Major author's note:

Hi all. At the end of 2016 on a road trip back from the top of Australia down, I was hit by a kangaroo while driving. This ended up being a pretty big incident, and I was left in a different state for a number of days until my friend and I were able to drive back home. We are both fine, no serious injuries, but the same can not be said for the kangaroo or the car.

I am really sorry, but this also meant I didn't post this chapter when promised. I am on the mend as we speak, and I am enjoying the comfort of my own bed again, however the last chapters will be posted over the next week now, not as they were to be posted at the end of 2016.

I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas and happy New Year celebrations surrounded by family and friends and I appreciate everyone who has been following this story and continues to follow this story even with my frequent delays. Here's a huge chapter to try and make up for it all.

Enjoy.

ROSE'S POV

MAY, ANTARES 10 MONTHS OLD

We had five months until the wedding. Five months until I had to walk down an aisle in a white dress. Speaking of said white dress, that was what I was trying to find now.

"You can see too much tit in that one."

"Dominique, for Merlins sake!"

I had invited mum, Astoria and Dominique to the bridal store, to seek honest opinions while I chose my ideal dress. Dom was completely and - according to mum - painfully honest about each dress I tried on. I appreciated her honesty, however her language was another story.

The current dress I was wearing plunged in a low v-neck, exposing just a little too much breast for a new mother. Not to mention how tightly it clung to my bottom, now that could lead to disaster if it were to tear.

From Dom's words alone - and the disapproving looks of my mum and soon to be mother-in-law - I waddled back into the change room where my 5th dress was waiting to be tried on. The hardest thing about my "dress journey" was that I simply had no idea what style I wanted. I was completely lost. Tight dress or a ball gown? Train or no train? Do I wear a veil? Do I wear gloves? I had so many questions but none had been answered yet through the dresses I'd tried.

A while of struggling and I soon stepped back out in a ball gown style dress with a lace bodice with delicate lace sleeves and plain tulle skirt. Paired with a matching lace veil, it really was stunning and seemed to induce a better reaction from my judging panel than the previous options.

"I like this one the best so far," Dom said as soon as she looked at the dress.

Mum nodded eagerly, probably relieved that Dominique didn't cry out a profanity for once. "Yes, it is gorgeous. Much better than those tight things you had on."

I examined the dress in the mirror, moving my hips to make the dress swing from side to side. Sure, it was beautiful, but could I see myself completely happy spending my wedding day in it? No. I knew it wasn't enough, but I tried to give it a chance, looking in the mirror a moment longer than the rest of them.

"It's not the one though is it?" Astoria questioned. "I can see it in your eyes."

I turned to face her, smiling appreciatively at her observation, "You're right. It's beautiful, but I don't feel it yet."

"What are you meant to feel?" Dom snorted.

"I don't know. I just know this isn't the one."

"Dominique, one day you'll get married and you'll understand the pressure that comes with finding the right dress. It's a special moment that only a bride-to-be can understand."

Dom crossed her arms and let out a laugh towards my mother, "Me, a bride-to-be? Not bloody likely. There's not a man in the world who could deal with this hurricane. Besides, I'm not-"

Eyes wide and mouth hanging open, Dom fell silent. Perplexed by her abrupt stop, I followed Dominique's line of vision which seemed to go further than the room in which we stood. As I glanced beyond the mirror and through the window, my eyes focused in on what Dom had seen.

It was Brian, walking hand-in-hand with a new woman.

The 'Dom and Brian relationship' that all of us had hoped would last had fallen apart just weeks before. Dom never actually told us what happened, brushing it off as though it were just one of her usual flings. Brian himself had told Scorpius simply, 'We're a bit too different from each other'. Their excuse was too glossed over to be reality, everyone knew that, however stubborn Dominique was not one to open up when she didn't want to and we all knew not to poke the bear too hard when she shut off.

I couldn't help but notice how similar this girl was to Dominique, honestly. Jet black hair, slender limbs yet still curvaceous - though not nearly as feisty as Dom regularly looked. The new pair continued walking, smiling widely at one another and playing with each other's hands until they were out of our sight.

By the time I had looked back, Dom had vanished from the seat.

Slipping my robe back on and excusing myself from the room, I went out of the store to find her. Leaning against the side wall of the dress shop, Dom stood with her head down to the ground, her dark hair covering her face.

I treaded carefully, starting with a simple, "Hey."

Her head snapped up in fright. "Wh- oh. Hey Rose."

"Are you alright?"

"Yeah fine," she said with a shaking voice and running nose, "Why wouldn't I be?"

Without saying anything, I pulled Dom into a tight hug. I could feel her tears on my robe. I said nothing, I knew she needed this.

"It's hard to put yourself out there and get pushed away," she whispered sadly. "I just didn't know it could feel like this. I'm so mad at myself for being upset."

"Hey," I whispered softly, "It's okay to be hurt from this."

Dom sniffed loudly, "I really liked him Rose. I thought I might have even loved him. It was awful, I hated feeling that way. It was obviously bad for me to have those feelings, because he- he left."

