Second chances

"I hate to say it but Sirius is right. Teddy is too much like us, he's smart and quick-witted and mischievous. It's going to take a lot more than just one of us to find him. It's going to take the mind of a child to find him" Remus agreed, wrapping an arm around Sirius, who leaned into his touch for just a moment without trying to make it obvious.

"Well, then I guess it's a good thing there's a kid hiding behind a wall in front of the stairs. Right now" Sirius stated, looking at his hands as if they were the most interesting thing while the other four turned in their seats to see what he was talking about. Harry and Ginny's expressions suddenly changed from worry to understanding and then anger.

"James Sirius Potter! You come out here right this instant!" Ginny pointed in front of her and a small child, the exact replica of Harry and Ginny combined stepped out from behind the wall, slowly walking over. He had the same unruly hair as his dad and grandfather and great grandfather but it was a light red, kind of auburn, instead of black and there were big round glasses falling down his nose every few seconds. Remus noticed that one of the screws on the bridge of the glasses was loose and with a small wave of his hand, he fixed it.

"James..." The older James stopped.

"Sirius..." The renounced Black heir added.

"Potter?" Remus finished, a little surprised too but not as much as his friends, who were frozen in shock. Harry blushed at them, taking the kid on his knee and wrapping both arms around him.

"This is our son, James Potter II. Who is most definitely not supposed to be here" Harry glanced down disappointedly at his son. James hung his head, smiling to himself.

"You didn't know he was here? He arrived with you guys" Sirius pointed out. Ginny and Harry looked at their middle son. James went back to playing with his fingers to avoid detection.

"Jamie, honey. How did you get past us and arrive here with us?" Ginny wondered, taking her son's hand in hers.

"You really should find a better hiding place for your invisibility cloak" The little James muttered, keeping his head down. Older James snorted and covered his mouth to hide his laughter. Harry and Ginny's son lifted his head, staring at the man who was a clone of his dad and then he slipped out of his dad's lap and walked over to the younger man.

"Your my grandpa right?" Jamie stated. James looked at Harry and Ginny, but they were just watching and had nothing to say.

"Yes, I am. It's nice to meet you, James Potter" James jokingly shook his grandson's hand.

"You died" Jamie stated, not realizing that he wasn't supposed to say that.

"James..." Ginny wasn't sure what to say or if she should try to stop her son. James turned to his friends and then his future son. He had a slight suspicion that was the case, but it was different hearing it out loud, from a child of all people.

"It's okay. I had a feeling" James assured her, smiling through the pain. There was another reason that Ginny had tried to stop her son though and not just for James' feelings. Jamie climbed into his grandfather's lap and closed his eyes. Time traveling had taken a lot out of him, and he was tired. James handed the child back over to his son before retaking his seat.

"When does that happen?" Sirius wondered, worried for his friend.

"Soon" Harry admitted, looking at his child. One of his children. Two more were at home alone and the fourth was somewhere, lost in time.

"How soon!?" Sirius demanded to know. He didn't care about the stupid time travel rules, not if his friend's life was in danger.

"Sirius, they can't tell us" Remus put a hand on his boyfriend's arm, calming him and forcing Sirius to sit back down.

"How many grandchildren do I have? How many children are there?" James wondered.

"Four. You've met Teddy and this is James. Besides them there's Albus and..." Harry stopped. Ginny put a hand on his arm, smiling at her husband. Jamie was passed out now, exhausted from the stress of the day, curled up in his dad's arm.

"And our little girl, Lily. Named after her grandma" Ginny finished her husband's sentence, turning to James. Lily had joined them a few minutes before, sitting next to James. Tears sprung up in her eyes and she gasped at the sudden news. Ginny gave her a sad smile. She never got to meet Lily but Sirius used to tell her, in the future, that she reminded him a lot of the Evans girl. Ginny pulled out something from her pocket, sliding it over to the older generation.

"There's Al. And this is Lily, she looks just like you" Ginny pointed out the two kids amongst the dozens of Weasley cousins. Lily took the photo, looking at her granddaughter.

