The Panther by Ael L. Bolt

Rating: PG13
Genres: Romance, Humor
Relationships: Harry & Hermione
Book: Harry & Hermione, Books 1 - 5
Published: 11/09/2004
Last Updated: 11/09/2005
Status: In Progress

[LostEboni's "Bodyguard" challenge] In the summer before 7th year, Hermione is in
danger from Voldemort and his Death Eaters. Charlie gives her a panther to take care of for the
summer, but what she doesn’t know is that the panther is an Animagus there to watch over her and
keep her safe from harm. And if only she knew who the Animagus really was...




1. Unanswered Letters and Really Big Cats
-----------------------------------------



Chapter One - Unanswered Letters and Really Big Cats

Hermione chewed on the end of her quill as she lay across her bed, a piece of parchment in front
of her. A few lines were written across the top, but the rest of the words failed to come to the
end of her quill. As she pondered what to say, her thoughts drifted to the potential recipient of
the letter.

Harry had become increasingly withdrawn over the past year, ever since his godfather was
murdered in front of him. Hermione and Ron had worried about him all summer, and when he was
brought to Grimmauld Place he didn't say a word to either of them...just locked himself in
Buckbeak's room. Hermione had nearly been sick with worry at his absolute silence, though he
did improve slightly when school started. Even then, he was so quiet. It reminded Hermione of first
year, before they'd been able to slowly draw him out and teach him to interact with people. He
would disappear for long stretches of time, then come back looking absolutely exhausted and
refusing to say where he'd been.

Needless to say, Hermione was terribly worried about him. It was only two weeks into the summer,
but Harry had yet to answer a single letter from her. Ron had written to her, complaining that
Harry was ignoring him too. She'd owled Dumbledore, but the elderly headmaster had only replied
that Harry was perfectly fine and not to worry. That letter had done precisely nothing to help her,
as she was sure he was *not* fine at all.

She looked down at the parchment and re-read what she'd written. *Dear Harry,* it said.
*Why haven't you been answering your letters? You can't just shut us all out, Harry. We
care about you too much just to let you go, no matter how hard you try.* That was as far as
she'd gotten, wondering what to say. She didn't want to accidentally make him retreat even
further into his isolation, breaking all contact with her because she'd offended him.

She was saved from her thoughts when her mother knocked on the door. “Hermione, honey,
there's someone here to see you.”

For a moment, her heart leapt at the thought that it could be Harry. Then she mentally shook
herself. *Harry can't just show up at my door. The Order wouldn't let him, even if he
wanted to.* “Someone to see me?” she repeated, putting the quill down.

“He's downstairs,” her mother said. “A tall redheaded man and his pet.”

*Pet?* Hermione was thoroughly bewildered, and followed her mother downstairs. Her mind
jumped to the conclusion that Ron was visiting, but she didn't know why Ron would bring
Pigwidgeon with him. As she stepped into the living room, her first thought was that Charlie
Weasley looked rather out of place in her house. Her second thought was that the large beast that
he held on a chain at his side stuck out like a sore thumb.

“Hermione, so good to see you,” Charlie said, giving her a bright smile and a hug. “How've
you been?”

“Charlie, what're you doing here?” she asked, ignoring his question. “And why do you have
that...er...creature with you?”

The “creature” looked as though it wasn't sure whether to be amused or offended, and instead
settled for sitting down on the carpet and staring intensely at her. She knew she should feel
frightened at being eyed up by such a large predator, but for some reason she knew there was
nothing to be afraid of.

“Dumbledore asked me to deliver something,” Charlie explained. “We found this fellow wandering
near Hogwarts and the Forbidden Forest. Hagrid wanted to keep him, but he has a mission from the
Order and can't take the panther with him. Everyone else is too busy to make sure he
doesn't get into trouble over the summer, so we voted and decided that the best place for him
is with you.”

“*Me?!*” she squeaked, taking an unconscious step backwards. “Why me?”

“For one, you already have a cat, so you know how to take care of them. This one's just on a
bit...hmm, larger scale than most.” The panther made a sneezing sound at this, which Charlie
ignored. “Dumbledore trusts you more than most of the other students, and that's saying a lot.
Also, Harry recommended it.”

Hermione's jaw dropped. “This was *Harry's* idea?” She looked back at the panther,
which was obediently sitting at Charlie's feet, doing nothing but watching her. “Is he
well-trained?” she asked with a sigh, giving in. If Harry thought the big cat should stay with her,
well, who was she to argue?

Charlie grinned. “Oh yes, he has wonderful manners. We suspect he's at least partly magical,
as he has very high intelligence for a panther. Sometimes we suspect he understands every word we
say, though he doesn't always listen if he thinks he knows what's best. He's usually
right, too.”

Hermione looked over at her mother. “And you're okay with this beast staying here over the
summer?”

Mrs. Granger smiled. “Jacob and I don't see a problem with it, as long as he doesn't
destroy the house.”

Charlie smiled at her. “He won't if we tell him not to, Charlotte.” He crouched down to look
into the panther's eyes. “This is Hermione,” he instructed it. “You will stay with her until
she goes to school in September. Try not to cause too much trouble.”

The panther rumbled as Charlie unclasped the chain from its thick leather collar, but didn't
move. Charlie straightened, pocketing the chain. “Well, if that's all, I'll be off. Have a
great summer.” With a loud cracking sound, he Apparated away.

Almost in the same instant as Charlie's departure, the panther got to all fours. Hermione
watched him, feeling a faint nervous twinge as the big cat stepped closer. She held out her hand,
letting him catch her scent, knowing that cats were often wary of strange people until they were
able to do so. The panther bumped his head against her hand instead, like Crookshanks did when he
wanted to be petted.

Feeling bolder, she stroked the soft, shiny fur on the top of his head. He closed his eyes in
contentment, and she gently scritched behind his ears. A faint rumbling purr rose from his throat
as she ran her hands down his back.

“Shall I leave you two alone?” Charlotte teased, causing both of them to jump.

Hermione smiled sheepishly, having forgotten that she was standing there. “Actually I was going
to write a letter to Harry. Call me down when lunch is ready?”

“Sure,” her mother agreed.

Hermione turned and headed back upstairs, and she was somewhat surprised to find the panther
shadowing her every step. *He really must be smart,* she thought to herself. *He's
taking Charlie literally, for crying out loud. Stay with me indeed.*

She stretched out on her bed to continue writing the letter, and the panther only watched her
for a few moments as if determining if she would stay there. Then he walked around the room,
investigating anything that caught his attention. She watched him discreetly as he prowled around
the room, and at one point she could've sworn he was reading the titles of the books on her
shelves.

