1Wow, talk abt a long time. Sorry to leave yall hangin

U don know me: No! Don't cry, crying is sad. Oooh im sooo glad you think im that good. My English professors definitely don't think so. Haha thanks so much...I hope you did good on that.

Maraudering-siriusly: don't worry, its all below.

Isafold: Sirius deals with his friends later. Chapter 6 or 7 I think... I have them written, I just need to go over them a few times

Jamie: I'm definately guilty of not finishing stories, but I have me heart set on this one. Ooh a cookie sounds wonderful!

Jackie64: I know hurting him sucks, but sometimes its gotta be like that. Well, Sirius says in the 5th book that Regulus was the favorite. My guess to it is that Sirius, despite what they taught him, was different. He probably questioned their beliefs and was too mischievous for their liking, then once he become a Gryffindor they probably cracked.

and thanks to everyone else who reviewed. Keep them coming, it really does make me gt to work faster on this stuff. If you ever have any question, please ask. Remember: there are no stupid questions, only stupid people...hehe I love south park

Chapter 5

The shrill sound of the doorbell filled the large house in Godric's Hollow. The small Potter family turned their heads towards the entry hall. "Who on earth," Kaelin asked. "It's Christmas Eve. Who rings the bell at seven-thirty on Christmas Eve?"

James hopped up from his chair. "Maybe it's Sirius," he said in delight. "Maybe he managed to get away this time."

Jacob look up from his wife's delicious cooking. "Well, don't leave the poor chap standing on the doorway in the cold. Go see who it is."

James took off for the front door, grinning all the way. He had been hoping Sirius could slip away from his house and come over. He opened the door, and the sight that met him was nothing he could have prepared for.

It was indeed Sirius at the door, but not showing off his trade-mark smirk and pushing past James to get at the kitchen.

Sirius was on his knees, leaning heavily on his broom, blood trailing from his hands. His shirt and pants were ripped, revealing what seemed like hundreds of cuts and bruises. His bottom lip was swollen and bleeding, as was his right eye. Blood flowed thickly down the left side of his face from a gash hidden in his hair. Red splotches leaked through his dark pants and shirt, staining the doorstep. He was shivering madly from the December cold.

James stared down in utter shock and horror. He couldn't move. He couldn't breathe. His heart had stopped.

"J-james," Sirius chocked out before his eyes rolled back and he fell forward.

Finally James moved. He dropped down and caught Sirius before the other boy hit the ground. "MUM!" James screamed.

The sound of silverware dropping and chairs scrapping could be heard before the rushed footsteps of the Potters came towards the entry hall. Kaelin screamed at the sight that met her. "Jacob, call a Healer!"

"Fuck that," Jacob said running to the boys. "We need to get him to St. Mungo's." Jacob scooped Sirius into his arms and took off for the parlor. Kaelin threw a large handful of Floo Powder in, and the family disappeared.

The Potters burst through the large fireplace of St. Mungo's. A nurse who was walking by saw Sirius and in shock dropped all her papers. She ran over. "What happened to him?"

"We don't know," Jacob said. "We need a Healer now!" She nodded and hastily made her way to the front desk. She sent off a call, and soon a Healer came running from the back with several assistants and a stretcher. They placed Sirius on it and ran off for a room, leaving the Potters alone in the waiting room. Jacob and Kaelin collapsed into a set of chairs.

James stood frozen in the middle of the room, staring at the closed doors where Sirius had just disappeared. His hazel eyes slowly trailed down to stare at his hands. They were covered in blood. Sirius's blood. James began to shake. He clenched his fists. He was going to kill those bastards.

He didn't want to believe it, but he was positive that the Blacks had done it to Sirius. That had to be why Sirius hated his home so much. There was no other explanation that could possibly be true.

"James," Kaelin said shakily. "James, baby, come here." James slowly moved to sit next to his mother, his eyes never leaving the door where his best friend had disappeared. Immediately she wrapped her arms around him. "It'll be ok," she said. "He'll be fine." James didn't answer. He just stared at the door.

It was over an hour before the Healer reentered the waiting room. He walked straight for the family, holding out his hand to Jacob. "You're the one who brought in the badly injured boy? My name is—"

James, having jumped up the moment the door opened, interrupted, "Who cares who you are! Where's Sirius? Is he okay?"

"James," Kaelin hissed. She turned to the man. "I'm sorry. My son is just very concerned for his friend."

"Understandable," the Healer said. "The boy is back in one of the isolated rooms. You can come back if you want."

James quickly walked towards the doors. The Healer, whose name was Carter, followed with the boy's parents. Carter led them up two levels and down a long hall. There was a nurse standing outside one door making notes on a clipboard. She handed it to the Healer as they entered the room.

James ran for the large white bed where Sirius lay. James cringed. Sirius's skin was almost as white as the sheets, the bruises and cuts standing out in great contrast. Several of the larger cuts had been bandaged. James frowned. "Why does he still look like this? You were in here for over an hour!"

