Whimsical {James Potter}

Chapter 36

Chapter 36: Animagus

Cressida releases a shuddered breath, stepping from foot to foot. James looks back straight, his eyes screwed shut and his lips twisted like he's just eaten a lemon or something equally as bitter. Nobody says anything – not daring to break their stares.

It all seems to happen at once. James begins to grow both shorter and longer at the same time. His arms grow thinner and longer, and the hair on his head is being pulled back into his skin until it is only an inch or so long, and turning a shade of reddish-brown. The same hair covers his entire body.

The entire thing happens in less than a second. Once where James stood as a human boy, now stands a stag. His head is just a few inches shorter than Cressida's, but a large set of antlers rise high above them all, branching out majestically.

A hand raises to cup her mouth.

"Holy fuck," Sirius cries. James, in his stag form, almost prances from hoof to hoof, gathering a feel for his new body. He takes a wobbly step forward and the three remaining humans jump back.

"Antlers," Cressida warns him, her hands reaching out to hold them back gently. "Watch your antlers." His dark deer eyes look upwards as he bows his head at the same time, trying to see them for himself.

"This is wicked," Peter hisses. He paces around James, taking in every detail. Cressida is entranced, running her fingers along the antlers she had been holding steady. They feel soft but bone like – an odd mix.

She blinks hard, almost failing to recognise the animal and James as the same. Every instinct is telling her to be careful to not scare such a beautiful creature, but she doubts James would be timid at the attention. Cressida's hands fall to his neck, stroking the soft fur with one hand as Sirius examines the prongs more closely. "I told you that you wouldn't be a lion," she laughs. James tilts his stag head, intentionally poking her shoulder with one of his antler prongs. Only laughing louder, she adds, "this suits you so much better." His wet nose presses against her fingers, twitching slightly as they pick up on something.

Then suddenly the stag disappears and is once again replaced with James. His voice cracks with a manic laugh. "I can't believe that worked," he breathes out. "And a stag is so bloody cool."

Cressida blinks, taking a silent step back. "What did it feel like?"

He shakes his head slightly, still stunned. "It-it felt weird. I could sense everything so much better. I could smell you all differently, you didn't look any different but it was also like seeing you all through different eyes. But it's like everything else is blocked out. Excess things just don't exist."

"Excess?" Sirius repeats.

"Yeah," James nods. "Like, worrying about the Quidditch games coming up. Or the potion homework I haven't done. You sort of zone in on what's around you."

Sirius picks up his bottle that was placed aside, uncorking the top. "Guess there's no reason to wait." With his other hand, he places his wand over his heart and recites the incantation then downs the bottle just as James had.

The transformation happens even quicker this time and Cressida barely has a moment to watch it happen. Instead of a shaggy-haired boy, a large black dog with equally shaggy hair stands in front of them. His head stands close to her hip, tongue already out.

"A dog," she states with a sigh of relief, not even having the time to be concerned. "You're a dog, Sirius." Her knees fold outwards, letting her sink to the floor in a kneel as he begins to wander around in his dog form.

James and Peter follow suit. "Not as cool as a stag," James grins. He reaches out to pet Sirius who only gives him a face that she could compare to a scowl. "But wicked just the same." Sirius' nose twitches, picking up scents that are non-existent to their own sense. "Told you," James drawls. "You can smell everything."