Chapitre 347: Vanilla flavoured Dumbles

"He complained about lethargy, difficulty falling to sleep, pins and needles constantly effecting him throughout the day, and a rather dramatic increase in hunger... You wouldn't happen to know what this all means would you?"

Reima's mouth becomes dry as he tries to think of a valid answer, though he suspects Dumbledore is already aware of his actions. "Er, no sir..."

The old man chuckles, "Well, from my personal observations of the situation and the report from Madam Pomfrey I think Mr Damien is either abusing Blood-replenishment potions while preparing a large amount of blood for a ritual... Or, more likely, someone is taking blood from him and trying to cover the effects with daily doses of blood-replenishment potions... Earlier today Madam Pomfrey reported that someone had used a... Not so skillful Episky charm to heal a wound on his arm." He continues to smile at Reima as he lays out all the evidence before him

Dumbledore "Now while we have many suspects, the personal it's most likely to be is you... Mr Damien had no problems like this before you became his room mate and you would be the only one with easy access to him daily. Is there anything you'd like to say Mr Ludvig?"

Reima sighs, "Not really... Can I ask what the potential punishment would be?"

Dumbledore "For stealing blood? The old crime would be death but I believe we've progressed past such barbarity. As Hogwarts and the Ministry are two separate entities I have control over what happens to you Mr Ludvig, for that reason I'd like to know what purpose were you stealing Mr Damien's blood?" he asks with no malice whatsoever.

Reima goes over his options, he hasn't admitted his guilt yet but it's already as clear as day that he's the one responsible, he can't deny it when the headmasters conclusion has already been made, and quite rightly. Maybe he can use the man's compassion and soft nature against him?

"Professor, my reasons for doing this are purely altruistic, I don't dare dabble in whatever rituals would require someones blood nor would I ever wish to."

Dumbledore nods, "Whether your actions are justifiable are up to me Mr Ludvig, would you care to explain how you may perceive this as Altruistic in any way?"

Reima clears his throat, inwardly thinking that if this goes wrong he'll probably have to kill the old man. "Sir, are you aware of the state of vampires currently?"

Dumbledore rubs his chin, "No, as much as I've tried to gain a correspondence with them they seem to despise myself for some reason."

Reima "Well, most vampires belong to clans which organise themselves into massive groups that occasionally steal people from the streets. They are also brutal against each other, so much so that you'd think a war was being waged between them."

Dumbledore nods, "I appreciate the information Mr Ludvig but I fail to see how this relates with your current situation."

Reima "Yes, well.. I recently saved a young girl who was about to be murdered by another clan of vampires. She of course is also a vampire and requires a relatively large amount of blood everyday to stay healthy. I'm sure you can see where I'm going with this?"

Dumbledore hums, "And, this person is on school grounds?"

Reima "She is but I beg you to let her stay, for some reason she's being hunted down by the majority of vampire clans. Without us she'll be alone and without protections."

Dumbledore ""Us" meaning you and Miss Rivia?"

Reima nods "I recently ran out of the blood we'd accquired from the muggle blood banks which caused me to resort to taking it from Damien, I had no other choice."

Dumbledore leans back in his chair and ponders over the information he'd just been provided, he had been trying to access the Vampire communities for decades as he feared they'd ally with Voldemort. Fortunately an opportunity seems to have dropped itself into his hands, with this leverage he might be able to actually enter talks with them... "And what is the name of your charge, Mr Ludvig?"

Reima "Nerissa Dracula."

...

Dumbledore is shocked at the name but manages to compose himself outwardly, he truly didn't expect a descendant of that monster to be alive and kicking. He could see why the child would draw the vampires attention, especially if she had similar abilities to her ancestor. He'll need to think over a few plans to see how he could integrate this into his plans. "Mr Ludvig, I can provide you with enough blood to keep the child healthy... But you'll need to inform me of any updates to her situation, as you can see, I'm also responsible for the safety of the school."

Reima sighs in relief at acquiring a method of securing blood for Nerissa without having to sneak around in the night like a... Well, a vampire. Other than that, providing Dumbledore with information relating to Nerissa is easy as he didn't expect there to be any changes in the near future. "That's acceptable Head Master, thank you for your kindness."

Dumbldore nods, "Now, pop off and continue your day, take a lemon drop if you wish. Oh, and greet that young vampire for me." he says happily while waving him away.

After Reima leaves Dumbledore looks at Fawkes and sighs, "What do you make of him old friend?" The bird hums a sad tone that echoes through the office.