Albus was curious as to how the first day went.

Of course, he could say without hesitation that he was more nervous than anything else. He was allowing a man who spent twelve years in Azkaban, and who wasn't still all there, to teach the students of his school. So, he had requested that Sirius meet him after classes in order to scout out how everything went.

And to make sure that he hadn't made a mistake.

As Sirius sauntered in after the first day of classes had concluded, Albus noticed something a bit different about the man. For one thing, he looked a little more cleaned up than he had that morning. His robes seemed to be in impeccably better shape, and it looked as if Sirius had combed his previously wild and manic looking hair.

But what stood out most of all was Sirius' completely turned around disposition. He had a slight bounce in his step, and looked more comfortable than he had the entire time he had been in this situation. He seemed to Albus to be more… relaxed. There was a small smile on his ragged face, and his eyes were gleaming with something that Albus could only attribute to hope. Albus let out a small sigh of relief that he didn't know that he was holding. He was so concerned that something would happen. With the combination of the revival of his best friend and the hatred that now stemmed from that best friend, he had been afraid that-

Well, no matter now. Albus smiled and offered Sirius a seat, the same seat that he had sat during their first real conversation. Sirius took a mock bow and chuckled, before falling comfortably in his chair.

Albus took the chair across, the portraits curiously gazing upon the strange pair. Albus had obviously informed Phineas to keep what he heard previously to himself and, at the scoff of the clearly insulted Headmaster, who proclaimed "Why, I would never" and a solemn promise, he was able to keep Sirius' secret from the rest of the Black family. Or, so he hoped.

"I see you're feeling better, Sirius. How was the first day of class?" Albus asked amicably, hoping not to set the man out of his happy stupor.

Sirius contemplated the question, and Albus expected the answer to be more complicated than he originally expected. He was expecting more of a slow progression with Sirius, having him burst through his doors claiming that he couldn't take seeing the ghosts of his friends, while Albus would try to convince him that this was the best way. He thought that it would be a long haul, with benefits coming along the way, but this immediate complacency was something unexpected, something Albus had not yet prepared for.

Crossing his legs at least six times, and leaning back and forth in his seat, Sirius finally found the words he was looking for.

"All in all, I think it went well. Mini Me hates my guts, and so does James, but I put a snobby pureblood in his place, so that's always a plus." Sirius said, a small smirk coming onto his face.

Albus sighed. Ah, so that's where the happiness had come from. He should have known. He was almost afraid to ask which pureblood, but, like always, his curiosity got the better of him, and he reluctantly asked.

Sirius had a vicious grin. "Barty Crouch Junior, the Death Eater responsible for allowing Voldemort to come back to life."

A groan escaped Albus' lips, and at the raised eyebrow of Sirius, Albus explained. "His father is very high up at the ministry. We're in a very precarious situation right now, Sirius. You're not supposed to even exist, let alone be putting children down." As Sirius began to protest, Albus quickly continued, "I'm not saying that the boy didn't deserve some humility, but you are not the correct person to be doing so. The best thing to do, at least for right now, is to lay low and not make much of an impression. Do you understand?"

Sirius was beginning to become angry, but Albus noticed that, surprisingly, his emotions seemed to be not only appropriate, but somewhat in check. He wondered what brought that on, but then he noticed the increasingly forced slow breaths coming from Sirius' slightly opened mouth.

"Why did you want me as a teacher then, Dumbledore?" Sirius asked tersely, a mix of emotions in his eyes. "Why did you want me to be around people if I'm not going to try and change things? Isn't that the reason I had to find some sort of difference? Isn't that the reason you want me to be around James and Lily and Remus"

Albus thought carefully before responding, as to not gauge a more negative response from Sirius. He could tell that the young man was attempting some sort of self-control, and he did not want to ruin that ounce of progress in the right direction.

"Sirius." He finally started, gaining the attention of the broken man. "You're going to make changes, but you have to take it slow. Let the students become accustomed to you. There are many who are probably suspicious of who you are. I regret not performing a glamour on you, for you do indeed look a little too similar to your younger self. Nothing we can do about that now, I suppose, but we need to look forward and not back. Eventually, you can start becoming more noticeable, but for now, it might be a good idea to not make such a great impression."

Sirius looked conflicted with this order, but after many seconds passed, he reluctantly nodded his head. Of course, Albus knew that his order would probably hold ground for one, maybe two days, but he thought it best to get the small stuff out of the way, and let Sirius know that he needed to be careful. He wondered how Sirius would deal with Regulus in the coming days, but he had already agitated him enough, and snapped him out of his happy reverie. He would save that issue for a later date. However, a sense of calm brushed over Sirius, and Albus wondered again if there was more that happened that he was left in the dark about. Before he could question it further, a voice interrupted his thoughts.