"He broke it off?" I questioned, amazed at the truth she was confessing.

She nodded sadly, "That never happens to me. I guess it's karma right? After all this time, all these guys I've used, I finally found out what that feels like."

"It's not bad karma Dom, it's unrequited feelings. Unfortunately it happens to the best of us. If Brian couldn't handle being with such an amazing person like you, then there's obviously someone better out there for you. You're a strong woman, I know you can get through it."

As though she had realised how out of character her outburst was, Dom promptly stepped out of my hug and wiped her eyes dry. Almost instantly, her face transformed back to it's usual look of stony composure, and she shrugged, "Anyway, I'm fine with it. You don't always get what you want, do you?"

I had always admired her ability to put on a brave face. Smiling sadly, I questioned, "Are you going to be okay at this wedding? Because he's not family, I can easily get Scorp to boot him out."

Dom laughed at my drastic offer, "I will be fine. Besides, you're not throwing your fiancé's best man out of your wedding."

"I'd do it for you," I said confidently, causing Dom to shake her head, a small smile on her face.

"Look I'll keep it in mind but trust me, I can handle this. It's me."

I knew beneath her mask there was a wave of doubt crossing over her, but for her benefit, I nodded and gave her one last hug. "You're a tough one Dom."

"Of course I am," she smiled weakly. Taking a step further away from me, Dom brushed her hair back behind her ears and huffed, "Now, if you don't get your skinny little arse back in this dress shop, I will bitch slap you. You need to find a bloody dress already, you're driving me mad!"

Thankfully, mum and Astoria didn't make comment on Dom's sudden departure from the room. I knew they wanted an explanation, both of them had their own distinct raise-of-the-brow look as we reentered. Still, they kept quiet as I flashed them my 'not now' look. Besides, I knew neither woman was game enough to question Dominique Weasley when she was in a state like that. When we were all composed again, I continued trying on the dresses as though nothing had happened.

"I thought this was going to be a bit more exciting," I sighed, stepping out to my judges in a another unappealing dress, "But this is exhausting."

"It will be worth it when you find the right one Rose!" mum smiled, though her nose scrunched at my current gown, "But maybe that's not it."

"Can I just wear a white garbage bag or something? This is torture!"

Dom laughed loudly from her chair. "I dare you. But seriously Rose, keep going. The more time you waste moping, the less time you have to find your garbage bag."

I poked my tongue out at her childishly before I once again returned to the changing room. I was down to my final few dresses, and boy was I going to be relieved when I left this place. I slipped into a full dress with a strapless sweetheart neckline and a fancy embellished belt.

"You ready?" I called.

"Yes, come out already!" Dom called.

Once it felt in place, I left the change room to see the dress in the mirror and show it to my group. As I stood in front of them for the first few seconds, only two words were spoken.

"Holy fuck!"

Not even mum chastised Dom for her language.

We all stared at the dress in silence. It was stunning. The neckline showed off my collarbone, with a hint of cleavage that would be deemed acceptable. The lace bodice hugged my waist, while the waist belt was glistening with blinding crystals. The dress had a full gown skirt with a slight train that was scattered with small crystals itself.

"Rose, it's perfect!" Astoria gushed.

I spun around a few times, mesmerised by way the dress moved and sparkled. Everything bout it felt right, it showed off all my right features and hid the ones that needed to be concealed. I could feel my stomach flipping and my heart fluttering, and I knew I could see myself walking down the aisle to Scorpius in it. This was the one; this was my wedding dress.

"You've never looked more beautiful sweetie," mum smiled.

"It's the one. I know it."

Mum and Astoria beamed proudly at me, while Dominic cheered loudly,

"Finally!"

JUNE, ANTARES 11 MONTHS

"Rose!"

I sighed with frustration as I heard my name. "What?"

"Come quickly!" Scorpius called from downstairs.

Stepping out of the shower with water still in my eyes, I fumbled for a towel, still annoyed that I was being interrupted after only a short while. I had just finished cleaning up the dishes from the meal that I had cooked for us and Scorpius couldn't even give me five minutes in the shower without needing me.

I called out, "Why?" and awaited an annoying request, until I heard his next words.

"Tares is about to walk!"

I froze, but then a second later I screeched, "What?!"

"He's gonna walk Rose get down here!"

"Fuck," I muttered as I flung the towel around my body and whipped the door open simultaneously.

With lightening speed I fled down the stairs. My heart was pounding with excitement. My boy was going to walk! My precious little prince, after months of practise and praise, was going to walk! And if I didn't hurry my arse up I was going to miss it all!

"No he's not, he is not!" I screamed, "make him wait!"

As I flew around the corner of the living room door I watched Antares fall into Scorpius' arms with a giggle.

"That's it little man, you walked! Good job!"

My heart plummeted.

"Dada!" Tares cheered happily.

"Di-did I miss it?" I began slowly.

