Revelation II-Lycantor

REVELATION II-LYCANTOR

CHAPTER FIFTEEN-THE MEIZULE

HERMIONE.

I had been sleeping peacefully when I heard it. The horribly familiar sound...the howling.

I snapped awake and sat bold upright in bed. I glanced over at Harry. He too was awake and listening.

"This can't be..." my voice trailed off.

"Maybe it's just Fang?" Harry suggested but from the look on his face I could tell he didn't believe his own words.

"I thought it was over," I said looking scared.

"Maybe we're jumping to conclusions," Harry said reasonably. "Maybe it's Professor Lupin?"

"Harry, Professor Lupin isn't here anymore remember? He left. Dumbledore would've told us if he had come back," I snorted.

Harry shrank back into his cot. Madam Pomfrey had come into the hospital wing carrying our robes and uniforms.

"Get dressed the both of you," she said urgently.

"What's going on?" I asked as she drew a curtain in between Harry and I's cots to give each of us privacy while we dressed.

"There's another one loose in the castle," she whispered as she waited until we were dressed before ushering us behind her as she left the hospital wing.

She kept us behind her at all times with her wand raised. We came across someone lying face down on the floor in the corridor.

"It's Rob," I whispered to Harry.

Madam Pomfrey bent down and gently shook Rob. He didn't wake up.

"I think I'm going to be sick," I said as I realized what I was seeing.

He had been decapitated...his head had rolled several inches away from the body.

I shut my eyes and buried my face into Harry's chest.

"Keep moving," Madam Pomfrey said. "There's nothing we can do for him."

We carefully slinked our way down the corridor until we reached the Fat Lady. Madam Pomfrey ushered us inside and then the portrait entrance closed.

Harry and I sat down on the couch.

"I don't understand it," I mused. "We had been the last two werewolves here. What is going on now?"

"I don't know," Harry said seriously. "I hope it's not the evil werewolf demon."

I shivered at the thought.

Suddenly, I realized Ginny was no where to be seen.

"Where's Ginny?" I demanded looking around the common room.

"I don't know," Harry said. "The last I saw her was when we were in the hospital wing."

"What's going on?" a voice said from the girls' dorm.

We jumped in our seats from being startled. Ginny appeared looking confused and a little scared.

"I heard howling," she continued.

I breathed a sigh of relief. She was okay.

"Where's Rob?" she asked looking from me to Harry.

Harry and I looked at each other and then swallowed.

"Ginny," Harry began but Ginny's eyes were already filling with tears.

"He left didn't he? I thought he liked me!" Ginny said.

"He didn't leave, well...in a way he did," Harry said quietly.

"Ginny, Rob's dead. We saw him in the corridor. He had been decapitated," I said finally.

I didn't mean to sound so harsh, but she needed to know the truth and fast. No dancing around the issue. It would be easier for her to know right out than broken softly to.

Ginny's tears spilled over and she dropped to her knees. She hugged herself and rocked back and forth. Harry got up and went over to her to comfort her.

"That was subtle," Harry said looking at me.

"It was easier to break it to her flat out than dance around the subject," I said.

I too went over to her and crouched down in front of her.

"Listen. I'm sorry about Rob. I knew you liked him a lot," I said more softly.

Ginny sobbed and pressed her face into Harry's shoulder.

"What killed him?" she asked in a shaky voice.

"We think there's another werewolf in the castle," I said.

"But how? You two were the last and we stopped the transformation," Ginny asked as she let go of Harry and wiped her eyes with the back of her hand.

"We know. I think..." my voice trailed off as I looked toward the window.

A full moon hung in a partly cloudy sky. Clouds parted exposing the moon fully.

"What is it Hermione?" Harry asked as we all stood up.

"I think we have a problem," I said slowly.

Suddenly, an idea hit me.

"Where's that werewolf book?" I asked.

"In your bag," Ginny replied.

I grabbed the book and flipped through it until I found what I was looking for. I began reading.

