Glad you enjoyed this story! I pulled a JK Rowling here, folks: I did the 'Andromeda's Epilogue' WAAAY before I finished the story! Review me one last time, and see you next story! BTW, this chappie contains DH spoilers...FYI...

June 9th, 2000

I really don't want to update my story. Mostly because I'm the only one left in it, really. But so much has happened in the 33 years since my fifth year at Hogwarts, so much good and so much evil, I almost feel that it is my obligation to do so. After all, I am among the last of my generation to remain alive, and one of my generation's few survivors of the War Eras and the In-Between Time. And yet, I scarcely know where to start. I write this down on parchment and plan to burn it in the fireplace, only because it will help me recover some of my lost memories. This parchment will not last long, so take a good look right now.

The summer after my fifth year, surprisingly, wasn't as hard as I imagined. Bellatrix spent her whole summer with Rodolphus, and rumors were Lucius Malfoy was dating around with girls his own age, so Cissy, although still bitter towards me most of the time, saw me as her only company. While our relationship, I knew, would never be the same again, for that one summer before my sixth year, Cissy and I tried to bask in each other's company, for we were all we had at our Black home. I did visit Sirius at James Potter's house once towards the end of the summer, and Cissy even came along. Sirius managed to convince Cissy that I was a more trustworthy person than Bellatrix or even our own mother. Cissy then formally forgave me, but, as I said, our relationship was never quite the same as it was before.

Not so long after I graduated from Hogwarts, our secret about Tom Marvolo Riddle and the Death Eaters was no longer a secret, for they, indeed, rose to power, as Cissy had predicted from the 'poems' she'd found on the floor around the castle and Hogsmeade. He was a bigoted man, much like my sister Bellatrix. And, it was no surprise to either Cissy or I, that she was among the first to join Riddle's Death Eaters.

Cissy and I held our ground, at least for a little while, anyways. During the summer after I graduated, Cissy came to stay with me instead of at home, because Bella had gone from bullying older sister to absolute bitch. But after Cissy graduated, she began a relationship with Lucius Malfoy and eventually married and had a son with him. Lucius was, like Bellatrix, a Death Eater, and therefore, Cissy quickly found herself on the other side of the line. At first, she was extremely skeptical about joining the Death Eaters, but gradually, as Lucius got their son Draco involved, whom Cissy loved even more than her husband, she found herself getting in deeper than she'd ever wanted, and she eventually became a watered-down version of Bellatrix, at least temporarily, but I'll get to that later.

As for Bella, well, Rodolphus Lestrange married her (the poor man). They never had any children due to the abortion spell Snape had cast on Bella, although Rodolphus never seemed to mind being childless, and I wouldn't have blamed him for that. WHile I never really came into contact with Bellatrix and Rodolphus myself, I was under the impression that as soon as they married, Bellatrix began losing interest in Rodolphus, as she always did with men. But this time, she was stuck. The two of them became two of Riddle's top Death Eaters. Mother was so proud of Bella, marrying a pureblood AND joining a group bent on purifying the wizarding world of Muggle-borns. It was disgusting. On her death bed, our mum left everything to Bella. Cissy wasn't given anything because she was the youngest and had already married rich. She didn't include me because, well, I was disowned, just like Sirius.

Sirius's story after our school days was possibly the most tragic other than mine. He ended up being betrayed by Peter Pettigrew, and when his friends James Potter and Lily Potter were killed by Riddle in an attempt to get to their son, Harry Potter, Sirius was ultimately blamed for it all and sent to Azkaban, where he spent 12 of the last 14 years of his life. Bella was the one who killed him, pushing him beyond the veil of the dead in the Ministry. Harry Potter told me later that he'd tried to torture Bella afterwards, but he couldn't pull off the will to curse her. Having my cousin die so young was like a knife in my heart. It was truly terrible to hear about, and I cried for a long time.

