Chapter 12
The next day, the smell of roasting pumpkin seeds wafted through the halls. Dumbledore was taking extra precautions. Too many things went wrong on Halloween, and with Voldemort back, things had to be taken more seriously. There were no classes that day, so Harry and Hermione decided to go visit Hagrid. They hadn't gone to see him yet.
"I was wondering when you'd come!" Hagrid said, ushering them inside. "Where's Ron?"
"He. didn't want to come."
"Humph." Hagrid said, busily making tea for the two of them. "So how's yeh school year been so far?"
"Good."
"Fantastic win, Harry. Watchin' from me hut." He handed Harry and Hermione cups of tea.
"That lesson you gave us on werewolves was great, Hagrid!" Hermione was telling him. "Did you see the werewolf?"
"Might have. It was dark when I heard it rustlin' about in the forest."
"What did you see?" Harry pressed on.
"Well, I saw a wolfish shadow. Yeh know. The long snout, big ears, the big tail."
"Oooooooo." Hermione said.
"According to Professor Dumbledore, when I told him 'bout the Werewolves in the forest, he said this had to be a female werewolf."
"How can you tell?" Harry asked.
"Simple!" Hermione set her cup down and walked over to the cast of the footprints. "Male humans usually have large feet. No offense you guys, and females have smaller feet. Full grown werewolves have large hind feet and claws. Most werewolves are males according to 'Percentages of Creature Status in the Northern Atlantic Region'. And all werewolves are considered full grown, unless the person bitten happens to be a teenager or younger." She took a breath.
"And if the werewolf happens to be full grown, you can tell by the size of the claws, and the footprint is smaller, than that means it's a female werewolf." She sat back down. Hagrid and Harry were silent.
"Well, that's all correct." Hagrid said. "I saw it last full moon. Think I better lock me windows and doors tonight. It's another full moon!"
"Oh yeah." Harry said, remembering his last Astronomy lesson. "It is.."
"What are yeh plannin' to do after the feast? I was walkin' the halls and heard some kids wanted ter do some games."
"Hmmm. Great." Harry said. He was staring off into space.
"Thanks for the tea, Hagrid." Hermione said, setting down her empty cup.
"Don't mention it. Yeh okay Harry?"
"Yes." He stood up. "Thanks, Hagrid."
"Bye!" he called to them, as they left the hut. As soon as the door swung shut, Harry turned to Hermione.
"Hermione. We have to prevent Ron from going outside tonight."
"Why him? No one should be out at night anyways. And why tonight?"
"It's a full moon, Hermione. Use your brain! I told you about Ron's oracle!"
"On a crisp autumn night, your throat will be offered to the wolf with the.. The wolf.. Oh no!!!!!!!!!"
"That's right! And Professor Midrigge knew it! When we learned about half-breed werewolves in Defense Against the Dark Arts, she told Ron she was sorry! She's sorry that he's going to be bitten by a werewolf! Probably the werewolf that Hagrid got the prints of!!!"
"Harry, what are we going to do?"
"I still have to talk to him. I'll try to keep him occupied in the common room."
"Oh poor Ron!" Hermione said as they entered the entrance hall. Up in the Gryffindor Tower, Ron was playing Wizard Chess with Dean.
"Hey Ron." Harry said, walking over to their table casually. "I need to talk to you later, okay?"
"Yeah. Sure." Ron said, not looking at Harry. Harry walked back over to Hermione.
"I hope this works." He whispered to her.
"Right."
The 7th years (and Nellie) went down to the Great Hall early. The full moon wasn't in view yet in the ceiling. Harry constantly stared at it. Heaps of roasted pumpkin seeds were in bowls scattered along the house tables. Several live bats were fluttering around.
"I don't see WHY we had to go early." Ron said grumpily to Harry.
"Chill, Ron. We get first dibs on the chicken." Seamus and Dean ran to get their plates from their places at the Gryffindor table and stock up on the crispy drumsticks.
"You're right." Ron said and went to help himself.
"And not to -munch munch- mention, you get -swallow- pumpkin juice!" Neville poured Nellie a glass. Harry and Hermione were just helping themselves to food and drink when other students and some teachers began to file in the hall. Professor Midrigge stopped by the Gryffindor table.
"Are things going good?" She asked.
"Hopefully." Dean said, as a Gryffindor House Boy. "Professor Dumbledore wants us all on look out tonight. How unfortunate that bad things always happen on Halloween."
"Indeed." She said, casting a sad glance at Ron. She went up to the Staff Table.
"She knows! I told you!" Harry whispered to Hermione.
