Characters © J.K. Rowling.

Plot © Sami-Lee 2004.

Over the next few evenings, Hermione had spent her time out on the grounds looking through books and jotting down notes upon notes in a small notebook. Draco was often seen accompanying her. Though none of the students found it weird anymore to see Draco and Hermione together, seeing them spend so much time together without the company of Harry or Blaise was becoming a little suspicious. In the meantime, Harry and Blaise were spending a lot of time together as well.

Hermione had pulled out every book she could find on magical communication. She'd covered enchanting items; mind charms, potions – nothing she found would work within the Hogwarts grounds without breaking school rules. She couldn't apparate in the school grounds, and she certainly couldn't just go marching down to Draco's room. Perhaps they'd just have to stick to making times to meet and sneaking around the castle. But then, that in itself broke several school rules. Hermione sighed and put her quill down, rubbing her eyes. Draco rubbed her back and then moved around behind her to give her a back massage. Hermione moaned quietly as he rubbed her sore shoulders.

"I can't think of anything else." She sighed, as Draco continued rubbing her shoulders. She buried her face in her hands. "This is impossible." She mumbled. Draco reached around from behind her and took her face out of her hands. She turned her neck to look at him and smiled.

Ron stood on the steps to the entrance hall, glaring down at the two figures sitting by the lake. He looked about ready to kill someone, if not himself. Harry stood behind him, not sure if he should say anything or not. Just as he was about to, Ron turned around and ran, almost headlong into Harry, but missed him and fumbled. He disappeared around the corner and a very confused looking Blaise appeared. Harry smiled as the brunette stopped where he was standing and looked down to where Hermione and Draco where sitting.

"They look happy, don't they?" He mused. Harry smiled and nodded. "Come on, lets go sit with them." Harry followed Blaise down to the lake. Hermione greeted them while Draco played with her hair.

"So, are you going to tell me what you've been up to yet?" Harry asked Hermione, she sighed and wriggled around in Draco grasp for a moment. Once she was comfortable, she decided to give Harry an answer.

"We're trying to find a way that we can use to communicate with each other, or to visit each other in the evenings, some way that we wont get caught, wont be seen..." It seemed to hit Hermione the second Harry's lips curled into a smirk. She leapt up and hugged him. "Oh Harry, it's perfect!" And with that she grabbed his hand and pulled him all the way to the library, leaving a very confused Draco and Blaise behind.

Harry and Hermione spent the better part of next three weeks in the library, searching through book after book. They refused to tell Draco and Blaise what they were looking for, claiming that if they could find out how to do it, it would be more fun as a surprise. They knew that if they couldn't find it in a book, then Lupin would teach them, or would at least know where they could find the information on how to do it. They wrote to him one evening in November, and continued searching the library in the meantime.

They received Lupin's reply three days later. Harry spilt cereal all over himself desperate to get the letter and read it straight away. He pulled it gently off Hedwig's leg and gave her some sausage before letting her fly back to the owlery. He unrolled the parchment and held so that Hermione could read it too.

H & H,

There was only one book in the Hogwarts library that could show you how to become an animagus. Unfortunately, it no longer resides there. Though your reasons for becoming animagi are beyond me, I wont sit here and warn you of the dangers, or lecture you and tell you not to do it, because I know that you will simply go ahead and do it anyway. So I will help you. I will meet you on the next Hogsmede weekend at the three broomsticks. 11am. I'll bring the book.

R.J.L.

Harry and Hermione looked at each other and grinned broadly. They headed off to their first class talking excitedly. When Draco and Blaise caught up with them, Draco asked them what the letter was all about. They explained that they had the solution to their problem, but still wouldn't tell them exactly what they had in mind. They also told them that they wouldn't be going with them to the next Hogsmede weekend, as they had to meet someone who would be helping them out. Draco and Blaise were disappointed, but understood.

The next Hogsmede weekend was two weeks away, and in the meantime, Hermione and Draco began plotting ways to get Harry and Blaise together. They were both too frightened to simply do something. Hermione and Draco had taken to spending time in the third classroom down from the potions room, but had come close, a few times too many, to being caught by Snape. They were becoming desperate for somewhere to meet and a way to get there without being caught. It had gotten harder to sneak around the castle since Voldemort had returned to power, the teachers and Filch had become utterly relentless.

