H. J. Potter

Chapter 6

Part 1

Halloween morning came far too early for both girls the next morning. Hari was the first one up, nearly an hour later than she normally woke up and had to start rushing around to get ready for the day. She found it completely unfair that Fleur didn't have classes that day, so would only be going down to breakfast before she could come back up and return to bed for a few more hours sleep. So frazzled by the fact she had woken up later than she normally did, Hari completely forgot her happi coat when she jumped out of bed. It wasn't until she ran out of the bathroom, hair still damp and unbraided as it flowed down her back, that she realized she was standing naked in front of the French witch.

"Good, you do not 'ave ze English modesty," was all Fleur said, throwing off her covers to reveal her own state of undress. "I 'ate ze robes in my room unless I 'ave guests. Zis makes eet much simpler."

With that said and evidently not a care in the world that she was now walking around the room naked, Fleur started getting ready for the morning. Hari could only watch as the beautiful French witch strutted proudly past her and into the bathroom, wondering how on Earth her life had gotten to this point.

"Oh yeah, my mother was a bitch," she muttered to herself, then figuring it was a lost cause to cover up, she started getting ready for the day.

It was a rather new experience to get ready for the day with someone else in the room and not be at least wearing her happi. Luna rarely if ever stayed in the room when Hari was getting ready, save for the first day she had spent the night, but even then Hari had been partially dressed. Padma was the same and except for that first day, always wore a robe or one of Hari's happi coats in the morning. Yes, when Hari had taught them the hair removal spells they had been naked, but Hari had remained partially dressed, which seemed to be the standard pattern, someone was always at least partially dressed. They were never all undressed at the same time. Now Hari had Fleur who seemed to have no qualms about being naked in front of her, or with Hari being naked at the same time.

"Do you know why I sat next to you last night?" Fleur asked as Hari was picking out an outfit for the day, having just cast the braiding spells on her hair and the support spell on her chest.

Hari shook her head, pulling out a light blue silk halter top and one of her now infamous flared micro-mini skirts. "No, I did wonder though."

"Très audacieux!" Fleur said from behind Hari who was only minutely aware that Fleur was watching her get dressed as she slipped on her top, fastening it around her waist and neck, then stepping into her skirt and casting her usual obscuring charm. "I sat next to you because I remembered seeing a young woman in Paris wiz 'air ze same color as yours. Eet was in ze boutique I like. I zought I would introduce myself to 'er, but ze time was not in my favor."

Not turning around, afraid Fleur would see her blushing, Hari said, "I recognized you from that day as well, but didn't think you recognized me."

"'Ow could I not?" Fleur asked, now standing from where she had been sitting on her bed and walking over to stand behind Hari, looking over her shoulder so she could see their reflection in the mirror of Hari's wardrobe. "You are a very beautiful woman and wiz 'air ze color of your's, you stand out in any crowd."

Hari was blushing even harder now, partly from the compliment and partly because Fleur was standing so close to her that the girls naked breasts kept brushing against the bare skin of her back. "Thank you for he compliment, Fleur."

"You are most welcome," Fleur said reaching past her, for a moment pressing her chest directly against Hari's back, to grab a powder blue ribbon. "Zat is why I sat next to you, because I 'ad wanted to talk to you zat day.

In the mirror Hari watched as Fleur pulled away before turning to walk back to her bed. Hari's eyes were drawn to Fleur's gently swaying backside, which was in her opinion the most perfect backside in creation. Fleur used the ribbon to tie her hair back in a loose ponytail, then walked over to where she had laid her uniform the previous night. Try as she might, Hari could not pull her eyes away from he sight of the French witch getting dressed, not bothering with bra or knickers. Once she was done dressing, Fleur slipped into the pointed dress shoes she had worn the night before and reached for her wand. Casting the same resizing charms Hari used all the time, Fleur's uniform soon fit the young woman like a glove, before turning to Hari and casting the same spell. Suddenly aware that her nipples were trying their best to poke straight through her now skintight halter top, Hari noticed that Fleur was in the same boat.

"I think we need to use warming charms today," Hari said as she grabbed her wand and book bag, slipping into a pair of black pumps as she did.

"Non, I zink it's just right," replied the young French witch with a playful smirk.

All Hari could think at that point was, "Either I'm the luckiest girl in the world, or this is going to hurt before it's over."

