Fulfilling Obligations (Harmione)

Chapter 21: The Iumentum Elixir

Harry stepped gratefully into the cool corridor on the seventh floor, feeling intensely high-strung as he made his way down the deserted hall. Almost a full month had passed since he and Hermione had started their plans to become Animagi, and he was quite anxious to begin the actual process.

When Harry had met Hermione in the Room of Requirement a week after her birthday, he had not expected the news he had received: to become an Animagus, a potion was required that was similar in composition to the Polyjuice Potion-but even more difficult to create.

According to Hermione, the potion, known as the Iumentum Elixir, would essentially alter their chemical makeup in a more permanent and drastic way than the Polyjuice Potion, enabling them to transform. She had spent the three weeks since brewing the complicated mixture, and, to Harry's pleasure and immense gratitude towards Hermione, it would be ready tonight.

He quickly paced the familiar tapestry of Barnabus the Barmy, thinking of the desired room, and the highly polished door sprang into view. When he entered the room, he saw a rather frazzled Hermione sitting cross-legged before two bubbling cauldrons, dressed in a long-sleeved shirt and jeans.

"How's it going?" he said without preamble, sitting down next to her as she added a fistful of fluxweed to each cauldron.

"Only a few more ingredients," she murmured, brow furrowed as she measured out essence of belladonna. She carefully added equal doses to each potion.

"Could you pass me those vials next to you?" she said, stirring in the belladonna in a counter-clockwise rotation.

"Sure," Harry replied, picking up two small crystal bottles sitting on a table beside him. One looked as though it contained a clear sparkly fluid; the other was filled with blood.

"Thanks," she said, taking the vials. "Diluted unicorn horn and dragon's blood. They're only used in the most powerful potions."

She held both vials over one of the cauldrons and tipped them over carefully, allowing one drop from each to fall simultaneously into the elixir. She repeated the step with the second cauldron and then dusted her hands off satisfactorily.

"Done," she said. "Well, at least as much as I can do on my own. The rest of the steps are personalized."

"Okay. What do we do?"

"There's a three step process to complete the potion," Hermione said knowledgeably. "Each step requires a part of the person who will drink the potion and an incantation. After each step, the potion will change to a shade that characterizes a certain aspect of the person's personality and a moonstone of that particular shade should be added."

She paused, gesturing to a small pile of smooth stones in a large variety of shades on the floor behind her. "Moonstones are used for emotional balance, so I presume they ensure that we keep our human emotions when we transform."

Harry scratched the back of his head, frowning. "That's not complicated in the least."

"Piece of cake," Hermione said, smiling. She pulled a large tome onto her lap and flipped it open to a marked page.

"Okay," she said, trailing her finger down the page. "The first step requires..." Her eyes searched the book. '"The hair of the future Animagus.'"

"Easy enough," Harry replied, reaching over and plucking a strand from Hermione's head.

"Ow!" she yelped, and promptly snatched a hair from Harry's head as well, resulting in a similar bark of pain. Smiling gratifyingly, she dropped Harry's hair into the cauldron nearest him; Harry did the same with Hermione's. She then produced her wand and pointed it at her own potion.