Beyond the Veil

A/N: Hey there! Thank you for those wonderful reviews. You guys make me feel so happy and giddy... I'd like to say that I'm sorry if I came out too strong about the lack of reviews- I'd should be thankful that you guys read this and enjoy it, instead of bitching around because I don't get more reviews, so sorry and thank you, again. One more thing- the question about Sirius not deserving Hermione was not meant to be taken seriously, but it's nice to know that after all that has happened to them in this story, you still want them together.

Enough of me. Enjoy!

Disclaimer: No, no, just the plot.

"Baby, I've been here before
I've seen this room and I've walked this floor
I used to live alone before I knew you...
I've seen your flag on the marble arch
But love is not some victory march:
It's a cold and it's a broken hallelujah."

"Hallelujah"- Imagen Heap.

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February the first.

The cold and the remaining snow were merely the physical sights of their emotions; something that they could touch and feel. It was as though the weather was the requiem for their anxiety and nervousness for what was to happen that very night. None of them spoke too much, and every smile or laugh sounded forced; they just fidgeted and paced, or ate too much, or simply tried to distract themselves for the looming fear that was also to fall on them later.

Everything was ready; even the people who were going to witness what could be another miracle, or another suicide. In Grimmauld Place Harry and Sirius only sat in the living room, without speaking, lost in their thoughts and insecurities; each of them wondering if they'd see the other again. In the Malfoy Manor Ginny compulsively swept the floors, washed dishes and ate, while Draco tried to remind her that she was pregnant and had to calm down. In their little flat near Diagon Alley Luna attempted to get some work done, while Ron simply walked around the house like a ghost, clutching his stomach now and then while muttering to himself. In Lupin's house Tonks tripped with chairs and carpets and burnt lunch, while Lupin read and reread The Veiled Mysteries to the point that several pages ripped and he had to Reparo them.

And so the day went on, in that endless apprehensive silence, and pacing, and dreadful thoughts, and nervous nauseas... The sun finally reached the horizon and set slowly, yet hastily; the temperature dropped dramatically, and the cold wind howled and whistled through the streets and the trees as the time approached when they had to reunite in the Atrium of the Ministry of Magic. The clouds that covered the sky glowed with a faded purple color as all of them took a peek through the windows, as they fastened the cloaks around their shoulders and placed the scarves around their necks.

10.00 p.m.

If Harry's, Ron's, and Ginny's assumptions were correct, Hermione had thrown herself through the Veil somewhere near ten thirty or so; therefore Sirius had to fall through it at that hour.

The Atrium seemed to get scarier and scarier on every occasion they visited it, but maybe it was because of the memories and the going-on's that they had undergone there. The faces of the statues in the Fountain of Brethren seemed deformed by the darkness and the shadows... Sirius's grip around the goblet tightened almost by reflex, as he stared at the Fountain.

"They should be here," Harry's faint voice broke the silence, and Sirius turned to look at him and nodded. Since yesterday, when it was decided that Sirius would return to the Veil, they had not talked save for 'good night', 'good morning' and 'we should get going'. Truth to be told, neither Sirius nor Harry knew how to exactly approach one another about Hermione or the potion. Would they see each other again? What to do with the uncertainty, and the fear? How to convey those emotions into words, or actions?

The sound of someone apparating behind them made them turn around quickly; Ginny and Draco nodded at them without a word, walking towards them. Minutes and four 'cracks' later, Ron, Luna, Lupin and Tonks joined them in equal silence. When they were all there Ginny walked towards the elevator and pressed the button to open the doors; they all crammed inside the lift and Draco pressed the number nine... It was difficult to breathe in there; it was like being in a fog laden moor instead of a metallic box; the memories flew among them like bothersome flies that they couldn't kill- No Dementor could have made a better job of draining them of any kind of hopeful or happy feeling... Merely because the very Ministry had already done so.

The elevator shook when it stopped, and it rattled slightly as the doors opened to reveal the dark corridor and the door at the end of it. The first ones to step out of the elevator were Lupin, Sirius and Harry; but Ginny and Ron did need some coaxing from their partners so they could also get out of the lift. Ron was so pale that his freckles seemed bigger and Ginny sported a nasty shade of green, clutching her throat. Tonks wound her arm around Lupin's as they started waking; Sirius and Harry merely glanced at each other. The torches innocently flared as they went pass them, illuminating the path towards the door. Their footsteps resounded in the corridor and their anxious breaths meshed as Sirius lifted his hand and pushed the black door open to reveal the circular room. Once everyone was inside Ron closed the door behind them, and the room spun. For once, nobody closed their eyes to prevent the blue fire leaving streaks of blue embedded in their pupils.

And no one spoke, still...

The room came to a halt and they all gazed at the identical yet different doors, wondering who would pronounce the words to open the right one... Tonks did, and the door in front of them opened slowly. Harry's Adam's apple bobbed up and down as he tried to swallow, for his mouth was so dry, as he walked towards the door with Sirius close behind him. When he trespassed the doorframe, the few torches in that room lit, giving him a clear sight of the sunken pit and the Veil, which fluttered in welcome. Sirius stood next to him, feeling his throat clench, curling his fingers around the goblet with a death like grip. He could not believe that he would be falling into that bottomless darkness again... He knew he was doing this for Hermione, and he didn't regret his decision of volunteering, but it was bizarre... No, not bizarre. More like... Surreal. Yes, that was it.

"Should we go down, then?" Luna's whisper brought them all out of their trains of thoughts. Like a group of rabbits about to enter a nest of vipers they went down the stone staircases, trying not to pay attention to the whispers coming from behind the Veil, trying to lure them to enter the realm, to touch the dais... They crowded in a semicircle around the dais, trying in vain to appear cool and calmed with the situation at hand, but they all failed dismally.

