Chapter 2

The Worst Kind of Help

Little did Eleanor know it but at that moment, one of the most significant experiences in her life since her parents had died was about to take place. And there was nothing she could do to stop any of it from happening. It was like a domino effect, and sadly her carelessness and all too powerful homemade sleeping draughts had put the first domino in motion.

Becoming a werewolf? Oh boy was she in for a rude awakening. She never had an easy life, but living in an orphanage with her older brother since she was four months old was definitely no cake walk. Of course, the two siblings didn't get adopted – nobody really liked the two for the price of one special.

And so, they tried to stick out their years at the magical orphanage with their chins held high. Eleanor was maddened with envy when her brother Rowan received his Hogwarts letter a year before she did. Being stuck in the orphanage without him for a great portion of the year was going to put her on edge.

However, Eleanor soon followed in Rowan's footsteps, and she glistened with pride as any other good Slytherin girl does, who will sometimes walk with her nose in the air despite whether or not she truly has reason to do so. Being a Slytherin undeniably had its side effects, as Slytherins by default only associated with other Slytherins. Of course, Rowan made sure that by Eleanor's fifth year – his seventh – she was hanging out with all the right people, which meant the bigoted Death Eater spawn at Hogwarts. Eleanor followed along, spouted the ignorant bull shit, but only had a handful of people to call close friends. And then at the end of Eleanor's fifth year, Rowan finished his schooling at Hogwarts and left for a temporary training position with the Committee On Experimental Potions at the Ministry of Magic. Luckily, at the end of Eleanor's sixth year, Rowan had managed to open his own tiny Apothecary at the end of a dirt road in Hogsmeade. It wasn't much, but there was an apartment above the small shop, which meant Rowan and Eleanor were free to leave the orphanage. Eleanor helped her brother at the shop as much as she could that summer. She was determined that, at the end of her swiftly approaching last year at Hogwarts, she would pour her heart and soul into the place and help her brother become a success. And then perhaps, not long after, she could set up her own Apothecary in Diagon Alley. And when she relayed this planning to Rowan for his approval, he would often press upon her that he would use his connections at the Ministry to get her a prime spot for her shop in Knockturn Alley.

Oh yes, life was finally beginning to look grand for her. Being out of that orphanage made her realize just how much it had put a damper on her freedom.

But then on that fateful morning, as she stood in front of Severus Snape's run down house with blood pouring from the werewolf bite on her leg, she concluded that perhaps that new found freedom hadn't been worth the price she was paying for it now. Eleanor knew going to Snape's wasn't the wisest choice, but she also knew that being bitten by a werewolf only meant one thing – and she was desperate to make sure not a soul would find out about it.

The great thing was that Rowan had made himself Snape's pet while he was at Hogwarts. Without the snide professor's help, Rowan most likely would not have gotten that position at the Ministry. Snape perhaps doted on Rowan a little, and this put Eleanor in a great position to receive help and pity from the Potions Master when he was presented with the siblings' unfortunate position.

Glancing at her brother before he knocked on Snape's door, Eleanor realized that Rowan did not feel quite the same way she did about the situation. Despite his standing among Snape's all time favorites, Rowan viewed this incident as docking some serious points from his score.

It only took a minute for Snape to come to the door. It was nine o'clock on a warm summer morning and Eleanor hoped in her woozy mind that they were not waking Snape from a good night's sleep. Rowan also registered this thought, and considered that if they were waking the professor, he could consider himself no longer in Snape's top three.

Snape opened the wooden door only a few inches, and squinted at the man standing on his walkway.

"Reynolds," Snape said questioningly. "I wasn't expecting your visit. What's the –"

But then the professor stopped short as his eyes slowly made their way to Eleanor, whom he had not spotted right away. His eyes narrowed in suspicion at the two of them.

"Can I help you?" he said, arching an eyebrow.

"It's a very serious matter, sir. May we come in?" Rowan said frankly.

"If you must," Snape replied bitterly.

