Dranex

"DRANEX."

Chapter six-transfiguration

We woke up the next morning and for a moment, I was almost terrified to leave the empty classroom.

"It's gone," Harry reassured me.

I nodded and took a deep breath. Ron slowly opened the classroom door and poked his head out gingerly.

"It's gone, guys," Ron said as he opened the door wider. There standing at the doorway was Ian.

I screamed and jumped.

"What are you three doing in here?" Ian demanded eyeing us skeptically.

"There were three of those 'things' chasing us last night!" Ron cried.

Ian looked surprised.

"Three you say? How would that be possible?"

"I don't know! But we've really got to go to Professor Dumbledore now and tell him!" Harry cried.

"I agree," I said.

We hurried out of the classroom and began jogging down the corridor. Ian was jogging behind us.

We turned a corridor and froze. Neville was lying on his back, his throat torn and blood had pooled on the floor by his shoulder.

I clamped a hand over my mouth and turned away, burying my face into Harry's chest.

"Bloody hell...it got Neville too," Ron said, weakly.

I felt nausea rolling over me. I felt like I was going to vomit. I kept swallowing, hoping I wouldn't vomit on Harry's robe.

"BLOODY HELL!" I heard Ron shout.

I peeled myself away from Harry and followed their gazes. Ian had a look of pure shock on his face.

Neville was moving. The wound on his neck seemed to heal itself and he was now in a sitting position.

"How'd I get here?" Neville asked, surprised.

"I don't know, Nev. We found you here," Harry said, weakly.

"I think you were dead," Ron added even quieter.

"Really? I'm hungry...I'm going down to the kitchen for some food," Neville said as he got to his feet and began walking down the corridor, occasionally stumbling along the way.

Ron, Ian, Harry and I exchanged looks.

"DUMBLEDORE!" we cried as we continued to tear down the corridor.

We reached Dumbledore's office entrance and we began ascending up to his office on the winding staircase.

We reached his office. He was sitting behind his desk reading a book. He was dressed in emerald robes. He looked up as we entered.

"Why hello. What brings the four of you up here?" he asked, kindly.

"Professor Dumbledore! Remember we told you that there was something in the castle killing people and then those people would be alive the next day?" Harry asked, breathless.

Professor Dumbledore nodded.

"Well, there's three of them now!" Ron blurted out.

Professor Dumbledore's blue eyes widened behind his half moon spectacles.

"Are you sure?" he asked, quietly.

We nodded. Oddly Ian wasn't too upset.

"Okay...describe in detail what they looked like," Professor Dumbledore said.

So, we launched into the whole story and gave every detail.

Professor Dumbledore frowned thoughtfully.

"Hmm...I don't know if this will be of any help, but I think I may know what they are,"

Ron, Harry and I looked at each other hopefully.

"I've heard a school somewhere in England a few years ago was doing some kind of testing. I don't know what exactly they were testing, but a few test subjects escaped,"

"Test subjects?" I asked, alarmed.

"Yeah. They were messing with all kind of stuff...I don't know the exact details, but I know it was really deadly and almost impossible to stop,"

"Wow...blimey...so you think that these creatures are those test 'subjects' that escaped?" Ron asked, awed.

"They might be. I'm going to have to do more research on the exact school and what the details of the experiments were. But for now, I'm issuing a curfew for students and teachers alike. I want all four of you to go to your classes together. At night, when coming home from your last class, you're to go right to the common room. I'm going to make an announcement tonight at dinner," Professor Dumbledore said.

Nodding, we left his office and began heading to Care of Magical Creatures outside with Hagrid.

"Wow, imagine that," Ron said, shaking his head.

"Testing? That's dangerous! Now whomever did this created creatures that are deadly and unstoppable!" I cried.

Ian was rubbing his chin thoughtfully.

"You know, now that Professor Dumbledore mentioned it, I do remember the article in Witch Weekly,"

"Now you remember?" Harry asked, raising an eye at Ian. "It took you all this time to remember that? Had you told us earlier, we could've had some kind of idea as to what we might be up against,"

Ron and I glared at Ian.

"It slipped my memory and only when Dumbledore said it, did I remember again," Ian said, defensively.

"Riiiiiight," Ron said, rolling his eyes.

"I'm telling you the truth!" Ian said.

Ian turned his eyes onto me.

"Hermione...you believe me...don't you?" Ian asked, pleadingly.

