The happiest man on Earth would look into the mirror and see only himself, exactly as he is. ~Albus Dumbledore
'I bet Wormy will just see a lot of cheese or something,' Sirius jokes loudly while he closes the door behind them. The four boys find themselves in a classroom that is clearly only used for storage these days and they make their way to the large mirror in the very back. They should actually be in class but they had decided that they'd better things to do than taking some notes. Well, Sirius and James had decided that and it had taken them a while to convince Remus of it, like always. 'Well, go on, then. Tell us what you see Wormtail!'
It had been two nights ago that Sirius had stumbled upon the mirror while he was on one of his rendezvous with some girl. He had been quite startled when he looked into it, to check his hair, and hadn't just seen himself but also three other people who weren't in the room. It had taken the Marauders a while to figure out why it had looked like James and his parents had been standing next to reflexion-Sirius when the blonde that was with him saw something else entirely. Remus had eventually realized that he had read about such a mirror, one that showed you the thing you desired most.
James looks at his best friend while Peter stands in front of the glass and can't help but smile a little. He should go out with him later and bring the matter up after a few drinks and cigarets. After all, Sirius should find something else to desire since he already was a part of their family.
'It's hard to tell, really.' Peter frowns. 'Well, it's me with the minister of magic who shakes my hand. My parents are there too and they're just proud of me.'
'Your parents would be proud of you even if you wouldn't graduate and became a genitor,' James snorts. It's probably true, Peter's parents would still love their son even if he murdered dozens of innocent people.
James sits down and puts his feet up on the table before him while he sticks a cigaret between his teeth and clicks his lighter open. 'Your turn Moony.'
Remus sighs when he sees what he apparently truly desires and shakes his head a bit tiredly. His brown hair has fallen over his forehead and he has purple bays under his eyes. The dust around them glinsters in the sun rays that fall through the large window. 'Well, this one was to be expected...' He sighs again when his friends motion for him to explain further. James watches the dust around them glinster in the few sun rays that fall inside through a window next to Remus while he waits. 'I see a full moon and myself. I am still me, though, I haven't turned.'
James feels the helpless feeling he has known ever since he discovered his friends' secret rise up in his chest. The sadness that unlike for the rest of them Remus' wish can't ever come true is overwhelming and the only thing he can think of doing is taking a large drag of the cigaret between his fingers.
'All right, that's depressing.' Sirius is the first one to break the silence and he takes the cigaret from James. 'You're up Prongs, and if it's just some weird sex thing with Evans please don't share. Honestly, you two are like bunnies.'
A rude motion with his hand and a ruffle through his hair later James is the one facing the mirror and what he sees isn't all that unexpected either but the only thing James can do is stare at the reflexion and grin.
~~~
'Seriously Potter, where are you taking me?'
James is dragging his beautiful redheaded girlfriend further into the classroom. She has been the only thing on his mind since he had been in the same room that afternoon with his friends. Granted that has mostly been the case for at least the last four years of his life but this was different. The only times he had felt like this was after their first kiss or the first night they had spent together.
His friends had already called him a hopeless fool when he had told them what he had seen and he hadn't even told them everything.
'Just arrived,' he says while he positions her in front of the mirror. 'Okay, stand right here.' He looks at her in the mirror, her cheeks flushed from the running they have just done and her green eyes so full of life. He wants to give her the world and whatever she sees he will do everything in his power or die trying to make a reality.
'And now?' Lily raises her eyebrows at him in the mirror.
'Well, what do you see?' he asks eagerly. Lily throws him a confused look and looks back in the mirror again. The last light of the day falls over them and colours their skin a deep red.
'Except that my hair is a mess? Nothing special.'
'What? No, your hair is fine. You look gorgeous, but what do you see?'
'Nothing,' she laughs. 'Are you all right? You're acting weird... It's just a mirror James.' James stares at her speechless for a moment before he shakes his head in confusion and steps in front of her. Something must have happened to the mirror in the few hours he has been away to make it in a regular mirror. But the same image he had seen that afternoon is shown to him again and he slowly turns around.
'I- I don't understand...' He searches her face for any implication that she isn't telling the whole truth but she just stares back at him a bit amused. 'You really don't see anything?'
'No... just me,' she says slowly. 'And you.' His eyes widen when it hits him and his heart stops. He has read the chapter of Remus' book about the Mirror of Erised to know what it means when you just see your reflexion in it. Lily is completely contend with the life she has, her life with him. 'So if we're done here, can we go back to the tower? The girls are out tonight and won't be back till at least two o' clock, so we've got my dorm to ourselves.' She smirks up at him suggestively but frowns when she sees he is still stunned from something she has totally missed. 'Jesus James, are you okay? You aren't having a stroke or anything right?'
'No... no...' He gets out and a disbelieving smile starts to form on his face. 'I'm fine. Your dorm sounds perfect.'
'You sure?'
'Yeah... I just-' He swallows and breathes out. 'I love you so, so much, Lily, you have no idea...'
'All right weirdo,' she laughs and grabs his hand to lead them out of the classroom. 'My dorm it is.'
James looks one more time into the mirror while he gets dragged away by the love of his life. A James that is just as fulfilled with happiness as he feels in that moment stares back. Reflexion-him has Lily by his side just like she had seen. The only difference is the golden wedding bands around their fingers.
While the head-boy and -girl hurry back to the Gryffindor tower James starts planning how to ask her to make his deepest desire a reality.
