I woke up, my head pounding. I could only hear a loud high-pitched ringing, nothing else. I tried to open my eyes but they were too heavy to move. Slowly, the ringing quieted, and I heard muffled sounds. I couldn't quite make out what it was, but I realized it was someone talking.
I concentrated for a while, trying to make out what the voice was saying. I realized after a while they were whispering. I felt something on my leg. A hand. Suddenly, the voice became clear.
"...all my fault. How could I ever live with myself? My fault. Dammit, all mine."
I recognized the owner of the voice as Mallory. I opened my eyes and whispered, "No it's not."
Mallory jerked back and stood up. She turned around and yelled, "SHE'S AWAKE! OH THANK GOD, SHE'S AWAKE!"
In the four seconds before I was surrounded by healers and nurses, I recognized the place I was as St. Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries. I was in a bed, and now I was surrounded by people with a wand and bone crossed on there lime green robes.
"Can you see clearly?"
"Does it hurt anywhere?"
"Open your eyes wider for me, please."
"Nurse Fuglehorn, get me this potion, please."
"This is a miracle!"
I was ambushed with questions and comments, and I was given potions to drink, and test to perform. After 2 hours or so of this, they finally left me alone, saying that I should rest and let the potions take effect. During this time, I got many visitors. Almost all of them were old Hogwarts peers. I also took a good look around the room. It was small, with white walls and two chairs off to the side, in the corner away from my bed. There was a door that led to somewhere. I wasn't allowed outside yet.
After the reunion with so many of my most favorite enemies and all of my older friends who I'd lost contact with, Mallory came and sat on the edge of my bed. She was dead serious, her gaze forward.
"The nurses didn't think you where looking so good. All the spells, every potion in the book. Nothing worked," she whispered. I sat up and stared at her. She looked towards me, looking me in the eye, "They were going to…"
She trailed off on that last word and took a shaky breath. She looked down at her hands, and a tear fell from her eye.
"I've never told you this, but you're like a sister to me, Angel. Even in Hogwarts, I always got this feeling around you," she said, "But obviously my friends didn't want me to associate with a student a whole year younger than us."
She said that phrase like she was mimicking her friends. She looked up and stared across the room at the wall.
"I didn't care how young you were. You had a promising aura. I just felt like you were… something." she said.
"You sound like Trelawney," I muttered. Mallory smiled and chuckled softly.
"I couldn't let them just… I mean, you were out for eight months…" she said. I nodded. Then I reran that sentence in my head and said, "Eight months." Slower, feeling the words around my tongue. "Eight months. But… what about Harry? Did Professor McGonagall say anything? What about your job? Heck, what about my job? How did this-"
"Calm down!" Mallory said, "Harry's fine, McGonagall dropped by weekly, but she didn't say anything, my job is still working out ok, and I altered the Dursleys' and Harry's memories of you. You never existed to them."
"Harry doesn't remember me? Can I at least go back to him?" I asked, and Mallory's silence spoke a million words. I sank into my bed, thinking of the torture Harry had to endure for eight months, without anyone to help him. Without anyone to avenge him. That sounded over dramatic, but I still wanted to get back at the Dursleys for what they put him through. I looked at Mallory.
"Why can't I go back?" I asked.
"If you go back, there's a chance you'll trigger the memories of Harry and Dudley. We can't let that happen since they witnessed magic. They might be traumatized for the rest of their lives, Angel. I'm sorry." Mallory said, solemn.
"Who's going to protect him, then? Who protected him for the past eight months? Tell me!" I said, a bit more forcefully than necessary.
"Harry can protect himself, Ang-"
"No he can't! He's too kind, too… too good to defend himself! He can defend others without a doubt, but he will never defend himself! And one day that might kill him!" I shouted, and covered my face with my hands. Mallory got up and left the room, leaving me with the pounding silence.
About 2 weeks of testing, experiments, and questions by some very unfriendly Aurors, I was free to go. But where to go to? Back to Mallory's flat? It just didn't feel right.
