As a reminder, you can find MORE of this on my SubStar (dot adult slash KajaWilder), it's posted up past chapter 50 there... And if you guys haven't seen an update in at least a week, please let me know! I have a busy life, and I get distracted and forget things. This story(as well as ZpoW and PTaL) are supposed to be updated WEEKLY!

And if you're just interested in discussing things with other readers, of course, you can go to my DISCORD here: h- t_ t_ p-s -: -/ -/ -discord . g-g / N9yDA8t6Cw (taking out hyphens, underscores, and spaces of course).

AND A NOTE: This chapter's gritty. Again. Not quite TW-worthy I think, but not an easy read for sensitive folks.

AND I'M SO SORRY! I don't know why I didn't post the 1st week of Sept (honestly, I thought I did), and the next I took the whole day off 'cause it was my birthday, and then this last weekend I've been at a Con- which, yes, was great fun, thank you. :)
And thanks to the couple people (here and on Discord) who did actually remind me it's been three weeks- this might've been posted at earliest tomorrow, if not for them. :)

Still, as always, if you can't wait... see that demi-link above, and the links at the bottom of that Discord. Ch. 112+... just sayin'. lol

Chap. 77: Questionable Sanctuary

Lilith, in her guise as Lyra Sendai once more, found Ron in the kitchens, of all places, getting his long dick sucked by Hannah Abbot, and another Hufflepuff girl the Succubus did not recognize at first glance. While being as randy as any other teenagers in Hogwarts, Hufflepuffs as a general rule took care of their own, and had for ages, so most of them were not as repressed as the other Houses.

Thus, it took a few seconds for her to recognize the girl and remember her name: Poppy Caxton. She was pretty enough, and had dreams as lurid as any other in her dorm, but until now had next to no sexual experience. That made sense, as she had a difficult time talking to boys.

The same did not apparently spread to sucking dick, for the girl, a year younger than Hannah and Ron, was licking his shaft eagerly as Hannah, far more experienced, jerked him off while giving her a few tips.

Several House-Elves worked on the other side of the kitchen, away from the four long tables that sat beneath the ones in the Great Hall. None, she noticed with a glance, were paying the students any heed. Almost studiously so, as if they had been told not to watch enough times that they simply took it for granted that they should ignore any youthful indiscretions.

Ron was the only one who looked up as she stepped through the door, but that made some sense. The girls were more engaged, and a wave of her hand along with a flutter of invisible wings and pink powder left the girl not 'in the know' helpless before her own lust. Not that she hadn't been fully into sucking off Ron already. As the secondary wave of pleasure and lust wafted over her, Hannah actually looked up, now very familiar with the feel of Lilith's magic, "Oh, hi, Lyra. Don't mind her, Poppy, just keep doing what you're doing. Ron's loving it, isn't he?"

"I sure am," the Weasley boy said with a grin, then waved a hello to the Succubus himself, "You're back. You aren't fuming, so I take it Harry's okay?"

Lyra nodded, glanced at the younger girl on her knees, then stepped forward and pressed a hand against Ron's forehead. A moment later he was grunting, as a powerful orgasm washed through him. The girl, caught by surprise, could only swallow with wide eyes as Hannah held her down, at least on the tip, "That's alright, Poppy, just relax. Swallow what you can- it's a sign you did well, you know, when a boy cums in your mouth. Don't worry, you get used to the taste and texture."

Poppy gulped again and again, Ron's secondary connection to Lilith was more than enough for his own semen to be a lot richer, thicker, and more rapidly produced than normal, so she was likely swallowing down more than she had ever dreamed in her relatively inexperienced life. She went at it gamely though, until she coughed a little, gagging on it, and some went up into her sinuses.

It was at that point that Lyra, in an act of mercy, manipulated the cum inside her body to flow downward instead. If nothing else, they didn't need the girl to pass out because her sinuses were full as much as her throat.

Once he was finally done, Ron sighed and pushed her away gently, prompting Hannah to remove the hand on the back of Poppy's head, "That was really good, Poppy. I bet your boyfriend, uh... what was his name... Kevin, will really appreciate it. You're a good teacher too, Hannah."

