Chapter 2- when everyone found out
Sirius and Remus sat in the living room of their one-bedroom flat when they remembered. They remembered where the Potters were. Sirius turned to Remus with a terrified expression on his face “Do you remember where they live” Sirius asked his voice shaky and almost breaking with emotion. Remus nodded not trusting his voice at the moment. With Remus's nod, Sirius jumped up and grabbed his leather jacket. He turned to ask if Remus was coming when he saw Remus right behind him with his wand and said, “Let’s go”.
When they got to Godric hollow, what they saw will haunt them for the rest of their lives. They saw the cottage that had once been the home of the Potter family destroyed. The door was blown off its hinges and the death mark above the house that was always so welcoming and homely. When they stepped inside, they saw the body of their best friend on the stairs, his eyes open and unseeing. Sirius broke down right there holding the body of the man who was his brother in everything but blood. Remus stood there frozen in place it can’t be he thought not James. Not the potters. He was about to join Sirius when he heard a soft cry, Hope rose in his chest as he ran upstairs ignoring his shouts of Sirius. He ran right into Harry's room where he saw the tiny body of his goddaughter. “Katie” he whispered scared that she was gone, but she looked up at him. Her small body shook with the force of her sobs as she chokes out “S she w won't wake u u up, w wake her up u uncle m mo moony”. Remus just scoops her up and tries to soothe the little girl as she cries her eyes out.
Just as she was falling asleep Sirius came barging in after hearing her cries. He looks around and sees the little boy quietly crying. He looks him over to see if he is hurt but the only thing is a small cut on Harry’s head a. so, he scups him up into his arms and holds him. “What do we do know moony,” Sirius asks knowing what he is going to do but unsure about Remus. “Right now, I’m going to hand Katie to you then I’m going to send a patroness to Alice and Frank and see if they can watch the kids till we have a place that can house two kids,” he says with a determined look on his face. “They need us to now. We are all they have.” He said handing Katie over to Sirius.
Alice and Frank had just gotten their little boy Neville to sleep when the Patronus of a wolf came through to where they were. Alice gasps recognising who it was “Speak,” she said to the wolf with tears in her eyes, the wolf opened its mouth, and the voice of Remus came through. “He found them, Lily and James Potter are dead but the kids are ok, can you two watch them while we get potter manor ready for them as our flat only has one bedroom”. Alice was shaking, Lily was dead. Her best friend was gone. She was broken out of her thoughts when Frank put his hand on her shoulder. “Do you want me to respond, we have the room and it’s the least we could do?” Frank asked worry in his eyes. “yes” was all she could say. So, Frank sent the Patronus telling the two men yes and to come as soon as they could.
20 minutes later Remus and Sirius were in the living room, the kids in bed and sound asleep. They sat in silence not knowing what to say to each other. Finally, Frank broke the silence by asking the question that needed to be asked. “How did he find them Sirius. You were their secret keeper weren’t you”. Sirius stood up and started pacing. “no” he finally said “I was too obvious a choice, James knew they would go after me first and he didn’t want to risk me being tortured for where they were. So, I suggested the FUCKING TRAITORS RAT. WE THOUGHT NO ONE WOULD HAVE GUESSED IF PETER PETEGREW WAS THE SECRET KEEPER.” Sirius shouted the anger and betrayal that he felt coming out of him. “Sirius” Remus hissed “Lower your voice there are three kids trying to sleep “. “sorry” Sirius said all anger draining from him. “Why didn’t you use Remus, he kept his lycanthropy a secret the whole time he was as Hogwarts?” asked Alice curious as why they didn’t. “He was away on a mission at the time and the ritual needed to be done there and then” Sirius explained.
