Hi everyone!

I actually managed to post this chapter in the three weeks I told you it would take - okay, three weeks and two days, but close enough! - yes, I'm as shocked about that as you are! xD

And something else that is amazing: This chapter makes this story reach the 100,000 words mark! I'm really excited about this and apparently you're still reading it, so it can't be too bad ;)

Anyway, let's get on with the chapter, I hope you enjoy it!

Chapter 20: A Monopoly on the Truth

Hogwarts – Wednesday, 4th of February, 1996

Hermione:

The corporeal Patronus often takes the form of an animal the caster has a connection with. This could be determined through shared character traits between the wizard and the spirit animal, or because the wizard associates a strong sense of safety with this animal.

Sometimes, falling in love can change the shape of the Patronus to resemble the loved one's Patronus. The shape of a Patronus can also resemble a parent's corporeal Patronus, as these usually make the caster feel safe and protected.

The shape of the Patronus of an animagus will always be the animal they can turn into. Similarly, if a werewolf manages to cast a corporeal Patronus, it will always be in the shape of a wolf.

I sighed, closed the book and put it on the stack with all the others I had read. None of them had told me what I wanted to know. They all mentioned that werewolves all had a wolf Patronus, but I couldn't find any information on whether a wolf Patronus could also be cast by someone without any deep connection to a werewolf.

I had no explanation as to why my Patronus was a wolf. It didn't make any sense. Before our DA meeting I had speculated about the shape my Patronus would take. Who wouldn't? I thought it might be an owl or a raven to represent my thirst for knowledge. Or, maybe, an otter as they are my favourite animals. I never expected a wolf.

So, how had that happened? The only werewolf I knew was Lupin, but our friendship wasn't nearly strong enough to explain my Patronus. The same was true for Sirius, if one considered my Patronus to just be a big dog.

I groaned and buried my head in my arms on top of the desk. As if there weren't enough other problems for me to worry about…

After the disastrous DA meeting last week, Umbridge had caught some of the people running away, among them Harry, and wanted to expel him. However, Dumbledore had taken the blame and fled before they could arrest him. So now we were stuck with Umbridge as a headmistress and about a hundred new educational decrees.

I quickly pushed the thoughts out of my head. There was nothing I could do about it, so to take my mind off things I had gone to the library in my free period and researched the Patronus. Instead, here I was, with even more questions in my head.

So… Was there any possibility I was secretly in love with a werewolf? I chuckled. Ron was very un-werewolf-like. I also doubted Victor had been a werewolf. I could still remember spending an evening at the lake with him, looking up at the stars and the full moon. So, who did I know who was always acting strange around a full moon?

I frowned. The only person acting strange around the full moon was me. What if my monthly anger issues were not caused by PMS but by lycanthropy? I looked down at my wrist and suspiciously stared at my bracelet for a moment, as if it could give me the answers I was looking for. I shook my head. That was impossible. I had never been bitten by a werewolf. Not to mention that as far as I knew I didn't grow any fur or fangs!

I decided to stop worrying about this and stood up to put the books away and got the ones I needed for my Transfiguration essay instead.

After ten minutes of trying unsuccessfully to understand the words written on the page before me, I gave up and closed the book. I just couldn't shake the bad feeling in my stomach, or the nagging voice in the back of my head that told me I was missing something.

Then, I remembered Kol and Elijah talking about a 'werewolf gene' after Lupin had attacked Kol. Could I have been born with that gene? Now that I thought about it, the two had acted quite strangely around me that day, talking in some kind of secret code and throwing me weird glances.

How could I have gotten this gene? My parents definitely weren't werewolves. Moreover, if I had that gene, I would also actually turn into a wolf during the full moon, wouldn't I? So why could I not stop thinking about this?!

I sighed and stood up. It didn't make any sense to stay here and try to do my homework. I wouldn't be able to concentrate until I had some answers. I knew there were only two people who could help me with that. Elijah was teaching the seventh year's Defence lesson right now, so I went to go and find Kol.

xxx

I found Kol in Elijah's office, potion books scattered all over the floor. One of the first things Umbridge did as a headmistress was to kick him out of the guest room and forbid him from attending any more of McGonagall's lessons. The only reason he was still allowed to be in the castle at all, was because Umbridge thought she could find out what secret mission he was doing for Dumbledore by having Filch spy on him. So, for now, Kol had moved into Elijah's office, sleeping on his sofa.

