Warnings: This will involve slash. It also has quite a few british swear words in ok!

Escape Into The Night

Prologue: A stormy beginning.

The house was quiet for the moment. Nothing moved, nothing creaked and Harry Potter sat there enjoying it. The peace would not last long. The first day back to Hogwarts, the children running around making sure they had everything, James once more picking on his little brother. It was a comical routine that Harry never tired of. This was how families should be; this was how his family was. Sitting there, a tumbler of fire whiskey hanging loosely from his fingertips, he just relaxed; his eyes closing for the briefest of moments, his head lolling backwards and his breathing steadying. Soon it would be chaos. Soon he would be waving his children off to school, kissing his wife goodbye and going back to the office. Another tedious routine.

"Mum! James has unpacked my entire trunk again!" Albus's voice was high pitched and whining. It sounded slightly like Dudley those many years ago, but now Harry did not dread hearing it, instead he just smiled softly. The door to his office was shut firmly and yet he could hear everything.

"I only did it because you stole my favourite pair of jeans again! Albus they don't fit you so stop stealing them and will you give me back my bloody mobile. Just because you're not allowed one doesn't me I'm not!" James voice was deep now, no longer high pitched and mischievous. His son had grown up. Going into his last year of Hogwarts and already wanting to move out of the family home. Too noisy he often said, no privacy. Harry just knew that James was embarrassed by his parents, embarrassed that his parents were well known, embarrassed that Ginny still gave him a hug and kiss goodbye in front of his friends.

"Well it's not fair. I'm only a year younger then you and yet you got one and I didn't!"

"It's your own fault. You should have spent more time studying for your OWLS then having your head in the bloody clouds and arse on a broomstick!"

"James!" Ginny's voice was sharp. She hated him swearing, though she herself had a mouth like a sailor. Do as I say not as I do, was her motto.

"Sorry mum but it's true. He's just being a spoilt little brat. He's sixteen for Merlin's sake so he should grow up!"

"Like you? You're just like Uncle Percy."

"I would rather be like Uncle Percy then a sniffling, broomstick humping, moron like you." Harry could hear the aggravation in James's voice. Harry had to admit, James was good at insulting people. It was harsh, to the point and did not let Albus win. That was James all over. A desire to win. Nobody was ever right. He was right at all costs and would fight to the bitter end to prove so.

"James! Get down here." Harry called up the stairs. A stern voice, which was the only thing he had ever taken from Vernon Dursley. He knew that a stern voice could make a child cringe and he often used it on his boys. They had been boisterous when they were younger and he had frequently needed to keep them in line less they break anything, including their own bones.

"What?" He was sullen, annoyed and stubborn. That was James. Harry motioned for him to shut the door staying completely quiet. Some of the men in the auror department had teenagers and told him about what he should and shouldn't do in punishing them. None of it had worked.

"Don't what me."

"You wanted to see me?" He said, mockingly, a slight upturn of the lips showing his amusement at Harry trying to be strict. James was the son that was never afraid of authority, the rebel but unlike Harry's father or Harry himself, James hated any kind of authority. He didn't care if you were trying to help him, he didn't care if you were on his side. As soon as you told him to do something he would do the complete opposite. It was just his little quirk that Harry blamed Ginny for.

"Must you always treat your brother like that?"

"Well you don't punish him, neither does mum. He thinks he owns the place." Shrugging James looked him square in the eye. Tall and slightly intimidating, if Harry had not been his father and had faced the darkest wizard in history he just might have backed off. He still didn't know where James had gotten his height. Must be Ron's kid swapped at birth.

"So you need to put him in his rightful place?"

"Oh come off it dad. I'm not some criminal. Look he stole my mobile and my jeans, again might I add, and once again I'm getting in trouble for getting them back."

"I am the parent James. I do the punishing and getting things back. Not you. Why must you always do this? Why do you always have to get in trouble, cause fights and start arguments why can't you," here Harry stopped. If he went any further then there would be hell to pay but it was too late. James was not stupid, far from it and that same little grin pulled at his lips.

"Why can't I be like you? Why can't I be like Albus or Lily or even my dead grandfather? I've heard you talk about it with mum. I don't want to be like any of you. I want to be myself if you don't like it then that's your problem." With that he left the room. No look back, no anger, just a statement. It was as if he was talking about his grades at school, or what he wanted to do afterwards. Harry really was at his wits end. Picking up his tumbler he swirled it around the glass before tipping the entire contents down his throat. Welcoming the burn, he sighed once for good measure and left the room.