Scorpius looked apologetic, though the excited smile wasn't leaving his face, "I'm sorry Rose, he was on a roll, I couldn't stall him!"

"Bloody Merlin," I growled under my breath before I whined loudly and stomped my foot childishly, "I missed his first steps!"

Scorp nodded before confessing proudly, "They were pretty good first steps too!"

"Dada dada!" Tares cheered once again.

I knelt down on the ground, one arm holding my towel together, the other reaching for my son. "Antares, wanna walk to mummy?"

Scorpius held Antares up to prepare him, before he carefully let go of his arms. Instead of walking, or even taking a single step, Antares bounced up and down on the spot twice before falling over with a thud, which was then followed by a fit of giggles. I let out a disappointed sigh before I pulled myself off the ground and recovered my slipping towel.

"I think he's a bit worn out babe," Scorpius laughed, "I'll put him to bed yeah? You go enjoy your shower."

With that Scorpius picked up Antares, and with a kiss on the forehead from Scorp and a hug from Tares, they both vanished and left me to be my sad, puffed out self.

That night as Scorpius slipped in to bed, I couldn't help but bring up my disappointment once again. Turning to face him, the first words I said were, "I can't believe I missed his first steps."

Scorpius laughed in a way that told me he knew those exact words were coming. He wrapped his arms around me and pulled me into a cuddle. I rested my head on he chest as he breathed, "Cheer up baby, you got the first smile and you were the first word, I had to get something to myself!"

"Still, I wanted the steps. I wanted it all!"

"We'll get him walking for you tomorrow yeah? I can pretend it's his first time if you want me to?"

I snorted, "It wouldn't be the same, I know it's happened now."

Scorp laughed once more, finding my disappointment amusing for some sick reason. "Cheer up Rose, it'll still be exciting the second time, and the third, and fourth and fifth-"

"-Okay I get it!" I silenced him before he could annoy me further. Scorpius chuckled and kissed my forehead as an apology. Sighing into his chest, I muttered, "Can you believe he'll be a year old soon? One whole year since we had him, that's crazy."

"You know what's crazy? I can't keep my hands off this sexy body of yours."

Pulling his lingering hands off my bum, I sat up to make eye contact. "Oi, I'm trying to have a conversation about our son here."

With a smirk, Scorpius replanted his hands where they were. "We have plenty of conversations about him, let's have a conversation about how sexy you look right now."

"Scorpius," I whined slowly, though I couldn't hide my smirk, "Stop it."

After planting a delicate kiss on my collarbone, Scorpius whispered huskily, "Make me."

And with those words, we both knew he had me.

SCORP'S POV

JULY, ANTARES 1 YEAR OLD

"The Canons have had a fine year thank you very much!"

"I'm just saying," dad smirked at Ron across the kitchen bench, "They haven't done particularly well, Weasley."

Albus snorted, "You got that right, we crushed them this year!"

"You stay out of this Potter!" Ron huffed.

It was Antare's 1st birthday party. The whole Weasley/Potter/Malfoy/etc. clan was once again enjoying celebrations at our house, just as they had a year ago before mostly everyone got drunk and Rose decided to go into labour during the 'after party'. This time though, no one seemed to be congratulating or celebrating me for my birthday; the focus was all on Tares.

Fair enough, I guess a 25th birthday can't compete with a 1st birthday. However I was making an effort to point out to everyone that the invitation did state "Antare's First (and Scorp's 25th) Birthday Party" therefore I deserved as much attention as those brackets allowed me.

Unlike our last event, Rose had made the decision to ban all alcohol. "It's an infant's first birthday party for Merlin's sake! Drink juice or water!" She exclaimed when her cousins complained. Instead of a bar, we had a table of juice, cordial, soft drink and water. I had heard a rumour about a secret stash of alcohol being near the pool, however that was confidential information.

Yet even those without knowledge of the alcohol still found ways to create drama an entertainment, as were Ron and Draco currently. They were meant to be on good terms right? Yes, but that didn't mean they ceased all rivalling, especially when it came to quidditch and specifically Ron's struggling team.

"Out of the 24 games you had last season, how many did you win?" dad smirked.

Ron narrowed his eyes at dad before he muttered, "I think it was about eight or something."

"I'm sorry, how many Weasley?"

"Eight okay Malfoy! It was eight! But we are still a fierce team!"

Dad laughed, obviously enjoying bringing Ron down, "And this season? You've got three out of eight games so far, right?"

"You're right Draco," Al chuckled, "And us Puddlemere's have snagged seven of our eight!"

"Harry, get your son out of here will you?"

Harry was holding baby Alexander in his arms when he approached the hostile males. Much like Ron and dad, Harry was a proud grandparent, always toting Alex Potter around to show off his little grandson. "Easy fixed Ron. Albus, take the baby and get out of here."

Al's eyes lit up with excitement as Alex was passed over to him. Alex had a full head of thick black hair, like his father, and warm brown eyes. He was a very loud baby, so for him to be asleep throughout the party was a blessing for everyone, especially his parents who could barely get a word out over their noisy kid.