"Hi darling, miss me already?" He greeted me, smiling brightly and opened the door wider, to let me in.

I entered the office and sat in one of the armchairs, while Kol fetched me some pumpkin juice from Elijah's minibar.

"Here you are. I know you're not too much of a fan of pumpkin juice, but it's the only non-alcoholic drink Elijah has here." Kol chuckled and I took the pumpkin juice from him and took a sip. Somehow it tasted different than the one usually on the house tables. This one tasted normal. Like I remembered pumpkin juice to taste. Like it tasted before the start of this school year…

"This one doesn't have vervain in it, does it?" I asked Kol, coming up with the only possible explanation for the difference in taste. He looked at me amused.

"No, it definitely doesn't." He chuckled, as if there was a joke here I wasn't getting. So apparently the vervain changed the taste of the pumpkin juice. But how could I taste it? According to Professor Sprout it was tasteless… except… I felt as if a bucket of ice water was emptied over my head. Werewolves could taste vervain.

"Hey, are you okay Hermione? You seem a bit pale." Kol asked me concerned and I looked at him. I needed answers. Now!

"I… You and Elijah… on Christmas you said something about werewolves born with a werewolf gene… werewolves who didn't get bitten. I need to know everything you know about them." I stated desperately and Kol stared at me for a moment. Then he sighed and let himself fall in the other armchair, rubbing his hand over his face. He sighed again deeply and then he looked back at me.

"So, you've finally figured it out." He stated and now it was my turn to stare.

"F... Figured… Figured out what?" I whispered. Surely, he couldn't mean… I had come here just because I wanted some more information… Just to convince myself that my worries were completely unfounded. THIS COULDN'T BE!

"You've figured out that you have the werewolf gene. I've already wondered how long it would take you, after you've seen that Patronus." Kol told me calmly and I felt myself fall into a panic. I WAS A WEREWOLF?! Calm down Hermione, you're not a werewolf like Lupin. You're just carrying this gene. BUT WHAT DID THAT EVEN MEAN? WHAT WOULD HAPPEN TO ME?

"Hey, Hermione, HERMIONE! Listen to me. Take deep breaths okay. Try to calm down. It's not that bad. You might never have to change into a wolf." Kol desperately tried to calm me down when I started hyperventilating. I didn't pay any attention to him. I WAS A FREAKING WEREWOLF!

In my mind I could see all the horrible things that would happen. I could nearly feel my bones breaking when I thought of the transformation. Fur growing everywhere. Fangs and claws. Fangs and claws dripping in blood. Fangs and claws dripping in blood as I was ripping apart Harry and Ron. Fangs and claws dripping in blood as I was ripping apart Harry and Ron and being completely unable to stop myself. Fangs and cla-

"HERMIONE!" I flinched as Kol shook my shoulders and was ripped out of my thoughts.

"Hermione, you're having a panic attack or something. You need to calm down and think about this rationally and I can tell you everything you want to know." He told me urgently and I took a deep breath and tried to calm my racing heart.

xxx

After a few minutes of deep breathing and listening to Kol trying to calm me down, reassuring me that it wasn't quite as bad as I was imagining, I was finally able to stop panicking and was ready to listen to him. If I really had that gene, I needed to know what it meant. However, first I needed to know for sure that my speculations were right.

"Okay. So, I have this gene. And because of it I always get these anger issues at the full moon. And I can taste vervain. And my Patronus is a wolf. Right so far?" I asked Kol and he nodded.

"You also have slightly better senses than a normal human." He added. I stored this information away for later. It might come in handy at one point. Then I remembered something else.

"Last week, when we tried that locator spell and it went wrong… I had bad burns on my arm first, and then they suddenly healed… Was that because of that werewolf gene?" I asked Kol curiously, but he frowned at me.

"I don't think so. Your curse still isn't triggered yet, so you shouldn't have any healing abilities." He answered confused and I sighed, no idea what he meant by "triggered curse."

"How about you start at the beginning? Like… How long have you known?" I asked him suspiciously. Why hadn't he told me? Kol sighed.

