Nine Lives and Bad Luck

19

"So what can you do exactly?" Flint was eyeing him up.

"Well, I'll need to start wherever you last saw him, and for someone to bring the bag, but I'm a, well, uhh," he shifted nervously on his feet before shrugging and shifting before them. He was more than slightly nervous as this was the first time he had a large audience- he never shifted in the common room except in out of the way corners. The Slytherins lunged backwards, more than a few drawing wands or screaming. To his credit Flint only took a step back. Hoping to calm them he carefully sat on the stairs- which was super uncomfortable as he was still on the stairs and wouldn't go even closer when they were already uneasy.

The fur of his dire wolf form was a dark charcoal gray, tinted with red highlights that were visible in certain lights that was barely a shade off from his hair normally, although there was a tuft of white on his chest and one of his floppy ears. He was large too, much taller than some of the younger students on all fours although he guessed he only reached around upper chest or neck level on Flint. The fangs that poked from his thick lips weren't helping. Cautiously he wagged his tail a few times, gently, on the floor.

Flint glanced him up and down, "You're an animagus then, does the ministry know about this?" He tilted his head side to side and Flint's eyes widened and he was given a more searching look, "Alright then, you didn't have to reveal this so it's only fair," he turned to the Slytherins and spoke, "he's doing all of us a great favor here, not one word of this leaves this room." Harry huffed at the drama and at the inquisitive looks he returned to a human form so he could speak.

"I'm a natural, you're only required to register if you use a method to force the transformation; its a hole in the law my guardian pointed out to me... but thank you, I found out naturals aren't seen much higher than the animals they sometimes look like by some and I'd rather not... you know?"

Flint gave a sharp nod and Harry returned once more to the wolf like form as the prefect began directing his house into groups with the help of a few other's and soon a small group had been selected and stood ready at the door, two moving to stand by him-one offering Adley's bag for him to sniff- a few moving back the gaudy furniture to rest against the wall, three conjuring mattresses, and the rest staying out of the way.

As the Slytherins were settled into the makeshift beds his group of three, the two Slytherins were joined by one Gryffindor when Percy returned, were ushered out the door. Keene and her friends had been with Adley until they had gotten to the Great Hall, so they would be restarting at its entrance.

From there he smelt the bag once more focusing on the oldest, and strongest scent and trying to ignore the scents of the Keene girl and whoever was holding it. Nodding he set off in a direction making sure to keep his pace quick- they were in a rush- but accurate. He had to be careful as the halls of Hogwarts were filled with different smells as hundreds of students, including his target,  passed by every day- especially by the great hall.

No normal dog or wolf would have been able to accomplish it with any real speed, but he wasn't simply a dire wolf (if you could ever call being a dire wolf 'simply') and he could with some effort use the traits simultaneously. From his bat form he took for his use echolocation, and manticore it's unique ability to track through magic signatures. House cat helped enhance his senses further and the ornate flying snake heat sensing and enhanced 'tasting' for scent. Dhole helped with subtle adjustments to his dire wolf form to allow for greater speed- it may have been an impressive beast to look at, but it couldn't be considered built for speed-  and the clouded leopard offered its wide jaws to let him better taste the air, faster movement, and better night vision in the dim halls. His last form, he didn't have much use for so he left it untouched alongside his human.