Chapter 16: The Court Hearing

I felt some weight lifted from my shoulders since the talk with my family. Since then, my family has supported me, helping me whenever I needed help. I still cut sometimes, but my cutting has gotten a bit better since the talk. My wounds are slowly healing, but the danger is approaching. The third task is tomorrow, and I need to be ready. Speaking of the third task, Harry and I were summoned into Professor Dumbledore's office tonight. I wondered what Professor Dumbledore wanted from us. I guess that he wanted to speak with us about the third task that is tomorrow.

When Harry and I stepped into Professor Dumbledore's office, we heard Professor Dumbledore conversing with another man named Fudge. "Another man has died here, Fudge. And he won't be the last. You must take action."

"I will not. In times like these, the Wizard world looks to its leaders for strength, Dumbledore!" Fudge yelled.

"Then for once, show them some! The Triwizard Tournament will not be canceled." Professor Dumbledore said.

"I will not be seen as a coward." Fudge argued.

"A true leader does what is right, no matter what the others think." Professor Dumbledore said.

"What did you say? What did you say to me?" Fudge demanded.

"Excuse me, gentlemen. It may interest you to know that this conversation is no longer private." Professor Moody chimed in. Professor Moody pointed to the door where Harry and I were. As Harry was about to knock on the door, the door opened revealing Professor Dumbledore, Fudge, and Professor Moody.

"Oh, Harry, Lana." Professor Dumbledore said, acknowledging our presence.

"Harry, Lana, how good to see you both again," Fudge said.

"Hello," I said.

"We can come back later, Professor," Harry said.

"Yeah, we'll get out of your way," I said.

"Oh, not necessarily you two. The minister and I are done here. I'll be back in a moment. Minister, after you." Professor Dumbledore said as he was leaving his office. Professor Dumbledore handed Fudge his hat. "There you are. Your hat. Oh, Harry, Lana, do feel free to indulge in a little Licorice Snap in my absence. But I have to warn you, they're a wee bit sharp." Professor Dumbledore said. The three of them left the office, leaving me and Harry behind.

It was silent in the office now, except for the ticking of the clock. I broke the silence by speaking up. "Dad. I am nervous about the third task tomorrow." I said.

"I know, honey. We will get through this, I promise." Harry said. I held onto his hand tightly as we looked around the office. A beautiful red and orange feathered bird stood on a bird swing cawed quietly. Curious about the Licorice Snaps we took some out of the bowl. They unexpectedly bit us hard. Harry yelped in pain, desperately shaking them off his hand.

"Shit!" I yelled when another one bit me too. A wee bit sharp you say, Professor? The supposed 'candy' kept attacking us, shoving us into a wall. The easiest way to get rid of those things was to stomp on them. As we were stomping on them, we heard some gears clicking. We turned around to see two doors opening, revealing a shiny bowl with bright blue water in it. The reflection of the water bounces on the mirror.

"Dad, look at that! What do you think it is?" I asked.

"I don't know," Harry replied. We stood up to get a closer look at it. As we stood in front of the bowl, curiosity got the better of us. I was confused when Harry grabbed his wand. An image of a building replaced the clear water of the bowl. Suddenly, Harry began falling down.

"Dad!" I cried. Not knowing what I was doing, I jumped in after him. We screamed as we were falling down. Surprisingly, we landed perfectly on a bench. Where the hell were we? I took a look at our surroundings. It looked like we were in some sort of courtroom. Lots of people were in their seats, having conversations. Harry and I saw Professor Dumbledore sitting next to us.

"Professor?" Harry asked.

"Professor." A man behind us said. I was surprised when the man's hand went right through us! It was as if we were some kind of ghosts.

"Yeah." Professor Dumbledore said, shaking the man's hand. I heard metal clinking. I saw a cage in the center of the room where a man was being lifted up in. The man had shackles around his hands and was wearing a prison uniform. Barty Crouch was the judge.

"Igor Karakroff, you have been brought from Azkaban at your own request to present evidence to this council. Should your testimony prove consequential, council may be prepared to order your immediate release. Until such time, you remain in the eyes of the Ministery a convicted Death Eater. Do you accept these terms?" Barty asked.

"I do, sir," Igor replied.

