The pale moon climbed to its zenith, then began its slow descent. Deep into the night, the village lay in darkness, its lights extinguished. From the nearby forest, a pack of upright, beast-like figures emerged. These were not the gentle sort of werewolves like Lupin; these were creatures consumed by vengeance! They would unleash all the ostracism and injustice they had suffered! They dared not cause trouble in wizarding territories, so they would vent their rage on Muggles. Thus, on this full moon night, they gathered near the Muggle village, waiting for the inevitable loss of control, the transformation into werewolves, and the ensuing havoc. Later, if the Ministry of Magic came calling, they would feign ignorance, claiming they had lost control, and hope for leniency. The lead werewolf stepped out of the forest and stood bathed in the moonlight, followed by a horde of at least a dozen others.
"Awooo~~"
With a mournful howl to the sky, the werewolves' night of revelry officially began!
...
Inside the crowded tavern, travelers were slumped over tables, leaning against chairs, or even lying on the floor. All were fast asleep.
"Hoo-hoo... huh?"
Jim, who had been dozing at a table, looked up, his eyes still heavy with sleep, glancing around the dimly lit tavern. Did I just hear that? He thought he'd heard a wolf howl in his sleep.
"Eh? You're all awake too?"
Jim noticed that Tom and the others were also stirring. Harry and Malfoy, who had been clinging to Hagrid, stared at him. "Did I wake you?"
"You were sleeping like a log," Malfoy retorted.
"How could that be? I once went three days without sleep…"
Jim stopped abruptly. "Sorry, I've got some personal business to take care of." He hadn't drunk much alcohol, but he'd had too many other beverages, so he was in urgent need of a restroom. Unfortunately, the tavern had none; it was on the other side of the village. Jim got up and headed for the door.
"Wait! Don't go out there!" Harry, abandoning any pretense, finally blurted out, "There are werewolves outside!"
"Werewolves?" Jim paused, then chuckled. "Don't kid me."
"..."
Tom and the others remained silent, watching the interaction.
Seeing their lack of support, Harry persisted. "I'm serious! There really are werewolves outside!"
"Sorry, buddy, I'll play along when I get back." Jim didn't seem to take Harry seriously. "I'm really in a bit of a hurry here."
Click.
Jim opened the door, then stopped. A tall, hairy figure blocked the tavern entrance.
"Dude, your werewolf costume is pretty realistic!" Jim's eyes lit up. "I'll definitely ask you how you made it when I get back, but could you move aside for a moment?"
"Roar!!~"
The werewolf opened its blood-red maw and howled at Jim.
"..."
The stench of blood hit Jim, freezing him in place. "No way..."
His eyes darted upward, landing on those eager, red wolf eyes.
"Heh heh heh... Oh dear, look at you..."
Trying to appear calm, Jim patted the werewolf's furry chest, then bolted back into the tavern. "Holy crap! It's real!!!"
Seeing Jim flee, the werewolf's hunting instincts kicked in, and it lunged.
At the crucial moment, Gilderoy Lockhart rushed forward, tackling Jim to the ground and dodging the werewolf's attack. He drew his wand, pointing it at the creature. "Petrificus Totalus!"
The werewolf stiffened and crashed to the floor.
Jim's eyes widened. "Mr. Lockhart! You really are..."
Lockhart, basking in Jim's adoring gaze, flipped his hair with a cocky grin, revealing a few gleaming teeth. "Of course! I, Gilderoy Lockhart, am a Level Thr–"
Before he could finish his boast, the werewolf broke free of the spell and went berserk again.
While Lockhart wasn't entirely useless, he was still just an ordinary adult wizard.
The werewolf's magic resistance was high, so Lockhart's spell couldn't restrain him for long.
By now, the others in the tavern had woken up.
"What the hell is that?!"
"A werewolf! Is that, like, from the movies?!"
"Run! It'll eat you alive!!"
"..."
The fleeing people attracted the werewolf's attention. Its bloodshot eyes gleamed with animalistic excitement. But before it could attack, a pink iron hammer flew through the air and smashed into it.
Jim covered his eyes to shield himself from the blinding pink light. When it faded, he looked at the transformed Harry and exclaimed, "Sailor Moon?!"
The earliest Sailor Moon had come out two years ago, and Jim had seen some of it.
Bang!
The sound of shattering glass echoed through the tavern as several more werewolves burst inside.
"Oi! You lot! Get out of here!"
Hagrid took out his little pink umbrella and stood in front of the werewolves, his enormous frame towering over them.
Seeing this behemoth, the werewolves' murderous intent wavered, replaced by a hint of wariness.
But their animalistic nature quickly regained control, and they charged.
Hagrid, holding the umbrella in one hand, grabbed a werewolf with the other and tossed it out of the tavern like a puppy.
Malfoy immediately transformed and rushed forward, wielding a blue bat and beating a werewolf senseless!
"Care to try?"
Tom looked at Cassandra, who sat beside him, observing the chaos. "As my student, you must master that spell."
"You're right."
Cassandra stood up and straightened her robes, displaying no fear as a werewolf charged towards them.
When the creature was just a few meters away, she raised her wand. "Avada Kedavra!"
A flash of pale green light erupted, and the werewolf's eyes instantly glazed over. Its fur began to wither, and its body collapsed lifelessly.
Jim, unaware of the Killing Curse's effects, stared in disbelief, never imagining that such a powerful monster could be defeated so easily by a little girl.
He had initially assumed Cassandra, like Tom, came from a noble family.
Now it seemed they were probably wizards, like Lockhart, and likely wizards of considerable power.
Sailor Moon, wizards, werewolves… could there also be vampires and zombies?
The shattering of his worldview left Jim exhilarated!
He was eager to learn everything about this "Otherworld," but he also knew the situation was dire, and he couldn't afford to cause them any trouble.
---