Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling owns Harry Potter.

Hello and thank you everyone for your kind reviews. Hopefully, this second chapter won't disappoint!

Tonks House, 31st October 1981

Andromeda and Ted were surprised to say the least when Sirius burst into the house, clutching Harry in his arms, his eyes wild with panic and grief.

"What happened?" asked Ted. "I thought you were only going to see Peter."

Sirius shook his head frantically. "It was Peter! Peter did it! They're dead!"

Andromeda rushed to Sirius's side and gently laid her hand on his shoulder. She spoke calmly but there was a slight tremor in her voice that betrayed her true feelings. "What are you talking about, Sirius? What did Peter do? Who's dead?"

"Peter betrayed them! He sold them out! He told Voldemort where to find James and Lily!" Tears were now streaming down Sirius's face. "James and Lily are both dead!"

Andromeda and Ted's faces turned to one of shock and disbelief.

"How do you know it was Peter?" asked Andromeda.

"He was their secret keeper! He –" Sirius struggled to speak as the feeling of guilt began to grow inside of him. "This is my fault… If I hadn't suggested…"

"Sirius, none of this is your fault!" Andromeda firmly stated. "If what you say is true then the only people to blame are Peter and You-Know-Who."

"But it was my idea to make him secret keeper!" argued Sirius. "James and Lily wanted it to be me but I insisted that Peter would be the better option. If it wasn't for me then they would still be alive!"

"Trusting Peter might have been a mistake, Sirius, but it was a mistake we all made," Andromeda explained softly.

"She's right, you can't blame yourself for this Sirius," said Ted.

Andromeda suddenly frowned. "What happened to You-Know-Who? You claim that he killed Lily and James, but why didn't he kill Harry?"

"I don't know," admitted Sirius. "When I got there he was gone. But there's a mark on Harry's forehead. I'm not sure what it is or how it got there but it wasn't there the last time I visited."

Andromeda examined the mark. "Strange… I've never seen anything like it. It looks like some kind of curse, but I have no idea what could have caused it."

Sirius nodded and wiped the tears from his face. "I'll have to ask Albus, but for now I have to get Leo and Harry home."

"Both of them?" asked Ted, shocked. "You aren't planning on looking after them both are you?"

"I have to," said Sirius. "I promised Kyla I would raise Leo, and James and Lily would want me to raise Harry too. I'm his godfather."

Andromeda sighed. "Make sure you get into touch with Dumbledore though. He'll know what to do better than any of us."

Sirius reassured her that he would and prepared to leave.

Hogwarts, 1st November 1981

Albus Dumbledore was worried. Very worried. The Daily Prophet lay open on a large, circular table, the front cover loudly stating last night's events in large letters. Whilst everybody was celebrating the supposed death of Voldemort, Albus had arrived at Godric's Hollow to search for little Harry Potter, who had, as everyone now seemed to know, defeated Voldemort at the age of one. 'The Boy Who Lived' everybody was now calling him. Albus couldn't help but pity the poor boy, both of whose parents had been murdered, and on top of that was now famous for something he wouldn't even be able to remember. Not only that, but Hagrid had claimed that he thought he'd seen Sirius Black flying away from the scene on that flying motorbike of his, carrying Harry. Albus hoped this wasn't true. If his suspicions were correct, then it was Sirius who had betrayed the Potters, and he didn't want to think what a Death Eater would do to the boy who had killed the Dark Lord.

Of course, Albus was fairly certain that Voldemort was not dead. Powers destroyed perhaps, but not dead. He suspected that Voldemort had found some kind of way to keep himself from dying. How exactly, he wasn't sure. It was something he would have to figure out so there would be a way to defeat Voldemort, should he ever return to power.

The sound of hurried feet could be heard outside and there was a knock on the door. Albus tapped his wand in the direction of the door and it swung open to reveal a very distressed Professor McGonagall.

"Hello, Minerva," Albus greeted her warmly. "What can I do for you on this rather peculiar day?"

"Is it true?" she asked. "All these rumours – apparently the little Potter boy killed You-Know-Who last night?"

"Whilst I severely doubt that Voldemort was killed, he certainly lost his powers. I am not sure how, but there was something about young Harry that stopped him."

"And Lily? James? They're really dead?" whispered Minerva.

Albus nodded sadly and Minerva gasped.

"I didn't want to believe it. Lily and James – dead. And what about their son? Pomona told me he was taken from Godric's Hollow shortly after the attack."

Albus told her of his suspicions about Sirius Black. She didn't believe it at first ("Sirius? Betray the Potters? Never! He and James were like brothers!"), but when he spoke about him being secret keeper, she admitted that the evidence certainly did point at him.

"Why would he do it though?" she wondered. "He always hated his family and everything they stood for, and all that work he did for the Order… you don't think he was giving information all this time behind our backs do you?"

"I don't know, but if he is guilty then we need to make sure Harry is safe," said Albus.

