Harry Potter belongs to J.K Rowling.
From above, the village of Godric's Hollow twinkled like a star. Sirius thought that there was a sleepy calm about it and its streets were deserted as the inhabitants were asleep in their cottages on the warm summer's night.
It made it easier for Sirius to land his motorbike which soared through the air with a roar. Sirius wouldn't be surprised if it woke up some of the people in the cottages.
He remembered the last time he came here on his motorbike; he got a telling off from a daft old bat who claimed that she was a historian.
But Sirius didn't care what the neighbours thought tonight. Not when Lily was in labour.
The motorbike came in for a landing and hit the old cobbled streets with a thud and sped along the old cottages before coming to a stop. Sirius got off his bike and looked at James and Lily's cottage.
There was a light on upstairs. Sirius went through the gate and was about to make his way to the door when it swung open revealing a visibly tired James.
"Did Lily-?" Sirius began but was interrupted as James tackled him in a fierce hug.
"She's had the baby!" James shouted. "It's a boy!"
"Fantastic!" Sirius grinned, pulling out of the hug to see James beaming like he had never beamed before. "What's Lily doing?"
"She's with the baby," James said. "Listen, Sirius. I just want to say how much I appreciate you coming out to see us this time of night. I know how busy you are and everything."
"Don't mention it," Sirius said gruffly. "You know I would drop everything for you."
"Do you want to see the baby?" James asked. "Lily's great with him. He only cried once. She started singing to him and he stopped. He's been quiet ever since. And cute. He's so cute, Padfoot as well as being so tiny. You should come in and see him, Lily won't mind."
James ushered Sirius in and led him upstairs to James and Lily's bedroom. James knocked and entered and Sirius hovered in the doorway looking upon a wonderful sight.
Lily was sitting upright in bed, cradling a tiny bundle in her arms which she was singing softly to. She looked up at James's knock and gave him and Sirius a radiant smile.
"You get to meet Uncle Sirius." She cooed at the bundle.
"How are you, Lily?" Sirius asked as he stepped awkwardly into the room.
"Not too bad," Lily said, smiling warmly at Sirius. "A little bit tired, but it's worth it."
Lily looked down at the bundle in her arms with so much tenderness, it took Sirius's breath away.
"Are you ready to meet your Godfather?" She whispered at the bundle and Sirius felt as if his entire stomach had dropped out. Did she say what he thought she said?
"Wait a minute," Sirius said, feeling as if he had been hit with a stunning spell. "Godfather?"
"You didn't tell him?" Lily asked, looking at James questioningly.
"Sorry," James said sheepishly. "I was too busy chatting to him about the baby. Did I tell you how cute he is? And tiny? Just look at him."
"What's this about me being a Godfather?" Sirius asked before James could go off on a tangent.
"Oh yeah," James said sheepishly, turning to Sirius. "Will you be Godfather to our son, Harry James Potter? I know it's a lot, but you're like my brother, Padfoot and I trust you with my life. Harry is in great danger now because of the prophecy and if anything happened to me and Lily, I know that you'll be able to protect him."
Sirius met James's eyes and he knew that he couldn't let James down. Had they not been brothers-in-arms all through Hogwarts?
"I'd be honoured, James," Sirius said. "You know I'd do anything for you".
"Thanks, mate," James said and shook Sirius's hand. A peculiar feeling came over Sirius when he let go of James's hand.- It felt as if they had sealed some sort of magical contract.
"I wholeheartedly approve, by the way," Lily said, smiling up at Sirius. "But no giving him Firewhisky until he's Seventeen.
James looked down at the bundle in Lily's arms, a soppy smile on his face.
"He's going to be a brilliant Quidditch player when he grows up," James said. "I can't wait to go flying with him."
"He might not like Quidditch, James," Lily said, rolling her eyes at her husband but smiling.
"He will," James said. "Quidditch is in his blood."
"If he flies like you do, Prongs, he's going to be unstoppable," Sirius said, grinning at James.
"Sirius, do you think you could do me a favour?" Lily asked. "I need to write a letter to my sister, so would it be okay if you held Harry for a bit?"
"I'd love to," Sirius said, smiling at Lily.
"Do you think Petunia is going to reply to you?" James asked Lily, looking at her with concern.
"Probably not," Lily sighed. "But I have to try. We are sisters after all and maybe one day, Petunia will come around."
For a moment, Lily looked quite sad but she was soon back to her cheerful self as she handed Sirius the bundle.
Sirius wasn't sure how to hold the bundle properly.- He was worried about dropping it, but James showed him the proper way to hold the bundle and once Sirius was holding it, he peered inside to see a tiny boy with a large mop of jet-black hair that stuck out all over the place.
Sirius remembered when Mrs Potter showed him some of James's baby photos when he stayed over James's house during the summer holidays. It was like looking at those photos again. Harry looked so much like James that the resemblance was uncanny and Sirius couldn't help letting out a sigh of wonder.
"I told you he was cute," James said, peering over Sirius's shoulder. Sirius could hear the note of pride in his voice. "And look how tiny he is. "
"He's got your hair, Prongs," Sirius said with a laugh, grinning up at James.
Harry looked at Sirius with wide eyes that were the same shape as Lily's.
"And your eyes, Lily," Sirius said softly. "He's got your eyes."
The baby looked at Sirius, his eyes trying to focus on his beard. A strange feeling welled up in Sirius. It filled his entire body, overwhelming him. It took Sirius a moment to realise that it was love.
Sirius wanted nothing more than to protect this small boy. This was James's son and Sirius loved him more than anything in the world. He wanted to be the best Godfather that he could be.
"Hello, Harry," Sirius said softly and Harry's eyes met Sirius's. "We're going to be such good friends."
Sirius could see Harry trying to focus on his face. A tiny frown appeared on Harry's little face and he reached out with a tiny hand and grabbed Sirius's finger in a very strong grip.
"He likes you," Lily said softly, looking up from her letter.
Sirius's eyes fogged over as Harry held onto his finger and shook it bringing a smile to Sirius's face.
"You're right, Prongs," Sirius said thickly. "He is cute."
"Are you crying, Padfoot?" James asked with a sly grin.
"You don't think it makes me pathetic, do you?" Sirius asked. He had hoped that being dressed in a leather jacket would've made him look a lot tougher than he felt.
"On the contrary, it makes you the coolest Godfather out there," James said, giving Sirius a significant smile.
"I can't believe that you're both parents already," Sirius said as Harry let go of his finger. "It seems like yesterday when we all graduated from Hogwarts."
"Now we're stuck in the middle of a war with a madman hunting our son because of a prophecy," James said grimly.
"We'll get through it," Lily said softly, sealing her letter with her wand. "Harry will be safe. Even if I have to die for him."
Lily looked at Harry laying contentedly in Sirius's arms with the same tender expression she had earlier. James moved around so he was next to Lily and put his arm around her, kissing her temple.
"I'm proud of you both," Sirius said. "With parents like you, Harry is going to be a great wizard."
"He's going to have a great Godfather to help him along the way," Lily smiled.
Because of the war, there had been few things to celebrate. But a new life was a cause for celebration in a dark and dismal world. Sirius knew that things were going to be tough. James and Lily may have to go deeper into hiding with Harry now that he was born.
Sirius didn't believe in prophecies. But he couldn't shake off the feeling that the birth of James Potter's son was going to change everything.
Thank you for reading.