Sirius Black died laughing. He was chuckling at his cousin's feeble attempts to kill him. A flash of light shot from Bellatrix's wand, and before Sirius could even raise his own to defend himself, he was knocked back.

He was surprised. Bella had really done it! He didn't think she had the guts.

The last thing he saw was his godson, screaming, held back by his friend.

Sirius fell for what seemed like too long. Millions of thoughts were running through his head. Like, what curse had Bellatrix hit him with? And what exactly was this veil he was falling through? Would he die quickly, or become a ghost? Would he even die?

Somehow, Sirius knew that he would die. He could feel it. He was strangely calm as he fell. Almost bored.

Finally, Sirius stopped falling. But instead of hitting the ground, he was caught by a pair of firm hands.

Sirius stood up. When he turned around, his first instinct was that it was James. No, don't be stupid, he thought. It's Harry, James is dead.

But then, looking closer at the face, Sirius realized that that the eyes weren't the bright green of Harry's. No, they belonged to the friend Sirius thought he would never see again.

"Sirius," the man whispered, his eyes full of hope.

And Sirius remembered- he was dead. James was dead. So that had to mean...

"James!" The two friends collided. Sirius forgot all about Bellatrix, and Harry, and the veil. All he could think of was how he much he missed his best mate.

From behind James, someone tapped Sirius on the shoulder. Sirius looked up, and cried out, running to embrace Lily. She began sobbing into his chest, and he fought back tears himself.

"I'm sorry," he said softly. "It was all my fault."

Lily sighed. "Sirius, nobody could have ever known that Peter would be... that he would do what he did."

"I should have been a better godfather."

"You were the best godfather," Lily replied, "you were there for Harry when he needed you."

"I should have been there sooner," Sirius choked out.

"You were angry. It's not your fault."

James cleared his throat. "Okay, enough with all this sentimental crap. You are perfect in every way and are completely innocent, all hail king Padfoot, et cetera, et cetera!" His eyes sparkled, and he slung an arm around his friend. "Moving on. So anyway... Seriously, Padfoot? Death by curtain?"

Sirius rolled his eyes. "It was a veil. Besides, it was technically my dear cousin Bella who finished me off."

James waved his hand dismissively. "Trixie's got nothing on Lord Voldemort himself!"

"Whatever," Sirius said, "I think Lils's death was the most honorable. If it weren't for her, Harry would be gone."

Lily laughed. "See," she said, nudging James, "Sirius agrees with me!"

James scowled. "Traitor."

"Hey! I thought you said I was innocent! Remember, all hail King Padfoot!"

James began repeatedly whacking Sirius on the head with his wand. and Lily stood of to the side, smirking. Just like they were back at Hogwarts.

After a while, Sirius stood up and took a good look at his surroundings. Everything was a bright white. He frowned. This was it? "So what now?" he asked.

"You sound just like James," Lily said. "C'mon!" The three grasped hands, and landed right outside of Lily and James's house.

"Hey!" Sirius cried, "It's your house!" He smiled for a second, then frowned. "Since when do you lot have a quidditch pitch?"

James eagerly explained the afterlife to Sirius, and showed him the screen. They decided against turning it on yet, not wanting to have to witness the pain their friends must be going through.

"Prongs," Sirius said suddenly.

"Yes?"

"Where are your parents?"

James smiled and led Sirius next door, where he was nearly strangled by Mr. and Mrs. Potter. They had welcomed him into their home as a second son years ago, and Sirius had always considered them his own parents.

The five of them eventually settled down on the couches in Lily and James's house, where they chatted.

"So Padfoot, what do you say? Want to come live with us?" James asked.

Sirius pretended to think long and hard, even though the answer was already cemented in his mind. "Well... I don't know if I could deal with your snoring for all of eternity. Seven years was bad enough!"

"You'd get your own room, you idiot!" James exclaimed.

"Hmm... all right, I suppose so. If Lily promises to cook her world-famous hash browns every once in a while."

"Brilliant! The afterlife is great, you know. We can watch The Harry Potter Show all day, and when we get bored-"

"Of The Harry Potter Show? I doubt it. Never a dull moment in your kid's life, Prongs."

"-we can visit some people, play some quidditch... pretty much whatever we want! Maybe you can even go see Marlene McKinnon, eh Pads?"

Sirius's face brightened at the mention of his former Hogwarts girlfriend. "Oh yeah, I forgot she was dead!"

"Sirius! I can't believe you!" Lily picked up the nearest pillow and began beating Sirius with it. Mr. and Mrs. Potter just chuckled, glad to see their son so happy again.

"Oh!" Lily cried, "That reminds me! James and I were speaking with your brother-"

Sirius scowled. "What in Merlin's name for?"

"Oh shut up Sirius! Anyways, turns out he changed his mind about being a Death Eater. 'Course, you can't just change your mind on You-Know-Who, but he spent his last moments trying to defeat him."

"And," James added, pausing dramatically, "he was dragged to death by inferi!"

Sirius's mouth fell open in shock. "You're serious?"

"No, you're-"

"Oh my God James I swear if I hear you make that pun one more time..." Lily aimed her pillow at her husband, who cowered.

"It's a lot to explain," Lily continued calmly. "Maybe he could do it himself?"

Sirius's mouth went dry. He didn't know why he was so nervous about the prospect of meeting his brother. The two hadn't gotten along well, but Sirius had been devastated when Regulus died.

"Um..." Sirius didn't get a chance to decide. Just then, the doorbell rang.

"That'll be him," Lily said.

"What? You invited him over without asking me?"

"This is our house you know," James said. "Now if you'll excuse us, we have to go... to the library! Yep, come on Mum, Dad, Lily! The library in heaven has all the books in the world!"

"Wait!" Sirius called, but the four were gone, out the back door. "Some best mate," he muttered.

The doorbell rang again, and sighing, Sirius slowly inched his way over to the door. Swallowing, he turned the knob and pulled it.

"Sirius." Regulus's face was blank, his eyes darting around.

"Regulus."

The two brothers stared at each other for a second. Sirius thought about what James and Lily had said. About the real reason Regulus died.

Quickly, before he could turn back, Sirius pulled his brother into a hug, the first in years. Regulus stiffened, and Sirius was surprised with himself too. But eventually they both relaxed.

Memories came flooding back to Sirius, of the two running around outside, riding on toy broomsticks. Of Regulus passing Sirius Christmas presents from under the table, when the rest of the family ignored him because of his sorting. Of how angry and confused he had been when he heard of his brother's mysterious death.

"James said that at the end..." He led his brother to the sitting room, and they both plopped on the couches.

Regulus took a deep breath, and explained everything, from the very beginning. "I'm sorry," he finished. "I should have listened to you about the Dark Lord."

Sirius tried not to wince at the title only Death Eaters used for Voldemort. "Mum and Dad could be pretty convincing," he said firmly.

"You've got that right."

"So," Sirius said once Lily and James came back, "how was the library?"

James smirked. "Excellent. Lots of books."

"Ah yes, a trait that most libraries back in the land of the living most unfortunately lack," Sirius quipped.

Lily rolled her eyes at the two boys and slung an arm around each of their shoulders. "Come on," she said, "let's play some Exploding Snap. For old time's sake."

James kissed the top of Lily's head, and she poked him in the stomach, eventually resulting in a pillow fight.

As he ran to the kitchen for safety, and to grab a case of butterbeer, Sirius realized that he was the happiest he had been in years.