Chapter 4

Harry spent the remainder of the summer with the Blacks. The home itself was protected under a spell called the fidelius charm. She was told that no one would be able to find them unless they wanted to be found, and she had never felt so safe before in her life. Harry was sad to have missed the Quidditch World Cup with the Weasley family and was sure that they were freaking out that she was missing.

The first few nights that Harry was there, she awoke to nightmares of Voldemort plotting, but before she could truly get worked up Calliope or Sirius would appear to comfort her until she fell back to sleep. Harry finally felt like part of a family and couldn't believe that she was so loved.

Most of Harry's time was spent learning how to change her appearance at will. Sirius grabbed every book that he could find on the subject of metamorphmagi and helped Harry as best that he could. He remembered another little girl from his family named Nymphadora Tonks that also held these rare powers, and he couldn't wait to introduce her and Harry.

As a full metamorphmagus, Harry could change everything about her body, including height, weight, and overall appearance. She even managed to change her nose into that of a pig, much to Sirius's enjoyment. However, when angered, Sirius noticed that Harry's features became sharper and more angular. The young metamorph appeared to be a frightening combination of Lily Potter and Bellatrix Lestrange, and the power of her curses, as her magic was now unbound, was nothing to scoff at.

Harry even became friends of a sort with Sirius's son. Regulus James Asteropaios-Black was the heir of both the ancient Asteropaios family of Greece and the Black family of Britain. Due to the unusual magic of his family, he was the first male Veela to be born in centuries. Even his mother didn't know the full extent of the powers he would one day wield.

As his powers were based on lust, Regulus was quite the chick magnet. Of course, he enjoyed the attention, he was a red-blooded male, but he preferred the quiet of his room with a good book. He was more like his mother in that aspect, and Sirius would joke that he was letting him down on that field. Luckily, Harry seemed immune to the young Veela's allure.

When the time to return to Hogwarts arrived, Regulus would be coming with her. Up to this point, he had been learning magic from his mother, who had remained on the island awaiting Sirius's return for all these years.

The mother and son had been hidden away on this island by the previous Lord Black when he learned of Sirius's imprisonment. The fidelius charm was used to hide both their location and the memory of them from the rest of the wizarding world, with the secret being held by Calliope herself.

The beautiful woman had never given up hope that her husband would find her again, even under though she had been hidden so well by the previous Lord Black. She had left small clues around the village that only a marauder would be able to find and had been led right to her front door. When she saw him standing outside in confusion, she nearly tackled him before letting him in on the secret that reunited the lovers once again.

Sirius told Harry how he submitted himself to the justice of the Grecian version of the Wizengamot. Through the use veritaserum and a court pensieve Sirius Black was declared innocent, and the evidence was submitted to the ICW for review. If everything went as planned, Sirius would be able to set foot on British soil by the end of August.

Sirius spent much of his time with his pup focusing on Defense and battle magic. He learned that Harry was an excellent duelist, and with a little push, she could become one of the greatest. Sure, Harry could work on her theory, but once shown a spell, Harry could add it to her repertoire and use it immediately in her spell chains. Harry's favorite tactic was to stun her enemies, blast them into the air and finish them by repeatedly slamming them into the ground. If one didn't dodge quickly enough, they wouldn't be able to escape Harry's barrage of spells. Harry was only ever irritated in a duel once Regulus morphed into his Veela form and took to the skies. Harry felt as though the teen was cheating as he rained hexes down on her from above.

It just wasn't fair!

Something new that Harry was learning was to become an Animagus. Sirius didn't know if Harry or Regulus would have the talent or the aptitude for the art but was sure that both teens would surprise him.

"Harry, Reggie," Sirius said. "The first thing you need to remember about this kind of magic is that you are must not lose yourself to the animal that sleeps within you. Many have tried to master their inner beast through brute force, but your father and I learned that you must form a union of trust instead. Through this method, even the rat was able to master his form. Once you drink the potion, I need you to clear your mind and look deep within yourselves. Focus on your own personal aspects and you will have no problem with the rest. I will be here if you need me pups."

