Le Frère de Sang

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GENERAL DISCLAIMER - I do not own any of the characters used.

NOTES ON THE CHAPTER - In this chapter we uncover another point that will help steer this story. I am introducing Anita Blake here and I’m sorry to say that I do not show her in a favourable light. Try to see everything from Harry’s point of view though, okay?

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“Perhaps you’d be kind enough to explain where you got all of these books from?” I jerked up in bed gasping at the sound of the voice. Staring wildly around the room I saw Jean-Claude and Asher stood by the foot of the bed. Jean-Claude waved his hand indicating to the desk. I glanced at it, seeing all my books all over the surface.

“I...”

“Hm?”

“I went home for them.”

“How?” Jean-Claude asked with narrowed eyes.

“I apparated.” Seeing they didn’t understand that word I decided to show them. I pooled my magic around me again and concentrated on apparating to the other side of the room. I disappeared and reappeared with a loud crack. The vampires spun around to look at me, I was sat on the floor, having apparated when sat down. I rose to my feet and Jean-Claude looked at me appreciatively while Asher gave me an amused smile.

“I assume you travel this way often?”

“Not really, I don’t like doing it that much but it’s really handy.”

“So I assume you have erected shields in your mind?”

“Not really. I’ve mended my mindscape and I’ve got a shield up but then I had to surface from the meditation to take care of my body’s needs. I can erect the shields now though, should only take about an hour at most.”

“Very well, proceed.” I sighed and moved towards the sofa, since it was nearest. I sat down and put my head in my hands. I pulled up shield after shield in my mind. I warded the room in my mindscape. I put various different charms around the door. I changed the brick walls to steel and then changed the wallpaper to dragons hide mixed with acromantula silk, strong but decorative.

When I surfaced from the meditation I found Damian in the room and all three vampires chatting amongst themselves. I saw food on the table and my stomach gave a loud grumble pulling the vampire’s attentions to me.

“Ah, you are back with us. That took just over an hour, though it is no matter. Would you be up to having a visitor after you have dined?”

“Yeah, I guess.”

“Then I shall leave you in Asher’s capable hands. Bon appétit.” Jean-Claude then left the room with Damian trailing after him. I rose to my feet and moved over to the table. I started to eat, this time it was scrambled eggs with toast and bacon, beans and tomato. I ate everything but the tomato and half the toast.

“Nathaniel is a good cook, hm?”

“Yeah.”

“You mentioned before that you cook.” I suppose this was the vampire’s way of making conversation. I gave him a small smile before waving my hand at the plate and cutlery, my magic cleaning it.

“Yeah. I learned to cook very young and it stayed with me. It’s a good tool for survival, not to mention you can lose yourself in it. It’s rewarding, for the cook and those who eat it.”

“I agree.”

“I’ll be right back, I’m gonna shower.” I darted into the bathroom before Asher could say anything and locked the door behind me. I cursed and unlocked the door to summon my backpack to me. Asher stared at the bag as it flew through the air with barely concealed astonishment. I gave him a small smile before shutting the door again.

After my shower I pulled on some loose jeans and a tank top that clung to my chest. I pulled a button down shirt on over it but left the buttons undone because the shirt was too big for me to be done up but looked okay otherwise.

“Asher?” I said when I came out of the bathroom. Asher turned to look at me from where he’d been sat at the table.

“Oui?”

“Who’s coming to see me?”

“A woman called Anita Blake. She’s Field Marshall.”

“Why is she coming to see me?”

“You have answers to her questions.” I fiddled with the bottom of my shirt for a moment before sighing. I ran a hand through my hair.

“I’m in a lot of trouble aren’t I?” I asked, dreading my answer.

“That would depend on the answers you have, wouldn’t you agree?” I made a noncommittal noise and moved over to the bed to tidy it up.

I worked and Asher stayed quiet. I pushed my shields up to the max. Then a knock came to the door. I froze in my motions and Asher rose to his feet. The door opened and Jean-Claude stepped into the room closely followed by a short woman with long curling dark hair and dark eyes. Immediately upon her stepping into the room I felt sick. Nausea swirled in my stomach and bile rose in my throat. My magic immediately rushed out of my core trying to repel the horrible thing that had entered the room.

It felt like death had entered the room. Every part of my being was repelled by it. It felt like Voldemort all over again and I shuddered, the urge to retch and repel the nastiness was nearly overwhelming. Instead my magic tried to lash out. I tried to pull it back but it just shook everything in the room.

“What are you?!” I gasped to her trying to push down the hot liquid in my throat and pull my magic in. The woman looked at me, around the room and then stared at me for a while. I felt like repeating the question when finally she answered.

“I‘m an animator. I‘ve been told you are a witch.”

“Wizard. Witches are girls. Did you say animator? What‘s that?” I asked drawing back a step. The woman frowned at me before growling out a reply.

