When Remus opens the morning Prophet, he chokes on his cereal.

Because Sirius' face is on the front page, under the headline "BLACK STILL AT LARGE."

He starts to read the article, but he can't make it past the first line, because that's Sirius, that's Padfoot, and how in the bloody world did he escape?

And then the shock wears off, and there's nothing left in him but anger.

Sirius killed James. Sirius killed Lily. Sirius killed Peter.

(Sirius didn't kill Remus, and that was even more cruel, because at least if he were dead, he wouldn't be alone.)

His hand crawls along the table until it finds his wand, and then he's gripping it tightly, and sparks are flying from the end. Not for the first time, he wonders what it would feel like to kill a human being.

(Or a dog.)

"Avada," he whispers, just to taste the word, but he doesn't go further.

If Sirius knocks on his door, though, he'll finish the Unforgivable without a second thought.

He pushes his chair away from the table and goes out into the garden. It's shabby, like the rest of his house, and a little neglected, but Remus doesn't care about the flowers. He cares about the six flat stones, lying in the dirt with shallow names scratched into them with a kitchen knife. He goes to them, all in a row, with daisies and tulips and lilies (because he can't help himself) planted all around, and they're wilting because he doesn't take care of them, so he murmurs a, "Sorry," and waves his wand to bring them back to life.

(If only it worked so easily on humans.)

Remus bends down and touches each stone gently, whispering names as he goes.

One is for his father.

One is for his mother.

One is for James.

One is for Lily.

One is for Peter.

And one is unmarked, but he knows it's for himself, and the piece of him that died the day his friends did.

"I miss you," he whispers to his makeshift gravestones - makeshift because there is nothing buried under any of them. "Mum. Dad. Prongs. Lils. Wormtail."

"What about me?"

And that voice, even after all this time, even after everything, is still like an electric shock

Remus turns, wand raised, and finds himself face to face with Sirius.

"Did you miss me?" he asks, hands up in surrender.

"Avada Ked - "

Sirius yanks the wand from his hand and throws it across the garden. "That last stone in your garden is not for me, mate," he says, and his voice is hoarse, as if he hasn't spoken in years.

(That, or he's been screaming.)

"I'll kill you," Remus whispers, and then again, louder: "I'll kill you."

"No, you won't."

Remus leaps at him. "You murdered them," he cries. "Your best friends!"

"I didn't!" Sirius shoves him off and pulls out a wand of his own. "I didn't, Moony. I can prove it."

"Prove it, then!"

Sirius pulls out a battered copy of the Daily Prophet. It's soaked in seawater, and the words are blurred and runny, and Remus can't read any of it. "Not the words," Sirius says. "The photograph."

It's a family in Egypt.

"They have a rat," Sirius whispers, and his eyes are glowing with excitement, and it throws Remus back into seventh year when Sirius' eyes lit up like that for him. "And it's missing something. Do you see what it's missing, Moony?"

Remus doesn't, and he says so.

"A toe." Sirius throws back his head and laughs. "It's a toe."

"How is this proving any - "

"It's Peter, Moony, don't you see? It's Wormtail."

Remus shakes his head. "You're mad," he says. "And you're a murderer, and you're going to pay."

"I have paid," he says. "I've paid every day of my life for twelve years. They're dead, Remus, and it's my fault, but I didn't betray them. I would never. I would have died first." He drops the Prophet and seizes Remus by the shoulders. "You know me," he whispers. "You know I didn't do this."

Remus meets his wide eyes. "I don't know you at all anymore." And he stoops to retrieve his wand and turns his back on his one-time friend, half-hoping Sirius will take the shot and kill him now.

But he doesn't. He watches Remus for a moment, shoulder's slumped, and then he transforms and lets out a howl of despair.

And as soon as Remus is safely inside, he sinks to the ground and sobs.

Because he's lost six people in his life.

One is his father.

One is his mother.

One is James.

One is Lily.

One is Peter.

And one is Sirius.

(Who has just let Remus walk away for the second time.)

[Becoming a Wizard Challenge: Chore 4 - garden]

[Wizard Sweets Challenge: Blood-flavored Lollipop - write about a graveyard]

[100 Prompts: Anger]

[Disney Character Challenge: Koda - write about a betrayal. Prompt: rocks (or stones)]