Son of Potter, Daughter of Black

DaSalvatore

Audio by Paper2Audio.

Harry felt he had lost his chance at family after watching Sirius fly away only for his godfather to show up during the summer. Sirius teaches Harry what he needs to know, helping him become the true Lord Potter. Then the Tri-Wiz comes and the deepest, darkest secret of the Marauders is was born the daughter of Lily and Sirius. Eventual Fem!HarryxTonks

Key:

"Words."

32. A Clash of Old and New

Thoughts / "emphasis" / Title of Books or spells used ~~Parseltongue~~ toForeign Language

"Magical language."

5th September, 1995 – Hogwarts

A Clash of Old and New

When Snape had collected Melania at the end of dinner, there had been a half-second where some of her Court wanted to go with her as some kind of honour guard. The Potions Master had glared that idea in the bud. The two wasted no breath with talking on the walk to Dumbledore's office.

Snape's glare didn't mean he wasn't proud of his Snakes' loyalty, only exasperated at their apparent lack of belief in his ability to keep them safe. Part of his lack of speech was an idea that had been percolating in his thoughts for a while, something that he was unsure if he wanted to investigate.

He wasn't the only one lost in thought. Melania's combat assessment of what was becoming her Court was positive, even though most wouldn't be able to handle any of the Inner Circle Death Eaters. That she was considering training teenagers to fight hardened murderers didn't sit well with the Lady Black, but she knew it had to be done. If only to keep some of her Court from dying at the hands of their parents.

The gargoyle parted for the solemn pair and they entered the moment Dumbledore called out. The headmaster was sitting behind his raise desk with a pleasant smile that didn't reach his eyes. Melania fought against a frown as she looked around the circular office, noticing several random objects missing from the last time she had seen it as Harry. Snape's focus was entirely upon his employer and second master, and the slight glazing to the man's blue eyes.

You're losing control if you need a calming drought before this meeting, Albus. Snape thought to himself.

"Thank you, Severus," Dumbledore said to draw Melania's attention. "You may go now."

"I requested Master Snape," Melania regally sat in the only available chair while the man in question stood by the door. Her legs crossed, and she placed both palms on her knee in order to appear non-threatening. She also had both her wands ready to be ejected from their wrist holsters if the man tried anything. "I'm aware you wanted to see me as Lady Black, headmaster, but one never knows what these chats might turn to."

A flicker of darkness crossed the old man's features and then was gone as the Calming Drought did its work. Dumbledore nodded and sat back to study Melania, peaking his fingers together beneath his beard. As the silence stretched, she took a glance towards the portrait of Phineas Nigellus. The cracks around the frame remained, and she was aware the former headmaster was in communication with her father. She wanted to frown when she saw the worried looks Phineas Nigellus was casting between her and Dumbledore. She would have to tread carefully if the powerful wizard had disturbed the dead man.

Dumbledore allowed the silence to drag on until it became almost uncomfortable before finally speaking. "I've been hearing interesting things from my Wizengamot contacts. The Greys are looking to unite behind a single cause for the first time since Arcturus Black and Charlus Potter."

"That's right, you knew my great-grandfathers," Melania pointed in a careful tone. According to her father, the powerful Dumbledore hadn't impressed either man. His eyebrows raised at how she addressed the infamous names.

"Grandfathers?"

"It works," she shrugged, refusing to elaborate. Dumbledore's eyes darkened at her lack of answer.

"I've had some respectable Light families come to me in concern. They too have heard the rumours and fear the Greys being drawn over to the Dark. A worrying proposition in these trying times."

"Any family falling to Voldemort is a worrying thing," she corrected with a hint of venom at the older man's blatant discriminatory attitude, silently apologising to Snape for using the Dark Lord's pseudonym. Narcissa had warned her how the Mark caused the wearer pain whenever they were around someone who said it.

"Your 'respectable' Light families should remember that their political leanings aren't the only ones at risk in these trying times."

"Yes, yes," Dumbledore mumbled, completely pushing aside anything that went against his ideology. "The fact of the matter is, I would like to speak to young Harry to discuss such things with him."

Melania blinked at the man who just stared back over his half-moon glasses. She ran back through the entire conversation yet still couldn't see how he justified the mental jump from subject to conclusion.

"You'll need to be more specific, headmaster," she demanded, flicking a bit of imaginary lint off her skirt rather than continue to worry over her Occlumency. "I don't quite see the relevance between Harry's safety and those rumours."

"Why, it's simple, my dear," he smirked. The condensing attitude radiated from behind the raised desk, and the smirk had both Melania and Snape wish to smack it off from beneath the bushy facial hair. "After all, he is the leading of the Potter-Black alliance, even though I would have wanted to keep him from such stresses for a few more years."

Melania's eyes narrowed at the jab, and she almost snarled at the arrogant git. Her reaction seemed to please Dumbledore, who couldn't see the dirty looks and vile hand gestures the portrait of Phineas Nigellus was giving.

