Outside the hospital wing was a complete chaos. After being forced out by Madame Pomfrey, they all dropped to the floor holding their knees to their chest, crying into them.

Neville and Luna sat by a far corridor, absorbed in their own thoughts. Tonks was doing her best soothing Ginny, giving her a shoulder to cry on while gently rubbing her back in circles. Ron had his arm wrapped around Hermione a bit awkwardly, as she leaned her head crying over his shoulder.

Their pained faces and cries of despair were identical. Their sobs seemed capable of lasting to eternity.

Everyone was too enwrapped in thoughts of misery and grief to notice the new arrival of Arthur Weasley along with his twin sons.

"What are you all doing out here... what happened?" Arthur asked breathlessly, as he circled a worried glance studying each of their expressions.

Heads shot upward, revealing bloodshot eyes. They remained speechless, not finding it in themselves to give an answer to such a dreaded question; neither of them seemed capable of saying it out loud. They still couldn't believe it, they didn't want to believe any of it.

Hermione buried her face in her hands again, attempting to master a little of the self control she possessed but failing terribly.

Fred knelt beside her, placing a hand on her knee. "Hermione, what is it? Come on, you can tell me. I promise whatever it is, I'll try not to laugh over it," he said, concern and eagerness equally reflected in his voice.

Ron sniffed and managed to say between sobs, "I assure you, you would never laugh over that."

"Try us! just spit it out and we'll decide for ourselves," replied George, a small smirk playing on his lips.

"Harry---" Hermione's cries doubled at his name. Coming with full force, sobs racked her body all over again.

Arthur's eyes widened with fear and panic. He wouldn't bear anything happening to any of his sons. And Harry was as good as! That was decided, or rather felt ages ago.

"Harry--is d--ead"

Fred and George looked identically shocked and pained. It's true, they couldn't laugh over it. For once, there was something powerful enough to leave them speechless, not finding it in themselves to crack a joke.

Arthur felt his breath constricted, lungs blocked; light-headed, brow sweating, his knees grew weaker and weaker with every passing second, so he held on to George for support.

Mr. Weasley never saw Harry as anything but a son. And, losing a son was a bullet to the head, sucking the soul out in less than a minute.

He sometimes imagined having two pairs of twins, Fred & George and Ron & Harry. The only main difference was Harry not being a redhead.

He glanced back at a tear-stricken and a heartbroken Ron and knew that's what would happen if a brother lost his twin.

***
Inside the walls of the hospital wing, the despair and grief were replaced with desperation and hope. The only thing that kept Sirius and Remus still on their feet was anticipation.

Anticipation of their fate, whether they would be given a second chance.. whether they could be cheerful ever again or doomed to live a life resembling, even worse than, death itself.

Sirius fixed his eyes on his godson's body, -wordlessly calling out for him- as if urging him to wake up just by looking at him.

Apart from the ticking consistent clicks of the clock, all that came was deep silence, wicked silence. No sign of life, nothing at all.

Remus slumped himself to the chair, burying his face in his hands. Not trusting himself to remain calm and controlled any longer, not anymore. Why should he try to hold in his grief and overwhelming guilt anyway? He had lost Harry, there was barely anything left for him to lose.

Although it seemed Sirius had no tears left, he felt a silver tear streaming down his face. He was losing hope.. And it was deadly painful, even more than before. He felt like losing him all over again by losing hope of the only chance to have him back.

A sudden intake of a faint shallow breath forced Sirius out of his thoughts. Tears obscuring his vision, he couldn't make out more than a blur of his godson. Blinking back the unshed tears, his eyes fell on Harry once again.

Still eyes closed, Harry took another very deep breath in but not one out. To the occupants of the room, it seemed close to infinity as time froze.

1..2..3..4..5..6..7..8..9..10

A deep out-take of breath was suddenly released. The marauders sighed in relief, a shaken smile washing over them.

However, it lasted for only seconds before Harry's heartbeats started to speed up out of control, running out of breath as though he'd ran a thousand mile.

They started to panic, looking over at Madame Pomfrey with pleading eyes, as she waved her wand casting a spell over the boy. At once, Harry's heartbeats gradually slowed down till it turned back to normal.

The now steady rise and fall of his godson's chest was the best Sirius could ask for. Sirius let out a shaky breath he didn't know he was holding.

Sirius didn't even notice Poppy leaving them, as he dropped to his knees next to the bed. With a faint smile, Sirius gently took Harry's hand between his own, gratefully realizing it was no longer cold like ice.

"Harry, I know you can hear me. It is time to wake up, come on, please," Sirius whispered softly and tearfully. His heart soared when Harry's head moved an inch to the direction of the voice.

