[Tom- 2011]
Late 2011
Thomas clasped Harry's hand tightly as they stood in the meadow where the Pavilion of Stars sat centre stage. The sky was clear, breeze chilly as it swept across the open space, ruffling their hair.
His husband was heavily pregnant with their tenth child, and Thomas stared down at him in awe. He was still staggered by how Harry seemed to grow more and more breathtaking with every year. His loss of youthfulness, now in his thirties, perhaps made Thomas even more enchanted than he had been those years ago now.
Harry sighed, captivating him further.
"I'm fat."
"Nonsense, Darling," Thomas was quick to rebuke. "You're perfectly rotund."
"Gee," His husband snarked, raising an unimpressed eyebrow. All it did was draw Thomas further into his eyes. "Way to make a man feel good about himself. You're supposed to say 'No, dear, I can barely see a bump. Are you even pregnant?'"
"But I love seeing you like this, swollen with my child and so utterly mine-"
Harry gagged, miming sickness. "Gross, chill with your creepiness."
He huffed, drawing back. "Where did you get such an expression from?"
The man rolled his eyes fondly. "Old man, you should listen to your kids sometimes. The mouth on Alsie, I'll never understand where she gets it from."
"Oh, I know exactly where." He smirked, leaning back with a chuckle as Harry smacked him. "I didn't say it was you."
He scoffed. "You implied it clearly enough-"
"Father!" A muffled shout reached their ears, and as a pair, they turned to watch their third child run across the field, blonde hair blowing about their face, causing them to splutter.
"Yes, darling?" He called back at them, waiting for them to come to a stop before him. They were panting heavily so unlike their usual put-together appearance. After a few moments, they straightened, staring up at him with bright blue eyes, full of conviction.
"Father, build me a Palace!"
Thomas raised his eyebrow, and his child continued.
"You built Allie her own, we're practically the same age! I want one, one with a big tower covered in roses, and a moat! Oh, and a drawbridge, and some stables for my horses, and-"
At his side, Harry chuckled quietly, nudging him. "I told you a Palace for a birthday present was too much."
"She turned twelve." He muttered. "I promised her I'd build one when she was double her age at six. And it's small, barely a true castle."
"Now you can promise Luce you'll build them one at twenty-two!"
"No!" Their child shouted, obviously overhearing them. "I turned eleven this year, I want a Palace!"
"You'll get your Palace,"
"Really?" Their eyes sparkled, and they clapped their hands gleefully. "Then-"
"When you are also twelve."
They threw their head back, groaning. "Ugh, that's ages away!"
"It will take time to plan and build, sweetheart," Harry gently comforted them as tears appeared in their eyes. "Won't it be fun helping with that?"
With a sniffle, they wordlessly nodded. Another shout had their heads lifting up, watching as a nearly identical form sprinted across the field.
"Luce!"
"Jem!" Their third shrieked as their elder sibling crashed into them, sending the pair toppling to the ground. A rip was heard. There were a few moments of silence as the pair stared at each other. Then-
"You absolute idiot! You've ripped my shirt!"
"Oops," Their second child grinned wolfishly, not sounding sorry in the slightest. Their green eyes, so alike Harry's own, sparkled with mischief, hidden by locks of blonde hair.
It had been a shock when they had been born with that hair, especially since both he and Thomas had hair as black as coal.
He had then remembered his Aunt, who he could barely picture now, with hair like straw. His children's hair was golden like the sun, their magic surely playing a part.
Thomas had been thrilled when their hair had begun to sparkle in such a way. Both had been further surprised when one morning their hair had turned a candyfloss pink, their twins' a brilliant blue.
Thomas refrained from rolling his eyes at the scene, keeping an arm around Harry as he began to berate the pair when they began fighting.
"Will you two stop it! Is this how royalty is supposed to behave?"
The pair stopped, looking up at them with glistening eyes. Their third child stuck their lip out in a pout, and Thomas had to stifle his chuckle in his palm before Harry's glare was turned upon him.
Harry simply raised his eyebrow at the pair, and with a sigh, they separated, although not without grumbling.
"No, Dad." "Sorry."
"That's what I thought. Now, run along, I'm sure you have better things to do than bother me and your father."
The pair shared a grin that was so similar to Harry's that it made Thomas' heart squeeze, and they ran off quickly just in case their Dad decided to change his mind.
"Don't encourage them." His husband turned to him then with a knowing look.
"I don't know what you mean, darling. I was supporting you the entire time."
The man scoffed, and the confident attitude Harry displayed towards him made Thomas somehow even further enamoured with him.
"After this one is born," Thomas wrapped an arm around his husband's middle, and the man quirked an eyebrow at him. "Can we try-"
"Absolutely not." Harry shut down the idea swiftly, frowning. "I was content with nine- Merlin, the triplets were almost too much to handle- ten is far more than enough children. Once this sweet darling is born, you can be the one to get pregnant."
Thomas considered the suggestion for a moment, calculating the logistics in his head.
"Perhaps-"
"You can't be serious." His husband deadpanned, looking unamused. "No more babies. We have enough for a small army as is. You have enough for an actual army."
Thomas pressed his lips to the man's cheek, delighting in the splutter and blush that spread tauntingly across his cheeks. "No more children, I promise you that. Unless-"
Harry cupped his cheek. "Darling, no."