"I am the leader of the Black-Potter alliance, Dumbledore," she practically snarled. "Lord Potter has no desire to get involved in the same political system that put him on trial for defending his life, even if he wasn't still recovering from Malfoy's attack."

"But it is young Harry's name that everyone flocks to, Melania. It is Harry who is the Boy Who Lived and beloved of the people."

Snape stepped forward to put a calming hand on Melania's shoulder before his Snake could respond. The tight muscles beneath his calloused hand betrayed just how deeply affected she was becoming with the conversation.

"Perhaps, Albus, you could explain what it is you want of my Snake? The time grows late and I have work to do."

"Yes, thank you, Severus," the old man snapped when it became obvious the contact between the Head of House and his student eased the latter's stress. "I wish to train Harry, Miss Black. There will come a time when he cannot ignore what is happening in the world and I want to make sure he is on the right path before it is too late."

"Why are you so certain he'll be pulled back?" She asked, wondering if the old man would reveal the prophecy.

"Voldemort," Dumbledore replied with a wave of his hand as though it was the most obvious answer. "Voldemort will not let Harry go even if it means he'll go after Harry's friends to draw him out."

A cold weight settled in Melania's stomach at the terrible words and she had a moment of wondering which 'he' Dumbledore was truly talking about. The paranoid idea was gone almost as quick as it formed. She rose, Snape's hand falling off her shoulder the second he felt her move, and gave the man an imperious glare.

"If you know this, then set up protections for his friends, headmaster. Don't put the weight of the world on the shoulders of a young man who has been through too much as it is."

She didn't wait for a reply. Her Head of House was a step behind her as she walked out of the office only for Dumbledore to call his Potions Professor back.

"We will be speaking soon, Severus. I have many questions for you."

Onyx eyes stared into blue and then Snape nodded, swishing out of the office without hesitation. He was not looking forward to that meeting.

The Potions Master found his Snake waiting for him at the gargoyle statue. He didn't let her talk. Instead, he used his longer strides to head down to the dungeons away from where portraits and house-elves were always listening to report back to their master.

He didn't need the precaution. Melania's emotions were a mess behind her mask and she wondered just what was Dumbledore's endgame for Harry.

"Come," Snape ordered as he moved towards his office rather than the Slytherin Common Room. His personal wards settled around his awareness as he entered the room and informed him that nothing had been in since he last left.

Melania took the seat facing Snape's desk and watched him lean down to open a locked drawer. The dark-haired man brought out a fresh bottle of bourbon and two glasses that he splashed some of the expensive liquid into. She raised an eyebrow at being offered alcohol, and he scoffed.

"You're old enough, you're Lady Black and it is one glass," he informed her in his usual no-nonsense tone. "It is also the only glass you'll get from me."

She had no argument and simply took the drink with the same respect it was offered. Snape sipped his own and watched her with his immutable dark gaze.

"There are several rituals designed to either purge a person of their emotions or to focus their minds on a singular task," Snape explained in the same low tone he used for his classes. "The one thing about all the rituals is that they make the person extremely dangerous to deal with. They find it far easier to make decisions others would declare horrific."

She knew there was a reason behind the impromptu lesson, but couldn't see it. Unless he's suggesting that Dumbledore has done something so stupid? She thought with a visible frown. Snape was pleased to spot her putting the pieces together.

"One specific ritual has the witch or wizard carve out the emotions they wish to avoid. They then find they have greater emotional manipulation over themselves and others. The downside to this ritual is any spell or potion that affects the emotional state will cause brief mental destabilisation. This evening, Dumbledore was under the effects of a Calming Drought."

"Morgana," her eyes widened at what Snape was suggesting. If Dumbledore had truly done such a ritual, then there was no telling what else he would do. Especially with pesky emotions like empathy and morality being dulled. Melania took a sip of the strong drink as the master Slytherin continued his lesson.

"The reason I know of this ritual is that I was considering it," Snape lifted his glass as though to take a sip while watching his student. A flicker of amusement crossed his face as he timed his next words. "Such was my pain when your mother died, mister Potter."

Snape couldn't help smirking as Melania Black choked on the bourbon. The expensive drink caught the back of her throat as he dropped his bombshell and she frantically put the half-empty glass on the desk before the harsh coughs caused her to spill the rest. As it was, Melania decided the drink wasn't as nice coming out of her nose as it had been going down her throat.

"You did that deliberately," she accused in a croaky voice. A handkerchief appeared from somewhere so she could wipe herself down. He didn't reply, but simply waved his wand to dry and clean her up.

Snape's intense gaze left no room for hiding. She couldn't pretend ignorance of his remark, not after her reaction to the man's words. Instead, the question was, how did he know?

"What gave it away?"

It pleased Snape that his Slytherin didn't look to hide the truth through quickly fabricated lies. Cunning was all well and good but he couldn't abide stupidity once someone was caught out in a lie.

