Of Veela and Wolves v2 - Chapter 2 (Patreon)

They returned to Hogwarts after a surprisingly good lunch. The undercooked goat leg was perfect for his new tastes. Crunchy portions were a nice contrast to the raw pieces, though it probably would have made him violently ill if he was a normal wizard.

Hagrid split off to report the news to Dumbledore. Harry decided to walk through the school now that the students were gone. It was eerie how quiet things were. At the same time, the emptiness was oddly soothing. The scents were excessive, it was nice and quiet, and he didn't have to worry about moving too fast or too silent. He found even his simple movements had become just different enough for people to notice something was off about him. It didn't help that his eyes had the tendency to flash in the when the light hit his eyes at the right angle.

Harry drifted toward Professor Flitwick's office naturally gravitating toward the other non-human among the staff only to find it locked. He paused for a moment to listen. The sound of light footsteps came from farther down the hall. He followed it until he came to a stop in front of a door that was slightly smaller than the standard.

"Professor?" Harry knocked on the door.

It swung open to reveal Flitwick. The sight of him in khaki clothing complete with a pith helmet made Harry's brain short circuit for a moment.

"Ah, Harry!" Flitwick smiled brightly at him then waved him into the room. "I had heard you were staying over the summer."

Harry followed the half-goblin in to find it was a nice apartment. A satchel lay on its side on a table with some supplies scattered around it.

Harry nodded slowly, "Uh… why are you dressed like that?"

"Oh, this?" Flitwick chuckled. "I'm off on vacation to the wilds of Louisiana."

"Louisiana?" Harry asked in reply.

"In America," Flitwick nodded. "They have some interesting approaches to magic that are well worth handling the alligators and zombies."

Harry's jaw dropped, "Zombies?"

"Yes," Flitwick replied. "The classic sort made through rituals and alchemy. They don't hunger for flesh like those the muggles created. These are simple-minded assistants that can get rather tiresome."

Harry nodded as he tried to adjust the image of Professor Flitwick he had formed over the years.

"You're not staying for the summer?" Harry asked.

Flitwick laughed, "Goodness no. Most of the staff head off for vacation. We need it just as much as the students." He paused. "Last I heard only Minerva and Albus were staying. Aside from Rubeus, I swear that man never leaves. Filch is around as well. It's about the only time I've seen him happy now that the students are gone."

"Oh," Harry didn't know what else to say.

Flitwick patted him on the arm, "Did you think we stayed here all year?"

"You do have rooms here," Harry shrugged.

The half-goblin went back to work packing, "It's not convenient to live off campus during the term."

"That makes sense," Harry nodded.

"I'll be back in about a month if all goes well," Flitwick added. "Give or take a week."

Harry walked back over to the door, "Have a good trip."

"Thank you, Harry," Flitwick replied. "Enjoy your summer."

Harry found himself wandering around the grounds without a goal in mind. He made a conscious choice to avoid the dungeons. His control did not need to be tested by encountering Snape. Instead, he found himself walking along a hallway that he didn't remember seeing before. More importantly, it was the large stretch of sunlight across the floor that drew him in.

He stretched out across the stone to reach as much as possible. The floor wasn't nearly as uncomfortable as he had expected. Sunlight had warmed the stone perfectly. His full belly guided him into light slumber. The sound of paws on stone perked up his ears, but his instincts dismissed it as harmless. He felt a cat, or Kneazle, walk across him then curl up on the small of his back. The animal began to purr, which helped him relax even more. It wasn't long before there were more cats that joined the pile.

His ears perked up at the sound of shoes on stone. The confident stride and swish of cloth identified them to belong to Professor McGonagall. He didn't have the energy, or desire, to say anything in defense of the impromptu cuddle pile.

"Harry," McGonagall sounded somewhere between annoyed and amused. "You are in my spot."

"Hm," He managed sleepily. "First come, first serve." His eyes opened just wide enough to see around him. "There's an open spot."

McGonagall sighed, "I understand you're adjusting to your new instinct, but sharing a sunbeam with a student would be crossing a line."

"Mmhm," Harry replied barely awake. "That's a problem."