With one last look at her, the panther left the room to investigate the rest of the house.
Shaking her head, she turned back to the letter and began to write.

~~~~~~

The panther explored every inch of Hermione's home carefully, eventually ending up in the
kitchen. He inhaled deeply as the scent of roasted chicken reached his sensitive nose, and Mrs.
Granger jumped only slightly as she saw him lurking in the shadowed doorway. “You!” she laughed
slightly. “Don't scare me like that. Try to make some noise next time or something.”

Obediently, the panther extended his front claws, letting them click on the tile a few times
before retracting them again. “Yes, just like that,” Charlotte agreed, setting a plastic bowl of
chicken on the floor. His ears still pricked and alert for any sound of danger, he approached and
began to devour the meat.

A jealous meow reached his ears, and he looked up to see Crookshanks on the counter. The ginger
cat stared down at him, almost as though the smaller cat didn't trust him. The panther tilted
his head to the side for a moment, considering the housepet carefully, then picked up a piece of
chicken and delicately offered it to the other feline.

Crookshanks watched him warily for a moment, then cautiously took the food from the panther. The
panther dropped his head back to the bowl and continued to eat. Crookshanks purred as he did
likewise, knowing that there was nothing to fear from this strange new cat in his mistress'
home.

Inwardly, the panther smiled. Only a half hour in Hermione's home and he was already
integrating himself into her everyday life. Yes, things were going perfectly for the Animagus named
Harry Potter.

-->



2. Flashbacks and the Shadow
----------------------------



Chapter Two - Flashbacks and the Shadow

*Two days earlier...*

Professor McGonagall circled the large black panther, sharp eyes taking in every detail of its
form. “Well Mr. Potter,” she said at last, “you have achieved a full transformation incorporating
your clothes. Well done, dear boy.”

The panther, which had been sitting on its haunches, became a crouching young man with a faint
*pop*. Harry Potter stood, straightening his glasses as they appeared on the end of his nose
and giving her a small smile. “I'm glad I was able to manage it. It'd be rather
embarrassing to transform and leave my pants behind or something.”

After almost a full year, Harry had completed his Animagus training. The paperwork had been
filled out the previous week and sent to the Ministry, but he hadn't quite gotten the hang of
integrating all of his clothing into his panther form until now. His glasses were also rather hard
to integrate, but after several attempts he'd gotten it right, impressing even McGonagall, who
sometimes forgot her own during the transition to cat form. Most people who tried the Animagus
transformation never completed their training because of how difficult integrating could be, in
terms of concentration and power levels.

Remus Lupin opened the door a smidge and looked in. “Are you two done yet?” he asked, smiling at
Harry.

“I do believe we're through,” McGonagall declared, looking sternly at Harry. “Don't let
me catch you misusing your new abilities, Potter. I didn't spend the past year coaching you in
Animagus transfiguration for foolish pranks.”

“Professor, you have my word that I will not use my Animagus form for pranks or anything
ridiculous,” Harry promised.

She smiled. “Then be about your business, Mr. Potter.”

Feeling happier than he'd been in a long time, Harry joined Remus in the corridor. “I take
it Dumbledore wants to see me then,” the teenage wizard said.

Remus nodded. “Somehow I think he knew you'd finish today. And just in time, too.”

Harry frowned. “In time for what?”

“Ah...er...I think Albus should tell you,” Remus said with a slight smirk that clearly said
I-know-something-you-don't-know.

Harry sighed and rolled his eyes, causing Remus to chuckle and ruffle his hair. “Don't worry
about it so much,” Remus advised. “You'll like it, I promise.”

Harry made a slight scoffing sound, but smiled and continued walking. They reached the gargoyle
that guarded the headmaster's office within a few minutes, and Remus gave the password
(today's candy was Ice Mice).

“I wish I could tell my friends about this,” Harry said as they rode the moving staircase
upwards. “I think they're worried about me hurting myself or something.”

“I'm afraid your friends must remain in the dark for a little while longer,” Dumbledore said
apologetically as the pair entered his office. “Please, sit down. Lemon drop?”

Both of them declined the sour candy as expected, so Dumbledore turned to face Harry in all
seriousness. “This summer, I have reason to believe that Voldemort will be attempting to kidnap
young Mr. Weasley and Ms. Granger to use as bait to lure you to him.”

Harry was not altogether surprised at this news, though he didn't look too thrilled at
having his suspicions confirmed. He briefly considered saying so, but thought better of it and
nodded instead.

“Now, the Weasleys are safe,” Dumbledore continued. “Young Ronald has both parents in the Order,
as well as four of his older brothers. As such, he is very well protected and it is unlikely that
Voldemort will be able to get at him.”

“What about Hermione?” Harry asked worriedly. “Her parents are both Muggles.”

Dumbledore's sky-blue eyes twinkled mischievously. “Ah, that's where you come in.”

The teenage wizard blinked in surprise. “Me?”

“Yes. With your newly-attained skills, you are fully capable of providing any aid she may
require in fending off Death Eaters, as well as being hidden in plain sight, as it were.”

“Wait, wait,” Harry exclaimed, running his hand through his perpetually-messy hair. “You're
saying you want me to turn into a panther and be Hermione's bodyguard?”

The headmaster nodded. “Ms. Granger will not know it is you, of course. As far as she will know,
a rather intelligent panther was found wandering near Hogwarts that needs a home for the summer.
Being a cat-owner already, and possessing a great deal of knowledge and free time, she is the ideal
candidate for the caretaker of the panther. This will provide her with adequate protection, let her
do as she wishes for the summer without interference, and place you well out of Voldemort's
sights, should he decide to attack you directly rather than through your friends.”

Harry thought about it for a moment. *It's true,* he decided. *If someone* did
*find some sort of big, smart, well-mannered cat and needed to have someone watch it for a bit,
I'd definitely recommend Hermione.* Smiling slightly, he relayed these thoughts to
Dumbledore.

“I'm delighted you think so,” the elderly wizard replied, looking very much as if he were
thrilled by Harry's words. “Before sending you to the Grangers' house, however, I would
like you to stay in your panther form at Grimmauld Place for a day or two. Remus can help you
modify your behavior so that you appear as nothing more than an animal, albeit a rather intelligent
one, rather than the wizard you are.”

“Will Hermione be safe until then?” Harry asked, shooting a glance at the rather smug-looking
werewolf in the chair next to him.

“The Order has been watching her carefully ever since she left Platform
Nine-and-Three-Quarters,” Dumbledore assured him. “Once you take up your post at her side, we can
reduce the guard from four Order members to just one, besides you. She will indeed be safe and
secure until you have the chance to join her. When Remus and yourself believe your behavior is good
enough to keep anyone from becoming suspicious, Charlie Weasley will escort you to the Granger
household.”

~~~~~~

*Present time...*

By the time the panther finished his lunch, Hermione had come downstairs. Lazily, he wandered in
the direction of the stairwell, Crookshanks at his heels. The two cats made their way to
Hermione's room, and Harry butted his head against the door to close it. Crookshanks lay down
in front of the door, ears alert for signs of Hermione's return.

With a nearly-inaudible *pop*, Harry stood in human form and sat down at her desk. Pulling
a piece of parchment from his pocket, he lifted a small whistle around his neck and blew gently. He
couldn't hear anything, but moments later his snowy owl swooped through the open window and
landed on the desk.

“Hey, girl,” Harry said softly. “Hedwig, I need you to deliver a message for me, okay?” Hedwig
offered her leg for him to tie the parchment to, which he did. “Take this to Hermione, but wait
until she's back in this room. Go fly around the neighborhood first to give us some time.”

The owl took off, soaring out the window and out of sight. Satisfied that the plan was working
so far, he opened the door slightly and transfigured again, letting Crookshanks nudge the door all
the way open.

A few minutes later, Hermione joined her feline companions in the bedroom and picked up her
Potions textbook. Before she could open it, Hedwig gave a hooting call and glided in.

“Hedwig!” Hermione exclaimed, seeing the parchment on the owl's leg. “Is this for me?”

Hedwig held out her leg in affirmation, and Hermione untied it and gave her an owl treat. With
that taken care of, she turned to the letter and read it out loud. “Dear Hermione. I'm sorry
for not answering your letters before, but I've been unable to send anything by owl post until
today. I know you must be awfully worried about me, but I am in a safe place and hopefully no one
will find me before September. Professor Dumbledore says you probably won't be seeing me in
Diagon Alley or Platform Nine-and-Three-Quarters, so please tell Ron and the others that I'm
fine. Hopefully I'll be able to send you another letter before September rolls around, but
don't be worried if I can't. Current circumstances being as they are, I can't make any
promises. I'm looking forward to seeing you at Hogwarts again. Take care. Harry.”

Harry was rather glad that panthers couldn't blush, because he'd had no idea that
Hermione read his letters out loud before. Thankfully, Hermione didn't notice his unease.
“Well, that wasn't too informative. Though I suppose turnabout is fair play...” she mused out
loud, absently reaching down to pet the panther. “Hedwig, I don't suppose you'd stay around
for me to write a letter to Ron?”

Harry's snowy owl hooted, blinking large amber eyes at the witch and making no move to
leave. Smiling slightly, Hermione quickly pulled out a fresh sheet of parchment and wrote a note to
Ron. “Dear Ron,” she muttered as she wrote. “I just got a letter from Harry. Apparently Dumbledore
has sent him into hiding and isn't allowing him to send much owl post. I think he was only able
to send one letter, and he asked me to tell you that he's fine and we won't be seeing him
until September. You don't happen to have any idea where he might be hidden away, would you?
Clues point to Hogwarts or Grimmauld Place, but he hasn't straight-out said where he is. Maybe
he's in disguise or something. Well, if you find anything out, please let me know right
away.”

She signed her name and carefully folded the note, tying it to Hedwig's outstretched leg.
“There, take that to Ron at the Burrow.” Hedwig spread her wings, casting a short glance at the
large black panther before leaving yet again, this time on a long trip to Ottery St. Catchpole.