A little bashfully, Hannah rubbed the back of her own head as she looked up at him, "Well, I'm no Lyra or Hermione, but I like to think I've learned a bit. Just helping out a fellow 'Puff. Really though, Poppy, if that trick I showed you doesn't show Kevin you're a hundred times better than Helen Bach, then I don't know what he's thinking. I guarantee that little tart hasn't figured out how to make a man cum like you just did. Just use the confidence this should give you."

"Fank you," the girl tried to say through a mouthful of white goo, before she swallowed and tried again more clearly, "Thanks, Hannah, and Ron. I never thought it'd be that fun- or that I'd be giving my first blow-job with an audience, heh, heh... hi, uh... Lyra, right?"

"That's right," the Succubus chirped, "Now, don't take this the wrong way, but... Sleep."

The girl slumped against Ron's leg then slid to the floor. Both of Harry's friends looked up at Lyra with a mixture of confusion and worry evident on their faces. She held up her hands disarmingly, "Don't worry, I just had to put her out with Eye of Dominance for a bit, I don't think this should be common knowledge. Yes, Master is alright, at least physically. Emotionally, mentally... he's very worn out but he will survive. Dumbledore isn't though, he's been poisoned with something bad and is in the Hospital Wing along with Master. It's best if you guys leave them alone for now, give them time to heal. Let the others know, if you can. I'm going to do a little something to help on my end. Alright?"

"R- Right," Ron said, then stood up firmly before hitching up and closing his trousers and robes. His wand fell into his hand a moment later, and he levitated Poppy up into the air, "Hannah, can you arrange her so she doesn't fall as I set her down at the bench? Thanks."

"Good thinking, Ron," the blonde replied, then did as he asked, "I'll go tell Neville, he's in the Greenhouses."

"I guess I'll find Hermione and Ginny then," Ron nodded, "and see if either of them know where some of the Slytherins are. If not I'll... I don't know, go wait or look in the quarters."

"I'll meet you there later then," Hannah nodded, looking concerned, just like the taller boy was.

Once they were gone, Lyra turned to find the elves now watching her with a look of worry, too, "Don't worry, I'm sure your boss will be fine. Your medi-witch is talented, right? Anyway, I'm going to go help out. Bye!"

The moment she vanished into swirling shadows, the elves relaxed. They didn't need her knowing it was her they were worried about, after all.

Nott - no longer Theodore, for he cared for the name no more than he cared for his past - growled in triumph before he ordered his servant to resume sucking his massive cock again. The Vampiress, well used to the order and now thoroughly conditioned, did not hesitate to obey. His member broke her open and ruined her throat, but the magic that kept her alive and dead at the same time regenerated the body as quickly as his size ruined it.

All in all, it was quite a pleasant experience, and he had already known the Vampiress enjoyed pain as much as the pleasure the rope around her neck gave. Good, yes, that was as it should be.

The Master would be pleased with him.

His task was complete. Complete, just like he was! A finished creation, final, perfect!

He was by far the superior of the two, of course. Only a fool would fail to see that, and Nott was no fool. Not anymore. He had been foolish once, arrogant, prideful, lustful. He still felt that last one, but it no longer ruled him, just as it no longer ruled his master. Pride? No - that was for lesser, imperfect beings. Arrogance? What need have he of it? Just look at him!

Indeed, Nott did look at himself in the large, wide mirror someone had graciously provided him and his companion. The Vampiress still preened in front of it nightly, in an effort to look good for him. He didn't care, it kept her amused while he worked. And he did appreciate the way she looked, of course. The bed had long since shattered under their rutting, the clothes torn and shredded by his claws as she had worn one thing then another for his amusement. Now she went around naked, as she should, available for his pleasure at all times. Clad only in her rope... as she should be.

Nott was a gargantuan creature now, some twenty feet tall, with thick, gray skin as hard as any dragon hide, knotted and ridged with muscle and spines and thick blastocysts to provide just a bit more protection to the softer insides. The thicker spines moved up the outside of his wrists up to his elbows, and the front of his lower legs to his knees, where great spikes, several inches long, composed of black, twisted bone, and made stronger than naturally possible by magic, served as close-range weapons - not that he needed them. Nott was prodigiously strong even for his size, and the claws that adorned his reptilian feet and still human-shaped hands were an inch or more as well. Two bat-like wings rose from the top of his back, and two smaller, insectile pairs, sprouted from above the barbed, scorpion's tail growing from the base of his spine. That alone was twelve feet long, able to reach around his body or between his legs, but not over it. Fangs, dagger like and over four inches long, kept him from speaking intelligibly, but again, Nott did not care.

