Prompt: As day broke, so did he.
Not again.
He whimpered and pressed himself into the corner of his cell.
Not again.
He'd been here for years; they came for him every day; still, he was scared.
Not again.
He felt his mind slipping away and he gasped from the effort of trying to hold on. He remembered laughing at the breakfast table, flirting with McGonagall, Quidditch… James flirting with Lily, Remus and Peter playing Exploding Snap. Everything burned white-hot at the thought of Peter. That obnoxious, evil, cowardly little rat. Sirius screamed with rage, voice hoarse and exhausted.
I'll kill him.
His face contorted as he imagined all the ways he would torture the traitor.
I'll burn him alive and pull out his teeth, his fingernails, his hair. I'll Imperius him and embarrass him in front of the Ministry. I'll take him to Godric's Hollow and- and—
Sirius collapsed, consumed by the weight of his grief. The only family he'd ever known, dead. Dead because of Peter.
Something stirred in the back of Sirius' mind.
Lily and James are dead, the dementor told him. He waved it away, impatient. There was something else…
They're dead. Everyone who ever loved you is dead, the dementor pressed.
Maybe, thought Sirius. But there was something else, someone else. Someone new who joined our little family. Remus didn't bring anyone new… Lily married James…
Sirius smacked his knees in frustration.
He had knobbly knees, like James.
The prisoner bolted upright, a grin growing on his face, as slowly, too slowly, the memory returned to him. "They had a baby." Sirius whispered. "Harry."
And just like that, his cramped, dank cell filled with light from his Patronus and Sirius' heart lifted, remembering a little boy whizzing around on a tiny broom, and laughter, so much laughter. The dementor screeched and recoiled, revealing the sunset that marked his victory in today's battle.
Sirius leaned against the cool bars of the cell, exhausted and smiling. I won again.
I'm coming, Harry.
A/N: I was going to save this oneshot for next week, but what the heck, it's been too long since I was publishing and I've missed it. I also have very poor impulse control, so there's that too. Hope you liked it – if you do, please leave one word in the review box to tell me what you think! - Pan x