I don't need wings to help me fly
An Animagus (pl. Animagi) is a witch or wizard who can morph him or herself into a specific animal at will. It is a learned, rather than hereditary skill, unlike those of a Metamorphmagus.
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"When once you have tasted flight you will forever walk the earth with your eyes turned skyward, for there you have been, and there you will always long to return." ~ Leonardo Da Vinci
- - - - -
It always came as a surprise to Harry that no muggles noticed people disappearing from the telephone box that acted as the visitor's entrance to the Ministry of Magic. He strongly suspected a good few muggle-repelling charms had been placed around it, but it was always possible that the Ministry relied on the muggles natural ability to only see what they wanted to see. Since the fulfilment of the prophecy that had shaped the last twenty years of his life, Harry had been avoiding the Ministry of Magic as much as possible.
It wasn't the building exactly, more his experiences with the last two ministers, and the fact that a woman as abhorrent as Dolores Umbridge had not only worked, but flourished there! The building itself was a magical marvel, he knew this – Hermione had drummed its history into him, even as they were breaking into the Department of Mysteries – but there were too many bad memories connected with the place for Harry to ever truly feel comfortable there.
However, today a trip to the Ministry was unavoidable. He had to meet Ron and Hermione to register their Animagus forms. He'd argued against it for weeks, backed up forcefully by Ron, but Hermione and Minerva had worn him down. His natural respect for his former professor, and sisterly devotion to Hermione had made him less resistant to their logic, and although he was confident that there had been at least four unregistered Animagi who had never been caught, he didn't really want to risk a term in Azkaban. The memory of Sirius as he'd been when he first escaped was an image that haunted him still, and his death was something he'd never truly gotten over.
As he disappeared below the London pavements in a rush of magic, he forced his mind to happier subjects. That evening Molly was throwing a party for himself, Ron and Hermione to celebrate their successful transformations and registrations. It had taken over a year of intense study with Minerva McGonagall, but all three of them finally got it. Hermione was first, her natural enthusiasm for studying and disciplined work ethic spurring her to work harder, but Harry quickly followed with Ron not far behind. They had made a pact to keep their forms secret, even from each other, until they could all transform successfully. Only Minerva knew what they could do. The original plan had been for the three of them to register separately and then reveal their forms to everyone at the party, but out of habit born of years of doing everything together they decided to register together and go out to lunch, to catch up and to have one last adventure as the Golden Trio.
Harry had always preferred their group nickname to his various labels - Chosen One, Boy-who-lived, Scarhead - at least with the Trio the attention was focused on more than just him. He really didn't enjoy being so famous, but followed the example of his beloved late mentor, Albus Dumbledore, and refused to take any of it seriously, remembering all too well how the press and the ministry had turned against him so easily in the dark days of Fudge's administration. He sighed, and crossed the Atrium to head for the lifts. His thoughts were turning maudlin again. It seemed to happen more and more often of late.
The lift door opened and he climbed in, ignoring the flurry of inter-departmental memos overhead. A pretty girl about his age pushed her way out, eyes widening as she took in the tell-tale scar and messy hair. She smiled at him and opened her mouth as if to speak when the lift doors slid shut, leaving Harry feeling slightly relieved and more than a little agitated. He hated the women fawning over him– Dean and Seamus told him he was mad, that he should take advantage of his fame to meet women, but he always said that he was happier than ever that Ginny was his girlfriend. She liked him for himself, and was almost as irritated by his fame as he was.
The lift glided to a halt and a serene voice intoned "Second floor, Department of Magical Law Enforcement, incorporating the Auror Office, Misuse of Muggle Artifacts, Wizengamot Administration Services, Improper Use of Magic Office and the Office for the Detection and Confiscation of Counterfeit Defensive Spells and Protective Objects." He stepped out and looked around for Ron and Hermione, finally spotting them seated on a bench at the far end of the corridor with what looked like a small mountain of paperwork. Yet another reason he'd had for not wanting to register. Paperwork, ugh! He made a face and set off down the hall. When he got closer he couldn't help but grin. Hermione had her back to him, and was clearly lecturing Ron about the importance of filling in his forms correctly – her hair fanning out behind her and her arms gesturing wildly to illustrate her point. Poor Ron looked trapped and his eyes were glazing over, but he brightened a little at the sight of Harry, who put his finger to his lips, indicating that Ron not tell Hermione he was behind her.