Hermione sighed, realising that this was certainly going to be harder than they first thought it would be. Draco had suggested several stupid things: paying them, cursing them, making a love potion – "That's illegal, Draco!" – buying them presents from each other, writing love letters to them, locking them in the library. Hermione shook her head, it was pointless, they'd just have to leave it and hope for the best. But Harry was stubborn, so she really didn't think it would be going much of anywhere.

Two weeks later, Harry and Hermione waved goodbye to Draco and Blaise as they entered the Three Broomsticks and headed over to the corner where they took a seat and waited for Remus. He showed up a few moments later ad shouted them a round of butter beers.

"Now then, how have you two been?" He asked, smiling broadly. Harry and Hermione, who had yet to tell him about Draco, Blaise and Ron didn't smile quite so much.

"We've been ok..." Hermione started.

"But Ron's not speaking to us." Harry continued and crossed his arms childishly.

"Well, he has good reason..." Hermione went on.

"He does not! He could just get over it and be friends with Malfoy like the rest of us." Harry unfolded his arms.

"We've called a truce with Draco, in fact, he and Blaise are now our closest friends..." Hermione was talking to Remus again.

Remus laughed. "Whoa, slow down! So you two are friends with one of the most infamous Slytherins ever, and you have to question why Ron wont speak to you?" Remus shook his head. "I thought you were smarter than that, Harry. I'm slightly disappointed." He smiled. "Anyway, it's beside the point, I'm sure Ron will get over it soon enough. We're here to discuss this." He pulled a large book out and placed it on the table before them. The large gold lettering on the front cover read: How to become an Animagus – it's easy! Harry laughed and Remus pushed the book towards him. "You shouldn't need much more help from me, the book is pretty straight forward, plus, you have Hermione. Anyway, It'll be interesting to see the animals that choose you." He winked, then got up and left the pub, waving behind him and calling to them that if they needed anything all they'd need to do is owl him.

Hermione grabbed the book before Harry had a chance to grab it for himself. She opened it up to the first page and skimmed over it. "Okay, let's get back up to the castle so we can get started right away, I have a feeling we should be reading this somewhere where no one will stumble in on us, we need to find Dray and Blaise first." Harry nodded, and the two got up from the table.

It didn't take them long to find Draco and Blaise. Hermione knew one of Draco's deepest, darkest secrets... He was a sucker for anything sweet. It took Harry and Hermione about 6 minutes to walk down to Honeydukes. They found Draco carrying far too much candy. Harry laughed at him and Hermione scowled, shaking her head. "We've got it, we want to go straight back up to school so we can start looking over it straight away without too many people around." She informed the Slytherins.

"Ok, just let me pay for this first." Draco mumbled from behind the huge pile of candy he was carrying. Harry and Blaise gave each other a look and rolled their eyes. Then the four of them headed back up to school.

"So where can we go where no one will know what we're up to?" Draco asked, almost whining. He'd been told he could have his candy later, and that this was more important. He had then resorted to sulking. This time it was Harry and Hermione's turn to give each other a look, they did so and both started smiling mischievously.

"Myrtle." They said in unison. Draco and Blaise looked at them strangely, before they remember that the boy in front of them was, after all, Harry Potter. They shrugged and followed the Gryffindors down to the second level girls bathroom which had been flooded in their second year, during all the happens of the Heir of Slytherin.

"Right, so we're going to learn how to sneak around the castle in a girls lavatory?" Blaise asked, reminding Harry and Hermione of Ron in their second year. Hermione frowned for a moment.

"Yep." Harry said cheerfully. "Don't worry, no one ever comes in here." He continued, mimicking Hermione. She glowered at him.

"And just why is that?" Draco asked pompously, the way he might have had he been speaking to Harry a year ago.

Harry and Hermione smirked and again, spoke it unison. "Moaning Myrtle." And with that said they pushed the door open and entered the bathroom.

"Oh! Harry! I thought you were never going to come back and visit me!" She flew down towards them and stopped when she saw Blaise and Draco. "Who're they?" She asked accusingly.

"Don't worry, Myrtle," Harry assured. "They're friends."

