Renesmee Cullen and the Locket of Michael

Chapter 5: Followed

After her last ride on the Knight Bus, Renesmee practically begged Harry to let her use another form of transportation like the Floo Network or at least a Portkey to Hogwarts. Harry, being an Auror for the Ministry of Magic, set a wooden haibrush on the kitchen counter and cast the spell to turn it into a Portkey. "Remember," he said as the brush started to pulse with a blue light, "you need to touch the Portkey with your finger, then you'll be taken to Hogwarts. I set it so you'll arrive in the Headmistress's office."

"Thanks," Renesmee said and touched the Portkey along with Rose, Albus and James. Lily, the youngest of the Potter children, watched with great envy and nearly burst into tears when James said his goodbyes. "Don't worry, Lily," Renesmee told the younger girl, "you'll be going to Hogwarts soon." Lily huffed and crossed her arms across her chest. "Besides, you and your family will be spending Christmas with us next year and I'll see if I can come over for the summer."

"That would be great," Hermione said smiling. "Go on, then."

Renesmee felt a jerk somewhere behind her navel and lurched into a roar of sound and swirling colors. A few moments later, she, James, Albus and Rose landed in the Headmistress's office. "Good morning," Professor Dumbledore said from his portrait. "Professor McGonagall is in the staff room talking with the other teachers. She said for you three to head to your common rooms until further notice."

Renesmee grinned at the older man in the portrait and headed out the door. On the way out, they ran into Nearly-Headless Nick and Peeves the Poltergeist. "Ah, Miss Cullen!" Nick said bowing to her, his neck threatening to fall off his ruff. "How was your Christmas?"

"Very good, thanks," she answered. "How was yours?" Nick launched into a lengthy explanation of how he and the other House Ghosts celebrated Christmas at Hogwarts. "Sounds interesting, Nick. Remind me to check that out next time." Albus pulled on her arm, urging her to move faster but she was staring at Peeves. The poltergeist looked as if he had a secret to tell and was itching to say it. "Peeves? Are you okay?"

"Eh?" the poltergeist said snapping out of his reverie. "Nothing wrong with Peevesie, not at all." He floated past her all the while muttering, "Peeves hears things, yes. Hears many things in Hogwarts."

"What did you hear, Peeves?" Albus asked curiously. But Peeves wasn't listening. He was still muttering to himself. "Peeves!" The poltergeist stopped and turned around. "What...did...you...you...hear?"

"Many things, Potty," said the poltergeist. "Strange things from other people here. For instance, I heard from Professor Whitlock in the Divination classroom speak in a weird tone...not sure what about, though." He gave a lopsided grin and floated upward. "Bye-bye!"

Renesmee shook her head, trying not to laugh. When Rose and Albus stared at her, she said, "Poltergeists have been known to lie, haven't they?" Albus nodded slowly as if urging her to get to to the point. "Well, how can we trust Peeves's information? He didn't give us much to go on."

"But he said that Professor Whitlock, your aunt, was having another vision!" James said excitedly. "Maybe she knows something!" Renesmee shrugged and walked toward the Grand Staircase. "Wait, Nessie! Where are you going?"

"I'm going to talk to Professor McGonagall and Alice. They might tell me since I'm the one in danger here." she told them. Albus grabbed her arm quickly and held her back. "What is your problem, Albus?"

"I don't think you should go, that's all," he said nervously. "The last time you went into a teacher's office, Professor Macmillan was dead. Or do you not remember that?"

Renesmee felt stung that he would think another teacher died at this time. "Albus, are you saying that the vampire who killed Professor Macmillan is going to attack another teacher?" Albus didn't speak at this but held her gaze. She patted his arm. "I like you, Albus, but you're acting totally weird." Renesmee wrenched her arm out of his grip and headed off to the staff room as Professors McGonagall, Flitwick, Longbottom, Finnigan, Lupin and Malfoy were walking out. "Good morning, Professors. Is there something I should know about?"

Professor Teddy Lupin looked a little nervous as he said, "Well, we're not exactly sure, Miss Cullen." Renesmee stood still, watching him with much intent. "Your aunt had another vision, but it's hard to tell if it'll happen in case whoever she had the vision about changes their minds."

