The Beast Within - Chapter 9

Harry swam around the small pond. The water was nice and cool with his increased body temperature. He hadn't been the strongest swimmer before. It seemed that the basilisk portion of his new physiology fixed that. Thinking himself as a were-dragon was a lot easier than trying to determine what type of chimera he truly was. The phoenix tears and the basilisk venom had mingled into something else. It was possible there might be true were-dragons out there. He would have to ask Hagrid. If he could even manage to get to the point where he could return to Hogwarts. What mattered was adjusting to the animal urges.

Even under the water he could hear the door open. It wasn't until he broke the surface to get another breath that the scent hit him. The now familiar Nym and Hestia were overpowered by someone else. Something else.

Harry burst from the water. He landed in a crouch and scanned the area.

"He knows I'm here." An unknown woman said.

"Harry!" Nym called. "We brought someone for you to talk to."

"A werewolf." Hestia added.

Harry sniffed the air again. There was an undertone of the forest to the woman. He forced himself to relax. For now, he wasn't a threat. Steam rose from his body as he waited. Nym and Hestia led another woman, the unnamed werewolf, over to him. Harry had fought the urge to swim naked, so he didn't feel as exposed. A quick charm on his boxers made them waterproof which was good enough.

"Harry?" The woman asked. "I'm Ginger."

"American?" He replied with his own question.

"Canadian." She smirked.

"You asked for a were-wolf." Nym presented the woman like a prize. "Here she is!"

Hestia pinched the bridge of her nose. Ginger gave the smallest hint of a smile.

"I was about your age when I was bit." Ginger scanned the area.

The Canadian wore a comfortable looking black top and a flowy skirt. A thick fabric bag hung on her shoulder. She found a bench that had been carved to look like a log and took a seat. Harry didn't realize how tense he had become until the muscles in his shoulder eased. Body language had more of an impact in his life now.

"Are you two going to get along or do I need to get a spray bottle?" Nym asked.

Ginger gave her a flat look.

"Fine." Nym huffed. "We'll leave you two to talk."

"There are alarm charms if things get violent." Hestia dropped into an official tone. "The room will lock down and a squad of Aurors will be called."

Ginger shifted the look to Hestia. The two Aurors left. It wasn't until they heard the door click shut that Harry and Ginger faced each other once more.

"It's a bitch, right?" Ginger smirked at him.

She pulled a pack of cigarettes from her bag. Harry arced an eyebrow as she used a muggle lighter to spark it up. He wrinkled his nose at the smell.

"Yeah, yeah." She rolled her eyes. "They're bad for you. Not anymore. Were-wolves heal too fast for these to hurt us. It helps muddle all the smells too."

Harry nodded. The smoke had already blocked out the surrounding scents. Not in a good way. His disapproval must have been clear on his face. She shrugged and snuffed it out then tucked the now dormant thing behind her ear.

"They didn't tell me much." Ginger leaned back. "You've gone through your first full transformation?"

Harry nodded. He got dressed as she spoke.

"The first one is the worst." She sighed at the memory. "My sister figured out wolfsbane, but we were injecting it like insulin. It wasn't until some witches found me half-dead and stuck as a wolf-creature that I was able to turn back. That potion your people have saved my life."

Harry settled onto the bench across from her.

"They said you're a dragon?" She scrunched up her face at the question.

"Sort of." Harry shrugged. "It's the easiest way to put it."

"Yeah." Ginger nodded. "I wouldn't call what I become a wolf. It looks like a mutant hairless bear fucked a monkey."

Harry chuckled.

"How are you doing with the urges?" She asked.

Harry ran a hand through his hair. He shrugged.

"The day after I was bit I fucked a scumbag." Ginger leaned her head back and stared up at the ceiling. "He was an asshole. I wouldn't have spit on him if he had been on fire before. He ate his dog once he started to change. I have no idea what happened to him after that. I had my own problems."

"I haven't eaten anyone yet." Harry gave her a small smile. "It's the other part that I have to fight."

"A horny teenage boy?" Ginger gave a dry chuckle. "Who would have guessed?"

"It's more than horny." The smile dropped from his face. "The beast in me wants to breed. Some women have a scent that makes my mouth water. I don't want to rip some guy apart because I see them as an invader or mount some poor girl against her will."

"Have you?" Ginger leaned forward.

"Have I what?" Harry asked.

"Killed or mounted someone?" She locked eyes with him.

"No." Harry shook his head.

"Then you should be fine." Ginger shrugged. "If you've made it this far without blood on your hands then you're doing better than most. What's the problem?"

