Disclaimer: I do not own the rights to the Harry Potter 'verse. I am making no money in writing or in posting this.

Chapter 18

Draco woke up slowly. His senses randomly informing him of things. The main thing was he hurt! All over. He wasn't in his bed in the Potter cave/cottage. The bed linens were stiff and newly cleaned. Voices whispering too low for him to discern the words, but was not Potter. He opened his eyes cautiously, knowing that sometimes seeing made different things hurt.

It was night in the medi-wing of Hogwarts castle. Or someone cast a dark charm on the windows. He groaned. What the hell happened to him to have him end up here?

He would've rolled to his side to get comfortable again, but his body protested from shoulder, to hip, to his leg.

"Lay still, Draco." Snape advised, coming to Draco's bedside.

"Potion?" Draco croaked with a sleep heavy voice.

Snape glanced at Madame Pomfrey. She shook her head no. "I can get you some water. Here."

Madame Pomfrey scowled, but said nothing letting Snape handle Draco. Which was more then odd. Even for their school physicals, the slightest cough would have a potion offered to them.

Draco took a sip, but was unable to drink more. Snape took the cup away too quickly. "What's going on? Are you refusing to treat me?" Draco asked confused at their behavior.

"We are treating you Draco. Your condition requires time to analyze before we fully treat you." Snape replied.

"What do you need? You both know the spells to assess…things. You have my…permission." Draco was finding himself short of breath. He had to pause to breathe before he was ready to end his sentences.

"What do you remember happening, Mr. Malfoy?" Madame Pomfrey asked, like her curiosity and impatience got the better of her. Snape glared at her.

"Well, I was the forest, in our cave, when a young centaur came knocking." Draco began telling both of them, unsure why Snape was being so protective. "I followed him out and meet up with a group of centaurs and…men."

Snape gestured for Draco to continue.

Draco started to shake his head, but the pain quickly convinced him to stop. He was fine if he didn't move, but as soon as he moved anything, pain and light-headedness occurred.

"That's all. They had me outnumbered, but I don't even remember a fight. How did I get here?"

"Potter rushed you in. He barely told us anything before he had to leave." Snape was, obviously disappointed in the undead boy who lived.

"Where did he go? He's not determined to live out in the forest alone again is he?" Draco asked, worriedly.

"He said vampires had gotten hold of you. That he was returning to hunt them and demand answers."

"Dammit!" Draco winced at his own voice. "Almost wish he was being stubborn again. Wait…am I?" Draco trailed off.

Draco had thought about asking Potter to turn him. Who wouldn't think about it? Draco had held off. He never fully decided. He wanted to know what it would cost him. Potter could still do magic, obviously. Potter wouldn't have been able to change the magic of the collar, if he didn't have some sort of magic. On the other hand, he'd never seen Potter do any formal magic since Potter's change. Did Potter even have his wand? Without knowing what Potter's change fully cost him, Draco couldn't make an informed decision. Also, the time never seemed right to ask such a rude and blunt question. After his friends visited and it was obviously painful for Potter to pretend to them that he was same old Potter, Draco rarely considered asking. He certainly had no plans to let anyone else turn him, but maybe it wasn't his choice now.

Snape sighed, neither confirming or denying Draco's question. "You show some secondary traits of vampirism as we wizards understand it. You were extremely… agitated when Potter brought you in. Despite it being daytime and wrapped in Potter's cloak.

Draco frowned. So Potter got tolerance to day light and he didn't? What else was new! "What else? What makes you hesitant just saying it?!" Draco demanded.

"Because we don't know. You are still alive, in our standards." Madame Pomfrey inserted herself again. This time Snape didn't bother glaring "You have a close to normal heart beat, your temperature….well it hasn't dropped…you look pale, but no more pale then you did as a student."

"Hard to get much paler." Draco pointed out. "So I didn't like the sun, anything else vampire wise?"

Snape looked at the space above Draco's headboard. "You drank Potter's blood."

Draco risked turning his head to Snape. Ok, slow enough movement was alright. "I did, what? What…Why did he even offer?" Draco struggled with the thought.

"We were getting you settled. You kept saying please to him. Next thing I saw was you at his wrist. He got you off, but you…withdrew and fell asleep." Madame Pomfrey explained quietly.

Draco closed his eyes. "There's something that eats vampires…and it's me. That's why you can't treat me? You don't know what I am, do you?"

Snape sighed. "We can wait for Potter to get back from his meeting. You have protection while in the castle infirmary. You'll report any… urges to Madame Pomfrey." Snape started to walk out.

"That's it? What about private room? Any student could come into here…and" Draco almost whined. Snape left, leaving Pomfrey to answer.

"This is an infirmary, not a hotel. These beds are all that's available." Madame Pomfrey huffed. "Do you feel anything abnormal right now?"

Draco kept his eyes closed, they felt better that way "Tired. Hurts to move."

"Get some rest. We are doing everything we can for you dear." Pomfrey offered.

