Disclaimer: This story is based on characters and situations created and owned by JK Rowling, various publishers including but not limited to Bloomsbury Books, Scholastic Books and Raincoast Books, and Warner Bros., Inc. No money is being made and no copyright or trademark infringement is intended. Any characters or situations that are unknown in the HP series are the author's intellectual property and should not be used without permission.

Author's Note: This fic is written for Full Sail Nate's Challenge on Portkey involving Harry in an Animagus transformation gone wrong. The genre is action/adventure/romance with H/Hr as the pairing. Warning: there will be humor as well... All Animagus background information used here is simply the humble author's own invention. Enjoy and Please Review!

Chapter Two – Cause and Consequence

Hermione immediately perched on the bed beside Harry, but Ron hung back behind McGonagall, staring down at his feet as if they were the most interesting things in the room. Harry frowned in confusion at Ron's preoccupation, and was about to speak to Ron when his teacher conjured a mirror in front of him and Harry could see his reflection for the first time.

In place of his regular features, a broad feline nose dominated his face, offset a bit by the large green eyes caught up at the corners. His face was also covered in the same very dark brownish black down which highlighted the intense color of his eyes even more. Two rounded ears stuck up through the black mop of hair and moved to catch the sounds around him. Peering closer, he could see the faint outline of black circles around his eyes and the off center lightning bolt remained as well on his forehead.  When his jaw dropped open in shock, large and powerful fang canine teeth were visible. Harry could not help but recoil from what he saw. "P-p-professor, what am I?" he asked, shaking.

Hermione reached out and tried to pick up his hand, but he jerked it away, terrified that his claws might hurt her. But, Hermione was not deterred from her goal, and chased his hand down and captured it.

McGonagall had been conjuring a chair and so had missed the byplay between the two teens sitting on the bed. "Mister Potter, I think I can safely say at this moment that you do possess the Animagus ability. In spades, I should say."

She continued, "I attempted to reverse the change at the time it manifested in the class, but your innate magic rejected any attempts to ameliorate the problem."

"Problem, Professor?" She nodded gravely, "Problem, Potter. You weren't prepared for the actual quest for the animal form and so you instinctually panicked when the change began. You can think of it rather like a reflex. Your magic was driven by your fear and shock into freezing you halfway through the transformation. Normally, in class, you would have begun with small, localized changes such as growing fur, changing hands or feet, etc. Not a full scale change as you are embarked on currently."

"But if you can't reverse it, what can be done? I don't want to be like this forever!" Harry's voice rose due to his frustration and fear. Hermione squeezed his hand tightly to reassure him, but remained uncharacteristically silent.

"No, unfortunately, outside assistance with this change won't be possible, Potter. The only outside way might be for Headmaster Dumbledore to attempt to overwhelm your natural resistance, but both of us feel that to be a risk we should not take unless there is no other alternative."

"But why not, Professor? Professor Dumbledore has to help Harry!" Ron spoke up and won a frowning glare from McGonagall for his trouble.

"Because Mister Weasley it is very likely that Harry's magic would be exhausted in the attempt and he would possibly die."  

Well, that put a new twist to his predicament, Harry thought.

"If outside intervention isn't feasible, is there anything that Harry can do for himself?" Hermione's voice cut through Harry's despairing thoughts, reminding him of the conversation he'd overheard between Madam Pomfrey and McGonagall. As if his thought had conjured her, Pomfrey arrived with the promised Pepper-Up potion.

As Harry tried to drink the potion, he made the mistake of inhaling first. The incredibly powerful smell of the potion caused him to start sneezing violently and uncontrollably. Pomfrey snatched the potion away before Harry could spill it and waiting for the involuntary response of Harry's olfactory system to stop.

When the storm of sneezes ended, Harry woke to the fact that he had fallen onto his side and his head was cradled in Hermione's lap as she stroked his arm. Ron had finally overcome whatever his misgivings and was now seated behind Harry and restraining his legs from thrashing and sending Harry to the floor. With both his friends so close, Harry found he could clearly differentiate their smells. Hermione's scent was a pleasant combination of cool fresh water, linen, old parchment and lavender. Ron's scent was a bit more pungent with musk, grass, pine and sweat with something acrid underlying it. With shock, Harry's changed senses gave him an answer.

Fear. Ron was afraid of him.

Hermione's scent held no fear at all, which Harry appreciated. Ron's fear was waking animal responses in him that Harry did not like to contemplate at the moment. Harry sat up and away from his friends, unsure of how to deal with this new information. He gave McGonagall a desperate look.