Marauders Lodge, 1st November 1981

Sirius hadn't slept at all that night. He had taken Harry and Leo to bed and watched over them the entire time they were sleeping. He knew that he needed to contact someone soon, but he wasn't sure who. He knew that people would suspect him being behind the attack, due to him apparently being the secret keeper, and therefore he couldn't just stroll into Hogwarts or the Ministry of Magic. When he made up his mind to write to Remus, he pulled out a quill and a roll of parchment and, after dipping the quill into an ink pot, began to write.

Dear Remus,

No doubt by now you will have heard about James and Lily's death. I visited Godric's Hollow last night after Peter went missing and took Harry. He is alive, and other than a strange scar on his forehead, he seems to be in good condition.

I know that you probably think it was me who betrayed them to Voldemort, but it wasn't. I wasn't their secret keeper; Peter was. We decided to switch at the last minute without anyone knowing because we thought Peter was a less obvious choice. It was me who suggested the switch so in a way I am partly responsible, but I would never have given up their location. The reason we didn't tell you about it was because we suspected that someone in the Order was giving information to Voldemort. I should never have doubted you and for that I am very sorry. I hope that in time you will accept my apology.

I understand if you don't believe me just yet, but I can show you the memories to prove it. I would love it if you helped raised Harry and Leo with me, and I know that James and Lily would have wanted it too.

Again I apologise for ever doubting you. You were a true friend unlike Peter, but I was too blind to see it.

Please send your reply soon.

From Sirius.

Sirius slipped the letter inside an envelope and decided that he might as well write a letter to Dumbledore as well. This one was slightly shorter than the one he had written to Remus but it explained about the switching of secret keepers. Sirius gave the letters to Merlin, a rather large owl with dark brown feathers and deep-set eyes, and watched as he flew out of the open window to deliver the messages.

It took a few hours of alternating pacing and watching the two boys sleep peacefully until Merlin arrived. The wait had been worth it, though, for the owl carried both Remus and Albus's replies. Sirius opened the letter from Remus first and was immensely relieved to find that Remus was willing to hear him out and view the memories. The letter from Albus was similar and invited him to come to Hogwarts so he could take a closer look at Harry's scar and they could decide what to do next.

Harry gave a timely yawn, and Leo, too, blinked open both his eyes. Both soon started to make hungry noises and Sirius was glad that feeding them postponed the terrible moment of telling one of them that his parents had been killed. He had no idea how to even explain something as awful as James and Lily never coming back.

"Where Mama?" asked Harry.

"Mummy isn't here at the moment," said Sirius.

"Dada?" the little boy then tried.

"Daddy isn't here either. There – there was an… accident. Mummy and Daddy aren't here anymore." Sirius felt his heart wrench as Harry's eyes filled with tears and he began to cry. He picked Harry up and hugged him tightly. "You still have me, Prongslet. I'm still here for you."

It took a while but Harry slowly began to calm down.

"Pafoo…" he murmured.

"That's right," Sirius said softly. "Padfoot's still here for you."

Lupin House, 1st November 1981

In a small, cosy home in Scotland, Remus Lupin was sat down on an armchair, deep in thought. He had been horrified to hear about the death of James and Lily, who were both very close to him, and even more so when he realised that Sirius, as their secret keeper, must have been the one to betray them.

He hadn't seen Sirius for months, due to the mission he was sent on, on behalf of the Order. Being a werewolf, he was the perfect man to infiltrate Fenrir Greyback's pack, but it hadn't been easy and he had returned a few days ago to relax and get some rest before the full moon in three days' time.

At Hogwarts, his transformations had always been manageable, and after James, Sirius and Peter and become animagi, they had even become enjoyable. However, after graduating from Hogwarts, James and Sirius were often busy with their own responsibilities, and Peter's animagus form as a rat wasn't particularly good at keeping him under control when the wolf took over. Instead, Remus had been forced to lock himself in the basement of his father's house during his transformations. Lyall Lupin tried to help him as much as he could, treating his wounds from where he scratched and bit himself, but he wasn't particularly talented at healing and Remus usually had no choice but to spend the next few days recovering.

After reading the letter Sirius sent him, Remus wasn't sure what to think. He wanted to believe that Sirius was innocent, but he didn't want to believe that Peter was guilty either. Both had been his friends for a long time, and although his relationship with Sirius had been strained over the last few months, he didn't think that either of them would spy for Voldemort. Finding out that one of them was a traitor had shaken him.

Eventually, Remus resolved that he would go to Hogwarts and if Sirius's claims proved to be correct then he would have to face the fact that Peter, whom he had trusted and grown very close to, was, in fact, guilty of betraying the Potters to Voldemort.

With that thought in mind, Remus slipped a thin cloak over a set of worn, rather shabby robes and walked over to the fireplace. Grabbing a handful of floo powder, he stepped directly in front of the fire and threw it into the flames. Emerald green flames erupted from the fire and Remus stepped directly into it as he stated the place he wanted to go to. A split second later he had vanished and the flames returned to their normal colour.

I hope you liked the second chapter.

I don't plan on Harry starting Hogwarts until around Chapter 10. Until then, the story will focus around trying to catch Peter, and Harry and Leo growing up.

Goodbye and thanks for reading!