A/N I will be switching around with POV in this fic as you can see. Next chapter is Emma's POV again.
Sirius POV
Sirius couldn't believe the magnitude of what had just transpired. The sheer power the woman had unleashed! Why was she even there? She certainly wasn't a witch he recognized, not from the Order or elsewhere. If he hadn't seen her magic with his own eyes, he would've sworn she was a muggle from the village. Sirius never even saw her draw a wand and he realized with a jolt that she didn't have one. He took a steadying breath and looked around.
The village was eerily silent, except for the distant cries of relief or pain. The thought passed faintly in the back of his mind that he should call for backup now the death eaters were down. Hell, he should be ensuring they stayed that way. That was why he'd stayed in the first place, to protect the innocents slowly recovering around him from those masked bastards.
But his heart was pounding as he gazed down at the unconscious woman in his arms and he couldn't bring himself to focus on anyone else. He cradled her gently, trying to shield her from the devastation around them. Blood was still seeping from her eyes, ears, and nose.
"Damn it," Sirius whispered. An instinctual need to protect her gripped him with an intensity he couldn't fathom. She was an innocent too, he reasoned. Though, really, he shouldn't assume. He should be suspicious, terrified at her strangeness.
But she had saved that child. And the moment he had her in his arms, he knew. She was good. Someone to trust.
"Stay with me," Sirius whispered.
The dying warmth of her form pressing close gnawed at him in a way nothing had before. It was unlike him; he had witnessed the brutality of war before--fallen bodies, screaming strangers. It was never easy, but this fear of losing her, it overcame him utterly, overriding his better sense. He brushed a strand of her wild, brown curls from her face.
The cuts on her legs were deep, and her hands were battered and bruised. He shifted her head onto his shoulder and her breathing quickened as she moaned. Shit. He realized that there may be internal damage as well.
Without hesitation, he apparated, focusing intently on James and Lily's home in Godric's Hollow.
--
They materialized just outside the front door. Her breath was feather-light against his neck as he stumbled slightly upon landing. The echo of his boot against the cobblestone felt oddly loud against her silence.
Sirius barely had a moment to react when the door burst open to reveal a startled James. His eyes darted from Sirius to the unconscious woman in his arms. He rushed out, his expression shifting from surprise to alarm in a matter of seconds. "Sirius! What the hell?"
Sirius's voice trembled, words tumbling out faster than his thoughts. "She... I felt ... Help her! Please!!"
Lily, hearing the commotion brushed passed James. Her healer instincts taking over, her fingers brushed the girl's wrist, the pulse weak but persistent. "Inside, now. James, get the potions," she ordered, her voice quaking with urgency as she stepped back inside.
James helped Sirius carry the woman into the sitting room, her head lolling against Sirius's shoulder. James sprinted up the stairs while Lily summoned a leather satchel, laying its contents on the coffee table.
"On the sofa, Sirius, carefully."
With shaky hands, he gently laid the woman on the rattan couch against the wall and knelt beside her, smoothing her hair out.
Lily nudged Sirius aside, her delicate fingers dancing over the woman's frame. She gently probed the stranger's temples and glanced up briefly, her eyes meeting Sirius's questioningly. He felt bereft now the woman was no longer in his arms. He began to pace.
Lily sighed at his silence and began working with a quiet determination, murmuring incantations under her breath, her wand tracing patterns over the battered form. Some of the wounds began to knit together but the woman remained deathly pale.
Every second away from the woman's touch sent a gut-wrenching jolt through his veins, an irrational fear gnawing at his core that she may disappear any second.
"Is she ... ?" He began, but Lily shook her head, her face growing increasingly taut with concern, a slight tightening at the corners of her eyes. James was bounding down the stairs, several vials in his hands. He placed them on the table next to the others.
"Mate ..." he started, but Sirius ignored him. He was losing the battle to resist getting in Lily's way and he surged forward, reaching out.
