Chapter 246. Bart's Changes
"This is so cool!"
Tonks watched, amazed, as Lupin shifted from human to werewolf and back again, unable to hold back a gasp.
Seeing that Tonks showed not the slightest hint of fear, Lupin lifted a paw to cover his forehead.
It looked like he had run into a very troublesome person tonight.
"Has no one ever taught you to stay away from werewolves?" Lupin said helplessly.
"But you can keep yourself under control, can't you?" Tonks shrugged, unconcerned. "If that's the case, what do I have to be afraid of?"
"Ah, all right."
With no better option, Lupin sat down on a flat stone and stared blankly up at the sky.
"What are you doing?" Tonks asked curiously.
To be honest, Lupin looked a bit comical just now.
"Waiting for the moon to set," Lupin said slowly. "After that I'll be safe."
"You're not safe right now?" Tonks tilted her head.
Lupin froze for a moment.
Right—he could already return to human form now; there was no longer any need to hide in some desolate place on a full-moon night.
Very quickly, though, Lupin shook his head and pushed the thought aside.
So long as there were still werewolf traits in him, he had to stay on guard.
After all, who knew whether he might suddenly lose control in the very next second?
Lupin had always taken a pessimistic view of his being a werewolf.
Perhaps sensing his mood, several wolves at his side nudged his legs, as if to comfort him.
"Oh, thank you."
Lupin stroked the wolves' heads.
These were friends he had made in the Forbidden Forest during the last full moon. They were beautiful, with sleek, glossy coats,
and finely shaped features.
What was more, they were especially clever.
Lupin could almost communicate with them without any barrier at all.
Thanks to these little fellows, his last transformation had actually been rather pleasant.
Watching this scene, Tonks couldn't help finding it all a bit absurd.
It overturned all her impressions of werewolves.
Time trickled by.
To Lupin's surprise, the young female Auror before him not only didn't leave, she grew more and more animated, asking all sorts of questions about werewolves,
including what it felt like to transform, his thoughts about it, and so on.
He had always hated talking about such things, but Tonks seemed entirely free of malice—merely curious—so he didn't get angry and answered some of her questions.
At last, the first rays of morning pierced the canopy and fell upon Lupin.
His fur gradually receded, his claws withdrew, and he became human again.
In that instant, he felt something inside him vanish.
It seemed he only possessed the ability to become a werewolf during the full moon.
The grey wolves nuzzled his palm one last time, then turned and slipped away into the morning mist.
Lupin got to his feet. "We should head back, Miss Tonks. I don't think you ought to stay out here this long."
"Just call me Tonks," Tonks said, patting leaves from her robes as she stood. "I honestly didn't expect Hogwarts to hire a werewolf as a professor—oh, I don't mean that as an insult. In fact, you're not dangerous. I'm just surprised."
Lupin smiled faintly. "As a matter of fact, I'm surprised as well."
After learning Lupin's "little secret," Tonks did not share it with anyone else.
Over the following days, Adrian Wesson suddenly noticed that Lupin seemed to have become friends with Tonks.
On one Saturday, he even spotted the two of them drinking together at the Three Broomsticks.
Besides that, Lupin told Wesson the latest effect of the Purification Potion—he could freely switch between human and werewolf forms on the night of the full moon.
Wesson grew rather excited.
This meant that, although only on full-moon nights, Lupin had already mastered the werewolf's power to a certain degree.
His Purification Potion was stripping out the things inside Lupin that were harmful.
Perhaps, once all the negative effects were removed, Lupin would truly master a werewolf's power.
Soon, three weeks passed, and it was late November.
At dawn, Wesson went to the Forbidden Forest to visit Bart as usual.
"Has your friend still not shown up?" he asked.
Ever since he'd learned that Bart had made friends with Black, Bart hadn't brought up Sirius Black again.
"Oh, no," Bart replied, dejected. "Since last time, friend hasn't come to see Bart..."
"What a pity," Wesson said.
"Will it... will it be that Bart has already lost a friend?" Bart suddenly became flustered.
"Don't worry, Bart," Wesson said, seeing this and trying to comfort him. "Maybe your friend just can't get away for the moment... I'll introduce you to other friends after a while, how about that?"
"Bart likes friends!" Bart brightened at once.
Seeing all of Bart's feelings written plainly on his face, Wesson couldn't help but smile.
At the same time, he felt a pang of concern.
This simple-minded child—wouldn't he be tricked someday?
After chatting with Bart for a while, Wesson took out a large bottle of Growth Potion.
[Name: Bart]
[Species: Beech Tree]
[Level: 2]
[Trait: Leader]
[Status: Growing (99%)]
Yes—Bart's growth progress had reached the threshold a week earlier.
It was time for something a bit stronger.
Wesson unscrewed the cap of the Growth Potion.
Bart's big nose twitched twice, and his eyes lit up at once. "Is that for Bart?"
Clearly, the potion in Wesson's hand held tremendous appeal for him.
"Of course," Wesson nodded.
Bart looked at the Growth Potion with an eager gaze. "If Bart drinks this... what will Bart become?"
"Maybe you'll grow a little taller, a little stronger," Wesson shrugged. "Of course, there might be no obvious change—after all, every per— every tree has a different constitution."
Before Bart could respond, Wesson poured the potion over Bart's thick roots.
The liquid touched the bark and immediately soaked in, as if being absorbed.
Bart's eyes flew wide; his whole body trembled slightly. "Bart... Bart feels so strange."
"This is a necessary process. Relax, Bart."
Wesson stepped back a little and watched Bart closely.
From his experience, Bart was about to enter a new growth phase.
All at once, a gentle green light rose over Bart's whole body, growing brighter and brighter until it wrapped his massive form completely.
Wesson had to squint and raise a hand to shield his eyes from the dazzling glow.
A few seconds later, the light snapped off, as if someone had hit a switch.
Wesson opened his eyes and found Bart looked exactly the same as before—he hadn't grown any taller, and his size hadn't changed at all.
"Um..." Bart looked over himself, then raised his head to Wesson, blinking in confusion. "Bart... Bart doesn't seem to have changed?"
Like this story Leave a review ; it would really help me out a lot.
Want to Read Ahead in Advance?
Join my Patreon!
+75 Chapters
Support me in
Patreon.com/BestElysium