SOLVING THE RIDDLE!

Disclaimer : Not ours….unfortunately!

A/N : THIS IS A STORY BY TWO! :D

PROLOUGE

Sirius ducked Bellatrix's jet of red light: he was laughing at her.

"Come on, you can do better than that!" he yelled, his voice echoing around the cavernous room.

The second jet of light hit him squarely on the chest. The laughter had not quite died from his face, but his eyes widened in shock. It seemed to take Sirius an age to fall: his body curved in a graceful arc as he sank backwards through the ragged veil hanging from the arch. Harry saw the look of mingled fear and surprise on his godfather's wasted, once-handsome face as he fell through the ancient doorway and disappeared behind the veil, which fluttered for a moment as though in a high wind, then fell back into place. Harry heard Bellatrix Lestrange's triumphant scream, but knew it meant nothing - Sirius had only just fallen through the archway, he would reappear from the other side any second… But Sirius did not reappear.

"SIRIUS!"

Harry yelled.

"SIRIUS!"

He had reached near the dias, his breath coming in searing gasps. Sirius must be just behind the curtain, he, Harry, would pull him back out… But as he reached the ground and sprinted towards the veil, Lupin grabbed Harry around the chest, holding him back.

"There's nothing you can do, Harry -"

"Get him, save him, he's only just gone through!"

"- it's too late, Harry."

"We can still reach him -"

Harry struggled hard and viciously, but Lupin would not let go…

"There's nothing you can do, Harry… nothing… he's gone."

"He hasn't gone!" Harry yelled.

He did not believe it; he would not believe it; still he fought Lupin with every bit of strength he had. Lupin did not understand; people hid behind that curtain; Harry had heard them whispering the first time he had entered the room. Sirius was hiding, simply lurking out of sight.

"SIRIUS!" he bellowed. "SIRIUS!"

"He can't come back, Harry," said Lupin, his voice breaking as he struggled to contain Harry.

"He can't come back, because he's d-"

"HE - IS - NOT - DEAD!" roared Harry. "SIRIUS!"

There was movement going on around them, pointless bustling, the flashes of more spells. But one person remained in her place petrified. To her it was meaningless noise, the deflected curses flying past them did not matter, nothing mattered except that Lupin should stop pretending that Sirius - who was standing feet from them behind that old curtain - was not going to emerge at any moment, shaking back his dark hair, his mischievous grey eyes twinkling….. eager to re-enter the battle. As Lupin dragged Harry away from the dais., some part of her realized, even as Harry fought to break free from Lupin, that Sirius had never kept him waiting before… never kept her waiting before… Sirius had risked everything, always, to see Harry, to help him… if Sirius was not reappearing out of that archway when Harry was yelling for him as though his life depended on it, the only possible explanation was that he could not come back… that he really was.

"No…..No…He didn't…..no…."

Hermione kept shaking her head. Sirius was not dead…. He can't be. He promised he will not leave her alone; then why is he keeping her waiting….?

" Mione… You alright? " Ginny's voice cut like ice through her. Of course she wasn't alright. Her Sirius, her love…

"Sirius…."

" I know Mione….. Harry is distraught….. I can't imagine how hard it will be for him…." Ginny said sadly.

Everyone was worried about Harry. Know one knew what Sirius has been for her. She had no one. She was alone.

"Mione… Professor Lupin told to take you to atrium. Can you walk?"

Hermione nodded. Silent tears streaked through her cheeks. Ginny thought nothing of it. After all her best friends's godfather just died. They reached the atrium fairly quickly. It was in chaos. Ginny called for Remus and he came to their side.

" This portkey will take you to Hogwarts. Only one minute is there. Here catch it." He gave a piece of elf's head, part of the destroyed golden fountain, to Ginny. Then seeing Hermione crying..

"Its' ok Hermione. Harry is okay"

Harry is okay. Harry is okay. That words kept repeating in her head. Harry is okay. He is but I'm not. Hermione thought. I will never be ok.

Hermione numbly took the portkey Ginny offered. She felt the familiar pull in her navel and next thing she saw the magnificent castle that didn't seem welcoming anymore.

A/N : Please review….. that's one thing that keeps us going….. Hope you liked it!