December 19th, 1890

Dear A,

Writing to wish you well on what looks to be a particularly challenging Christmas season. I sincerely hope you are able to enjoy the company of your friends, family, or loved ones without being too distracted by aches or fatigue. I know it's been a while since we've exchanged letters, but please know that you are frequently in my thoughts. I don't know how your friend's scheme is progressing, but I do hope you will consider letting me know how it goes. You ought to take solace and pride in having someone who cares so deeply about you that they are willing to undertake such an involved task to bring you comfort — and if it is successful, I believe others could benefit greatly from having a friend such as yours. Of course, this is predicated on de-stigmatizing the issue enough to have conversations about it — but that's my business, and what I hope to accomplish with my research. If you share your stories with me, I hope I can handle the rest.

But this letter has become more rambling than I intended. I only wanted to write to wish you a very sincere

Merry Christmas,
M

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Kieran Abernathy Cassius Lestrange

Includes a small bag of iced gingerbread men

  

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Prof. Marlowe Forfang

Jules

December 20th, 1890

M

Thank you for the gingerbread men - I have a soft spot for sweets.

I will of course let you know if my friend is successful; he has not attempted the transformation yet. Whether or not I am worth the risk is - another question, but I am not convinced I can talk him out of it.

Have you heard of the upcoming book?

Merry Christmas yourself.

A.

  

December 21st, 1890

Dear A,

Oh! I have quite a penchant for sweets myself. I've included some of my favorite seasonal treats; let me know what you think. Always happy to share with another aficionado. These are all from bakeries local to London — I believe bakers to be some of the most wonderful people in the world to talk to so I make every excuse to frequent their shops.

I know you must be concerned about your friend, but from a scientific perspective I don't believe there's any reason you ought to talk him out of it. The rabbit test went much better than I could have hoped for, so I'm rather optimistic — and, of course, I'm sure you'll take precautions when it comes to trying it the first time. And while you may not be entirely in control of the way the evening progresses, he will still be quite a capable wizard the entire time and can adjust if things don't go to plan. Actually, this entire thing seems nearly as safe as can be, given the circumstances. I do still think it would be a good idea to try another test once your friend has completed his animagus transformation and knows what form he'll assume — but otherwise, I believe you've already done everything that can be done to set you both up for success.

Do you mean the book by Professor Forfang? Yes, I'm familiar with it. Did you see the research published earlier this year? What did you think of it (the research or the upcoming book)?

Warmly,
M

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Prof. Marlowe Forfang

Jules

December 23rd, 1890

M

It is not as much about the danger of It as it is about the animagus transformation itself - at the risk of sounding dismissive, what if he fails? People die attempting the animagus transformation all the time.

I did see it, and the research - a friend of mine with a similar problem to myself mentioned it.

People do not take kindly to research on the harmlessness of werewolves - I am unsure as to the reception it will get. Have you ever met Mr. Forfang?

A.

  

December 24th, 1890

Dear A,

Ah, of course I understand your concern about the Animagus transformation — but there are a great many dangerous things people undertake every day in wizarding England, so I should not worry so much about it — at least, I would advise you to put off your worrying until it is imminent so as not to overexert yourself.

I believe Professor Forfang is quite reclusive. I have not heard anyone in the academic community professing to have met him. But I will say that I believe your characterization of the research as revolving on the "harmlessness of werewolves" is a fundamental misunderstanding of the piece. The fact that he focused so intensively on precautions those afflicted can and do take to protect those around them (and particularly that he chose this as the subject of his first published piece) acknowledges that precautions are incredibly necessary — but centers the humanity of the subjects, too, I think, in discussing their care in approaching full moon nights. I particularly think that the relationship aspect — the people who love and support those afflicted despite their conditions, and the people that those afflicted with lycanthropy love and protect, even from themselves — I believe it to be novel. It is an approach I have not seen in any prior research and I believe that is why Forfang's work garnered such immediate attention.

That being said — I do worry about the upcoming book. Perhaps acknowledging that those with lycanthropy can also be caring and devoted mothers is going a step farther than the academic community is ready to accept.

M

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   Verity Swann

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Prof. Marlowe Forfang

Jules

December 25th, 1890

M

Obviously I would rather Forfang publish than Picardy, but I worry that Forfang's writings will get more of a backlash. I'm also interested to read & see what the other werewolves are doing to prevent attacks - maybe there's something I can be doing better. We have very little sense of community, as I am sure you are aware.


Merry Christmas, as well.

A.

attached is a small pumpkin tart with a snowflake frosted on it

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   Juliana Ainsworth

December 29th, 1890

Dear A,

I hope you had as pleasant a Christmas as possible, given the circumstances.

To your point on a lack of community: I believe that is one of the greatest harms done by the way society stigmatizes lycanthropy, as it deprives those afflicted with the ability to share successes, learn from one another, and develop better means of management. With perhaps a very few exceptions, I do not believe anyone afflicted with lycanthropy intends to pass it on, and therefore every time someone is bitten it reflects on our failures as a society to give them the proper tools to control the spread of the condition. If Forfang's research can help fill this gap and serve a similar purpose, I believe society on the whole will benefit, not just those afflicted with lycanthropy.