Draco drifted back to sleep.

HPHPHP

"How is he?"

Draco woke up, blearily, not knowing what woke him.

"Wha.. Oh excuse me." A tired yawning voice replied. "He's resting. He woke up briefly, and we informed him of what we knew. Do you have information on how to treat him?"

Pomfrey wakes up pretty quickly. Draco observed. Was she sleeping in her office?

"I can't. I'll be taking him back." Potter explained.

"Harry. If I am to be your physician…" Pomfrey started to pressure Harry for information.

"And that's exactly what caused this!" Potter yelled. There was a long pause. It made Draco curious if Potter's characteristics changed. Sometimes when Potter was emotional, he's eyes would grow and his vampire teeth would seem more prominent than the other teeth.

"I'll request permission. Just… treat us both like vampires and then go from there." Potter advised.

Oh god. Vampire? The both of us? Malfoy thought, unsure to be fearful or anything else.

"Harry…"

Harry came into view. Pomfrey followed him to Malfoy's bed side. Potter nodded at Malfoy. "Ready to go?"

"Am I…" Malfoy looked down at himself, his hands…they didn't seem different.

Potter shook his head. "I can't explain here. Where's his things?" Pomfrey bustled away.

"What are we going to do? You have barely enough sources….now I'm competition…"

Potter touched Malfoy's shoulder. It made Malfoy pause and look up at Potter.

"You aren't a vampire. Does that reassure you enough to get us to the cave?"

Malfoy wanted to retort no. But Pomfrey came back with Draco's clothing. "You take care dearie." She looked like she wanted to say more, but Potter's glare and desire to give her patient privacy overruled it. She left.

Malfoy quickly put the ring on first. It mollified him to know that Potter was feeling very frustrated at the moment, with an undertone of impatient.

"Alright. First the cave, then answers." Malfoy accepted. Potter's frustration started to fade.

Malfoy wished he could've skipped the whole process of traveling. Just apparated from the med wing to his cottage. But the Hogwarts wards made that impossible. Then when they got out past the wards, Malfoy had to admit to not having the energy to try. Appartion wasn't a spell a wizard could cast tired. There was a reason a whole Ministry Department was for the purpose of spliching.

So Draco rode Guide to their cave in the forest.

Draco slid off Guide's back, familiar with the task. Unfortunately, his body wasn't quite as recovered and Draco fell to his knees. Harry was at Draco's side in a second.

"Dammit."

"Are you?"

"I'm fine. Tired." Guide shifted a leg next to Draco. Without grabbing, since spider's legs are fragile, Draco managed to convince his legs to support him while standing.

"Draco…" Concern flowed thru the link.

"Stuff it. You are going to tell me what happened to me. Then I'm going to sleep." Draco demanded.

Potter offered his left hand palm up to Draco. Draco looked blankly at Potter. "What?"

"Take my wrist." Potter suggested.

Draco shook his head. At first he didn't know what Potter was getting at, but he rememebered what Madame Pomfrey had told him. "Next thing I saw was you at his wrist. He got you off, but you…withdrew and fell asleep."

"I…I'm fine. Did I really in the infirmary?" Draco asked, afraid of the answer.

Potter sighed and let his arm fall back to his side. "You did. Scared the hell of everyone at the time."

"Potter… I don't care where you start. But you better start telling me something." Draco pointed out.

"You want a start?" Potter glared at Malfoy, his eyes glowing faintly. "Let's start at that article."

Malfoy gasped. "Damn stupid idea." rung throughout his head. Master did not approve of it at all.

"Merlin… I'm sorry. What the hell?" Malfoy shook, determine not to fall again. Especially since falling this time was something he desired to show his servitude….and he wasn't a servant!

Harry grabbed Malfoy's arm. "Just breathe. Romulus made you his direct servant. That's why you are feeling all…of that."

"I'm…not…"

"Don't fight it. He said you would hardly notice it in your day to day activities."

Malfoy shook his head. It was hard to breathe. His world seemed to be small and chaotically tilting around. "I never wanted to be….enslaved." Malfoy finally managed to say.

"I know. I'm sorry, I should've not let you to talk me into that interview."

"Why….does enslaving me involve drinking blood and lack of sunlight issues?" Malfoy tried to focus on the situation.

"Vampires. Apparently they don't like training the help every hundred years. So they share their blood. A servant can live as long as the vampire provides them blood. The lack of sunlight, Romulus said you could probably do daylight stuff…just not right after…..feeding."

Malfoy shook his head slowly. "I need…I need to get some sleep. And think. He- Master isn't going just pop in here is he?" Malfoy closed his eyes. He had been unable to refer to Romulus without that title. And he felt oddly hopeful at both possibilities of Romulus visiting or not visiting.

"Whatever happens. I'll protect you, Draco." Potter swore.

Malfoy went into his cottage and fell into his bed without caring about clothes for once. Gryffindors…