Chapter Three

"Oh my, Sirius, what has happened to you?" Lily exclaimed. He looks so much-well-older, Lily thought. What do those jailers at Azkaban do to their prisoners? His hair was long and there was stubble on his chin. He was dirty- but his kind smile still lingered on his face.

" It is so nice to see you all again- when Dumbledore said you were alive, I almost didn't believe him." Sirus hugged them both warmly, ignoring Lily's comment, and went on. "Ahem- well, long story. You know that I have been in Azkaban for something I didn't do, correct?"

"Yes, uh, we took it that when Harry said that a mass murderer was his godfather he had found out," James said.

Sirius looked at James and Lily in turn. He looked as though he wanted to say something, but to say it would change their lives- and not in a good way.

"Just say whatever you have to say, Sirius, please?" Lily said.

"All right… what I have to say to you is- is that I told him," Sirius said quietly, staring at his shoes.

"Told who?"

"Harry."

"What did you tell him, Sirius?" Lily demanded, her face going red.

"I told him…that the Dursleys are- are you,"

Lily's face changed abruptly from red to dead white. "Albus, please tell me that this is some kind of joke. I simply cannot and will not believe this-

James just stood there in silence, shaking his head disapprovingly while Lily wailed. James' father walked into the other room and sat on the couch with his head in his hands. Finally, James put a hand on Lily's shoulder and said, "Sirus, do you even realize what you have done? Do you even realize the effect on our lives? And Harry's?"

Sirius stared at the three, like a child who had been caught stealing a cookie from the cookie jar. Lily finally had stopped wailing and allowed Sirius to speak. "Wh- what did I do? I thought that he deserved to know what really happened to his parents after a long fifteen years-

Albus Dumbledore, who hadn't said a word throughout the whole conversation, cut it. "Sirius. Please, just listen to James for a moment."

Nodding to Albus, James continued, "When Voldemort cursed us, he said that someday we would go back to our normal selves around Harry, but- but if…" James trailed off and turned away, tears streaming down his pale cheeks.

"What they are trying to tell you is that when Voldemort cursed them, he said that if anyone told Harry of what the curse actually was, Harry would never see his parents and grandfather in their true form again," Dumbledore said solemnly.

Sirius's eyes went wide with horror. "And it is all because of me…"

Lily started to wail again. James looked annoyed as he tried to comfort her.

As for Sirius Black, he stood there looking at them, realizing that he had something that had ruined three people's lives, and trying to think of some way that he could redeem himself. But a curse could never be reversed, unless-

Dumbledore interrupted Sirius's thoughts. "But remember, there still is a way that you can see your son and grandson again."

"No, that would be too cruel. We could never get anyone to do it, anyway," Lily sputtered in between sobs.

"But it is a way, Lily," James said.

"What is the way?" Sirius asked.

Dumbledore lowered his eyes. "The way is to get three people to take their places."

A/N: Of course I don't own any of these characters except Gerald, the good ol JK does, but the ideas are my own. Just to clarify this for you. Please review this chapter! Thanks!! And thanks for reading!! Oh, and just another clarification- at the time, Harry is fifteen.