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Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry:
365 Prompts: 267. (restriction) no female characters
Fantastic Beasts and How to Collect Them: 4. Acromantula (scenario) facing a fear
Scavenger Hunt: 15. Write a story set in the Next-Gen Era
Animagus Training: Becoming an Animagus: Task 3. Write about someone trying to decide which animal to become as an Animagus.
Sticker Club: Marvolo Gaunt's Ring (plot point) being unaware of something
Would You Rather?: Write an m/m pairing.
You Get My Love: Familial 1. (task) Write a fic in the Next-Gen Era
Elizabeth's Empire: (genre) romance
Angel's Archives: r (genre) romance
Days of the Year: Absolutely Incredible Kid Day - Write a story featuring one the Next-Gen kids as a main character.
Crochet Week: Double Crochet (word) basic
Colors: Emerald
Slytherin Character: Scorpius Malfoy
Slytherin Challenge: But You Can Spell It?: R (genre) romance
The Quidditch League Fanfiction Competition:
Reserve League 2.0: Season 5, Round 3 Keeper Write about a truth being hidden from somebody.
Monthly Challenges For All:
Link Maker: Same Ship Type (romantic/sexual) 2,213 words
Firework Factory: Easy (Next-Gen Lovin') 2,213 words
Warning for extreme fluff. Word count is 2,213 words. I hope you all enjoy Speaking Animagus Form.
"What animagus form are you going to take when the potion is ready?" Albus Severus asked, looking intently at his older brother. "Me and Scorpius are going to try for pair of penguins. Wouldn't be the most glorious thing in the world to see two tuxedoed penguins strutting down the street of Hogsmeade?"
James Sirius doubted how cool the confused populace of Hogsmeade would be to see two penguins, not in the zoo. Let alone strutting down the streets. He was about to say such when he caught sight of how happy and excited both Albus and Scorpius seemed to be at the prospect. He couldn't ruin this for them. He wouldn't ruin this for them.
"I don't know," he said, trying to go back to his thoughts on the subject.
"You be otter just like I hear Teddy Lupin is," Scorpius said, hissing in pain as he received an elbow from Albus. "What?"
Albus shook his head and mouthed, "Teddy's with Victoire."
"As odd as it would be to see two penguins in this area, it would be even odder still to see an escaped otter," James said, feeling his cheeks heat up at the mention of his crush Teddy and Teddy's girlfriend Victoire. "Plus, I don't want to do something anyone else has done before. I want to be original."
"Original?" Scorpius said, staring at James like he'd grown a third head. "How can you do when you don't the entire history of Animaguses? How can you know what's been done or not done before without having to ask?"
The unspoken words of and get us in trouble hung in the air like the hugest of weights just hanging by a string. At any moment to plunge and crush the fragile peace of the afternoon.
Albus sensing that trouble was on the horizon quickly acted to defuse the situation before it got worse. "Why don't we just head into Hogsmeade proper and head over to Honeydukes for some candy?" he asked, smiling at both his brother and "boyfriend". "That way James has time to think over what he wants his Animagus form to be and we get some candy. It a win-win for everyone, right?"
James nodded. He could see Scorpius grudgingly doing the same thing. It seemed like ever since they'd started brewing the Animagus potion Scorpius had been upset with James for some reason or another. He just couldn't put his finger on what it was.
As James moved toward his favorite part of the store, the Weasley Wizard Wheezes section, he could hear the hushed conversation that Albus and Scorpius were having. He moved a bit closer to the shelf they were standing near to hear better.
"How am I supposed to know what to do?" Scorpius was saying to Albus. Pure terror was in his voice which a strange thing for a Malfoy to have. Both father and son always portrayed a calm exterior.
"You need to calm down, Scor," Albus said, putting his hand on his "boyfriend"'s shoulder. "We'll figure it out before the potion is ready." Albus chuckled ruefully. "It's going to be a huge shock for him when he finds out."
