Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter.
Shards
By: ChoCedric
Remus Lupin sat in the kitchen of his flat, drinking a cup of tea. Fatigue overwhelmed him, for last night had been the full moon. Unfortunately, he'd had to go it alone; the Marauders usually came and transformed with him, but circumstances had stopped that from happening. James and Lily and little Harry were in hiding, and so was Sirius. And there was nothing much a rat could do against a werewolf.
Sighing, Remus took another sip and reflected on how bad things now were. Voldemort was terrorizing the entirety of wizarding Britain, and Remus was terrified that his friends wouldn't live through this war. All of them were so important to him; he didn't know how he'd get on without them, now that he knew what true friendship was.
Knock, knock.
Who could be calling on me? Remus wondered as he put his teacup down on the table and slowly went to answer the door. It could be Peter, he surmised. He's the only one not in hiding. He smiled slightly at the prospect of seeing one of his friends.
But when he answered the door, it was not Peter on the other side. Remus's heart did a somersault in his chest when he saw it was Albus Dumbledore with a terribly sad, somber look on his face.
"Hello, Remus," Dumbledore said, and even his voice portrayed what he was feeling. "May I come in?"
Remus silently beckoned for him to enter the flat. Once he had, he said, "Professor Dumbledore, what can I do for you? Would you like a cup of tea?"
"I think not, Remus," Dumbledore said, and Remus's heart did another flip. As long as he had known Albus Dumbledore, he never, ever said no to a cup of tea.
"Living room, then?" Remus asked softly.
"Yes," Dumbledore answered, so the two of them went to the living room and sat down on the sofa.
"Okay," Remus said, mentally preparing himself for what Albus had to tell him. Little did he know what was coming. "What is it, Professor?" he asked weakly.
"I am terribly sorry to bother you, Remus," Dumbledore started. "I am aware that last night was the full moon, so you are not in the best of shape. But I think I should be the one to tell you this information before you hear it from another source."
"What information?" Remus asked, his heart beginning to pound in his chest. "James and Lily ... don't tell me ..."
At this, Dumbledore looked even sadder, and Remus felt a numbness start to seep through every pore of his body, and it continued at Dumbledore's next words.
"I am terribly sorry, Remus," the Headmaster said, bowing his head in sorrow. "Voldemort attacked their home last night. Both of them didn't make it."
"No ..." Remus whispered in horror. "No ... no. That can't be true, there must be some kind of mistake. Sirius ... Sirius was their Secret-Keeper. He can't have ... he can't."
"He did, my friend," Dumbledore whispered regretfully. "Sirius made Voldemort aware of their location."
"So they're all ... all dead?" Remus choked out. "Little Harry, too?"
"No." Dumbledore's answer caused shock to course through Remus. "Harry is alive. I am still trying to discern how he survived, but when Voldemort cast the Killing Curse upon him, it rebounded on him. He has disappeared, for now at least."
"Disappeared?" Remus gasped. "Voldemort ... Harry defeated him?"
"For now," Dumbledore repeated quietly. "Many think he is dead, but I do not think that is the case. But for now, he is in exile."
Remus's heart was still pounding as he tried to take the information in. James and Lily were dead ... Sirius had betrayed them. Sirius ... their Sirius ... their best friend, Sirius, had gone over to the dark.
"Remus." Dumbledore's gentle voice pulled him out of his thoughts. "I am afraid that is not all."
"Not all?" Terror gripped Remus again; he'd heard enough bad news. How could there be more?
"I am afraid so," said Dumbledore, putting his hand over Remus's. "Peter Pettigrew heard what happened early this morning, and he cornered Sirius in a Muggle street."
"No ..." Remus had lost count of the number of times he'd whispered that word in the past few minutes. "Don't tell me ..."
"He died bravely, Remus," Dumbledore said, his head bowed in sorrow again. "Sirius killed him and a street full of Muggles. I don't know how to tell you this ... but all they could find of Peter were some bloodstained robes and ... and a finger."
"No." Remus felt a wave of nausea roll over him, and before he could stop himself, he'd emptied the contents of his stomach all over himself.
Dumbledore raised his wand and vanished the sick once Remus was finished. He then pulled the younger man into an embrace. Remus felt tears finally sting his eyes as he repeated a litany of "No, no, no, no, no, no, no."
"Sirius is in Azkaban now," Dumbledore whispered gently. "He, surprisingly, went without a fuss." Not wanting to tell Remus this next part but knowing he had to, he said, "He was laughing as they took him away."
"Laughing?" Remus choked out as tears streamed down his face. "How could he ... how could he laugh ... after that?"
"I do not know, Remus." Dumbledore continued to embrace the younger man as his world rained down around him, and his heart shattered into tiny shards. His friends, the only people who accepted him for his lycanthropy besides his parents and Dumbledore, were gone. Dead. Never coming back.
It hit Remus like a full-fledged tornado, and he couldn't stop the horrendous sobs from ripping through him. "Nooooo!" he wailed in agony. "Nooooo! Why, why, why? This can't have happened!"
And Dumbledore knew that the next days ... months ... years ... would be the hardest that Remus John Lupin had ever faced in his entire life.