Tenebrous ❆ Sirius Black [2]

Chapter Eighty Five

Nadia lay spread over the sofa, her head placed in Sirius' lap while his hands gently brushed through her hair, Tybalt curled into her side while Lear lay on Sirius' feet.. She did her best not to fall asleep, her eyes glued to the television in front of them. Although, they weren't watching the programme with as much dedication as they usually did since their doorbell provided a frequent interruption, a new group of people standing on the other side every time they opened the door to greet the trick or treaters enjoying the festive Halloween night.

Her exhaustion, however, was starting to catch up to her as time passed on and evening became night. With all the hours she had been putting in at work to properly lead her team, paired with a lack of sleep caused by indistinguishable nightmares making a surprise appearance all throughout the night before, Nadia was eager to get some well deserved rest.

"Maybe we should call it a night, love. It is past most children's bedtime anyways." Sirius, easily catching on to his wife's tired composure, suggested with a small smile, his hand brushing against her cheek lovingly as she turned her head to look up at him. She was ready to voice her agreement when a sudden knock on the door stopped her from uttering the words.

"You were saying?" She asked with a light chuckle passing her lips as she straightened up while he stood from the sofa and moved towards the door. Along the way he grabbed the bowl of candy, more than ready to give it out to the children who may be standing on the other side. Or Nipsey who had even knocked on their door at one point, clad in the costume of a cat and eagerly asking for some candy while Mrs Garner laughed from across the hall.

"It is up to feed the children, Nadia. You wouldn't turn them away when they're hungry, would you?" Sirius' question made the brunette burst out laughing as he seemed completely serious while he spoke. If he believed candy and sweets to be a perfect form of nutrition, Nadia feared for what their future meals may look like.

She was about to speak her mind about the issue, however, as Sirius opened the door she stopped herself. She would have done so independently of who may stand on the other end, but the sight of Nicholas standing on the other side, the expression on his face full of sadness and concern made Nadia and Sirius quickly sober up from their amusement, worry quickly replacing it instead.

"Nicholas, what's wrong? What happened?" Nadia questioned, however, it was as if he hadn't even heard her, his eyes completely frozen on Sirius and full of surprise as if he hadn't been expecting the Black to be home.

"You're here?" Unable to hold back his shock, the question came tumbling past Nicholas' lips as he stood in front of Sirius. His behaviour made Nadia and Sirius exchange confused looks, both growing worried by their friend's behaviour.

"It is my home. We've been here all night, why? Where else would I be? Mate, what happened?" Sirius questioned, trying to get to the bottom of the situation as he ushered Nicholas into their flat and away from prying ears.

"Nicholas, what's wrong? You're scaring me. Is Henry okay?" Nadia questioned him as he came to sit on the sofa next to her, the look on his face basically showing the gears turning within his mind as he tried to connect the pieces of whatever it was that was troubling him. However, instead of giving a reply, Nicholas was suddenly clutching his wand, pointing it at Sirius as he rose to his feet once more.

"You're lying! You're the only one who knew!" Nicholas exclaimed in an accusatory tone. Nadia was unsure of what was going on, but the sight of Nicholas pointing his wand at Sirius made her stand up just as fast, placing herself between the two while Sirius took a couple of careful steps backwards.

"Nicholas! What the bloody hell are you doing? Knew what?!" She yelled out at him. She hadn't reached for her own wand, not yet, not wanting to point it at one of her closest friends, but her hand hovered by her pocket, ready to pull it out should the need arise.

"Nicholas, just tell us what happened. I'm sure there's an explanation. What did I-?" Sirius spoke in a calm tone, trying to get to the bottom of whatever Nicholas suspected him of, but as he started to repeat the man's words, the pieces fell into place within his mind. There was one thing, only one, that Nicholas would believe he and only he knew. "No." He whispered to himself, dread starting to spread through him. He no longer needed Nicholas to tell them why he was here, it was all clear to Sirius.

And so he didn't say anything else. With quick steps he rushed out of the living room and towards the exit, his mind tuning out Nadia's confused calls after him as he rushed into the hall. He wasn't aware that she tried to follow him, tried to stop him from disapparating as soon as he was beyond their protective charms. He didn't notice her trying to reach for him in an attempt to follow wherever he was going. He noticed none of it before he was gone.

"Nicholas, what the fucking hell is going on?!" Nadia had lost the last thread of patience she had been trying to hold on to, spinning on her heel as she sent Nicholas a look that let him know he better come out with it right then and there. Whatever Sirius had concluded from Nicholas' behaviour she didn't seem to follow.

"Come back inside, I'll tell you." Nicholas' voice was now quiet, an expression of dread coming over his face as he realized what he needed to do now. When he had heard the news while at the Ministry, he knew he needed to come see her, to warn her about Sirius (or so he thought), to tell her what happened, but now that he was faced with it, Nicholas wished he didn't have to. It would break her heart, he knew that much.

Nadia followed him back into the flat, but as soon as the door was closed behind her she started demanding answers once again, while Nicholas walked towards the living room forcing her to follow. "I think you should sit down." He told her once they found themselves where they started, but Nadia, agitated by such a dramatic and still inexplicable twist remained on her feet, sending him a look that made it clear he should stop stalling.

"Nadia... It's James and Lily."

And it was those words that made the world around her crumble. That made it all fall into place as she suddenly understood. Lily and James were gone, another piece of her family torn away. As the realization struck her a heartbroken cry broke out of her as she crumbled into Nicholas' arms, sobs wracking through her body as her heart shattered into a million pieces.

All that talk of seeing each other soon, of celebrating holidays and Christmases together, it was no longer possible. They were gone, and she'd never see them again. She'd never hug Lily again or joke with James and tease him about his hair turning grey. Their future together was gone. Lily and James were gone... All because of a mistake they'd made, a mistake she helped make.

And now her family was gone.

Published: 02nd July, 2020

Guys... They're gone :'(