Ron and Harry were watching me.

I sighed. I really didn't believe him, and yet I did. I was torn here.

It was quite possible that he had forgotten and when Dumbledore said about it, it might've refreshed his memory. But there were other things playing in my mind that were suspicious.

First, why did he keep disappearing? And when he did, those things showed up, and then when they were gone, he reappeared?

He did seem to show up right after they had vanished...it did seem odd.

"Well, I don't know. It's possible that he had forgotten and when Dumbledore said it, it refreshed his memory," I said, slowly.

Ron's jaw dropped.

"But there are some questions that I'd like to be answered that are bugging me," I said, raising an eyebrow.

Ian waited patiently.

"First, why is it that when you disappear, those creatures appear?"

"Yeah. Why is that?" Harry demanded, frowning at Ian.

Ron folded his arms over his robe.

"Yeah. I'd like to know why that is too...it's strange,"

Ron, Harry and I stared at Ian and waited.

Was it me or was Ian starting to sweat?

"Erm, I don't know...by some strange strand of luck, I guess I keep missing it," Ian said.

Feeble answer. I could sense it.

I wasn't buying it, nor was Ron or Harry from their expressions.

He definitely had some hand in these creatures. It was just too strange that they never seem to show up when he's around.

"Maybe you have something to do with those creatures," Harry said, voicing exactly what I was thinking myself.

"Yeah," Ron piped up.

Ian's jaw dropped again as he turned to me.

"Hermione? Do you honestly think that I have something to do with those creatures?"

I bit my bottom lip.

"Again, I don't know. There's just so much that's unexplained right now," I said, slowly.

Ian looked angry.

"I thought I could trust you three to help me around Hogwarts as I was new here...I guess I was wrong about you," Ian snapped.

He spun on his heel and stormed off down the corridor.

Ron, Harry and I looked at each other.

"I think that went well," Ron said, dryly.

Harry snorted.

"It is odd though. He really didn't explain why he disappears,"

"No. I do hope we find out soon," I said, quietly.

That night at dinner, Professor Dumbledore was late. Murmurs went around.

"I wonder where he is. He's never late like this," I said, worriedly.

I was especially worried since Ian was mad at us and I was scared that he'd do something to Dumbledore for being on our side.

A few minutes later, Professor Dumbledore entered the Great Hall. He had a bandage around his wrist.

Ron, Harry and I exchanged worried looks. He looked exactly like Malfoy had...grayish skin with dark circles under his eyes. He faced the entire Hall.

"I'm issuing a curfew. I have just been informed that there are three creatures now at Hogwarts. So everyone is to be in his or her common room by seven o'clock. No one is to be up wandering," Professor Dumbledore said.

Murmurs went around again.

"Tuck in!"

The food appeared on our plates. But it was very unusual. It was raw meat and the meat was very bloody. There was other stuff such as hot dogs, hamburgers, and chicken halves.

We helped ourselves to baked potatoes, hot dogs and veggies.

Most of the students were going for the hot dogs, hamburgers and the chicken. The roast beef was the raw meat. I glanced up at the head table. Professor Dumbledore was digging into the roast beef.

My eyes wandered over to Amy. She was eating the roast beef...so was Neville and Malfoy. Ian was now sitting with Amy at the Ravenclaw table helping himself to 3 more slices of the roast beef.

I leaned forward. Harry was sitting across from me. Ron was sitting next to me.

"Hey...isn't it odd that Professor Dumbledore, Amy, Neville, Malfoy and Ian are the only ones eating the roast beef?" I whispered.

Harry looked up at me. He turned around and scanned the Hall.

"Yeah. No one else is touching it," he said, turning around to face Ron and I again.

"And what's wrong with Professor Dumbledore?" Ron asked, leaning close. "He looks exactly like Ian, Malfoy, Neville and Amy."

"Yeah...dead like," Harry said, slowly.

My eyes widened.

"Oh my God," I said, as realization dawned on me.

"What is it?" Harry asked, lowering his right hand that was clutching the fork. His hand rested on the edge of the table.

"I think I just figured out what might be wrong with Dumbledore,"

Ron and Harry waited patiently.

"Remember Amy wanted to know if Dumbledore was in his office?"

They nodded.

"Well think about it...she knew we went to talk to him about what was going on. Then, Ian comes with us and he was right there when we told Dumbledore! I bet Ian knows what those creatures are and he did something to Dumbledore to silence him because he was afraid that we'd find out and try and kill them!"

