Chapter 1

Esmeralda POV

Esmeralda Potter wasn't in bed. In fact, she was wandering down in the dungeons brooding. She was currently trying to find her sleep, although she suspected she wouldn't find it down here. The dungeons held a certain sort of quietness she was looking for. The kind of stillness that let you think properly. So here she was, in some random corridor, thinking.

Esmeralda was short for her age, looking more like a third year than a sixth. She was well developed though, her curves more than making up for her height. Her hair was a dark auburn that looked black in all lights except sunlight and firelight. With large emerald eyes that often had a dreamy look, a cream complexion and pixie features, she looked like a living doll that hadn't been told it wasn't supposed to be alive. She was often told she could have been her mother's twin, if she didn't have her father's height, nose and smile. The kind of lopsided smile that brought out the lights in her eyes, and had managed to win over every teacher. Luckily.

Turning the corner, she discovered a door. Checking the marauders map, this particular corridor was supposed to be a dead end. Perhaps it was an unplottable room, like the Room of Requirement. Shrugging, she pushed open the door, to find a potions lab. There was a workbench against the back wall, and on it, were three cauldrons. Walking over, she gently peeked inside them to find them full. One had a pink coloured potion that swirled hypnotically. One had a green potion that released a heavy kind of smoke that made it look like the Muggle interpretation of a witches brew. And the third had a blue potion that emitted small sparks every now and then.

A note suddenly popped up over the potions, and Esmeralda pulled it down so she could read it.

Drink whichever potion appeals to you, read the note according to its physical appearance.

Esmeralda shrugged and looked over the potions again. She had seen potions like these. Snape had made the class make them so they could see what a show potion looked like. They all show value and nothing else. She finally decided on the green one, just for the fun of it. Plus the potion was the same shade as her eyes. She lifted the ladle from the bench, and took a large scoop, and drank it. It tasted like what she would have expected an essence of wildness to taste like. Light and tangy, with a certain nuttiness, but refreshing none-the-less. There was also a crisp cold sensation that caught her by surprise.

She put the ladle down to find another note.

The blue one makes a permanent change, the green makes a reversible change, and the pink one will change you for a week. Choose again, read the note, the change will occur after you drink this scoop

Esmeralda looked at the potions with interest. She wondered if she should just leave, but the reckless side of her (which she was certain came from her father, or possibly Sirius) told her not to be a fraidy cat.

She looked over the potions again, and finally decided on the green one. If it was reversible, then it wasn't too bad. And she liked it. So she took another scoop with the ladle and drank. It seemed to taste the same, but this time there was a spiciness underneath that seemed to arm her up.

The cauldrons and the ladle disappeared, along with the entire room, so she was standing on what seemed to be nothing, greyish white fog swirling around her.

'Make a wish in emerald eyes. Then your change can be decided' giggled a decidedly feminine voice.

"Who are you?" called Esmeralda, more spooked than she was willing to tell.

'I am Hogwarts. You didn't like the life you have, so I'm giving you a chance at something different,' said the castle, and Esmeralda calmed down slightly. Surely the school wouldn't hurt her too badly.

She sank into her thoughts. She couldn't just make any random wish. It had to be something that would change about her. She couldn't wish for Sirius back, or her parents. Finally, she made her choice.

"I wish to be able to go where I want, do what I want and to be seen when I want. I want to be free from all this. I want to be able to sit back and let someone else do the worrying." She said firmly, hoping that she hadn't made a bad choice.

'Nice idea,' said the castle, and then she suddenly felt a burning sensation fill her whole body, and she curled up in pain.

'Don't worry, it will pass,' said the castle soothingly, and she felt arms circle her, holding her close.

Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, she woke up to find herself in the corridor where she had started.

'I have put you cloak and map in your trunk, and your trunk where no-one can touch it,' said the castle, 'now, before I go, where would you like to be?'

I don't know, she tried to say, but all that came out was a meow. She stopped and blinked, then checked herself over. Paws, fur, and a tail. She was a cat! A black cat, from her paws to the tips of her tail.

'What's going on here?' she thought.

'You were changed,' said the castle, 'so where would you like to go?'

'I don't know as yet,' thought Esmeralda.

'Alright. When you decide, just ask, and I'll send you there,'

Esmeralda smiled (as much as a cat could smile) and trotted off, stumbling a bit as she tried to get used to her new body

It only took three days before people actually noticed she was gone. Esmeralda would have been insulted if it hadn't been the weekend, and seeing as she was often gone on the weekends, she couldn't blame them. But it was funny watching them run around like headless chickens when they realised she was gone. It was also interesting to hear what they said of her behind her back. Apparently, most of the guys in her dorm wouldn't mind sleeping with her. In the adult way.