Despite that, Mallory was my escort. We Apparated back to her flat. She helped me to my room, where I plopped down on the bed. She stood in the doorway, an imposing figure.
"McGonagall said she's coming tomorrow." Mallory said. I scoffed and said, "Great. I get another free lecture."
Mallory smiled and said, "Oh come on. At least it's not Snape."
I laughed and said, "Yeah, he'd probably tell me to 'Define the difference between monkshood and wolfsbane.'"
"They're both the same thing!" Mallory and I said at the same time. We laughed for a while. It was nice to laugh. Mallory soon went out of the room, leaving me to my free thoughts.
I thought about Harry, Dudley and Hogwarts. I thought about Death Eaters, the Dursleys and muggle school. I thought about whatever my mind threw my way until I nodded off to sleep, dreaming about flashes of red and children screaming. Just the same as it had been for eight months and 2 weeks.
Professor McGonagall arrived at the crack of dawn. I hadn't even put any decent clothes on, when I opened the door to a green robed figure. She smiled when she saw me, and when I ushered her to the living room, she said, "I'm glad your back, Ms. Custos. Ms. Knox mentioned you still wanted to watch Harry. Is that true?"
"Yes, Professor, but they said I couldn't see him in case I triggered his memories."
"This is true, although, if he saw you as something else, they maybe he wouldn't remember."
"Are you suggesting… Polyjuice Potion?" I was puzzled.
"Partially yes. Can you call Ms. Knox? My plan requires the both of you."
Mallory had just fumbled out of her bedroom as I walked to the door. Her hair was a mess this Saturday morning. "McGonagall is here. She want to talk to us. I suggest you," I waved a hand at her hair and she nodded. "Give me a few seconds," she muttered.
When she arrived back into the living room, her hair was reasonably tamed, and eyes much brighter. Professor McGonagall motioned for her to sit, and I could tell she didn't appreciate being told to sit down her own home. But McGonagall was McGonagall, and you sat when you were told to sit.
"Ms. Knox, Ms. Custos, I believe you both should continue to watch Mr. Potter. As Hogwarts students."
"Woah," was all Mallory said. I felt the same.
"Which students?" I asked.
"Well, actually, it's two Muggle girls from Yorkshire, but you can pose as students."
"Okay…."
"You will be Slytherin students watching as often as necessary. And because you'll be in Slytherin, and Harry, following the Potter legacy will most likely be in Gryffindor, one of you will need to be nearer to him. I suggest this be Angel. She will take the Animagus potion and if it's needed, Ms. Knox will also assist you." She pulled out a bottle and a leaf, similar to the one she had showed me when offering the position over 10 months ago. "I suggest you start the process two days from now. The day before the start of next month is then. Don't worry about getting registered, I will take care of it. I will come on the day before the start of term with the polyjuice potion at noon."
"Woah," I expressed
"Yeah. Woah," Mallory agreed.
"How will you get ingredients for the polyjuice?"
"Professor Snape might be potions master, but I have a healthy talent for potions myself. I will provide the potion. You don't have to use it every hour, only when absolutely necessary. Oh, and one more thing. You must recite this spell every day-Amato Animo Animato Animagus." She said her goodbyes, handed me the bottle, and left.
For the rest of the next month, we had a leaves on our tongues. It was really hard not to swallow it in our sleep, so I had to stay half awake for it to actually work. I'm not sure if Mallory got good sleep or not. Let me just say, if you sleep like that for a whole month, you get some lousy sleep. Every morning we woke up and said, with difficulty, 'Amato Animo Animato Animagus'. I just hoped it wouldn't backfire on us.
Eating was the hardest task to do. In the end, we had decided that we should eat soft foods like bananas and stuff, like old people. It wasn't fun. We had to hold the leaf down on our tongues using one thumb and then use the other hand to help us eat. The same thing occured while drinking anything. We would spill and drop more than we'd actually eat anything.