"Uh-oh," I said aloud.

"What's wrong?" Harry asked as he and Ginny sat down beside me on the couch.

"I had it all wrong before," I said. "The Lycantor werewolves didn't want to start the war. They just worked for the main werewolf. Sort of like worker ants do for the queen."

Ginny and Harry exchanged looks of fear.

"What are you saying?" Harry asked.

I felt a tingle of fear running down my spine.

"I'm saying that we haven't seen the 'daddy' of werewolves if you will," I said raising my eyes to meet theirs.

"I'm still confused," Ginny said sheepishly.

"Okay...the Lycantor werewolves were just recruiting 'soldiers'. They work for the top werewolf. There is a fourth werewolf...one that is so evil and huge that most of the time books won't even print any facts about it," I said. "Sort of like a queen."

"You're saying that there is one more werewolf we have to fight? One that is more evil and bigger?" Ginny said slowly.

I nodded.

"Lovely," she said sarcastically.

"What's it called?" Harry asked peering at the book which lay open on my lap.

"The Meizule," I said.

"And who might this 'Meizule' be?" Ginny asked.

"We don't know, but might I suggest keeping our eyes opened the entire time. Just stick to the people we know," I said. "Remember, it can be anyone."

Ginny and Harry nodded.

Suddenly, we heard something outside the common room.

"Ssh," I said putting a finger to my lips.

Ginny and Harry fell silent and listened with perked ears.

We could hear something moving around outside with low growls and occasionally we heard the sound of toenails scraping across wood. The fire crackled gently and gave off a warm orange glow over us.

We heard the Fat Lady starting to yell.

"THERE'S A WOLF LOOSE!"

We heard a kind of growl/roar and the sound of fabric ripping. Ginny was clinging to Harry for dear life.

Then, there was a silence outside.

"I'm going to take a look," Harry said.

"No, I am," I insisted.

"Neither of you budge!" Ginny hissed. "I lost you once I'm not loosing you again. Leave it till morning."

Harry and I looked at each other and nodded.

We ended up falling asleep in the common room.

In the morning, I felt warm sunshine on my face. I yawned and stretched. Harry and Ginny were already awake, looking apprehensively at the portrait entrance.

Students were now waking up and walking out of their dorms. The portrait entrance opened as Lavender and Parvati left the common room.

Lavender screamed.

"Someone get Dumbledore!" she screamed.

We looked at each other before getting to our feet and rushing outside to see what had happened.

The Fat Lady's portrait was totally devastated. Bits of fabric hung off in shreds. But the worst part was, whatever attacked the portrait, also attacked her. She apparently didn't make it in time to another portrait. I let out a sob and turned and buried my face into Harry's chest.

Harry wrapped his arms around me and hugged me. Ginny began sobbing too. Dean appeared and put his arm around her.

A first year ran and got Professor Dumbledore.

He arrived shortly with Professors Snape and McGonagall.

"Oh dear," Professor McGonagall said putting a hand over her mouth.

"What happened here?" Professor Dumbledore asked gently as he scanned all the Gryffindors.

"We don't know sir," I said, wiping a tear from my cheek. "We only heard something outside and then a kind of roar and growl combined. Then we heard the howling."

All the color drained from Professor Dumbledore's face.

"The howling?" he asked slowly.

We nodded.

"Very well. Find Sir Cadogen and ask him to guard the Gryffindor tower," Professor Dumbledore said to Professor Snape.

"Sir? Remember what happened the last time. He let Sirius Black in," Lavender said.

"That's right," Professor Dumbledore said. "But I have a feeling this will be different."

Professor Snape nodded and headed down the corridor.

"I want the rest of you to go back to your common room except Miss Granger, Mr. Potter and Miss Weasley," Professor McGonagall said.

The rest of the students nodded and then began heading back to the common room.

"Are you sure you heard the howling?" Professor Dumbledore asked once everyone else had vanished.

We nodded.

