Date: Wed, 18 Jan 2012 02:08:43 -0500
From: Jesse Jesse <gmmac1987@hotmail.com>
Subject: To Hold The Heart Of A Vampire Pt 3

	Though Draco had ideas of several possible members of the order, he
most definitely hadn't expected the morning when breakfast was interrupted
by a visit by Professor Snape. And perhaps most shocking of all was that
everyone surrounding the breakfast table greeted him civilly. Snape had
merely given a curt nod, nothing different there, but when his eyes found
Draco they'd widened substantially. "Draco?" "Hello Professor." Snape's
nostrils flared a bit at the attempted casualness of Draco's greeting.
"Draco do you have any idea how worried I have been about you?"  This
question acquired the attention at the table. "Worried Professor?"  "Yes,
worried!" snapped Snape. "Since your escape and your parents' death, the
Dark Lord has been livid. He has questioned me more times than I care to
count, asking if I had any knowledge of your whereabouts. Several of the
other followers have even questioned my loyalty to him. How stupid of you
to leave in the manner you chose!" Draco felt his face flush, but was
thoroughly shocked when an unexpected champion came to his rescue. "Now,
just a moment Professor. We've all heard Draco's story, and especially
since you've seen firsthand the same things as Draco, you can't blame him
for wanting to get away!" Weasley! Draco couldn't believe his eyes, but
Snape was not to be deterred. "Silence Weasley! I neither require, nor
requested your opinion on the matter. The fact remains that Draco has put
my life in even greater danger than ever before by his treachery. If you
were so concerned with his wellbeing, why wasn't I notified that he was
here?! I am his godfather! And what do you know of what either of us have
seen? You've been here, protected from..........."  Draco couldn't explain
the sudden surge of rage that he felt bubbling within his soul. "Don't you
dare speak to him in that manner!" Snape rounded on him again. "You will
not raise your voice to me Draco! You forget that I have seen you, seen
your new place of residence. What would the Dark Lord think if he were to
find out that one of his followers had chosen to take up residence with the
very group who oppose him strongest?"  The force with which Draco leaped
across the table, catching Snape by the throat, and subsequently pinning
him against the wall, surprised even him. "How dare you threaten me! I can
assure you, Severus. I know from firsthand experience, experience acquired
after my leaving that son of a bitch's presence, that there actually are
things to be more feared than simple death!" For the first time in Draco's
life he saw a flicker of pure emotion on Snape's face, fear! And as Draco
stared into the wide, black eyes, he remembered that Snape hadn't known
about his transformation. A hand was on his shoulder. "Draco! Draco! Let
him down. Draco, stop or you'll choke him to death!" Ron. Draco turned to
see the rest of the table sitting goggling at them.

	It was evident that even Hermione, with all her knowledge and text
books, hadn't expected such a transformation after Draco's infection. Truth
be told, almost everyone in the house had avoided him for the rest of the
week after his incident with Snape. The only person who didn't seem to
avoid him was Ron, er, Weasley. For all those years of cursing and hexing
each other at school, Draco found that they'd gotten along quite splendidly
in the weeks he'd been here. Though he couldn't explain why, Ron seemed to
be popping up in his mind at the oddest times. He'd jerked awake a few
nights ago after dreaming that he and Weasley had been sitting alone, just
sitting and smiling at each other. Another night had brought another
incident of him waking to the tantalizing aroma that had roused him weeks
before. This time he'd propelled himself from the bed, throwing the door
open to find Weasley creeping down the hallway towards his room. Ron had
jerked to see who he'd awakened. "Drac....er...Malfoy? What are you
doing?"......................Draco felt his face flush. "I..........I just
thought I smelled something." The times when he found himself jerking from
his deep reverie to someone staring impatiently at him when they'd realized
he hadn't been paying attention were most embarrassing. He'd grandly
humiliated himself at the dinner table a few nights ago when he'd been so
enthralled by Ron's blue eyes that he'd not heard Mrs. Weasley warn that
the night's soup had just been pulled from the stove. Everyone had laughed
hysterically when he'd taken a sip, only to spew the scalding soup on
Mundungus' vest. Finally Draco was forced to admit that he was going to
have to seek help from someone in the house. He began considering the
people who frequented the house. Lupin! Yes, Lupin was the Defense Against
the Dark Arts teacher, and being a werewolf himself, he probably knew about
dark creatures.

