Clock Strike Five
Walking to dinner that night Snape knew what he needed to do, so he was pleasantly surprised to run into Black on his way to the Great Hall.
"Your wife isn't with you?"
Snape simply shook his head, stepping now at the same speed as the man, "I have to ask you to do something for me."
"The great Severus Snape needs my help?" Snape scowled at the man before continuing.
"I think she needs to know."
Black stopped in his tracks, this was not something he thought the man would ever tell him.
"You think she's ready?"
"I think she was always ready, her mother and I were the ones who were not."
A silence fell upon the pair as they entered the hallway to the Great Hall, and the man paused to press a potion into the Defense teacher's hand.
Black looked into Snape's worried eyes, "We'll do it tonight, She'll be okay."
"Thank you, Black."
And they went to dinner, Snape was worried, should he have spoken to his wife about this, yes. But what Dumbledore had said was true, it was not his place to hold his daughter back because he was scared. He would let her be who she wanted - needed - to be.
And then a figure turned the corner.
Lily had been engaged in an argument with a particularly enthusiastic portrait of a purple robed wizard when Dumbledore found her.
"I will have you know, Geoffrey, she has never gone back on a belief." At the headmaster's voice the wizard in the painting back away and could be seen sulking through the adjoining paintings.
Lily smiled up at her old professor, her old commander, a man she would go through hell and back for.
"Albus!"
"You know, my dear girl, I never realised just how amazing you were until I was able to see your children. You did good there.:
Lily smiled, "I hope they haven;t been too much trouble."
"You mean your daughter?"
Lily smiled shortly, "Harry can have his moments as well."
Dumbledore gave the woman a look, just knowing which Weasleys her daughter was closest with made her know that one of her children would be significantly more likely to cause trouble than the other.
"We should, however, head to dinner. I figure you have lost track of time?"
Lily looked down at her watch, she had, in fact, not realised the hour, she had left to explore nearly two hours beforehand, but there was still so much to see.
The two took their time walking towards the Great Hall, Conversation flowed freely, though they were old friends they saw little of each other, save for a few visits over the years when her children would stay with friends overnight, or the once a year dinner party Dumbledore threw at his own home for Order members.
They were nearly to the Great Hall when they heard voices.
"You think she's ready?"
"I think she was always ready, her mother and I were the ones who were not."
"We'll do it tonight, She'll be okay."
"Thank you, Black."
Lily could feel the eyes of Dumbledore on the side of her head. But all she felt was pure terror.
"Can I assume he has not discussed this with you?"
"Yes."
The conversation dropped. But the silence that fell between the two was tense. Blind fear seized the woman to the point she couldn't believe she was still walking.
She could tell her husband was lingering outside the door to the Great Hall. So letting her fear guide her she turned the corner and faced her husband, who upon realising who was standing in front of him had a look of terror on his face.
"Lily I know what you're thinking."
"Are you insane? We discussed this. She isn't ready-"
"But what if she is, and it's just us stopping her?"
Lily took a deep breath, which angered Snape, wishing she would just yell back at him, "Severus, she is eleven. I don't care what you think, she isn't ready to deal with anything. She only learned to tie her shoes in July. And you want her to deal with extreme magic?"
"But it's only the test, and besides, if it's positive she should have been dealing with this already. Really, it will only help her."
"Until it's negative and she has another outburst because she's upset she isn't more like them."
Severus looked at the crazed look on his wife's face, "You don't have to say it like that. She is our daughter. Finding out things about Gael and Emmet won't make her any less our daughter, in case you haven't realised, they are dead, they're not coming back to challenge us any time soon!"
Dumbledore took this moment to come round the corner himself, "I think that is enough, you two. I think it is time that your daughter figures it out herself. Give her a little faith. I have a feeling she will come out with her head intact. Now, I am ready for dinner, if you two would follow me."
Though they knew this argument would carry into the night, the two followed the older man into the Great Hall.
Harlow may have pulled off the best prank of her life.
She was now cleaning it off the walls but she thought it was worth it.
