Sirius, James and Remus were walking down the corridor, joking with each other as they normally did. James looked to his right, and saw a pretty Ravenclaw girl staring intently at Sirius, a large grin plastered across her face. James shook his head, and elbowed Sirius in the ribs lightly. "That Ravenclaw girl is totally checking you out, Sirius!" James informed him, a smile creeping over his face.
Sirius let out a laugh, and turned in the direction James indicated. He smiled at her, his dark hair falling casually into his face, enhancing his handsome features. When the girl saw Sirius look at her, she squealed and her grin grew even larger.
"Erm, look out for that wall!" Sirius called to her. The corridor was coming to an end, branching into another. The wall stuck out on that turn. But it was too late. The girl, only watching Sirius and not where she was going, ran into the wall.
She was knocked off her feet and landed on the floor. Her books were sprawled out in front of her and to the sides. Her cheeks were bright red as she struggled to get up. Stifling a laugh, Sirius bounded over to her side, and offered her a hand. She took it quickly, and Sirius pulled her up. He bent down to pick up her books, not noticing her loving smile.
"Are you alright?" He asked her, handing her books back to their owner. Her cheeks flushed bright red again as she nodded sheepishly. Sirius was about to say something else, when a gruff voice rang out, coupled with laughter.
Snape was standing in front of them, laughing hysterically. "That was a good one, Julia!" He laughed sarcastically. "Right into the wall!" He screamed in hilarity.
Sirius walked away, deliberately ramming his shoulder into Snape's, shoving him to the side roughly. "Stuff it, Snape. Go boil your greasy head in a pot. But please, don't infect anything." He laughed, and was backed up by his friends, who had appeared next to him. Julia giggled and waved to Sirius, who winked at her, and grinned at a fuming Snape.
James and Remus walked down the rest of the hall with Sirius, laughing loudly. Remus shoved Sirius playfully. "That's the fourth girl this week, Padfoot!"
Sirius laughed in response. He opened his mouth to say something, when a loud voice cut him off. The three boys turned around, and were met with the stern site of Professor McGonagall. She eyed them, and spoke in a serious voice. "Mr. Black, please come with me. Lupin, Potter, please be on your way."
Sirius turned around to his friends, and gulped. "Word gets around fast," he whispered. In a louder voice, he said, "I'll see you guys at lunch later." He then turned back around, and followed the Professor into her office. She offered him a seat, and Sirius took it. Before McGonagall could say anything, he spoke quickly. "It wasn't my fault, Professor! I didn't hurt Snape, I just pushed him. He was making fun of someone!"
Normally, McGonagall would have given him a wry smile, but her face remained like stone. She seemed a little nervous also. Her voice was soft, another sign that there was something wrong. "It's not that, Mr. Black. I don't know how to tell you this." She sighed and her features softened even more. Sirius gulped, this couldn't be good. "You-Know-Who… he found your house yesterday. I'm sorry, Mr. Black, but he killed your parents and brother."
Sirius' mouth dropped open slightly, and it felt like his heart had stopped beating. He was expecting anything but this. He drew in a ragged breath. "W- Why?" He stammered weakly. Averting his eyes from McGonagall, he glared at the wall.
"We don't know why, there was no reason why. I'm sorry, you know that he leaves none alive. There is nothing we can do. Your Aunt is coming to pick you up right now so you can go to the funeral tomorrow. It would make too much of a fuss if she picked you up here, and I'm sure you don't want that, correct?" Sirius said nothing, so McGonagall continued. "She'll pick you up in Hogsmeade in half an hour. Do you understand?"
Sirius continued to stare at the wall, not really seeing it. "Sirius?" Professor McGonagall asked softly.
Sirius snapped his to face her, and stood up quickly. "I understand."
McGonagall stood up also, eyeing him in concern. "Would you like someone to accompany you to Hogsmeade?"
"No," Sirius responded absently, still not looking at her.
McGonagall sighed, "very well, Mr. Black. Go pack you things, you'll be there for a couple days." Sirius walked to the door, and put his hand on the doorknob. "I really am sorry, Sirius," McGonagall said again in a gentle voice. Sirius turned the handle and went out the door, not responding.