"I didn't say she didn't!" she hissed back. When Dumbledore came in the Great Hall, he was followed by a bunch of the ghosts. Everyone stared at them. They seemed to be dressed as castle guards, with their spears to block invaders attempting break in.
"My fellow students!" Dumbledore said, his arms outstretched wide. "I have a couple of announcements right now, so please pause your devouring." People stopped talking and eating.
"For the night, we will be having these wonderful men guarding the main and back entrances for safety reasons. Thank you." The talk broke out again.
"Hmmm. Ghosts." Seamus said. "You would think he would hire REAL wizard guards."
"Well, you can't trust people really anymore." Nellie spoke up. "If Dumbledore hired real wizard guards, they might actually be pretending and let in the people Dumbledore is trying to keep out. And people who are dead are more truthful. It's a fact. Professor Binns said so."
"And you take that information from a ghost?" Harry asked.
"Well. Everything else he says is true." Nellie shrugged her shoulders. She was talking with her brother! It was very strange to be around him, thinking of him as just a friend, when if their parents were there, they would be at each other's throats like Ron and Ginny. When they left the Great Hall, the guards standing watch glared sideways at them.
Back at the Lion's Den:
"I thought you were going to talk with him later." Hermione whispered to Harry.
"I am. Don't worry." Harry held his hands out to the fire to warm them. He looked sideways at Ron who was sitting nearby. Something didn't seem right about him now. He was deep in thought and looked as if he was going to cry. Harry turned back to the fire and stared at it. Hermione was curled up on the couch next to him, reading a book. When Harry decided to go over to talk to Ron, he wasn't there. Harry got up to go up to his dorm. Harry pushed open the door. and Neville was lying on the floor.
"Neville!" Harry preformed the counter full body bind spell and Neville was able to sit up.
"Harry! I went up here and Ron was snooping in your trunk! Then he put a spell on me!"
"Do you know where he went? Did he take anything?"
"I think so. I was face down on the ground. When I finally rolled myself over he was gone!" Harry ran over to his trunk and searched through it.
"Damn!" he hissed. The invisibility cloak was missing! Harry found his Marauders map and tapped it. The Hogwarts grounds greeted him. Peeves was in a lower floor classroom. And there in the corner, sneaking off into the Forbidden Forest, was a dot labeled Ron Weasley.
"Neville. Get Hermione up here and don't say a word to anyone." Harry said. Neville ran out of the room. Hermione appeared up there seconds later.
"Ron took the invisibility cloak. He's headed to the Forbidden forest!"
"What should I do?"
"Say I'm sick and throwing up everywhere so no one can come in the dormitory. I'm going out after him."
"But someone will see you!" Harry brought out his Firebolt.
"Not if I can help it." He stuffed the map in his robe pocket and carried his broomstick over to the window.
"You're going to FLY out of the window and follow him?"
"There are the ghosts, remember? They can't see him because he's in the cloak. He's as sneaky under that thing as I am. I have to do this, Hermione! I have to save him!" Hermione ran up to him and gave him a kiss.
"I'll be in here waiting." She said. Harry opened the window and climbed on his Firebolt. Then he soared out of the window towards the forest.
Ron pulled off Harry's invisibility cloak. He shivered, it being so cold outside. The air was crisp and the moon shone down on him like a spotlight. He pulled out his pocket knife and flipped open the blade. It glinted in the moonlight. He turned it, examining its every angle. Did he really want to do this? There was a swishing sound from above. Ron looked up. Nothing there. Leaves began to crunch. Ron gripped the knife.
"Ron! What are you doing?" Harry asked, running into the clearing. Clouds were drifting over the sun, so Harry's face was getting dim.
"None of your business."
"Give me that." Harry demanded, holding out his hand for the knife.
"No."
"Accio!" Harry yelled and the knife flew out of his hand and went over to him.
"Hey!" Ron said. Harry pocketed the knife.
"Ron, what are you doing? Why did you take my cloak? What were you doing with that knife?"
"Nothing! Why don't you just sod off?"
"No! Ron, what is wrong with you?"
"You! I mean. It's all your fault! I liked her too!!!!"
"This has to do with Hermione?"
"Of course it does!!!! I heard what you guys said about me. I'm not dumb. I knew what was going on."
"Ron, you should have said something!"
"What were we going to do, Harry? Fight over her?"
"Yes! No! Oh, I don't know! Ron, we need to go right NOW!"
"Why are you in such a hurry? Have a date tonight?"
"Ron! Listen to me! It's your oracle! You shouldn't be out here!"
"What about my oracle.