"I have no doubt your records and paper trail are exceptional work and your backstory is something suitably Black in its execution." Translation; when your father was younger, he was idiotic enough to abandon both his newborn daughter and godson for revenge. "Yet this does nothing to take away from the fact you came from nowhere, just as someone with as much baggage as Harry Potter carries vanished from the public eye. Anyone who doesn't at least suspect a connection between the outgoing and incoming students is a complete dunderhead."

She cringed at his critique. It had been her biggest worry in their entire plan.

"The sex change had convinced me otherwise," Snape admitted before taking another sip of his drink. He was watching Melania as he explained his thought processes. He wouldn't have done so for many people, but Melania Black had impressed him over the past couple of months. "Yet even allowing for Melania to be a secret love-child of Black, this then brought up another problem."

"And that would be?"

"You are your mother's daughter. Your talents are Lily's, your mannerisms are Lily's, your personality is far more Lily that it is Black's. So unless you wish to convince me that Lily Evans had an extra-marital affair with Black and hid it from the world, explain to me how you can sit there as Melania Black but be Harry Potter."

She winced as Snape's voice grew colder at the end, his anger at the idea of Lily sleeping with her father overcoming much of his growth in attitude towards the Marauders. Melania reached out to snatch up her glass and down the remaining bourbon. She was still a daughter of House Black and even her furious movement didn't cause the slightest of noise when she put the glass back on the desk. She took a deep breath and settled herself, legs crossing while she matched his intense eyes.

"It all starts with Antonin Dolohov," she proclaimed in a firm voice that showed none of her nerves. She explained about Lily being hit by the Death Eater's curse and her parents finding out what it did. Snape's knuckles whited as his hold on the glass tightened, and she was sure he would have a refill once she left his office. "According to mum's journals, she had been researching magical genetics since her third year."

"She had," Snape confirmed and his eyes lost focus for a moment as he thought back to his Hogwarts years. "She never told me why, but Lily became obsessed with understanding Familial Magic and how it linked specific traits to family lines."

"Malfoy hair, Black bone structure and grey eyes, Potter hair," she agreed, looking forward to her Head of House's reaction to what was to come. "The Avada coloured eyes of Salazar Slytherin."

"Excuse me?" The mind of the Master Occlumens came to a screeching halt at what was being suggested. "Are you telling me that Lily was a descendent of the most infamous Founder there is? The most anti-Muggle wizard in history?"

"No, Master Snape, I'm telling you that her eyes made her the Primary descendent for Slytherin's line. She would have come out on top if she and Riddle had attempted to claim the Lordship."

And it had been a complete surprise for Melania to read that it had been Narcissa who had explained this to Lily.

Snape struggled to wrap his mind around what he had heard and looked into his student's eyes, once again noticing how the laurel colouring was more akin to the Black's grey colouring overlapped with Lily's green than its own thing. It made him wonder what other secrets the young woman was hiding.

"As shocking as this is, I assume your previous experience as Harry Potter is not all down to some secret Slytherin magic."

"Nothing so mundane," she replied with a small chuckle that had Snape snorting at her quick cheeky grin. Melania explained how Lily had manipulated the genetic material of the two best friends. "With James being the son of Dorea Black, it meant that Harry would carry the potential for being a Metamorphmagus. Somehow, mum manipulated that ability to have her child swap between James' son and Sirius' daughter in order to beat the curse. She truly was a genius."

"Yes, she was," Snape replied in a soft voice that betrayed his feelings for his childhood friend. He snapped out of the melancholy feelings to focus on the reason he had begun the meeting. "This means you will need to be even more careful of Albus, Miss Black. There are things I cannot discuss with you about why he is so focused on Potter, but believe me, he will not give up demanding you return his Golden Boy."

"You know about the prophecy?" Melania gasped, putting wand and movement together. The hair at the back of her neck bristled from the instant frosty glare from the older man.

"What exactly do you know of the prophecy, miss Black?"

"Harry got Riddle to admit there was one at the graveyard," she quickly explained and Snape absently noticed how the girl split herself from her other persona. "Amelia Bones told my father that there's one in the Department of Mysteries with Harry, Trelawney, and Dumbledore's name on the plate."

Snape took a moment to compose himself. He was under oaths to Dumbledore that kept him from talking in any detail about this very topic. Nevertheless, he had one thing to share before sending Black the Younger to her Court.

"Be aware that the Dark Lord would like nothing more than to have Potter collect the Prophecy for him. Now, you have some Slytherins waiting for you and I have no wish to see them break down my door looking for you."

Melania knew a dismissal when she heard one, and its suddenness didn't bother her. The entire evening was enough to cause her head to spin, and she needed time to digest how her world had changed from the two meetings.

Later that Night "What do you mean Snape knows?" Sirius' voice hit an unnatural note that had all those hearing it cringe. Melania was lying on her bed, using her mirror to explain the day's events to Grimmauld.