	Finding private audience with Lupin proved harder than Draco had
expected. It seemed he was forever surrounded by someone from the
order. Potter was forever bubbling to Lupin, gushing with sickening
affection and asking about his wife Nymphadora. Finally came the day when
Draco found Lupin studying in the library. "Uh, Professor Lupin, do you
have some time?" The haggard looking werewolf looked up and met his
gaze. He stared at Draco a moment and then smiled faintly. "Come in
Draco. I've been expecting you." "You......you've been expecting me?"
"Yes. I've been wandering when you'd start having some questions." "What
are you talking about?" "You've been realizing the truth about you and
Mr. Weasley, haven't you?" Draco's heart almost stopped. Though he was
relieved that the werewolf knew why he was here to speak with him, he
couldn't believe it was that obvious to him. "I don't understand. Has it
been that obvious to everyone?" Lupin chuckled. "No Draco, I don't think
anyone suspects but me, but you have to remember. I am considered a 'dark
creature' myself, so I do know a thing or two about other dark creatures. I
was the reason Arthur brought you here to begin with. He thought I might
know how to treat you, though I confess I didn't. But down to the reason
you've come. You've started having feeling for Ronald, haven't you?" Draco
could've fallen over. He couldn't believe what Lupin had asked. "Well,
I.....I......I wouldn't exactly say 'feelings.' I just wanted to..." "You
just wanted to know why you suddenly seem obsessed with him? Maybe you
suddenly want to know why you can't get him out of your head, regardless of
how hard you try to concentrate on other things." The werewolf wore a
wicked grin, but his face gradually turned more serious. "Draco, it's okay
that you feel this way, and I actually can help you with this. I know the
answer, but I won't guarantee you'll like it." Draco was a bit apprehensive
to ask, but knew he must. "What is the answer?"............... "Ron is your
mate." ................................................... "My what?"
"Ronald is your vampiric mate." "What the bloody hell kind of an answer is
that? That's the fucking stupidest thing I've ever heard!" Lupin's eyebrows
arched. "So, if I were to ask you if you've not been suddenly intrigued by
his appearance, you'd say no? Or if I were to ask you why you nearly killed
Severus the other day, you'd say you weren't trying to protect Ron from
him? I'd be willing to bet that, by this time, you've even started picking
up on his scent!" Draco's mouth fell open. "No! You've got to be joking!"
Lupin's eyes twinkled as he stared at Draco. "I'd hardly joke about
something like this Mr. Malfoy. Here, I suggest you read this." He handed
Draco an ancient, very worn book. "This will give you enough information
for now, at least enough so that you'll understand what's happening."

	Draco rushed with the book back to his room. Lupin had already
marked pages he found would be most useful.

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They Mysteries Of Magical Creatures And Their Mating Rituals

Section: Vampires

Though vampires are considered to be among some of the most evil creatures
to roam our world, they are observed to be very affectionate with their
own. A vampire discovers their mate shortly after transformation is
physically and magically complete. Many vampires studied have been
surprised to find that their mate may is someone who has been part of their
life for many years, though both parties have been unaware of the true
magical bond. Commonly vampires find their mate through an overwhelming
sense of smell (usually one said to be erotically pleasant to the vampire,)
though other signs of a vampire's growing bond between their mate and
themselves are obsessiveness, protectiveness, and the calming effects their
mate can have on the vampire's disposition.
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That night's dinner was the normal bustle of chitchat and talk. Lupin sat
at one end of the table staring at Draco. Occasionally he would catch
Draco's eyes and mouth "you need to tell them." But Draco couldn't. He just
couldn't. This couldn't be possible, not Weasley! But his internal turmoil
was to be interrupted. There was a loud clearing of a
voice. "Mmmmm...Mmmmmmm. Excuse me everyone, but I believe Draco has an
announcement to make. Draco?" The table grew quite as all eyes fixed on
Draco. Draco searched the table for something, anything to stare at, and
then he saw them. Two blue eyes were boring holes into him, but they didn't
hold the usual friendly twinkle. No, tonight they seemed to hold a
fear. "Draco?" He jerked from his reverie and tried to regain some form of
his composure. "Well.......uh.........I wasn't planning on announcing this
tonight, but since Professor Lupin has brought it up. I need to tell
everyone that I know who...." "Malfoy!" Ron's voice had almost cracked as
he'd shouted at him. "Sorry to interrupt, but I need to speak to you, in
private."