After making sure the coast was clear, the Tomlinson triplets sprint to their dad's old cottage, changing back to human form so they could peak inside through one of the windows.

The sight they're met with has them gaping in disbelief.

There inside was a younger version of their dad.

Tied up to a chair and gagged.

With a complete stranger looming over him.

"Da-!"

"Sh!!" Aiden covers Zayla's mouth before she could get them caught.

Though slightly muffled, the three teens were still able to hear what the stranger is saying to their father.

"I always liked you, Harry. But you never gave me a chance to show you how much I cared. You were always busy doing something so I gave you space. But then- " The guy let out a humurous laugh. "Then that shapeshifter came along and you gave him all your attention!" He harshly pulls down the gag on Harry's mouth.

"Xander, please! I don't even know who you're talking about!"

"And you never will cause I won't allow it!"

The guy mutters something under his breath then forces Harry to look into his eyes, a smile etched on his face as the curly haired witch falls unconscious, going limp in his restraints.

The triplets could only watch as the guy -Xander, apparently- unties their dad from the chair and carries his passed out form to his room.

"Who the hell was that?" Zayla breaks the silence between them.

"Xander??" Henry answers, but more as a question.

"Yeah I heard too but, dad never told us of any past ex-lovers..."

Aiden furrows his brows, "maybe he wasn't a past ex-lover... Maybe he's just a guy who always wanted to get with dad but never could, and now he's trying to get with him again and by doing so he went back in time to prevent our parents from meeting so he can have dad to himself."

"...yeah maybe that." Henry nods,  agreeing with his brother.

"Well, he can't! That's not how the story is supposed to go!" Zayla protests, crossing her arms.

"What story?" Her brothers ask at the same time.

"The story of how Dad and Papa fell in love." Zayla answers softly, "and as much as I'd like to still exist in our time, our parents' love means so much more to me. Without their love, we wouldn't even be alive."

"Actually it was uncle Zayn's doing but yeah, it takes two to make babies. Add a wizard to make it possible."

Aiden nudges his brother playfully, making the boy grunt and massage his arm, "stop it. You know how fragile I am."

"Sorry sorry. Anyways, back to our parents. Why don't we ask help from uncle Liam and uncle Niall?" The eldest sibling suggests.

"Would they really help some random teenagers claiming to be the children of their former child and current best friend?"

"...well, let's go find out!"
______

The trek to their uncles' place didn't take long for them, having to only be about fifteen minutes since they sprinted in their cat forms. So once they arrived, they pile up on the doorstep and turn back into their human forms, Aiden being the one to knock on the door.

Seconds pass, yet no one came to answer.

Aiden tries again, his knuckles hitting the wooden door harder. They waited another thirty seconds or so, but to their disappointment, there was still no response.

"Maybe they're out?" Zayla shrugs, not knowing where else their uncles could be.

"Or maybe-"

"Sh!! Do you hear that?" Henry hushes his siblings, his cat ears high and alert on his head.

Aiden and Zayla quiet down and use their heightened hearing to listen for the sound their brother is talking about.

To their surprise, they could actually hear voices coming from the inside of the cottage. Barely audible, but there.

"Let's barge in!"

"No wait Zayl-!"

Aiden face palms as his youngest sibling ignores his order and manages to open the door without using any physical force.

"It was unlocked." The cat girl shrugs and casually walks inside. She and her brothers have visited this place more times than they can count. It basically served as their second house.

"Uncle Niam?" Henry calls out.

"Should we really be calling them uncle? They don't even know us."

"They will soon." Zayla says, walking passed her brothers to open her uncles' door. She really wasn't expecting the sight she was met with.

And no. Her uncles were NOT doing the do.

They were encased in some kind of jar with them in their pixie sized forms.

"OHMYGODLIAMWHATARETHEY?!!" A smaller and slightly younger version of their uncle Niall exclaims.

"Niall get off of my back-!"

"HELL NO YOU'RE DYING FIRST!"

"Uh..." Aiden clears his throat awkwardly, gaining the attention of the two pixies, "I know this may sound crazy and made up but um, we're your future nephews and niece..?"

"...what?" Both pixies say in unison.

Their uncle Liam is the one to confront them, "what are you talking about? This better not be another trick and you all are one of Xander's minions-"

"NO!" Zayla is quick to deny, "that's the very reason we're here! Well, not technically, but we came here to ask for help! Dad is in trouble cause of that Xander guy so we-"

"Hold on a second there, missy." Niall cuts off the cat girl's rambling, "who's your father?"

"Harry!" The triplets exclaim together.

"Like, our Harry? The Harry me and Liam took care of as a baby?"

"Yes!" Henry nods frantically.

Liam and Niall share a look, "and your mother is...?"

"Harry!" They answer again, groaning in anticipation for their uncles to get what they're trying to tell them.

"...last time I checked, our little Hazza had a penis." The blonde pixie turns to his brunette friend in confusion.

"Oh my god..." Zayla face palms dramatically.

"Why don't we use a memory projection spell?" Henry says out of the blue.

Aiden brightens up at that, thankful that his brother came up with an idea.

"Good thinking, Henry!"

The older of the siblings begins to mutter the spell under his breath, focusing on building up his magic to make a good projection of the memory he's remembering.

Niall and Liam gape when they finally see it.

The memory was of them (but older) playing with three little toddlers (they assume are the teens who claim to be their nephews and niece), next to them is their not-so-little Hazza who's cuddled into a short guy with cat ears and a tail.

"...wait am I wearing a ring? Am I married? What." Niall stares at the memory projection in shock.

Zayla giggles at her uncle's reaction, "you're married to uncle Liam, uncle Ni."

"WHAT?!"

"Ni, we literally raised Harry together, why are you so shocked?" Liam asks his blonde mate.

"That's different!"

"We agreed that I'll be the father."

"I ain't your bitch Leeyum!"

Someone clearing their throat snaps the two pixies out of their small argument.

Aiden awkwardly stands with his siblings next to him, "s-sorry to interrupt but... Now that you know we're not lying, will you please help us save our dads?"

Liam's face softens and he nods, "of course we will. We just have to find a way to get out of this jar prison first."

The triplets beam happily at their brunette haired pixie uncle.

"But like, how were you guys born? Did you guys come out of his butt hole or his di-"

Liam sighs exasperatedly and covers Niall's mouth before he could finish his sentence, "save your questions for the future, Ni."

"Yes sir, daddy."

"NIALL!"

The triplets shift on their feet quietly, glancing at one another with looks saying "should we leave?"/"this is awkward..."/"they have the same kink as our dads!"

...yeah that last one was definitely from Henry.