Grabbing her robes and slipping into them, Hari led a still grinning Fleur from the room. Once they exited Ravenclaw Tower, Fleur once again linked arms with Hari the two set off for the Great Hall. Hari was slightly confused by how flirty the French blonde was, but then had to wonder if it was even flirting at all. For all Hari knew Fleur could just be a very touchy feely type of person and there was nothing more to it than that. On the other hand Luna had that kind of personality, but Luna never pressed her breasts to Hari's back. Honestly, Hari was fourteen and still coming in to her own in life, so the situation while rather exciting for her was also very confusing at the same time.

Reaching the Great Hall Fleur said she needed to take care of something rather quickly, but asked Hari to save her a seat. That said, Hari headed inside as Fleur walked towards where the Goblet of Fire was displayed. It was a given Fleur was going to enter the Tournament, though Hari hoped she didn't get chosen as the Beauxbatons Champion due to the rather bloody history of the competition. Those thoughts still in mind, Hari sat down across from Padma and Luna, getting a rather curious set of smiles from her two friends.

"So, Hari, how was your first night with Fleur?" Padma asked with a mischievous smile.

"Oh, I heard Hari rode her flaming dragon to the rescue of a damsel in distress, with a beautiful Princess following behind her," Luna chimed in, winking at Hari.

"God, who told you that?" Hari asked as she poured herself a steaming mug of coffee.

Luna jerked her head in the direction of Slytherin's table, where Aggie was sitting between Daphne and Tracey waving. "It seems Aggie was not as asleep as you all thought and heard you telling Snape to deal with the problem, or you would. By the way, if you look closely at Montague you will notice he is sporting two black eyes and walking with a distinct limp this morning."

Hari smirked in the direction of the clearly injured boy. "Couldn't happen to a nicer chap."

Padma nodded in agreement, she had never liked the rather rude and bigoted boy. "Daphne wanted me to pass you a message. She said to tell you, 'Slytherin House deals with its problems. This one has been dealt with.' So, care to tell us what happened?"

Shaking her head, Hari answered, "I can't tell you, not that I don't want to, but I swore an oath not to. It was the only way I could get Aggie to tell me what was wrong with her."

"So, Aggie needed you last night to come save her and Montague is looking like a troll took a liking to him this morning," Luna said glancing over her shoulder at the bruised and battered boy. "I think we can figure out what happened, but were you the one to put him in that condition?"

"No, I wasn't," replied Hari with a frown. "Not that I didn't want to be."

Both girls nodded, knowing how protective Hari was of the younger years, but it was Padma that asked the question she and Luna really wanted the answer to. "So, your heroics aside, did you enjoy Fleur last night? I mean enjoy her company, not her per se."

Hari blushed slightly at the images the question brought to mind, but pushed them aside to answer. "Fleur is a wonderful person and had fun talking and getting to know each other," she paused, leaning forward before continuing. "You remember I told you there was a girl I had noticed in a clothing store this last summer? Well that girl was Fleur and she told me this morning she noticed me that day as well. That's why she sat next to me last night, she wanted to get to know me."

"I told you on the train you just needed to be patient," Luna said with a mysterious smile. "Paths that were once blocked are now open. Don't be afraid to explore them when the time comes."

Padma and Hari were staring at the younger blonde, used to her sudden statements along these lines. Luna would admit to anyone that asked that she had minor talents when it came to seeing the future, but would also be the first to tell you that she couldn't tell you which would come true and which wouldn't. It was only to Hari and Padma that Luna admitted more often than not her visions came true. With that in mind, Hari looked up as the doors to the Hall opened and Fleur strode into the room, looking at first as if she was going to walk over to talk to some of her fellow Beauxbatons students. Then Fleur saw Hari and with a brilliant smile the French witch changed direction and headed direct towards them.

"New paths," whispered Hari with a slight smile as Fleur approached.

"All obstacles will be wiped away," Luna said with a smile aimed at Hari. "Just have a little faith, Hari."

"Bonjour! Faith in what?" asked a beaming Fleur as she sat down next to Hari, sitting so close that their hips were touching.

"Faith that love overcomes all obstacles," Luna replied with a very direct look into Fleur's eyes. "Don't you agree, Fleur?"

Shooting a shy glance in Hari's direction and blushing slightly, Fleur nodded. "Oui, love can overcome any obstacle."

Part 2

The rest of the day for Hari was spent in a daze as she tried to get her mind off the quick peck on the cheek Fleur had given her before they split up after breakfast. Hari had not seen Fleur at lunch, but then again she hadn't seen any of the Beauxbatons students. She figured a room had been arranged for their lessons to be held in and classes had resumed earlier than expected. It was only when she returned to her room to drop her book bag off after her last class that found a note on her pillow telling her that guess was right. Fleur also told her she would see her at dinner that night, then evidently she had kissed the note leaving an impression of her lips rather than signing it. Hari swore to her self she was never getting rid of that note.