After they explained and answered every question that they two wanted to ask. Exhaustion hit and they head up to bed as they had a feeling that they would be woken up most of the night by a crying baby. At around two in the morning, the wards surrounding the house alerted them that someone had arrived at their front door. Both Alice and Frank ran downstairs with their wands in their hands ready to defend the children in the house. When Frank looked out the window and saw Dumbledore standing there waiting for them. He opened the door and let their old headmaster and the leader of the Order of the Phoenix in. “Albus, what is the meaning of this? It's two in the morning you had us scared to death.” Frank hissed. Dumbledore just smiled with a twinkle in his eye he said, “I am sorry for the disturbance my boy, but it is with utmost importance that we talked”, “Alright, come in” Alice said still on edge.
Dumbledore just stepped into the house when Sirius and Remus came down, Harry in Remus's arms and his nappy bag on Sirius’s shoulder. “ah” sighed Dumbledore “the Potter children are all here. I was worried when Hagrid arrived to retrieve them and bring them to their aunt and uncle that they were nowhere to be found and that something bad has happened. Thank you for rescuing them but it is of the utmost importance for the two of them to go live with their aunt”. Sirius was confused. James Potter had no siblings as he was the only child of Ephiameia and Flameout Potter. However, he knew that Lily had a muggle sister one that absolutely hated anything to do with magic including her sister. ' He can’t be serious right now can he thought Sirius ', beside him he saw Remus tense and his eye turned a golden colour signalling that the wolf was not happy with Dumbledore's suggestion. “You can’t mean Petunia Dursley can you,” Sirius said not believing that Dumbledore would send those children to that awful woman. “Yes, Petunia Dursley, she is the only family that the children have left,” Dumbledore said annoyed that they did not just comply with him, after all, it was essential to his plan.
“NO” Remus shouted startling the little boy that he was holding who began to cry. “Sh sh sh. I’m sorry I didn’t mean to scare you you’re ok” Remus whispered trying to soothe the baby that he had in his arms. “They will not be going to that bitch of a woman. No, we are their godfathers and legal guardians we will raise them” Sirius hissed anger rising in him. “But my boy, it is for their safety. Although Voldemort might be dead just now, he will be back and it's important that they are protected.” Trying to justify why they should go to that house. “Wait a minute, you know who is dead,” Alice said hope rising in her could it be true? Could Neville grow up in a world with no war going on Alice thought hoping that it was true. “Yes, he is gone for now though he will be back. And we must protect the saviour of the wizarding world” Albus said growing tired of this conversation ' why did they not just hand over the children to me? They are ruining my plans ' thought Dumbledore. “What do you mean the ‘saviour of the wizarding world’” Sirius said as Remus held little Harry more tightly to his chest. “yes, the saviour of the wizarding world. That cut that the boy has shown that he survived the killing curse. I believe that Voldemort cast the curse but it rebounded and hit him instead.” Dumbledore explained as if it were obvious.
Alice looked at their former headmaster and she could not believe what he was suggesting. Petunia Dursley hated Lilly, Alice could not count the number of times that she held Lilly as she cried because of what her sister had said to her or what she had sent to her in a letter. No, this woman could not get her hands on these children she would not let them go through what Lilly went through. “I agree with Remus and Sirius, I have met Petunia Dursley and her husband they are awful people. Those kids would not be safe there. What would the point be in protecting them from you know who when they would be in danger in that house? That is the end of the discussion” Alice said. “I am sure Lilly would love for her children to get to know their aunt,” Dumbledore said getting desperate. Frank just stared at the old man he uses to trust, but now he wasn’t so sure “Didn’t you listen to anything they just said? One” Frank said holding up his finger “you have no say in who those kids live with you are not their parents or their guardians. Two, that woman is awful and hateful and jealous of her sister. So those kids who are sound asleep will be staying with us for the time being while Sirius and Remus find a place that can house all of them. Now please leave my house it is late and we will have a very long day tomorrow.” At that, Dumbledore left angry that he didn’t get his way. Once he had left they got Harry his bottle and then went back to bed, when they next woke it was to parties in the street and the headline. He who must not be named dead thanks to Harry potter .