"I mean, he worked out that I'm Lily's daughter and knew that there's no way she'd have an affair with you behind James' back," Melania explained in a patient 'you're being an idiot' voice. "He wanted to know what was going on and I told him. He then warned me that Riddle might try forcing Harry to retrieve the prophecy."

Sirius' mouth was working with no sound being made as he tried getting over the fact his school-time nemesis now knew their family's biggest secret.

"You believe he's on your side?" Cissy softly asked. Melania was aware of the tension between her aunt and Head of House, but also knew the woman was doing her best to keep it from causing any issues.

"As much as he can be, yeah. It wouldn't surprise me if both Dumbledore and Riddle have him wrapped up in oaths."

"Mel, pup, please be careful," Sirius pleaded, his grey eyes filled with his love for her. The intensity took her breath away.

"I promise."

10th September, 1995 OoOoO

It had been an interesting time for Melania. The inspections by the dishonourable Madam Umbridge continued, though much more subdued and with almost no interruptions after the first few days. The pink blob in the corner of her classrooms had taken nothing away from Melania's enjoyment of learning, and she had dived into each class like a Ravenclaw finding a new library.

And for the most part, the teachers were reasonable and fair in how they treated her, though somewhat stricter with her and her homework than they had been with Harry the previous year. It took a little longer to for her to be called up for answers and her points accumulation were only half what Harry had enjoyed.

Malfoy had been subdued after his loss in their duel, but she had no doubts that would change. The training with her family continued, and she had found a surprising development in her connection with Muninn. Their familiar bond extended beyond what they had suspected, and Melania had been delighted to find she could see out of her raven's eyes on command. She had been doing it as often as possible during the day to master splitting her focus and was enjoying the way her friend soared through the Hogwarts grounds when she entered one of her Transfiguration classes.

"Early, Miss Black," Professor McGonagall said with suspicious glee. "Excellent."

"Excellent, Professor?" Melania frowned as she separated herself from Muninn's mind. "Why?"

"Don't be so nervous, child," the woman chuckled. "I merely wished to ask if you knew how to dance."

"Er... yeah, I do," she admitted as she took her seat. The room filled up around her and the feline smile the elder woman gave them disturbed her.

"Before we begin class, I have an announcement to make," McGonagall declared once everyone had taken their seats. "Because of the wonderful results of last year's Yule Ball, the Hogwarts staff have decided to host a Halloween Ball this year. If it is as successful as we believe it can be, we are thinking of holding a themed Ball every year."

The class erupted in eager whispers from the girls and some boys, while Melania blinked in utter surprise. It didn't help that her mind filled with raven laughter.

"Unlike last year, the Halloween Ball will be open to all students. We will also allow dance partners from outside of Hogwarts, but only once the staff has vetted them. Anyone thinking of sneaking someone in who at least two members of the staff haven't agreed upon will face severe punishments.

Now, we continue with animal transfiguration. Miss Brown, share the mice out, if you will."

Melania continued to blink as her thoughts rebooted. There was no way the person she wanted to invite would go as her date. A nudge from Tracey snapped her out of her daze.

"Already thinking of which boy to accept your invitation from?" The girl giggled and Melania heard Daphne's usual sigh of exasperation from her other side.

"Actually, I'm wondering if my date will be available," she replied, her second-choice popping quickly to mind. The mental nod of agreement from Muninn had the Lady Black wondering when she had started taking so much advice from her feathered friend.

Melania would spend the rest of the time leading up to the Ball fighting off both requests to be a date and Tracey's desperate attempts to find out who she had picked out as the lucky guy.

7th October, 1995

OoOoO

Melania's potential date for the Ball met with her outside of Hogwarts for the first Hogsmeade trip of the year. It was still warm and Fleur Delacour was wearing low cut pants with knee-high dragon-hide boots. A silver chain was fastened loosely around her waist and dangled distractedly down one leg while her sleeveless top hid far more than it showed. All-in-all, Melania thought the girl looked good enough to eat and told her so.

"Merci, my little dagger," The French girl beamed at the compliment and they kissed each other's cheeks after sharing a crushing hug. It was a nickname she had given Melania after watching the girl's training sessions with Andi. "Mother and father send their best and little Gabriel is pouting that she could not be here to steal you away from me."

Melania laughter filled the sunny air, and the two girls turned heads as they made a slow walk to Hogsmeade.

"So how have you been?" Fleur asked with a smirk as they walked arm in arm. "How goes your private lessons with your Dora?"

"Not my Dora, Fleur," Melania sighed, ignoring the stares they were getting from the passing carriages. "And she's a professor this year. No private lessons for me."

"Pish," the elegant girl said with a wave of an artistic hand. "She only needs encouragement."

"Speaking of," Melania began, her nerves causing her friend to frown. A part of Melania sighed at how lovely her friend looked while making the expression. "There's a Ball at Halloween and I can't ask Dora.."

"Ah, my darling dagger," the French girl held the back of her hand to her forehead in mock horror. "I've been relegated to a back-up date. What shall my little ego do?"