"I've known even before I first met you. The bracelet I made for you… Elijah asked me to make something to keep a werewolf's anger in check, so you wouldn't accidentally trigger your curse." He told me and I frowned.

"So, Elijah knows too? How?" That explained a few things. Like why he wasn't angry when I punched him and Ron. He knew it was because of that gene. I felt like I should feel angry about him not telling me but pushed that aside for later. Right now, there were more important things to worry about.

"Yes, he does. No idea how, I guess he just figured it out from your mood swings at the full moon."

"He also said he knows my parents… Do they have this gene too? They have to have it, don't they? It's hereditary. But they don't turn into wolves at the full moon! And neither do I." I guessed Kol could see my confusion because he chuckled.

"How about I first give you the short version of all I know about the werewolf gene, and then we continue with the hundred questions game?" When I nodded, he continued, "So, first of all, the gene is hereditary, you're right about that. But it's a curse that a witch cast over a thousand years ago. And this curse only gets triggered when you kill a human or a witch. Doesn't matter if it's an accident or on purpose. As long as you don't do that, you won't feel much of the gene, maybe some anger issues and better senses, but that's it. Many werewolves go their whole lives without ever triggering it and so, after a few generations, they might not even know that they have that gene. Your parents probably have no idea. It's not like muggles would even believe it, if you just told them." He explained and suddenly I was very grateful my parents decided to become dentists and not surgeons. Much less likely to lose a patient.

"Okay, so as long as I don't kill anyone, I'm fine? But what if I trigger that curse?" The thought of killing someone, anyone, was absolutely terrifying and at first I tried to convince myself, that I would go my whole life without ever triggering the curse, like my parents had. I had to be realistic, though. They were muggles, I was a witch. There were a lot of freak magical accidents that could happen. More importantly, there was a war coming and because of Harry, I would be right in the middle of it. What would happen if I had to duel a Death Eater? What if they tried to kill me? I would have to defend myself… Kol ripped me out of my thoughts again.

"Well, if you trigger the curse…" He took a short break, looking at me, building up the tension. Then he continued in a dramatic voice, "You'll turn into a werewolf at the full moon."

I stared at him. Was he serious? HOW COULD HE JOKE ABOUT SOMETHING LIKE THIS?! I glared at him. If looks could kill, I would probably be a werewolf now. He only chuckled and quickly went on to reassure me.

"Listen, it's not as bad as you're probably imagining right now. Yes, the transformation hurts, and you will not be in control of yourself, but you won't turn into an ugly hyena-thingy like Lupin. You will look like a normal wolf, but actually be much stronger and faster. A werewolf can easily take on a vampire. And their bite is lethal to vampires. Also, they heal extremely fast. So yeah… it's not that bad, it gives you a lot of cool powers." He told me and I didn't really know what to think about that. So, I would turn into a perfect vampire-killing-machine, if I triggered the curse? It didn't sound quite as bad as being turned by a werewolf bite, but there was still the excruciating transformation each month, not to mention randomly attacking people! When I still didn't look any happier, Kol suddenly started grinning.

"Oh yeah, I nearly forgot! A few years ago, Elijah and Nik found a spell to create 'moonlight-rings' for werewolves. With one of them, a werewolf can control their powers and is not affected by the moon anymore. So, don't worry too much. If you ever trigger your curse, I'll make you a ring and then you can have all the cool powers all the time without ever having to change at the full moon." He told me excitedly and I stared at him. He nearly forgot something this important?! Then I noticed his smirk. He had held back that information on purpose to mess with me! However, I didn't feel annoyed at him, just relieved. If what he said was true, there was no reason to worry!

I wouldn't have to turn into a wolf! I felt like a big weight was lifted off my chest and the panic finally ebbed down. I could handle this.

"So, feeling better?" Kol asked me, smiling brightly and I nodded happily.

"Oh yes, you can't even imagine!" I told him.

xxx

"If you made that bracelet specifically for a werewolf, why is it not working properly for me?" I asked him curiously. Kol had spent the last twenty minutes answering all my questions – all thirty-seven of them.

"I guess because you're also a witch. That's very rare, at least with genetical werewolves. I think Nik once had a girlfriend that was both, but that's the only other one I've heard of. Elijah hadn't told me you were also a witch when I made the bracelet, so I couldn't take that into consideration.