"Ron! Listen, I'm sorry I didn't tell you about Hermione and I. I'm sorry about what we said. We need to get back to the Castle right.. What was that?" A soft padding noise was coming closer to the clearing. It was very dark and Harry could hardly see Ron.
"Stop being dumb." Ron said.
"Ron." Harry said, trying to be as quiet and alert as possible. "Do you forgive me?" There was silence.
"I suppose so. Now tell me why you were talking about my oraCLE!!!! AHHHHHHHHHH!!!" Something had grabbed Ron.
"Ron!" There was snarling noise and the slashing noise of claws. Harry ran towards Ron but he was thrown back by a shove from a hairy paw.
"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" Ron screamed as the monster bit into him.
"RON!!!!!!!!!" Harry yelled, getting up, clutching his chest. Ron began to shake and convulse. In the shadows of the moon, Ron was sprouting pointy ears, a tail, and massive paws. His clothes ripped and stretched.
"RON?" Harry yelled still. Ron lifted his large furry head and howled.
"My GOD! RON!" Harry yelled. Ron hurled himself at Harry. Harry leapt onto his Firebolt and headed out of the forest as fast as he could go. Harry hurtled into the dorm room. He fell off his broom panting.
"Harry!" Hermione cried. "Where's Ron? What happened?"
"I. Couldn't.. Save him!" Harry gasped. Blood was slowly seeping onto his shirt. Harry tore off his robes and took off his shirt. When the monster that attacked Ron hit him, he had been clawed in the process.
"You mean.." Hermione's eyes filled with tears. "He's. Gone?"
"No. Hermione, get me a wet cloth." Hermione ran over to the wash basin and wet a towel. She pressed it over the wound on his chest.
"I saw him. He lunged at me! He's probably out there. Alone. In the forest! He's doomed, Hermione. Doomed!"
"Calm down." Hermione said. She switched sides of the cloth and pressed on the wound again. "There's a cure, remember?"
"But what if he doesn't make it back?"
"You can see through the forest in the morning." Hermione told him. "He'll make it. But right now, we need to get this covered." She searched the boys bathroom attached to the dorm for some bandages. She came out with some antiseptic and bandages.
"This will sting a little." She said. She began to dab some of the antiseptic with a cotton ball on his wound.
"AHHHHHHHHHHHH!" Harry yelled in pain.
"Quiet!" Hermione said. The door opened. Dean and Seamus poked their heads in. Their mouths dropped open when they saw Harry with out his shirt on and Hermione kneeling in front of him.
"Geez you guys. It you wanted to do THAT you could have asked instead lying and saying Harry was throwing up." They closed the door snickering. Hermione rolled her eyes and began to wrap a gauze around his chest.
"There. Now be careful about that." She told him. She went over to Ron's bed and arranged the pillows so it looked like Ron was sleeping in them.
"Now all we have to do is wait for Ron to return in the morning." She said.
"We hope." Harry added.
Ron opened his eyes. He was in pain. He was cold. Where was he? In a bed? Well, it wasn't a comfortable one. And it wasn't his. The crackling of a fire was nearby and he could smell smoke and sausages. Was he in the Gryffindor common room? No. He couldn't. Why would someone be making sausages in the common room?
"Unnn." He slowly opened his eyes and sat up. He was in a brightly lit cave. He was lying covered in thin white sheets on a straw mattress.
"Huh? Wha-" he said. Feeling quite strange, he looked under the covers.
"AH!" he yelled.
"Good. You're awake." Ron looked towards the source of the voice. A pretty blonde girl was sitting in front of a fire, holding a pan.
"What am I doing here? And where are my clothes????????"
"Over there. How do you want your eggs?" The girl pointed to a pile of red and black and khaki shreds in a corner. The invisibility cloak lay unscathed next to them.
"Scrambled. What did you do to my clothes?"
"Nothing. YOU did that to them."
"What do you mean?"
"You don't remember. Of course. I didn't either. Someone had to explain it to me." The girl set the pan on a small cooking platform over the fire. She walked over to him and stared him in the face. She had two different colored eyes. One was green, the other was blue.
"You're a werewolf."
"I'm a WHAT?????" Ron yelled.
"Yes. You are. After you transform once under the full moon, you don't remember what happens quite yet."
"How do you know?"
"I am one."
"Then YOU were the one that attacked me!!!!"
"Hey. You can't blame ME. Blame the person that bit me!!! If I wasn't bit, then I wouldn't be here, and you wouldn't have been bitten either or be here."
"I guess you're right. I can't be mad at you. And there IS an antibiotic, isn't there?"
"Yes. But with the plant shortage, you'll have to wait to be normal again. You have more time than I do."
