Chapter 7: Growing up

I don't own 'Harry Potter'

Harry stood up and walked across the room, looking down into the wide cot and grinning at the babies inside.

Really, they made a truly adorable picture.

Ascella, his little Elle, was lying next to Alphard's son Antares, the two Blacks holding hands as they kicked their little legs into the air while babbling in their usual nonsensical language. Next to them, Lucretia's twins were sleeping curled around each other, their deep red hair a massive contrast to the cream blankets and cushions surrounding the babies. Rounding off the group was Dorea's daughter, the poor little girl having the traditional Potter mane, brown hair so dark it was nearly black pointing in every direction.

Hogwarts was going to be so crazy when they all went together.

July and August had been pretty hectic months for the House of Black in terms of births. First, Lucretia had gone into labour while in the middle of an argument with her brother-in-law. Which honestly translated into Lucretia ripping into the idiot while her magic had been crackling throughout the room in preparation for cursing Silvius Prewett into oblivion. Twenty hours later, Harold and Meissa Prewett had been welcomed into the world.

Harry could admit that he'd had a bit of a lump in his throat after his sister-in-law told him that she was naming her children after him and Orion. All because Harry had given her that potion, and Orion had been her emotional rock ever since he was a child. 'Harold' for him, and 'Meissa' for being a star in the constellation Orion. It was beyond touching.

A mere eight days later, Alphard's body had decided to start the birthing process while he was in the middle of having sex with his husband. The Healer in Harry had told him that it was perfectly normal, seeing as sexual intercourse could release certain hormones that induced labour. The man in Harry had wanted to facepalm and laugh hysterically at such a ridiculous set of circumstances, especially as Harry had had to answer that particular floo call from a naked and stressed Gideon.

Definitely a night to remember, if nothing else.

Then of course Harry's contractions had started a month early, and he'd flooed Saint Mungo's for some of his favourite fellow Healers to come and give him a caesarean, because his body had not been up to a natural birth. Despite the pain and few days of bed rest, he'd gotten his beautiful daughter out of the ordeal, so Harry considered it to be a fairly good trade-off.

Finally, six days after Elle came into the world, Harry had visited the Potter residence to help Dorea deliver the first Potter daughter in five generations. Thalia Potter had arrived fairly quickly with minimal stress to Dorea, though the same couldn't have been said for her husband and son. Charlus' worry had been understandable to Harry; it had been difficult enough to have James for the couple, and a second child was somewhat terrifying. Harry hadn't quite been able to stifle his chuckles at James freaking out at his mother in the birthing bed, though. The teen had long since gotten used to the idea of being an only child, and the appearance of a sister had thrown him for a loop.

Though seeing as the brat now treated his sister like a literal Princess, he was clearly enamoured with the idea. Perhaps it would also teach him some responsibility?

Harry shook off the memories and wiggled his fingers above Thalia's face, grinning as the little girl grabbed his hand and stared into his face intently. He wouldn't be surprised if the school would finally be graced with a Slytherin Potter when she was eleven. The girl certainly seemed to be Dorea's daughter through and through despite her messy hair.

"Having fun, Uncle Harry?"

He extricated himself from the intelligent infant's grip and turned around, smiling at the young woman across the room.

"Always, Narcissa."

The blonde woman rolled her eyes but wandered over to the cot as well, peering down at her new cousins with a hint of yearning in her blue eyes. Harry snorted internally. If Fabian only wanted one child, then he was soon going to be in for a rude awakening.

"It's quite nice to see another blonde Black."

Harry held in his frown at the woman's neutral tone, but he knew full well what she was referring to. Her parent's marriage had been a disaster from the very start, and nearly all the blame could be laid at her mother's feet.

Druella Rosier had been a spoiled little brat, and she'd been betrothed to Cygnus when she was only ten, and him five. Of course, the tart had been discovered in bed with an older gentleman not long after her seventh year at Hogwarts began, so the marriage had hastily gone ahead with Cygnus only a mere twelve-years-old at the time. Their betrothal contract had been unbreakable, and neither the Blacks nor the Rosiers had wanted Druella to turn up pregnant with a bastard child, hence the quick marriage.

