From Hogwarts to Strixhaven.

Chapter 231 Werewolf
Although Dumbledore did not agree with Harry telling Sirius everything, he allowed them to practice wizard dueling inside Hogwarts.

During this month, Ivy always maintained his habit of appearing and disappearing mysteriously, making various preparations in the depths of the Forbidden Forest to cure Lupin of the lycanthropy curse.

As the April Easter holidays approached, the students at Hogwarts became noticeably anxious.

Among this group of people, Hermione's anxiety was particularly obvious.

"March is almost over! I can't believe you don't have any review plans!" Hermione flipped through the textbook, quite hysterical.

Ron nudged Harry with his elbow. "Why do I feel like I've seen this scene somewhere before?"

"It had to be last year," said Harry, trying to check if he had copied anything from his History of Magic paper. "You said at the time that the final exams were a lifetime away."

"This year is very important for us!" Hermione placed a piece of parchment with several lines of words in front of them. "We should choose courses by Easter. The choice of courses is related to our future career planning!"

"We are only in the second grade, and we have to start planning our future careers?" Ron's face was full of fear. "Isn't this a little too early?"

"Third year is a very important watershed!" Hermione said firmly, "Not to mention that Care of Magical Creatures will become a compulsory course for us! So..."

"So you have made your choice?" As a wizard who has just entered the magical world not long ago, Harry doesn't know what career he will pursue in the future. Fortunately, Hermione has always been very opinionated. He has made up his mind that no matter what courses Hermione chooses, he will follow suit.

"...Yes, that's about right." Hermione said vaguely, "I can't give up any subject..."

"What do you mean by that?" Ron seemed to find Hermione's words very amusing. "Don't talk like they are your relatives."

Hermione glared at Ron. "What I mean is - I picked them all."

Harry looked over the list of courses Hermione had drawn up and gasped in sudden realization.

Maybe I shouldn't think about taking up a general career. Savior or Dark Lord's nemesis would suit me well.

Harry's mind was full of unrealistic fantasies, and he quickly deleted the memory of "choosing courses with Hermione" from his mind.

Ron also felt that they couldn't continue to dwell on this topic, so he looked around the library, trying to find something new to distract Hermione.

"Professor Lupin!" Ron pointed in the direction of the librarian's desk.

Lupin was holding a pile of books to register for return, and Madam Pince was professionally flipping through each one, checking for missing corners or damage.

"Professor Lupin is not some dark magic creature. There's no need to make a fuss." Hermione just looked up and stopped paying attention, continuing to mark on her paper with a pen.

"Um... it's normal for Professor Lupin to appear in the library..." Ron tried to get Hermione's attention, "but he's also the professor of Defense Against the Dark Arts. Aren't you curious about what books he borrowed?"

"Why should I be curious about what books Professor Lupin borrowed?" Hermione asked in confusion.

"Maybe the books he borrowed are related to the content of the next class!" Ron suddenly had an idea, "If I know the title of the book, maybe I can..."

"Prepare your lessons in advance!" Hermione's eyes lit up. "I didn't expect you to be so smart!"

After rummaging in her bag for a while, Hermione took out a large book and walked towards Madam Pince. It seemed that she was planning to use the opportunity of returning the book to see what books Lupin had borrowed.

"Hogwarts, A History!" Ron made a face at Harry. "I bet Hermione has read it at least three times!"

"I agree." Harry nodded approvingly. "She bought a copy herself!"

In just a few minutes, Hermione returned.

"What book is it?" Ron asked.

"Maybe it has something to do with evil dark magical creatures?" Harry guessed.

"No, it has nothing to do with Defense Against the Dark Arts," Hermione said calmly. "It's probably Professor Lupin's own research. They are all books related to Transfiguration, and they are particularly advanced content - Animagus."

Lupin borrowed books related to Transfiguration from the library, of course not for his personal magical research, but to cure his lycanthropy curse.

Although he did have Sirius, who was very good at Animagus transformation, by his side, he also needed some knowledge from paper to reassure himself.

But as it stands, the books on Animagus transformation in the library really can't help him much.

So after Lupin returned the pile of books to Madam Pince, he set off for the Forbidden Forest.