I don't know what it was, but something about babies left Albus a pathetic, sappy mess. When he wasn't causing trouble, getting drunk or trying to convince his girlfriend to have a baby, he would be playing with a baby. Was it creepy? Sure, but it was effective in keeping him out of trouble, and honestly he was a pretty handy babysitter.

"What are they fighting about?" Harry asked me, his eyebrow raised quizzically.

"Quidditch."

"Oh, of course."

Ron flapped his arms up and down, "We aren't having this fight again Malfoy, my team will show you. One day, we'll come out on top and you'll be sorry when you don't score tickets to the games!"

"Oh yeah, because I'd be coming to you for my quidditch tickets would I?"

"When we're the top team of the season you will be! Don't make me break our nose!"

Draco laughed, slapping his hands on the table, "I'm a healer you baboon, I could fix a nose break with my eyes closed!"

"Oi, break it up fellas," Harry smirked, "It's a first birthday party, this conversation seems a little heated. Go back to talking about something you both love, like your grandson or something."

"Well, funny you mention Antares Harry, because d'you know what he recently starting doing? He starting walking!" Ron beamed proudly.

"And he even started calling me Pa!" Draco grinned with the same look of pride.

"Me too! How clever is he?"

Suddenly the two full-grown men were deep into a conversation about my son, talking as though they were best friends and not sworn enemies. The dynamics of their relationship were beyond anything I could ever comprehend. One minute they couldn't even stand to be around each other, the next they were giggling like two school girls together.

"I don't get these two."

Harry chuckled at my stunned response, "It's just years of built up rivalry and differences that were cut short by having a sudden similarity. My guess is these mood swings won't ever stop. As long as you keep their attention on their grandson they'll be fine."

Before I could reply, I felt a strong hand grasp my shoulder and reef me around to face its owner. It was Dom, and she looked pissed. Harry and I both shared a look of confusion, both of us furrowed our brows at the witch before I questioned her.

"Uh, something wrong?"

"You invited Brian?!" Dominique screeched in my ear.

I searched around the room for my friend, but I couldn't see him. Judging by this outburst though, I was assuming he had definitely arrived. "Uh, yes Dom, I invited my best friend to my birthday party," I frowned. I knew they had broken up - and mind you, that was months ago - but I didn't realise Dom would be so enraged by his presence still.

With a huff she muttered darkly, "You keep him away from me this afternoon or you'll both be sorry."

Without explanation Dom scurried off to the living room. Perfect timing for her, actually, because Brian entered from the back yard at that moment. He held a gift in one hand and used the other to wave me over to him.

"Hey mate, happy birthday," Brian smiled once I approached him. "Where's the better birthday boy though? I've got a present for him!"

As he held up the boxed gift I frowned, "Where's my present?"

"Sorry mate, Antares is my favourite Malfoy so he gets a gift, not you."

My frown didn't move, "What happened to our life long friendship? Did that mean nothing once I brought a cuter Malfoy into the world?"

"I'm just kidding you emotional bitch, I got you a bottle of fire whiskey. I kept it at home though, I was afraid Rose would hex me if I brought it to this 'alcohol-free' event."

"Safe call," I smirked as we both looked across at Rose who was helping Antares open more gifts.

"By the way, is Dominique here?"

"No, I-I haven't seen her," I said quickly.

His eyes kept scanning the room for signs of his ex-lover. "Hmm, I would've sworn she'd be here. If she does show up, tell her I'd love to talk to her, see how she's going and all, you know?"

I nodded, "Will do, enjoy the party."

After socialising a while more, I walked through the house to find where Antares had been planted. I passed the older group of males who seemed to be talking about the ministry, Rose was in the kitchen serving food with the help of our mothers and her grandma Molly. I was watching Dom play a very interesting game of hide and seek with confused Brian, and Albus was holding Alex in the middle of of a group of clucky females while they all fawned over him.

When I walked into the living room, I noticed another group of people. Fred, Hugo, Lily, Molly, Lucy and Louis were all seated in a circle, calling out directions to a much littler person in the middle.

Lucy called to my son, "Walk this way Tares, come on."

Tares took a few confident steps towards his cousin. "Woah, he walks! He's like a real person!" Fred exclaimed excitedly.

"He is a real person you tosser!" Lily rolled her eyes. "Come here Tares, come to Lils!"

"No come to Uncle Hugo!"

"Shove off Hugo I was here first!" Molly growled as she pushed Hugo out of the way.

Poor little Tare's turned in a circle, confused at where to walk with everyone calling his attention. I could see his bottom lip dropping as he tried to make his decision and his blue eyes were filling with tears. Before the bomb could be detonated, I scooped him up out of the fighting ring and into my arms where he instantly relaxed.

"Oi! No fighting over the birthday boy!" I frowned at the bunch. "One at a time."

"I shotgun!"

"Yes, shotgun my baby, good job Hugo," I rolled my eyes, but I still passed him to his uncle. "Please remember he is a person and not a toy."

