And So the World Falls to Pain

A/N: This was written for the I Demand Zombies challenge (created by imdeadsothere) over at the HPFC forum. Thanks once more to my wonderfully delightful beta (who I harass all too much), eldritcher.

So, when I said AU, I meant massively AU. 1) Remus is not a werewolf. 2) I have messed with the timelines. For instance, James is ten years older than Sirius and Remus and never attended Hogwarts with them.

Warning: This story is not for the faint of heart. It will contain slash, language, and massive amounts of gore. Ye have been warned...

---------------------------------------------------------------------------

The Ending

"Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: or thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me. Thou preparest..."

Sirius tuned the voice out as he stood at the graveside. There were people weeping all around him, but Sirius felt nothing more than a faint twinge of sadness and regret at another life lost.

Shouldn't I feel something more? he mused to himself.

It was true that Sirius didn't have much experience with death - any really - but he had always thought that when someone he knew died, he would feel an unimaginable amount of grief. Instead, he stood wishing for more, though who in their right mind hoped for more emotional pain, Sirius didn't know. Perhaps the grief came only when someone was considerably close to a person?

Sirius hadn't known the woman all that well, to be honest. She had been a Healer at St. Mungo's for near ten years and the main consultant for the Auror department at the Ministry where Sirius worked. She had been feisty and happy and damn good at what she did and Sirius had truly liked her. He had only seen her three weeks ago. He hadn't even known she was ill.

As the service drew to a close and those that had gathered to mourn watched as the black casket was lowered into the ground, Sirius looked across the open grave and studied the two at the edge.

Both sported messy shocks of black hair and their faces were adorned with glasses. The older of the two, probably Sirius' senior by a decade, gazed down into the grave with unseeing hazel eyes. His jaw was clenched tightly as he obviously attempted to contain his emotions.

The younger - who Sirius knew from previous conversations with the deceased woman was ten - gripped the elder man's hand tightly and stared at the slowly descending casket with disbelieving green eyes. So young, Sirius thought. The boy was old enough to know what had happened, but not nearly enough to understand why. Sirius didn't think anyone was.

Exhaling a sigh, he tentatively made his way over to the two. The boy glanced up at him as he approached and gently pulled on his father's hand to gain his attention. The man blinked and turned his gaze to his son and then up to Sirius as the boy pointed.

Sirius offered his hand. "You're James Potter, yeah?" he asked softly.

The man studied him with emotionless eyes for a brief moment before accepting Sirius' hand. "I am," he replied flatly. "You are?"

"Sirius Black," he said. "I'm with the Auror department and I worked with Lily from time to time. I didn't want to leave without saying something."

James continued to stare at him and Sirius inhaled a deep breath at the pain he could clearly see in the man's eyes.

"I didn't know her well, mind, but it wasn't difficult to see that she was a brilliant person. She thought the world of you both; talked about you every chance she got." Sirius paused as James swallowed and briefly glanced away. "I know it probably won't be any type of solace, but she did love you. I could see it in her eyes anytime she spoke of you. And knowing Lily, she won't let this stop her from watching you every second of every day."

James looked back at him and swallowed again, his eyes finally filling with tears. He reached out and gripped Sirius' hand once more. "Thank you, Sirius," he whispered.

Sirius inclined his head in acknowledgement and glanced down at James' son. He crouched to the ground to be eye level with him.

"And you must be Harry," he said, smiling at him. When the boy nodded, Sirius offered his hand to Harry as well. "I'm Sirius."

"Hullo, Sirius," Harry murmured, taking Sirius' hand and giving it a gentle shake.

"Tell me, Harry," Sirius began softly, "do you love your mum?" Harry provided a weak nod. "Well, she loves you too; told me so."

Harry's eyes shone with faint hope as he stared at Sirius. "Did she really?"

"Yes, she did," answered Sirius. "Can you do something for me, Harry?"

Harry glanced up at his father questioningly and James nudged him. "S'pose so," Harry finally said. "What is it?"

Sirius pulled a single white lily from behind his back and handed it to Harry, who accepted it in his gentle hands. "Take this lily and keep it," Sirius said. "As long as you have it, your mum will always be with you. Never stop loving your mum, Harry."

"Thank you," Harry whispered as Sirius stood.

"You're welcome, Harry," Sirius whispered back. He glanced at James again as he started to turn away and the man provided him with a sad, grateful smile. Sirius nodded before walking in the opposite direction and Apparating away.

--------------------------------------------------

The sound of the television greeted Sirius as he entered the flat and removed his shoes. He made his way down the hall and stood in the living room doorway as the Muggle newswoman began her report.