After freshening up Hari made her way down to the Great Hall, meeting up with Padma and Luna along the way. Luna was looking extremely pleased with herself and had no qualms about telling Hari how cute she and Fleur looked together. The blush on Hari's face had Padma giggling, though she admitted that she thought Luna was right. Only their entrance into the Great Hall ended the teasing, mostly because they had so many eyes on them when they entered as usually happened when the three attractive witches entered a room. Daphne Greengrass, a very attractive young woman in her own right, compared it to wolves catching sight of the plumpest looking sheep in the herd, especially the drooling portion.

Seeing Fleur waving at them from the Ravenclaw table, the three girls quickly joined her. Once again Padma and Luna sat across from them while Hari sat next to the French witch. No sooner had she sat down had Fleur scooted over closer to her, not so close as to be obvious about it, but close enough that their hips and thighs were touching. Hari found she rather liked the closeness and without even thinking about it she laid her hand down on Fleur's, who instantly turned her hand over and intertwined their fingers with a slight blush.

"So, Fleur, you think you'll be picked as the Champion for Beauxbatons?" Padma asked once they were settled.

Fleur smiled, but looked nervous. "I would be 'onored to be ze Champion for my school, but zere are many ozers zat are qualified."

Fleur's comment was evidently overheard by one of her classmates who snorted and tried to hide a sneer which Hari caught. "Some of your fellow hopefuls are not so keen on that idea?"

"Non, zey are not," Fleur admitted, looking down at the empty plate in front of her. "Some feel I am unworzy of competing because of my 'eritage."

Padma scowled down at the rude girl, causing the girl to quickly look away. "I get that a lot because my family is from India," Padma admitted with a frown as she turned back to look at Fleur. "Ignore them. Trust me, there is no shortage of stupidity in the world, no matter where you go, but the best way to rub it in their faces is to show you don't care for their bigoted opinions. My father has a saying, 'bigots are like sheep, both are easily led and both are full of shit.'"

Soon the meal was underway and the four young women were happily trading funny stories about their experiences at school. It was a fun time for all and only stopped when Dumbledore called for everyone's attention as the Goblet of Fire was carried back into the room by Argus Filtch. Under the table where no one could see, Fleur grabbed hold of Hari's hand and held it tightly. Not knowing why she did it, Hari used her thumb to brush the back of Fleur's fingers which got a warm smile from her. They sat like that as Dumbledore prattled on about the Tri-Wizard Tournament for several minutes, until the Goblet was ready to pick the Champions.

Suddenly a smoldering piece of parchment shot out of the Goblet and was snatched from the air by Dumbledore. "The Champion for Durmstrang is Victor Krum!"

Hari watched as the famous Quidditch star stood and made his way towards a side room where the Champions were to gather. She was not overly impressed by the rather brutish looking boy with his dark hair and eyes. Admittedly he had a rough sort of appeal to him, but Hari thought he looked more like a thug than a Champion. His movements also seemed awkward as he walked towards the front of the Hall, the direct opposite from she had heard of his grace in the air.

A second piece of parchment suddenly shot out of the Goblet and was retrieved by Dumbledore. "The Champion for Beauxbatons is Fleur Delacour!"

Fleur tried to look calm when her name was called, but Hari was fairly certain the French witch had pulped her hand. Fleur stood slowly, reluctantly letting go of Hari's hand, before she gracefully made her way towards the waiting room. Meanwhile Hari could hear several of the Beauxbatons crying, but also a few that were muttering about it being unfair for "someone like her" to be chosen. Hari made sure to memorize the faces of those students, they would need watching to make sure they didn't try something against Fleur.

"The Champion for Hogwarts is Cederic Digory!" Dumbledore called out, drawing Hari's attention back to the proceedings.

All the students applauded as the handsome Hufflepuff stood and headed for where the other Champions where waiting. Meanwhile Dumbledore had started to explain what was going to happen next, but was stopped when the Goblet spit out another piece of parchment. Grabbing it from the air in an almost savage manner, the Headmaster glared at the piece of parchment for a moment before he stood up straighter and looked out at the students.

"Neville Longbottom!" Dumbledore barked, not looking happy at all.

