A/N:
Hello, dear readers. My name is Pier J.H. Legere, an aspiring student writer with a tendency to overuse the comma. (Thank God for Grammarly :3)
I have not much else to say, other than to thank you for choosing my fanfic to spend your time reading!
Happy New Year, and let's get on with the story!
Directly from [Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
Dumbledore sped down the steps past Neville and Harry, who had no more thoughts of leaving. Dumbledore was already at the foot of the steps when the Death Eaters nearest realized he was there. There were yells; one of the Death Eaters ran for it, scrabbling like a monkey up the stone steps opposite. Dumbledore's spell pulled him back easily and effortlessly as though he had hooked him in with an invisible line-
Only one couple were 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 on 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 doing so. He was jumping down the steps again, pulling out his wand, as Dumbledore turned to the dais too.
It seemed to take Sirius ages to fall. His body curved in a graceful arc as he sank backward through the ragged veil hanging from the arch…
And Harry saw the look of mingled fear and surprise on his godfather'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 and 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…
But Sirius did not appear.
"SIRIUS!" Harry yelled, "SIRIUS!"
When Sirius opened his eyes again, he was floating. He could still feel Bellatrix's stunning spell course through his body, but he could move again.
"Feeling better?" A voice asked.
Sitting behind Sirius, was a man who looked to be in his 40s. With a tidy appearance and a black suit to match, Sirius knew that he was a man that meant business.
"Who are you?" he asked.
The man raised an eyebrow before speaking. "My name is nothing of importance. In fact, I barely know it myself." He then rose to brush off his pants, before continuing, "You can call me Lord Death."
Sirius paled. "Am I dead, then?"
The man, Lord Death, smiled. "Yes, I suppose you are in a sense. You went through the Veil."
"And what exactly is the Veil?" Sirius asked.
"It's a one-way passage from the realm of the living to that of the dead."
It was with those words that Sirius truly realized what had transpired. He was no longer part of the living. He could no longer participate in the Great War that had already taken many of his friends. He could no longer protect his godson, could no longer be of help to Harry.
The tears fell freely, as Sirius Black held back nothing. For what felt like hours, Sirius cried and cried until his eyes were no longer capable of weeping.
While Sirius was going through an emotional breakdown, Death calmly stirred his tea, savoring the scent. It wasn't uncommon for a soul to be in such as state, he had enough experience dealing with such souls every day of his career.
"I'm going to ask you to follow me si-" Death froze.
Sirius's chest was glowing- no, something inside of his robes was emitting a peculiar light. Death flicked his hand to part the man's robes, to reveal what appeared to be a sphere of sorts. Death realized what it was, and grinned. Things were about to get interesting.
Death used a quick spell to put Sirius to sleep and teleported him to the nearest conference room. It was time for a gathering of minds to discuss what their next course of action would be.
When Sirius woke, he found himself half-sitting half-reclining in a black leather chair. In front of him was his wand, some un-mailed letters he was about to send before he had… died. There was also the trinket that James had gotten for him on his 19th birthday, a broken Time-Turner. Only it didn't seem to be broken anymore. The shattered core which hadn't moved once for all the years Sirius had it in his possession was now spinning like crazy, flashing and making eerie noises every few seconds.
"Hello Sirius." said a woman. She had on white robes, which seemed to shimmer with energy. If Sirius had to guess, he would say that they were made of silky clouds.
Everyone in the room seemed to give off an aura of power; it took much effort on Sirius's part not to bolt for an escape, which would've been meaningless anyway.
"Before we begin, we would like for you to understand the circumstances of your passing."
From nowhere, a pensieve appeared in front of Sirius.
"When you're ready."
Sirius examined the silvery substance swirling inside of the pensieve. These images he was about to see, would most likely haunt the remainder of his existence, he was sure of that. Then, he plunged his head inside.
Sirius was laughing.
The obvious gap in skill between himself and his cousin had him at ease during the duel. Nothing could go wrong; the Bellatrix he knew was too slow on the attacks. He dodges another jet of red light.
"Come on, you can do better than that!" Sirius yelled.
Sirius never saw it coming, the consecutive stunner sent immediately after the first. Perhaps if he had known, he would have easily stopped it. But it was too late now, far too late.
The spell hit him squarely in the chest. Sirius could feel the coldness seeping from where he was hit. Unable to move his limbs freely, he stumbled backward- through the archway.
"SIRIUS!" a voice yelled.
The darkness swallowed the man. Sirius was falling, falling into the abyss within the Veil. Where Bellatrix had hit him, there was a faint glow that indicated some magic was at work. Inside Sirius's robes, the broken Time-Turner emitted a green light while the core spun wildly.
"That is enough, do you see what we are trying to show you?"
Sirius shook his head. "No, not really."
The woman smiled. "You were hit by the Stunning Curse by Bellatrix Lestrange. The curse forced you through the Veil, a direct passageway into the realm of the dead. However-"
Sirius paled at having been confirmed once again of his demise.
"-there is something you should know about the Veil. As you know, once a person goes through the archway, their physical body disappears from the mortal world as their soul is brought to the Underworld-"
The woman levitated the Time-Turner, sending bolts of energy into it.
"Usually, when someone dies, their body is left behind in the realm of the living; all of their physical possessions are left behind, this way. In your case, however, this doesn't apply."
The Time-Turner was now fully functional, as shown by the faint violet light it emitted that filled up the room.
"With this device, the Time-Turner, you will be able to go back in time."
"What? That's impossible. I'm already dead." said Sirius.
