Haja

Chapter 9

('''……''' = catspeak)

Harry felt as if he was seeing the Potions Master with a whole new set of eyes. And, really, he was. It was a constant marvel to habitually push frames up on his nose and find that they weren't there. The clarity of objects both near and far made it hard for him to concentrate on his work because he would find himself absorbed in noticing details that were never so clear before.

He found himself re-examining all his previous years as a student of the Potions Master, the Occlumency fiascoes, the scathing remarks, the detentions. He was seeing that there just might have been other reasons besides the hatred of Harry's father for the man's behavior. Review of opportunities told Harry that if the man had wanted him dead, he had been given numerous occasions to make that happen. Yet, he had repeatedly protected Harry, even if it was done with snarling reluctance. He had told Harry that he had cared for his mother. Maybe his regard for Lily really was stronger than his dislike of James. Maybe the man was now seeing Harry as something other than a carbon copy of James.

If Harry's animagus had been a stag like James's, would he be so nice to Harry still? Harry doubted that, though it still was a shock that the man seemed to have taken a liking to the cat Harry became. What shocked Harry more was the way he was drawn to the man while in his cat form. He instinctively trusted him, wanting to be close to him, enjoying the long fingers stroking and scratching in the right places along his head and back.

Harry wrote about these feelings, trying to sort them out. He was hesitant to be so honest on paper. Snape had shown that he would openly read whatever Harry had written. That made Harry grit his teeth in irritation. These were private thoughts regarding his animagus experience. Snape reading the journal entries seemed too much like the legillimency lesson; too much like the man ripping into his inner most memories and thoughts. For a few minutes he wondered if he would still be so abrupt and ruthless with those lessons.

Dobby popped in and set a tray on the low table beside where Harry still sat on the floor. Hot chocolate and a few butter biscuits on a plate were accompanied by two small potions vials. Harry looked at Snape and the man motioned for Harry to take them.

"It's the last of the healing draughts; bone strengthener, and blood replenisher. You should have something in your stomach in order to take them both together. Your energy levels should be better afterwards."

Harry took the potions along with sips of the chocolate and bites of biscuits. He wrote a bit more in the journal before closing it and standing up. Snape looked up from his own work.

Hesitantly, Harry asked, "If I change to the cat, may I explore the castle? The book says that the way I see things that are familiar with my human eyes will be different with my animagus eyes."

"If you will get your map and let me hold on to it while you do so." The opportunity to study the magicked parchment was too difficult to pass up.

Harry nodded and went to his room, retrieving the map. He watched as Snape unfolded it on the table and pulled out his wand. Harry had to fight not to reach out and snatch the map away when he pointed the wand at the parchment. He clenched shaking hands when Snape murmured the password phrase.

"I solemnly swear that I am up to no good…" the man intoned.

They both watched as the parchment did…absolutely nothing. Snape had been thinking about the map and had realized that it was the 'spare bit of parchment' that Harry had been carrying back in his third year. Then, the map had rudely insulted him He had expected that it might do the same thing now.

Harry was staring down at the map wide-eyed. Then he looked up t Snape with a spark of fear in those green eyes. "I don't know why—"

"It's alright, Harry. You activate it and we'll see if it will stay activated for me." Harry searched the dark eyes and finally saw the assurance that he needed.

"I solemnly swear that I am up to no good."

The map blossomed into the lines and swirls of the castle matrix. At the bottom of the map a new sentence appeared.

Messrs. Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot, and Prongs

Purveyors of Aids to Magical Mischief-Makers

Solemnly requests that the current owner of

The Marauders Map

To reconsider allowing undesirable access to its properties.

Snape murmured under his breath and Harry had to look at him to see that he wasn't angry, but fascinated. "The magic in this astounding… that they were able to imbue it with a sentience when they were still students…"

Harry remained silent until Snape looked at him. "Walk away and we will see if it remains active when you are not close."

Harry obeyed, going back to his room and then out to the garden beyond. In a few minutes, he heard Snape come out behind him and he looked up at the man.

"It still works." He looked at the worried frown lines on Harry' face and lifted a hand to the teen's shoulder, briefly touching it. "Thank you for trusting me with it."

A flash of relief crossed his face before he asked, "Then I can explore the castle?"

Snape nodded. "Be careful. If you get lost, remember to become human again. Things look very different when you see them from different eyes. I expect you to return within an hour."

