Half-winged angels

The higher you stood, the harder you fell. They had been at the top, holding the world together. That's why, when they fell, they fell so hard and brought the rest of the world crashing down with them.

There should have been someone there. That was always what James had adamantly told the rest of them. He couldn't be left alone. They all knew that. But that night, no-one was there. The tiniest shake. That's all it took.

"Prongs! Oi Prongs!" Sirius bellowed down the hallway, black eyes glittering maniacally. James looked up, shaking his head slightly before informing the petite brunette with an apologetic smile, "Sorry, Emily, I've got to go. There's a rabid dog I've gotta treat. Catch you later okay?" Hazel eyes searching Emily's eyes, he smiled, pressing a kiss to the corner of her lips, watching as she darted away, almost ethereal like. Groaning, he turned to face the handsome teen in front of him, raising an eyebrow, "What is it? I was having fun, you know? Just because you don't…"

James had no time to finish his sentence to have a fist collide with his shoulder and then to be dragged away from the corridor, "Don't finish that sentence mate!" Rolling his eyes, the Gryffindor consented himself to following Sirius down the corridors.

"There. What do you think?" Sirius finally came to a stop. He gestured to the corridor which had been duly decorated in pink banners and with a few fairies set loose just for the hell of it. James' brow creased, gazing at it worryingly, "Padfoot, what's this for?" Sirius' grin faded slightly before coming back in full force, "For the girls of course. It's supposed to be a prank, James." His eyes were bright, waiting for the approval that would never come. His arms, still up in the air, sank slowly to the sides as he watched his best friend turn his back on it. There was no reason, no explanation; just a cold voice.

"Take it down. All of it."

Rejection always stung the most. The ultimate weakness. It severed loyalties, and encouraged brash decisions. The stronger the bond, the harder the whiplash. A crack was all it took. Just a tiny fragment, in the centre for the whole window to shatter.

Sirius' eyes darkened. He'd left for him. He would die for him. That was all he was worth, was it? A mate for a laugh? The sky was already starting to darken, a harsh reality slipping inside the castle. Kicking at a stray streamer still lying on the ground, he flicked his wand at it silently, the pink streamer going up in flames. Damn. What the hell was he still doing here? Why hadn't he left? He should've left a long time ago.

"Up late are we?" A voice snarled, almost trying to hide his pain. The shadowy figure that had been ready to slip past jumped and eyes looked at him, hatred burning. Sirius smirked cruelly, tapping his wand in his open palm, threateningly, "So Snape, what are you up to?" The greasy-haired boy spat at Sirius' feet, not deeming it with an answer. A split-second later and he was struggling to breath, held up by the oldest Black son, whose face was contorted with wrath, "You spat on me, you vile creature. Get it. Clean it. I said CLEAN IT!" He dropped the teen to the floor, watching as the Slytherin scrubbed the shoe with his robe. Eying the shoe with critical, his mood was serene again as he drawled out, "I suppose it will do." Eying the boy with his dark eyes, he exhaled, almost laughter hiding in it, "I suppose I owe you one then. How bothersome. Go down to the Whomping Willow tonight. The knot on the tree. Press it. I know what you want to know. You'll find it there."

Snape's eyes narrowed. He wasn't a fool, but there was that nonchalance. He watched as Sirius meandered away, staggering slightly at the end of the corridor. Drunk. Definitely drunk.

There was that sense. Forgetting always made it better. You didn't have to think about consequences. Things just happened. There wasn't anything to it. That's what he thought. That's what they all thought.

"He could have been killed!" James snapped, his wand in his hand, trembling. The figure at the other end of the room was silent for a moment. His head was throbbing but his answer was clear, "Would have saved us the trouble then." James' eyes darkened and he stormed across to the boy, wand-end directly by the other boy's neck, digging in harder than need-be, as he hissed, "Say that again." The other boy's eyes opened, dark and a smirk was on his lips, unbothered by the wand at his neck, as if it happened all the time, "I said, it would have saved us the trouble then."

The blow sent him reeling, both emotionally and physically and the air was knocked out of him as he staggered, rubbing his jaw. Head whipping around to stare at James, Sirius shook his head, lashing out at his friend, "What the hell was that for?" His wand was out, pointing at James. Neither of them lowered their wands. The icy gaze of James rested on Sirius, and then he spoke. The words that would break Sirius' heart. The words that would break his soul.

"I guess black sheep are really as black as they say."

Friends are strange things. They are the people who give you happiness, and keep it there. Yet just one word from them can shatter your sky forever and leave gaping cracks in the ground below. They may be your closest friend; but in a second they can become your worst enemy.

