Wandering with Werewolves
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Wandering with Werewolves
by Gilderoy Lockhart
It seems a reasonable deduction that the Lockhart version of the story of his alleged encounter with the Wagga Wagga werewolf is in this book. :o
The werewolf is a most unusual creature in that it doesn’t technically exist except for a brief period of time around the full moon. At any other time, a werewolf is a completely normal human. However, the term werewolf is used for both the wolf-like creature and the normal human. Remus Lupin is a werewolf by definition even if he isn’t in the actual form of the wolf.
A werewolf comes into being when a person is bitten by another werewolf. Once this happens, the person must learn to manage the condition. Modern potion-making has come up with a draught called Wolfsbane Potion which controls some of the worst effects of the condition. Wolfsbane Potion is quite difficult to make, even for fully qualified wizards, and is said to taste rather disgustin. Nothing will completely cure a werewolf, unfortunately.
A werewolf can be distinguished from a true wolf physically by several small distinguishing characteristics, including the pupils of the eyes, snout shape, and tufted tail.
A werewolf when transformed is a fearsome beast indeed. All trace of human awareness is gone and the werewolf will attack any witch or wizard, including the werewolf’s best friends. This transformation is triggered when the moon is full, although there is some evidence that a werewolf who is taking a regular regimen of Wolfsbane Potion will not transform until the moonlight actually strikes him. (Lupin, for example, did not transform while he was in the Shrieking Shack, even though the moon was full, until he stepped outside and the full moon came from behind a cloud. Lupin had been taking Wolfsbane Potion for months.)
Bill Weasley was bitten and slashed by a werewolf, Fenrir Greyback, in the Battle of the Tower. His face was severely damaged with magical wounds which might not heal properly. Because the werewolf was not transformed into a wolf, he will likely not become a werewolf himself.