Only one pair was still battling, apparently unaware of the new arrival. Harry saw Sirius duck Bellatrix's jet of red light: he was laughing at her.
'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 in the chest.
The laughter had not quite died from his face, but his eyes widened in shock.
Harry released Neville, though he was unaware of doings so. He was jumping down the steps again, pulling out his wand, as Dumbledore, too, turned towards the dais.
It seemed to take Sirius and age to fall: his body curved in a graceful arc as he sank backwards through the ragged veil hanging from the arch.
Harry saw the look of mingled fear and surprise on this god-father's wasted, once-handsome face as he fell through the ancient doorway and disappeared behind the veil, which fluttered for a moment as though in high wind, then fell back into place.
Harry heard Bellatrix Lestrange's triumphant scream, but knew it meant nothing – Sirius had only fallen through the archway, he would reappear from the other side any second…
'SIRIUS!' Harry yelled. 'SIRIUS!'
He had reached the floor, his breath coming in searing gasps. Sirius must be just behind the curtain, he, Harry, would pull him back out…
But as he reached the ground and sprinted towards the dais, Lupin grabbed Harry around the chest, holding him back.
'There's nothing you can do, Harry – '
'Get him, save him, he's only just gone through!'
' – it's too late Harry.'
'We can still reach him -' Harry struggled hard and viciously, but Lupin would not let go…
'There's nothing you can do Harry…nothing…he's gone.'
Harry sagged in Lupin's arm, the fight gone out of him. Bellatrix continued to laugh at the successful defeat of her blood-traitor cousin.
Suddenly, an electric blue light lashed out across the room, striking the middle of the veil with a sharp snap.
All eyes focused as the blue light spread in tendrils across the veil, seeking and finding the gaps in the tattered fabric and creeping through them into the unknown.
Harry struggled once again in Lupin's arms.
'What's happening?'
Lupin craned his neck, trying to see where the light had originated from, but its source was hidden in shadow.
'I don't know, Harry, I don't…' he trailed off, as the blue light pulsed and writhed.
A dark silhouette was being drawn towards the veil as everyone held their breath, Bellatrix's laugh trailing off uncertainly.
The light seemed to jerk and the body of Sirius Black tumbled back through the veil.
Harry pulled himself ferociously from Lupin's hold, skidding down to the body.
'Sirius! Sirius, answer me, please God, Merlin, please!' he cried
His hand fumbled to under Sirius's jaw, desperately searching for a sign of life. His eyes turned wildly to Lupin who stood there gawping at the body of his best friend.
'He has a pulse! Lupin, he isn't dead! He – '
He was cut off by a cruel hiss from Bellatrix.
'Impossible! But with no-one else here' her voice turned sickly sweet ' finishing him off properly should be an easy task'
Raising her wand, a maniacal grin spread across her face and dancing in her eyes, she advanced on her prone cousin.
Harry pushed to his feet, standing defensively in front of his beloved Godfather as she advanced, wand at the ready.
'ADAVA K-'
'EXPELLIARMUS!'
Bellatrix's wand flew easily into Harry's hand as she remained frozen mid-curse.
Harry spun, looking at Lupin, who shook his head slowly, before turning to Dumbledore, who for once seemed to be as confused as everything else.
'Boring, boring, BOR-RING!' claimed a distinctly female voice from the corner of the room.
'Seriously, arch villains these days – or at least their sidekicks I suppose. No imagination. No class. No style. So maybe she had the laugh down, but really, that's not much is it?'
No one responded. Death Eaters and Order members alike stared at the source of the voice, still cloaked in shadows.
'And the rest of you. Look at you, standing there like stunned mullets. You'd think there wasn't a fight supposed to be going on here. Well, that's what I get for interfering. But really, I just couldn't let Sirius Black there die. The consequences of that were giving me a headache to be honest. Operating behind the scenes gets awfully tedious you know. Especially when no one knows you're doing it.'
Dumbledore pushed his half-moon spectacles up his nose.
'Ah … Ahem, that is to say, who are you?'
'Oh for the love…what happened to most powerful wizard of our time? That's all you can come up with?'
A light thud was heard, as if someone had jumped down from some higher perch. Seconds later a girl stepped into view, wand twirling artistically between her fingers. Long silver curls tumbled down the back of her black leather bomber jacket, and her bright blue eyes twinkled with mischief, in an eerie imitation of Dumbledore's.
'Who I am doesn't really matter right now. I have question though, and –'
The mysterious girl was cut off by the crack of apparition.
The girl rolled her eyes at the newest arrival.
'Really? The main villain is really a snake-faced psychopath?'
The snake-faced psychopath in question hissed, and raised his wand, non-verbally directing the killing curse.
With a slight flick of her hair the girl leant to the side quickly, watching dispassionately as the green curse sped by her and hit the wall behind her.
'I was actually talking you know.' She said, sounding more like a teacher scolding a mildly disobedient child rather than anything else.
Cocking her head to the side slightly, she looked directly at Harry.
'Where the fuck is Hermione Granger?'
So, trying something new here. I always seem to lose interested in my stories, but this one has got me really fired up. I'd love and feedback from readers.
Hopefully, if this story is a success, I can get back into my other writing.
My imagination won't give out on me this time. I refuse to let it happen. Unfortunately the base of this story didn't originate from my imagination. That was all J.K. Rowling.
Oh well, a girl can dream.
X Sceptical Whimsy x