AN: Thank you to everyone who has reviewed, favourited and followed the story so far! The last chapter was admittedly a bit dull as it was setting the scene but the storyline starts in this chapter. I have a decent chunk of this already written so I will be uploading chapters once I've edited them. Please review as I really want to know what people think so I can improve my writing. Thanks!

Teddy found it difficult to thoroughly enjoy his first week at Hogwarts. The castle was everything he had ever dreamed about but he couldn't keep his mind from what was happening on Friday night.

He didn't think that his fellow Gryffindors had any idea what was going through his head. Externally, he appeared cheerful enough as he joined his classmates in excited discussions about their new classes. He laughed along when Fionn O'Brien, his muggle born roommate, made jokes about the castle but didn't speak much – this was very unlike him.

Teddy had always been a cheerful and chatty child. The truth was, he had always been encouraged to be himself and he was confident in the fact that all of his family members had accepted him for who he was. He didn't like that he had to hide part of himself from anyone but he knew that it was for his own safety.

He tried to push his worries to the back of his mind and enjoy Hogwarts. He was quickly getting to know his fellow housemates and other first years well.

Friday morning came around in a blink of an eye and Teddy awoke with his usual monthly symptoms. Every full moon had been the same for as long as he could remember. However, his grandmother was usually there to look after him. He would have to face this on his own.

Teddy sat up in bed and immediately felt like he was going to throw up.

"Jaysus, Teddy, are you feeling alright?" Fionn asked when he caught sight of him. Teddy attempted a smile. "Yeah, I'm ok," he responded in a fake perky voice. Fionn didn't look convinced.

Teddy quickly got dressed, quickly checking his appearance in the mirror to ensure that he hadn't accidentally changed his hair colour or anything of the sort in his sleep.

Both his grandmother and Harry had sent him letters wishing him luck for the night ahead. Harry's had contained practical advice while his grandmother's contained a warning to go straight to the Hospital Wing. That was the last thing he wanted to do. Teddy was going to have to deal with the full moon every month for the next seven years. He didn't want to spend that much time in the hospital wing. All it would do is rouse suspicion amongst his friends.

The day didn't get any better as it wore on. The first years were subjected to their first class with Professor Thursten Farrow. They had heard from older students that he was a difficult Professor. Where other Hogwarts Professors often favoured one house over another, Farrow seemingly hated every student equally. Teddy had once overheard Hermione and Harry discussing how he was an unsuitable teacher. When Teddy had asked them about it, both had told him that he can form his own opinions on his new Professor.

Farrow surveyed the class with his arms folded across his chest as they filed in. He was very tall and his stance was rather imposing to a class of first years. His greying hair was slicked back into a ponytail that emphasised his receding hairline. Teddy wasn't certain, but he thought he saw Farrow smirk when he entered the room.

Teddy took a seat next to Fionn as Farrow began to speak.

"Welcome to Defence Against the Dark Arts," he began in a slow drawl. "While you all have grown up in a relatively peaceful society, do not doubt for a minute the relevance of this subject. Although we may not currently have a dark wizard at large, that is not to say that the period of peace will remain so."

Teddy glanced around the room. All of his classmates were looking sombre. Some of the muggle born students such as Chloe were looking positively terrified.

"One must also remember that Defence against magical creatures is of the utmost importance, particularly in our current climate. That is where I will began our course on defensive theory this year. My aim is for you to identify dark creatures in our midst as well as what they can do.

"As many of you may not know, this is in fact my area of expertise. I worked for the Department for the Control and Regulation of Magical Creatures for a number of years, dealing with the likes of vampires, dragons, and werewolves."

Farrow's eyes lingered on Teddy momentarily but it was likely that the rest of the class didn't realise. He could feel the colour rise to his cheeks under the stare and focused on keeping his hair the same colour.

Farrow had worked for the Department for the Control and Regulation of Magical Creatures. Teddy could only imagine that this was part of the reason why Harry and Hermione weren't his biggest fans. Hermione worked for the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, focusing on the rights of Magical Beings. Teddy knew that a lot of her work involved campaigning and litigating for better treatment and equal rights for all Magical Beings. This often left her at heads with the Department for the Control and Regulation of Magical Creatures for the sole reason that she did not classify Magical Beings, including werewolves, as creatures.

