Hey guys welcome to Chapter two of The Potters. Firstly I'd like to thank everyone for all the favorites and follows . It's incredible seeing how many we got in only two days. I'm gonna do something a bit different than I did last time and this time talk to all reviewers as I have them pop up. So going to the first.

DrkDragoon117: I'll consider it but as of right now I am not sure if I want this to have that pairing. That being said, any suggestions are welcome. I plan to start having Harry date in the third year at the earliest because well most kids start noticing the other gender around that age.

Thank You all again and here we go!

Sirius sighed as he watched Harry playing with Susan, Amelia's niece who was about a month younger than him, and a 8 year old Nymphadora Tonks. It was good to see a smile on Harry's face after what had happened only two months ago. Christmas had not had the same feeling as it usually did nor did Thanksgiving since Halloween happened. If Sirius was honest with himself, he knew it wouldn't ever be the same feeling but the smile on Harry's face gave him some semblance of hope.

"Sirius." A voice broke through his thoughts and he turned slightly to look at the person who had asked. Andromeda and Theodore, or Ted as he preferred being called all the time, Tonks sat across from him looking at him as if they were waiting. A quick glance to Amelia had told him that he had disappeared from the conversation looking at the children again.

"Sorry Andi." He rubbed his eyes softly in an effort to stop the tears that threatened to fall. "I got lost in thought."

"So not much has changed since our years at Hogwarts?" Andi grinned at him teasingly before felt the grin falter looking at him. "How are you Siri?" Sirius had no clue how to answer this as he slowly undid his arm from around the shoulder of Amelia and his hands came together, leaning forward his arms rested on his legs as his nose sat on the bridge that was his fingers.

"I…." Sirius took a deep breath. "I don't know." Amelia gently ran her hand onto his back comforting him and egging him to go on. He had begun to hide his thoughts and concerns from her over the past several weeks she had to admit and it brought a lot of concern to her. "I'm worried for James… for Harry… Hell even for Madam Longbottom and her grandson Neville. So much happened that night that it feels like I was completely unable to help anyone."

"That's not true, Paddy." Amelia gently scolded him. "You did all you could with the information you had. If anyone wasn't able to help anyone that would be Albus, too many bloo-" Amelia caught herself in case the children heard, "blooming names, Dumbledore." She huffed out.

"You do not hear me arguing, love." Sirius scowled at the ground in his thoughts. His mind went through each and every scenario that had happened and the conclusion that kept coming to mind was that somehow Albus had failed them, but he couldn't…could he? He questioned it for a moment before looking up. "It's not just that. It's the fact that the search teams have not been able to find whisker nor tail of Peter… Regrettable this is also on our faults for never registering our animagi forms. It just seemed the safer thing to do at the time, especially since right after school we were at war and did not know who to trust at the Ministry." He exhaled in order to keep his voice calm and settled.

"He's a rat Sirius, sooner or later he'll come up for air." Ted spoke softly in order to comfort his cousin-in-law. "How is Harry?"

"Honestly?" Amelia looked at Harry as he was playing with Susan with his stuffed animals as Nymphadora made animal noises for them by changing her face. "It would be worse in the daytime if we weren't already raising Susan as well. They are like siblings almost and it seems that Susan can tell when Harry is sad because she'll try to distract him or hug him before the tears come… but night? That is a whole other issue."

"He wakes up periodically crying… The other night he started calling out Mama…" Sirius again rubbed his eyes to stop the tears but his growing red face from sadness exposed himself to them.

"He remembers his mothers death…" Andromeda said matter of factly that Sirius could do nothing but nod. "I've seen it in other patients at Saint Mungo's. I just… Have you considered temporary blocks on his memories?"

Sirius shook his head. "No… Our family Andi has a history of such and I would not harm him in that way…"

"Forgive me Sirius, I didn't mean to suggest…"

"It's fine Andi. I know you were only thinking of ways to make it easier on him." Sirius stuck his arm out and took Andi's extended one, squeezing it to show he wasn't angry.

"Mommy! Daddy!" Nymphadora ran over almost using the two youngests as a hurdle as she skidded to a stop in front of them. "Harry called me Dora!"

"Did he?" Ted smiled and looked down at his daughter picking her up and sitting her on his knee gently. "And you didn't chew him out?"

"He's just a baby Daddy!" Dora refuted puffing up her cheeks. "He's the only one allowed to call me that." She muttered.

