CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN: THE ANIMAGUS
Ron, Hermione, Draco, Giles, Sirius, Willow and Faith sat in complete silence, each of them glancing at the clock on the kitchen wall every few seconds. Draco kept sighing in frustration and running a hand through his now incredibly messy hair.
"What's taking so long?" Ron asked.
Hermione sighed and placed a gentle hand on her boyfriend's leg. "These sorts of things take time Ron," she explained.
"The book said the ritual could take anywhere between an hour or a day," Willow added.
Ron sighed and looked at the clock again.
"It's been nearly three hours," he complained.
"We can take you back to Hogsmeade if you'd like," Giles offered, somewhat snarkily. He was frustrated as well, but Ron's questions were getting on his nerves.
Ron looked suitably chastised and shook his head. "Sorry Professor," he said.
Willow couldn't help but giggle a little at the title. Giles glared at her, but rolled his eyes when Willow laughed even more because of Giles' expression.
Draco abruptly stood up, unable to stay seated any longer.
"I'm going to check on them," he announced. "See what's taking them so bloody long."
"Awww…you worried about little old me?"
The group swivelled suddenly, all of them beginning to grin madly as they took in the sight of a fully conscious Buffy. Draco raced to his cousin and swept her into a tight hug.
When he pulled away, he was immediately replaced by Hermione, followed by Ron, followed by Willow and Giles.
"Are you alright?" Giles asked quietly.
She nodded slowly, and Giles knew that she wasn't completely recovered from what had happened, but that she would heal, given enough time.
"I'll be okay, thanks to you guys," she said.
She looked around the room at the familiar smiling faces. She stopped when she came to Faith, who's smile was genuine, but not as forceful as the others. Buffy looked at the dark-haired girl curiously. Willow followed Buffy's gaze and remembered that the two girls hadn't ever met.
"Oh…Buffy, this is Faith," Willow said. "She's the Slayer."
Buffy's eyes widened, and she immediately re-appraised the new girl. She held her hand out to Faith who shook it. Buffy winced at the force of it, and Faith immediately looked contrite.
"Shit, sorry…forgot my own strength," Faith said apologetically.
Buffy just laughed. "S'okay, believe me," Buffy assured her. "I used to do the same thing all the time."
"Ain't that the truth," Willow muttered.
Buffy shot her a mock-wounded glare. Willow just laughed, thankful that her best friend was alright.
"Are you sure you're okay?" Draco asked.
Buffy nodded, smiling in what she hoped to be a reassuring manner.
"I'll be okay," she said. "I'm just…well, exhausted seems to fall short, so…whatever comes after that, that's about where I am."
Draco nodded, thankful that she didn't seem to be too harmed.
Ron looked at Buffy and something that had been bothering him for the last four hours formed itself into a question.
"How'd you manage to escape?" he asked. "I'd have thought for sure that Fudge would've taken your wand.
Buffy suddenly smiled genuinely. Harry felt his heart pick up at the sight of it, her smile a balm to his weary soul.
"He did," Buffy replied.
"More Wiccan magic I'd guess," Hermione said.
Buffy nodded. "Yep. A power transference, a trans-locator spell, a bit of old-fashioned muggle lock-picking, and uh…"
"And what?" Giles asked, suddenly worried about the types of magic that Buffy had been doing. The power transference spell was what worried him the most, but Buffy hadn't seemed too worried by it. It was the spell she'd trailed off about that had Giles beginning to wonder just what his ward had been reading.
"I know that I wasn't meant to be reading it…and that I wasn't meant to try it without being registered…" she began.
"Buffy, you've got your apparating licence," Hermione reminded her friend.
Buffy blushed a little.
"Well…it's like this. I've been researching some uh…extra curricular subjects, and…well, I figured if Sirius and Harry's dad could do it without getting caught, then…so could I," she said.
Harry, Ron, Hermione and Sirius were the only ones who caught on to what Buffy was implying. Giles, Willow, Draco and Faith could only look at the girl in complete confusion.
"Buffy…what did you do?" Giles asked slowly.
"You're an Animagus!" Ron yelled incredulously. "Wicked!"
"Why didn't you tell me?" Harry asked, looking wounded.
"Oh dear lord," Giles whispered, pulling off his glasses and polishing the lenses furiously.
"I've never done it before today," Buffy said, trying to defend herself. "I've been reading into the theory of it, and…well, ever since I heard about it last year, I've always wanted to try it."
Sirius looked at Buffy in shock. "Wait…you've never successfully transformed yourself before today, yet you managed to do it after being locked in with a Dementor for over a day?"
Buffy nodded and shrugged. "Yeah."
Sirius shook his head in disbelief. It had taken he, James and Peter over two years to learn how to transform themselves into their different animagus forms. The girl in front of him definitely had a lot of power in her hands. And Sirius for one was thankful that she was on their side.
"What did you turn into?" Ron asked curiously.
