Bend me break me I fall down just to give you a thrill I think I'm paranoid, manipulate it
Anyway You need me
All I want is you
Bend me break me
Breaking down is easy
All I want is you
Prop me up with another pill
If I should fail, if I should fold
I nailed my faith to the sticking pole
I think I'm paranoid, too complicated
Diagon Alley was, in a word, incredible. As we walked down the street my head twisted as I tried to look at everything and Ginny laughed as I tried to pull her into every shop. The alley was so alive, so full of scents and sounds it was amazing. I fell in love with Diagon Alley straight away. One hour and fifteen galleons later I had bought a cauldron, a broomstick (which I wouldn't be able to use until my second year anyway, but I didn't care), a wand (I was incredibly excited about that one) and my school robes. We all headed into the bookshop to buy the school books when we heard a squeal. I turned quickly, anticipating danger, when I realised it was Molly.
"Oh isn't he wonderful!" Some sort of "amazing" "handsome" wizard was book signing. Harry got dragged onto the stage to get his picture taken and I rolled my eyes. Even Ginny and Hermione seemed quite taken by the wizard. I glanced up at Ron who seemed to be disgusted by his mother, sister and friend. He grinned at me and whispered,
"You think he's hot?" Hot I thought? I've never really thought about someone's attractiveness before. I turned to look at the wizard. He had a nice smile I suppose but there was nothing distinctly "handsome" about him.
"Not particularly." I responded turning to Ron. "Handsome" dial still turned on I examined Ron thoroughly. Yes, I decided, Ron was "hot". There was just something about him that made my spine shudder, in the good way. I was rather enjoying this; I'd never looked at people this way before. Suddenly I got grabbed from behind, I shrieked expecting Mother or Father and I felt a golden glow engulf me. I immediately panicked. Not now, I thought, there's no water, I won't be able to escape. I felt the usual slippery scales on my legs but this time it was all over my body. I turned this way and that, finally realised that my size had changed as well. I looked up at the petrified faces around me and I realised my captor was still clutching me. I slipped up his arm and around his neck, my head burying in greasy blonde hair.
"Call her off." Commanded another man, tall and blonde like my captor (now my victim) and I presumed they were related. Animal instincts told me to squeeze and I began to tighten my hold on his neck. I watched the blonde boy's skin redden as I did so.
"Haylen!" I heard Hermione and Ginny begin to shout at me, demanding that I let go but my anger got the better of me and I tightened some more. How dare this boy scare me into thinking he was Father? How dare he let me presume it was Mother? How dare he lay his greasy little hands on me while I was unprotected? My victim began to shake, trying to get me off of him. I tightened some more.
"Malfoy stay still." I heard Ron's voice and the shaking stopped. I loosened slightly and my victim gasped. "Haylen, as much as I'd love you to murder the Malfoy scum this could get you into a lot of trouble. I'm going to hold my hand out now ok? There we go." He reached out a pale, freckled hand to me and I slid towards him, wrapping round his arms and up to his neck, hanging loosely against his warm skin. I closed my eyes and the golden glow enveloped me. When I awoke I was human again and I was sobbing into Ron's arms as he carried me the way he had when he found me as a mermaid.
"Curious." I heard a voice mutter. I turned my head to see the tall long haired man that I had guessed rightly was the victim's father. I felt the golden glow engulf me quicker than it ever had and I was a snake again, hissing at this despicable man.
"Hush now Haylen, there's no need to be like that. Just come with me and we can test your abilities..."
"You stay away from her!" I heard Ron shout. I transformed back and Ron set me down and escorted me out of the bookstore, Molly and the others soon followed with our books. We flooed straight home to the burrow and I went to bed in Ginny's room immediately.
The next day I was woken harshly. I blinked as the sunlight poured onto my bed and turned my head to see Hermione shaking my shoulder saying,
"Haylen! Wake up Haylen!" again and again. I groaned and pulled myself upright,
"What's the matter Hermione?"
"It's midday already and we have one day before Hogwarts." I frowned, pushing hair out of my face and rubbing sleep from my eyes.
"So?"
"So! We need to test your abilities-"
"That's what that blonde man said." I interrupted quickly.
"If we don't know what you're capable of then you may not be allowed into Hogwarts," Hermione stated softly, "you could've really hurt Malfoy." I heard what was left unsaid. I could be "dangerous."
I pulled on some clothes after taking a shower and joined everyone outside on the field where we'd played Quidditch two days ago. They sat in a circle and where Hermione sat there were piles and piles of books.
"Right. Haylen we're each going to throw some spells at you and see how you respond. So far you've only transfigured due to fear so we need to test that." I nodded my acceptance and stepped into the middle of their circle. Everyone stood up and pointed their wands at me.