The Healer shook his head. "The extent of his wounds is too great to magically heal. All of the necessary potions would put his body into shock. He'd die."

"Fuck," James cursed, and his mother overlooked it.

Jacob turned to the Healer. "What all is wrong with him," he demanded.

The Healer looked down at the clipboard. "Too much to remember off the top of my head," he said. "Obviously numerous cuts and bruises, some more serious than others. There is significant blood loss. His left wrist rotates very oddly. I'd say it was broken some time ago but never properly healed. His right shoulder was dislocated, left leg broken above the ankle. Several of his ribs are broken, and they're poking at his lungs. We have a charm on him to counter it. He's also suffering from some internal bleeding. There are also several signs that the Cruciatus was used on him." He looked up. "What happened to this kid?"

"His parents," James hissed. "They've been doing this to him. For years, I'll bet."

Kaelin's eyes traveled back to Sirius. She didn't want to believe this.

Carter nodded. "As I said, we can't heal him magically. He's going to have to do it mostly on his own. My sister married a Muggle doctor. I can get the necessary equipment and medicines, if you'll excuse me for a moment."

The Healer stepped out of the room, leaving the family alone. Kaelin dropped into a chair opposite her son. She reached up and took Sirius's hand in hers. It was freezing. No one spoke or moved after that until the Healer reentered along with another man.

He placed several tiny items on the floor and enlarged them while the other man, the Muggle doctor, observed Sirius. The two men immediately got to work. They placed different needles into Sirius and connected him to the machines. They placed a clear mask over his mouth. The remains of Sirius shirt had been cut off, leaving the doctor less work in covering his torso in a plastic brace. His leg was put inside a simple support system.

The brothers-in-law spoke for a few moments in hushed tones before Cater turned to the Potters. "We're going to leave the charms over his lungs and controlling the internal bleeding intact. I can also administer a few potions to heal the smaller cuts and prevent infection of the remaining, but I wouldn't risk anything else."

Thickly, Jacob said, "That—that'll be fine."

The Healer then handed a transparent sheet to the Muggle. The other man studied it for several moments, biting his bottom lip. "Metal plate," he said. "Definitely."

James frowned. "What?"

The Muggle glanced up. "Because we aren't magically healing it, the break in his leg is going to require surgery. We'll have to install plates and pins in his leg." The Potters looked slightly disgusted.

He continued, "Moving him anywhere for a while will be dangerous, so we will perform the surgery here. It's a very simple procedure, but you will have to leave for it." And with that, a nurse escorted the dazed family back to the waiting room.

Several hours later, the Potters were allowed re-admittance into the hospital room. James set himself down into the seat next to Sirius's bedside. He frowned at the labored movements of Sirius's chest and the looks of pain evident despite the drug induced unconsciousness.

While his parents sat on the other end of the room, slowly drifting off from exhaustion, James kept constant watch over Sirius. He couldn't believe this was happening. He had been trying for hours to convince himself that it was all just a horrible dream, and he would awake soon, and Sirius would be fine. But that wasn't going to happen. This was real. Sirius was lying hurt in a hospital bed, and James could do nothing to help him.

James ran a hand over his tired face. The last time he had seen a clock, it had been some time after one o'clock in the morning. It was Christmas, Christmas Day. The muscles in James's jaw tightened. What had happened to this being a season of love, joy, and peace?

James leaned his head on his hand but refused to let sleep over come him. Truthfully, he didn't think he could sleep if he tried. Not with Sirius like this. Sirius meant everything to James, as much as his parents, and sometimes it seemed like more. For over five years, the two boys had been inseparable. They saw each other as brothers, twins, even. One knew what the other had to say before he even opened his mouth. It had been like that almost immediately.

James wondered, how had he not seen this? How could he have missed the signs? Sirius detested almost every member of his family and came close to physically cringing when they approached him.

Thinking back, James could vividly recall things. After coming to school or his house from the manor, Sirius always seemed sore and a bit slow. He would tense up if someone touched him. He also was quick to submission around angry adults (Although the Hogwarts staff was, for the most part, excluded).

When they had first become friends, James had thought Sirius very peculiar. He had been shy to a certain degree. He did not seem to ever want to speak out his opinions. He never said a thing against the Slytherins, and he had been very wary of the Muggle and mixed blood students. Of course, Sirius had grown out of all those things by now.

Sirius was now the most outspoken person James knew. On several occasions, James had been led to believe that Sirius lacked a certain filter that blocked things in his brain from coming out of his mouth. It got him in trouble more times than James could count, but somehow it only resulted in the swelling of his charm.

Despite the changes in Sirius over the years, the Black heir, more notably in a private setting, was the first person to criticize himself. But it was never healthy criticism. Many times, Sirius honesty seemed to think himself worthless, a waste of life. It scared James when he acted like this, but James had always been able to brush it off and forget, thinking it no more than a mood swing.

Why had he not looked into it?

He should have paid more attention. He was Sirius's best friend; it was his job to be there for him, but he had failed miserably.