Hermione's emerging Animagus was beyond anything she'd expected and she could not complete her full training without McGonagall. Granted she had been given a solid beginning via Merlin and Helga. But Helga was not an Animagus and Merlin would not reveal enough information about his Animagus, claiming he didn't want to give any undue influence on Hermione's evolving Animagus magic. So they had both urged Hermione to complete her training with her Professor, since McGonagall was one of the Wizarding world's foremost authority on Animagus magic. In addition, Helga and Merlin pronounced Minerva McGonagall to be a worthy and powerful witch, a suitable mentor to their charge. Finally, it went without saying that Hermione seemed to merging with her Beast at an accelerated rate and that this Beast was a magical creature.
Naturally the Animagus professor had been delighted and so before the whole terrible business with Umbridge and the subsequent DoM battle, Professor McGonagall had begun teaching her in earnest. The training often left Hermione utterly exhausted by the end of the week. Between classes, studying, training with Merlin and Helga, keeping Harry and Ron out of trouble, and now additional hours with the Head of Gryffindor, it was all Hermione could do to stay awake at times. After several grueling weeks, Hermione believed her… Beast, for lack of a better word, had started to manifest itself in weird ways.
McGonagall found these manifestations as puzzling as Hermione, although she agreed with her cub that it was her Animagus Beast making itself known. It had begun with the dreams; the sensation as if she were running a high temperature, but that this heat wasn't harmful – it was almost like an intense itch that she couldn't get to, but could be relieved by more heat – like feeling an intense pleasurable sensation of hot water running over a rash. Sometimes she'd waken up soaked in sweat, panting puffs of air that seemed as hot as steam coming out of a boiler. Or at least that was what it had felt like… and then there was her reaction around water. Her skin had become increasingly sensitive the longer she was exposed in the water.
The Gryffindor was reminded of that first time she attempted to take a long soak during her Animagus training. She'd been ignoring her body's increasing sensitivity around moisture, making her fidgety and anxious. The sensations disappeared the moment she was no longer submerged in water. But she'd had such a long and grueling week that she knew a long, hot soak in the huge Prefect's bathing room would be just the thing her body needed. At first the heat felt divine, but then the heat continued to build until the water began to bubble. She'd begun staring wide-eyed, trying to process what she was seeing, trying to rationalize why the water seemed to be boiling, but she'd remained unaffected. This was made more noticeable when she removed an arm from the water and her skin felt cool to the touch, even slightly cold. She'd frantically looked around for something to use to measure the temperature of the water, to validate what she was seeing and feeling.
Using wandless magic, a towel flew into her hand, while her other hand grabbed her wand to charm the object into something she could use. Thinking for a moment, she decided on charming the towel into a small kettle. Dipping into the water to fill it up, she'd then gave another wave of her wand to spell the kettle to float in the pool of water. It was only after a few seconds that the loud piercing sound of water boiling within the kettle that Hermione began to really become… concerned.
Almost leaping out of the water, her hair laid in thick, wet strands along her shoulders and face, she'd simply stood staring at the steadily calming waters. Finally, Hermione was forced (although not really) to remember that night she'd been with Faith. Even though during those moments her Beast's manifestations hadn't registered, it didn't detract from the further signs of her Beast: brilliant and unusual red skin or the tingling heat in her eyes. Hermione was a witch who sought answers, loved gaining knowledge so when something didn't add up she felt compelled to find answers. She wasn't known as the "brightest witch of her age" for nothing. Although Hermione thought that was a ridiculous moniker – she was certain that a few in Ravenclaw more than rivaled her intellect.
So it was with this so-called vaunted intellect, coupled with her thirst for knowledge that prompted her to slowly reach down and dip a finger back into the water. At first nothing happened, but then like sponge soaking up moisture, a reaction began to occur. And that was when she realized that her Animagus, her Beast was making an appearance. At first the water grew still and quiet, and then the water began to churn and bubble. Wide-eyed, Hermione watched as her nails grew darker while the skin along her finger continued to grow redder.
Yet, instead of the water burning her, her skin grew sensitive and cooler. Quickly, Hermione pulled her hand away and hurried over to a large panel of mirrors, and what she saw astonished her. The first was that her hair had somehow become dry and lustrous, but with streaks of red, reddish-orange, and burgundy interwoven with a deep chestnut color. The colors were so brilliant and rich that it almost appeared as if parts of her hair were on fire. But that wasn't the only noticeable change; her eyes had become orbs of flames that almost seemed to leap out from her sockets. Bemusedly lifting her hands, she noticed that all her nails had become black and sharp, claw-like.
However an even bigger change included not just her finger turning a deep, almost Gryffindor red, but the rest of her body as well. And it matched the swirls of black ink snaking up her arms, shoulders and torso so that it looked like some kind of giant tribal tattoo. Only these 'tattoos' continued to swirl, dip, and curl all along her skin. Additionally, her face had become more… delicate, almost catlike, but broader, like a big cat, and it was then that she noticed her teeth had also become sharper, she now had gleaming small fangs. Being the Guardian had enhanced her senses, in this new form, those senses became even more acute. Barely restraining herself from muffling her ears with her hands, she realized could actually hear conversations taking place within the Great Hall, alongside the sound of clinking dishes and the sounds of food being eaten.
Shaking her head, she uttered a wordless Silencio spell, giving her blessed relief. Feeling the sensation of this new Animagus magic coursing through her veins, she focused on her wandless hand. Turning over to palm up, remembering the instructions from her Animagus lessons from McGonagall, the Guardian concentrated. But not too hard – she didn't want to stress it, she listened to her body, to her magic, and as if something was racing along her veins, the magic that'd begun to physically manifest itself throughout the evening, crystallized. Forming one's Animagus magic, discovering one's Beast, Hermione learned was a bit like waddling through thick sludge, similar to working oneself from quicksand; you had to be methodical and careful. It was difficult to sort through all the clues, harder still to sift through all the muffled mess, until you began to receive clues. Yet, if you went too fast you could get sucked in and you'd lose the tiny thread, your body and magic locked into some unpleasant version of yourself.
Hermione suspected that her Beast was unlike any she'd ever heard of, a rare Magical Beast, a Fire Elemental. These latest clues were even more telling – yet confusing, because an Elemental wasn't necessarily a Beast, more like chaotic Earth Magic. Deciding to test her theory, Hermione concentrated on an area on the palm of her hand, after a few moments a small ball of fire began to form in Hermione's palm. An icy-hot, yet not altogether unpleasant sensation stung her palm below the orb. It began to confirm things for her. Still it also made her increasingly unsettled. The Beast chose the witch/wizard based on personality and character traits, and other unidentifiable things. She knew little about Elementals, only that they were very rare, and often stayed away from the Wizarding world. Hermione also knew she had to get a handle on this new form and Its magic, because not having control of Elemental magic would have dire circumstances.
Closing her palm, Hermione concentrated once again, allowing the Elemental Beast to… simmer down, reverting her back to her human form. Shuddering and suddenly exhausted, she was instantly reminded of the fatigue she'd been trying to fend off, only this time it sunk deeper due to changing into her Animagus form. Marshalling her reserves, she shakily walked towards the powder room to grab her clothes. As she dressed, even though bone-tired, a tiny grin began to form on her face. A Fire Elemental… how cool is that?! marveled Hermione. She couldn't wait to tell McGonagall!