Disclaimer: I regret to announce that I do not own these characters...just the plot.
Pairing: Remus/Sirius (yup, it contains Slash so if you don't like it, don't read it. And if you do read it, don't flame me I warned you!)
A/N: This chapter isn't the best but it does get better! Honest! (at least I think it does....) It is slightly AU but only very slightly at the moment.
Cemetery Drive
Chapter 1 – Dead on Arrival?
A piercing scream tore through the air. Sirius sat up and stared around him. The screaming continued and he put his hands over his ears. Who was screaming? Where was he? All he could see was black. A thin streak of light fluttering a few metres away as if it were coming through a curtain. His head pounded as if he'd just fallen down several sets of stairs and landed on it repeatedly. Gingerly, he fingered the back of his head. A large bump was beginning to form but there was no blood, which Sirius assumed was a good thing.
The screaming no longer seemed so loud and among the constant wailing he could hear whispers, many whispers, and quite frankly it was beginning to annoy him. He tried to push himself to his feet but his legs felt like jelly. He crossed his arms over his chest and tried to remember what had happened.
The first thing he could remember was falling and laughter, cruel laughter. Then he remembered eyes. Belletrix's cruel, laughing eyes, Harry's eyes, shocked and horrified, and Remus'...Remus looked as if his whole world had just come crashing down around him as he stood holding Harry back from the veil. The veil.
That was what had happened. He remembered it all now. His cousin's spell hitting him full on in the chest, losing his footing and falling backwards through...through the veil to... to here.
But this was the land of the dead. He wasn't dead, was he? He couldn't be, it just wasn't right. A pair of brown eyes flashed before his eyes, sad eyes. Remus. He couldn't be dead, he couldn't leave Remus, not again. Stumbling to his feet, he dragged himself the few metres to the veil.
"Don't worry Moony." He growled, "I'm coming."
Taking a deep breath, he dived at the entrance. He was almost there, almost there. Two more steps and... he hit something solid. He tried again and still he couldn't get past. It was like a force field was blocking his way.
"No! Remus!" He pounded his hand on the force field. This couldn't be happening. No. A single tear slipped down his cheek. No. He buried his face in his arms and slid down the transparent wall.
"No. No. No. Remus." He murmured.
He pulled his knees up and tears filled his eyes. He wasn't dead. He couldn't be. He couldn't leave Remus, not again. He had to get back through. Another tear fell and more followed it. No. Don't cry. He had to get to Remus. One last try. He punched the wall with his fist, hard. No use. He was trapped. He frowned in anger. The dead couldn't keep him, he belonged to Remus. He punched the wall again, and again, and again. Tears still slid down his cheeks and blood from his knuckles was beginning to slip between his fingers.
Blood. He couldn't be dead, he was bleeding. The dead didn't bleed, they couldn't feel physical pain. He wasn't dead. He stared at the dark red liquid as it lightly coated his hand in a deep red stain. Thoughts flew through his head, if he wasn't dead how couldn't he get back to Remus? Maybe it was just an illusion. As soon as one thought came another chased it, leaving doubt in everything he thought.
Footsteps, or what would have been footsteps, approached him and stopped. Sirius found himself staring at a pair of ghostly white feet. Moving his gaze up, he noticed a man. He was clad in a guard's uniform and wore a sword at his side. An arrow had pierced his heart and, what looked like, blood stained his tunic. He shimmered in a silvery light that seemed to come from the man himself.
"Sirius Black?" His voice was deep and hollow sounding.
Sirius nodded hesitantly.
"You are to follow me."
The guard turned and began to head back the way he had come. Sirius suddenly noticed stone walls were beginning to appear out of the darkness and a warm orange glow came from a few torches on the walls. He began to get to his feet.
"Wait!" He said as the man slowed to a halt. "Who are you?"
The man looked him in the eye and Sirius was surprised at the intensity of the gaze.
"My name is Maridus. I am Captain of the Guard." He looked at Sirius wearily. "Now, please will you follow me."
Sirius shrugged and followed him. Maridus led him down a long winding passage which just seemed to appear out of nothing. At first he was scared to take his eyes off the archway but he had no choice. Very soon the veil was out of view and Sirius could do nothing but follow the guard down the twisting corridors.
They walked for what seemed like hours. Sirius tried to keep track of the direction they had come, so he could get back, but it was almost impossible. There were so many turns and twists that he wasn't even sure whether they were going left or right. Eventually Maridus stopped opposite a very large oak door. Two guards stood at the entrance to the door and pushed it open for Sirius and the Captain to enter. They pulled the doors shut behind them and fell into step behind Sirius.
He found himself in what looked like a very large study, or perhaps a library. Books of all shapes and sizes lined the walls and yet more lay in stacks on the floor around the room. Deep red, velvet curtains and ancient tapestries covered any part of the walls that weren't hidden behind bookshelves. The room had the same orange glow as the corridor outside.
"Moony would have loved this." Sirius muttered sadly to himself as Maridus led him down a gap between two bookshelves. His heart twisted painfully as he thought about Remus. The memory of the look on Remus' face as he fell through the veil flashed momentarily in his mind and he winced. Would he ever see his Moony again? He didn't even want to think about what it would be like if he didn't.
He was knocked abruptly from his thoughts when Maridus began to speak again. They had stopped in front of a pair of large oak doors.
"You are entering the Hall of the King, speak only when you are spoken to and do not anger him."