Draco eyes suddenly opened in realisation. "Myrtle? You're the mud... ahh, girl that the Basilisk killed over 50 years ago!" He cried, Hermione smiled at him for stopping himself from saying mudblood.

"So?" She snapped and flew back up to her spot in the corner of the roof. Harry looked and Draco and shook his head, the four of them laughed. Hermione took a seat in the centre of the walkway between the cubicles, she didn't really feel like sitting next to the entrance to the chamber of secrets, even though she'd never been down there.

"Alright." She said, opening the book as the boys gathered around her. Draco and Blaise both looked at the book in utter amazement.

"Animagi? We're going to learn to become animagi? That's so awesome, that's so totally cool!" Draco yelled. Hermione looked at him and he settled down. He and Blaise still had huge grins plastered to their faces as Hermione began to read from the first page.

"As difficult as one may perceive it to be, becoming an Animagus is actually very simple. The first thing one needs to do is decipher what form they will be taking. In order to do this, a potion must be made; the ingredients and procedure to make the potion can be found on page XII.

"Once the potion is made, and the animal is known, one must then learn how to grasp the frame of mind of the particular animal – this can be done by looking up the animal in this book. The animal habits, mannerisms and thought patterns are found on pages LVII to MMXCIV. If you are a less experienced witch or wizard, it may help to eat foods similar to that your animal enjoys, for example, if your animagi form has chosen that of a rabbit, you may eat a lot of carrots, or if your form is a rodent, you might eat a lot of nuts."

"Well, that certainly does sound easy." Harry interrupted. But if it's really that easy then why are the laws so strict about becoming an animagi? Why don't you just have to sit a test, like when you learn how to apparate?" He looked at Hermione quizzically.

"Well, I'm assuming there can be mix ups with the process." Hermione stated before continuing to read from the book. "A word of warning:; See, Harry. One who does not know their true self, should not engage in this course of action, it could result in one becoming trapped permanently in animagi form. One must have someone close to them, whom they trust greatly, to be present whilst engaging in the process of transformation. In the event that one can not change back whilst they are learning to transform, the person who has agreed to be present must talk to them, reminding them of this that will help them remember who they are."

She turned the page and saw that the next few pages all had diagrams on them with short decriptions underneath. They basically showed the process of transformation. She flicked forward a few pages until she reached page XII. The potion looked simple enough, Hermioen read aloud:

"This potion will be used for two purposes. The first being to decipher ones animagi form; the second to initiate the process. You will need two small caldrons as well as one large one.

Ingredients:

Shrivelfig

Daisy roots

Fluxweed

Lacewing flies

Asphodel

Ginger roots

Monkshood

One large length of prachment

Blood of individual undertaking procedure, 4 drops

Procedure:

Chop ingredients finely and place altogether in large caldron without blood.

Add water and stir well.

Set on high heat for approximately 1 hour.

Separate potion into two even amounts in small caldrons.

Add blood (2 drops to each caldron)

Let potion sit for 20 minutes.

Once potion has cooled, pour one caldron onto parchment.

The liquid will move to form a detailed shape of the animal.

(If unsure of exact animal, picture references can be found on pages LVII to MMXCIV)

Do not move parchment until liquid has dried into a wax like state.

"Well, that does seem easy enough. "Hermione stated, after reading out the procedure of the potion. "But how are we going to get all the ingredients now that Filch has four extra cats roaming around?" She queried, looking at the three boys.

"Well, that's easy." Draco said. "I take them from Snape's office." He smirked, raising an eyebrow. "Never underestimate the power of Draco Malfoy." And with that he stood up and moved toward the door.

"Wait a minute, where are you going?" Harry asked him from where he was still seated on the floor next to Blaise.

"To get the ingredients, duh." And with that he strutted out of the bathroom.

"Well, I guess that leaves us to go and fetch the caldrons and some parchment." Harry said, also standing, Blaise stood beside him. Hermione nodded and shooed them off before she opened the book and started reading about the procedure of transformation. It seemed far too simple.

All they had to do, once they knew what their animal was, was find something that distinctly related to their animal, if not the fur or a blood sample of it, and add it to the remaining potion, then, after letting the potion simmer for another half and hour, they simply had to drink their designated potion. Once they'd taken the potion, they simply had to think about being the animal and they would transform. It would obviously be more difficult in the beginning, but once they'd managed the first few transformations and had experienced what it was like to be the animal, it should become easier and easier to transform.

