I made it three hours before I retreated to Arda. I had a feeling the slander against was just beginning and I had at least ten people accosting me every hour - gryffindors included. So much for house loyalty.

I released my magic and emotions to run wild only to stumble as extra legs began bursting out of me. Another outfit ruined but the release from that too tiny body was worth it. Not that I'd intended that to happen or anything. I'd never heard of polyjuice wearing off early before but the books didn't cover usage on near-human species let alone whatever I was these days.

I was miles south before I figured out why. That… thing I'd killed. I needed to know where it came from. If its species was intelligent, if it was good. If I'd done something truly terrible or just terribly beastly.

I wasn't happy thinking even obliquely over what I'd done but the running helped. It felt good to stretch my legs, especially as Arda shifted from a red sunset to the comforting embrace of night. I even had a three-pound haunch of cured ham to gnaw on when I got hungry. The house elves were far less scary when they weren't fixating a shiny ring and were very quick to give me anything I wanted to get the predator out of their midst. I wasn't sure if it was the spider thing or the giant cat thing that set them off but it was hard to get out of the kitchen without getting flooded in drumsticks.

I saw a few deer on the far side of the river, visible in the twilight thanks to my improved night vision. None on my side though. Either my scent scared them off or the giant spiders in the woods had already eaten them all. Hmm, I might have to teach them animal husbandry before anything else if I wanted to get their civilization off the ground. Trickier than teaching omnivores how to farm potatoes but doable so long as they kept that respect for their 'Honored Grandmother' going, whatever that was about.

It took hours but I was still at the scene before I was ready. There was a half-foul half-tempting scent that led me to the body in the tall grass. There wasn't much left of it. Bone, gristle, a bit of blood. The flies fled as I approached. A distant pall of horror took life in the recesses of my mind as I noted how much of those bones were missing, how many of my own tooth marks marred them.

The staff was nearby, tossed free during the fight and somehow free of blood. I picked up the staff, a vague sense of something living inside it that resented my touch hitting me the moment I touched it. I might have thought the feeling was born from superstition if I couldn't see a hint of a bright but very diffuse soul inside. Even if the staff was properly built to channel spells I didn't dare casting one through it. With its temperament it would do its best to turn any spell right back on me. I didn't discard the staff though. I still wasn't sure why wizards had switched from staffs in the pre-renaissance period to wands which had traditionally been a woman's tool of magic; it was an object worth studying

I turned and started trotting east, the direction the humanoid creature had come from. I wasn't sure what I hoped to find. A tribal community of evil creatures that pretended to be human and had limited mental faculties and magic would be nice. Even better was if he was a troll or something transmogrified into that shape by some dark wizard that gave him a magic staff. Yes, that would ease my conscience the best. I still hated trolls with a vengeance. Would explain the bug coming out of his mouth too since only trolls had such despicably poor hygiene.

I hit the woods without encountering any signs of civilization, troll or otherwise. With nary a pause I continued. Even my improved eyesight couldn't penetrate the dark of these woods in the night but once again my echolocation-like spider sense allowed me to pass without incident so long as I didn't think about it too much.

There were a few strands of giant spider silk here but nothing like the concentration further north. It didn't seem likely that I'd see any of my friends down here unless I went searching for them on purpose. There were a wealth of tiny spiders of other species though, and bugs and bats and all sorts of scurrying things I couldn't identify. Only once did I feel like I was being threatened and a swift stunner sent it scurrying off. Whatever it was.

Hours later I'd finished off the last pound of ham and was thoroughly lost. The barest glimmers of souls I could see in the trees and overgrown insects were as useless for navigating as my echolocation. Dim enough too that I felt no urge to devour them so at least I didn't have that to worry about. I had quite enough guilt on my mind from one soul already.

I wasn't sure if it was a natural phenomenon or some sort of spell but my compass spell kept glitching. I wondered if a mundane compass might work better. Well, idle theory wouldn't help me, it might be time to hole up until morning.

Or not. The forest ended quite abruptly as a mountain reared up before me. More of a hill, actually, but quite imposing nonetheless. Tall and thin like a spire and with nary a hint of the original features, an impressive work. I couldn't tell from here what parts of it were built from quarried stone and what parts were carved from the mountain itself but the fortress was a match for Hogwarts thrice over. Probably less homey on the inside but the dark, gothic style had an allure of its own.

I swore I could smell magic on my tongue as I approached. Pausing at the bridge I stuck my tongue out, tasting the air. Alas, the scent of magic was lost amidst the scent of males of some species as the wind changed. It smelled like a great pack of wolves or the like had taken up home in the castle and had been marking their territory for years.

'Is my tongue longer?' Spiders weren't even supposed to have tongues but demon spiders could be the exact opposite, I supposed. Well, it hadn't caused me any trouble speaking yet save for the occasional hiss when I was stressed. Probably nothing to worry about in comparison to everything else.

My forelegs tapped the bridge in front of me, testing for solidity. It seemed like a sturdy enough stone bridge despite the lichen but it was an awfully long way down. Spider-silk sure would come in handy at a time like this. Was I sure I wanted to investigate a spooky (albeit awesome) castle in another dimension that was probably full of wild creatures?

Damn, but I actually was. I had too many questions that needed answering to just turn away. And so I picked up my pace. Common sense said to only investigate abandoned castles in full daylight but common people couldn't sense their surroundings in full darkness.