Sirius and Lupin had already recovered from their shock, and without exchanging a word, the two of them chose not to interrupt Harry and Lily.
As for Hermione—she had always been easily moved. While she was happy for Harry, her nose still stung slightly, and in the end, she simply stepped forward and hugged Arthur.
After a long while, it was Lily who loosened her embrace first.
"Alright, Harry. Everyone's watching."
She led Harry over to Arthur, then bowed deeply.
"Thank you—for allowing my child and me to be reunited."
Arthur quickly helped her up.
"There's no need for that. Harry being able to summon you was entirely his own fortune."
"But if you hadn't given him this opportunity, we never would've met again."
Arthur smiled faintly.
"That's enough gratitude. Harry and I are friends—friends don't stand on ceremony. You should go catch up with your old friends instead."
He then turned to Sirius.
"The books I asked for—are they ready?"
"Of course," Sirius replied. "I've had a full copy of the Black family's collection made. It's all in the study. Oh, right—Kreacher!"
Pop.
Kreacher appeared in front of Sirius at once.
"What does the foolish eldest young master want Kreacher to do now?"
"Kreacher, take Arthur to the study and let him collect the copied books. Also—from today onward, you belong to Arthur."
Sirius couldn't be bothered to argue with Kreacher. Right now, all he wanted was to properly talk with Lily.
When Kreacher heard this, a trace of reluctance flashed through his eyes. After all, he had served the Black family for most of his life—it was impossible to say he felt nothing.
Yet soon after, a hint of joy surfaced.
His new master would be Arthur.
From their brief interactions, Kreacher could clearly feel Arthur's respect toward him. Powerful, polite, and fair—Kreacher held a good impression of this wizard.
For once, Kreacher didn't spit venom at Sirius. Instead, he bowed deeply, then led Arthur toward the study.
Hermione didn't stay behind either. She followed Arthur into the study.
The moment she saw the Black family's extensive collection, her eyes lit up.
She truly loved books.
The rare volumes Arthur had brought back from the Malfoy family had already been read through by her more than once.
Seeing this, Arthur had prepared a dedicated study for her inside the Zen Garden, placing all of his collected books there.
From then on, whenever she had free time, Hermione would bury herself inside.
Sometimes, she even made use of the time dilation within the Zen Garden—finishing an entire book there in a short span, then freeing up time to attend Professor McGonagall's private lessons.
Since taking Hermione as her apprentice, McGonagall had been giving her special guidance every few days.
Arthur didn't stop her.
In truth, he did the same thing himself at times. As long as there were magic crystals, the minor lifespan expenditure could easily be replenished.
Still, Hermione's time consumption was very real.
Recently, she'd been growing noticeably faster—she was already close to catching up to Ranni in height.
That, in fact, was one of the reasons Ranni preferred staying inside the Zen Garden.
She absolutely could not tolerate being overtaken in height by a little witch.
As a divine being, her growth rate was closely tied to her strength—and painfully slow.
So she remained inside the Zen Garden, constantly improving herself to accelerate her development.
Seeing Hermione eagerly pick up a book, Arthur tapped her lightly on the head.
"That's enough. Once I've collected everything, we'll go home and read at our leisure."
Hermione nodded obediently and put the book down.
"Master, does Kreacher need to help?" Kreacher asked from the side.
"No need. I can handle it myself. Oh—and from now on, just call me Young Master."
"Yes, Young Master."
With a wave of his hand, Arthur stored all the books into his system space.
The sight left Kreacher quietly astonished. Once again, he marveled at the strength of his new master.
After everything was packed away, Arthur and Hermione returned to the living room to say their goodbyes.
"Won't you stay for a meal?" Harry asked reluctantly.
"No," Arthur replied. "You still have plenty to talk about. We won't disturb you."
Staying longer would only mean listening to old stories—something Arthur had little interest in. As for Hermione, she was far more eager to read the newly acquired books.
"Alright then. Be careful on the way back," Harry said.
"Relax. We won't need to walk."
With a snap of his fingers, Arthur Apparated away with Hermione.
Watching this, Harry couldn't help but feel envious. He turned to Lupin.
"Professor… I want to learn that."
Lupin shot him a look.
Lily laughed softly.
"Harry, Apparition isn't a simple spell. One mistake, and you risk splinching—part of your body arrives at the destination, while the rest stays behind."
Harry imagined himself being left in pieces and shuddered violently, instantly abandoning the idea.
Better to focus on Transfiguration for now—and work toward becoming an Animagus first.
After Arthur left, Harry continued telling Lily about the years he'd lived through.
She listened with a heart full of both pain and pride.
Pain—for all the suffering her child had endured.
Pride—for how he had grown strong and kind even without parents.
Meanwhile, when Arthur returned home, he happened to see Snape next door, accompanying his daughter in the garden.
Little Lillian had already learned how to crawl. Snape had placed her on the soft grass, watching quietly as she moved about, a rare smile on his face.
Arthur paused, suddenly curious.
What expression would Snape make if he saw Lily?
He didn't know it yet—but that curiosity would be answered the very next day.
The following morning, Harry arrived at Arthur's home—with Lily.
Before they even went inside, Lily looked at the house and sighed softly.
"It's hard to imagine that such a powerful wizard lives in such an ordinary Muggle neighborhood."
The day before, Lily had asked about Arthur, and Harry had told her some of his deeds. She'd been amazed—she never expected a wizard Harry's age to be so formidable.
Out of gratitude, she had decided to visit in person and thank him properly.
"I actually think it's nice," Harry said. "A family living together—warm and lively."
Lily heard the trace of envy in his voice and pulled him into her arms.
"No need to envy them. From now on, you have your mother with you."
At that moment, Snape—next door—heard Harry's voice and curiously opened a window.
Then he saw the ghost standing beside Harry.
A face he knew all too well.
One he saw every day—on someone who resembled her by nearly eighty percent.
"L–Lily?!" Snape exclaimed.
Lily turned her head.
"Snape? Why are you here?" she asked in surprise.
Harry hadn't mentioned this at all.
"I live here," Snape replied stiffly. "But you—what exactly is your current state?"
Just as Lily was about to answer, Arthur opened the door.
"Why don't we talk inside?"
He had sensed their arrival long ago. What he hadn't expected was Snape's sudden appearance—and that the three of them would start chatting right outside his front door.
Inside Arthur's living room, after hearing Arthur explain the summoning runes, Snape felt a fleeting pang of regret.
Maybe I should've chosen the ghost-summoning runes back then…
Only fleeting, though.
His relationship with Leah was good now, and he already had Lillian. While traces of Lily still lingered in his heart, he had long since let go.
His reaction earlier had been surprise—not longing.
Meanwhile, Harry was explaining to Lily why Snape lived here.
Lily hadn't expected her childhood friend—who once followed Voldemort—to become the Head of Slytherin after his fall.
She had always known of Snape's feelings for her, but their ideals had diverged too greatly. In the end, she had chosen James.
Now, knowing that Snape had settled down and built a family, she was genuinely happy for him.
Though she did find it… strange that his wife resembled her so closely.
Still, after some conversation, Lily and Leah hit it off surprisingly well.
Before long, they were chatting like close sisters.
Harry watched, puzzled.
Weren't we here to thank Arthur?
How did Mum end up chatting with Professor Snape's wife instead?
Such was the mystery of women's friendships.
Arthur understood this all too well—after all, Mrs. Granger and Leah had been the same way.
Seeing the situation, Arthur simply pulled Harry and Snape aside and started playing billiards with them.
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