Everything You Are

Chapter Seventeen:

Tears streamed down over Sirena's face as she started the shower again, a great deal warmer this time. Her cold goose bumped skin became warm and flushed very quickly. Her hands found a green glass bottle filled with an herbal shampoo she'd purchased in Diagon Alley. She poured it directly onto her hair with a sigh and began rubbing it in furiously. She found herself trying to rub away the thoughts filling her head more than any possible amount of dirt in her hair.

When she found that it wasn't about to be washed away by mere soap and brute force, she stepped out of the shower and wrapped up in the grey fluffy towel left for her by a house elf. She padded out to one of the many dressing stalls, the black and emerald marble cool under her bare feet. She pulled the curtain around and dropped the towel.

She was positively bare, save for a small silver chain around her neck with a star dangling from it. She looked into the mirror, examining her milk-white skin. It was the color of untouched porcelain with very few spots of a silvery discoloration where she'd scarred when her vampiric healing capabilities had failed her. She ran her hands over her arms in a half-hearted wish to make them disappear. She cocked her head to examine the small black design of the Dark Mark placed artfully between her neck and shoulder in a way to separate her from the throng of Death Eaters she oversaw.

As if on cue, the mirror sighed. "You're much prettier without that, dear..."

Sirena caught herself and glared at her own reflection. "As if you'd know anything about it"

She wrapped up in the towel and slunk off to the dorm, where everyone else was asleep. The silken green sheets clung to her damp body as she crawled into bed. She grabbed her wand from beneath her pillow and, with a few mumbled words, she drew the canopy cover around her to leave her in solitary darkness.

The next morning, a double dose of Defense Against the Dark Arts came first for the Slytherin and Gryffindor fifth years. After briefly debating licking her palms and heating her forehead to fake ill, Sirena made her way to class and sat down in her seat begrudgingly, wondering idly what good could come of ninety minutes with her father. Her chin rested on her hand and her fingers drummed over her cheek while her mind wandered away. Her eyes slid shut as she remembered just how late she'd gotten to bed.

'What a waste of time... I could be doing so many other useful things right now. I could have gotten some sleep and done some research as to what happened in the dreams or... ugh. No. I'd definitely rather be here. I don't have the motivation... but then again, I COULD be talking to Sirius, and that counts as research. Hmm... I wonder where Sirius is. Maybe I can get it out of dad...'

"Does anyone know the answer? Anyone? Anyone? Sirena, how about you? Sirena..." Remus shot a wry smile to the rest of the class. "Of course, it's only my own DAUGHTER that falls asleep in my class."

"Hmm?" Sirena mumbled, shaking out of her reverie and looking around. There were a few tentative snickers around the room. Draco smirked, almost positive that Sirena would have something funnier up her sleeve.

"Before I'd realized that you had decided to doze off, I was going to ask if you'd be so kind as to explain the... ah... food pyramid, if you will, of vampires," Lupin said fondly.

Sirena smiled, devising a plan. "But of course."

* * * * *

Draco was more than a little surprised. For the first time since they'd started school, Sirena sat through the entire Defense class without complaint. Granted, she'd zoned out for a bit, but she'd explained the food web in a totally unbiased and unaffected manner without any outward signs of hatred towards her father.

'No mischief at all? Oh no. This won't do...'

"...So, you see, the blood of criminals and the like actually has a bitter taste to vampires, but it compensates with its potency. Innocents, while tasty, not that I would know, are really a bit like the fats and sweets group for humans... though blood really doesn't vary in caloric value and as vampires are pretty much frozen in their appearance, they really never need diet to keep their girlish figures," Lupin said. Laughter ensued and Remus took the opportunity to lock eyes with his daughter, which had turned a vacant shade of blue. "I want you ALL to understand that the strength and the survival of a vampire depends heavily on the strength of the blood it consumes."

Draco glanced at Sirena briefly before raising his hand and an eyebrow. "Well, that could be taken one of many ways, Professor."

"How do you figure, Draco?" Lupin asked

"Well, it could really be one of three things. You COULD be telling us to be good so that the vampires won't bite us for lack of nutritional value. You COULD be telling us to become murderers so that we taste bitter to vampires and remain unbitten." There was a brief pause and Lupin smiled slightly.

"All right, I'll bite, Draco, if you'll all excuse the terrible pun. What's the third message?"

"You COULD be telling your daughter to eat her proverbial green vegetables."

Laughter was heard all around, with the blatant exception of Sirena, who shot a look at Draco that told him explicitly that he had not chosen the wisest of topics to bring up.

