Meetings At The Ministry and Scarlett's Secret

British Ministry of Magic London Underground December 9th 2004 Morning

Scarlett and Harry were with their parents at the British Ministry of Magic to observe the Wizengamot Council, normally Sirius or Lily wouldn't be here as their Proxies would stand in for them but this was important enough for the Heads of Houses to be here, in the observation platform, the young and powerful pair were met by Andromeda and Daphne the latter was there to watch her father Lord Greengrass as she would have to take over as Lady Greengrass one day but not for many years at least.

"Hi Auntie Andi" Scarlett said hugging one of the mentors to the Black Heiress "how are you and Uncle Ted?"

"We're both well thank you, and he sends his regards" Andi answered "I've also heard that you have been very busy with your man lately" Scarlett blushed at the pride in Andi's voice "I approve by the way"

"Thanks" Black answered "it's past time that people learned that the Black Family should be feared and respected, it's a pity some had to die for that lesson to sink in"

"I'd say you succeeded in that regard" Andi said "taking the lessons my sister's and I have taught you and putting them to good use"

"And for that I will always be grateful" Scarlett answered "later today I think it's time I tell Harry my secret, while I've enjoyed having some things up my sleeve, Harry is my intended and I won't have anything between us" Andi nodded approvingly, a smile on her face. Silence fell as business got underway and it began with the most important issue.

"Albus Dumbledore" began Lord Black grey eyes boring straight into the twinkling blues of the Hogwarts Headmaster "please remove yourself from the Chief Warlock position as this involves you and your lack of action when it comes to the school, my godson is attending at the moment"

"Sirius" Albus began only to be interrupted by Lord of the Greengrass Family who are allies to the Black Family

"Proper decorum sir" bellowed Marcus Greengrass "Lord Black has not given you leave to speak his given name" there was a brief moment of silence as Lord Black waited for Dumbledore to correct himself but was unsurprisingly not worried when the old man spoke again.

"Sirius, is all this necessary, I mean really, Harry needs to learn his place in the world and listen to his elders and show me the respect I am owed as for what goes on in my school it is my business and nobody else will interfere not even you, a traitor to the British Magical Society."

"Traitor, am I" Lord Black replied calmly but everyone who knew the powerful Lord understood the undercurrent of anger "how dare you Albus Percival Brian Wulfric of the Minor House of Dumbledore lecture me, you who had a Death Eater on your staff, my daughter and heir took care of that issue herself, she is a lot like me."

"Your daughter is an upstart bitch" Dumbledore spat his face now twisted into something evil and stared down at Lord Black with undisguised hatred "she is not deserving of Harry at all and their relationship is something I am heavily against." Unfortunately for the insane old man Lily happened to be there and within earshot, she glared angrily at the old man, her almond shaped emerald eyes ablaze with righteous fury, the only reason that spells hadn't flown was the restraining hand from Marlene, Up in the viewing balcony an infuriated Scarlett struggled against her Aunt and mentor Andromeda Tonks nee Black.

"Peace, you will have your chance now though is not the time" the elder woman spoke wisely, her niece nodded breathing deep and calming her mind, Harry was oblivious as Daphne was keeping him distracted.

"That bastard is going to get what he deserves," Scarlett swore "try and manipulate my father into doing your bidding, the Most Ancient and Most Noble House of Black bows to no-one. Especially to a Minor House like the Dumbledore's are" her fists clenched desiring nothing more than to smack the shit out of the arrogant bastard.

"Be that as it may, we're not here to discuss my daughter's behaviour, we're here to put the matter of my godson's illegally placed name in the Goblet, while you say it's magically binding and unable to be broken I think that for once you are wrong" Sirius pulled the scrap of parchment out of his case "this is a forgery by you to gain control of the Potter Family" he held up the parchment scrap and then produced another bearing Harry's name. Harry blinked before pulling out his wand.

"Lumos" he muttered nearly sagging with relief as he still had his magic "this means I can do what I planned anyway and watch as Fleur and Scarlett do the final Task then leave Hogwarts for good," the relieved teen turned to his girlfriend "did you have anything to do with this?" he asked, Scarlett nodded "I know you better than anyone and the fact that you have a distinctive style helped me put it together, once I was absolutely sure of my findings I took the evidence to my father and now here we are, when we get back to the Room of Requirement there is something that I need to show you"