"Oh no, not on your life!" shouted Neville, standing up and glaring back at the Headmaster. "I didn't enter my damned name and I'm not competing!"

Remembering the advice Sirius had given her regarding her previous adventures and the lack of belief people had shown her, Hari stood up and looked right at Neville. "Swear it, Nev! Give your oath and prove to them you didn't do it! Don't let them do to you what they did to Harry!"

There had been a great silence when Neville's name was called out, but quickly the students had started grumbling and shooting nasty looks in his direction. Soon the hall was filled with yelling students, most of them calling Neville a cheater or calling him an attention seeker. Only Hannah Abbott seemed truly worried and started screaming denials over and over again. Hari remembered those looks and comments being aimed at her before she was freed from Lily Potter's curse, so she would be damned if she let Neville suffer the same fate. The moment she shouted out everyone in the room had gone silent again, even Dumbledore was too shocked to speak, but not Neville.

Neville had looked at her confused for a moment, then suddenly smirked as if having figured something out before he drew his wand and held it up for all to see. "I, Neville Longbottom, swear on my magic and life that I did not enter the Tri-Wizard Tournament," he started, only for Harry to cut in.

"And that you didn't ask anyone to do it," Hari urged.

Neville looked at her with a smile and a nod before he continued, "Nor did I ask anyone to do it for me. Let my magic judge the truthfulness of my words! So I say, so mote it be!"

There was a bright flash of light after which Neville was still standing and obviously still alive. "There, I proved I didn't enter, so I'm not competing!"

"I still need you to join the other Champions, Mister Longbottom," Dumbledore instructed, looking a little less angry, but still greatly upset. "We must discuss the legalities of your name coming out of the Goblet. However, there is no doubt that this was not something or your doing and no one here should suggest otherwise."

Still grumbling, Neville finally made his way towards the side room where the Champions were waiting. Dumbledore however was distracted by the fact the Goblet of Fire had not gone out yet. Suddenly another piece of parchment shot out of the Goblet, but this one was actually burning rather than smoldering like the others had been. By the time Dumbledore managed to grab it, the parchment was nothing more than glowing embers floating in the air. This was not the end of it however as suddenly the Goblet started spitting out one piece of burning parchment after another, looking like a veritable fountain of fire. Dumbledore had to take a step back until the fiery display stopped and finally the Goblet was extinguished, finally stepping forward and waving his wand over the pile of ash that now covered the area. As the student watched Dumbledore managed to restore several of the scraps of paper, picking several up and glancing at them one at a time.

"Evidently, someone or several someones thought it would be funny to try fooling the Goblet into calling a particular name," growled the Headmaster, looking up with rage filled eyes at the student body. Holding up one of the scraps of parchment after another before letting them fall, he whispered the name written on them, "Harry Potter."

"I KNEW HE WASN'T DEAD!" shrieked Hermione, standing up and looking as if she had just been vindicated in her belief.

"No, Miss Granger, that is not what this means," Dumbledore growled, glaring at the witch. "The fact is the Goblet of Fire rejected all the various attempts to fool it into choosing someone who no longer exists! Were you one of the ones to do this, Miss Granger?"

Looking shocked by Dumbledore yelling at her, before nodding her head. "I tied Harry's signature to a rock and then levitated it over the Goblet," she explained, tears starting to pour down her face. "It was the only way I could prove Harry was really alive."

"Harry Potter is gone!" roared the Headmaster. "To my eternal shame, I failed that boy horribly and he paid the price for my failures. Now you, one of his closest friends can't even let the poor boy's memory rest in peace. I'm ashamed of you," Dumbledore finally said, turning from the now sobbing Hermione and turning towards Hari. "Miss Black, my apologies to the House of Potter," he started to say, but Hari cut him off.

"Sir, there is no need for apologies," Hari said, standing up and smiling sadly to Ron who was trying to comfort Hermione. "Hermione misses her friend. I can't fault her for wanting him back."

With a grateful nod from the Headmaster, Hari listened to him say a few more words to the room as she watched Ron leading a distraught Hermione from the Hall. Hari hated to see her so torn up, but telling Hermione was a double edged sword. She would insist on telling Ron, that was a given, but then she would want to tell Dumbledore and the list of people she would think needed to be told would grow exponentially from there. Sirius and Hari had discussed this to the point they were both sick of the topic, but the truth was that if Hari wanted to keep her life private she had to keep her secrets just that, secret. It was a harsh truth, but the fewer people that knew, the safer Hari was.

