𝐀𝐔𝐑𝐎𝐑𝐀 | 𝐦𝐚𝐫𝐚𝐮𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐬

✧ chapter 44 ✧

1977

The next few days were a total blur. The muggle police along with ministry officials showed up not long after. The ministry officials convinced the muggles it was a fire caused by a gas leak which lead to the explosion and catastrophic deaths of a mother and her sixteen-year-old daughter.

Afterwards, Lily, Aurora and Marlene were taken into the ministry and their parents were contacted. The three girls all answered questions about what they found when they first entered the house. All three of them stated they knew exactly who was responsible. It was well known that the Mulciber family were avid supporters of Voldemort, so having their son expelled from Hogwarts by a muggleborn no less was a horrifically shameful mark against their family. The dark mark in the sky signalled that this was an act of revenge and war. The ministry stated that they would look into the Mulciber family and the girls were free to go.

When they exited their individual interrogation rooms the girls were met by their parents, all of whom were crying. The McKinnon's had organised with both Lily and Aurora's parents to have them stay at their country home for as long as they needed. They also sent owls to the boys inviting them to stay if they wanted too. By now they had heard the news and all four of them felt a numbness they had never experienced before.

When the ministry owls arrived at the homes of James, Remus and Peter respectively their parents opened the letters apprehensively. They all thought it was something the boys had done, nothing could have prepared them for the news that lay waiting on the neat parchment.

Sirius had been out wandering the streets when the letter arrived at the Potter's. He had taken to doing that more often in an attempt to get out of the house more. His head was fuzzy from the cheap muggle vodka he was drinking and yet another cigarette hung precariously from his lips. He stumbled about aimlessly, wandering up and down unfamiliar streets. Despite it being summer he felt cold. He took another clumsy swig from the bottle in his hands, grimacing at the awful taste. A wave of nausea quickly washed over him and he lent against a street light to steady himself.

A sudden rustling from a nearby tree caught his attention, and he reached for his wand instinctively. His vision was slightly blurred but he could make out the shape of a large owl watching over him. The owl blinked twice and swooped, dropping a scrap piece of parchment on the ground in front of Sirius before flying off again. Sirius furrowed his brow and bent over to pick up the parchment. In his haste he almost sent himself toppling over, forgetting just how much he had actually drunk. His bleary eyes quickly scanned the parchment, struggling to make out the letters at first. When he did finally get the message scrawled hastily however he felt his stomach drop. His mind cleared almost instantly as the words set in.

Come home. Mary's dead.

His head was swimming as he reread the note over and over again. His jaw grew slack and the cigarette between his teeth slipped from his grasp, long forgotten as it rolled into the gutter and extinguished itself. It couldn't be true. Surely this was a prank. James was just trying to snap him out of his current state. This was his sick idea of an intervention. It had to be. He would much rather be furious with James than face the truth. He stumbled a little as his feet began carrying him forwards. He had no idea where he was going but his legs continued to run, his vision blurring as his eyes welled up with tears. Suddenly he wanted to be sober. This information was too much for him and he felt sick. The alcohol in his veins only heightened his emotions and he didn't like it. He wanted it all to stop. He felt panicky and scared.

Without warning he ceased running and fell to his knees, dropping the half empty vodka bottle onto the pavement beside him and allowing the remaining liquid to spill everywhere. The parchment in his hands becoming crumpled as he balled up his fists and let out an anguished cry. This wasn't happening. More tears spilled from his eyes and suddenly he felt hot. The coldness from before was all but forgotten and he was struggling to breathe. Sirius clawed at his throat as if urging the airways to reopen and allow oxygen in. His body involuntarily lurched forward and he sat on all fours as he vomited in the middle of the street.