Well, I haven't had much feedback on this, I'm afraid :cc In any case, here is the second chapter. Thought I'd upload it just to make sure I don't drift off ;)
Please do review!

xx


Wobbling slightly, the two-year-old stood up, his arms stretched out to his sides as he focused on balancing himself. His small feet were round and very babyish, making it rather difficult for him to not fall over. Hovering right behind, though, was his father, looking amused and hiding an anxious look behind his slight smile.

"Seriously, Harry, he has to fall a time or two is he ever is to learn." Ginny chuckled from the sofa, looking up from the book in her hands, eyeing her small family.

"I know." He muttered quietly, still not taking his eyes of his standing son.

"Then back off." She said. Meeting his eyes, she saw a childish defiance in her husband's eyes, making her utter a tinkling laugh. "Come here." Casting one last, nervous glance at the small boy, he then stood up straight and sat down next to his wife on the spongy couch.

"D'you think he'll be okay?" said Harry, biting his lower lip.

"He'll be absolutely fine." As if determined to prove his mother wrong, James then wobbled over and landed with a light thud on the carpeted floor. Harry was on his feet at an instant, though unable to move closer to James when he was standing. Scowling, he turned around to face Ginny, whose wand was lying casually in her hand.

"Leave him." She said firmly. The baby seemed completely oblivious to having just fallen. He looked slightly surprised, but without further ado he placed his chubby hands on the floor and stood up once again.

"See? He's perfectly all right." Reluctantly, Harry sat down again, though on the edge of the couch. "Merlin's beard, Harry, calm down! He's only standing up, not bungee jumping." Grinning at his wife, he leaned back and watched the tiny boy. The resemblance towards his father was clear, but Harry was still glad he wasn't an exact copy, like he had almost been to his father. He knew his name would bring him enough annoyance when he started school, and didn't want anything else to get in his way. James was standing once again, his right leg extended in front of his left.

"Oh…"

"That's called taking a step." Ginny said, trying not to giggle wildly. Harry didn't even dignify this with an answer, simply kept watching the child, whose forehead was scrunched up with concentration. Just as his left leg followed the right, a piercing cry shot through the house, making Harry jump slightly. Sighing deeply, Ginny put her book down.

"That'll be Albus. I'll go get him." Rising, she disappeared out of the room, her steps hasty up the stairs. Taking advantage of her absence, Harry walked over to James and scooped him up in his arms.

"First step, eh? That's my boy." Tickling him, James roared with baby laughter.

"'Top iit!" Harry immediately stopped what he was doing staring in disbelief at the giggling toddler.

"What's that?"

"Did you say something?" Ginny walked back into the room, the bundle that was their second son in her arms. This one, Harry had thought while peering over at Albus, is in for a tough time. When Albus Severus Potter was born, the first thing Harry had really noticed were his eyes. Staring up at his young father, Albus' eyes blazed in the same green colour of his dad's and grandmother's.

"James. He… He told me to stop." Ginny's eyes widened slightly. So you do have feelings, Harry thought scornfully. He really couldn't comprehend how she took everything so calmly.

"What do you mean?" she asked, shifting Albus to her other arm. Harry tickled the boy again, making him scream, startled.

"'Top it, daddy!" he shrieked. Stopping straight away, he looked in bewilderment at the little boy, red in the face from laughing so much. This time it was different though. For the first time, ever, he had been referred to as a dad. It felt odd, and in some ways a bit frightening. Daddy. All the same, though, his heart warmed at the words, and he turned his head up to face Ginny.

"I… How can he speak, just like that?" He looked questioningly at Ginny, who was still staring with wide eyes at her eldest.

"I have absolutely no idea. Hang on." Placing Albus tenderly on the couch, she grabbed a handful of Floo powder.

"I'll be back in a flash. The Burrow." Green flames erupted in the fireplace, and whisked her away. It took about two minutes before green flames blew out Ginny again, who was closely followed by her mother, Molly Weasley.

"What did he say?" the woman squealed in delight, her brown eyes shining.

"I was tickling him and he told me to stop." Answered Harry sheepishly. Clapping her hands together, Molly all but snatched the boy out of his father's hands.

"Hello there, gorgeous." She whispered, stroking the boy's soft hair. "It was about time he started speaking." Harry looked nervously at his wife, who shrugged.

"Is… Is two years late to start speaking?" He asked, feeling quite embarrassed by not knowing more about all of these things.

"Well, not late, but later than many. A lot of children start talking before they've even got twelve months in their baggage." With those words, Albus whined quietly, demanding some attention. With James still in her arms, Molly beat both the young parents to it and heaved Albus up on her other arm.

"They are quite a pair, aren't they?" she beamed. "And look at those eyes. My, he looks just like you." She nodded at Albus, whose eyes were wide open and looking curiously around the room.

"Mum…"

"Yes, I'm sorry." Handing Albus to Ginny, she then placed James back on the floor, in a standing position. "I take it he does stand?" No one needed to reply: as soon as she let go of the boy, he stood quite steadily on his own.

"They grow up so fast…" she said, choking at the end. Harry didn't see anything worth crying about. He felt more like screaming at the wonder of seeing his small son standing up on his own and calling him 'daddy', while Albus was just yawning and smacking his tongue in the same way James had always done.

"Well, I ought to get going. Make sure to fetch me once Albus catches up with his handsome older brother." Winking fondly at the Potter family, Mrs Weasley then disappeared through the Floo, back to the Burrow. Making a humming noise, James stumbled forwards in small, uneven steps, reaching his mother, grabbing a handful of her trousers.

"Hey there, sweetheart." She cooed, picking the squirming boy up in her arms. "You're getting a bit old to be carried soon, aren't you?" Not that the child was at all too big, but the boy giggled by her words.

"Down, down." Biting her upper lip, Ginny shot Harry a wondrous look, and obliged by putting the little boy back down on the carpet. This time, however, James didn't bother trying to walk, but crawled on all four towards the kitchen.

"I suppose I should get him something to eat." Harry said, taking the boy's hint. Chuckling, Ginny agreed.

"I'll just get Albus. We can have lunch together, the four of us." Smiling faintly, Harry nodded.

"That'll be a first…"