"Some things change, Hari," Luna whispered as the pair made their way out of the Hall. "She feels guilty for what she believes was her part in what happened and it is bringing out some of her less than attractive quirks. Eventually, she will either accept the truth, or she will pay the price for her stubbornness."

"But can I ever tell her the truth?" Hari asked as they made their way through the castle.

"No one ever really knows what the future holds," Luna replied, giving a sad smile to her friend. "Just have faith."

Part 2

The rest of the week was chaotic to say the least, but in many ways it was the best week of Hari's life so far. For one thing, since she had been called out to tend to Aggie there had been no further late night wakeup calls to care for scared children. Hari actually found she missed tucking the children in when needed, but she loved being able to get a full night's sleep. Another reason it was such a good week was her blossoming friendship with Fleur. At first things had been a little rocky between Fleur and Hari's other friends, but that Friday night while all the girls were gathered for yet another party the whole group had accepted the French witch with open arms. Of course Fleur's comment to Hari about how cute Ginny was had momentarily hurt, but that only lasted until the French witch explained her reasoning.

"I've always 'ad a thing for red 'air," Fleur told her after the other girls left, innocently playing with a loose strand of Hari's hair as she said it.

The final reason she found it such a good week was a surprise visit by Sirius early Saturday morning. She woke up to the sound of someone knocking on the door to her room and a casual wave to turn the door transparent revealed Professor Flitwick standing outside. After donning her happi and pulling the covers up over Fleur, the girl had a tendency to kick most of them off during the night, she went to see what her Head of House wanted. Flitwick quickly explained that her father was in the castle waiting to speak with her, which instantly put a smile on her face. Thanking the professor for telling her, Hari quickly got dressed and left a note for Fleur to tell her where she had gone. Rushing out of Ravenclaw Tower and down to the entrance hall, she saw Sirius waiting for her with a smile on his face and arms held wide for a hug.

"Dad!" Hari called, leaping into his arms and hugging her adopted father tightly.

"Hello, Little Angel," Sirius whispered, hugging her tightly in return.

Pulling apart, Hari looked up at Sirius trying to figure out why he was there. "Not that I'm not glad to see you, but why are you here?"

"I'm here because I got a formal request from Neville Longbottom for a meeting with me and possibly training for this damned competition," he explained as he handed the note to Hari. "He also requested you be present and I figured since I was going to be here anyway, might as well show up early and spend some time with you."

"Brilliant!"

"So, tell me," he asked, offering an arm to Hari and leading her into the Great Hall, "how are you getting along with your new roommate?"

Hari had made a habit of writing to Sirius every other day since her return to Hogwarts and his replies had been very important to her. Of course she had shared with him all the details of her stay at school, Sirius was convinced Hari was trying to start a female version of the Marauders no matter how much she denied it. He was also very impressed with the level of care she took of the younger students, knowing Hari did it because of the lack of care she had received while trapped in the illusion of being a boy. So, it was no surprise she told him about Fleur.

Taking a seat at the far end of the Ravenclaw table, Sirius had out of habit headed for the Gryffindor table until Hari pulled him away, he cast several privacy spells around them to prevent anyone from hearing what they had to say. To her surprise, he also cast sever spells to detect listening charms, a spell to detect anything living other than themselves, and a final charm she didn't recognize. When he was sure they would not be overheard he smiled at her and motioned for her to speak.

"Fleur is great," she started to say, then blushed slightly before continuing. "I really like her, Sirius."

"Like as in you enjoy her company, or like as in you would like to ask her out?" Sirius asked, pouring the both cups of steaming coffee from a nearby carafe.

"The later," she answered, her cheeks now trying to match her hair color. "I don't really know if she's interested in me the same way, though she does seem to be very flirty. That could just be part of her personality though."

"Okay, setting aside the fact I think you are too young to date," Sirius said with a smirk, "maybe when you turn fifty I'll be okay with the idea, but let's see what we can figure out. Now you say Fleur is flirty, but is she flirty with everyone or just you?"

Hari thought about that for a moment, replaying the times that she saw Fleur with other people. "Well, I don't know about when she back at her school, but I get the impression from watching her with other Beauxbatons students that they tend to avoid her. I think that has something to do with her being a Veela, but again I'm unsure."

"And here at Hogwarts?"

"Well, she always sits next to me when we eat, so I've never seen how she acts sitting next to anyone else," Hari answerer, thinking hard on the topic. "When we walk together she tends to stay close to me as well, usually either holding my hand or taking my arm. I haven't seen her walking with anyone else, so I'm at a loss there as well."