"What do you mean?"
"Two years after you have been bit by a werewolf, the potion is of no affect and you have to stay a werewolf forever. That's the case of older werewolves. I, being bitten this summer, don't have as much time as you do."
"Oh." The girl brought him a plate of sausages and scrambled eggs. She held them out to him.
"Here you go. um.."
"Ron."
"Ron. Here."
"Hey! That tattoo!" he said, reaching for the plate and seeing her arm.
"Oh this thing?" She pointed to the tattoo, two red roses entwined around her right arm.
"Yeah! That! The wolf with the red roses!!!!"
"Oooo." The girl said. "I like that!!!!"
"No. No! How could I have missed that?"
"Missed what?"
"It was an oracle!!! It said something about my throat and mouth and jaws and teeth and hunger being offered to a wolf with the red roses! You're a werewolf, and you have two roses on your arm!!!"
"So?"
"So, it was prediction!!!"
"Ooooohhhh." The girl said. She walked over to the pile of his shredded clothes. She picked up his tattered robe. "You're a student from the school. No wonder you knew that."
"You're not a student?"
"I WAS. At another school though. I was visiting Hogsmeade. When You- Know-Who took over. I escaped and ended up here. Got bitten, and I've been here ever since."
"Whoa." He took a bite of the eggs. "Mmm! This is good!"
"Thanks." She said. She brought out her own wand, pointed it at the clothes. The clothes were immediately mended.
"How did that happen?" Ron asked.
"When you first transform, your body gets too big and awkward to fit your clothes, so they eventually stretch and rip."
"Where did you find me?"
"In a clearing. You were pretty banged up. Probably tried to attack yourself."
"Was I wearing."
"They kind of fell off along the way here. Don't worry. I didn't look.. Much." She smiled at Ron and he went red.
"You should be getting up to the school. Your bite mark will be hidden. I wrapped it up." Ron looked where the girl was pointing and saw a white cloth around his arm, dried blood staining it. It was tied in a pretty bow.
"Thanks." The girl busied herself with cleaning off the dishes while Ron changed. He walked to the edge of the cave and looked out. The forest didn't seem as scary in the morning as it did in the mid-afternoon and at night.
"You'll find your way back to the castle down that path. You'll have to walk far in order to get near the castle. There's a path that goes around the greenhouses and stuff." The girl said.
"All right. Thanks.. Uh. um.."
"Leila."
"Leila. Thanks. And hey, if you see a turquoise Ford Anglia anywhere in the forest, it's mine."
"O-Kay.."
"Long story." He said at the look on her face. She smiled at him.
"Hey Ron. Can you. Come visit sometime? It kinda gets lonely here. When the fairies are the only ones to talk to, and sometimes it's hard to understand them with their lungs 82.3% helium."
"Sure. Next break I have, I'll come. I'll bring food too."
"What, my food isn't good enough?" she asked, hands on her hips.
"No. It's good. It's just that we could um. make it a date." Ron went red.
"Sure." Leila said. "Bye."
"Bye." Ron said and headed along the path. Just as Leila said, the path led out behind some trees behind the bushes behind the greenhouses. Climbing over the bushes, trying not to snag the invisibility cloak he was wearing. The ghost guarding the entrances were gone. Ron snuck up to the Gryffindor tower and waited for someone to come out or go in to go in. Dennis and Colin Creevy raced out and Ron scrambled in the common room. Harry wasn't in the common room, only the Vintricous quints and a couple of second years. Ron opened up the dorm room. No one was in there. He slipped off the cloak.
"Hi." Said voice.
"Ah!" Ron said and spun around. It was Harry.
"Hi." There was an awkward silence. "H-Here. It's your cloak." He thrust it at Harry, "Sorry about everything. I think I just needed a good kick up the ass to bring me to my senses." Harry took the cloak and tried to act casual.
"Soooooooooo. Did you.. Get back all right?"
"Yeah. Um. You?"
"Yeah."
"Great."
"Uh. You want to go to the Great Hall to get some food?" Harry asked, jutting his thumb over his shoulder towards the door.
"No thanks. I already ate." Harry winced, imagining Ron the Werewolf eating up poor little forest gnomes and unicorns.
"Well.. Defense Against the Dark Arts is in 15 minutes. Should we go down?"
"Yeah. Sure." They silently left the dorm room.
Note: PHEW! This has to be the longest and greatest chapter I've written so far!!!! Tell me what you think. I promise to get Chapter13 up later. Happy New Year everyone! Here I am, eating Frosty red, white, and green Nerds typing stuff about Halloween.. Go fig.
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