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Wolf

Wolf stared despondently at his hands. They were completely human now, with not a trace of fur or claw. But the signs were still there. Dried blood crusted on his fingernails, in his hair, staining his teeth and clothes, a grisly souvenir of his rampage. It would be ages before he finally got rid of it all, but at least he could get rid of it. He would never get rid of the memories. Sybil Mira screaming in terror as he sank his fangs into her throat. Roland's howl of pain as Wolf's claws slashed across his face. The shrieks and sobs of students Wolf couldn't name as he tore into their flesh, biting and clawing, leaving permanent marks on the living, and rendering the dead nearly unrecognisable. Jael's pale face as Wolf pounced. The terror in Scarlet's eyes as she looked at him, and finally saw the monster he really was…

Wolf groaned and put his head in his hands. It felt like his soul was shattering from the inside out. There was no way she would smile at him now the way she used to, laugh with him, be kind to him, be his friend. Not after what she'd seen, not after he almost killed… Wolf shuddered, unable to complete the thought.

The door opened noiselessly. Somehow that was even more terrifying that a loud, grating creek.

A tall woman stepped into the room, sneering with disgust as her gaze landed on Wolf.

He narrowed his eyes. Normally, he would dip his head with respect, murmuring a quiet "Hello, Headmistress." if he happened to encounter her. But, somehow, he just couldn't quite bring himself to do it today. How strange.

"Well, I hope you're proud of yourself." Levana said coldly, "Thanks to you the Great Hall is now filled to bursting with grieving parents and Ministry Officials demanding to know why a werewolf was able to transform in the middle of the day and attack my students."

Wolf offered no reply.

"Some aurors are coming up here to question you on the events of the attack." Levana continued, "You will tell them that you have a mutated form of werewolfry that can cause you to transform at unconventional times, and that you didn't inform the school because you were afraid you wouldn't be allowed to attend. Understand?"
"What happens if I don't tell them that?" Wolf asked, a touch of rebellion creeping into his voice.

Levana smiled. "Over the course of your attendance at this school as a regular student, the faculty have been watching you Kesley."
"You don't say?"
Levana ignored him. "They couldn't help but notice that you've made yourself a close friend. A half-blood farm girl, what was her name? Scarlet?"

Wolf said nothing, though his heart was pounding in his chest. She wouldn't hurt Scarlet, she couldn't, it would look too suspicious… right?

"I would hate to think that something bad might happen to her." Levana continued sombrely, "But you know, this is a wizard school. So many dangerous things around here. Poisons, the beasts in the Black Woods and cursed library books to name a few." Her lips turned up in a cold smile, "Of course, the staff will do everything in their power to make sure your friend stays nice and safe. But if you refuse to cooperate, their focus might just slip."

Wolf allowed his eyes to narrow in a thin glare. A part of him wished he still had his claws and fangs, his ruthless instincts and eternal hunger, so he could rip the headmistress to pieces right then and there. But he didn't, and he couldn't. So, jaw clenched so tightly he thought his teeth would crack, he nodded.

"A mutated form of werewolfry…" said one of the aurors wondrously as he stared at Wolf, half in amazement and half in fear, "I don't believe it."

Wolf scowled at the floor. If only.

"Well kid, I hope you're proud of yourself." Grumbled another auror, her wand firmly trained on Wolf's face. "Your secrets have cost six kids their lives and afflicted nine others with your condition."

"It is hard enough for a regular werewolf to get into a wizarding school." Wolf told them through gritted teeth, "But a mutated werewolf? I wouldn't have stood a chance."

"Well now a whole bunch of other kids don't stand a chance at completing their education because of you." Said the woman unsympathetically, "It was incredibly selfish of you to attend a school when you knew there was a chance you would suddenly transform."

Wolf sighed. "I'd never transformed in the daytime before. If I had known that was a possibility then I never would have come."
She snorted. "A likely story."

"Do you have any idea what triggers your transformations?" the man asked with a warning glare at his partner.

"They sometimes happen when I'm overly stressed or angry." Wolf repeated the words Levana had drilled into his head, like the parrot he might as well have been at this stage. "One of my classmates had been bullying a friend of mine a lot. That was why I transformed this time."

The woman snorted. "A werewolf has a friend? Don't make me laugh."
The man sighed. "Bement, please."

She rolled her eyes but said nothing.

Turning back to Wolf, the man tried for a smile. "We'll send a report of your unusual condition to the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures. Maybe they have a record of a case like yours and will be able to give you advice on it. In the meantime, you can stay here at the school."

"At the school?" Wolf asked incredulously, "You're not going to take me to a cell or keep me in some kind of solitary confinement?"
"Your teachers have assured us that they will take extra precautions to ensure you won't harm any other students in the meantime." The man assured him, "We're sure that no other incidents will occur until we can figure out what to do with you."

Wolf raised a dubious eyebrow. Why did he get the feeling that the reason the aurors were letting him go had more to do with a bag full of galleons than assurances that the school would keep the students safe?

"Well send you an owl when we get the results from the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures about your condition." The man told him as he opened the door. "Until then, just enjoy your holidays."

Wolf almost laughed. Enjoy his holidays? He'd just killed several students and two teachers!

He watched the aurors leave the room, keeping his eyes trained on the door even after it had clicked shut. He wasn't sure how the school would keep him here as a regular student, but he was sure they would try. After all, he was their strongest wolf. Of all of the disposable monsters they created, he was the one they were least likely to get rid of, at this stage at least. Normally, the thought of continuing this life of forced transformations and night-time battles would have made Wolf crumble with despair. But not now. Now, something was different. Now, he knew something, something that gave him power. The glamour that Levana uses to hide her true face only works on humans, and with each forced transformation, more and more of Wolf's brain has become animal. So when the headmistress had walked into the office half an hour ago, for the first time, Wolf hadn't seen a beautiful woman.

A/N: Good news, I'm going to be back to regular updates!

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