Walden woke up with a start when he heard Evey grunt in pain. He sat up on his bed, squinting in the darkness. "V? You alright, kid?"

She mumbled something he didn't quite catch, but he heard her cry out an instant later. He lit up his wand, stood and made his way to her bed. Evey lay curled up in a ball, as she often did, and she had her back to him. She was holding her arm. "It fucking hurts," he heard her mumble.

Walden sat down next to her. "Let me see," he commanded. When she didn't comply, he placed his wand on the bed and took her hand off her arm, and this time she whimpered. What the hell was wrong with her?

He saw what it was right away. Her left arm was covered with scratches, deep gashes that bled profusely. "Shit!" he muttered. He grabbed his wand and pointed it at the wounds, ready to send a basic healing spell before alerting the others, but he noticed that the injuries were closing already. A moment later, they were gone entirely. Walden stared at her bloodied arm in shock. That might explain why Greyback's attack hadn't left any mark on her, but where did these new injuries even come from? A quick glance around the room confirmed that they were alone.

Evey squirmed and tried to turn toward him, but then she groaned again, clutching her shoulder this time. Blood oozed through her pyjama top. "Make it stop," she said pleadingly.

Before Walden could come up with a reassuring reply, Tony banged the door open. "Everything alright? I heard–" He saw Evey, pale and covered in blood and sweat. "Bloody hell!" He covered the distance from the threshold to the bed in a flash, making use of his supernatural vampire speed for the first time since they'd joined the Order.

"I have no idea what's going on," Walden said through clenched teeth. "Help me, will you?" They made her sit up, and Walden cautiously unbuttoned part of Evey's pyjama top.

There was a large bite mark on her shoulder. As they watched, the wound receded, leaving only smooth skin under the blood. They glanced at each other, but Tony seemed as clueless as he was. Evey opened her eyes slowly. She was panting hard. "What's happening?"

"Don't know, lass. Keep still, alright? You're going to be fine." He had no idea if that was true or not, but what else could he tell her? "Let's just–" At that moment, her hands flew to her face, and she doubled over, apparently overcome with pain.

"My eyes!" Blood was spurting from beneath her fingers and for an instant, Walden sat frozen, not daring to remove her hands. It was Tony who moved forward. "No, don't! They'll fall off!" Evey cried. "Oh Merlin please help me." The last words were an almost inaudible whisper.

"V, we have to… Trust me, yeah? Let me see," Tony murmured soothingly. He took her hands away slowly.

Her eyes were closed, but apparently still there, in their appointed location. There were more scratches around them, however. Blood ran down her face and dripped from her chin onto the sheets. Once again, the wounds closed as they stared at her helplessly.

Walden swallowed audibly. "Open your eyes, V." She shook her head at first, her lips pursed in a thin line, but she complied eventually, after more gentle coercing from Tony. Her eyes looked perfectly normal. Tears were spilling down her cheeks, washing some of the blood away. "Can you see?" Walden asked her softly. She nodded hesitantly.

Walden expected another bout but, after a moment, he decided that it was over – whatever 'it' was. "Let's get you cleaned up," Tony said. He didn't wait for a reply, but instead gathered Evey in his arms and carried her to the bathroom. "Get her some fresh clothes," he told Walden.

Shaking his head to dispel the whirlwind of thoughts that suddenly assaulted his mind, Walden fetched clean pyjamas from the wardrobe and joined them in the bathroom. Tony had removed her top completely and was wiping off the blood with a wet towel, but Evey didn't seem to notice. She kept pressing her fingers lightly against her eyelids, as if to make sure that her eyes were still there. She was shivering, and probably not just from cold.

"Should we tell Black?" Tony asked him in a low voice.

Walden hesitated. "No fucking clue." He paused to consider. "I've seen some weird shit, Tony, but never anything quite like that. Hell, I can't even think of a rational explanation."

"Me neither. I mean, she looks as though Greyback came back for her, but that hardly qualifies as rational. And besides…the way she healed…" He glanced up at Walden. Transformed werewolves, as well as vampires, both regenerated rapidly – or instantly, in Tony's case – but Evey wasn't either of those things. How much had Greyback really contaminated her, when he attacked her? They hadn't discovered anything new regarding her condition since that first night in July. In any case, it didn't explain wounds that appeared out of nowhere.

"I really thought they were gone," Evey murmured, hands still on her face. She removed them slowly, reluctantly. "I don't know what happened. I was dreaming, I think – I don't remember what about – and all of a sudden I felt this sharp pain in my arm." She placed a hand on a specific spot. "Then I heard you speak, Wal, so I knew I was awake, but a second later there was more pain in my shoulder, and it kept coming." She took a deep breath in an attempt to calm herself, then gazed at them both in turn. "What the fuck is wrong with me? Do you think it's connected with Greyback, somehow?"

"I don't know, V," Tony said. "Look, maybe you should talk to Dumbledore. He's more likely to–"

She was already shaking her head. "No," she said firmly. She was obviously recuperating from her ordeal. Abruptly, she seemed to realise that she was half-naked and covered herself with her hands, blushing. "I can finish myself, thank you," she muttered as she grabbed the towel from Tony's hands. They retreated to the bedroom after telling her to call out if it happened again.

"Should we tell Dumbledore anyway?" Tony asked when the door was closed.

