Harry had been living with Sirius for just over a week and was fast becoming accustomed to life with his godfather. Sirius usually woke him in the mornings with a hand on his shoulder and a gentle shake; years of living with the Dursleys had ensured he was a light sleeper. Therefore it was quite a surprise to wake to the sight of the large black grim which stood with its paws on his shoulders and its tongue dangling dangerously close to his nose. With a half hearted groan Harry pushed the heavy paws away, "Geroff Padfoot, you know Nixie dislikes dog hair on the bed." The dog gave a loud bark and transformed back into his godfather who was still laughing,
"Happy Birthday puppy mine." Harry let a large grin spread across his features, in the joy and excitement of coming to live with Sirius he had completely forgotten about his birthday, for the first time ever he was actually expecting to have fun. Sirius beamed in response, "Up and dressed pup and I'll meet you outside in ten minutes." Harry nodded happily and almost jumped out of bed and only the quick reflexes of his godfather prevented him from falling flat on his face. Sirius caught him by the shoulders and held him until he regained his balance, "Slow down pup, you're still recovering and trust me when I say you don't want to be falling asleep this afternoon." Once he was sure Harry was steady he released the teen's shoulders and exited the room to wait.
Discover moreHair CareFan FictionBirthdays & Name DaysPsychologyDrawing & ColoringApproximately ten minutes later Harry exited the room, dressed in the new clothes Sirius had got for him the moment he saw what the Dursleys had given him, with a wide smile on his face and Sirius couldn't help but smile in response before bending down to pick the boy up. "I probably won't need to do this in a few days," he remarked as they headed downstairs, "You're regaining strength quickly and hopefully in a few more weeks you will be too heavy to lift comfortably." Harry just nodded noncommittally, as much as he was happy to be getting better he had to admit to himself that he would miss the feeling of safety that surrounded him whenever his godfather carried him. The animagus seemed to read his mind, "But don't think that means I'll stop hugging you, and you are welcome to hug me whenever you want to, within reason of course." Harry relaxed, comforted by his godfather's words.
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Soon they reached the sitting room and Harry was hard pressed to stop his jaw hitting the floor. Piled before him were more presents than he had ever received in his entire life, Sirius chuckled at his gobsmacked expression, "I haven't had the chance to be at your birthday for the last twelve years so I think I went a little overboard." Harry was still trying to get his jaw back off the floor, seeing this Sirius rested one hand on the boy's shoulder, "That said they aren't all from me, I believe there are ones from Andy, Hagrid, the Weasleys excluding Ron, and a couple of others." Seeing the question in Harry's eyes he continued, "Ron, Hermione and Remus will all be coming over later so you will receive theirs then."
Discover moreBiological SciencesChildren's BooksBooksScience Fiction & Fantasy BooksCrossover storiesHarry did a quick mental count of the presents before him, eighteen in total, whilst eight or nine were from the people Sirius had mentioned the rest were from him. Harry turned towards his godfather, "You don't have to do this for me." The animagus sighed and looped an arm around the boy's thin shoulders, tugging him closer,
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"I know I don't have to pup. I want to do it. I've been out of your life for twelve years through my own stupid mistakes but now I'm here and I'm going to spoil you a bit. It won't make up for the time I lost and your time at those monsters, but it will make me feel a bit better so just enjoy it pup." Sirius smiled although it didn't reach his eyes, "It's your birthday Harry, you're supposed to have fun." With a gentle shove he propelled the teen towards the pile of presents and when Harry still hesitated he reached out plucked a present from the pile and handed it to his godson before leaning back on the sofa to watch the fun.
For the next several hours Harry opened present after present, admiring each before moving onto the next one. Sitting back he surveyed the collection of items, he had received a box of fudge from Mr and Mrs Weasley, a fake wand and tonne tongue toffees from Fred and George, a book on the Ministry from Percy, a lumpy parcel of wool he assumed was a pair of socks from Dobby, a moleskin pouch from Hagrid, chocolate frogs from Neville and a book on jinks from Andromeda. Added to that already impressive collection was quiddich armour, more DADA books, an interesting selection of sweets and a photo-album from Sirius. The books had caused Harry to raise his eyebrows at his godfather, Sirius was well known for his dislike of books, in fact Remus had told more than one story where he had forcibly dragged Sirius into the library of Hogwarts. Sirius managed to have the grace to look embarrassed, "I'm not saying I like books but those will definitely help you, they are fairly interesting and, well, one is the Auror Handbook," Sirius snorted, "One of the few books I actually read willingly and you'd be surprised by how good it actually is."
