"We really don't have enemies. It's just that some of our best friends are trying to kill us."
"So," Harry started, "who's gonna explain? About Emily and her… situation, I mean."
Almost as a collective group, everyone in the room, except Emily, who was focused on her breakfast, turned to look at Sirius. Looking a little sheepish, Sirius motioned to some empty chairs across from himself and Harry and Ron each took a seat.
"Okay, this may end up being a long story, so I just need you guys to listen for now, and then you can ask any questions you may have at the end, alright?" At Harry's nod and Ron's shrug, Sirius continued, "Okay, as you know, fourteen years ago, Voldermort was taking over everywhere, and your parents had to go into hiding. You know that much. But I've also been told that you don't know much about what happened before that. When we were back at Hogwarts, there was a group of us, seven to be exact. You know about James, Remus, Peter," he spat the name out, like it was a dirty word, "and I. Lily and two of her friends also hung out with us all the time. Two sisters named Liz and Lana. And for the first few years, that's all it was. Friendship. Oh, sure in second and third years, everyone had a crush on someone, but those were always changing. But when we started fifth year, everything changed. We discovered dating. And kissing. Suddenly we were spending less time as a group and more time as couples. Your mum and dad, Harry, were the first of us to get together, though I think, in some ways, they had been together since our first day at Hogwarts. Not long after that, Remus and Lana got together, as did Liz and I. Over the span of our fifth, sixth, and seventh years, the three couples fell in love. As we got older though, we, as all teenagers do, looked for ways to express our love. Liz and I were the first two too sleep together, during our sixth year. I think James and Lily first did it during seventh year, and Remus and Lana didn't do it until we were out of school. Anyway, the day of graduation, both James and I proposed to Lily and Liz. They, as you can guess, both said yes, and for a few months everything was perfect. For about six months to be exact. In December that year, Voldermort started attacking much more frequently, and everyone was becoming frightened. We were young and foolish, I suppose, thinking that we were immune to it. But that same month, the least expected thing happened. Liz discovered she was three months pregnant. I have to stress now, that while the baby was unexpected, he was not, for one moment, unwanted. However, both of our parents would have been mad if they found out we were having unprotected sex before we were married, so, before everyone came for Christmas, we eloped. The only people there were James, Lily, Remus and Lana. After that, everything was good again. We were the typical parents-to-be. Excited but nervous. The baby ended up being born two months early, in the middle of May. It was a healthy baby boy, weighing in at eight pounds six ounces. We named him James Remus Black or Jimmy for short. He would be about 17 or 18 now, I believe. Well, anyway, that summer, Lily and James got married and Remus proposed to Lana, and they were married right before Christmas. After that, life fell into a peaceful, happy routine. For over a year, life was perfect. Then, the second September after Remus and Lana's wedding, all three women found out they were pregnant. Jimmy was only two, and suddenly we were expecting another one. But none of us believed anything bad could happen to us. Peter was rarely around anymore, and looking back I now realize why, but back then, I don't think any of us really noticed. But about January, the lives the six of us had thought we had built so strongly for ourselves slowly started to crumble. The first tragedy came early on in the month. One day, while Remus and I were on a mission for Dumbledore, when something happened to Lana. Even today, no one is really sure what it is that happened. When Remus returned home some time later, he found Lana passed out, surrounded by a puddle of blood. He rushed her to the hospital, but it was too late. Lana had lost the baby. The loss hit all of us, but the two of them the hardest. I don't think either of them ever really got over it. Later that month, James' parents were killed in a Death Eater attack on their home. But even through the pain and sorrow, the six of us managed to persevere, each more determined to just live another day. Then, after several depressing months, we finally found a reason to celebrate. On July 31st, Harry was born. I even cried when they named Liz and I godparents. Two days later, Harry was to be brought home, so we held him a homecoming party. It was as if we knew that soon, our troubles would resurface, and we were milking the joyous time for all it was worth. While at the party, Liz went into labor. We rushed her to the hospital, and several hours later, I was the proud father of another son. Yet, before we could even decide on a name, she was going into labor again. It was over in a few minutes, and I now had a daughter as well as two sons. It was a surprise, but a very welcome one. We named him Joshua, or Josh, after my Grandfather, and her Emily, after James' mother, who was a really great lady. And once again, we were happy. For awhile anyway. The next dose of bad news came that November. Liz and Lana weren't twins. They were triplets. The third triplet was a boy and that was when they found out that he was a Death Eater. However, they only found out because he wanted to switch sides. He approached Dumbledore, and truly convinced him that he wanted to help. The first task Dumbledore had him do was too admit to his sisters what he had been and what he had done. He visited the house on a Tuesday, if I remember right, and both Lana and Remus were already there. It was a shock to see him. He had never really approved of Remus's relationship and mine with his little sisters. I mean, Snape had never liked us in the first place, and when we married his sisters, whew, it was not pretty…" This was as far as Sirius was able to get before he was interrupted, as he predicted, by Harry.