McGonagall muttered something that Harry didn't care to figure out. She briskly walked away. Somewhere in the back of his mind, he knew this was the start of a war. Harry had fought a basilisk, a werewolf, a possessed professor, a troll, and dementors. For some reason he knew this would be harder than all of them.

§~§

"Harry," Hagrid laughed at the scene.

Hogwarts had a lot of cats on campus to help keep the vermin population under control. The magical world had quite a few little critters that made the felines indispensable.

"Hm?" Harry woke up enough to realize the cats had left and the sun was gone.

"Been looking for you," Hagrid chuckled. "You should get up, it's dinnertime."

Harry grumbled as he got to his feet, "Do the elves still cook?"

"Yes," Hagrid answered. "They get bored during the summer without the students here. Cooking for the staff is one of the things we've got to keep them busy." He patted his stomach. "How else do you think I keep all this weight?"

Harry raised his eyebrows in an unspoken question.

"You'll find out soon enough," Hagrid waved for him to follow. "Being half-giant burns a lot of energy. Remus told me he had quite an appetite as well." He shook his head. "Before that night. I don't know how he would miss a dose."

Harry sighed, "I'm not mad at him."

"Oh?" Hagrid asked.

Harry nodded with a mixed smile, "I don't have to go back to the Dursleys, and I get to stay at Hogwarts. That's a dream come true."

"That's a good outlook," Hagrid patted him on the back.

Harry took an extra step forward but didn't nearly fall over like before. The elves were more than happy to make whatever he wanted fresh. It made the meals during the school year a little bland in comparison. They had to make food that everyone could eat rather than a specific order.

"Where are you sleeping tonight?" Hagrid asked.

Harry looked at his friend, "I was going to go to my dorm."

"Can't do that," Hagrid replied. "The dorms are closed for the summer. You'll need a proper room. Until then you can stay with me."

Harry smiled, "Thanks, but my own room?"

"Hogwarts has plenty of them available," Hagrid answered. "Dumbledore will probably set you up with one of the empty professor rooms. He's a bit busy at the moment. Might be better to ask Minerva."

Harry winced, "I'm not sure how that would go."

"Why's that?" The half-giant asked.

Harry gave a wry smile, "I stole her favorite sunning spot."

"Oh," Hagrid nodded seriously. "That might cause some issues." He stood. "Come along, I'll get you set for the night."

§§

Harry looked around at the Shrieking Shack. This was to be his home for the next three nights. Some of the furniture had been repaired. They said it was for 'enrichment' purposes. It gave him something to do in his wolf form.

Currently, he was standing naked in the living room. The school term ended a week ago. While he missed Hermione and Ron, it removed a lot of stress. He was surprised to see that a majority of the staff left as well. Currently, only Dumbledore, Professor McGonagall, Madam Pomfrey, and Hagrid stayed at Hogwarts.

The care packages from the Weasleys started a couple of days after the end of term. Harry found himself a little choked up when he found that they had included a selection of meat. It was a subtle way of telling him that they knew and still cared about him. He literally almost choked when a package from Fred and George arrived shortly after. It contained a couple of chew toys and a bone.  

A pressure in his chest brought him out of his reminiscing. The feeling spread along his body, just short of pain. It felt similar to the moment before the muscle cramp. Harry took a deep breath and let the change roll over him.

He hunched over violently as the bones in his spine popped loudly. His hands spasmed as his fingers morphed to claws. The world went blurry as his face began to shift to accommodate a muzzle. It felt like every joint in his body popped and cracked. The sudden hair growth was a minor annoyance in the flood of new sensations.

Harry had tried to prepare for this. Hermione had shown him the few books she had found on the subject that were more concerning than helpful. There was a very short journal written by a werewolf tucked away in the library. It had more blank pages than those with text and the scent was incredibly faint. There were only a few entries that documented the first shift and not much after. The handwriting changed drastically after the shift. Once measured, almost artistic script became scribbles. The meticulous notes were replaced by frantic ramblings with little focus.

