Marriage, Murder & Magic- [OMINIS GAUNT]

Chapter 27- Banshee

I ran and ran, ending up at the bottom of the Grand Staircase towards the Slytherin dungeons. I stopped right in front of Morgana's shrine.

Eight candles had gone out, but twelve still burned. The collection of trinkets and memorabilia had grown since me and my friends had set it up back in September. People left pretty things that they thought Morgana would have enjoyed. Someone had even made a pretty pastel sketch of her from the shoulders up, which moved, giving me a secretive smile like the Mona Lisa.

"Why didn't you tell me?" I cried to the picture. "Morgana... you kept everything from me... and now things are so screwed up-"

I stopped. Distantly, the clock tower struck midnight. I realized with a chill that it was January 11th. Morgana's birthday.

"Happy birthday, Morgana." I bowed my head, catching a glimpse of myself in her seashell mirror. My eyes were red and watery. The hairdo I had started the night with was now falling out of its clips, hanging in haphazard strands around my face. Sebastian had seen me like this and yet still kissed me like I was the most beautiful woman he'd ever seen.

Beside the mirror, I noticed something else that was new on the shrine. It was a statuette of Aphrodite. Aphrodite was the Greek goddess of love, known for being promiscuous. That was eerily appropriate for Morgana.

The hair on my arms stood up when I heard a moan come from the end of the empty hallway.

I looked around frantically for what could have made that creepy sound. It could have been a portrait- or Peeves. I instantly knew was not alone.

Terror gripped every limb on my body as I gazed at the black corridor leading down to the Slytherin dungeon. From below, a translucent figure rose from the stone floor; it was a ghost, with long curly hair, wearing a gown.

"M-Morgana?" I could hardly believe my eyes. Perhaps I was still hallucinating; the residual drugs in my system could have created this apparition. But then I remembered reading somewhere ghosts' connection to the physical world was strongest on two days of the year: their death day, and their birthday.

She groaned again and I felt my blood curdle. "Ohhhh...." she groaned. I noticed a dark ring of blood around her neck. She was clutching her hand to the chest of her blood-stained gown. I noticed that on her left hand, her fourth finger was missing. Her ring finger.

"Ohhh, my finger," she moaned. "Where is my finger?"

"M-M-Morgana," I couldn't keep my teeth from shaking. Ghosts were so, so cold. "P-P-P-please. Tell me who killed you-"

Morgana cried again. My god, ghosts were hyper-emotional. It was almost like she was stuck in the emotion she was feeling when she died.

I covered my ears as the moan turned into a scream. Other ghosts I had met around Hogwarts were not usually like this. When someone becomes a ghost, their behavior and personality are similar to when they were alive, with a few minor changes. But Morgana- usually so confident, and graceful- she was completely changed. She was screaming her head off like a banshee.

Hogwarts students learned about banshees in 3rd year. I was not a Hogwarts student then. But my parents had taken me to Ireland before and told me of banshees. They were the spirits of dead women who had sinned in their lives. They appeared as white, frightening ghosts who screamed to warn that death was near.

"How did you die, Morgana?" I asked again, desperate that she would give me an answer. Instead, she turned and floated away.

I chased after her through the halls. Everything she passed developed a layer of frost.

She passed through a wall. I was not going to let her get away without giving me some answers, even if she woke up the entire faculty hall. She floated all the way to the bell tower.

The hour was late. No one was awake to witness me chasing Morgana's ghostly dress train or hear the sounds of her cries. It was up to me to find out what she had to tell.

Suddenly, she stopped at the staircase just above the music room. I caught my breath in heavy gasps.

"I'm sorry," Morgana cried. "I cannot tell you what happened. It was horrible- too horrible-" Her mouth contorted into a silent scream that stayed in her throat.

I didn't know what she was talking about, and I had no time to ask. Her cloudy form pulled apart like tufts of cotton candy and evaporated into the air. My friend was gone.

A clunking sound from above caught my attention, continuing in rhythmic footsteps. Someone was on the staircase above me.

"Who's there?" I asked, wand drawn, and terrified. I heard no response, other than the footsteps descending the stairs, coming towards me.

A foot of stone landed on the step in view. Slowly, the figure revealed itself to me.

It was a stone statue of a knight holding a sword. There were statues like this all over the castle. Except it moved on its own, like a Pensieve Guardian.

Before I could get my thoughts in order, it brought down its heavy sword. A wood beam got turned into sawdust above me. That was the only thing stopping the sword from meeting the crown of my head.

I landed a few sloppy shots on the statue's face, and then sent its sword flying with a disarming charm.

"Depulso!"

The statue flew back and hit the wall with a crash. I was ready to continue my attack, but the statue had gone still.

I poked at it. It did not react. It was as though it was sleeping.

I investigated it a little bit more. It was completely made of stone, so there was no one inside controlling it. The form it took was a knight. It was smaller than a Pensieve Guardian. Those had been powered by Ancient Magic and fought in order to protect the Keeper's memories. But I detected no Ancient Magic on this statue. Other than the fact that it was moving on its own only moments ago, this knight was completely ordinary.

I looked at the sword. It was identical to the one that had taken off Morgana's head.

Morgana may not have told me who her killer was. But thanks to her leading me here tonight, I was a big step closer to finding the answer.