"You are an amazing woman Scarlett" Harry said, his glowing emerald eyes piercing as they stared into the very soul of the pale skinned, grey eyed goddess beside him "and I'll follow you anywhere" the utter conviction in Harry's voice told Scarlett that he meant every word. "I stand with you as well Scarlett" Daphne vowed, her blue eyes also full of conviction and sincerity "I'm sure Fleur would as well, if asked" Harry and Scarlett both nodded. After Dumbledore was forcibly ejected from the Chief Warlock position, Amelia Bones was named as temporary replacement, a woman who was the only Auror to be totally incorruptible other than Dora, the last ever protege of legendary Alastor 'Mad-Eye' Moody who in turn was responsible for putting numerous Death Eater's behind bars including Bartemius Crouch Jr and the Lestrange brothers Rabastan and Rudolphus all three were responsible for the torture of Auror Frank Longbottom and his wife Alice now residents of St-Mungo's Hospital long-term ward. The final verdict was passed that Albus Dumbledore had all his titles taken away with him barely hanging onto the title of Headmaster but even that had restrictions such as that no longer would Harry be allowed anywhere near the old man without Lady Potter, Captain Dora, Lady Marlene or Lord Black present, Albus was not a happy man when the judgement was given, he swept from the hall without out a backwards glance. Before Harry, Scarlett and Daphne had to return to Hogwarts they had lunch with their parents before the trio had to depart with much reluctance.

The Room of Requirement Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry Scottish Highlands Early Evening

After an afternoon of training which Harry found he rather enjoyed it now that his life was no longer in any danger or as close to being safe what with the school being a hotspot for all kinds of monsters, nevertheless when they were done and had a hurried dinner and then a shower, Harry found himself resting on the couch in front of the fire, his eyes closed, behind the fourth year Seeker, Scarlett stripped off and in her place stood a majestic and powerful tiger, the black and white fur glossy and sleek, grey eyes sharpened the colours more vibrant then the scent of Harry flooded her nostrils, she growled just the once before padding forward, leaning her head down she licked Harry across the face, pink tongue rough startled the fourteen year old awake.

"What the hell?" blurted out the stunned and shocked man "how the fuck is a tiger in here and what did you do to Scarlett?" the powerful feline growled again the points of her razor sharp teeth appearing beneath the muzzle of the young tiger, it was at this point both Daphne and Fleur entered the Room, both blonde's eyes widened at the sight before them, they approached cautiously hands raised in a non-threatening manner before the Ice-Queen herself spoke in a calm tone.

"Harry you idiot, haven't you seen this gorgeous cat's eyes, only two people I know have the same colour and as one is most assuredly Lord Black then this must be Scarlett in her animagus form" she raised a hand and after a moment the tiger lowered her big head and allowed Daphne to scratch behind the ears, Scarlett's chest rumbled as she began purring from the attention.

"You need a name" Fleur said as she too started stroking the great cat's glossy flanks "I believe that Storm is an ideal choice", the contented cat nodded her head then getting up she walked away pausing only to scoop up her clothes before entering the bathroom.

"Maybe one day you'll get to see me hunting" Scarlett said as she rejoined the trio, now fully dressed, the Chaser sat in Harry's lap "apologies for not telling you sooner about my Animagus form" just then as Scarlett was about to continue speaking, Shadow appeared dragging an unconscious Mad-Eye Moody in her jaws, before their very eyes however somebody else appeared and who was most assuredly supposed to be dead.

"Barty Crouch Junior" breathed Scarlett as her grey eyes narrowed " Daphne would you please get my mirror and call Captain Dora, Fleur could you be a darling and watch Harry for me", the young Veela nodded her blue eyes hard as she stared daggers at the Death Eater, her wand drawn ready to be used at a moment's notice. Scarlett and her familiar Shadow took off at a run, the black panther leading the way, soon though they arrived at the deserted Defence Against The Dark Arts classroom, walking into the office, Scarlett scanned the area before her eyes fell on a massive trunk at the foot of the bed, blasting each of the padlocks off with precision, the young Black heiress stopped when the last lock pinged off.

"Mad-Eye?" she called, her voice echoing "it's Scarlett Black, daughter of Sirius and Marlene" conjuring a ladder she climbed down, nearly gagging as the scent of shit and piss hit her like a rogue Bludger, vanishing the mess and adding some air freshening charms, Scarlett also conjured a stretcher, she levitated the legendary Auror onto it, when she emerged from the trunk, she was met by Dora who stared in horror at the weakened form of her former mentor, Dumbledore was there and didn't look surprised at all. Sirius and Marlene brought up the rear.

"Merlin's balls" swore her father then turning to Dumbledore he snapped "how in the hell did you not notice that your closest friend was being impersonated for nearly the entire year?" Dumbledore had his patented disappointed-grandfather expression mark two on his face but remained silent, he was summarily disarmed and placed in vicious looking restraining cuffs that blocked off his magic, Scarlett appeared from nowhere and slapped the old fool across the face.