Ron and Harry gasped.

"My God! It makes sense!" Harry said, shocked.

"Yes!" Ron agreed.

"So what now? We're on our own?" Ron asked, as the color drained from his face.

"I think so," I said, quietly.

"But why didn't Dumbledore see through Ian? If he did anything to him? Dumbledore's powerful...he should've been able to stop it," Harry said.

"Maybe there's one thing that Dumbledore isn't able to see through," I said, gravely.

"Maybe," Ron said, doubtfully.

"Right now, I think it's best that we keep this between ourselves. The curfew is in effect so no one else should be wandering the Halls late at night and get hurt," I continued.

"I hope so," Harry said, quietly.

Dumbledore continued to eat. After dinner, we headed to the Gryffindor common room.

We sat around the fire, deep in thought. Everyone was in the common room, either talking, playing Wizards Chess, reading, or catching up on homework.

"I really wonder what school that was that Professor Dumbledore was talking about? You know, the one that was doing the testing?" Ron mused.

"I don't know," Harry said, shaking his head.

Suddenly, a thought struck me.

"Wait.... Why would Ian be concerned about Dumbledore telling us about the school...unless...." My voice trailed off.

Harry and I's eyes met and we held the gaze for a bit.

"Unless it was his," Harry finished for me.

"Blimey," Ron breathed.

"Why would someone go through the trouble of silencing someone unless there was reason?" I asked.

"Okay...so we might've figured that out...but that still doesn't explain what those things are," Harry said.

I frowned.

"They must be part of some experiment like Professor Dumbledore said,"

"How do we stop them?" Ron asked.

"I don't know," I said.

Just then, we heard Ian outside the common room.

"Harry? Hermione? Ron? I have something to show you and tell you!"

We looked at each other.

"Let's go," Harry said, quietly.

We got up and headed outside.

Amy, Neville, Malfoy, Ian and Professor Dumbledore were standing outside in a line.

I felt Harry behind me. Ron was standing beside Harry.

"So, you've figured it out," Ian said, smiling.

There was something about his smile that was not human now.

"All except what is really going on here," Harry said, glaring at Ian.

"Look out the window," Ian smirked.

We looked out the window. A full moon hung in the midnight sky. When we looked back, Amy, Neville and Malfoy began changing.

Their noses and mouths stretched into snouts; their hands and feet changed into paws and their eyes changed into a jaundice color. Their skin reddened and their bodies slimmed down. There were three of the creatures that chased us standing on all fours in front of us.

I reached back and grabbed Harry's arm in fear.

"You see, the school Dumbledore was talking about was my school. We managed to take werewolf DNA, Gecko DNA and combine it with the TI virus'. So, basically, we created an effective crossbreed called the Dranex. These...Wolf-Dogs are heavily infected with the TI virus. One bite from them transfer's the werewolf DNA, Gecko DNA and the TI virus into the host. The TI virus half has them crave meat...especially human. Your friends are dead...well, undead actually," Ian smirked. "I'm one also. I was the first one you saw. I bit Dumbledore on the wrist. Amy was going to do it for me before, but for some reason, Dumbledore wasn't in his office. You were so stupid to trust me. Hermione, you're very smart...too smart."

"What did you do to Professor Dumbledore?" I cried.

"He's alive...for now. I just infected him with the TI virus. It will take 24 hours for the virus to totally turn him...what's the word...cannibal?" Ian smiled.

We moved our eyes onto the Dranex's. Their eyes were now a milky white.

They pulled back the top lips of their snouts and snarled.

"I'd run if I were you," Ian smirked. "I must be going. Chow."

He changed into a Dranex himself and galloped down the hall. Now, we were faced with three Dranex's and a sick Professor.

"Shit. What do we do now?" Harry asked as we pulled out our wands.

One of the Dranex's eyes were locked on Ron. Before we could react, it leaped on him, knocking him backward onto his back. Harry had grabbed me and yanked me out of the way. It was standing on Ron's chest. Ron looked terrified. He aimed his wand at the Dranex and said in a shaky voice, "Avada Kedavra!".

The thin jet of light hit the Dranex squarely in the chest. It had no effect. The Dranex snarled again.

"Crap," Ron choked out as the next thing we knew the Dranex clamped its jaws around Ron's neck and bit down.