A/N: This is a sequel to 'Unconditional' and it will be difficult to understand without reading that first so if you haven't i'd recomend doing so! Hope you enjoy the story!
Disclaimer: I do not own anything, it all belongs to JK Rowling, apart from the various OC's which I myself may take credit for :)
Chapter 1:
July 1993
'Harry's alive, Peter escaped, Alli's pregnant.'
Sirius Black sat in the corner of his cell, chanting the same words over and over in his mind. Unlike the countless other prisoners who surrounded him he had not succumbed to the insanity that was considered inevitable in Azkaban prison.
The words he had chanted, over and over for the last twelve years, had acted as an invisible Patronus; protecting him from losing himself to the nightmares of his past.
'Black.'
His head jerked up in surprise at the sound of his name; he often went years between people addressing him. Whether it being the taunts of his cousin Bellatrix, or the disgust of Aurors.
In this occasion it was the current Minister of Magic; Cornelius Fudge.
'Minister' he nodded a greeting, fighting the urge to smile at the look of surprise in the man's eyes at having been addressed so normally in the place normality was so rarely seen.
'You don't suppose I could have that paper if you're finished with it, do you?' he asked politely, eyeing it hungrily 'I haven't had much to read in here, and I do like the occasional crossword'
'I – erm – well I –'
It took a lot of effort to stop himself from rolling his eyes at the man. How could he be in control of the Wizarding world?
Seemingly in shock at his sane manner, dumbfounded Fudge handed over the paper, and Sirius let out a sigh of relief.
'Thank you' he grinned, causing Fudge to grimace with distaste.
Sirius shook his head, he remembered a time when his grin melted hearts and caused envy amongst other men, nowadays it only seemed to disgust people.
That's what twelve years in hell does to you.
As the Minister continued further into the prison, Sirius settled himself on the floor in his dingy cell, squinting to read the printed title.
MINISTRY OF MAGIC EMPLOYEE SCOOPS GRAND PRIZE.
His eyes flickered down to the black and white picture of the aged, yet familiar faces of Molly and Arthur Weasley and what must be their children. Some of whom he remembered running around the Headquarters' living room as toddlers.
Before his eyes saw him, before his heart raced in his chest and his eyes widened in shock, he quietly chuckled as he remembered Molly vowing never to have any more children as she struggled to contain the twin boys that reeked havoc the moment they could walk.
But the thought diminished the second he saw him sitting on the boys shoulder.
Right in the middle of the photo, with one toe missing.
Peter Pettigrew.
'Harry's alive, Peter escaped, Alli's pregnant.'
He had to get out of there. That he was certain of. If Peter was able to get into Hogwarts with that boy, where Harry was, he had to stop him.
He had dreamed for years of finally destroying Peter Pettigrew; the man who single handed had taken away everything he cherished, everything he lived for.
For a second he allowed himself the rarity of thinking of her.
Was she all right? Was the baby all right? It would be the same age as Harry now if it had...Survived.
He flinched at the thought causing the habitual chanting to suddenly cease.
And silence to take its place.
A silence that filled him with utter fear.
How long had he been chanting alone? How long ago had her voice faded away from his? They had been chanting together, keeping each other strong, how could he have not known she wasn't there?
'Alli?' he whispered, reaching out with everything he had deep inside of him.
No reply.
Placing his head in his hands he let out a shaky breath.
I'm not going to lose it. Not this time.
This time he needed to think rationally.
He needed to get out of here.
He needed to kill Peter.
And he needed to find Alina.
It was in his dreams where the answer came to him.
For weeks he had been tormenting himself, searching for a way to escape the prison and to find Peter.
To find Alina.
Thinking about her, something over the years he had stopped himself from doing, had brought him the idea.
It had caused him to reflect on all the time they had spent together, it had made him think of Hogwarts.
And of course, thinking of Hogwarts made him think of the Marauders; made him think of James.
He dreamt of the nights he used to run wild through the forest with his best friends in their animagus forms.
The way Moony wouldn't attack them like he would humans.
And then he had it; his animagus form.
How could it have taken him this many years to figure it out? The Dementors could not sense animals in the way they sensed humans.
It's perfect.
He saw no time bothering to wait, or to plan. Patience was never one of his strongest traits and from his own experience impulse was far more successful for him.
