As Sirius fell through the archway, he felt something like an electric shock run through his body, and he landed on the floor with a thump. He scrambled quickly to his feet, wand at the ready, thinking hurriedly of what spell to use on Bellatrix next.

But there was no Bellatrix.

There was no Remus, no Tonks, no Kingsley, no Moody, no Harry, no Neville...

Sirius was completely alone in the most secret room of the Department of Mysteries.

There was a slight rustling behind him, like the whisperings of many voices in the distance. He whirled around and stared at the archway, his heart beating fast. His mind suddenly whirred into action, and a dozen questions filled his mind.

People who fell through the archway died-everyone knew that. In fact, it had been Sirius' hope to push Bellatrix through, if she got close enough.

So was he dead? Was this the afterlife? Heaven? Or Hell?

Sirius had always imagined that when one died, one knew about it. But he felt no different-except that his chest felt a bit bruised from the Stunner Bellatrix had shot at him. He pinched himself, just to make sure this was real.

Ouch. Yup, it was real.

In his hand, he still clutched his wand. 'Lumos', he muttered, his voice echoing strangely in the cavernous, empty room. His wand tip lit up immediately.

So he had fallen through the veil, but he was not dead; everyone else had disappeared; he still had his magic and was in perfect shape.

Slowly, he got down from the dais and walked up towards the exit, half- expecting to find he was trapped. But the door opened, and he found himself in a dark room, lit only by some candlabras. He remembered it well. The room began to rotate, making Sirius feel extremely dizzy. 'Reveal the exit!' He shouted, realising that this situation was making him more nervous than he had thought. The door straight ahead opened, and the room stopped spinning. Sirius stepped out of the Department of Mysteries, and raced towards the lifts. He punched the button marked 'Atrium' repeatedly, his breathing coming fast and shallow. With its usual steady speed, the lift ascended, while Sirius paced up and down, puzzling everything over in his brain. How could everyone have disappeared? The Department of Mysteries had been completely silent. Had he been unconscious, and Lupin and the others had managed to defeat the Death Eaters, and brought them upstairs? Surely they wouldn't have just left him lying there? Or maybe one of the Death Eaters had used a portkey and transported them all away. Or maybe-

'Atrium', announced the cool voice of the lift. Sirius burst out of the doors and stared around.

'Can I help you, Sirius?'

Sirius jumped a foot in the air and turned quickly, pointing his wand at whoever had spoken.

'Easy, Sirius! You look terrible, what's the matter?'

Sirius felt his jaw drop. Joseph Anderson, the man who had been Chief of Security in the Ministry nearly two decades ago, was standing behind Sirius, looking slightly worriedly at Sirius' wand.

'Joseph!' He gasped, but stopped dead. Was this all part of Voldemort's cunning plan? Was he messing with Sirius' head, so that he would be distracted from watching out for Harry? Maybe this wasn't really Joseph Anderson.

'How many kids've you got, Joseph?' He asked, lowering his wand a little.

Joseph looked even more confused. 'Three', he replied, 'and there's a fourth, but that's from me first wife, the vampiress, and I don't like to remember about 'er and 'im much. But you know that!'

Sirius exhaled loudly. Joseph had never told anyone about his oldest son, apart from James and Sirius, who had gained his confidence when they would be hanging around the Ministry...

'Joseph, what're you doing here?' He asked, still feeling suspicious, 'something very odd's happening...'

'I work here, Sirius!' Joseph replied slowly, raising an eyebrow, 'you know that, too!'

'You retired nearly twenty years ago!' Sirius cried. Then something else struck him. 'Aren't you in the least bit scared to see me, since as far as you know, I'm a murderer on the run from Azkaban?'

'Sirius mate, I think they did you in with a Confundus Charm', Joseph said, coming closer to Sirius and leading him to the chair behind the security desk, 'where are the others?'

'That's what I'd like to know!' Sirius responded, sitting down, 'and what d'you mean, "they did you in with a Confundus Charm?" Who's they?'

'I think I should wait 'til the others get back', Joseph answered, looking disturbed, 'when someone's got that Charm put on 'em, anything you say might make 'em worse. You just sit here, Sirius, and relax. Put your wand away like a good lad, they'll be back any minute.'

But Sirius could not be soothed. 'Joseph, where's Harry? Did you see him? Please don't let them have got Harry!' In despair, he placed his head on arms on the table, hoping that the darkness would help clear his mind.

'If you're talking about Harry Potter, I sincerely hope he's at Hogwarts-if he's not, he's going to be in serious trouble, and I don't mean with the Death Eaters!'

A shiver ran down Sirius' spine, as he slowly looked up from the table. Standing in front of him was a tall, thin man with untidy black hair and glasses. He looked flushed, as though he had just run a long distance, but had a cheeky grin firmly in place.

'What's the matter, Padfoot?' James Potter asked cheerfully, 'you look like you've seen a ghost!

If you liked this, stick with it, although I haven't explained an awful lot just yet, it will get better I promise you!