It was silent. A tense, thick, brooding silence. Peter didn't like it. He didn't like it at all. He stood by Sirius of course. That boy had a point. It wasn't as if he was ever going to really try and kill the boy. No. Sirius wouldn't do that to Remus. Padfoot wouldn't do that to Moony. After all, Sirius had been standing there in the entrance. He would have stopped him.

All he ever wanted were friends. That's what he got. The best friends one could ask for. But nothing was supposed to happen now. Nothing was ever supposed to happen. There were no jokes, no laughter, no joy; that was in the past now. Peter could only wait. He could only watch as the seconds of their lives ticked away into nothingness. Just like the friendship.

Every moment of the day, the silent glances, turned into glares; the small things they did; purposefully, just to irritate the other. The cold shoulder; icy comments; politeness; Peter couldn't take it. He needed the warmth. He needed the love. He needed the security. He couldn't go back. Not to what it was like before. He couldn't be alone again.

The quiet avenues and hollows were filled with rage. The stone walls bore the mark of abuse; lashes and lashes digging deeper with each word. Scars. Battle scars. The memory of the pain would always be there. Dig a little deeper and pour salt on old wounds and they would never heal. Wounds that would never heal.

The shame. The hot coursing shame that burnt his hand and his body. Remus could feel the tinge constantly in his cheek and the burning white anger that was present. That night was the worst of his life. To find there had been someone there. Someone other than them. To find that it was him, the one he had most trusted, who'd broken the promise. Remus couldn't think. Betrayal was too much of an understated word. It went deeper than that. Far deeper.

Quill scratching parchment, Remus wrote, copying notes from a board that he didn't need to see. Defence Against the Dark Arts. The one thing he didn't need to learn. He was one himself wasn't he? Looking up at the board, a bitter smile encroached upon the boy's face as he wrote. The irony. Was this what he deserved? Was this all he was worth?

The moment doubt sets in, is the moment it dies. It is the moment hope dies. They were never meant to be this way. They were meant to stand strong. They were meant to stand tall. They were meant to live. But if they had continued standing, then who could've made way for the future?

It was strange. The ones in the crowd, always in the limelight; were the ones who felt the empty space the most. They could feel it and they hated it. How could one be stuck in a crowd of moving hot bodies and limbs, people pushing in a murmur of sound that rose and fell and yet feel as if you were alone? James couldn't see it. How could that have happened? The ironic harshness was too much to bear at times.

"James?" A soft voice called across and startled, the teenager lifted his head from the ground to see a red-haired girl making his way towards him. The girl's lips were parted slightly, emerald-eyes soft and caring as she laid a hand on his cheek, smiling softly, "Thank you for yesterday but…I miss you."

"I'm here." James replied, a frown creeping across his features, settling with alarming familiarity. Lily's hand traced the lines momentarily, before she let her hand drop to her side, a sigh escaping from her lips, "I miss you. I miss them. I miss the Marauders." Her amused eyes flickered to meet his before the amusement faded again, "You know what's missing. The school needs it. It lives off it. Hope. Bring it back, James. For everyone. For them. And…for me."

With a finger pressing gently to his lips, the girl turned away, her red-hair dancing in the sunlight as she was lost in the masses. James Potter touched his lips once and understood.

The lies, and the tears shed over it were few. They were honest boys. Truthful. But it was the honest and truthfulness that would kill them eventually. For during that moment where they'd separated and turned against each other; they had also lost each other. And that was what mattered most.

"Master, I know where they are. I can tell you. I know their location."

"You have done well, Wormtail, very well."

"Thank you master, thank you."

"Take me to them. It is them. Take me to them."

One friend had gone.

"Run, Lily! Run! Take Harry!"

"James!"

"I said run! I'll stop him!"

"Foolish boy."

"You can't have them. You can't have anyone."

"That's where you're wrong, James Potter. I can have anyone I want. And I will kill to get them."

Another one had fallen.

"You did this, Pettigrew. You knew what would happen. Don't lie!"

"I never knew. But you know what…YOU'RE TO BLAME. SIRIUS BLACK! YOU MURDERED THEM!"

"Get the hell back here, Wormtail. I'm not finished with you. I'm going to kill you!"

One had been betrayed.

"He's gone, Harry. He's gone. And he's never coming back."

"He can't. He won't have. He's just there. Let me go. Let me get him!"

"He's gone, Harry! Don't you understand? He's not coming back!"

One had been left alone.

"I'm going to keep on fighting. There's always someone worth fighting for. There's always something worth fighting for."

"Take me with you."

"No, Nymph, it's too dangerous."

"Remus…"

"Look after him for me. Look after him."

"Remus…take me with you. Don't leave me."

"I have to. I owe it to them."

"I…I love you Remus Lupin."

"I love you."

And the living breath was gone from the earth. The tears shed for each worth their weight in silver and gold. The Marauders were gone. And the whole Earth mourned. For their half-winged angels.