Using all his sneaking skills he crept closer until he was barely a handspan behind her, then without warning he grabbed her around the waist and threw her in the air, catching her easily a second later. Her shrieking, he had expected, but was alarmed and ever so slightly amused when her wand hit him between the eyes and her fist caught him in the solar plexus.
"Oof! Hermione it's only me! Calm down!"
"Calm down? Harry James Potter, you nearly gave me a heart attack! What were you thinking?" she swatted his arm, while Ron attempted to pick himself up from the floor and breathe again, his chuckles earning him a glare from both Hermione and Harry.
"Ron? Not helping, mate." Harry growled.
"Oh, but you should see your faces. Hermione lighten up. It was just a bit of fun – although I must say your reflexes are impressive!"
"Humph. Well. I hope you learned your lesson about attacking defenceless witches for no good reason," Hermione said, smirking at Harry who was attempting to discreetly rub his ribs, "It'll save me having to tell Ginny to get her to help me plan a suitable punishment."
"Defenceless? Hermione, you are many things. Defenceless isn't one of them. I'm sorry if I'm late – have I missed anything?"
"Only about fifty forms. I'm done, so I started on yours. You'll just need to check them over and sign them."
"Have I told you lately how amazing you are 'Mione?"
"Well after that stunt you pulled you're lucky I haven't just evanesco'd them, but I'm all for getting out of here before Christmas. Are you done yet Ron?"
"Nearly. How are you supposed to know what your identifying marks are? It's not like you can see yourself very well once you've transformed!"
"Honestly Ron! Didn't you ask Professor McGonagall to tell you?"
"Um ..."
"Oh, never mind! You're hopeless. The registrar will note it for you. Here, pass me your forms, I'll let them know we're ready." She bustled off with the huge stack of parchment, shaking her head and pursing her lips as she went.
Harry grinned at Ron. "Never changes, does she? Completely dependable, that one."
"Yep. Never met a book she doesn't like, always has to be right, always has the last word, and can make a man feel about this big in one sentence." He moved his fingers about an inch apart.
"But we love her." Harry said.
"But we love her." agreed Ron
After a brief conversation with a bored-looking middle-aged wizard, Hermione hurried over and plopped herself back down next to Ron.
"They'll see us alphabetically, me first, then you Harry, and you're last Ron, but we can all go in together if we like, so long as we're quiet and don't interrupt each other's interviews."
"Sounds good. Wait, what interviews? I thought we just go in, transform, get a piece of paper to say we're registered and that would be that."
"Honestly! Do either of you ever listen when I talk? Animagus registration is like a practical exam, except instead of the examiner there's a registrar. You have to demonstrate your grasp of the transformation, and your control of your form. Due to the complexity of the magic involved in the transformations, if you don't have satisfactory control, they can refuse to allow you to register – which is why we trained with a registered Animagus until our control is as good as it's going to get before we came to register. They take a picture for the records. They check the forms are correct. They note any distinguishing features. Then they interview you. Because the Animagus transformation is now so rare they want to know, well, how we did it I suppose."
"So, not very simple then. Okay. Sorry."
Hermione sighed. "No, I'm sorry. I think I'm nervous."
"Don't be. We're in this together. Like always." They smiled at each other.
"Miss Granger? They're ready for you now."
"Come on then boys, this is it." She gripped their hands for a fleeting second before marching through the door to the examination room.
- - - - -
Clutching a butter-beer in one hand and wiping a tear from his eye with the other, Ron tried to signal the barman that they were ready for another round.
"Hermione, you make a sweet cat, but I thought you'd be, oh, I don't know, a bookworm or something! But I can honestly say that I wasn't surprised that Harry's form could fly, were you? He's a natural in the air – apparently with or without a broom! And just think! He could pick up some extra cash working for the Owl Post Office!" Ron sputtered, collapsing into laughter again.
"Oh, shut it you. At least I'm not a ginger dog!"
Hermione suppressed a smile at their bickering and sighed in contentment. It was good to spend some time just the three of them. They'd all been so busy, and her Healer training meant that she kept odd hours. When she wasn't working she saw more of Luna and Ginny than her two favourite men, due to her living arrangements. Ginny and Luna had both been approached by the Department of Mysteries upon graduation, Luna for her unique abilities and Ginny for her power, skill and past experiences. Although the three of them were very different, they had decide to rent a flat together. They got on surprisingly well and had grown remarkably close, but Hermione missed the first two real friends she'd ever had.
Harry cleared his throat, breaking into her reverie.
"Since we're all here together, I have an announcement to make..."