See Part One for warnings, rating, disclaimers, etc.

Part Two

The next morning, Ron sat at breakfast alone. His chin was cupped in his palm, while he fiddled with the spoon and clinked it against the dish.

Finally, John said, “You are not hungry?”

“Sort of,” muttered Ron. He got up and passed by the window. Something caught his eye and he realized it was a giraffe who was coming up to the window. He stared at it, wishing he could be as strong and noble as the giraffes. He knew he was a Gryffindor through and through, but he also knew that he and Harry sometimes put up a bit of a front. They had courage, but sometimes it wasn’t always easy. Especially when Harry had to go away. That took every ounce of courage Ron had. And more. But he wanted to be that giraffe.

Ron went upstairs to his and Harry’s room. He sat on the bed looking out of the window again. He didn’t want to be near the people downstairs, but he didn’t like being alone either. He called to Pig, who was twittering near the window.

Ron swiped at him, saying, “Come here, you show off!” Pig had never grown too much bigger and still was a bit of a git, according to Ron. He scrawled out a quick note to Harry and tied it to Pig’s leg. He knew he shouldn’t be doing it, but he couldn’t help it. He had to know how Harry was and what was happening. He sent Pig on his way.

He sat again on the bed, finally flopping down on his back. He felt his eyes get droopy and he dropped off almost in the same instant.

*****

Ron awoke with a jolt. “Harry?” The sun was hot and beating into the room. He jumped out of bed. How long had he been asleep? He got up and rubbed his eyes. He went to the window and looked out once again. He knew it would take Pig more than one day to get there and come back.

He decided to go out for awhile and actually do the job he had been sent to do. It would not look good if all he did was mope around his room.

He walked downstairs, passing the second story dining room, and went outside. He saw two men standing in front, chatting. He stood next to them, not saying anything until one gestured to Ron, saying, “Where are you from?” The man had a definite American accent, though Ron couldn’t tell from what area.

“London. You?”

“California.”

Ron nodded his head. “My name’s Ron. Yours?”

The American man said, “Al. I’m here with my girlfriend Lucy.”

Ron looked at the other man and started to asked the same questions, but the other man said quickly, “I must be going.”

Al said, “Sure. See you later.”

Ron gestured towards the man walking away. “Where is he going?”

“Don’t know. I think he’s from around here. He was a bit quiet about it.”

“Do you know his name?” Ron asked.

“Mustifa something.”

Ron looked at him. Al had been standing around talking to the other man, yet he barely knew anything about him.

“Luce and I are going to take some pictures of some of the giraffes. John is going to get a Jeep for us to drive. Wanna tag along?”

Ron’s head lifted and he smiled, “Yes! I’d like that!”

They walked inside the hotel. Al said, “Aren’t you here with another fellow? Does he want to come?”

Ron shook his head. “He had to go to Nairobi on business for a few days.”

“Oh, that’s too bad! And on vacation, too! Well, no need to be by yourself. Meet us down here in an hour. I’m gonna go find Luce, okay?”

“Okay.”

Al darted off, leaving Ron to wonder how that had just happened. How he now had plans for the afternoon. He also wondered about Mustifa.

*****

Ron met Al and Lucy in the lobby, and they all set off in the Jeep to take pictures of the countryside and the animals. Al and Lucy sat in the backseat, and Ron sat in the front seat with the driver. The driver, whose name was Kibe, pointed out the scenery. Ron didn’t bring a camera, but was starting to enjoy himself in spite of missing Harry terribly.

Al attempted to ask Ron about what he did for a living, but Ron tried to remain vague. He changed the subject many times, as Al asked more questions that Ron had no desire to answer. Ron began to wonder about Al and why he was so insistent on knowing all about him.

They completed the trip, spending two hours driving around the preserve. Kibe stopped the car in front of the hotel and the three passengers filed out. Ron shook Kibe’s hand and thanked him for driving. Then he turned to Al and Lucy and thanked them for the invitation.

“Would you like to join us for dinner?” asked Al.

Ron hesitated. “Well, perhaps I will see you if I decide to come down.”

