August 1977- Town of Lavenham, Suffolk, England

"Prongs! Duck!"

James dropped mid step, rolling aside as his friend's curse flew over his head, a grunt of pain and a dull thud and a splash telling him that his pursuer had fallen. He rose fluidly from the mud, turning to return the favor as the death eater's fellow took the chance to sneak up on Sirius. Their opponents down, the two tore off up the dark street, laughing despite themselves, wands clutched tightly in hand. Rain fell on their heads but they took no notice of it as they ran, raising the puddles beneath their feet, soaking them further as they stuck close to the edge of the street, eyes peeled for movement.

Crash!

The wall next to them exploded in a shower of sparks and falling rubble, throwing both men through the air along with the debris and ropes of fire that seemed immune to the pouring rain. James hit the pavement hard, taking his breath away, his head snapping back painfully against the hard stone, dazing him. He rolled away from the falling flames, his head pulsing painfully as he caught sight of at least a dozen death eaters at the end of the lane. He could feel them watching him as they advanced, gliding across the stones as a single unit. He and Sirius were greatly outnumbered and he wondered if this time there would be no lucky escape.

"Prongs!"

Sirius was standing and reached out to drag James to his feet. They pressed themselves against the nearest wall, both breathing hard, lucky both to be unhurt and to have their wands intact.

"I don't suppose you have a plan here?" Sirius asked in a would be casual voice, blinking against the darkness of the night.

James chuckled darkly. "I think we might have greatly overestimated our abilities on this one."

"We always do" Sirius replied easily. "Listen, If we don't get out of this one James..."

"Oi!"

Both men jumped, eyes sweeping the shadows. James noted that the street was now swarming with death eaters at both ends yet they had stopped moving, and stood silently, waiting.

"Up here!"

They looked up to see Remus crouched low on the roof off the damaged house next to them that still smoldered sadly, smoke rising in a hiss as large raindrops eliminated the last of the fire. Glancing to either end of the street uneasily he slid down and lowered himself over the edge, dropping lightly to his feet and moving swiftly to join them.

Remus' face was pale and bloody, his lip split, blood lining his teeth, smeared on his skin and clothes and matting his hair.

"Seems you two have got us into quite the fix" he said. "Strange" he added seriously, offering another glance at the hooded figures that blocked their way silently.

"Where have you been?" Sirius demanded impatiently, rubbing his filthy hands on his filthier robes.

Remus sighed, drawing his damp cloak more tightly around his shoulders to cover a deep gash in the shoulder of his jumper where the fabric was stained red with his blood.

"Thought I'd stop for a cup of tea" Remus answered sarcastically. "It's the same as ever. Like it's a sport to them. Dragging people from their homes, burning the places to the ground, mothers and children, infants, old people. And of course the muggles can't understand what's going on, how could they? It's sick!"

A scream wrenched the air from the next street, making them all flinch, and followed by wicked laughter.

"And what the bloody hell are these morons waiting for?" Remus asked uncomfortably, again eyeing the silent death eaters.

"I imagine they weren't expecting resistance in a town full of muggles. They probably think were locals and we'll give ourselves up if they wait long enough" James said, though he wasn't sure they were entirely wrong. They were outnumbered at least five to one and it was certainly better to be a prisoner than to be dead, though capture of course didn't guarantee survival and definitely meant being disarmed and probably tortured.

"Shall we just apparate to the next street then?" Sirius asked, glancing between his friends, but Remus was already shaking his head.

They've got men everywhere, so if we disapparate then it'll have to be out of here, and if we leave we won't get back in alive. We can't leave Peter anyway."

The others nodded in agreement.

"Do either of you find it strange at all how many death eaters they've sent in?" James asked his friends. "We've never been up against so many at once before, and in a town full of muggles it hardly seems necessary." He ran his hand through his hair, then removed his glasses and rubbed them on his sleeve, only smudging them further. He used his wand more effectively to remove the muck that coated them.

"Well maybe you were wrong" Sirius suggested. "Maybe they' are thinking we'll give ourselves up, but maybe they were actaually expecting resistance."