In her final transfigurations class of the term, Harlow had been able to change every quill in the room with one that exploded as soon as someone tried to write. She had done it one by one, after a few students fell victim everyone was weary while going to write. And one by one they fell victim to the girl.
She had, of course, tried to cover up the fact that it was her by also covering herself in the ink, but it had not worked.
She was, after all, the only one in the class smart enough to come up with the plan.
So she had to spend her first day of break scrubbing the ink off the walls, floors and desks where it had stained, which was significantly harder over twenty four hours later when it had already dried.
Dinner had already started when McGonagall declared the classroom clean, so the two of them went down to dinner together. Harlow was able to keep the conversation the whole time with questions about class. And McGonagll couldn't help but notice that, like her best friends, though she may be a nuisance in class she was incredibly bright. She had also noted that though the beginning of term had been exceedingly hard with random magical problems, she was seemingly able to now channel that into doing extremely advanced magic, notably being able to do transfigurations she wouldn't learn until third year.
Knowing she didn't hear it enough, McGonagall decided to voice her thoughts.
"You know, Harlow, I have been very impressed with you in class recently. You're doing very well in class."
Harlow wasn't really sure why she was saying this, "Thank you?"
The professor laughed at the girl, "I do mean it. I'm sure with all your troubles you don't get praised enough, Despite your...antics," Harlow couldn't help the grin that crossed her face, "you do seem to put pride into your work. You may be my best student. A hard feat for a Slytherin to beat a Ravenclaw."
Harlow smiled, "Well, you know Slytherins, we want to be the best."
"But most don't want to put in the work, you do. And that is what makes you succeed. It's what makes you a great Slytherin, like your father."
Harlow smiled. She liked being compared to him. Especially now that they shared something Harry would never, a house, she felt more like his daughter than ever. But she couldn't help the question that came to her mind.
"You knew my parents, right?"
"They were my students, yes."
"What were they like in class?"
It wasn't necessarily the question she thought it would be, but she new at some point the girl would start asking questions.
"Well, your mother was a Hufflepuff, she acted very much like one in classes. Always wanting to work in groups. Helping her friends with whatever they needed, she wasn't great at transfigurations, and it was made worse with her magic, of course. There was something we called the 'Gael Specialty."
Harlow took a moment to laugh at the name, "I assume the other Hufflepuffs came up with that one."
"You would be correct," the witch replied with a light smile, "it was when she got so mad at an object she couldn't transfigure it blew up. Quite sad, specifically when we were working with animals. But quite funny on inanimate objects."
"So she was like Seamus?" There was a grimas behind her smile as she asked and pictured her friend blowing up anything he could try and transfigure.
"Yes, except Seamus is simply inadequate, your mother was a master of theory."
"And my father?"
McGonagall paused to think of what she should say about him, "You father, well, he was quite the opposite. A Ravenclaw through and through he was. Transfiguration was one of his great strengths. Being an animagus helped, of course, he was top of his class every year. Top Transfiguration O.W.L. and NEWT. I believe he was also top of the class a few years, including his last year. He was defined by his brain, as many young Ravenclaws are."
Harlow let that sit in silence. Her father was smart, it wasn't something she hadn't considered, him being a Ravenclaw and all. But it was interesting, ,she had never thought he would be that bright.
"And of course they were both a menace on the quidditch pitch. No doubt where you got that from."
"Not my father, certainly."
The two chuckled
"And I have to say, once they became friends, that is, off the pitch, I did notice a change in your mother. Her magic calmed down. That is how I knew they were a good pair. He calmed her down, let her take control of herself."
Harlow thought for a moment, she had never really thought of her future romantic relationships, "Do you think something like that will help me, down the line I mean, I am only eleven."
The old witch smiled at the girl, so desperate to be normal, "My dear you already have that."
This was news to Harlow, "I don't follow. Again, eleven."
A breathy chuckle accompanied the witch's reply, "They happen to be summening you, my dear."
Harlow pulled her wrist up. She hadn't even felt the vibrations of her friends calling her. Probably wondering where she was.
"They help you, as much as you don't realise it."
"I still don't understand."