"Yeah, not like Elijah told me that I was a werewolf…" I grumbled. Why had he kept that from me? Why had Kol? Suddenly that annoyance from earlier came back full force.

"Why didn't you tell me?" I asked him angrily and he shrugged apologetically.

"I wanted to, believe me, but Elijah threatened to rip out my tongue, if I did and I do feel quite attached to it." He told me seriously and I frowned. Did he actually believe that threat?

"So… Is that why you also won't tell me what object you are looking for here in Hogwarts? Or whether Elijah can do magic or not?" I hissed and Kol's look turned dark.

"Oh no, Elijah would rip out far more than my tongue, if I told you that." He muttered and I stared at him.

"Do you actually think he would go through with that? Or is this just some stupid excuse for keeping secrets and lying to me?" I was really angry now. He could have told me that I was a werewolf last month, when I went to him because the bracelet wasn't working. Instead he had just pretended not to know what was wrong with me. Kol sat up straight and glared at me.

"Oh yes, I do think so. I know my brother much better than you do. Believe me, he doesn't make empty threats. And do you really think you're the only one he's not telling the truth? I've been here for over a month, helping him and Dumbledore and do you think they would have told me why I'm even looking for this thing in the first place? I still have no idea why it's so damn important to them! And more importantly, I still don't know, why Elijah is even here, why he is so obsessed with stopping Voldemort!" Kol ranted, he seemed to be just as angry as me now.

"What do you mean, you don't know why Elijah wants to stop Voldemort? He's evil and killing all those innocent people and wants to take over the government." Wasn't that obvious?! Kol only scoffed.

"As if Elijah cared about that. He hasn't joined the Order of the Phoenix solely because it's the right thing to do. There has to be something in there for him. I would have guessed he was after political power, but he would get that much more easily by joining Voldemort, so that can't be it. He claims he's helping your side because he and Minerva have been friends for a long time, but that doesn't explain why he's going soooo far to stop Voldemort… There has to be a reason why he's willing to do all these things just for a slight advantage on him." He explained, but I didn't understand a word he was talking about.

"What things? What is he doing?" I asked confused and Kol looked at me for a moment, but then shook his head.

"Sorry, but that's another thing that would get my tongue – or more likely my heart – ripped out, if I told you. However, when we went on that mission for Dumbledore after Christmas… He sort of went behind Dumbledore and Minerva's back. Why would he do that, if he was only trying to support them? There has to be another reason, and I have to find out what it is." He stated. A shiver ran down my back. What was it Elijah had done on that mission? Was he betraying Dumbledore? I suddenly had a very bad feeling. Did Kol think Elijah was working for Voldemort? That couldn't be, could it? Elijah wouldn't work with Klaus, he seemed to hate him too much for that… Maybe Kol was just paranoid. But he and Elijah were brothers. He probably knew him better than most people. So, if Kol didn't trust Elijah…

For a moment Kol and I sat there in silence, both lost in our own thoughts, until Kol finally said something.

"Listen, I've been thinking. Last week, after Dumbledore had to leave and Umbridge had us all in her office for questioning, Elijah warned me not to drink anything she offered me, because she wanted to put a truth serum into the drinks." Kol explained. Where was he going with this?

"Yes, I think she put Veritaserum in the tea." I told him. Then I realized why there were all the potion books lying around.

"You want to brew Veritaserum and use it to question Elijah." It wasn't a question. It was obvious what he wanted to do. Kol smirked.

"Yes. If I'm going to help him, I want to know what he knows. He doesn't get to have a monopoly on the truth and give everyone else just tiny snippets he deems important. I'm done with that. So, I'll make Veritaserum, and then he'll finally tell me the truth about what's going on. There is just one problem… I don't really have much experience in brewing potions and Veritaserum looks like quite a difficult potion to make." He explained and then looked at me sheepishly.

