AN: This is my first Harry Potter fanfic, ever, so I hope I do it justice. I've changed a couple aspects of the books, most of them in this chapter, but there will be a couple more in the future, so don't panic if the story doesn't go perfectly with the books. Please review and let me know what you think!
If you asked 20 different people how they would describe him and you'll get 20 different answers. Several of them might refer to his undeniable allure, or his constant nonchalance that just added to his reputation as a bad ass. Even so, all of these descriptions would differ because of one simple fact: Sirius Black just couldn't be described, not properly anyway. Sirius Black is and most likely always will be indefinable.
Sirius Black is also, however, a wanted fugitive. While you might be quick to say this just adds to how interesting he is, that couldn't be further from the truth. Life on the run was not only hard, inconvenient, to say the lease, and often cold; it was also incredibly lonely.
Sirius was not used to being lonely. Back at school when he was young, he had the attention of the majority of the schools, girls (and some boys) wanted him and the boys that didn't wanted to be him. But besides being popular, Sirius also had 3 best friends that he wouldn't have traded for the world. James, his partner-in-crime when it came to pranks, Remus, the level-headed, intelligent one who kept them out of trouble when he could, and Peter, who was always there to lend a helping hand.
Even after Hogwarts, Sirius kept his 3 friends close, but now the group had changed, and for the better. James had finally gotten the girl of his dreams, Lily Evans, and they were married. And Remus... well, Sirius and Remus had fallen in love and were living together happily.
Sirius didn't think life could get any better, and he was right.
It could get worse, though.
It was just a few months after James and Lily's son, Harry's, first birthday. Sirius had been named Harry's godfather and he and Remus spent as much time as possible with the boy. As it was highly unlikely that they would ever have a child of their own, Sirius and Remus became Harry's unofficial second set of parents.
But that nearly perfect world was about to be completely shattered.
None of them could have anticipated it, but not only did their group of friends fall apart, but it was also one of the 4 Marauders that caused it.
One day, Sirius had everything he could ever ask for, and the next, two of his best friends were dead, because of the actions of someone he thought was his best friend, who James and Lily also thought was their best friend, and Sirius was the one most people seemed to think was responsible.
The rest of the wizarding world was celebrating. You-Know-Who was gone, and it was just a little boy who killed him; Harry Potter, the boy who lived. Meanwhile, Sirius was living his own worst nightmare. James and Lily, dead, and Harry was now an orphan at only one year old. Sirius would never be able to forgive Peter for what he did. He not only tore apart the Potter family, but also their family, He and Remus, Lily and James and Peter. The Marauders could no longer exist, not with one dead and another a follower of Voldemort.
Sirius was originally going to be James and Lily's secret keeper. He would have kept them safe. But in order to protect Sirius and themselves, and to avoid the obvious choice, James and Lily switched secret keepers at the last minute. To Peter Pettigrew. No one knew, of course. Sirius hadn't even told Remus that he was secret keeper, or where James and Lily were hiding. It wasn't that he was afraid Remus would betray them; Sirius trusted Remus completely. He just didn't want him to be hurt. If Remus didn't know anything, then no one would go after him to try and extract the information.
So when Sirius got the news that James and Lily were dead, he got on his flying motor bike without so much as a word to Remus, flew to Godric's Hollow to try and get Harry to a safe place before any more harm could come to him.
Sirius found the house almost completely demolished, and broke down. This was the Potters' home. It was where James and Lily had celebrated their first anniversary. It was where he and Remus had shared a bed for the first time as a couple on their visit to celebrate their first Christmas out of school. It was where Harry had taken his first steps. And now it lay in shambles, all because of an immortality-obsessed dark wizard and a ridiculously vague prophecy.
Sirius could barely bring himself to go inside, knowing what would be waiting for him when he did. But he forced himself to cross the threshold. Harry was still inside, and Sirius would be damned if he was going to let him stay there.
Nothing could have prepared Sirius for the sight he found upon reaching the first landing.
