Hogwarts for the Marauders

Chapter 11 A Cat?

Remus saw as Sirius's eyes filled up with tender tears. He reached over and put his hand on Sirius's shoulder, soothingly. When Sirius looked up, tears vanished from his eyes and he tried to smile back at Remus but his lips refused to rise. He sobbed for a while and then quickly dried away his tears.

"C'mon, now you lot! Move some wizarding butts!! We have a transfiguration class to attend." Sirius yelled from his place on the table to the other first years who were chatting merely and looking into each other's parcels.

Lily looked up at him, a look of total disgust on her face and then hopped up and started walking towards the oak doors. Alice and Remus followed her out.

"Well, she doesn't like us much, does she?" James asked, his eyes glued on Lily's retreating back.

"I don't care 'bout that. She's just a nosy witch. Let's go!" Sirius said with a sneer.

"Yeah- yeah maybe." But James mind was still stuck on that disgusted look Lily had given them.

                          ***

Bilius led them to a classroom on ground floor, accessible through the middle courtyard. Outside the wooden doors, read a notice:

Transfiguration Classroom. Treat inanimate objects respectfully. They may be your classmates.

"Classmates? What are we, cobblers or something?" Sirius asked as they stepped inside the candle lit room with shelves of goblets and shoes and many more 'inanimate' items. On the far side of the room, the wall was covered with cages of different types of birds and rodents.

The classroom was big, surrounded by high windows, and had four rows of three desks, and still has enough room for several cages and bookshelves, two chalkboards, and a desk for the professor.

They all walked upto the benches and Sirius and James took the last one in the fourth row. Sirius was still going on about how insulting it felt to be associated as classmates to shoes, but James thoughts was somewhere else.

Remus and Lily had reached the first bench of the second row at the same time, and smiling, Lily had sat down beside Remus. James couldn't get his mind off that fact yet.

After a few minutes, Sirius's patience was gone and he jumped up from his seat and went over to the chalk board.

"Students-" Sirius began,in his best imitation of professor McGonagall's voice, until he was disturbed by a cat's meow.

They all turned to look at the black, green eyed cat that had walked in from the wooden doors. It had a distinctive coat of jet  a black fur with swirling patterns of grey, joined together with a mark resembling an "M" on its forehead. It had white lines around its eyes, encompassing them as if by spectacles.

They all turned away from the cat, to look at Sirius Black, who was now laughing hysterically from his place in front of the chalk board, still holding the long teacher's stick.

"A cat?" His laughter echoed through the room.

"Siriusly, a cat! Here, here. Rise and greet, students here comes your transfiguration teacher. A CAT!!!!!!"

"Did he fell down from the stairs. He seems like he's having a fit." Lily asked Remus slowly, not wanting to grab Sirius and James, who had now joined Sirius in his hysterics, attention.

The tabby cat walked up to the teachers table, and with a pop, now there stood Professor McGonagall, looking glum and her lips pressed together in a straight line.

When Sirius realised what had happened, he stopped guaffawing, his mouth hanging open as he nudged James to do the same.

"Mr. Black, indeed a cat is going to teach you transfiguration. And as of now, I don't require your assistance in taking my classes, but if I do in future, I will certainly let you know." She said pointing at the teacher's stick in his hand.

"Sure, professor meow. But cat you tell me how you did that miraculous bit of magic?" He asked in his sweetest voice, which surprised even James, who had turned to look at him, and then upon realising the presence of the pun in the sentence, started laughing again.

Even though Remus and Peter both had a little laugh this time, McGonagall turned to James with a stern expression. "Why don't you, Mr. Potter, answer Mr. Black's question for me. I am sure you know your transfiguration well." James was surprised at how sarcastic she can be when she wanted.

"I-I don't know professor. Maybe you just, you know, transfigured yourself into an animal?" James asked hopefully.

"Well, have a seat then, you two." She motioned for James and Sirius to sit on the bench next Remus and Lily. "This may as well be you first lesson be. Although we don't teach these until third year but, you lot seem bright.... So who can tell me what exactly do we call such a branch of transfiguration?"

"Animagi" whispered Remus under his breath.

"Well, Mr. Lupin, you must learn to be confident. Especially, if you're giving the correct answer." McGonagall told him and then turned to face the others.

"Animagi or animagus, is a witch or a wizard who can morph him or herself into an animal at will. It is a learned, rather than hereditary skill, unlike those of a metamorphagus."

"Meta-esophagus?" Sirius asked.

"Metamorphagus, Mr. Black. I would not go into details regarding that, right now. But you now know what an animagus is. So let's proceed with the lesson."

As professor McGonagall turned towards the chalkboard and waved her wands to make words appear on it, Sirius turned to James and they started their own lesson of quidditch on the parchment.

After a while, when they had been dismissed, Sirius went to professor McGonagall, curiosity about animagus still haunting him.

"Professor, can you tell me a little more about animaguses please?"

"I certainly can, however, seeing as how interested you were during today's lesson, I may have to reconsider." McGonagall stared down at him with her see green eyes, as Sirius turned a deep red.

"You will, if I concentrate?" He tried again, not yet ready to let the matter go.

"I can always reconsider, yes." She said, her eyes fixed on Sirius.

"Can I ask something else then?" He asked, a sly smile creeping up his face.

"Why do I have a feeling that you will no matter what my response is?" She replied curtly, "Go on then."

"Why, a cat?" He asked and turned to run out of the classroom before McGonagall had a chance to fry him with just her eyes.

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