3 Chapter 3

From Jame's point of view:

Si...Sirius he..-before Regulus could have finished his sentence a scream tore through the quiet house. That scream sounded an awful lot like Sirius.- Oh god no.

-with a quick glance at my father, I bolted upstairs to where I heard the scream .-

*meanwhile Sirius's room, upstairs*

Mom, the pain….. It's getting worse. I don't think that I will be able to keep quiet much longer, I'm worried about Regulus. I'm worried that he won't be able to sleep if this keeps on any longer. - when I looked at my son covered in cold sweat, crying out of pain, but still trying to put on a smile for me I couldn't stop the tears anymore- It's okay Siri, It's okay. You can be afraid, you can let go. To hell with this house, I would even erase it from existence if it helps you to bear the pain. – this made him smile for a while. He started to open his mouth, probably for a smart reply however what came out was in no way a quirky nor a funny remark. What came out was a very pained, bloodcurdling scream.

Before I could have done anything about it the doors banged open and a father-son pair barged inside.

Sirius! – I called out for my friend as I barged into the room.

What I saw was a horrifying sight, Sirius was ….well he looked like a living corpse. Covered in sweat lying in bed with a terrifyingly white complexion, which only pronounced his sunken in features and the dark circles under his eyes. All in together he looked terribly weak.

After he caught his breath he tried to pick up his hand and send me a wave but it looked like he thought better of it in the end. So only with a bow of his head and a smile that was supposed to look happy and goofy, but ended up being a painful grimace, he welcomed me in his room.

After a while of standing in the door, I was pushed by my father from behind to go to Sirius's bed.

Mrs.Black would you mind going out for a word? – My father asked with a stern face. Sirius's mother seemed to hesitate while looking to her son as if asking for permission to leave him.-

It's okay mom, James will be here with me. If something happens, or my condition gets worse he will call you right away. Right James? -he asked me while looking at me.

Of course, I will take care of him Mrs.Black. -I confirmed Sirius's words to his mother. After another look at her son, she nodded towards my father and left the room. My father turned to follow her but before he left the room Sirius stopped him.-

Mr.Potter, I just wanted you to know that it's not her fault. Please don't be too hard on her. – his words left me confused but it seemed like my father understood what Sirius meant. After a small nod as a sign of acknowledgment, he turned around and followed Mrs.Black out of the room. When the door closed I glared at Sirius. –

What do you think you are doing you mutt?!

Well, James If you haven't noticed yet, I'm laying in my bed.- he answered with a smirk on his face.

When you didn't respond to any of my letters, I thought you didn't want to be friends with me anymore. I was seriously worried Sirius.- he looked at me with a gleam in his eyes, only then did I realize what I said.- No James, you weren't seriously worried, - oh boy, here it comes – you were siriusly terrified. – he finished off his sentence with a satisfied smirk.- You just had to say that right?

Yes, yes I had to. - like this, we continued to joke around until Sirius suddenly stilled and his eyes glassed over.

Dad! – I got up from Sirius's bedside, hastily ran to the door and yanked it open- Dad! Something happened to Sirius! Dad!

*outside of the room after Mrs.Black left *

Mr.Potter may I know why you asked me out here? – I asked him with my business mask on-

The reason Mrs.Black is the fact that I would like to ask some questions. Questions that I don't want my son to hear. – he answered my question with an equally cold expression, well at least he had an equally cold expression up until he started to massage his temples. With a sight he asked me his first question – Mrs.Black I need you, to be honest with me, was Sirius put under the cruciatus curse recently?

Why would you like to know? -he made a slight grimace and looked at me.

To tell the truth Mrs.Black, I'm an auror. As an auror, I have seen the after-effects of this curse more often than, I would have liked to. Therefore let me rephrase my question. Was Sirius Black put under the cruciatus curse? – he looked at me with worry in his eyes –

Yes.- I answered in a whisper- My husband, no …rather Mr.Black tortured my son repeatedly with this curse.

Mrs.Black could you please tell me when this happened?- he asked me with sadness in his eyes.- It happened exactly two months ago. After Mr.Black stopped torturing my son he left, and Sirius was in a coma up until a few hours ago. -I answered his question and waited for his answer. – I don't know what to tell you Mrs.Black, the fact that Sirius is still alive is a miracle by itself. All we can do is wait and hope that he's strong enough to pull through the pain. However, I must caution you that the possibility of him surviving is very slim. -Mr. Potter looked like he was losing hope –

How much? -Mr. Potter startled at my sudden question –

Excuse me, what did you ask Mrs.Black?

I asked, how big of a chance do you think, that my son has to survive?

If it's only to survive there is a slight chance. However, to survive and to stay sane while doing so, I regret to inform you that it's near impossible. – not long after he finished his sentence we heard shuffling and loud sounds from my son's room. After a shared look of worry, both of us started towards the room.

Before we could have reached, the door slammed open and in it stood a distressed young Potter heir.

Dad! Something happened to Sirius! Dad! What's going on?! -Mr. Potter looked at his son not knowing what to do, while I quickly rushed into the room only to see the motionless body of my son with glassed over eyes.

A strangled sob escaped my mouth and I couldn't hold the tears back anymore. Slowly, I walked closer to my son, hoping for a miracle to happen, for a higher being, for anything just so I could see my son healthy and alive. Sitting down at his bedside I took one of his limp hands in mine and closed his eyes. Like this I can pretend, pretend that he's just sleeping, I can pretend that he's breathing, like this I can dare to hope. At least for a little while.