They exchanged dark glances. "Even if they were expecting us, they can't have flooded the place with the death eaters just for the four of us when they're just here to spread fear and panic and have a little fun with some clueless muggles."

"Well maybe they were expecting someone else" Remus said mysteriously. "Maybe this was a trap."

"Someone else?" Sirius hissed. "And who exactly would that be? Sure, were probably not the only ones trying to do some good, but come on, do you really think any of the others are important enough that Voldemort would make the effort to set a trap for them?" he asked, rolling his eyes. "I'd like to see that."

"Well what do you call this?" Remus demanded defensively, "and what about the order of the phoenix?"

Sirius snorted. "The order of the Phoenix. Please. You shouldn't believe everything you hear, Moony. The order is a myth based on people like us who decide not to lay down and let Voldemort and his minions walk all over us and kill people we care about. There is no order of the phoenix."

"Shut up, both of you!" James snapped in annoyance. "Some of us are trying to think of a way out of this." If only he had a broomstick.

"Back me up here Prongs. The order of the phoenix?"

"Well if they do exist we could really use a hand here right about now" he answered. He turned to Remus. "Where's Peter?"

"Last I saw him he was scouting a safe place to take anyone we managed to get out, though at this point were the ones who're going to need saving."

James grunted in acknowledgment but he was thinking fast, eyeing the areas that surrounded the death eaters at each end of the street.

"Alright" he said finally, "We don't have a lot of options here, so were just going to pick an end and go for."

"Pick an end and go for it?" Remus repeated in bewilderment. "And what exactly does that mean?"

"Exactly what it sounds like" he replied with a shrug. "And we do it now, before more of them decide to join this party."

An explosion shook the street, and more screams were carried to them on the chilly breeze.

"So which end?" Sirius asked eagerly, driven by the shrieks of the people who needed their help.

"Left" James decided randomly, "Ready? NOW!"

He threw himself back into the street, running for the death eaters that waited for him at the end, adrenaline fueling him. Aiming high, he used their own trick, bringing the building behind them down on their heads, dodging brightly colored curses as the death eaters leapt to respond to the attack while avoiding being crushed as the building behind them collapsed, lighting up the sky momentarily as flame bloomed high above them.

"Quick!" he shouted over his shoulder at his friends, who were fast on his heels, sending their own spells forward and back at the death eaters behind them who were rushing to help their fellows.

With a pop James disapparated, reappearing instantly behind the wizards who were trying to kill him, and he managed to hit two of them before they realized where he had gone, turning on him just in time to get hit from behind by Sirius, Remus, and even curses from the other end that his friends had managed to dodge.

"James! This way!"

He spun to see Peter sprinting past him down the adjoining street. Calling to his friends he took off after him, taking out the last of the first group of death eaters as he leapt over piles of burning rubble, sending the man tumbling back into the remnants of what had once surely been a house.

He caught sight of Peter turning into an alley and joined him, followed seconds later by Sirius and Remus.

"There are too many of them!" Peter said, bending to catch his breath. "They're killing the muggles. It's just a game, there's no reason for them to be here."

James pressed his fist into a cramp in his side, but his hand came away bloody and he wiped it on his jumper, leaning into the wall to peer around the corner, ensuring that no one was bearing down on them secretly.

"He's right" Sirius said, "We can't take them all. For whatever reason, there are just too many of them."

James shook his head. "We can't take them, but we can't just abandon these people to Voldemort's plans either. They need us." He pulled the hood of his cloak up over his head, glowering at the other marauders, waiting for their answer.

"Prongs" Remus said. "If we go back out there then were as good as dead and that does nothing for these people either. You have to learn to pick your battles James. If we die here than were not doing anyone any good."

"I won't abandon them!" he snapped at his friends furiously. "You lot can save yourselves if you like, but I'm going back out there. These are defenseless people and we're the only ones in a position to save their lives right now. I'm going!"

