One step at a time. One foot in front of the other. To walk into the cold embrace of death, slowly, one step at a time, the sliver of moonlight which managed to penetrate the thick dark canopy of leaves overhead the only guide.

There was no one. No comforting whisper in the dark that it would not hurt, that it would be peaceful and quick, that there was any glory or pride in what he was about to do.

He wanted to turn back but his feet would not obey. He did not want to stare into those red eyes and feel the pain of death, or worse, what if death was prolonged until the point that he begged…?

His heart pounded in his ears, pleading with him not to do this… his breathing was deep, slow, making the most of the oxygen around before he would have to give it up forever…

And she seemed to stand before him her eyes blazing, hair fiery, lips pulled into a silent laugh. But she was not there and she could not give him the comfort he so desperately craved and needed, and it was in terrible green light that her face was illuminated and then faded-

He awoke, panting, drenched in a cold sweat, pale faced and fearful. Someone was cradling his head and making hushing, soothing noises, and he thought vaguely that it was like the sea. He caught a brief scent of wildflowers, and he calmed. Her warm hands were proof to him that the nightmare was nought but a nightmare, a fiction born of fears and twisted memories. His eyelids fluttered and closed once again and when morning came, he would not remember waking up at all.

She carried on rocking him slightly and thought bitterly how child-like and vulnerable her husband could be at night. It was not right that a man by who by all counts was strong could be so fragile and scared night after night, years after emotional trauma.

She placed a soft kiss on the top of his head, and pushed herself down the bed so that her face was level with his. She reached out her hand and touched his exposed neck. His pulse. A constant, soothing reminder that he was still here, and not some figment of her imagination.

Uneasily, she sank into a reluctant slumber.

***

“Sleeping on the job, Potter?�

Harry jerked awake, nearly falling off his chair as he swivelled around ready to apologise to whoever was barking at him. Only to see a broadly grinning Ron, eyes glinting with mischief. Harry glared at him and laid his head back on the desk with a groan.

“Leave me alone, I was up half the night,� he yawned.

“Do I want to know why you were up half the night?� asked Ron, amused. Harry made a strange half-yawn half-phrase sound, and Ron raised an eyebrow. “Sorry?�

“I said, apparently I had another one of my night terrors last night. I don’t remember it, but Ginny says I woke up every twenty minutes. She’s shattered too.�

His grin faded, Ron sat in a nearby, scruffy chair and looked at his brother-in-law with concern. “I thought they were meant to be getting better? Is that potion not working anymore?�

Harry grunted and shrugged. “Dunno. Maybe it was a one off.�

“Hmm… well, maybe you’d better owl Healer Sims about it later.�

“Yeah, maybe…� mumbled Harry, sleepily. “But it’s not as bad as it used to be… I used to have ‘em every night, remember?�

“Yes, well… think about it. Anyway, I just came to say that the Minister wants to see you at three… but I can tell him you’re busy if you’re not up to it…�

“No, it’s all right, I’ll yawn my way through it,� Harry replied, pulling, with great effort, his head off the desk. “What does he want, anyway?�

“Sorry, mate, no idea. Let me think… Hmm… Wouldn’t have anything to do with your growing pile of overdue paperwork, would it?� he asked lightly, clearly enjoying himself. “See you later,� he said before Harry could respond.

A knot of nerves was now tying itself around Harry’s gut. Feeling slightly queasy, he looked at the wall of his cubicle, where various pictures of Death Eaters snarled down at him, and hastily scribbled notes were pinned, occasionally into a Death Eater’s head.

Antonin Dolohov gazed sourly down at him, and Harry was hit with a sudden memory: Remus, screaming, writhing on the ground , Tonks, pleading, begging…

Harry shuddered, and had to fight the strong desire to burn Dolohov’s photograph. He sighed, pushing his desires to the back of his mind, and left his cubicle. He walked to the other side of the office (why did his cubicle have to be so far to the right?) and wearily stuck a garish bright blue pin in Rio de Janeiro. Another reported sighting of Bellatrix Lestrange, which he ought to have tacked up earlier, but had fallen asleep before doing so. Though it was probably a waste of time, in his opinion. Abroad sightings had to be filed before they were checked out, and that could take anything up to two weeks, which usually meant that the culprit was long gone.

