Greetings, class,
Today we’ll be covering the advanced chapters on Werewolves. How to recognize them, their strengths and weaknesses, their treatment within wizarding society past and present, and the laws governing them.
A review of our homework revealed the methods by which Lord Voldemort was able to conscript into his legions of followers circa the Second Battle of Hogwarts. We learned that Fenrir Greyback was not just a werewolf, but an Alpha whose M.O. was entrapping children and lone adults and attacking them in wolf form during a full moon. He even enlisted the help from several Snatchers in order to make this possible, contributing to the large number of missing witches and wizards, the majority of whom were, sadly, children.
Siring so many werewolves, Fenrir became one of the most powerful Alphas in the world leading quite possibly one of the largest werewolf armies ever known to recorded history.
However, we also learned that not all werewolves are evil. In fact, most werewolves are as good or bad as the next witch or wizard. What, then, makes them so dangerous?
Werewolves, when transformed, lose all sense of humanity, becoming pure beast, pure predator, and they’re very territorial and aggressive by nature, most likely an evolved trait associated with the pain that comes with each transformation coupled with their wolf-like tendencies.
As we covered before, a werewolf cannot choose whether or not to transform and will no longer remember who they are and would kill even their best friend given the opportunity once transformed. Despite this, they are able to recall everything they have experienced throughout their transformation upon reverting to their human form. This often leaves good people with this infliction suffering from a deep sense of guilt over their actions when they were a werewolf. It is for this reason, and the lack of a cure, that Werewolfery is considered to be a curse.
Why ‘werewolfery’ and not ‘Lychanthropy?’ Because the Muggles have a medical term defining Lychanthropy as a mental condition where another Muggle believes, within their minds, that they are indeed a werewolf and that they can transform during a full moon. While wizardkind are not susceptible to this particular mental malady, it was deemed appropriate to differentiate between the Muggle condition, and the act of truly transforming.
Lycanthropy is a magical illness known to be spread by contact between saliva and blood; thus, when a transformed werewolf bites a human, the bitten will become a werewolf themselves. Most Muggles, however, will die from the extent of their injuries in the instance of a werewolf attack as noted by Professor Marlowe Forfang. If a werewolf is in human form and bites the victim, they will merely gain lupine tendencies such as a fondness for rare meat. Any bite or scratch obtained from a werewolf, whether in human or animal form, will leave permanent scars. However, the fresh wound can be sealed with a mixture of powdered silver and dittany.
Werewolves cannot pass on lycanthropy to their children, and so if having a child with a human partner no lupine tendencies will occur as noted with Teddy Lupin, son of Remus and Nymphadora Tonks. However, there is no concrete evidence to support this claim as Teddy may have inherited his mother’s talent over his father’s, as Dhampir are proof that Wizarding genes are more dominant than Vampire genes, so it can only be assumed that the same could be said in the case of Wizarding and Werewolf genes. Previous to Teddy’s birth, there was no documentation of werewolf births.
If two werewolves mate at the full moon, in their animal forms, something very strange happens. The result of their mating, which has only ever occurred twice throughout history, has been a pack of wolf cubs — actual wolf cubs — who grow to become very beautiful wolves and can only be distinguished from true wolves by their near-human intelligence.
Thus, rumours of werewolves living in the Forbidden Forest in the grounds at Hogwarts Castle are actually about a pack of lupine werewolf offspring that was released into the woods with the kind permission of Albus Dumbledore, former Headmaster of the School, and has lived there ever since. Teachers have never tried to dispel these rumors because they felt that keeping students out of the forest was highly desirable.
Unfortunately, there is currently no cure for lycanthropy. However, some of the worst effects can be mitigated by consuming Wolfsbane Potion, which allows a werewolf to retain his or her human mind while transformed, thus freeing him or her from the worry of harming other humans or themselves. It is a very difficult potion to make, with many complicated ingredients. According to Remus Lupin, former Defense Against the Dark Arts Professor at Hogwarts in the 1990s, it tastes disgusting but sugar makes it useless. Because werewolves only pose a danger to humans, companionship with animals whilst transformed has been known to make the experience more bearable as the werewolf has no-one to harm and will be less willing to harm themselves.