"And what do you wish to present?" Barty asked.

"I have names, sir. There was uh, Rosier. Evan Rosier." Igor said.

"Rosier is dead," Barty said.

"Dead?" Igor questioned.

"Yeah, took a piece of me with him, though, didn't he?" Barty said.

"I didn't know," Igor said.

"If that is all the witness has to offer-" Igor cut Barty off.

"No, no, no. There was Rookwood! He was a spy." Igor said.

"Augustus Rockwood? Of the Department of Ministries?" Barty asked.

"The same. He passed information to You-Know-Who from inside the Ministry itself." Igor said.

"Very well. Council will deliberate. In the meantime, you will be returned to Azkaban." Barty said.

"No! Wait! Wait, please! Please, I have more! What about Snape? Severus Snape?" Igor asked.

"As the council is very much aware, I've given evidence on this matter. Severus Snape was indeed a Death Eater and prior to Lord Voldemort's downfall turned spy for us at great personal risk." Professor Dumbledore said.

"It's a lie! Today he is no more a Death Eater than I am. Snape remains faithful to the Dark Lord!" Igor yelled.

Barty tapped his ring nail on the desk. "Silence! Unless the witnesses process any genuine name of consequence, this session is now concluded." Barty said.

"Oh no, no, no, no. I've heard about one more." Igor said.

"What's that?" Barty asked.

"The name," Igor said.

"Yes," Barty said.

"I know for a fact this person took part in the capture and by means of the Cruciatius Curse, torture of the Auror Frank Longbottom and his wife!" Igor said.

"The name! Give me the wretched name!" Barty yelled.

"Barty Crouch..." Igor said. A young man in a suit stood up. Rita Skeeter's mouth dropped open. Whispers could be heard through the crowd. Igor finished his sentence. "...Junior."

More whispers could be heard. Barty Crouch Junior tried to make a run for it but was shot down. The crowd gasped with shock. Police officers tackled him to the ground.

"Hold him down!" A man yelled.

Barty Junior was angry, desperately trying to break free from the police officer's grasp. "Get your filthy hands off of me, you pathetic little men!" Barty Junior yelled. "Hello, father." Barty Junior said when he came face-to-face with his father. Barty looked at him with a disappointed look in his eyes.

"You are no son of mine," Barty said. Barty gave out an angry yell as the officers were dragging him away. Suddenly, Harry and Mine's head popped out of the bowl, bringing us back into reality. We stumbled back, falling to the floor. We gasped, trying to catch our breath. Harry helped me up. My heart dropped by Professor Dumbledore's sudden appearance.

"Sorry Professor, we were just... looking around." I stammered with a nervous smile. I was worried we were going to get in trouble for going through his things. But he surprised me.

"Curiosity is not a sin, Harry and Lana. But you both should exercise caution. It is a pensive. Very useful if, like me, you find your mind a wee bit stretched. It allowes me to see once more things I've already seen. You see Harry and Lana, I have searched and searched for something. Some small detail. Something I might have overlooked. Something that would explain why these terrible things have happened. Every time I get close to an answer, it slips away. It's maddening." Professor Dumbledore said. Professor Dumbledore sat down on a ledge.

"Sir? Mr. Crouch's son? What exactly happened to him?" Harry asked.

"He was sent to Azkaban. Destroyed Barty to do it. But he had no choice. The evidence was overwhelming." Professor Dumbledore said. Professor Dumbledore looked at us. "Why do you ask?"

"It's just that I... I had a dream about him. It was in the summer, before school and after I adopted Lana. In this dream, I was in a house. And Voldemort was there. Only he wasn't quite human. And Wormtail was there, too. And Mr. Crouch's son." Harry said. I looked at Harry with confusion on my face.

"Have there been other dreams like this before?" Professor Dumbledore asked.

"Yes. Always the same one." Harry said. Professor Dumbledore walked over to the bowl. "Sir, these dreams, What I see, you don't think it's actually happening, do you?" Harry asked worriedly.

"I think it's unwise for you to linger over these dreams, Harry. I think it's best if you simply..." Professor Dumbledore stopped. He took his wand out, pointing it to his head. I watched with amazement when his hair sucked into his wand. He put his hair into the bowl. "...Cast them away."