"So… you want me to help you brew an illegal truth serum to question your brother – my teacher by the way – because you think he's keeping some things from you?" I asked him incredulously. Sure, I was angry at Elijah too, but slipping Veritaserum into his drink was highly immoral, as well as illegal, and I didn't really think the circumstances excused such extreme measures. If he was a Death Eater – sure. However, it was Elijah. He was working for the Order and he was our teacher. Dumbledore trusted him and Kol had no evidence to the contrary, other than a bad feeling. Besides, I really respected and liked Elijah. There was no way I would do this. Then, Kol continued.

"It's not only that. Questioning Elijah would only be an added bonus. But I really need the Veritaserum for something else." He stopped for a moment, lost in thoughts, seeming sad.

"With Dumbledore gone it's only a matter of time until Umbridge kicks me out of the castle. Right now, she thinks I could be useful, but if she doesn't get any new information from spying on me in the next two or three weeks, she will want me gone. Maybe I could drag it out a bit by behaving suspiciously and making Filch think I'm somehow communicating with Dumbledore, but in any case, my days here in Hogwarts are numbered. So, I really want to go back to New Orleans, to Davina. But I can't, because everyone there still thinks I've thrown the Mayor out of his window. But it wasn't me. Someone pinned that murder on me and if I want to go back, I first need to find the real murderer." He explained and I sighed. He looked so sad. He must really miss Davina and his home.

"Do you have any idea who that could be?" I asked him.

"Well, if I had to guess I would say it was my sister's boyfriend Marcel, he doesn't like me and definitely wanted me gone. I doubt it was Hayley or Jackson, the leaders of the werewolf faction, they don't have a real motive. It could have been any of the witches in New Orleans, maybe one of them didn't like me and Davina together. On the other hand, it might have just been another human, who wanted to become Mayor themselves. Or… " He trailed of for a moment and frowned.

"I guess it could have also been someone acting on Elijah's orders… He must have known I would then come here and help him…" his suspicions made another cold shudder run down my back. Could Elijah have killed some innocent human and blamed the murder on Kol just to manipulate him? I seriously doubted that, but in any case, I could definitely understand why Kol wanted the Veritaserum. He must feel terrible, being accused of being a murderer! Moreover, the real murderer was still walking free, probably somewhere in New Orleans, where Kol's girlfriend and sister were! What if they were in danger?

"But couldn't you just find the murderer and prove that you're innocent without the Veritaserum?" I asked him, trying to find another, more legal solution. Kol only chuckled humourlessly.

"They won't believe me. They will believe anyone else over me. The only way I can convince them that Marcel was the murderer is if they hear him say it himself. Even then I'm not even sure they won't just ignore it and still keep me exiled, because they rather have me gone than Marcel." Kol said and I looked more carefully at him. He seemed so sad that I was convinced that he actually believed that. That was terrible.

"Hey, Kol, don't think like that. Of course, they will believe you. Davina will and so will Rebekah, if you show her evidence. They are your family." I tried to convince him, but he just shook his head in defeat.

"My family has always loved Marcel more than me. He's the adopted son of my brother Nik. And Nik and Elijah and Rebekah have always fawned over him. Rebekah will never believe me over him. I doubt she even wants me back in New Orleans. Even now, she still cares more about Nik and Elijah than she does about me. Even after all they have done… So yeah, I don't stand a chance. The only way she will consider just listening to me, is if she hears Marcel confess to the murder in front of her. And for that I need the Veritaserum. And even then… I just… I don't know what to do. I miss Davina sooooo much and if they don't believe me…" He trailed off sadly, burying his face in his hands. I sighed. He usually was so happy and carefree. It was really hard seeing him like this.

"They will believe you. Don't give up hope, okay. I'll help you brew the Veritaserum and then you can prove you're innocent and go back to Davina. I promise it will all work out." I tried to reassure him, and he sent me a small smile.

"Thank you, Hermione."

"Okay, first of all we need a room to brew in. I suggest the girl's toilet on the second floor or the Room of Requirement. It's quite unlikely that Umbridge will look for us there again. Then we need the recipe, which should be in some potions book in the forbidden section, but I can probably convince Elijah to sign a permission slip." I sighed. This would have been much easier a week ago, before Umbridge banned Kol from the forbidden section! "Then we need to get the ingredients. Maybe you could go to Diagon Alley to buy them, so we won't have to steal them."

xxx

When we had finally planned all the details of brewing the Veritaserum and Kol was considerably more cheerful again, I decided to talk about something else with him.