According to Gilderoy Lockhart, the Homorphus Charm can force a werewolf back into human shape. However, due to Lockhart’s reputation as a liar, and the many falsehoods he told to inflate his popularity, his information is highly suspect — as is the very existence of a Homorphus Charm in the first place. However, as many of Lockhart’s claims are also based on the accounts of more trustworthy wizards (accomplishments he would claim for himself, following the disposal of the originating witch or wizard), there is a chance that the charm does, in fact, exist.
Contrary to what the Muggle world believes, werewolves are not affected by silver, except in that it can be used to prevent death and merely closes their wounds to prevent bleeding in a severe werewolf attack.
The monthly transformation of a werewolf is extremely painful if untreated and is usually preceded and succeeded by a few days of pallor and ill health. While in his or her wolfish form, the werewolf loses entirely its human sense of right or wrong. However, it is incorrect to state (as some authorities have, notably Professor Emerett Picardy in his book Lupine Lawlessness: Why Lycanthropes Don’t Deserve to Live) that they suffer from a permanent loss of moral sense. While human, the werewolf may be as good or kind as the next person. Alternatively, they may be dangerous even while human, as in the case of Fenrir Greyback, who attempts to bite and maim as a man and keeps his nails sharpened into claw-like points for the purpose. Though werewolves usually only infect their victims through biting, they sometimes take it too far and kill their victims.
Without any humans nearby to attack, or other animals to occupy it, the werewolf will attack itself out of frustration. This leaves many werewolves such as Remus Lupin with self-inflicted scars and premature ageing from the difficult transformations.
Werewolves can be easily distinguished from regular wolves by their shorter snout, more human-like eyes, the tufted tail, and their mindless hunting of humans whilst in wolf form. At all other times, they appear as normal humans, although they will age prematurely, and will gain a pallor as the moon approaches and then wanes.
The real difference between a wolf and a werewolf is in behaviour. Genuine wolves are not very aggressive, and the vast number of folk tales representing them as mindless predators are now believed by wizarding authorities to refer to werewolves, not true wolves. A wolf is unlikely to attack a human except under exceptional circumstances. The werewolf, however, targets humans almost exclusively and poses very little danger to any other creature.
Werewolves are generally regarded with fear and disgust by wizarding society. People seem to think even when in human form, the werewolf may pose a danger. It is not uncommon for people known to be werewolves to be shunned by society and discriminated against within the wizarding world. It is very difficult for a werewolf to get a job in the wizarding community, especially after the passing of restrictive anti-werewolf legislation by the prejudiced Dolores Umbridge in the 1990s. Umbridge drafted this legislation due to her irrational hatred for what she considers to be “half-breeds”. Because of the difficulty in finding a job many werewolves lived in poverty. It also forced some, like the departed Remus Lupin to take jobs far below their abilities. After Lord Voldemort’s defeat in 1998, the anti-werewolf legislation was most likely repealed by the new Minister, Kingsley Shacklebolt, in his effort to reform the Ministry of Magic, therefore weeding out corruption and not tolerating prejudice.
As a result, many werewolves suffer poverty; Remus Lupin managed to get by with the aid of his friend James Potter, and later by working as Defence Against the Dark Arts professor at Hogwarts, though in between he had to work at many jobs that are far below his level of abilities, resigning and moving on to another before his workmates notice his signs of lycanthropy, while living in a tumbledown, semi-derelict cottage in Yorkshire. He decided to resign from this position after his condition was exposed, by Severus Snape, as most parents would not want their children being around a werewolf, despite the safety precautions Remus and Albus Dumbledore took; Remus stated that it would have been impossible for him to even attend Hogwarts as a child if it were not for Dumbledore’s kindness, as other headmasters would not want a werewolf in the school.