"See I told you you'd love your name Nymphadora." Andi smiled as she kissed her daughter's head before Dora whined and hoped off her father. "Now go back and play honey, we're having a grown up talk."

"Is it about the monster with red eyes?" That question froze all of them in place as they looked at her.

"Nymie… Where did you hear about that?" Andi asked cautiously.

"Harry said it." She explained. "He said he'll keep us safe from him."

This struck at Sirius' heart that his godson, although not understanding the severity of his comment, and or memory, was already showing that deep down he was brave for those he cared about.

"No honey," Ted comforted his daughter. "It's about other things like work." Which curtailed Nymphadora's interest immediately and sent her running back to join the fun again. "Sirius… Does he remember him?!" He kept his voice as soft and quiet as he could.

All Sirius could do was nod.

"Sometimes Harry acts as if he's still out there….but the things that are the most common in his dreams are Lily, Him, and a flash of green light." Amelia spoke as she hugged her boyfriend. The comfort he desperately needed as he recalled the nights of him crying after comforting Harry.

"What about James?" Andromeda asked as she had been the Mediwitch who had been assigned due to her connection with him. "How is James?"

James stared down the drain as he felt the water hit his neck. The blood from the wounds had stopped about a month back…The wounds, he snorted. More like the devastation. He turned his face and bit down on a rag as the water hit the scars.

"Auror James Fleamont Potter?" A voice that still haunted him ran through his mind as he remembered his time at Saint Mungo's. "We have some news sir."

Slowly James turned the knob of the water to stop and gasped out in pain feeling his brow scowl in pain. He spit the rag back to his hand and placed it back where it belonged as he let the last remnants of the water drip from his back down to the floor.

He slowly pulled the shower cover back and stepped out of the tub slowly grabbing his towel as he did and dried off his body. The body that his years as both a chaser and as an auror had formed for him. He felt the small twitch of a smile come until his towel reached his face.

"We…" The voice sighed with disappointment clear in their voice. "We've tried everything we can sir."

James dried half his face before slowly tilting his head letting his hair which had begun to grow out wave to the side as he ran the towel over every inch slowly. He memorized each line, each curve….the face of a stranger.

"Curses as you know, especially dark ones, leave marks sir."

He hissed as he at one moment pressed too hard as it got closer to the biggest part.

"And not to mention one coming from You-Know-Who with his level of strength. There was nothing we could do to repair the damage."

Slowly he let the towel drop down in his hands and he wrapped it around his waist before his eye glanced up at the mirror first. He waved his wand causing the steam to slowly disappear and clear the mirror before he took a big breath in. And a big breath out. Closing his eyes he stood straight and prepared himself to look at it again.

"We couldn't save your eye either…and had to remove it before it caused an infection."

He slowly opened his eyes…eye. He had to remind himself. He stared at it. The entirety of his right side of his face looked as if lightning had burnt him. His eyes traced the lines almost as if someone had drawn a tree on his face in dark red ink as the injuries, although now healed, looked angry. It trailed from the side outward stopping right where his cheek met his lips. The area had grown sunken with the muscle death that the curse had caused but the biggest imperfection…..the biggest and cruelest imperfection that would remind him every waking day and night as the phantom pain of loss would haunt him ... the empty cavity of his right eye socket. He bit his lip for a moment until he couldn't any longer and drove his head down to the toilet beside the sink, losing his breakfast and lunch. The face of a complete stranger now haunted him. He gasped as the remnants finally stopped and he flushed the toilet before standing back up taking in a deep breath and staring at the mirror again. This wasn't the face of the man who loved Lily… and now he was stuck with that constant reminder.

"We can't do anything about the scars either sir. The damage is permanent."

His sadness turned to hate as the tears dripped down his cheeks stinging his right side while leaving a red line down his left. His frown and unbent brow curved and twisted in disgust and anger as he stared. Shortly after he was sitting on his bed looking at a photo of Lily who stared up at him. He saw the look the photo gave him and he closed it immediately. He couldn't see her face moving like that. The pity. The concern. They pulled at his memories too much. He leaned over and let himself fall to the pillow as his eye closed before hitting it and the crying began to ring out from the room.

Sirius and Amelia returned home in the afternoon once it became clear that Harry and Susan were getting tired. Amelia carried Susan while Harry was in Sirius' arms. He gave a finger to his lips and smiled at her going to the children's bedroom and laid them in their cribs. They had decided to move Harry into the same room as Susan when James began to have night terrors. The fear of what James would do albeit unintentionally to Harry being the motivating factor.