"How dare you speak to the Headmaster like that?! I have been sitting here for the last five minutes completely appalled at the goings on here! And to think, a member of the great and noble Black family would even DARE…"

"That's enough, Phineas." Albus said sternly, turning to face the sometimes unruly portrait. Phineas' face was red with anger, and he was glaring at the now laughing Sirius. "Sirius and I were just having a civil conversation. Go back to what you were doing."

Phineas, clearly still upset, huffed in indignation, and turned away from the current headmaster.

Sirius wiped his eyes in mirth, and the unsteady tension in the room began to dissipate. Albus smiled; maybe that portrait was good for something after all.

"Wow, anytime a family member starts going off on the whole "disappointment" thing, I can't help but laugh. It's just too many things that I've already heard before." Sirius said in a humorous fashion, though Albus could tell there was still a bit of bitter resentment behind those words.

"Well." Albus began, clearly his voice. "If there's nothing more you wish to add, you are dismissed Sirius."

"Actually…" Sirius said, and Albus wondered if he was going to find out what had calmed Sirius down. "I was actually wondering where the Mirror of Erised went?"

Albus was a little surprised at the question, and he too noticed that this was the first time that Sirius had been in the room without the mirror there. He wondered suspiciously why Sirius wanted to know.

"I put it in a safe place, along with the Philosopher's Stone." Albus answered back slowly. Sirius nodded in understanding, but almost seemed… disappointed?

Albus gulped. If the reason was what he thought it was, then they may have an issue.

"Sirius, why did you want to know?" Albus asked the man solemnly, and Sirius stiffened slightly. And with that, Albus knew exactly what Sirius' problem was.

"I… I know I see them now, as younger versions, but it's just… I miss them, you know? And to see them…"

It was the first night that Sirius had been in a "new world." He hated that phrase. It made it seem like he was so displaced, but that was unfortunately the case. He hated it. He hated that he let Harry down. He could now remember what happened. He mocked Bellatrix, and fell into that damn veil in the Department of Mysteries. What a way to go; falling through some curtains. What he wouldn't give to have James make fun of him for that one, just once.

Dumbledore had fallen asleep after their long conversation about differing timelines, so, as a natural prankster, Sirius just had to explore. He picked up a couple of interesting instruments off of a table, examined them, and then threw them down in disgust. Nothing interesting. He had heard from Harry that there was a penseive somewhere in the office, but there was very little light, and Sirius knew that if he knocked it over Dumbledore would never again trust him. And then he remembered the mirror.

Harry had told him the story in a letter, and he knew what could happen if he looked at it too long. But he had to know. So, lighting his wand with the second Lumos of the night, he found the mirror that he had fallen out of and gazed into it.

He wasn't exactly surpised at first. On his left, he saw James and Lily. James was just as he was before he died, grinning, his hair tousled and glasses slightly skewed, At his arm was Lily, her hair vibrant and eyes smiling at him. Remus was at his right, a steady hand on his shoulder. Sirius began thinking of how much he had used Remus in the past few months. Remus was really his last friend in the world, and he had been taking a lot of his frustration out on the already bruised and crippled man. Poor Remus probably thought that he was the last true Marauder left alive. Sirius felt like he had betrayed him by disappearing, leaving him to care for Harry-

And that's when he saw Harry. Harry, who was in between James and Lily. Harry, who looked healthy and happy and well fed. Harry, who bore no scar on his head.

He felt his breath leave him when he saw what he desired. The four most important people in his life, all standing around him. Healthy. Happy. Alive.

And he knew, without a doubt, that it would be very hard for him to stop looking in the mirror.

Albus understood more than Sirius thought he did. The mirror drew him in in the same way, which is why he knew he had to distance himself from it. He contemplated telling Sirius about Ariana and Gellert and Aberforth, but thought against it. That would be a story for another night.

"Sirius, you have to understand that this was for the best. Trust me." Albus said sadly.

More confliction crossed over Sirius' face, but it fell into a wave of realization as he muttered "the stag." He looked at Albus a bit differently. "My problem before," he started, "was that I couldn't see them at all. Sure, I see them younger now, but that isn't them. But, on the other hand, it is them. So I see my friends, in some way, but Harry was missing. But I think I may have found him again.

He leaned back, and blew a hair out of his face. "I think my greatest desire would be seeing them happy and alive, but if they were happy and alive, they wouldn't be the same people, you know? So I'll make sure that happens. That the ones here are happy. But I want to see my James and Lily, my Remus, and my Harry again. I want their happiness here, but I also need to know that I'll see my own loved ones again. Does that make any sense?"

Albus thought this was a noble want, the want for his alternate friends to be happy, and nodded. Though not understanding the way he was able to see his godson again, he smiled and with a nod and goodbye, they both parted ways for the night.

A/N Update on when I update. I'm going to try and motivate myself for twice a week. Look out for Thursdays and Sundays (or days close to that anyway).

By the way, this chapter was written a bit quicker than the last few, so if there are any glaring problems, please let me know!

Thanks for reading!

~M