Unexpected Animagus, Part 4
Hunting Habits of the British Changeling in His Preferred Habitat

Please Read and Review. I'd like to know what I'm doing right (to keep doing it), and what I am doing wrong (to correct it).

Personal Note. I wrote this chapter from memory, so there will be some inexactitudes. Please bear with me as the events are either unchanged from canon (like the sorting and announcements at the Welcoming Feast), or they go completely off canon (you´ll know when that happens).

Puckle Farm

Under advice of Hermione, both Drs Granger, and even Sirius, Harry decided to keep his "superpower" a secret.

He already had enough experience with Ron's jealousy that he didn't want another round. If he knew he could change into an animal form, he would go spare, no need to imagine his reaction to knowing Harry could shapeshift into any animal he wanted to.

"Just imagine what would you have done if you had this power back when the Death Eaters attacked the Quidditch World Cup." Hermione commented when they were in private.

"I would have used my power to…"

"You would have jumped immediately. But without enough practice to use it effectively. You could have been killed, Harry. No. I think dad is right, you must go full superhero. Secret identity and everything."

"But the Changeling doesn't have a secret identity." He argued.

Hermione arched an eyebrow. "He can't have one. He is green, for Merlin's sake. You are green only when you change."

"Good point."

Dan Granger had another point of view.

"Any power is only as useful as the user can make it work. There are many stories in the comics where the hero has everything against him, or her. The Flash and the Atom are two characters that did that a lot, especially on the Silver Age." He noticed the puzzled expression on Harry's face. "The Renaissance of comics, it began with Showcase issue 4, the debut of the second Flash (1). Comics had been under heavy attacks from self-righteous people, and blamed for everything bad under the Sun, as a way to reestablish their reputation and het back into the good graces of the public, the major publishers agreed on a self-censoring code, and aimed to be more 'educational', having heroes use science to win was a way to do that. The stories included little tidbits of science so no one could accuse the publishers of being useless (2). Flash even called attention to real science by framing the bits as Flash Facts. I'll send you a few reprints for you to read later, just send Hedwig with a letter and I'll send the books back." He cleared his throat before continuing, "As I was going to say, you have to learn to use your power effectively. Not just changing into animals that are big and strong. Sometimes the small animals will be what you need."

Emma Granger also had a piece of advice,

"Surprise. Keep what you can do secret. Don't reveal it just because you want to show off, or in the heat of the moment. Once your enemies know what you can do, they can plan around it. You can change into small insects too, ever hear the expression 'I would love to be a fly on the wall when something happens'? Well, you can be that fly."

Sirius agreed wholeheartedly, "I've had a lot of time to think, and I'm sure the Traitor was spying on us. A rat can hide almost anywhere, listen without been seen, and come and go without being noticed. It's only fair to do the same to them. Plus, it opens some very interesting possibilities. From pranking to downright spionage and sabotage!" He rubbed his hands together like a vaudeville villain, and actually twirled his mustache!

So, Harry decided to keep his new ability a secret, for those reasons and one more.

He wasn't looking forward to another episode of Ron's jealousy.

Hogwarts, Great Hall
Welcoming Feast.

While watching the ceremonies for the new school year, Harry signaled Hermione, pointing at the staff table. "Look, no DADA teacher."

"I wonder who will be this year…" she said, just as the doors opened with a bang, and letting a gust of cold air into the Great Hall. To Harry, it brought hints of grass, leaves and dirt, mixed with something else…

A tall man, was silhouetted in the threshold, dripping water with each step. He limped heavily, but something in his posture radiated warnings of terrible danger for anybody who dared to cross him.

The man was terribly scarred, missing part of his nose and an ear, his gray hair hung limply around his head, and stomped on an obviously wooden leg. But the most striking feature was the eye set on a patch over the left side of his face, when his actual eye should be.

It was a white sphere, with iris and pupil turning wildly in every direction, moving independently from the other eye.

For a moment, the stranger's eye fixed itself on Harry, who felt as of that eye was trying to ferret his deepest secrets. The doors closed then, as they had been spelled to do, and the gust of air brought back the smells to Harry, this time, the smells of the Great Hall, candle wax, parchment, students and staff, and again, that other half-remembered smell, mixed with oiled leather, rain, and sweat.