He shuffled back to his cubicle and slumped down in the swivel chair, leaning his head back lazily, willing his eyes not to close. He could not remember ever being this bored. For once, there was nothing to worry about and, though Harry would never admit it, he couldn’t help but miss the war, just slightly. At least he had felt that he was doing something worthwhile then, even if he would have liked to be a little less in the centre of it all. But lately the remaining Death Eaters had been quiet, and following a rather large illegal Dragon eggs raid, there was nothing but paperwork to do, which meant that Harry had been bound to his two metre square cubicle for the past ten days, and looked likely to be stuck there for several more.

His gaze wandered over to a photograph of his family, which sat proudly framed on his cluttered desk. He grinned lazily, and marvelled at how he could still feel deliriously happy about them even after all these years. His redheaded wife sat on a lush green lawn, trying to contain two wriggling and giggling children in her arms. The twins. Lily and James. A baby sat on the grass in front of them, every now and then turning around to give them a watery grin. Sirius.

Of course, the photograph was several years old now, and his children had grown, but this photograph was his favourite. He watched James sneakily raise a hand behind his sister’s dark head, and put up two bunny fingers. Ginny pushed it firmly back down.

Harry laughed lightly, and swivelled his chair around again, staring at the ceiling. He supposed he should get on with his paperwork. With a groan and a yawn, he pulled himself up, and reached for his quill.

The next two hours went by agonizingly slowly, and Harry swore that he had seen his clock hand move forward one minute, and then back another two. However, three PM eventually rolled around, and it was with half relief, half foreboding that he closed his paperwork folder, and made his way to the lift.

“Afternoon, Jackie,� he said cheerfully as he entered. The little blonde witch smiled at him, a cardboard box in her arms. “What’s in the box?�

“Hey, Harry,� she greeted back as whatever was in the box gurgled. “Baby Kappa. Some idiot was selling it in Diagon Alley as a pet.�

The lift gave a ping as it arrived on Harry’s floor. With a good-bye wave to Jackie, he left and headed towards the Minister’s office.

He was not overly concerned. Although Amanda Rider had come back shaking when she had been called up for overdue paperwork, Harry had a good relationship with the Minister, although he supposed that was due to the fact that the public was constantly behind Harry. It seemed that the old arguments between Harry and Scrimgeour had been quietly forgotten.

Nevertheless, as he walked up to the Minister’s door he nervously tried to flatten his hair, and hoped that he didn’t look too tired. He knocked on the door.

“Enter,� growled a voice through the door. Harry entered the office, and walked over to the desk, suddenly aware that his hands were in his pockets. He took them out and immediately had no idea what to do with them.

“You wanted to see me, sir?� Harry was distinctly aware of the portraits of all the old Ministers whispering and muttering at his presence.

“Ah, Potter. Please, sit down.� The Minister gestured to a much newer and better looking chair than the one in Harry’s office, and Harry sat. The Minister leaned back and surveyed Harry over steepled fingers. “Tell me, how is work?�

“Erm… Good, sir.�

“I have heard reports that you are becoming rather frustrated in the office.�

“Oh… Only lately, sir… Since the dragon egg raid.�

Scrimgeour nodded, and the room lapsed into a sticky silence once again. “I have a job for you, Potter. It is a little different than your normal duties, but it will get you out of the office and give an excellent comfort to the general public.�

“What sort of job, sir?� asked Harry, feeling uneasy.

“A guard job.�

“Guard?� Harry felt rather taken aback and vaguely insulted. After all the good work he’d done over the years, the Minister wanted him to be a guard?

The Minister nodded, stood, and began to pace around the desk. Harry thought distinctly of a vulture circling a dying animal.

“As you know, the new term at Hogwarts will start in less than a week. Your eldest two are starting this year, I believe?�

“Yes, sir. They’re looking forward to it.�

“Good to hear. Now… You know of course that the remaining and aptly named ‘wannabe’ Death Eaters have been unusually quiet these past few weeks.�

“Yes, sir.� Harry felt a prickling sensation at the back of his neck, suddenly wondering whether the Minister was saying that his twin children were not safe.