Snape opened the door wide, and Eleanor hopped to an ancient sofa in the sitting room with the help of her brother. This sparked Snape's curiosity, and he shut the front door quietly.

Rowan seemed to not want to waste any time.

"I'm very sorry about this Professor, but my sister, well, you know how stubborn she is –" Rowan gushed out as he very painfully brought Eleanor's leg onto his lap and began rolling up her bloody pant leg to expose her punctured calf, causing Eleanor to yelp "– and she insisted we come here, instead of a decent hospital like I told her."

Snape's eyes grew wide as the bite mark on Eleanor's calf registered with him. Eleanor suddenly became conscious that she was in her pajamas, which gave her a ridiculous sense of embarrassment despite the dire predicament she was in. Being present in her pajamas in front of her Potions professor was the least of her worries. She wanted answers, and she wanted them now.

"What in the name of Grindelwald were you two doing that lead to such an injury?" Snape said, his voice suddenly a lot sharper.

"Well, you see, Professor, my sister has a bad habit of adding a little too much extra asphodel to her sleeping draughts. Frankly, I think she's got a bit of a problem –" Rowan gushed out.

"Just tell me if this really is what we think it is!" Eleanor finally spoke, her words rushed and frantic.

Snape sighed and studied them both for a minute in silence.

Finally he spoke, quietly and carefully, "It does indeed appear to be a werewolf bite, Miss Reynolds, but I think the more important question in this sort of situation is –"

Eleanor interrupted boldly, "Honestly, Professor, the all important question here is what the hell am I going to do about it!"

"Eleanor," Rowan scolded. "Calm down –"

"Silence," Snape hissed. Calming himself first, he continued, "Miss Reynolds, you were sleeping when such… bite occurred?"

"Yes, and –"

"Shut it."

Eleanor let out a tiny, frightened peep, and then nodded slowly.

Snape cleared his throat, and then continued once again, "And Reynolds, you didn't even here the thing enter the house?"

Rowan seemed dismayed. He stuttered, "Well, sir, I – I wasn't at home, y-you see –"

"And Miss Reynolds, would you perhaps happen to have some sort of grievance with the area's werewolf community?" Snape added with a hint of heated sarcasm.

"I didn't provoke an attack, if that's what you're implying, sir," Eleanor stated.

"Well then," he continued, "this is quite the situation you have landed yourself in. Unfortunately, as last night was indeed a full moon, chances are extremely slim that you will not become a werewolf yourself."

Eleanor's anger was almost completely gone. The sheer dread of becoming a werewolf was consuming her now. She could feel the hot tears clinging to her eyelashes. As she resisted the urge to cry, silence fell over the room.

After a minute that seemed like an eternity, Rowan broke the silence as he cleared his throat and choked out, "What do we, Professor?"

Snape stared at the bite on Eleanor's leg as he responded sternly, "At this point in time what is of the utmost importance for you, Reynolds, is to make sure that your sister's wounds do not become infected. It will be another month before the next full moon, so is there no need for an immediate plan of action for such a circumstance. We - and I use that word rather loosely, Reynolds - will figure it out when the time calls for it. As much as I would advise you to seek proper care -" Eleanor opened her mouth to speak, but Snape put up his hand to stop her, and she immediately quieted "-you both have made it very apparent that something that sensible is obviously not an option. Miss Reynolds, as you are in a state of shock at the moment, I am sure you are not feeling the full effects of such an injury. It will be much more substantial very soon. And Rowan, you are a bright young man and I would hate to see your family name tarnished over your sister's carelessness, so please know that this is the only reason I will agree to help you. But also know that, should anything go wrong, I will take absolutely no responsibility for it."

Rowan nodded his head slowly in agreement, and Eleanor let out a small whimper.

Snape left the room and quickly returned with several potion bottles. As he handed the tiny vials to Rowan he mumbled some simple instructions on werewolf bite care to him. But Eleanor was too afraid and feeling too hopeless to even listen.

Before she knew it, she was back at home, in her bed, her wounds bandaged and throbbing. Snape was right, she thought, this is only going to get worse, in more ways than one...