After a long talk at Professor Dumbledore's office, we were dismissed. As we stepped out of the office, I was surprised to see Kovu, Kiara, and Gwen standing outside.

"Mommy? What are you guys doing here?" I asked.

"We came to get you. It's past curfew, sweetie, it's time to go to bed before you get in trouble." Gwen said.

"Oh okay," I said.

"Come on Lana, let's go back," Harry said. I held onto Harry and Gwen's hand as we walked down the dark hallways of the castle.

"So, what did the Professor want from you?" Kovu asked me.

"You guys won't believe what I saw. There was this weird bowl thing, and I was actually in Professor Dumbledore's past memories. So was Dad." I said.

"Wow, that man has a lot of secrets for sure," Kovu said.

"Yeah, he does. How are you feeling about tomorrow, Grandma?" Kiara asked me.

"I am nervous. I don't know what is going to happen." I said. Gwen took hold of my hands, looking at me with a soft glimmer in her eyes.

"Hey. Don't worry honey, everything is going to be okay. No matter what happens, we are here for you." Gwen said.

Harry put a hand on my shoulder. "And I'll help you in the tournament. You'll be safe with me, and I'll protect you. I promise." Harry said. I smiled as I hugged both of them tightly. Kiara and Kovu joined the hug.

"Thanks, everyone. I love you guys." I said.

"We love you too," Kiara said. As we continued our journey back to the Gryffindor Common room, we heard an intense conversation between Igor and Professor Snape.

"It's a sign, Severus. You know what it means as well as I," Igor said. The door busted open, revealing Professor Snape and Igor. I was in shock when I saw Igor had the markings of the Dark Lord on his arm. Igor quickly walked past us.

"Potter!" Professor Snape yelled. Oh no, what now? Gwen grabbed my hand as we tried walking away but Professor Snape stopped us. "What's you're hurry? You stay too, Mrs. Potter!"

We nervously walked up to Professor Snape who had his usual stern expression. "Congratulations. Your performance in the Black Lake was inspiring. Gillyweed, am I correct?" Professor Snape asked.

"Yes, sir." Harry and I said.

"Ingenious." Professor Snape said as he started walking inside the closet. "A rather rare herb, Gillyweed." Professor Snape walked up the ladder and grabbed a bottle from the shelf. "Not something found in your everyday garden. Nor is this." Professor Snape said. Professor Snape walked down the ladder and held up the bottle.

"Know what it is?" Professor Snape asked.

"Bubble juice, sir?" I asked.

"Veritaserum. Three drops of this and You-Know-Who himself would spill his darkest secrets. The use of it on a student is... regrettably forbidden. However, should you ever steal from my personal stores again, my hands might just slip over your morning pumpkin juice." Professor Snape said.

"I haven't stolen anything. Neither did Lana." Harry said.

"Yeah, we didn't steal shit!" I yelled. Harry bumped me in my arm with his elbow. I immediately shut up, not wanting to get in trouble.

"Don't lie to me. Gillyweed may be innocuous, but boomslang skin lacewing flies? You and your little friends and family are brewing Polyjuice Potion, and believe me, I'm going to find out why!" Professor Snape yelled.

"You can't just blame people for things they did not do!" Kovu yelled.

Professor Snape just ignored him. "Begone!" Professor Snape yelled, slamming the door in front of us.

"That nerve of him!" Gwen shouted.

"Are you okay?" Kiara asked me.

"I just wanna go to bed," I said.

"Okay. We can go to bed." Gwen said. When we got to the Gryffindor Common room, my husbands, Miguel and Scar were waiting for me. Miguel had a glare on his face, his sharp fangs and claws were out. Scar was equally pissed. I was shocked to see my dad, Miles laying on the ground, bleeding out. Gwen immediately ran up to him.

"Miles! Oh, baby what did he do to you?" Gwen asked, worriedly. Uncle Peter rushed up to them, placing a hand on Miles' shoulder.

Miles coughed up a bit of blood. "He... he scratched me badly. He stabbed me with his claws when I disobeyed." Miles choked out. Miles had tears streaming down his face. Gwen was furious. She turned to Miguel, anger written all over her face.

