Too Late
By Lana Mush
Sirius fixed the bow tie to his tuxedo and knocked on the door. Lily and James opened the door in a heartbeat and ushered him inside. He pulled out the small black box wordlessly and shrugged. Lily, even though she was eight months pregnant, jumped up and down, squealing. James smiled and patted Sirius's back.
"Now I'll get to be the best man," James said, looking at his best friend.
"Hey, now, don't be counting my chickens before they hatch!" Sirius said, pretending to be angry. "Anyway, you never know, I may get Moony or Wormtail to be my best man."
Lily slapped his wrist, "Oh, Paddy, you know Dorcas will say yes! She's been waiting for this moment for a long time. Moreover, I know you'll pick James to be the best man! You said so yourself last week. Oh! Maybe Harriet can be the flower girl!"
James sighed and said, "She's still convinced that my son is going to be a girl. Silly woman."
"I don't see you with a basketball in your belly! It's inside me, and I can tell it's going to be a little girl," Lily retorted. Sirius rolled his eyes and began to step out the door.
"Wait!" Lily yelled, before coming at him with a wand. She waved her wand at his tuxedo, making it crisper and much more elegant. The dog fur was gone, too. She smiled.
Sirius, after muttering a 'thank you' walked down the street to his motorcycle. He was too nervous to fly it, so he drove it all thirty miles to Dorcas's house. What he saw there was enough to make him have a heart attack.
The Dark Mark was over the small house, and muggle and wizarding law enforcement alike were gathered around. He was about to run inside when he saw Dorcas, his love, his light in the darkness, his almost wife, being carried out on a stretcher, her beautiful blue eyes frozen in a state of shock and fear. She was pale, and she wasn't breathing. He fell to his knees, and for the first time since he left his parents' house, he wept.