Okay! Here is my attempt to turn this little collection of thoughts into a story. The things Sirius said in the last chapter did not actually reach any characters. It is merely what he would have said if he had had the time before his death. This chapter is just a take on how things may have gone for Sirius just after he died. And yes, this does most certainly contain RLSB. Ohhhh, yeahhhh.

And finally, I'd just like to say that this story has absolutely no religious significance. The 'afterlife' I have created is very vague on purpose and not meant to offend anyone. Please enjoy Sirius' encounter with Lily and James after death!

Part Two: The Afterlife

"Sirius! We heard you had arrived! It's so nice to see you again!"

Sirius was thoroughly surprised when his intangible nothingness became a sea of red hair and arms around his torso. He had a torso? It was all so strange. He wasn't sure he'd ever get used to this. Ignoring this thought, he turned his attention to the body embracing him. He could have cried with joy when he realized who it was – and who was standing just a few feet away. He was not dead for ten minutes, and already, James and Lily Potter had found him. He embraced Lily Potter tighter than he ever had in life. He sobbed into her hair as he reached out an arm for James. It had been too long – far too long.

What could have been minutes or days later, (it was so hard to get a grasp on time here – wherever here was) Sirius released the couple, wiping his eyes. His smile was watery, but so very genuine.

"You look great," he said, looking from James to Lily.

"As do you," James replied. It had been a very long time since anyone but Remus had sincerely said anything like that to Sirius. Surprised, he looked down at himself. He had color in his skin again. He touched his chest through his robes; he had meat on his bones again. He looked at the pair before him quizzically. They looked exactly as they had when they had died. Why was it that Sirius looked so drastically different?

"You always look your best here, Sirius," Lily explained knowingly. "The best you ever looked in life."

Sirius nodded. He looked at James, afraid he'd burst into tears again. "I've missed you," he said in earnest.

James chuckled. "Who wouldn't?" he replied with playful arrogance.

Sirius laughed loudly at James' pompousness. It felt like not a day had passed since they had graduated from Hogwarts together. But at this moment, Sirius had a million questions; maybe even two million. He started slowly, trying to keep it simple. "Do you know everything that has happened since your deaths?"

Lily nodded. "We know what has happened, Sirius. We know what you sacrificed for us." She grasped his hand meaningfully. He felt his eyes well up for the third time as he looked to James. James was nodding in gratitude. "You were always so rash, Sirius," Lily moaned, shaking her head disapprovingly. "You should never have given your freedom for our memory."

"But we appreciate it all the same," James interjected. "I wouldn't have expected any less." He smiled broadly, shining with pride and admiration.

Sirius nodded before moving on. He vowed to never cry in front of James again. He had done so too many times already. He needed to move on to a lighter subject. "Can you see them?" he asked eagerly. "Can you see Harry and the rest who still live?"

James shook his head sadly. "It doesn't quite work that way," he explained. "We never watch, but in times of great need, we have been able to share experiences with those we love most. Lily and I have been there in spirit every time Harry has faced Voldemort," he said somberly, rubbing his forehead as though the thought gave him a grievous headache.

"We have been with him at select other moments as well," Lily continued, "But only when he has needed us most. It is never our decision to go or not to go. When we are needed, we must go." She paused before looking at Sirius momentously. "But we can only ever experience," she said. "We cannot influence or communicate in any way. It is impossible." Her tone was devastatingly sad, and Sirius knew she and James had tried and failed in every way to communicate with their son. His heart ached for them as it had before he had died. They would never speak to their son. The thought jolted pictures of Remus into his mind. His knees gave out with the realization of what this meant. He would never speak to Remus again.

Lily knelt down beside him, a hand resting soothingly upon his shoulder. "We know, Sirius," she said softly, "We know how this feels." She paused, closing her eyes as emotion fought to overtake her. "But this," she pointed to James and herself before pointing to Sirius. "This is what has kept us sane. You will see Remus again. Just as we will one day meet the man our son has become." She smiled broadly at her husband. "We will meet him here, just as we have met you. And here, you will one day meet Remus. Hold onto that knowledge, Sirius," she advised, "It will get you through everything."