The realisation that Hermione and Farrow did not get along made Teddy feel a pit in his stomach. He could only imagine that Hermione and Farrow had disagreed about Hermione's policies – most likely about werewolf rights. Teddy attempted to push the thought from his mind.

"We're going to begin out studies with a quick quiz on Dark Creatures," Farrow said with a devious smile.

"Who can tell me which side these creatures fought for in the war?" Farrow flicked his wand and an image of a giant appeared on the board. Several hands raised around the room.

"Giants fought for You-Know-Who in the Final Battle, sir," Emmeline Forsythe answered.

"Correct." He flicked his wand again and a centaur appeared on the screen. Fewer hands were in the air this time including Teddy's. Farrow called on Amina Shafiq.

"Centaurs didn't take a side," Amina said. "They're independent creatures but they did fight against You-Know-Who in the Final Battle."

Farrow flicked his wand again to reveal a vampire. He called on Teddy to answer.

"Vampires weren't involved in the war or the Battle of Hogwarts," he answered.

Farrow merely nodded and once again waved his wand. Teddy's heart skipped a beat when he saw what was on the screen. A werewolf.

Several hands rose throughout the room again. Teddy remained frozen in place. Isabelle Forsythe answered.

"Werewolves fought on both sides, sir," she said. Farrow narrowed his eyes at her.

"While it is true that some werewolves fought against You-Know-Who, the vast majority fought with him," Farrow said slowly. "That answer alone would not pass in an exam. Five points from Ravenclaw." Isabelle Forsythe looked like she was about to cry.

The class moved onto talking about how to identify various creatures such as pixies and Grindylows. Teddy remained silent for the rest of the class. After what felt like the longest hour of his life, the class ended.

"You all know that tonight is the full-moon," Farrow said as they were leaving. "Make sure that you all have your guard up," he sneered. Teddy kept his eyes firmly ahead of him, he didn't want to look at Farrow. His one class with him had confirmed his suspicions – Farrow was anti-werewolf.

Teddy was gradually starting to feel worse as the day wore on. He was spending the majority of his time focusing on not throwing up. He was exhausted by dinner. Typically, on the day of the full moon he had always spent most of it sleeping and not doing so was taking its toll on him. He managed to make it to dinner before he went back to the dormitory amid the concerns of fellow Gryffindors Fionn and Chloe.

"Teddy, are you sure you're feeling ok?" Chloe asked him with a note of concern in her voice. Teddy looked up from his potatoes that he was moving around his plate with his fork, not actually eating. He tried to appear as positive as possible as he responded.

"Yeah, I'm great," he said but even to his own ears it sounded false.

"Head on up to bed, mate," Fionn said. "No offense but you look awful." Teddy smiled. "Yeah, I think I might."

Christopher Lewis, Teddy's other roommate looked at him suspiciously as he stood up from the table. Teddy tried to shoot him a grin but he felt it came out as more of a grimace.

Teddy went straight to the dormitory and lay on his bed without changing. He knew that he wasn't going to sleep that night, he never did. He lay there in silence, mentally preparing for the night to come, nervous that it was his first time to go through it alone.

He looked at his watch. The moon was due to rise at 8.25pm. He had ten minutes before it began. He pulled the curtains around his four poster bed so that if his roommates came in they would just assume he had fallen asleep. He knew that they would eventually start to wonder what was happening to him as the months wore on – he just wasn't ready to explain the situation right away.

Although he had his curtains drawn, Teddy knew the moment that the moon rose. He closed his eyes as the familiar pains took over his body.

Every one of his muscles was aching and his heart was pounding. It was as if his body was fighting with itself. He tried to remain as still as possible so as not to aggravate the pain in any way. He focused on remaining calm when all he wanted to do was shriek in pain.

He had tried countless different potions over the years but none had been successful. When the moon was up, his body temperature rose and his body burned off any potions he took quicker than they could take any effect.

Teddy was unique in many ways. He was the child of a werewolf – perhaps one of the only children like himself in existence. He knew his godfather and Hermione had searched for information about other children born to werewolves but had come up empty handed. His father had worried about passing his affliction onto a child and was elated to find that Teddy was not a werewolf when he was born. However, although he did not become a fully-fledged werewolf at the full-moon, he didn't remain unaffected by the moon's powers.

Hermione, the brightest witch of her age, had come to the conclusion that it was his mother who had saved him from the true extent of lycanthropy. As a metamorphmagus, Teddy could control and transform his appearance at will. Hermione said that the metamorphmagus genes override his werewolf genes. His body, so used to changing at its own will, fought back when another force tried to change it.