The house was chaos. Clothes were thrown everywhere, Ginny was trying to cook, clean and find Lily's history book all at once, Albus was trying to find that last piece of underwear that had somehow made its way down stairs and under their living room sofa, and James—well he was like normal running around pushing Albus out of the way to try and find his Arithmancy book that he had probably left under the sofa as well. Why they always found the most obscure things under the sofa, Harry didn't know. Maybe it was a magical thing.

"Morning," he muttered to his wife, slipping his arms around her waist, and kissing her cheek. Her hair smelt like roses. He always brought her that shampoo, it smelt the nicest and she always seemed to like it.

"Morning. You smell of alcohol. We don't have long so go and get changed and help your sons get their brooms," she was all business. Seeming to channel her mum and Harry had always been slightly in awe at the talent of the Weasley women keeping boisterous males in check. Saluting her mockingly, he turned, handed his daughter the jumper that had been hanging on the edge of the banister and walked up the stairs to his bedroom. The sounds filtered up the stairs and through his closed door. In a matter of hours his house would once more be silent, he and his wife only seeing each other in the evenings as they busied themselves with their work. Was this how all parents felt? Although it had been a routine for seven years it was still a strange experience, something he didn't like nor did he look forward to. What he would do when all of the children had flown the nest he didn't know. He was hoping he could at least keep his little girl with him forever but he knew that wouldn't happen.

Although part of his worry was natural. Just a worried parent sending his kids off to school for a year, there was another fear at the back of his mind. There were dark stirrings in the political world. Another ministry had come forward. Although Harry and the ministry had known about vampires, knew that they existed, no wizard knew that the vampires had their own ministry, their own laws, and their own world. It had frightened everyone including Shacklebolt the man who always seemed to stay calm under pressure. They had all thought that vampires were evil creatures who only thought about sucking blood, allergic to garlic and sunlight. Suddenly a new breed came forward calling themselves, Sanguinatus vampires. Apparently they were born vampires, age like mortals and any time after their twenty-fifth birthday can stop the aging process. They were eloquent, intelligent and organised. In that moment Harry had realised that if they were enemies it could be dangerous and he knew that Shacklebolt had felt the same. The vampires had seemed to sense this.

"We don't wish to harm you. What we want is an alliance between our two ministries. However we shall not settle for second-class citizenship. Equality or nothing else," their designated speaker, a grey haired, balding vampire, had told them. Not all of them were good looking or had ethereal beauty. From what the vampires explained, they were like mortals, they had different features, some were good looking some weren't and some chose to age past their fifties while others chose to stay looking like their twenties forever. It was a vampire's choice. In all Harry thought it was very confusing.

"And if we don't agree?" Shacklebolt had not been intimidated. He was not one to be told what to do by someone he didn't know nor respect.

"It would be detrimental for you to not agree. You seem under the idea that we are like those useless and ridiculous vampires you see in the movies and read in books. We are stronger then you, we are faster then you and we can destroy you with a flick of our wrist." The speaker was calm, his thin lips pulling back in a mocking smile, brown eyes sparkling in enjoyment. Harry wanted to smack him, that grin was just so patronizing.

"Is that a threat?"

"Good man. Do you really believe that we would come all this way to get into a fight with you? Stop thinking with your macho testosterone and start thinking with your head." Sharp admonishment that cowed one of the ministers, so much that his shoulders slumped and he stepped back. Harry didn't mind, that minister was a twat.

Sitting there on his bed, his legs crossed at the knee, his elbows leaning on them, he looked at the door. It was strange that the vampires had suddenly decided to appear now. Leaning backwards, his eyes closing and his mind churning he thought over what this could mean. He was too old to go into another war, too tired. He could just see himself as Dumbledore fighting in another war until the other side got lucky and killed him first. That lifestyle was not for him. He wanted to watch his children grow and marry, have grandchildren and die in his sleep. Simple really.

"Harry," Ginny was calling, frazzled and probably at the end of her tether. Smiling to himself he stood up, grabbed his jacket and slipped it on, his black hair still messy, and running into the bathroom down the hall, he quickly brushed his teeth.

