The Beast Within - Chapter 21

Lady Amelia was absolutely gorgeous. She was statuesque with smooth skin that hinted at just enough muscle definition. Her breasts were full and firm, her lips were kissable, and she was completely nude in front of him. Over the last few days, they had tried many different ways to inspire emotions to fuel his transformation.

Harry was just as naked as she was. The only problem being that he felt absolutely no desire to touch her. He wasn't hypocritical enough to dismiss her for her alternate form. It was everything else about her that just made it impossible. She didn't have a heart-beat, didn't breath, and her skin was cold to the touch. On top of that, she was a blank spot to his magical senses. Everything had a magical impression, even inanimate objects. Lady Amelia was devoid of magic, and it made his skin crawl to get close to her.

"I must be losing my touch," Amelia purred as she studied his body. "Not even a hint of lust?"

"You're gorgeous," Harry admitted. "Just not my type."

"Oh?" She raised a sculpted eyebrow. "And what is your type?"

"Alive," he replied.

Amelia let out a hollow laugh. It made him wonder how she spoke since she didn't need to breath. Was it a hold-over from when she was human? She strolled closer to him. Her gaze traced the various scars on his body.

"Your scars tell quite the story," Amelia traced a couple with her fingertips. "Battles, accidents, abuse." She paused as she reached his collar bone. "What are these?"

Harry leaned back enough to get a look at what she meant.

"Bite marks," he said blushing.

"Oh?" Amelia teased. "You must have had some fun before you were turned."

"This was after," Harry corrected. "Each from one of the dragons."

Amelia froze. She took a couple of steps away before she began to pace as she muttered words in a language he didn't recognize. After a couple of moments, she turned her attention back to him.

"I have been approaching this wrong," she stated. "I was treating you as a werewolf, but you are not."

"Did the scales give it away?" Harry asked rolling his eyes.

"You were a werewolf with a skin condition," Amelia snapped. "The mechanics are the same."

Harry shrugged.

"You are not a werewolf," she repeated. "You are a dragon."

She said the words like it was some big reveal.

"Yeah," Harry nodded. "I know."

"No," she shook her head. "You do not simply resemble a dragon; you are a dragon."

Harry didn't see the difference.

"Give me your arm," she said.

Harry did. She moved in a blur, stabbing a claw into his forearm. His eyes went wide as it scrapped along his skin leaving a scratch rather than piercing it like it should.

"I am an Elder Vampire," she explained. "That should have removed your arm. I have done so to werewolves in the past. How is it then that I cannot pierce your skin, but a dragon's bite can?"

"They're dragons," Harry said with a shrug.

"Exactly," Amelia shouted. "The cocktail in your blood and their bites made you something more. You aren't simply a werewolf or were-dragon as you claimed. You are a dragon."

Harry raised his eyebrows at that.

"I think I would notice if I was a dragon," Harry stated flatly.

"Yes, yes," Amelia waved away his words. "That is part of the problem. You have not accepted that part of yourself." She paused. "This has become a magical concern, not a disease."

Amelia went completely still. It was a habit she had picked up when she was deep in thought. First there was muttering, then pacing was added, and finally, stillness. It wasn't that she simply stopped moving around. Her body was completely frozen. No breathing, no pulse, she was a statue. It freaked Harry the hell out when she did that.

"I will need to change my approach," she finally spoke.

The intensity in her eyes made the hair on the back of his neck stand. He watched as her body twisted into the creature he had briefly glimpsed the first day she had arrived. The beautiful woman was replaced by a pale, leathery skin that clung to an emaciated form. Her long, lustrous black hair was now stringy, thin, and dull hanging limply atop her skull. Most pressing were the claws her hands and feet had sprouted as well as the mouth full of sharp teeth.

"To appear as this," her voice, oddly enough, remained the same. "The true form of a vampire. It is not emotion that drives it, but an act of will. My kind have our own sort of magic."

Hearing such a melodic tone coming from a horrid creature made it hard to concentrate. He forced himself to focus.

"Your will and intent power your spells," she continued. "This transformation is no different."

She changed back into her human form in an instant. Harry finally understood why they were naked. They would shred their clothes every time they transformed if they hadn't taken them off. The limited attraction he had for her was gone after seeing her in the other form for more than just a moment.

"The first time you used your magic," she said. "Purposely. How did that feel?"

Harry opened his mouth, then shut it. How could he explain that? It was like trying to get a shark to learn how to ride a bike.

"You don't have to tell me," she let out a little laugh. "How did it feel?"

It was tempting to close his eyes to truly focus on the search, but he still didn't trust Amelia to leave him alone. He thought back to the first spell he had used. There was a moment when he felt something inside of him connect to a greater force. Suddenly he could feel. Magic was part of him, of everything, and everyone, except for vampire apparently.