“Well… Headmistress McGonagall has been sent various threats recently by these Death Eaters. They are threatening to attack the school unless those in Azkaban are set free.�

“What does Hogwarts have to do with Azkaban, sir?� asked Harry slowly, processing the facts he had just been told.

“That’s the thing. They are threatening to attack the school and kill the students who have connections to the Order of the Phoenix.�

Harry stood sharply. “My children will not be attending this year.�

Scrimgeour raised a hand. “I understand your concern. However, by pulling your children out of school, it will only tell the Death Eaters that their threats are working. What we plan to do, is put you there.�

There was a long pause. “You want me to go to Hogwarts?�

“You, and three other Aurors, more specifically, Aurors that have children in the school. We feel that if the guards there have more of a concern about the safety of the school, they will do a better job.�

It was logical, Harry thought, though he thought it was rather crude and just a little cruel to play on Aurors emotions like that. “Who are the other Aurors, sir?�

“We are picking one for each house. You for Gryffindor, obviously, Mrs Lupin for Hufflepuff, Mr Shackelbolt for Ravenclaw, and unfortunately we could not get an ex-Slytherin to guard, so we have Mrs Angelina Weasley for Slytherin. We decided that putting the guards with their old houses will give the students more comfort and a role model.�

Harry was not sure he wanted to be a role model, but according to the press he was one anyway. He was unsure of what to do. On the one hand, it would be very easy just to pull his students out of school. On the other hand, he knew his children would not take it well when he told them that they could not go to Hogwarts, and if he was there to look after them…

“So, what’s it to be?� asked the Minister. “Will you take the job?�

She turned a page, her warm brown eyes focused on each word. Her forehead creasing slightly in concentration, she continued to read the thick book. In her opinion, just because she worked from home doing a Quidditch column didn’t mean that she had to give up on learning new things.

From the open window, a cool breeze kept the cosy living room at just the right temperature, and the sounds of her children playing two-a-side Quidditch floated to her ears. They were playing with their cousin, Rose Weasley, who was thirteen, and staying over for the night. Privately, Ginny, Hermione and Rose had set it up so that Rose could reassure Lily about going to Hogwarts. They had all seen through Lily’s brave face, which she had been putting up for several weeks now, but the Potter children believed that Rose was staying just for a normal sleepover.

She heard a sudden crack from outside, and the children’s distracted and vague greetings. She smiled and padded out of the living room to the kitchen, where she saw Harry coming through the back door. “How was work?� she asked him.

He took a breath, and said, “Okay… Well… I need to talk to you about something.�

Puzzled, she allowed him to lead her through to the living room and gently push her down onto the sofa, where he sat next to her. “What?� she asked him.

He hesitated. “Death Eaters are after our children,� he said bluntly.

Ginny stood up sharply. “You could have told me more tactfully!� she shrieked. “What the hell d’you mean they’re after our children? After all these years? After-� she suddenly pointed at him so fiercely that he could not be blamed for shrinking back and wincing. “You! You’re not doing your job properly! Do it properly!�

“Ginny, clam dow-�

“No! I will not calm down! You have just told me that Death Eaters are after our children, and you want me to calm down? Well, what are you planning to do? Not wander off to live in a tent for a year again, I hope?�

His face suddenly darkened. “That’s not fair,� he said quietly. “That was different.� Ginny snorted, and ran a hand through her hair wearily. She realised that she was shaking. “Look,� he continued quietly. “It’s going to be okay. The Death Eater’s are threatening to attack Hogwarts and kill any children connected with the Order of the Phoenix unless all the Death Eaters in Azkaban are released.� Ginny swore and gave a half, hysterical laugh. “Listen,� Harry said sternly. “The Ministry is putting four Aurors, me being one of them, Tonks, Kingsley and Angelina being the others, into Hogwarts. We’re going to be acting as guards.�

“Can’t we just pull James and Lily out of Hogwarts and go into hiding somewhere?� asked Ginny. Her back was to him, and he could hear her sniffing. He wondered whether she was crying.