It could have been the revival spells, thanks to Madame Pomfrey, or the desperation in his godfather's voice, but Harry found it in himself to obey and listen to this hopeful command.

Emerald eyes snapped open.

Sirius closed his eyes in pain for a moment. He felt an electric shock spread throughout every inch of him, reviving his soul once again back to life. It wasn't Harry who had just returned from the dead; it was Sirius, by having his godson back, he felt alive once again.

It took every ounce of self control Sirius possessed to not dance around in circles and scream at the top of his lungs. However, he couldn't nor did he even attempt to hide the happiness from his eyes and the relief from spreading across his face. Sirius looked like he'd gone through Hell and back, in a way he truly did.

Remus handed Harry his glasses, and everything came to focus. Harry felt two strong arms help him sit up straight. He looked up at his godfather, who had helped himself to his feet before sitting at the end of his bed, and smiled.

Although Sirius' eyes were burned and puffy and nose was still red from the hours of crying, he had a truthful smile drawn on his face, in which he himself didn't recall having in years.

"Har--I-" Not finding any words to say powerful enough to convey what he felt, Sirius attacked his precious godson in a bone-crushing hug.

Harry returned the embrace just as enthusiastically. He could feel his godfather shaking against him and wrapping protective arms around him. Harry beamed when Sirius gently ruffled his messy hair.

Sirius kept a firm grip on Harry not wanting to ever let go. They were locked like this for who-knows how long, both just so relieved to be hugging each other once again, after fearfully thinking it was impossible.

A small voice snapped Sirius out of his paradise. "Sirius, as much as I want to stay like this, but I need to breathe. I don't want to die again, at least not now."

Remus had been watching all of this with an ear-splitting smile, once again, drawn on his face. He seemed incapable of speech as well. All the how and why questions could be saved for later, he told himself.

Acting on instinct, Remus leaned forward and kissed Harry's forehead. Blinking back the tears threatening to fall, Remus felt his heart expand with relief.

"I've never been more grateful in my life than I am now, Harry," said Remus, a smile lightning up his eyes.

Harry met the eyes of his ex-professor, with a smile on his face, knowing deep down that he had always been more than a favorite student to Remus, way more than that.

***
A thought crossed Remus' mind and was reflected by what he said next, "I've to find the others." He walked away, leaving behind him Sirius beaming at his godson.

Remus opened the door to find no one there. He frowned and started calling out their names, but to no answer. He rushed over the school as fast as his tired knees and drained out muscles could master.

Wondering where could they've gone, Remus wished he had the Marauder's map in his hands now... it was always of great use. But now, he had no other choice than figuring out their whereabouts manually. He kept on pushing his overexcited brain to come up with the most likely possibilities.

The Great Hall? Nah, too crowded. They would want some quiet time, away from people. Maybe, they went off to the Black Lake for some peaceful solitude? Remus glanced from the nearest window, it was pitch black, showing no one. Could they be in the Gryffindor common-room? No, they wouldn't want to go there.

What's the place that would give them what they've wanted? As soon as he asked himself, his eyes widened with the answer sliding itself to his mind. Remus took the moving stairsteps two at once up to the seventh floor.

Finding himself within the Room of Requirement, his guts told him that they wanted to go back to how it was during the DA sessions under Harry's leadership.

His eyes fell at the mourning Ron, Hermione, Ginny, Tonks, Fred and George, Neville and Luna. They were all crying into their knees, eyes at the ground in deep sorrow.

His heart throbbed guiltily, blaming himself for not reaching for them earlier to save them all that pained grief and despair.

"Excuse me, there is something you have to see... if you would follow me, please," Remus said, trying to hide the excitement from his voice

Looking upward, Ginny snapped, angry tears swarming in her eyes. "Just leave us alone... There is nothing that could--" It seemed as if every word was causing her more pain that she could no longer afford.

Remus bent on his knees in front of her, looking at her straight in the eye. "Trust me when I say, you'd want to see this. If it doesn't make you feel any better, you could deal with me later," he said smirking with glee at the depth of his eyes.

After much persuasion, they all finally relented to see what could possibly make them feel cheerful again, as Remus put it into words.

When Tonks looked at him, she noticed that the vivid worry lines -that had been always marked on his face making him look at least five years older than he really was- were remarkably losing their significance now. Even his warm eyes looked more lively than she ever recalled seeing.

It must be a very big thing that made him look younger than she'd ever seen him, especially now given the circumstances, she thought.

Tonks raced after Remus and spoke in a low voice for only him to hear, "what is it?"

