The Sorceress and the Grim

Chapter 21

It all ends with a cloud of dust.

Time had gone by as simple as it could be and after graduating from Hogwarts Sirius was dropped with a bombshell from James about how he had asked Lily to move in with him to which she agreed. So now he stood on the door step of his uncle Alphard's old home, his favourite uncle that had left Sirius a good fortune and a home in his will after his death which became available after he graduated. But as he stepped over the threshold he was undertaken with memories he didn't want to face and as the months dragged by Sirius sold the house and began searching for another apartment. His search had gone well and he found a quiet apartment just outside central London and as he drowned another fire whiskey in the Leaky Cauldron he ran his hands threw his shoulder length hair as a sigh escaped his lips. After they had graduated his relationship with Alyssa had been put on hold as she accepted a place in a French fashion school and it wasn't until many months had dragged by after he celebrated his 18th birthday did he recognise a voice echo behind him as he walked through Diagon Alley with the newly engaged James Potter.

"Sirius?" the voice called excitedly and as he turned around he was met with a force jumping into his arms and wrapped her legs around him.

"Aly, what are you doing here?" Sirius asked as he wrapped his arms around her waist and set her back down on the ground.

"I dropped out of my course, I've only just moved back to London." she replied.

It was here that Sirius managed to get a good look at her and the first thing he noticed was how she was much curvier than before and her brown hair now sat just past her shoulders. Her green seemed to sparkle as she smiled broadly back at him. He noticed how her binding ring, the simple silver band it was, still sat delicately on her finger and when she wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed his cheek he couldn't help but capture those cherry chap sticked lips with his own again.

"Alright love birds cut it out." AJ, the other girl that had joined Alyssa side after graduation, laughed.

"Come on, we'll catch up over a drink, my treat." James insisted.

"So what are you doing anyway?" Sirius asked as he and James set down four sets of butterbear.

"Well I'm currently staying with your parents until I find a place of my own but they constantly insist I stay there." Alyssa informed.

"You should have escaped while you had the chance." Black laughed

"They are driving me nuts, normally I don't have a problem with them but ever since your dad fell ill I've-"

"Dad's sick." Sirius interrupted as he spat out his butterbear.

"…Didn't you know, I thought you knew?" Alyssa mumbled. "He hasn't been well for awhile; he's had to quit his job."

Sirius hadn't been prepared for this; he had always seen his father as the one to last the longest out of his family. Over the years things between his family had deteriorated even more even though he understood the reasoning when he had tried to help when he found out Regulas had gotten marked they just bluntly ignored him. Emily had rang him sometime after that saying it was to risky to which Sirius had yelled at her to tell them that he was done playing these games and that he no longer wanted to be apart of it, he hadn't heard anything from them since. Now after hearing the news about his father Sirius wanted to go back home more than usual but he wasn't sure how it would have gone down and when he did go visit as he took Alyssa back to Grimmauld he was not prepared for the onslaught his mother directed towards him.

"What in the name of Merlin are you doing in this house?" Walburga had yelled. "Get out, get out now."

"Not until I see dad." Sirius yelled back.

"He doesn't want to see you; none of us want to see your treacherous form now get out."

She had took to pushing him towards the door until a small voice belonging to the weakened form of his father called from the top of the stairs, Sirius caught a quick glance of the thin, pale looking, ghost of man that used to be Orion Black before his mother had wretched open the front door and shoved him outside, slamming the door in his face. Sirius stumbled backwards as the house began settling back into its hiding spot and he could hear the distant yelling between Alyssa and his mother as he stared up at the closing house. He had sat there on the ground for a good few minutes waiting for something to happen and as the sun began to set Sirius turned and apparated back to his apartment. Dark clouds had quickly replaced the empty orange sky and rain fell heavily as Sirius opened his front door and was greeted with a bunch of bills on his door step.

"Bunch of maniacs the lot of them." Sirius groaned, chucking his keys on the counter and yanking open the cupboards in search of his whiskey.

