Harriet Potter and the New Fangs
Chapter 1: Turned
As the young girl ran through the labyrinth of small alleys that made up the backstreets of Little Whinging, Surrey, a figure wreathed in shadows followed behind her, not needing to use the waning light from the full moon to track its prey.
Gasping in shallow breaths as she ran, the girl turned a corner before promptly digging in her heels to avoid slamming into the wall in front of her. It was a dead end.
She didn't know what had been chasing her; she could neither see nor hear it, but she could feel its presence closing in on her ever since she had narrowly escaped from 4 Privet Drive. Closing her eyes and hiding behind a nearby bin, she felt her pursuer round the corner and clenched her eyes tighter, praying that it wouldn't be able to find her.
She sat there for what felt like hours, but in reality, was likely only a few minutes, before she opened her eyes and slowly peered round the bin to the alley entrance. There was nothing there. Breathing out a sigh of relief, she made to continue towards the train station, before there was a sharp yank on the back of her head as she was lifted up by her hair.
She struggled as hard as she could, flailing her arms and legs uselessly before there was a piercing sensation in her neck and she quickly found herself unable to move and her mind numbing as the world began to fade around her.
Just as her consciousness fell into the depths of her mind, a muffled crack, like that of a whip, sounded around her and she slumped to the ground, unconscious.
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Remus Lupin awoke from the haze of his transformation, feeling the fresh cuts on his face and arms as he stumbled to his feet and took in the forest around him. He had lived in a cottage in the woods ever since a friend had bought it for him, and had been transforming there every full moon for the 12 years since.
Despite the numerous times he had awoken in the forest after turning back into his human form, he had never seen this area before, so had no idea what direction his home was in.
"Ostende mihi viam," he cast after retrieving his wand from the sleeve of his robe, a path of small lights appearing and floating in the air. About 4 years prior, he had figured out a way to keep his clothes and wand during his transformation, saving him from many an embarrassing moment whilst finding his way home. Now that he could easily access his wand, he could simply cast a compass or direction charm and he could easily make it back.
Beginning his trek back to the cottage and hoping it wasn't too far – the spell only showed him the fastest route – he quickly settled into his usual slow pace, his bones and muscles still aching from the pain of involuntary transformation.
As the building came into his view and the lights began to slope uphill, his enhanced hearing picked up the sound of shallow breathing to his right. Turning to face it, he saw a small figure lying face down on the ground, unmoving.
They had long and messy red hair that cascaded down their back, and they appeared to be thin and extremely malnourished.
Rushing over to check they were alright, praying desperately that he hadn't caused this, he began casting diagnostic spells at them, letting out a small gasp at what he found. They had recently been cursed, and as he saw the small puncture wounds in his neck he inwardly sighed.
"Merlin's beard!" He almost yelled when he flipped them over, their hair falling away from their face to reveal a scar in the shape of a lightning bolt upon their forehead. "It can't be…"
Before him lay the unconscious form of his best friend's daughter, the only surviving member of James Potter's family, a girl who had just been subjected to a horrible curse. Before him lay the form of Harriet Potter, the Girl-Who-Lived. Before him lay the form of a newly created vampire.
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Harriet jolted out of the bed underneath her and sat bolt upright as she attempted to clear the fog from her head. Only after a second or two, realisation dawned on her and a cold dread settled itself over her body. She was on a bed, and she hadn't hit her head on any steps when she sat up. In fact, the white ceiling of the room was at least a meter above her head.
The fog cleared more as she began to panic. Had she been caught during her last attempt to run away? Had Uncle Vernon made good on his threats and sent her to some sort of psychiatric institution?
As these thoughts continued to run rampant throughout her mind, she launched herself at the room's open window and into the forest outside. Luckily for her, the drop had been shorter even than her tiny stature.
15 seconds passed of her sprint away from the building before she reached a clearing in the trees, and less than a second after the sun's rays made contact with her skin did a searing pain akin to that she felt when Uncle Vernon used his branding iron on her begin.
She collapsed to the ground whilst – in her mind – screaming in agony, and as she felt herself slip into unconsciousness, she heard the faint sound of footsteps approaching her.
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Harriet awoke more slowly this time, her body aching, to find herself in the same room as before, though now there was a man sitting in a chair beside the bed. He looked ill and exhausted. And although he appeared quite young, his light brown hair was flecked with grey. Upon his face were littered numerous scars of varying ages.
