The Raven II

Disclaimer: This story is based on characters and situations created and owned by JKR, various publishers of the HP series. No money is being made and no copyright or trademark infringement is intended.

A/N: Back from vacation. Funny thing happened on the excursion bus in Alaska. I was sorted into Raven Clan! What a coincidence. The other group was Eagle Clan.

Chapter 3 (uploaded 7/21/04)

Harry flew out of the potions lab and circled around the castle a couple times to get his bearings and in celebration of his freedom. It bothered him that he was compelled to obey the potions professor when he was ordered off of the shelves. Then he spotted a tower in which owls were flying in and out of open windows. 'The owlry! I'll bet Hedwig is in there.'

"Oi, kid! In or out, no loitering in the window!" the brown school owl hooted behind him.

"Oh, sorry," Harry flew to the nearest available perch. Once he spotted his snowy white owl above him, he flew next to her and shuffled close. "Hi Hedwig, it's me, Harry! Oh, please tell me you can understand what I'm saying."

Hedwig was preening under her wing. Her head popped up and she stared with big round eyes, "Harry! No wonder I couldn't find you this morning in the Great Hall. How long have you been a bird, love?"

"I woke up this way this morning. Aren't you surprised? Hey, we can talk! That's great!" The young wizard was truly happy there was someone he could share his predicament with.

"Yes, love. You'll find that you're able to talk with most birds. There isn't anything that will surprise me at a school of wizardry. I've heard it all. Are you otherwise okay?" Hedwig put her large white wing over Harry's back and pulled him in as close as she could. She started preening the back of his head.

"Unh, what are you doing to me?"

"I'm preening you, love. The feathers on top of your head won't lay down properly. So, have you been eating all right?"

Harry fidgeted. "Thanks Hedwig, Snape gave me aviary formula earlier. Yuk! He thinks I'm scrawny. Look," Harry lifted his talon to show the bracelet, "he's claimed me as his familiar. He can't do that, can he?"

Hoo-hoo-hoo-hoot, Hedwig laughed.

"It's not funny, he's ordering me around," Harry croaked. "He's calling me Munin. I mean, why? Everyone else was calling me Harry. I've got so many questions and I admit I'm a little scared of this form. I mean, I can't do magic like this! How am I going to study?" Harry started hyperventilating and his little chest feathers quivered.

Hedwig tightened her hug. "I'm sorry, I'm not laughing at you. I just love the irony. Professor Snape spent the summer as your raven and now you're his raven. You took good care of him, I'm sure he'll return the favor."

An old owl a few paces away snorted as he woke up from his nap, "Here, here, what comes around, goes around. How do you do? I'm Errol."

"Yes, Errol, I know you. I'm Harry Potter. You've delivered mail to me many times."

"Harry Potter? Oh, dear. You've been transformed. Oh, dear." Errol yawned and nodded off again.

Harry blinked a couple times and whispered, "Is that normal? I mean he fell asleep in the middle of conversation." Hedwig ducked as a gray mass of feathers zoomed past her head. She gave an indignant hoot at it. It flapped its little wings wildly as it hovered unsteadily in front of Harry's perch.

"Ya ya ya! That's normal for Errol. The Weasleys want to retire him but he tries very hard to be useful, so they try to give him a little run once in a while. Nothing too important or rushed, you know. Hi Harry, you know me, I'm Pig! You're always nice to me. I like you. If you need anything, anything at all, just let me know. I'm happy to help you. Just let me know, 'cause I like you!"

While Harry giggled at Pig's antics, Hedwig said, "Thank you, Pig. Why don't you go sit over there. A bit more. Just a bit more. Is that as far as you can get? Well, that's fine then. Harry will let you know if he needs anything. That's a good bird."

"What am I going to do, Hedwig?" Harry leaned into Hedwig's chest and sighed. He was comfortable with her.

"It'll work out, Harry. Don't you worry." Hedwig hooted to the little black bird tucked comfortably under her wing.

"So do you know anything about this bonding bracelet? What if I don't obey him, will it hurt?"

"No, love. They've been used for centuries and they're quite harmless. You'll be able to sense his needs and he'll sense yours. You might feel a bit guilty if you don't obey him, but it works both ways."

"Do you mean I can make him obey me? Cool!"

"He doesn't have to 'obey,' Harry. Nor do you. But I think you'll find that you'll care enough about each other that you'll 'want' to do as asked. Actually you don't even have to ask, he'll just know."

"Is it like resisting the Imperius Curse then? I've done that before. Can it be blocked with Occlumency? He's a good Occlumens."

"I wouldn't know. Magical creatures don't learn magic the same way as witches and wizards. We just have it in us. If you attempt it, let me know if it works."

"What if he asks me to deliver a message? I don't know my way around."

"Come see me," Hedwig answered, "I guess I won't be delivering any mail for you, eh little one?" She nuzzled into the tufts of feathers on top of his head.