"Aguamenti!" They all shouted simultaneously. Water spouted from their wands and just before it hit me I felt the golden glow happen faster than it ever had. I felt scales on my body but this time only on my belly, the rest of my body had turned hard and armour like. I soon recognised my shape had changed so that I was on ground level. I gnashed my teeth and the twins backed away from me. I transfigured back easily.
"What was I?" I questioned the terrified looks of my friends and family.
"Alligator." Said Fred.
"Crocodile." Said George. They argued over this for a few minutes whilst Hermione flicked quickly through a book.
"A Nile crocodile." She said triumphantly and showed me the picture. I blushed,
"Why was I a crocodile?" I quizzed the know-it-all.
"My guess is that you were on land yet you needed to withstand water. That was the first thing you thought of." I nodded, it made sense.
"Now I'm going to cast some random spells okay?" I nodded.
"Avis." A flock of birds appeared. I transfigured into a kestrel and joined them. Hermione didn't give me a chance to transfigure back before casting her next spell,
"Densaugeo." Her spell hit me and my teeth began to grow, I transfigured into a walrus.
"Obliviate." I screamed at the powerful memory from when I was seven. I don't know what I became but Hermione immediately ran to me.
"Shh it's ok, I didn't cast it, I'm sorry." I looked up at her then transfigured back.
"What did I become?" I looked around the circle shakily. No one answered. I repeated myself, louder this time. "What did I become?" Ron stepped forward and looked me in the eye,
"This is a wild guess but I think you became a seven year old you." I shuddered then processed this information,
"I was still human," I swung round and marched to Hermione, "What does this mean?" She handed me a mirror and said,
"Focus on your eyes, they're blue. Make them green." I concentrated as hard as I could and felt the warmth from the golden glow. I opened my eyes and saw Fred and George sniggering at me. I looked back into the mirror and saw that I'd turned green, head to toe. Even my hair was a slight shade of lime. I looked to Hermione for help.
"Now when you feel the golden glow, draw it in to your eyes." I saw that she was reading this from a book with a weird name beginning with "M." I did as she said, let the gold glow do its work then opened my eyes. They were green. Harry, Ron, Hermione, the twins, Ginny, Molly and Arthur all erupted into cheers.
"You did it! You're a metamorphagus." I stared at Hermione blankly,
"I'm a what now?" Hermione grinned then replied,
"You're a metamorphagus, a shape shifter; you can change what you look like. It's very rare you know." I stared at her blankly then looked around at everyone else,
"So you guys can't do it?" They shook their heads simultaneously.
"So I'm a freak in the wizarding world as well as the muggle one?" Ginny opened her mouth to protest and I shook my head and ran away from them. I didn't turn to watch Ron chase after me, and I didn't fully acknowledge the golden glow until it had transformed me into a swan and I was flying away from them all, over the burrow.
"Haylen!" I turned my head and saw Ron on his broomstick trying to catch up with me. I looked down and saw everyone looking up at me, panicking. I didn't want them to worry about me I just wanted some time on my own, I mean is that too much to ask. I transformed into a sparrow and perched on Ron's broom and he looked relieved as he took us down to the burrow. When he landed I flew off of the broom and transfigured mid-flight.
"Don't say anything." I interrupted all of them as they started to speak. I didn't want to hear it. "I'll be on the roof if you want me." I transfigured back into a sparrow and flew to the roof of the rickety burrow. After an hour I heard two sets of heavy breathing and some clambering come from behind me. I turned back into human form and watched the twin's huff and puff as they came to join me.
"You have no idea how" Said Fred.
"Bloody hard it is to" Said George
"Get up here without wings." They finished. I regarded them thoughtfully,
"Why didn't you use brooms?" They looked at each other bewildered.
"Didn't think of that one eh Gred?" I laughed at them and wiped away any tears that may have fallen earlier.
"We think being a metamorphagus is majorly cool." Stated George. I laughed at their blunt approach and nodded. I stared at them for a second, closed my eyes and became George. Or rather Fred. Who can tell the difference anyway?
"Oh wow," chorused the twins, "we've got a triplet! I'll name you… Lenny." I laughed in their same Weasley way and followed them back down the drainpipe they'd climbed in order to get to the roof. We walked into the kitchen and Molly did a double take,
"Oh Merlin, two was enough!" I laughed and replied,
"Which ones which?" she frowned and guessed wrong three times before I morphed my eyebrows away to give her a clue. I morphed back to me.
"Haylen,"
"Yes Harry?" I turned to him.
"You look really weird without any eyebrows." I laughed and morphed them back.
"Ohh!" I exclaimed.
"What is it dear?" Asked Molly.
"I can be a Weasley!" I shook my hair and it turned the trademark Weasley red as I did so. Everyone laughed,
"You are a Weasley, Haylen, red hair or not." Stated Molly and I sat down for dinner then went to bed, ready for my Hogwarts adventure to begin.