He could now speak with the power of his mind and will alone. He could destroy Master, if he chose: His innate magic resistance and sheer ferocity would suffice. But why should he? Master gave him pleasure, gave him power. Master was all that was worth serving. So serve he would.

The creature once known as Theodore Nott had never noticed the more subtle enchantments on the rope, ones that circumvented his own will more carefully and slowly than they had his 'pets'.

But that was alright with Nott. He was loyal, rather than foolish.

He could destroy Master, in theory, but why?

Master was giving him pleasure, yes, and power, such power! His fingers alone could cast any spell the weak, foolish, arrogant boy he had once been could do. His strong arms could lift horses and throw them dozens of feet if needed. He could bound, if not quite fly, hundreds of feet with the wings gliding or lifting. And he could fly, if needed, for short distances. It was just terribly tiring, even for him: he weighed in excess, Nott guessed, of three tons. Even with magic aiding his flight, it was not easy to get and keep his size airborne.

But that didn't matter.

He ejaculated, filling the Vampiress with the only food she had been given in months aside from his ever-regenerating, potent blood. She smiled around him, then pulled off and waited while her own throat regained its normal shape before speaking.

"Is it done, Master?"

"Yes, Pet," his thoughts told her while a savage-sounding snort came from his own altered mouth, "I will make use of your lower end once, and then we will go. This night, we place it. The next, we rampage. For Master."

"Yes, Master," she cooed, and rolled over, sighing with pleasure as his meaty hand lifted her undead flesh and sheathed it where it belonged, then left her there to do the work herself. His own hands turned to caressing the magical device he had spent months laboriously crafting.

It was deceptively simple looking, for all the complexity of the enchantments he had been ordered to layer upon it.

All it would do... well...

Nott grinned. He could think about that later. He didn't care. Pleasure mattered, and fulfilling Master,s orders mattered. The how and why did not.

For all their size, his claws were nearly silent as he padded down one of the side passages out of the Chamber of Secrets, Nott carrying his pet and his package to where they had been instructed.

Things were happening, finally, after too long.

After this night, this one more day, he could have all he wanted. All the blood, all the flesh, all the power, all the pleasure. All of it. All for him... because he was the only one deserving of it.

Master's magic told him so.

Harry felt his pulse and respiratory rate dropping, but it was agonizingly slow. The Hospital Wing had been quiet for more than twenty minutes now, and the frantic, desperate activity by several of the smartest, best-educated, and most powerful witches and wizards he knew had mostly fallen still. Madame Pomfrey was now the only one actively using magic, her wand still moving ceaselessly over the old wizard's body. The others, Professors McGonagall, Sprout, Flitwick, and Slughorn - not coincidentally the current Heads of House, he dimly realized - had come to join his own silent vigil. There were a few chairs for visitors against the wall behind Harry, but none of them sat.

On his left, Horace Slughorn still dabbed at his sweaty, red face and neck with an already too-wet handkerchief while he fought to control his own breathing. Pomona Sprout, beyond him, was equally red-faced but breathing a little easier thanks to a Calming Draught she had prescribed herself from the Healer's potion cabinet. On his left, the Transfiguration Professor and his own Head of House stood tall and straight-backed, her expression as firm and solid as he had ever seen it.

Did she suspect that she might have to take over as Headmaster because Harry had failed?

Because Dumbledore, too, had failed?

He knew McGonagall had stepped into the role before, and likely would again. Whether or not it was a permanent thing, though...

On her other side, Flitwick alone seemed relatively relaxed, though the part-Goblin was still clenching and relaxing his fists with some regularity as he murmured almost sub-audibly under his breath, his eyes closed. A meditation or mantra ritual, perhaps? Harry did not know.

What he did know was that he could use the same, and no one seemed to care.

Then again, what was his own trouble in light of Dumbledore's?