Finally, the day before July first came, me waking up and saying the incantation. I went out to the living room and heard Mallory in her bedroom, saying the same thing. She came out of the bedroom, and had a beaming expression on her face.
"Why are you so happy?" I said, but it came out as, "Whay all yoo sho happae?" By now, we'd gotten used to it and understood everything as to what the other person said.
"This is it. This is the day we see if we're Animagi or not." Mallory said. That realization hit me like a Bludger.
"Hell. It is, isn't it?" I asked and sat down on the sofa. I didn't even eat breakfast or shower that morning as I waited patiently for Professor McGonagall to come. As soon as the clock struck noon, there was a rapping at the door. I opened it to find Professor McGonagall, who suddenly adopted a distasteful look as soon as she saw me.
"Ms. Custos, it would have been appropriate to wear something else than your pyjamas for today." Professor McGonagall said. Mallory came as well, also in her pyjamas. I looked back at her and said, "We should change." She nodded and ran to her room. I led McGonagall in and she sat on the sofa as I quickly changed into something more formal. I wore jeans, a white shirt and a grey blazer, which seemed to please Professor McGonagall. Mallory came out wearing black pants, a t-shirt that had some sort of old Muggle band named 'AC/DC' and a denim jacket.
"This is by far, the most difficult part of the process. It takes a considerable amount of willpower and magic. Now, take the leaves out of your mouth, and repeat the incantation one more time."
We did.
Nothing happened.
Did we do something wrong?
"Now we wait," Professor McGonagall said, crossing her arms and getting comfortable.
"For how long?" I asked, feeling very scammed.
"The harder you concentrate, the faster it goes."
"But what about the mag-"
"Getting angry does not help the process, Ms. Knox."
"I'm not angry, I just don't like it. I mean, what are we even suppose to be concentrating on? The spot on the wall?"
"Nah, the answer is probably going to be "one's inner soul" or something of that sort," I said. To my surprise, McGonagall laughed. "Very close, Ms. Custos. I would say more, getting in touch with your spirit animal. You both know about Patronuses?"
"Yeah, but they're terribly hard to conjure. I've never gotten anything more than a wisp," I said. I was top of my class, but Patronuses just were not for me.
"Me too. Are you saying our Patronus animal is the same as our Animagus form?"
"Yes, precisely. Now, I'll leave you two, send me an owl when you've figured it out." The corners of her mouth twitched like she had just told a funny joke no one else got. She smiled and left.
Mallory was not pleased. "This is so disappointing," she exclaimed and threw herself down on the couch.
"Well at least we can talk and eat normally now. I would puke if I ate another banana." I sat down next to her as she nodded forlornly. I got an idea, and said, "I bet you three knuts I can do it first." She grinned.
"Make it three Sickles and we have a deal." We shook on it, and the competition began.
First it was just sitting in chairs, trying to "concentrate on our inner animal". But then it was lunch time and we wanted some real food. The restaurant we went to, Speedy's, had very good food, better than bananas, but not as good as Hogwarts. I also had a strong suspicion the server was a pickpocket.
We went to bed, still trying to find out inner animal. Harder than it sounded. But I slept better than I had in weeks.
That was, until, a great weight fell on my chest, jerking me away from unconsciousness. A great, furry, sandy, furball seemed to have landed right on top of me. I was so scared, a sharp cold seemed to pierce every pore in my body. I gave a yell of fright, but all that came out was a hoot. A hoot. The cold. I looked down at my arms and saw, not arms, but great, strong, wings. I hooted again, this time triumphant, for I had changed first!
I looked closer at the fur ball. My vision had sharpened in the dark, and I could see 10 times better than I ever had before. The fur ball was moving, and it seemed to have legs. On closer inspection, it looked like a cat. What was a cat doing in our flat? Then it clicked. This cat had the same sandy brown hair as Mallory, almost the exact same color. Mallory was the cat. I had not, in fact, changed first. With a soft pop, Mallory changed back into her human form, smirking at me with a gloating look.