"Has one of your pranks ever gone wrong because of your magic?"
Harlow had to stop walking with the revelation. It was true, she never had random outbursts with the twins. Sure, emotional ones, but the random ones that she encountered and caused her so much trouble in class never affected her with them.
"As much as they cause me problems, they give you the gift your father gave your mother, a sense of calm that inexplicably allows you control."
The rest of the walk to dinner was silent. Harlow thinking about her new revelation, and wondering what it would mean for her future.
Dinner was uneventful, comparatively.
There were so few people at Hogwarts that they all fit at one table, while the other three had been taken away to make room, even the professors sat at the table, at least, those besides Lupin, who Black said wasn't feeling well and would take his dinner later.
Harlow knew they were trying to be smooth about it, but she noticed her father shoot a glance over to Black, who then turned to her. He was close enough to her that he didn't need to do more than lower his voice to project his message around Fred who sat next to her, "Harlow, you'll come for a lesson tonight?"
"Do you think Professor Lupin will be up for it?" Harlow was curious, would it only be Professor Black giving her this lesson?
"He will be fine, he's just resting. He'll be excited for this lesson though."
"Okay. I'll be there."
As she looked back at the rest of the table she couldn't help but notice her mother scowling, if trying to cover it up, unsuccessfully.
"Mama, are you okay?" Harlow knew hew mother worried very often, and very easily.
"Her mother smiled down at her, in a way that for some reason made Harlow feel inferior, "I'm fine sweetheart, just had a funny thought."
She didn't believe her, but Harlow dropped the topic as Fred pulled her into a conversation on the best woods for beater bats with Wood, defending her own vibrantly as the captain tried to tell her otherwise.
Everything was relatively normal.
That night, after running around with her brother and sneaking around just for fun with her best friends Harlow went down to the Defense classroom to meet with her professors. She knocked quickly on the door, hoping not to disturb Lupin had he not recovered since she had made the arrangement.
"Come on in Harlow!" She heard Professor Black call from inside.
She opened the door and stepped inside to find Professor Lupin quickly closing a wardrobe and turning around to her.
"Hey kid." he greeted her.
"Hi professor, how are you feeling?"
"Much better, thank you. Now, tonight we are going to have a special lesson tonight. One we've been waiting to have for awhile."
"Why is that? What are we doing?"
Over the course of the term they had shown Harlow a variety of advanced spells, the last three of which were spent trying to produce a patronus, something she had been told was magic most Hogwarts students would never be able to produce. She had been close, so when she was called tonight she simply assumed they wanted to continue from two nights earlier.
"We've been given permission by your parents to finally try something, test a theory most of us have about you."
Harlow simply looked at Black, she really had no idea what the man was talking about, "what about, something to do with my curse?"
"Kind of, you remember how your parents were animagus, right?"
"Of course." It wasn't something Harlow had forgotten easily, something she had asked the professors about time after time until they gave her small bits and pieces about their gifts.
"Well, when your mother was at Hogwarts, there was a theory they had about her magic, before they learned about the curse, something your family had kept from her." Black tread lightly, as though he didn't know how to tell her what he was trying to.
"Well, your mother did not know about her form until she was nearly thirteen. It was the reason most people thought she couldn't control her magic, her form was aging, reaching...uh...maturity, and couldn't come out, it was unable to take over her body fully."
"Why? Don't most animagus present as childhood accidental magic?"
"Yes, as was the case with people like your father, but the curse held back the animal form from your mother, something they would learn later."
Harlow began putting the pieces together in her mind, but didn't want to speak the words she believed out loud until she was certain.
"We believe that might also be the case with you."
Boom.
Harlow didn't even flinch as the cabinet Lupin had been looking in when she came fell over.
"You think I'm an animagus?"
"We believe you might be. We can't promise anything." Lupin was choosing his words carefully as he looked over to the cabinet, making sure it did not break or get opened.
"How can we know?" Harlow was ready, so excited that there might be a part of her that connected to her parents. And turning into an animal would be so cool.