Sirius held up a hand to stop Hari at that point. "Let me see if I've got this straight she only sits next to you, hold your hand or arm when you walk together, and I'm guessing she has other quirks that she does around you that she won't around other people?"

"Yeah, she's always playing with my hair, or touching my face, not to mention she kisses my cheeks a lot," she said, giving some of the tamer example of some of Fleur's behaviors.

Sirius nodded, smirking as he watched Hari's cheeks turn red, then looking around the room. "You see that couple over there, the blonde girl with the tall bloke?"

Hari looked in the direction Sirius gestured and saw the couple in question. "Oh them, they're in seventh year and always together. Can't remember his name, but her name is Sarah O'Connor."

"Alright, well you see how they are sitting close together?"

"Obviously, she's almost in his lap," Hari snorted looking at how the couple interacted.

Sirius nodded, the girl was sitting very close to the young man. "Well, you see how she's constantly touching his arm and how he returns the gesture by touching her hand? There, see how she blushed slightly when he smiled at her? Ask yourself this, is that how you and Fleur sit together?"

Hari thought about it for a moment and had to admit that she and Fleur did tend to touch a lot, nothing improper, but when they were together it was almost a constant thing. "Yeah, we do," she admitted with a blush. "So, you think she likes me the way I like her?"

"Possibly, but that is something you would need to talk to her about," Sirius said with a smile. "You told me she's Veela and unlike most people I know that there is no such thing as a part Veela, you either are or you aren't. What I know of Veela is they are very sexual beings," he stopped Hari from interrupting by holding his hand up. "No, I don't mean they are loose women or act improperly. In fact, the Veela I've met have been very monogamous and extremely faithful to their mates. What I mean by sexual is that they tend to be more in tune with their own sexuality. I'm guessing Fleur has little or no modesty when it comes to being around you?"

"Yeah," Hari admitted, blushing again and starting to hate how easily she did.

Sirius nodded, having expected the answer. "That's normal for a Veela. They are very comfortable with their bodies and have no hangups about showing it off. Now the flip side of that is if you try to force yourself on a Veela you had better be ready to face one very nasty and pissed off woman. Trust me, I've seen it happen a few times, thankfully not to me. Another thing you need to know, Veela don't really care about what gender their mate is, so long as there is love between them."

Hari thought about that, then decided maybe it was time she asked a question she had been curious about for some time. "Sirius, say for example I did start dating Fleur and we became a couple, what about heirs? I know she and her sister are the last of her line, just like me, so what about continuing our families? We obviously can't have children together."

"That's not exactly true," Sirius said with a slight frown. "Some older families, in order to maintain their bloodlines, have created various potions that would insure a male heir is born. The problem with those potions is they tend to leave the mother infertile afterwards. In the case of the only child being born female, well they usually went extinct as their line was absorbed into another family. Still, there are some great advancements in non-magical medicine as you know, so I doubt you would need to worry about either bloodline going extinct."

"There's no other way?"

"If you are looking for a magical spell, potion, or even ritual that will allow you to father a child with another woman, you're going to have to ask someone else," Sirius replied with a sad smile. "Look, homosexuality and bisexuality in the magical world has never been a major taboo. There have been rumors and stories floating around for years about people doing just what you are thinking, but I can't tell you if they are true or not. The most common solution I know of in your situation is to take a fertility potion and a mild love potion keyed to someone you think would make a good biological father, then let nature take its course. Problem is, technically you are cheating on your partner and that can lead to problems. If you really want to have a child, I'm suggesting you either go the non-magical route or you adopt. In your case you or Fleur would carry the child to term after you became pregnant, in one way or another, and after the child was born you could use the Blood Adoption ritual."

"I've never heard of that," Hari admitted with a frown.

Sirius nodded, saying, "I'm not surprised. Blood Adoption fell out of favor during the war against Grindelwald started. In fact, most blood magics fell out of favor during that war because of how many attacks the other side used that revolved around the use of blood. While it's not illegal and some of the older families are still rumored to use it, the Ministry considers it a Dark ritual," he said with a frown. "It was most commonly used when a male was sterile or completely opposed to sleeping with a female to father a child, but had no other choice. The mother would take a substitute to bed until she conceived and after the child was born the 'father' would perform the ritual, basically replacing himself as the father of the child. Once completed the change is permanent and every known means of checking the parentage of the child will show the adopting parent as the biological child of the man. Oh, and in case you are wondering, the ritual works for women as well, though it was rarely used in that fashion."