The Ministry of Magic attempted to regulate werewolves. By 1637, there was a Werewolf Code of Conduct, and according to Newton Scamander, werewolves have been shunted between the Beast and Being divisions of the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures for years. At one point, the Werewolf Registry and Werewolf Capture Unit were both in the Beast Division, while at the same time the office for Werewolf Support Services was in the Being Division. These regulations and services were ultimately a failure, as no one would be prepared to walk into the Ministry to admit themselves as werewolves, and thus none took the prescribed responsibilities of the Werewolf Code of Conduct. Dolores Umbridge herself incorrectly referred to werewolves as half-breeds, and had drafted an anti-werewolf legislation that made it almost impossible for werewolves to find a job.
Given Kingsley Shacklebolt’s friendship with Remus Lupin and the furthering of Muggle-born and house-elf rights after 1998, it is likely that the reforms of the Ministry under Minister for Magic Shacklebolt included less prejudicial treatment of werewolves.
Due to the oppression and discrimination they face, some werewolves had come to hate the wizarding society, and as such have created their own society. Under Fenrir Greyback’s leadership, this society worked to infect as many people as possible, especially children, with the goal of one day having enough strength to take control of the wizarding community.
The werewolves under Greyback’s command served Lord Voldemort in the Second Wizarding War, believing that they would have a better life under his rule, though Remus Lupin spied on them for the Order of the Phoenix. and the Death Eaters looked down on them; for example, they were not permitted to have the Dark Mark. They were used as a threat to ensure ordinary citizens’ compliance with Voldemort; for example, five-year-old Montgomery was fatally attacked by Greyback after his mother refused to cooperate with the Death Eaters. Although only Greyback is explicitly mentioned as participating, werewolves under Greyback’s command may have fought alongside the Death Eaters in the Battle of Hogwarts. They were most likely sentenced to Azkaban for life for uniting with Lord Voldemort, or killed for resisting arrest. It is unknown whether this was the only occurrence of the society, though it is implied that it was a new idea of Greyback’s. Likewise, it is unknown whether all werewolves in the society were caught, or — as it was “underground” — some of the members evaded capture and continued their efforts.
Despite the leniency and progressive repealing of the Anti-Werewolf Legislation Laws by the Minister for Magic, Kingsley Shacklebolt, many Schools still have to answer to the wizarding community at large as a whole, or face severe lack of funding and a withdrawal of students from the schools. As such, many wizarding schools such as Hogwarts, still enforce some of the old policies. One such policy being that if you are a werewolf, in order to attend the school you must be registered with the Ministry. If you are caught as an unregistered werewolf, you must have an adult keeper of sorts to keep you and other students safe while you attend Hogwarts. This keeper takes responsibility for you and your actions during your time at Hogwarts. Unfortunately, while Hogwarts is accepting of werewolf students provided they have a human wizard caretaker, it’s much more difficult to accept werewolves as teachers. While typically staff at Hogwarts is not prejudiced, many wizarding families still are. In efforts to keep the relationship between Hogwarts and the Ministry of Magic amicable, Hogwarts must adhere to the wishes of the families of the students who attend the school.
To such ends, should a werewolf on Hogwarts grounds ever injure or endanger a student or staff member or any visitors to the grounds, Hogwarts, like many other schools of magic, has a team of professionally trained Werewolf Hunters on staff ready to track and contain the werewolf in question by any means necessary.
Known Attributes:
It is believed that werewolves who have been shifting for a year or longer tend to have more control over their ability to freely shift without a full moon, however during a full moon they still have no choice. Werewolves who have been shifting for five years or more tend to be able to shift select part of their bodies, rather than fully shift. However they still have no choice during a full moon. The only werewolves who can shift without immense pain, are Alphas.
Brand new werewolves typically have the strength to punch through solid wooden doors. Ones who have been werewolves for a year or longer can lift a car above their head. Ones who have been shifting for five years or more, have the strength of 15 men, making them stronger than vampires. An Alpha wolf can rip a vampire clear in half.