Harry nodded. In a blink he was down on the floor as Haja. He trotted through his room and to the front door of the quarters. He meowed happily when he found that he was able to make a swinging door appear here with his paws, just as on those doors inside. He glanced back over his shoulder at Snape standing there watching him. The Potions Master gave him a small nod and Harry disappeared through the door.

*********

The castle did indeed look different from this vantage point and in this form. Things had always been bigger than life to Harry, but to Haja they were huge. But he found that spaces that were inaccessible to a human were very accessible to a flexible cat. Nooks and crannies behind statues and suits of armor were shadowy realms that were full of intrigue. He knew he had spent a long time just in the main hall when he emerged from the dungeon stairs. His tail twitched as he tried to decide whether to go up the grand staircase or down another hallway off the main hall. He was about to go down a hall when the noise of the giant front doors of Hogwarts opening stopped him.

When the door opened and Mr. Filch came in carrying his bag, Haja hid himself in a tight space between the feet of a suit of armor and the sword it held pointed to the floor.

"Yes…It's good to be home again, isn't it dearheart?" The old squib was followed closely by the large orange-eyed cat, Mrs. Norris.

Unerringly, the cat focused on the space where Haja sat. With a low growl her hackles rose and her pupils dilated. As she stalked slowly to Haja's hidden spot Filch asked,

"What is it Mrs. Norris? Have the mice taken over while we were on holiday?"

The stringy-haired man bent over to peer under the armor and Mrs. Norris crept closer. Under the armor, Haja quivered. He had not thought that he would run into trouble so soon.

'''Mrs. Norris, can you understand me?'''

The orange eyes constricted a bit and she responded with a spit meow, '''Who are you?'''

'''You can't tell…'''

She let out an irate yowl that made Haja tremble more. '''Answer me at once and I might not tear your innards out!'''

'''Ok! Ok! Harry Potter! I'm an animagus!'''

Mrs. Norris immediately sat back and reversed her attack stance. Beside her Mr. Filch glanced over at her.

"What is it dearheart? It's only a small kit…you can easily take him!"

Haja meowed softly, '''Please, Mrs. Norris… Professor Snape is my mentor, and Professor Dumbledore knows about me. I'm just looking around the castle.'''

The orange eyes blinked and Mrs. Norris leaned over and rubbed her head against Mr. Filch's face that was still pressed close to the floor.

'''We'll have to talk more later, young one. What are you called?'''

'''Snape named me Haja.'''

Filch was gently prodding Mrs. Norris to move closer to the armor. "Go on, love! Get him!"

"Filch!"

The old man scrambled to his feet as the Potions Master strode towards him rapidly. "Ah, Professor Snape! I've only just gotten back and already my dear Mrs. Norris has discovered an intruder!"

Mrs. Norris meowed, '''Here it comes… I love the man, but Merlin he can be so dense.''' She proceeded to wash her face with a paw.

"You have cornered my cat, Filch." Snape's voice was just short of snarling.

"Your cat! You don't have a cat, Snape!"

"I do now, and he is off limits."

Haja peered out at them all. Filch was looking back and forth between Snape and the feet of the armor. He looked to be struggling for something to say and finally muttered, "Shoulda told me… why do we need another cat around here anyway…" He beckoned to Mrs. Norris, "Come dearheart. Let's go unpack."

Mrs. Norris stood up, stretching languidly. '''I'm certain we'll be seeing each other around, little one. Snape will be an excellent mentor.'''

'''How do you know?''' Haja asked.

'''He is one of us,''' she answered as she followed after Filch.

Haja crawled out from under the armor as the caretaker and his cat disappeared around a corner. He sat looking up at Snape with a questioning tilt to his head.

'''What did she mean?'''

Snape narrowed his eyes and pulled out his wand. Casting a tempus charm in the air he then looked down at Haja. "Instead of going back to my quarters, meet me in the Great Hall in half an hour. It is almost dinner."

'''As Haja?'''

"Of course," he said with a roll of his eyes and a slight lifting of one corner of his lip.

Haja flattened on ear back at the tone in Snape's voice. It seemed slightly contemptuous.

'''Sorry. It took the cat brain a moment to remember why I can't be human in front of everyone here.'''

"Hm," was all the response Snape gave that. He turned and strode back down the stairway that led to the dungeons and Haja stared after him for several long moments, part of him glad that the man had the Marauders Map. It was probably how he had known to come up to rescue him from Filch!

The encounter with Filch and Mrs. Norris had turned his adventure sour. The appeal of exploring was no longer there and now he felt hesitant about going off anywhere else. Mrs. Norris had seemed to back down, but what if she changed her mind? And what exactly had she meant that Snape was one of them? Snape had ignored that question neatly.