Hermione looked down at the panther, which had begun a light purring sound and leaned into her
caresses. “And as for you,” she said, “I think you need a name. I can't just keep calling you
`panther' now can I?”

The large cat rumbled as if in agreement, raising bright green eyes to look into her own brown
ones. Inwardly Harry was feeling nervous, wondering if she would catch on to who he really was, or
if she'd give him a silly mythological or historical name of some kind.

“You do look an awful lot like my friend Harry,” she said absently, and it took all of his
concentration not to give her a shocked stare. Instead, he attempted to distract her by nudging her
arm with his muzzle, getting her to continue petting him. She giggled softly. “You've both got
the same green eyes and messy black hair, after all...but it would just be too weird if you were
ever in the same room together. Plus I think he might be a bit embarrassed if I named you after
him.”

*Thank Merlin,* he agreed. *She doesn't know it's me,* and *she's not
going to name me after myself. Spiffing!*

“I think `Shadow' would be a nice name,” she decided at last.

Harry blinked in surprise at the completely normal name she'd just suggested. *Well I*
am *her shadow, I suppose,* he thought to himself, and purred in agreement. She smiled at him,
gave him one last stroke along the back of the neck, and opened her Potions textbook to start her
summer reading assignment.

-->



3. Visions, Scars, and Teenage Hormones
---------------------------------------



Chapter Three - Visions, Scars, and Teenage Hormones

While he was sure that the Potions reading assignment was very exciting, Harry quickly found
himself becoming bored. Hermione hadn't moved except to turn the page or take notes for the
past half hour, and the panther part of him was becoming almost stir-crazy from the lack of
movement. Even Crookshanks had already fallen asleep, curled up on the desk chair.

Unable to sit still any longer, he got to his feet and wandered towards the door. Hermione only
glanced up at him before going back to her book. *Perfect,* Harry thought to himself as he
padded down the stairs. Flicking his ears towards the open window, he could hear Mrs. Granger
working out in the garden.

Satisfied that he wouldn't be caught doing things a panther shouldn't, he made his way
to the living room and located the television remote. Grabbing it carefully with his teeth, he
leapt up onto the couch and lay down, placing the remote between his front paws. Aiming it at the
TV, he carefully pressed the power button with an extended claw.

The TV turned on to reveal a low-budget series about a guy named Lister, a hologram named
Rimmer, and their mutated space cat onboard a giant red ship three million years in the future.
Growling in exasperation at the show, he fiddled with the buttons to change the channel. Finally
finding what he was looking for, he leaned back into the plush cushions and watched the news for
anything suspiciously like a wizard cover-up story.

He must have fallen asleep at some point, because he found himself looking through
Voldemort's eyes at a ring of kneeling Death Eaters. *“My loyal followers,” the Dark Lord
hissed, “what news do you bring me?”*

*One of the Death Eaters spoke up. “My Lord, after careful observation of number four Privet
Drive, we have concluded that Harry Potter is no longer in residence there.”*

*“Idiot!” Voldemort snapped. “Of* course *Potter no longer lives there! Dear old Albus
must have sensed the wards weakening and moved him to a more secure location. That is why we are
going after his pathetic little friends...to get him to come to us.”*

*Harry felt a chill run down his spine at the proof of what they'd only suspected thus
far. Voldemort was indeed targeting the Weasleys and Hermione this summer in hopes of drawing him
out to bargain for their lives.*

*“We will capture the youngest Weasley male first,” Voldemort decided. “Wormtail!”*

*The short, balding traitor skittered forward to cower at his master's feet. “Master?” he
asked, voice quivering with fear.*

*“You shall lead fifteen of my inner circle to the Weasleys' residence,” the Dark Lord
ordered. “Capture Ronald Weasley and bring him to me alive and* unharmed*. Feel free to kill
anyone else, but bring me my hostage or it will be better for you if you never return to
me.”*

Harry's scar seared with pain, and an even greater pain hammered through his skull as
something connected with it. Yowling in agony, he nearly fell off the couch. A masculine voice
screamed in surprise and fear, and Harry cracked open his eyes to see a rather shaken man standing
over him with a briefcase in his hand.

Hermione's voice called down the stairs, heralding her approach. “Shadow? Dad?” she asked in
worry.

The man, whom Harry assumed was her father, didn't look up from staring at the panther on
the couch. “Hermione, honey, explain to me exactly *why* we have a wild beast in the living
room?”

Before she got the chance, she noticed a trickle of red running down Harry's face and
immediately grabbed a tissue. She pressed it against his forehead to slow the bleeding, and he
couldn't refrain from hissing in pain at the pressure. “What happened?” she asked her father,
gently running her hands down Harry's back as if trying to distract him from the pain in his
head.

Mr. Granger, still somewhat taken aback but having recovered his composure somewhat, explained
that he'd come up behind the couch, intending to sit on it only to find a panther lying there
already. As he'd already begun to throw his briefcase onto the other end of the couch, it had
struck the panther soundly on the skull, waking it up rather vocally.

Hermione carefully pulled the tissue away from Harry's forehead, and he allowed her to
inspect the wound. “Hey,” she said in slight surprise and amusement, “now you've got a cut that
looks kind of like a lightning bolt. Now I almost regret not naming you Harry; you look a
*lot* like him now.”

Harry rather suspected that Mr. Granger had hit him on the scar, reopening the still-sensitive
tissues rather than creating a new mark. *I guess it's a good thing that this happened,*
he mused, able to think clearly now that the pain had died down to a faint twinge. *It would have
been suspicious if she'd seen the scar without any explanation of how it got there.*

Remembering that her father still had no idea why there was a panther on the couch to begin
with, Hermione abruptly apologized and briefly explained that `Shadow' had been found on
Hogwarts grounds and, being at least partly magical, needed someone to watch him over the summer
until the Order could take him off her hands.

Mr. Granger looked slightly skeptical, but accepted his daughter's explanation without too
much difficulty. “Can he understand English?” he asked, curiosity getting the best of him.

Absently, Harry gave him a slight nod, startling even Hermione, who knew he was smarter than the
norm for panthers. Acting quickly to restore normal catlike behavior, he bumped his head against
her arm. She smiled slightly, running her hand between his ears and cautiously avoiding the
`new' scar. “Charlie said he understands most of what we say,” she elaborated to her father.
“So if he's somewhere you think he shouldn't be, you can tell him and he'll know what
you mean. Charlie told him to stay with me, and he refused to leave my side for a little while
until he got bored and went off exploring the house. So far he hasn't caused any trouble
besides scaring me out of my wits when I heard you two yelling.”

She turned to Harry, her face holding a certain degree of seriousness. “Shadow, this is my
father, Jacob Granger. He's really a nice guy...he didn't mean to hit you.”

“Terribly sorry about that, old boy,” Jacob said, warily reaching towards the panther as if
expecting `Shadow' to bite him. Harry politely took notice of the man's scent before
maneuvering the hand to his furry head in a please-don't-be-scared-of-me gesture. Breathing a
sigh of relief, Mr. Granger ran his hand along Harry's soft head before stepping back. “I
suppose I'll watch the telly some other time, then,” he commented, throwing a wink at Hermione
before heading upstairs to the parental bedroom.