The burning orange fluid had become a comfort for the disgraced Black and had taken to it better than the wizarding version. Both James and Remus, who had got a job working for Dumbledore, had told him to watch his drinking but Sirius had simply laughed and told them that he knew his limits. But he had been drinking more than normal as his friends moved on with their lives and he remained stuck in the past. James and Lily had grown very close over the years and the news of their engagement was like a kick in the stomach for the black haired boy, even though James had told him he wanted Sirius as his best man, Sirius himself didn't have the heart to say no especially after James told him the wedding was being held on Valentines day which was in a few months time. As cliché as Sirius had said it was James had laughed and said that it was the only date him and Lily could get. Over the noise of the thunder Sirius barely managed to hear the knock on the door and he looked out the window to see Lily pulling away in the Honda civic she had talked James into buying her for passing her test.

"Getting Lily to drop you of James was not a good…Aly."

Sirius had been expecting the sight of his best friend when he opened the door but seeing the drenched brunette standing on his doorstep in a skirt and shirt made him quite happy that it wasn't James. Due to the rain Sirius could make out the shape of a pink bra under her folded arms and through her chattering teeth she asked him if she could come in to which he didn't object and quickly stepped aside before summoning her a towel after shutting the door.

"What are you doing here?" Sirius asked as he rubbed her shoulders with the towel.

"Well…After your mom threw you out I kinda had a go at her to which she told me that if I didn't like how she ran things then to leave….So I did and I headed to AJ's who wasn't in and then it started raining which was great and all that given my choice of outfit for today so I started walking down the road when a car pulled over and Lily stepped out and well she offered to bring me here and here I am but quite frankly I don't know what I'm doing but I'll leave when AJ gets home…"

"You're rambling." Sirius grinned, "Look bathrooms down the hall go get dried off and I'll get you something to wear."

"Sorry….For earlier I didn't think she'd act like that and I'll be out of your hair soon."

"Nonsense your welcome to stay, we can catch up on the stuff we've missed, plus you owe me a few happy birthdays." Sirius called as he headed towards his room.

Alyssa took this time to take in her friend's apartment while she tried to ignore the butterflies in her stomach. It was spacious enough with the marble kitchen being right beside the living room. The black leather sofa seemed to stand out remarkably against the red walls and the white and black tiles of the kitchen. The cream carpet was completely spotless and the black curtained windows seemed to add that extra bit of darkness against the light that cascaded from the ceiling.

"Sorry it's not much but hopefully it'll do." Sirius stated as he handed the brunette an old school shirt.

With the towel wrapped her around the shoulders and the shirt in hand Alyssa went to change out of her wet clothes while Sirius took a mental note to thank the soon to be Mrs Potter. Turning the kettle on and putting some bread in the toaster Sirius drowned his shot of whiskey before dumping the empty bottle in the bin. The toaster popper and the kettle clicked as Alyssa stepped back into the front room with Sirius' shirt on. The aged white shirt fell to just above her knees and her damp wavy hair clung to her form as she scratched at her arm.

"It looks good on you." Sirius smirked as he took in her bare legs.

Before Sirius could hand over her coffee and toast Alyssa's hands grabbed at the front of his shirt and her lips crashed onto his. The soft murmur of "I missed you" and the taunts of wanting were heard through the kisses as Sirius wrapped his arms around her waist and hoisted her up onto the counter. As her hands weaved through his hair the sound of a happy birthday here and happy birthday there were whispered in between kisses as his hands reached up to the top of her thigh and rested on the small of her back.

"Stay with me." He mumbled into her hair as she nibbled on his ear. "Move in with me."

A lick of his ear and growl in reply was all that was said as Sirius picked her up and carried her to the bedroom, the thought of this being their first night of sleeping together never crossed their minds as her hands ran over his jeans and his lips over her collar bone. The memories of the past were thrown to the side as she groaned into Sirius' hair as his fingers swept over her naked hips. The thoughts of the future were swept under the carpet as he pushed into her and the thoughts of tomorrow never entered their minds as they fell into a dreamless sleep.

"We really should get back to the party."

"It can wait; Harry won't mind he's only one."

"Sirius, if Lily and James find out what we're doing in their bathroom we will be killed."