Harry inhaled brusquely, and his breath stuck in his throat. For a long and terrible moment, he forgot to breathe.

Hermione shook him by the shoulder, "Harry, are you okay?"

"Y-yes. It's just…" he shook his head, "later. I'll tell you later." He whispered. Luckily, Ron's stomach chose those moments to growl loudly, covering his word so only Hermione heard him.

Empty classroom, close to Gryffindor Tower.

"What happened, Harry?" Hermione asked. After putting a couple of privacy charms.

"When I got my Animagus form, my senses were… sharpened… I'm not at the level of a dog, but I can see, hear and smell much better than I used to. I need to change my glasses to simple plain lenses, no graduation at all." He commented.

"A-ha…" She encouraged her friend. "I can do that, just flat lenses, not a problem." Harry gave her his glasses, and she began to reshape the lenses, she nodded to let Harry continue.

"The new teacher, Moody. He is not who he is supposed to be. I caught a whiff of a smell I won't ever forget, Hermione; Polyjuice Potion. I don't know who he is, but he is not Mad-Eye Moody."

"You think..?"

"Yes, the annual attempt on my life by the DADA teacher. By now, it is unavoidable."

"We need to expose him!"

"No. I think this time, we act slowly. Every time we rush in, we get ignored or punished. Not this time. We need to gather information first. Let's check the Marauder's Map and see who he is."

He pulled the piece of parchment from his pocket and a few moments later, they had located the staff reunion in Dumbledore's office.

The names of the professors, Headmaster, and even Mr. Filch were there, in plain black over off-white, plus a name they didn't expect.

"Barty Crouch?" Hermione said, her teeth working on her lower lip. "Who is that?"

"I think he is in the Ministry. A big shot, head of a department. I know I have heard the name, but I'm not sure of where."

"Why would he impersonate an Auror?"

"Isn't it obvious? To mess with the Tri-Wizard Tournament!" Harry began to pace around, thinking. "I bet he will make it so I'm forced to compete!" He hit his left palm with his right fist.

Hermione nodded, "But why?"

"I'm not sure, but I'm sure I'll be forced into the TWT." A slow grin spread over Harry's mouth. "Forewarned is forearmed, isn't it?"

"It will be dangerous, Harry."

"Yeah, but this time, I have an idea of what to expect. And with the Changeling's help… I can spy on him, find out his plan, and prepare for it."

"So, you will let yourself be entered into a contest that had been cancelled because of a high rate of casualties? It's a trap, Harry!"

"Of course it is, but they are expecting to catch a mouse, not a T-Rex."

"Don't go overconfident on me. If you're stunned, you are as vulnerable as anybody else. And a T-Rex is a big target."

Harry nodded. "Wait, if the fake Moody is with the rest of the staff, where's the real Moody?"

Quickly, they searched the map, until they found Moody's name, in the DADA teacher's quarters. Hermione slapped her forehead. "Of course," she said, gritting her teeth, "Crouch needs easy access to the real Moody, Polyjuice Potion wears off and he has to keep drinking it to keep the change going. He need the real Moody alive to replenish his supply of potion, it doesn't work unless the original is alive. And it copies the person's body as it is at the current moment. A hair taken six months ago would turn the user in a copy of the person now, not like they were six months ago (3). So he has to keep Moody reasonably healthy."

Harry nodded, "I think Moody must be held prisoner there. Look. His name is inside this rectangle. It's big enough to be a chest."

"Poor man, he must be suffocating!"

"Okay, time to do something. Let me run something by you, and tell me what could go wrong."

An hour later, the staff meeting ended, and the Professors tags in the Marauder's Map went back to their respective quarters. "Moody" was no exception.

"Time to go, cover up for me in the Common Room, please."

"Be careful. Don't let him see you."

Harry nodded, and in a flash, he seemed to disappear; only to be replaced by a green fly. They had agreed it would be the least noticeable form he could use to travel quickly inside the castle.