The weather was good today, with only a few clouds in the sky and no wind. As spring came, the days began to get longer and longer, so Lupin could spend more time outside on the full moon day.

This is also the biggest reason why Lupin was able to go to the Forbidden Forest alone before the full moon appeared.

Once they entered the Forbidden Forest, the light around them dimmed instantly, and it seemed as if there were countless pairs of prying eyes in the darkness, making Lupin feel a chill in his heart.

He looked at the lunar instrument in his hand, and the pattern representing the full moon was becoming brighter and brighter.

This is a prop that Ivy made not long ago. It is said that it can sense the changes in the moon phases through the changes in magic in the environment, and it still works even in a room where the moon cannot be seen.

The luna instrument is a disc-shaped prop with twelve different forms of the moon on it. The new moon and full moon are located at the two ends of the disc, one is completely white and the other is completely black.

The one in Lupin's hand also serves as a guide, and can find the place with the brightest moonlight according to the changes in the brightness of the pattern. Lupin has to rely on the moon phase instrument in his hand to find the ceremony venue arranged by Ivy in advance.

It was indeed not easy to tell the direction in the dim forbidden forest, even though Lupin had wandered here for several years in the form of a werewolf. However, with the moon phase instrument in hand, all this became possible.

After passing through layers of trees and vines and startling many innocent animals, Lupin finally followed the guidance of the moonlight and found an open space.

The sun had not yet completely set, and without the shade of the trees, the lunar instrument no longer shone in this open space.

Lupin saw a huge rock structure, a small circular square paved with gray-white rocks, and two huge stone pillars standing in the square.

"This was... originally in the Forbidden Forest?" Lupin couldn't help but ask.

"No." Ivy was standing between two tall stone pillars, combing the ropes hanging from the stone pillars with his hands. "I built it with magic, but it will be a permanent structure. Unless it is destroyed, it should be able to stand here for quite a long time."

"Ah..." Lupin didn't know what to think, so he could only ask, "...Are you ready?" "You should ask yourself this, Professor Lupin." Ivy turned around, looked at his pale face and said, "You are the main body of this magic ceremony."

"You're right..." Lupin said softly.

He closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and then slowly exhaled: "What should I do?"

"Put this on first." Ivy threw something at him.

"A pair of... shorts?" Lupin frowned and shook it off. This was seriously inconsistent with his psychological preparation. He had thought that he might become a werewolf for the rest of his life and wander in the Forbidden Forest, but Ivy only threw him a pair of large shorts.

"A pair of stretch shorts. The shorts you wore last time were ruined, and the one before that was just a little bit off." Ivy explained, "If my estimate is not too far off, I'm afraid this werewolf transformation will be more intense than ever before. In other words, you have to be prepared to run naked."

"If our ritual is successful, I'm afraid spandex shorts will become your best friend for life - if you don't want to run around naked after turning into a werewolf."

"Okay." Lupin sighed and compromised.

It took Lupin less than two minutes to strip himself naked. Because of his werewolf identity, he usually couldn't find a decent job, and had to change positions after his colleagues noticed that he always disappeared once a month, so his financial situation was worrying. The robes on his body were his few assets and he couldn't let them be scrapped because of a transformation.

After folding his clothes neatly and placing them under the stone pillar, Lupin felt the chill of spring.

"What happened next?" He shuddered, trying to make his tone sound steady.

"Stand here." Ivy pointed at the ground, and Lupin saw a moon carved on the ground.

"Stretch out your hands." After Lupin stood up, Ivy gave the next instruction. "This is a rope woven from Aconitum. Tie both wrists together. Be careful not to break it. And remember, to guide your body when you transform, you need a glottis that can speak, just like the last time I performed Transfiguration on you."

The thin stems of Aconitum were intertwined with each other to form a dark green rope, which passed through the ring at the top of the stone pillar and was tied with a buckle that did not look very strong.

"And this." Ivy took out a round pendant tied with a silver chain from the Grimoire of Destruction. He just waved his hand lightly, and the silver chain automatically wrapped around Lupin's neck.

Ivy clapped his hands and placed the lunar device that Lupin had brought into a groove in the stone floor.