"The death toll climbs higher and higher as an unknown and previously unseen illness threatens not only Britain, but the rest of the world as well. According to officials, a new research facility has been set up in Samara. Scientists from all over the world are preparing to depart for the Russian city in hopes of discovering a way of curing the illness.

"From what we can determine, the symptoms of the illness are -"

The television suddenly went black and Sirius was enveloped in a pair of strong arms. He buried his head in the crook of a warm neck and inhaled the scent of his lover, his home, his comfort.

"I'm happy you're home," Remus murmured into his ear. "I was worried about you."

Sirius smiled and allowed his teeth to gently nip into the soft skin. "You know better than to do that," he whispered.

Remus pulled back and cocked his head, gazing at Sirius fondly. "And yet I still do," he replied. "I'm sorry I wasn't able to come with you. How was it?"

Sirius waved him off and leaned his shoulder against the wall. "'Bout how I expect a funeral should be, I suppose," he answered. His eyes moved around the room as he shrugged. "Don't really have anything to compare it to."

"Be thankful for that," insisted Remus.

Sirius nodded as he gazed out the window. Remus moved behind him and wrapped his arms around Sirius' waist, laying his head on the slightly taller man's shoulder. They fell into a companionable silence and simply breathed together, allowing the uneven rhythms of their chests to soothe their burdened hearts.

"I met her husband and son," Sirius finally murmured.

Remus turned his head so that his cheek was resting on Sirius' shoulder and studied the faint lines around his grey eyes. "How were they?" His chest vibrated against Sirius' back as he spoke.

Sirius sighed and turned in Remus' arms so that his back was leaning on the wall and he was face to face with the other man. "Not well, I think," he replied. "James, her husband, looked as though he was ready to jump in with her. He probably would have if it wasn't for his son."

Remus shook his head. "It can't be an easy thing to deal with, losing the person you love," he murmured, his hand cupping Sirius' jaw. "I don't think I could."

"Nor I," Sirius whispered. His eyes met Remus' brown ones and his breath hitched in his chest as he leaned forward and captured the man's lips in a kiss. They broke for air after a moment and Sirius took the opportunity to tell Remus exactly what he was thinking. "Don't ever leave me." His lips ghosted over Remus' as he spoke.

"Never," Remus panted and then they were kissing again and Sirius was being pushed back against the wall and all he wanted then, all he had ever wanted was Remus.

Eventually, the broke apart and Remus pulled back. "Come on, you daft sod," he said affectionately, grabbing Sirius' hand and pulling him away from the wall. "Let's go have tea and then you can help me...pack."

Sirius grinned and swatted Remus' arse playfully. "I'll help you with more than 'packing'," he suggested as he followed the other man willingly.

--------------------------------------------------

Three weeks later, Alastor Moody found Sirius at his desk.

"Black," he barked and Sirius started in surprise, "I want you, both Longbottoms, and McKinnon at St. Mungo's. Something's happening there."

Sirius' eyebrow arched. "What's happening?" he asked in confusion.

"I don't bloody well know, boy," Moody growled in irritation. "That why I said 'something'. We just got a Floo call begging for Aurors."

"Right," Sirius said, holding up his hands in a sign of peace, "I'm going. Keep your eye in its socket."

Moody stomped forward threateningly as Sirius darted away and he knew he would pay for the cheek later. Sirius gathered the others and they all made their way to an Apparition point.

When they arrived in the main lobby of the hospital, all was quiet and caused the hairs on the back of Sirius' neck to rise. St. Mungo's was never quiet. There were always random people wandering around the waiting room with various types of spell damage or injuries. Even the Mediwitch was absent from the reception desk.

Sirius unsheathed his wand and looked to his companions to make sure they had done the same. Once assured, they slowly progressed down the corridor and towards the far door that led into the rest of the hospital. Frank was the first to enter, followed closely by Alice and Marlene, with Sirius guarding the back.

As he slid through the cracked door, he heard a banging sound from the opposite end of the corridor. He took a step forward and ran directly into Alice Longbottom, who, along with the other two, had stopped completely.

"What are you -?" Sirius began to snap, but he cut himself off when he saw and his eyes widened.

The walls, the floor, and the ceiling were all covered in dripping dark red. It looked as though someone had taken buckets of blood and splashed on every available surface they could find. Marlene motioned to something lying halfway down in the middle of the floor and she walked over to examine it. Three steps away, she turned and vomited. That was when Sirius realised that is was part of an arm. A quick glance around provided him with images of other various detached and mutilated body parts.

He swallowed thickly. "Fuck," he muttered.

The pounding at the doors increased and the next thing anyone knew, they were thrown open. As the foursome stared in horror at what lay behind, Sirius suddenly saw the Gates of Hell.

----------------------------------------------

A/N: The first paragraph is Psalm 23:4 from the Bible (KJV).