A/N: Random musings from Liza to clear up any confusion(:

Nothing here in this story, save my OC and the plot, is mine. Unless JK Rowling decides to will all the copyrights to me when she dies or something.

Hi, my name is Elizabeth Arundel, and I was born 30th march, 1592, to Althea and Arcturus Arundel. My parents were killed shortly after Merlin cast his spell to make the entire Malis race barren. Usually Malis are immortal, but my mother died when was pregnant with my sister as she was affected by the spell. My dad committed suicide shortly after from grief.

I suppose my job would be a full time companion, a part time pet. Currently I am in my eagle form – technically a bald eagle. I am 88 cm tall and have a 2m wingspan (small for female bald eagle standards). In human form, which I have not been in for a long time, I am rather short (1.59m), just a little bit on the plump side (in the past fat was fashionable – I would love to lose the weight though), black hair to the waist (that was fashionable too), and blue eyes. But I cannot change back to my human form 'till my master dies. Previously, I was a black tabby cat, with white socks.

Uhh, my social class depends on the master/mistress I currently live with – in this case it means I'm very, very well off (the malfoys are rich! MWAHAHAHA). By the way, I cannot eat anything other than fish now as an eagle; therefore, I miss my apples and mangos. Ohh, and my stamina is crappy. As a human, I am right-handed; but I don't think eagles like myself favour a wing; we'd drop out of the sky if that was the case.

If you were wondering, I don't talk – eagles have no vocal chords that I'm aware off, but I communicate telepathically with my master/mistress and only with them, which means I don't talk to others, but I understand them. Other than that, I don't understand what other eagles are saying either. And sometimes I still have the urge to scratch behind my ears – it's not my fault, blame my living twenty years as a cat!

My childhood – It was fun while it lasted. Then I was sent to the Elders to learn the ways before going on to find my first master. I never heard from my parents again, save the news that they died when Merlin casted his spell.

My earliest memory was discovering that I had the ability to change. Father was in the garden sowing corn when I suddenly had an overwhelming urge to peck at them and eat them. So I did, and when father looked up again, he was shocked to see in the place of his only daughter was a hen pecking at corn in his seedbed. After much shaking and shouting from him, I finally managed to change back.

I didn't go to school much, the Elders taught me the ways of a Malis – how to be a great companion, how to lend a listening ear, for around three years, cramming as much as possible before sending me off into the world. But now I'm at Hogwarts, that counts too, no?

If you count the house of Elders a school, I had fun in school. There were many like myself (other Malis). I made friends there, the Elders were nice, although strict, but I learnt if I studied hard, they would not have minded if I let myself go once in a while. I used to love racing other Malis to see who could change from each form to another the fastest. My friendships with other Malis were all forged during my stay at the house of Elders. But those Malis I knew either died or disappeared from the surface of earth for I never heard from them again.

While growing up, I wanted to become like one of the Elders – so I could teach other Malis our ways. But that never happened for Merlin cast his spell soon after I left the house of the Elders and there were no more young ones born to us. Furthermore, while I was serving under my previous mistress, I learnt the ways of potion brewing – herbs and their uses.

Anyways, I've gotta go, they're is calling for me, and I don't want to keep him waiting! Bye (for now)!

Okay, so let me get this straight. You are a Malis that has been alive for almost 500 years, and whenever you switch masters, your form switches as well?

Yupps! I lose the ability to switch forms once I find a master/mistress. But in between, I'm free to choose my form. However, we Malis prefer to find a new one quickly once our old one dies because its what we're supposed to do, you see. Or we'd feel uncomfortable, very uncomfortable.

Tell me more about the Malis. What is their history as a peoples.

Ohh okay, let me explain it more clearly. The Malis were around on earth since the beginning of time. Our early ancestors took mostly the form of domesticated dogs and horses, for that were the useful and favoured animals by humans at that time. We live to provide companionship and friendship, hence the uncomfortable-ness with having no master/mistress. We also live forever, but if we fall in love with a human, we die out of grief (just like my teacher at the Elder school did), so basically we die out of grief. Of course, weapons can hurt us, so do spells too. But I've hardly seen any of us dying from battle wounds (we don't like to fight, so we don't). Ohh but one thing, if we do fall in love with another Malis, we wont die.

We bond to one master/mistress at a time, until they die. Then we're free to change forms again until we find a new one.

What was it like living in your village as a child?

It was like living back in the time when the Salem Witch trials. Fear of persecution was making most adults cautious, especially those in human form (those who were married to another Malis stay in the same form as each other, most of the time they stay as humans). Except that it wasn't the witches being pursued, it was them hunting us. Soon after I was born, Merlin soon found the spell to cast to render every single Malis barren. Hence I bonded very much to the other children in the village as well as in school. I guess you could say we were the last batch of little kids in the Elder house.

However, if we ignore the tense atmosphere then, I guess my parents were great.. I'd like to get to know them more if I could go back in time. But that's impossible. (I would shrug at that sentence, but that's impossible for an eagle)

When you are an animal, you have human senses?

Yeah, I do – I can hear people talking, but I can't talk back to them. I see the world through my eagle's eyes now, so it is better than the normal human eyesight. As for hearing, it's about the same as a human's, though I miss the sharp hearing of a cat, my previous form.