"Hey Kol, about that magical object you're looking for. I know you can't tell me what it is, but I think I know why Dumbledore and Elijah are looking for it." I started slowly, still hesitating. Should I really tell him? But then, he was helping us, and it might help him to find it, if he knew what it actually was.

"Really? Why are they?" he asked me curiously and I took a deep breath. Dumbledore had told Harry not to tell anyone besides me and Ron and that it had to stay a secret. However, I trusted Kol, and honestly? He was right, nobody should have a monopoly on the truth. So, if Dumbledore and Elijah wouldn't tell us anything, we should at least tell each other what we knew. This was important.

"I think Voldemort turned this object of yours into a horcrux." I stated and watched Kol's reaction. His eyes widened at this information. He seemed to understand what I was talking about.

"A horcrux? He split his soul?" he asked for confirmation and I nodded.

"Not just once. He split it into seven parts." Kol stared at me.

"Seven? Are you sure? Why would he do that? Splitting it that many times… It would make your soul really unstable and vulnerable. Not to mention that it would turn you into a monstrous thing…" He speculated, and I nodded.

"Well, yeah, Voldemort wouldn't exactly win any beauty contests anymore." I chuckled.

"Okay, at least that explains why Dumbledore is so desperate to find it. If it really is a horcrux, it's going to be hidden very well." He sighed.

"Have you made any progress in finding it?" I asked him and he shook his head with an annoyed expression.

"No. I might be able to find it with a locator spell, but I would need the blood of the rightful owner for that, or some other magical object belonging to her. That's both nearly impossible to get." He told me and we both were silent for a moment, thinking about the problem. Then I suddenly had an idea.

"What if you go at it from another angle? Like… Well, we know the thing is a horcrux, so what if you don't try to look for the object with the locator spell, but instead try to find that piece of Voldemort's soul that's locked in it?" I suggested and Kol frowned.

"That's a good idea, but for that we would need Voldemort's blood." He explained and I nodded.

"Or another object that belongs to him, right?"

"Yes, that should work too, but it needs to be something he has a strong connection with, not just some random old junk."

"What about a magical diary that contained part of his soul?" I asked and Kol grinned.

"You have another of his horcruxes? That could actually work!" he jumped up enthusiastically.

"Well, Harry already destroyed the horcrux in it, but that diary should still be enough, shouldn't it?" I asked and Kol nodded thoughtfully.

"Where is it now?"

"I'm not really sure, Harry used it to trick Mr. Malfoy into freeing Dobby. Maybe Dobby knows where it is. We could go to the kitchens after dinner and ask him." I suggested and Kol grinned.

"Sounds like a good plan. I'll probably need some help with the locator spell, but I can ask Minerva or Snape for help or channel Elijah. You're brilliant Hermione!" he cheered and gave me a high five. At that moment we heard a chuckle behind us.

"Oh yes, she is." Kol and I jumped and turned around quickly.

"Elijah? What are you doing here?" Kol asked nervously. Elijah raised an eyebrow at that.

"This is my office." He stated with a grin and I felt myself flush. I was sitting around in a teacher's office without him being here. That was really rude. Luckily Elijah didn't seem angry.

"What were you doing here?" he asked curiously.

"She helped me figure out how to find your princess costume!" Kol told him teasingly. Princess costume? Was Kol looking for a dress? Or some kind of jewellery? Probably the latter. Voldemort wouldn't put his soul into a dress. So probably some necklace or bracelet or so?

"So, you know where it is?" Elijah asked, interrupting my chain of thought.

"Well, not exactly, but we have a good idea how to find it with a locator spell. Don't worry about it, you'll have it in a few days." Kol told him. "Anyway, if you're here, it means lessons have ended. I'm going down to dinner, I'm starving!" he exclaimed and was out of the room before I could follow him.

So, I was left alone with Elijah. I felt a shiver run down my back. Was that because of Kol's suspicions that he was betraying Dumbledore? Or because of those graphic threats Kol had told me about. Would Elijah really rip out his brother's tongue? That had to be an empty threat. Then my glance fell on my bracelet. Maybe I always felt on edge around Elijah because of that werewolf gene? If he really was a monster hunter, maybe some instinct warned me of him?

