Disclaimer: Harry Potter and any and all official related material are the property of J.K. Rowling.

Chapter 10

When James stumbled out of the fireplace, after he had ceased spinning, he had to stagger out of the way to avoid being run into as Lily stepped into the room. Rubbing his eyes to clear the soot from them, he righted his glasses and looked around. They were in a kitchen, a rather dark and gloomy one at that, and it was empty save for himself, his wife, and the newly emerged Dumbledore. Reaching over to help his wife steady herself, James looked to Dumbledore. "Where are we now?" he asked.

"As I said back at the school, we are at Number 12, Grimuald Place, which is headquarters for the Order of the Phoenix. This house, which is located in London, is also the home of your friend, Sirius Black, and has been in his family for several generations." Dumbledore turned to the door. "And I do believe that I can hear him now." And in fact, James could hear what sounded like footsteps coming down a set of stairs just beyond the kitchen's only door.

"If you would please wait here for a moment," Dumbledore instructed before striding to the door, pulling it open, and stepping through. The door swung shut behind the headmaster, leaving James and Lily alone in the dark and rather filthy kitchen. After a moment's pause, James led his wife to the nearby table and sat her down. His own weary body longed to sit as well, hell, it longed to relax on a soft bed and send him off to a much needed sleep, but his wired mind refused to relax, refused to settle down, until he could manage to set matters straight. James was also sure that Lily felt the same. As tired as she was, she would never rest until she saw Harry.

In the silence of the kitchen, the Potters could hear voices drifting through the door from the hallway beyond. The clear, calm voice they recognized as Dumbledore's, though the coarser, harsher voice escaped identification. This second voice seemed to be rising in volume, as well as taking on tones of disbelief, confusion, and accusation. The door burst open, and there stood a man that James didn't recognize.

He had shoulder length hair, a face that bore signs of much wear despite the relative youth of its occupant. The eyes were sunken and the cheeks were hollow with the look of someone who had been very ill and only recently returning to health.

Both James and the man stared at each other for heartbeats before Dumbledore appeared at the stranger's shoulder. "As you can see, I was not lying to you, Sirius." James and the man gaped at each other. Sirius? This is Sirius Black? This figure and the one from his memories could not be one and the same.

This unfamiliar 'Sirius' seemed to be having similar difficulty comprehending what was before him. He turned to the older man behind him. "This is impossible, Dumbledore. This is bloody impossible. How can they be alive? How the bloody hell can they be standing in front of me?"

"I have been asking myself that very same question for the past several hours, Sirius, just as I believe our guest have been doing as well. But go and see for yourself, find out if they are real or not." And Dumbledore gestured for the man to proceed.

The man stepped into the room, and as the light from the hearth fell on him, James could finally see elements of his old friend in this man's face; the arc of the nose, the height of the cheek bones, the shape of the jaw. The man peered into James's face, then his sunken eyes widened. "Prongs, is it really you?"

At that moment, James knew that this was Sirius, that this was his best friend. "Padfoot…" He couldn't say anymore as Sirius pulled him into a bone crushing hug.

"James, oh James, I'm so sorry. Oh God, it's all my fault, and I am so sorry." Sirius sobbed into his friend's shoulder.

James squeezed back until Sirius's sobs took on a wheeze. "It's alright, Sirius, it's alright. Harry is safe. That's all that matters. It's alright." Tears began to stream from his own eyes. At the nearby table, Lily had covered her mouth, her shoulders quivering in a silent weeping.

When the friends finally managed to pull away from one another, James looked back into Sirius's ravaged, once handsome features. "My God, Sirius. What happened to you?" James whispered.

Sirius grimaced. "Twelve years in Azkaban, James. Twelve years for Peter's betrayal."

James scowled. "I will make the right, Sirius. I will clear you name. In front of the whole Wizengamot, I will swear it."

Sirius's features finally relaxed as he gave a bark like laugh. "Well, first you're gonna have to keep them from shipping you down to the Department of Mysteries for being alive when you should be dead."

With this relapse into Sirius's characteristic humor, James felt some of his pent up tension finally leave his body. As Sirius turned to greet Lily, she stepped into a warm embrace that seemed to reassure her. While the two hugged, James looked to Dumbledore, catching sight of a fading silver light in the corridor as Dumbledore stowed his wand away inside his robes.

At James's questioning look, the headmaster clarified. "I have sent word to various members of the Order to attend a meeting here so that we may explain the current situation to them. The Weasley will be arriving shortly and I have asked Nymphadora Tonks to collect Hermione Granger. Once they have arrived, we will assemble a party to go and collect Harry."

James nodded his head and turned to his wife and Sirius, who had finally released each other. Sirius returned the glance. "Well now, James, Lily, you must be famished. Sit down, sit down, and I will try and get the two of you something to eat."

So it was that Lily and James were still tucking into some sandwiches when Arthur, Molly, Fred, George, Ron and Ginny Weasley came spinning out of the fireplace.

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