Al frowned. “Well, okay.”

Ron walked into the lobby and headed upstairs in his room. He wondered about Al.

*****

Pig finally returned two days later. Ron grabbed the little owl and pulled the note from around his leg. He tossed a treat to Pig, who grabbed it and twitted away.

Ron open the note and was glad to recognized Harry’s writing.

Ron sat down on the bed and held the note.

Damnit, Harry!

Trying to do it all himself. Ron flopped back onto the bed. He missed Harry terribly, but knew he shouldn’t waste his time moping for Harry. He sighed loudly and pushed himself up off the bed.

Ron left the room and decided to go for a walk in the back of the hotel. He saw the giraffes walking along near the sparse trees. He decided at that moment to attempt to become a giraffe. To help Harry. He was suspicious of a great many people who could be the Death Eaters in disguise, and he knew that he could kill them easier as a giraffe. Yes, a spell would kill them, but it would have to be well-aimed and one never knew what a Death Eater had up their sleeve. They would not suspect an animal, and as a giraffe, Ron knew he would be able to handle them without magic, by using the element of surprise.

He sat down on a large boulder and wondered if he was going mental. This plan was not something he knew Harry or the Order would approve of. He got up and looked out over the savannah. He saw a giraffe out in the distance. He wanted to change into a giraffe, just to see if it would work, just to see what it would be like.

Ron stood very still, wanting to help Harry with all his heart. His vision blurred and he felt himself wavering. He thought he was going to faint. He was so dizzy that he put his hand out to try to catch himself. He fell forward into the dirt. He opened his eyes and pushed himself up to his hands and knees. His head hurt a little. He thought he might have bumped his head when he fell. Ron reached a hand up and touched the top of his head. Instead of blood or a small bump, he felt something else. He realized it was a horn. He reached up with his other hand and touched the other side. He desperately rubbed his hands over his head and felt two horns and a tuft of hair in between them.

He looked down at the rest of his body and it seemed to be normal. He started to panic but knew he couldn’t go running into the hotel with giraffe horns on his head. He leaned against the boulder and tried to breathe deeply, calming himself. He tried to logically think that if he had wanted to be a giraffe so hard before, maybe he could want to go back to being normal.

Ron stood up and concentrated again on wanting to become human again. Not have those horns on the top of his head. Wanting to help Harry. Knowing he needed his wits about him if he were to do so. He closed his eyes, feeling himself waver, then quickly opened his eyes, as he toppled head first into the dirt. He groaned as he pressed his hand against his forehead. He pushed himself up and felt the top of his head. He had his head of hair back, minus horns.

He sighed and walked back into the hotel, hoping no one had seen him. He knew he would try this again.

*****

He walked into his room, and startled a woman who was going through the top drawer of the dresser.

“Who are you?” Ron asked angrily.

She jumped back from the dresser. “I…I…I’m the maid, sir.”

“Why are you going through my things?” Ron walked quickly towards her.

“No, I wasn’t!”

“Yes, you were! Get out!” Ron rushed towards her, even though he knew there were only socks and boxers in the first drawer. He grabbed her wrist and pulled her away from the dresser. He continued pulling her towards the door.

“I haven’t finished cleaning the room, sir!”

“No matter. Get out.” Ron pushed her through the open door and tossed her broom and supplies after her. He slammed the door and leaned up against it, breathing hard. He wiped his forehead with the back of his hand.

Again, Ron felt like he was going mad. He missed Harry and he was sure everyone in the hotel was a Death Eater. If Harry had been there, he would have calmed Ron and they would have looked at all the facts before doing anything rash.

Yeah…don’t do anything rash. Like turning yourself into a giraffe, you burk.

*****

The next morning, Ron went further out into the preserve. He was slightly afraid of the other animals that may be near, but he concentrated on what he wanted to do. He knew he wanted to help Harry. He wanted to become a giraffe. To become strong and tall and kill those Death Eaters. Anything for Harry’s sake. Anything.