Now that they were there, in front of the jittering Veil, the weight of what they were about to do fell upon them with cruel force. The risk that both Sirius and Hermione could be lost forever was a big one... And if that should happen, what would they do with the guilt that they had sent Sirius to his death, once again? Would Harry be able to take it? Would they be able to live with the remorse?

"Well..." Lupin trailed off barely above a whisper, not knowing what else to say. The words were stuck in his throat, deeming useless. Sirius glanced at him with his eyes opaque, and handed him the goblet full of the potion. "Sirius, what-"

"Hold this," His friend requested in a gruff whisper; the goblet shaking slightly. Lupin raised his eyebrows and did as told, carefully cradling the goblet in his hands. No one said anything as Sirius turned towards Harry and put his hand on his shoulder, mutely asking his godson to turn around. When Harry did, and before he could even make a gesture, Sirius enveloped him in a hug. Suddenly what had happened between Harry and Hermione (and Sirius and Hermione, by default) didn't seem all that terrible; the abyss was somehow not as big as it had once been. Much to Sirius's surprise, Harry hugged him back with equal force.

"If you don't come back with her, I'm punching you again," Harry told him, trying in vain to sound cheerful.

"Something to look forwards to," Sirius replied with the same voice, trying to smile convincingly. Harry's smile faded from his face as he gazed at Sirius, looking as though he wanted to say something but couldn't get it out. "See you later then, Harry?" Sirius added, not wanting to hear any 'goodbye', or 'forgive me for everything I did'. He didn't want to hear any farewells. Harry swallowed and agreed with his head.

"See you later."

It was Harry's turn to hold the goblet when Sirius turned to hug Lupin, not as strongly as Harry, but enough for Lupin to understand how Sirius was feeling. As Ron and Draco took turns to shake his godfather's hand, Harry wondered how Hermione had felt when she threw herself through the Veil, all alone in this horrible room, with no one to bid her farewell. Had she cried? Had the sound of her tears been magnified by the silent room; the soft falling of teardrops on the floor?

"It's time," Lupin's voice broke his reverie. Harry tried to control his emotions as he saw Sirius breathe in deeply and grab the goblet. He had the urge to tell Sirius to stop, but he didn't. He had the urge to tell him that he loved him, but he didn't open his mouth. Sirius lifted the goblet to his lips and, for a second, Harry remembered Dumbledore drinking the potion inside the basin which contained the false Horcrux, and his stomach turned over unpleasantly. Everyone stared at Sirius drinking the potion inside the goblet, containing their breaths, wondering what it would do to him... Sirius coughed soundly and let the empty goblet fall to the floor, grimacing and shuddering.

"What's wrong??" Ginny squeaked. Sirius continued coughing and crouched over slightly.

"Padfoot! Are you alright?" Lupin urgently asked, going over towards Sirius.

"It- It tastes like condensed blood," Sirius managed to say. Next to Harry, Luna and Ron let out an identical strangled gasp as Harry widened his eyes and let his jaw fall open. A sort of white light encased his godfather's body for a couple of seconds, and he stopped coughing. Sirius straightened his back and his eyes opened completely; his pupils were dilated. He looked... possessed...

Without another word and without a last glance, Sirius mechanically walked towards the dais, climbed the one step, and stiffly as a board simply let himself fall forwards, through the Veil, and his body was engulfed by the fabric with a soft whisper. The remaining persons in the room fixedly stared at the Veil, frozen, incapable of articulating a single word. What had just happened? Had Sirius thrown himself into the Veil again? Was it a dream, a nightmare? It was- It was too soon, it had happened so quickly, so rashly! Harry's altered mind once again decided to think of Hermione, as his wide, horrified eyes stared at the never ending, wave like movement of the Veil.

Had that happened to her, too? Had she tasted his blood on her mouth? Had she cried while she muttered the incantation that would bring Sirius back? The questions went round his head without a pause, but he couldn't find any reasonable answers. Maybe she had cried out of sadness and loneliness. What could he have done to ease her pain, and to dry her tears...?

The whispers coming from the Veil grew in his ears, but he knew better than to listen to them. They only had to wait...

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They checked the courtroom every single day from that night on, to see if Sirius and Hermione had returned. No one wanted to be alone anymore, in these desperate and uncertain days; no, not alone anymore. The very Minister of Magic and the Unspeakables had been informed what had gone on inside the courtroom, so no one questioned neither Harry nor Ron when they went inside the room to check.

Lupin had informed them that, according to the book, Sirius had a sort of deadline to return from the realm of the Veil, into the world of the living once more. Hermione had made Sirius return within her own deadline, for instance. According to the calculations of the time and the quality and quantity of the ingredients, Sirius had to return with Hermione before or on February the 26th- that was the deadline.

When that day came, Harry, Ron and Lupin mounted guard inside the Courtroom throughout the whole day, sitting on the benches and just staring at the Veil in expectant silence. And they waited. And waited.

Harry's watch indicated that it was midnight already, and neither Sirius nor Hermione had crawled out of the Veil yet.

At one o'clock, the Veil fluttered as though a breeze had flown, but nothing happened. They would appear any minute now, Harry was certain of it. They just had to wait a bit more.

At two o'clock, Ron (for a couple of seconds) could glimpse the darkness that lay beyond the Veil, but the fabric returned to its original position as quickly has it had trembled.

At three o'clock, they realized that the deadline had long become obsolete, and that Sirius had not returned with Hermione.

It wasn't until Harry felt someone's hand on his shoulder that he realized that he was crying.

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A/N: For some bizarre reason, a knot lodged in my throat as I wrote the last part... I hope that you liked this! If I'm not much mistaken, there are only two chapters left until the ending... Now I hope that you'll leave me a review to let me know what you thought of this chapter!