I'm not a kitten... Okay, I'm Kitten

Chapter 7

It took them about half an hour to get to the area Hagrid had mentioned. Boy felt bad. The man probably could have gotten there in ten minutes, but kept to Boy's pace. He'd apologized a few times, but Hagrid had assured him that it was fine.

"There ain't no rush."

Boy thanked him, the guilt easing some. Hearing a loud bark, he paused.

Now he understood why Hagrid started calling the dog 'Bear'.

Bear was barking at a large tentacle that seemed to be taunting him.

It was playing, he realized, with the Giant Squid.

The tentacle was bobbing around Bear, but not touching him. Bear looked ready to pounce, his tail wagging. He let out a happy bark as he leapt onto the tentacle. The tentacle was wiggling until Bear slipped off.

Apparently, that was the whole game, Boy thought. From there, they just started all over again.

"Bear!" Hagrid called.

Bear stopped, head cocking to the side. Upon seeing Hagrid, he gave the tentacle a lick and ran over.

Licking Hagrid's face all over, his tail continued to wag.

"Alrigh', Bear. Ge' down." Hagrid started wiping the slobber off his face.

Doing as told, Bear put all four paws on the ground. He looked at Boy and gave a few sniffs. Bear approached Boy slowly, still sniffing. He let out a whine, nosing at Boy's injured leg.

"Hi, Bear," Boy said, patting the dog. "You're about the fluffiest doggy I've ever seen."

When Bear stood straight up, they were the same height. He let out another whine, and snuffled at his leg again.

"He can tell yer hurt." Hagrid said. "Told yeh he was a smart one."

Boy was impressed by the dog. "Alright, smart doggy. Would you like to stay with me?"

Bear's head tilted. Sniffing and snuffling, he walked around Boy, as if appraising his worth. When he stopped, he used his muzzle to shift Boy's sleeve out of the way.

And he bit down.

Terrified, Boy tried to pull away, but Bear wasn't letting go. He could feel the teeth digging into his skin without breaking it open and the tongue laving at his arm. "Hagrid! Do something!"

"Ain't nothin' ter be done." Hagrid said, sounding awed. "I din't think he had magic. Full o' surprises, eh, Bear?"

Boy didn't want to hit the dog, but it wasn't letting go. When he finally decided that he couldn't do it, Bear let his arm slip out of his massive jaw. There were indents from his teeth, but he hadn't drawn blood. Bear licked the 'wound' all over and the indents filled out, leaving a red mark. It almost looked like it had been tattooed into his skin. He gasped. "Did he do what I think he did?"

"Looks like yeh got yerself a pet, Little Mite." Hagrid said happily. "He's given yeh the familiar mark!"

Boy beamed. "So, doggy. You're my familiar, now?"

Bear woofed, wagging his tail a mile a minute. He lowered himself to the ground and gently tugged on Boy's cloak.

He didn't have to lean down to pat Bear's head, but Bear wanted something else. "Do you know what he's after?"

"Can' says I do,'' Hagrid replied curiously, scratching his beard. "I was on'y jokin' about ridin' him like a pony, but tha' migh' be it."

"You can't be serious."

"Dunno," he said honestly. "Won' know till yeh try, I s'pose."

Boy felt stupid even considering it. He looked at Bear. "Are you trying to carry me?"