Troubled Love║Sirius Black

Chapter 65

The summer of 1979 passed by quickly for Hallie. It had arrived in an explosion of colour and life, painting the world in vivid hues of sharp and bright tones. The days had stretched out considerably and the weather had become predominantly warmer. The air had been thick, with the sweet scent of blooming flowers, mingling with the earthly aroma of freshly cut grass.

Every single morning without fail, Hallie and Sirius had woken up to the rhythmic hum and trill of the birdsong, echoing through the trees. Their evenings filled with serenity and stillness, as the long days came to a close, accompanied by the fiery oranges and pinks of the setting sun.

Yet autumn soon approached, taking over from the vibrant days of summer. It seemed that the world slipped into a quieter, more muted existence, as the birds no longer sang and the flowers soon wilted in the cold. The once brilliant greens of the summer foliage had faded into dull shades of brown and the sky nearly always inhabited the same blanket of uniform, grey clouds.

Each day, it seemed like the sun made its routinely arc across the sky with less enthusiasm than the last. The vibrant gatherings of people by the lakes and in the parks over the summer months had vanished in desolation and abandonment.

In fact, autumn brought forth routine and predictability and the days soon blended into each other, without the joy of spontaneous summer adventures.

Life had become slow and mundane.

Maybe that's what happens to the world when you watch the people you love die.

Hallie remembered sitting around the table with James and Fleamont, playing a rather ruthless tournament of wizards chess, that had been going on for over an hour. Fleamont was winning. He always won, no matter how hard James and Hallie played for it.

Even as kids, he had never ever let them win a game. He always joked it was all part of life. You win some and you lose some. You can choose how to play, but you can't choose to just win. You have to earn it.

Yet for the first time in her life, Hallie had won a game against Fleamont Potter. Hallie had moved her pawns to surround his King. A simple, easy win. Yet Fleamont wasn't stupid and the old him certainly wouldn't have fallen for a trap that recognisable.

From there, it all happened so fast.

Hallie remembered his head slamming against the table; James barely catching the man as he slipped from his chair. Hallie remembered sending an urgent patronus almost immediately to Mia, Sirius and Lily, before grabbing ahold of James as he apparated them to St Mungos.

From there, Fleamont was taken away on a stretcher, leaving James and Hallie sitting inside of the waiting room, nervous for the outcome. Mia had arrived not long after they had, looking rather ill herself, but continued to dote of the two teenagers nevertheless.

It was then that they had to say goodbye.

Say goodbye to family.

Not once.

But twice.

Euphemia passed away only hours after Fleamont. The couple had died, hands intertwined with the other, surrounded by their two sons and their only daughter.

The world went grey the day the two eldest Potter's passed away. The sky remained grey and the rain continued to pour. The flowers continued to wilt. The sun didn't shine. After all, it had nothing worth shining for.

───※ ·❆· ※───

Hallie quietly padded her way up the stairs of the Potter manor, taking in the relentless chill the house now adorned - now that the warmth of the flame Monty and Mia had provided had fizzled out.