The girl had been pulled from Hogwarts and left in her new home to deal with her pregnancy with some help from the Blacks. Things might have gone differently if it weren't for the fact that she'd birthed Bellatrix, and not a son. As her children were to be the first of the next generation of Blacks, Druella had wanted sons to further her own position.

Andromeda's birth had only twisted the young woman's mind further.

Cygnus' unwanted wife had then gone on to have several affairs, leaving her daughters in the care of a multitude of elves while she slept with any man who would have her. She had fallen pregnant with Narcissa during Cygnus' summer break after his sixth year, but there had been many questions about the child's legitimacy at the time.

Even with the child appearing on the Black tapestry, and being born with the Black Family magic, many gossips had deemed the third daughter to be a bastard. Her not looking like a traditional Black hadn't helped. Narcissa's blonde hair and blue eyes were the mirror image of Druella, who had inherited the colouring from her own Malfoy mother. Considering one of Druella's many lovers had been her own cousin Abraxas Malfoy, it had unfortunately lent more credence to the theory of her illegitimacy.

Once Harry had arrived in the past, he'd told Orion and Arcturus about Druella's abhorrent treatment of her daughters. Druella had been the main driving force behind Bellatrix's insanity; the girl's formative years had been spent without Cygnus around because he'd been at school, and then she'd kept quiet about the torture in order to protect her sisters, even as her own mind had been further destroyed at the hands of her own mother.

Walburga hadn't been the only member of the House of Black to suffer an 'accident' after Harry's appearance.

Harry stayed silent but placed a hand on Narcissa's shoulder, squeezing gently. "You know, Lucretia might be my daughter's godmother, but she's got her own children to take care of now. Elle's going to need more than one female role model, and I think she'd be thrilled to be close to her Cousin Narcissa as she grew up. Or Aunt Narcissa as it might be because of the age difference."

The blonde woman looked him in the eye, a hint of shock in those blue depths that hurt Harry's heart. She didn't deserve to go through all that and end up so vulnerable.

"Do you mean that?" she asked, a hopeful note to her voice.

"Of course," Harry replied with a small smile. "Just because I love my daughter more than anything, doesn't mean that I'm going to be able to understand her perspective on certain things. From what I understand, only a woman can possibly understand a young girl's mind when it comes to a few topics," he teased gently, grinning as Narcissa's shoulders relaxed somewhat.

"Thank you, Uncle."

He pulled the blonde into his arms and hugged her. "You're welcome, Narcissa." He pressed a quick kiss to his niece's head then pulled back. "How are things going between you and Fabian?"

Narcissa blushed somewhat and fidgeted where she stood, the picture a far cry from the Narcissa of his previous timeline. Instead of a woman who'd deliberately retreated into an icy persona just to protect herself from all angles, here was an openly happy woman who had healthy relationships within her birth House and was willingly being courted by a cheerful former Gryffindor.

It was astounding what the removal of one awful woman could do.

"To be perfectly honest, Uncle, Fabian and I are doing much better than I could have possibly anticipated. We haven't told anyone else yet, but …"

She lifted her left arm and pulled down the oversized sleeve, exposing her pale hand and slender fingers. One of which was adorned with a breath-taking engagement ring studded with sapphires.

Harry beamed at her and hugged her tightly. "Congratulations! When did he ask you?"

Narcissa huffed a small laugh as she pulled back from the embrace. "Last night. He took me to the opera in Vienna." The blonde blushed lightly. "He asked while we were taking a walk after dinner."

Harry whistled, grinning as Narcissa's blush deepened. That man really went all out, didn't he? He hadn't expected Fabian to be that sort of man, but it seemed that the redhead was really committed to his niece. Which Harry approved of; she deserved to be treated like a treasured human being rather than a walking uterus to auction off as some people saw her.

"I'm happy for you, Narcissa. Have you thought at all about the wedding yet?"

She nodded with a smile. "We're going to wed on Beltane."

Traditional through and through. The festival which celebrated marriage, sex and fertility was a popular day for handfasting ceremonies, and invited blessings from Magic for a long-lasting union. It was a good choice.

