Written for the Quidditch League Fanfiction Competition - Season 2 (Falcons, Beater 1)

Disclaimer: I do not own the characters therein and make no money off of this.

Word Count: 1,400

Prompts: glitter, tickle/ish

Dedicated to one of my favorite people in the known universe, Moomin.

.x.x.

"But Dad! Every knight needs a princess to rescue! And Al won't do it!" Lily cried, sticking out her bottom lip the way she'd seen Victoire do to Uncle Bill last winter when she wanted those new gloves. "I need someone to rescue!" She waved the little sword in her hands around a few times, making wild slashing motions at the air, pretending there was a dragon there.

Her dad frowned. "But Sweetie, couldn't I be a…a dragon instead? I'm good at being a dragon." He scrunched up his face, making it look fierce, then held his hands up in front of him, his fingers bent into claws. "ARGH! I will tickle you!"

Before Lily could run away from her dad's sudden attack, he caught her around the waist with one hand, pulling her towards him while his other hand danced up and down her sides, making her squeal and squirm in a most un-knightly manner.

"NO!" Lily shouted between bursts of laughter. "Dragons…dragons don't tickle people! They eat them!"

He stopped. "Eat them?" Lily looked up at him taking deep breaths. He had that twitchy frown on, the one he had when Aunt Hermione scolded Uncle Ron and he was trying not to laugh.

She stepped away from him and stomped her feet. "YES! And Al's already gonna be the dragon!" Lily planted her little fists on her hips the way she'd seen Mum do when she got angry or serious.

Her dad laughed, making her pout again. "I could be the evil wizard?" he offered.

But Lily wouldn't have it. She had decided her dad was going to be the Princess. "Jamie's gonna be the evil wizard. You're gonna be the princess and I'm gonna rescue you!"

Lily could tell she'd won when her dad sighed—loudly. "Yes!" She giggled and threw herself at him, hugging him close. "Thank you, Dad! Now put on your dress so we can finally play."

.x.x.

Harry tugged at the puffy pink thing his youngest had wrapped around him. There was glitter on it and he could just feel the evil things clinging to him. The last time he'd played with Lily in her room, he found glitter in his things for a month. Sometimes, he still stumbled upon glitter in his bed or hair or on his clothes, and he had to wonder if maybe Lily was just leaving glitter everywhere for him to find. Sometimes, it was like his daughter was a walking glitter bomb ready to throw glitter on everything and at everyone. He still shuddered at the mess she'd left in their living room that one day George had come over.

Resigned to his fate, Harry poured lukewarm tea into the itty-bitty tea cups: one cup for him, one cup for Bassy the stuffed snake, and one cup for Moomy the stuffed griffin.

"Would you like more tea, Lady Moomy?" Harry said rather loudly. He waited a few moments. When nothing happened, he continued, "What about you Miss Bassy?" He said that even louder, wondering where his sons were.

A few seconds later, Jamie stumbled in wearing a set of his old robes.

"I am the Evil Wizard James!" he shouted, "And I've come to kidnap you, Princess Dad!"

Harry almost laughed.

James frowned. "Dad you aren't supposed to laugh," he whispered, "you're supposed to scream in fright!"

"Right. AHHHHHHHH! Help!" Harry said, still trying to stop from smiling.

"No one can save you now!" James laughed his best evil laugh.

"STOP evil-doer! I am Sir Lily and I will stop you!" Harry watched as his youngest child stomped her way in brandishing the cardboard sword he'd helped her make a few months ago and wearing a towel tied around her neck like a cape.

"Sir Lily! I won't let you stop me this time! Drag—" Before James could finish summoning his younger brother, though, he appeared yelling and growling with all his might.

He watched as his two sons ganged up on their younger sister, ready to jump in if anything were to happen. He needn't have worried, though, as she slashed her sword wildly at them.

"ARGH!" growled Al after Lily's sword hits him in the leg before he fell forward clutching his heart pretending to be dead.

"I've taken your dragon, Evil Wizard!"

"You might have taken my dragon, but you'll never take me!"

The two ran around the room with Lily swinging her sword and James yelling nonsense spells and Al—who was dead—giggling. They both collapsed in a tired heap next to Al a minute later, both too worn to continue. Harry laughed at his pile of children. He picked Lily up who was lying on top of Al.

"Oh Faire Sir Lily, what say you and I teach these Evil-doers a lesson, hmm?" Harry poked her on the side so she would know what he meant. She giggled as he put her down before she launched herself at Al, attacking his sides making him laugh. James, seeing what was happening, scrambled up to his feet ready to run, but Harry was much too fast for him.

.x.x.

"I win!" Lily shouted, jumping in excitement after both her brothers cried for mercy. She stood above both of them with her arms in the air.

Jamie laughed. "Hey, that's not fair! You had dad help you!" She looked down and caught his eye, her smile wide. It only took Jamie a second to get what she was thinking and they both turned to Al who was already grinning.

Big brothers might be useless sometimes, but that didn't mean she didn't have the bestest big brothers out there.

They turned their grins at their father who'd been studying them, giving them looks that told them he knew they were up to something.

The three of them attacked as one with Jamie, being the biggest of the three, pushing their dad down and Lily and Al going for his sides, tickling with all their might before they again collapsed, this time on top of their Dad.

.x.x.

Ginny found them an hour later with Harry's arms curled around his sons—one in each arm—and Lily curled on top his chest her thumb in her mouth.

"Had fun, did you?" she asked from the doorway.

"Yeah," he whispered.

James and Al were easy enough to wake, but Lily stayed resolutely asleep on his chest.

"I'll just put her to bed," Harry whispered picking her up.

As he tucked her in, Lily stirred.

"How's my brave knight?" he asked her. Lily just murmured something incoherent and wrapped her arms around his neck giving him a dry peck on the cheek.

"Good night, Dad," she sighed.

"Good night, Sweetie."

.x.x.

"Tea?" Ginny asked as she poured steaming water into her mug. She didn't even wait for his response before grabbing his mug and fixing him a cup as well.

"Thanks," Harry said.

They stood in comfortable silence sipping their tea. He slipped his hands into hers and squeezed.

"Hadn't laughed like that in a while," he said. She chuckled and squeezed back.

"Feeling better now, are we?" she asked.

"Sometimes, I wonder if Lily isn't more perceptive than she seems," he said instead. Ginny didn't answer, just gave him another squeeze.

"So when do you plan on removing the dress?" she asked instead, laughing.

"I don't know. I've grown a bit fond of it."

.x.x.

Harry cursed as he flipped through the files. It's been weeks since they'd found a new lead. Here he was, Great Harry Potter and he couldn't do a single thing to stop the killer from taking another victim.

"Dad?" Harry didn't look up; he just sighed.

"What is it, Sweetie?"

"I want to play Knight and Princess!" Harry frowned.

"I'm a little busy right now. Why not play with your brothers?"

"But we need one more person!" Lily said.

Harry looked up at his pouting daughter. Her lip trembled ever so slightly, and he had to wonder where she'd learned to do that because he couldn't remember her ever doing it before. He sighed and tucked the file he'd been perusing away. It wasn't as if he'd find anything new today either. He practically had the case memorized.

"Alright, then, Princess," he said.

"No!" she said.

"No?"

"I'm not the Princess; you are!"