"I broke into Crouch's mind and found out that he tampered with the Cup, turning it into a Portkey to who knows where for some nefarious reason" she paused as her brain reached a horrifying conclusion "you know Riddle is still out there and yet you expect my fiancee to defeat that half-blood psychopath by himself?" Dumbledore flinched at the cold fury in Scarlett's voice "are you insane or just incompetent" The Black Heiress shook with rage eyes flickering between tiger and human , Sirius and Marlene both moved forwards and engulfed their daughter in a tight embrace more so to stop her from having a forceful transformation into her animal form and tearing the older man into bloody chunks than to protect the delusional man. Dora and her squad of Aurors then frogmarched Albus out of the castle to a secure Ministry cell that was also magic dampening to await trial. She only calmed down when Dumbledore was far away and his scent had dissipated, thanking her parents she returned to the Room.

"He's gone, Harry" Scarlett said "the old fool who kept putting your life in danger has finally been arrested and sent away for good"

"What are you talking about?" Daphne asked "Dumbledore is the only one You-Know-Who ever feared and with him gone, this school will be vulnerable to attack"

"Like it hasn't been already" Scarlett retorted "the rumours that you've heard over the past three years about the various adventures Harry's had are all true, besides Riddle is a half-blood and not pure like you or I" stunned silence met her words.

"Who the hell is Riddle?" Daphne demanded

"Slytherin Head Boy of 1944" Scarlett promptly answered "he's also responsible for the current gamekeeper Hagrid getting expelled in his third-year for something he never even did."

"How is this not public knowledge then, if the people knew the truth surely You-Know-Who would not have risen to power in the first place" Daphne demanded incredulously, eyebrows raised and hands on her hips.

"Suppression of the truth has always been the way of the British Ministry of Magic" Scarlett answered "remember Dumbledore tried to have my father Lord Black thrown in prison for no reason other than-"

"Being my godfather" Harry said finishing Scarlett's sentence inadvertently cutting his future bride off, "then last year I nearly lost my soul due to the fucking Dementors that Fudge placed here for absolutely no reason whatsoever. Dumbledore could've vetoed that but alas he did not"

"Had Harry become a soulless husk however remote, I would have come over here and murdered the bastard and I'll kill anyone who threatens the both of you" Scarlett said, her tone deadly and also deceptively calm. Fleur and Daphne were both rendered speechless as their minds flashed back to when Draco and the entire tribe of mer-people were killed, they shared a look between them and then silently swore to never do anything that would bring Scarlett's wrath down on both of their heads. Neither women noticed the knowing smirk that ghosted for the briefest of moments around the edges of her mouth.

The Great Hall Evening

Sitting at the Ravenclaw table much to the shock of the 'Claws nearby, Luna stood up with a collared Granger the elder witch's head bowed in subservience, following behind the psychic third year.

"The path you walk is littered with many dangers, many you will see coming but there are some that choose to remain hidden" Luna said mysteriously, which mystified Scarlett as she processed what was said, Harry squeezed her hand in support, Daphne glanced at the retreating blonde "she'd make a great addition to our group" she mused thoughtfully, Harry turned his head so fast that he gave himself unintentional whiplash, wincing slightly.

"I've got three witches already, I don't need or want a fourth" the Seeker said rubbing the back of his neck, the former Ice-Princess stared in shock at the tone Harry used, she opened her mouth to reply but was silenced by Scarlett who said

"Harry didn't mean it, he just under a lot of stress worried about me in the forthcoming Third Task and the fact that the Cup has been tampered with" glancing over at the Hufflepuff table she spotted that pretty-boy Cedric Diggory sitting with his friends, standing up with Fleur, she walked over to him.

"Mister Diggory could I have a word with you in private please" she asked politely, after a pause he stood up and followed the two women into a deserted corridor, to ensure that they wouldn't be overheard, a few privacy and silencing wards were put up,

"The fucking Cup has been compromised" Scarlett burst out bluntly, Cedric blinked in utter confusion, Fleur closed her eyes, pinching the bridge of her nose mouth twitching at the corners as she fought to keep the smile off her face. "While I wouldn't have put it quite like that, Scarlett is in essence correct, the Cup has indeed been compromised." Diggory stared at the two female Champions in shock and dawning horror "does Potter know?" he asked

"Harry's out of the Tournament thanks to today's Wizengamot meeting" Scarlett answered, "turns out Dumbledore forged my beloved's signature to get him to compete illegally I might add" Diggory slumped against the wall from the news "Harry still has his magic" she added rather redundantly, the seventh year Hufflepuff chuckled weakly "I have to admit that it was rather nice to not be outnumbered for the past two Tasks but I guess the odds are stacked against me, now it's nothing personal but I will take you both down if you get in my way of a Hogwarts victory"

"The same goes for you" echoed Scarlett and Fleur in return. After Cedric had left, the two women returned to Harry's table, the emerald eyed boy wonder had a happy expression on his face.