"What's the problem?" Harry gawked at her. "I don't know if I can control myself around more people. How can I go to school like this? I can think of five people off the top of my head that I might disembowel on sight."

Ginger gave him her now-signature flat look. She took the cigarette from behind her ear and lit it up again. Two long drags later she finally spoke.

"If you're going to keep this shit up then I'm going to need these." She patted the pack on the bench.

"This isn't a joke." Harry growled.

"Calm down." Ginger shook her head. "You don't need to be so dramatic."

"Dramatic?"

"You're a wizard, right?" She asked.

He nodded.

"From what they've told me, magic can do all kinds of crazy things." Ginger continued. "Accidental Magic, they called it. Did you kill anyone when you sparked off one of those prematurely?"

"No." Harry glared at her.

"Did you want to?" She pressed.

"Yes." Harry admitted.

"You've had years to adjust to power." She shrugged. "This is just another flavor. You didn't rip my head off the moment I walked through those doors. You haven't fuck those bitches bowlegged even though they're dripping for you. What is there to worry about?"

"That isn’t the same." Harry groaned.

"I'm a fucking werewolf in your territory." Ginger took another drag. "Your instincts should be screaming at you to rip me apart. You haven't even flashed."

"Flashed?" Harry asked.

"Your eyes." Ginger leaned forward. "Brace yourself."

Her eyes flashed gold for a moment. Harry felt a flare of rage rush through him. He gripped the edge of the bench to stop himself from launching himself at her. Splinters bit into his palms. He focused on that sensation. Seven along the edge of his left hand, two in that thumb. Four splinters on his right hand, nine in his palm.

"It's a subtle threat." Ginger leaned back and focused on the cigarette in her hand rather than him. "You can learn to do it on command. At first it's just something that happens when you're agitated."

Harry let out a rough breath.

"Again." Ginger shook her head. "You're being dramatic. I've run into others of our kind that would have tried to kill me for even mentioning it. You've got some insane control."

"Thanks." Harry gave a single, dry laugh.

They sat in silence as Ginger finished her smoke. She ground it out on her palm before she tossed it on the ground. Harry glared at her. She rolled her eyes and picked it up. After a moment she tucked it in a side-pocket on her bag.

"See." She gave him a smug smile. "No problem."

Harry cocked his head to the side in confusion.

"That was a blatant insult." She explained. "You're not human anymore. Your brain doesn't work the same. It's the things you don't expect that will set you off."

"I won't tear a guys throat out for insulting my mother?" Harry asked.

"Not unless you would have before." Ginger said. "They're just a little yapping dogs. You are a monster."

Harry nodded. Oddly enough, that did make him feel better.

"Thanks." Harry let out a sigh. "I appreciate it."

"Glad to help." She shrugged. "My life would have been so much easier if I had someone to talk to."

"Did they bring you all the way from Canada just to talk to me?"  Harry asked.

"Nah." She waved his question away. "My sister and I are traveling around the world studying the different types of werewolves. I was in the neighborhood."

"You have a sister?" Harry asked.

"Younger." She nodded.

"Is she…?" He let question hang.

"Yeah." She sighed. "I bit her during my first full change. We knew about wolfsbane by then and were able to keep it at bay for a while. She thought she killed me. Werewolves a lot harder to kill than people think. I had to track her down, show her I wasn't dead, and that I'd gotten help. I helped her adjust too. Guess you could say I'm a pro at it."

Harry rolled his eyes.

"Now what?" He asked after a moment.

"I." She said. "Am going to get back to work with my sister. You are going to stop being such a dramatic bitch and see which one of those ladies upstairs have dibs."

"Dibs?" Harry laughed. "Right."

"You can lie to yourself." Ginger laughed along with him. "But you can't lie to your nose." She stood. "Nice meeting you Harry. My sister will probably want to talk to you before we leave England. You're close enough to a were-wolf to count."

"See you then." Harry stood as well. "Thanks."

Harry walked with her upstairs. She knew the way to go but it felt rude not to.

"No blood and you've both got your clothes on?" Nym teased. "I owe Hestia lunch."

"See you around, Harry." Ginger waved as she headed for the front door.

He waved back. His eyes dropped to watch the swish of her skirt as she walked.

"Oh." Nym said in a sing-song tone. "You two got dressed before you came up. Smart."

"Please." Harry huffed. "We'd still be down there."

"Big words." Nym teased right back.

Harry shrugged but didn't say anything more. Nym studied him for a long moment.

"Hestia went out to get lunch." She broke the silence. "Hope you like Chinese."