Back to Hogwarts

When Sirius awoke it was to the strange sensation that the world was at its end. As he sat upright in his best friend's bed, shivering with cold, he felt oddly out of place. Looking at the day ahead he realised that he had now come to the end of his chosen path. He was living in his friend's house-he had nowhere to go and nothing to do. He would get up, sit down and stay in his chair for the remainder of the day until returning to bed. There seemed no point in such an empty existence.

Although Sirius had not given up on his sister, he now knew that he had to move on; stewing in self pity would get him nowhere.

It was time to go back to Hogwarts.

He was not due at the school for a few days, but there seemed no point in waiting. His godson and only remaining friend still needed him, and he needed them even more.

Dragging himself to his feet Sirius crossed the room to Remus's desk and pulled out a roll of parchment. Picking up an old quill he wrote.

Dear Harry,

Things have not gone to plan with Ebony. I plan to travel north in a few hours so I should be at Hogwarts in time for supper. Let Remus know I'm coming.

-Sirius.

Sirius checked his untidy scrawl for mistakes and then folded the parchment in two. He trampled down the stairs into the front room where he found Mrs Lupin.

'Could you take this down to the Post Owls with your mail?' he asked.

Mrs Lupin's face contorted into a look of worry as she put a bony hand to Sirius's forehead.

'What's happened honey, you look dreadfully pale? Your eyes are all red poppet, are you ill?'

'No' Sirius answered quickly. He was in no mood to give Mrs Lupin any explanations, he could not face her pity and mollycoddling.

'Well, if you're sure,' she said softly. 'I think you should rest though, just in case you're coming down with something.'

'Actually,' Sirius began, pushing Mrs Lupin's hand away. 'I'm going back to Hogwarts today; I want to be near Harry.'

Mrs Lupin looked saddened at the prospect of losing the man she considered her second son.

'I understand,' she said, trying not to sound downcast. 'We'll miss you though. You must bring Harry up next time, I'd love to meet him. It doesn't feel the same, having you and Remus here without James, it must be comforting to have his son around.'

'Yes.' Sirius replied, apparently lost in memory.'

Mrs Lupin left the room, leaving Sirius to his thoughts. Sirius, however, was in no mood to reminisce; the past seemed to be causing more harm than good lately. He went back up the squeaky staircase and began to pack the few belongings he had. The sooner he arrived at Hogwarts the better.

It may have seemed that Sirius was trying to replace Ebony with his godson but that was not the case. As Remus had often worried, it was more a question of him attempting to replace James with his son. Sirius was aware that Harry could not provide the comfort he could have sought in James, but it did make him feel that extra bit closer to the friend that he had lost.

Sirius took the time he had to rummage amongst Remus's books. The large collection of Magic Defence books his friend owned would aid him considerably when he took over the Dark Arts post. Sirius's search for his sister had taken up so much time that he hadn't even begun to prepare for his new job. Hopefully Remus would provide him with some tips.

With his belongings packed away and ready for the journey Sirius sat and awaited Mrs Lupin's return. Only now did his mind fully return to Ebony.

Where was she now?

She would probably be sitting in a classroom, not even in the same country.

Was she feeling as hurt as her brother?

Did she too feel as though the world had turned its back on her?

Or was she laughing and chatting with her school-friends, without a spare thought for the brother she had left behind?

Sirius did not think he could bear that. He did not want Ebony to be in pain, but he couldn't stand the thought of her laughing, not caring about what she had lost.

Just then, a loud banging sound came from the hallway, someone was knocking on the door. Sirius gave a heavy sigh as he heaved himself up from the settee; Mrs Lupin had obviously forgotten her key.

Sirius clicked open a small, brass latch and jerked the front door open moodily, annoyed at having been aroused from his thoughts. Yet as the door swung open he realised that something was very wrong. He had expected Remus's mother to bustle into the house, arms full of shopping, wondering how she could possibly have forgotten to take her key.

But it was not Mrs Lupin.

A pair of dark, tearful eyes peered up from the doorstep.

'Ebony?'

Sirius looked down at the young girl, stunned.

'What is wrong?'

Ebony did not answer. She flung her arms around her brother's shoulders and broke into uncontrollable sobs. Sirius could feel her breath coming in short, sharp bursts against his chest, she had been crying so much that her whole body shook and she did not seem able to stop.

