When darkness return

Chapter 3

Scorpius found himself sitting in the couch watching TV, enjoying his last night before going back to work. A couple minutes later he heard his husband coming home. 

"Hey, honey!" Scorpius called.

Albus entered the living room. "Hey, handsome", he said and joined him in the couch followed by a kiss. "I've missed you."

"I've missed you too", Scorpius said.

"Packed Tori's trunk?" Albus asked.

"Yeah. She packed before she went to bed."

"Can't believe she's growing so fast", Albus said. "First year. Not so long ago she was only a baby."

"She was so tiny. And chubby."

Albus laughed. "Do you ever miss those days? Just holding her onto your chest. The wide smile she gave when we made those silly faces."

"Sounds like you're getting baby fever all over again."

Albus's smile faded a bit. "I mean I do miss those days. I just don't want Tori to feel like we're replacing her."

"It's not a replacement. It's more like a gift. The greatest gift ever."

"Easy for you to say. You were an only child", Albus said and took a deep breath. "I on the other hand, especially as the middle child, was rather left out most of the time. See I was only two when Lily was born, so I can barely remember what it was like before that. I mean, don't get me wrong. I love Lily and James a lot. I just don't want to give my own child the kind of childhood I had. And I know she's smart, and old enough to understand. I'm just not ready for it."

"That's alright", Scorpius said. "I'm not sure if I'm ready for another baby either."

Scorpius pulled his husband in for a hug enjoying their moment. They held each other for a bit before they heard some steps making their way down the stairs. They released each other and paid attention to the steps. In came Tori dressed in her niffler T-shirt and a pair of shorts, rubbing her eyes.

"You're still up?" She asked.

"Yeah did we wake you?" Albus asked in concern.

"No. I had a nightmare", Tori said and walked over to join her dads.

"Wanna talk about it?" Scorpius asked with his arm wrapped around her.

"It's nothing special really", Tori said. 

"You know you can talk to us right?" Albus assured her. 

Tori leaned forward to hug him, refusing to let go. "Can't you come with me tomorrow?" she asked even though she already knew the answer to that.

"You know I can't. But I'll bring you to the station, okay? And once you arrive papa will be there, and you will see him every day."

"Yeah, you're gonna be so tired of me", Scorpius joked. 

"That depends on how you act", Tori joked back.

* * * * *

The next morning, Albus and Dom had decided to meet up at King's Cross to say goodbye to their daughters. Scorpius and Delphi were already at Hogwarts. Teddy was also at the station with Dora, who was starting her fourth year.

"Now remember", Albus said. "You can write to me as much as you like, and papa will be around at school. Listen to your teachers and stick to the rules."

"The train is leaving any minute now", Dom said. 

Tori gave Albus one last hug, and Bella did the same to Dom.