Harry Potter and all of its characters belong to J.K. Rowling.
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Chapter 42: The Animagus Road
"You can't be serious…" Peter muttered.
"Well, of course I am!" Sirius exclaimed.
"You have to keep the mandrake leaf inside your mouth for an entire month?... That seems a bit too much." Remus was reading the notes that Sirius had given them.
"Then put it in a crystal vial that has been exposed to moonlight." James examined the vials before looking around the room they were in. "I suppose this Shrieking Shack would be a good hiding location for these vials."
"Then we have to add a silver teaspoon of dew from a place that neither sunlight nor human feet have touched, for seven days in a row. Oh, and we need to add the chrysalis of a Death's-head Hawk Moth to the crystal vial as well," Sirius said.
"Hmm… You seem to have collected everything we require for this ritual… I'm very impressed," James told his friend.
"That must have been very expensive," Peter commented.
Sirius chuckled. "Hey, my parents may not like me very much, but I still have an allowance. And it wasn't that expensive… Not many people want to become Animagi, so these materials can be easily found."
"I can see why," James said. "Even if the materials aren't too expensive, the process is very arduous. Every step must be carried out with utmost precision and will take quite a bit of time to complete."
"We even need to wait for a thunderstorm for the last part?" Peter glanced at the notes.
"You're not really considering doing all of this, right? It's crazy! And there are way too many steps!" Remus said.
"But then we'll be able to hang out together during the days of your transformation," Peter told him. "You know… like tonight."
"Yeah! Once we can transform into animals, there'll be no danger if we stay with you," Sirius assured him.
Remus felt a lightness in his chest, and a smile appeared on his face. He felt happy to know that his friends would go to such lengths for him. "But… with the potions that James has made for me, there should be no need for this. He said that with this version that I've drunk over the past week, I should be able to keep full control of the beast… right?" He glanced at James.
James nodded. "Yes, you will. But you also need to remain locked in this house by yourself and transform." He looked at the notes that Sirius had carefully written and could tell how much effort his friend had gone through to put all of this together.
The process for the Animagus transformation is not publicly available. Normally, one would need to first request a license from the Ministry of Magic, and if approved, they will provide the necessary reading materials. Afterward, the transformation will need to be recorded in the Ministry archives so they are aware of what kind of creature the wizard or witch can transform into.
Of course, there are many unofficial books about this ritual. But those are illegal, so you wouldn't find them in any shop at Diagon Alley. However, most ancient wizard families should have at least one book in their library describing the process.
This led James to believe that Sirius must have sneaked into the Black Library to acquire this method… a place that he surely didn't have access to, since his standing in the family is not good at all.
Because of his potion, Remus's situation had improved a lot. But James didn't want Sirius's work to go to waste.
Besides, he was personally curious about this piece of magic. During his previous life, he had studied all sorts of things but never went through the Animagus transformation, even after discovering the process inside an abandoned magical library in Cancun.
"I still think this is a good idea," James added. "There are other benefits that would come from performing this ritual."
"Haha, that's right!" Sirius added with excitement.
Peter joined in. "Yes, then we could hang out together all night. Maybe go for a run across the—"
"The Black Forest! That's right!" Sirius interrupted his friend. "That was a great idea, Peter."
The boy's face went pale. "No, no! I wasn't going to suggest going there! I meant the school's grassy fields."
"That would be too risky. Someone could see us. The Black Forest is much safer," James said.
"Safer?!" Peter exclaimed.
"Hmm…" Remus looked a bit troubled. "This is a very long process, though. You may not even finish it until after the Christmas break."
"Then it's a good thing that you have James's potions," Sirius said. "Once we can all transform, we can have some fun, but it's good to know that you won't be suffering so much during these days."
"...Thanks," Remus responded.
"So, it's decided then? Are we doing this thing?" Peter asked.
"We are," James nodded. "And we'll need to start today, since we must begin the process on a night of the full moon with the mandrake leaf."
"That we need to keep inside our mouths for an entire month…" Peter was not looking forward to that one.
"We also must set up these crystal vials in an appropriate location," James stood up and picked up the vials. "I'll go find a good place for them in the upper part of the house." He said before taking off in a rush.
"He's always so dedicated… I can barely recognize him anymore," Peter couldn't help but express his feelings.
Sirius and Remus glanced back at the door that James used to leave the room.
"Yeah… That dragon pox really messed up his head. I don't think he likes pranks all that much anymore," Sirius said.
"He's changed a lot, huh?" Remus didn't want to say it out loud, but he did like the changes in James. Not that he didn't love the personality of the old one, but this new James Potter always seemed so reliable… like he could do anything.
He would never have drunk a potion made by the old James, but the day that he was first given the Wolfsbane Potion by him… the look of absolute confidence in his amber eyes led Remus to take it.
And he was so glad that he did.
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