Disclaimer: Harry Potter belongs to J.K. Rowling. I make no claims to ownership.

12 July 2009

When September the first arrived, it was cold. Harry hated the cold. It reminded him of his awful time camping and Dementors. Not that a Dementor would affect him with his children having already sucked the soul out of him.

"You'll be a psychopath," sneered Tom Vernon.

Albus Severus snorted. "Don't be ridiculous, you'll be the psychopath."

"Boys!" Ginny said sharply. "Don't forget your sister."

In response to this, little Petunia Jane pursed her lips. With her flowery dress, she should have looked sweet and innocent, yet Harry was painfully reminded of both her namesakes. He brought it on himself, though, when he married Ginny.

Two more years, he reminded himself. Then I'll be rid of all three.

Maybe he would divorce Ginny, too.

Finally they reached the barrier, and Harry was happy to wave goodbye to Tom. Before Tom left, though, he leaned over to his brother and hissed, "You're barely better than a Squib." Then he laughed and, dodging his mother's hex, he disappeared into the barrier.

A flash of light momentarily blinded Harry, and he heard Rita Skeeter dictating to her quill.

"Ginny Potter has no control on her temper and hexes her own children. One has to wonder if she treats her husband the same way, and that's why he remains married to her…"

Half of it was true, but Harry no longer cared about his portrayal in the papers. He didn't care about much of anything these days.

Albus looked up at his parents.

"Tom's wrong," he stated. "I'm not like a Squib. I'm the best wizard ever."

"Of course you are, sweetie," Ginny gushed.

Sick of their yammering, Harry pushed his spawn through the barrier. Then he followed before Ginny had the chance to protest. Most of her concern was for her precious little Albus Severus. She had been the one to name him, in revenge of Harry choosing Tom Vernon. However, unlike him, she actually admired Dumbledore and Snape.

On the other side, Albus was gazing hungrily at his cousin.

"We're best friends, right?" he said in a pointed tone.

Rose sighed. "Of course we are, Al."

Wanting to get away from them, Harry snatched up Albus' trunk. He was about to use magic to make it lighter when Ron grabbed the other end. With a sigh, Harry let him help carry the trunk onto the train. Ron liked to feel needed.

"Hermione thinks I'm too stupid to drive," Ron told him. "Do you think that, Harry?"

Harry grunted but said nothing. After his experience in second-year, he wouldn't trust Ron behind the wheel, either.

When they returned to the platform, the two families were gathered together.

"Oh, look," Ron said brightly. "Ginny, it's your ex-lover."

Following his gaze, Harry saw Draco standing with his wife and son. Scorpius looked just as arrogant as his father. Draco caught them staring and Ginny turned away, blushing bright red.

"Where's Tom?" asked Hermione.

Harry shrugged. "Who cares?"

Unfortunately, those words drew the vindictive little demon out of hiding. He loved to torment his father with his very presence.

"The cycle continues," he said, dark hair falling into his brown eyes as he looked up at Harry. "A little orphan boy will marry a Weasley…"

A shiver passed down Harry's spine. Tom really could be creepy.

"I hope so," said Petunia. "We can't have him marrying a Mudblood." She looked at Hermione and added, in a tone somehow both sugary and vicious, "They're just freaks."

"So are half-breeds," Ginny said snidely, glaring at where Fleur stood with Bill.

Harry checked his watch. Time for them to leave.

He rushed his two older spawn onto the train. Tom immediately went to find his followers, but Albus leaned out the window.

"Am I like a Squib?" he demanded.

"You kind of are," Harry said, and then stepped back before Albus could ask any more questions.

The train began to leave, taking the children away from him. In two years, he might even be happy.

Harry woke with his heart thudding erratically. Trembling, he reached for his wand and quietly lit the tip. He was almost scared to look at the woman sleeping next to him. Slowly, he turned his head and let out a breath when he saw Daphne's golden hair spread on the pillow.

She began to stir.

"Harry?" she mumbled.

"It's nothing," he whispered. "Go back to sleep."

Daphne shifted enough to face him, one eye barely open. "Bad dream?"

"Yeah." He swallowed after his voice came out a little rough.

She moved even closer so her head was against his shoulder. He could feel each of her breaths on his neck and drew comfort from them.

"What was it about?" she asked.

He sighed, knowing she would press even more if he didn't give in. That was the difference between her and Ginny. His ex-wife would've waved off his concerns. Daphne got to the root of the problem and helped him solve it.

It would be easy to make up an excuse. Soon Teddy would be leaving for Hogwarts, and even if he was teaching there, Harry was feeling some separation anxiety. However, Harry knew he ought to deal with the real problem first.

"I named my son Tom Vernon. And my daughter Petunia Jane." The name Albus Severus didn't bear mentioning. She already knew his horror regarding it.

For a moment, there was only silence. Then she said softly, "We don't have to go if you don't want to."

Yesterday they'd received a wedding invitation from Harry's cousin, Dudley. He somehow found an owl to deliver it, too. It was the first time Harry had heard from his cousin since the war, and that Dudley used a wizarding method to reach Harry meant a lot to him. Unfortunately, he knew without a doubt that Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon would be in attendance.

He shifted to look at his wife.

"Would you go?" he asked.

"This isn't about me," she said. "It's entirely up to you."

"But would you?" he insisted.

Daphne hesitated before responding. "I think I would," she said slowly. "But only if you went with me. It's never a good idea to face your demons alone."

At last, his scattered, worried mind calmed down. It was amazing how she could overwhelm him in so many different ways. "You'll go with me?" he asked, and hoped she would understand what he was truly saying. He'd never been good at putting his emotions into words.

Her lips pressed to his jaw in a gentle expression of love.

"Until the very end," she murmured, "I will stand by your side, Harry Potter."

His heart was so full of love he thought it might explode. With a bit of maneuvering, he connected their lips in a real kiss. Then he lay back down, his arm wrapped around her, and slept peacefully for the rest of the night.

AN: The dream sequence comes in at 666 words. I could've made it longer but I thought that number was perfect. I also took Cursed Child's route: Who's Hugo?