Hermione sat, reading over some lighter, not so important details about being an animagi until the boys returned with the caldrons, parchment and ingredients, she was impressed that Draco had managed to get everything so quickly and easily. They decided that they would do one potion at a time, and that Harry would go first.

"But what if something goes wrong?" He asked, insulted that just because he was Harry Potter he had to do all the dangerous stuff first. He sighed and agreed, letting Hermione prick his finger and take four drops of his blood. She put a stopper in the top of the tube and placed it beside her on the floor next to the other ingredients. She then started finely chopping everything else.

An hour and a half later, Hermione had two beakers of ready potion. She took one and handed it to Harry who looked extremely apprehensive, even for the boy who lived. He took the beaker and looked at the sheet of parchment spread out in front if him. Then he took a breath and he poured the liquid onto the parchment.

At fist it didn't look like it was doing anything, until it started to swirl around slowly. As it got faster it started changing colours, going through almost every colour known to modern man before it stopped at black. A dark as night, jet-black - The exact colour of Harry's hair. The mixture stopped swirling and moved to form a detailed picture, all four of them leaned forward to see what it was.

On the parchment before them, was a full colour picture of a Black Leopard, with bright green eyes, residing on a tree branch. The leopard yawned and closed it's eyes. Harry stared at it in wonderment. "Wow." He though about being a leopard, and though, a little obnoxiously, that it fitted perfectly with his fun, playful personality. But how was he going to find something distinctly leopard-ish to use in the potion? He'd have to ask Hermione later, who had in the mean time started chopping up her own vegetables.

"You know, it probably would be easier if the three of us did them all together." She said to Draco and Blaise. Harry nodded and volunteered to go and get more caldron's, Blaise went with him.

Once they were gone, Draco moved around behind Hermione and put his arms around her waist. He kissed her neck softly. She smiled and turned to face him, placing her arms around his neck and kissing his mouth. They stayed like that for several minutes, before Draco broke the kiss and looked at her.

"What do you think my animal will be?" He asked her.

"I'm not sure," She replied, laying her head on his chest. "If it's anything like your mind, you'll be some smart, funny, slightly fluffy animal, like, maybe, a chimp! But if it judges you by your heart..." Hermione smirked and Draco knew exactly what she was thinking.

"Nope, there's just noooo way." He said, going slightly red. Hermione giggled and continued chopping up the ingredients to make three more potions.

Harry and Blaise returned as Hermione finished chopping and an hour and a half later there were three more potions sitting before them in 6 beakers, which Hermione had charmed to read their names, so as not to mix the potions up. "Ok, who's next then?" Harry proclaimed, rolling out a sheet of parchment. Draco looked at Blaise who shrugged and took one of his beakers, pouring it slowly onto the parchment. The mixture did the same as Harry's, swirling in a mix of colours, finally settling on a mix of dirty brown and dark brown, very similar to Blaise's hair. He looked confused as the image took a similar shape to Harry's.

"Oh my." Hermione said, flicking through some pages.

"What?" Blaise asked, worried by Hermione's tone. She looked up.

"You and Harry are the same species, but a different breed. It means your spirits are very closely connected. By the way, your animal is a Clouded Leopard." Harry and Blaise looked at each other before they looked back at Hermione, she took her beaker and poured.

This time the liquid didn't swirl around the parchment, but split into several different blobs, each a different colour, which chased each other around the parchment until they all ran headlong in the middle of the parchment, and melted into a picture. A small Brown Fox stood on the parchment looking up at them; its tail was extremely bushy. Hermione smiled, it seemed to fit almost perfectly, foxes were quick, witty and very, very intelligent, as well as playful and curious.

The three turned and looked at Draco. He smiled nervously and picked up one of his beakers, then, hesitating a little, he poured it onto the parchment. It split similar to Hermione's, but then all the pieces started to spin around the parchment forming a whizzing circle of blurred colour. As the colours started to slow, they melted into a picture.

Draco stared at it in horror. Harry cracked up laughing. Hermione stared at Draco wide-eyed. Blaise sat with his mouth open like a goldfish...