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The photo-album in particular had brought tears to his eyes; the whole book was filled with pictures from his birth to the day his parents died. Utterly speechless Harry turned towards his godfather hoping his eyes could convey the thanks his mouth was struggling with. Sirius smiled his understanding and reached out and pulled his godson into a hug. Harry hugged the animagus back, repeating his thanks over and over. Mirth alight in his eyes Sirius reached out and ruffled the boy's hair, "There is just one more thing Harry." His godson stared up at him temporarily mute, "When Ron and Hermione get here you are going to take the animagus potion to reveal your animal and you start animagus training formally next week."
It was a good thing Sirius had been sitting on the sofa else he was likely to have been bowled over by the strength of the hug he received at the statement. Laughing he managed to pry the boy's grip loose, "Come on Harry, breakfast before they actually arrive would be a good idea, you want to have enough energy for the potion after all." Harry grinned at him and obediently drew back allowing Sirius to stand as the two of them headed towards the dining room and food.
The instant lunch was finished Harry Potter was found all but bouncing up and down on the sofa, staring at the fire as he waited for his friends to arrive. Eventually the flames flickered emerald and soon the red mop of hair belonging to his best friend was visible as Ron Weasley tumbled out of the fireplace, closely followed by Hermione. Grins threatening to split their faces Ron raced over towards Harry whilst Hermione followed at a more sedate pace. "Happy Birthday Harry," she announced brightly, handing him an extremely precisely wrapped gift. "Yeah mate, Happy Birthday," Ron added as he gave him his own gift. "So how's your summer been Harry?" With fire in her eyes Hermione smacked Ron on his shoulder, "What was that for?" he asked.
"For being an insensitive prat," hissed Hermione with a significant look in Harry's direction. Ron opened his mouth to reply but Harry, sensing an argument in the making intervened before Hermione could draw up a large enough head of steam. "It's been fantastic Ron, not the weeks with the Dursleys of course but the last week or so has been absolutely brilliant. It's great to live with Sirius, even foul tasting potions don't detract in the slightest and it's been good to have a real family at last you know." A quick glance at Hermione revealed she was beginning to tear up and Ron just looked slightly lost so Harry decided to change the topic of conversation as quickly as possible.
Discover moreWriting workshopsMobile user analyticsFiction writing guidesFan fiction booksApp download campaigns"Thanks for looking after Hedwig Ron," He said hurriedly. Ron just waved the thanks away,
"It's nothing mate, I was glad to do it. I know it's difficult for you with the muggles and all. And anyway she's come here now." Harry grinned at his friend then changed the subject again. He was incredibly grateful that Ron had taken Hedwig when his Uncle had refused to let her into the house, the owl had been his first real friend.
"So what do you guys want to your form to be?" He asked. Immediately Hermione started to speak,
"Apparently you don't get much choice, the animal you become reflects your personality and the traits you have. I'm really looking forward to taking the potion and starting training, it will be absolutely brilliant to change into another animal and I couldn't believe it when Sirius owled my parents asking for permission." She would have continued in this vein for another hour or so if Harry hadn't held up his hands to stop her,
"Breathe Hermione," he reminded her teasingly and Hermione rolled her eyes in response as Harry turned towards his other best friend, "What do you think about the Quiddich World Cup then Ron?" Hermione rolled her eyes again and muttered something that sounded strangely like boys before opening her guide to the animagus transformation as the boys animatedly discussed the merits of the various teams and the likely contenders for the cup as they waited for Remus to arrive.
Soon all three were sitting cross legged on the floor as Sirius and Remus described to them in detail the process they were about to go through. As soon as the lecture was finished Sirius presented a bottle of the clear potion to each of them, "You'll enter a trance for about an hour or so, after that it's nothing more than hard work and lots of studying." Everyone laughed at Ron's groan, "Come on then kids, bottom's up," Sirius said the instant he got his mirth back under control. The three looked at one another for a moment before swallowing their respective potions in one gulp. Dimly Harry was aware of the soft voice of his godfather saying something to Remus as his senses slowly blurred and he slipped easily into the trance state.
His vision filled with a kaleidoscope of colours, all whirling and dancing in a dizzying pattern so complex his eyes could not follow it. Flashes of colour jumped at the edge of his vision, spinning out of the dance then racing back in but slowly at first then gathering speed the colours started to condense into black as a new image rose in front of him.