Unable to decide which direction to go, Haja went over to the doors of the Great Hall. From his place on the floor and gazing up, the doors seemed gigantic, even in proportion to other doors. He placed his paws up on the door to see if it would open for him. Nothing happened. No little swinging door appeared in the lower panels to allow him entrance. He sat back on his haunches, trying to decide what to do next. It seemed as if he couldn't get a clear thought about whether to stay put and wait or simply run off and resume his explorations.

Out of the corner of his eye he caught a flitting movement and his head turned sharply. A white moth was flying in a random pattern across the entry hall. It dipped down and the instinct to pounce became the new top priority in the cat's brain. The door was forgotten as he stalked the new prey. The insect came tantalizingly close and Haja quickly leaped and swiped with a paw. Missed!

The game was consuming and Haja kept dilated eyes on the moth. Again and again he played a game of almost-but -not-close-enough with the moth. Vaguely, he was reminded of something else that was as much fun as this… but it didn't matter… he would catch this bug at whatever the cost! He leaped again, only for the moth to take to a higher flight path and head towards the outer doors. Haja raced after it, not hesitating when the great doors opened and the moth went through them. So intent was he on watching the flight path of the moth, that he didn't see who had opened the door.

The moth now hovered around the head of Draco Malfoy and he swatted at it impatiently. Haja leaped up again to attempt a catch, narrowly missing landing in the arms of the Slytherin.

Draco reached out and easily pinched the moth between two fingers as Haja sat eyeing him reproachfully. His tail swished back and forth in is irritation and he eyed the moth hungrily.

Draco looked from the cat to the moth. "You'll have to develop faster reflexes if you hope to catch it, stupid cat. Now if you were a seeker like me, you could fly up on a broom and chase it like a snitch."

That was it! That's what it had reminded Haja of! Catching the snitch! And now the very annoying blond had his 'snitch'!

Without another bit of hesitation, Haja leaped up and quickly climbed up the wizard, using front and back claws to gain the leverage and height he needed until he was at Draco's arm and lightly running down to the hand and snatching the struggling moth from the surprised fingers.

He leapt away and sat down to hold the moth down in his front paws as he watched Draco's delayed reaction.

"That hurt, you damn cat! You put holes in my new slacks and robe! Who do you think you are, anyway?"

Haja stared up at him, mentally preparing to run if it looked like Draco would come after him. But the blond was busy rubbing at the claw marks, and examining his clothing for damage. Haja stood up and took the moth in his mouth. The trophy was his! He trotted back inside the castle door and back under the suit of armor, settling down to munch on his treat.

Draco followed him in and hissed, "I hope you choke on it, furball! If you didn't belong to Severus, I'd relieve you of your skin and look up cat parts as potions ingredients…"

Haja watched from his safe spot as Draco disappeared down the dungeon steps. The moth in his mouth gave a feeble twitch and Haja put it out of its misery with a bite. The taste was not what he had expected and he spit the moth out quickly. The powdery coating of the insect's wings clung to his tongue and the roof of his mouth. He sat there licking at his mouth, trying to get the bitter taste out, as he prodded the moth with a paw. It didn't move. Somewhere in his feline mind, he had learned a lesson, but he was still unclear about what it was.

Hearing footsteps, he looked out and saw Dumbledore coming down the staircase and heading towards the doors of the Great Hall. Leaving the moth under the armor's feet, he dashed into the Great Hall just as Dumbledore entered.

Albus looked down at the cat as he trotted up towards the table set for dinner.

"Feeling better, I'm glad to see, my friend," he called out.

Haja ignored him, and continued up to the table. Several other people who were currently in the castle came in; Hagrid, Filch, and Professor Trelawney.

Trelawney had not been there when Haja first came, so she paused when she saw him.

"A black cat is a bad omen, Headmaster," she intoned as she pointed at Haja with a shaking finger. "I foresee a year that will see us all immersed in darkness…"

Filch looked up and nodded, "That's what I'm thinkin'. Don't need no new cats around here. Mrs. Norris is enough."

Mrs. Norris was walking along beside him and Haja looked at her in time to see what looked like the orange eyes rolling skyward. She looked at Haja and gave him a cat-grin.

Haja tried to give her a cat-grin in return, but wasn't sure if he pulled it off, as she ignored him in order to go and sit in Filch's lap when he sat down in a chair.