Werewolves also heal very quickly. The age of the werewolf not in terms of personal age but in terms of how long they’ve been a werewolf, determines the rate in which they heal and the severity of the injuries they are capable of healing. A new wolf who is a year or younger can rapidly heal from blunt force trauma due to beatings, as well as gunshot wounds, hexes, potions, and shallow cuts from blades. A werewolf who is aged five or older and belonging to a pack, are more resilient to psychic abilities, potions, and abilities which harness the power of your aura or presence. An Alpha werewolf won’t even notice small injuries such as bruises, scrapes, and shallow cuts because they heal so quickly.
All werewolves are faster than humans, but Vampires are faster. A werewolf is so fast, that to the human eye, they appear only as a large, quick blur. It is unknown whether or not Vampires and Werewolves can see one another at high speeds the way in which we would see one another at normal speeds.
Werewolves have improved senses, much like vampires, they can hear and smell with crystal clarity, and can see perfectly in the dark. New werewolves can speak to wolves and animagi in wolf form. They can also hear voices in rooms behind closed doors, provided the doors aren’t warded against eavesdropping. They also are able to pick up the call of any Alpha or werewolf nearby. Once they’re part of a pack, they can only hear the call of their own pack and Alpha.
Werewolves who are at one to four years old can call out to nearby werewolves, hear whispers behind shut doors, again provided the door’s not enchanted, and can smell food, people, dirty clothes, and any other strong or familiar subtle scents from up to a mile away.
Werewolves five years or older and who belong to a pack, can call lesser werewolves to them, use echolocation to navigate in the dark blindly, and can smell certain pheromone-inducing emotions such as fear, lust, and sadness/depression.
An Alpha werewolf can force lesser werewolves to answer their call, can see the aura of people to determine the nature of their personality (good, evil, etc…), can hear and understand most animals from up to a mile away, and can smell when someone is lying. It is rumored they can hear the nuances of your heart rate when you lie compared to when you tell the truth.
Werewolves can regenerate, which contributes to their rapid healing abilities. A new werewolf tends to get to a certain age in adulthood, then their aging rapidly slows. They tend to live a bit longer than humans, but they are not immortal. Werewolves heal themselves at a very advanced rate based on the amount of time they’ve been a werewolf.
Ones who are between one to four years can quickly recover from being poisoned, as their high metabolism pushes the toxins out of their body at a rapid pace…this also means, however, any toxin in their system will also work on them more quickly than on a human. However, the upside is that it runs its course very rapidly, usually too rapidly to do much damage to them considering the rate in which they regenerate damaged cells.
Werewolves five years or older who belong to a pack are typically able to heal other people by licking their small wounds and cuts. This does not turn a human into a werewolf as that particular transition can only occur from a bite during a full moon, nor will the injured human get wolf-like tendencies as this also requires a bite from a werewolf in human form, hard enough to pierce skin. It is the toxin within the fangs of a werewolf which carry the curse, as an older werewolf’s saliva actually contains healing properties. This is a nature-inspired nod toward normal wolves and the reason why they lick their wounds.
Alphas are capable of healing extreme wounds, of themselves or others, though it comes at a price. It is a very taxing ability, and only occurs when an Alpha lets their own blood as sacrifice for the healing ritual, or through sex. While it may sound odd, sex is one of the oldest forms of ritual, and the power behind it is only increased based on the emotional attachment involved, as love is often considered to be the oldest form of magic. This healing ability causes extreme fatigue in the werewolf, regardless of which method is used, but it can heal grievous injuries that nothing else could, including bringing someone back from the very brink of death. There are few potions, and even fewer natural healing properties from other magical beasts, which have such potent healing capabilities.