He groaned against her neck as his finger unhooked themselves from her knickers but a quick kiss to his temple and sparkle in her eye told him they would continue this later and it satisfied his need to take his fiancé now. They had kept their engagement quiet after he proposed to her a few weeks after she had caught Lily's bouquet. Alyssa had told him that the sooner they told their friends the easier it will be to plan their wedding. At first she had only thought he proposed due to the death of his father and with his brother missing Alyssa had felt that he should have mourned first rather than propose. Sirius had told her that it had made him realise how short life actually was and he had missed out on enough time with her to want to waste any more. She eventually agreed under the condition he invited his mother, unhappily he had agreed and more surprisingly he had agreed to lunch with his mother to inform her of his proposal, she had been mildly impressed and simply told him it was about time and to keep it discreet. After the death of Orion Black and the disappearance of her son Regulas, Walburga had caught up with her son after the funeral and apologised for how she had been acting. He had quickly forgiven her after he saw how upset and broken his proud mother looked and after a few days of staying at Grimmauld to look after her Sirius returned home.

"Now what do we say when we go back downstairs." Alyssa asked as she fixed his shirt.

"We were merely trying to figure out how we were going to tell you guys that we're getting married." Sirius cited. They had memorised it time and time again when he had first followed her upstairs.

"There you two are, honestly your Harry's godfather pad's you can't keep disappearing on his first birthday." James mockingly glared as they came back down stairs.

"Ah well….About that." Sirius replied as he instantly forgot what he had rehearsed.

"We were trying to figure out how to tell you our big news." Alyssa said as she nudged Sirius in the arm as panic crossed over his face.

"Well…You see Prongs….we umm."

"OI YOU LOT SHUT IT A SECOND." James yelled. "Padfoot here has some big news."

Whatever colour was left in his face quickly drained away as everybody in the room turned to watch them, each of them eager to hear what Sirius had to say. Normally when Sirius had big news it was definitely big and if there was one thing Sirius hated was being put on the spot regardless of how he acted in school. Alyssa's friends AJ, Lucy and Julie watched with an almost hunger on their faces and Lily smiled sweetly as she took a place by her husbands side with her one year old son in her arms, while Remus and Peter looked ready to grab him if Sirius tried to make a run for it. Alyssa patted his arm reassuringly and gave him a small shove forward as he took in a deep breath to prepare himself from informing everyone of something nobody thought he would actually do.

"I'm getting married." He mumbled quickly. "Sorry, I mean me and Alyssa are getting married on the first of November."

The room had gone quiet and Sirius almost contemplated turning into his dog form to hide from all the blank faces but that was before James' face broke out into a massive grin and Remus and Peter joined in on the hug James and engulfed Sirius in. Lily had given out a small squeal of delight as she wrapped one arm around Alyssa and held Harry on her hip. The squeal that had erupted from AJ's mouth had startled the one year old slightly and as soon as Lily had let go of the brunette she had tackled her friend to the ground. Lucy merely congratulated them in a more dignified manner while Julie seemed to remain quiet but Sirius noticed over James' shoulder the expression on his ex-girlfriends face but the dark look that crossed her face quickly vanished as she wrapped her arms around her friend.

"Did you notice Julie's face?" Alyssa had asked him as they had arrived home.

He had noticed and he had known exactly what it meant, Sirius knew Alyssa did to and even suggested that maybe she should remain as a guest instead of being part of the bridal party. But the entire wedding had to be put on hold as Dumbledore announced at an emergency meeting that the prophecy they had been monitoring was about James and Lily and the three of them were soon put into hiding and moved into a house in Godric's hollow. Sirius had stopped by to make sure they were safe and it was then Dumbledore told them they would need a secret keeper, to which Sirius immediately volunteered for.

"Mate, your getting married in a few months and this could go one for a while." James had reminded him.

"I know and I can do that as well, it's only going to be a small affair and kept quiet so you could still attend." Sirius replied.

"I don't think Alyssa will be happy with the idea of you being our secret keeper, she may see it as something that's too dangerous." Lily had mentioned.

"She can handle it; her ascension is this year as well so she'll gain the rest of her powers. Good luck to anyone who'll try and attack us now eh." Sirius had laughed.

