cleansweepfive:
Ben Barnes as Sirius Black Andrew Garfield as Remus Lupin Aaron Johnson as James Potter & James Phelps as Fred Weasley from my Marauders Era Dreamcast dedicated to Emma, my Caradoc, the Bom to my Bur - for enabling me.
The plains of the afterlife were vast and unending, stretching as far as the eye can see from end to end. In the midst of it all, three spirits traveled side-by-side, walking together just like they had always done.
“Why didn’t Lily come with us today, mate?” Sirius asked, turning to the man on his left. “Did something hold her up?”
James shook his head. “She’s with Dorcas and Marlene. Figured we’d have a boys day out, now that Moony’s here. And… I think she just really wanted to sit and watch Harry for a bit.”
Sirius understood. He, too, had days, where all he did was watch over Harry. On other days he would check in on Remus, and see how little Teddy was. The War had ended, and the Dark Lord had been defeated - but there was a price to be paid. The moment he and James found Remus wandering the plains alone, Sirius’ heart both leaped and broke at the same time. It leaped, because he never imagined being able to see his dearest friend again so soon.
It broke his heart to see Remus there, because, well, it meant that he was dead. Just like him. Just like James and Lily.
Ever the man of logic, Remus came to accept the reality of his death quite readily, knowing that his sacrifice was not in vain, and even then, as Sirius looked at him, there was a serene, peaceful smile on his face.
“You all right then, Remus?” Sirius murmured, reaching out to clasp his shoulder gently. “You don’t miss Dora already, do you? Bloody hell, let the woman catch up with her dad, won’t you?!”
Remus rolled his eyes, grinning. “I’m fine, Sirius, thank you. It just takes a bit of acclimating to get used to being ‘round you two again. It’s as though things never cha—”
“Who’s that?”
Both Sirius and Remus turned at the sound of James’ voice. Peering off into the distance, he saw a young man lying on the ground. Tall and lanky, he looked somewhat familiar to James; the fiery red hair atop his head told him that this boy was most definitely a Weasley.
“Ah,” Remus said, frowning slightly, “that would be Fred.”
“Fred Weasley,” Sirius continued, looking at James while they approached the boy. “Arthur and Molly’s boy.”
James’ expression hardened. “He was too young.”
“Not that much younger than you and Lily,” Remus reminded him, and his eyes widened slightly when he saw that Fred had begun to stir. “Come on. He’ll be disoriented. Best if we’re there when he wakes.”
——————————————
To say that Fred was confused was a bit of an understatement. The last thing he recalled was seeing a wand aimed straight at him, followed by a jolt of pain… then nothing. Now, he was lying in the midst of a grassy plain, and Hogwarts was nowhere in sight. Perhaps he had disapparated to safety? Or maybe there was a Portkey involved. Where was George? His mind was a jumble of thoughts.
The last thing he expected to see when he opened his eyes were the peaceful, smiling faces of Remus Lupin and Sirius Black, familiar and foreign all at once. They seemed much younger, somehow, if that were even possible, and no lines of worry were etched in their faces. Behind them stood Harry - a familiar face that Fred was more than glad to see - and he was about to holler when it dawned on him.
Sirius has been dead for years. And Remus… I saw Remus fall. He blinked, giving the third man a closer look. That’s not Harry, Freddie.
“Hello, Fred,” Sirius greeted, smiling widely. “Good to see you again.”
As Fred regained his bearings, he stared at the three men standing before him in wonder. “But… the lot of you are…”
“Yes,” Remus nodded, confirming Fred’s thoughts.
“So… that means that I am, too?”
“Yeah.”
It was an odd feeling, really, to have people nod and tell you that you were dead. For some reason, however, Fred didn’t seem too entirely bothered by the revelation. Until, of course, he thought of—
“George,” he gasped, his head darting around in search of his twin. “Where’s George?”
“He’s not here,” Remus quietly said, his gaze falling to the ground.
“And the fighting?” came his next question.
At that, Sirius managed a small smile. “Over. Voldemort’s gone.”
Fred was torn between relief and sorrow. George was all right. George was okay, and he was probably with Harry and Ron and his parents and siblings, safe and sound.
But George wasn’t with him, and somehow it felt like he just lost a limb. Or, more accurately, half of himself.
“C’mon then,” the man behind Remus and Sirius said, reaching forward and taking Fred’s hand, helping him rise to his feet. “Lily would have a good laugh, meeting you. And you can tell her stories about Harry. She never tires of hearing them, does she, Moony?”