James lay across two or three stairs, wand still clenched in his hand, eyes gazing wide and lifeless up at the ceiling. Of course James would have gone down fighting, protecting the two people he loved the most in the world.
Sirius felt tears running down his cheeks as he looked down at his best friend's lifeless body. He had known James almost his whole life, and had lived with him for the last few years of his Hogwarts schooling. James was closer to him than his biological, brother, Regulus, and Sirius would do anything to be the one dead on the stairs instead of James. He bent down to close James' eyes and kissing on the forehead as a final goodbye.
Sirius forced himself to leave James' side, continuing up the stairs to Harry's bedroom where he could hear the boy's shrill cries, calling for his mother and father. Sirius felt his tears intensify as he saw Lily's body laid out in front of Harry's crib, staying with Harry and protecting him, even after she was gone from this world.
Sirius bent to close her bright green eyes and kissed her forehead in the same fashion as he did James before standing and rushing to Harry's crib and lifting the wailing infant into his arms. A bright red lighting bolt stood out against Harry's pale skin, marking the deadly spell that hit him, but did not kill him. His mother's love and willingness to die for him saved him from death.
"Shh-shh-shh. I know." Sirius said, trying to calm Harry. "I miss them too. I miss them as much as you do. But they loved you so much, your mum and dad. They loved you more than anything in the world, enough to die in order to protect you."
Harry's cries quieted and soon, he was lying contentedly in his godfathers arms. Sirius had no idea how Harry could understand the gravity of the situation, as young as he was, but something about how Harry was acting showed that even though he was no longer crying, he knew there was something wrong. His mother wasn't with him and his home was gone. He was now an orphan.
Sirius Apparated quickly back out to the street, not wanting to have to walk past his best friend's body a second time.
"Sirius." a gruff, low voice said from behind him. "I'm guessin' ya heard the news and came right over?"
Sirius spun quickly to find Hagrid standing mere feet from him, clutching a pink umbrella.
"Yeah." Sirius choked out. " I had to get Harry-"
"I'm 'ere to collect 'im." Hagrid said. "I know you're 'is godfather 'n all, but Dumbledore thinks it's best if 'is aunt and uncle take 'im."
"Petunia?" Sirius said, the name bitter on his tongue. Harry must have felt him tense up because he began crying again. Sirius quickly calmed him before looking back up at Hagrid. "You can't be serious, Hagrid. Petunia? The one who called Lily a freak ever since she got her Hogwarts letter? The one who refuses to interact with any of 'our kind'?"
Hagrid shrugged. "Dumbledore reckons little Harry'll be a bit of a celebrity now. Wants 'im to grow up a normal boy."
"I can't let you take him." Sirius said, holding Harry against his chest. "I"m his godfather. Let me take him." He was starting to shake with the anger and sadness of it all.
Hagrid noticed Sirius was upset and went to comfort him, wrapping a large arm around Sirius' whole body. "You okay, Sirius?"
"Silly question." Sirius said around his tears.
"You're right. Look, Sirius, go home. Leave Harry with me and go home to Remus. We've all got to get through this together and he needs you there with him. James and Lily were his best friends, too."
Sirius pulled himself together, wiping away the stray tears on his cheeks. "You're right. I need to go back to Remus. Here. Take my motorbike. It'll be easier, now you've got Harry with you."
"Thanks, mate." Hagrid said. "You go on home and I'll return this to ya when I've dropped Harry off. Got to meet Dumbledore at the Dursley's soon, anyway."
"Take care of him, Hagrid." Sirius said, handing Harry over to Hagrid carefully, bending to speak to Harry, say goodbye for what he assumed would be a very long time. "Harry, you must never forget how much our parents love you. That scar, it proves it. Never forget that they love you, and they'll be watching over you, always."
Sirius straightened up and hugged Hagrid tightly then watched and waved as the motorbike disappeared into the night sky before Disapparating.
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