"You have a beautiful family. I wish I got to meet them" Lily sniffled a little, holding the photo like it was a newborn baby. One hand dropped down to rest on her stomach, looking at it and then at Harry.

"I'm so sorry!" She burst into sobs. James hugged her closer, feeling just as sorrowful at the knowledge of what was to come. Harry had tears in his eyes too. He was seeing his parents in person for the first time and it was quite overwhelming. The reason for their meeting wasn't helping either though. Teddy was still out there somewhere and that scared Harry. It was time to get going and to find the child before he got hurt. It was too late though. Teddy was already in the middle of danger and making things worse for himself.

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"That's enough!" Regulus snapped, looking down at the child on the ground before him. Barty huffed but pocketed his wand anyway so Evan did the same thing, both of them moving to stand beside Regulus as he walked forward, crouching down before Teddy.

"If you ever insult my friend again, I won't hesitate to kill you. Child or not, your a threat" Regulus had a good idea why this child was here and he couldn't afford any obstacles. Not as long as the days kept passing and the inevitable got closer. Suddenly, a loud voice reached the four boys.

"Boys! Hey" Pandora Rosier ran over, stopping when she saw the child on the ground and she knelt down before Teddy.

"Oh, what did you all do?" She demanded to know, cradling the boy in her arms. Teddy's eyes were barely open but he could see the slight flush that spread over the older boys' faces.

"He insulted me and my father" Barty stated, as if that justified his actions.

"So you beat him up!? You ought to be ashamed of yourself, Bartemius Crouch. All of you should be! I am appalled at all three of you! You especially, Evan Rosier. I thought you were better than this" Pandora cast a disappointed glance at her twin brother. Evan hung his head. Barty looked to the side and Regulus stared Pandora straight on, refusing to break eye contact. The girl stood up, setting Teddy back down on the ground and pointing at him with her wand drawn.

"One of you better pick that child up right now and follow me. Let's get him taken care of before he dies from what you three have done" She ordered. Barty scurried forward, doing what the Queen of the group demanded.

"He won't actually die, will he?" Barty wondered. That wasn't his intention to kill the child, just hurt him a little to teach a lesson. It sounded stupid now that Barty thought about it.

"I certainly hope not or I would have to kill you myself" Pandora snapped, pushing open the door to her small cottage and clearing the table in the kitchen, motioning for Barty to put Teddy down before she was rushing off and grabbing potions and a variety of other things.

"You can't kill us" Regulus responded, haughtily, his chin pointed up and looking down his nose at Pandora in the most sophisticated manner he could manage at the moment. He was feeling a little bad too but he hid it better than his friends. They were weak. They would never be as strong as he was. Pandora gave him a sharp glance but she said nothing for several long seconds, letting the tension in the room grow. Regulus knew what she was doing. He, Barty and Evan were the only ones who knew that Pandora was a Seer. They kept it a secret for her own safety, knowing that if the little fact got out, Pandora would be in danger. Suddenly, she gasped loudly and her eyes got extremely wide. Regulus held her gaze. She had seen something, he could tell.

"I won't have to, will I?" Pandora questioned, knowing something.

"Stay out of my head" Regulus spat at her, knowing exactly what she was talking about. Pandora made a small noise of acknowledgement and went back to treating Teddy.

"Don't make it easy for me to get in" She muttered. Regulus huffed and stormed out of the house, slamming the door behind him. No one came after him. Pandora stared at the door that he had gone through before returning to the task at hand. As soon as she touched Teddy, she drew back as if she had been burned.

"Holy Merlin" She whispered under his breath.

"What is it? Is he okay!?" Barty wondered, filled with worry despite being one of the ones to put Teddy in this state. Pandora put her hands on Teddy again, closing her eyes. Her body went rigid and she was frozen for several long minutes before withdrawing her hands again and staring straight ahead at the window in front of her.

"This child is not from our time. He's a traveler and he is going to cause some terrible things" She stated. Evan and Barty looked at each other, terrified by that sudden news. Pandora seemed to still be in a trance but she snapped out of it now.

"Where is Regulus?" She questioned. Barty and Evan ran out the door but they were too late.