“No, she doesn’t,” Remus chuckled. Seeing the awed look on Fred’s face, he tilted his head. “Ah, right. This is… you might’ve guessed already… James Potter. Harry’s dad.”
Fred was staring at him, his mouth slightly agape. They really weren’t kidding when they’d said that Harry was a spitting image of his father. Every single aspect of him save for Harry’s eyes - all of it came from James. “It’s an honour, sir. You’re legendary.”
Sirius made a gagging noise, rolling his eyes. “Oh, here we go.”
“It’s true, though!” Fred argued, looking amongst them. “And it’s all of you! You’re the Marauders. All the stories about you, and about my uncles? Georgie and I worship you.”
“There’ll be no worshiping here, Fred,” James said, clapping his shoulder. “And speaking of them… I’m sure Gideon and Fabian would like to meet you, too. We just have to walk back to the main road, and we’ll find them all.”
“And where does the main road go?”
“Onwards,” Sirius said, and the simple reply seemed to explain everything in itself.
The four men walked together in silence for some time, letting Fred take all of this new information in. There was a profound sense of melancholy about him, and Remus especially understood; Fred had never been without George in all his years, and now he would have to learn how to cope without him. In life, George would have to learn how to do the same.
“You’ll be able to watch over him,” SIrius offered, seemingly reading Fred’s thoughts. “Keep an eye on him and everything.”
“Good,” Fred replied, grateful. “Th—that’d be nice.”
As they reached the main road, Fred saw a city ahead, vast and unending and unchanging and more beautiful than he could have ever imagined. He was awestruck, to the point that he didn’t even realise that someone had approached them. When he looked beside him, he saw a young woman rush into Sirius’ embrace. Her dark hair was long and flowing behind her, and it fluttered in the wind, a stark contrast against the pale white of her summer dress. She was smiling brightly - even moreso after Sirius kissed her - and when she finally drew back, Fred realised that he recognised her. Her name was Dorcas - she was in that photograph of the old Order of the Phoenix.
“Dorcas, love,” Sirius said, “we’ve got a new guest. This is Fred Weasley.”
Turning to Fred, Dorcas offered him a wistful smile, both sad and welcoming all at once. “You look just like your dad and Fabian mixed together,” she murmured, regarding him with her bright, twinkling eyes. “I’m Dorcas. Meadowes or Black… I respond to either, really. I prefer Black, though.”
It was James’ turn to roll his eyes and gag, then.
“Oh shut up, Prongs,” Sirius hissed, punching his arm.
“Make me, Padfoot,” came James’ reply, and Sirius looked just about ready to hex his best friend when Remus intervened, getting between them and pushing them apart wordlessly.
“Do you think you could get Fabian and Gideon, Dorcas?” Remus asked, still keeping his friends on either side of him. “And Nymphadora, too, if you see her. I want them all to see Fred.”
“Of course,” she smiled. Returning her gaze to Sirius, she kissed his cheek. “Be good,” came her words - with a tone of warning - before she rushed back towards the city.
“She says it like I’m not,” Sirius mumbled.
James, Remus, and Fred all replied to him in unison: “You aren’t.”
Fred managed to laugh then - the first time he’d laughed in quite some time - and it came as a relief. Although it would all take some getting used to, he felt good. He felt at peace. The contentment seemed to show through his expression, because Remus had been grinning up at him. “That’s a good man, Fred,” Remus murmured.
The four of them looked out at the city, and in the distance, Fred could just make out the shapes of four people approaching. Two of them had fiery red hair - his uncles, to be sure, and he couldn’t help but smile knowing that in just a few moments, he’d be surrounded by every man he’d ever idolised.
“George would’ve loved to be here with me, meeting you lot,” he said to no one in particular.
“In time,” James assured him. “But until then, I hope you don’t mind hanging out with us.”
Fred looked incredulous. “You’re joking, right? This is my bloody life’s dream. Or, well… death’s dream, now, I suppose.”
“Cracking jokes already,” Sirius noted with a snicker. “You’ll fit right in. You already do! I can already see the hijinks we’ll be up to.”
Remus nodded in agreement, though he gave Sirius a sidelong glance for his words. “Moony, Rapier, Padfoot and Prongs. It flows well, doesn’t it?”
Fred broke into a wide smile.
In time, Georgie. I’ll see you again in time. I’ll save a spot for you until then.
“Yeah,” he finally said, at peace. “It does.”