"I can't wait," Harry said softly. They were a good couple.

Narcissa's eyes shone with happiness. "I'm going to tell everyone else at dinner tonight."

"That should get you some good reactions," Harry quipped with a grin.

The blonde woman's lips twitched upwards before she bid him goodbye and left the room, making sure to hide her ring once more. Harry shook his head and turned back to the five babies, all of whom were asleep now.

"Your cousin's going to give someone a heart attack soon, isn't she?"

Harry looked softly down at the sleeping infants before retreating back to the sofa and his glass of wine. He picked up his book and opened it to the appropriate page.

It was nice to have some peace and quiet.

I spoke too soon, didn't I?

Harry watched as his oldest paced back and forth across his bedroom, looking about as erratic as his older self had upon escaping Azkaban. The teen was muttering under his breath and running a hand through his curls every so often, sending them all over the place. Siri's face was set with a deep frown, his brows pulled together in his agitation, and he routinely gnawed at his bottom lip.

So much for a peaceful Yule.

"Siri? I know you said you wanted help, but I can't really do anything unless you tell me what's wrong."

His son let out a frustrated sound and collapsed on his sofa gracelessly, arms crossed and eyes on the floor.

Worried. Cautious. Defensive.

Harry's eyes narrowed at the position and moved to sit next to Siri, close but not touching. He didn't want to make the teen withdraw further into himself. If he wanted Siri to open his mouth and tell Harry what was going on, he was going to have to let his son come to him. He wasn't going to force him to speak; God only knew how terrible that would make things.

He let his gaze rove over Siri's room at Black Manor, spotting the few things gave the room personality, as opposed to the blank atmosphere of the guest rooms. A small stack of Quidditch magazines on the bedside table, a copy of a George Orwell novel next to them, his leather jacket hanging on a chair by the window, and a photo album on top of some parchment on the desk. It was tidier than Siri's room at Grimmauld Place, and a far sight better than the older Sirius's room had been. Then again, considering many of the older decorations had been there for no other reason than to spite Walburga, his son didn't exactly need them this time around.

"Papa?"

"Yes, Siri?"

Siri cleared his throat, swallowing a couple of times. "Do you … do you think it's – that it's too early to … to propose?" he asked in whisper, trailing off pitifully as he lowered his head even more.

Part of Harry wanted to smirk and tease his son about his love life, but the larger part needed to reassure him first. Harry would always put his children's happiness first.

He sighed and shifted closer to Siri, reaching out to pull the teen into a hug, one hand on the back of Siri's head to rest it on Harry's shoulder. He twisted his head a little to press a kiss to his son's curls as he rubbed Siri's back.

"Siri, it's your life, you know? If that's what you want to do, then I say go for it. You've been friends with Marlene for years already, and together for a year; you know better than anyone how she'll feel about it."

"… She said she'd want to get married soon after school," came the muffled response.

Harry hummed quietly. "As for proposing after only a year, you have nothing to be concerned about. You're making a decision based on true emotions. This isn't you making an arbitrary choice because of a whim. If that were the case, you wouldn't be as worried as you are. Your heart's in the right place, Siri.

"Your relationship with Marlene grew from friendship, so really and truly you aren't making a hasty decision," Harry explained patiently. "The two of you first met when you were eleven, right? You've had a long time to develop your relationship. To tell you the truth, you've done a lot better than your father. It was only thirteen months after I met Orion that he proposed," Harry said with a laugh, still somewhat disbelieving that their relationship had occurred so quickly, even all these years later.

Siri sat up and looked at him with wide eyes. "Thirteen months?! I didn't realise it was that quick!"

Harry grinned. "There wasn't even two years between our meeting and me giving birth to the twins."

His son looked bewildered and shook his head. "That's mental. I can't believe I didn't realise that until now. I know my memory of being six isn't that great, but I didn't realise it was that bad."

The time traveller chuckled softly and started stroking Siri's hair. "So, do you understand? If everyone could accept my relationship with Orion, nobody's going to say anything about you proposing to the girl you love after a whole year of being in a relationship. Your family are going to stand by you, Siri."

