And so it started on a late summer night.
Harry Potter had an uncharacteristically smug expression playing on his lips. An Animagus! Of course, he would have become an animagus. Not because his father had been one. Actually, Harry didn't know that at all. It was simply his own ambition, it could come in very useful- especially if he wasn't known as one.
He was just a very curious child who enjoyed immersing himself in his books. In his cupboard, he would sometimes have been able to sneak in some library books, but more often than not, he would curl up and drift into his own fantasy world with athletes on broomsticks, flying motorcycles and anything else his inventive mind would create.
Which is why he loved learning. It distracted him, gave him a sense of self, and made him feel as if he was actually worth something in this new, exciting world. Being a celebrity didn't count, it constantly reminded him of the reason he had been cast off on the Dursleys doorstep in the first place. There he was despised for something he couldn't remember and here he was adored for the same reason. Ridiculous really!
Harry shook those thoughts away- he was far from all of that, no use in dredging up foul memories that were threatening his previously cheery mood.
So how had the young boy managed the transformation in the first place? Well, it was ever so tedious, but then again he was learning how to become an animagus - at the ripe age of eleven no less. The process involved first, to place a leaf under his tongue for a month! Bizarre yes, but very necessary. After a few more shenanigans that weren't exactly allowed by the rules, Harry had completed the transformation!
And so he became a tiny black kitten with a bright-almost luminescent- lightning scar etched deep into his soft, charcoal fur. Treading lightly, the petite animal snuck silently out of the Hufflepuff common room and up the corridors to have a quiet nap in the moonlight- since even the strongest, most complex silencing charms weren't very effective at silencing Macmillan's snores. Honestly, how did the boy not wake himself up?
The moon cast its eerie glow over the otherwise pitch-black grounds. The slightest breeze swept through the courtyard however even the tiny black kitten perked up at the inaudible whistling. He had not been fed much his whole life and so physically speaking was very weak, but also very, very receptive to his surroundings.
And so it startled him when a large jaw firmly clamped on the scruff of his neck lifting him high above the ground, leaving his tiny limbs dangling in the air. In fact, the bewildered kitten looked very adorable indeed. However, the larger cat was too frustrated to really care. Harry soon realised he was in no real danger but oh damn was he in a hell of a lot of trouble. The little rascal began to meow quite vigorously in protest but the larger cat kept a firm steady grip all the way through the corridors and up to McGonagall's office.
The portrait of the stern Transfiguration mistress swung open to permit the professor and her wayward student into the regal office. Harry was aware that only a few moments later, he had been unceremoniously dropped into someone's lap. The tiny black kitten was engulfed in a sea of ebony robes. A large shadow was coming over him and Harry couldn't help but shiver in fright; however, a large, gentle hand came to lightly stroke his fur. The small animal purred in pleasure which evoked a low chuckle from the person above him.
Severus saw that while he found the sudden appearance of a kitten amusing, Minerva clearly didn't. There was deep disapproval etched in her features and she levelled a deep glare at the mirth that she saw on her colleague's face.
"I don't think you would be so amused if you knew that that little rascal in your lap is none other than Mr Potter!"
Snape showed no outward sign of surprise but inside he was astonished. The little brat was already an animagus! Impressive. He had begun to develop a grudging respect for the boy- much to his chagrin. But nevertheless, the rascal had just broken about 1000 school rules with this hare-brained scheme of his!
Severus lifted the kitten to be eye-level with him and fixed the brat with a deadly glare.
"Already thinking yourself above the rules, Mr Potter?"
The little kitten meowed vehemently in protest with a glare that rivalled even Severus' in intensity. Despite this, Harry was just adorable. Adorable? The little troublemaker had broken many of Hogwarts' rules as well as the law! But Harry still managed to remain simply cute. Calling the troublemaker by his first name are we? Damn it!
"Alright, Potter, why don't you change back and tell us why I had to drag your sorry hide back to the castle in the middle of the night!" Minerva's patience was fraying at the edges, but that just made it even more amusing in Severus' eyes.
Not more than a few moments later, there was a scrawny midget of a boy in the potions master's lap. When he realised what position he was in, he slid off the teacher's lap and rushed over to a nearby chair.
"I just wanted to get away from Macmillan's snoring, honest!"
"So you decided to break about a dozen laws and even more school rules to relieve yourself from someone's snoring?" Honestly, he had never heard such a pathetic, dunderheaded excuse.
"I tried everything, sir, silencing charms, wards, earplugs, stuffing a pillow over my head- nothing works!"
Well, the brat wasn't lying, that's for sure but Severus sensed more to the story than what this student let on.