The Sorceress' ascension was the time in her life that she was basked under the light of a blue moon and the part of her magic that was locked would be opened and a new source of strength would flow through her veins. It would be with this ascension that Alyssa would be strong enough to hold the staff of Merlin, the whereabouts of the three deathly hallows would be made known and she would easily be able to summon them. Sirius had picked the first of November for two reason, one because it fell after Halloween when the magical world was as its most power and two it was four days before Alyssa's ascension. Their marriage would complete their binding and if anyone was to attack her the protection they would both gain would diminish anything thrown at them especially seeing as it was before their 21st birthday which was when they had to have the binding completed. Soon Alyssa could take her place as the Wizarding worlds Sorceress and help Dumbledore settle this war once and for all but deep down Sirius had a feeling it would not be that simple.

"That is if she's ready for her ascension, if she's not strong enough we all know it could kill her." Dumbledore prompted.

"I'll be there to protect her." Sirius reminded, they had not told Dumbledore of his Animagus form but they had a feeling he already knew.

"Legend tells that it is the grim that will protect her." The old wizard said.

"The grim is death; she'll be protected by death itself when she ascends. I highly doubt it means the figure of the grim itself." Sirius laughed.

Sirius hadn't yet fully accepted that he was the grim he still saw it as a joke and not something he felt he could match up to. But as the Fidelius charm fell into place and Sirius made his way home after bidding his friends good bye he couldn't help but feel that maybe a visit to Morgaine was in order to help him understand his role in all of this but when he got home and the sounding of retching from the bathroom reached his canine ears the thought left his mind.

"Aly, are you alright?" Sirius asked from the bathroom door.

"No I am not alright; your spawn is going to be the death of me." She choked in reply.

"…My spawn." he murmured in confusion.

"Yes your spawn." Alyssa groaned as she looked up at him. "I'm pregnant."

"You really think this is a good idea mate."

"Yeah, it's too risky now not with what is at stake."

"Can't believe you're going to be a dad but don't you think things are moving a bit quick."

"I know they are James but I don't want to waste anymore time."

"But Padfoot things could go horribly wrong with the curse on your family she could loose it."

"I've considered that but I think after I was born it may have been cancelled out." Sirius informed "Look switching to Peter is going to be a better option; nobody is going to suspect it's him."

"Sirius is right James nobody really thinks I'm up to anything." Peter had mumbled.

Peter Pettigrew had always been a quiet boy and always aimed to take life easy and whatever he could get he would take it, he had never thought he could amount to anything. But his friendship had been tried and tested throughout the years and time and time again things slowly began fading to nothing as they all began moving on with their lives, leaving the chubby, and mouse of a boy behind. Even now he couldn't really fathom how this was going to play out, he knew what he had to do he didn't really have a choice in the matter.

"So it's settled, Peter is the new secret keep. Sirius I hope you know what your doing" James said quietly.

"Don't worry I won't let you guys down." Peter smiled. "This way Sirius can concentrate on keeping Aly safe and you can concentrate on keeping Harry and Lily safe"

By 2am on October 31st Peter Pettigrew had been made the Potter's secret keeper and as Sirius went back to his pregnant fiancés side James shut the door as Peter apparated home and thought over how to make this work best to his advantage. In school Peter had admired them, he had grew accustomed to be second best but also how they applauded they little things he did like when he found the last part of castle they needed to complete the map they had celebrated in his name. They had helped him earn his first girlfriend but when she had died from a curse from a fellow Auror he had attended her funeral alone. They had been more focused on tracking down the rouge Auror when in turn Peter had wanted them there just like he had been by his side when James lost his parents, when Sirius lost his dad and when Remus' family were slaughtered in front of him when he turned down Greyback's offer. Peter had been there for every single one of them yet none of them where there for him, except Lily had been, she had stayed up with him and baked him those cookies that he loved so much. He liked Lily she was always nice to him and he didn't want her to get hurt, he would make sure the dark lord left her alive, he would look after her the way she looked after him. So as he sat and contemplated how to make his so called friends suffer Peter stared at the ancient paper that mentioned the love of Peter's life once and he made his decision.

Sirius had woken up to the feel of Alyssa's hand running down his bare back and he couldn't help but grin into his pillow before turning to face her, they were getting married tomorrow and tonight was his last night of freedom. Unfortunately Sirius was planning on spending it indoors while Alyssa went to visit his mother, he had hoped him and James could have gone through with his plans to go to Las Vegas but he had been happy enough knowing they were safe and that he would see them tomorrow. Running his hand over her belly that held his tiny kid Sirius felt like things couldn't be any happier. It was currently five in the afternoon and these long lay-ins were something he cherished.