"It is for me to know and you to find out. Anyways, we are just a couple of minutes away," Remus said, glancing sideways to hide his grin. Shaking her head dismissively, Tonks was too enwrapped to get annoyed.

Remus opened the door and gestured for them to enter to the surprise waiting for them.

***
Harry was standing by the window, Sirius right beside him. At the sound of the doorknob, their heads snapped to the right. Harry didn't know exactly why, but he sensed nervousness settling in the pit of his stomach, anticipating their reaction.

Just like their look of despair had been identical, again they all had the same look on their faces conveying different and equally intense emotions... disbelief, pain, hope, relief, happiness -in that specific order.

They all stopped in their path when their eyes fell on him: jaws dropped to the floor, panting furiously, eyes wide with speechless shock and disbelief. Even the silence in the air was deafening.

With hopeful eyes and a small smile, Harry held out his arms for the welcome-back-hug he wanted to receive. When he got none, he slowly dropped his open arms defeatedly. His brow was cold with sweat, slight disappointment marked on his face.

Remus' voice broke the silence and took everyone from his/her momentary trance. "I would like you to meet your best friend, Harry, who miraculously didn't die from the killing curse" he said as an afterthought with a smirk on his face "again."

Harry tried again a slightly different tactic, "hey" hesitantly meeting their eyes. He expected silence to unfold them again, but he was caught by surprise by a certain furious Hermione.

He backed away fearfully as she came closer, rage in her eyes. She thumped him on the head and he rubbed it softly. She gave him a piece of his mind, and he accepted it with ease.

"You leave us mourning and crying over you for hours and you just come back and say hey. Is that the best you could come up with? You--little--"

Her words were cut off and the next thing Harry knew was being engulfed in a hug, seeing nothing but her bushy brown hair. He returned the hug just as fiercely with a smile sliding on his face.

Seconds later, Ron launched over and had his eyes on Harry, and Harry only. Harry returned the gaze with a small smile drawn on his face. It was as if they were seeing each other for the very first time.

Ron stuttured, "pinch me" Harry raised an eyebrow; whatever reaction he expected, it wasn't that. With glee in his eyes, "don't worry, this isn't a dream. You only dream of spiders."

Ron gave him a tearful smile and tackled him into a bear-hug. That was all the proof Ron needed to believe what he truly wanted to believe. The novel hole in his heart sealed itself after having his brother back.

Ginny nudged and pulled Ron from the back of his shirt, as she couldn't stand waiting for her turn any longer. "Bloody hell, Ginny!" Ron exclaimed, rolling his eyes, being pushed backward.

She engulfed Harry in a tight embrace; Harry tensed then significantly relaxed, as he realized its warmth. Pulling away, Harry was hugged by Tonks followed by Neville then Luna.

To Ginny, no one seemed to notice that her face was now tomato-red in strong resemblance with her hair. She couldn't stop herself from blushing furiously. Sirius was the only one who caught that, but he looked away, smirking to himself.

Pulling away, Fred exclaimed, "I knew it, the Boy who Lived could not die, putting aside the irony. Isn't that right Forge?"

"Right you are Gred, he has done it once and now twice. Why not of a third time too? Waiting for that one, mate," George remarked, shifting his gaze from his twin to Harry.

"You'd probably live up to 200 years, what life would that be? I pity you, buddy," Fred said, groaning.

"The things we lose have a way of coming back to us at the end, if not always in the way we expect," said Luna, her dreamy eyes twinkling and her thin lips smiling at Harry... as her deceased mother's words came back to her, in which she had never really felt their underlying meaning more than now.

Silence met her words, enjoying the beauty around the company of true friendship and brotherhood.

***
Ginny's voice, bursting with gratitude, came from behind, as she gently nudged Remus' shoulder. "I am sorry. You were right, thank you," she said, to which he smiled back at her warmly.

Sirius tried his best to avoid eye contact with Ron. But Ron himself approached him, rubbing the back of his neck nervously while uttering, "Sirius, mate, I am sorry. I didn't really intend to say what the words meant. I was just--mad, I guess."

Sirius just shook his head and squeezed his shoulder assuringly. "Forget about it. It is alright, I understand." With a smile on his face, Sirius' voice trailed off before continuing, "I would have done the same, even more, for a friend."

Harry's voice came from behind them, "what happened?" They spun around to Harry's curious eyes popping up with a dozen of questions.

Ron's eyes widened, oh no Harry would never forgive him if he knew what he said to his godfather.

"Nothing," Sirius' voice spared Ron, giving him a reassuring wink with the silent message I won't tell. And for that, Ron was grateful, breathing a sigh of relief.

