Spoiler Alert

For those who are planning to read the Harry Potter series and haven't, STOP READING THIS BLOG POST!  It will address something that happens in the fifth book, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, and will ruin the suspense for someone who hasn't completed the series.

Perhaps reading the latter part of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix while at work was a bad idea.  Having just read the Ministry of Magic scene in which Sirius is killed, my coworkers and I were called to report to a meeting.  How does one concentrate on work-related tasks after Sirius, Harry's beloved godfather and friend, has just been murdered by his own Death Eater cousin?

In addition to the sense of loss I was experiencing, the exact circumstances of Sirius's death confused me.  For example, why don't we hear Bellatrix utter Avada Kedavra? Couldn't the "second jet of light" have referred to any number of curses?  Sirius' facial expression registers shock upon getting struck with said curse, but does it necessarily register death?

• And Harry saw the look of mingled fear and surprise on his godfather's wasted, once-handsome face as he fell through the ancient doorway and disappeared behind the veil, which fluttered for a moment as though in a high wind and then fell back into place.

Sirius' face is already "wasted" as a result of his time in Azkaban, so why should we assume that he's dead based on the above description?  And what does the veil represent anyway?  The function and/or purpose of the veil is never developed, so why should we assume that his falling through it signalls death or his passing on to the "other side" as some readers suggest?  All of this to say that I fully expected (like Harry did) for Sirius to reappear and rejoin their ranks--if not in Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, surely in subsequent Harry Potter installments.

(At this point in my reading, I interrogated Melissa, coworker and Harry Potter enthusiast, as to whether Sirius would indeed return.  When she would neither confirm nor deny my suspicions, I resorted to "googling" the topic to find the answer to my query.  I'm not proud of my behavior, but after all, I was in a panic!  When the answer I found was not to my liking, I temporarily refused to read the remainer of the series.  But after a weekend of mourning, I began reading again in earnest.)

The Harry Potter fan will know that many disturbing and saddening events take place along the young wizard's journey.  But for me, a reader invested in Harry's success and deeply concerned for his well-being, the most devastating event within the series is the death of Sirius Black.  And here's why:

1. Harry deserves a father figure, and he's robbed of that privilege not once but twice (or actually three times, if you count Dumbledore).  Since Harry has been deprived of a relationship with his biological father, he should be granted a lifetime of interaction with his godfather, right?  Well, J. K. Rowling didn't think so. 
2. The death of Sirius is ironic--He's the one person Harry escapes from Hogwarts to rescue and the only person killed in action at the Ministry of Magic.  Can you say tragic? 
3. In a way, Sirius's death is an indirect result of Harry's decisions and actions.  Because Harry didn't take his occlumency lessons with Snape seriously, Voldemort is able to plant a fake "vision" in Harry's mind that lures him to the Ministry of Magic.  Furthermore, Harry's endeavor to rescue Sirius from Voldemort's alleged torture brings about the battle during which Bellatrix is able to kill Sirius.
4. His death is unexpected.  Up to this point in the series, Cedric is the only person to have been killed by Voldemort and the Death Eaters. His death is also abrupt and unexpected, but he is such a minor character that his absence doesn't greatly impact the reader or subsequent narration.  Also, at this moment in the Ministry of Magic skirmish, Dumbledore has arrived. So the reader (along with Harry) sighs with relief because they're all saved, right?  But this assumption, too, proves incorrect. 
5. Finally, Sirius's arrogance contributes to his demise.  Right before Bellatrix hits him square in the chest with an unnamed curse, he taunts her with some version of "Is that all you've got?"  If he'd have focused entirely on protecting himself, perhaps Sirius could have evaded the jet of light that ultimately killed him.  Instead, he made himself vulnerable to his cousin's final attack.

So there's my impassioned and analytical approach to Sirius's death in J. K. Rowling's Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix.  Maybe one day I'll revisit the series and come to terms with his passing, but for now, I mourn his loss.