"Now there has been a change of plans, your mother has insisted I stay in Grimmauld tonight to make sure nothing happens." Alyssa informed.

"What does she think is going to happen, a terrorist attack?" Sirius grumbled.

"Tradition Sirius, next time you'll see me I'll will be heading down the aisle at that church near that coffee shop you love so much."

"Only cause of the muffins not for the supermodel looking owner."

"Sure it is." Alyssa laughed. "Look I'll send you an owl first thing in the morning just please don't get to drunk and be sure to check in on Peter make sure he's still got the rings."

"Pete will be fine he's nice and safe tucked up in that house of his." said Sirius.

"I know but you know how he manages to lose everything." Alyssa mumbled "Look at 11 o'clock tomorrow we will be getting married and then we'll be off to spend two weeks in the Pacific."

"Don't worry about a thing." Sirius whispered as he kissed her forehead and a beep sounded from outside. "Look that's Henry the new driver just please stay away from the curtains you know how they don't like you."

They had never figured out why, Sirius had always thought it was because they didn't like him either but as he helped Alyssa into the waiting black Bentley Sirius felt an odd chill go through his body as the car drove away. In the distance he could see the outline of rain clouds and hoped they were gone by tomorrow. Walking back indoors Sirius headed to the bathroom to clean himself up but as soon as he closed the door something ripped through him and he fell to the floor. He didn't know what had happened all he saw when he opened his eyes was his dog form reflect in the window he was looking through beside him he could smell his own brother.

"Well done you have done me proud."

"T-Thank you m-my lord."

"My lord when do you plan to strike"

"Tonight, get ready my loyal followers as tomorrow we begin our decent on the wizarding world."

The scene changed and he found himself staring through a set of bars up at the blue moon that sat in the sky. He felt empty and that feeling of cold and loneliness crept back into his body as the sound of choking echoed behind him and as he turned around the scene changed again to that of a destroyed house that looked exactly like the one the Potters were being kept in. Beside the house stood Morgaine whose mouth moved silently as he took in the ruined house. Next thing he knew he was changing back and he felt a cold hand wash over him before the scene faded to black and a scream erupted from the darkness. He woke with a start and the first thing he noticed was the darkness outside, panic seemed to wash over him as he grabbed his wand and his keys before running out of his apartment. Within minutes Sirius landed his infamous flying motorcycle that Alyssa insisted he got rid off outside Peter's house.

"Pete open up it's me." Sirius called as he banged on the door which opened with loud creak.

The first thing Sirius noticed was the empty biscuit tin and the cold cup of tea on the table and as he searched the house for his friend worry seemed to settle in. The panic he had felt earlier settled back in and seconds later he was back on his motor bike heading to the Potters and it was the smoke he saw first. A choked cry made its way out of his throat as he stepped onto the grass, his knees shook slightly and before he could fall he felt an arm wrap around his shaking body and looked up into the face of Hogwarts's gatekeeper.

"Hagrid…What…Where are they?" Sirius choked out.

"James and Lily….Sirius they….I'm sorry they're….Sirius they're gone." Hagrid replied as a tear fell from his face.

"Harry, where's Harry?" he cried before noticing the bundle in Hagrid's arms.

"Harry seams to have slept through the whole thing; he has a nasty scar though."

"Give him to me Hagrid I'm his godfather, Lily and James…They entrusted him to me….Give him to me." Sirius begged.

"Sorry Sirius' mate but I gotta give him to Dumbledore; he's to stay with his aunt and uncle."

"But they're muggles." Sirius exclaimed, "Look….Take my motorcycle…It'll get you there faster."

"But you love that bike." Hagrid murmured as Sirius let Harry hold his finger who let out a tiny 'pa'foo'.

"Just go….Get him somewhere safe."