The magnetic pull was as strong as ever as his fingers intertwined with the unconscious woman's. Sirius exhaled, the weight on his chest lightening slightly. She sighed deeply at his touch, a little color returning to her lips.
Lily started at the intrusion and eyed their intertwined fingers, her usually serene green eyes wide and keen. She glanced at James holding his gaze momentarily before tracing runes in the air, her mastery evident.
"Sirius, what happened?" Lily asked, her eyes filled with curiosity and suspicion. Her form was rigid, her voice a mixture of authority and concern.
Sirius, still reeling from the emotional whirlwind, took a deep breath, trying to piece together the words. "We were… There was … Death Eaters."
James nodded, his eyes darting between Sirius and the woman. "Padfoot" he began, trying to keep his voice steady, "C'mon mate. Breathe. Try again. We need to know what happened."
Sirius finally found his voice.
"We were in the village," he began, "Death Eaters everywhere. She ... she saved a child."
James's gaze hardened, "In Helmsley?" a touch of anger seeping through. "Always the hero, huh?" he mumbled. "Why didn't you retreat when the others did?"
Sirius looked down, guilt evident in his expression. "I couldn't. The muggles, you should've seen."
James's jaw ticked but he said no more.
But a soft glow began to envelop the woman, breaking the tension. The sheer intensity of the magic in play was palpable.
Lily hummed at whatever she was discovering and began chanting, her voice rising and falling in a melodic rhythm. The glow illuminated something on Lily's face. A hint of recognition? Understanding? She looked at Sirius for a brief moment.
"Tell me everything, Sirius. All of it this time," she ordered gravely.
He felt James's hand on his shoulder, a grounding force. "Padfoot, I need you to focus."
Sirius nodded. "We were in the village, Death Eaters ... and, and then... this... energy from her. She's powerful, Prongs. She saved them, saved us all. There was this light, gold. Coming from her center I think, and they just, the death eaters, she felled them all. But then... then she was just... falling and," he hesitated before continuing, "I felt something... when I caught her. It's like... she's a part of me. She healed me. I was a bloody mess but now ..."
Lily was gazing at him with a concerned awe and James, sensing the severity of the situation, turned his attention back to the village. "We need to send the Order to help the survivors."
Nodding, Sirius watched as James sent off his silver stag. He gulped. "I couldn't leave her. I had to..."
Lily nodded. "I know, darling, I know" she murmured, her voice barely audible. Her expression was solemn but kind. James deflated a bit, placing one hand on Lily the other back on Sirius's shoulder.
"Sirius," Lily began, "This light around her, it means ... ," she swallowed, "It means you've started something deep, something ancient."
James was puttering in the kitchen now, restless.
Lily met his gaze. "To save her now, I know how. But I need her consent, and yours."
Sirius's heart plummeted. "She's unconscious. I..." He broke off, his voice hoarse with emotion.
Lily's soft voice broke through his desperation. "I can revive her for what we need to do but ... Sirius, you should know... there's a connection. A Bond. And it's just the beginning."
James spasmed, looking at her sharply. She ignored him all but for a furtive glance and nod.
Lily sighed deeply. "It's powerful stuff. Magical and spiritual. And it's not complete. She won't survive if we don't continue what has been initiated."
Confusion took hold of Sirius. "A bond? What are you talking about?"
Lily sighed. "There isn't time for more now but you need to know this: it will tie you both ... permanently, irreversibly."
Amid the uncertainty and fear, one thing was clear: he'd do whatever it took to keep the woman safe. "I can't lose her, Lil. What do I need to do?"
Lily searched his eyes then nodded to herself. She breathed in, as if to steel herself then cupped the woman's face, chanting softly. A moment later, the woman's eyelids fluttered open, revealing the cloudy haze of confusion.
She looked around wildly, disoriented, but when her gaze locked onto Sirius's face, her expression softened slightly.
"Hey there beautiful," Sirius said softly, a small, reassuring smile on his lips.