"Stop it," Melania giggled, hip bumping Fleur in the hopes of getting the mocking girl to behave. "You were the only one I thought of besides her."

"And of course I shall be honoured, ma chérie. I know the perfect dress for you to wear."

"What? What about your dress?"

"We can worry about that later. Yours is the one that must be the honey that traps the fly."

Melania groaned while her friend laughter rang in the air.

OoOoO

Nymphadora 'Dora' Black-Tonks growled while her mother's chuckles echoed in her ears. Dora was looking out of the window of The Three Broomsticks, where she was sharing a lunch with Andromeda and had just spotted the laughing pair of Melania and Fleur Delacour.

"You respect our Lady, don't you?" Andromeda asked with the sternness that only came from a prying mother. "You aren't playing with the girl's affections?"

"Mum!" Dora hissed, half-angry, half-embarrassed, glancing around to make sure no one heard the question.

"Of course I do, of course I'm not."

"She cares for you a great deal," Andi pointed out, and took a sip from her glass of pumpkin juice. "You were there when no one else could be."

"I know," Dora sighed heavily. It was all too easy to remember the night Harry had taken the potion that revealed Melania to the world and the fear she had felt watching her friend. "I know that."

"You care for her."

"That's not the point, mum," she whined unhappily. She took a deep gulp of her butterbeer and Andromeda was extremely grateful it wasn't anything stronger, even though she was sure her daughter wasn't. "I'm a teacher. It's not right."

"You won't be a teacher next year. Amelia's only put you on this for a year."

"I know, mum," once again she looked to the streets where the two girls were having fun over some joke.

Madam Bones had been so impressed by her undercover work as Natalia that she had pushed Dora into taking the dada position to keep a watchful eye on Lady Black. The political situation was heating up and Hogwarts proved to not be a safe environment for important students. Dora hadn't expected it to be a nightmare to watch Melania each day and miss the personal time they had spent together the previous year. The private conversations, the emotional sharing, the teaching of how to be a girl. Tonks had fallen hard for the newly discovered Melania, and every excuse seemed to crumble that little more as the weeks passed.

"Tell me about what's going on upstairs." Andi took pity on her daughter. Love was a tricky business for the Blacks, especially for those close to the Head of House, and she didn't want to push either girl into something that could fracture their family. "Did young Neville really come up with this all on his own?"

"Oh, yeah!" Dora laughed, remembering the way the Longbottom Scion had come to her with Luna and Hermione. The boy had been convinced the two girls had thought it all up, only for the two to explain what really happened when he left the room. "He really did, and I think it's a great idea. See, what he wants to do is..."

In a full room on the next floor up, the current topic of discussion between mother and daughter was taking place. A crowd of almost thirty students, a surprisingly good mix of all four Houses, were sitting in the magically expanded room waiting for the show to start. Nestled in the corner was Professor Flitwick, the reason for the magical expansion, who was part sponsor along with Dora for the entire adventure. Hermione pointedly looked at Neville while Luna gave his hand a squeeze, and the brother of Harry Potter took a deep, steadying breath before standing.

"Right. I would first like to thank everyone for coming," he said, timidly at first, but growing in confidence as the words came. Many struggled to relate the confident and powerful boy as the same Neville Longbottom they had seen continuously losing his pet frog in their first year. "We've all experienced dada classes and see where Professor Black-Tonks is heading with it."

By then everyone had heard of Melania's attack on McLaggen and no one was stupid enough to make a rude comment about their teacher in case it got back to the powerful Slytherin.

"But I feel... and I think some of you do as well... that the classes have shown how unprepared we really are," he nodded in thanks at Luna when she passed him a glass of water and he took a steadying sip from it. "Yes, we want to pass our owls. But we can't hide from what else she is trying to teach us."

"And that is?" An aggressive Hufflepuff called out. Susan, standing near her friend, sigh, and whispered the boy's name to Neville. "What exactly are you suggestion, Longbottom?"

"Danger, Smith," Neville forcefully told the boy, his aura beginning to tingle the air around him in his passion. "You don't have to believe Voldemort has returned."

The predictable shudder and gasps of fear ripped through the crowd.

"I do. I believe Harry had to face him," Neville declared, staring down Zacharias Smith until the boy had to look away from the fierceness of his glare. "But you don't have to. You know why?

Because there are still ten escaped Death Eaters out there who would kill you as soon as they saw you. You don't have to believe their leader is back if they're out there ready to hurt anyone they feel is beneath them."

"What are you suggesting, Neville?" Ernie Macmillan asked and the rest of the crowd murmured their wish to know the answer. "Where's this really going?"

"Training," Neville told them plainly. By now, his presence was filling the room and no one could turn away when his eyes met theirs. "I did a lot of training with Harry last year when he was preparing for the Tournament and he made sure I understood a lot more than simple charms. Duelling tactics, how to stay alive, when to run and when to fight."

"Harry certainly knew all that." Fred smiled fondly at the idea of the boy he considered family.