He ran to the Gryffindor Tower, and to the dormitories. He was relieved to see that there was no one in the Gryffindor Common Room. They were all probably still eating lunch right now. That's the way Sirius wanted it, he couldn't deal with any questions right now. "They're dead," he mumbled disbelievingly. He took out a large green camping back and threw in a couple shirts carelessly. He hurled some other belongings in his bag, and roughly closed the zipper. He hoisted the bag onto his shoulder, and went out the door. He slammed the portrait of the Fat Lady shut, ignoring her shouts about his improper behavior.
Half an hour later, he found himself in the Hogsmeade entrance. He saw his Aunt standing in front of a store apprehensively. He noticed that she didn't even try to hide her red eyes as she rushed over to him. Before he could protest, she had enveloped him in a tight hug. Sirius was still in such shock from the news, that he didn't have the strength or resolve to push her away. Grabbing his arms, she rushed him to her red Muggle car. The car ride was silent, only broken by sniffles coming from his Aunt.
When they reached her house, Sirius' aunt spoke, her voice hoarse from crying. "I'd let you go see your house, but they don't allow anyone there. It's chained off, the Dark Mark is still over your house." She had a horrified expression on her face, and she shuddered visibly. Grabbing his bag, she walked into her house.
Sirius stayed back a second, and then followed her into the house. The normal Sirius would have broke past the chains, into the house anyway, forbidden or not. But Sirius just didn't have the strength or resolve to. When he entered her house, he caught site of his Aunt in the kitchen.
"Would you like anything to eat, dear?" She asked softly. He shook his head slowly, not wanting to speak. She sighed sadly. "You can take," her voice cracked miserably, "your brother's room." Sirius' brother stayed over their Aunt's house so much, that she had given him a room and called it his. Sirius let out a shaky breath, and grabbed his bag, running upstairs. He entered his brother's room, and closed the door roughly.
Dropping his bag weakly on the floor, Sirius staggered over to his brother's desk. He picked up a photograph, watching the picture of himself and his older brother smile and laugh. "Leo," he whispered. Ever since he was a little kid, he had always idolized his older brother. He had always tried to dress like him, and act like him when he was younger. Leo was six years older than he was, but that never stopped the two from hanging out. Leo had already graduated from Hogwarts, and Sirius could remember the long afternoons he and his brother would spend together, Sirius laughing as Leo preformed certain enchantments. In the picture, behind him and Leo, stood Sirius' parents. His father was tall and skinny, just like him, with brown hair. His mother was shorter, and her long black hair was tied back into a bun. Both were smiling, looking down at their sons.
Trembling slightly, he placed the picture into his robe. He turned around, and saw his brother's old bed. Sirius let himself fall into it, feeling the cushions break his fall. Closing his eyes, he instantly fell into a deep sleep, even though it was only 1:30.
The next morning, his Aunt shaking his shoulders gently woke Sirius up. "Come on, Sirius. Breakfast is on the table."
Sirius sat up slowly, and looked at her, "no thanks, Aunt," he croaked. "I'm not hungry."
She looked at him in concern. "But Sirius, you haven't eaten anything since yesterday morning!" You could tell that he hadn't, he was much skinnier. Sirius had always been thin, but now you could see his ribs outlined through his black shirt.
"I'm not hungry." He repeated, a little louder. She sighed and patted his shoulder, walking out of the room. The rest of the day was a blur to Sirius. He couldn't remember what he did, all he could remember was the funeral. The three large, wood coffins lying there sadly. He heard the minister speak, and the sobs coming from his aunt, his parents' friends, his brother's friends, and other people that his family had befriended. After the ceremony, most of the people came over to reassure Sirius that his parents were happier now, and that he shouldn't grieve for them. He didn't pay attention to them, how could they know?
His Aunt brought him back to her house after the Ceremony. They didn't speak of it at all. She started to set the table for dinner. "What would you like to eat, Sirius?" she asked hoarsely, her voice rough from crying.
Sirius turned away, not looking at her. "I'm not hungry, you eat."
His Aunt stopped and stared at him. "Sirius, you haven't eaten in days! Aren't you hungry?"
"No," Sirius responded truthfully. The thought of food repulsed him, he wasn't hungry in the least. "Aunt, can- can I go back to Hogwarts today? P-please?" he choked out. His Aunt looked at him, sensing that it hurt him to remain so close to his dead family.
