Spike lounged in his chair waiting for Dumbledore to arrive. The old man had called an emergency staff meeting and the blonde was not in the mood to deal with him and his twinkling. Harry had not been in class today and from what his friends said, the Gryffindor hadn't been to any of his classes.

Through their bond, he knew Harry was at the school and not in pain or scared, but nothing else.

Hopefully this would be quick.

Finally the old man entered and the meeting got underway.

Twenty minutes later Spike found himself blinking up at Dumbledore – from the floor.

"Are you all right William?"

"What happened?"

"We were discussing Mister Potter and you...fainted."

"Really?"

"Yes, My Boy."

Spike jumped up, "Right! Well, let's carry on then shall we?"

Dumbldore quirked an eyebrow and both Headmaster and Vampire ignored the flabbergasted expressions on the other teachers faces.

"As I was saying, we have discovered that Mister Potter is a Bearer and that he has already gotten pregnant. Our task now is to find the father. Has anyone here noticed him spending time with anyone in particular? Mister Weasley perhaps? Or Mister Finnigan?"

Spike sat heavily in his chair. Oh yeah. Impending fatherhood was bound to make any self respecting Demon hit the floor.

Fatherhood...he was going to be a father...

"No Albus," Professor McGonagall said, "In fact I overheard Mister Weasley complaining to Miss Granger that Mister Potter has been disappearing for hours at a time with no explanation. They mentioned that when he was with them, he seemed distracted and anxious."

Dumbledore eyed the blond Vampire closely as the conversation flowed, the teachers speculating on the father of Harry's child. William had reacted rather strangely to the news and the old Wizard wondered at the cause.

He knew that the only reason the blonde was here was to look out for his nephew...hmmm....

Dumbledore smiled. Of course! Young Mister Malfoy must be the father! That would explain why Harry's friends didn't know of the boy's whereabouts and why he had been acting so strangely. It would also explain the Vampire's violent reaction – his job would be immensely more complicated now. Once the news got out, and it would get out, he had no doubt that Voldemort would try to take Harry for himself.

They had to get the two boys bonded as soon as possible, but of course it would have to be handled delicately. Draco and Harry were volatile in the best situations, if they were pushed too hard they could very well end up killing each other.

An hour later and just after sunset, Spike found Harry on the Quidditch pitch. The brunette was on his broom, slowly drifting around, feet dragging in the soft sand. From the number of trails in the dirt, Harry had been there quite a while.

The Vampire approached slowly, not wanting to startle the Gryffindor whose head was down, apparently deep in thought as he flew.

"Harry?"

The boy sighed before bringing the broom to a halt. He did not dismount or look up when Spike came within arms reach.

"Harry?" He called again, worried. Their bond wasn't giving him any indication of what his mate was going through and to be honest, Spike was worried.

"Are you angry?" the boy whispered. Green eyes peeked from behind tousled chocolate locks, eyes so full of fear that Spike felt his chest clench.

"Oh Luv," he said, pulling the boy off the broom and into his arms, "I could never be angry with you."

"But I'm a freak!" Harry sobbed into Spike's chest, "Boys aren't supposed to like boys, an' have babies! They're not supposed to do magic or talk to snakes!"

Spike hugged the nearly hysterical Harry tighter against his chest and nuzzled the shorter man's hair.

"Shhhh, Luv, shhhh. No need to be getting' yourself all worked up pet. I don't know where you've gotten this ridiculous view of yourself, but you are not a freak."

Spike pulled on Harry's chin, lifting his tearstained face to his own.

"Do you hear me Luv? You are not a freak. You are a bleedin' powerful Wizard who happens to be mated to William the Bloody, the Scourge of Europe, Slayer of Slayers and the only Vampire to pass the Demon Trials to regain his soul. You, My Love, are exceptionally lucky to have a handsome bloke like me to take care of you until the world ends."

Harry hiccupped. "That long, huh?" he joked weakly.

Spike grinned, "I guess the Hogwarts curriculum doesn't cover what happens when a Witch or Wizard gets mated with a Vamp, eh?"

The Gryffindor shook his head.

"Let's go inside and get you fed, then we can talk about that and Junior there."

"So you're really not angry."

"Of course not Luv, shocked the bloody hell out 'o me, that's for sure, but I'm startin' to like the idea. I get to be a Daddy! Peaches will be horrified."

"Who's Peaches?"

Dumbledore stood in a seldom used corridor watching young Mister Malfoy as he stared out a window overlooking the Quidditch pitch. The old Wizard had seen William approaching the Gryffindor but there were no windows where he stood now.

Mister Malfoy's face was pink with some unnamed emotion. Silver eyes flashed when the Headmaster stepped forward.

"Is it true then," the Slytherin spat.

"Many things are true, My Boy. Which thing were you inquiring about in particular?"

The blonde's face turned nearly purple.

"Is Potter a Bearer?"

"Yes, indeed he is, though it is perhaps wise to keep that to yourself, hmmm?"

Draco sneered and took one last look out the window before storming away.

Dumbledore moved up to the window but in the deepening darkness could only just make out two figures returning to the castle.

"A delicate operation indeed," Dumbledore murmured.