"Right," McGonagall said frowning, "and we still have yet to find that monster that killed Professor Macmillan. Though the Aurors are doing their best to find them, Harry Potter specifically asked us to do what we can here at the school." She looked at Renesmee and said, "I need you to go back to your common room, Miss Cullen. Professor Finnigan will be there shortly with some news.

Renesmee entered the common room; the portrait hole door had closed for less than ten minutes until it opened again and Professor Finnigan, Head of Gryffindor House, walked in with a rolled-up piece of parchment in his hand. He unrolled it and cleared his throat before saying, "With the death of Professor Macmillan being investigated by Hogwarts staff and the Ministry of Magic, these rules are in effect as of now. All students will walk to classes and other activities in groups, and will be in their common rooms before sundown. Are there any questions?" Renesmee raised her hand immediately. "Yes, Miss Cullen, I know about your hunting and we will make sure you hunt but you will have to do it in between classes. Understood?" She nodded and put her hand down. "Good. Professor McGonagall wishes that I not mention this, but since this whole ordeal, there may be a possibility Hogwarts will be closed down for good." With a sad look on his face, Finnigan headed back to his office leaving the students to talk about everything that happened.

"This is nuts!" Renesmee said while pacing in front of the fireplace not long after Professor Finnigan left. "We know that a vampire attacked Professor Macmillan and killed him on our first day here, right?" Her friends nodded and murmured. "McGonagall and the other teachers here believe that the attacks were made by a rogue vampire, but they're wrong! I believe that the vampire who did this was not doing this for pure fun. He was after something and Professor Macmillan was in the way."

"But," Albus said, his eyes a little misty now, "what would this vampire be after?" Renesmee held up her locket without a word and let it slip into her shirt. "Oh yeah, the locket. But who or what would want the locket?"

"The vampire, you twit!" Rose growled. "The vampire would want the locket for something, but the question is why would it want the locket?" She tapped her chin in thought and sighed. "I can't think of anything!"

"Maybe," James said from another table close to them, "it's an ancient vampire! Aunt Hermione told us that at the beginning of time, there were three angels who had fallen from grace and battled the three Archangels. The Archangels killed them and sent their bodies down to Earth. Unfortunately, Michael's sword broke into four shards and were scattered at the four corners of the Earth!" He pointed to Renesmee's silver locket with his eagle-feather quill and added, "That locket may be one of the shards!"

"Proposterous!" Rose snapped. "That locket has incredible power, Uncle Harry confirmed that, but I find it very unlikely that this locket is one of the four shards of the Sword of Angels, James. What makes you think that?" Renesmee opened the locket and showed them the copper-colored strand of hair inside and held it close to her own hair. "Oh, Merlin, that strand matches your hair color!"

"Yep, and I think that another vampire might have had my hair color and whoever killed it placed it into this locket, which I believe now is the first of the four shards." Renesmee said grinning. "I don't mean to act like your mom, Rose, but I'm heading to the library to do some research on this Sword of Angels. It might be an important key to what's going on here." Without letting her friend speak, the vampire hybrid rushed out of the portrait hole and down the stairs. Thanks to her vampire hearing and smell, she realized that Albus was following her. "Al, are you going somewhere?"

Albus stopped at the top of the staircase they were on and said, "Um, yes, I have to see Professor Longbottom about our homework and, if I can, I'll see if he knows any herbs that will stop this vampire from attacking again."

So, you still have the idea that the vampire's going to kill another teacher, eh? Renesmee thought angrily. Well, I'll prove you wrong, Albus Severus Potter! Mark my words, I will! She ran into the library at top speed and stopped at the desk where a redheaded woman was standing. "Excuse me, do you have any books on the Sword of Angels?" The woman glanced up and nodded. "Where are they?"

"Probably in the restricted section." she said smiling. "Do you have a note from a teacher to take the book?" Renesmee shook her head and the woman frowned. "This complicates things." Her smile returned and she strode next to Renesmee. "I'm a nice person, so I'll get the book for you without the note. Just don't tell the headmistress or I'll be fired, okay?"

