Hogwarts: I am Snape

Chapter 105 Ears and Tail

“Let’s go, we should go in.” Hagrid cocked his giant crossbow and strode into the shadows at the edge of the Forbidden Forest.

“Speaking of which, Hagrid,” Snape’s shoes crunched softly on the damp leaves, “do you know why Professor Dumbledore kept werewolves in the Forbidden Forest?”

Previously, he had always thought that the legend of the Forbidden Forest werewolves was just a trick used by professors to scare new students and warn them not to enter the Forbidden Forest.

"If only there were a dog right now..." Hagrid muttered incoherently, his thick arms pushing aside the branches blocking his path. "Oh, you're asking me a question."

“This is everyone’s Forbidden Forest,” he belatedly turned his head, blinking in confusion, his tone as if explaining a self-evident fact, “and it’s not just for wizards.”

“I mean,” Snape paused, took a deep breath, and said, “that werewolves living next to the school isn’t safe for the teachers and students.”

“Not all werewolves are the same, Severus,” Hagrid said, brandishing his giant crossbow. “Some werewolves in the Forbidden Forest are not ordinary werewolves, and Dumbledore doesn’t mind them living there. For a long time, we have lived in peace.”

"But the night before last, I was feeding Ah... um, patrolling in the woods when I suddenly heard werewolves howling and fighting."

“After things calmed down, I wanted to go and see what was going on,” Hagrid continued, his voice unusually worried, “but I was chased away by several normally gentle werewolves.” He sighed heavily, “I didn’t even get to see Lyka…”

"Who is Lyca?" Snape raised his wand, scanning the surrounding darkness. The light from the tip of the wand illuminated the moss-covered tree stump and winding roots in front of him. "And, so much time has passed since the full moon, why are they behaving strangely?"

“Their leader is a… very special werewolf,” Hagrid said vaguely. “In any case, Dumbledore believes an investigation is necessary to prevent any harm to Hogwarts.”

“I still don’t understand,” Snape said, pushing aside a few thorny bushes in front of him. “And what are you referring to as ‘special werewolves’?”

Hagrid stopped and, as he turned, knocked down several low-hanging branches. In the moonlight, his expression was unusually serious.

“The werewolves in the Forbidden Forest are unusual, Severus.” Hagrid’s voice was very low. “They are close to wizards, and some of them… well… have more werewolf features.”

"What do you mean?" Snape pressed.

“Well, it’s exactly what it sounds like…” Hagrid scratched his beard with his free hand, as if searching for the right words. “Some of them… also have wolf-like features, like ears and tails…”

“I remember Dumbledore saying,” he gestured awkwardly, then continued after a moment of thought, “that it’s caused by a blood curse. If you are bitten by a werewolf multiple times and are lucky, or perhaps unlucky, to survive, the blood curse may accumulate and the power of the curse may deepen. It’s a state called ‘half-werewolf’.”

Hagrid's words reminded Snape of Nagini's plight, still hidden in his robes. Both were blood magic users, and both had their bestial traits intensify as the curse deepened.

But another question arose, and he asked in bewilderment, "Wait, why were they bitten multiple times? As far as I know, werewolves only attack humans."

Dobby suddenly pricked up his ears and made a soft "cluck" sound.

Hagrid gestured for them to continue, then lowered his voice to explain, his tone laced with obvious anger: "These werewolves are close to wizards... They choose to side with the wizards, and are seen as traitors by their own kind. Some extreme werewolves will bite them as punishment."

“So they were ostracized by the werewolf pack,” a hint of understanding flashed in Snape’s eyes, “and also discriminated against by wizarding society because of their werewolf characteristics and identity.”

"I think that's how it is?" Hagrid tilted his head. "Anyway, it's reasonable for Dumbledore to allow them to live deep in the Forbidden Forest, as long as they don't cause trouble. Their leader, Lyca, is a werewolf like that, and it was Dumbledore who saved her back then."

The three fell silent, accompanied only by the sound of footsteps and the rustling of leaves.

The ground gradually became damp, and the air was filled with the smell of moss and decaying wood.

They rounded a huge, fallen oak tree, and the faint sound of flowing water in the distance suggested the presence of a stream nearby.