Hari was sitting there quietly listening to Sirius break it down for her. She did wonder what it would be like to have a child, but being sexually attracted to women meant having a child was going to cause issues eventually. The more Sirius explained, the more she thought he was right and she would have to go about having a child in the non-magical way. It was annoying to think she would never be able to have a child by the person she loved, but even if she did find a way she still had to find that someone special to have a child with.

"Little Angel," Sirius said, getting her attention again, "don't worry about this right now, you've still got years before this is an issue. You've got plenty of time to figure it out and still be a kid for a while. Don't rush to grow up any faster than you need to, okay?"

"I won't Sirius," Hari promised, then asked another question she had long wondered about. "Why are you so accepting of me?"

Sirius just smiled at her, reaching over and patting her hand. "You're my kid, adopted or not, and I've loved you since the moment I first saw you. I don't care who you love, just so long as you are happy with them. That's what being a parent means to me and nothing is ever going to change that."

Part 3

A little while later Hari saw Fleur entering the Great Hall with Padma and Luna and waved them over. Introducing them to Sirius she was happy to see Sirius behaved himself, though for a moment she saw him fighting with himself when Fleur smiled at him. It wasn't the first time Hari had seen a man fight against the Veela allure, but it was the first time she had seen someone do it with so much style. Sirius had fought it off, then smiled before kissing the back of Fleur's hand and winking at her.

"I'm not sure which is more dangerous, Miss Delacour, your allure or your natural beauty," he said with a smile, then turned to Hari. "Hari, which do you think is more dangerous?"

Hari couldn't help but blush, as she slapped her adopted father's arm, but she did notice Fleur seemed particularly interested in her answer when she replied. "The allure doesn't work on women, you old dog."

"Ah, so it's the real her you see and not a minor bit of magic," Sirius us said with a smile aimed at Fleur. "Good to know, don't you think, Miss Delacour?"

Fleur who was now blushing just nodded before she turned to smile at Hari. "Oui, it is good to know."

A few minutes later Hari's "students" started pouring into the room and Sirius sat back to watch as the four girl's started helping them with their homework. When lunchtime arrived Hari explained she had a meeting that afternoon, so the other three would be handling her afternoon lessons for the day. The various students seemed a bit disappointed, but Hari promised she would make it up to them the next week. Aggie and Lizzie insisted she check they were using proper posture before Sirius and she had to rush off to meet up with Neville for their meeting. The meeting was to be held in Professor McGonagall's office and once they arrived and Sirius greeted his old Head of Gryffindor House, she left them to their business.

"Alright, Mister Longbottom, Hari and I are here as you requested, so how can we be of assistance?" Sirius asked as they all got comfortable in the chairs McGonagall had provided for them.

Neville looked around the room rather quickly, taking note that several portraits seemed to be paying close attention to what they had to say. "Thank you, Mister Black and you Miss Black, but before we speak would you mind placing some privacy charms around the room. Maybe even check to make sure we are alone, if you don't mind?"

"Of course," replied Sirius, drawing his wand and casting the required spells. A few moments later he flicked his wand at a beetle that was clinging to Neville's robes. "What have we here? You're not a normal bug, are you? Too much magic clinging to you to be normal," he muttered, then cast a spell on the insect that made it glow a bight pink. "I don't know who you are and I don't really care at the moment, but that spell is permanent. From now on you will glow bright pink when you change shapes. That's what you get for trying to spy on us, now get out of here."

Levitating the glowing insect over to the window, Hari opened it for him and a moment later the spy was banished at high speed towards the edge of the Hogwarts wards. "Who do you think it was, Mister Black?" asked Neville once the window was closed and sealed.

"I'm not sure, but I'll be checking the Animagus Registry at the Ministry once I leave today," Sirius said with a frown. "I had to register my form after I was freed, so I think it's only fair everyone else should have to. Well, at least once they get caught. Anyway, other than a few standard listening charms, the portraits, and our little visitor we are now completely alone and no one can hear us. So, care to tell us what you need from us?"

Neville nodded, reaching into his robes and pulling out an old leather bound journal and handing it to Sirius. "My father was a good man, dedicated to his family and his friends. In an attempt to mold me into a copy of him, my grandmother gave me my father's journals this last summer," he said as Hari watched Sirius open the journal and start paging through it. "I'm sure you can guess how important those journals are to me after what happened to my father and mother. Sadly, my grandmother did not see a need to keep my mother's journals and they have been lost or burned over the years. I'm not happy with her at the moment because of that, but I have used what I learned from my father's writings to take a firmer stand in regards to my own life."

