Chapter 9
The remainder of the group had gathered into one of the rooms down the hall.
". . .six, seven, eight. This does no look good for the ham-ham gang," Stan said.
Sandy was huddled between him and Maxwell, not about to leave their side for any reason. Maxwell had some books he was looking through to find something out about werewolves. Bijou was near Boss and Hamtaro, with Panda not far away.
"We need a new plan, guys," Boss mentioned. "We shouldn't just sit here and wait for it to come get us."
"I think that all we need to do is find a way to kill it. It's the only way we can stop this thing," Panda said.
Maxwell looked up. "I'm looking through this myths and legends book right now. I might find something in here."
"Maybe we could sneak up on it. Then we could stab it or some deal. That would kill it for sure," Boss said.
"I don't know if we have anything sharp enough though. Well, maybe. We've got a safety pin somewhere," Panda suggested.
"Good. Do you know where it is?"
"I believe it's up in the storage room somewhere. We'd need to go in a group, just to be safe."
I think we'll only need about two or three. Three, maybe. Four would be too easy for the werewolf to find us," Boss said. "I'll go up. Who else wants to come?"
Panda was hesitant. "I might-"
"Okay. I want Bijou too," she looked up, slightly surprised, when Boss said that, "just because I want to keep my eye on her." No monkey business down here when we're gone, okay? No leaving the room."
"Uh, Boss, I was just wondering if I could go in Bijou's place. I don't want her to get hurt," Hamtaro said.
"Oh, alright, but you guys had better make sure nothing happens to her. Deal? And once again, no leaving the room for any reason."
"Don't worry. We won't," Sandy reassured him.
They quietly left the room and were out of the other's view.
X X X X X X X X X X
Panda, Boss, and Hamtaro tiptoed down the dark hall. They were extra cautious, and listened for any sounds that could be the wolf. They arrived at the door to the storage room, paused for a moment, then Panda creaked open the door. He stuck his head through the doorway and looked around the room to see if the werewolf was hiding somewhere. He glanced to the right because he thought he saw something, and his eyes widened as he saw a huge paw coming straight toward his face.
It clamped around his head, and Panda started to grab wildly at the door frame. Hamtaro and Boss couldn't see what happened but could tell something was wrong. They peered into to room and were terrified to see what was going on.
Panda was trying to scream, but the wolf's paw muffled out the sound. The werewolf yanked on Panda, and he fell to the ground. The beast dragged him across the floor until it reached a corner of the room that was too dark to see.
A series of growling noises were heard from the back of the room, then screams of pain echoed through the corridor. Seconds later, Panda's yelps stopped abruptly accompanied by the noise of tearing flesh.
Though they couldn't see it, Hamtaro and Boss feared the worst.
"Scratch the plan! Let's just get the heck outta here!" Boss yelled. They rushed through the hall, past Snoozer . . . wait. Snoozer's sock was there, but Snoozer was nowhere to be found. They glanced around the area, but there were no signs of him.
"I sure hope he's okay . . .," Hamtaro said nervously. He lifted up the sock and dumped out what was in it, but stiffened up as he realized his mistake. Stuffed inside the sock were bones of all variations, and most were bloody with raw muscle and tendon attached to them still. One of the bones had a patch of fur on it, and even though it was hard to tell through the blood, there was no doubt it was Snoozer.
"I can't take this anymore!" Hamtaro cried. He bolted down the stairs, Boss not far behind.
X X X X X X X X X X
"Where's the safety pin? Couldn't you find it?" Oxnard asked.
"And where's Panda!" Sandy asked. "He's alright . . . isn't he?"
They could tell from Boss' demeanor that he was not, and she began to cry more.
"This is hopeless. I don't think that monster can be stopped," Maxwell moped.
Boss looked over at him. "That's not the only thing that happened. We ran by Snoozer's sock-"
"Oh no! Please don't tell me he's . . .," Bijou began.
Boss lowered his head. "You guessed it."
The atmosphere in the room was definitely solemn, due to the recent losses. No one said a word for what seemed like ages, and the only thing heard was Maxwell flipping the pages in his book.
Bijou sat over in the corner, all by herself. She couldn't help but think that there was something she could do to help, but she'd never done a thing. Only the time that night when she pulled the basket with Penelope in it up to the ceiling, but that was almost more of a death sentence than a rescue.
There must be something I can do, she thought to herself. Maybe, just maybe, she could sneak upstairs and get the pin that Hamtaro, Boss and Panda originally went up for. That would be a great favor to them.
She confirmed it in her mind that she would go upstairs and get it, for Panda's sake. She snuck through the shadows, and then out the door unnoticed.