"That's all the preparations we need to make." Ivy once again looked around the entire ceremony venue. "Now all we need is the full moonlight."

Aconitum, moonlight, and the lunar instrument were all set up to enhance the other consciousness in Lupin's body. The stone circular ground under his feet was a magic ritual field carefully set up by Ivy, with many runes related to flesh magic built in. The effect was very simple, just to allow Lupin to coordinate his magic with the drastically changed body after turning into a werewolf.

As for the device that ensures that Lupin himself will not get lost during the ritual, it is the necklace worn around his neck. Ivy gave this strange object a very simple enchantment spell effect, and its function from beginning to end is only one, that is, to constantly use a soft and low voice to ask the wearer's mind "Who are you? Where are you? What are you going to do?"

If a normal human put on this necklace, he would probably be annoyed to death in no time, but for a person who is constantly fighting for control with another consciousness in his brain, such questions are actually a reinforcement and suggestion. You only need to pay the smallest price to achieve a good effect.

Of course, Ivy also set restrictions on the necklace, which is that it can only be activated on a full moon night. At other times, it is just an ordinary silver necklace.

As the last bit of sunlight disappeared below the horizon, the moon, which had already risen into the sky, finally shone with its own brilliance.

Lupin looked up and saw the bright moonlight shining through the stone pillars and shining right on his face.

With an uncontrollable long howl, Lupin's transformation began.

Unlike the black hair he had after his previous transformation, Lupin grew gray hair bathed in the moonlight. These new cilia reflected the moonlight and looked metallic.

In almost the blink of an eye, Lupin turned into a terrifying giant beast, with fangs and claws revealing a dangerous aura. His height increased to at least two meters, and if the erect ears were counted, the visual effect would be even higher.

The Aconitum rope woven by Ivy using magic was still tied to his wrist. It was obvious that he could break free from this symbolic restraint with a little effort, but the tall werewolf remained motionless.

Apart from the first howl when he transformed, he didn't make any sound at all.

The shadow of the stone pillar moved little by little. Ivy kept observing Lupin's changes patiently. But judging from the results so far, there was no particularly obvious change except that his eyes moved very quickly after he turned into a werewolf.

Ivy wasn't sure whether his spell ritual was effective, but at least Lupin didn't lose his mind and turn into a beast that only knew how to attack.

There was a sudden noisy sound in the forbidden forest. Ivy looked back and saw a huge black dog suddenly jumped out from the edge of the clearing in the forest.

Ivy recognized it as Sirius at a glance.

It was Lupin's decision not to tell Sirius the location of the ceremony venue. Ivy would certainly respect his patient, and he was also afraid that the reckless Sirius might cause some trouble.

But unexpectedly, even though the venue was chosen in a remote forbidden forest, Sirius still found it. I don't know whether Lupin's howl exposed the location or he left a scent on the way here.

Ivy put a finger to his lips, signaling Sirius to be quiet.

But the giant black dog's attention was not on Ivy at all, but only on Lupin who was standing in the center of the ceremony venue.

At first Sirius was able to remain rational and just stood in the distance and watched, but as Lupin stood there longer and longer, Sirius became more and more anxious.

He kept looking back at Ivy, trying to get the wizard in charge of the lycanthropy curse to come forward to help his friend, but Ivy just made a gesture to silence him.

Just as Sirius looked at Ivy for the fourth time, the werewolf who had been standing still suddenly howled at the moon.

Sirius immediately turned his head and instinctively wanted to get closer to check on his friend. In his understanding, Lupin would not actively attack him in Animagus form after transforming into a werewolf, which was why he always maintained the appearance of a big black dog.

But the Animagus form, which had always been effective, failed to work this time. The gray werewolf broke free from the aconite rope and leaped in front of Sirius.

Sirius was shocked and turned around to run back. Although he was already very big, he was obviously not a heavyweight compared to the two-meter-tall werewolf in front of him.

"Where are you going Sirius?"

The sudden sound caused Sirius to slip and fall headfirst to the ground.

However, Sirius's ugly appearance did not last long, and he turned over and returned to human form.

"You... succeeded? Lupin?" Sirius asked in surprise.

(End of this chapter)