After Cissy married Lucius Malfoy, that left only me to fight for the good side, so I, along with Sirius, Remus, James Potter and Lily Evans, joined the Order of the Phoenix. As for my love story beyond Hogwarts: you probably already guess that Ted Tonks and I, awkward as our relationship seemed at the time, ended up in our marriage. Very soon after that, I had a daughter who's hair and face could change at her will. I named her Nymphadora. She always hated her name, but I thought it was the most beautiful name in existence, and so did Ted. Because I married Muggle-born Ted, my face was blasted off the Black Family Tree like Sirius', and Nymphadora was automatically considered a blood traitor and disinherited.

Ted and I were so proud of our daughter. So full of life and so strong. She had her heart set from an early age on becoming an Auror, and so she did. Ted and I were also extremely relieved that Nymphadora 'inherited' Ted's house over mine. She also joined the Order (I had retired from it after the First War) after she finished her years at school. She was truly the best child a woman could ask for. She had Bella's fiery spirit, Cissy's charm, and my sense (evidently). By the time she grew up, Riddle, after a crushing defeat the first time, had risen again, in force. Nymphadora was quickly swept up in the Order's battles and matters, and Ted and I rarely saw her anymore.

I recall one night, about three years ago, Remus Lupin came to me while I was alone in my house. Albus Dumbledore had died not a fortnight ago, and the whole wizarding world (the good part of it, anyways) was still in mourning for his loss. I remember seeing Remus' worn, torn, sad face, and wanting to cry. My ex-lover looked so conflicted and so abused. Remus had come to me just for a chat, for old-time's sake. And we did talk about what went wrong in our relationship, and that Remus' only real reason for breaking off our affair was because he was a werewolf, and he didn't want to harm me. I agreed with him, but insisted that he still needed a woman in his life. I can recall the next few lines of our conversation perfectly:

"That matter is another reason why I came here, 'Dromeda," Remus asked when I mentioned our relationship back in school.

"Oh? You've fallen in love?" I asked. I couldn't have been happier if he was.

"Yes, I suppose…" he said, sounding rather skeptical about his new affair.

"Who?" I asked. "Hestia Jones?"

Remus shook his head. "She fell for me first, and I guess I kind of fell too, when I thought about her…"

"Don't call it 'falling,' Remus! Tell me her name!" I said, excitedly.

Remus gave me an odd look, and I waited for an answer.

"Your daughter, Dora."

I can't recall anymore of the conversation. It came as a bit of a nasty shock. After all, I'd made love to this man myself many years ago, and now he was in a relationship with my daughter? The awkwardness of the situation was almost too much to handle. The man who had my virginity (and I had his) was in love with my DAUGHTER? It was preposterous! I wasn't even sure if it was legal! Remus saw my awkward feeling and put his hand on my knee, apologizing for creating the awkward scenario, for it must have been rather strange to him too. To love the daughter of his first lover.

"You know, she initated this," Remus said. "I tried to keep my head above water for most of it. She fell for me first."

"No such thing and someone falling first," was my reply. "No matter what falls first, everything hits the earth at the same time."

But after the initial shock wore over, Ted and I saw the silver lining (that our friend and daughter were happy together) and gave the couple our blessing, and we saw them marry. Very soon after, as if it happened on their wedding night, Nymphadora and Remus presented me with a grandson, Ted Remus Lupin. He took after his mother and inherited her shape-shifting powers. But, the time at which Teddy Lupin was born was not exactly a happy time for me. Only a small while before, my Teddy was killed by Death Eaters. My husband, being gone from my life forever, and me being a widow way before I felt was my time, had stabbed me like a knife in the back. But Teddy's birth (I was present for it, to aid Nymphadora), seemed to dilute my sadness. Again, it would only be temporary.

