SHE'S ALL THAT ➭ SIRIUS BLACK ❨2❩ ✔︎

ACT FIVE, SCENE ONE

FONTAINE MANOR

Sage and Sirius sat across from each other at the kitchen table, silent, each waiting for the other to say something.

They had yet to speak to each other that morning, for they had woken up in a tense quiet and both gotten dressed without saying a word. It had been awkward, to say the least; twelve years apart had made things strange between them.

After nearly ten minutes of just staring at each other, Sage spoke: "Explain. What happened on Halloween when you went after Peter?"

He pursed his lips. "I killed him. And the muggles, too. Or, at least I thought I did." He began, but he stopped before he could continue telling her the story of the worst night of her life.

"Well?" She demanded. "Keep going. What do you mean, you thought you did?"

Sirius hesitated, as if he held the answer to every question she'd ever had. "In the Prophet a few weeks ago, there was a photograph of Arthur and Molly Weasley and their children. One of their sons has a pet rat that's missing a toe. It's him, Sage. It's Peter. He's alive. He faked his own death." He told her, voice wavering with nerves and some other unreadable emotion.

She couldn't help but laugh. "Peter. Quiet, reserved Peter that never stood up for himself. You think he faked his own death?" She asked incredulously, disbelief apparent on her face.

"No, I'm serious. One of the guards in Azkaban gave me a copy of the paper—took pity on me or something, I dunno—and I swear to Godric Gryffindor himself, I knew in my heart that it was Peter.

"I fired a curse at him that night, and the memory was blurry even right after it happened, but when I saw that picture in the Prophet, I remembered that I missed. The explosion...that was all him, Sage. I never killed anyone." He finished, one hand coming up to scratch at his beard.

He seemed almost afraid to meet her eyes and see the expression on her face. Would it be even more doubt and skepticism, or would she look at him like she believed every word that came out of his mouth?

In their sixteen years of history, he could not recall a time when she ever lacked faith in him. Whether it was her reassuring him that he wasn't stupid, or listening to him when he had an insanely dumb idea, there was never a time when she didn't trust him completely.

And now that he was brave enough to meet her eyes, he saw that she did believe him. The understanding was plain in the look on her face.

"So he's alive." Sage said breathily, like she'd been holding in air the entire time he'd been talking and was just now able to exhale.

He let loose a sigh of utter relief. "Yes. He is. and I'm going to kill him." He stated surely.

"No. You're not." She snapped, standing up from her chair and slamming her palms on the table. "If you kill him, you'll be sent right back to Azkaban. Then you'd have broken out for nothing, Sirius."

That was the first time she'd said his name to his face in twelve long, agonizing years. And hearing the word tumble from her lips was the most euphoric feeling he'd had in an unimaginable amount of time.

Sirius just looked at her, the strangest emotion in his eyes. "I broke out for you."

"I'm sorry?"

He rolled his eyes. "There was an editorial in the Prophet around a year ago. Your picture was on the front page, and the article was a piece on the Ministry's best up-and-coming Auror—it was about you, although I'd had no idea you quit your job at the embassy. I stole the front page from one of the guards just so I could see your face every damn day. And I read that stupid bloody article a thousand times, analyzed it 'til I had every single word memorized, because I wanted to make sure you were alright. Happy, alright, alive." He didn't have much feeling in his voice, but his mouth was tense and twitching while he waited for her to say something.

She stayed silent, though. All she did was furrow her eyebrows and cross her arms in front of her. She slowly sunk back down to fall bodily on the chair, appearing to be utterly perplexed by what he had just confessed to her.

"This doesn't mean I forgive you." She said shortly, not giving him the satisfaction of showing any affection towards him.

His face softened, and he propped his chin onto his hand while he gazed at her.

"I never expected you to. I just wanted you to know that I spent twelve years—four thousand, two hundred, and twenty nine days, to be exact. Not much to do in Azkaban except count the days—finding a way to get back to you."

i couldn't resist. here u go. (also can we all agree that sage pegs sirius?)