*＊✿❀ Chapter 7 ❀✿＊* “-I’m a vampire.” Nora didn’t know what to expect, but it was anything but that. “Wait-I don’t understand….You’re like, an actual vampire?” She asked, backing away a few steps. “Yeah, and I’m ashamed of it. It’s why I’ve been up so late and why I haven’t been helping you as much, especially when you took them outside.” He explained bluntly. “I still don’t get it….Does Dumbledore know? Why haven’t you told me this before? Why didn’t you tell me that I’d have to take over pretty much all the Prefect duties?” “Yes, Dumbledore knows. And I told you, I was-and still am-ashamed of what I am. And as I said, I’m sorry for leaving all the work to you.” Nora’s mind swam. A vampire? It did all add up, he had left the day jobs to Nora mostly, and he hadn’t been in exactly the brightest part of the library earlier. “How though? How did you become one?” Jeremy shook his head and gestured to two armchairs. “Sit, I’ll tell you.” They both sat down across from one another. “My parents were Death Eaters, as everyone knows, two evil, but normal people. My father had fallen incredibly ill when I was ten, and my mother couldn’t go off into the forest behind our house, deep in the forest, and find Mallowsweet.” “Isn’t Mallowsweet incredibly easy to purchase though?” Nora asked. “In most parts of Europe, but not where we lived, right in the middle of nowhere. Anyway, I was afraid to lose him, as any sane child would be. So I set off into the forest alone, I knew there was werewolves, dark mongrels, vampires, trolls, and other creatures in the forest, but I went anyway. My powers had just been starting to come in so I thought I really had a chance to make it out unscathed.” Jeremy heaved a deep sigh. “I was so very wrong. When I was far enough to where I couldn’t see the light of day or my house, I knew I was far enough. I began to look around and it grew later and later, though the trees blocked the light so I couldn’t tell how late it was. I finally had found a cluster of Mallowsweet leaves and yanked them right out of the ground, when all of a sudden, I felt something sharp in my neck, and I collapsed. Not long after, Ministry officials had found me laying unconscious and bl**ding out of my neck terribly, they heard a hissing growing more distant and presumed it was the vampire. They brought me to St. Mungo’s and I remember waking up with my mother at my side, sobbing, until she noticed I was awake. And I’ve lived with this burden ever since.” He finished. “That’s….Awful, I’m so sorry. If there’s anything I can do….” “All I ask is that you take the first years outside when it’s bright and that you tell no one about this.” “Of course.” Nora nodded quickly. The next day, the first years had already left the common room, Nora supposed they had a lay of the land by now, so she had a few minutes and spent them just relaxing and watching the grindylows swim by. "I knew it." An unfamiliar voice said, moving closer to Nora. She turned around in her chair.
A fourth year boy had come up from his dorm with a smirk on his face that made Nora feel uneasy. "I knew he was a vampire, that freak." He said, his hands in his pockets, though Nora knew he had his hand on his wand. "....He isn't a freak, at least, less of a freak than you. Sneaking up on me like a Demiguise? What's that for?" "I heard you two last night. I'm going to expose him to the whole school at lunch." Nora frowned, "Why? What has he done to you?" "He's been a bully his whole life! He's nearly gotten me expelled multiple times!" The boy argued. "Does it make you any better to go off and tell everyone his secret?" "I will not settle for anything less, I will have my revenge." "I should warn you, boy, that both me and him are Prefects, doing this will either end up with you losing a hundred and fifty points for Slytherin, or expulsion." The boy just glared at her for a bit. "I know he hasn't exactly been kind to you either, don't you want revenge?" Nora did, she did want him to feel guilty, but never this way, she would guard his secret as if it were her own. "Not like this, no. He threatened me on the Thestral carriages, but he trusted me with his darkest secret, I am not about to let that slip. So, if you expose him, it won't get you expelled, but I can make it seem like you were doing something much worse to him. It's your choice." Nora had him trapped. *Perfect,* she thought. "Fine, but you can't guard his little secret forever...." On Saturday, Nora met up with Calvin in the Entrance Hall where Filch was checking all the students for illegal objects. Not long after, Dakota showed up holding hands with a very pretty red haired girl, Dakota introduced Laveda to Nora and Calvin, then the four of them were off. The grounds had been thinly layered in snow and the dirt was crunchy to walk on, Nora pulled her scarf on a little tighter as the wind picked up a bit.