Hugo gave a lopsided grin, "But he is small and fun to play with!"

"Not a toy," I repeated sternly, trying hard to hold a serious expression.

Lily snorted, "Gee Scorp, your dad voice could give Rose's mum voice a run for it's money."

"I don't have a dad voice."

"Yes you do," everyone said simultaneously.

I crossed my arms over my chest and grumbled, "You kids need to stop being so damn childish."

"Roger that, dad!"

"Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you, happy birthday to Antares and Scorp, happy birthday to you!"

"Happy! Happy!" Antares cheered excitedly on my lap while I assisted in blowing out the candles.

When the clapping died down, James cleared his throat. "I'd like to give a toast."

I nodded, "Sure James."

"You know what goes well with a toast? Alcohol."

"Toast with your juice!" Taylah glared at her husband, earning her an approving nod from Rose.

"Well okay then. I just wanted to say congratulations to Antares for surviving his first year of life, but more importantly we should congratulate Rose and Scorp for not killing him in his first year of life." Our family members laughed while Rose and I shared wry smiles with each other. "This little man has already won the hearts of every person in this room, I can't wait to see how he goes with the hearts at Hogwarts."

"Whatever he does, your son will be right behind him James!" Ginny warned him to be careful with his jokes, not that he seemed phased.

"True, let's hope Tares does well in that department then," James avoided Rose's glare at his suggestion. "Anyway, here's to Antares - the boy who couldn't wait the two minutes it took to be born on the same day as his dad. And here's to Scorp, who's birthday will forever be the shadow of his sons. Happy birthday to Scorp and Tares!"

"Here here!" everyone laughed and cheered as they pretended to enjoy their non-alcoholic drinks.

"Thanks for all coming to celebrate guys. We're really glad you all made it," Rose beamed at everyone as she began cutting the cake.

"Look out, the next cake you'll be cutting will be your wedding cake!" Astoria chirped excitedly.

"Yeah," Rose breathed anxiously. "There's still a lot to do before we think about that though Astoria."

Mum gave her a comforting hug, "Don't go worrying about it Rose, it will all come together in no time!"

"As long as I'm marrying Rosie and she hasn't been turned into some bridezilla by the time we make it to the big day, I'll be happy," I smirked at Rose who held up her wand threateningly.

"You watch it mate, or I'll show you bridezilla right now," she spoke so innocently it terrified me more than if she had yelled her response.

"I think it's too late mate," James chuckled nervously before Rose sent a hex his way.

"It's like watching a dramatic, silent film."

"Are they fighting or preparing for sex? I honestly can't tell."

I was standing by the backyard window with Rose, our first solitary moment of the day when we saw Dominique drag Brian outside where they too could have a solitary moment. Though, their's seemed to involved a great deal of yelling, flailing arms and threatening each other with their wands. Without knowing what they were saying, their body language only became all the more interesting.

"At least they're trying to sort it out, I guess," Rose shrugged, her eyes not moving from the couple outside.

"You reckon they're about to make up?" I asked hopefully.

"It kinda looks like it."

At that moment Brian pulled Dom in for a fierce kiss. They held each other tightly while their mouths fought intensely together. Brian held his arms around her waist while Dom fisted his hair with her hands. The intensity of their actions started to worry me for I thought they might actually begin fucking on our back lawn.

Then suddenly, as though reality had hit her, Dominique took a step back and swung her arm to collide with Brian's face. Rose and I simultaneously winced and groaned at the obvious pain in that slap, though neither of us rushed out to their aid. However Dominique promptly apparated without another word or action, leaving Brian a weeping mess, clutching his throbbing cheek with his hand.

"Maybe not."

"She's really good at that slap," I blurted out honestly.

Rose laughed, "Man, you didn't see it when it was Poppy's face, that was on a whole other satisfying level."

"So you reckon they'll be okay for the wedding?"

Rose snorted, shaking her head quickly. "No, but I don't think we can fix that anyway."

"Should I go see if he's okay?"

"You know, I'm sure Dominique wouldn't waste a slap like that on someone who didn't deserve it. I'd leave him be."

As we spoke more about the odd relationship dynamic we had just witnessed, Taylah approached us. "Now that was quite a show out there wasn't it? Dom sure knows how to put a guy in his place," Taylah smiled before her face took on full seriousness, "by the way, have either of you seen my son?"

"Have you tried checking with the baby hoarder Albus?"

Rose gasped, "Where is Antares? How haven't I noticed he was missing?"

"Bad parenting?" I smirked at my frantic redhead.

"Oh sure it is," Taylah chuckled, "Not anything to do with the fact that this house if full of noisy, crazy family members who kidnap the younger children at any opportunity?"

"I'll take that excuse," Rose smirked against her glass of water.

"Come on Rose, let's not risk a bad mother reputation and go find our kids."