“Can’t see them taking to well to that idea, can you?� he said, smiling weakly. She turned around, and he saw that she was not crying, but her face was pale.

“How can you be this calm?� she asked hollowly. “You think you can just go to Hogwarts with them and everything will be all right?�

“No,� he replied quietly. “Of course I don’t think that. Don’t you think I’m just as scared as you? They’re my children as well, and losing them is my biggest fear.� He paused. “But I don’t want them to miss out on Hogwarts. Every child in that school will be in danger. The Minister is going to make it public tomorrow. Putting four famous Aurors there… well, it may serve as a deterrent to the Death Eaters. Pulling the children out will only show them that they’re winning.�

“This isn’t a game,� Ginny whispered harshly. “It’s not about winning or losing. This shouldn’t be a pride thing.�

“Of course it isn’t,� replied Harry soothingly. “I never said it was. But we can’t encourage the Death Eaters. If they see that they’ve succeeded at this, they’ll only start doing it all the more.�

Ginny nodded. In truth, she understood. But understanding is different from acceptance, and fear bubbled in her stomach. She sat back on the sofa, and leant backwards so that she was staring at the ceiling. She bit her lip. “Have you taken the job?� she asked.

Harry nodded. “Yes, but I can always pull out if you want me to.�

She looked at him. “No, take it. If you stay with the twins… protect them… I’ll look after Sirius.�

“Are you sure you’re all right with this?� asked Harry cautiously.

Ginny nodded slowly. “Yes… I think I can cope.�

Simultaneously, they leaned towards each other and kissed. All the troubles and concerns seemed to melt away, and they became lost in one another. Ginny’s hand became entangled in Harry’s hair and-

“Ughr, scar me for life, why don’t you?�

They broke apart to see four children walking into the room, disgust plastered on their faces.

“If you think that I will still call you my parents after that-�

“All right, Lily,� smiled Harry. “We won’t do it again, if it annoys you that much. We’ll just let our marriage slowly fade away.�

Lily rolled her eyes, and flicked her dark red hair back behind her shoulder. “What was Mum shouting about?� she asked nosily.

“Yeah, she sounded like she was in one of her moods again,� agreed James knowledgably.

Ginny scowled. “I was not in a mood. I don’t have moods. Your father was just telling me about his new job.�

“You’ve got a new job?� asked Sirius, curiosity peaked. “Doing what?�

“Making sure your brother and sister don’t get into trouble at school,� replied Harry. James and Lily exchanged looks of horror.

“What d’you mean?�

“Due to some Death Eater issues, I’ve been assigned a guarding job at Hogwarts this year.�

He grinned as the children gaped at him. “You… you’re coming with us?� said James weakly.

Harry nodded. “That’s right. I’ll be able to keep an eye on you that way.�

“You can’t!� howled Lily despairingly. “This is so embarrassing!�

“What’s so embarrassing about your Dad?� asked Ginny, amused.

“Dad himself isn’t embarrassing, most of the time; it’s the fact that we’re going to Hogwarts with our dad which is embarrassing!� She turned to her father, her hands on her hips, standing as tall as possible. “Dad, I forbid you to come with us.�

“Tough luck, dear, you have no choice in the matter,� Harry replied fondly, standing up. As he walked past her into the kitchen, he ruffled her hair in the way he knew annoyed her.

“Don’t touch my hair! Dad – Dad, you can’t go! There are a million reasons why… Number one, it would completely ruin my chances of being popular. Number two, you’ve already had your turn going to Hogwarts. Number three…�

She followed him out to the kitchen, still rattling off a long list of reasons, all of which Harry ignored.

“Well, it looks like Lily took it well,� commented Rose lightly.