He gently laid Harry down and put the stag, wolf, and dog plushies around him as if they were watching over him along with tapping his wand to a lily flower in a vase nearby. The spell was a common one that kept it good and healthy and wouldn't let the flower wilt if done everyday.

Leaning down, Sirius kissed Harry's head before coming up behind and hugging Amelia. "I'll be right back." He whispered to her clearly showing his intention to come back and keep an eye on the kids. It was something that Sirius had begun to do since Harry's first nightmare. He'd sit in the kids room during their naps just to make sure they were alright while he worked on the few things he needed to as Head of The House of Black.

Sirius made his way to the restroom and relieved himself, sighing as he finished up and washed his hands and splattered some water on his face and in his hair before he sat up to look and his mouth fell open. The mirror was shattered. Not by magical means if the blood at the impact point was any sign. He looked back down as his hands grabbed the corners of the sink and he exhaled slowly.

"Siri?" A voice asked him that often gave him comfort at night and he looked over to the red haired witch he loved. She looked at the mirror and gasped. The shattered cracks lining the entire mirror. "James?"

Sirius nodded at the question. "He's not well Amy….not well at all." The voice that came out of him sounded hurt and as cracked as the mirror in front of him. "I don't know what to do…"

Amy hugged him as she laid her head on his back. "We need to talk to him. He can be a danger to Harry if he doesn't get this under control."

"He'd never hurt Harry."

"Not intentionally but look at how he's been the past two months." Amelia looked him in the eyes as Sirius thought. James the past couple months had grown more distant, barely eating to the point his body was beginning to shrink, not holding Harry, and rarely cleaning himself until Amy had demanded him to do it at least once every two weeks. Which they noticed he did when they were all gone from the house. He also wouldn't speak to Sirius about Lily. They'd sit down together and sit in silence for hours on end until finally James stood and left when Sirius would even mutter the Li- in her name.

"You're right." Sirius nodded at that. "He's closing himself off from the world when his son needs him the most." She nodded. "I'll send a message to Moony to come when the kids are asleep and we'll confront him together. I wonder if Moody too would be someone to speak to."

"Perhaps I'll ask him about it tomorrow when I'm on shift..." Amelia's face grew serious. "If you can't do anything Sirius… I'm going to have to invoke Magical Law and remove his custody of Harry."

"Amelia!"

"Listen to me Sirius…I'm not saying he's not going to be allowed to see him or even has to not see him. But Harry needs at least a parent and right now we are acting more like Harry's parents than he is. If this was anyone else and I saw what we've been seeing I'd have to do this after the first month, hell the first two weeks. It's an inability to take care of a child, Sirius! I just want what's best for Harry."

"And taking him away from his father is the best thing?!"

"No. And I didn't say anything about taking him away… I said We'd have to transfer guardianship to someone else ... .you… "

"Me?"

"Sirius, you've been the dad he's needed these past months… I can give you one more month." Amelia looked down, hiding her tears. "I'm so sorry…"

"No, you're doing your job." He wrapped his arms around her and gently kissed her head.

"I love you Sirius."

"I love you too Amelia." With that they separated and Sirius returned to his spot like he did everytime the kids napped as Amelia went to prepare dinner. Her words settled on his mind as he sat in thought.

She ran. As fast as her legs could take her running through the woods as he chased after her. Her feet hit the dirt with a tempo that she hadn't done since her days in the dueling club. Launching herself over a fallen log she twisted and sent a bone crushing hex at her followers before taking off again. His scream of pain radiated in her ear as she heard and grinned at the sound. Yes! She was almost free.

Leaping over again she felt she was far enough away from the wards before closing her eyes and focusing on someone. Someone she regrettably hadn't seen in years. With a loud pop she disappeared as a group of men appeared and surrounded three men as they snarled at their captors.

She landed with a groan. She HATED apparition. So SO much. She laughed though. Laughed that she was away from it and as she stood she saw the hubble of a house and ran to it. The door was her salvation…or at least that's what her mind told her it was. Almost like it was the light at the end of a tunnel.

She threw herself at the door knocking it open and went tumbling to the ground. Sleep depravity had begun to finally take it's toll as she laid there before she did one last thing. She looked up and saw a man, a woman, and a young girl.

"Andi…." She said before her consciousness left her and sleep claimed the woman.