Sirius Black raced through the Department of Mysteries, the rest of the Order close on his heels. He pushed himself, harder, harder! Each second counted, and he might be too late to -- No. he couldn't think of that right now.
The doors burst open and he raced to Harry's side, shielding his godson from a stray spell. "Alright there, Harry?" he questioned gently as he scanned the room. The Weasley kids were passed out in the corner, Hermione was unconscious but breathing (or so it looked from here), Neville was... with Harry, legs flailing madly with the effects of Tarantallegra but still fighting, and Luna was nowhere to be seen. The rest of the Order seemed to be holding their own. He twisted away to duel another Death Eater, satisfied for now.
Everything seemed to be going well until he heard a high, cackling laugh. His vision narrowed, almost tinged with red. Bellatrix, he hissed almost inaudibly, and began dueling in earnest.
Diverted spellfire splashed and scorched the walls as the cousins dueled fiercely. Nobody seemed to be gaining any ground, and Sirius smiled, alight in the freedom and adrenaline that he had been deprived of for almost a year now. His vision tinted red with anger, he snapped out a taunt, giddy and overconfident. It was his fatal mistake, and Bellatrix used it to send a stunning spell straight at him.
Sirius's eyes widened, then closed in resignation. He couldn't dodge in time, and he wasn't going to waste the last moments of his life. Unbidden, images sprang to memory.
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It was Sirius's first day on the train, and he was extremely happy to be getting away from his family. They had started pushing him into being a proper pureblood heir recently, and he didn't like it one bit. Who wanted to marry his yucky cousins anyway? No, he was better off the way he was.
He peeked into a compartment, curious. A boy with flyaway black hair and glasses sat there, muttering to himself. Sirius walked in and said, "Hi, my name's Sirius Black."
To his surprise, the boy wrinkled his nose slightly. "Black? Isn't that a dark family?"
Sirius's heart sank a little, and he replied, "I suppose so. Honestly, though, it seems like I'm the white sheep of the black family. I'm not like the others, I promise."
The other boy narrowed his eyes, then relaxed. Sirius relaxed as well and took a seat next to the boy. He turned and asked, "So... who are you?"
The boy smiled impishly and whispered dramatically, "James Potter, prankster extraordinaire." Sirius took the offered hand and smiled.
It was the start of a beautiful friendship.
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It had been a few months since school started, and the Marauders, as they now called themselves, had come together at last. Sirius and James met Remus on the boat ride to the castle. The quiet boy seemed boring, but he had a spine of steel hidden behind the bookworm exterior. The last addition was met at the table after the sorting, and pretty soon Peter was hanging around too.
Sirius couldn't be happier. He had real friends, his family couldn't reach him, and he had people who cared about him. When he got hurt in the greenhouses, his fellow Marauders were also concerned about him. He didn't know people did that outside story books until now, seeing as his parents had never done anything but hand him off to house elves and tutors. It was strange, but he wouldn't trade it for the world.
His soul and heart were finally free from his family. He had a new purpose, and he was going to do it right. He had people who cared, and he would make sure nothing happened to them.
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Sirius Black
FanfictionSirius Black found a purpose three times in his life, and two of those times were Harry. A character study and Sirius's thoughts at important points in his life.