Although he was not a full werewolf, the full moon had its effects on him. Once a month, as his metamorphmagus genes fought his werewolf ones, Teddy was left in excruciating pain. He was simply grateful that it was not up to him to focus on not transforming and that his body did it for him.

Once the moon rose, Teddy could not sleep. The pain in his body was not the only thing to keep him awake – the moon itself had an effect on him which caused restlessness. While the full moon was risen, Teddy was unable to fall asleep leading to long nights trying to deal with the excruciating pain that coursed through his body.

Teddy heard his roommates entering the dormitory and was thankful that he had the privacy of drawing his curtains so they couldn't see him.

"Teddy must've already gone to sleep," Fionn said glancing at his drawn curtains. Christopher made a noise similar to a grunt.

"I wonder what's up with him," Fionn continued in a whisper. "Hope we don't catch it, I don't want to get sick in the first week!"

"I don't think it's contagious," Christopher said in a dry voice.

"Are there special wizard diseases, then?" Fionn asked, curiosity seeping from the muggle-born's voice.

"Yes," Christopher hesitated. Teddy could feel his heart pounding in his chest. "I don't know if that's what's wrong with Teddy though."

Christopher must know, Teddy thought to himself. It wasn't necessarily a secret that his father was a werewolf. He was proud of who his father was and what he had done. He was a hero. Teddy had been taught from the moment he was old enough to understand that his parents had died to protect the wizarding world and he should be nothing but proud of them.

Despite this, and despite the work that had been done to progress werewolf rights by Hermione, Teddy knew that there was still a certain stigma attached to the disease amongst some wizards. He had been warned before entering Hogwarts that the real world was not always as tolerant or understanding as the one he had grown up in, surrounded by his extended family consisting of the Potters, Weasleys and the remaining members of Dumbledore's Army and the Order of the Phoenix. Perhaps his roommate Christopher was one such wizard.

Teddy lay awake and in pain for the night. He didn't dare get up and walk around in case anyone in Gryffindor caught sight of him.

When he was younger, his grandmother or Harry would stay up with him for the night and do anything they could to distract him from what was happening. While he had been in pain during these nights, he couldn't help but look on the nights he spent with Harry fondly. It was always one of the rare occasions that he had Harry to himself – no younger kids demanding his attention. They would spend the nights playing games of exploding snap or wizard's chess, reading books, watching Quidditch plays or simply talking. Harry would tell him stories of when his father had been his teacher in Hogwarts and the stories that he had gathered about the Marauders and their time in Hogwarts. They were special nights for Teddy.

The moon eventually gave rise to the sun and Teddy felt his body relax. It was almost seven in the morning when Teddy finally drifted off to sleep, the effects on the moon leaving his system, relieved that he had made it through his first full-moon in Hogwarts unscathed.

Teddy awoke mid-afternoon the next day to a tapping on his window. He looked over and saw Harry's owl looking impatient.

"Alright, alright, I'm coming," muttered Teddy, dragging himself out of bed. He glanced down at his watch, it was after three, he had slept through breakfast and lunch. Nothing unusual for the day after the full moon but it was possibly problematic given the amount of homework he had to do over the weekend.

He opened the dorm window and allowed Harry's owl to swoop in. He rubbed her gently as he retrieved the letter from her leg.

Teddy,

Please let us know how last night went as soon as you can. You were brave to go through it on your own for the first time and we are so proud of you.

Harry.

As Teddy read Harry's letter the door of the dormitory swung open and Fionn strolled in.

"Teddy, what did you do to your hair? Is that a spell?" he cried.

"My hair?" Teddy looked up at him. Realisation struck and he darted his eyes towards the mirror near him. Sure enough, his hair had reverted to his favourite turquoise colour. The thought hadn't even occurred to him to change his hair back to its natural sandy brown as he usually did first thing when he woke up. He quickly switched it back which he couldn't hide from his roommate who's mouth fell open in shock.

"How'd you do that without a wand?" Fionn asked incredulously.

"Er… I'm a metamorphmagus." Fionn's face remained blank. "Right, you're a muggle-born," Teddy said remembering. "I can change my appearance whenever I want," he explained.

"Deadly," Fionn said with amazement. "Can you teach me?" Teddy shook his head and smiled. "Nah, mate, you have to be born like this," he explained. "My mum was one too so she passed it on to me."