"There is a potion, one your father has already given to us, it forces animal forms to escape. But we have to emphasize, it is a highly unpleasant potion to take, we don't know how you will act under for the first time, we may need to bring you back with another potion, you may not even have a recollection of it. What do you think?"
"THIS IS THE BEST DAY OF MY LIFE!" Harlow shouted jumping out of the seat and throwing her arms up in the air. "I don't care that it'll hurt. I want to do it now!"
"You are your mother's daughter."
At his words Harlow stopped to think, which mother did he mean?
It didn't matter, but she kind of hoped he meant Gael.
That night, under the influence of the very strong potion Harlow destroyed the Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom, mind, in a way she never had before. And after the girl was brought down to the hospital wing and they made sure she was taken care of Black and Lupin had a small conversation while piecing the classroom back together.
"You think this is the right thing?"
"Don't worry, Moony, I don't think this can hurt her any more than it hurt her mother."
"It killed her mother."
"Quiet, you know what I mean."
Lupin looked at the ground quite cross, after seeing what he did he couldn't help but think of himself, powerless under the influence of the wolf.
"You've read the lore. I think you know what it means as well as I."
"Yes, Gael."
"Gael."
They cleaned until early morning, when they went to the Great Hall for dinner and let anyone who needed to know the status of their daughter, sister and friend.
When Harlow woke up the next day, she was blinded by a beam of sunlight from the window above her bed.
This is not my room. Was all she could think.
She was in the hospital wing. Suddenly her head started throbbing as all the memories came flooding back, the pain, so much pain.
But she didn't know the outcome. She needed to know. So she stood up.
That made it worse, she tried to grab the stand next to her bed but it just made everything worse.
Then Madam Pomfrey came into the partition.
"Harlow, my dear girl get back into that bed. Dear me, why would you try to stand up?"
"I need to… talk to Professor Lupin, or Black. One of them." She stuttered as she tried to make sense of things. As the nurse led her back into her bed she noticed Beatrice sitting contently at the end of the bed, looking concerned, even for a cat.
"They were the ones who brought you. What experiment were you doing? Despite your condition they told you the results were positive. Do you know what that means?"
Happiness flooded Harlow all at once. And she noticed scratch marks down her arms.
She was an animagus. Like her parents. Like them. Something about her was like them. Her parents couldn't take this away or hide from her.
"Yes I know what that means. Thank you."
"Now, will you just lay down and go to sleep."
"Yes...yes sorry. But if anyone comes can you wake me up, my brother, my dad," then a question flashed in her mind, "Do they know I'm here?"
"They have been made aware, your family was here not too long ago but they were called away. Those fiends of yours as well, they will be back soon I'm afraid."
"Fred and George?" Harlow couldn't help but laugh at the title she had used for them. They have landed quite a few students here.
"Yes. They simply stepped out to get something to 'cheer you up.' I dare say I am worried about what it will be."
"I promise I'll make sure they don't make anything explode."
The witch merely smiled at the girl and set off to her tasks.
Harlow layed back on the pillow and closed her eyes.
She was like them.
She was perfect.
She must have fallen back to sleep, because when she opened her eyes Fred and George were suddenly sitting next to her.
"Harlow! Merlin, what the hell happened last night?"
"Give her some space, Fred, how do you feel?"
Harlow blinked a few times, the dizziness she had felt standing before came back, but she was sitting down. Besides that, she felt no pain.
"I'm okay," her voice came out in a scratchy way that made her words null, "a little dizzy but that's it."
"Your parents nearly had a fit when they got here. Black and Lupin were here, saying you were fine, but you were covered in bruises and bleeding scratches. It looked like a dog had got you."
"Well, it was something like that."
Fred and George exchanged a look, "Black let you see his form?"
Harlow looked at her friends, not sure she had heard them right, "What do you mean?"
"Him, as the grim, you didn't know?"
"Black an animagus! He'll never let people see him, did he change before you saw him?"
"No, it wasn't him at all. But I didn't know that?" Harlow didn't know if she felt betrayed or intrigued. The would be something she thought he would tell her. What made him do that?