Sirius nodded slowly, gathering himself as he stood. He looked at James sheepishly, half expecting the bespectacled man to shake his head and ask Sirius when he had become such a pansy. But he never did. Instead, James placed a hand on Sirius' shoulder in much the same fashion as his wife had done just minutes before. Sirius grinned at him before a bubble of laughter welled up in his chest. He embraced it, allowing the joyous laughter to consume him for several minutes. He was not sure when James had joined in, but he was happy to see mirthful tears spring into James' eyes. It felt so good to be with his best mate again. It felt so damn good

"Oh, James," Sirius said as his uncontrollable, undirected laughter died down. "I am so glad to be with you again."

James smiled kindly. He didn't say a word for several minutes. Sirius didn't need him to.

Then suddenly, his facial features and voice quickly sobered. "Sirius," he said, fear lacing his words. "We have to leave you now," he continued as his eyes glazed over. Sirius glanced at Lily; the same event had happened to her. They looked terrified. "Harry's facing him again," said James urgently, grasping his wife's arm. "We must go."

The next thing Sirius knew, he was alone again in the strange nothingness. He knew James would return for him and answer the remainder of his questions, but he didn't know when that would be. He didn't quite know what to do with himself until then either. He resigned to sit on the floor – it was really just whiteness – and thought about Remus. In a severely twisted and selfish way, he wished Remus were here with him. He envied that James and Lily had each other here in this confusing labyrinth of nothing and everything. He wanted Remus to figure this out and tell him what to do next. He wanted someone to spend eternity with the way James had Lily. Sirius was so bloody jealous.

He thought he may have sat there for days thinking about Remus and how much they had never experienced – how much they had lost. He waited for one of those experiences-in-spirit Lily and James had spoke of. He anticipated it with both fear and excitement. He hoped he never had to be there as Remus faced Voldemort; he hoped Remus never had to face Voldemort. He wanted so badly to see Remus, but he was nervous about the situation he may find Remus needing him in.

It was not for years that Sirius recognized his body doing what he had seen happen to James and Lily on the day he had died. He was suddenly struck with indecipherable emotion. He could no longer see his own surroundings. When he blinked, he saw a patient's room in St. Mungo's – he was well aware that he was no longer with his body. He was with Remus.

Sirius looked around the small room for him, spotting him standing nervously next to the occupied bed. In the bed lay a very pained and very pregnant Nymphadora Tonks. Sirius didn't understand. No one was in danger. Why was he here for this?

Sirius had learned very shortly after his death that, yes, he found out about all the things happening to the people most important to him in the living world, but he more often than not found out about them at a very delayed pace. Most often, he would learn about things several months after they had occurred. He was sure it had something to do with the lack of tangible time here.

He knew very well that he was witnessing Tonks giving birth, but at this point, it was all he knew. It didn't take long for Sirius to sort through Remus' current emotions and thoughts. What he found there was devastating.

Remus was here because he was married to Tonks.

And Tonks was, at this very moment, giving birth to Remus' child.

Sirius thought he would vomit from the force of the realization. He tried to remove himself from the experience, – to get himself out of Remus' head – but Lily had warned long ago that this just wasn't possible. When a living loved one needed support, the dead had to be ready to give it regardless of why their support is needed. Sirius knew he had to see this through. He stopped trying to escape. Instead, he tried to ignore the scene unfolding around him and focus entirely on Remus' thoughts. Why had Remus needed him for this?

Sirius put all of his energy into deciphering Remus' thoughts. Remus feared bringing a child into the world. He feared that his curse of lycanthropy would somehow be genetically transferred to his child. At this, Sirius' heart truly reached out for Remus. As much as Sirius despised what Remus had done – marrying and reproducing with Sirius' own cousin – Sirius hated to see Remus blame himself for an event that should make him joyous and proud.

Deeper, Sirius found Remus' fear of bringing a child into the current world. Remus didn't want his child to grow up as Harry Potter had been forced to because of war. At this, Sirius could relate. He hated how Harry had had to grow up without James and Lily, without magic. It was Sirius' greatest regret about being sent to Azkaban. He could not be there for Harry Potter. It was hard to imagine another child – Remus' child – having to live through what Harry had lived through in his youngest years. And suddenly, Sirius knew why Remus needed him. He needed the assurance of someone who knew him well enough to understand how he was feeling; he needed the assurance of someone who loved him unconditionally. Though Sirius was well aware that Remus could not possibly know that he was here with him, Sirius still hoped that, somehow, his presence had helped.

