As Lavender Brown's body lay amongst the ruins of what was once her home, she watched a family grieve the loss of one of their own, wondering why fate had so cruelly dealt them such cards. From a young age, all she wanted was to love and be loved in...
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»»» "SIRIUS!"
Lavender winced as Fred whipped his head around at a speed that surely caused some residual pain.
"I was summoned," Sirius Black's voice echoed from the Veil. Lavender squinted. She could just about make a shadowy figure, one with a dark curly hair that fell to his shoulders and grey eyes that twinkled in amusement at her. "But I didn't realise we'd have company."
Fred grinned toothily at him and gestured for Lavender to approach the archway. The closer she got, the easier it was to make out his features. "This is Lavender Brown," he introduced her. Sirius glanced between the two of them, his eyes lighting up.
"Honoured to make your acquaintance," he replied with a grand nod.
"Likewise," she muttered dryly. The idea of putting blind faith into a man who spent most of his life locked up in Azkaban didn't seem like a good idea when Fred had first suggested it, but now, with everything at stake, Lavender felt her stomach twist into tight knots. But as her gaze travelled up to Fred, she plastered on a smile, determined to try and find their way out.
"We need your help," Fred started, immediately launching into a summary of their story. The whole time, Lavender felt Sirius' presence grow stronger, and yet he barely uttered a word. He only interrupted Fred once to confirm that the first time they solidified was when they met. No matter how she regarded him, the man seemed nothing like the Daily Prophet portraits she remembered seeing in her third year.
Then again, she recalled the story Fred told her about how Sirius was the one who gave him the idea to use Polyjuice Potion with his brother. The day apparently went by relatively smoothly, except when Lily Argent leant in to kiss her boyfriend, who subsequently got tackled by George to the ground for screaming when she approached.
Lavender pressed her lips into a tight line, remembering the way she witnessed the exchange and wondered how no one (and especially Lily) had realised George was acting strangely. She blinked, her lips twitching at the memory.
"So now some ancient maniac is stalking her and wants to use a Vessel for passage to get to the real world," Fred concluded with a sideways glance at Lavender. He paused suddenly, a frown etched on his forehead as he turned away.
Sirius exhaled, causing the folds in the Veil to ripple outwards. "And neither of you met anyone once you died," he questioned.
Lavender frowned. "We saw people, sure. Like Fred said, I spent the time at my parents' and he went to see Geor-"
"No no, that's not what I mean," Sirius interrupted her with a wave. "This person doesn't always appear in the same figure, but they always greet anyone who has died. They're the Gatekeeper," he explained. "You wouldn't be able to mistake them for anyone else," he added when he noticed them exchange a look between themselves.
"No, we haven't met anyone like that," Fred said in a low voice and Lavender nodded to confirm. "What does it matter?"