She stopped setting the table, and grabbed her coat. "Of course, Sirius." She said softly. "Grab your things, and we'll leave right now."
Sirius was grateful for her understanding, but could only let out a tiny smile. He rushed upstairs as quickly as he could, considering he was feeling a bit weak. Stuffing all his things into his bag, he ran downstairs, almost tripping on one of the steps. His Aunt was waiting for him at the door, putting her coat and hat on. "Put your coat on, Sirius," she said as they walked out of the door. "Its cold out."
A chill went through Sirius, but he didn't acknowledge it. "I'm not cold," he responded firmly. She sighed, and they entered the car. Like on the way to her house, the ride was silent, until they reached Hogsmeade. She parked her car outside, and they both got out of the car.
"So you want me to walk with you, Sirius?" She asked him. He shook his head. She launched herself on him, giving her a huge hug. "It'll be alright, Sirius." He didn't say anything to that, but when she released him, he looked at her.
"Thank you, Aunt," he croaked out as he picked up his back and walked through Hogsmeade. He looked over his shoulder, to see his Aunt slowly getting into the car, still watching him. Soon, he got lost in the crowd of people. He shivered, it was really cold. His coat was on top of everything else in his bag, he could just open it and get it out. But Sirius found that he ignored the cold, and kept on walking. Half an hour later, due to his slow walking and non-awareness of exactly where he was going, Sirius arrived in Hogwarts.
Looking at a watch, he noted that dinner had begun about five minutes ago, so everyone would still be in the Great Hall for a while. He coughed as he hoisted his bag higher up on his shoulder. Making his way through the halls, he found himself in the Gryffindor Common Room. He started to unpack his belongings, not caring that they were messy. When he was done, Sirius sat down weakly on the bed, and took the picture of his family out of his pockets.
Coughing into his sleeve, Sirius didn't take his eyes of the picture. Suddenly, he heard the sound of an opening door, and footsteps. Sirius shoved the pictures into his robe pockets, and got up.
The face of James Potter met him. James' face lit up with joy as he bounded over to his friend, putting his hands on Sirius' shoulders. "Sirius!" He said loudly. "You're back! You're back, where were you? Its been so-" James cut himself off as he pushed Sirius a bit further back, and eyed him critically. "Sirius," he said softly, with a look of serious concern taking over his face. "What the hell happened to you?"
Sirius tried to put on a cheerful face as he coughed roughly. "Nothing happened to me. What're you taking about, James?"
James was still staring at him. "Don't give me that, Padfoot. Look at you! I can clearly see your ribs! And you're deathly pale! And you won't stop coughing!"
Sirius coughed into his hand, "That's not true," he lied. "Look, it's just a cold. I'm fine."
James huffed loudly. "It is not! But fine, whatever. What happened, though? Where were you? Why didn't you tell us you were leaving?"
Sirius shoved him off, and was about to respond, when someone came crashing into the Common Room. It was Peter, and he was trembling. "S-S-Sirius!" He called, "S-S-S-Snape saw y-you in the h-halls near the s-statue, and he s-s-said he wanted to t-t-talk to you right now. H-he said that I-if you d-didn't go im-immediately, he would h-hurt me." He whimpered pitifully, obviously scared.
Sirius, didn't say a word, and stormed out of the Common Room. James looked after him frantically, than at Peter who was still trembling. He bent down a moment to reassure Peter, and then went running down the Halls after Sirius. He followed the sound of his coughing friend, until he saw Sirius and Snape staring at each other heatedly. James walked between them, holding out his hands to separate them. Before he could say anything, Snape whipped out his wand and sent James flying a couple feet. He landed and skidded across the floor. "Stay out of this, Potter," Snape snarled.
Sirius ran over to his friend, and knelt down next to him. "James, are you alright?" He asked, shaking his friends' shoulder gently. James opened his eyes slowly, and nodded in response. Sirius held out a hand, and he helped James up. Sirius glared at Snape with heated midnight blue eyes. "Bastard," he growled as he started to walk away, much to James' relief. Sirius didn't feel like he had the energy to get in any kind of fight, and he was feeling pretty sick at the moment.