But suddenly her thoughts went to Lupin. Is that how he got the scars that marr his face? She had always thought someone evil had given them to him. But if Black had the form of the grim, maybe he had given them to the other. She didn't think that he would, but what other explanation was there.
Then her thoughts went to her own arms. She had given those scratches to herself. Maybe the same was for him. Maybe Lupin was also an animagus? But what animal would do that to himself? Well, it must be powerful, especially if it took him out of class, she thought, because everytime he misses he has a new mark. Most superficial, but every month, a new scratch or line of bruises.
And then she thought of something, every month.
It was, every month. For a single day he would not be in class. Black missed some classes as well.
But never after every full moon, as she now realised was the case for Lupin.
The day he took off every month, was right after the full moon.
It could be a coincidence, but what was the chance?
She hadn't realised she wasn't paying attention to her friends chattering until they dropped something in her lap, pulling her from her musings.
"It was surprisingly easy, actually didn't even need something to blow it off."
"Of course we did but we didn't have to. I think that's what really sets us apart, huh Georgie?"
"Our signature."
Finally able to focus Harlow recognised a toilet seat sitting on her lap.
All her thoughts cleared, and suddenly she was laughing so hard she had to sit up at risk of choking.
When she was finally able to pull herself together she sighed, "Well, I told Pomphry I was going to try and keep you from making anything explode. I assume she won't mind as long as no one got hurt."
"What did you get this time?"
Suddenly Black and Lupin walked into her partition, and, upon seeing the toilet seat resting on their student's lapthe two teachers started laughing nearly as hard as Harlow had, which made all three of them laugh.
But soon Harlow asked the twins to let her have a moment with the professors, and after they each kissed one of her cheeks they were off with the promise of returning at dinner time.
When they were out of earshot Harlow turned right to the men in front of her, "What was it?"
"A tigress."
Harlow cocked her head to the side. She wasn't sure what she was expecting, but it wasn't that.
"We want to read you some lore, we think it may clear up a few questions." Lupin could read her like a book, then pulled a piece of paper, old and yellow, out of his pocket, he unfolded the paper and started reading, "A tigress is a large cat that Dementors will not want to cross. A mother tiger with cubs is one of the most patient, protective, self-sacrificing animals that there ever was. The last thing that Dementor will see is an enraged mother tiger charging after it, protecting her cub."
Harlow still did not understand.
"Well, we have reason to believe that your patronus matches your form."
"So you think that my form is, what, my mother?"
"Not necessarily, just a, say, reminisce of her? We have a theory that her death may have imprinted on you, creating a new form in you to kind of, protect you. Do you understand?"
"I think so."
"Of course, it could be a coincidence, but I don't think so." Black spoke, and it was now that Harlow saw a long claw mark around his throat.
"Did I do that?" Her eyes were wide. She had hurt someone. She hated that.
"Yes, don't worry, it is the most minor thing you could have done, it's happened before."
"Yeah, by the way why didn't you mention to me you were an animagus?"
Black had a sheepish look on his face, "Sometimes you have to go on your own journey, and I became one by transfiguration, not the same."
Without responding she turned around and looked at Lupin, who looked back with a curious gaze.
She looked at the corner of the partition that had been ascue, and had yet to hear anyone else, so she assumed they were alone.
"And you weren't going to mention you being a werewolf?"
It was kind of funny, the way her two professors blanched in front of her. She chuckled to herself, she hadn't been one hundred percent positive, but once she had seen his face again, she knew.
"How did you find out?" Black said, seemingly coming back to the world before his counterpart.
"I don't know, I guess I just remembered that all your days off are right after a full moon. I'm very good at astronomy, after all." Harlow had a little chuckle behind her words, she was good at astronomy, if you count anything but constellations, she could never see any type of picture in the endless stars that surrounded Hogwarts.
Lupin blinked a few times before speaking, with a tiny tone of fear in his voice, "You are not afraid of me?"
Harlow laughed, "How could I be scared of you? You're like one of the best teachers here, and your being has nothing to do with me, as long as you don't come after me, which I assume you are not going to any time soon."
