Familiars Love

Chapter 1

Darkness was just falling over a tiny farmhouse when Andromeda Jackson exited the Jacksons' farmhouse. The thudding of the screen door behind her cut off her angry shout but it didn't matter there was no one there to hear it. As usual, the world tossed stones at her back and bit into her skin. Forcing herself she raised an unsteady hand to brush along the scar over her nose. It was a totem for everything she had become; on some levels, she hated it while on others she loved it. At times like this it was a reminder of everything she had learned and come to love; a whisper of freedom that she knew she would taste one day.

The entire incident had begun after the arrival of Dumbledore's phoenix, Fawkes. The beautiful Phoenix was horribly excitable and had shrilled and cooed as he flew about Meda's room before allowing Meda to relieve him of the letter clutched in his claws.

Which brought Meda to her current condition; she needed just a few hours to forget the contents of the letter that Dumbledore had sent. As brief and vague as every letter before; it danced merrily around anything of importance before bowing out and leaving Meda frustrated with the lack of response to any questions she had asked in her own letters.

The past months had been filled with short letters from Dumbledore, Ron, and Hermione, that barely containing anything of interest or significance. No matter how many letters she sent, they refused to answer or update her on any of the events occurring in the Wizarding World. Their letters contained the bare necessities of a letter one would expect to receive from friends; appearing to be more of an acquaintances letter sent only on special occasions. Through conversations that she'd had with Harry, she found out that he was also receiving about the same letters as her.

Currently, she was stalking towards the small patch of woods at the end of the farm; the only place she had managed to find any solace over the summer months. She couldn't help but smile as she felt the welcoming embrace of the dark forest. The cool air whispered against her skin; teasing her hair and causing goosebumps to rise along the skin of her arms.

Unfolding Dumbledore's letter, she allowed her eyes to brush over the words she had come to know by heart before shredding the letter and tossing the pieces into the night breeze. Violet eyes flashed as she moved deeper into the heart of the forest before beginning to shed her clothes. She stowed the oversized clothes carefully in a hollow tree.

Closing her eyes and focusing on the image held firmly in her mind, she heard the familiar crunch of bones as pain rushed through her nerves. Biting her hand to keep from crying out, she focused on the final details before exhaling sharply. Slowly she opened her eyes; sharpened by the change they quickly picked up every minute detail before moving elsewhere. Rising on to four paws, she carefully flexed, feeling muscles slide powerfully beneath the thin black and white coat. Claws slid neatly from their sheathes as dainty ears tipped back and forth while nose and whiskers worked together testing the air currents for any vital information.

She had put a lot of thought into her Animagus form but had never considered a white Bengal tiger as a possibility. She had hoped for a doe but after experiencing the body of a predator she didn't believe she could ever consider inhabiting the body of a prey animal. The tiger's body had proven to be very powerful; quiet and nimble, it allowed her to look at the world in a whole new way.

Meda had worked on her transformation all summer, she had even been tempted to inform Hogwarts about her newest project but after several days had ditched the idea. Of course the vague answers she had received, from Dumbledore, had assisted her in making the decision. Harry and she had gotten the idea after Sirius had died. In honor of him, they had worked all summer to master the abilities they had gained in hopes of rekindling fond memories of them. Harry was a natural and quickly mastered his form which happened to be a black falcon. Meda had taken a little longer but soon mastered it as well. Both of them had been pleased with their forms even if it wasn't what they had suspected.

Shaking off the plaguing thoughts, she stalked deeper into the forest; allowing soft paws to carry her through the brush silently. All her senses worked madly to prevent possible discovery or capture. Reaching a small creek she dropped into a crouch, allowing her sandpaper tongue to dip delicately into the cool water. Flicking her tail, she rose only to freeze as the faint sound of voices crept to her ears. Testing the air quickly she was rewarded with the scent of man, steel, and lead.

Cursing softly she moved into darker shadows, beginning a crouching run back to her clothes. The sharp warning crack of dry wood froze her in mid-movement. The thundering crack of a gun and the bite of metal in her left flank startled her into letting loose a growl before lunging into a flying run. Her mind began to swim and the tiger's body became sluggish and unresponsive. Suddenly she found herself tipping; slamming into the ground she snarled as pain from the wound traced burning fingers up her spine.

As Meda's world spun into blackness, the words of the hunters reached her sensitive ears, "...wanted something unusual... the biggest tiger...eyes like violets...ought to fetch us a good price..."

Disclamer:

I do not own any Harry Potter character all rights reserved to JK Rowling and the Harry Potter Franchise.