First fanfic in a long time…Hope it's still good…And this is not a one-shot, by the way. Each chapter will probably be very short, but that just makes it easier for me to finish.

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or any of the characters. In fact, I barely own this plot. So no suing.

Chapter One

"Are you sure?"

"Of course! They'd never suspect him!"

"Well..."

"Look, you know that I'd be questioned first – so why tell me?"

"But…"

"But nothing. I insist you make him the Secret-Keeper. Never, not in a million years, would anyone ever think of him."

There it was. The former residence of James and Lily Potter.

What was once a beautiful home was now falling apart. The windows had all been shattered; there was a hole in the upper east corner of the house next to the young apple tree, where Harry's room used to be. The front door was hanging off its hinges, and a part of the roof had caved in. Not even the tree had escaped unscathed; branches littered the ground, and the decapitated section of the tree was smoking quietly.

Sirius slowly reached up to turn the ignition off his bike. He paused for a moment, somehow knowing that this would probably be the last time he would ever touch it. Finally, he twisted the key sideways and up, wrenching it out of its slot.

It was dead silent.

Dismounting, like he had done a thousand times before, he repressed a shiver. He felt unnaturally cold as he gently set the brake down, trying to quell the shaking in his hands. Sirius walked slowly towards the house he had visited many times before, the ache in his heart unbearable.

Please…Let them be alive…

The smell of death reached his nostrils before he even got to the curb. He knew it was too late. His stomach lurched, and he emptied it out in the gutter. Pale and shaking, he coughed once before groaning and falling sideways, lying like a wounded dog.

It was his fault…

It was his fault they were dead…

"All right, Sirius…I trust you."