Disclaimer: The world of Harry Potter, its characters and settings are the copyrighted works of J.K. Rowling, Warner Bros., her publishing companies and affiliates. No profit was made from the writing of this story nor was any malice intended in any way, shape or form to the author or the actors/actresses who so brilliantly have brought them to life.
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The creature on the worktable blinked, stretched, and yawned, showing off a very impressive mouthful of teeth and impressive fangs. Severus seemed content to stretch out and find the limits of his body before investigating the world in this new form.
Moony gave a woof and surprised Severus into jumping straight up…and onto Currycombe’s shoulders, claws extended.
“Ow! Ow! Get him off! Get him off!” Currycombe begged. He jumped around, hands and fairy wings flapping wildly.
Moony sat back and huffed, the equivalent of wolfish laughter as Severus’ wild-eyed furry face flashed by. Currycombe finally stilled himself and Severus retracted his claws and then jumped down to sniff at Moony.
The wolf laid down and was nose-to-nose with his human that was not his human. Suddenly, Severus was nose-to-nose with Moony, the look of surprise on his face making the three painted wizards chuckle and laugh.
“So, what am I?” Severus asked as he reared back onto his heels. Moony scooted across the straw to his side and rested his head on Severus’ thigh.
Albus cleared his throat to gain everyone’s attention. “You’re a Scottish Wildcat, Severus. Most versatile, most endangered, and the last of Great Britain’s large predator mammals.”
“Ye look like the wildcat ma love hunted through the Highlands. Fierce, yet small enough to sneak into a burrow—or a secret meeting—and a bit innocent lookin’ too, until ye yawn and then those teeth, och! You could put the fear o’ Merlin into a mon!” Jamie chortled.
“A cat? I’m a feline?” Severus asked Currycombe, a glint in his eye. The words hung in the air as if frozen into icicles.
“You are what you are. A fierce and loyal fighter for those you love, adaptable and innovative, and secretive,” Currycombe said as he backed away.
Moony sat up and licked Severus’ cheek. “You liked me in that form, didn’t you?” Moony nodded with difficult. Severus closed his eyes and began shrinking into himself until the Scottish Wildcat sat next to Moony, purring and flicking its tail.
“Well, since you seem happy with your new form…” Currycombe flapped his wings and rose into the air, a golden glow limning the edges of his wings. The Sugar Plum Fairy slowly shrank into a golden point of light and disappeared with a soft chiming of bells.
Severus resumed his proper form and grinned, a wide, open expression no one had ever seen on his face before. “That was fabulous!” he sighed. “The world smells so interesting. I can’t wait to hunt for ingredients in this form.”
The moon touched the far horizon and Moony yelped. Severus pulled him close and held him loosely as the Transformation wracked his body. Remus smiled up tiredly at Severus as his lover tossed part of his robes over Remus’ nakedness.
“You’re a beautiful wildcat, Severus. Icy disdain and barely restrained power suits you,” Remus sighed as he drifted off to sleep in Severus’ lap.
The holly and oak leaves on the rafters and beams slowly began wilting and falling to the stable floor, the combined smells of the Old Year and the New Year filling the air. Severus grabbed a handful of still vibrant holly berries and green acorns with leaves and shoved them into his pocket.
“If you melt the icicles from the roof, you’ll have some very pure water for a soothing potion,” Phineas called. “Add some of the dried holly berries, mistletoe, and oak leaves, stir anti-clockwise, simmer for fifteen minutes and then decant.”
Severus laid Remus down and whirled his outer robes off to cover him. He also cast a Warming Charm on his robes and the floor underneath Remus. Then he opened his satchel and pulled out a shrunken battered cauldron. “Engorgio!” The cauldron grew to its proper size as Severus grabbed it and rushed outside for some icicles and a handful of snow. He glanced over his shoulder as he pulled out a silvery salver and conjured a flame in its center. Severus waved his hand and the cauldron hung suspended in midair over the flame.
Once the icicles melted, he tossed in some of the holly berries and green oak leaves from his pocket, and then plucked seven mistletoe berries from the kissing ball on the worktable. “You owe me seven times seven kisses for this, Lupin.” Severus almost swore Remus smiled in his sleep.
Albus tugged Phineas’ sleeve and Jamie’s kilt. “Let us leave Severus to his ministrations, gentlemen. I think we’ve enough to regale the other portraits with, don’t you?” The other painted wizards nodded as well and they slipped one-by-one out of the farming painting.
“Finally, some peace and quiet,” Severus muttered.
Then, Peeves screeched and swooped out of the shadows. “Snapey! Snapey got a gifty-ifty!”
The Bloody Baron formed out of the ether and grabbed Peeves’ sheets and dragged him shouting and cursing through the far wall.
“Thank you, Baron!” Severus yelled. He stirred the potion anti-clockwise and counted out fifteen minutes. When his internal timer ‘ding-ed’, he extinguished the flame and let the cauldron float down onto the salver.
“Now, how do I get it down your unconscious gullet?” Severus muttered.