"What's the matter, Black? You afraid of fighting me? Are you a Mommy's boy?" Sirius stopped dead in his tracks, holding in a cough. He turned around slowly, and walked closer to Snape, glaring at him. Snape raised a hand to his chin as if in surprise. "Oh wait, you can't be a Mommy's boy anymore, now can you? She probably went down crying." He grinned maliciously.
Something inside Sirius snapped. He leaped on Snape, and knocked him to the ground, punching him in the nose. Snape reeled back, but brought up his fist, catching Sirius on the jaw. The continued to punch and kick each other relentlessly.
James ran off, trying to find a Professor. The two were going so hard at each other, that he feared if he immobilized one of them, the other would kill him off.
Sirius didn't know how long he had been fighting with Snape, but he suddenly felt Snape stop punching him. Sirius felt someone grab his shoulders and pull him back. He looked behind him, and saw that it was James. Not wanting to hurt him, Sirius didn't resist too much. Looking ahead of him, he saw that Dumbledore was holding Snape. He looked at Severus severely. "I want to hear your story first, Mr. Snape," he ordered.
Snape glared at Sirius, and then feebly tried to make it sound like Sirius had provoked him. "He hit me first! I had to protect myself!"
Dumbledore glanced at Sirius, who was swaying weakly on his feet. His face was covered in blood, and he coughed some blood onto his hand, due to the punch in the mouth Snape had given him. "What's your story, Mr. Black? What reason did you have to attack Mr. Snape?" he asked just as severely.
Sirius glanced at the ground. James, who was still holding Sirius back, expected to hear Sirius try to sweet talk his way out of it, but he was surprised when didn't. "I was provoked, sir."
"Did you hit Severus first?" Dumbledore asked.
Now James really expected that Sirius would say something to get himself out of trouble, but he was surprised again. "Yes, sir. I did," he said, his voice wavering.
Dumbledore and Snape looked just as surprised as James did at Sirius actually cooperating and confessing to everything. "Mr. Black, you said that Mr. Snape provoked you. What exactly did he say?" Dumbledore eyed him, silently telling Sirius that this was his chance to get out of trouble.
Sirius looked up at Snape, then to Dumbledore. His voice trembled violently. "Nothing important, sir. I was just angry, that's why I hit him." Snape looked almost scared that Sirius wasn't admitting that he really insulted him.
Dumbledore glanced at Sirius, but he looked down at the floor. "Mr. Potter, do you have anything to say about what happened?" He asked a confused looking James.
"Yes, sir. Severus did indeed provoke Sirius, that's why he hit him."
"What exactly did Mr. Snape say?"
"He said something about-"
Sirius cut him off sharply before he could tell Dumbledore what Snape said. His voice was really trembling now, and he was sure that they could all hear how much. "I told you, it was nothing of importance, sir." His mind drifted back to what Snape had said about his mother. "I accept whatever punishment you give me." Sirius jerked out of James' hold, and ran down the opposite hall.
James looked surprised. "Dumbledore, sir…"
Dumbledore nodded kindly, "Go on James, go find Sirius."
James nodded his thanks, and took down the hall after his friend. He could still hear the weak cough of his friend, and the little drops of blood on the ground from his injuries. They lead him to the Gryffindor Common Room. Sirius was sitting on his bed. He saw that Sirius had conjured himself a bowl and some water, and was wiping his cuts and bruises absently, flinching every once in a while.
James stormed in front of him. "What the hell is going on, Sirius? First you took off for two days without even telling any of us. Then you look like you haven't eaten for days, which you probably haven't, you're sick, and I know you are. You won't talk to me, and you let Snape get away for what he did! Why didn't you tell Dumbledore what he said? Why didn't you let me?"
"Because it wasn't important!" Sirius shouted, slamming his hand down into the bowl, sending water splashing all over the place.
"If it wasn't so important, why are you so angry about it? What happened?" James shouted back.
"Nothing!"
"Obviously something happened to you. You're not like this, Sirius. I know you."
"Nothing happened, James!"
James glared at him. "Something happened, Sirius. I'm not stupid!"
"Just… stop, James. Please, just leave me alone!" Sirius said, softer this time, trying to wipe some blood from his forehead.