Fawkes flew in and hovered in front of Harry and Hedwig. "Harry, Headmaster Dumbledore says you should be in class. Arrangements have been made with your professors."

"I can't go to class in this condition!" the little raven whined.

"Now, now, Harry. You are a wizard." Fawkes scolded. "Although this transformation will be a good lesson in life, you must continue your training. NEWTs are very difficult, you must continue your preparation."

"You sound like a professor," Harry replied.

"I have served Hogwarts headmasters for a very long time, even before Albus Dumbledore. Get along, now. The Headmaster would like a word with you after Divination." Hedwig removed her wing and nudged Harry on his way.

"Pig!" Harry flew down to Ron's owl. "Could you lead me to the Divination tower? I'd really appreciate it. Thanks, mate."

----- ooOoo -----

After class, Harry flew into the open window of the Headmaster's tower. Dumbledore greeted him as he landed quietly next to Fawkes, "Hello, Harry. I'm afraid I can't understand you, but you need to hear what I have to say."

"You're probably wondering how I know who you are. This device on my desk tells me who is on Hogwarts grounds and their general state of health, much like Molly Weasley's clock. You've seen it, I'm sure." Dumbledore's eyes twinkled at Harry as he offered his hand and watched Harry step up. "During the summer holidays all these little dots, rest at the bottom. See how the dots are grouped? Those are classes in session. This shiny black one is Professor Snape. This green one is Professor McGonagall. Here's a orange-red one, that's your friend, Ron Weasley, in Divination class. This other orange-red one is Ginny Weasley, in Charms. Oh my, three years ago, with five Weasleys in attendance, I wasn't always able to one Weasley from another. But I regress."

"As for your condition, I think it's best to let it progress normally. I'm sure it's a prank. So it's a reversible condition which can serve a purpose. Death Eater activities are on the rise and you are at the top of Lord Voldemort's list. I haven't found a way to break the news to Professor Snape yet about your true identity, but while you are bonded to him, he'll feel compelled to protect you. So consider yourself in hiding. I have made it a secret that you are away in protective custody, that way the whole school will find out by the end of the day."

"As for your subjects, you are still a student here with the ability to attend classes. You are responsible for your work, so once you are restored, we'll sit down with your professors and discuss how you will make up your homework and exams. If you have any questions, I suppose Fawkes might be able to answer some of them, he's been around a few dozen times." Harry nodded his understanding and glanced at the fiery-red phoenix.

"I've tried to find a way to tell Professor Snape who you are. But I've decided that it's better that he doesn't know, just in case Lord Voldemort decides to extract your whereabouts from him. Your mates, Mr. Weasley and Miss Granger know who you are and I've already told them to start calling you Munin because you're in hiding."

"Well then, it's dinner time. I'm sure Professor Snape is wondering what you've been up to. Let's walk down together." Harry climbed up Dumbledore's sleeve to ride into the Great Hall on Dumbledore's shoulder. He spotted Hermione and Ron at once and glided down to the Gryffindor table.

"Oi, Harry," Ron greeted the black bird after washing down a mouthful with pumpkin juice. Hermione broke open a roll and put it on an empty plate so that the little raven could pick at the crust. "Shh, Ron. His name is," the brown-haired witch examined the bracelet on Harry's leg, "it's Munin. Harry's gone into protective custody."

"Did I hear right?" Neville asked. "Dumbledore has taken Harry out of school to protect him?"

"Shh, Neville, it's supposed to be a secret," the bushy-haired prefect whispered. "Voldemort is after him and Dumbledore has to protect the rest of the students, as well, so he's sent Harry away." Naturally, that started a hushed chain reaction as the 'secret' spread through the Great Hall.

Harry had a feeling. He looked up at the teacher's table and saw Snape staring at him intently. 'Get away from the bloody Gryffindors, Munin,' he thought. Harry coo'd at his best friends, 'Sorry, gotta go.'

Harry flew off the table and landed in Draco Malfoy's messy blonde hair. 'Well, if it wasn't messy before, it is now. Wheee!' Malfoy waved his arms around to swat at the pesky bird but Harry was too quick. 'Fine, I'm at the Slytherin table now! Hahaha, whoops, that was a bit close.'

'Munin, stop that! Go to your cage this instant.' Snape mentally ordered his familiar.

Although Harry didn't hear the words, he knew what Snape wanted. 'I think I'm feeling rebellious,' Harry thought, 'I guess now's a good time to test this bracelet thing. Fine, I'll stop messing with Malfoy, but I didn't hear about the cage.' Harry proceeded to waddle down the Slytherin table, knocking over goblets, hopping into their pudding and flapping his wings madly to get it all over everyone at the table. "Accio raven!" Snape called. 'Whoa!' Harry screeched as he was summoned into Snape's outstretched hand. He was shoved into a robe pocket and quickly carried to the dungeons.

