The Shifter and The Weasley

Chapter 3

"Please continue Miss Willow" Dumbledore gave a slight nod, his eyes never leaving the girl.

"Well, my parents had decided to start trying to enhance my magic from a very young age. It was in their heads that if they could achieve it, I would be the greatest weapon the Dark Lord could have. However, one night, when I was 9, the experiments they had been running started to explode, they fled the room, however I couldn't as I was chained to a radiator. I remember thinking about how I was going to die, and that they had just left me there to die, then came the pain." Katherine took a deep breath to steady herself, the only person she had ever told about the accident was Professor McGonagall. "It was like red hot fire running through my veins, it lasted for what felt like eternity before the pain became central to my back, when I reached around, I could feel what I thought was bones but actually, it was a pair of wings".

Everyone was silent for a moment, Katherine could see the cogs turning in Dumbledores head, as if trying to believe what he had just heard.

"Could you show me Miss Willow" She could see the scepticism in Dumbledores eyes, so she did the only thing she could do. She rose from her seat and stood a distance away from the two Professors, her wings had a rather large wingspan, and come out at such a speed she could easily send someone soaring a few feet away.

Taking a deep breath in, she unfurled her wings. Her wings were a midnight black, to match with the dragon she can shift into, with a span of around 15 feet from tip to tip. Her eyes burned purple as they turned into slits as she stared at the headmaster.

"It's a sight to see, isn't it Professor" Katherine pulled her wings back in, she knew it wasn't safe to keep them out any longer just in case anyone happened to come in. "However, that was only a partial shift, I do have the ability to shift into a dragon, whilst I am only small at the moment being only 15, I will eventually have a wingspan of around 25 – 30 feet. However, my dragon, Athena, is not the only shift I have" Dumbledore looked amazed. He had never in his life seen anything like this, she really was a magical marvel. However, his gaze softened as he realized the horrors this girl must have endured to get here.

"What is the other shift Miss Willow" he glanced at Minerva, who he realised doesn't seem surprised to hear this news.

"I'm a siren, my voice has the ability to lure people to their deaths, my beauty is an open invitation to danger, and I can scream so loud I can make someone fall unconscious, and yes, before you ask, I do have a tail, however my siren is only dangerous if she is threatened, I haven't had her out for some time though, the last time I did, I ended up making my father's ears bleed when her got too close, so I keep her as hidden as Athena." Katherine blurted everything out in one breath. Her siren Elise and her dragon Athena will be seen as incredibly dangerous, especially in the wrong hands.

"I'm assuming your parents know of your abilities?" All Katherine could do was nod, this was finally the hardest part of it all, she needed help to get away from these people. She had suffered enough. "I need to know Miss Willow, how is home life?" He questioned quietly, he knew this was a thin line and if not navigated carefully he could do more harm than good.

"Dreadful Professor, they are not the nicest of people. I have faced horrors I would not wish on any man." Katherine looked down at her hands, she couldn't bring herself to say it. "You're a master at legilimency, you are free to have a look, I would rather not speak them aloud if I can avoid it" The headmaster merely nodded. Katherine could feel him as he entered her mind, as he saw each memory, each curse thrown at her and heard her screams. Eventually he sat back and remained quiet for a moment. "Thank you Miss Willow, if I may please speak to Professor McGonagall for a moment, I will write you out of your lessons for the rest of the day, head back to your common room and I will send a message with McGonagall for you when I've processed all of this and thought of a way forward" Katherine thanked him quietly before leaving the room, it felt like a huge weight had been lifted from her and she could finally breathe. These past few years have been hard, having to keep it all to herself and not having a close enough friend to share it with, minus Minnie, because she was the best.