The light was dim and tinged slightly with the green that comes from filtering through a canopy of leaves. All around him trees rose up, bark scarred and weathered, they appeared to have stood since the beginning of time. A light breeze slipped between the trees, ruffling his hair and the lower leaves slightly but otherwise all was still. He could feel the carpet of moss give slightly beneath his feet and a faint crackling of twigs reached his ears whenever he moved. The whole forest was hushed as if waiting for something. Out of the corner of his eye he saw a flicker of movement, moving slowly so not to attract the attention of whatever it was he turned his head to scan the forest but there was nothing. Turning round slowly he just caught a glimpse of a shadow before it slipped away and vanished back into the darkness of the forest. Cautiously he spun in a slow circle, scanning the trees for any sign of movement or the animal but there was nothing.
Sighing slightly he lowered himself down onto the moss and started to wait, after all neither Sirius or Remus had said anything about how long it took for your animal to show up. Suddenly he froze. Something large and heavy was pressing down onto his shoulder. Moving slowly and steadily, endeavouring not to startle whatever it was he turned to face it. It took all of the self control he had learnt at the Dursleys to stop him leaping backwards. Standing before him was a wolf, on paw digging into his shoulder and its muzzle no more than a few inches from his face. The wolf gave a coughing bark and removed its paw as if to say, I've got your attention now look at me.
The wolf was magnificent, it stood at about a meter high and was about a meter and a half long. Its back, head, tail and ruff were all jet black whilst the muzzle, throat, legs and underbelly were all a lighter grey. Bright, emerald green eyes stared at him and the thin outline of a lighting bolt was visible on the forehead. Tentatively Harry reached forward, raising his hand as if to stroke the animal but quick as a whip the tongue shot out and licked his outstretched fingers. Harry couldn't help but giggle as the tongue tickled his fingers. His animagus form was a wolf! He couldn't wait to tell Sirius. As if waiting for his acceptance the wolf walked up to him and prodded him with its cold nose. Grinning Harry reached out and buried his fingers in the wolf's soft fur. As the blackness faded across his vision once again he felt the sense of his body melt and shift, changing.
The first thing he noticed was that his sense of smell was suddenly much sharper. A myriad of scents assailed his senses each clamouring for his attention but he could clearly smell each of his friends. He could smell the faint perfume of Hermione's shampoo combined with the slightly musty scent of thousands upon thousands of books, whilst he could smell the conflicting scents of several meals on Ron as well as the old layered scents of the entire Weasley household combined with the scent of old pine and the faint tinge of sky and grass. Remus was obvious, his nose could easily pick up the scent of a fellow wolf even though it was seeped slightly in blood, must be the werewolf aspect he thought as he noticed this was overlaid by the musty scent of books as well as the common scents found in human homes and then there was Sirius, his godfather's scent was clear even though Harry's own scent was mixed in. He could smell the dog and the freedom on Sirius as well as his own singular scent that Harry was sure he would know anywhere.
The second thing he noticed was the rush of whispers that had broken out almost instantly. Well at least he thought they were supposed to be whispers, his hearing as well as his sense of smell seemed to have sharpened considerably. Pulling open his eyes to see what all the fuss was about, he was immediately struck by the changes, both reds and blues had become much more prominent whilst green and yellows had faded into the background slightly and many colours he had previously thought to be orange or yellow had acquired a distinctly reddish tint. The other thing that caught his eye was that all the furniture seemed to have risen considerably although the floor seemed much smaller.
Unnerved slightly he tried to ask a question but all he heard was a collection of snaps and snarls, frustrated he tried again with the same results. Vaguely he was aware of the scent of Remus, Ron and Hermione leaving the vicinity. Confused he swung his face in their direction and immediately a large black grim appeared in front of him. Relaxing in his godfather's presence he took a step forward only for the grim to bare his teeth and growl at him. Instantly he froze and his eyes widened; what had he done, why had Sirius growled at him, had he done something wrong? Tentatively, keeping his head lowered in a submissive gesture he stepped forward only to see a paw move instead of his foot.
Suddenly he realised what had happened, somehow he had ended up in his animagus form and Sirius was trying to protect the others; when he had tried to talk he had only succeeded in making them think he would try and attack them. That realisation crowding in on him he sank to the floor, closing his muzzle and gazing up at his godfather, green eyes seeking grey, putting all the recognition and love he had for his godfather into one look. Abruptly the animagus shifted and Sirius was standing before him although Harry noticed he still kept a tight grip on his wand, "Harry?" his godfather asked quietly. A whine escaping him Harry nodded although he didn't try to stand. Slowly Sirius lowered himself down until he was kneeling beside the wolf, "Do you know how you transformed?" Harry shook his head in answer. Sirius sighed and ran his hand through his hair, "See if you can change back, I'd rather not use the animagus reversal if I don't have to, it isn't that pleasant."
