Disclaimer:I don't own anything.

A/N:Well, here's the prologue as promised. It's quite short so I won't keep you waiting too long for the first chapter. If you're reading this, make sure you've read Complexities of the Heart first, otherwise nothing will make much sense.And thank you, of course, to my wonderful beta MissBubbles, without whom this story would be riddled with silly, silly mistakes. Don't forget to review!

Summary: A continuation of Complexities of the Heart, this follows Sirius and Anna through a brutal war against Voldemort and into the future.

Things Between People

By katemary77

Prologue

For in that sleep of death, what dreams may come.

Hamlet, William Shakespeare

Sirius Black opened his eyes and felt he had not done so in an age.

There was grass underneath him and his fingers curled into the emerald green carpet. The scent of jasmine and the sound of birds around him alerted Sirius to the fact that he was in a garden. Then, there was the sound of footsteps.

Wait, footsteps?

Sirius rolled over with a groan and shielded his eyes from the bright sun. Sitting up, he lowered his hand hesitantly to gaze up into a face he had thought he would never see again.

"Hello, Padfoot."

"James?"

The tall, bespectacled man sat down in the grass beside Sirius and ran a hand through his hair, messing it up as he did so. Sirius near wept at the sight – indeed the wetness on his cheek proved he was crying.

"James," he said again and his best friend, his brother, nodded and pulled Sirius to him. He sobbed brokenly in the tight embrace for a long time before he managed to collect himself and looked around.

"Your mother's garden?"

James nodded. Dorris Potter had worked tirelessly in this garden, carefully cultivating each beautiful flower, and Lily had vigilantly continued the tradition when she had married James.

"Am I dead?"

"You shouldn't be." James paused and Sirius frowned, unsure on what his friend meant. "You're in between life and death, Sirius. You weren't supposed to die." He paused again here and Sirius could see from his face that James was torn between happiness and sorrow when he said, "They're sending you back."

Sirius' breath caught. How could he go back, how could he leave when he had just found what he had missed so much in life?

"I know," James said, reading the expression on Sirius' face. "But Harry needs you. We need you to take care of him."

Harry. He remembered now. He had left them when they had needed him most. Harry, Remus… Anna. He had to go back.

"I'm sorry, James."

James stood and took Sirius' face in his hands. He stooped and kissed the other man's brow.

"I know."

He extended his hand and Sirius studied it intently.

"Time to go back, now, Padfoot old friend."

Placing his hand in James', Sirius Black was pulled, ragged and gasping, back into life.

A/N: Don't forget to review!