Hagrid nodded as silent tears fell from Sirius' face, the gatekeeper felt a lump form in his throat as he watched the man in front of him fall apart. Wrapping his arms around the shaking man Hagrid soothed him the best he could before hopping on the bike and taking his leave. Sirius wiped his face with his sleeve as he watched Hagrid disappear into the night sky and slowly he turned and walked towards the house. The door hung of its hinges and the glass had been shattered but it was the familiar sense of dead magic he felt as he crossed the threshold that used to be so full life. He caught sight of the blackened living room where the patches of black scattered the walls from spells that had missed their target. Out of the corner of his eye he caught sight of a foot dangling at the top of the stairs and as he made his way upstairs Sirius caught sight of the corpse of his best friend.

James Potter lay sprawled out on his back, his empty hazel eyes staring up at the ceiling as his cracked glasses lay beside him on the ground. The slippers Lily had brought him lay at twisted angles on his feet and Sirius knelt down in defeat as his repaired heart broke. A sob escaped his lips as he wrapped his arms around the fallen form of his best friend and cradled him close to his chest. The cry that retched itself from his mouth was like the sound of a dying wolf crying for its pack. Sirius rocked back and forth as he cried praying for his brother in arms to wake up, he longed to feel his arms wrap around him and tell him that everything was going to be okay but that comfort never came and as Sirius opened his eyes he noticed the door to Harry's room lay open.

Laying the body of his friend in a more comfortable position Sirius stood and walked over to find Lily Potter lying on her side, those green eyes that James loved so much stared without seeing at the wall. Her red hair fell around her body that seemed dull in the dark night and Sirius realised there and then that she had died protecting Harry and realised why Dumbledore was placing Harry with his relatives. Blood wards was something Sirius understood it was the ward his family cherished the most and he had been brought up knowing that there was nothing stronger. He knelt down beside her and wished he had gotten the chance to apologise for all the times he had never given her a chance.

"I'll fix this." Sirius whispered. "I promise I'll fix this Lily."

A thought Sirius had never wanted to acknowledge crossed his mind and he realised that all this was down to Peter's fault, they had switched to him and he had sold them out. A dark growl echoed in his throat and calmly he walked out the door and left the dead house behind him before apparating into town. He searched everywhere for Peter and it wasn't until he apparated into London itself did he pick up Peter's scent. Sirius' canine senses followed Peters and it was when he heard big ben chime nine in the morning on the 1st November did Sirius catch sight of the traitor. Peter noticed Sirius and broke into a run with the enraged Black hot on his heals. Sirius eventually corned Peter in a familiar street. He recognised instantly and in the distance he could make out where Grimmauld place stood, behind him stood the coffee shop he favoured.

"Why Peter…Why did you do it?" Sirius growled as he drew his wand on the traitor.

"Why…What are you talking about Sirius." Peter said as he spotted a familiar person behind Sirius.

"You know fine rightly what I'm talking about."

"LILY AND JAMES, SIRIUS…HOW COULD YOU DO THAT TO THEM, HOW COULD YOU KILL THEM." Peter yelled suddenly

"ME, YOU WORTHLESS TOE-RAG, DON'T YOU DARE STAND THERE AND DENY WHAT YOU'VE DONE."

"YOU KILLED THEM, YOU KILLED LILY AND JAMES."

But before Sirius could respond the alleyway exploded just as Sirius felt something touch his shoulder he was knocked of his feet. His head was ringing as screams began reaching his delicate ears and a cloud of dust lay all around him before he caught sight of a pile of robes, discarded in the crater. Peter had blown up the street and he could see Auror's apparating from across the street, the coffee lay in ruins and body were strewn across the street. But as arms clamped down on his shoulders and the sound of someone talking echoed in his ears he caught sight of Alyssa lying on her back with her head to the side and her eyes closed. He realised as the Auror's placed him under arrest that she had grabbed his shoulder and the flicker of a smirk he had seen on Peters face before he blew up the street was because he knew he was taking her with him.

It was when Big Ben chimed 11 o'clock and he spotted the church in the distance did he realise he had just lost everything and it was all Peter Pettigrew's fault. He didn't know why and he didn't know how to stop but Sirius began laughing manically at the situation, even as they dragged him to Azkaban and took his photo with his criminal ID he still laughed, even as they shoved him into his cell on the highest floor did he still laugh, a laugh that was filled with so much emptiness, so much hate and lunacy that echoed of the very walls of the prison he would spend the next 12 years in.