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"Right," Ginny announced, clapping her hands together with the authority of a woman who had faced down Death Eaters, played Quidditch for the Holyhead Harpies, and somehow still found toddler tantrums more terrifying. "New plan. We're going to try something different."
Harry, who was attempting to peel a stubborn piece of grass off Lily's cheek, looked up with cautious hope. "Different how?"
"Different as in not chaotic," Ginny said, adjusting the lens of the Muggle camera Arthur had lent her. "The kids are going to be serious. Mature. Like little Aurors."
James, six years old and already convinced he was the next Head Auror, immediately puffed out his chest. His jacket, which had been buttoned incorrectly since breakfast, strained against his newfound importance. "I can do serious," he declared, squinting his eyes in what he clearly believed was a fearsome Auror glare. "I'm basically a trainee already."
"You're six," Harry said mildly.
"Age is just a number, Dad."
Ginny shot Harry a look that said where does he get this from? Harry wisely said nothing.
Albus, four years old and currently wrestling with a dandelion he'd picked, looked up with a frown. "What's a serious?"
"It means you don't smile," James explained importantly. "You look like you're about to catch a Dark Wizard."
Albus's face crumpled in confusion. "I don't want to catch a Dark Wizard."
"It's pretend, Al."
"I don't like pretend."
"It's not REAL—"
"BOYS," Ginny interrupted, her voice carrying the sharp edge of a woman who had been trying to get a decent family photo for forty-seven minutes. "Stand here. On this spot. Do not move. Do not fight. Do not—" she pointed at Lily, who was trying to eat a handful of dirt, "—eat the garden."
Harry scooped Lily up, brushing the dirt from her chubby fingers. "Right, sweetheart. You're going to be a serious Auror too, okay?"
Lily, two years old and deeply unimpressed, stared at him blankly. "No."
"Excellent negotiation skills," Harry muttered.
***
The first attempt was a disaster.
James had taken "serious" to mean "constipated." His face was scrunched up, his eyebrows drawn together, his lips pursed in a look of such intense concentration that he looked like he was attempting to solve a very difficult maths problem rather than pose for a family photo.
Albus, trying to copy his older brother, had ended up looking profoundly confused and slightly sad. His eyes were wide, his lower lip jutted out, and he was clutching his dandelion like it was the only thing keeping him tethered to reality.
Lily, completely oblivious to the theme, was staring at her brothers like they'd both lost their minds. Which, to be fair, they had.
Ginny lowered the camera. "James. That's not serious. That's... that's you needing the loo."
"I'm BEING AN AUROR!" James protested.
"An Auror with digestive issues," Harry muttered, earning himself a sharp elbow from Ginny.
"James, relax your face," Ginny instructed. "Just... look at the camera. Calmly."
James tried. His face shifted from constipated to mildly panicked. His eyes widened. His nostrils flared.
Ginny sighed. "That's worse."
"I THOUGHT I WAS SUPPOSED TO BE SERIOUS!"
"You're supposed to be calm, not terrified!"
"I'M NOT TERRIFIED! I'M INTIMIDATING!"
"You look like a startled owl!"
Harry snorted. He tried to hide it behind a cough. He failed miserably.
Ginny spun on him. "You're not helping!"
"I'm not doing anything!"
"Exactly! Help!"
***
The second attempt was worse.
Harry had taken over the camera, hoping that a different perspective might help. Ginny was now on the ground, trying to coax the kids into position.
"Albus, put the dandelion down."
"But it's my FRIEND, Mum!"
"You can have your friend AFTER the photo."
"I don't want to abandon my friend!"
"Albus, it's a WEED."
"It's a BEAUTIFUL WEED!"
Lily, sensing chaos, took the opportunity to make a break for it. She darted toward the flower bed, her little legs pumping furiously.
"LILY, NO!" Ginny lunged, grabbing her daughter by the back of her dress just as she was about to face-plant into a patch of tulips.
Lily shrieked with laughter. "MUM! AGAIN!"
"No, Lily. No again. We are TAKING A PHOTO."
"I don't LIKE photos!"
"Tough."
"TOUGH!" Lily repeated gleefully, clearly having no idea what it meant.
James, meanwhile, was still trying to perfect his Auror face. He'd moved from constipated to squinting. He looked like he was trying to see something very far away while also being extremely suspicious of it.