"I've got it," he said softly.

"Good," Amelia smiled, a kind one for once. "Now, use that feeling to return to your true form." She paused. "I find it easier to start with my hands."

Harry held his hands up to his face. He could feel his magic swirling inside of him. It wanted to be used. He took a deep breath and tried to shape his magic with his will. Nothing happened. He tried again, then a third time. Still, nothing. Maybe it was closer to silent casting? In that case, it would make sense to start with a verbal component. He had a flash of an image of himself striking a pose, calling out TRANSFORM, and changing into his dragon form while explosions went off behind him.

The tips of his fingers shifted into claws. Scales spread out from his fingertips along down to his wrist. Harry flinched and the change stopped.

"Well done," Amelia said. "Now do the rest of your body."

"Uh," Harry blushed. "Ok."

Harry tried again, only for his hands to transform back to normal. He narrowed his eyes at his fingers. Well, it was a change. Harry tried to think of how it felt the first time. The 'verbal' component seemed to help. More than that, it was the feeling. Amelia was wrong, at least in part, emotion was part of it. The transformation wasn't brought on by anger, lust, or something like that. It was happiness, pride, and confidence. When the Death Eaters had attacked he wanted to protect those that inspired the feeling. The time with the dragons wasn't so much about emotion as it was a biological urge. If he squinted at it, he could say that time was driven by his desire for a family. Regardless, he knew how to tap into that emotion then took a deep breath, focused on the feeling. His magical energy crackled along his skin and sparks arced between his fingers.

Nothing happened.

"I don't understand," Harry muttered as he let go of his concentration and the energy dissipated.

"You're pushing too hard," Amelia explained. "That was lightning, you need fire. Try again, softer."

Harry sighed. Once more, he delved into the feeling of happiness. He selected something smaller than the memories he used for his Patronus. Family, freedom, and friends were too potent. Instead, he focused on the small joys in his life. Silent moments reading with Hermione, losing to Ron in chess, and the cool fall breeze as he flew.

The memories woke the magical energy inside of him. This time it didn't appear as the sharp, electric power from before. His memories guided the fire from a spark into a steady, constant burn. Heat spread along his body. The change happened before he realized. One moment his hands were flesh, the next they were clawed and covered in scales. He could feel the weight of his wings and the balance the tail provided. The air tasted wrong with Amelia so close to him. He would need to see about a freshening charm once she was gone.

A stray thought played along the back of his mind. He took a deep breath, felt the heat gather in his chest, and let it out in a burst of contained flame. Harry laughed; the sound came out as a stuttering hiss. His sharpened senses could track Amelia now. She didn't have a presence in the magic that Wizards used, apparently he tapped into a different sort in this form. The vampire reeked of death. Wisps of oily shadows swirled around her, making the shape of her true form superimposed over the human.

"Good," Amelia said, adding a soft clap to her words. "Now, show me you can change back."

The rest of the week was focused on improving his transformation speed and consistency. It was a lot easier once the first step had been successfully made. Amelia had him transform while swimming, in the middle of a run, and while eating. She also helped him tap into the power while he was in human form. He couldn't breath fire without getting a sore throat, but he could harden his fingernails into a set of short claws. Accidentally, he had also discovered he could change his teeth too, but it made his mouth feel too small. A nice little bonus was that speaking Parselmouth was a lot easier.

Harry was able to change smoothly by the time the Aurors returned to let them know his house arrest had been complete. Harry was certain his tail would have wagged when he finally saw Nym, Hestia, and Moody again. Thankfully, Amelia took her leave at the end of the week. Her departure was handled in a polite, professional manner. Harry was just happy she was gone. She was pleasant enough to be around, but he felt like he was sharing the room with a corpse. Harmonizing his two forms made being around her so much worse. Her non-scent made him feel nauseous if they were too close and his enhanced vision wouldn't let him ignore every time she went still. Thankfully, breathing fire helped dull the smell long enough for him to eat. Much to his disappointment, he hadn't been able to try flying. The room simply wasn't as big as it appeared. There were trees, but the ceiling was only a couple of feet higher than their tops.

The transformation was infused with more magic than what was normal for a werewolf. He wasn't in pain, he kept his mind, and he was no longer dependent on outside stimuli. However, the magic that powered the transformation wasn't on par with an Animagus, which meant any clothes he wore during the change would be shredded. Harry was hopeful that there was some enchanted clothing that would solve the issue.

Now for the hard part. Trying to convince the DMLE that he had enough control to attend Hogwarts. They already had a test arranged for him and all he had to do was pass.