"And the boy can sure cast a patronus," George added with a wistful sigh.

"And we'll learn that too." Neville promised only to go red as everyone stared at him.

"You know how to cast a patronus?" Lee asked with worship in his eyes.

"Corporeal?" Hermione looked as though someone had told her one of her books actually held the secrets of the universe, except she had been reading it wrong this entire time. Luna merely beamed at the attention her man was getting.

"I can, and yes," he answered, running a nervous hand through his hair. "Harry showed me how to the last time I saw him."

The students were looking at Neville akin to a superstar. Here was a boy they had ignored and laugh at, yet claiming to be able to do things only power wizards like Dumbledore and Harry Potter could do. And he was looking to train them. It took almost no time at all after that for everyone to sigh up for the list Flitwick put Melania was having a blast with Fleur as they drifted from shop to shop. They'd even slipped into Gladrags to pick out a few items, where Fleur had her stand still while the shop assistant took and noted her measurements for the mysterious dress. Every joke and hint at what her friend was cooking up had Melania growing more nervous at things getting out of hand.

Muninn was enjoying the warm air and soaring somewhere above, mentally laughing at her pet's embarrassment and keeping her from getting too worked up. Suddenly the raven sent a pulse of warning through their bond so strong that Melania almost tumbled to the ground.

"Chérie?" Fleur cried out as Melania lost footing, barely catching her. "What's wrong?"

"Trouble," Melania croaked, fear blazing in her eyes. She spun her head up and down the street in desperation. Something caught her attention, and she blinked when she realised it was the still form of Draco standing in an alleyway watching her. He calmly looked down the village to where Muninn had told her the attack was coming from and back to her.

Her heart sunk as she realised he knew what was coming. A noise caught her attention, and she was glad when she spotted a sizeable crowd exciting The Three Broomsticks. She shot a glance back to the shadowy alleyway, but Malfoy had already vanished. She shook off any thought about the boy. She couldn't worry about that now.

"Professor! Professor!" She called out, racing hard towards Flitwick while the surprised Fleur was left trying to keep up. "You need to get everyone out of here. Now."

"Miss Black," Flitwick stared at her in confusion. "What are you talking about?"

"Dementors," she snapped, wand in hand, as she scanned back down the street where Muninn had seen the waiting demons. The raven in question soared down to land on her shoulder to nuzzle into her hair in the attempts to comfort the panicking girl. "Dementors and Death Eaters."

Filius Flitwick didn't think for a moment that it was a poor joke and immediately withdrew his own wand. A quick swish had the glowing form of a wyvern appearing before the startled and scared students.

"To Albus," he commanded the Patronus. "Hogsmeade is about to be attacked by dementors and Death Eaters."

The unique dragon nodded its large head and flew off towards the castle just as Dora and Andromeda raced out of the Three Broomsticks.

"I saw the Patronus. What's wrong?" Dora demanded, her hair cycling through colours as her attention focused on Melania.

"We're about to be attacked," she told her friend, not wanting to explain the how. Muninn squawked, and that was enough of a hint for the Auror who immediately pulled out her badge of service to tap at an emergency code. Melania had turned to Fleur and barely opened her mouth before the French girl cut her off.

"Non! Don't you dare ask me to run and leave you here," she snapped, the air warping with the heat that the Veela was giving off. "I vill not."

"You dare try that shit with me, girls," Andromeda stated before either Melania or Dora could look at her. "And I'll have you both over my knees."

"I'm afraid it's too late for that," Flitwick pointed out as dark shapes appeared at the end of the street. Cries of fear and alarm filled the air from somewhere in the village as the Death Eaters made their own presence known.

"Students to safety," Melania commanded as she stepped out into the street, her eyes locked onto the creatures of nightmares. Her magic pulsed, acting like Loki ready to slip free and rip and tear. "That's your job, Professor."

Fleur was immediately beside Melania, and Neville followed behind. Dora turned to her mother, fear for both their safety evident in her ever changing hair colour.

"Help Flitwick, mum," she pleaded. "And if she's out there, please stay out of her way. Please."

"You as well," Andi hugged her daughter, neither caring what it looked like to the students nor did they have to expand on who 'she' was. Dora nodded to Flitwick and chased after Melania just as Lady Black was casting her first patronus. "Do we know how many of each there are?"

Flitwick never had time to answer as an explosion rocked the village and a familiar cackle travelled through the air, followed by the screams of the innocent.

OoOoO

Two grims, a large grizzly bear and an elegant swan moved through the air to push back the dementors as the group of casters fought to get to the Death Eaters who were attacking anyone they could find. The enemy's plan was as simply as it was effective. The soul-sucking creatures would push forward, keeping any resistance at bay while the Death Eaters followed up behind to strike at those who had fallen behind the lines.

Melania had counted at least twenty of the demons and knew they had sensed her potent blood. She had been holding back, using only the normal Expecto Patronum rather than her more lethal version. The truth was, it required her to want to kill, to want to destroy, in order to cast and she hated reaching for that type of rage. It felt too much like what she had felt in the thoughts of Riddle when his soul piece had erupted from Harry's scar.

