I Solemnly Swear That I Am Up to No Good: An idea

[alt_terry]

I've been thinking...

The Headmistress had me shelve a lot of her advanced Transfiguration books at her place in London. I guess since she isn't teaching any more, she thought she might as well get the books in her collection out of the way if there's also a copy in the library. Anyway, it was my first chance to see some of those really advanced textbooks up close. Master always kept the most advanced Transfiguration textbooks that he uses locked up so I couldn't ever look at them.

She has a whole load of books on the Animagus transformation. Which makes sense, of course, since she's an Animagus herself. It was while I was paging through one of those books that I discovered something I'd never realised before.

You can actually learn to become an Animagus.

Did you know that? I guess I really never thought about it, but I just supposed it was sort of like being a metamorphmagus, an ability that you're born with. And if you're not born with it, you're out of luck.

But if I could actually learn to become an Animagus....

I could escape, couldn't I? And if Master ever got custody of me again, he couldn't keep me. I mean, if I could figure out how to turn into the right sort of animal. Not something big and noticeable like, um, a tiger or anything, but something that's ordinary, that people wouldn't maybe notice. Something that could outrun him, or maybe even fly away! And I could get away and hide, and he'd never ever be able to find me!

Most of the Headmistress's more advanced books about it are in Latin, I'm afraid, but I'm hoping there's something here at Hogwarts I can use, either in her collection or maybe in the library. Would it be in the Restricted Section? I hope not. I mean, she does send me to get books from the Restricted Section pretty often, but Madam Pince would know.

Anyway, what do you think?

Comments

[alt_sally_anne]

I'd always heard you don't exactly get to PICK what animal you learn to be. So you might study, and then turn into a tiger or a crocodile or something else really noticeable.

But it's a good idea. If you can figure it out. It's also supposed to be really hard.

I'd love to learn how to do an animagus tranformation. The Headmistress is an animagus? Really? Have you ever seen her transform?

[alt_neville]

Wow, that's brilliant, Terry. I don't have any ideas, because I don't know much about it. But if you could do it, yeah, that would be amazing!

Dunno what sort of animal I would be. Maybe a sloth. Not that I like to hang upside down or anything! But I guess I'm sort of slow and clumsy.

[alt_ron]

What if it turns out you turn into a Bundimun or something that can't move anywhere? Or just something really small and, y'know, something that's easy to hurt? Like a rabbit or something.

Carrow's not an animagus is he? Think what he'd turn into!

[alt_gredforge]

We're all for it, Professor. There isn't anything about the transformation in our Transfiguration textbook for this year. But we'll try to pinch Percy's textbook and see if it's mentioned in the 7th year text.

And you've been an animal, actually. Remember? Maybe that will make learning the transformation easier.