Chapter 14: Professor Kangae

Professor Kangae was a very old, slant-eyed man with a long white beard on his chin, no wider than a 10-pound bill, a fine mustache framing it and long white hair too, very fine, that fell above his waist. He was very tall and stood very straight. His outfit was halfway between the wizards robes Dumbledore used to wear and the kimonos of 19th-century Japanese samurai.

This man, a friend of Professor Flitwick, had cleared his schedule to come and help them. In the two weeks since Harry had suggested the idea of involving a legilimens, Jasper's condition had been regressing. Memories of Voldemort entering his head to show him images of his family being tortured, or torturing him with a modified version of the Cruciatus Curse, looped through his mind. The vampire had regained control over the man, who was struggling to resurface and even Harry was finding it difficult to approach him. His emotions had been so violent that he had destroyed the bedroom furniture on several occasions. He had confirmed, several times, that he agreed that the legilimens should look into him for the key to lifting the curse, but having the choice wasn't enough to calm his anguish.

Seeing him like this hurt Harry, who did his best to help him; he found him new books every day, on every subject, and the vampire read them two or three times each in less than twenty-four hours. He also supplied him with paints. Esmée had once confided in him that Jasper liked to paint to externalize other people's emotions. Since then, the walls had been repainted every day in dark colors that inspired pain. Edward or Carlisle always made sure to observe the latest mural and put the memory of it in the pensieve dedicated to Jasper. However, what upset Harry most was that the empath refused proximity or discussion with him now. He always stood in the farest corner of the room and ordered the young man to stay away. Harry obeyed, for both their sakes, but couldn't help feeling saddened and hoping that the next time would be different.

The first thing the Professor had done on arrival had been to dive into the pensieve while Flitwick, Arthur, Percy, Hermione and Harry chatted over a cup of tea. All had been shocked by the images they had seen, but the Professor emerged stoic. He confirmed that he could explore Jasper's memories, but doubted his ability to remain undetected by the vampire's mind - Voldemort had probably left obstacles in his way.

Carlisle then pointed out that Jasper risked losing control if he suffered and attacking anyone in the room with him.

This risk made them think for a long moment; the legilimens master couldn't practice his art through the magical barrier erected by Professor Flitwick and needed to be calm. The more Jasper became agitated, the more painful it would be. What worried Arthur and Percy most was the old wizard's safety. The latter didn't seem so concerned about the risk and decided that he would stand just behind the door so that he could be evacuated if necessary, while Edward and Carlisle would stand by Jasper.

They all knew that the empath was likely to be in a bad mood when they went upstairs, dressed in their death eater outfits, but none of them had expected the mural painted on the walls.

All the walls were black, but the shades revealed a smoking ruined castle and a forest filled with hooded shadows. Their eyes followed the clouds of smoke rising to the ceiling, only to lose themselves in black clouds. The wizards couldn't hold back a shudder of horror; in the middle of the ceiling was painted the mark of darkness, green and horrifying.

"This sight, that night, is when He came. The last time I felt the wind on my skin, the last time I could breathe fresh air."

Jasper's cavernous voice made them tremble even more than the mark, it was much deeper and huskier than his usual voice. Leaning against one of the walls, dressed all in black, the white skin of his neck and face stood out morbidly and made his black eyes even more frightening. The Major, the vampire, had taken over the man and everything about him inspired danger. However, Harry couldn't help but find him handsome as the empath walked like a black panther towards them. He advanced to the magical barrier, detailed each person clad in a black cloak, smirked as he fixed his gaze on Kangae.

"So you're the one who's going to search my mind.''

'' I'll be as discreet as possible.''

''Find what you're looking for as quickly as possible and get the hell out of my head."

The aggressive tone gave an idea of how the Major felt about this operation and made Harry fear the worst, but when he fixed his gaze in his, the young man saw a few golden flakes light up. He hoped this was a sign of the presence of the one for whom his heart was beating faster and faster, and prayed that all would go well.

Carlisle and Edward passed through the magic barrier with two chairs and moved into the room in slow motion, alert to the vampire's reactions between them. Guided by the legilimens' thoughts, they set one of the chairs right up against the barrier and the other facing it, two meters away. Carlisle invited Jasper to sit on the chair furthest from the door, but the latter didn't move, his gaze fixed on Harry's, who felt his breath catch and realized he had to enter the room. Despite the risk the vampire represented, he passed through the barrier and was pinned against the wall.

"If I killed you now, no one would go poking around inside my head," breathed the cavernous voice in his ear.

Harry motioned for the others to stand still and bent his head to rest it on the blonde hair. He raised his hands, letting them caress the taut body until they rested on the nape of his neck.

"You would then say farewell to us and your freedom. Kill me if you wish, I should have died many times already, but you know what you're condemning yourself to."

The vampire drew his head back to gaze into the emerald one, his terror at the thought of what lay ahead dancing in the black irises and coming out of every pore, yet without imposing itself on Harry. Without any warning, he recalled all his emotions and closed his gaze, letting the wizard know that he had chosen to let him read him.

"Where are you going to be?" gasped Jasper.

''Where do you want me to be?"

Harry's heart was pounding with fear, excitement, and hope. He wanted to lend his support to the terrorized empath, but didn't want to be an embarrassment to the professor.

"Be by my side."

The tone was authoritative and the phrase sounded like a challenge. Both knew that for his safety he would have to return to the corridor, but neither of them wanted to. Harry slid his hand along the marble arm and interlaced his fingers with Jasper's. Without saying a word, he walked over to the chair and sat the empath down, still looking at him defiantly. He freed his hand, summoned a low stool and sat down on it before placing his hand on the vampire's thigh.

The tension in the room was palpable and Harry knew that everyone disapproved of the decision he'd just made, but he'd always trusted his instincts, and they were screaming at him that if he didn't get in touch with his soulmate it would be a fiasco. A small voice reminded him that he wouldn't stop the fiasco from happening if something went wrong and he risked losing feathers, but he contented himself with securing his grip on his wand in his free hand. Edward and Carlisle each placed a hand on Jasper's shoulder. Professor Kangae entered the room, and without a blink from the vampire, he summoned a side table and a pensieve, which he sealed to the floor and informed that he was about to begin.

Harry's gaze locked with the one that was now as intense as a black hole, and the scene seemed to freeze around them.