“Animator, necromancer…” She reeled off on a list of alternatives for the word but I just heard ‘necromancer’ over and over.

“Death raiser.” I muttered and turned my head away. Images of the graveyard where Voldemort was resurrected kept surfacing in my mind. I could feel some of the shields in my mind shudder under the stress.

“Do you have a problem with that?” The woman asked. I shuddered and tried to turn my mind from the thoughts.

“What do you want? Didn‘t you have questions about the night B-Blaise d…” I trailed off.

“Yeah I have questions but first you are going to answer me whether you have a problem with me being a necromancer or not.”

“Yes I have a problem with it. What are your questions?” I asked in desperation. My reign on my magic was loosening and there wasn’t much I could do about it. My shields cracked slightly and I could feel annoyance, tilting towards full blown anger, seep through.

“Why do you have a problem with it?” I groaned aloud and stepped a few paces back from her. I could feel her anger pulsing through the cracks in my shields like blood through veins, like a base beat through the floor. Every pulse went through my body, making the muscles tense and fill with adrenaline. My stomach twisted with more than just nausea, the anger churning inside it. My head ached and another crack split through the shield letting more anger pulse through. I grabbed my head with my hands.

“Please, just ask your questions…” I trailed off and stumbled back again only this time I hit something hard and cold. A pair of cold hands gripped my waist and twisted me around. I was pulled roughly against a hard chest and I could feel the coldness through clothes. It was empty coldness though. Hollow. No emotions. Nothing but I knew it was a body. Arms wrapped tighter around me, holding my head in against the chest, a flat muscular chest.

The pain in my head lessened. The cold, emptiness that surrounded me blocked out everything else, created a barrier around me. The anger that had pulsed through me pulsed weakly in the background almost non-existent. I sighed and released the tension in my body, the adrenaline running out of my muscles leaving a shake in its wake.

The embrace was so like Blaise’s embrace. He was cold, not this cold but still cold. And he was so hard and bigger than me and he just wrapped me up and held me to him. It was so like Blaise’s hug…but my brother was…was d-dead. But it was so like Blaise’s hug. I wrapped my arms around the cold body, my hands fisting the material on the back of the person holding me. I didn’t care who it was, just that it was so like Blaise, it reminded me of him. For a moment I could pretend it was him, him protecting me even though he’d never...never protect me again. I sniffed and tried to hold back the trembles that threatened me in the stead of tears. My eyes burned but I was out of tears.

“Shh, calm petit magicien, calm. Relax. Don‘t cry. Shh.” The hands that were wrapped around me moved so they were no longer holing my hips. One hand ran up and down my back in a soothing motion while the other cradled the back of my head, sliding into my hair.

“What‘s the matter with him?” A female voice, Miss Blake’s voice. It came from right behind me. I felt repulsion again and Voldemort’s image flashed up in my mind. I tried to push away the body holding me, it gripped me harder. I tried to push against it to move it backwards but it resisted. I let out a mutter of frustration.

“Calm yourself Harry, she means you no harm.” I stopped pushing at Asher’s voice. It came from right next to my ear. I shuddered slightly against him and tilted my head away but further into the chest.

“Ma petite, mayhap we should do this another day.”

“No Jean-Claude, it must be done today and before you say anything yes I have to do it. Either me or the others in my team but I don‘t think you want them here now do you? No I didn‘t think so. This would have been easy except from his prejudice against me being an animator.” I flinched violently in Asher’s hold but his grip merely tightened again.

“Let me go Asher! Let me go…”

“Non.” Came Asher’s reply. “Not until you have gained control over all of your shields. Do so, and I shall release you.” I jerked slightly before turning my face to the side and resting my cheek against his chest. I saw the things in the room still shaking. In fact a vase had fallen and smashed, paintings had fallen off the wall. I breathed in, my breath catching in my throat before I tilted my head up to look at Asher.

Asher’s blue eye was watching me carefully. His other was hidden behind a waterfall of his blonde hair. I could see some of the scars on his face but I was so tightly against his chest that I could hardly see much. I gave another breath in, once again feeling the air catch in my throat and my eyes fluttered shut. I lowered my chin so I was no longer looking up at him and pressed my cheek against the chest again.

I threw my mind into my mental landscape and pulled my magic in with me so it would mend the shields in my mind instead of sweeping the room. I felt my core fill up with magic again and the rest of the magic filled my mind shields and my body. Blaise always said my magic seemed to run in my veins, he could taste it in my blood.

My mind shields fixed the anger pulsing was blocked out and couldn’t reach me. I sighed in relief at the release from the foreign emotions and let my hands drop from Asher’s back to my sides. Asher didn’t release his grip immediately though.

“Are you okay now, Mon petit magicien?”