He had been there. He had seen the poison, cut off the man's own leg before the Headmaster had cauterized it. Seen the extent and breadth of awe-inspiring magic, both subtle and extremely powerful, that Voldemort and his long-time adversary had used to either protect or gain access to the Horcrux they had destroyed.

The ring that Harry now carried in his pocket.

It was a soft weight, barely noticeable unless he focused on it, but it was all Harry could do in some moments to ignore it.

There was no more taint of darkness, of evil, of Voldemort.

But there was still something there. Heady, strong, like a drug, or that first rush that preceded an orgasm, making him ache to take it, to finish, to go over the edge into blissful oblivion of release.

Or maybe it was the exact same siren's call as the Veil in the Department of Mysteries.

He knew that sound, knew its haunting melody, for he had heard it most of his life. Harry James Potter only now realized it for what it was, though he knew not why: Death.

Death. Motherly, it sang its lullaby. Calling to him, as a friend it beckoned. Goading and taunting, it became like a nemesis.

Death was just beyond that ring, or the stone within it, which had once held a fragment of Voldemort's soul. How one might cross over, or use the ring to achieve that blissful, chaos-free, struggle-free state, Harry did not know. Presumably, Dumbledore had recognized it for what it was. Certainly, his actions as he lifted the artifact with his wand, and then asked to borrow Harry's cloak for a moment signified that.

But did it matter? The ring represented Death as a concept, in some ways, he thought. Yet Harry had almost no desire to wear it, to wield it. It had no power to bring Dumbledore back from the brink.

It was unnecessary, in that moment that stretched interminably.

Finally, after what felt like hours, even Poppy Pomfrey started to relax, her spell-work slowing. Then she exhaled, and seemed to slump, her body collapsing in on itself at least a few inches, "He's... he's out of the woods. For now. Thank you all for your help."

She said it without looking at any of them. Harry didn't blame her. No doubt, each of them felt they could have, should have, done more, somehow.

As if that were possible. Reason told him it wasn't, even while his own heart and soul screamed at him, silently, that there must have been something, some clue he had missed, some spell he should have known, damn it.

Pounding feet grew louder in the corridor, and soon the door was thrown open by people Harry felt coming through his own growing bond with them. Ron, of course, and Hermione, Ginny, Neville, Hannah, Lavender, Pansy, Daphne, Tracey. Along with them were Parvati and Padma Patil and, trailing in after the rest with bandages still over her own now mostly-healed wounds from when she was attacked, Luna.

"Harry!" several of them cried the moment they entered the room, before the Healer's wand stabbed over her shoulder, and a silent spell dropped the noise level to, well, silence.

The Mediwitch turned slowly, her back coming up again as she reasserted dominance in her own domain. A swish had her own spell canceled as the students finished piling in, "You will not yell in my Hospital Wing. The Headmaster needs rest."

"Yes, but Harry-" Hermione acknowledged, looking frantic as the Patils and Lavender nodded beside her.

"'M fine," Harry told them, and twenty-four eyes moved from where they searched the beds to the side. Most of them widened, some almost comically.

"R- Really?" Ginny asked, sounding strangely timid.

Harry nodded, "Yeah, not- not a scratch on me."

Pomfrey snorted, and turned from the intruders to him, "I'll be the judge of that, if you don't mind."

Yet as she ran her wand over him, casting many of the same spells he had seen her use on Dumbledore, or on himself previously, her own eyes widened, "You.. you truly are unhurt. It's a miracle. You left the castle, and you are unhurt."

Beside him, McGonagall's eyes narrowed as she looked down her nose, "You went on an adventure, with Albus, and you are unhurt. It truly is a miracle. Has Christmas come early, and I didn't notice?"

Slowly, soft, quiet chuckles and titters broke through the gathered students and teachers. Harry only rolled his eyes.

He would happily put up with the older witches taking the mickey, if it helped them all relax. He could use the relief himself, "Yes, I'm fine. Truly. Uh... where's Lyra?"

"Pretending to be you, I think," Ginny told him, separating from the group to be the first to give Harry a bone-crushing hug, "Trying to give you an alibi, or something. It's what she called as we were dashing out, anyway. Said she'll be there when you need her."