Wolves run in packs, and werewolves are no different. There is a structural hierarchy, a chain of command, in every pack. Every pack leader is, by definition, an Alpha. The larger the pack, the more powerful the Alpha. One reason why Fenrir Greyback was so difficult to capture and even more difficult to control. Pack leaders have certain abilities which they gain only by having a pack to empower them, they will lose these abilities if they lose their pack in any way, be it from death, or being cast out of their position as Alpha by their Beta, or are cast out of the pack as a lone wolf. While this is extremely rare and has never been recorded to happen, werewolves tend to keep their pack secrets close to their sleeve, some wolves who have suffered through this did come forward with some information, potentially out of spite for their former pack. However the werewolves turned by the Alpha directly, would still remain his or hers to control, only wolves who joined the pack but were not turned by the Alpha, have the ability to attempt to defy their Alpha. For this reason, Alphas rarely ever choose a wolf they themselves didn’t sire as their Beta.
Some known Alpha abilities as as follows:
Commanding: Lesser werewolves will submit to the Alpha’s wants, needs, and desires without hesitation or question. Lesser werewolves can be called to the Alpha at any time, the link is believed to be telepathic, not just auditory, as Alphas can call their pack to them even while in human form. A werewolf must be lesser to the Alpha to be fully commanded. A wolf closer in age to the Alpha, or even older than the Alpha, could choose to ignore the call or order. Again, age here is determined not by how long one has been alive, but by how long one has been a werewolf.
Controlled Change of Others: Lesser werewolves can be forced to instantly change into beast or human at their Alpha’s command. This forced change is said to be more painful than if they transformed of their own will. The more you fight the change, the more painful it is. Lesser werewolves can also be prevented from making the change by their Alpha. The exception being during a full moon.
Shield the Call: Alphas are able to resist the call of any werewolf, even other alphas.
Feed the Pack: When an Alpha feeds their blood to others within their own pack, they enter a state of physical euphoria as they get a small piece of their Alpha’s power shared with them for a short while. The effects are almost narcotic.
Shared Abilities: If an Alpha has a rare ability, the werewolves they create will receive a very small fraction of that same rare ability.
Known Rare Abilities:
Facial Manipulation: The ability to alter one’s appearance to look like a sibling or cousin, appear younger or older, but always somewhat similar to one’s original form.
Venomous Bite: Normal werewolf bites will hurt, and create a new werewolf if the person survives. This one is that of a venomous bite – sends extreme pain to the victim and even paralyzes them if the dose is strong enough. Unlike the normal bite, this one can be treated and the person will not become a werewolf, however if it is left untreated before the next moon, the victim will become a werewolf.
Rat Control: The ability to call and command any normal rats in the immediate area.
Summon Munin: The ability to summon and communicate with werewolf ancestors and spirits of the pack. This ability is very rare and highly respected. Dangerous to use, the werewolf cannot usually choose which Munin (wolf spirit) answers their call, not without very strict training, It is possible to become temporarily possessed by the Munin and be granted the abilities they had in life, but only so long as the possession remains.
As it stands today, the Werewolf Registry is still in place with the abolishing of the Anti-Werewolf Legislation back in the late 1990s. Any werewolf who willingly signs is protected legally by all the same laws that regulate wizard society…however the unregistered werewolves are still regarded with suspicion and are less legally protected due to the unknown status of their existence. But what does this mean for werewolves in today’s society?
It means that presently werewolves are governed by all the same laws as you or I, save for one select list of special laws by which they must abide once every month: The Werewolf Code of Conduct. Due to their beastial nature while transformed, werewolves are unlikely to ever be treated normally, as their actions are beyond their control if they cannot afford the upkeep of the Wolfsbane Potion. If ever there comes a method by which a werewolf may keep their humanity intact post-transformation permanently, this may change. Until then, the Werewolf Code of Conduct remains in place. It is unfair, but a necessity for us to coexist together in a society without fear of being attacked by our neighbor once a month.
If there are no further questions, this will be the last week where we cover the chapter on Werewolves. Please complete the previous homework assignment if you have not already, and have it turned in by next week if you still wish to receive full credit.
Class dismissed.
Professor Jonathon E. Bellehaven 