"You'd better not say anything," Scorpius said, sounding more serious than James had ever heard him sound. "I swear to Merlin, Albus if he finds out from you I'll…."
"He won't," Albus said, walking backward toward the part of the store that held the licorice wands.
"But if he does…."
"It won't be from me," Albus said in a taunting tone.
"What was that all about?" James asked himself as he walked over to one of his Uncles George and Ron's newest candy products. He'd heard that it granted the user the courage to speak their true feelings.
After purchasing enough sweets to last him the whole afternoon, James Sirius bid his brother and Scorpius a good day. He had a lot of thinking to do about what animal he'd choose for his animagus. And he didn't have a lot of time to do this thinking in. The potion would be ready in a week's time as Albus and Scorpius kept reminding him.
He walked and walked and thought and thought. He could go the traditional route like his father and his grandfather before him. But that wasn't the way that James Sirius Potter wanted to be remembered. He wanted to do something special. Something with meaning to it. Something that no one would be able to stop talking about for years.
But then again that would also bring to light that there were yet three more unregistered animagus running around in the world. That wasn't what this was about. It was about learning a new potion and doing something fun with his brother at the same time.
He looked at the book that they'd checked out of the library on animagus potions and how to use them. They'd told Madam Pince that it had been for a Transfiguration project. Which wasn't entirely a lie. They were doing a Transfiguration project albeit an illegal one. One that would get them in huge trouble with the Ministry of Magic if anyone were to find out.
"But Animagus form should I take?" he asked himself, unwrapping and biting into a chocolate frog before it could hop away. He looked at the page showing all the animals that one could transfigure themselves into.
He didn't think that a bunny would be the way to go because that was just too ordinary and girly. He didn't want to go with a normal run of the mill cat or dog animagus. That had been done to death from what he'd read of it. Rat gave the wrong connotation.
"Maybe a lion?" he murmured, thinking of himself as one of the African big cats. His main would flow with pride as he raced across the fields of Hogwarts and Hogsmeade. His giant cat paws would pad across the trampled Earth with great speed and prowess.
"To much risk of slipping up and hurting someone with that one," James murmured to himself. He could already see the lion accidentally squashing the penguin Albus and Scorpius. He could imagine the Howler he would get from his mother for that.
"How dare you squash your brother with your illegal Animagus form?"
He chuckled to himself as the sounds of his mother's chiding voice continued to sound in his ears. Was it strange that he was playing out events that weren't even a possibility of happening? Yes. Was it hilarious at the same time? Hell yeah.
"A badger?" he questioned himself, looking at the book and seeing that it wasn't a very popular choice. That was looking like a very good choice. But then again it would be obvious that it was him. Almost everyone knew of his crush on the ex-Hufflepuff Head Boy Teddy Lupin who'd just graduated not long ago. Plus that would alert his cousin, Victoire, of his crush on her boyfriend. He wasn't about ready to do that. There would be a lot of explaining on his part to do if he did that.
"Something small," he murmured to himself, taking out another chocolate frog and munching into it. "Something that wouldn't be easily noticed walking or slithering down the street. Something that would command respect."
He flipped through the book and came to a page that held the snakes and bugs and things like that. He didn't even stop to consider any of the insects. Most of them were disgusting in his mind. Plus he was super afraid of spiders. Not that he would tell anyone this out loud to their faces. But spiders made James Sirius scream like a little girl and most unGryffindor like.
That's when he saw it. Sitting amongst the snakes. The most unassuming creature ever in his mind. That would be his choice.
The night of their transformations came way too quick for James Sirius. He had made sure over and over again during the week that had just passed if he was a hundred percent sure of his choice. Which he was. But as he stood there looking at the bubbling potion in the middle of the woods, he could help but feel that something was off.
"Are we ready?" Albus cheered, holding out goblets of the potion to each of them. "Tonight we become animagi."
"Yes," Scorpius said, raising his goblet to meet Albus's. His eyes wandering over towards James Sirius.