I followed the girls through the house I search of our children. They weren't far away in the end, they had been captured and taken upstairs to the second lounge where the play pen was. The culprit of course was Albus Potter, accompanied by his blonde girlfriend, Ashley. Ashley held baby Alex up in her arms while Al played on the ground with Tares.

Obviously not noticing our presence, Al gushed, "Look at us Ash, one adorable, happy family. I think Tares and Alex could even pass as our children."

"True, except that Tares is a complete copy of his father."

Al sighed though his eyes twinkled with mischief, "You're right, we'd never get away with the kidnapping."

"Oh please," Ashley rolled her eyes at her boyfriend, "You are not kidnapping your own relatives."

"Fine, I'm just borrowing them for a while then." Albus continued to play with Tares on the ground, passing him a variety of toys which he would play with for a few seconds and the get bored of them.

She raised her eyebrow with curiosity, "For what purpose exactly?"

"For long enough until you realise you want one for yourself," Al grinned playfully before Ashley swatted him away.

"I've told you Al, I do want one. I just want other things more first."

"Like what?"

"Ladies, I've got this," I cleared my throat to save Ashley from answering, put on my best auror voice and extended my wand. "Hand the children over Potter and we'll spare you."

Al instantly raised his hands in surrender, his eyes wide with fear. "It wasn't me! It was Ash's idea!"

"Ashley kidnapped my baby?" Taylah shook her head in disbelief.

Ash stood up and passed Alex in his mothers arms before turning to kick Albus in the backside. "Tell the truth you coward! I've basically been held captive up here by you too."

With a groan and one hand clutching his sore bum, Albus stood up and confessed, "Okay okay, it was me, as usual. Sorry to scare you guys."

"You took my son away from his own birthday party you sod!" Rose used her mum voice on her fearful cousin. "Could you at least leave him alone until it's over?"

"Does that mean I can have him back afterwards?"

Rose nodded briefly, accepting that Al's obsession with children wasn't subsiding any time soon. With a small what I'm positive was a 'yippee' noise, Al fist pumped the air with joy. I on the other hand, shook my head in disbelief.

"Albus, my son is not a toy!"

Damn it, it seemed that my dad voice was real and it was here to stay.

ROSE'S POV

EARLY OCTOBER

Our wedding plans were well set in stone. Flowers were on order, dress was fitted, appointments were booked - even the chairs and alter at the manor gardens were set up ready for the big day. The letters were flooding through the house rapidly, with the musicians, photographers, caterers, you name it, all finalising our requests and ensuring our day would go off without a hitch. Amazingly, everything had been going to plan.

Thank was, until I found myself alone in my bathroom one sunny afternoon.

I stared down at the potion bottle, my stomach flipping with a mixture of emotions. Pink. I'd had my suspicions, I knew the symptoms, and my gut feeling was proven to be correct when the liquid transformed into this familiar shade.

"Scorpius!" I bellowed from the ensuite once my thoughts were barely sorted. Instantly, I heard his footsteps up the stairs, followed by the opening and closing of the baby gate at the top of the stairs, indicating he had brought Tares with him.

Great, he protected himself with my baby. That prick.

He popped his head into the bathroom, Antares resting on his hip also peered in curiously. "Yes love?"

"Mummy!"

"Hello my prince," I smiled at my son. "Come here."

Without speaking to Scorpius, I plucked Tares from his arms and carried him out to his play pen in our bedroom. I left the door open so we both had vision on our baby - who was finding entertainment just walking around the pen in circles - but with a flick of my wand I cast a silencing charm over the bathroom to protect his little ears from what was about to escape me.

"You fucker!"

"What?" Scorpius frowned, surprised by my inappropriate language.

I gave him a rough slap on the bicep. "You complete idiot! You are in so much trouble!"

He raised his hands in defence, genuinely confused by my behaviour. "What have I done?"

I thrust the bottle into his hand without saying a word. I watched his face pale as he read it. "Oh."

"'Oh' is right mister. You are in huge trouble."

Eyes nearly bulging out of his head, he scoffed, "Me?"

"Yes you!"

His brows furrowed together before he asked seriously, "Why am I in trouble for this?"

"Because I told you to be careful with this! I told you to stop seducing me spontaneously! But no, you persisted with your seduction and got me all caught up with sex and satisfaction and you didn't listen and now look!"

Scorpius had recently taken a liking to having me in every available moment. He blamed it on "wedding jitters" whereas I knew he was just being a very horny guy. Sure, I loved it. I loved being taken on the desk, or the lounge or in the shower - don't judge me - but I also loved not having to look at this potion. And I loved the times when I wasn't being sick each morning.

He looked down at the bottle once more, shaking the potion slightly before he looked up at me with wide eyes, as though the news had only just sunk into his brain. "We're having a baby?"

There it was. I was pregnant. Again. Merlin sure couldn't give me a break, could he?

Scorp's soft tone cut my anger short, causing me to drop my flailing hands down to my hips and mutter, "It appears that way, yes."

