The Last Gryffindor (Sirius Black)

Epilogue Pt II

A/N
I know I finished this story over a year ago, but this has been in my drafts for awhile and after some dawdling, I've decided to upload it. There is one factual inaccuracy in it, which is why I've kept it to myself, but I still like it because it brings things full circle back to the beginning of the story. I'm sure not everyone will read it, but for those who do, please enjoy!

Setting: Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

• — • — •

Only after Moody left did Harry realise he hadn't mentioned anything of the three individuals in the very center of the photo, two wizards and a scowling witch amongst a cluster of former Order members. Their exclusion from Moody's explanation was surprising, as something about them seemed to naturally draw Harry's eye, but whether it was just their placement within the picture or an innate quality in the air around them, Harry couldn't be sure.

Even though nothing about the photograph thus far struck Harry as "neat," as Moody put it, he found he still wanted to know about those three, if only because Moody had glossed over their presence with his magical eye so thoroughly, like they'd never existed in the first place. It wasn't like Moody to shy away from anything, nor to make such an obvious mistake.

Harry peered around the random clusters of Weasleys inhabiting Grimmauld Place, past Fred and George, who trailed tragically around in all black, dogging Ron's footsteps and talking in raised voices about him as if he were dead, their grief at his attaining prefect status palpable. Still, Moody was nowhere to be found. Finally, Harry's eyes landed on Sirius and Remus drinking copious amount of firewhisky in the corner. Surely they'd know the answer, too, since they were also in the picture.

"Sirius?" Harry asked his godfather, striding up to them with the picture clutched tightly between his fingers. "Moody gave me this and I was wondering if you might explain something about the people in the middle."

Sirius, and Remus over his shoulder, looked over the photo with great interest. When he noticed the wizard Harry indicated, a handsome man who appeared to be in his mid to late twenties, a flicker of something like caution flashed across Remus' eyes. Sirius, on the other hand, gazed hard at the man, transfixed and unbreathing.

"I'm not surprised old Mad Eye neglected to mention him," Sirius finally managed, tearing his eyes away. "People don't like to talk about him, or the rest of his family, for that matter."

"Who is he?"

Sirius hesitated, glancing back at the photo, and away just as quickly. "His name," he said softly, "was Caius. Caius Gryffindor."

"You mean he was in Gryffindor, right?" Harry reiterated, growing more puzzled by the strange way Sirius was behaving by the second.

Sirius barked out a laugh that was strangely devoid of warmth. "Yeah, I reckon he was in Gryffindor. What else could he possibly have been in?"

Remus shook his head, sensing Harry's confusion, and answered as if Sirius hadn't spoken. "Yes... and no. He was certainly in Gryffindor, but he was, in fact, the direct descendent of the Hogwarts cofounder, and shared his same surname."

"They're still around?" Harry was floored, feeling oddly betrayed by the new surge of information. How could he have been in Gryffindor for what would be his fifth year and not have heard about the surviving line of his own House's founder? "Why has no one ever mentioned him before?"

"Was around," Sirius corrected. "Theirs was one of the many lines that died out during the last great wizarding war." He paused, adding softly, "Caius died only few weeks after this picture was taken."