Sirius suddenly felt Vid's figure vanish from his sight. He quickly looked around and shouted, "Vid!"
The sound was drowned out by thunder, the lightning casting a ghostly pallor on everyone's faces.
Sirius abruptly turned his head and looked at Lupin not far behind him.
"Remus, did you see him?"
Lupin shook his head and shouted loudly, "We've blocked all around! He can't have gone far!"
Sirius turned to look back and saw that the entrance they had used was tightly sealed by Lupin, which gave him some relief.
But this still couldn't ensure complete safety because there were always gaps between branches and vines. If an ordinary bird folded its wings, it might still slip through.
"He's turned into a bird!" Sirius shouted, "Very fast, maybe a swift or an owl or something!"
Lupin nodded, thankful they had brought their Flying Brooms.
The two each mounted their brooms and whoosh, soared into the rain curtain.
The rain pouring through gaps between the leaves was like a faucet turned on, cascading down and drenching their heads, trickling down their necks and soaking into their clothes. They were both thoroughly wet, unable to bother with magic to shield against the rain.
Vid's animal form being a bird wasn't particularly surprising; a flying raptor was more useful than most creatures.
This was actually something worth celebrating.
But the downside was, during a first transformation, a human's consciousness was often overwhelmed by the animal's instincts, and sometimes the transformer would forget they were human.
The simple brain of an animal might lead them to flee or crash into walls, or even do something more foolish. If they couldn't revert back, it wouldn't be long until they were completely assimilated by animal instincts.
If Vid ran off to the outside world in this state, the two feared they would never be able to find him again.
In just a few minutes, Lupin already felt himself nearly frozen, his hands turning blue from gripping the broom, and his lips bloodless. Rainwater streamed into his eyes, and through the dense rain, he could only see a small patch in front of him.
He saw Sirius shouting, seemingly saying something, but he couldn't hear at all. Finally, Sirius gestured frantically, indicating they should split up and search in a spiral.
Lupin nodded and soared away.
He tried to appear composed, though he was already panicking inside.
In just a few minutes, Lupin had regretted countless times—
Regretting why he taught Vid the Animagus practice method, regretting encouraging him to learn such an advanced course, and regretting waking Vid tonight.
—If something happened to that child, it would all be your fault!
Lupin told himself with regret, over and over.
He knew well, comparing with James and the others back then, Vid was much younger.
Even though he had a solid foundation of knowledge and potential talent, his Magic Power was not strong enough, and his willpower was naturally less than that of an adult.
He hadn't spent the long time gradually mastering Transfiguration techniques and methods, nor had he undergone prolonged meditation and magic control training. Lupin and Sirius felt a twinge of unease about this, so they spent a great deal of time preparing.
At this moment, all of the anxiety and worry seemed to converge and erupt, making Lupin feel like his body was going numb.
The two carefully searched from below to above, but found nothing. When they landed back on the ground, their faces looked even more pallid than a ghost's.
By this time, the downpour had slightly decreased.
"Perhaps we should notify Dumbledore... Sirius." Lupin's lips trembled slightly as he spoke, "At the very least, call Professor McGonagall; she has more experience."
Sirius frowned and said, "Maybe the rain was just too heavy that we couldn't see clearly... Let's search again!"
He flew out like an arrow off the bowstring, and though Lupin was a bit muddled, he instinctively lifted his broom and followed.
They each held out their Magic Wand, bright light emitting from its tip to illuminate a vast area.
Yet after circling around again, they still found nothing.
By now, even optimistic Sirius had to admit that it seemed they had accidentally lost Vid.
The two looked at each other, their hearts sinking like they had fallen into an icy well.
Just then, Lupin suddenly heard a faint, "ooh-waa" sound.
He was momentarily stunned, thinking he had misheard.
Then he saw Sirius staring in astonishment behind him, with a look that was both amused and exasperated. After a while, Sirius finally spoke up:
"You little rascal... hiding in this place..."
Lupin whipped around and found behind him a dark green bird.
Its size was much larger than a pigeon, but still on the smaller side among raptors. Its head and cheeks bore black stripes, its neck glinting with a shade of black and blue, and white markings adorned its belly.
At this moment, it was using its yellow talons to grasp a cross-branch on the broom, hiding behind Lupin to shelter from wind and rain. When it saw him turn around, it tilted its head, looking at him curiously and innocently.
Lupin: "..."
He felt as though his heart nearly stopped from being shocked by this kid.
He opened his mouth, then closed it, and still couldn't utter a single word.
"Let's change him back first." Sirius approached with his Magic Wand out, saying, "The longer it takes, the more time it'll take to recover his consciousness."
As Sirius drew near, the dark green bird uneasily shifted, as if wanting to fly away. Yet as soon as it spread its wings, it was frozen in place by magic.
The bird's grayish eyes nervously flicked around, watching as Lupin also drew his Magic Wand.
"Get ready, Vid." Lupin said, "I'll count to three. One... two... three!"
Two beams of blue-white light shone on him, and he began to struggle. Then his limbs underwent an amazing transformation, and the bird, whose length from head to tailtip was less than a human forearm, in a few seconds, turned into a twelve-year-old boy.
He landed on the ground with a thud, splashing water all over himself, and looked ahead in a daze, his wet hair pitifully plastered to his forehead.
"Pfft――"
Sirius couldn't help but laugh, and his laughter grew louder and louder. Lupin, too, showed a wry yet relieved smile.
"You nearly scared me to death, Vid..."
"...Huh?"
Vid was clueless.
During his first transformation, his mind was hazy, and he couldn't quite recall what had happened before.
"Alright, let's head back and change clothes."
Lupin pulled him up from the ground and said, "Now that you've succeeded your first time, it will be much easier to transform in the future. Remember to maintain a clear mind and self-awareness; it's very important."
He had said these words more than once. Vid nodded, then curiously asked, "So? What exactly is my animal form?"
Before he transformed, he had caught a glimpse of his transformed figure in his mind but could only remember it was a bird, having forgotten what it was called.
"Peregrine Falcon." Sirius said with a laugh, "The fastest bird―from now on, you won't need to take the Hogwarts Express to school."