Name: Bjor Vargr
IGN: Antler
Year: 3rd
Sample of Writing: (I just kind of typed up a fake report on werewolves)
Werewolves have been hunted, feared, and stigmatized for hundreds of years. Somewhat rightfully, as before the discovery of wolfsbane potion, werewolves had no control over their lupine state. A single werewolf could slaughter a large number of wizards should it be turned loose in a village, and god forbid one made it's way into a muggle village. It'd take large parties of wizards to fight off a single werewolf in it's transformed state. Instead, it was often easier to attempt to find the werewolf in their human form, but this often lead to witchhunts and unnecessary death. From all perspectives, werewolves brought death and destruction, but those who contracted the disease themselves suffered the worst. It wasn't until very recently that werewolves found some solace in the form of Wolfsbane potion, but even now the stigma still lingers heavily over them, causing many to go into hiding or join packs for support.
What makes lycanthropy, or werewolfry, so deadly isn't what it causes it's victims to transform into. The deadliest part of lycanthropy is it's nature as a disease. As a disease, lycanthropy is beautifully designed to be deadly. Every full moon, the host is transformed into an aggressive wolflike beast with an unquenchable bloodlust. It wont hesitate to attack those it loved, including spouses and children. While the werewolves have no control, they remember everything they've done, causing severe emotional trauma. The saliva of a werewolf spreads the disease, so when someone survives the attack, they're only doomed to the same life as their attacker. In many ways, death is more merciful than living with lycanthropy, leading some attack survivors to beg for death rather than be treated. The treatment, powdered silver and dittany, doesn't cure the disease, it only seals the wound which would otherwise cause the victim to bleed out. Because of this, it's uncommon for muggles to survive werewolf attacks, as they don't know how to treat the bite.
However, contracting lycanthropy in modern times isn't nearly as bad at it once was. Damocles invented the Wolfsbane potion, which allows werewolves to transform but keep their sane minds. With the creation of the potion, the outlook for werewolves changed drastically. No longer did the victims have to dwell in the shadows, fearing for those around them as the full moon approached. They could lead mostly normal lives, as long as they had the galleons to afford the potion. However, this has done little to reduce the negative association werewolves have. As recently as 1993, anti-werewolf legislation has been passed to discriminate against werewolves. While this has been repealed since then, werewolf registration and the Werewolf Code of Conduct show that the Ministry still fears werewolves, and werewolves still fear the Ministry. Werewolf Support Services went totally unused, and the Werewolf Capture Unit, while inefficient at capturing werewolves, somehow retains it's funding.
Werewolves still live bleak lives, but as lycanthropy is further studied and Wolfsbane potion is made more readily available, attitudes are beginning to change. For werewolves, it's becoming easier to obtain jobs and live with society. As more people come to view werewolves as victims of a disease rather than bloodthirsty hunters, they'll have an easier time re-integrating into society, and werewolves like Greyback, who knew nothing of hate and thus turned to hate, will slowly dwindle away. Possibly, with enough treatment, lycanthropy can even be eradicated.