"Yes," James said, raising his own goblet to meet the other two already in the air. Maybe it was the way that Scorpius was watching him but something felt different about tonight. Tonight a lot of things were going to change. He just didn't know what that was going to be.
They stood there nervously for a bit. No one wanting to be the first person to drink the potion. Each one was nervous about how the transformation would go.
"How about we all go at the same time?" Albus said, looking between his older brother and supposed boyfriend. "On the count of 3?"
Scorpius and James nodded. Agreeing to the plan. It was better than sitting there and staring at each other like they were.
"One," Albus said, causing James's heartbeat to speed up a bit as he worried what the others would think of his Animagus form.
"Two," Scorpius said, watching James for some strange unfathomable reason.
"Three," James said, downing the potion in one disgusting gulp.
The change seemed to be rather instant. One minute he was James Sirius Potter, standing with his brother Albus Severus and Scorpius Malfoy. The next minute he was far smaller than he'd ever remembered being in his entire life. He was staring up at a rather bewildered-looking penguin.
"James," the penguin said in Albus's voice.
"Albus," he said, hearing the s on the end of Albus's name take on a hissing sound.
"Are you showing a bit of Slytherin pride to support your little brother or is there another reason for the snake?" asked Scorpius, causing James to look around for a second adorable looking penguin.
"Where are you?" he asked Scorpius, looking around the surrounding area.
"I'm right here," said Scorpius's voice to his right.
That didn't sound like the sounds that a penguin would be making. In fact, that didn't sound like Ablus's animagus at all. It sounded more like James Sirius's own animagus form. He looked next to him at what he'd originally thought was just a common variety garden snake.
"Scorpius?" he asked, looking closely at the snake as its grey eyes stared at him.
The snake nodded its head. A slight blush creeping up its emerald green scaly cheeks. It looked more nervous than James had been about choosing his form, to begin with.
"I thought you were going to be a penguin with Albus," James said, looking at his brother's penguin form. A knowing smile had crossed Albus's face as he nodded at Scorpius. "Wasn't that the plan you two came up with? A couples animagus form? When did the plan change?"
Scorpius's snake form and Albus's penguin form shared a look and started to laugh as though they'd just shared a private joke between the two of them. James couldn't see what so darn funny about this.
"What's so funny?" he asked, looking from the penguin to the other snake.
"I'll just give you two a moment," Albus said, waddling away from the two snakes in the grass.
James stared at Scorpius. He wished he was in his human form. That way he could cock his eyebrow or show some sort of emotion. Ridiculous snake features.
"You're probably wondering what's happening," Scorpius said, sounding nervous. More nervous than he had the right to be in James's mind. "Well, remember that rough patch that Albus and I went through last year?"
James nodded his snake form's head as though saying yes and.
"Well, we decided that we didn't truly belong together," Scorpius explained. "Which was pretty good for him. He was able to ask out the boy he actually likes. Lorcan Scamander."
"What about you?" James asked, concern coloring his voice. "Didn't that upset you, him getting over the breakup that easily?"
Scorpius shook his head. "That was the thing," he said, looking at James. "There's always been someone else that I felt more compatible with than Albus. He could see that. Which was why he helped me plan to…."
"Helped you plan to what?"
"Helped me plan to see what animagus form this person would take."
"Me?"
Scorpius's snake form nodded his head. "You."
"Really?"
"I know you like Teddy but would you….I don't know…..maybe consider going on a date with me next Hogsmeade weekend?" Scorpius asked, nervously wriggling from side to side in his snake form.
James would always have a crush on Teddy, he knew that much was true. But he couldn't stop living and wait for a crush to be reciprocated. He looked at the nervous Slytherin boy in snake form. Maybe he should give dating someone a try.
"I would like that," he said, giving the snake approximation of a smile to Scorpius.
"Great," he said, sounding joyful as he slithered off after Albus. "It's a date."
I hope you all enjoyed Speaking Animaugs Form as much as I enjoyed writing it.