There wasn't a name on the journal, but it didn't take long to find the origin. Nearly eighty years before Remus Lupin attended Hogwarts there was another student, Jacob Lane, the son of a Muggle Doctor, who had been bitten. The details of how it happened were never discussed, but his death was a black mark on Hogwarts history. He had attacked another student in the middle of a class and had to be killed to protect those around him.

His balance shifted as the transformation completed. He jolted forward and caught himself before his muzzle connected with the floor. Each finger ended in a wicked claw that was made to rip through prey. He raised his nose to the air to sniff the air. There was a slight breeze, but it was more than enough to bring the various scents from Hogsmeade closer. He could tell the people in the town had taken refuge on the full moon. The lingering memory of the Shrieking Shack had made the townsfolk careful.

Harry shook his head. His vision was much sharper than usual. Everything that had been obscured in darkness a minute before was easy to see. His vision was in shades of gray where the shadows grew too deep while the lit patches were still in color.

He waited for something to happen. A sudden madness, or overpowering hunger to hit him. This was supposed to be the worst of it. His first shift. He couldn't use Calming Draughts or Wolfsbane until the next full moon.

Instead, he felt fine. At most, he was really hungry.

Harry shifted back to stand on his feet. He found he could walk on two legs or use his arms to propel himself along like a gorilla. Unfortunately, he didn't know what he looked like. They hadn't given him a mirror out of fear that he would hurt himself. From what he could see, his fur was black like his hair. Thankfully, it wasn't as wild. He stood against the wall and marked his height with a claw. When he stepped away, he could see that he was taller than the nearby door.

He tracked down the first piece of meat easily enough. It was a full stretch of beef ribs and it smelled wonderful. He took his time working every bit of meat he could get. Once that was done, he turned his attention to the bones. A curious nibble led to him gnawing on it for a few minutes. It tasted amazing while the texture against his teeth felt so good.

Harry let his thoughts wander as he worked on the bone. He could think clearly, he wasn't a ball of rage, and he was getting bored. A not-so-small smile crossed his muzzle. Hermione probably already had a letter on the way to get a detailed account.

"Arroarworr," Harry tried to speak.

His tongue didn't move right in his mouth. He continued to work on it for a few minutes before he called it a loss. Out of curiosity he tried to cast a spell. Nothing happened. He wondered if he would be able to use magic if he learned how to do non-verbal casting and wandless. That would be a good project to focus on over the summer.

Harry tried to think of something else to do. He could smell a couple more pieces of meat spaced out around the shack, but they didn't interest him. His stomach felt contentedly full. With nothing else to do, he curled up on the recently restored bed to sleep.

§§

"Harry!" Hagrid yelled from outside the shack.

He jumped up to his feet. The familiar click-clack of claws on wood announced Fangs arrival as well. What was Hagrid doing here? Even he knew enough to be wary around a werewolf. The edge of panic faded when he saw the sunlight that drifted through the boarded windows. His first shift was over.

"I got you some clothes," Hagrid called as he opened the door. "Didn't think you'd want to walk around stark naked."

"Thanks," He called from the room.

Harry opened the door just enough to grab the clothes.

"How are you feeling?" Hagrid's voice was soaked with concern.

"Fine," He called back as he got dressed. "I ate, I chewed on bones, and slept."

"You remember all that?" Hagrid asked.

"Yeah," Harry opened the door.

Any further conversation ended as Fang jumped on him. His fresh clothes were quickly soaked with drool. Harry laughed as the big dog licked his face like crazy.

"Fang," Harry laughed. "I'm fine. I'm fine. Yes, I still love you."

That seemed to mollify the dog. He stepped off of Harry to allow him to stand.

"Are you sure?" Hagrid looked at him closely.

"It was boring more than anything," Harry shrugged.

Hagrid turned his attention to the shack. The furniture was all still intact, there weren't any new claw marks on the walls. There was even a stack of bones near the old couch. Hagrid didn't get a good look at it as Fang began to poke through to find a one worth his attention.

"Forgot these," Hagrid pulled out a pair of glasses and held them out.

Harry cocked his head to the side. He tapped the bridge of his nose where his glasses usually came to rest. They weren't there, but he could see just fine. In fact, his vision was better than ever.

"Huh," Harry shrugged. "I don't need them."