Buffy cast her mind back to the events of several hours before, but couldn't remember what form she'd been able to take. Whatever it was, she'd been able to get through the tiny slot in the door. She hadn't even been sure that it would work, but obviously it had.
"I don't know," she admitted. "Everything after draining that damn Dementor is a little fuzzy."
"Draining?" Giles repeated, his voice rising an octave with worry.
Buffy looked at him sheepishly.
"I had nothing left Giles," she admitted. "I didn't have my wand, and I couldn't draw on any of my own magic. So…I took his."
The room went silent with worry, and it was Giles' who voiced what they were all thinking.
"That's tremendously dark magic Buffy," he said.
She nodded and shuddered, remembering the struggle she'd gone through in trying to balance herself. "Trust me Giles, if I could have done the translocation spell without it, I would have. I know that powers not something to be messed with. It was…dark. God it was so dark. Evil," she whispered. "I could taste it."
"How's evil taste?" Faith asked curiously.
Buffy turned to look at her, and tilted her head to the side thoughtfully. "Kinda chalky."
"Alright, so you drained the Dementor," Giles said, still sounding slightly disapproving. "Then what?"
"Well…I've been working on this translocation spell lately," Buffy admitted. "Kinda of like apparating, but with Wiccan magic, and…well, I'm still kinda working out the kinks."
"Well, it must have worked," Harry commented. "Where'd you send the Dementor though?"
"I dunno," Buffy shrugged. "That's one of the kinks."
Ron couldn't help but laugh. He could completely picture a Dementor suddenly popping up in the strangest of locations. He could only hope that it was at the top of some remote mountain somewhere.
"I still want to know what animal you transformed yourself into," Hermione prodded.
Buffy just shrugged. "Trust me, if I remembered, I'd tell you, but…I barely remember apparating here. I just thought of the one person who I've trusted since the beginning."
Willow blushed bright red and smiled at her best friend, truly touched that Buffy felt that she could come to her.
"So…why not just do your animagusy mojo," Faith suggested. "Wouldn't that solve everyone's problems?"
Buffy looked at the Slayer in shock. Her first impression of Faith hadn't been of a thinker, but obviously she hadn't given Faith enough credit.
"Absolutely not," Giles said. "Buffy, you're exhausted."
Buffy just shrugged. "Giles I was exhausted before I got rid of the Dementor. Beside, I couldn't hold the transformation for longer than a minute anyway. It's not gonna kill me."
Giles rolled his eyes, hating the obstinate nature that Buffy had. She'd always been headstrong, and whilst it was a good quality at times, at others it was just dangerous. He knew however that there was nothing he could say that would deter Buffy from attempting to morph into her animal form.
The group fell silent as Buffy found herself looking inwards at her power. She grabbed hold of what was left of her power, hoping that this day would end soon so that she could recharge, and felt her body again begin to shift.
The group watched as Buffy disappeared and she transformed into a black snake, measuring five feet, two inches uncurled itself and looked at the group curiously. It's head cocked to the side in a familiar manner, and it's hazel eyes held the same look that Buffy's always held.
Harry stepped forward and crouched down so that he was eye level with the snake.
"You're a snake," he whispered in parseltongue.
Buffy's tongue flickered out of her mouth in a somewhat teasing manner.
"Figures," she replied.
Harry grinned, and cautiously reached out his hand to touch the black serpent. It stilled beneath his touch before nestling closer.
"Do you think you're poisonous?" he asked.
Harry hadn't been aware that snakes were able to shrug, but now he'd seen the equivalent with his own eyes.
"We could find out," she teased.
Harry grinned and shook his head. "I don't think Sirius would be too impressed if I volunteered to be bitten."
Faith looked between Harry and the snake that she knew was Buffy Summers. She had definitely seen a few too many strange things within the space of only a few hours. She leaned closer to Willow.
"How can he understand her?" Faith asked.
Willow shrugged, not knowing the answer. Hermione looked at Faith and launched into an explanation.
"Harry's a Parselmouth. It means he can talk to snakes. Buffy's one too," Hermione said.
"Buffy can talk to snakes?" Willow asked incredulously.
Hermione nodded. She was going to launch into an explanation about snakes in relation to Tom Riddle and Salazar Slytherin, but she was interrupted by the snake morphing back into Buffy. Harry reached down to help his girlfriend to her feet, catching her as her knees buckled.
"Okay…I'm thinking bed's looking awfully good right about now," Buffy commented tiredly.
Ron couldn't help but snicker. He stopped immediately when Buffy glared at him.
"Hey, what'dya know?" Buffy said, using the last of her energy to smile cheerfully. "The glaring thing really does work. Thanks Ron!"
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Like I said in WYD, I won't be updating either of these again until the 29th. Enjoy your Christmas holidays and catch yaz all in a few days. (Dreaming of a Green Christmas)
DKG.