So you could technically write if you wanted too?

I could if I really, really wanted to. I use my beak to peck out words on a muggle computer. But that's only for muggles, so I don't know what to do with a parchment and a quail. Come to think of it, quails are evil things. How dare they use feathers for writing? Feathers are best left on our bodies!

Does this ever frustrate you?

Of course it does, it takes such a long time pecking out all these letters you know. Just that sentence alone took me 3 minutes! Pooh.

What makes you happy, sad, and angry?

I guess I live simply for fish, that makes me very, very happy. Yes, I know, I'm a glutton. But seeing my master happy makes me happy too, since it means I'm doing what I do well enough. Yeah, my emotions are tied pretty much to his. But when he's sad, I'd have to cheer him up too, even though I feel horrible. Ahh well...

What are some negative traits of yours? What sets you off?

Hmms, I'll just list a few since there are so many... I'm impulsive, rude and irritable – according to the Elders, but I seriously don't think I am, I hope. They say I talk back too much. One of my previous masters said that too. He told me to shut up every five minutes. Awww but I really don't think I'm a chatterbox. I don't like changing back to my human form too, for the last time I checked, I was short and fat. Maybe the fat would have worn off by all the exercise by the time I do get the chance to change back. And I ponder questions for too long before actually answering them

And I absolutely hate it when my master forgets to feed me! I mean, I look like an eagle, but I can't stand raw fish. :( It's so... barbaric

where do you hope to go after your master sets you free? If that's even the term you use...

I don't really hope to go anywhere, and besides when that happens, it means he's dead, 'cos we can't go anywhere till the bond is severed, which usually only happens when our master's dead. And we don't really plan that far ahead; we just focus on what we do! (:

What happens to you between masters? Could you transform back to your human form and practice your Malis magic?

When our previous master/mistress dies, we loose all bonds tying us to them, and there for the bond that restricts our form-changing is gone too. Therefore, yes, we can transform back to our human forms. But we don't really have Malis magic, but I do know a few simple spells that I've learnt over the years from my previous masters (the power of long-term observation)

Uncomfortable as in being in a room full of people you don't know who all seem to be good friends with each other or uncomfortable like having a constant itch on your foot?

It's like a constant itch on your foot – a tugging on your soul, a feeling that something is not quite right and you can't do anything about it till you find a new master/mistress.

What are some things that make you uncomfortable even when you're with a master or mistress?

I don't really like wandering far from them, it feels uncomfortable too (but not as much as the above-mentioned one). Hence, when they go out on errands and can't bring me, when they go for classes or when they bathe; I'll feel uncomfortable too. Of course, those weird people and creepy places that makes everyone uneasy makes me feel the same way too.

How do you find a master or mistress once your former one dies? Do you go looking for them? Do you just hope that you will someday stumble upon someone who needs a pet?

It's quite up to me to choose a new one. Sometimes I actively go looking for one if I can't stand the 'tugging'. Other times I just wonder around 'till I find a kind/nice looking person to bond with.(:

You said that if you fall in love with your master or mistress and they die, you will die too. This special 'bond' sounds a lot like love to me. Do you mean romantic love? Because losing your best friend or anyone very close to you can be kinda devastating too.

You're right – losing your best friend will be devastating, but we don't really see it that way. Its the way things are. I don't know for the rest of the Malis, but in my lifetime so many have come and gone – nine masters and five mistresses, to be exact. I can't speak for myself, for I've never fallen in love (a romantic one) with a human yet, but I guess the bond that runs between that Malis who did and her master would be even deeper than what already exists. Therefore, I guess when the bonds are severed, the pain of the bonds breaking would be too much to bear and the Mali dies. Of course, breaking the bonds itself, without the love, is still painful, but bearable.

Have you ever had a master or mistress that you really didn't like?

Of course, but the period of time I stayed with him was quite bearable, because it was short. Around a month or so. It seemed like no one else liked him either, and he was killed by debtors.

What do you think is worse, being stuck with someone you hate, or wandering aimlessly around with no one at all?

This is a rather tough question.. I'd have to say wandering aimlessly around would be worse. Besides the constant uneasiness, there would be absolutely nothing to do! At least, with someone I hate (which I haven't really met many), I could try to get to know them, rather than wasting the time. When you have all of eternity, you'd welcome any form of distraction.

Do you get impatient with people you don't like?

Sure I do, I even get impatient with people I like, especially when they're behaving like they own the world! (p.s don't tell the Elders about this – its not what a good Malis does) But, I'm proud to say, generally, I do keep my temper in check, I hope.

Where do Mali's fit into the class system of magical races? (And if you're wondering, I did just make that up.) For example, are they considered lesser then humans because they serve them? Greater because they live longer? Or are they widely unknown about, ( I mean, they aren't mentioned in the books.) and therefore unconsidered?

Hehs I'd love to say greater! We're the best in the world does a little dance But that wouldn't be truthful.. Well, honestly I haven't met a single master that heard of our race before I met them. That's quite sad, isn't it? So I suppose that would leave us unconsidered, since no one knows about us. But at least now you'd have heard of us:D

A/N: the story will countinue in the next chapter! I hope this chappie helps to clear up any confusion. Please review! (: