All Hollow's Eve
Halloween. The night Lily and James died. It was Halloween once again and Sirius was sitting in the Honeyduke's basement…he hated Halloween.
"Peter? Peter?" Sirius called out worriedly, knocking on his friend's door. When no answer came he tried the door and found it unlocked. "Peter? Are you there?"
He wasn't. Peter was completely gone and panic set in. 'Where could he be?' Sirius thought. 'What could have happened? What if he's hurt? I should have never suggested him for Secret Keeper; this is all my fault, what have I done?'
"Peter!" Sirius cried out seriously worried now. "Where are you?"
But nothing came to comfort him. Sirius looked around the house. 'It doesn't look like anyone was forced to leave,' he thought hopefully. But as he continued to look around it al felt wrong somehow. Something was seriously wrong…
Leaving the house, Sirius jumped on his motorbike and flew to Godric's Hollow in a panic. The fear he had not even let enter his mind was confirmed- Lily and James' house was a wreck, and their bodies…and Peter, their old friend Wormtail, the small boy who always depended on them to protect him; he had killed them. 'He killed them- you killed them- they're dead…'
Finally he realized that he wasn't alone; Hagrid was standing there, the baby boy in his arms. Harry was alive. Hagrid was trying to comfort him, but Sirius wasn't listening; only one thought remained in his head: Harry was alive. "Give Harry to me Hagrid, I'm his godfather, I'll look after him-"
"No, Harry's ter got to his aunt an' uncle's," Hagrid responded.
Sirius tried to argue but eventually gave in. "Use my bike to get him there. I won't need it anymore."
It was all Peter's fault, all of it. And the nasty little rat was in Hogwart's, just through the trapdoor. Everyone would be at the Halloween feast and Peter would be all alone in the tower with no one to hear him squeak.
o0o
The Fat Lady recognized him but she wouldn't let him in. "I wouldn't let you in even if you had the password; you're not supposed to be her!"
Sirius growled at her. "I need to get in," he said pulling out a dagger he kept having no wand to defend him hoping to scare- a portrait? But Sirius was angry and he wanted to get in.
It didn't work though; she refused to be threatened and when he actually cut through her portrait he learned how creative the founders had been with the barriers on the Common Room entrances. Cursing, Sirius left the Fat Lady, who was screaming at him and sobbing, running to the one-eyed witch before she attracted attention.
o0o
It was Halloween and Remus was in his office entertaining company. "I see," he said to Harry. "Well, well, well, I'm impressed. That suggests that what you fear most of all is- fear. Very wise Harry."
"A phobophobic eh, Moony? That sounds made up."
"It's not Prongs, it's fear of fear," Remus responded.
"That idea gives me a headache," Sirius commented. "I mean doesn't that mean you're scared of being scared of being scared and so forth?"
"Now you're giving me a headache!" James said jovially.
Remus blinked. Memories shouldn't randomly surface like that. "So you've been thinking I didn't believe you capable of fighting the bogart?"
"Well…yeah," Harry said. "Professor Lupin, you know the dementors-"
And then a knock came at the door. "Come in," called Remus, expecting it to be- ah yes, Severus bringing the cup of Wolfsbane Potion. Remus offered his thanks and watched Snape leave sighing inwardly; he couldn't shake the feeling that he was missing something from the whole Whomping Willow Incident. It used to be that Remus was the one Marauder even Snape could bear, but ever since WWI…he became as hated as the rest. Turning back to Harry he said, "Professor Snape very kindly concocted this potion for me. I have never been much of a potion-brewer and this one is particularly complex. Pity sugar makes it useless." He meant that last sentence whole-heartedly- it really was a nasty potion.
James grinned when he heard Slughorn say that sugar made the potion useless and pulled a sugar cube out of his pocket. He waited until the perfect moment came, when Snape's back was turned, to put it in the potion…
Remus shook his head slightly- he always got like this on Halloween. Harry had been asking him why he needed to take the potion and Remus offered an explanation of sorts. Then Harry said, "Professor Snape is very interested in the Dark Arts."
"Really?" Remus said. 'Not new news,' he thought. 'But I see where you're going with this…and I disagree.'
"Some people reckon-some people reckon he'd do anything to get the Defense Against the Dark Arts job."
Remus finished the potion and made a face; the stuff was really "Disgusting," he said. "Well Harry I'd better get back to work. I'll see you at the feast later."
o0o
He had failed but he had tried. Remus shuddered; and on Halloween of all nights! But that made a bit of sense; why not kill Harry on the anniversary of Lily and James' death? But surely he would remember that everyone was at the feast? Or maybe he had gone mad in Azkaban. That was what had become of the Marauders: two dead and one their killer. And they all left Remus behind.
'Why Halloween?' Remus thought as he searched the castle for Sirius- or Padfoot. 'I mean it's too cliché. Everything bad happens on Halloween, doesn't it? Everything out of a fairytale. Didn't Sir Nicholas de Mimsy-Porpington die on Halloween?' Remus considered that last fact. It took him a bit of reaching to recall Nearly Headless Nick's true name and death day, but Remus always had had a knack for remembering such things. 'All that's missing is the equally cliché full moon to send me howling. That would make the perfect scene wouldn't it?'
o0o
Sirius sat in the Forbidden Forest grinning madly. He somehow felt that he had properly honored Lily and James. He had failed…but he had tried.