"Thanks, Miss..." Renesmee said, but stopped as a man who looked to be in his late sixties came up from behind a few shelves, his arms laden with very old and heavy books. "Oh, hello."

"Ah, hello," said the man smiling. "I see you're interested in researching the Sword of Angels?" Renesmee nodded. "Good. I'll show you where it's at." The woman looked a bit disappointed but went back to the desk. "Oh, Willow, could you possibly help me? I'm a bit swamped with books here." Renesmee was very confused at who he was talking to until the redheaded woman flicked her wrist at the stack of books in his arms and they floated around until they landed on a metal cart. "Thank you."

"So, you're name's Willow?" Renesmee asked kindly and the woman nodded. "Cute name."

"Thanks, sweetie," said Willow grinning. "My wife thinks so, too." Seeing Renesmee's surprise she grinned wider. "Yeah, I'm gay. Trust me, I was surprised as you were when I found out." She stamped a few books before turning back to the man and asking, "D'you need help over there?"

"No, I've got it, Willow." the man replied. "Come, my dear, let's get your book." Renesmee followed him into the restricted section and, while they walked through the labyrinth of bookshelves, he asked, "Just out of curiosity, but why are you studying the Sword of Angels?"

Renesmee was lost at what to say at first, so she settled on telling him the truth. "I believe my locket is the first shard of the sword, sir." she said. The man took his glasses off, wiped them with his shirt and put them back on nervously. "If this locket is one of the shards, I think the vampire that attacked Professor Macmillan wants it badly for something."

"I see. May I?" he said. Renesmee took off the locket and handed it to him. He took his glasses off and replaced it with a magnifying glass. "Hmm...it does seem to be a genuine shard." He opened the locket and closed it quickly. "Oh crap!"

"What?" Willow called from the desk. "I heard 'oh crap' and that's never good!" The man handed Renesmee the book she needed and returned to the desk to whisper something to Willow, who gasped, her blue eyes widening with fear. "No way! Are you sure?"

"Positive! This locket is definitely one of the shards of the Sword of Angels and I believe..." He stared at Renesmee for a second, then lowered his voice unaware that Renesmee could hear him perfectly. "...I believe that the hair in the locket came from Moloch the Destroyer. Not the same Moloch that seduced you back in your sophomore year, but something much worse than that." Willow gulped and hid her face in her hands. Knowing that this was the time, to leave, Renesmee said a quick goodbye and headed for the door. "Not so fast, my dear. I must warn you not to go out after dark in case Moloch is indeed out there."

"Yes, sir," Renesmee said nodding. "I was told the same thing from Professor Finnigan." Without even thinking about what she was doing, Renesmee was gone in a blur and up in the common room within seconds. Rose and James were sitting in front of the fire and Albus was still gone. "You're not going to believe this, but our librarians definitely gave me information without knowing it." Rose looked up, an expression of happiness in her eyes. "This older man...I don't know his name...said the vampire may be the one whose hair is in my locket. He looked at it and told his coworker, Willow, about a vampire named Moloch. Do either of you know anything about this vampire?"

"I've heard stories from Mum," Rose said slowly. "You remember what James said about the three Fallen Angels, right?" Renesmee nodded slowly. "Well, their names were Ba'al, Belial and Moloch! When they were killed and sent down to Earth, some tribe members nearby worshipped them and revived the Three. It's said that Ba'al, Belial and Moloch are the first vampires ever to walk the planet."

"Interesting." Renesmee said sitting in the nearest and most comfortable armchair. "I'm guessing the vampires turned humans into what they are, right?" Rose and James nodded. "I thought so. So, Moloch...was he killed again?"

"No one knows...but I think you might want to talk to Professor Lupin about this whole thing. He may know something about it." James said. "In the meantime, Nessie, get some sleep. The end-of-the-year exams are coming up and we need to study hard." Renesmee nodded and went up to bed.