Hall Outside DADA Professor´s Quarters

The fly turned into a green spider and waited for his prey, hiding in the supports over the hall, right outside Moody's office/quarters.

The impostor arrived a few minutes later, stomping heavily on the wooden leg. After looking around suspiciously, he entered the place, while Harry turned back into a fly, and entered the room after the man.

Crouch closed, locked and spelled the door, before walking to the bed, quickly, he took off the magic eye and undid the straps that held the wooden leg to the stump.

"Aaahhh… much better…" he wheezed, he pulled a pocket watch from his vest, opened it, and with expectant intensity, waited for a few minutes.

Harry watched from the ceiling, as the man's body rippled and changed. A healthy eye appeared in his empty socket, and a new leg grew under the clothes. The man was rail thin, with sharp features and messy brown hair. His eyes glinted with madness and evil.

He actually cackled as he massaged his features.

Harry looked carefully at the young man who stood on the cold floor as he opened the chest, and extracted a ladder from its depts. Harry flew silently after him and stopped at the edge of the chest compartment, looking down.

Crouch descended to the very bottom of the magically expanded chest, where the real Alastor Moody lay down on a bunch of straw.

"Don't get up." Crouch said mockingly. "I'm just here to shear you."

Evidently, Moody was completely paralyzed by a spell. Though his one eye narrowed in impotent fury.

Crouch pulled violently at Moody's hair, ripping a small fistful from the back of the neck, where the rest of the long strands would hide any blood. "Time for you to eat." He put a potion bottle against Moody's lips, forcing the man to swallow. "We wouldn't want you to die of hunger before my Master returns, do we? Our mutual friend is taking care of things outside while I prepare things here. If it was up to me, I'd kill you here and now, but my Master needs me here, impersonating you, so, you get to live a little longer."

These words held Harry back. 'There's somebody else… Pettigrew!' He thought. Now he had to know more. He hesitated, Crouch paralyzed Moody again, and without another word, came out the chest.

Harry turned into a flea, and hitched a ride on the impostor's coat as he emerged.

Crouch slammed close the lid, and twisted a set a couple of apparently ornamental studs. The chest glowed for a moment. "There, safe and sound."

He changed clothes to sleep. Fortunately for Harry, Crouch fell asleep in just a minute.

A green spider walked out the room by simply passing under the door. Once outside, Harry turned back into a fly, and returned to the Gryffindor Common Room. He bypassed the portrait of the Fat Lady by turning into a small cockroach and sliding behind the frame.

Gryffindor Common Room

Hermione waited for him, the only student still in the Common Room. As they had agreed, once she saw the green fly and heard it buzz the agreed code, she closed her book and went to sleep, relieved Harry had returned safe and sound.

As for himself, Harry flew into the room he shared with his group, checked they were already sleeping, and changed back to his original body.

Minutes later, he lay down on his bed, thinking.

He would need to ask for advice, not only Hermione's, but also the Grangers and Sirius.

But that was a matter for tomorrow.

Author Notes

(1) Back in the 1950´s, the only way to adjust print runs was to wait for the sales reports, and launching a new title was considered risky, DC solved both problems by creating Showcase, a comic book made explicitly to test new concepts and see f they were worth the risk of launching new titles. The first few issues were relatively realistic and neither got a title; but the fourth caught lightning in a bottle, by relaunching Flash as a completely new character (Showcase issue 4; October, 1956), superheroes were back in business, after several years of shrinking runs and cancelled titles. After a few more issues featuring Flash, the character proved to be popular enough to get his own title, Green Lantern followed later (Showcase issue 22; October, 1959), and also got his own title. Many of the best known characters of the Silver Age debuted (or were relaunched) in Showcase, during its 104 issues run.

(2) True, and several heroes had secret identities who worked in jobs that would be desirable during the Cold War. Barry Allen (Flash) was a forensic analyst for the police, Hal Jordan (Green Lantern) a test pilot, Ray Palmer (Atom) a physicist. So they tended to have a ready justification for their scientific knowledge.

(3) Reasonable parameters for the Polijuice Potion.