Hagrid slowly put them back in his pocket. He took another long look at Harry. The first time he had seen Remus after the full moon was not a pleasant memory. Remus had fresh scratches all over his body, winced with each step, and his hands noticeably shook.

Harry appeared to be fine. Actually, he looked healthier than ever. His already striking green eyes practically glowed.

"Madam Pomfrey is waiting for you," Hagrid waved him on. "Got some food for you there too."

Harry rubbed his stomach. "Now that you mention it, I am hungry."

Hagrid made out of the shack before he realized Harry wasn't with him. He turned around to see the boy staring at a doorway.

"What are you doing?" Hagrid asked.

"This is how tall I am," Harry pointed at the slash on the wall.

"That's a good size, Harry," Hagrid said with a nod. "Too bad you're still so short now."

"Hey!" Harry shot a mock-glare at Hagrid. "I'm not short, you're just incredibly tall."

"You're just the right height for a second year," Hagrid teased.

§§

The second day of the full moon was much like the first. Harry transformed, ate, and slept. By the third night he was bored out of his mind. It got so bad that he had taken the chew toy Fred and George had sent with him. Unfortunately, it wasn't as satisfying as a bone, so it didn't last long. Harry used it to work on the precision use of his claws. That led to further exploration. He started using his claws to draw pictures on the walls then switched to writing when he realized he lacked artistic talent.

He wrote about how Sirius was innocent, and Pettigrew was guilty. It included the full account of the encounter with the rat as well. He found that it felt really good to put it out there for someone to see. Once that was done, he put down what he remembered about the basilisk. How he had fought it, the way he should have done it, and then who had originally let it out. After that, he started to note all the other magical creatures had had encountered. He wondered what it would be like to see them again now that he was a werewolf.

One thing that he hadn't expected was the changes to his body. Even when not transformed he found his body had gone through some drastic changes. He had grown a few inches after his first transformation. Unfortunately, it only happened once. He was still on the shorter side of things, but it wasn't as obvious. The multiple scars on his body had faded, even the one on his forehead. He no longer needed glasses, his appetite had increased by a lot, and he seemed to always to be warm. His vision at night was sharper, not as much as he was as a wolf, but better than it had been. Thankfully, the transformation helped him adjust to his enhanced senses. They turned up to eleven when he was in wolf form which made it easier to deal with in his human form.

On top of all that, he was noticeable stronger and faster. It didn't take the news that he couldn't play Quidditch hurt less, but it made sense. His new strength and speed gave him an unfair edge. Thankfully, he could still fly.

§§

He had two full moons under his belt when he got a letter from Ron. The writing was sloppy, even by Ron's standards, and the ink was smeared. His dad had got tickets to the Quidditch World Cup. He wanted to invite Harry along. They hadn't seen each other all summer. His usual stay with the Weasleys had been postponed until he felt comfortable starting again. The experience of transforming alone in the Shrieking Shack didn't mean it would be the same around people.

Harry hated to do it, but he had to refuse. The Quidditch World Cup was on the first night of the full moon. He couldn't risk it. Knowing his luck there would be some random thing that would turn him into a mindless beast.

The news of the Death Eater attack had put him in a rage. He had transformed that night of his own will and took his frustrations out on the furniture. His friends were fine, but the Ministry had written it off as a random thing rather than taking a closer look.

That was the start of things around the school grounds getting weird. The professors, as well as some witches and wizards he didn't know, arrived within the week. They brought in large animal enclosures, built new stands around the Quidditch field, and spent a lot of time negotiating with the Mer-People.

Hagrid did an exceptional job at keeping the information secret. For about two hours. The half-giant couldn't keep in his excitement for the upcoming Tri-Wizard Tournament. He told Harry that he had never been around so many magical creatures before. Somehow, Hagrid managed to stop himself before naming any specifics, but the half-giant looked like a kid on Christmas.

The pure joy that Hagrid exuberated was a balm to Harry's anger. It was hard to stay mad when his friend would disappear for a while only to return and giggle throughout the day. He always came back with new scents on him. Harry had to hold himself back to ask. He knew that Hagrid would tell him if pressed, but the half-giant was so pleased that he was keeping a secret.