Harry nodded, his arms feeling quite nice around Ginny's narrow waist. The feel of his first, well, second, but first official Pet against him was always pleasant, her slender, toned body a near perfect match for his own Quidditch-honed frame, "We love you, Harry," she said quietly, "All of us. You know that, right?"

"Yeah, I- I love you all too. Yes, even you, Madam Pomfrey."

"How sweet," the exhausted witch replied with a dry tone, "I think I'm going to go need to brush my teeth," then she turned the knot of students, "Mr. Potter will be along shortly. You lot can wait in the hall, or the lounge next door. I do not want you bothering me while I work, so please keep the noise down. The Headmaster's condition is not good, but he will survive the night. I expect he will be conscious again by morning."

"R- Right," Ron nodded, then turned and held his arms out wide, "Alright, ladies, Nev, let's go, you heard the lady. Lounge next door."

While Neville and the Patils did leave with him, all of the other girls, lead by Hermione, scooted around the ginger's chivvying to come up and hug Harry in turn. Luna patiently waited for the rest, then shooed Daphne and Tracey out the door as if the Slytherins were some of her oldest friends before she stepped into his arms for her own long, gentle hug.

Like Ginny, she was on the petite and slender side, but the Ravenclaw's body was softer, sweeter somehow, which fit her somewhat kooky, spacey personality just perfectly as far as Harry was concerned. One by one, while she held him, the Professors exchanged a few words with each other then drifted away, leaving the Healer to the last bits of her work.

Finally, when it was just the two of them and Pomfrey left standing in the infirmary, the witch turned to Harry and sighed, "At least it wasn't you on the beds this time, but poor Albus... Whatever that snake injected him with, it was no natural toxin. His heart is... well... it's not doing well."

Harry stiffened, even in Luna's gentle arms, "He... is he...?"

"Oh, he won't die yet," the Healer said with a sad chuckle as she glanced down at her charge, and ran a hand over his long white beard, "He's got a few days left at the very least, and a year or five if I have any say in the matter. But he's old, Mr. Potter. The venom... If I had a sample, I might have been able to make an antivenin potion, but without it... I'm afraid there's not much more anyone could do."

"I'm sure you did all you could," he replied woodenly, though he meant it. He just couldn't seem to muster much emotion, not after the day he'd had, "I... I wish I could have done more."

"You most certainly saved his life," the Healer sniffed, then raised a scolding finger, "I won't have you feeling bad about this. I mean it, Mr. Potter: He would not be alive, right now, if not for the swift action of you and your... friend. Albus Dumbledore is many things, but invincible is not one of them."

Harry snorted, "If only."

"If only," the older witch agreed, "I promise you, Mr... Harry. He'll live through the night, at the very least. Days, weeks, a few years. He fought hard, you know, that's why I had Horace get the magic replenishing potion. He was exhausted from whatever adventure you had done, and needed the extra juice, as the muggles say, to keep fighting. And he's won, for now, but I'm afraid it's a losing battle in the end."

"What about the Headmaster's Phoenix?" Luna asked quietly, her face buried in Harry's chest. He could feel it getting wet, and knew the girl had been crying silently in his stead.

"Fawkes? I... I suppose if we can get him to comply, it would help. I don't know that it would cure the damage. Or more accurately, it would likely cure most of the damage, and remove some of the traits of the venom... but it won't be able to do all of it. It's worth trying though. A good suggestion, Miss Lovegood."

"Thank you," Harry whispered to the witch, and she traced the scar on his arm left from the basilisk almost four years earlier.

She knew. By now, all his friends knew the truth of what had happened every year.

Following the urging of both the Healer and his lover, Harry followed Luna out of the Infirmary a little while later, his eyes lingering on the relaxed, pain-free face of Albus Dumbledore. He breathed easy, and though he was a little pale, Harry was almost able to convince himself that the man's body was not broken, not missing a leg from the knee down, or poisoned with a lethal toxin they were not likely to find a cure for.

Almost.

Things were quiet in the lounge. Daphne sat between Pansy and Tracey, Ron sat next to Pansy with no hint of animosity, Hermione held Ginny's hand, who held Lavender's, next came the Patil sisters who had stayed with the group, while Hannah and Neville snuggled across from them in the small, cozy room. A fireplace had been lit by someone, and refreshments were sitting on serving trays on the small table in the center. Some had glasses of water or pumpkin juice, but only Ron seemed of an appetite. Still, he held only a half-eaten biscuit in one hand.