At four o'clock in the morning, Renesmee woke up with her throat burning savagely. She had not hunted for over a week and she felt week. Human food did a good job with her hunger, but she needed her blood and decided to go out hunting. Surely nothing would attack her at this early, right? Grabbing her cloak, wand and slippers, Renesmee kept to the darkness while heading out to the Forbidden Forest to hunt. She just barely got to the edge when the front door to Hagrid's hut opened and there stood Rubeus Hagrid, his beady eyes narrowed beneath his tangled gray beard and hair, a crossbow pointed straight at her. With a sigh, he said, "Renesmee, what're yeh doin' out this early? Yer not supposed ta be out here!"

"I know, but I haven't fed in a while." Renesmee explained. "My throat is burning and I know I need blood down me." Hagrid sighed again and insisted he go with her. "All right, you can come, but just remember what happened last time." How could Hagrid forget what happened the last time he watched her hunt? The half-giant was amazed at her hunting skills and how fast she was at it. Hagrid grinned and followed Renesmee into the Forbidden forest with his lamp lighting the way. They reached a spot where she liked hunting and she ran off to do her thing leaving Hagrid standing in his spot. As she hunted, Renesmee heard a rustle a few feet to her right and turned to face it. After lighting her wand tip, she moved around letting the thin beam of light rest on each spot around her. "Huh. Nobody there. That's odd."

"Nessie, are you all righ'?" Hagrid called to her.

"Yeah, fine!" Renesmee called back. "I just want to finish the hunt and be done with it!" She found a deer drinking from the lake, pounced on the deer and drank deeply. "There. Let's head back to the castle now." Hagrid nodded gruffly and led her back through the grounds to the castle. "Hagrid, I felt something while I was hunting...it felt like someone's watching me."

"Hmm, I don' know abou' that, Nessie," Hagrid said deeply troubled now. "There's no safer place than 'Ogwarts or the Ministry, for that matter." Renesmee sighed and watched someone run past them as they crossed the covered bridge. The sun was coming up and their robes were smoking slightly. Chuckling, Hagrid said, "That migh' be one of our new staff members, but I couldn' tell with them runnin' so fast."

"I never saw a set of robes smoke like that." Renesmee pointed out as she and Hagrid stopped inside the entrance hall. "Odd, right?" Hagrid shrugged and headed back to the castle and watched as the robed figure pulled down their hood to reveal slicked back blonde hair. "He looks very odd."

"Yep, tha' would be our new staff member, Spike." Hagrid confirmed. "He came all the way from Los Angeles just to be here." He strode up to the man and shook hands. "Hello, Spike. How was yer trip?"

"Slept through half the trip, I did," Spike said grinning. "Made sure the bloody blinds were down before I settled into my seat and fell asleep, but I enjoyed it." He sighed with satisfaction and added, "It's been a long time since I rode on a train." Hagrid chuckled and introduced Renemsee. "Oh, well, it's good to meet you."

"So, Spike, where's our friend?" Hagrid asked Spike, who looked confused. "Whaddya call 'im...the poofter?"

"Oh, Angel." Spike said turning somewhat mean now. "That ponce was on the train with me, but he took a different route. Think he went through the boathouse and up to the library with Giles and Willow." Renesmee had not expected this new guy to know the librarians let alone the older man and let him know it. "I worked with those two a while back, Li'l Bit," Spike informed Renesmee with relish. "Averted an apocalypse or two and I saved the world from a terrible fate." He opened his mouth to say more when Professor McGonagall came in wearing her green robes and looking very stern. "Ah, this would be the headmistress, right?"

"Yes," McGonagall said, "and I need to talk to you in my office immediately. Angel is in there waiting for you." Spike nodded and rushed past her. "Oh, Miss Cullen, I suggest you come with me as well. It's time you met our new staff members properly." Renesmee gave a nod and followed the headmistress to her office, Spike pulling his hood over his head and running faster than they were just to get out of the sunlight.

(I apologize for not mentioning it sooner, but the remainder of the books will include characters from both TV shows, Buffy: The Vampire Slayer and Angel, so this will be a three-way crossover. Fans of both shows, I hope you're happy, and for those of you who have never seen the shows or were never into the series, please PM me when you read the next few chapters for more information on why I chose them. Thanks!)