Oh, for Merlin's sake, it wasn't as if he were trying to rape her.
Malcolm gave Fred a slightly relieved look. Besides, he was familiar with Trent to a certain extent, so it wasn't as awkward. Although it still was to a certain extent.
"Just to make it perfectly clear, I'm not planning to out you. I'm not planning to blackmail you. And I have no intention of putting you in a cage." Malcolm paused, looking down at his hands for a moment (possibly for inspiration, but more likely for avoidance of any tinge of confrontation). "You're too good at this job for me to turn you into a research subject. If I were going to conduct any animal-like cruelty experiments, I'd do them on creatures that were more belligerent against our cause." He raised an eyebrow. "That's not to say I'm not intrigued by the situation, and that's certainly not to say that I wouldn't like an account of some kind. But I'm also reasonable, and I respect your privacy." At least, provided that she didn't become a huge dissident against all of their work. Fred had proven the best source of information until her shape-shift.
There was more he wanted to say, but he thought it prudent to be silent. Malcolm hadn't known that lycanthropy extended past werewolves, and he was glad he did, because now he would be able to try and tailor Wolfsbane to species and help to make his name. But he would not consider taking advantage of an ally to do so--it would be unethical and immoral. He would look to alternative research centers. He wanted to tell her that.
He also wanted to tell her that he was desperate to hear her story. To hear the details of what Trent had told him earlier. But he would not say anything to foster suspicion or resentment. And besides, Fred specialized in lycanthropy, so he reasoned that she would have already considered the situation.
And then Malcolm wanted to ask her how she could be their department's executioner when there was a chance that if she had been discovered by someone less reasonable than himself, she could see herself in the position of many of the creatures that she--well, that wasn't an issue, was it? She had proven loyal, anyway, and the Regulators no longer did that. Or at least, they hadn't since he had joined them, and he assumed Fred was infinitely more just than her predecessor.
In any event, he looked up from his hands awaiting a response.