Harry closed his eyes and concentrated but nothing happened. The main problem was he had no idea of what he was supposed to do. If he had been aware of the actual transformation he would have stood a chance of reversing it but he didn't even know where to start. After a few minutes he opened his eyes again and looked beseechingly at Sirius. The animagus sighed and pointed his wand at him, as a blue-white light erupted from it and struck Harry. Immediately he felt his body shift and change, twisting and lengthening unpleasantly. He felt his skin shift and crawl, a sensation not dissimilar to taking polyjuice, although it wasn't quite as unpleasant it was definitely close. A few seconds later he sat somewhat uncomfortably on the floor, back in his human shape once again.
The instant he was back to normal Sirius pulled him into a tight hug, one which he gladly returned. It had been more than slightly disconcerting, especially when Sirius had growled at him. "I'm guessing that wasn't supposed to happen," he said after a moment. Sirius let out a long breath and ruffled his hair,
"You could say that," he grinned wryly, "You just broke about every law on the animagus transformation there is." As Harry's eyes widened he turned his head to call into the next room, "You can come out you three, the wolf problem has been sorted." Within a few seconds the other three entered the room, Remus leading with his wand drawn,
"Everything under control Padfoot?" he asked sharply as he surveyed the room for any sight of the wolf. Sirius just grinned at him,
"Everything's fine Moony," he dropped his hand to Harry's shoulder, "It seems that the pup here managed to stay in his form after the potion wore off, and not realising he was in wolf form managed to scare the lot of us." He looked down at Harry, "I assume you tried to talk and all you got were growls?" At his nod, Sirius laughed, "Still, I had to force the change so he'll still have to learn like rest of you." Eventually Hermione managed to regain her voice,
"So your form is a wolf," she exclaimed, "What was it like? How is it different?..." She would have continued in this vein for several more minutes if Harry hadn't shushed her, "I wasn't paying that much attention, just going on instinct, you know. Anyway what were your forms?"
"I'm a Scottish Wildcat," Hermione said in delight, "Not what I expected of course but a brilliant animal and I can't wait to begin learning how to transform," she gushed, "What about you Ron?" she added, noticing their friend appeared slightly put out.
"I'm a chimp," he said flatly. Both of them frowned slightly at his disappointed tone,
"But a chimp's great Ron, they are supposed to be fun loving, intelligent, brave and devoted to family," Hermione said authoritatively,
"And," Harry added, "It is much better than some of the other animals. Imagine if you were a ferret, or worse a weasel. And imagine what you could do to Fred and George." Neither boy could suppress a snicker at that thought and eventually Ron grinned at them.
The rest of the party was spent in animated discussions of the various forms and quiddich and even Hermione was persuaded to join in with an impromptu prank war which broke out against the Marauders despite the fact Harry was at a considerable disadvantage, being unable to move fast or dodge properly. Thankfully fewer pranks were sent his way but it was still a laughing group that enjoyed supper before Mrs Weasley came to collect both Ron and Hermione, who would be picked up by her parents from the Burrow. After they left, Harry sank down comfortably into the sofa. It had been the best birthdayhe had ever had.
Lucius Malfoy was at a state verging on inarticulate rage, if it wasn't for the fact that the pureblood prided himself on his emotionless slytherin facade it was almost certain that his face would traumatise anyone within a hundred meters of him, even as it stood his expression rivalled that of Voldemort's when the Dark Lord had been particularly angry. And all that rage was centred on a single letter. The filthy blood traitor Black had written to him, thanking him for the services rendered and forgiving the sum of 100,000,000 galleons. It was an vast amount of money but Malfoy was still acutely aware that the sum remaining was still enough to virtually bankrupt him and destroy his political influence and his family in one fell swoop. Not for the first time he cursed his ancestors for getting into this mess.
But the real reason for his current rage was his new understanding of his predicament. Now he had freed Black the man had not only the Lordship of House Black which still carried a large volume of political clout, he also had amounts owed to him which could cripple the Malfoy family. He had been uncomfortably aware that Black could easily dictate his actions from now on. If he did something Black didn't like or attempted to work against him, Black could threaten to or call in the debt destroying him. He knew that with Black back in the picture he could say goodbye to the vast amounts of political influence. The only way it would be possible to survive would be alongside Black but he knew the blood traitor would never work with him and had only done so because the circumstance were so desperate, not to mention the fact he already had Lucius over the proverbial barrel. And, he thought as he snapped off a crucio at a flicker of movement, that situation was unlikely to change soon.