Sirius turned his gaze away from Remus as he heard Tonks scream. Her hands were clutching desperately to Remus' in the way any wife in labor would do. Mixed in, Sirius could hear the distinct crying of a newborn baby. The child was born! In a confliction of emotions Sirius was not completely sure were his or Remus', joy, pride and extreme worry flooded his veins.

Sirius was so very happy at this new life, and yet so very sad that the love of his own life had created it with someone else. Sirius had never experienced these kinds of emotions in life. He certainly had no idea how to handle them now that he was dead. As he felt himself leaving Remus' experience, he reached into Remus' thoughts one last time. He was shocked to find himself in them. At the moment of the birth of Remus' son, his thoughts had strayed to Sirius. Remus silently wished Sirius could meet this child. He hoped Sirius would have understood were he still alive. Under it all, Sirius could feel the love Remus had once felt for him. Sirius knew that love had not died with Sirius. Remus had moved on, but he hadn't really left Sirius behind.

The realization of Remus' thoughts only temporarily soothed Sirius. When he came flooding back into his own body placed firmly in the afterlife, he felt his legs buckle beneath him. He gasped in shock and pain as tears down-poured from his eyes. He wanted to be happy for Remus and he wanted to understand, but it hurt so badly to see him with someone else. It was foolish and it was selfish to expect Remus to pine for Sirius until his own death, but to see Remus' wife giving birth to Remus' child was more than Sirius could handle.

He remained on the ground for a very long time before soft hands found his shuddering shoulders. He looked up into two faces blurred by his own tears. He knew it was Lily and James. He allowed Lily to embrace him as James knelt beside him sympathetically.

"I'm sorry, mate," James said, "We just found out as well. We came as soon as we could." James looked pained, as though he were trying to figure out how Sirius felt, but he just couldn't quite grasp it. Sirius was nodding blindly as he sobbed into Lily's shoulder. She held him silently, looking at James with pain and pity in her eyes.

After several minutes, Sirius calmed enough to speak coherently. "I want to be happy for him," he admitted quietly, "but it feels like betrayal, James." It was hard for Sirius to realize that he had finally landed himself in a situation unfamiliar to Lily and James. Here, they could do nothing but speak comforting thoughts. It burned through Sirius' heart.

James' lips tightened as he fought to find the right words. "You've gone to him, Sirius," James tried to explain. "He's only moving on. As much as that hurts you, it's not his intention. He waited half his life for you, Sirius," James continued slowly. He looked as though he too may burst into tears. "You're not coming back to him this time. He has to move on."

Sirius nodded again. "I know," he said, pulling himself to his feet as he wiped his eyes. "He has everything I couldn't give him now." His tone held a great deal of sadness. Again, Lily tried to comfort him with an open palm on the arm. "He has a wife," Sirius continued bitterly. "He has a child." The words seemed to break Sirius as they left him. His face fell into misery once more.

"He still loves you, Sirius," Lily said gently. "I know you felt it. Don't forget it. Remus still loves you. He always will."

Sirius silently agreed, biting back tears again. Lily was right. She was always right. "What do I do?" Sirius began desperately, looking directly into Lily's emerald eyes. "What do I do when Remus dies?" All Sirius could see was Remus and Tonks together in the afterlife the same way Lily and James were. Always together, always happy. Only coming to their other deceased loved ones when they were needed. "How do I face him, now that he has Tonks to spend eternity with?" Sirius' voice almost broke as emotion flooded him. He didn't know what to do.

Neither did Lily. Tears welled in her eyes at this. She took a deep breath. "You meet him," she said with quiet confidence, "on the day he dies – the same way we met you." She faltered, looking to James for assistance. James quickly took over the conversation.

"Let Remus decide who to spend eternity with, Sirius," he said optimistically. "There isn't any use in worrying about that now. Be there when he needs you, and be there when he dies. There's nothing more you can do."

Sirius could do nothing but agree somberly as James and Lily left him once more. He would simply support Remus however he could until the werewolf's own life ended. From there, it was anyone's guess. At the moment, Sirius felt he could handle that fact. He was certain Remus would make the right decision. He was certain.

And there you go! I hope you liked it. Not too dramatic, was it? Review if you feel like it!