August, 1978

It had been two weeks since Charlus had died, but when Dora closed her eyes she could still feel his presence beside her.

He felt near enough to touch sometimes, and she had more than once found herself reaching out, palms open, trying to find him in the dark of an early morning and the fogs of sleep. Charlus always disappeared before she could quite reach him, though, and her fingers would close on emptiness and her heart would break all over again. Even knowing the pain she would feel when he was gone again, Dora still chased the feeling of his presence, sitting and staring into space, her mind in another world.

Minerva McGonagall stood, watching Dora as she sat in the small yard behind the home that Minnie and Elphinstone shared in Hogsmeade. Dora sat facing the dark trees of the Forbidden Forrest, unfocused and talking to herself. Minerva's arms crossed as she watched, hugging her own arms close to her chest, and biting her lip.

"Come sit," Elphinstone Urquart's voice broke into Minnie's reverie.

Minerva continued to stare out after Dora.

"She needs time, Minerva," Elphinstone said. "It's still fresh yet..."

"Tis been a fortnight," Minnie replied, accent thick, "And she's worse than ever. She's talking to him, Elphie... "

"She's processing," he replied. "You know that's what Ms. Meadows said of it, too. She will come 'round and be herself once she's moved through her grief properly. For now, you're who I'm worried for. You need to eat, you've spent such a time worrying over Mia... You've neglected yourself. Come, have a cuppa with me."

Minerva stared for a moment longer, then tore herself away from the window and went, lowering herself beside Elphinstone, who waved his wand, sending the tea things soaring about in preparation around them. Minerva reached across the space between them, as she'd seen Dora do many times in the past two weeks, and clutched onto Elphinstone's hand - glad for the fact that Elphinstone, unlike Charlus, was very solid, and very there, and the way his fingers tightened around hers was a comfort. 

"I cannae lose them both a'twonce," whispered Minerva, shaking her head as Elphinstone's tea cup slipped into her hands. The dark blue and purple tea pattern set warm between her fingers and she held it closely, thankful for the heat it gave off. "Flea and Mia, all a'twonce..."

"She's just in need of a bit of recovery," Elphinstone replied firmly. "You aren't losing her."

Minerva stared into her tea. 

There was a knock on the door and Elphinstone looked up at the clock on the wall. It was getting on in the hour, and seemed a bit late for a call about to visit, but he stood up, and, with a quick squeeze to Minerva's shoulder, he slipped from the kitchen to get the door. He peered cautiously through a peep hole in the wood, spotting Sirius Black upon the door step, and opened it carefully. "Mr. Black," Elphinstone said, surprised. "To what do we owe this visit?"

"I need to see mum," Sirius answered.

Elphinstone nodded, then stepped back, allowing Sirius through the door. His eyes drifted out over the quiet Hogsmeade street. Just passing by was Hagrid, trailed by that funny three-headed dog of his, a bit on the tipsy side, having just come from the Three Broomsticks. Elphinstone waved back as Hagrid spotted him and jovially flapped his arm, and then he stepped quickly back inside.

Sirius had already stepped through to the kitchen and found Minerva, sitting and sipping her tea still. "Hullo Minnie," he said, though his tone was less cheerful than it might normally have been upon seeing his beloved professor. 

Minerva looked up in surprise to see one of her students there, in her very home. "Mr. Black!" she said, raising an eyebrow, "And what are ye doin' about here?"

Sirius said, "I need to see mum."

Minerva considered him a moment, then waved to the door that led out into the yard. "She's - she's not quite herself, even yet, I'm afraid, but yer quite welcome to see her. Just out there, in the yard," she added.

Sirius nodded, then ducked away, out the door, as Elphinstone rejoined Minnie in the kitchen. When the door had closed behind Sirius, Elphinstone sighed and settled back down next to Minerva. He took her hand and squeezed her fingers gently, and she forced a weak, sad smile at him.

Outside, Sirius walked quietly across the lawn to where Dora sat.

She was staring off into the darkness, working very hard at feeling Charlus there, half convinced that if she tried hard enough to feel him he might simply appear there, a real as he'd ever been...

"Mum?" Sirius's voice broke the silence - and the feeling of Charlus's presence. 

Dora looked up at him in surprise. The presence of someone real was so much stronger, she realized, than that of Charlus. The tangible proximity of Sirius Black made her see just how far away Charlus really was, and the chasm between life and death fell into perspective and Dora's throat tightened with the realization that he was not close at hand, but so very far off as to never return again. She began to sob.

"Mum!" Sirius stepped forward quickly, enveloping her in his arms and hugging her close to his chest so that her head rested against his neck below his chin as he held her. She shook with her tears and he clutched her tight to him, rocking her gently, remembering once when she'd done the very same for him, when he'd run away from home and found himself at the Potter's house... many years ago. "It's alright, mum..."

Dora's fingers closed tight 'round a handful of the cotton of Sirius's t-shirt. "I miss him so much," she cried into his chest, because she could feel in Sirius's presence that Charlus was what he had come there to discuss.

"I do too," Sirius said quietly, and he rubbed her shoulder comfortingly.

"He was such a good man, so loving..."

"He was," Sirius nodded, "The best." He paused, wanting to tell her what he'd come to say, but also unsure how to form the words. Finally, he pulled away, breaking the embrace and he looked into her eyes. "Mum, I've got to tell you something. About Dad."

Dora stared at him with questioning eyes, red-nosed from crying.

"He wasn't alone when he died," Sirius said.

Dora's eyes pooled once again. "He - he wasn't?"

Sirius shook his head. "No. He wasn't. I - I wasn't allowed to tell anyone, but... but I was there."