McGonagall recognized his distress and spoke commandingly to the other two Gryffindors. "Miss Granger, Mister Weasley, could you both return to Gryffindor Tower and retrieve Mister Potter's books for his classes and a change of clothing and robes. He will need to stay in Hospital overnight, but he will attend classes tomorrow."

Ron took the order with an almost relieved look and headed for the Hospital doors immediately. Hermione looked as if she wanted to protest vociferously, but McGonagall cut off any resistance by quietly requesting that she return with the books and apparel alone. Hermione looked nonplussed for an instant, then glanced at Ron's retreating back and grimaced before nodding in agreement.

"I'll be back in just short while, Harry. I promise." With that, Hermione left the ward in pursuit of Ron.

Harry hung his head in his hands, his depression palpable. Pomfrey bustled back up with the newly scentless version of the Pepper-Up potion. He took the potion silently and felt its energy throughout his body. It also seemed to sharpen his senses acutely as well. McGonagall spoke up after Pomfrey had retreated back to her office.

"Now, tell me, Harry. What is your form?"

"I'm not exactly sure, Professor. I think it's a Leopard, like the one you showed us in class. At first, I thought it was a lion." McGonagall reached over and pushed Harry's pajama sleeve back and examined the fur and its shadings carefully.

"No, not precisely a Leopard, I would say. See the spot pattern?"

Harry stared hard and saw that the spots seemed to form circles like he had seen on the Leopard. He said as much to McGonagall, who pursed her lips and pointed to one of those circles. "See the spot in the middle of the circle?"

"Yes, but does that mean something?"

"Your form is a melanized version that colloquially is referred to as a "Black Panther" though it is neither black nor a panther. This melanized form appears in the Leopard, but also in the larger cousin of the Leopard. I believe, Mister Potter, that your form is that of a Black Jaguar."

"Jaguar? Not a Leopard?"

"The spot pattern confirms my suspicion as well as the changes to your form. You have gained quite a bit of mass above your normal amount though your form is reflecting a sub-adult animal, which is correct. Jaguars are the third largest of the Big Cats, after Tigers and Lions. A fully-grown male Jaguar can weigh up 120 kilograms and can pull down prey as large as cattle and horses." McGonagall peered over the top of her square glasses seriously. "Your animal form came to you in your visualization?"

"Yes, Professor, though at the end it seemed to be stalking me. I ran…"

"Ah, I see. Potter, your retreat from the image came at the worst time I'm afraid. Now, your inner image is at war with your animal image. Until you can complete the full transformation, you are in peril of becoming stuck as you are permanently."

"But exactly how do I complete the change? If my magic is set against it…?"

"Your mind holds the key, Potter. Your visualizations got you into the change, and so they can also lead you through and out again."

Harry found he was loathe to think about going into a visualization again, given the results he had the last time, but there seemed to be no other way for him.

"Should I try another trance, now?"

"No, rest until tomorrow, Harry. The reflexive nature of your response to protect yourself cannot be easily overcome. Give it and yourself a chance to relax first. If you are able to calm your fears and accept what is happening, you may notice your changes will continue gradually. This would be the most excellent sign that you will be able to complete the full shift and then return to your normal form." That sounded reasonable to Harry and he nodded, finally hopeful that he could deal with change.

"One word of caution, Harry," McGonagall's voice and eyes were filled with grave concern. Harry, unused to his head of house using his given name, met her eyes instantly.

"You need to be aware that this slower Transformative cycle allows for more integration of the animal's sensory perception for the wizard. This will allow you greater use of the enhanced senses, even while in human form." He started to smile at the thought, but McGonagall continued quickly. "However, there will also be greater difficulty in controlling instinctive responses to stimuli. Hence, it was this concern that had me check to see if you were in control or if your psyche was overwhelmed by the animal form."

This is the part I'm definitely not going to like, I can already see it, he thought as McGonagall stood up and Vanished the chair she had conjured previous. She then turned back to the young man on the bed and said, "You must remain in control, Harry, for your own sake as well as for the sake of your fellow students. If you become feral, then we will have no choice but to intervene. Either we will have to force the change back, and in so doing risk your life or you will have to be caged for the rest of your life." Harry was sure that his eyes reflected the horror of those alternatives to his teacher, for she closed her eyes as she finished, "This is one of the hardest things about the Animagi, Harry. Sometimes magic isn't always enough to save someone."

Harry lay back down on the bed as McGonagall left the ward in silence.