"You could've asked one for us, for heaven's sake!" Minerva was perplexed, irritated and exasperated- what horrors should await her for the next seven years if the kid had managed this in the span of six weeks?
"Well, Minerva, Timothy Macmillan was also rumoured to have a snore that shook the entire castle. It would be no surprise if his spawn developed the same affliction for annoying the entire student body." Severus remarked with a sneer.
"Nonetheless, Mr Potter has broken the law!"
"Minerva, he was only having a nap in the courtyard for Merlin's sake. If I were him I wouldn't want to spend that much time around those dunderheads anyway. Also, most children wouldn't bother researching the legal requirements of becoming an animagus."
"You're only defending him because you used to sneak out to abandoned classrooms at 3 am in the morning to brew potions since your first year!"
"It benefited me in the long run. Besides, the ability to become an animagus- an unregistered one in that- could be especially handy,"
"Don't give him any more ideas, the scallywag ought to have his hide tanned!"
The child stiffened and was clearly on edge. He barely moved- apparently too afraid to speak. Severus decided to diffuse the tension as quickly as possible- he didn't want to deal with a pissed-off Minerva at 1 am in the morning.
"Minerva, You do remember corporal punishment has been banned in this institution for at least a decade."
The scrawny child next to him visibly relaxed and Severus let out the breath he didn't know he had been holding.
"Fine, Severus, but still all of this because of someone's snoring!"
"Well it wasn't just snoring, professors, but I don't think it matters." The child hung his head low but Severus nudged the kid's chin upwards until green eyes met black.
"Nightmares then, Mr Potter?" Harry nodded but still avoided eye contact. The kid wasn't lying but there was something up. What was the boy hiding?
"Mr Potter, I believe that it definitely matters since they must be disturbing enough to motivate you to become an animagus," Minerva said.
"It was just the one with the flash of green light and the woman screaming, nothing serious." Harry snapped, damn it why couldn't they just get his punishment over with yet. No-one cared about his freaky nightmares.
"He dreamt of his mother's death, oh Severus that is simply wretched," The proud Gryffindor matriarch deflated with a distant look in her eyes while she thumped into a nearby armchair.
"Potter, I assure you that is not 'nothing serious' as you put it. Watching your mother's death isn't something that people should just brush off. I'm certain Professor Sprout would've easily been able to comfort you should you need it." the potions master stated, staring intently at the boy.
The boy was reserved for sure,but surely he must be jumping for joy at having been released from his punishment.
"I didn't think it would've been that important." Harry bit back.
Minerva and he both shared a glance and the Gryffindor head of house delicately cleared her throat.
"Mr Potter, Harry, we will deal with your punishment, later on, it's obvious we must keep your abilities secret. For now, you shall go with Professor Snape and I suggest you rest. We've all had a very tiring night."
"Why my quarters?"
"Because Macmillan is still in the Hufflepuff dormitories for all I know."
Snape shot her a murderous look but gestured for the boy to follow him through the floo. McGonagall sighed as the green flames dissipated pondering the strange little boy who had sat in front of her just a few minutes ago.
Meanwhile, Snape roughly hoisted Harry up as he came from the fireplace in a whirl of smoke, coughing up a storm.
"I know there's more than nightmares, although they probably are part of it."
"Well yes sir, after all, would people easily spot a black kitten in the darkness or would they just ignore it?"
What was the boy going on about?
"You see sir, as the saying goes, out of sight, out of mind."
"Potter-" he was tired and didn't have time for cryptic riddles.
"Don't use that name sir, please,"
"Why?"
But the brat was uncooperative to answer. Doesn't matter anyhow.
"Right, I believe it's time you got to bed, You're fortunate that tomorrow is a Sunday because I wouldn't write you a permission slip to excuse your tardiness."
"I know sir, that's why I chose today,"
"You'll have to tell me the real reason you became an animagi,"
"Macmillan honestly does snore that loud though, sir!"
Severus shook his head exasperated.
The door creaked ominously as both entered the guest bedroom. However, it looked like nothing more than a nest of old webs and decaying furniture. Right, definitely not this room.
"I'll just sleep on the couch, if you don't mind sir,"
"Uh, no that's fine, here," with a flick of his wand a set of sheets appeared in his arms, and Potter trotted off with the pile, his small frame struggling to balance the load in his arms. Severus turned to his room, not really knowing what to say or do.
Severus had learnt over time that there just some things he couldn't force himself to ignore and he always did hate mysteries. Ever since he had seen the lad as an infant the boy's life had always been a mystery. But this time, unlike the others, he would finally figure it out. He knew he would.