Hari suddenly heard Sirius gasp, going pale as he looked up at Neville who nodded at him. "I see, you found the same passage I did?" he asked and received a shaky nod from Sirius. "My father was very happy that you and James Potter had not forgotten about my family after we all went into hiding. It was his intention to return the favor after that fateful night, but we all know how that turned out."

"What are you two talking about?" asked Hari, starting to think this conversation wasn't as simple as a request for training from her adopted father.

"I'm sorry, Hari, I didn't mean to confuse you, especially after the help you gave me on Halloween," Neville said with a frown. "What I'm getting at is the fact my father wrote about how happy he was that James Potter and Sirius Black checked up on my family, but he found it humorous that James Potter could not stop bragging about his beloved child." Neville paused, then continued on with a smirk. "Yes, my father found it quite funny that James Potter could be so absolutely wrapped around the finger of his first and only child, a beautiful little girl named Harriet Jasmine Potter."

"Damn," Hari swore, standing and starting to pace back and forth. "How long have you known, Nev?"

Neville smiled in her direction, pointing at the journal. "I knew 'Harry Potter' wasn't dead the moment I read my father's journal," he answered with a smirk. "You can't kill someone that never really lived, can you? As for who you really are, the daughter of James Potter, I figured that when you called me 'Nev' the night my name came out of the Goblet. I don't know if you realize it, but you are the only person who has ever called me Nev rather than Neville."

"Shit," Hari swore as she started pacing faster. "You always did say it would be the small things that would catch me up someday, Sirius."

Sirius nodded, handing Neville the journal and sighing. "It was always a possibility that someone would figure it out, which is why we practiced your back story so much."

Hari sighed, stoping her pacing and turning to stare at Neville, asking, "What will you do with this information, Nev?"

"Not a thing, Hari," he immediately answered, "but I need your help, badly."

"Help with what?" asked Sirius, looking intently at the boy.

Now it was Neville's turn to stand and pace. "Right after 'Harry Potter' died Dumbledore started approaching me and claiming that I was in grave peril now that you were thought to be dead. He told me flat out that V-v-voldemort would come after me, though he won't tell me why. All he would say over and over again was with 'Harry Potter' now dead, V-v-voldemort would be focusing on me." Neville paled after saying the name, looking around as expecting the man to leap out of the shadows at him. "He's been hounding me about training and the like ever since. My grandmother sent him packing over the summer, but now I'm here at school and I'm wondering if he wasn't the one to put my name in the Goblet in order to force me to start training," he growled the last part with his fists clenched into fists. "What I need from you is for you to teach me how to survive this damned farce of a competition. I don't care about winning, in fact I wouldn't even compete if I had the option. I'm no hero, Hari, that was always you. Even with all you had to deal with, you still managed to overcome every obstacle and I need you to teach me how to do the same."

"Nev, I'm no hero," Hari objected, but Sirius stood up and slapped a hand over her mouth to stop her from speaking.

"Shut up, Hari," he barked, then turned and looked at Neville. "Has the Headmaster or Snape looked you directly in the eyes for an over long period of time since you figured this out?"

Looking confused by the question, Neville shook his head. "Not that I'm aware of, sir."

"Good, because if they do that it usually means they are rooting around in your memories without asking permission first," Sirius said with a growl. "We'll need to start you off learning Occulmency, then we can work on your problem solving skills and get you thinking on your feet. Is that Frank's wand?"

Neville nodded, looking fondly at the wand until Sirius spoke again. "Well, unless it chose you then you need a new one. I'll be taking you to Diagon Alley to get you one after I have a nice little chat with Augusta about her behavior. Are your parents still in St. Mungo's?"

Glancing at Hari, Neville nodded before answering. "Yes, sir."

"I'm going to talk to her about getting them moved to the same hospital that treated Hari over the summer," Sirius said with a look of determination on his face. "They do a lot of good work with mixing magical and non-magical treatments, so maybe they can help your parents. Once that's out of the way, Hari will start showing you some of the basic dueling drills I showed her this summer."

"Sirius," whined Hari, looking less than thrilled. "When am I supposed to find time for that?"

Sirius turned and looked at her with disappointed eyes. "You need to remember that whether you are Harry Potter or Hari Black, that crazy fucker is still out there and would happily snuff out your life if he ever learned you were alive. So, you tell me, when are you going to find the time to protect yourself and the people you love?"