rattled, then knocked and they had their work cleared away and hidden within ten seconds, then Vlad waved his hand to unlock the door, revealing the headmaster. "Sorry sir, practicing on specifying people in allowances. It worked!" Dumbledore looked at Vlad for a minute, then nodded and turned to Bertrand. "I have a letter from the Vampire High Council for you, would you accompany me Mr du Fortunesa?"
Harry and Vlad made themselves scarce, taking advantage of the empty library to start working through Vlad's list of creatures in comparison to basilisks. "Anything to pass the time?" "Ingrid did threaten to stake me if I interrupted her first day with a completely empty dormitory to sleep in. She missed lunch, but I'll check in with Snape if she isn't at dinner." Ingrid was at dinner, declaring she had the best days sleep ever when they went out to visit Hagrid and Vlad was visibly relaxed seeing she was alright. By the time they got back to their dorm, Draco was back from spending the day with his godfather, they were starting to work on what to do about Narcissa Malfoy.
"Still not telling what this mystery adventure tomorrow is?" "We will when we get back, I promise Draco. Ingrid doesn't know either, you guys can complain about being kept in the dark together and hear all about it when we get back." They trusted Draco and Ingrid not to tell anyone, but the fewer people who knew they were about to move a giant snake out of Hogwarts illegally, the better. They went to breakfast like normal, then casually strolled down to Snape's quarters when the eight other students had disappeared outside to enjoy the April sunshine. "You two go ahead, we will meet you there in twenty minutes." A staggered approach was a good idea, so Vlad charmed Bertrand with sun protection spells, drank as much replenisher as Snape would let him and picked up his backpack.
"How do you feel?" Vlad was visibly jumpy, his hands shaking as they closed the door to the bathroom behind them. "Like I'm about to explode, but in a good way?" The young vampire was bouncing off the walls almost, and Harry was waiting on their teachers so Vlad could make the portkey and ease off the excessive magic he was holding on to. "I'm scared to move too fast, it feels like it's all going to come out. Is it twenty minutes yet?" Harry checked his watch. "Fifteen. Just try to meditate or something, you do plenty of practice." "Can't, can't even stop my hands shaking." By the time their teachers arrived, Vlad was twitching and sparks kept flying from his hands. "I think we should have waited to give him the potion."
"Open the chamber, before I spontaneously combust?" Harry turned and looked for the right sink, somehow knowing how to find his parseltongue ability instinctively this time as he hissed "open". They all stepped back as the sinks pulled open, and Harry remembered the grime of the pipework. "I wish that other way worked in, not just out. Still, I have spare clothes this time. Lets go!" Vlad practically leapt down the hole, leaving Harry watching in bemusement for a moment before he jumped down after and quickly cleared the way for the teachers. "Good garlic, that is pretty grimy." Snape rolled his eyes, and Harry felt a little daft for not thinking of it before. Though he was scared for multiple lives at the time. "Scorgify!" Soapy water ran down the pipe, making them all somewhat Vlad for the raised piles of skeletons keeping them out of the grimy flood.
"Well, if we ever decide to visit again, at least it's cleaner." Vlad was hopping about as they walked through the chamber, Harry hissing to open the next door then stopping them. "Wait, I need to renew the charms and put them on you two or you'll get killed when he comes out." Vlad let Harry charm his face, then redid his own and again, the hissing was much easier. "Here we go." Casting parseltongue spells on teachers was mildly nervewracking, but both could still see clearly when Harry was done. "Professor Snape, meet the founder of your house." Harry pointed to the huge stone face of Salazar Slytherin, still an eerie sight to Harry - his apparent true heir. Closing his eyes, Harry tried calling Samael's name.
"Wait, Riddle said something first to call Samael out." Vlad was right, but Harry genuinely couldn't remember what he had said. "I know you aren't a parselmouth, but can you remember how it sounded?" Vlad scrunched his face up, still twitching anxiously. "Can we make this portkey first? I can't focus." Bertrand handed Vlad a photograph of his home to fix on, and Snape gave Vlad a star shaped piece of metal - so everyone could reach and touch it together. "Portus." The metal glowed a bright blue, then faded away to look normal. "It'll activate on touch, I don't know how to password it so Bertrand, you'll have to levitate it until we're ready." The vampire nodded, hovering the portkey in the air and Vlad went back to remembering.
At first, it was a strangled choking sound, but then Harry could recognise some of it. "Try again, I actually understood half of that." Vlad's eyes widened, but he tried again and Harry understood "Beast of Slytherin, I call you to serve the heir." Nothing happened, but then Harry realised - he was the heir, he had to call Samael. "Nice impression." Speaking the words himself, Vlad nodded to say he had hissed them and the stone mouth creaked, lowering and a large, scaly head was soon visible. "You call me?" "We're busting you out of here, come on Samael. You're going somewhere safe and spacious, I promise." "As you wish master." Bertrand and Snape both watched avidly as the snake kept going, and going and going until he was finally all out. "Vampire. Slytherin. Interesting." "Vlad's tutor, and the current head of slytherin house respectively." Samael seemed to sort of incline his enormous head to the two teachers, then turned back to Harry.
