Author's Note: Just a quite note to be aware of as you read: I kind of mixed and matched between book canon and movie canon in this. In the movie, Bellatrix kills Sirius with the Killing Curse. In the book, it does not specify the curse used to knock him into the veil, but it is describe as a "jet of red light," so it definitely was not the Killing Curse, which means it was falling beyond the veil that actually killed him. Also, even though I quote his last words in the book here, in the plot I actually use his last words from the movie (ignoring the "Nice one, James" comment, because I'm in denial that that actually happened).

May Angels Lead You In: A Tribute to the Fallen

"'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."

(Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix)

Sirius Black
12 November, 1959 – 18 June, 1996

There was pain as the spell hit him square in the chest. It was a pain that was so intense that for a moment his vision faded to a bright white. He blinked as the scene before him came back into focus. He realized that he was falling backwards. His eyes focused in on Harry, taking in the terror and confusion on his face. He saw Remus running up behind Harry, reaching for him and yelling something that Sirius couldn't quite make out through the sudden ringing in his ears. Despite the fact that he knew Remus was moving very quickly, somehow the movements seemed to slow down in Sirius' eyes.

Sirius tried to shake the fog from his head. They were in the middle of a battle, he needed to keep fighting, he needed to protect Harry. But his neck wouldn't move and he continued to arch backwards in what felt like slow motion, something that hardly seemed physically possible.

Suddenly there was an intense cold spreading from his back and seemed to reach down to his very bones, causing them to contract painfully. The icy feeling quickly traveled through his bones, spreading from his back to his limbs before working its way up his neck. He let out a shuttering breath as his entire body was consumed.

Unbeknownst to him, this would be his final breath.

He watched as Remus grabbed hold of Harry and he found it odd that the scene that was right in front of him seemed to be getting so much farther away. A strange white mist was now floating between him and the people he had sworn to protect. He needed to get back to them. That thought was clear in his mind but his limbs refused to move as he continued to float backwards against his will, the Department of Mysteries slowly disappearing into the mist and taking with it those he loved most in this world.

Then, almost as suddenly as it had come, the pain and cold suddenly began to fade until it was completely gone. In fact, all physical human sensations faded away with it. He felt nothing. He looked down at his body just to be sure that it was still there. It was. But he was gripped by a feeling that bordered panic as the situation was finally dawning on him. Clearly he was no longer in the Department of Mysteries. Where was he? What was happening? He needed to get back; he needed to finish the battle.

"It's okay, Sirius."

There was no mistaking that voice, even after all these years.

"James?" Sirius said, his voice hoarse with emotion.

"It's okay, Sirius," James' voice repeated. It seemed to be coming from nowhere yet everywhere at the same time. Sirius looked around frantically but all he could see was the white mist that surrounded him, pushing in around him. "You've done enough. You can let go now."

"But…" Sirius protested slowly, his mind feeling sluggish. "Harry… Remus… I have to get back to them. I have to help them."

"They will be okay." James' voice was gentle yet firm. Sirius started to protest again but James' voice cut him off. "If you try to go back now you'll be stuck between worlds. You've already sacrificed so much. After everything you've been through, you deserve peace, Padfoot. Please… come with us."

Suddenly there were two figures coming through the mist toward him. Sirius could only stare as their features came into focus. Tears welled up in his eyes as he looked upon James and Lily Potter for the first time in over fourteen years. They were holding hands and both smiled as him. Physically they hadn't aged a day but somehow as he looked at their eyes it seemed that were so much older than he ever remembered them.

"I know it hasn't been easy for you, Sirius," Lily said. "But I can't thank you enough for all you've done for Harry."

Tears streaked down Sirius' face. After feeling like he had failed James and Lily – two people who were more family to him than his own biological family ever was – so completely, the idea that they were thanking him for what he had done and telling him that he had done enough wiped away any ideas of going back. He was finished. He had done something meaningful with his life. Now he could leave behind all his pain and anguish and he could find peace here with his friends.

"You've done beautifully," James said with a knowing smile as he repeated Sirius' last real words to his son. "Now let me take it from here." He reached out his free hand and Sirius smiled as he reached out and took it.

And with that Sirius Black was finally a free man.