She attempted to back away from the man but stopped and winced as a flare of pain surged through her body at the movement.
"I wouldn't advise moving around too much yet. I was able to somewhat heal your burns, but since they're technically cursed wounds, they'll mostly need to heal on their own," the man spoke softly.
Harriet's face morphed itself into a look of shock and confusion, unsure of what he meant by 'cursed wounds', and attempted to ask for an explanation, though only a wheezing sound escaped her lips.
"Don't worry, your voice will come back to you in time. I suppose you'll want to know who I am and where you are," He spoke again and seemed to think on what to say next before continuing. "I'm Remus Lupin, an old friend of your parents. We were in the same year at Hogwarts. As for where we are, this is the cottage your father gifted me 12 years ago, located somewhat near Symonds Yat in the Forest of Dean."
She gestured for something to write with as her confusion deepened, and Remus swiftly passed her a notebook and pen.
What do you mean by cursed wounds? And what's Hogwarts? Is it a school? She wrote.
Remus frowned at her before responding. "You weren't told of it? Do you at least know of magic's existence?"
Magic is real? She hastily scribbled as her face began to portray more shock.
"So you haven't been told anything?" she shook her head and Remus sighed before speaking once more. "There's a lot to say here, so I'll summarise and tell you more later. Your parents were a wizard and witch respectively, and I'm a wizard as well, meaning I can use magic. Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry is Britain's main magical school, and teaches students aged from 11 to 18 how to control and use their own magic. I attended it, along with your parents."
Ok, but what did you mean by my burns being cursed wounds? And when did I get burned
Remus sighed and his face became grave, as did his voice. "When I found you in the forest a week ago, you had recently been cursed. Given how much blood you'd lost, I presume your attacker wasn't planning on letting you live, so it was lucky you accidently apparated away," he sighed again. "Listen, Harriet, the morning that I found you, you'd been turned into a vampire. That's why you got burned when you entered the clearing yesterday."
I'm a vampire? she wrote as she struggled to comprehend her new reality. Firstly, magic was real, and secondly, that she was now a vampire.
Remus nodded gravely. "Unfortunately, yes. You were very lucky to survive your encounter, but you didn't escape unscathed."
What happens now?
"I believe you'll have to consume at least the same amount of magical blood in your body each month, luckily this means you don't need to feed on humans, and can take small amounts from magical creatures over a month. There is something else you should know though."
What? she hastily wrote.
"Within the magical community, magical creatures that can wield a wand or have 'human-like intelligence'… well, let's just say we aren't treated very well."
We?
"Ah yes… that. I'm in a similar situation to you, though werewolves are generally treated worse than vampires due to how rare it is to survive a vampire attack compared to one by a werewolf, meaning vampires are much less common."
So you're a werewolf? she wrote after thinking for a moment.
"Yes," Remus responded. "There is something else you need to know, though."
Something else?
He nodded. "Indeed. You should know, you are quite the celebrity in Magical Britain."
I'm famous?
He sighed once more and his features appeared to become more sombre. "You see, in 1970, a war started in the magical community, the opposing parties being the Ministry of Magic, our government, and the Death Eaters, people who believed that those with 'pure' magical blood were superior. The Death Eaters were led by a very powerful dark wizard known as-" Remus flinched slightly as he spoke the name. "Lord Voldemort, who most people call You-Know-Who or He Who Must Not Be Named. The war ended on October 31st 1981 when You-Know-Who went after you and your parents. That night, he killed both of your parents with the killing curse, which instantly kills anyone it hits. However, when he turned his wand on you and attacked you with this same curse, it backfired and hit him instead, making you the only person to ever survive it and causing you to be given the title of 'the Girl-Who-Lived'."
What happened to Voldemort?
He flinched after reading her words. "No one knows. Some think he died, though others, like myself think he lost most of his power and is biding his time, waiting until he has amassed enough strength to return."
So my parents weren't alcoholics who died in a car crash?
"Merlin no!" Remus almost yelled. "That couldn't be further from the truth! Your parents were the greatest people I've ever met. And they certainly didn't die in a car crash."
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Hey everyone! I hope you enjoyed the first chapter of this fic. This is the first part of a 7 part story, as I'll be posting each year as a different story. Please leave any suggestions in the reviews, I'm not the best writer so any and all advice or feedback is appreciated.