Leaving the Lonely Mountain, Luke and his two companions arrived in Lake-Town to temporarily reside.
Smaug the Dragon was too enormous, so Luke let him hunt for prey in the Great Wilderness near the Lonely Mountain and await his summons at any time.
Many of Lake-Town's buildings had been destroyed by Smaug's dragon flame back then, and even if Luke wished to restore them, he couldn't.
The three of them went directly to the house they had stayed in before.
The fireplace there was still connected to Rivendell and had not been severed by Luke.
Gandalf was a busy man; after only a brief rest, he prepared to find Bard.
He intended to have Bard lead the residents of Lake-town to migrate to Lake-Town.
Lake-Town was easy to defend and difficult to attack, and it was backed by the Lonely Mountain; if the Orcs made any move, they could quickly unite with the Dwarves of the Lonely Mountain, forming a force capable of resisting the Orcs.
This would prevent them from being defeated one by one by the Orcs.
However, Lake-town was surrounded by an endless expanse with no barriers whatsoever; once a large Orc army attacked, it would be impossible to stop their destructive advance.
Therefore, for the safety of Lake-town's residents, Gandalf had to quickly move them to Lake-Town before the Orc army arrived.
If possible, Gandalf also wanted to persuade Thranduil, the Elven King, to join the alliance against the Orcs.
After Smaug the Dragon was subdued, Luke and Gandalf had inquired about his cooperation with the Orcs.
Smaug naturally dared not conceal anything.
According to him, the Orcs had contacted him before Azog was alive, attempting to persuade him to cooperate with them.
However, Smaug was only devoted to guarding his treasure and had no interest in ruling or conquering Middle-earth.
Thus, he refused Azog's cooperation.
It wasn't until recently that Bolg, Azog's son, proactively contacted him, informing him of Thorin Oakenshield's intention to reclaim the Lonely Mountain.
Using this as a pretext, he reached an agreement with Smaug.
Smaug allowed Bolg's Orc army to enter the Lonely Mountain territory and march north to reclaim the Kingdom of Angmar.
In return, the Orcs recognized Smaug the Dragon's sovereignty over the Lonely Mountain and promised to give Smaug half of the treasures obtained from their conquests and plundering.
Now that the dragon had been subdued, as the news spread, Bolg would surely be restless and might launch a major offensive against the Lonely Mountain to seize this important strategic stronghold in the North.
While Gandalf was busy preparing for the impending war with worry, Luke was also facing an important matter.
One morning at sunrise, Luke, as usual, pointed his wand tip towards his heart and chanted: "Amato, Animo, Animato, Animagus."
As the incantation finished, it felt as if he had a second heart within his chest; the faint thumping sound followed his original heartbeat, rising and falling like a duet, which he found novel.
Luke was delighted to discover this, as it was a premonition of successful Animagus Transfiguration.
He then pulled out his Palantír to check the weather conditions at the High Pass of the Misty Mountains.
Upon seeing the High Pass shrouded in dark clouds and thunderstorms, Luke immediately set off.
Leaving Bilbo in Lake-Town, he teleported to Rivendell via the fireplace, then rode his flying broom without delay towards the Misty Mountains.
At the High Pass, heavy rain poured and lightning flashed.
Luke, riding his flying broom, dared not fly too high, fearing being struck by the lightning in the sky.
He continued until he reached the spot where he had buried the small crystal vial, and dug it out.
The mixture in the crystal vial had now turned into a blood-red liquid.
Seeing the Potion in the bottle, Luke's eyes lit up, and he immediately departed, swiftly returning towards Rivendell.
Now, only one final step remained before the Animagus Transfiguration.
After returning to Rivendell, Luke did not immediately return to Lake-Town through the fireplace but temporarily stayed in Rivendell.
Performing the Transfiguration required a spacious and safe place to ensure the process would not be disturbed or put him in danger.
"Luke, was your journey smooth?" Elrond, who had returned to Rivendell from Lórien, asked with a smile.
Luke nodded and pleaded for Elrond's help: "Lord Elrond, could you help me find an undisturbed Chamber of Secrets? I want to ensure that no accidents occur during the Transfiguration."
Elrond naturally would not refuse, and he was also very curious about Luke's Animagus Transfiguration.
To date, only the Skin-changers were capable of transforming into animals.
Now, with Luke, a Wizard who had mastered human Transfiguration magic, he also wanted to see what animal Luke would transform into.
Elrond led Luke to a spacious hall.
There were no tables here, only two fireplaces on either side between the pillars, burning with blazing fires.
There was no firewood in the fireplaces, but they burned year-round, providing warmth and light to the hall.
On the marble floor, mysterious Elven runes were carved.
As soon as Luke entered, he felt his spirit invigorated and his mind became clear.