Intentionally changing the subject, Remus cleared his throat. "Harry, you need to see Dumbledore," he said cautiously, to which the entire atmosphere around them tensed.

"I'll take him," Sirius said, sighing, knowing what laid ahead.

Harry looked around and saw everyone casting him worried glances, "don't worry guys, I'll be back."

***
The walk to Dumbledore's office was silent and tense. Sirius wrapped his hand around his godson's shoulder protectively.

Dumbledore wasn't alone, having company of a furious and an equally miserable Arthur Weasley. Registering the voices roaring from behind the door, Harry's heart hammered against his chest.

After a soft knock on the door and a forced calm voice, "come in," the occupants of the room stopped dead at the sight that met their eyes.

Arthur slumped himself to the cushions, trying to get over his shock and desperation. Albus, however, didn't leave himself in shock for long. He rose from his chair dropping one of the books to the floor with a loud bang and directed his wand at Harry, looking him over with his piercing sharp blue eyes.

Sirius moved forward between them, acting as a protective shield. Harry stood behind his godfather with pure fear voiced in his eyes, trusting Sirius to get him out of this.

"Albus, I assure you. This is Harry. He just woke up--" Sirius said seriously.

He was cut off mid-sentence furiously- "This could be a deatheater making all of us vulnerable now. Sirius, you could have been fooled," the calm headmaster roared.

Sirius frowned. He had believed it at once because he wanted to believe it so much. Could he have been that desperate to be tricked?

Harry was hurt to see his godfather backing away in doubt. But it didn't last for long... Harry even argued with himself whether it was actually there in the first place.

"I think I'd know if he wasn't my godson... I don't need any further proof." Sirius' confident words gave Harry all the reassurance he needed, at least for now.

Harry felt himself being X-rayed from inside out by a certain doubtful headmaster.

"What did I tell you about the sword of Godric Gryffindor?" Albus inquired, rage filling his sharp -no longer sparkling- eyes.

Harry's eyebrows knitted together in thought, "oh erm, it takes a true gryffindor to pull that out of the hat."

Harry instinctively looked at his godfather and saw nothing but pride in his eyes. Sirius then gave the old headmaster a told-you-so look.

Dumbledore's outrageous gaze softened as he slowly lowered his wand. There is still some hope to vanquish the darkness, he thought as he was now assured that this was truly Harry. A thankful smile escaped the old headmaster.

"Harry," Arthur's desperate voice came from behind. Spinning backward and running forward, Harry launched himself on Arthur in a tight embrace. The only words that escaped Arthur was a mumbled, "oh my boy," as he hugged him closer.

As they pulled away beaming at each other, there was another knock and a calm "come in." The door opened revealing a miserable looking Mcgonagall.

She sniffed, "Albus, I need to talk to you," her voice was hoarse as if she hadn't stopped singing at the top of her lungs for days.

But in truth, she had spent the last hour crying in her office away from people's gazes... crying over a true hero she secretly cared for. Harry was more of a grandson to her than a student, in memory of his father who was also more of a son to her.

When her eyes landed on Harry, the parchments in her hands crumbled to the floor. Harry looked at her and moved himself forward. He bent on his knees and collected them for her. He handed them to her, but she didn't move to take them. With a sigh, he placed them on the desk.

"Hello Professor," Harry said, a grin playing on his lips. He waited for any reaction from her, but she remained stubbornly silent, tearful eyes wide in shock. In defeat, he gave her a small nod and turned away.

"Potter--" she said softly as she squeezed his shoulder comfortingly. For the first time, she seemed lost for words. "It is good to have you back." Emotion evident throughout all her features, a motherly smile involuntarily broke her face.

"Thank you, Professor," said Harry, beaming.

Professor Mcgonagall to Harry was someone worthy of all the respect imaginable, even more than what's available in stock in the entire universe. Nobody -not even he, Harry, himself- was ever allowed to cause her any pain.

"Well, Albus, it seems there is nothing to be said now," she said, biting back a sob, and walked away with a smile sliding itself across her lips.

Professor Mcgonagall felt truly happier than she had been since a very long time. From the inside, she was dancing with triumph and singing with pure happiness.

***
"Well, there has to be some explanation for this reawakening," Albus' reasoned, glancing at Harry.

Harry didn't want to reveal to Dumbledore what his father had told him about the reason behind his survival, at least not yet. He didn't have time to tell Sirius or even Remus about his talk with his parents. Harry wanted them to be the first to know.

Glancing from Harry -studying his reluctant eyes- to Dumbledore, Arthur spared Harry as his words rang out, "I don't think now is the time for that, Albus. Questions could be answered later." Harry sent him a silent thank you.

