Epilogue

"Mum!" Hermione groaned, rubbing her forehead. She looked at the clock. They had to leave in fifteen minutes or they would be late.

"What is it?" She called.

"I can't find my other shoe!" All of a sudden, she heard an odd clunking sound coming down the hallway. Then her oldest son appeared around the corner, hair a mess, dress shirt half unbuttoned, and one shoe on.

"Reggie! You were supposed to already be dressed!" Hermione cried, swooping in and fixing his shirt.

"I am dressed! I just can't find my other shoe!"

At nine years old, Regulus had black, wavy hair that he wore long, like his father. He had Hermione's brown eyes and freckles across his nose and cheeks. But his mischievous streak and disorganization he definitely inherited from his father.

"Have you checked the basket by the back door?" Hermione asked as she attempted to smooth his hair; definitely a losing battle.

Reggie shook his head then ran off to check where she had indicated.

"Thomas! Are you ready to go?! Your father will be home any minute and we have to be ready!"

"Just a minute!" She heard the muffled response. She heard a thump, then footsteps running down the stairs. Her youngest son appeared, short brown curls neat, completely dressed and ready to go. Now this child was all hers. Six years old, and already far more organized than his brother. His gray eyes sparkled as she smiled at him.

Just then Reggie appeared, lost shoe in hand. Hermione heard the front door open, then Sirius' voice call out, asking if everyone was ready. She looked at her boys, smile on her face, as she ushered them to the door.

Sirius was about ready to growl. Even after all these years, he still hated crowds, and the press of people around him combined with the summer heat was doing a number on him.

But then he felt Hermione's hand on his arm, and he looked down into her smiling face, and he felt himself relax. She took his hand and pulled him behind her to the seats she and the boys had found near the front of the audience.

His sons were both sitting at the edge of their seats, looking around the Quidditch pitch. Though he had taken them both to a few professional matches, this was Hogwarts' pitch, and he knew both of them aspired to join their house team when they attended Hogwarts in the future. They looked completely awed.

He caught sight of Harry across the lawn, and nodded to the other man. He smiled and waved in return. Ginny turned and looked, then turned her nose up at him and pulled Harry down into their seats.

She had never warmed to him, and even though he was close with Harry, and their children were all good friends, she still avoided interacting with him as much as possible. And she avoided Hermione like the plague. Not that Hermione was complaining.

They only had to sit for a few minutes before the ceremony started. It was long and boring, but everything was worth it when he saw his girl.

When Minerva had called, "Elaine Black," he saw her walk up the stairs in her graduation gown, blue and bronze tie, a huge grin on her face. She shook hands and crossed to the other side of the stage. Then she paused, searching the crowd. Finding them, she gave a little wave before bounding down the stairs and back to her seat.

She had grown into a stunning young woman. Her blond curls were much longer now, and her blue eyes usually sparkled with mirth. She had never lost her outgoing personality, and she had easily made friends across all the houses.

As soon as the ceremony was over, she made her way through the crowd to them. She threw her arms around Hermione first, laughing at her mother's teary eyes. She hugged her younger brothers next, one arm around each of them. When she turned to him, he couldn't help but try to swallow back the lump in his throat.

"Oh, Dad! You're as bad as Mum!" She laughed and hugged him tightly around the neck. He hugged her back, hiding his tears in her curls.

"I can't believe it! A Hogwarts graduate! You've done wonderfully Elaine. We're so proud of you!" Hermione said, hands on Reggie's shoulders.

Elaine preened at the praise, then excused herself for a few minutes when a large group of friends congregated nearby. When she came back, she was holding the hand of a boy, green and silver tie sparkling brightly in the sunlight.

Sirius suddenly felt like he'd been slapped. He looked to Hermione, who was looking just as surprised. When he looked back at the boy, he finally registered what he was seeing. "Albus?!"

"Hello," Albus said awkwardly, obviously beyond nervous.

"Well congratulations on graduating Albus!" Hermione said, hugging the boy.

"Thanks," he muttered.

"Mum, Dad, I was hoping we could invite Al over for dinner sometime this week?" Elaine asked.

Hermione nodded beside him, "Well, of course, we'd love to have him over! Right, Sirius?"

When the silence stretched on too long, Hermione elbowed him in the side, hard enough to make him grunt. His eyes met Elaine's, and he saw the hope there. She wanted his approval. "Sure, El, we'd love that," he ground out, voice rough.

Her face lit up, and she bounced forward giving them both kisses on the cheeks before dragging Albus back off to their friends. Sirius let out a whoosh of air, turning to his wife. "Did you know about that?!" He demanded.

"No! But I'm not very surprised. She's always talking about him." Hermione shrugged.

"Our little girl! Dating the Slytherin son of my godson! My daughter, with my best mate's grandson! That sounds... wrong. I can't even wrap my head around it!"

"Oh, Sirius, don't think about it like that! Albus is a lovely boy."

"I know that! But can you imagine if they end up together? Elaine will have Ginny Potter as a mother-in-law! We'll be related!"

Hermione's look of horror told him she hadn't thought of that. He couldn't help but laugh at her expression. He wrapped his arms around her and kissed her forehead, "Just one more thing to face, yeah?"

Hermione cringed, then smiled up at him, "As long as we face it together."

He nodded, "Always."