"Of course there are several things that you must take into account. First, you will no longer be able to live on as Sirius Orion Black. That man is dead, and any incarnation of the same name that you encounter is by all means, no longer you. When you go back in time, the timeline will be completely altered, and there is even a small chance for the space-time continuum to collapse entirely, which would spiral the universe into a path of destruction. Though the chances for this can be
reduced significantly once we take the necessary precautions." said the woman.
"We would be able to completely alter your identity, by fusing your magical core with our power, essentially recreating your existence. You may find your new body… confusing at first, but you'd get used to it. But as I said earlier, once you do this, you would no longer be Sirius. You'd have to take on a new name, a new identity, and we would send you back to where you are most needed." another man said.
"When would that be?" asked Sirius.
"A few months before Harry Potter is first introduced to the rest of the magical world."
"Why then?"
The woman gave Sirius a smile. "We know how you have lived your life, Sirius. Your rebellious years as a teenager, your work as an Auror, the betrayal of one of your best friends. You deserve it. Plus, this is one of the rarest times ever that a loophole is created in the workings of death, a loophole which allows for you to be sent back in time. Frankly, we wish to expand our knowledge by using your endeavors as a research of sorts."
Sirius was shocked, so much that he almost lost the ability to speak. He would be able to go back, to see his godson again, and to participate in the war that took many of his loved ones away from him. He only had to ask.
"You would be giving up much, and we cannot guarantee that this would work. But if given the chance, would you do it?"
No longer would Sirius be… well, Sirius. If the woman's words were true, he would have to take on a new name, a new identity when approaching Harry. "Does this mean I'll have to re-attend Hogwarts?"
"Indeed. Though I imagine this to be a good thing."
After a long silence, with Sirius struggling with his thoughts, he finally spoke up. "I'll do it."
"EXCELLENT!" A boisterous man cried. "I knew you had it in you, lad! After all, you ARE in MY House."
"Excuse me?"
"Well, you ARE a GRYFFINDOR, aren't you?" the man bellowed.
"Are you, Go- Godric Gryffindor?" Sirius asked.
"The one and only!" Godric grinned.
The woman in white shook her head. "Forgive me, we haven't even introduced ourselves." She straightened her back and gave off her most radiant smile. "I am Rowena Ravenclaw, one of the Founders of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry."
"Th- that's impossible Hogwarts was founded centuries ago... How are- you're not gods, are you?"
At this, the people in the room all shared a laugh. This coming from beings exerting divine levels of power, the atmosphere of the room elevated.
"No, we're not gods. Not all of us anyway. Here, let me introduce you." said Rowena.
Starting from the right, Rowena called the names of those present. Rowena Ravenclaw, herself, Salazar Slytherin, Merlin the Prince of Enchanters, Helga Hufflepuff, Godric Gryffindor, Morgana le Fay (surprisingly having made up with her mortal enemy Merlin), Circe, and Herpo the Foul.
"The gods bestowed upon us, the right to reside in the realm between the living and the dead, due to our feats and magical ability. We…. define the laws of magic, you could say. Our knowledge and constant research allow for magic to constantly grow."
"Wait, you said that not 'all' of you are gods. Does that mean…"
"I'm somewhat of a goddess. Though I was a human once," said Circe,
"Gotcha."
"Well, we'll need to start discussing the specifics. As I said earlier, your Time-Turner is set to take you back to a few months before Harry Potter, your godson receives his letter for Hogwarts. What are your plans?"
"Plans?"
Rowena sighed. "You'll need things to be better than they were before, right? We'll need for you to be cunning, to plan your every move and their consequences… You know what that means, right?" she asked, her face gleaming with what seemed to be excitement. This made Sirius gulp, worry etched on his face.
"Wha-"
"Classes. Loads and loads of classes."
"Shit."
Rowena slapped him, Helga laughed, and Godric grinned. Salazar merely shook his head at the profanity uttered from the mouth of a pureblood.
A/N: Hello again, my super awesome and sexy viewers! Just to be clear, this Author's Note will only be for while Sirius Black is receiving an education on the conduct he will have to maintain while in his reincarnated form! I'd like to take a moment to summarize the plot up to now- just so that we're all on the same page! Now, I promise you, I'll be sure to try and get better at presenting the plot without the need for a summarization from now on... D:
1. Sirius Black is hit with a Stunning Curse by Bellatrix Lestrange.
2. Said Stunning Curse manages to partially activate a broken Time-Turner that Black received from James Potter (Harry's father).
3. 'The Veil' sends Sirius Black to the Underworld. Then Sirius meets death. Literally.
4. Death finds the partially activated Time-Turner and takes Sirius to a gathering of really important people! (See the actual story for full list excluding Death)
5. Sirius is informed that he can go back in time, allowing for him to get a second chance at life.
6. Sirius is informed that he can no longer be Sirius Black, and will have to take a new identity.
7. Rowena Ravenclaw drags Sirius Black to her torture chamb- classroom to teach him how to properly adjust in the past.
8. Sirius is about to be de-aged, so I'd better get ba-
"So what will you do when you go to Number 4, Privet Drive?" asked Rowena.
"I will not attempt to make direct contact with Harry Potter until I have established myself as a new neighbor to his legal guardians," replied Sirius.
"How will you achieve this position?"
"I will buy a nearby house and create an illusion of a wealthy middle-aged man who has a single son- me."
"Excellent. Now, what did I tell you about Harry Potter?"
"I must not tell him he is a wizard until he receives the information from Hagrid."
"Fantastic." Rowena beamed. Her methods of education had never failed her yet, and they never would.
Sirius did his best not to wince as he massaged his throbbing ass.
Rowena cleared her throat, and said, "We'd best perform the de-aging ritual immediately. The sooner you use that Time-Turner, the sooner we'll be able to gather information through you."