The Battle of Hogwarts soon took Remus away from Nymphadora. He went to the front lines to help fight off the Death Eaters. I knew Bella would be fighting on her side, and Cissy would eb there with her family, fighting on Bella's side. Having such a torn heart, I stayed home with Nymphadora and Teddy. My daughter seemed distressed that Remus wasn't home and could potentially be never coming home. I remember closing the door to her room and Teddy's room after bidding them both good night, smiling and telling her to have faith. When I came upstairs later, Nymphadora was gone, Teddy writhing in his crib, crying for his lost mother. A small note scribbled on toilet paper was lying by the window. In Nymphadora's chicken-scratch handwriting, it read:

Mum,

Take care of Teddy until I can bring Remus home safely. Just remember: blue hair means feeding time, green hair means nap time, and brown hair...well, you can guess!

Signed with love, Your Dora

The note instructed me to take care of Teddy until she could bring Remus home safely. I still take care of him because she has yet to do so.

As if Ted's death wasn't tragic enough, the deaths of my daughter and son-in-law/ex-lover (that's such a complicated title!) were more than I could bear. I went to the castle as soon as the Order declared victory. I took Teddy with me, a bundle in my arms. My grandson, and now my ward. Having to claim the bodies was, without a doubt, the worst task I ever had to undertake. They were so peaceful, as if they'd fallen asleep before an operation and forgot to wake up. I remember having to pass Teddy to Molly Weasley because I was too hysterical from crying. My daughter, my son-in-law, my husband, all of them were gone.

I had to leave the festivities very soon after. As I sat crying, someone sat down beside me and embraced me. I looked into the face of my little sister, Cissy, who was near tears herself.

"Bella was killed," said Cissy.

"Good," I hissed back. "She deserved it. Thus ends the house of Black!"

"No," said Cissy. "No, the house of Black isn't dead. It's still in Draco…"

I looked at Cissy. "Why aren't you and Lucius and your precious boy gone?!" I asked hysterically.

"Lucius and I wanted to keep Draco safe, that was all. None of us killed anyone," she promised. "I heard about your family. I'm really sorry. After nearly losing Draco many times, I know how it feels, your child in danger and possibly dead."

"This isn't you, Narcissa," I said. "Sympathizing with me, associating with me!"

"Lucius, Draco, and I are leaving tonight. We're going to Denmark," Cissy announced. I looked at her. "We're going to be under very high tensions with the Ministry, and potential Azkaban prisoners, all three of us, unless we don't flee. I just wanted to let you know," said Cissy, getting up and leaving quickly., before I could say anything.

As I watched Cissy walk into her husband's arms and leave me, I couldn't help but see the little 12-year-old girl inside her come out. It was the last time we spoke. The Ministry eventually pardoned the Malfoys after Cissy's show of kindness towards Harry Potter (the story is too complicated, even for me to tell), but they left anyhow. Draco has come home in the year since, but Narcissa and Lucius both decided to stay behind in Denmark and let Draco make his own way for once. I heard from an aquaintence in Denmark that Narcissa had died last winter during an outbreak of some disease. Cissy was always so delicate, it didn't really surprise me. Lucius even invited me to the funeral, but I didn't go.

The last I heard from my ex-fiance, he was still in Denmark. A widower, he hasn't even bothered to go out and try to find another wife.

So now, as I sit here in my garden, watching my grandson play in the yard among the late-spring butterflies and flowers, his hair a bright happy blue, I think to myself…why did it all happen the way it did? Why did Remus, Nymphadora, Ted, Sirius, the Potters, Bella, and so many others die? Why didn't the good times last forever? Why didn't Remus and I make it as a couple? Why did Ted suddenly become a bold, brave warrior when he met me when he was such a little mouse before? Why did I fall in love with Ted after Remus broke up with me? Why did we have a daughter? Why did Bella and Cissy turn to the Death Eaters? My life has been filled with so many hard questions, and I doubt none of them will be answered until I myself fall through the veil one day. My brown hair is beginning to grey in the front, and my skin is wrinkling slightly. It might be soon, and it might not be soon.

Thus ends the story of the House of Black, it's epilogue written by its sole survivor.

Signed, Andromeda Aries Black-Tonks