But as to your point about backlash — yes, I do worry about that as well. Hopefully the good that can be done from sharing this type of research can outweigh any additional stumbling blocks that arise from its publication.

M

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Prof. Marlowe Forfang

Jules

January 3rd, 1891

M

Have you managed to talk to anyone who turned someone yet?

A.

  

January 4, 1891

Dear A,

It's not a question I typically ask, so I'm afraid I can't say for certain. Of course as you know they would not have had any memory of the event, so what benefit could there be to my asking about it? It would only serve, in most cases, to alienate my correspondents and put them on the defensive.

I did have one gentleman early on tell me quite a bit about his... unfortunate exploits, I suppose one could say, but in retrospect I believe he was only trying to shock me.

I hope nothing happened over Christmas. If there's anything I can do—

M

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Prof. Marlowe Forfang

Jules

January 6th, 1891

M

If they take precautions, they can tell. Or they can suspect. Particularly if there's relevant news in the Prophet.

Nothing happened over Christmas, at least not in terms of anyone's safety.

A.

  

January 7, 1891

Dear A,

I'm not exactly in the business of researching anyone's suppositions; that sort of work is best left to private detectives.

I do talk to people, sometimes, about the emotional consequences of these failures of precautions, or the mental toll of worrying about potential failures. In short: I concern myself primarily with the effects of these events on those who were already afflicted with lycanthropy, not with the events themselves or the victims. Is that the sort of thing you'd like to discuss?

I'm assuming, anyway, that you want to talk about this, or else you wouldn't have brought it up.

M

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Prof. Marlowe Forfang

Jules

January 8th, 1891

M

I think that it's hard to talk about werewolves without talking about what happens when we fail? This isn't to say that your research isn't important - I think that it is - but rather that there's a reason that Picardy is able to whip up a little fervor against us, and the reason is this: people die when we fail.

I have never, to my knowledge, killed anyone. But - there is something to be said for intention vs affect, and you said that no one intends to turn anyone, and I agree with that. But if the effect is bad, doesn't that matter too?

A.

  

January 11, 1891

Dear A,

I owe you an apology. Truthfully, in the time between my last letter and your reply I had lost the thread of our conversation, and I thought — well, you know what I thought. I can offer little excuse aside from the intervening holiday and the distractions in the paper over the last week for my absent-mindedness. I had, therefore, interpreted your question as more than hypothetical.

You are right, of course. I did not mean to imply that the consequences are not severe, or the effects unimportant, by pointing out the lack of intent. But neither do I think the case for declaring werewolves criminal — or lawless, or lacking in morality, as Picardy has done — can be carried without intent. What good is our society if we cannot, at a minimum, provide the tools necessary for those who intend no harm to do no harm?

Have you ever heard of an obscurus? They're extinct now, I believe, but I've read about them. (I am about to embark on an analogy here which I recognize to be imperfect; I hope you will take my meaning without offense). An obscurus is an uncontrolled burst of raw magical energy which is produced by a magical child without any education or means of channeling that energy. They are capable of destroying buildings and causing grave injury or even death. Every magical child has the potential for this within them — and we do not respond by ostracizing or jailing them. We educate them. We provide the means to manage the condition until it no longer poses any danger to society whatsoever. If we were able to accommodate such unpredictable and reckless magical energy into our society, there is no reason — in my opinion — that providing those afflicted with lycanthropy the same security and comfort should prove an insurmountable obstacle. The only reason we haven't done it yet is that we don't want to. And I hope that my research, highlighting the humanity of people such as yourself, helps to create that desire to better ourselves and our society.

M

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Prof. Marlowe Forfang

Jules

January 13th, 1891

M

That's an interesting point, in terms of the obscurus. Do you ever worry that without more public werewolves, it might be difficult for your research to make a dent? Not that I'm saying it's not worthwhile - if I did not think it was worthwhile I would not be writing to you, frankly - but that without -people to serve as examples, we might not feel "real" to the people making decisions.

A.

  

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set by MJ!

January 16, 1891

Dear A,

Yes, I do worry about that, but as there's nothing particularly that I can do about it, I try not to let it preoccupy my thoughts. Do I think the world would be much improved if all those secretly living with lycanthropy came forward and declared themselves and forced society to reckon, once and for all, with their existence? Yes; I do. But I recognize that this would require an enormous sacrifice of everyone who chose to come forward, with only the hope that things might someday be better for others in the future as a reward for their sacrifice. Since I would not be personally affected by a decision like this, and so many others would, it would be irrational for me to try and convince anyone of my position. It is not personal for me, and while I hope this allows me to be more objective in my research it does mean that I have no rights, really, to try and make decisions that would affect the lives of others.

This is a bit beyond the bounds of what I typically talk about with people I write to, but — well, I believe our relationship has evolved a bit farther than simply researcher and subject.

I ought probably to admit —

What did you think of that exchange between Forfang and Picardy in the paper?

M

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Prof. Marlowe Forfang

Jules

January 19th, 1891

M

Picardy is obviously a nut, but he's a nut with resources and a grudge; I think that he is probably going to continue to write counterpoints to Forfang, and even if Forfang's research is more grounded in fact, people are going to continue to act as if both sides are equally well-reasoned. Does that make sense to you?

A.