"I need you to sort of coil up so your tail is pointing out towards me, and touch it to this thing when we do." Samael shifted his bulk, graceful and easy considering his size. "Ready guys?" Bertrand lifted the star to hover between them, everyone with a hand out and both Vlad and Harry with hands on Samael. "On three." The countdown was slow, everyone poised as timing was critical. "Three!" Closing his eyes, Harry felt like he had been pitched through a supernova as the world rushed by, pulled by something lodged in his stomach that he couldn't see. His feet slammed to the ground, winding him and he fell, realising he could feel cool, smooth scales against him. "Samael? You alright?" "Disorientated. Otherwise unharmed." Vlad looked green next to them, Snape and Bertrand looking fairly fine.
"I hate portkeys. Everyone alive?" "Open your eyes, and you'll see we are." Vlad cracked an eye open, brightening when he saw Harry the other side of Samael. "Did I do it right? Is this the right place?" Bertrand confirmed his residence, indicating the way Samael should slither down to the tunnels while they walked. "That alright?" "Of course. Though, are there others around? I may draw attention." Harry asked Bertrand, and he confirmed they were quite alone. Watching the basilisk exit through an enormous door, Harry hurried down to the tunnels to see Samael join them there.
"How long do I stay here?" "Until we can figure out a place you can stay with me I guess. A couple of years? I'll visit, or I can put you back to sleep until we find a way?" Samael contemplated his options, having spent so long asleep already. "Once I have somewhere, you won't ever have to go through suspended animation again. Temporary, and nobody will know you're here." "Very well. However, I would like to eat first."
"Uh, ok. Any preference?" "Perhaps a large mammal? Rats are excellent, but it has been so long since I had any variation." Unsure he could agree, Harry had to ask Bertrand what sort of thing they could find for him. "There's a farm nearby. Sheep, cow, horse or goat?" Samael replied with "whichever is larger." They left him to eat the stolen cow alone, so he could cough up the skeleton in relative peace before Harry returned to put him to sleep. "We'll put up protective charms for you. I'll be back for you, don't worry." Given his previous masters, Harry wasn't sure how used to the growing affection he had for 'his' basilisk Samael was as Harry rubbed the scales between his eyes gently. Samael coiled up in a wide space, touching Harry's leg very softly with his tail.
"Is it warm enough here for him? We can use a spell to stabilise the temperature if he needs it." "Probably a good idea. In case it gets too warm or cold, nobody will be here to know." Snape did that spell, and Vlad hovered nearby watching Harry 'pet' the snake. "We'll figure out a way for you to stay with him in the future, and until then we will put alarm spells up to make sure nobody ever disturbs him." "Thanks Vlad. I know he did bad stuff, but that wasn't his choice and now he's... he's mine you know?" The boy vampire squeezed his shoulders, then placed a hand next to Harry's on the scaly head. "I get it. So long as he never hurts anyone else, I'll work on forgiving him for Ingrid. He did help cure her after all."
"I don't wish to hurry you, but the longer we stay the more likely our absence will be noticed." "I know." Bertrand did have a point, so Harry swallowed the well of emotion he was still surprised to feel, connected to this creature somehow, and stepped back. "Stay close to your vampire, he is good for you." Nodding to Samael, Harry hissed until the serpent was coiled, eyes closed and Bertrand said his heart rate was near nonexistent. "Is that what's meant to happen?" "Yes, it's very similar to being petrified, except voluntary and much easier to reverse. We should leave soon." Vlad gripped his wrist gently, pulling Harry away so they could put protective magic up to keep Samael safe while he slept. "Nobody but Bertrand can get in here without us knowing about it, and they wouldn't get far enough to even see Samael."
"I know. Thanks guys, I know this is a big deal and a huge ask. I appreciate the help." "No problem. Just keep him out of trouble." "Unlike Vlad, who follows you in to trouble." Their 'way back' turned out to be side along apparition to near Hogwarts, into what Harry thought was called ' the shrieking shack', an immensely haunted building. Bertrand went with Snape first, then the potions professor came back for Harry and Vlad. "When we land, use your invisiblity charm on all four of us, I know the way to Hogwarts that slips under the charms barring entry." Something in Snapes face made Harry wonder what had led him to such knowledge, but didn't push. Vlad charmed them all when they got there, and both Vlad and Bertrand looked... almost offended, by something about the shrieking shack. "What's up?" "Smells awful here. Lets get out of here."
They encountered a mild setback when Bertrands sun spell wore off a minute before they got to the doors, the vampire having to flit ahead before anyone noticed him smouldering while invisible. Vlad ducked behind a stone pillar to reverse his invisibility, so someone could open the door and let the others in. Safely back in the head of Slytherin's quarters, Vlad reversed everyone else's charms and dropped heavily next to his sister. "I am beat, but if you bring more replenisher near me I may vomit right now." "Chocolate then, should offer some relief to almost magical exhaustion." Vlad nodded, hunting through his backpack and coming up with a bar of 'Honeydukes finest chocolate' from the latest Weasley twin haul. "Here professor, that multiple apparitions probably took it out of you too." Snape looked surprised at the offer, but did take a couple of pieces with a quiet sound of gratitude.
Ingrid eyed them oddly, and Harry expected she probably would have started sniffing them properly like Vlad did sometimes - if Draco hadn't been there. "So, do we get to hear this story or not?" Still surprised they, for the moment, had somehow gotten in and out of Hogwarts with Samael and back again without getting caught, Harry took the tea Nimmy was offering around and indicated the adults could lead the story telling - he was still missing Samael somewhat.
-YDHP-
I am aiming to be done by 50 chapters, because it will drive me batty if I hit 51 or 52, so apologies if I possibly rush things. I will do my best not to, because there isn't loads to go before the end of year two. And again, I love each and every one of you who follows this story!