And he did, shoving away from the wall and back into the open without a second glance, selfishly aware that his friends would not leave him, that they would be right behind him, he was depending on it, and he was also suddenly aware of how good it felt to be alive, to be running in the rain, lungs burning, friends behind him, even the pain felt good, the ache that had a hold over his entire body, that he ignored eagerly.

It was two streets away that the death eaters were busy at work, burning houses with the occupants still inside, elsewhere dragging people into the street, cursing them, torturing them. Bodies littered the pavement, none of them masked, some of them children.

James ducked back out of sight, putting out an arm to stop his friends before they revealed themselves.

"We need some kind of plan here, unless you lot really want to be home in time to have a good nights sleep?"

POP! POP! POP!

It was an unmistakable sound, that of a dozen people apparating at once, and then shouts and flashes of light that told them they were no longer the only ones opposing the death eaters. James glanced around the corner and steadied himself against the wall in relief. Liberated muggles were running for cover and safety, flashing past the foursome where they stood in watch. The remaining death eaters were being taken on by other hooded figures who moved in well trained formation, protecting themselves and each other with speed and impressive aim.

"Lets go" James said. He had no idea who these people were or where they had come from. All he knew was that the good guys were still outnumbered and could use all the help they could get. He glanced at his friends, who, despite clear uncertainty, each nodded in turn, pulling their hoods up and following him out into the chaos.

They were part of it immediately, dancing out of the way of flying curses and dueling pairs, quickly finding their own as Sirius blasted a death eater who was about to do the same to one of the newcomers. The stranger gave a harsh laugh and turned away to help a smaller companion who was dueling three at once.

James caught sight of a death eater turning on a young woman who was regaining consciousness on the road, and he jumped forward to intervene. He wasn't the only one to do so however as the masked man was hit by another spell even as his own hit home, jerking the body back and forth before it collapsed to the ground.

"Nice one." James was surprised to hear a woman's voice from beneath the cloak, and though he couldn't place it, the voice was vaguely familiar, not that he had time to think about it as the same woman shot a spell over his shoulder that singed his cloak as it took down a death eater behind him.

"Thanks" he said honestly.

The woman chuckled. "Don't thank me yet." And then she was off in the other direction, and so was he as the mailbox behind him exploded, sending burning letters a hundred feet in the air to rain back down on all their heads.

It was slow but sure, and then all of a sudden they were no longer outnumbered. What had seemed to him as an unbeatable number of death eaters was down to half a dozen, the number of bodies on the street had grown, but with cloaked figures rather than muggles, and those that remained were starting to fall back, many of them disapparating, and then, as the sun began to rise in the east, as the last of them fell or disappeared there was suddenly no one left to duel.

An odd silence fell on all sides, yet his ears were still ringing from the battle.

James turned, nearly colliding with one of his friends who was backing towards him.

"Prongs" Peter hissed warningly next to him, drawing his attention to the group of strangers who had now turned to surround the four of them, seeming much less friendly than they had as they fought shoulder to shoulder with him and his friends, saving their lives. And he remembered the woman's words.

"Don't thank me yet" she had said, and she had laughed. He hadn't even considered the comment.

And it was too late to consider now.

James raised his wand but it was too late.

"Expelliarmus!"

His wand slipped through his fingers and though he grabbed at it as it left his hand it spun from his grip and was caught by one of the strangers, as were his friends'.

"Who are you?" Sirius demanded furiously, a sentiment James shared, having just fought side by side with these people, only to be turned on.

They were closing in on the four of them slowly, almost unnoticeably, and if they had had no way out before, it was much worse unarmed and surrounded on all sides.

"We are the Order of the Phoenix" a soft voice answered cooly, one of the smallest members of the group, though James had seen her fight and wouldn't underestimate her. "And who are you?" He froze. He didn't have to think twice to place this voice, for it was as familiar to him as his own, or those of the other marauders.

"Evans?" he said in shock, and despite the hood that hid her, her face was clearer in his mind than it had been since the day they had said goodbye. He had never expected this.

"Wrong answer" a different, harsher male voice informed him. James opened his mouth to reply but he was already sinking into the darkness.