"James, stop squinting," Harry called from behind the camera.
"I'm BEING SERIOUS!"
"You're being BLIND. Open your eyes."
"I CAN'T! THE SUN IS TOO BRIGHT!"
"It's overcast!"
"I HAVE SENSITIVE EYES!"
"You have a SENSITIVE ATTITUDE!"
Harry and Ginny exchanged looks. The kind of looks that said we created this chaos. We have no one to blame but ourselves.
***
And then came the shoulder incident.
Albus had been watching Harry carry Lily around all morning. He'd noticed how his dad would scoop her up, toss her over his shoulders, and let her dangle there giggling. It looked, to Albus, like the most important job in the world.
"Dad," Albus said suddenly, abandoning his dandelion. "I want to carry Lily."
Harry, who was mid-squat trying to fix James's jacket, looked up. "What?"
"For the photo," Albus explained earnestly. "You carry her. I want to carry her too. Like you do."
James's head snapped around. "NO. I'M the big brother. I carry her."
"You're not carrying her," Albus said, his voice taking on a stubborn edge that Harry recognized all too well. It was the same tone Ginny used when she was about to win an argument. "I'm carrying her."
"You're FOUR. You can't even carry your own apple!"
"I can TOO!"
"You dropped it THREE TIMES!"
"It was SLIPPERY!"
"Lily isn't an apple!"
"I KNOW LILY ISN'T AN APPLE! I'M NOT STUPID!"
Ginny, who was holding a squirming Lily, looked at Harry helplessly. "Do something."
Harry sighed. "Boys. There's enough Lily to go around. You can both—"
"I'M DOING IT!" James declared, lunging toward his mother.
"NO, I'M DOING IT!" Albus lunged too.
Lily, sensing she was the center of attention, shrieked with joy and began flailing her arms.
James reached her first. He grabbed her around the waist and tried to hoist her over his shoulder. She was wriggling and laughing, which made her heavier than she looked. James staggered.
"I've got her!" he grunted, face reddening with effort. "See? I've got—"
Lily twisted. James wobbled. His feet tripped and he stumbled.
"JAMES, CAREFUL!" Ginny shouted.
But it was too late. James overbalanced. He and Lily toppled backward in a tangle of limbs and shrieks. Harry lunged forward, catching Lily at the last second. James hit the grass with a soft oof.
Lily was delighted. "AGAIN! AGAIN!"
"No again!" Ginny snapped.
Albus, seeing his opportunity, darted forward. "My turn!"
"Albus, you're too small—" Harry started.
But Albus had already grabbed Lily by the waist. His little arms wrapped around her middle. He grunted. He strained. His face went red.
"Just let go, Al—" Harry said gently.
"I CAN DO IT!"
Lily, sensing a new game, stopped struggling. She went limp and cooperative. Albus, with a heroic groan, managed to hoist her onto his shoulder. She dangled there, feet kicking, giggling madly.
"LOOK!" Albus shouted, his voice cracking with pride. He was wobbling. His legs were shaking. He looked like a baby deer trying to stand for the first time. "I DID IT! I'M CARRYING HER! LIKE DAD!"
James, still on the grass, sat up with a scowl. "That's not FAIR! I had her first!"
"You DROPPED her!"
"I did NOT! I was ATTACKED!"
"By WHO?"
"By GRAVITY!"
Harry pinched the bridge of his nose. "Where do they get this from?"
"Absolutely not from me," Ginny said quickly.
Harry raised an eyebrow. "Really? Because I distinctly remember you threatening to hex the referee into next week when he tried to give you a foul."
"That was different. That was Quidditch. This is—" she gestured vaguely at their children, who were now engaged in a tug-of-war over Lily's left foot, "—this is pure Potter stubbornness."
"Ah, yes. The famous Potter stubbornness. Definitely not the Weasley brand of chaos that you brought into this marriage."
Ginny opened her mouth to argue, then closed it.
"Fine," she conceded. "We're equally to blame. Happy?"
"Deliriously."
***
Harry stepped forward, inserting himself into the sibling war with the practiced ease of a man who had broken up approximately four thousand toddler disagreements.
"Alright. New plan. Everyone stop fighting."
James, who had been trying to pry Albus's fingers off Lily's waist, froze. Albus, who had been holding on for dear life, also froze. Lily, who was thoroughly enjoying the attention, giggled and clapped her hands.