Neville's bear was impressive, but he wasn't used to the power needed to keep the intense spell going and too many dementors were slipping around their ring of protection to attack those behind them.

"Oh lookie, lookie, it's a wittle girl wanting to pway with the big boys," a childish voice giggled from nearby and for the first time Melania's eyes settled on her other aunt. The sight of the woman, the one whose very mention could bring her aunt Cissy to tears, brought that hidden bursting free.

"Patronum Mortifer!" Melania screamed, her wand pointed at the nearest dementor. Her dark-furred Loki burst forth and ripped the unsuspecting creature into pieces before immediately jumping to the next. Fury burned reason out of Melania's thoughts and she continued to cast, attempting to fill the street with black-lined silver grims. "Patronum Mortifer. Patronum Mortifer."

As like when Harry and Dora had been attacked, the dementors fled the moment they faced the threat of their own mortality and the group released their hold on their patroni to stare at the human monsters before them.

Bellatrix Lestrange was without a mask and surrounded by her fellow Death Eaters, but she only had eyes for her niece. Likewise, Melania burned to remove the stain upon her family's honour. The moment's rest ended when Bellatrix launched an Avada at her niece's heart.

Melania ripped an oversized piece of rock from the ground to take the blast. The stone blew apart, and she banished the fragments at the Death Eaters.

"Scatter!" She shouted to her friends, following her own advice by diving away from her original position. The others followed and were saved contact with more deathly green beams of magic.

Melania's trick sliced through the Death Eaters, and it was only Bella who got away unscathed. Some fell, never to rise again, while others dropped in agony as bones were broken. Half still of those standing saw a group of rescuers racing towards them from another street and headed the group off.

"Little bitty girl wants to play?" Bella screamed, her insanity clear in the fevered light of her eyes. "Let's play!"

The fury of spells launched at Melania was breathtaking, and she would have marvelled at her aunt's skill if they weren't all lethal. It took all her training to merely stay alive, using a combination of movement and shields to keep from being hit. She was barely getting off a spell back for every five sent her way and didn't know how long she could last.

OoOoO

Tonks recognised the Death Eater she was fighting against. Alecto Carrow had lost her mask in Melania's attack and even had a slit cut on her cheek that wouldn't stop bleeding. The Carrows were sadistic and dangerous, willing to hurt anyone and everyone just because they could, and Dora switched over from her Auror training to what she had been taught as a Black. No prisoners.

OoOoO

Fleur wasn't a fighter, not really, but she was more than capable of handling herself against the average wizard. There was a reason she had been selected as her school's Triwizard Champion. Still, she was thankful when the Death Eater trying to kill her seemed to be less about skill and more brute force. The large, bulky man seemed to have an extremely limited range of spells, and she was keeping him on his toes with the occasional fireball.

Don't get cocky. She scolded herself as a hastily thrown up Protego barely stopped a nasty bone-breaking curse.

Neville didn't know who it was he faced against. The squat, almost lumpy man in torn robes had an annoying giggle he would let loose before every Avada attack. The heir to House Longbottom was thankful to Harry's constantly training about spacial awareness, as more than once he would have tripped over a piece of rubble if he hadn't been so focused on his surroundings.

He used more shields than he wanted, but he was winded and drained from fighting the horror of the dementors. They had forced him to face the empty eyes of his parents, and that only made Neville mad. Especially when he was constantly spotting Melania's opponent out of the corner of his eye.

Melania had realised that playing a defensive game was tantamount to giving in when fighting Bellatrix Lestrange. The woman's insanity seemed to give her a depth of energy that would out distance almost anyone and she had at least ten years of experience on Melania for the younger girl to win a war of attrition.

Yet Lady Black was feeling more alive than she had done ever before. Her thoughts were speeding up, the blood pounded in her veins and her feral grin easily matched the deranged one her aunt wore for its sheer disturbing factor. Her natural aggression took over, and she swirled her wand.

"Protego Horribilis." She chanted and her laughter caused Bellatrix to scream in fury as every spell the woman had flung at Melania splintered and shot back at her from multiple angles.

The refracted magic might have been weaker than its original casting, but it was still dangerous enough for the Death Eater to have to dive and roll out of the way. Melania couldn't help but fling a few piercing arrows at the Death Eaters attacking her friends to keep the bastards on their toes, and at least one sliced into the arm of the woman attacking Dora.

"Bitch!" Bella cried out as it was now the elder Black's turn to use a strong shield against an overpowered Reducto. "That was my trick."

"Sorry, auntie," Melania replied sweetly as she stepped closer, driving her insane aunt back from her own barrage of powerful spells. Until the Horribilis broke, there was very little Bellatrix could do. "But you know how it is. The new must make way for the old."

"Avada Kedavra! Crucio! Avada Kedavra! Depulso!"