We both stared at each other for a moment, unsure of what to say. What could be said between the two of us? Somehow, through a mix of passion and foolishness, we'd let history repeat itself. It wasn't entirely Scorpius' fault either, I know. I had a big part in this, but I couldn't believe even I had let this slip again. As I was about to break the silence, Scorpius' shocked expression suddenly morphed into one of pure happiness, a smile larger than ever spreading on his face.

"We're having another baby!" he pulled my body against his own, his excited eyes staring in to my own confused ones. Holding me in a tight hug, Scorpius lifted me from the ground slightly.

"Yes but-"

I was silenced with a deep kiss that seemed to radiate Scorpius' excitement into me. Taking a hold of the back of my head, Scorpius gently pushed me against the tiled wall to continue kissing me fiercely. Moving his hands around my waist, I found myself getting lost in his seduction, as usual, but I resisted taking the kisses further. His reaction astonished me, even made my heart flutter with it's own excitement, as I hadn't imagined his first reaction being to pounce on me like that. Scorpius began planting soft little kisses down my neck and across my chest before he came back up to my mouth to silence my protests once more.

When he broke away, he gushed, "-Another kid Rose? This is great! A little brother or sister for Tares! Another beautiful, wonderful child Rose! That's not such a bad thing is it?"

I stared at him in disbelief. There was no way I imagined this conversation taking this dramatically positive turn. "Did you do this to me intentionally?" I narrowed my eyes at him, growing suspicious. "Because you're far too happy for this to be an accident."

He rolled his eyes at me, still holding his smile. "No, I did not purposely knock you up. Since when have I ever knocked you up on purpose?" He grinned as my eyes grew narrower. "But hey, who cares? You're pregnant, with my baby, again!"

"Since when have you wanted another kid?" I frowned.

Releasing me from his tight embrace, he shrugged as if it was the most simplest topic we'd shared, "Since when haven't I? Of course I want another baby with you! I know we didn't exactly plan this, but there's no way I'm not being happy about it. Why? Don't you want another kid?"

It wasn't that I didn't want the baby. Truth be told, I was absolutely ecstatic over the thought of giving Tares a sibling. Since the day I first noticed my period was late, my mind had drifted through fantasies of our growing family, and I couldn't be happier. That was, until I remembered my upcoming events and obligations, and the timing of my pregnancy couldn't have been more inconvenient.

"I was hoping to be married first, like we planned! By the way, have you forgotten our wedding is in 2 weeks?"

Scorpius let out a loud laugh, before covering his mouth with his hand upon seeing my bewildered expression. "Sorry babe, it's just, we never do things right, do we?"

I sighed, before I took a seat on the closed toilet lid. "I'm going to be pregnant on my wedding day."

"That's not a bad thing. I mean, you'll be pregnant with my baby, nothing would look more gorgeous to me."

I rolled my eyes at his cheesy line. "Scorpius, seriously. We've already got a baby to look after and we're about to get married. Are we going to handle having a second child so soon?"

"I think we can," he flashed me a grin, "We've done alright with the first kid, look at him, he seems almost normal."

At that moment as I peered around the doorway I caught my one year old repeatedly banging his head against the playpen wall, laughing at himself each time he did so. "Oh yeah, he's totally fine."

Scorpius laughed at our child before he left the bathroom to go collect him. Scorpius let Antares run over to me steadily, a big smile on his face as I caught him. "Mumma up!"

I picked him up and gave him a kiss on the forehead. Looking into his bright blue eyes, I felt the excitement of the situation bubble inside of me. Whispering gently, I finally revealed the news aloud, "Guess what Tares? Mumma's going to have another baby. You're going to be a big brother."

"Mummy," he smiled widely, though he obviously didn't understand the significance of my words.

"I can't believe you're pregnant," Scorpius had a small, proud smile on his face as he whispered this.

I brushed Tares' blond hair curls off of his forehead and reciprocated Scorp's smile, though my brows soon furrowed with worry, "I can't believe we're going to have another baby already."

"I can't believe we're going to have to tell our families that we've done this again."

I let out a nervous chuckle. "We never do things right do we?"

"Never."

SCORP'S POV

MID OCTOBER

My life was very, very good.

I was going to be a father again.

I was insanely happy about having another baby, more than I let on. Sure, it meant we'd yet again have to tell our families and go through the emotional and physical changes that a baby created, but if it meant I got another kid to play with, I was willing to take it all on.

Rose was still fretting, not only because Tracey had told us she was already 8 weeks along, but because our wedding was just days away.

That's right, in just 3 days, Rose Weasley was going to be my wife.

Did I mention I was going to be a dad again?

We'd agreed to keep the pregnancy a secret until the wedding was over; Rose didn't need any more stress and we didn't need our families having another freak out like the first time, especailly when it had all been running so smoothly. It was super hard to hold down my excitement though. At every moment, I wanted to scream and shout out the news to everyone. Rose on the other hand, was quiet content on keeping very, very quiet.