Lupin cleared his throat. "I'm sure I've raised my daughter well enough to know not to feed on innocents..." he glanced at Sirena, who shot him a particularly murderous look. There was a very awkward pause and Lupin steepled his fingers, looking around the class. "Besides that, many vampires take blood from the ministry, which is obtained from those who have received the dementor's kiss. It's not a lot, but the ministry recognizes the need for their survival and DOES try to help them when they can... even though some don't realize it." He received another meaningful glare from Sirena before the bell rang. "Class dismissed. I want you all to be prepared for a possible quiz tomorrow."

As the last students filed out, Sirena remained and walked up to her father's desk, where he sat sorting thought papers. "Ahh, Sirena. Nice to see you. Do you have a kiss for daddy?" he asked, his tone letting out a bit of the mischief he'd failed to exert during class.

Sirena snorted indignantly. "FIRST of all, I do NOT feed on innocents."

"Glad to hear that. Why was I so SURE this wasn't going to be pleasant?"

Sirena rolled her eyes. "I wouldn't be HALF as strong as I am, you know. And the MINISTRY, pardon my French, are a bunch of assholes. Their status in the world of vampire lovers is right up there with Albus Dumbledore. While it IS your class, father dear, I'd ask you to refrain from giving false information to the students before I let my urges to correct it in a rage-filled and violent manner get the better of me."

Remus sighed. "How did you get to be so sweet?"

"Years of practice," she replied dryly.

"Sirena, darling, you have a class to get to. I was simply telling you to take care of yourself, seeing as you haven't allowed me to do that anywhere else. Nothing more."

"You didn't have to do it in front of everyone," she said, arms crossed.

"No, I didn't. I apologize," he said, looking at her, "but I wasn't sure I'd be able to get it to you otherwise. I have NO idea how you're feeding these days. How you're surviving at all is just... it's beyond me. You haven't been feeding on students, have you?"

"I haven't," she said calmly,"and I will not."

"Well, you're not... hunting, are you?"

"No. I have a... friend of sorts." She chose her words carefully. "He had done some bloodletting before and did it for me once. He said that he'd do it again should I need him."

Remus paused and raised an eyebrow. "And this is not a student?"

"No."

"But Sirius isn't here... is he? I could have sworn..."

"No, it's not him. Don't worry," she paused. "I was actually about to ask you where I might find Siri," Sirena said, her voice and eyes softening at her godfather's pet name.

"What's your next class? You're miserably late."

"Potions," she said, waving a dismissive hand. "Where is he?"

"POTIONS? Professor Snape will have my head, Sirena! Go to class."

"Severus will have no problem, I assure you. Where is Sirius? I need to talk to him."

Remus sighed in a defeated way and closed the door before muttering a silencing charm about the room. "Sirius has been all over the place. He's spent most of the time at our house but he's spent nights at the Shrieking Shack under the promise that he wouldn't go wandering about the grounds. He's spent nights with Harry in animagus form and..."

"Sirius is an animagus?"

"Of course. I never told you?" he said, dismissively waving his hand. "At any rate, I guess he also has a place over in the States where he can stay with a few unsuspecting muggle friends when he has to." Remus sighed, inwardly wishing that he could have a normal father-daughter conversation for once. He locked eyes with his daughter and spoke softly. "Why do you need to talk to him so badly?"

"I'm taking your advice," she said with a shrug.

"Right," he said, his tone more sarcastic than he would have liked.

"Are you suggesting I'm not who I say I am?" she said, the hint of an old joke floating in her voice.

Remus smiled tiredly. "Sirena, if you're so keen on taking my advice today, perhaps you should go to potions before your head of house is forced to drop with bigoted ways and toss some disciplinary action at you"

"I have some leeway with Severus. Don't worry about him."

"I'm not worried about him. I'm worried about you."

"Ok, dad..." she said, patronizingly. She rolled her eyes. "At any rate, thank you. I needed to find him," she said, picking up her bag.

Sirena made her way to Potions quickly and shot Severus a sheepishly apologetic glance as she slunk in.

He worked very hard to glare at her, forcing away the thought of kissing the little smirk off of her lips. "Ms. Lupin, you'll want to work harder at being on time. I've hear this has been a problem for you of late."

"Sorry, Professor," she mumbled, moving towards her seat, biting her lower lip in what was (in Severus' opinion) a sensual, if not entirely intentional way.

Severus bit the inside of his cheek to keep from smiling.

"Detention, Sirena."