He waited for the night to fall and darkness to consume the prison. He could hear the whimpering and the screams of the newest residents and glancing around to check nobody was watching before transforming into the familiar wolfish dog.
As he slipped through the bars in his cell he acknowledged how much weight he had lost over the years; he would never have been able to get through such a small space when he had arrived in the prison.
Slowly, ensuring that he made no noise, he slinked towards the exit weaving in and out of the countless Dementors that taunted Azkaban's captives.
He knew he was in the deepest delves of the prison, far below the seas surface and as he climbed up the winding stone staircase he struggled to quieten his panting.
Another thing that had deteriorated throughout the years; his fitness.
As he neared the top of the staircase, and crouched low as he made his way into the entrance hall he vaguely recalled being dragged into, it seemed ridiculous how empty the place was.
How reliant the prison was on the powers of the Dementors.
Not that anyone had escaped them before.
Slipping past the final few Dementors that guarded the entrance, Sirius made his way out into the night.
As he slipped and stumbled down the islands rocky surface he breathed deeply in the salty fresh air, filling his lungs with richness they had craved for twelve years.
He raised his head as he reached the water's edge and before he dived into its ice cold clutches, he let out an animalistic howl of delight.
He was free.
A burst of air that expanded her lungs caused her to awaken with a jerk. She gasped as she sat up, her eyes wide with shock.
It was the first time in she didn't know how long that she could truly see her surroundings, the white walls, and floor and doorway. Her own personal prison.
Over the years she had resorted to her old technique of self preservation, and retreated into herself. Holding herself as a hostage of safety behind the strong barriers of her mind.
The torturing had ceased over the years; the vacant look in her eyes had been mistaken for insanity and they gave up trying to force her compliance.
Every now and then they attempted to break her barriers, to little or no success.
She only lived for one reason now; revenge.
The minute they had destroyed the very thing she had survived for.
The second that she was forced to live her nightmare.
She lost her fight; her drive.
She felt herself slip away from Sirius, the chanting that had kept them together faded from her mind.
He would never forgive her for failing him.
She would never forgive herself.
And yet in the darkness, through the bleakness of her world, a sudden blast of freedom and relief had exploded within her.
Forcing her out of her cocoon.
It was Him.
She felt her fingertips tingling and her body growing numb.
The room that had just come into focus was suddenly spinning and her vision started to blur.
The world around her was growing darker, darker; she was going to him.
The world came back into sight around her, the cold air blew through her ghost-like form and sucked in a deep breath of fresh air.
The freedom and happiness that had flooded through her before was suddenly sucked away and she felt exhausted and tired.
Sirius.
She could see the form of a dog dragging itself out of the ocean, clawing at the rocks to drag itself onto the main land and to safety.
Concentrating, she focused on the figure and urged him forward with her mind, ignoring the ache of tiredness that clutched her with its claws.
She was weak.
Her vision was already growing blurry, but unlike all the previous years, she fought. She had something to fight for.
He was already changing shape, revealing the dishevelled form of a man, lying unconscious on the ground.
'Sirius' his name felt like velvet to her lips and despite the exhaustion she felt a warmth she had forgotten existed in her heart.
She approached his form, flowing amongst the night wind like a spirit.
She stifled a gasp as his appearance became apparent before her eyes. The last time she had seen him he had been twenty-one, and now, the thirty-three year old man before her was barely recognisable.
His face was gaunt and pale, his hair matted and overgrown and he was thin and weak. But despite it all, despite the change in his appearance, he was still beautiful. He still made the heart she was sure she no longer possessed beat erratically.
He made her feel alive.
As her breath deepened, and the feeling of the night air no longer embraced her with its touch, she drew all of the energy she possessed within her and she sent it to him with all the strength she could muster.
And despite her blurred vision and the dizziness, her lips cracked painfully as they stretched into the ghost of a smile as she heard him moan gently, and just about made out his eyes flickering open before she returned back to her prison.
'Alli' he whispered into the cold night, before shaking his head at his stupidity.
Shivering, he forced his aching limbs to take action and he climbed to his feet.
Of course she hadn't been there, she was gone.
Just like James and Lily...
'No' he whispered, shaking the thought from his head. She was not gone; she was lost.
And he would find her.
But first, before anything else, he just needed one glimpse of his Godson.
He had to see Harry.
A/N: Well there you have it! The first chapter! I hope you've enjoyed it and please, please, review!