The woman's skill with the Unforgivables was horrifying. The trio of spells came at Melania with such fury and perfect aim that she knew she couldn't avoid them all. She repeated her earlier trick of blocking the terrible spells with rubble, and the explosive result meant she was open to the simple but effective follow-up.

Melania turned sideways against the banished shards of her makeshift physical shield and had no idea that the actual focus of Bellatrix's spell had been the downed body of one of her own Death Eaters. The large body flew at Melania, whose body was in the wrong position for a proper dive to safety, and so her ankle was an easy target for the silently cast bone-pulverising spell hidden behind the body. She landed hard on the floor with agony and hard impact taking all the air out of her lungs. She had landed angled, facing away from her opponent and towards at Neville, and beyond him, Dora. Melania wondered if seeing them fight for their lives would be the last thing she ever saw.

Neville was bleeding from a dozen shallow cuts and he kept his left arm tucked close to his chest to keep a potentially broken rib from moving around too much. His opponent wasn't doing much better and looked to be barely on his feet. Only rage and embarrassment at being equalled by a boy giving Amycus Carrow the strength to continue.

The Death Eater could have portkeyed out, especially with the fighting he could hear getting closer, but there was no way he was leaving before showing the insolent kid who was the master.

Neville saw what happened to Melania, and his heart skipped as Lestrange's wand began glowing green for the killing spell. His mind absently picked up a strange whooshing sound before a man screamed in horror, but Neville ignored it all as he focused on one of the faces he saw in his nightmares. He ignored the Death Eater facing him and turned, wand extended towards Lestrange. He caught Melania's wand aiming across him towards his Death Eater, but Neville only had eyes for the dark-haired woman who had cost him so much.

"Pertundere!" He roared, not bothering with a visualisation. A tremendous blast of magic raced from his wand towards the startled Death Eater.

Bellatrix knew that spell. The Longbottom brat had dared to use one of her family's spells against her! That was the thought racing through Bellatrix's mind and it almost cost her life as the sheer surprise of the spell took much needed time off her attempted dive. Which meant it ripped a wound in her side that could have come from one of Macnair's axes. The echoes of Bellatrix Lestrange's cries of pain and anguish over being bested by a schoolboy lingered long after she vanished from the activated portkey.

Melania's spell shot past Neville's vision and he unconsciously followed it to see the strange sight of the Death Eater dropping his wand to clutch at his head until there was a crack and then pop as the man's brain exploded from the skull. Interesting use of an enlargement charm. He thought, blinking in utter surprise at what he had just witnessed.

"Amycus!" Alecto screamed in loss at the sight of her dead twin.

It was the last thing the woman ever saw as Dora's Reducto caused her body to explode into sharp, wet, and fleshy pieces. The Auror didn't care, already racing to Melania's side with her heart in her mouth. Fleur was mere steps behind, her own enemy burning where he had fallen after she had transformed and roasted him with her fire.

Neville was still standing, staring at where the woman had exploded apart, when the Aurors and some Order members arrived. The mediwitch who had to take care of his shock first needed to remove blobs of Carrow out of his hair.

OoOoO

There would be no more Dolores Umbridge at Hogwarts after the attack on Hogsmeade. She had been hiding from Melania Black in the Hog's Head while trying to find the right balance between buzzed and sober.

Every time the girl was close, Umbridge would see her eyes change. Each time the girl looked her way, Umbridge saw the beast inside that wanted to hunt and kill her. This was why she had done everything she could to destroy the werewolves.

The beasts terrified her. Yet the worse thing was, Melania Black was some type of super werewolf.

Umbridge had somehow bribed one of Hogwarts' elves to switch out the girl's cutlery for pure silver. It had taken a long time – oh, how she hated dealing with those foul, loathsome little creatures – but eventually the thing agreed. The exchange did nothing.

There had been not a single reaction to the silver at all. Umbridge had come to only one conclusion. The Blacks had somehow merged their prestigious bloodline with those terrible beasts in such a way that they got all the strengths and none of their weaknesses.

The girl had been active during the full moon, completely without a change, yet still there was the telltale eyes. The beast's eyes. She couldn't take it much longer.

For all her work in destroying the nightmares, House Black had done the impossible. And with no weaknesses for her to exploit, there was no way she could prove it to the Wizengamot.

What she, and Melania, would never know was that three specific elves had taken it upon themselves to add little extras to her meals that helped her 'see the light'.

Screams broke through her wild, drunk and drugged fuelled thoughts. She gingerly stood from her dark corner of the pub and carefully shuffled to the window as the barman observed her every move. Umbridge looked on in fear as she saw dementors fall to a strange coloured patronus. She finally understood where two of the dementors Cornelius had sent after Potter had gone.

It was the final straw for the confounded woman. Enough was enough. With a scared hiccup, she pulled open the door of the Hog's Head and ran the entire way to Hogwarts and her office. She would be out of the country by the end of the day and her disappearance was the next step in the Fudge's downfall.

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