"Are you okay, Hermione?" Elijah asked me concerned, interrupting my thoughts. I looked at my bracelet again and decided to tell him.

"I… I figured something out today. Something concerning my anger issues and a werewolf gene." I told him slowly and looked up at his face. He frowned and just looked at me for a moment, then he sat down in Kol's vacated armchair.

"So, I suppose you've spoken with Kol about what this means for you?" he guessed, and I nodded.

"How are you feeling?" he asked me carefully. I shrugged.

"I guess I'll be okay. I mean it's not exactly the best news, but at least I know now what's going on with me. Kol offered to make me a moonlight ring too, if I ever trigger that curse, so it's not too bad." I reassured him. "But why didn't you tell me? You must have known about it for months, so why not tell me what was wrong with me when I told you about my anger problems?" I asked him angrily. I still felt betrayed by him, that he had lied to me for so long. Elijah sighed.

"I'm truly sorry Hermione. I simply did not want to scare you. I do not think that you will ever trigger the werewolf curse, so I didn't see any reason why I should worry you." He told me apologetically.

"Oh really? What makes you so sure I'll never trigger that curse? There is a war coming! Anything could happen! Anything could happen now, for that matter. I'm a witch, sometimes accidents with magic happen. What if I blow up a potion or cause an explosion in Charms?!" I ranted.

I was still horrified by the mere thought of accidentally killing someone, but it wasn't completely out of the realm of the possible. With a shiver I remembered the accident with Harry and Neville in last week's Defence class. Even if I had only imagined it, for a moment there, I had been afraid Neville would die. It easily could have happened! So, how could Elijah keep important information like that – information about me – to himself? What gave him the right?! Not to mention threatening Kol into keeping quiet about it too?

Elijah sighed heavily.

"I did it for your safety. There aren't many witches with the werewolf gene, and if the wrong people found out about it, it could be very dangerous for you." He explained, but I only scoffed. So, he was worried about me telling everyone about it? How stupid did he think I was? I knew how the wizarding society treated werewolves.

When I just glared at him, Elijah continued.

"It's really important that you keep it to yourself. Kol never even should have told you in the first place." He told me and that made me really angry now. He really had the audacity to complain about Kol telling me the truth?

"Keep Kol out of this! He didn't tell me. I've figured it out all on my own! Do you know that he actually believes those horrible things you threaten him with? He is afraid of you, Elijah! What kind of person threatens their own brother they will rip his tongue out?" I ranted.

A second later I realized what I had said and took a deep breath and tried to calm down. Werewolf temper as an excuse or not, Elijah, Professor Mikaelson, was still my teacher and I couldn't just shout at him!

Elijah, however, didn't seem fazed by my accusations. Apparently, it didn't bother him that Kol was scared of him. He also didn't try to deny anything. I felt a cold shiver run down my back. What if Kol was right in not trusting Elijah? He knew him better and much longer than I did. What if he was right and Elijah really meant those threats?

After a moment of thinking I decided to throw caution in the wind and ask the one question I've wanted answered for months. I felt that after everything that I had found out today, I just had to know. Especially since, apparently, nobody around here told me anything. I was trying to trust Elijah, I had defended him against Kol, even though I had my own suspicions. So now it was time to see if he trusted me.

"Elijah?" I waited until he looked at me expectantly. "Who – no, what are you?"

I still had no idea if he was a squib, a hunter, a powerful wizard or something else entirely, but after hearing Kol talk today, I seriously started to doubt whether he was really on our side. Now, I was fed up with all the secrets and the lies. He stared at me for a moment and then sighed.

"I can't tell you, Hermione. I don't think you would want to know, and it might put you in danger. So, it really would be best if you stopped trying to find out." He told me with a decisive voice, ending the conversation.

So, he was still intent to keep me in the dark? Fine. I was done with this. I've tried to figure it out for months, wanting to believe I could trust him, despite every instinct telling me he was dangerous. What was so bad, that he couldn't tell me? I knew I could no longer keep on trusting him without knowing where his loyalties were. We couldn't afford another Death Eater getting close to Harry. So now, I would have to make sure he was really on our side. I would help Kol put that Veritaserum in Elijah's drink.

It was time to find out the truth.

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