Sirius and Ginny laughed, but James glared at his cousin. “You don’t understand. How would you feel if your Dad went with you to Hogwarts?�

Rose shrugged, because she knew it would infuriate him, and turned to Ginny. “Can we go to Diagon Alley now? You said that we’d go when Uncle Harry got back.�

“Yes, yes… I’ll just quickly Floo your Mum and tell her to meet us there. You’d best all go and get ready then.�

The children nodded and scuttled off. Ginny unwillingly heaved herself off the sofa and plodded over to the fireplace. She wasn’t much looking forward to going into Diagon Alley. Not after the news she’d just heard. But it was best to follow Harry’s lead and not scare the children… Act like everything was normal. Even if it wasn’t. After quickly calling Hermione by the Floo, she proceeded with the difficult task of getting the children ready and fit to be seen in public.

After desperately trying to flatten James’s hair, Ginny concluded that nothing could be done, that he would look like a caveman all his life, and that they had to get going now otherwise Ron and Hermione would be left waiting. So, in a swirl of green flames, each child disappeared through the fireplace, to the Leaky Cauldron, in Diagon Alley.

Upon arriving there, she was greeted by a very enthusiastic Tom (the barman), who grew even more ecstatic when Harry arrived. She used the distraction Harry caused to brush the excess ash and soot off the children, and slip quietly out the door past the crowds.

The family began to walk to the street, Harry catching up with them half way down. They had agreed to meet Ron and Hermione at Flynn Fortescue’s Ice Cream Parlour, and given the warmth and brightness of the day, it was no surprise to find it packed. Hermione and Ron sat at one of the shiny metal tables under a large outdoor umbrella, already eating ice cream.

“You lot took your time,� Ron said, as they approached.

“Yeah, well, Ginny still hasn’t accepted that the Potter hair is naturally a mess and will always be,� replied Harry, ruffling James’s hair.

James scowled. “Stop it; you’re embarrassing me.�

Harry grinned. “Thanks. Anyway, kids, why don’t you all run and order your ice creams? We can all sit and have a chat before we go shopping for your supplies.�

As the children scampered into the Parlour, Harry and Ginny sat down, and launched immediately into the information they had received that morning, in low, hushed and worried tones.

Hermione and Ron listened aghast, ice cream long forgotten.

“S-so you’re going to Hogwarts?� asked Hermione, looking pale.

Harry nodded grimly. “Yes, the children aren’t too happy about it, but I’m not leaving them on their own. Ron, you’ve been assigned to cover me in my department.�

“Wow,� said Ron quietly. Then he frowned. “You git,� he glared at Harry, “so while you get to go back to Hogwarts, I’m still stuck in the office sorting out my paperwork and all the paperwork you’ve left behind!�

Harry grinned. “That is a bonus, yes. But don’t worry, my paperwork isn’t too bad, there’s just a lot of it, although its sorted differently to your section of the department. Listen carefully; everything in the blue folder needs to be sorted alphabetically and then put into the red folder if it’s a green form, and the purple folder if it’s white. The forms need to be filled in exactly and the information is in the puce folder-�

“Puce? What’s puce?�

“Purple-brown colour. Now, the information is in the puce folder, but don’t get any information from the burgundy folder, because that’s all information that needs to be checked, analysed and evaluated and then put into the maroon folder-�

“Harry, shut-up! Puce, burgundy and maroon are all the same colours, and why does your section of the department have to be so complicated when it comes to paperwork?�

“Ron, it’s all quite simple, look, the falu-red folder-�

Ginny shook her head and rolled her eyes at Hermione, who was fighting back laughter. “Shall we take the kids and go?� she asked lightly. Hermione nodded, still holding a hand over her mouth and shaking her shoulders. “We’re heading over to Flourish and Blotts, we’ll meet you at the Magical Menagerie,� Ginny told Harry and Ron, but they were now arguing over the colour sangria, and seemingly didn’t hear her.

She shook her head again and called the children, who came out of the shop licking ice creams, which were melting down the cones and onto their arms.

“Where are we going?� asked Hugo, who had managed to get ice cream on his forehead.

“Flourish and Blotts – try to eat all your ice cream before we get there, won’t you? They won’t let you in with it.�

“Finally,� said Lily. “Can we start buying stuff for Hogwarts now?�

They finally reached the book shop, and traipsed around it, scanning the book list and squinting at the titles on the shelves. Finally, their arms full of extremely heavy bags; they left the shop, and made their way over to the Magical Menagerie.