Just then there was a commotion outside the partition and Harlow could tell her parents were coming. A wide smile spread across her face, she could tell them who she was, that she was going to get better. She was going to help.
As the curtain flew open the first face she took in was her father's. It was streaked with nerves, but his eyes told a different story, they were proud, Harlow noted, just as they were when she had been sorted, they were happy, and they caused the smile on her face to spread even wider.
She didn't bother looking at her mother before sitting up and sending herself nearly flying at her father, who caught her easily in his embrace.
"I'm an animagus, I'm like them. I can get better." Harlow nearly yelled into her father's neck as she let him rub her back in a soothing manner, noticing the table next to the bed begin to shake.
Then she looked up, the table fell over.
Her mother was fuming. She was mad. Why is she mad?
And why was her anger directed at her. Had she done something wrong?
"Mama? Aren't you happy? This is going to help me control my magic."
With no lack of spice her mother replied, "If you must ask no I am not happy. You were not ready for this, Harlow, This is too much magic for you, look what you've done already."
Harlow turned from her mother to the table behind her. The toilet seat had been the only thing spared, hooking itself around the bedpost before falling completely, now handing off the bed. At the noise Madam Pomphrey had come and was not fixing the table quickly while reassuring Harlow everything was alright. But she couldn't help staring at her mother's face. Angered and betrayed.
Why did her father look so proud when her mother was angry.
"Well, I'm sorry, I guess. Professor Blak and Professor Lupin seemed to think it would help, though. And most people are already using their magic like this, I just thought-"
"No, you didn't. You never do think before you do something. Switching quills in McGonagall's class? kidnaping Mrs. Norris? You didn't think before those actions I bet. And now what, stealing a toilet seat? I suppose you thought that would be hilarious didn't you? I suppose there's a toilet in desolation somewhere, where, Prefect's toilets? You don't think, that is why you're always in detention!"
Harlow wasn't sure how to respond when her mother was finished. She had never been yelled at quite like that. But her father answered for her.
"Lily!"
Before she could breath Harlow's mother had turned around and left the room.
"She doens't like it? What's wrong with it, why doesn't she think I'm ready." Harlow's eyes clawed to her father, trying to extract an answer.
Of course Snape knew the answer, but couldn't burdon her with the answer, so instead he kissed the top of her head and looked up at the nurse, "Any chance I can spring her out of here, just to the lab."
"I don't know."
"Please? I'm dying here."
Pomphry didn't look impressed, :so Snape gave another plea, "I'm just going to show her a potion. I promise, she will sit and watch."
That seemed to get her, "Fine, but I want to see you back here tomorrow morning to change your bandages."
With a quick promise and a flurry of grabbing her toilet seat and leaning on her father for support, Harlow and her father left to go down to the dungeons.
"So, are you going to tell me where you got the seat from?"
"Fred and George, they blew up a toilet to cheer me up. I don't know where, could've been the prefect's toilets."
A low chuckle found its way to her father.
"What form did you take?"
"A tigress."
Lifting her up to avoid a trip step Snape took a moment to think. He knew what it meant, and Harlow knew he knew, but he thought he should comment, "That makes sense. A disaster with stripes."
Harlow hadn't even thought about it, but his words brought her back to when she was seven years old, and had written to her father at Hogwarts that a boy at school had made fun of the scars coming down from her eyes by calling them 'stripes.' He had told her to make it an asset, pretend she were a zebra, or a tiger and act like her wild self.
Involuntarily her hands went up to her face. Her scars were so a part of her life she barely ever thought of them, until someone stared or commented on them.
"Stripes."
It wasn't long until they got to the dungeon, even with weakened strength Harlow walked fast, any lesson with her Papa was a good one.
He was halfway through teaching her about Felix Felicis when he said something odd.
"Nothing happened."
Harlow looked at the cauldron, something certainly was happening.
"I don't understand."
"When your mother yelled at you. You were upset, but nothing happened."
Harlow thought back, she had been upset, and figured she hadn't heard the crash or something, but nothing had done anything out of the ordinary.
She gasped, "Do you think that means-"
Her Papa looked and nearly choked on his own words, "I hope."