"Even if …" His son trailed off with an embarrassed flush, as if he were ashamed by his own thoughts. Hmm, I wonder …

"Is this because Marlene's a half-blood?"

Siri flinched slightly but nodded stiffly, clearly wanting an answer but desperate to escape the topic. Harry could understand the sentiment, even if he knew there was nothing to worry about.

"Sirius, neither Orion nor I care about that, you know? I myself am a half-blood because my mother was a muggle-born, and nobody has a problem with Andromeda's marriage to Ted. As for Marlene, she has three pure-blood grandparents, so she's close to being a pure-blood herself. It's only her muggle grandmother that makes her a half-blood. If you were to have children together, they would all be pure-bloods. That would quiet any naysayers, even if Orion and I don't care. Siri, you could marry a muggle for all I care, and all I would worry about would be your happiness. The same for your father. And if he didn't, then I'd hex him until he agreed," Harry added with a conspiratorial grin.

He smiled wider as Siri snorted with laughter, his face lighting up with a light-hearted grin. That was what Harry wanted to see. He hadn't been lying, either; Harry couldn't give a crap who his children ended up with, as long as they were happy and with people who cared about them.

Harry knew that Marlene cared about Siri, having viciously defended his son in public against some gossiping students who'd had a problem with his Black blood. The blonde girl had received detention, but had apparently simply put her nose in the air and questioned when exactly the school had started condoning bullying based on unsubstantiated prejudice.

He was quite looking forward to having her as a daughter-in-law. And Reg was a fantastic informant.

"So, any idea on when you're going to propose? Have you got a ring yet?"

Siri blushed at the questions, but the small smile indicated that he was happy about the idea of popping the question. First Reg gets betrothed, now Siri's asking his girlfriend to marry him. Merlin, my children are growing up too quickly.

"I was hoping to ask a few days after New Year's. I was going to invite her to the Kew Gardens for the day and have a picnic, then ask. Erm, I don't have a ring yet. I was hoping Dad might let me have a look in the vaults for one," he finished with a sheepish expression.

Harry laughed lightly. "Siri, I don't think you'll have a problem there. Come find the two of us after dinner and we'll sort it out together."

His son leaned forward and buried his face into Harry's chest, hugging him tightly.

"Thanks, Papa."

"It's no problem, Siri."

Harry kissed Siri's head again. "Just make sure you actually go to dinner. I'm sure you'll enjoy the surprise."

The teen pulled back and blinked silver eyes up at him. "Surprise?"

He tapped Siri on the nose. "Well, it wouldn't be much of a surprise if I told you now, would it?"

His son rolled his eyes. "You're awful, Papa."

Harry just chuckled, laughing even harder at the childish whine he got in return.

"Whatever. I know when my brilliant and curious mind isn't wanted," Siri sniffed dramatically, nose mockingly in the air. He looked like a complete and utter idiot. "I suppose I'll have to go and annoy Reg instead."

"Or you could go and stop your brother from hexing Alphard into oblivion for joking about his love life again," Harry countered dryly.

Siri just grinned. "He does kind of ask for it, doesn't he?"

His oldest son then kissed him on the cheek and stood up, running out the doorway like a loon, all the while waving behind him with no decorum whatsoever.

What strange children I have.

Harry stood up and made his way out his son's room, wandering down the hallway towards the window facing the grounds. He was admiring the falling snow when a pair of arms wrapped around his waist from behind. He leaned back and sighed in contentment.

Orion nuzzled his hair. "Do I even want to know why our oldest child just started running through the manor like he was being chased by the hounds of Hell?"

"He's excited."

"About what?"

Harry spun around and grinned up at his husband. "I hope you're prepared for two surprises tonight, Orion."

The taller man raised a brow, an amused glint in his silver eyes. "Two? Well, the night should be entertaining, at least." He paused and smirked down at Harry. "You're not pregnant again, are you?"

Harry poked the man in the chest, frowning playfully. "Don't even joke about that."

Orion just chuckled lowly, causing Harry to start laughing as well. He leaned forward and embraced his husband, closing his eyes and enjoying their moment together.

It really was nice to have some peace and quiet.

A/N: Sirius will always be a loveable idiot.