"Still cool," Fionn said. "You know, Amina is convinced that your eyes are always changing colour. She said it in the common room last night after you went to bed."

Teddy grimaced. His eyes always gave away his emotions. He had the most trouble controlling their colour and obviously he hadn't been careful enough.

"Yeah, they change a lot. I better be more careful."

"Nah, it's amazing!" exclaimed Fionn. "That's one of the coolest things I've seen since getting here. If I was you I'd be changing my appearance all the time."

"Usually I do," he said. "My gran and godfather told me to keep it quiet at Hogwarts though. My godfather says that it's better to keep certain things private in case of emergency."

"What kind of emergency is he expecting?" asked Fionn, utterly bewildered. Teddy realised that as a muggle-born, Fionn was not aware of the extent to which Dark Wizards were once at large. Despite the overall peace in the Wizarding community, Teddy knew that there were still dark wizards who had supported Voldemort. Harry didn't let on, but he knew that Harry was their number one target and because of this, he liked to do everything he could to keep the public knowledge about his family to a minimum, in case it was used against him.

"My godfather is very… careful. He's an Auror – a dark wizard catcher."

Teddy joined Fionn for dinner in the Great Hall. He was feeling much better after spending the entire day sleeping, as he usually did. As they joined the Gryffindor table, Amina looked at them seriously.

"Did you hear the news?" she asked quietly. Teddy and Fionn shook their heads.

"There's been a breakout from Azkaban." She handed Teddy the Daily Prophet.

AZKABAN ESCAPEE

It was discovered this morning that there has been a breakout from Azkaban. The high security prison, which houses the darkest of wizards, many of whom were followers of You-Know-Who, has only had two reported breakouts in the past and none since the fall of He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named. The escapee in question is Fenrir Greyback, who was arrested after the Second Wizarding War for acts against wizards and muggles alike. Greyback, a known werewolf, is highly dangerous and any sightings should be reported to the Ministry instantly.

Harry Potter, the Boy-Who-Lived, the Chosen-One, Conquerer of the Dark Lord and Head Auror had the following to say: "The breakout is an isolated incident and the means by which Greyback broke out of Azkaban are being investigated. It is not believed that Greyback has a wand but he is still very dangerous. The Auror office is working tirelessly to capture Greyback."

Long-time friend of Harry Potter and part of the famed Golden Trio, Hermione Granger-Weasley, who is now head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement made the following statement in relation to the breakout: "I trust the Auror office to capture Greyback in a timely manner. If Greyback's means of breaking out are to be understood, it raises the question of the power of the Dementors and their ability to effectively guard prisoners. It is clear that other methods should be considered."

Hermione Granger Weasley has spoken about Dementors in the past, citing the lack of control of the Ministry over the creatures, particularly during You-Know-Who's reign as a reason for their dismissal. However, the rest of the Wizarding World may not feel safe if not for the Dementors. Enid Hawkins of Battersea has said (Continued page 13).

"He's a werewolf?" Chloe said when she had finished reading, fear evident in her eyes. "Do you think he could come to Hogwarts? If he bites do you become a werewolf too?" The poor muggle-born girl looked terrified. Teddy could understand, it was her first exposure to the dangerous side to the wizarding world.

He said nothing. He knew that Greyback was the werewolf who had bitten his father and subjected him to a life of discrimination. He was never told, but he had overheard Harry and Ron talking about him a few years previously.

"I heard he's really dangerous," a third year sitting next to them said, overhearing Chloe's apparent fear. "Apparently his mission is to bite as many people as he can – and he loves children."

Chloe went positively white. Amina attempted to cheer her up. "Don't worry, Chloe. There's no way he can come here."

"You never know," said the third year, grinning menacingly. "There may already be some werewolves in our midst." His eyes darted towards Teddy and he smirked while Teddy scowled at him. Amina clearly noticed the exchange between Teddy and the third year as her eyes grew wide with understanding.

"Well, there's nothing to worry about Chloe," she said comforting the girl. "Greyback could never get into Hogwarts. Most werewolves live ordinary lives and don't try to hurt others. They're misunderstood."

Fear was still present on Chloe's face as she nodded sombrely.

"Not all of them," the third year said. "Most of them are violent and dangerous. Greyback even bites people when he's not a werewolf – others probably do too."