Just then, a piercing howl suddenly came from not far away. It wasn't an ordinary wolf howl—it ​​was mixed with a human-like scream of pain.

"Dobby heard it!" the elf exclaimed in a high-pitched voice, his ears twitching violently. "Over there!"

Hagrid immediately raised his crossbow and warily looked around. Snape held his wand in front of him, while Dobby walked beside him, closely protecting his side.

The three of them carefully moved in the direction from which the sound came.

“Here.” Snape crouched down, the light from his wand illuminating a pool of dark red blood, with a few strands of chestnut-brown hair scattered nearby.

“The blood is still fresh,” he noticed the messy footprints and drag marks on the ground, indicating that a fierce fight had taken place. “It must have been not far away.”

After walking for about two minutes, Dobby suddenly stopped, his long ears twitching, and said in a low, almost inaudible voice, "There's something ahead!"

A faint groan came from ahead. This time it was closer and clearer.

The three exchanged a glance and slowly made their way through the small mound that blocked their view.

Moonlight filtered through the gaps in the tree canopy, illuminating the clearing beside the stream: a figure huddled at the base of a large tree, trembling like a wounded animal.

It was a girl—or rather, it used to be. Now she was covered in blood, with two pointed wolf ears standing upright in her long chestnut-brown hair, and a bushy tail trailing behind her. The edges of some of her nails were curled outwards, and her fingers were painfully contorted.

Nearby, a werewolf with distinctly bestial features lay on the ground; and closer still, a naked male body lay motionless in a pool of blood, a horrific laceration on his chest.

"Rika!" Hagrid exclaimed, "What's wrong with you!"

Before Snape could stop him, Hagrid had already charged forward.

Fortunately, there were no other enemies around. The injured werewolf girl did not attack, but weakly raised her head, a hint of surprise flashing in her amber eyes when she saw Hagrid.

“Hagrid,” she said in a hoarse, breathless voice, “Fenrir Greyback and his gang attacked us, and some of us defected to them.”

“Greybuck?” Snape asked warily. “Is he here?”

If this werewolf, the most ferocious creature in the world, whose mission is to bite and infect as many people as possible, is in the Forbidden Forest, then he must be on Voldemort's mission.

“Yes,” Rika nodded, a hint of pain in her eyes, “He found us and wants us to side with the mysterious man—”

Her voice suddenly choked, and a painful cough made her curl up even tighter.

“Let’s treat her first,” Snape noticed her injuries were more serious than they appeared. He took three vials of homemade healing potions from the inner pocket of his robes, his gaze sweeping over the other two figures. “Are they enemies?”

“The one without a shirt is the enemy,” Rika said, casting a worried glance at the werewolf whose bestial features were more pronounced. “The other one is an ally.”

Snape immediately went to check on the person with more werewolf features and cast a silent cutting spell on another figure lying in a pool of blood, but he did not react and was clearly beyond saving.

Under the healing spell, Rika's companion slowly awoke, and Snape placed the medicine bottle in his hand.

“This is yours,” he said, walking up to Rika. “A powerful healing potion, try it.” Rika looked at the bottle warily, her nostrils flaring.

With Hagrid nodding in confirmation, she took a bottle and said to her companion, "Wait a minute, I'll drink it first."

She tilted her head back and drank the potion. Almost immediately, her tense muscles relaxed slightly, and the wounds on her body began to heal at a visible speed.

“Drink up,” she said to her companion, then turned to Snape in a friendly manner and said directly, “Thank you, Lyka Lupa, werewolf.”

The other werewolf also drank the potion. Their complexions improved considerably, but injuries of this severity would take much longer to fully heal.

“Oh, right,” Rika struggled to stand up, but slumped back down, “we still have—”

Her words were interrupted by Dobby's sudden scream: "Someone's coming! Lots of them! From the southeast!"

A series of hurried footsteps and low growls echoed from the distant woods. Hagrid immediately grabbed the two weakened werewolves like chicks: "We have to get back to the castle! Now!"

"No!" Rika struggled desperately to break free from Hagrid's grip, her tail bristling. "And my companions... they're locked up in the camp..."