Once he was gone, Hermione gently turned Harry's head so that he was looking at her. “I
think you're a lot smarter than you let on,” she said in a not entirely condemning tone. “I
don't know of any other pets that watch the news, let alone know what a remote control is.” She
stared into his eyes, as if she could read the answers in the emerald-green orbs staring back at
her. Finally she sighed. “Come on then, I imagine it's time for supper anyway.”

~~~~~~

Charlotte Granger had apparently looked up information on a panther's diet, because his
supper consisted of a very large dish of shredded venison. He noted in slight confusion that she
had also sprinkled a very small amount of mango shavings onto the meat. At first he was wary of
eating fruit as a panther, but he was pleasantly surprised that even the panther part of his mind
greatly enjoyed the taste of mango.

This time he didn't finish eating until the three Grangers had already left the table.
Feeling comfortably full, he strolled up the stairs and into Hermione's room. She had begun
closing the door as he arrived, but let him in before shutting it all the way.

“You sure took your sweet time,” she said, and to Harry's great shock, she didn't give
him a second glance as she took off her shirt.

Harry was almost certain he could hear his brain blowing fuses as he was treated to a sight of
Hermione that he'd never seen before. Over the years she had developed into an
adequately-curvaceous young woman, and Harry distractedly wondered why school robes had to cover up
so *much* of people.

Three seconds later, it hit him that he was staring at his half-naked best friend, and his body
was telling him to do things with her that he hadn't even *considered*. If he had been in
human form, his face would have been Weasley-red as he tore his eyes away from the tantalizing
vision of loveliness before him. Seeing no other place that he could go without breaking things, he
bolted under the bed and crawled back to the wall. Only then did he let himself resume watching
her, as all he could see was her feet and ankles.

*We're not even the same species at the moment,* he scolded himself. *So stop looking
at her like that!*

“Shadow?”

Harry closed his eyes as he saw her kneeling on the floor, peering under the bed at him and
unintentionally giving him a rather good view of her chest. “What're you doing, you silly
panther?”

Obviously, he could not answer, but was doubly embarrassed when she crawled under the bed with
him. She settled herself very, very close to him and gently stroked his side. He couldn't help
but notice that she'd also taken her jeans off, leaving her in very little clothing at all.
“Hey, boy, what's the matter?” she said soothingly, completely unaware of what effect her body
was having on Harry.

*Oh, please let her give up and go to bed,* Harry pleaded to any deity who was listening.
Apparently no one was on duty, because Hermione chose to cuddle up to him instead, apparently
thinking her presence would provide comfort against whatever was disturbing him.

After several minutes, he heard her breathing slow down and deepen. *Oh...no. She's
fallen* asleep *on me?! This is* not *supposed to be happening!*

However, he didn't have the heart to move and wake her up, and she would have to move before
he could get out from under the bed. He was, rather effectively, trapped with a barely-clothed
young woman draped against his side.

*She's going to kill me when she finds out who I am.*

It was several hours until he could convince his body to go to sleep.

- - - - - - -

A/N: Wow, thanks for all the reviews! As there are some questions/concerns from the first two
chapters, I'll do my best to answer them now.

**Why did you choose a panther for Harry's Animagus form?** (asked by several people)

I picked the panther as Harry's Animagus form for several reasons. Firstly, black panthers
have black fur and green eyes, which are the obvious markings for Harry's form. Second, black
panthers are actually jaguars or leopards with rare black fur, which sets them apart from their
fellow jaguars/leopards…just as Harry is unique among wizards.

Thirdly, according to Indian myth, Panther is the stealthiest of the animals (think invisibility
cloak), uses its eyesight to hunt (Seeker), great warrior (Harry's good at dueling and stuff),
tries to protect mankind and innocents from harm (his saving-people thing), is mostly solitary but
sometimes has close companions that they defend to the death (Harry has a few very close friends),
and also hates evil and will try to hunt it down and slay it (as he is the Prophesized one).
Panther also believes in being able to defend itself without magic (such as Harry beating
Draco's face in during OotP) and is known to be quiet as it prefers to avoid getting into
pointless arguments (making no noise and pretending that he doesn't exist).

Fourthly, “The panther is prominent in American Indian mythology, with its cunning, agility, and
strength respected and admired by many tribes. The animal figures in the magic and shamanism of
nearly all ancients as their progenitor, protector, or as a source of power to ward of disease or
to excel as a hunter. Others are awed by the animal and consider it an omen of disaster.” This is a
dead ringer for how people treat Harry - they either worship the ground that he walks on, or want
to get rid of him (like the Ministry).

And finally, it just seemed to fit. ;)

**There were very few places I** **felt the story fell out of line. One however was:
"“Wait, wait,” Harry exclaimed, running his hand through his perpetually-messy hair.
“You're saying you want me to turn into a panther and be Hermione's bodyguard?”". I
really doubt Harry would figure it** **out THAT quick. He is a bit dumb** **without Hermione
you know****.** (stated by Just a Player)

Since there is an entire year in between OotP and The Panther, I am operating under the
assumption that seeing Sirius get killed will force Harry to grow up even more and pay attention to
things. He will not want to be caught off-guard by false evidence again, so I believe he will pay
much closer attention to details and be able to draw conclusions from them.

**I like this fic, but I hope you are not going to copy too much from “Protection,
Possession.”** (Stated by Beppo)

Don't worry, this fic is just another response to the same challenge, and I don't plan
on copying anything from any of the other challenge responses at all. They all have to start
somewhat similar, however, due to challenge restrictions. You'll start seeing differences right
away, I assure you.

**Does anyone else know Harry's secret?** (asked by lauren-danille)

As of right now, the only people who know about Harry being an Animagus are Dumbledore,
McGonagall, Remus, and Charlie. The rest of the Order knows only that there is an Animagus watching
over Hermione, but they do not know who the Animagus is, only that Dumbledore put them there. They
don't suspect it to be Harry because they have been told that Dumbledore is keeping Harry in a
secret, safe place but won't tell them where for fear of there being a spy in the Order.

**Will Hermione ever find out who her “shadow” really is?** (asked by NateP)

Of course she will. Just not for awhile.

**Where'd you get the idea for this?** (asked by several people)

This is a response to a challenge on this site's forums, called the Bodyguard Challenge. As
far as I know, there are four other people writing responses to this challenge. Check for it under
the H/Hr forum under Challenges.

**Crookshanks knew that Sirius was an Animagus, so why wouldn't he know that Harry was
one?** (asked by picky_picky)

Crookshanks knows that the panther is an Animagus, but he does not know that the Animagus is
Harry, specifically. As far as Crookshanks knows, Harry could be a Death Eater Animagus, and is
thus on guard at first until he is sure that Harry poses no threat to Hermione.

**Does Hermione realize that the panther is a boy?** (asked by picky_picky)

Charlie referred to the panther as a male, so yes.

**Is this after 5****th** **year or 6****th** **year?**

It's after 6th year.

-->



4. Library Surprise
-------------------



Chapter Four - Library Surprise

By the time Harry woke up, he was alone under the bed. For a moment he was disoriented, having
no idea where he was or how he'd gotten there. Crookshanks' meowing jolted his memories,
and he recalled with a fierce flush of embarrassment what had happened the night before.

As he crawled out from under the bed, he saw Hermione sitting at her desk. Faint scratching
noises came from something in front of her, and the scent of ink and parchment confirmed his
suspicions that she was writing something. To his great relief, and a smidgen of disappointment,
she was a lot more clothed than she had been last night.

“Good morning,” she said as she saw him emerging from the shadows under the bed.

Harry stretched, working the kinks out of his spine from lying in such a cramped position all
night. Several joints popped as he moved. *That's the last time I sleep under a bed,* he
vowed. *Okay…I'll just check on what she's doing and then report to the Order,* he
told himself.

Shaking off the remaining stiffness, he padded over to the desk and peered at the parchment she
was working on. A complex set of equations that he didn't have the slightest clue about
revealed that it was her Arithmancy homework.

Hermione finished up the paragraph and set down her quill, grabbing her backpack and heading for
the stairwell. Taken by surprise, he bounded after her and followed her to the front door. “Mom,
I'm going to the library,” Hermione called out.

*Why am I not surprised?* Harry sighed inwardly, then swore. *Dammit, now I gotta follow
her! Sorry Order, but Hermione is top priority…*

As she went to open the door, she suddenly noticed him standing behind her. “Oh, no you
don't, Shadow. You have to stay here. I'll be back later.”

Harry's ears automatically laid back against his skull in displeasure, and he growled as she
tried to sneak past him. He dug his claws into the wood of the door, getting his paw around to the
outside to keep it open. Hermione put up a valiant struggle to close the door, but he managed to
get his head through the gap to follow her.

She sighed. “Fine then! But don't you be getting into trouble or running away from me, got
it?” Harry slid the rest of his body outside through the gap, and she was finally able to close the
door to the house. “I think I'd rather have you be on that chain Charlie had,” she told him.
“If only to make the neighbors feel better about all this.”

A clanking noise caught her attention as she stepped off the porch, and she looked down to see
the chain lying on the sidewalk. She cast a suspicious glance at the panther, but Harry was just as
surprised as she was. Apparently deciding that Charlie must have left it there in case she took him
outside, she attached one end to his leather collar.

“We're going to get such strange looks from people,” she muttered to him as they walked down
the road. Harry looked around and was amused to see that she was right; people were stopping to
stare at the unlikely pair of panther and teenage girl strolling casually towards the town library.
A sporty red car almost collided with a telephone pole as the driver gaped at Harry.

From the other side of a chain link fence, a Yorkshire terrier started yapping insanely at him.
Harry raised a feline eyebrow at the tiny dog that was so bold as to try to scare off something
over twenty times its size. *I may be a cat, but this is ridiculous,* he thought with a
snigger. It came out as a sneeze-like noise, which Hermione thankfully ignored.

The library was a rather large one, as far as libraries go; it was three stories tall and took
up a good deal of floor space as well. The aged scent of bound paper permeated the entire room, and
there was even a small lounge-like area in the center with couches and ornate rugs.

“Miss Granger!” a surprised man at the circulation desk exclaimed.

“Hello, Mr. Atoz,” Hermione said.

“What exactly are you doing with this wild beast?” Mr. Atoz asked, looking nervously at
Harry.

“I'm taking care of him for a friend,” she explained. “He's very well-behaved, and
there's no rule against having a panther in here, is there?”

“Well, no,” Atoz admitted. “But keep an eye on that creature. If he so much as scratches one
person, I'm afraid I'll have to ask you to leave.”

“You won't have to,” Hermione said with a smile, though Harry could smell her uncertainty.
Feeling as though he needed to give her confidence a boost, he affectionately rubbed his cheek
against her leg as if he were nothing more than a really....*really*...big kitty.

Which, of course, he was.