They met Ron and Harry, who seemed to have abandoned their arguments over paperwork and colour coded folders.

The pet shop was dark, yet warm, probably because a good ten centimetres of straw covered the stone floor. Tanks and cages lined every square inch of the wooden walls and mouse-chewed bags of food sat in corners, trying and failing not be noticeable. The building was tall and only the faintest rays of sunshine managed to slip through the holes in the thatched roof. A witch sat at a dusty brown desk in the middle of the room, sending owls with what looked suspiciously like expensive bills and writing notes with a bright pink quill which seemed to stick out like a sore thumb in the otherwise drab shop.

“One pet each,� said Harry, reaching into his pocket and pulling out three velvet money bags. “Nothing too fancy and you can keep the leftovers, consider it pocket money for the next three months,� He handed the children the bags, and when he handed a bag to Sirius, the youngest looked at it with a confused expression.

“Why am I getting a pet? I’m not going to Hogwarts.� Harry grinned

“Why does that mean you’re not allowed a pet?�

As the children ran off Ginny wrapped her arms around Harry and whispered to him, “You spoil them.�

Harry shrugged. “I dunno about that… they’re not getting birthday presents this year…�

Lily’s warm brown eyes widened as she saw a jewel encrusted turtle. She moved towards it and surveyed it greedily.

“Dad said nothing fancy you twit.� James grumbled, dragging her away from the exotic animals section. Lily pulled a face at him and headed over to the owls. She didn’t want a snowy one. James was buying one of those and she wouldn’t be able to stand having something the same as him. All the other owls were rather plain and boring.

She strolled over to the cats. She was watching a rather fine tabby lick its paws in a dignified way, when she heard a small meow to her left. She looked and there was the most adorable creature she had ever seen.

“Oh,� she sighed softly.

The kitten was smoke grey and so small it could fit into her hand. It had large blue eyes and big soft ears. Its paws seemed too big for it so occasionally tripped over them. Lily put her fingers through the chicken wire. The kitten licked them.

“Dad!� she called over her shoulder. Harry wandered over and crouched next to his daughter.

“You want that cat, do you?�

Lily smiled angelically at him, and he rolled his eyes. He looked at the price tag attached to the cage and gave a yelp of surprise. “Lily, the price on this thing is ridiculous! Are cats now an endangered species or something?�

“But he’s so sweet,� cooed Lily. “Anyway, I’ll pay for him out of the money bag you gave me.�

Harry stared at her. “There isn’t that much money in the bag! You need a lot more than that!� She smiled at him. “Wha- no! I gave you the money-�

“Please, Daddy, I love you, and I think that this kitten would make me very happy. You’re always saying you want me to be happy and have the childhood you never had.�

Harry scowled. “That used to work, not anymore. You’re not having that kitten.�

Ten minutes later, Lily walked out of the shop with her somewhat grumpy and considerably poorer father, a small grey kitten in her hands. She held the cat close to her and walked over to show him to James, Sirius and Rose.

“Ahhhh! Sweet!� Rose scratched him behind the ears.

“Has he got a name?� asked Sirius.

Lily shook her head. “Not yet.�

Just then, James wandered over with a large snowy owl. “Say hello to Blizzard!� He stated proudly.

“Blizzard?�

“Yes, Blizzard. As in snow.� Lily rolled her eyes at the stupidity of her brother and had a look at what everyone else had brought. Rose already had a sweet little Barn owl at home, named Willow, so she had simply got a new cage for him. Sirius (who was planning to get a rat until James had reminded him of the story of Peter Pettigrew, including the death, only with a lot more blood and guts) had brought a rabbit, which, according to the witch at the desk, could change its size, within limits of course.

“You won’t be able to take that to Hogwarts,� warned Rose. Sirius scowled.

“I don’t care! I’ll sneak him in when the time comes.�

“Well, if I can still afford it, we should go and get your wands,� said Harry, still with a grumpy expression.

“Expensive cat, Harry?� asked Ron, a large grin on his face. “Never mind, I’m sure the cat food will be less expensive.�

Harry glared at him. “C’mon,� he muttered. “Let’s head over to Ollivanders.