There was absolutely no doubt about it. Those two young Aurors had definitely encountered the pack of werewolves.
Maurise stroked his chin thoughtfully, hesitating over whether he should offer a helping hand. Logically, since the Aurors were already present and had received prior intelligence, they must have prepared specific countermeasures. It was entirely unnecessary for an ordinary civilian like him to get involved.
However, were those wolf howls not a bit too numerous? Based on his rough estimate, there were at least seven or eight werewolves howling simultaneously. That was a terrifying number.
After a moment of deliberation, Maurise decided to wander over and take a look. He would consider it his good deed for the day.
It had been years since he had witnessed such an exciting spectacle in Knockturn Alley. Usually, it was just minor skirmishes... a few Dark Wizards brawling over smuggled goods or a petty thief being chased down the street.
Maurise strolled casually toward the darkened alleyway.
He had barely reached the entrance when two shadowy figures violently burst out of the gloom, nearly colliding with him in their frantic rush. It was the two Aurors from earlier.
Upon noticing Maurise, they slammed to a halt.
The male Auror's face was completely covered in blood. One of his eyes was swollen shut and plastered with crimson, leaving him to glare at Maurise with his remaining good eye.
"Why are you still here!?" he roared.
The female Auror seemed to be in much better condition, with no visible injuries.
"Don't panic," Maurise shrugged easily. "I came to help, didn't I?"
He had vaguely suspected these two would run into serious trouble. It seemed his intuition was spot on.
"Run!" the female Auror screamed over her shoulder. "Behind us!"
Before she could even finish her sentence, the heavy, rapid thudding of massive paws echoed from within the alley. In the blink of an eye, two monstrous figures erupted from the darkness.
Maurise looked up. Unsurprisingly, they were werewolves.
However, these beasts possessed thick, bulging limbs and exuded raw, terrifying physical power. They looked completely different from Lupin's sickly werewolf form. Compared to these hulking monstrosities, Lupin practically looked malnourished.
Simultaneously, a chorus of chilling howls continued to echo from deep within the alley. There were clearly many more of them.
The two Aurors reacted with lightning speed, instantly raising their wands. "Impedimenta!"
The Impediment Jinx struck true. However, the werewolves merely stumbled for a fraction of a second, quickly regaining their footing. The weak spell seemed to only enrage them further, and they lunged forward with renewed ferocity.
Once a wizard transformed into a werewolf, they were consumed by an overwhelming, primal desire to slaughter humans. These two had clearly lost every shred of their sanity.
Just as Maurise prepared to step in and casually display his overwhelming power, the male Auror suddenly grabbed him tightly by the shoulder.
In the very next second, a violent, suffocating sensation pulled at Maurise from all directions. The brief delay caused by the Impediment Jinx had bought the Auror just enough time to safely Apparate.
Maurise chose not to resist. But a question quickly formed in his mind. If they could Apparate away, why didn't they just do that in the first place?
The three of them vanished into thin air.
When they reappeared, they were standing inside a small, incredibly dim room. Maurise glanced around and noted the dilapidated surroundings, which heavily reminded him of the Shrieking Shack. Faint, echoing wolf howls could still be heard drifting through the grimy window. They were likely hiding inside an abandoned house somewhere deep in Knockturn Alley.
The male Auror collapsed heavily onto the floor, panting wildly.
"Shawn!" The female Auror immediately rushed over to bandage his bleeding head.
Maurise finally learned the man's name.
Although Shawn's face was a bloody mess, his actual injuries were remarkably light.
"It is just a scrape," he waved her off, wincing slightly. "Those filthy beasts did not manage to bite me."
Once his wound was hastily wrapped, Maurise spoke up. "Since you two are perfectly fine, I will take my leave now."
Perhaps he had severely underestimated the Aurors' capabilities. Based on the current situation, they clearly did not require his assistance.