"Sir, I think we figured out what the howling was," I said. "There's one more werewolf loose in the castle. It is something we haven't seen yet."

"A Meizule?" Professor Dumbledore asked quietly.

I nodded.

"Very well. We're all just going to have to be careful around here. We don't know who the Meizule is," Professor Dumbledore said.

"Well," I said. "There are a few physical signs."

They waited patiently.

"From what I read, the person who is the Meizule will be tall, loves to torment people and easily amused by other peoples agony,"

Harry narrowed his eyes.

"Does that sound like someone we know?"

I looked at him confused for a moment then it dawned on me.

"Malfoy," he and I said in unison.

"Him? How could it be him?" Ginny asked looking from me to Harry.

"I don't know. It might be him or it might be someone else. We just don't know," I replied. "But keep an eye out for anyone that fits that description."

"She's right. For now, I will issue another curfew," Professor Dumbledore said. "Go back to the common room."

We nodded and headed back into the common room.

The next morning, Sir Cadogen was in his portrait. The Fat Lady's had been taken down and his replaced it.

"The poor Fat Lady," Lavender was saying as we left the girls' dorms. "She saw what had happened but now isn't able to tell anyone."

"I know," Parvati said.

Sir Cadogen was making people stand and fight as they left the common room.

"Stand and fight you scurvy!"

Harry and I met up with Ginny and then headed down to breakfast.

"Do you know how many people fit that description? The entire Slytherin house," Ginny said sighing.

"Not all of them...just a certain two that we know for sure," Harry said.

I rolled my eyes.

We sat down at Gryffindor table and began eating breakfast. I noticed Professor Dumbledore, Professor Snape and Professor McGonagall were scanning the entire Hall starting with the Slytherin table.

We too, followed the teachers' gazes.

Malfoy and Goyle were watching this Ravenclaw first year with amusement. The first year got so nervous with then watching her, that she ended up spilling her pumpkin juice all over the front of her skirt so that it looked like she had wet herself.

Malfoy and Goyle burst out laughing.

Harry, Ginny and I exchanged looks.

That fit the description perfectly for now.

The bell rang ending breakfast an hour later. When Malfoy and Goyle stood up, we realized that neither of them were very tall.

"Okay. Neither of them are very tall," Harry mused. "Who can it be?"

I sighed.

"What about someone we knew before?"

Ginny and Harry got deep in thought as we headed to Potions.

Realization dawned on Harry's face.

"Annabelle was tall," he replied.

"Yes, but she didn't find joy in other people's misery," I said reasonably.

"True," Ginny said nodding.

"This is going to be a real mystery to figure out," I said.

Suddenly, Ginny cried out and grabbed her hand.

"Ginny? What's wrong?" Harry demanded worriedly.

"My hand!" she cried. "It hurts!"

Harry and I went over to her.

Her hand had been bandaged from when she cut it on the table.

We unraveled the bandage. There was one puncture wound that had healed but now it had begun to bleed slightly.

"Are you sure you cut your hand on the table? This looks like a puncture wound," I said gently taking her hand.

But Ginny was in so much pain that she couldn't answer. Then, she passed out.

As Harry and I watched in horror, Ginny began changing.

Her back lengthened and narrowed; her chest broadened straining the material of her uniform and robe, causing it to split into halves. Her ears grew tapering off into points. Her nose and jaw pulled forward into a snout and white canines and incisors slid down under purple lips. Her eyes changed into a haunting blue color. Her entire body was covered in a black fur. Her legs bent into haunches and her hands and feet looked like hands but yet paws.

She shook the torn halves of the uniform and rob from her body and stood up.

"She's not the Meizule. She's a soldier...but how?" I breathed backing into Harry.

From somewhere in the castle, another howl rose up. Ginny's ears flicked forward and she tilted her head toward the ceiling and opened her jaws. A loud answering howl came from her throat.

"What is going on here?" I asked terrified.

Ginny took several steps toward us but then dropped to all fours and tore from the common room.