I got home from my last suit fitting around 6pm to find Rose taking a pizza out of the oven. Before she found out she was pregnant, Rose was trying some ridiculous diet to keep her body in shape, yet now that she knew she was once again eating for two, she let her cravings manifest. I was more relieved; I didn't have to sneak to the store after work to eat junk anymore.

"Hey baby mumma," I grinned as I wrapped my hands around her waist to rest on her flat stomach and planted some slow kisses down her neck.

Rose jumped out of my grasp and gave a slap on the wrist. "Scorpius be quiet! Someone might hear you!"

I looked around the room, only to find us and Antares who was content playing in his play pen. "Who? Our one year old son?"

"Scorp, the wedding is this Saturday, we have people coming in and out of the house all the time. I don't want to risk someone finding out the we are preg-"

"-Hey guys! How's the happy couple?"

Rose gave me the most outraged glare that basically screamed I told you so at me as her dad entered the kitchen. "We're great Ron, how are you?"

"Perfect. Rose, your mother sent me over to take the dresses to the Manor."

"You're going to the Manor?" Rose asked with shock.

Ron frowned with confusion, "Uh yes? That is where the wedding is being held and where your dresses need to go to be ready for the big day, right?"

"B-but you're going there now? Before the big day? You're actually going there voluntarily?"

Ron snorted, "Well, I am being told to go there by my wife, but I am quite content in going there now before the wedding, if that's what your asking?"

Rose shrugged, "I just thought you said you'd never step foot in that place again? I thought you said the gardens was as far as you'd go at the Malfoy estate?"

"Well things have changed, like the fact that you are getting married there and I want to see you before you come out to the gardens on Saturday," Ron shrugged with a small grin, "The past is the past Rose. If you mother is happy to go there, I am too."

Rose and I both smiled gratefully before I spoke sincerely, "Thank you Ron, that means a lot to me. I did try to make her pick another location though, to be fai-" Rose silenced me with a jab in the ribs.

"No no, the Manor was a great choice, it'll be very… nice?" he struggled to find an appropriate word.

Rose walked over to give her dad a quick but appreciative hug. "Thanks for doing this dad."

"No trouble. Besides, Astoria makes these amazing cookies, I've never had anything like them! She said there'd be some there when I arrived. Don't tell you mother though, Rose. And if Draco asks, my wife makes better cookies than his."

I watched Rose roll her eyes at his childish competition before she led him up the stairs to collect the dresses.

While Ron and Rose were busy, I worked on spoon feeding a very grumpy boy in his high chair. Tares definitely wasn't happy that I took him out of his playtime to eat, and was showing his displeasure by spitting out every spoonful of purse I fed him.

"Come on Tar, eat the food!" I coaxed him, "don't you want to be a big strong boy?"

"Uhh-ah," he grumbled, spitting up more down his chin.

I wiped it off and tried again, "You need to eat so you can be big and strong when you new little brother or sister arrives. I want you to be able to crush any bullies and pummel any boys for them. Now come on, eat the food!"

Nothing was going to make this kid budge. I decided to surrender, taking him out of his high chair and letting him run over to his play area. Rose and Ron came down stairs, followed by a levitated stack of dresses.

"Don't look! You can't see my dress yet!" Rose warned as she came over to block my eyes with her hands.

"I'll see you tomorrow Rosie! Bye bye Tares, a kiss for grandpa?" I heard Ron called, follow by a loud 'mwah' sound which was sure to be a big sloppy kiss from my son. "Oh and bye Scorp!" He added.

Although I couldn't see him I gave him a nod and a wave, "See you tomorrow Ron."

After the door closed Rose finally released me and gave my sight back. When I stood up and faced her, her expression was less than impressed, her arms were crossed over her chest.

"That was so close, you idiot!" Rose growled at me, "what if he had heard?"

I shrugged and spoke honestly, "I would've told him that he would be walking two people down the aisle to me on Saturday."

Rose's face took on a look of pure disgust, "That sounds so disturbing, don't say that."

I cringed at my words before I tried again, "And then I would've rephrased my stupid sentence and congratulated him on being a granddad again."

Shaking her head, she sighed, "You are hopeless, you know that?"

"Hopeless for you baby," I flashed a grin and gave her a cheeky wink.

"Ugh, don't make me sick now!"

Wrapping an arm around her waist, I pulled her closer to me, enjoying her strawberry scented perfume as it wafted towards me. She was so beautiful. So very, very gorgeous that it took me all my strength not to pick her up and carry her straight to the bedroom to show her how very hopeless for her I really was.

Instead, I opted to focus on other things, whispering excitedly, "Can you believe this time Saturday, you'll be my wife?"

And true to her word, Rose promptly turned away from me and hurled a vomit into the sink.

Ah yes, she sure was ecstatic about marrying me.

Dun dun dun! Whoops, these two are like rabbits aren't they? Yep, she's pregnant again folks! Keep in mind it is over a year since Tares was born. Okay, you're either going to love or hate that plot twist, so let me know what you think! Please review! The wedding is up next, and I will have this story finished so soon it's crazy!

Love you all, Alicia xx