Sirius pulled his sister into the house and sat her down in the living room. She nestled against his chest as he ran a hand soothingly over her head, willing her to calm down. After some time Ebony's tears finally ceased as she hadn't the energy to cry any more. She remained silent, not moving from her brother's grip.

'What is it?' Sirius whispered, when Ebony appeared to have calmed down.

'He's gone' Ebony replied, her voice hoarse and sore.

She pulled away from Sirius and sat facing him. Her eyes were just narrow, pink slits upon her red, puffy face.

'Martin?' Sirius asked in shock.

Ebony nodded silently, her face buried in her hands.

'He….he was….when I arrived home….I called the doctor, but….he was old.' Ebony sobbed incoherently.

'You found him?' Sirius's face filled with concern. 'You weren't alone were you…you had people to look after you overnight?'

Ebony shook her head weakly. 'I just wanted to be alone…I needed to think, and then I came to find you.'

For the first time, the girl raised her head and glanced around the room. Her eyes fixed upon a half packed trunk that lay in the corner of the room.

'Am I interrupting? Are you going away?'

Sirius thought for a moment and then answered. 'We both are.'

Ebony did not seem to understand. She looked at her brother in confusion.

'I told you that I'm going to work at Hogwarts, and you're going to school there.'

Ebony looked as though she was going to protest but Sirius would not let her argue. This was for the best. Ebony had suffered a terrible loss; he could not leave her to go back to Beauxbatons alone. She was now his responsibility again and he would not fail her twice. He had to be there for her, to look after her. He also had an obligation to Harry, with Ebony at Hogwarts too he could ensure that they were both equally happy and content-he could provide them both with love, with a family.

'But… Beauxbatons will…'

'Ebony, you are not leaving my sight again' Sirius cut in, 'I can't force you to come but I need to make sure that you are ok.'

To Sirius's surprise Ebony nodded.

'I had planned on leaving today but…we could stay here for a few days, give you time to get your head together and we'll set off on Christmas Eve.'

Ebony seemed comforted. Since losing her father her thoughts had been scattered, surreal- it felt good to be making plans, putting life back into perspective. It would be strange starting a new school, a whole new chapter in life, but it seemed like the right thing to do. Her father's old house was the last place she wanted to be and the thought of going back to Beauxbatons alone was unbearable. Although she knew she would miss her friends, she wouldn't miss them half as much as she would Sirius. She needed her brother around; family now meant more to Ebony than she ever thought it could.

'I need to say goodbye to my dad.' Ebony said quietly, staring at the floor. 'And I got an owl telling me I have to go to the Ministry building in the New Year, to attend a reading of dad's will.'

'Don't worry' said Sirius 'Professor Dumbledore will understand…Come on, I'll take you to collect your things and I'll send Dumbledore an owl from town, let him know that you're coming.'

The slightest trace of a smile flittered across Ebony's face.

'You can use mine if you like. Dad kept quite a few, I'm sure you could keep one.'

Sirius took the girl's hand and led her down the hallway.

'Only if you choose it for me.'

The sky outside was beginning to welcome in the night. A thin sliver of the early moon was visible beyond a covering of thick, white cloud. Ebony's eyes were automatically drawn to the few stars that adorned the great icy, blue scene above. She felt a warm sense of comfort, knowing that Theodore Martin was now somewhere up there, at peace, looking down upon her.

 'I'm alright dad. It's ok' she whispered as Sirius led her towards the place where his old bike was parked.

Overhearing his sister's words he smiled to himself. No matter how selfish it made him, he couldn't help but feel the same. Things were finally going to be ok.

 

A/N Well, that's it, the end of A New Beginning! Well, technically, all will be transferred on to my next fic.

If you want to find out how Sirius and Ebony get at Hogwarts…and what Harry thinks of it all, Part 3-'The Secrets of Slytherin', will be up very, very soon.! I'm so excited Gred, Forge AND two Marauders under the same roof! In Part 3, The Order of the Phoenix will fully reform and Voldemort will return with a horrible new plot, so please, please come back and read it, PLEASE!!!! There'll be some OOTP inspired bits and a different death (as you will have noticed I'm rather attached to the guy JK …did away with *sobs*, oh no I'm off again) so PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE…oh well, if all of that grovelling didn't succeed I may as well surrender.

Anyhoo, BIG thank you's for reading this fic and sending me such lovely reviews!