Hadrian Romanoff and the Beginning

Chapter-4

Sirius glanced curiously around the cluttered lab, trying to make sense of what he could see as Tony and Bruce lead him to the back of the room.

There was a tall metal archway attached to a round platform. It wasn't the strangest looking thing in the room nor the most advanced but Sirius had long learned not to underestimate something Tony built. The Great Toaster Incident made sure of that.

"What exactly do you need me for?"

"We want to study the effects and changes to a person's physiology when they go through transformations," Bruce explained. "We've been consulting with Dr. McCoy and Professor Xavier from the Xavier Institute as well as Dr. Richards..." Tony muttered something uncomplimentary under his breath. "But their research is based on the X gene and external forces that bring about the change."

"Not wizards like me," Sirius said with understanding.

Bruce nodded. "We're sure that there are differences between, say, a mutant with the ability to turn into an animal and a wizard who has to learn the process of turning into one, like you did."

Tony stepped away, calling out orders to JARVIS as he circled the machine. He removed a small panel to check on the wiring inside and stuck his arm under the arch to see if the sensors were working properly.

"Since we've already studied the magical 'core' as it is with you, Remus, and Hadrian we should be able to detect any changes or anomalies when you shift into Padfoot. I spoke to Remus and he agreed to have his next transformation monitored as well." Bruce said.

"You think you can help him?" Sirius asked intently, staring straight into Bruce's eyes.

Bruce looked away from the intense gaze and cleared his throat. "I'd like to try. The recent discovery of the Wolfsbane potion has helped but there's no telling what long term side effects there could be. If we have a better understanding of the process itself and what it does we should be able to come up with an alternative aid which effects we'll know about."

Sirius clapped his hands together. "Let's get this thing started then."

Tony and Bruce had Sirius under the arch for over an hour, asking him to shift as quickly or as slowly he could manage, requesting for him to perform different spells before shifting, seeing if he could perform magic in his shifted form. Tony was nearly mauled by the large black dog when he brought out a dog whistle to 'test how far the physiological changes went' - Bruce had to threaten putting a collar and leash on Tony for things to calm down again.

At one point Sirius sneezed just as he began to shift and ended up sporting dog ears and a tale. It took Bruce fifteen minutes to prevent Tony's death from an overdose of laughter and another ten minutes to pull Tony and Sirius apart when the billionaire told JARVIS to send the video to everyone in the tower.

"I'm working with children." Bruce removed his glasses and pinched the bridge of his nose.

"Doctor Banner, it seems we have an intruder," JARVIS said just as Bruce heard the sound of soft and quick footsteps.

He turned to see Hadrian running toward them, his arms stretched out in front of him. He ran to Bruce first and wrapped himself around the man's leg tightly.

"Unca 'Ruce!"

"Hadrian, what have I told you about running with your arms out like that?" Bruce reprimanded.

Hadrian blinked before responding in a soft voice. "Not to."

"And why is that?" Bruce continued.

"'Cause it makes me loppy." Hadrian answered, hiding his face in the fabric of Bruce's pants.