Walden sat down on his bed, rubbing at his right temple, suddenly feeling the absence of his left forearm more keenly than usual. "I don't think we should, no. She would hate us for it, and I don't know what Dumbledore can do about it, in any case."

"I don't like it, Wal. I mean, if anything happens to her, and they realise we knew there was something going on and we didn't tell them…" Tony trailed off, looking nervous.

"We do nothing for now," Walden said. "And if it happens again, we tell Sirius first, before alerting the whole Order. I can't even imagine how Molly would react…"

Hopefully, it would never happen again. Walden didn't like the thought of Evey being hurt. He didn't like it at all.

"Bite me," Evey said the following morning.

Gaping slightly at the harsh words, Tony looked up from his magazine – some rag about celebrities he'd never heard of. Molly had left it at the Headquarters after her last visit. "Um…I beg your pardon?" He must have misheard her. Yes, he'd removed her pyjama top without her consent the previous night, but surely she couldn't be mad at him. He'd had a perfectly valid reason – the thing had been soaked in blood. Evey's blood. Yummy blood–

He held back a gasp as his fangs came down with an inaudible snap. What the fuck is wrong with you? he scolded himself. In all his time as a vampire – admittedly, not even a year yet – he'd never enjoyed either the sight or taste of blood. But the smell of Evey's blood…

You idiot, stop thinking about blood! And retract your cursed fangs. Why are they even out?

"And I thought your hearing was superior to mine…" Evey was saying with a smirk. "Will you please bite me, o Ancient One?" she repeated, enunciating each word with exaggerate care.

Oh hell. She'd noticed the fangs, hadn't she? "I can't do that! Why would I… I don't want to… Why?" he demanded, trying his best to look utterly devoid of impure thoughts.

"I want to see if it heals," Evey explained matter-of-factly.

Tony stared at her. Was she bloody mental? "V… Of course it will heal. With my saliva, it will heal right away." She had to know that, so why was she insisting?

"I'm not sure it will, actually."

"I…" Tony glanced at the bathroom door. Walden was in the shower. He had to stall until his brother came out. Walden's naked chest would likely provide a distraction. "Evey, if you want to experiment with your regenerative abilities, why not start with a tiny prick with a needle or something?"

"I already tried that. I also used one of your razorblades. The incisions healed like the other wounds from last night." He gaped at her, speechless. She used a razorblade? "Don't give me that look," she said impatiently. "I wasn't trying to cut my veins open or anything, I just had to know." She showed him her arm. "See? Nothing."

There were no marks, but she couldn't have known that before butchering herself. She was out of control. Tony was about to tell her that she should take it easy when Walden finally came out of the bathroom. He was shirtless, as usual. He only bothered when he knew that Molly was coming. They were lucky he even wore pants. Although, admittedly, Evey didn't appear to mind, far from it. She grinned at his brother, an appreciative gleam in her eyes. Walden, being Walden, was completely oblivious to it. "Wal, please ask the vampire to bite me."

Walden cocked his head slightly. At first he looked as though he was wondering if he'd heard correctly, but a moment later he was nodding thoughtfully. "Good idea," he said, turning to Tony. "Bite her."

"Are you out of your fucking mind?" Tony shouted.

"It makes sense," his brother said quietly. "Werewolves regenerate rapidly, unless they're bitten by a vampire. I should have thought of that before."

"Bloody hell, she's not a werewolf! And what if it doesn't heal properly? Molly will cut me to pieces if she sees puncture marks on her!"

"Tony, I'm not asking you to tear my neck open," Evey said with clear exasperation. "You can do it on my wrist. I always wear bracelets anyway. No one will notice."

He gazed at them both in turn. Damn, they were being serious. Merlin's warty buttocks! "You're crazy," he whispered. "Both of you."

"Obviously," Evey replied with a grin. She was already removing her jewellery. "Here," she said when she was done, presenting him with her left wrist.

Tony groaned softly. Considering the reaction the mere thought of her blood had caused earlier, he truly wasn't keen on actually tasting it. If he went mad with sudden bloodlust, there was nothing anyone could do to stop him. "If Molly finds out…"

"Oh, for Merlin's sake!" Evey exclaimed. "You're undead, Tony. Get a grip. What is she going to do, force you to wash the dishes for eternity?" she said with a sneer.

"You're underestimating her, very much so," Tony mumbled.

Sighing in defeat, he took Evey's wrist. He gave her one last questioning glance, but she simply nodded. His fangs came out sharply, without him having to even think about it. Bracing himself, Tony sank his teeth into her flesh, as gently as he could. He heard her gasp softly. The saliva wasn't working as it should, he could tell right away. She shouldn't have felt the prick at all. He moved away as soon as he tasted her blood.

It tasted incredible. It was nothing like Walden's, which simply tasted like…well, blood. Evey's was a subtle blend of dark rum, coffee and… Tony shook his head. His mind must be playing tricks on him. Besides, the taste of her blood should be the last thing on his mind at the moment.

The three of them stared at the tiny incision for a minute. Tony tried to will it to disappear, but it remained stubbornly in place. "Shit," he grumbled eventually. "I told you it was a bad idea."

Walden took Evey's wrist delicately and studied it for a long moment. The fine hair on her arm exploded in goosebumps, but Walden didn't appear to notice. "Yep, looks like you're officially part werewolf, kid."