~~~~~~

By the time Hermione picked out a book to read, all the seats in the lounge area were taken. It
didn't take her long to convince him to lie down on the plush rug and let her recline against
his side, though many people had stopped to stare at the panther in the library.

Unwilling to be drawn back into a mire of boredom, Harry peered around her arm at the page of
the open book. To his surprise, it was The Hobbit, a book he'd heard about but never read
himself.

Hermione noticed his interest, and tilted the book so he could see better. “Can you read?” she
asked quietly, almost inaudibly. Deciding to play it safe, and take some suspicion off of him, he
shook his head and gave her his best pleading look. “Do you want me to read it to you?” This time
he nodded slightly, prompting a smile from his friend.

“All right. `Chapter One: An Unexpected Party. In a hole in the ground there lived a
hobbit...'”

Harry listened in fascination as Hermione told the tale of a content little hobbit named Bilbo
Baggins, and the old wizard Gandalf who tricked him into going on an adventure with thirteen
dwarves to take back the Lonely Mountain from the dragon Smaug. Hermione had to stop for a moment
when they reached the chapter about the hill trolls, because she was giggling a bit too hard to
read quietly. “Oh, don't look at me like that,” she scolded him playfully as he eyed her in
concern. “I was just thinking that if Harry had been there, he would've tried to put his wand
up its nose or something, like he did on Halloween in our first year. Though to be fair, it did
help distract it long enough, and it was rather sweet of him to come running to my rescue.”

Once again, Harry was thankful that his dark fur hid his blush. *Well, what was I supposed to
do? I didn't know any helpful spells but I couldn't let it just kill her.*

Hermione giggled a bit more, then went back to the story. She was still smiling, however. “Right
then. `A really first-class and legendary burglar would at this point have picked the trolls'
pockets - it is nearly always worth while, if you can manage it -, pinched the very mutton off the
spits, purloined the beer, and walked off without their noticing him...'”

~~~~~~

“...`Utterly miserable as Gollum sounded, Bilbo could not find much pity in his heart'-”

“Hey, that big cat hasn't been there before, has it?” a new voice interrupted somewhat
loudly.

Hermione looked up in irritation to see a pair of young men who appeared to be in their early
twenties - old enough to know better, but young enough to disregard that fact. One of them was
staring at Shadow as if he knew *exactly* what the panther was. The other was apparently
unaware that Shadow was a real, living creature and proceeded to come a bit closer to see him
better.

“Excuse me,” Hermione said, “but we were busy reading, so if you don't mind, we'd like
to get back to that.”

“Who's `we'?” the second guy asked, raising an eyebrow sharply as if he thought she was
crazy. “I only see you, darlin'.”

“Uh, Josh?” the first guy said hesitantly.

“Not now, Adrian, I'm talkin' to the girl,” Josh commanded, not even sparing Adrian a
glance. “So, where'd this big stuffed cat come from?” He reached forward to poke at the big
cat's side.

Up until that point, Shadow had been lying with his head resting on his paws, eyes closed. He
obviously knew the two men were present, but chose to remain still for whatever reason. At the
`stuffed cat' comment, however, he lifted his head and opened his jaws wide in a huge yawn.
Hermione could actually hear his jaw joint pop loudly before he closed his mouth and stared
straight at Josh, who had gone rigid in sudden fear.

“I tried to tell you, dude,” Adrian commented quietly. “That thing is *real*.”

“Like I said,” Hermione said, smirking slightly and reaching up to stroke the top of
Shadow's head in emphasis, “we'd like to get on with our reading, so if you don't
mind...”

Josh was apparently frozen in a combination of shock and terror, so Adrian grabbed the back of
his jacket and dragged him away. Hermione smiled at him as he cast an apologetic look in her
direction, mouthing the words `sorry about that' as he hauled his petrified friend away from
the witch and her panther.

Shadow looked up at her as if to ask what he should do now. “I think we should finish the book
at home,” she said. “You never know what kind of interruptions we'll get here.” She
could've sworn Shadow actually grinned at that, but when she looked again he was still
normal-looking.

Grabbing a bookmark, she marked their spot in The Hobbit and stood, grabbing Shadow's chain.
The panther gracefully rose to his paws as well, and followed her to the checkout desk. Several
people had stopped to stare, and Hermione caught a glimpse of Adrian peering around a bookcase at
the pair. When he saw her looking in his direction, he gave her the thumbs-up sign in approval. She
smiled back, and turned back to the counter to check out The Hobbit.

~~~~~~

During dinner, Harry was able to sneak away long enough to send a quick note to Remus Lupin
about his vision the previous day, signing it under the name “Hermione's Shadow,” knowing that
he would understand and alert Dumbledore. Apparently Remus was on Hermione's guard-duty today,
because a reply came back about ten minutes later.

*Weasleys safe,* it read. *Burrow under Fidelius and family at 12G. Stay with
Hermione.*

*RJL.*

Harry breathed a sigh of relief and tapped the note three times. It obligingly disappeared, and
he transfigured back into Shadow before padding downstairs to rejoin the Granger family.

--------------

A/N: Once again, thanks for all the reviews. There were a few more questions this time around,
so here are the answers.

**When will Hermione find out?** (asked by several people)

I'm not telling. :-P But obviously not until towards the end.

**How will/Did he warn the Weasleys/Order about the attack?** (asked by several people)

As you can see at the end of the chapter, he did indeed, but he wasn't able to earlier in
the day because he had to stay close to Hermione as she was out of the house.

**By that last sentence, "It was..." do you mean he was enjoying it or not?**
(asked by Musique)

Part of him was enjoying it, part of him was too mortified. Wouldn't you be?

**I'm guessing that Mr. and Mrs. Granger don't know that it's Harry.** (stated by
Anastasia O'Hara)

That's correct. They don't know that the panther is an Animagus at all, as they were
told the same story that Hermione was.

**How long does it usually take you to finish one chapter?** (asked by Andi)

Actually I have most of this written out in advance, but I'm currently stuck on one of the
later chapters. Plus sometimes I forget about my fics (I get caught up in my homework and stuff -
I'm in college, so I'm sure you can understand why) and then weeks later I say to myself,
“Oh, I should probably update that…”

**Why doesn't Hermione suspect at all?** (asked by toink)

Hermione's been told that Harry is in a safe place, so she thinks he is being kept far away
from anyone and everything. Plus, well, you know what they say, love is blind…which is why Harry
can get away with being right under her nose without her suspecting.

**How many chapters are there going to be?** (asked by toink)

I'm not sure, somewhere along the lines of ten, according to my plans. Could be more, could
be less.