With a deep sigh, Dumbledore fixed his grim eyes on Harry, "well, it seems I am the one who owes Harry an explanation... to some of the questions that surely have been roaming in his mind for so long now."

Harry felt the hand wrapped around his shoulder tensing and tightly holding him closer. Looking upward, Harry saw that Sirius' expression had hardened significantly.

"I would like to talk to Harry... alone, please," Albus said and watched Arthur excusing himself leaving silently with a respectful nod.

Sirius raised a cold eyebrow, "I beg your pardon?!" He exclaimed, with a threatening look directed at his old headmaster.

"It is fine, Sirius. You may stay." Sirius, rolling his eyes, muttered under his breath for only Harry to hear, "I wasn't planning to leave, anyway." To that, Harry suppressed a chuckle as he attempted to wear a neutral mask anticipating the answers to his inquiries.

Harry took it all in... the reason behind the hiding and the secret keeper, the reason behind the betrayal, the reason behind his parents' death, the reason he escaped death when he was just an infant, the reason why he was repeatedly on the edge of death since then.. the reason his life was what it was.

It all answered up to one thing, the prophecy. The weapon to destroy the chosen one, that's what Voldemort was after.

All of that had a huge toll on Harry, but what felt like a blow to the head was the mere phrase of neither can live while the other survives.

His fate of being a murderer or a victim had been already written down on him, ever since his very first year of life.

Harry had never thought of his own survival or the gifted life he had with his friends, who were more of a family to him. All the memories kept flashing at the back of his mind, he appreciated every minute of it.

Now that he knew there was a huge possibility for him to die again, Harry didn't want to leave those he cared about to mourn him once more.

Sirius had his eyes on Harry with a longing expression, trying to read his mind. He hoped to dive inside of him and see for himself what his godson felt right now.

It felt like hours till Harry got answers to most of his questions, and they left the office after giving Dumbledore slight nods.

***
Walking through the hallway, Harry remained silent. Giving Harry worried side-glances, Sirius couldn't help but notice that his godson was shaking.

Sirius held his arm, stopping his path and sat him down. Harry kept his eyes fixed on the ground, playing with the loose end of his sleeve. Sirius sat across him and placed a finger under Harry's chin pulling his head upward to meet his gaze. "Harry, talk to me."

Harry dropped his gaze, out of fear his vulnerability would show off. He didn't want Sirius to think he was a coward or selfish. Harry couldn't deny it any longer... he was truly afraid.

Why wasn't he entitled to live his life like a normal teenager? Why were his parents taken away from him just because of a stupid prophecy? Why was he doomed to die and leave behind all his loved ones miserable?

Harry wanted nothing more than to open up to someone -Sirius seemed to be a perfect choice- but he was still hesitant.

Mainly throughout his childhood, Harry was never allowed nor given the chance to talk over his thoughts; this was how he had been raised, and he couldn't just change that overnight.

But he knew Sirius was different from those pathetic title of relatives, the Dursleys. Sirius cared and would always care about him.

Just when Sirius was close of giving up to Harry's stubborn silence, he heard a faint voice coming out of him, "I am scared."

In spite of himself, Sirius had a smile washing over him, warming up his heart. Another step closer to trust, having Harry open up to him and honestly confess what's troubling him.

"I'd consider you a fool if you weren't. And it has nothing to do with cowardice... you are anything but a coward, Harry," Sirius replied in a firm voice yet with gentle eyes.

"This is normal. A part of being human is to feel.. whether it being anger, pain, fear, happiness," Sirius said solemnly.

Harry didn't regret opening up, not one little bit. He felt understood, something he rarely experienced.

"And there is something I want you to engrave in that thick-skulled head of yours: whatever forces you have to beat on the dark side, I'll always have your back. Whatever you have to go through, I'll be with you," Sirius promised, truly meaning every word.

Sirius beamed at his one and only godson, sending reassurance and love. The message was successfully received, he just knew it.

Harry felt a rush of affection toward his godfather... and he decided that one day he'd open up and tell Sirius everything.

Sirius promised with his life that he'd be there for his godson till the end of time, no matter what.

Accept this chapter as a Christmas present.

As always, don't forget to vote and comment and share.

Your opinion would be like oxygen to me.. not exaggerating

Also, who do you think is the closest thing to fatherhood for Harry, deserves to be a second father to him? Sirius, Remus, Hagrid, Arthur, Dumbledore.. or even Voldemort or Vernon Dursley or the giant squid, anyone basically!
And in what situations was that most portrayed?