"Snape?! You…you… both you married Snape's sisters?" he asked, aghast.
Sirius nodded. "Yes. The two of
them weren't a lot like Severus, but they were close to him. I always
felt a bit bad that she had felt like she had to choose between us.
I could have gotten along with him. For her, I could have done just
about anything. But anyway, he came, and told them everything.
And they forgave him. At the time I didn't understood how they could
have, I mean, he had killed and tortured people. How could they forgive
him? I think now, looking back I think I understand. After
that we had a good few weeks. Over the Christmas holidays, Remus
and Lana announced that once again they were pregnant, about five months
along. They had waited to tell us until the chance of another miscarriage
was slim. January came amid a whirlwind of preparing for the coming
baby. Then, Dumbledore had a new mission. Lana insisted she
do it. She promised all of us, she promised Remus, that this would
be her last mission before the baby was born. He had a bad feeling
about it; he didn't want her to go. She told him, that if he really
didn't want her to go, she wouldn't. All he had to do was say the
word. But he knew how she felt. She felt that she had to do
this. And he wouldn't stand in the way of that. So she went.
I still remember her leaving, and that she did it with a smile on her face.
I think, a small part of her knew that she wasn't coming back. In
later years, especially in Azkaban, the last words I ever heard her say,
haunted me.
Speaking for the first time, Lupin whispered to Harry, "Ssshhh, he's not done. He's just pulling himself together. What's next is hard for him."
Sure enough after a few more minutes of silence, Sirius started to speak again, "When I got there, I was put into my cell. Only a few days later, Fudge showed up. He interrogated me for over a week. He kept asking me questions; who were my fellow Death Eaters, things like that. But I didn't know. I told him so, but he didn't believe me. I asked about Liz and the kids, and he said that they had been killed. I asked how. He said that other Death Eaters had blamed me for Voldermort's downfall, he had gone to the Potters on my information, and he had met his downfall there. They had attacked the house, setting it on fire. He told me that Josh and Emily had died in the fire, yet they were the lucky ones. Liz and Jimmy were taken by the Death Eaters, alive, and were tortured for hours, days, before they were killed. He showed me four photos. Two were of small children, unrecognizable under the burns. The next was of a three-year-old, covered with hex marks, and it looked as if he had been beaten- many times over. The last was of a woman. She had been beaten, and possibly, well probably, raped. She was also covered in hex marks, as well as curse burns. Fudge told me that all of it was my fault, that I had done this to my family. And for the next fourteen years, I believed him. I won't tell about what happened in Azkaban, I don't think some people here are old enough to hear it, and I don't think I can tell it. Anyway, everyone knows what happened when I got out, and most everything after that. But several months ago I started having dreams. For the first time since Azkaban, they were dreams, not nightmares. In them I was always watching a girls sleep, right before she would wake up, frightened. This is when I'd wake up. The strange thing was, the girl looked like Liz always said Emily would. She had long, dark hair, about the color of mine, and piercing blue eyes, which were a lot like Liz's. This had to be my daughter. The one that had died fourteen years ago. So I went to Dumbledore, and questioned what I had been told. He told me that it was all a lie. As far as he knew all three of my children were alive, and it was very possible for me to find them. But, as far as he knew, my wife really was dead. She had left the kids with Remus that morning and had come after me. A Death Eater in the Ministry told everyone who she was, and, fearing that she was dangerous, one of the Officials cursed her, and it killed her. They never found a body, but they think that the impact of the curse totally destroyed her. I went looking for Emily first, knowing that if I waited, it may be too late. And that brings us up to date. After you all go back to school, I'm going to go look for Josh and Jimmy. And after I find them, I'm going after Peter. After I catch him, I am going to be a free man. As Lana taught me, live life, no regrets."
He stopped then, and everyone knew he was finished. For a several moments, no one could think of anything to say and the only thing heard was silence.
To Be Continued