"This is too dangerous!" Hagrid's voice was unusually stern. "We need to find Dumbledore first!"

“No need,” Snape said calmly, his wand already pointed in the direction the voice came from. “They’re here.”

Hagrid quickly put Rika and her companions down and raised the giant crossbow.

The bushes shook violently, and five or six figures emerged from the darkness.

The first to emerge was a half-human, half-wolf. His yellow eyes glowed in the darkness, and jagged fangs peeked from his grinning mouth.

“Victor,” Rika said coldly, staring at the newcomer with hatred, “you brought them here.”

“Lika, this isn’t my fault!” Victor screamed, his eyes gleaming with madness. “It’s taken me so long to realize that we’d be better off under the Dark Lord’s rule! I don’t want to stay in this wretched forest anymore!”

Rika wanted to argue, but then several other ragged people followed Victor out into the moonlight.

Snape's gaze immediately locked onto the man walking in front—a huge man with long limbs. His gray hair and beard were tangled together, his face was covered in scars, a cruel smile played on his lips, and his dirty fingers had long, yellowed nails.

Snape also smelled a pungent, strange odor on him, a mixture of earthy, sweaty, and... bloody smells.

“Greybuck,” Hagrid pointed his crossbow at Fenrir Greybuck, “you shouldn’t be here. This is Dumbledore’s territory.”

“Oh, Hagrid, isn’t anyone else here?” Greyback grinned, revealing sharp teeth, and slowly, disgustingly licked his lips. “You want to use this little toy against me?”

His voice was strange, unlike anything Snape had ever heard: a hoarse, piercing roar.

“I understand, Dumbledore isn’t here.” Greyback turned to Lyca, a cruel pleasure gleaming in his eyes. “As for you traitors… tonight will be your last night.”

"Coming to Hogwarts is certainly a wonderful job," his gaze lingered greedily on Snape, his voice as unpleasant as sandpaper scraping, "What a pleasant surprise! I love children so much, they taste so good, so good..."

As he spoke, he picked at his front teeth with a yellow fingernail, grinning maliciously at Snape: "I can have you as dessert, my lovely child..."

“But I just find you disgusting,” Snape said coldly, a look of disgust on his face as he looked at Greyback with disdain.

“How I wish your bones were harder than your mouth in a moment.” Graybuck spread his arms, revealing his filthy fangs.

“Dobby,” Snape whispered, “get ready to take the men away.”

His lips barely moved, and his voice was so soft that only the house-elf beside him could hear it.

The little elf nervously tugged at Snape's robes, his long ears trembling.

Greyback took a step forward, and the werewolves behind him spread out in a fan shape.

Several of them looked reluctant, their eyes darting around—they may have been forced to join.

“Hand over that traitor,” Greyback pointed at Lika, “and maybe I’ll let you die a quick death.”

“Is that so?” Snape looked calmly at Greyback. He knew werewolves had strong resistance to most spells, but the Killing Curse was equally deadly to any creature. The problem was, he had never used this spell on a human before…

"Avada Kedavra!"

A green light immediately illuminated Graybuck's terrified face.

"No!" he roared, reaching out to grab a werewolf from the side and holding it in front of him.

After being struck by the spell, the werewolf immediately collapsed.

At the same time, Snape shouted, "Now, Dobby!" Nagini also slipped out of his sleeve.

The house-elf grabbed the hands of the two wounded and vanished with a snap.

Greyback let out an angry roar that made the surrounding trees tremble.

Hagrid suddenly fired an arrow, hitting a werewolf who lunged at him squarely in the shoulder.

Greyback also drew his wand—a blinding green light flew toward Snape as well.

At this moment, the other two werewolves were already close by, and Snape could even smell the blood and rotting flesh on them.

He quickly turned to the side, waving his wand, and an invisible barrier instantly formed, deflecting the werewolf's claws, but the impact still sent him staggering back a few steps.

A green light grazed past the ear of one of Greyback's werewolf companions, who shuddered and instinctively moved away from Snape.

"Attack!" Graybury roared. "Those who retreat will die!"

　Thank you to 20300 and book friend 20240201211959566 for the monthly tickets.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)