Author's Note: After some deliberation, I decided to write another kinda-drabble-story. I enjoy using the Mirror of Erised as a means to write, as what someone wants could truly be anything.

Disclaimer: I don't think I'll ever own Harry Potter, unless I somehow require the means to buy the rights from Mrs. Rowling. Since that'll never happen, I only own the brain in my head and the imagination I write out.

What We All Want

On the night of Halloween, the Mirror of Erised was graced with a surprising presence. The lanky boy wore thick-rimmed spectacles that were partially covered by his jet black hair, and his brown eyes stared in front of him in complete disbelief. He heard about this strange mirror from his best friend, but – per usual – James believed that Sirius was joking. After the Halloween Feast, he decided to take a stroll to the Room of Requirements to find this strange, magical mirror.

Erised stra ehru oyt ube cafru oyt on wohsi.

James could only stare at the Latin lettering as he stepped closer to the looming mirror. The object seemed normal – a regular mirror depicting his usual reflection. It wasn't until he was a foot away until he leaned back from shock.

"Sirius wasn't joking," he whispered to himself.

Instead of his seventeen year old self staring back, James was graced with an older version of himself. His hair was cut short and was not as unruly as it normally was. In his arms was a gurgling baby boy with a black mop of hair and a familiar set of startling green eyes.

"Lily, is that you?"

James gaped as another figure joined his own. An older Lily Evans stood with a proud expression on her face, showing her expensive diamond ring to the young James. She took her child out of James' arms and began to snuggling him. The young toddler began to scream in joy as Lily's motherly movements turned into tickling. James could only think that the baby not only inherited Lily's eyes, but her dazzling smile as well.

More figures soon joined the happily married Potter family. Sirius stood with a playful smirk on his face as he began to make faces to the baby. Remus stood next to him, face healthy and youthful. No scars graced his grace, and his amber eyes were turned blue. Even Peter looked different: older, more mature, and less skittish looking. His friends – James' best friends since he was eleven – grew up to be well-rounded men alongside him.

"Ah, you seemed to have stumbled upon the Mirror of Erised."

The smooth voice made James jump away from the mirror in shock as Sirius entered the room. "I'm guessing you see something amazing, Prongs. You've never had such a smile on your face before."

"You weren't joking, were you? This truly exists?" James asked quietly, turning back to the loving scene in front of him.

"You've been staring at it for the past twenty minutes, mate. I think that would indicate that it does exist," Sirius replied, the same smirk that Mirror-Sirius wore gracing his lips. "Dumbledore was the one who caught me the first time, so I guess I'll pass on the knowledge he gave me."

James snorted. "You and knowledge? This is going to be good."

"Let's just say that if the happiest man in the world was to look in this mirror, he would only see himself. Others, on the other hand, view more than themselves."

"What do you see?"

Sirius stood tall in front of the mirror as his own reflection was joined by five other figures and a small boy that looked eerily like himself. "I see you with Lily, married mind you. Remus is completely healthy, Peter isn't such a tag-along, and there's me being a better father than mine ever will. Oh, throw in a gorgeous and unknown woman, and you'll have exactly what I want."

"A family," James mumbled under his breath. "I think we all want a family to call our own during this time."

"More so than you think, Prongs. More so than you think."