"This is the Hall of Flames. Whenever I seek tranquility, contemplation, and meditation, I spend some time here," Elrond introduced.
"You can perform your Transfiguration here; no one will disturb you."
Luke hadn't expected Rivendell to have such a wonderful place; he felt that practicing magic here would be several times more efficient than usual.
Suddenly, he felt even more confident about his Animagus Transfiguration.
After sincerely thanking Elrond, Luke began to focus all his attention on the Transfiguration.
He once again placed his wand against his heart and chanted for the last time: "Amato, Animo, Animato, Animagus."
Then he opened the crystal vial and drank the red liquid in one gulp.
The next second, two intense heartbeats emanated from his chest; the loud thumping could even be heard in the empty hall.
Immediately following was an intense pain, as if his entire body was being reshaped, no easier than the Crucio.
At the same time, the image of an animal gradually emerged in Luke's mind, becoming clearer and clearer.
Luke's will was firm, and he tried not to resist the transformation.
His body began to shrink rapidly; his clothes, jewelry, and other items melted into his skin, transforming into fur.
Finally, only a massive owl remained in the hall.
To be precise, it was an eagle owl.
It had a round head topped with characteristic ear tufts, its feathers were a mix of yellow and black, its eyes were large and golden, radiating a sharp, cold glint, its beak was hooked, and its strong talons concealed sharp blades.
Eagle owls are among the largest of owls, and the eagle owl Luke transformed into was even larger than a common eagle owl.
It stood a full meter tall, with a wingspan of over three meters.
During his initial Transfiguration, Luke felt somewhat bewildered and helpless.
He lowered his head and saw his reflection through the polished floor.
"So, my Animagus is consistent with my Patronus; it's an owl?"
Luke was both surprised and unsurprised by this.
Although it wasn't the handsome raptor like an eagle that he most desired, an owl was still acceptable.
Owls not only possess excellent flying abilities but also have night vision and hearing, allowing them to move freely at night, making them very suitable for stealth.
However, transforming into an owl did not mean he could fly immediately.
Luke flapped his wings, attempting to fly repeatedly within the hall, stumbling and falling countless times, scattering feathers everywhere.
Finally, after numerous attempts, he successfully took flight.
Although he had experienced flying on a broom, flying by himself was a completely different experience.
Immersed in flight, Luke felt the hall was not spacious enough, so he swiftly drifted out of the window and continuously circled and soared above Rivendell, taking in the entire scenery of Rivendell.
Below, on the observation deck, Elrond looked up at the sky and smiled.
Once he had flown enough, Luke flew directly towards Elrond and, as soon as he landed, transformed back into his human form.
"Thank you for your help, Lord Elrond, otherwise I wouldn't have been able to successfully Transfigure so quickly."
Luke expressed his gratitude.
Elrond shook his head.
"This is your own effort; I merely provided you with a space for practice."
He then asked, "By the way, how was your mission this time?"
Luke concisely recounted everything that had happened on the Lonely Mountain.
Upon hearing that Luke had subdued Smaug the Dragon, even the well-traveled Elrond couldn't help but be greatly astonished.
Since dragons were created by Morgoth, no one except Morgoth had ever been able to subdue a dragon.
Not even the Dark Lord Sauron was an exception.
He hadn't expected such a change to occur with Luke now.
At first, Elrond was concerned whether this was a trick by Smaug the Dragon, but upon learning the nature of the unbreakable Vow and that the contract was completed under Gandalf's witness, Elrond finally felt relieved.
He trusted Gandalf's wisdom and knew he wouldn't act aimlessly.
Therefore, after Luke requested healing for the dragon's injuries, Elrond readily agreed.
Afterward, Luke did not linger in Rivendell and returned to Lake-Town once again.
However, this time he chose not to return via the fireplace but directly transformed into an owl, preparing to cross the Misty Mountains to thoroughly familiarize himself with his Animagus.
Although he had successfully mastered Animagus Transfiguration, it was still only at a beginner level, and he could not perform it without his wand.
If he were a Transfiguration master like Professor McGonagall, he could perform Animagus without a wand, and even incorporate the wand into his body, making it a part of himself.
Therefore, even after successfully mastering Animagus, Luke needed to practice continuously until it became second nature.
The Misty Mountains towered into the clouds.
Luke flew along, seeing traces of Trolls, Orcs, and Wargs in the mountains, but he did not stop, flying eastward until he crossed the mountains and reached the eastern side of the Misty Mountains.
Here, he encountered the Great Eagles.
The Great Eagles also spotted him and swiftly charged towards him.
Luke was startled, wondering if they mistook him for prey.
He was about to transform back into human form when a voice reached his ears.
"What are you? Although you look like an owl, you don't smell like an owl; instead, you have a human scent?"
A Great Eagle circled around Luke, curiously examining him and asking the question.