"You --" she looked confused, "Sirius, honey, you couldn't have been. You were in Costa Rica. With Remus..." Dora shook her head. He was trying to make her feel better, but telling a lie couldn't make her feel better. It only hollowed her more, made her feel more broken than ever.

"Yeah, I was," Sirius said, gently, "But I was at Mungo's with Dad, too."

"You can't be in two places at once, love," she whispered.

"Mopsus," said Sirius.

The name alone said it all. It hung there between them in the air, thick with the weight of the meaning of it. Dora could feel her heart had quickened within her, and she stared at Sirius, afraid of what he was about to tell her, yet wanting to know everything.

"Go on," she whispered.

"A couple years ago," Sirius began, voice low, "Mopsus came to me and he asked me to spare precious seconds. He said that they were very important. So I told him he could have as many seconds as he needed and he took me, to London, to Mungo's, to what was, then, the future."

Dora's eyes could not have been torn from Sirius's in that moment, no matter how large the distraction might've been. Sirius Black had her sole and utmost attention.

"I didn't know the dragon pox were so... so bad," Sirius said quietly. "There was loads of smoke and such, but he was there, and I - I sat with him and we talked for some time about.... things... and I was there when he -" Sirius paused. He looked up at Dora, pleading. "I knew it was on the night of a wedding but I didn't know -- I mean to say that, I thought -- I thought we had loads of time, I didn't think --"

Dora reached out a palm and pushed Sirius's loose hair back over his shoulder. "Tell me about - about that night. The time you spent with him. Tell me about it." Her eyes were wide and sad, her face lined with the need to know exactly what had happened in the last moments of Charlus's life.

Dora listened patiently as Sirius told her everything - or nearly so, at least. The only thing he kept from her was the identity of Snuffles being revealed. He told her how Charlus had been happy, how he'd held his hand (well, it had been his paw, but close enough), and how he had died quietly and peacefully - a blessing for someone in the advanced stages of Dragon Pox, whose last moments were usually quite painful and horrid. Charlus's had been gentle and his last breath a sigh of relief.

They sat in Minnie's garden for a long time after Sirius had finished telling her his story, and she hugged him as they watched the stars come up, populating the dark night sky overhead with a million tiny winks of light. Dora closed her eyes and, quietly, she felt the rebuilding beginning in her heart.

It was nearly half eighteen and James knew he ought to be getting back to the flat in East London, where Lily, Remus, and Sirius were presumably waiting for him. But instead he stood in the kitchen of the house in Godric's Hollow, a sheen of sweat on his brow, holding a paint brush and covered with speckles, a smudge of colour across his left cheek.

Stepping back, he looked over the freshly painted kitchen cupboard doors, the lovely sunshine-yellow on the walls bright with the soft green cabinets offsetting it. His wand sat, unused, on the table. He'd wanted to do this the "muggle way", and though it wasn't perfect - he was by no means a professional at interior painting and remodeling - the house was coming along quite nicely... if he did say so himself.

James had spent a couple of hours at the house in Godric's Hollow every single evening after working at the Ministry for Mr. Underhill, diligently hammering, painting, sanding, and repairing stones in the floor - largely without magic. 

It had taken hardly any effort at all to purchase the house. He'd found the owner was an old wizard who had gone to live with his daughter in Oxford, and upon sending the man an owl with the offer to name his price, the wizard had offered a very low asking price. James had apparated out the very next day to a pub in Oxford to buy the man a drink and pay him in full with large, shining galleons, a bit over asking price. And just like that, James Potter had bought the little stone house in Godric's Hollow.

He didn't know why he hadn't yet told Lily about the house - or anyone else for that matter. Sirius had been there when he'd first decided he wanted to purchase it, of course, but he hadn't mentioned a breath of it to him or anyone else since. There was something therapeutic, James thought, in coming here in secret and working on the house, rebuilding it from the wreck it had been when he and Sirius had broken through the broken front door. Every pound of his hammer, every stroke of his paint brush, seemed to pull him a little closer toward normalcy.

And every night, he finished the same way.

He packed up whatever tools or paints he'd been using that day, tucking them up and washing himself off with a flick of his wand. He locked up the door safely and walked down the road to the old church's kirkyard, where the moss covered stones stood quietly marking their owners. His father's grave was toward the back, and he would dust off any leaves or dirt that had gathered in the day since he'd been there last and he'd step back and stand at the foot of the grave, staring down at the stone, at the carved name and dates.

"I painted the kitchen today, dad," he said, "The paint sure smells, and it gets a little hard to breathe when you're doing it like a muggle. It's tedious as bloody hell. You know, you have to do more than one coat or the old colour just shows right through?" He paused, as though waiting for an answer, biting his lips and thinking a moment. Then, "I think Evans will like it. I did it yellow and green, and there's this brilliant stone work for the back wall behind the stove and of course the fireplace is all stone and brick, and the floor's flagged..." He shrugged, "Course, I imagine you've spotted over there and seen it for yourself, if you're able to, I probably don't have to tell you what it's like."

The stone, of course, did not respond, but James still paused so that the ebb and flow of conversation to feel real, as though Charlus might speak back if he only allowed him the chance.

"I sure do miss you, Dad." James sighed and wiped his eyes. "Anyway. I better pop off, or else the lot of them will be out looking for me and I'll get a scolding from Remus for missing dinner. You know how he is about eating, it's very important business to Remus that everyone makes it to dinner on time." James hung there for a moment uneasily, then he nodded. "Alright. Have a good night, Dad." He half-waved, half shrugged, then stepped back, away from the grave, and walked across the kirkyard, back to the road, without looking back.