**Why are the Grangers so calm in allowing Hermione to keep the panther as a
pet..****.aren't panthers dangerous?** (asked by toink)

Remember, the Grangers aren't magical, so they pretty much have to take the wizards at their
word. Charlie did nothing to indicate that the panther would be a danger to them or their daughter,
especially since he left the panther in Hermione's care, and Hermione has told them about
magical creatures being intelligent and less apt to be randomly violent.

**I thought the bit with Hermione cuddling with Harry was really cute - but I don't know if
she would crawl under the bed to do it - most of them aren't comfortable to crawl under.**
(stated by MissLexi)

Apparently, Hermione's bed is one of the few that is comfy to be under. Plus my beta
suggested it, and I thought it was a great opportunity to embarrass Harry - and mortify Hermione
when she finds out. :D So for the sake of amusement, Hermione's bed is quite comfy
underneath.

**I don't know if you know any** **F****rench, but my comment is "tres
bein!"** (stated by _Amber_Eyes_)

Merci! I'm afraid I don't know too much French (I did take two years of Spanish though),
but I know what that means at least. That's about the extent of my knowledge, besides
“parlez-vous francais?” (to which I usually say “Non!” for obvious reasons.)

**Please hurry up and post the next chapter!** (stated by practically everyone)

I'm trying, I'm trying, but like I said before, I'm a college student. So I get
caught up in my homework and have to put my fics on a back burner, plus sometimes I just plain
forget about these things. While it's nice to see that this story is so well-loved, please tone
down the enthusiasm just a notch or two, I'm doing the best I can. If you really want to have
me update faster, IM me on AIM (EnigmaSphinx42) or MSN (vulcan_danks@hotmail.com) and remind me.
(AIM is preferable, but if you must use MSN, I suppose you must.) At least I updated faster this
time, eh?

-->



5. Intruder Alert
-----------------



Chapter Five - Intruder Alert

Later that night, when everything was dark and the Grangers were asleep, the front door clicked
open. A man, dressed all in black and carrying a large bag and a knife, cautiously crept into the
house. Almost shutting the door, but not letting the latch catch, he turned to search the
house.

~~~~~~

Harry woke with a start, ears alert for any sign of what had shocked his consciousness from
sleep. Next to him on the bed, Hermione slept peacefully, her arm draped across his furry side but
not quite pinning him down to the mattress.

A soft creaking reached his sensitive ears, followed by a very quiet tapping.

*There's someone downstairs,* he determined. A quick flick of the ears and he realized
that both Granger adults were still sound asleep. *An intruder!* he realized in alarm. *A
Death Eater?*

Quietly, he slipped out from under Hermione's arm and padded over to the closed bedroom
door. Ten seconds later, he discovered that neither paws nor jaws could turn the handle adequately.
He took a deep breath and gathered all his Gryffindor courage, then concentrated on his human
form.

As he made the tell-tale *pop* of Animagus transformation, Hermione made a small noise and
moved as if she was going to sit up. Harry froze with his hand on the doorknob, holding his breath
as he watched her anxiously. An eternity passed before she murmured and rolled over to face the
wall, putting him out of her sight...but not out of her hearing, if she wasn't quite asleep.
Deciding to take a chance, he twisted the doorknob and opened the door.

“Muh...Shadow?”

Hermione opened her eyes and sat up, blinking sleepily at the panther. Harry inwardly sighed in
relief as she made no signs of having seen or heard him transfiguring himself for the second time.
He stood attentively at the door, ears flat against his skull as he growled quietly, staring out at
the staircase.

Hermione correctly interpreted his body language and came awake immediately. “There's
someone here,” she deduced in a whisper. Harry nodded, and she grabbed her wand from the bedside
table as she slid off the bed. “Lead the way, Shadow.”

Harry didn't want to take her into danger, but he knew she wouldn't stay behind if she
felt threatened. Calling upon all his panther stealth, he crept down the stairs and towards the
living room.

To his chagrin, Hermione charged right in and hit the light switch, flooding the room with
light.

“What the...?” the intruder swore, shielding his eyes with his hand.

“Get out of my house,” Hermione commanded, and Harry relaxed a fraction when he realized the
intruder didn't appear to have a wand.

The man had apparently recovered enough to see her, and raised the knife in his hand. “Look,
girlie, I'm not leaving until I get what I came for, so be a good little girl and don't try
any funny business.”

While the man spoke, Harry circled around behind the couch and took up a position behind the
intruder. When the man took another step towards Hermione, proving that he was a Muggle - otherwise
he'd know what Hermione was aiming at him - Harry made his move.

With a loud roar, he lunged at the man's back. The intruder spun around at the unexpected
sound, and a look of pure surprise crossed his face as Harry tackled him to the floor. Growling
menacingly, the Animagus sank his teeth into his victim's upraised arm, causing him to howl in
agony. He planted his other massive paw on the man's chest, claws extended and digging into the
black shirt.

“Get him, Shadow!” Hermione encouraged, still aiming her wand at the downed man.

The intruder lashed out with his other arm, and Harry felt something sear into his shoulder.
Cursing mentally as the pain flared up, he ripped his claws through the man's free arm. The
intruder bellowed and dropped the knife, which Harry slapped out of his reach. Both of them bled
freely, and Harry decided to immobilize the intruder before he did something else.

The man let out a strangled cry as Harry dropped his full body weight onto the intruder, and
nearly one hundred sixty pounds of big cat pinned him to the floor. Footsteps could be heard from
the stairway as the man was finally rendered helpless.

Jacob and Charlotte appeared in the doorway and took surprisingly little time to take in what
was happening. Charlotte went to dial the police, and Jacob moved closer to the whimpering
intruder.

“Please,” the man gasped, “get this thing off me!”

Jacob was silent for a moment, staring at the man who had dared invade his home. “Hold him,
Shadow,” he said at last. Harry growled in agreement, still holding onto the man's arm with his
teeth.

Over the sound of his own growls and the intruder's wheezing breath, Harry could hear
Charlotte on the phone in the kitchen. “There's a man in my living room; he broke in a few
minutes ago with a knife and tried to rob us. My daughter and her pet panther managed to disarm him
and they have him cornered now. Could you send somebody out to arrest him or something?” A pause.
“Yes, my daughter has a panther. She's taking care of it over the summer for a friend.” Pause.
“Yes, I'm sure Charlie Weasley has a permit to- oh, you've heard of him, then.” Another
pause. “Ten minutes? I think we can keep him detained for that long, yes. Thank you.”

The man looked desperate now. “Look, I think I got the wrong house or something. Just let me go
and I'll pay for your...um...pet's treatment. Please, just let me go! Don't let the
cops take me away...”

Harry relaxed his jaw a little as the man's scent radiated sincerity. He did not, however,
let go of his arm of get off him. Jacob glanced at the intruder's weapon, which was lying at
least ten feet away. “You realize that by coming here like this, you've committed three
felonies?” he asked casually. “Breaking and Entering, Burglary, and Assault. If Shadow hadn't
been here, would you have hurt my daughter? How could I let you go, when I know that someone
else's daughter could be found murdered because I released you? No, you decided to do this, so
you have to face the consequences."

~~~~~~

The cops were still taken somewhat aback when they arrived, and spent a good five minutes just
staring at the panther. Finally, one of them stepped forward and handcuffed the intruder. He almost
jumped back as the panther offered him the felon's other, much-chewed arm, but kept his
composure long enough to finish restraining the man. Harry stood up and moved to where he
wasn't blocking the cops from taking the intruder away, but could still tackle the man if he
tried any funny business.

Harry shadowed the police and their captive all the way to the cop car, and once the intruder
was finally locked in the back seat he returned to the house. Hermione immediately descended on
him. "Oh Shadow, you're hurt!"

For a few moments, Harry had no idea what she meant and just stared at her blankly. She reached
out and pressed against his shoulder, and he yowled as the pain suddenly hit him like a Mack truck.
Hermione didn't show a trace of fear as she pressed harder to stem the bloodflow, and as she
did he remembered the intruder stabbing him. "Mom, Dad, would one of you get something we can
use as a bandage for Shadow? The burglar got him with the knife during the fight."

Charlotte reacted quickly and retrieved Hermione's Gryffindor scarf from the kitchen
counter. Jacob helped Hermione tie it around Harry's wounded leg while Harry stayed absolutely
still. "Does the vet's office treat exotic animals?" Charlotte asked as they
worked.

