"Wake up Sirius. You need to wake up."

Sirius was sweating profusely. It took him a moment to re-center himself in the hospital room and not his father's study. He didn't have nightmares much anymore. Not of his parents. Therapy with the Potters had helped him to get passed the trauma and abuse of his childhood. Finding Lily the way he did triggered the nightmare though. Thinking back to her crouched in the corner crying. It reminded him of him and his brother at a young age. It had brought memories back into focus.

James was at eye level with Sirius wiping his forehead with a damp paper towel. Sirius made it known that he was awake and listening.

"Let's go for a walk." James suggested.

Sirius had a knee jerk reaction to the request "I can't leave Lily I promised."

James though about it for a minute. "You said you promised to not leave her alone with me right?"

Sirius nodded. He was ashamed that he made a promise that technically went against the code of brothers. James had obviously been mad that Sirius had made the promise and was following through with it.

"What if you woke her up and told her that I would be with you?"

Sirius shook his head "She's worried about Severus too."

James face showed he didn't like to be compared to Severus but didn't say anything out loud. "What if Remus promised to stay with her? Also, if we told a nurse to be on look out. That might make her more comfortable."

Sirius was surprised at James' rational behavior at the situation. It seemed to be night and day from when he last saw James. Sirius did just that. Lily seemed apprehensive to reply with James in the room. Remus told her that the nurses had a panic button and would be vigilant in their watch. With everyone placated, Sirius and James left the room.

James didn't know whether to demand answers or wait for Sirius to explain.

"I looked up a bit about abuse victims, when you asked me to leave. I didn't know why. I still don't understand it, but I want to. I know it will be hard to hear, but I want to know."

"Are you serious?"

"No, you're Sirius." James hadn't made that pun in years, but it cleared the tension from between the two of them. They both laughed and wheezed even though they were in public. After they both sobered up, Sirius started to explain.

"You didn't mean to, but in that fight with Severus in front of her, you two became correlated in her mind. You're right that sometimes you have to use force to remove someone from immediate danger, but you should have waited for back up. You did your best, but it doesn't mean that it didn't hurt her still."

"So, what do I do now. Just never see her again without someone else in the room?"

Sirius pondered for a moment. "You need to take it slow. Wait for her. For now, be extra aware of how your actions might be perceived by her. Make sure to be aware of how she's feeling."

How the hell was James supposed to read her mind?

"James, you're a good man. You need to show her that even though you are capable of doing bad things, you are not a bad man. Be authentically you, while understanding that she's seeing things through the filter of someone who's been abused."

"How am I supposed to read her moods?"

"If you look closely enough, you'll see it in her body language. I'll try to help you at first. Try to signal to you if you need to back off or if it's ok to move forward."

James felt like the task was impossible. "Am I really a good man? In that moment I wanted to kill him Sirius. I don't know if that makes me a good man."

Sirius wrapped him in a hug. "You are a good man. We've all got both light and dark inside us. What matters is the part we choose to act on. That's who we really are."

James wrapped his arms around his brother tight. He it was nice to know that Sirius was still on his team. That Sirius hadn't turned against James after he had caused this mess. The two continued around the block. The spoke of a business that had requested funding, new eateries opening up, and new movies being released.