"You asshole. Who the fuck do you think you are, hurting my family!?" Gwen yelled. Miguel ignored Gwen, turning to me with his arms crossed tightly over his chest.

"Where were you?" Miguel demanded. Harry jumped in front of me, pointing his wand at him. I yelped in pain when he shocked me, sending electricity through my body.

"I asked you a question, Lana. Where. Were. You?" Miguel said with a low growl.

"I... I... I just had a meeting with Professor Dumbledore. I'm sorry, I forgot to tell you." I stuttered. I yelped in pain when Scar shocked me, the electricity lasting longer this time.

"You know you are supposed to ask for permission to leave! You broke the rules!" Scar yelled. I was gasping and screaming in pain as the shocks continued. Scar finally turned the shocks off. I took some time to catch my breath. Miguel walked over to me, grabbing me tightly by the chin, his claws digging into my skin.

"You will never leave without permission again. Now come outside with us. We need to get you ready for the tournament tomorrow." Miguel said. As Miguel was dragging me away, Scar following him, I looked at Miles who was still in a lot of pain. Uncle Peter picked him up, carrying him to his room.

"Come on, kid. We'll take care of you." Uncle Peter said. Miles didn't respond. All he could do was cry into his arms. As I walked outside with my husbands, I couldn't help but feel nervous. They always go hard on me when I train with them.

"All right Lana, today we are going to practice you're fighting skills. I better not see you slack off again." Scar said.

"O-Okay," I said. And just like that, we began our training. Scar and Miguel hit me endlessly, scratching me with their claws. Every training session was abuse.

"Come on Lana, is that all you got!? Again!" Scar yelled. He swiped his claws at me. I narrowly missed them by inches. I tried running away from them at one point but that wasn't gonna fly with them.

"You can't just run away from all you're problems!" Miguel yelled, throwing another punch at me. My heart was racing, with sweat poring down my face. After a while of a brutal session, I was grateful to hear a familiar voice.

"What is going on out here!?"

I looked to see that it was Professor McGonagall, along with my Aunt Sarafina and Uncle Peter. Miguel cursed to himself in Spanish. Then he spoke up, "I'm just getting my wife ready for the tournament tomorrow."

"By hitting her? That's not how we do things here, Mr. O'Hara. You need to leave her alone now or I will inform the Headmaster about your behavior and see to it that you will be banished from the castle grounds." Professor McGonagall said firmly.

"But we need to keep training her! She's not ready!" Scar yelled.

"No, Scar. She needs rest. Resting is the best training for her right now." Uncle Peter said.

Miguel gave out an annoyed sigh. "Hmm, fine. But this isn't over, Lana." Miguel said dangerously. Scar and Miguel turned around to leave. I gave out a sigh of relief. Uncle Peter put his hand on my shoulder.

"Are you okay, Lana?" He asked me.

"Yeah, I am fine now thanks to you guys," I said.

"You're welcome. We're always here for you." Aunt Sarafina said.

"Sorry to break up this moment, but you should go to bed, Lana. I advise that you get some rest for your big day tomorrow." Professor McGonagall said.

"Okay, Godmother. Thanks." I said.

"Come on. Let's go back." Aunt Sarafina said. I was too tired to walk back from all the rough training and abuse I endured, so Aunt Sarafina picked me up by the scruff of my neck and carried me back to the dorm room. She tucked me in bed, then kissed me goodnight. I closed my eyes, trying to go to sleep but I couldn't. All I could think about was the final task tomorrow and what dangers lay ahead.

A/N: Hello everyone, here is chapter 16! I am sorry it took me a while to post this chapter, I was working on a new story I started which is called The Sixth Glitter Warrior. Please read it if you can I would love to hear your thoughts on the new story I have been working on. The other reason why this was taking me a while was because I was having some battles about this story. Off and on battles on weather to keep writing it or to delete it. After I did some editing, I decided to start writing this story again, so moving forward, I will continue writing this story and hopefully have more frequent updates now that I know what I want to do. Anyways I hope you all enjoyed reading this chapter! Next chapter is coming soon.

Have a nice day, don't forget to leave a review, and thank you for all your wonderful love and support!

- GalaxyQueen500