12 August, 1981

His gray eyes met her hazel ones, and he smiled, knowing that he already loved her.

"Hey there, little one," said Sirius Black quietly, smiling down at the tiny, inquisitive face peeking out of the blankets. He was only whispering, but James Potter could still hear the high pitched timbre in his friend's voice, and grinned goofily at him.

"Very manly, mate," he said cheekily, clapping Sirius on the back. Peter Pettigrew laughed (longer and louder than the joke deserved), and James' wife, Lily, rolled her eyes, smiling as she cuddled their small son, Harry, closer to her on the bed.

It may have been near the end of summer, but the First Wizarding War was at its pinnacle. News of disappearances, deaths, and hospitalizations were reaching members of the Order of the Phoenix nearly every day, and it was hard to know who trust. But, even in the midst of war and destruction, tidings of new life were exhilarating, and brought forth hope, light, and… fun. Between being reunited with his best friends and his wife giving birth to their second child, James Potter was outright giddy.

"It's alright, Padfoot," he said happily to Sirius, who was scowling at him. "We'll blame your lack of robust on my daughter's utter cuteness."

Sirius scoffed as James tenderly kissed the newborn's head, which was covered in a tuft of messy red hair, "My lack of robust? Coming from the man who just used the word, 'cuteness'?!"

Lily and Peter laughed, and the baby gurgled in her swaddle of yellow blankets.

"What's this little one's name anyway?" asked Sirius, directing his attention back to infant in his arms, who was staring up at him, a small smile on her lips.

"Emily Rose," said Lily fondly.

"Emily Rose Potter," repeated Sirius loudly, gesturing imposingly with his arm. "You, my dear," he said, tapping her tiny nose with his finger, "are going to be just as gorgeous as your mother. Your father and I are going to have a hard time dealing with all of your suitors."

Peter looked troubled. "Can't I help beat up her boyfriends?" he asked timidly.

"She's not gonna have any boyfriends to beat up," said James shortly.

"Remus!" said Lily suddenly, beaming at somebody who had just arrived.

James, Sirius, and Peter all whipped around, and there, standing in the doorway, was none other than Remus Lupin.

"Unca Moony! Unca Moony!" said Harry excitedly, leaning toward him, his arms outstretched.

Sirius, fingers tightening around his wand, glared at Lupin, but James bounded across the room and embraced their old friend.

"Thank you so much for coming, Remus!" he said gratefully.

Lupin blushed slightly, never having thought himself worthy of being touched, and muttered, "No problem, mate."

James clutched Lupin's shoulders and held him at arm's length. "You'll be godfather?"

Sirius' arms tightened protectively around Emily as Lupin spluttered. Hadn't he, Sirius, told James that Dumbledore had warned the Order of a spy amongst them? Hadn't he advised James to be careful around Lupin? What was his friend playing at?

"J-James, you know what I am!"

"If something happens to Lily and me," said James seriously, "we want you in our kids' lives."

"But, don't you think Padfoot is-?"

"Padfoot is going to take both of them," James interrupted, "just so that they're not separated. But we want you there, Moony. They need both of you."

Sirius, outraged at James' words, watched as Lupin silently struggled with himself. "Well," he said slowly after a moment, "do I have a godson or goddaughter?" And then James was hugging him again, and taking Emily from Sirius' arms so that her godfather could hold her.

"We'll take good care of them," a grinning Lupin promised a few minutes later, not even glancing up at James. He was gazing down at Emily, plainly already adoring her. "You and Lily probably made a wise decision. I can help balance Sirius out…"

If Lupin hadn't been holding Emily, Sirius would've hit him. But instead, he turned to James.

"Can I have a word with you?" he asked through gritted teeth, glaring at Lupin as he crossed the room and sat on the bed next to Lily and Harry.

James followed his friend out of the open doorway, still grinning wildly.

Once they were in the hallway, Sirius rounded on James. "What the hell are you thinking?" he demanded.

"Padfoot," said James calmly.

"Someone in the Order is a spy, Prongs, they're passing on information on to Voldemort, and-"

"It has to be Lupin because he's a werewolf."

The temperature in the hallway might have dropped a hundred degrees. James' eyes were cold, and Sirius looked as if his friend had hit him.

"I never said that," Sirius said after a moment.

"But you thought it," said James quietly, "didn't you?"

There was a moment of silence while they stared at each other, communicating without words, and then James' eyes softened.

"I understand that the werewolves are with Voldemort," he told Sirius, "but I trust Remus. He's the same person we turned into Animagus' for at fifteen…"

"James," said Sirius pleadingly, looking directly into his best friends eyes, "I don't trust him."

James clapped a hand to Sirius' shoulder, and said, "Then trust me."