And it was also interesting to discover how many people ignore a black cat that wandered the castle. She had been to all the house dormitories, and had spent a while begging in the great hall. It was amusing to see the seventh year boys reduced to a pile mush when she had turned her eyes on them.

Of course, she had also been to Dumbledore's office, and had discovered that she could still talk to Fawkes. Apparently there were a lot of things Dumbledore didn't tell her, like the fact that she was a Horcrux. One of Voldemort's horcruxes, to be precise. It was also rather disturbing to discover that Snape harboured a secret crush on her mother.

Now, she was sitting perched on a window sill watching the teacher interrogating the entire school. Apparently the last she had been seen was during dinner. Honestly didn't people care about her? Hadn't she announced to her dorm-mates that she was going out? Apparently not. Neville managed to get into the hall, and when asked he told them that she had been in the dorm, before announcing she was going for a walk. The others looked at him like he had grown an extra head, and Esmeralda rolled her eyes at them finally, all the students were released.

"What are we going to do Albus?" asked Minerva.

"I don't know," sighed the old man, "I shudder to think what could have happened to her,"

"She's probably gotten herself locked in a classroom," said McGonagall, "She's in no danger in Hogwarts,"

"With Slytherin and Voldemort having been in the castle, there is no accounting for what could be found," said Dumbledore.

"Hundreds upon thousands of students have attended Hogwarts since they have been here. Surely such dangers would have been found or accounted for," said McGonagall.

"Still, knowing young Esmeralda's luck, there is no accounting for what could happen," said Dumbledore.

"Surely the castle will protect her students?" asked McGonagall, obviously perturbed by the old man's thoughts. Esmeralda couldn't blame the woman. Honestly, she thought Dumbledore was being daft.

"What of the basilisk?" asked Dumbledore.

"Maybe the castle has no protection over what her founders dictate. Besides, only one student was killed, the rest paralysed," argued McGonagall, "Surely that accounts for something,"

"My dear woman," said Dumbledore, launching into a speech that Esmeralda tuned out. From the look McGonagall gave the headmaster, it was obvious that she thought he was going barmy in his old age.

Finally, McGonagall interrupted the headmaster and told him she would be searching the castle. The man nodded, and wandered off, probably to go and suck lemon drops.

Esmeralda shook herself, and hopped down, deciding to do a little exploring. She thought that the old man might actually have a point. With all the famous people who had walked the halls, surely there were going to be some interesting things around. And seeing as she was now released of her duties, she might as well discover them. She trotted off through the halls of Hogwarts, humming merrily in her mind. A humming (it was possible. She had tried) cat was a bit unusual, even here.

"Well, look what we have here," came a cold, sneering voice from behind her.

Turning, she spotted Crabbe standing behind her, regarding her with a creepy look of interest.

"The perfect thing to practise on," said Crabbe, casting a body bind on her, "I need to practise the cruciatus if the Dark Lord is going to look at me,"

She tried to struggle when she heard what he wanted to do with her, and discovered, to her horror, that he had somehow managed to get proficient in body-binds.

Finally, they got to an empty classroom, where he dropped here onto the floor. Casting a locking charm on the door, he released the body bind, and aimed his wand at her. Despite the fact that she knew what was coming, her body didn't seem to work, and she stayed frozen on the floor, staring up at him.

"Crucio," he said clearly, and the next thing she knew, waves of pain were running through her. She screamed out in agony and curled up, praying for the pain to end. Finally, it abated, and she lay there panting for breath. She heard the faint sound of laughter, and saw Crabbe standing there laughing. She managed to get to her feet, and, using the last of her energy, she bolted, finally hiding under a bookshelf, tucked into the furthest corner. She started to shake, hearing him yell in anger. In his frustration, he started to randomly throw reducto's around, causing several things to blow up, one being the door. The only problem was, he was in the way. Finally, he peeked under the bookshelf. Upon seeing her, he reached a hand in, and she did the first thing that came to mind. She bit him. He swore and pulled back to look at his hand. Using the distraction, she streaked out from under the bookshelf and darted out the door. With a roar, he followed.

Down the corridors he chased her, shooting random curses at her. Luckily, they all missed. She seemed to be going on whatever adrenaline her body had left, and she knew it would eventually run out. Either that or her luck.

Eventually it was her luck that ran out, and she found herself trapped in a dead end. She turned to find Crabbe coming down the hall. How he managed to catch her was a mystery. She felt herself start to shake.

'Please no! Not this! Anything but this!' she whimpered in her mind, 'I don't want to be here! Anywhere but here! Somewhere safe!'

And then, quite suddenly, she wasn't there.

'You asked for somewhere safe' whispered the castle. The next thing she knew, she was standing on a rock, set in the middle of a pond in the freezing rain.

'How is this safe?' she thought sarcastically, before she started to yowl.