"The remaining time spent here will be cathartic, I think as soon my life will never be put in danger again by old men who think they know better" Harry said before taking a bite from his favourite dessert, a slice of banoffee pie which surprised Daphne as she had wrongfully assumed he liked treacle tart, almost as if hearing her thoughts,

"Harry never did like the stuff, he prefers American desserts mostly because of me and also the fact that he has an ever fresh stasis charm on his trunk upstairs which has at all times confectionary from my home country for him to enjoy" Scarlett explained then after a pause "however, his absolute favourite though" grey eyes sparkled with the innuendo causing Daphne's cheeks to pink as she realised what the bodacious American was getting at. En-route back to the Room, Scarlett suddenly dragged a surprised Harry into a hidden corridor and kissed him fiercely, bruising her mouth on his when they broke apart for air.

"What was that about?" he asked, surprised by the action "not that I'm complaining, it's kinda hot when you take control,but nevertheless please sate my curiosity"

"No reason, other than I felt like it" Scarlett admitted "your hands on my arse was a nice touch though"

"Your arse is perfect" Harry agreed tone heated and promising "sometime I'm going to-" he was cut off by the blushing Chaser's ruby red lips on his again, they only broke apart due to the lack of oxygen, Fleur and Daphne were fanning themselves, both blondes red faced, watching closely. Greengrass suddenly found herself staring deep into Scarlett's hypnotic grey eyes, her mouth suddenly went dry, for a while the two beauties locked eyes unfortunately for Daphne, she blinked breaking the spell. Back inside the Room, Fleur and Scarlett went to the bathroom to change into their workout attire, leaving both Harry and Daphne to amuse themselves, when the two Champions reappeared, the two younger students stared unashamedly at their partners bodies though they had seen a lot more on multiple occasions.

"Seeing as you're with us now Fleur, I'm going to have armour made for you" Scarlett said raising a hand she stopped the other woman's protest, Harry spoke up then "When Scarlett gets like this I suggest letting her do what she feels in her gut, in the First Task for example, if I hadn't been wearing the armour she had commissioned I would not be here right now." Fleur's mouth closed at that pointed reminder."You think the merpeople massacre in the Black Lake was an accident, I killed them all and I would do it again" Scarlett added her tone of voice casual but also deadly. "Nobody takes from me what is mine" that last word uttered sent a jolt of electricity directly to Fleur and Daphne's cores, in unison they shivered at the possessiveness on display by the Black Heiress. Harry was unbothered by that as he is used to it, a grin on the young man's face had him reminisce about the time his beloved threatened to neuter Cho Chang last year if the very pretty Asian student hadn't backed off, the brilliant and lethal woman had sent the Whisper the blue envelope counterpart to the infamous scarlet Howler, it was described in bloody detail exactly what would happen, it wasn't screamed for all to hear but yet every student heard it that day Chang had kept her distance from Harry and when Scarlett arrived, she barely glanced at the elder woman, something that pleased the Black Heiress greatly.

"Oi, Black" sneered Theodore Nott breaking Scarlett out of her memories "did you think that murdering my Ally Scion Malfoy would go unpunished, you will be begging for death after I beat that half-blood bastard Potter to a pulp."

"That was the wrong thing to say" Scarlett replied, raising her wand "do you really want to be reunited with your dearly departed boyfriend so bad if that's the case then I will be happy to oblige you." the end of Scarlett's wand glowing red and vibrating slightly almost as if waiting to unleash the magic building up. "I killed Weasley for provoking me, Nott, what do you think I am going to do to you for threatening me or mine?" The Slytherin male bloodlusted and enraged by Scarlett's audacity charged forward with both hands clenched into fists, he got two steps before he was frozen quite literally as his entire body was encased in thick ice only Nott's head was left free.

"Listen up you little shit" Scarlett growled menacingly grey eyes sparking with barely restrained power "the now deceased Draco Malfoy was a womanizer and a potential rapist, he deserved what he got, the Malfoy line will die out and become extinct, thank the gods, the world doesn't need more scum like that at all."

A.N: Sixth Chapter is done. Apologies for the shortness. Please read and review. Flames will be used to make s'mores. I shall see you next time.