The piercing roar of a dragon left everyone below with ringing ears. They looked up in astonishment.
They saw an enormous winged, serpentine beast winding down from the vaulted ceiling, filling their hearts with terror.
"Heavens!"
"Oh, Merlin's underpants, what is that?"
Many of them found the enormous beast very familiar. Last Christmas, almost all of them had watched the Patronus battle between Shawn and Dumbledore.
The Patronus that had held its own against the Phoenix Patronus had left a deep impression on them, thanks to that fierce, spectacular battle. It was also proof of Shawn's overwhelming power.
But now they were actually seeing a living creature!
They had thought it was a five-star Occamy before, but now they realized it was not!
Although an Occamy was also a winged Fantastic Beast that could grow or shrink, it could fight a fire dragon and was formidable in battle.
Yet no matter how they looked at it, the enormous beast overhead was even stronger. Its majestic, imposing presence was almost suffocating.
And no one could say what it was.
The enormous beast strode through the air above the throne, its eyes radiating dominance. Electricity crackled around its tapered horns, its wings were white as snow, and its whiskers and fins drifted with graceful vitality.
Higher above, lightning flashed and thunder boomed in a vast bank of clouds that had formed on its own, further accentuating the creature's might and dominance.
Naturally, this was Shawn's Animagus form.
His dragon eyes swept imperiously over the terrified crowd. Even his trusted followers wore looks of disbelief, and he was quite satisfied with his entrance.
Then, in a flash, his enormous Yinglong form swiftly reverted to human shape, and he appeared upright before the Purple-Gold Throne.
He flicked aside the long hem of his robes