-September 26 1991-
Sirius still wasn't sure if he was dreaming or having a nightmare. Having his godson returned to him was all he'd ever dreamed about, but having him returned as an Inferius... that was never a part of it. One hand was clenched tightly around a stalk of Forget-Me-Nots (the irony of the flower was not lost on him) and the other held Harry to his chest. He was sitting around the massive table in the kitchen that doubled as a meeting space for the Order, and everyone was silent.
They were all staring at Harry with a mixture of emotions, too many for Sirius to decipher. Everyone had grieved the loss of James and Lily, as they were all close friends, but none had grieved like Sirius and Remus did. And when Sirius had returned to the Order, his eyes empty and dried tear tracks still drying on his cheeks, they had all frozen. They'd been in the process of making a welcome party for little Harry when Sirius told them that Harry was gone.
To see Harry alive... sort of... it was a shock to everyone's system.
Harry didn't seem to understand that, though. He sat contendly in Sirius's lap, playing with the fingers holding his midsection protectively. He seemed incredibly happy for a toddler who died. Sirius's grip tightened ever so slightly at the thought.
"Snape." Sirius suddenly said, breaking the silence. The bat looked at him with a sneer, but Sirius persevered. "What do you know about him?"
Snape sighed. "Not much." he answered, and Sirius scowled.
"My boy, I believe whatever information you have would be beneficial," Dumbledore said, clearly sensing that Sirius was two seconds away from ripping his face off. "Please, my dear boy, share what you have."
"What do you want to know?" Snape asked, looking at Sirius with barely concealed disgust.
"How did he get Harry?" Sirius asked. That was one of the questions that had been weighing on his mind since Harry was returned. That and... "How did he die?" he added as an afterthought.
Snape looked as though he sucked on a lemon. "I do not know how the Dark Lord got Harry, nor do I know why," he said. He then paused. "As for how he died..."
"You know how he died?" Sirius demanded, his heart beginning to beat faster. Snape narrowed his eyes and nodded slightly. "Tell us!"
"There was... an incident." Snape said slowly.
Sirius glared at him and bit out through gritted teeth, "What kind of incident?"
"Little One---"
"Harry."
"Little One was being introduced to new recruits," Snape said, ignoring Sirius's hiss. "One of the recruits had a death wish and insulted him in front of the Dark Lord. He asked if Little One was aware that he was dead."
"And?" Remus asked, leaning forward slightly. Snape sighed, and the answer clearly made him weary. It put Sirius on edge, seeing the old dungeon bat so uneasy. "What happened?"
"Little One informed the recruit, and the rest of the people in the room, that he did know," Snape said, his dark eyes finding Harry's form. He smiled softly at the child in Sirius's lap, and it made Sirius clench his jaw and hold Harry tighter. "He explained that he... He was punished for doing magic and his Uncle strangled him to death."
It was dead silent in the room as everyone's horrified gazes switched between Snape and the oblivious Harry.
"You. Son. Of. A. Bitch!" Sirius shouted suddenly, snapping his head to glare venomously at Dumbledore who sat stricken at the head of the table. Sirius felt Harry flinch in his hold, and instantly he felt guilty for scaring the child.
Then he remembered that Harry was dead and his rage returned tenfold. He quickly handed Harry to Remus and stood, slamming his hands on the table.
"You swore he was safe!" he spat. "You said he was happy there! You bloody bastard! How could you?! Did you even check on him?!"
Dumbledore's eyes had lost the twinkle, and he was staring at Harry with sad eyes instead. His posture was defeated as he slouched into his chair. "Sirius I swear I had no idea..."
"Did you even visit him once?" Sirius demanded.
"I did not." Dumbledore said, his eyes falling to the floor in shame. Sirius growled, his hands clenching in rage. "I'm so sorry, my boy. So, so sorry."
"You... You..." Sirius was so angry he couldn't even verbalize it. He sputtered, his rage overtaking him as he stood there. He suddenly whipped out his wand, pointing it at the old man sitting across from him.
"Sirius, no!" Remus cried, grabbing his arm and pulling it down.
"He's the reason! It's his fault that Harry's dead!" Sirius shouted. "I'm gonna kill him! How could you?! We trusted you!!"
"Sirius, you need to calm down." Remus said firmly. Sirius turned to look at his lover incredulously, only to stop at the sight of him. Harry was held in his arms like a baby, his head resting on his shoulder as he played absentmindedly with Remus's hair. It would be adorable if it weren't for the fact that Remus was having trouble controlling his wolf. His eyes flashed from brown to gold over and over as Remus struggled to calm down.
"Remus he..."
"I know," he said firmly. "I know. But listen to me, cursing Dumbledore will solve nothing. Do you understand? We need to go about this level-headed. So calm down and get a hold of yourself, Sirius Black."
Sirius nodded, and he slowly lowered his arm, and regretfully pocketed his wand. Suddenly all of his rage left him, and Sirius collapsed into his chair with an age-old weariness. Grief filled his veins as he looked at Harry once more.
His precious godson was abused and murdered. His Harry. He slouched in his chair as the emotions overtook him. He made a small gesture and Remus wordlessly handed Harry back to him, and Sirius buried his face in Harry's curls.
It was silent once more as everyone in the room attempted to process what they'd just learned. The only noise came from Remus's growls as he gained control of his wolf once more. A few minutes passed before Sirius felt like he had enough control to face everyone again.
When he looked up, he was greeted with the sight of a melancholy Order and a guilty Dumbledore. Sirius sucked in a deep breath before he turned to look at Snape.
"How did you not recognize him?" he asked. Snape looked up at being addressed and sneered at him.
"I never saw Harry Potter while he was alive," he responded. "Other than his eyes, I saw no likeness to your friends."
"He looks just like James," Sirius argued. "I mean, look at his hair!"
"Little One is not James Potter." Snape snapped. Sirius hissed at him but was stopped when Snape bent over in pain.
"What's happening?" Remus asked, looking at Snape in concern and confusion. Snape hissed.
"He's found out Little One is gone!" Snape cried out, gasping through the agony. "He is calling me!"
Dumbledore stood, his previously heavy eyes were hard with determination. "Go to him, Severus," he said. "Do what you need to and then return. We are going to do everything we can to save Harry Potter."