He felt himself start to fall over again and tried to catch himself. He fell forward again in the dirt. He shook his head, trying to get rid of the dizziness. His eyes refocused on the dirt in front of him. He pushed himself up and sat down in the dirt. He touched his head and didn’t feel anything but his own hair. He felt uncomfortable sitting and readjusted himself, but it didn’t help. Ron felt as though something were wrong with him, but looking down, he saw nothing out of the ordinary. He got up and realized his jeans had split in the back. He reached around to his bum and felt a tuft of hair coming out his pants. He turned quickly, trying to see his bum, but this was impossible. He felt the tuft of hair and realized in horror that it was a tail. A giraffe tail!

He put his head into his hands, wondering why he couldn’t complete the transformation. He knew once again that he couldn’t go back into the hotel with a tail out of his arse. He stood again, looking towards the savannah, and saw a giraffe in the distance. He calmed himself and breathed deeply. He wanted to help Harry, but right now he needed be a human. Before he became dizzy again, he decided to get down on his knees. He didn’t want to fall over. He breathed deeply again and thought of Harry and how much he needed to be a human to help him. He got dizzy and leaned over on his left hand to keep himself from toppling. He lost his balance and his arm didn’t support him. He fell over onto his side. He decided to lay there for a moment.

*****

“Ron! Ron!”

Ron heard his name being called, but couldn’t respond. He opened his eyes and realized he was still lying in the dirt. He felt someone shaking his shoulder. He finally open his mouth. “What?”

“Are you alright?” asked John, concerned.

Ron couldn’t lift his head. “Yeah.”

John shook his head. “Why did you come out here? Were you hurt? What happened?”

All John’s questions made Ron’s head hurt. He told the truth before he even realized what he was saying.

“I want to be an Animagus. I have been trying to turn into a giraffe.” Ron still didn’t lift his head.

“What?” John stood up and looked down at Ron. “Ron, this isn’t right.”

“Why? You gave me the idea.”

John sighed. “I meant that it was a possibility for some, not that you should actively seek it.”

“How else would I do it then?”

John didn’t say anything.

“I want to help Harry.”

“This isn’t the way to do it, Ron!” John crouched down again and touched Ron’s shoulder.

“Yes, it is. It’s a way to help him. And it helps me,” whispered Ron.

“What do you mean?”

Now it was Ron’s turn to not say anything. He didn’t feel like sharing his self-esteem problems with John. Only Harry understood, and Ron wanted to keep it that way. Only Harry made him feel better.

John sighed and helped Ron to sit up. Ron rested for a moment, and realized he didn’t feel anything on his bum. He knew the tail was gone.

He looked up at John and pleaded, “Don’t tell anyone. Don’t tell Harry. At least for now?”

John sighed again, but silently agreed.

*****

Ron went out the next morning to attempt it again without John’s knowledge. He needed it to work this time. He felt like he needed to get it right. He walked out towards to horizon, walking farther out than he had before. The animals were closer, but he decided not to be afraid.

Ron found a boulder and stood against it, looking off into the distance. Then he turned to see if he were far enough from the hotel. He turned back to the horizon and lowered himself to the ground, resting on his knees. He rubbed his eyes with his palms. Then clasped his hands together and looked out towards a group of giraffes in the distance.

Ron felt his heart become full with his love for Harry. He could hardly breathe with how much he wanted to help him. He needed to help him. He loved Harry so much. He wanted to be a giraffe.

Ron heard himself cry out, as his vision blurred and he couldn’t stay upright. He fell forward, but this time his arms went out in front of him and he caught himself. He was on his hands and knees. He felt strong and powerful, more than he ever had in his life. He felt tall and proud, as he realized the ground was a long way down.

His vision cleared and he looked again towards the giraffes in the distance. He turned and looked back towards the hotel. He was uncertain which direction he should go. He gingerly moved his legs, but they felt slightly shaky. He looked down at his legs and realized…

He was a giraffe.

He smiled to himself and walked towards the hotel. As he got closer, he realized John was watching him. He had probably seen the whole thing. Ron stopped. John shook his head, then turned suddenly and walked into the hotel.