"I'm going back to the common room," Teddy said abruptly, standing up and leaving the table. He wanted nothing more than to argue with the third year but he didn't want to draw attention to himself. He was still tired and on edge from the full-moon the previous night.

He didn't want to be surrounded by talk of werewolves. The thought of Greyback on the loose terrified Teddy but he had every faith in Harry and the other Aurors.

What was really bothering him was the third year's attitude on the subject. He obviously knew who Teddy was judging by his smirk and it seemed like he had a problem with it. The question was – did anyone else have a problem with him?

"Teddy," a voice called just as he rounded the corner towards the Gryffindor tower. Amina was behind him, panting slightly.

"What's up, Amina?" Teddy said, feigning a friendly demeanour.

"Blimey, you walk fast," she said catching her breath. "I wanted to talk to you. Are you ok? I heard what that tosser Hargrave said, he doesn't know what he's talking about, he –"

"It's fine," Teddy growled. "I know what he meant by it, you clearly do too."

"Well, it's not really a secret," Amina said shuffling slightly. "You're sort of famous, well your family is. Not to mention your godfather. People are bound to know your dad was a werewolf. I don't care, and most people don't. Everyone has become much more accepting since –"

"It's fine, Amina."

"Clearly, it's not, Teddy."

She reminded him of Victoire. If there was ever anything upsetting him, Victoire wouldn't let it go until he told her about it. Why did girls have to be so persistent.

Teddy sighed. It was clear that Amina wasn't going to leave him alone about what had just happened.

"I just don't want muggle-borns like Chloe and Fionn, who have no experience with things like this to get the wrong idea. I know things have changed, but not everyone is so accepting. I'm worried they'll hear someone saying something and then think of me differently. Chloe is nearly crying thinking about werewolves, for Merlin's sake."

Amina smiled. "Oh Teddy, if that's all you're worrying about I think you'll be ok."

Teddy shot her a quizzical look. "Fionn is probably one of the most laid-back people I've ever met. Could you actually see him treating you differently?"

"Well… no, I couldn't." In fact, Fionn would probably think the whole thing was cool, as he did most things in the magical world.

"And Chloe doesn't know enough not to be scared. She'll learn." Teddy grinned genuinely at Amina.

"You're right. Thanks."

What he didn't want to say was that it wasn't Chloe and Fionn he was worried about in Gryffindor, it was his roommate Christopher.

As the weeks passed, Teddy became better friends with his fellow Gryffindors – particularly with his muggle born roommate Fionn who, despite their very different backgrounds, had a lot in common with Teddy. Fionn's enthusiasm for all things wizarding was infectious and Teddy enjoyed watching his reactions when he shared another piece of new information with him.

The boys had also become rather friendly with Chloe and Amina, the Gryffindor girls. The only first year Gryffindor that Teddy was unsure of was his other roommate Christopher. Christopher tended to keep to himself but Teddy couldn't help but feel like he was particularly cold towards him.

The castle was alight with talk about Greyback's breakout over the following few days. However, as things typically went in Hogwarts, something else came up to distract the masses – in this case it was the Head Boy being caught cheating on his girlfriend with the Head Girl, something Teddy cared very little about but the girls cared a great deal.

"It's such a scandal, Teddy!" Chloe had gasped. "Like a reality TV show."

"A what?"

"Mate, you don't even want to know," laughed Fionn.

Teddy was just happy that Chloe was no longer occupied with thoughts of werewolf attacks. He still hadn't mentioned his own connection to Greyback and werewolves – not deliberately, it just hadn't come up.

As the next full-moon rapidly approached, Teddy felt as though he had companions in his apprehension in the form of the entire school. About a week before the following full-moon, some of the older students started to sell werewolf repellent amulets, claiming that they were made of pure silver. Chloe had almost been convinced to buy one by a particularly pushy fifth year student.

"Don't waste your money, Chloe. They don't work," Teddy told her.

"Don't listen to Lupin," the fifth year sneered. "He's just saying that because he doesn't need one."

Teddy had opened his mouth to retaliate when he was dragged away forcefully by Amina.

Teddy had written to Harry asking him about Greyback. He hadn't wanted to seem like he was worried, merely curious but knowing Harry, it was unlikely that he believed him. He had written back telling him not to worry and that the Aurors were already following leads.

Ultimately, Greyback became another aspect of the full-moon that Teddy would worry about.