Harry Potter Oneshots and Headcanons

The Grave Reminder

The wind gently swept through the burnt umber leaves, causing a few to rustle and tumble softly to the damp earth. It was not yet dark, it was dusk, and the vivid orange sky was stained with clusters of indigo clouds. Remus closed his eyes and took a shaky deep breath. He pushed the weathered gate that obscured the entrance to the little cemetery and it opened without a sound. He winced because to him it was a gunshot. A stab in his chest, tearing open the old wounds he had tried so desperately to forget.

Slowly, he walked onto the little path and looked around. Soft moss coated the floor like an emerald carpet whilst strange stains and thick ivy had grown over the many headstones in the graveyard. The names on most of them were now covered by it. Names of people forgotten and loved ones lost.

Hot breath tickled his fingers. Reaching out, his hands met rough fur. It was a comfort to feel a friend by his side. He looked down at the black dog and saw the dark, wild eyes stare up at him. Remus nodded, a weak smile gracing his sunken, lined face.

"Come on, Padfoot." The dog walked at his side, keeping Remus's pace, and Remus left his hand on its head; for his own comfort as well as Sirius's.

They passed each headstone and every name caused his heart to pound harder in his chest, caused a jolt of pain to strike him. He searched for a few minutes, secretly hoping he wouldn't ever find it and that he would wake up and none of it would have happened. But just as he began to think it wasn't there, he saw it.

They were there. In the graveyard. Their final resting place... what Sirius felt, he didn't know, but Remus knew his own pain was worse than all of the scars he had given himself put together.

Swallowing hard, he pressed his hand hard onto his animal companion's back. "There Sirius, there they are," he whispered. On the weathered grey headstone, two names were engraved.

"James and Lily Potter, 31st October 1981."

Tears burned his eyes and sobs threatened to escape. He thought of them. The two people buried in the icy grave deep beneath his feet. They were just twenty one, he remembered, not that he could ever forget. So brave and so young, and their end so tragic.

The dog beside him let out a long, high pitched whine and nuzzled his hand. Remus didn't stop. Tears that had stained his cheeks a hundred times before, for the same reason, trickled silently down his face and mingled with the heavy rain that had begun to fall.

The cemetery was swallowed with darkness, but still they both stood in the rain. Stood before the grave that was a symbol of loss, a symbol of everything that had been taken from them. In a blur, the black dog was no longer Padfoot. Sirius stood beside Remus and tears ran down both their faces. His arms wrapped around his friend's shoulders and they held each other, the only two Marauders left. So much was left unsaid, not because they didn't want to say it... but because they just couldn't.

Remus broke the embrace and took out his wand. Without uttering a word he conjured a wreath of delicate lilies and set them down carefully on the base of the headstone. Sirius turned to Remus after a few moments. His eyes dark and his face harrowed. "Shall we go?" He whispered, his voice hoarse.

"Yes, Siri... I think we should," he replied. With one last look at the names of their best friends, and a glance at the patch of ground that held their cold stiff bodies, they left supporting each other - the ghosts of the past heavy on their trails.