"He's going to be okay, at least for now," Harry said in lieu of greeting. The majority of his friends had looked up despondently as he and Luna stepped inside, but it was only after he said something that they truly reacted. Most exhaled a long, deep sigh of relief.

The only one who didn't was Lavender, who nodded, then frowned, "For now...?"

Harry could only shrug, "For now. The... There was a snake. He used a lot of magic getting the... the thing, getting us in. It was my job, mine and Lyras' to hold off a swarm of snakes. We... we missed one. Or it came up under him. Either way, he got bit. Some kind of magical poison, sort of like... well, I guess like the one that bit Mr. Weasley around Christmas last year."

"I heard about that," Lavender whispered, and the Slytherins nodded too.

"Draco was really happy about it, the little shite," Pansy informed them softly, "I can't believe I used to think he was cool."

"You're with us now," Ron reminded her reasonably, "so at least you three have come to your senses. Well, I suppose Bulstrode and Flint and your sister have been alright, Greengrass. Not all Slytherins are pure evil."

"Surprisingly mature coming from you," Ginny chuckled weakly, but no one did more than smile wanly at her joke.

Harry couldn't blame them, it was all he could muster, too, "Anyway, the... he used more magic, things I'd never heard of or seen before, to get us the rest of the way in. That was... a- after he made he sever his leg to stop the poison from spreading more."

There was a sharp intake of breath, and Daphne, Lavender, and Parvati looked decidedly green in the face, while Hermione, Ron and Ginny were simply stony, stoic. Pansy, if anything, looked a little excited, "Then you cauterized it, right? I've heard that's the best thing to do, at least for magicals, if it's a bad poison."

"Yeah. Well, he did. Then we went... in. There were some... well, memories in the place. More defenses he broke down with even more powerful magic, after all that. We- we did find the... the thing. And it's destroyed."

He couldn't mention, not even to these his closest friends, what he suspected was a great weakness of Dumbledore. Or what the ring was. Maybe it was a good thing he didn't actually know.

"A- Anyway, we found the thing, like I said, and then Dumbledore collapsed after he... fixed it. Something about it was cursed, and keeping Voldemort-" Harry paused while several in the room shuddered or jumped, then rolled his eyes as he continued, "alive. It's gone, so he's one step closer to being defeated for good. That's all I'll say on the subject for now, it's pretty need-to-know, and most of you don't. It's as much for your protection as ours. Seriously, Parvati, Padma, I can't stress this enough. No one talks about this. No one hears about this. No teachers, no friends, no family, not even with those in this room. It doesn't get discussed at all. Ever. Once he's gone, maybe. Maybe I'll let everyone in on the secret. But until then, if you want Voldemort gone... keep it absolutely quiet."

"I promise," Parvati said at once, her expression strangely serious.

"I swear I won't talk about it to anyone, not even Parvati," Padma added, just as grave.

"Good. Uh... anyway, then we found something... else. Something not related to Voldemort, I think, but just... there, in the place. Maybe he was trying to keep it away from us, or something. I don't know. After we found it, he- Dumbledore collapsed, and then Lyra brought him here, to Madam Pomfrey. I set the place on fire, burned... watched it burn, to the ground, then she came back for me just as that was finishing. You know most of the rest... The professors and Pomfrey stabilized him, kept him alive. It was... pretty touch-and-go, but it looks like he's fine for a day or two at least."

"Good," Daphne exhaled, "I feel like we all still need him. He's... well, frankly, he's been someone our father has been a political opponent of for our whole lives, but he's a good man. A good leader, a good Headmaster. And I know he means a lot to you especially, Harry. So... I'm glad he's going to be okay."

Harry nodded, "Thank you."

He didn't have the heart, not just then, to tell them how much that 'for now' really was just 'for now'.

A QUICK NOTE AGAIN: Dumbledore's not dying from this (at least not immediately). However, I 'will' be following the whole 'hero's journey' thing. He's not gonna be around much longer. Rest assured, for all his other faults, he'll be going out with a bang, and not for a few chapters yet. ;)