"They'll probably do their best," Jacob mused. "I'm sure they don't
specialize in it, at least, but he's just a housecat on a large scale. They won't be open
for another few hours though...Shadow isn't about to bleed to death, so he should be okay until
morning. Then we can get him checked out and fixed up. For now, let's just get the bleeding
stopped and go back to bed."

Hermione led Harry back up the stairs to her room, keeping a close eye on him for any signs of a
more severe injury to his shoulder. Harry did his best not to limp for her, but couldn't hide
all signs of being injured from his observant friend. She directed him to a spot right alongside
her bed, and he gratefully lay down and closed his eyes. *What a night,* he thought. *I hope
there's no more excitement like* that *for her this summer...that man was a Muggle, not a
Death Eater, and he caused enough trouble by himself.*

As though from across foggy waters, he heard Hermione whisper goodnight as she too lay down to
sleep. Goodnight, 'Mione.

--------------

A/N: As usual, thank you all for your reviews. I continue to be totally blown away at how
popular this story is (currently coming in at 203 reviews and 10892 hits). Even on fanfiction.net,
this story holds my personal record for most reviews, at a measly 61. Thank you all for being so
generous with your reviews, I love you all.

**Why didn't Hermione suspect that the panther was an Animagus after it ran to hide under
the bed when she took off her shirt? W****ouldn't that be odd to have a c****at**
**(large or small) do that?** (asked by Chinthliss)

Remember, Hermione has been told that the panther is a magical creature and very intelligent, so
she understands that it will react differently than Muggle animals.

**Does Harry have his wand with him? If he does not, how can he fight off Death Eaters?**
(asked by PotterEvansBlack)

Harry does indeed have his wand - I explained the concept of Integration in chapter two. His
wand is Integrated along with his clothes when he transfigures himself. However, as he is in the
form of a large predator, he doesn't really need his wand to fight, unless in dire
emergency.

**Strange that the people in town didn't call the zoo or animal control about Harry.**
(stated by PJ)

The Order, or more specifically, Charlie and Remus, made sure to notify the police, animal
control, and anyone else who might be called about it before taking Harry to the Granger household.
As you can see in this chapter, Charlie has quite a reputation amongst the police, resulting from
his years of being a dragon wrangler.

**So are we going to see more of the two guys? That one who knew what Harry was; are you
implying that he knows Harry's an Animagus?** (asked by JayaMioneDurron)

No, they were just two random Muggles I needed to interrupt their reading session. And what I
meant was that he knew Harry was a living panther, not a very realistic stuffed animal, as his
friend arrogantly assumed. Neither of them knows about Animagi or wizards.

**When you said she didn't notice it was Harry because love is blind, did you mean because
she's in love with Harry?** (asked by HurricaneCaitlin)

This IS an H/Hr site, is it not?

**What were the two boys up to? Did Josh like Hermione, and Ad****ria****n was a friend
of hers?** (asked by Kalina Malia)

The boys were just up to no good, as teenage boys tend to do. Josh does not know Hermione and
neither does Adrian, though I doubt they'll ever forget her now.

**Esta bien! Tu escribes muy excelente, chica! Understand that?** (asked by
OceanAvenue213)

Muchas gracias, amigo!

**Err, aren't there British laws against having exotic pets?** (asked by trick of the
light)

I honestly don't know; I'm not British. (I'm American, BTW.) I'd guess they have
to have special permits to do so, however, and so the Order has taken care of that. If exotic pets
are completely banned (which I doubt), then perhaps they put Muggle-repelling charms of a sort on
him to prevent Muggles from thinking about calling the police or whatever.

**There are usually rules about *animals* in public libraries, so Hermione's hair-splitting
probably wouldn't have gotten her much. Mr. Atoz (Wow, man! Shades o****f Star Trek!) must
have really** **liked her.** (stated by Alorkin)

Actually in some libraries, they have cats (normal housecats) that live in the library itself,
and visitors get to spend time with them if the cat permits it. Therefore, it seems logical to
assume that a somewhat larger cat would also be welcome. Size matters not, after all. (And yes, Mr.
Atoz is a blatant reference to Star Trek. :P)

**This is one of the FUNNIEST fanfics I have read!! I am really excited to see what happens!
Ever thought about a "tackle" fight between the two or a game of tag?** (asked by
Lorel)

I hadn't thought about it, but I'm afraid it just won't work in the context of the
story, unless they're goofing off after she finds out. I'll think about it.

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6. Vet's Office and Baths
-------------------------



Chapter Six - Vet's Office and Baths

In the morning, Harry found himself being coaxed into the Granger family car for a quick road
trip. His panther instincts rebelled furiously against going into such a small, confined space, but
one look at Hermione was all it took to get him to climb across the back seat. His friend took
passenger seat while her father got in the driver's seat, though she kept looking back at Harry
as if afraid he would try to escape.

The vet's office was a thirty minute drive out of town, and seemed suited for various types
of large animals like horses, cows, or sheep, as well as house pets. Hermione clipped the chain to
Harry's collar before opening the car door and letting him out. He sniffed at the air, catching
the scent of farm animals and antiseptic coming from the moderately-sized building in front of
him.

Hermione led him to a waiting area while Jacob filled out the paperwork at the front desk, and
Harry looked around at the other patients and their owners. A miniature horse stood beside an
elderly man on the other side of the room, and the little equine watched Harry warily. There was a
little kid and his mother two seats away, holding a birdcage with a parakeet inside. Two dogs
growled at Harry despite their owners telling them not to, and a yellow housecat in a cat carrier
tried to bat at Harry's tail through the bars of the door.

They only had to wait ten minutes before the secretary called “Shadow, black panther,” though
not without looking twice to make sure she was saying the right animal. Jacob, Harry, and Hermione
followed her to an examination room, where their vet was waiting.

“Ms. Granger,” the vet said with a smile, “Don't you already have a cat?”

“I'm taking care of Shadow while his owners are out of town,” Hermione explained to him,
also smiling. Harry guessed that this was where Hermione took Crookshanks whenever he needed
medical attention, and that she and the vet knew each other at least a little well.

“So you say Shadow here sustained a knife wound to the shoulder?” the vet asked, unfazed by the
panther in the slightest.

“Yes. A burglar broke into our house last night and stabbed Shadow in an attempt to get away,”
Jacob said. “We would've brought him in earlier, but it wasn't an emergency.”

“I see,” the vet said, nodding. “Can you get him up on the table so I can see the wound
better?”

Hermione patted the waist-high table. “Up, Shadow.” Harry carefully jumped up onto it in an
attempt not to slide off the other side. He balked at the feel of cold metal under his paws, but
Hermione's gentle hand on his back calmed him.

The vet shone a bright light onto Harry's shoulder and carefully separated the fur around
the injury. “Looks like maybe two or three inches deep,” the vet stated. “Has he been limping, or
otherwise shown difficulty moving?”

“A little bit of limping,” Hermione admitted, “but other than that he's looked just
fine.”

“Hmm.” The vet prodded at Harry's shoulder a little bit. “No infection or festering yet, but
it could be too early to tell. I'll set up an antibiotic for him and a proper bandage to cover
the wound. Shouldn't take more than twenty minutes.”

Harry forced himself to remain still as the vet shaved the fur around the wound completely off,
though he winced at the thought of what he'd look like now. The vet smeared some type of salve
into the cut and then covered it with a white bandage that stuck right to his skin. However, when
the man came at him with a syringe, Harry laid his ears flat against his skull and hissed
threateningly. He absolutely *hated* needles.

The vet wasn't too startled at his reaction, but stayed out of range of Harry's claws.
“I don't think he likes needles very much,” he said. “Could you try to calm him down enough for
me to give him the antibiotic?”

“I have an idea,” Hermione said, and suddenly Harry had to close his eyes as Hermione's hand
covered them. *Well, crap,* he thought. *I guess I should just get it over with before they
try sedating me or something.*

A small pricking at his shoulder and it was done. Hermione let him hop down off the table and
they made their way to the front desk. Jacob sent them out to the car while he talked to the
vet.