“Yes.” I breathed out and the hands dropped from me and Asher stepped backwards. I opened my eyes and looked him over again before slowly turning back around and looking over at Miss Blake. I moved my body slowly, carefully with my muscles barely responding to my minds instructions, but as soon as I saw her standing there I tensed up and looked down quickly. Just seeing her made me feel sick and knowing what she was filled my body with stress.

“Ma petite, I really don‘t think today is a good day after all. We shall try again tomorrow.” I looked over at Jean-Claude who had spoken and saw he had a hand resting on Miss Blake’s shoulder though his eyes were pinned on me.

“Why?” Miss Blake demanded, I didn’t have to look at her to know she was glaring and looking stubborn. I knew the tone well enough; it was the tone Draco Malfoy used to Blaise, the tone I used to Hermione when she tried to lecture me and the tone Ginny used to her mother when Molly discovered her daughter’s promiscuity.

“Harry is not up to this today. It was too early for him to have visitors. Especially one such as you whom he has obviously had a bad experience with in the past. And no, ma petite, that is not a prejudice but merely a survival instinct. I can smell his terror and it spikes every time you remind him of your place in the room.” I heard Miss Blake growl and turn around to stalk out. Self hatred boiled up inside of me and empathic hurt, not the kind from my ability but just from being sympathetic to Miss Blake’s situation, shot through my heart.

“No…I‘m sorry. It‘s my fault. I‘ll try to control it. Please…I don‘t want this to hang over me. I‘m sorry to have upset you Miss Blake. What are your questions?” I said trying to put as much self assurance behind the words as I could and dispel my intense fear of her ability and my nausea at her aura away.

“Non Harry, not today I don‘t think.” Jean-Claude said and I saw his nostrils flair. I stared at him for a second then gathered my magic to me. Blaise had taught me this spell; it cast an invisible bubble around the caster and held everything inside the bubble, not allowing anything to escape it. Not even pheromones or smells could escape, that would stop Jean-Claude sensing my fear through smell. I couldn’t’ cast anything to stop the sound of my heart without blocking out my voice.

“No, I can do it today. Miss Blake, the questions.” I looked at her, my stomach churned and I swallowed.

“I don‘t…”

“He said it was okay Jean-Claude. Let the wizard judge himself for himself, he doesn‘t need anyone to do it for him.” I nodded my head slightly at the anger that heated her words. Miss Blake strode across the room and pulled a notepad from her pocket along with a pen. She sat at the table and opened the pad.

I slowly moved towards the table, forcing myself to approach. My whole body rebelled against her; it wanted to run in the opposite direction and my magic rose to the surface again. I squashed it all away and approached. My breathing sped up. Anxiety filled my mind; my temples throbbed with the strain. I pulled the chair back and slowly sat down. I couldn’t look at her, I stared at the paper.

“Your first…” My voice broke off, I swallowed three times in quick succession and twisted my hands in my lap. “Your first question?”

-

Miss Blake asked her questions and all the way through the interview the stress built up. Just the thought of Blaise, let along vocally expressing truths about him to the person who was the living reminder of what happened in that graveyard, was almost overwhelming to my mind. My shields that stopped my empathic gift from working were constantly being rebuilt by me constantly slipping into my mindscape while Miss Blake asked a question. It made the interview last a very long time, my having to get her to repeat the question.

Finally we got to the end and she left after telling me she’d be in touch. I’d told her about my guardian less state and that my ex-blood brother had no family, biological or vampiric. It was decided I’d be a ward of the state. I didn’t argue when Miss Blake said she’d be contacting child services. I didn’t say anything when she told me they’d put me into foster care until I was eighteen. I said nothing but answered her questions.

The door closed behind her and no sooner had the door clicked shut than I released all the magic in and around my body. The bubble dropped, my mind shields dropped and almost sighed at the relief from the strain. The relief was so intense that black flooded my vision and I felt weightless.

I collapsed to the floor above me…the floor to the side of me…I didn’t know where the floor was. It seemed to be everywhere and nowhere. I had no sense of direction, no balance. I just had weightlessness. And I had the heavy twisting feeling that was moving inside me. It was boiling. I twisted and it gurgled and it tensed all the muscles in my body and forced my mouth open as the hot twisting vileness surged out of me. I let it go, encouraged it. I wanted rid of the vileness, rid of the evil. It had to go. My muscles tensed again and my whole body surged. More vileness was expelled. Warmth ran all over me, encased me. I pushed the vileness out, forced it out. Every trace went. I forced it to go.

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MORE NOTES:

I would like to thank all my 11 reviewers for the first 5 chapters. I would also like to thank Jade who told me about the ‘Federal Marshall’ not Field Marshall mistake I made. I would change it now having the correction but first I will have to figure out how to, so bare with me on that. Chriswiz, thank you for reviewing but did your comment about translating bad spelling ec cetera mean I did some? Again, everyone, thank you for reviewing and in response to all the encouragement I am posting the next 4 chapters today and will start writing chapter 23 so I have more to update you with soon.