Nodding their heads seriously to Sirius, they both downed the potion that Lord Black had prepared for them.

As soon as the thick potion slid down her throat, Harry entered into a deep trance. The first thing that Harry noticed was that it was very humid. A tropical island of some sort situated on what appeared to be an active volcano!

Harry slowly made her way through the jungle and could hear the sounds of animals coming from all around her. However, one trill could be heard above all the others. A familiar sound that Harry had heard once before echoing in the Chamber of Secrets in her second year. The sound of a phoenix!

Harry quickly made her way after the beautiful sound and was forced to climb up a large banyan tree to find a better vantage point to look around. Once at the top of the tree, Harry shouted out for the magical bird.

"Where are you?!" she yelled into the air. "I can hear you, but I can't see you!"

In a flash of flame, a truly magnificent creature appeared before Harry. The phoenix was darker in color than Faux had been, with deep ebony feathers covering its body. The tip of each feather glowed red hot, but the most striking feature of the bird was its eyes. Bright green eyes stared back at Harry, and the girl knew that this was her form.

Tentatively, Harry reached out towards her form to claim it as her own when suddenly the branch she was standing on snapped! The jungle floor was swiftly approaching, and all that Harry could do was scream. Before Harry met her doom, flaming talons plucked her out of the sky and carried her aloft. Warm embers of flame showered down onto Harry with each flap of the bird's wings and merged into Harry's body. Feeling the acceptance of the magical bird, Harry reached out with her magic, and the two became one.

In a flash of flames and sparks, Harry was once more in the Black villa on Santorini. She began to hop around excitedly to tell Sirius what happened, but all that could be heard were squawks and trills before Harry realized that she was transformed!

'No, no, no, no,' Harry thought. 'Don't tell me I'm trapped as a flaming chicken!'

To Harry's right was a most unusual creature. Regulus had shifted into the mythical Anzu! The small, feathered dragon was a master of air and fire, and it was said that the creature could even affect the weather when it was angered. As both Harry and Regulus were still young, both forms were still in a juvenile state. However, they would grow with time and truly become a force to reckon with.

"Blimey!" Sirius shouted in shock. He could not remember ever hearing of a magical Animagus form since the times of Merlin himself. Sure, he was a grim, but that didn't come with any extra powers. He was still just a big strong dog.

"Hold still, you giant chicken!" he shouted to Harry as he tried to calm her down. Regulus seemed to cackle and hiss as he rolled on the floor in mirth. Watching Harry freak out had him in a fit that didn't seem to be letting up. Harry appeared to understand what the Anzu was saying and turned her ire on the draconic bird, pecking him on the head and chasing him around the room!

With his wand in hand, Sirius incanted the Animagus reversal spell, and once again, a raven-haired girl and boy appeared in the room. The two looked at one another before Harry broke the silence.

"That was wicked!" the Potter heiress exclaimed from the back of Regulus before promptly feinting from magical exhaustion.

With a barking laugh, Sirius picked her up from the floor and carried her to her room as regulus remained on the floor, resembling a starfish. The teen was too tired to move but also too excited to sleep. Placing her on the bed, he brushed the hair out of her face with his fingers and placed a warm kiss on her brow.

"Sleep well, pup," he whispered into her ear. "You've done well. Your parents would be so proud of you."

"They truly would," Calliope agreed as she snuck up behind him. "When do you plan to tell her about your latest prank against wizarding Britain?"

"Soon, my love," he replied. "Soon. She will need all the protection we can give her once we return. At least in this way, we won't need to worry about Dumbledore and his greater good getting in the way of her happiness. I only hope that she will understand why I have done this and forgive me."

"Well, you better tell her quickly, dad," Regulus smirked from the doorway. "I hate keeping secrets from her. Also, I would hate for my betrothed to try and kill me before we get the chance to truly get to know one another.