Dumbledore simply chuckled. "The cat is named Haja, Sybil, and he is with Severus."

Snape strode into the room just then and Trelawney turned to him. "You have brought a poor omen into the castle… it bodes ill for us all…"

Draco, following Snape, spoke up, "He's already attacked me, my clothes are ruined from the holes and blood."

Snape looked down at Haja and the cat meowed, '''He was keeping my prey from me. It's his own fault.'''

Snape shook his head and took his seat while saying, "He's a cat, not an omen, nor an intruder. He is learning his way around the castle and I will not appreciate anyone else interfering with his wanderings."

Dumbledore chortled with amusement. "That is quite the speech from someone who is so intent on preventing nocturnal student wanderings during the school year."

Snape snapped his fingers and Dobby appeared with a small plate. He set it down beside Snape's chair and Haja knew it was his meal. He walked over to the plate and gave a head bussing to Dobby's leg in thanks. The house elf patted the cat on the head before popping out again. This time, the food was choice bites of the roast beef that everyone up above was having. Dobby had even remembered how much the human Harry loved the creamy roast gravy and he had been generous with it. Haja wished he had some of the mashed potatoes that usually went with the roast, but it looked like the meat was all he would be getting.

He meowed softly as he ate, in comment to the occasional snatches of conversation that caught his attention. Draco was still complaining about his damaged clothing, and Filch was still arguing the merits of Mrs. Norris being the only cat necessary to the castle. Trelawney was still moaning about Haja being a bad omen.

"Would you begrudge Severus the company of a familiar then?" Dumbledore directed his question to the two men. "He has not had a familiar other than his owl all these years. Does he not deserve that consideration?"

Filch and Draco didn't answer. Trelawney seemed to be murmuring more doom and destruction, and some of it was hitting a mark too close to Harry's reality.

"…He has come out of darkness and he will be fighting for his place in this world… he is… linked somehow… to the one who is to save us all, but he is—"

Dumbledore interrupted her musings as Haja raised his head in alarm at her words. Her voice wasn't in the tone of the times when she had given further prophecy about him, but she was getting awfully close to the truth of who he was.

"Sybil… let us all enjoy our meal. Haja is just a familiar. There is nothing ominous about him."

Haja finished his meal and began to rub against Snape's legs. After a few minutes, the man reached down and lifted him into his lap. Haja peered across the table at Trelawney and she gasped.

"He is marked! He is marked just like—"

"That will be enough, Sybil," Dumbledore said firmly.

Snape kept a firm hand on Haja as he tensed to jump down and run. "As you note, Sybil, the cat is marked, with a blaze similar to the scar that Harry Potter bears. That should be enough, even for you, to see that he is not a solid black cat and the portent of doom you foresee."

Draco took the opportunity to add to the melee, "If he is a bad omen, it should be bad only for that scarheaded Gryffindor."

He continued to eat in silence until he noticed that everyone else had stopped eating and was staring at him. He realized his error immediately and tried to backtrack.

"It's all in good fun, you know, us calling each other names and such." He saw the hardness in the eyes of the teachers and even a bit of scorn in Filch's eyes, although that was likely due to him anticipating a round of summer punishments for the loose-lipped Slytherin.

Draco mumbled into his plate, "He calls me Ferret-face…"

Snape felt the fur under his hands shift as Haja's muscles rippled in agitation. The cat let out a hissed meow and everyone turned to him. Snape settled his hand even more firmly and spoke quietly, "Haja will not attempt to use your person as a tree again, Mr. Malfoy. You, in return, will stay away from him. On the subject of your rather juvenile name-calling…" he paused for a moment. "I will not hear of it again, by any parties. It is offensive and childish."

Draco tensed his jaw, but he finally nodded that he understood. After a moment the tension at the table eased and everyone went back to eating and talking in forced lighter tones and on lighter subjects.

Haja settled into Snape's lap as the man sipped on an after dinner cup of tea. One of his hands continued to idly pet the small cat and Haja found himself relaxing into a catnap.

A/N: Sorry for the wait, but as I've said, I am working on chapter by chapter now. This one doesn't seem quite right somehow but I need to post it and step back. Some of it was simply setting tone and developing characters a bit. Still seems lacking… more as soon as I get the next chapter done!

Thank you again for all the story alerts and reviews! Even though there are probably hundreds of animagus fics out there, this appears to be one that people are enjoying!

Tea and cookies for you all, and iced tea for all of you in hot Texas heat like I am! Nothing like Texas in August…come on September!