"Dad," James protested, "I was supposed to—"
"I know what you were supposed to do," Harry said calmly. "And I know what Al wants to do. So here's the compromise."
He knelt down, bringing himself to their eye level. Ginny watched from behind the camera, a small smile playing on her lips. This was Harry's superpower. Not fighting Dark Wizards. Not surviving the Killing Curse. No—it was this. Mediating toddler disputes.
"Albus," Harry said gently, "you want to carry Lily like I do, right?"
Albus nodded vigorously. His face was still red from exertion, but his eyes were bright with determination. "Like you, Dad. Over my shoulder."
Harry nodded slowly. "That's a big job. Lily's heavy."
"I'm STRONG," Albus insisted.
"You are strong," Harry agreed. "Very strong."
James made a scoffing noise. Harry shot him a warning look.
"But here's the thing," Harry continued. "Carrying Lily is a two-person job. Even I need help sometimes. Remember when I carried her and she grabbed my glasses and threw them into the pond?"
Albus giggled. "She's a menace."
"She is absolutely a menace," Harry agreed solemnly. "Which is why we need a team. So here's what we're going to do."
He put one hand on Albus's shoulder and one on James's.
"Albus, you're going to put Lily on your shoulder. Like you wanted. But James is going to stand behind you and hold her from the back, just in case she wobbles. You're going to carry her TOGETHER."
James blinked. "Together?"
"Together," Harry confirmed. "Like partners. Auror partners."
James's eyes lit up. "Like we're on a mission?"
"Exactly like you're on a mission. Albus is the main carrier. James is the support. You work as a team. No fighting. No arguing. Just teamwork."
Albus considered this. His little brow furrowed. He looked at James. James looked at him.
"The main carrier?" Albus repeated slowly.
"The main carrier," Harry confirmed. "You get to do the shoulder thing. But James gets to make sure she doesn't fall."
Albus thought about this. It seemed fair. He got the glory. James got the responsibility.
"Okay," Albus agreed reluctantly. "But he has to listen to ME."
James bristled. "I'M older—"
"James," Harry interrupted. "In a partnership, you both listen to each other. That's how it works. If you want to be an Auror, you need to understand that. Aurors don't do things alone. They trust their partners. Can you trust Al for two minutes?"
James looked at his father. Then at his brother. Then at Lily, who was now attempting to stuff a fistful of grass into her mouth.
"Fine," James muttered. "But if he drops her, I'm telling Mum."
"I won't drop her!" Albus protested.
"You nearly—"
"BOYS," Ginny called from behind the camera, her voice dangerously sweet. "The sun is moving. We're losing the light. Do the thing."
***
Harry helped maneuver the three children into position.
"Alright, Al. Scoop her up. Gently now. Gentle."
Albus wrapped his arms around Lily's waist. She giggled and waved her legs. He grunted, hoisting her upward. His arms wobbled dangerously.
"James, get behind them. Hands on Lily's back. Support her."
James stepped in, his small hands pressing against Lily's spine. She squirmed, but James held firm.
"Al, get her over your shoulder. Slowly."
With a heroic grunt, Albus managed to flop Lily over his shoulders. She shrieked with laughter.
"I DID IT!" Albus shouted. "LOOK, MUM! I DID IT!"
"I'm holding her!" James yelled, his face pressed against Lily's back. "I'm the support! I'm the PARTNER!"
Lily, pleased because of his brother’s success, grabbed a fistful of Albus's hair and yanked.
"Ow! LILY!"
"HAIR! HAIR!" Lily shrieked.
"Albus, stay still! James, keep holding her!" Harry instructed, stepping back.
Ginny raised the camera.
And then Lily started giggling so hard that she began to slip.
"SHE'S SLIPPING!" Albus shrieked.
"I'VE GOT HER!" James yelled, tightening his grip.
Harry lunged forward instinctively, ready to catch them all, but James held firm. His little arms were locked around Lily's middle, anchoring her to Albus's shoulder.
"I've got her, Dad! I've got her!"
Albus, hearing his brother's confidence, steadied himself. His legs stopped shaking. He planted his feet.
"Partners," Albus whispered.
"Partners," James agreed.
Harry looked at them—his three children, somehow working together for the first time that afternoon—and felt his heart swell.
"Gin," he breathed. "The photo. Take the photo."
Ginny was already clicking.
Click. Click. Click.
