"I want to go first." She spoke defiantly, it was Rebecca after all. She was brave to the point of utter stupidity. There was no room to question her place in Gryffindor.
"Are you su-" Remus started.
"Are you really asking her that question?" Interjected Sirius casually, snorting.
She stepped forward, as if she was unaware that the conversation behind her was in fact about her still.
There were nearly too many viles of potions set on the four separated tables in front of her to count. About sixteen on each table, like little replicas of each other, the room of requirement had provided all the necessary requirements for them, it had been there all the way through for them. Mirrors made up the walls all around those tables, making even the plaintive room such a sight to behold that it was strange.
Merlin, all of this will be over soon. No more sneaking around for ingredients, no more practicing these spells.
She hurried to push those thoughts aside, moving forward, chin held high, masking the little bubbling sensation of fear in her chest with ease, until she was inches away from one of the tables. That table seemed like some kind of obstacle now, like she had to defeat it and clear it to win this match.
Three years they'd planned out this. Being a part of them, the group, Sirius, Peter, James, and Remus, it was so strange, being the only girl to be this close to them especially, like she made it unbalanced and unsteady at times, and while she was probably the odd one out of the group, she still fit in so well, each of them had a different relationship with her, but all four of them were special to her. Other girls made fun of her for being boyish enough to hang out with them, but most of them were just jealous anyway, she had decided that much in her second year.
Being something for Remus though, it wasn't much of a decision at all, being able to help him during his transformations, there was no question, and everyone had agreed so easily.
Reaching a small hand forward, she grabbed up the first potion, her wand ready for her to speak the spell that was first, that she knew so well by now.
"Cheers." She giggled, holding out the little thing to them, before downing it like it was a shot, pointing her wand to her temple in the same motion, whispering the enchantment.
Her brows pinched together almost immediately, a pinching feeling settling unsettlingly in the pit of her stomach. It wasn't painful, just uncomfortable, but not scary. It was a feeling that made you jittery with the prospect of discovering something amazing, that kind of feeling.
14 potions in and she might have argued about her previous thoughts, she was barely able to hold herself on her feet anymore, but she refused to lose herself in this unnerving pain stabbing at her gut, twisting her insides roughly, like a bloody blender. She stammered a few times before she murmured the spell that followed.
"Two more." She grumbled, gritting her teeth, staggering forward a small step. She finished off 15 quickly and moved on.
Sucking in a shaky breath, she settled herself, her balance swaying once more before she lifted a shaky hand to jerk the 16th potion off the table, lifting it to her lips and tipping her head back without a thought. She followed up with a whispered spell and immediately went to the very last filled vile on that little table top.
Her hand trembled a bit, pausing in the air, her shoulders heaved with one more deep breath and she glanced toward the boys, just feet away from her, watching her so carefully.
She didn't dare to waste anymore time, snatching up the glass, bringing it to her face and chugging it down.
"Oh." She gasped after a short second, not quite sure if it'd been out loud or not, it was like her knees just couldn't hold her weight anymore as she slid down to the ground, flexing her fingers outward.
There was a strange plucking sensation all about her, her stomach churning and making her feel nauseous so that she had to work hard to keep down her dinner.
Her gaze blurred for a brief second, but when she had blinked her gaze back to normal finally it settled on them, all of them seemed half between shock and fear, they looked like they thought she was in great peril, and in spite of the situation and her dazed state of mind she allowed a giggle to slip from her throat. Remus had moved to her side, but Sirius was moving right after him to yank him back.
"Leave her, I think it's working."
"You think?" He snapped back quickly, She'd never actually seen him this concerned about her before. Sure, all of them were protective over her, but…
Her thought trailed off, head spinning again.
It seemed to happen in a matter of seconds after that, but she remembered all of it so well.
Her body contorted forward in a nearly unnatural way and her toes curled, her eyes slipped past the boys and to the wall of mirror behind them, to her reflection. Well, almost her, but not really her. That wasn't herself, not the girl that had stared back into the mirror at her for 17 years. Nearly, but…just not exactly.
Her eyes had shifted from that plain grey she knew so well, to a color that seemed stuck between silver and amber, an odd combination she couldn't really explain. Her pupils, usually tiny and encircled by flecks of a green tint, had become completely slitted, and eerie. She could feel fur flecking up over her pale skin, her bones shifting, her structure changing in a way that she was sure should've been painful, but it just happened too damn quickly.
A tale waved behind her once it was over, two tiny ears flicked atop her head, and a creature looking like a housecat version of a jaguar stared back at her in that mirrored wall behind the boys.
She stared, blinked a few times, and flexed her dainty paws out against the cold, marble ground under her. In front of her, Sirius was the first to approach, but they all seemed so awestruck. Peter looked like he thought she might tear out his throat with her newly acquired claws, but that was Peter for you. How he got in Gryffindor, Rebecca would never know. Remus stayed behind, just watching, quizzical as always, but James wasted no time in moving to Sirius's side.
It was strange, that she could see their mouths moving, hear the tone of their voices, but she couldn't understand a word. It was frustrating, but at the same time, she could actually, physically sense that their words were hung with awestruck emotion, something that made sense to her, but at the same time didn't.
The second ability she discovered was that of purring. It didn't take much effort to figure it out, especially when James scratched under her chin, in just that place that felt really, oddly good. It was so silly and so strange at the same time.
Weaving herself forward, she took her first steps as an animal, curling herself around Sirius's leg, even as he kneeled, pausing in her step to shoot a glance at Peter and hiss devilishly, her ears flicking back at the sounds of James and Sirius's laughter, so that something of a smirk curled into her mouth.
Oh god this was awesome.