James stared at him, and his voice got louder with anger. "No, I will not leave you alone! I want you to talk to me. Tell me what the hell is wrong with you! I'm your friend, you can tell me anything, you know that. Tell me what happen-"
Sirius cut him off in mid sentence, not able to take it anymore. "MY PARENTS AND BROTHER ARE DEAD!" he shouted. James stopped talking, a horrified expression crossed his face. "There, are you happy? Now you know." He looked up at his friend, "They're dead, damn it!" His words came out in a half-sob. He looked down, apparently disgusted with himself.
James looked at him, worried. He sat down next to Sirius on his bed. "What happened?" He asked gently.
"Voldemort," Sirius spat, "he killed them. I don't know why, and if anyone does, apparently they don't want to tell me."
"I'm so sorry, Padfoot." James said softly.
Sirius looked away, "I don't want your pity," he whispered. "I just want my family back." He added in a softer tone.
"You may not want my pity, but you need it. And I know you want your family back, Sirius. I know you do." James spoke soothingly.
"He killed them all, James." Sirius said, his voice cracking. "Why? Why did he kill them? They didn't deserve to die. My brother was a good man, and my parents were good people. They didn't deserve it," he repeated. "I wish he had killed me instead of them. I deserve it more than they did."
James quickly put his arm on Sirius' shoulder. "No, they didn't deserve it, they will never deserve to die. But neither do you."
Sirius let his first tears since he heard about his parent's death fall. "I miss them so much, James." He sobbed.
James' heart felt as if it were breaking. Sirius was his friend, the strongest person he knew, and here he was, crying. "I know, Sirius. I know." He jerked his head up as he heard someone else enter the room. It was Remus, they're friend.
Apparently he didn't notice that Sirius was crying, because he laughed joyfully, bounding over. "Sirius! You're back! Where were you, Padfoot? Padfoot?" He asked again, when Sirius didn't say anything. He could see the somber look on James' face, and Remus immediately became serious. "What's wrong?" He eyed him as James did when he first saw Sirius. "Why are you so skinny?"
Sirius looked up at his friend through slightly red eyes. Remus immediately sat down on the other side of Sirius. "What… what happened?" he asked, concern showing through his voice. Sirius bit his lip, and ducked his head once again. Remus looked over him at James. James silently mouthed "his family was killed." Remus felt a small shock go through him at the news. He lifted Sirius' head to eye level. "Sirius, everything will be fine."
Sirius snapped his head back, and stared at Remus. "No it won't, Remus. I've lost my family. Do you know how that feels?' He asked, his voice cracking again.
Remus looked at him seriously. "No, I don't know how it feels. It must be terrible. But you haven't lost all of your family. You still have us, and we'll always be here for you, Sirius. Always."
Tears brimmed once again in Sirius' eyes. "Tha-Thank you." He squeezed his eyes shut, and lowered his head as more tears came. James and Remus both wrapped their arms around his thin shoulders and hugged him tightly, giving him all the support he needed.
"It will hurt for a long time, Padfoot, it will. The pain won't go away easily. But just remember you always have us, okay?" James said softly. He felt Padfoot nod his bent head slowly, his black hair cascading over his face like a veil. "Will you be alright, Sirius?" James asked him.
Sirius slowly raised his head to meet their faces. His eyes were still red and puffy, and tear tracks were still visible on his face. But his tears had stopped. "As long as you guys are around. I'll be all right in time."
He got off the bed weakly, and crossed the room. Going through his drawers, he took out a large frame that didn't have any pictures in it. He took out the picture of his family he had taken from his brother's room, and placed it on one side of the frame.
"The other side isn't covered, Sirius. You may want to center that a little more." James called out.
Sirius didn't say anything, but continued to root through his drawer, until he pulled out another picture. He turned his back to his friends, and put the picture in the frame, next to the one of his smiling family. He turned around, and showed them the picture frame. The picture of his family was on the left of the frame, and a picture of him, James, Remus and Peter were on the other side. "Its fine just how it is," he remarked softly. He walked over to his bed, and placed the frame on the little table. He smiled a real smile for the first time in days.
James and Remus got up and put their arms around their friend, allowing him to lean on them. "Thank you, guys. I don't know where I would be without you two." Sirius sniffed, and for the first time, he felt like he hadn't lost all of his family.