Harry Potter: The Vampire Prince

The weekend had arrived, marking another Hogsmeade trip.

Early in the morning, Nolan bid farewell to Eve with a lingering kiss in the Slytherin common room. Miss Stock was staying behind today, wrapped in a warm blanket by the crackling fireplace, sorting through Nolan's "Switches" notebook.

"Thank you for helping me, Eve."

"Actually, I think there's something else you should be thanking me for." Eve gave him a wry smile.

She knew perfectly well that Nolan was heading out for a date with his newest conquest, Penelope. And being the gracious Miss Stock that she was, she had assured him she wouldn't interfere with their romantic day.

Eve thought that, more than her helping him with his notes, Nolan ought to be grateful for her generosity.

Alas, our dear vampire never seemed to find anything strange about having multiple lovers. Nor did he consider Eve's attitude particularly magnanimous. In fact, if Eve had insisted on strict monogamy and tried to keep him on a tight leash, Nolan would have been far more confused.

"Alright, Eve, uh..."

"Don't bother explaining. I know it's not you who should be accommodating me, but me who should be accepting the Von Draugr family's views."

"Mmm."

"Don't overthink it, alright?" Eve pressed a soft kiss to his jaw. "I'm already learning to accept it."

The younger Slytherins watching from a distance were left utterly speechless.

The wizarding world didn't have as many distractions as the Muggle one—love was still largely simple and pure. But even so, the Slytherins couldn't help but envy Nolan. Finding someone as beautiful and understanding as Eve Stock was nothing short of a miracle.

Ten minutes later, beneath the Ravenclaw tower, the students of the Eagle House found themselves feeling much the same.

"Have you been waiting long?"

Penelope was always beautiful, but today, she was particularly stunning. Her long hair had been braided neatly, and her face was dusted with the lightest touch of makeup. Though she still wore the standard Hogwarts robes, her natural grace made even the plain uniform look elegant.

A beautiful girl looked good in anything, after all.

"Waiting? No, of course not." Nolan pulled out his pocket watch and glanced at it. "In fact, you've arrived early. It seems that British witches, unlike British Muggles, actually have a sense of punctuality."

"Punctuality?" Penelope arched her delicate brows. "And you—a vampire—understand the meaning of that word?"

Nolan grinned but said nothing.

Vampires were notorious for having no concept of time.

Just last Christmas, Penelope had heard a rather ridiculous story—a young vampire had once complained that his sister had failed to show up for his 130th birthday party. She had, in fact, arrived twenty-two years late.

At the time, Penelope had been utterly baffled. But Nolan, upon hearing the tale, had simply shrugged as if such an occurrence was perfectly normal.

This absurdly casual attitude had left a deep impression on her. It also made her realize that, beyond all the myths and fears surrounding them, vampires were actually... kind of amusing.

It was these little oddities that had gradually chipped away at the fear and hostility that witches like Eve and Penelope once had toward his kind. In the end, it became clear—they were just another race, no different than how wizards had their own distinctions, like Muggles and purebloods. There was no real reason to fear them at all.

But while Penelope and Nolan were getting comfortable with each other, the Ravenclaws standing nearby were growing increasingly confused.

Hadn't they heard that Penelope was supposed to be going on a date with Percy Weasley?

Why was she suddenly with Nolan instead?

Maybe they were just catching up? After all, the Clearwater and Von Draugr families were well-connected. Penelope had even spent Christmas with them. Maybe this was just a friendly outing? Maybe she was still waiting for Percy, and Nolan was waiting for Cho?

But those thoughts were quickly dismissed when the Ravenclaw Quidditch team headed off to practice, taking Cho Chang with them.

And, more importantly—Percy Weasley had arrived.

"Clearwater!" Percy called out, adjusting his best robes and flashing what he believed to be his most charming smile.

Despite his gaunt face, which always made him look somewhat frugal and severe, he had made a visible effort to present himself well today. It was obvious how much he had been looking forward to this date.

After all, this was Penelope Clearwater.

Before heading out, he had subtly bragged about it to the entire Gryffindor common room. Even his little sister Ginny, despite being sick, had congratulated him.

"Oh, hello, Weasley," Penelope greeted, her tone tinged with mild surprise.

That surprise, however, was interpreted quite differently in Percy's mind. To him, it looked like admiration—perhaps even awe.

He nodded politely at Nolan before turning back to Penelope with obvious excitement. "Hello, Von Draugr. I assume you're waiting for Chang? Seems like a fine day for dates! Clearwater and I will also be going on our first date today."

"...Huh?" Nolan blinked, looking at Penelope in confusion. "You're going on a date with Weasley? I don't remember hearing about that."

"Of course you didn't," Penelope said, frowning. "Because I never heard about it either."

"What?!" Percy's face turned pale. Then, with a mix of indignation and desperation, he exclaimed, "Clearwater, if this is some kind of joke, I must say—it's not funny!"

Penelope shook her head. "I agree. Which is why I wasn't joking in the first place. I'm spending the day with Nolan at Hogsmeade. And while this isn't necessarily a date, we are going together. So no, Weasley, I won't be going with you."

"But... but Hanks told me you agreed!" Percy turned desperately to Shiva Hanks, who had been standing awkwardly to the side.

"Uh, well..." Hanks winced, realizing she had made a rather serious mistake. "Penelope, remember when I mentioned—"

"That was Nolan, wasn't it?"

"No, it was Weasley! Damn it, I must've phrased it poorly!" Hanks clutched her head in frustration.

Meanwhile, Percy's face had drained of all color.

"I think we should clear this up properly, don't you?" His voice was tight with suppressed anger.

He had already told everyone in Gryffindor about his date! If it turned out this was all a misunderstanding—if he had never actually secured a date with Penelope—he would never be able to live it down.

"Even if this was a misunderstanding, you already agreed to go out with me!" Percy insisted desperately. "Von Draugr and you are just going as friends, right? So you can go with me instead. It's just one day, what's the harm?"

"Why would I do that?" Penelope's eyes narrowed. "I don't owe you anything, Weasley."

"But I didn't do anything wrong!" Percy's pale face flushed red with frustration. "Everyone already thinks you accepted! This is your fault, Clearwater! If you don't go on this date, you're breaking your word!"