Beyond Azkaban

Chapter Two

***

It was misty and cool as Sirius Black was escorted into Azkaban. Bartemius Crouch had sentenced him to a life in the prison- without a trial. According to the Ministry and the rest of the wizarding community, he had killed Peter Pettigrew along with about twenty Muggles. Luckily, not many knew about his being Lily and James' Secret-Keeper, even that was used against him, but the failure to keep the secret wasn't a law to be broken, although Crouch had practically ignored that. Of course, he hadn't even betrayed Lily and James. That had been Peter. It had all been Peter.

He took his first step into the dank place, wrinkling his nose because of the terrible smell and shivering, though not from the cold. The farther inside he walked, the more he forgot, and the more the dementors of Azkaban sucked the happy feelings out of him. He was being taken to a top-security cell, one that dementors would guard day and night.

Once he was left there alone, he could see dementors gliding past his cell. Soon, he began to hear voices in his head of things that he had pushed out of his mind for a decade. His parents, his brother, times before the Marauders were all playing through his brain until he couldn't take it anymore. He became Padfoot.

The dementor currently outside of the cell stopped, sensing the loss of complex memories. "They can feel the difference," Padfoot thought. He morphed back into Sirius, and unknowingly fell asleep.

***

"Lily and James, Sirius! How could you?" Pettigrew yelled.... A flash of green light and Lily's red hair was blackened, her body cold... James was in front of him, but dead....

***

He woke up before it could go on any longer. It was his usual dream, but now he had learned to stop it, to wake up. He tried to remember Remus, his best friend, his lover, who he hadn't seen or heard from for months since he was taken to Azkaban. He used to be able to see him so clearly in his head, but that was months ago, when he first arrived.

He didn't know why he hadn't gone insane by now. He should have done so ages ago, like so many others who were brought here. He had already seen his cousin Bellatrix Lestrange come in with her husband and heard true Death Eaters scream in their sleep about Voldemort, deaths, and Peter Pettigrew. They knew Voldemort had gone to the Potter's on his orders and that Voldemort had met his downfall there. That was one thing that could satisfy him here, although any happy thought would be gone within seconds.

Only one remotely good idea stayed with him; he was innocent. This wasn't a happy thought, nor was it terrible. It was an obsession. It was the only thing he could hold on to, it was what kept him going for months upon uncountable months.

***

"You filthy blood traitor! I may as well have a Mudblood for a son! And you aren't even in Slytherin! Consorting with half-breads since your first year, not to mention all the other traitors to our Cause! They're probably what did this to you in the first place! I can't stand for it anymore!"

This was the last time he was listening to his bitch of a mother insult the Marauders, not to mention her own son. He was forever sick of her constant complaints and cries of "Why can't you be like Regalus?"

"Damnit, you don't have to anymore! I'm leaving- and don't expect me back anytime soon!"

***

When it all became too much for him, he became Padfoot. Everything was easier to handle, as there were no thoughts to ignore, and if there were, they were so much simpler. As Padfoot, it was easier to concentrate on the good times.

***

"Sirius! What are you doing here?" Remus asked him as he Apparated into his small, one bedroom flat.

"Just thought I'd drop in and say 'Hi'."

"It's been awhile," Remus stated.

"Exactly. And Lily and James say 'Hi', too."

He took a seat on the chair across from Remus' at the kitchen table. "So, anything new?" he asked, staring into Moony's amber eyes.

"Not really..." Remus trailed off as Sirius landed in his lap and they experienced their first kiss....

***

He quickly morphed back into Sirius Black as he heard footfalls and voices coming towards his cell. But they took a turn and headed towards that of Bartemius Crouch Jr.'s. What could they be doing? The kid had only been in for about two months, maybe three.

Then he heard a voice murmur, "What a shame. He was only in for about a year..." the voice trailed off, leaving Sirius dumbfounded.

Had it really been that long already? He tried to think of how long that had been. Two years maybe, two goddamned years. That meant that he was twenty-two, along with Remus, and that Harry was three. He wondered how Harry was at his aunt and uncle's, if he was there. At least that's what he thought Hagrid had told him.

He then bitterly thought of Peter. Two years as a rat for him. He wondered how he was holding up. There was no way he'd be able to show his face in public without being hunted down and blown up, not unless every Death Eater was in Azkaban. Then Sirius wondered if Peter knew that. He hoped not. Then he wouldn't have to worry about revenge.

***