"There are werewolves roaming outside," Shawn quickly scrambled to block the door, his tone much gentler than before. "Just stay here for now, Mr. Black. I have already sent an emergency signal to the Ministry. Backup will arrive shortly. It will only take a few minutes. Once I brief them on the situation, I will personally escort you back to Diagon Alley."
Maurise honestly did not mind going toe-to-toe with a pack of rabid werewolves. Although there were quite a few of them, he was fully confident in his ability to wipe them out. If things truly went sideways, he could always just teleport away.
But since the Auror was being so insistent...
"Alright then," Maurise conceded. He found a rickety chair with a missing corner cushion and sat down. The ancient wood groaned in protest, sounding as though it might shatter under his weight at any moment.
Shawn leaned heavily against the crumbling wall and closed his eyes, taking a deep breath to steady his racing heart. "Backup should be here in about two minutes." He paused, his voice tinged with deep concern. "I just pray those beasts have not managed to attack anyone else."
The Ministry of Magic received reports of werewolf attacks fairly regularly. The vast majority were tragic accidents, but a small percentage were premeditated and malicious, precisely like tonight's organized gathering.
However, these attacks typically occurred in remote villages or isolated rural towns. It was exceptionally rare for a pack to target a place like Knockturn Alley. Honestly, some of the Dark Wizards lurking in these shadows were infinitely more dangerous than a wild dog. A few years ago, a lone werewolf had tried to cause a scene here. Rumor had it the beast ended up as experimental potion ingredients for a particularly nasty Dark Wizard...
Two minutes was not a long time. Maurise simply leaned back in the creaky chair and closed his eyes to meditate.
Suddenly...
Thump!
Someone knocked heavily on the wooden door.
Shawn's eyes snapped open, instantly on high alert.
Maurise tilted his head slightly. "Is that your backup?"
Shawn did not answer. He pressed a finger to his lips, silently gesturing for Maurise to remain quiet. He then drew his wand, tiptoed over to the grimy window, and carefully peered outside.
He immediately let out a massive sigh of relief and hurried to unlock the door.
A tall, dark-skinned man with a completely bald head stepped into the room. It was too dark for Maurise to make out any further details of his face.
"Mr. Shacklebolt," Shawn sounded deeply confused. "Are you alone?"
The man named Shacklebolt nodded slowly, his deep voice remarkably steady. "We received your distress signal. Scrimgeour sent me alone. All other active units are currently deployed on separate assignments."
"That is terrible news," Shawn's face paled significantly.
Clearly, no one at the Ministry had anticipated such a massive pack of werewolves gathering in Knockturn Alley tonight. Without sufficient manpower, there was absolutely no way they could contain the violently out-of-control beasts.
Shacklebolt's gaze swept methodically across the small room, finally landing on the teenager sitting quietly in the corner.
"Who is that?" he asked.
Shawn followed his gaze. "A civilian. We were attacked simultaneously, so I brought him along during our retreat."
Maurise looked at the tall Auror and introduced himself casually. "I am Maurise Black."
"Kingsley Shacklebolt. As you can see, I am an Auror." After introducing himself, Kingsley immediately turned his attention back to Shawn. "Exactly how many werewolves are we dealing with in this sector?"
Awoooo!
A bone-chilling howl suddenly shattered the silence. It sounded terrifyingly close.
Shawn let out a heavy sigh of defeat. "We have to retreat," he stated grimly. "There is absolutely no way the three of us can handle over a dozen frenzied werewolves... This is a disaster. I can only hope the streets are empty tonight."
Upon hearing the staggering number, Kingsley's expression remained completely unfazed. He looked at Maurise, his tone perfectly calm and collected. "I will escort you home first, Mr. Black. Where do you live?"
"I do not need—"
Before Maurise could finish his sentence, the heavy, chaotic thudding of multiple clawed feet suddenly echoed from the hallway outside.
Immediately following that...
Scraaaatch!
The sickening sound of razor-sharp claws violently raking across the wooden door filled the tiny room.