"Three Sickles, please." She held out her hand, and I concentrated on my human self, and with a pop, was back to me. Rolling my eyes, I reached into the dresser beside me and pulled out three Sickles. "What did I look like?" She asked, pocketing the silver.
"A cat with a squished up face," I said, sitting up next to my friend. "What about me?"
"An owl, I think. Big and white. I bet you'll be Harry's owl when he gets to Hogwarts. Speaking of which, let's write to Professor McGonagall. She'll need to register us." She pulled out paper and pen from her desk and started scribbling. "So, are you ready for a flight?" She turned and grinned at me, rolling up the paper.
"I'm new at this, but what the heck. Let's throw caution to the winds." I remembered that feeling of every cell in my body quivering and changing, and in now time at all, I was a great white owl. I lifted my wings (wings!) and pushed off from the ground towards the table.
I miscalculated my jump, and my head collided with the table with a sickening thud. "You alright?" Mallory asked, peering under the table. I wanted to rub the throbbing spot on my head, but my new joints wouldn't bed that way.
I walked back on my scaly legs and tried again. Success! I clicked my beak and stuck out my leg, like I had seen post owls do, and Mallory tied the letter to my leg. She wished me good luck, handed me some cereal, and opened the window. This couldn't be terribly hard, could it?
Unfortunately, it was. It took ten minutes to figure out how to get out of the window, then a few more to discover the secrets of staying aloft. I kept falling, unsure about how to gather momentum, but I was determined to not give up. Within the hour I was privy to the secrets that birds had kept for over a millennium. The wind streaming through my feathers, the tiny world below and the starry sky above, all of it amazingly spread out for as far as my amber eyes could see. The experience was exhilarating and exhausting.
Now…. To Hogwarts. I knew it was up north, Scotland, but I lived in London. I thought struck me. I was of age, and had a license to Apparate. Could I do it in this strange new form?
Concentrating on my every partial to will itself into Hogsmead, I imagined a snowy owl apparating at my destination. It was a trick that made, envisioning yourself in the place you wanted to be. It tended to get you there in one piece. With a soft pop I pressed myself into the suffocating tube that was Apparation.
My surroundings changed in an instant. I was in Hogsmead, and only a few people milling around the streets to see me. In the distance, a castle loomed, and I felt a distinct pull towards home. I pushed off again, soaring towards Hogwarts.
I wondered which window was Professor McGonagall's. Or where the post owls came in through the ceiling. Did McGonagall even live in the castle over the summer?
After swooping around and peering through all the windows, more for the pure fun of it than anything, the sun had started creeping into the sky. I spotted blinds being pulled open, and flew over to see Professor McGonagall in red robes, accepting a plate from a house elf. I tapped on the window, which she pulled open.
My unceremonious entrance was further marked by hitting my head on the lamp. Ouch.
"My goodness, who's owl is this?" McGonagall muttered as she bent over to take the scold tied to my leg. As soon as she had taken the string off my ankle, I turned back into my witch form. McGonagall jumped a little, and almost dropped the letter. "Miss Custos!" She yelped.
"Sorry Professor." There was an awkward pause, where I didn't know what to say. McGonagall shook her head and read the letter. After a few moments, she looked up, a proud gleam in her eyes.
"Congratulations, Ms. Custos. I will get you and Ms. Knox registered by tomorrow morning."
I nodded and turned back to the window, spreading my hands. I concentrated on my Animagus. What had Mallory said it was? An owl? I felt myself shrinking, feathers growing out of my body. In mere seconds I had transformed into an owl. I fluttered up to the windowsill, when suddenly, McGonagall called to me, "Ms. Custos! While you're at it, why don't you deliver Harry's letter?"
I nodded, or tried to at least, and McGonagall reached down on her desk and picked up a letter, which she gave to me. I grasped it in my beak, and took off. Again, my take off was shaky and I needed a few seconds of sheer panic to adjust.
As I flew over Hogwarts, a warm feeling filled my heart. I was at home. Not in human form, but still. I flew to Privet Drive, the sweet memories in my mind the whole journey.