Michael Brown

I was in a bit of trouble at the moment. Well, calling it a trouble would be a severe understatement, as I was currently being hunted by humanity's natural predator, with nothing to protect myself with.

Because of my careless remark, Severus Snape, our potions teacher and mighty vampire lord, was slowly approaching my desk to punish me for my hubris. He was taking his time, moving through the classroom at a sedate pace, his every movement full of almost unnatural grace. I was sure he was able to feel the fear that was slowly filling me with his every step, so he was taking his time, no doubt reveling in my rising panic.

After what felt like an eternity, but in reality was likely less than thirty seconds, Snape stopped right before my desk and spoke.

"...It appears that there are some students here, who are not interested in potions, as they can't even be bothered to stay silent when someone is talking," he said with a scathing voice, trying to drill a hole in my head with his eyes. The rest of the classroom was silent, as everyone was looking at us with a mixture of interest and amusement, unaware of the gravity of this situation. Only Luna knew what was going on, as she wasn't looking at Snape at all and was touching her onion necklace. Ignoring the audience, Snape continued speaking "Isn't that right, mister…"

"Michael Brown, sir" I replied, still avoiding his gaze. I briefly considered telling him some fake name, but I knew it would be a foolish move. He had access to the students' list, so my trickery would be quickly revealed and I would be drained from blood. It was safer to give a minimal amount of information and look for a way to disengage.

"I see…" Snape said, his voice dripping with disdain. I didn't have any solid proof, but I had a feeling he already didn't like me "So, Mr Brown. Could you tell me what's so fascinating that you decided it was worth disrupting my class?"

"It was nothing, professor" I responded quickly, knowing that I was walking on thin ice. There was nothing worse than insulting a vampire's passion. Vampires, as immortal creatures, were often quite obsessed with their hobbies, as it was their way of avoiding madness caused by centuries of unlife. I knew that Snape, perceiving my murmur as an insult to his beloved potions, got quite angry, so I had to diffuse the situation.

"Nothing? So you decided to interrupt me on a whim? Do you like to murmur without a reason, Mr Brown? I think not. Five points will be taken from Ravenclaw" He said with a sneer. He probably expected me to argue with him or display some sign of anger, but I didn't really react to the loss of points. It was hard to care when I knew that the whole point system was just a sham, made to make students hostile to each other. I was also relatively sure they were trying to make everyone hate Gryffindors, as the faculty was quite obviously biased towards them . It was harder for these natural rebels to stand up against the Ministry if they didn't have support of anyone else, after all.

Unfortunately Snape didn't seem to like my silence, as he continued speaking, his voice more cutting with every word.

"You have nothing to say?" No, I didn't, I really didn't. But I doubted he would like me saying that, so I stayed silent. Seeing I was keeping my mouth shut, he decided to change tactics to something much more dangerous to my health "And why are you not looking at me when I am talking to you? Do you have no manners, Mr Brown?"

"No sir, it's just..." I said hurriedly, knowing that my situation was really bad. I was desperately trying to come up with an excuse that would allow me to avoid looking at him, but I wasn't able to think of anything. I couldn't even lie about the reason, as he would read my mind and learn the truth anyway.

I was utterly and completely screwed.

"Just?" He pressed, no doubt sensing his victory. I felt myself shaking, as I knew that there was only one thing left to do. I had to tell the truth and reveal his unhuman nature to the entire classroom. It was still a very dangerous move, but at least he wouldn't have a reason to silence me anymore. Not with so many students knowing about it too.

I took a deep breath, preparing myself and calming my nerves, and spoke.

"... I was afraid of your vampiric gaze" I said, trying to sound as confident as I could. I didn't know if it would mean anything, but it would be better to not show any weakness in front of predator.

After I said that, the classroom felt completely silent. Everyone was looking at me incredulously, most likely shocked to find out that their teacher was a bloodsucker. Snape's face looked like it was made out of stone, as he was looking at me with worrying intensity. It took a few seconds before he spoke.

"...what did you say?" Snape said softly. His voice was very quiet, almost like he was whispering, but I could hear the tranquil fury there. His body was shaking, as he was most likely trying to contain his anger. It wasn't good, certainly, but I had no choice but to keep going. Revealing his true nature was probably the only card I had that could save my throat from being ripped apart by Snape's fangs. However, before I was able to respond, Snape shouted. "You think this is funny? This ridiculous display of foolishness will get you nowhere. Look at me when I am talking to you!"

Knowing I had no other choice, I looked. As I saw these cold, dead orbs, I instantly knew he was a true vampire. I could see a terrible weight of time in his eyes. He was like Dracula or… what was the name of that guy in "Interview with vampire"? Brad Pitt played him. It was a really weird movie. Like all these scenes with that girl vampire were quite uncomfortable and that whole undead secret society…

…Society like a wizarding world, where nobles were calling themselves purebloods. It all made sense! All magical nobles, like Malfoys, were members of various vampire clans, ruling the wizarding world for centuries. They didn't like muggleborns, as they were only lowly humans, who were somehow able to wield magic, something vampires considered to be their unique right. They were calling them mudbloods, because these humans were mingling with vampires, diluting their vampire blood with human one. It meant that…

All of the sudden Snape took a step back and broke eye contact with me, looking like he was struck. I blinked, surprised. So was everyone else, as the entire classroom was looking at our potions teacher questioningly, not really sure what happened. For the moment I thought he reacted like that because he learned about my first life, but I immediately discarded that thought. Dumbledore definitely told Snape, a member of his inner circle, about everything he learned from the sorting hat. That was why my situation wouldn't surprise Snape at all. So why did he startle like that?

Apparently he wasn't eager to answer that question, as upon noticing that everyone was looking at him, Snape just grunted.

"…Fifty points from Ravenclaw. I…Enough of this foolishness. Let's continue the class" He said before turning away and starting to write something on a chalkboard. He began explaining something about his classes, his voice weirdly calm and controlled despite his previous mood, but I wasn't really listening, as I had no idea what was going on.

Was I spared? Was it possible that he didn't use his powers on me, deeming me too unimportant to waste his vampiric magic? Or maybe he was about to do that, but he stopped himself for one reason or another? It was possible that there was some sort of magical contract he signed with school that was stopping him from using his powers on students. It certainly made sense, as I wouldn't trust a bloodthirsty vampire with teaching a bunch of defenceless children without taking precautions. Still, I had too little information to be sure.

I looked around, hoping someone would have a better idea about the situation, but unfortunately it wasn't the case. Instead of being helpful, most of Ravenclaw students were just glaring at me with barely hidden hostility, while Hufflepuff students looked like they were desperately trying to stop themselves from laughing, watching me with extremely amused expressions.

I turned to Luna, who was sitting next to me, but she only smiled and gave me thumbs up.

I didn't really know what she meant by that, but I responded by doing the same, confused by the whole situation.