“That wasn't so bad now, was it?” Hermione asked him as she opened the back door. “Get in
the car, Shadow.” Harry inwardly sighed, and climbed up onto the cushions. *This was* not
*on the agenda,* he grumbled to himself.

~~~~~~

Harry's shoulder healed quickly over the next week, and took up prowling around the outside
of the Granger house several times daily. The neighbor dogs still barked at him whenever they saw
him, but they were all confined inside fences and Harry squashed the instinct to fight them.

He leapt up onto the porch railing in one fluid movement, using all his panther senses to make
sure no unidentified persons had come anywhere close to Hermione's house.

A rather burly man was walking his pit bull down the sidewalk on the other side of the street.
The pit bull growled at Harry, and the man stopped to stare with a strange look in his eyes. “You
think you can take a panther, Killer?” he asked the dog. The dog barked savagely in reply,
straining at the leash towards Harry. The man smiled maliciously. “Sic `im,” he said, and let go of
the leash.

The pit bull plowed into a surprised Harry, knocking him off the railing. The dog snapped at his
paws, and Harry recovered his composure. He snarled a warning, and when the dog tried to bite him
again, he swatted at the beast with his claws extended. The dog yelped in surprise as Harry roared
and pounced on top of it, though he held back from trying to kill it.

Mud splattered everywhere as the Animagus shoved his opponent into the ground with his front
legs. The dog futilely attempted to get up and fight back, but Harry dealt it a stunning blow to
the head with a paw. The dog yelped as Harry bit it on the back of the neck, lifting it by its
scruff and dragging it to the sidewalk. He released the dog and snarled at it.

The pit bull needed no such incentive. It staggered to its feet and fled to its flabbergasted
master's side, tail between its legs. The man stared slack-jawed at his thoroughly whipped dog
for a moment, then glared angrily at Harry. Harry bared his teeth and roared. The man paled and
took a step back, noticing for the first time that the panther was not restrained in any way. He
turned tail and ran down the street, with his bloodied and muddy dog following.

“Shadow!”

Harry whirled around to see Hermione standing in the front doorway, looking at him
disapprovingly. “You're all dirty now! Mom won't let you into the house like that, you
know.”

Harry shifted guiltily. He hadn't meant to cause any trouble, and if he wasn't allowed
inside then how would he guard Hermione? *Some bodyguard I am,* he thought to himself.

“I guess I'll just have to give you a bath,” Hermione continued, grabbing his collar before
he could react. *WHAT?! A BATH?* he thought in alarm. “Luckily for you, the downstairs
bathroom has a tub in it big enough to hold you, and there's only easily-cleaned tile floor on
the way there,” she said as she pulled him towards the house.

Hermione dragged him into a small bathroom and closed the door behind her, ensuring that he
couldn't escape. She unbuckled his collar and set it on a shelf next to the sink, then turned
the water on in the tub. “Get in, Shadow,” she told him, looking ready to at least *try* to
make him do it if he didn't obey on his own.

Harry counted himself lucky that panthers didn't mind water like most housecats, and
carefully got in the tub. A few inches of water splashed around his paws, and he briefly amused
himself by pawing at the water as Hermione located the shampoo.

“Hmm,” she mused out loud as she looked at the bottle. “We don't have any cat shampoo, but
I'm sure what's good for us is good for you…as long as you don't mind smelling like
lavender for awhile.” Harry cringed at the mention of flower-scented shampoo. *Oh, that is* so
*unmanly…* He let out a small growl of protest as Hermione liberally doused him with the
purple syrupy liquid, but she ignored it and began scrubbing the shampoo into his fur.

*I'm never going to live this down if she finds out she gave her best friend a bath,*
Harry thought, and his fur hid another blush as he realized the implications of that. *Aw man,
she's gonna* kill *me.*

Hermione's hands worked their way down his back from his head, and then each paw was
individually tended to. He was startled when she grabbed at his tail and washed that too, but
almost felt like dying from embarrassment when she scrubbed at his underside. *Whoa there,
that's just indecent! I'm* never *telling her about this once I'm human again,*
he decided.

The water quickly turned a frothy brown as the mud washed off, and Hermione drained the water as
she rinsed the remaining shampoo from his fur. As soon as the water was no longer being dumped on
him, he shook himself from head to tail, spraying water everywhere like a dog. Hermione sputtered
as she was drenched from the onslaught, and Harry hopped out of the tub onto the bathmat, feeling
secretly pleased that he'd been able to get her back for the indignity of bathing him. Hermione
grabbed a large fluffy towel and began to rub it over his wet fur.

*Oooooh wow, this feels good…*

A rumbling noise made its way from deep in his throat and his human mind took a backseat as
Hermione rubbed his back with the towel. She chuckled when she heard him purring. “You like that,
do you?” Harry, to his slight embarrassment, could only purr louder in response.

After all too short a time, she pulled back and looked at him critically. “Yeah, I think
that's good enough,” she declared. Both Harry and the panther's instincts disagreed, but
she'd already draped the wet towel over the curtain rod. He sighed inwardly as she buckled the
leather collar around his neck again before opening the door. Reluctantly, Harry followed her up to
her bedroom for another one of her homework sessions.

---------------

A/N: I'm sorry it took so long for me to upload, but real life got in the way, big time. My
laptop imploded, my dog had to be put to sleep, I had to get a part-time job, and college recently
resumed. Chaos all around. Plus my interest has shifted towards Stargate. Don't worry, this
story will get finished, just maybe not right away. Since you've all been so patient, I thought
I'd find the time to get another chapter out. As always, I'm astounded to see how many
people are reading this fic. I have 107 reviews on Fanfiction.net and 273 reviews here. It's my
second-most-read fic on ff.net, with 1037 hits (topped only by a Stargate fic with 2652 hits), and
on Portkey.org it currently has 21576 hits. Wow. Very popular, this thing. And now, to answer ten
million reviews.

**Are you still working on this?** (asked by destroyerdrt and many others)

Yep.

**Wow, libraries that come with cats? Where do you live and how do you find them?** (asked by
Porphyria)

They don't have them where I live, but I've heard of it being done. Run a search for
“library cats” and see what you turn up.

**I, too, would have expected Hermione to suspect Shadow as Harry by now.** (stated by
Spartacus)

Yes, well, love is blind. Besides, the story would be less interesting. And a lot shorter.

**Oh** **I** **love t****h****is f****ic, it's godlike. but honestly
H****ermione** **won't** **allow them to bring S****hadow to a muggle doctor... and
please why** **don't** **you just answer the reviews at the reviews, because**
**it's** **lame if the half chapter consists of review answers..** (asked by DaWing)

Okay, this is a review that has bugged me for quite a bit. I don't think it's “lame” for
me to want to answer honest questions from my readers that may not be answered in the story.
Besides, with all the reviews this story has, would YOU want to wade through nearly 300 reviews for
an answer to your question? I know I wouldn't. This way, it's up front where everyone can
see it, and similar questions will likely NOT get asked over and over because someone didn't
read the reviews.

**By the way, will the next chapter be taking Harry to a vet? It would definitely be
interesting.** (asked by Lucifer)

As you can see, yes indeedy they did. Unfortunately the mention of the vet's office is still
a bit of a sensitive subject with me, as my dog had to be put to sleep over the summer. I went with
her and was there in her final moments, and it still hurts to see the vet's sign every day on
the way to college. That's one reason why it took me so long to post this part.

**As for the chapter, it was quite good, other than the fact that a panther, would not weigh
160 pounds, it is more like 300+, after all it is pure muscle.** (stated by nkao1000)

Actually no, it all depends on what type of panther it is. Black panther is not actually a
species, it's a genetic fluke in jaguars and leopards that produces all-black coats, sometimes
with faintly visible spots. All my sources said black panthers are usually around 160 pounds, being
the average size. I'm sure there have been some bigger ones, but Harry has never been a big
guy, so he's bound to be at the other end of the scale, if you'll pardon the pun.

**Is that Harry's only Animagus form or are there other transformations?** (asked by
Parrkind)

Just the panther.

**I take it that the burglar is just a "regular" muggle and not one hired by the
Death Eaters or Voldemort. Although his statement "****I'm not leaving until I get what
I came for****" was a little worrisome. What was he looking for?** (asked by
MononWalker)

Just a regular Muggle, looking for valuables. Dentists make a lot of money after all. He was
just looking for something really expensive he could sell on eBay or something.

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