She captured everything. Albus's proud smile. James's determined and flashy grin. Lily's confused glee. The accidental teamwork. The chaos. The love.
When she lowered the camera, her eyes were suspiciously bright.
"Got it," she said, her voice slightly thick.
Harry looked at her. "You okay?"
She nodded, dabbing at her eyes with the back of her hand. "Just... dust. In my eyes. Spring. You know."
Harry smiled and didn't call her out on it.
The children were still in position. Albus was now gently swaying, humming a song under his breath. Lily was humming along, her fingers still wrapped in his hair. James was still holding on, his cheek pressed against Lily's back.
"Can we stay like this forever?" Albus asked quietly.
"Please no," James muttered. "My arms are tired."
"Mine too," Albus admitted.
Lily squirmed. "DOWN. DOWN. LILY WANT DOWN."
"Okay, okay. We're going down."
Harry helped Albus gently lower Lily to the ground. She immediately toddled off, apparently done with being the center of attention, and began chasing a butterfly.
James collapsed onto the grass, arms flopped out. "I'm never doing that again."
"You were brilliant," Harry said, sitting down next to him. "You held on. That was good work, James."
James looked up. "Really?"
"Really. Albus couldn't have done it without you."
Albus, who was sitting on the other side of Harry, nodded solemnly. "You were a good partner, James."
James blinked, clearly surprised by the compliment. Then he scowled again. "You still stole my job."
"You didn't HAVE a job—"
"PARTNERS," Harry interrupted firmly. "You were PARTNERS. Both of you. Equally. Important."
James and Albus looked at each other. Something unspoken passed between them. A truce, maybe. Or just a shared exhaustion.
"Fine," James muttered.
"Fine," Albus agreed.
***
Later that evening, Ginny was scrolling through the photos on the camera. Harry came up behind her, wrapping his arms around her waist.
"Are you looking at the photo again?" he asked.
"Maybe."
"It's the third time."
"Fourth."
Harry laughed, pressing a kiss to her hair. "You're obsessed."
"It's perfect," Ginny said softly. She pulled up the image. "Look at James. He looks so fierce. And Albus—" she laughed, "he looks like he's about to topple over. But he's so HAPPY. And Lily's just... Lily."
"Chaos incarnate."
"Exactly."
Harry studied the photo. His three kids. His feral, wonderful, impossible kids.
"She's right, you know," Harry said quietly.
"Who?"
"Your mum. When she said that children don't come with instructions. You just... figure it out. And sometimes the best moments are the ones that don't go according to plan."
Ginny leaned back against him. "She was talking about the seven of us. We were absolute terrors."
"You were. And you all turned out okay."
"Eventually."
"Eventually."
Ginny looked at the photo again. "I'm framing this one. And the one with the cat. And the one where Lily ate the dirt. And—"
"Are you framing the entire camera?"
"Maybe."
Harry laughed again, tightening his arms around her.
***
The next day, the photo was in the hallway.
James walked past, stopped, and stared at it.
"Dad," he called.
"Yes, James?"
"Why is this one in the hallway?"
"Because it's a good photo."
James scowled. "I look like I'm GRIMACING."
"You look like an Auror partner."
James paused. "Really?"
"Really. Aurors support each other. And you supported Albus. You did the job."
James studied the photo again. His scowl softened slightly.
"Albus looks stupid," he muttered.
"He looks happy."
"Same thing."
Harry bit back a smile.
Albus wandered over, saw the photo, and beamed. "I'M CARRYING LILY! LOOK, MUM!"
Ginny appeared from the kitchen. "I see it, sweetie."
"I DID THE SHOULDER THING! LIKE DAD!"
"You did. You did the shoulder thing perfectly."
Albus puffed out his chest.
James rolled his eyes, but there was no heat in it. "You're going to be insufferable about this, aren't you?"
"YEP!" Albus said happily.
James looked at the photo again. Then at his brother. Then at his sister, who was currently trying to eat a book.
"Fine," James said with a dramatic sigh. "Maybe you can do it again. For the next photo. But I'm holding her from the front."
"Deal," Albus agreed.
"DEAL!" Lily shrieked, having no idea what she was agreeing to.
Harry looked at Ginny. She looked at him.
"We're doomed," Harry whispered.
"Completely," Ginny agreed.
And they both laughed, surrounded by chaos. Their chaos.