When he was finally uncovered, Harry found himself in an unfamiliar place. It was a nice bathroom, decorated with ocean foam green tiles. He was placed on top of the sink while Snape ran the water to a comfortable temperature. "Look at you," he scolded his bird, "you're a mess. What were you thinking when you jumped into the pudding? You were just itching to get into trouble weren't you? Maybe I should be calling you Harry Potter, what do you think about that?"

He was picked up and put into the water up to his neck. Harry panicked, 'Oh my god, he's going to drown me now!' Harry started flapping his wings, but Snape's big hands held him firmly in the water with his wings pinned. "Shhh," Snape said in his softest voice, "I'm not going to drown you. Your feathers are sticky with pudding and juice. However, you will remain in your cage for the rest of the evening to keep you out of trouble. I've still got papers to mark and detentions to supervise. If I have time, maybe I can train you to be useful." Once Harry calmed down, Snape's nimble fingers started rubbing the feathers on his belly, then on his back, helping Harry to relax further. "There's a good bird."

Harry was picked up and wrapped in a fluffy towel before he was allowed to shake off the excess water. "You're in Slytherin now, Munin. We Slytherins, even at our bravest hour, don't just charge in without thinking ahead to the consequences. We plan ahead, we use our connections, subtly and finesse are key." When Harry was release from the towel, Snape put him in his cage and covered him with black cloth.

When he was uncovered, Harry found himself on the credenza behind Snape's office desk. The potions professor had his back turned and was marking a stack of papers. He answered the timid knock on his door with a typically curt, "Enter."

"S-s-sir?" the chubby-cheeked Gryffindor walked in with a pale face.

"Longbottom, you're here for detention. Go down to the greenhouses and harvest these ingredients for me." Snape pointed to a parchment at the edge of his desk. "You've somehow managed to survive to your sixth year, I don't expect I need to supervise you for this task. Professor Sprout will be there talking to her plants, no doubt. Go on, get moving." Neville's shaky hand took the list from Snape's desk and ran off.

An unfamiliar low growl came from the potion master's throat. 'Is he laughing?' Harry pecked at the bars of his cage to gain his attention. 'Stupid, greasy overgrown bat, he enjoys picking on Neville.' Snape could feel Harry's anger rising and turned toward his pet, but he thought Munin just wanted to be let out.

"See there, Munin? Neville's quite good at Herbology. He was being bullied this afternoon in the hallway. I saved him from embarrassment and gave him detention in the process. He doesn't realize he's paying me back for saving him. Draco's gang missed their opportunity on an easy target."

'What kind of twisted Slytherin thinking is that?' Harry gaped. 'Besides, Neville can hold his own, he's not an easy target anymore.'

"You're quite stubborn, aren't you, Munin? Not to worry, I'll train you up properly." Snape said softly to his raven and turned back to the stack of papers. While Snape scratched away and made off-handed comments to himself, Harry set to working on his feathers. They had gotten a bit ruffled in the bathing and drying process. He didn't really understand why he was doing this or how he knew what to do, it just seemed instinctive.

He had gotten the biggest feathers straightened out and was working on little feathers on his back when a solid knock on the office door startled him. "Enter," Snape answered.

"Professor," it was Draco Malfoy. Upon making eye contact with the black bird, he scowled at it, but changed his demeanor quickly to address the head of his house. "We were wondering if we could continue to revise in the laboratory. We'd like to work on that antidote."

"That's fine. May I see your recipe?"

"Oh. Well, I didn't write it down. It's in this book, though." Malfoy snapped his fingers and Goyle stepped forward with a large faded book.

"Come back when you have written it down in your own hand. I want to make sure you all understand what you are doing before you attempt this potion."

Malfoy huffed as he turned to exit the office. "Excuse me, Mr. Malfoy? Something you wanted to add?"

"No sir." Malfoy's eyes narrowed and the right side of his mouth turned up, "Are you enjoying your pet?"

"He has a lot to learn. As it is, he is being punished for that little stunt he pulled at supper time."

Malfoy laughed openly, and his gang of Slytherins joined in as the blonde teen nodded. Harry squawked loudly to voice his irritation. 'I'll get you Malfoy!'

To be continued...

----- ooOoo -----

A/N: Thanks for the reviews! Simpleinsanity, starangel2106, Sky, Lady Shang, tall oaks, Anna Taure, Shadow Dragon Boss, ataraxis (x2), Lucky, Persephone Lupin, romm. I love the questions you all ask.

Simpleinsanity: I did a web search on Odin/Wotan and found out about his ravens. I like that they're a pair. I think SS liked his previous raven experience and has a fondness for ravens.

Ataraxis: To quote an instructor I once had, "It's the same, but different." In the timeline, it's a continuation.

Lucky: I hope this chapter answered some questions. When I figure it out, so will Harry, LOL!