Anger him? Sirius blinked at him, a question forming on his lips. But if the guard noticed, he made no move to show it. Instead he turned to the men guarding the doors and nodded once to them as they pulled on the heavy handles. The doors opened to reveal a long white stone hall. Huge golden pillars on both sides led up to a small stage at the far end. Sunlight streamed through many large windows, giving the room a healthy glow.
Sunlight? Sirius took a double take. Hadn't it been dark before, where was the sun coming from? Blinking as the light hit the stone and blinded him a second, he followed Maridus down the hall.
At the far end of the hall sat a man. He too glowed in a silvery light, just like Maridus and the other guards, but this man seemed to have an even brighter light. It was so bright it marred his features slightly and made his light blue robes and greying hair seem silver. Upon his head was a golden crown encrusted with sparkling emeralds and glittering diamonds and in his hand he held a staff of gold.
"My Lord." Maridus bowed low. "I bring Sirius Black."
"Ah! Bring him here, bring him here." Said the King.
Sirius, who until now had been standing about halfway down the hall, moved forward so he was level with the guard. Now he was nearer, he could see the intense blue of the King's eyes that seemed to be fixed on him. Gulping a little, he bowed in the same way as Maridus.
"Sirius Black?" Sirius stood again, bringing his gaze back to the man before him. "I am Thorrn, son of Troydon, King of this realm."
There was a lot of shuffling around him as people made to bow. Sirius looked down at Maridus just in time to receive a very sharp look telling him he should be doing the same. Forming an "O" with his lips, he sank to the ground in a long bow like the rest.
"Rise."
The whole court began to stand up straight, Sirius included.
"Sirius Black. It has been brought to my attention that you are not like us. You came here by a means unknown to us..."
"Not like you?!" Sirius interrupted. "You mean, I'm not dead?!"
The King gave him a sharp look before continuing.
"No, you are not dead. You have come here at a time far too early than that at which you should have arrived. You should not have seen what comes after death." Sirius felt a flood of relief flow over him at King Thorrn's words, which was then quickly followed by a wave of grief. What would they do to him?
Thorrn snapped his fingers and a serving girl Sirius had missed before came forward and handed him a goblet filled with, well he guessed it was wine. Sirius eyed it suspiciously then looked at Maridus who seemed just as confused as he did.
The King gestured for him to drink but Sirius narrowed his eyes. He didn't trust this man.
"Will you not drink?"
"What is it?" He refused to drink it until they told him exactly what it was.
"It is just wine, nothing else." Thorrn's tone gave away nothing but Sirius caught the slight flicker in the King's eye as he switched his gaze from him to Maridus and back. He gave a slight nod and began to raise the goblet to his lips.
Shutting his eyes, he rested the goblet on his mouth, breathing in the scent. His nose twitched. Summoning his strength, he called Padfoot into his mind (1). The dog barked softly in his head telling Sirius he had arrived. Still holding the goblet to his lips he allowed Padfoot to sniff at the contents. It looked like wine, smelt like wine but there was something about it, something telling him not to touch it, to pour it out at his feet. And so, with Padfoot's bark of approval at his idea, he poured the entire contents out of the goblet onto the shiny stone floor.
Gasps of surprise fluttered through the court as Sirius let Padfoot fade from his mind. He guessed nobody had expected him to turn down the King's wine, to dishonour the King. Dishonour the King. Maridus' words from earlier came back to him, "...do not anger him". Was that what he had just done? King Thorrn had already seemed to dislike him, what would happen to him now?
Slowly he raised his eyes to meet the King's and instantly dropped his gaze. Thorrn's eyes burned with such an anger and dislike so intense that it hurt to look into them for long. Oh dear, he thought, he was in trouble now. He looked up at the King again. The dead man was shaking, his arm outstretched towards the door. He couldn't even seem to speak, he just kept opening and closing his mouth, words escaping him.
"Get...that man...out...of...my...sight!" He eventually managed. "I don't EVER want to see him again."
Sirius couldn't help but grin at the King. It was a habit he had picked up as a child when his parents or a teacher yelled at him to leave the room, and as they say, old habits die hard. This earned him an icy glare from Thorrn and a stern glance from Maridus.
Quickly, as if he was making sure Sirius couldn't do anything else to anger his King, Maridus bowed swiftly to Thorrn and hurried Sirius from the room. Cursing under his breath and giving Sirius annoyed looks, he lead him down corridors and through doors until, finally, they came to a small wooden door at the end of a long hall. Taking a small silver key from under the mat, Maridus unlocked the door and slid it open.
On entering the room, Sirius noted how familiar it looked but couldn't seem to think why. He threw himself down on the bed and shut his eyes, finally realising how exhausted he actually was. At that moment all he wanted to do was sleep but he could sense the guard standing by the door, watching him.
"Yeah?" He said, cracking open one eye.
"I am sorry to do this Sirius Black but I am going to lock you in." Maridus said regretfully. "I am sorry."
Sirius shrugged, he wasn't in the mood to care about much at that moment in time. Maridus bowed to him, then turned and walked out, locking the door behind him. Leaving Sirius alone to his thoughts.
To Be Continued....
(1) I don't actually know if Animagus can do that, but seeing as they can turn into animals then they should be able to become them in their mind but not change form. Anyway, it was just a theory that seemed to work for the story. It will probably be used in later chapters as well so I thought I would comment on it here.
So how was that? Reviews are very welcome! But I'll carry on regardless if I get none.
Next Chapter: We hear from Remus...but that's all I'm saying.
