It was less than a week until full moon, yet for once, Jill didn't feel tired. Everywhere students helped themselves to an array of food, marvelled at the decorations and chattered happily. It was Halloween, and Halloween meant good times. When at last the desserts had been polished off and even the older students were yawning, everyone returned to their dormitories.

Jill was climbing into her pyjamas when Mary called out.

"Hey, Jill."

"What?"

"Lisa's telling spooky stories. Want to join?"

Jill felt a happy, giddy feeling spread throughout her, Lisa was well known for her ability to tell stories, something most people rarely had a chance to hear.

"Yeah, hang on…" Jill pulled her arm through the sleeve before tugging back the curtains on her four-poster. Everyone sat on their bed, staring around the room. Lisa had tied her hair in a ponytail, and when Jill had settled herself, she spoke, her voice quiet and low.

"The muggle village of Biblinton had suffered for many years. Every so often, and always at night, strange sounds could be heard. It was a ferocious howling, accompanied by screams that sounded as if someone was being tortured. While the sounds scared many people, no harm came to Biblinton, and the villagers learned to live with the sounds. After several years, they became used to them.

All seemed well. That was, until the daughter of the local baker went missing. The villagers searched and searched, from the woods to the marshes, yet the only trace they found were several long claw marks in the ground."

Jill frowned, a feeling that something that Lisa had just said was supposed to be familiar to her. Shaking her head in frustration, she returned to the story, revelling in the looks of fear in her friend's faces.

"The villagers eventually gave up, blaming wild animals for the sudden disappearance. For seven weeks, the villagers enjoyed a quiet, if sombre, peace. On the 56th night, there was the sound of screaming and shrieking, and in the morning, the two sons of a farmer had gone missing. Once again, they were never found, though there was a trail of blood leading into the forest. Frightened, the villagers began to dread sundown. Over the ensuing year, there were 10 more disappearances. Many of the villagers left, and those that did stayed only because they had no choice. In the darkest of times, when all seemed lost, a stranger came to visit Biblinton. Unbeknownst to the villagers, he was a wizard. He had heard tales of the recent disappearances, and immediately guessing the problem, called everyone to the village centre.

'Do not despair, good people!' He cried, 'I know what ails you! Tis a werewolf!-'"

Jill's grin slipped off her face and a cold, sickly sensation spread through her stomach.

"A werewolf?" she asked.

Lisa broke off, giving Jill and annoyed look. She rolled her eyes.

"Yes, a werewolf."

Huffing and frowning, she continued the story. Jill wasn't sure she wanted to hear it now, though she knew she would raise suspicion if she went straight to bed. Normal people, she thought sadly, viewed werewolves with fear.

"'Tis a werewolf!'

At these words the villagers began to quake.

'How may we rid ourselves of this beast?' someone asked. The wizard told them of his plan, which was slowly put into place.

When at last the full moon showed itself, the villagers set out, armed with pitchforks and the wizard. Following the sound of the howls, they eventually came across a wolf, bigger than any wolf, with a short snout and a tufted tail. At first, the villagers tried to run, but stopped when the wizard reminded them of their obligations to their families. The werewolf was angry and blood-thirsty, leaping for one of the villagers, who fended it off with a pitchfork.-"

Jill clenched her hands, fighting the urge to vomit. This wasn't right.

"As quick as lightning the wizard drew his wand, sending a bolt of energy at the werewolf. It collapsed, dead."-

Jill dug her nails into her palms, hot anger rising up inside her. She tried to calm down. It wasn't her friend's fault, after all, merely the prejudice society had created.

"The villagers rejoiced, free at last from the curse of the werewolf. The wizard departed happily, and slowly, the original villagers started to return. For 27 days there was much feasting, and for 27 nights there was much happiness. On the 28th night, the people cheered as the full moon came up. They no longer had to live in fear of their lives, scared to go outside. They no longer had to lock their doors.

All seemed well.

It was only when the villagers stopped cheering that they heard the horrible, familiar howls of a werewolf.

It was still out there."

Lisa leaned back, grinning, to collect the looks of mingled excitement and fear on everyone's faces. Everyone, that is, except Jill. Lisa frowned, her forehead creasing like old paper.

"didn't you like it?" she asked, sounding disappointed. Jill blinked, startled, and looked up from her clenched fists.

"Pardon?"

"I asked if you liked it."

"Jill smoothed her features into a smile, though it did not reach her eyes.

"Yes. I found it quite… interesting." Jill lied, feeling thoroughly sickened. This seemed to satisfy Lisa, who smiled back.

"That would be quite scary, though." Anna piped up, looking eagerly around. "having to face off a werewolf, I mean. With no wands and only one person who could write magic…" She trailed off, shuddering.

"They're not all bad." Jill protested, then biting down on her lip to stop anything else from slipping out. She was met with befuddled stares and frowns. Lisa was looking at her in particular, with the kind of expression teachers wore when a pupil had gotten a question wrong in front of their class.

"You know that werewolves suffer from a permanent loss of moral sense, right?"

Jill would've laughed if she hadn't been feeling this angry. She would've come up with a furious retort too, but was saved by the girl sitting next to Lisa.

"My father says there's a registration werewolves sign up to, so the ministry can keep tags on them." Shirley -a brown haired and freckled girl- said. "Problem is, no-one signs up to it.

"Yeah, cause a loss of moral sense, Shirley."

"They have a capture unit too. For the werewolves who go crazy on the full moon."

"I sincerely doubt the ministry would let them roam around free."

"I heard they release them back into the wild."

"I heard they ki-"

"Guys! Guys, can we not?!" Jill was struggling to contain the hatred rising in her and the horrible, squirming sensation that sat in her stomach like a disgusting, hairy wolf. Her eyes were screwed shut, a deep, ugly frown plastered over her face. Jill didn't care that six pairs of eyes were looking curiously at her, or that Shirley and Mary were whispering urgently. She felt as if she were going to throw up. Jill stood up, yanking the curtains on her four-poster across, shielding her from her dorm mates and their muttering. She lay down, tucking herself into her red blankets. As the minutes ticked by, Jill's anger faded, and was replaced by a terrible sadness. This was what her friends thought of her. She had hoped, one day to tell her friends about her condition. Now she saw her dreams dashed to pieces by one story.

A single tear rolled down Jill's cheek.

It was Halloween, and Halloween did not mean good times.

A/N: Hey, look, a long chapter!

And so this fic takes a darker turn. Don't worry, it'll get worse.