Tenebrous ❆ Sirius Black [2]

Chapter Forty Eight

Sirius couldn't get the sound of Nadia's screams out of his head. They echoed off of the walls of the room. Everyone had heard them. When they stopped and he spotted Eloise intervene he was relieved. But now that it was over, all he could hear were the screams again. He was so wrong to feel relief.

"We have what we came for!"

When Bellatrix said it, when she called for the Death Eaters retreat he couldn't understand. Nobody knew what it was what they came for. But just the idea of them getting it, he knew it wasn't good. And he realized how bad it was when he ran over to Eliza and Adam who were clutching their daughter worriedly. She had run off. She had disappeared and if it wasn't for Nadia she would have died.

But now Nadia was gone.

Because she was what they came for.

And now they had her.

He lost her. On their wedding day. She was taken.

And Sirius wanted to scream.

He wanted to run out of there and look for her. He didn't care for the people piling into the Hog's Head. Order members as much as wedding guests who weren't actually part of the group. They all came there. All wanting to make sure everyone had gotten out safe. Sirius could hear someone come in, he could hear them question whether everyone was here. Until that he had been sitting at one of the tables, almost despondent to whatever was going on around him. But that question, that one unsuspecting person, made him snap.

His fist collided with the wooden surface making the people around him jump in surprise, and heads turn towards the side of the room where the sound had come from, trying to see who had caused it. Their group was sitting at their usual table; Sirius, Lily, James, Remus, Camille, Peter and Marlene. For a moment, those who didn't know yet were confused by his outburst.

"No, we aren't all here." Adam was the one to answer Professor McGonagall's question in a solemn tone. His arm was around Eliza, who sat at the table next to the one occupied by the rest of Nadia's friends. Gwen was nestled in her arms, now asleep and calm, but the mother was doubtful she'd ever let go of her again, not when she had so easily run off when the chaos unfolded. Nicholas and Henry sat at the same table, their hands intertwined in silent comfort and support.

Adam's words made people look around, searching for those who were missing. But while some looked, others, like Professor McGonagall, just had to look at that table. Those who knew them well enough knew that an integral member of the group wasn't there. It took only moments for the whole room to become aware of Nadia's absence.

"What happened?" Professor Dumbledore stepped forward, his voice calm, but the sense of urgency could be seen in his eyes. He was worried. And seeing the headmaster of Hogwarts worried, a rare sight, made this whole situation even worse.

"She saved Gwen, but... But they took her. They killed Eloise and took her." Eliza answered this time, remembering the sight as clear as day. They held her back, she tried to run over as soon as she heard her daughter in the crowd, but they physically held her back, from helping Gwen, from helping Nadia, from helping Eloise. There was nothing she could have done, and now the guilt for it all was eating away at her.

"Dear Godric." Professor McGonagall's shocked whisper echoed through the quiet room as loudly as an exploding bomb would have. Her hand went to her chest, her eyes wide as she looked at her former students. They all sat closely together, all showing worry and sadness, all fearful of what was going on to their friend. But Sirius seemed worst of all. His face depicted so many emotions. But worst of all, looking at him now, many had become aware of how unusual it was to see him without Nadia by his side. It looked like a piece of him was missing, and that was exactly how he felt.

"We need to get her back. Go look for her. Merlin knows what they're doing to her." James called out, unable to hold back. All this quiet, all this silence and pitiful looks weren't what they needed right now. They needed to save her. He needed to get her back and for her to be safe. He left... He didn't go back... Maybe if he had, if he left Lily at the Inn and he went back, maybe they could have been stopped.

"We can't just rush into this. We don't even know where to start looking." Kingsley voiced the main flaw with the idea. They had heard of Death Eaters and You Know Who taking people before. And they tried, every time, to find a way to get to them, to get them back. But they never discovered where the people were taken. There was never any clue left to follow.

"So what are we supposed to do? Just sit here and hope they bring her back?" Sirius' voice was quiet, but everyone still heard it. All eyes turned to him. He was still looking at the table, his head down, but then he looked up and turned to the Auror.

"They never bring anyone back. Merlin knows what they're doing to here while we sit here and talk! Do we just leave her?!" His voice continued to increase, but nobody could fault him for it. Even if they tried to, the pain could be heard in his every word, nobody could hold it against him. This was their wedding, what was supposed to be the happiest day in any couple's life. But for them it was ruined. They weren't even pronounced husband and wife.

"Sirius we'll find her." Remus tried to calm his friend. He was worried too, terrified even, of what might happen to Nadia, but he knew that right now, they had nothing to go on. Nowhere to start. He hated it. But Remus knew that he couldn't even begin to imagine what Sirius felt. A part of him felt guilty as he clutched on to Camille's hand desperately. He was too scared to imagine losing her like this.

"When? How long do we leave her with them?" Sirius questioned his voice showing all the pain he felt over what happened and anger caused by the thought of waiting around while she has to endure whatever the Death Eaters, whatever Voldemort has in store for her.

"Mate, we're not leaving her. We'll get her back, you have my word." Fabian spoke from the crowd. So many times Nadia had saved their lives, the lives of so many in that room. She saved his and Gideon's life when she didn't even know them. They weren't about to give up on her. Not when she needed them most. And looking around the room, it was obvious that everyone felt the same.

Sirius tried to stay strong, tried to come up with some solution, some way to get her back. But as Marlene's arm wrapped around his shoulders in a comforting gesture, he finally snapped, all his emotions coming to the surface and spilling out as they slipped beyond his control.

"We're supposed to be celebrating right now. She's supposed to be my wife right now." He spoke, his voice so quiet and holding so much sadness that if he looked around he'd see people tearing up just by hearing it. "She's supposed to be here. With me." His voice cracked, a tear flowing as he didn't put up a fight or try to stop it. So many times he had promised he'd keep her safe, that they would never be separated... All of his promises were now broken, and he had no idea how to start fixing it.

None of them knew how to get her back.

Published: 17th January, 2020