"Dad." Now James was calling. How that boy could one minute be so calm and anti-social and the next perfectly normal and loveable was completely beyond Harry. At least Albus and Lily were easier to understand. If they were all like James he would most probably be at the bottom of a bottle everyday. He loved his son dearly but the boy was so troublesome and confusing.

"I'm coming, I'm coming."

"Well mum said if you are not down there in five seconds then you are in the doghouse."

"I have to clean my teeth."

"Just telling you what she said."

"She has a name."

"Fine I'm just telling you what mum said," James turned sighing as if it was an effort and walked off, his back straight, his walk confident. Harry knew that James was one of the more popular boys, probably because of his heritage, something that Harry apologised for but couldn't change. Albus was proud and so was Lily but James seemed to think it was more of a chore. That boy was an oddity.

"Dad can we go now?" Albus stood by him. Having the drawn look of growing too fast Harry was often reminded of himself. Everyone considered Albus the younger Harry with the fact that he loved flying, however Albus was amazing at Herbology and whilst a Gryffindor, he still preferred to stick to himself, avoiding all arguments and fights, classifying them as petty moreover not very fun. At times, he reminded Harry of Neville. Strange how that happened. Maybe all of his children were swapped at birth.

"Just a minute. Have you got everything? Double check the lists that your mother gave you," they had realised that no matter how much they packed and repacked they often forgot something. So Ginny had written a list for each child, what they wanted, needed and didn't need. They never forgot anything important again; though they often wrote home asking for this or that. James had jokingly written home and asked his father to get him some muggle porn. Apparently one of his muggle born friends had suggested Nuts magazine and Playboy. Ginny had sent a howler worthy of her mother. He never mentioned porn again. Harry knew that he hid it very well.

"Yup."

"Of course."

"Mum I'm not like them I already packed weeks ago. It was only that one book I was missing." The boys rolled their eyes, grinning at each other in a moment of mutual camaraderie against a common enemy. Lily was the youngest, smartest and although he wouldn't admit it, Harry's favourite. She was his little girl and she always made sure that everybody knew she was Daddy's girl. It was teasing her that caused the two boys to ever join forces.

"Humour me." Ginny looked through her own checklist. Harry watched it all with a sense of dread. A sense he had not had since he had been a student. Would this all change, would his children become soldiers in a war that could have been averted. He felt tired already. This year was going to be tough; his frazzled nerves would most probably get worse over the year, his one glass of fire whiskey probably becoming two or three. His children would be in the direct line for any war that might happen, if anything went wrong then his children were on the firing line and for the first time in years, Harry Potter was terrified.

"You do know that Uncle Ron and Aunt Hermione will probably be there already?" Albus looked up from his ticked checklist. It was true, Hermione had every one of her children packed and ready to go three weeks in advance so there was no mess, and no confusion. Ron just willingly went along with her, muttering about how it made his life so much easier and in the years that they had been together he had been well trained.

"Then we best get going. If you have forgotten something I won't send it to you because it'll be your own fault," Ginny folded her arms over her chest, face settled in a glare, her red hair framing her face and Harry laughed, kissed her on the cheek ignoring the gagging from his children and pushed her slightly towards the door. Giving him a suffering look, she acquiesced and started to bustle her children out the door.

"James come here a moment please."

"What is it now? Please don't say it's another one of those 'don't pick on your brother' speeches," he said in a flippant tone, arms folded across his chest and his rosy lips turned down at the edges.

"No James. Keep any eye on Lily and Albus for me please."

"I'm not going to be their babysitter."

"I don't mean that. Just make sure they don't get in any trouble and," here Harry stopped. What he would say next would be a severe breach in confidentiality and if he didn't word it correctly his son would do the complete opposite.

"And?" brown eyes stared reproachfully forward.

"And keep an eye on the new professor," he had said it. Harry knew that there was going to be two new teachers at Hogwarts, he knew that one whilst having a murky background was no threat, the other could destroy everything he held dear and it was he who Harry was warning him against without saying names and going against the rules of being an auror even if he was head of department in addition to being close friends with the minister.

"Ok. Dad I think you've been drinking too much whisky," with that James turned, shoved a bag over his shoulder, grabbed his trunk and dragged it out of the house. Once again the house was silent. Once again he was left to his own thoughts, once again he was cursing his bad luck and once again he just wished his son would listen to him.