Darkness. Chills. Five in the morning, James rose off the prickly hay and grabbed his bag. He had to keep moving, he couldn't stay in one place for too long or they'd track him down and he couldn't let them catch him.

A few weeks earlier: "Two minutes," James slurred, taking a swig from his Fire Whiskey.

Sirius barked with laughter. "Yeah righ', to ge' a slap mebbe."

James shook his head. "I can ge' 'er," with a swaying head he looked from Sirius to Peter to Remus and back again. Each of his three friends had a look of pure disbelief on their faces. "Alrigh', if I don' 'ave 'er fallin' fer me in two minutes I'll…"

"You'll what?" Remus asked clearly. He had drunk the least out of the four and was obviously not affected by the large quantities of alcohol, or at least very little.

"Shhh…" James hissed loudly. "I'm tinkin'…"

"If 'e doesn' 'e's goin' 'ome wit' 'er," Sirius announced even louder, pointing at a woman as she passed.

"I'm no' tha' drunk, I can still see she's a banshee."

"Exackly," Peter squeaked higher than usual. "She's abou' the bes' yer gonna ge' t'nigh'."

James downed the last of his Fire Whiskey. "Alrigh' I'll show yer," he said as he stood up, banging into the table as he did. "Yer'll see."

He stumbled over to where a girl about his age was sat. She wore a red halter neck top and a short black skirt on a beautifully tanned body. She was thin, had pretty blue eyes and sleek and straight light brown hair. She was the kind of person who didn't need to wear make-up but when she did it made her look even better.

"Wanna drink?" James asked when he reached her.

She looked him up and down with a dirty look and turned from him.

He stepped back into her view sight. "I'm a Quidditsch player you know? How abou' me an' meh broom show yer a few moves?"

The woman's look changed from one of looking down on an inferior to pure disgust. "Get away from me you loser." She stood up and walked away, but not before giving James a sharp slap across the face.

"Oooh!" Peter winced as Sirius howled at the sight.

"Bad luck," Remus said when James got back, he sounded sympathetic but a tone in his voice suggested he maybe thought James deserved it.

"No ma'er," James shrugged it off as he looked around the room for another woman to try it on with, trying to stall Sirius' choice in woman. His eyes fell on the woman who had just slapped him as she left the club. "I'll jus' go give it anuvver try, if I'm no' back in ten minutes don' worry abou' me."

He stumbled after the woman, finally catching up with her a street away.

"'Scuse me, love," he called after her.

She turned around and, when she saw who it was, turned away. "Get lost!"

"I wanted to apologise," he slurred at her.

"Oh?" She turned back again, a little curious.

"Yeah, I was jus' tryin' to win a be' wi' meh friends. Sorry if ah upse' yeh."

She listened to his drunken apology and a small smile crept onto her face. "What was the bet?"

"To ge' lucky wi' a beautiful woman."

Her smile grew slightly. "And I was her? Then I guess I should be flattered. Come on, I'll go for a walk with you."

James grinned and the two walked around the town for a little bit, talking, before going to hotel to spend the night. James got the Honeymoon Suite and ordered a bottle of champagne to be sent up to their room. James did in fact 'get lucky', falling asleep afterwards. When he awoke his head pounded with pain, as though he were being stabbed with one thousand needles over and over again and he looked at the high ceiling above him, not recognising it. He looked around the room and didn't see anything that looked familiar to him but saw the room was in a state. Furniture was broken and glass and wood splinters covered the floor, there was a red liquid in some places too. Finally James' eyes looked down and saw the sheets printed with a small insignia, "The Crescent Hotel," that he realised he must be there, but he didn't remember getting there, or any of the events from the night before come to think of it so he had no excuse for the state of the room.

He groaned as he sat up, "How much did I drink last night?" he wondered aloud as the pain got worse.

He hurried to the bathroom where he splashed cold water on his face, drinking some to help soothe his aching throat. Looking in the mirror he saw his continuously messy hair was even worse than when he usually got up and his eyes were hideously blood shot. But that isn't what caught his attention. He was more drawn to the dried blood above his eye and on his lip. Looking down at his hand he noticed that they too were bloodied and cut. James frowned, unable to remember where he had got them.

He went back into the bedroom where, for the first time, he noticed a girl lying on the bed besides where he had been. As he got closer he became horrified. The girl lay on the bed covered in blood, scratches and bruises littered her body and she had at least one deep cut for there was an ever increasing pool of blood on the once pristine white sheets below here. On the floor beside her there lay a smashed bottle of champagne. Too scared to do anything else, James hurriedly put on his clothes and left the hotel, not telling anyone about the girl upstairs.

When he got home James went in the shower, turning the hot water as high as it'd go. He scrubbed himself raw, in some places he was still bleeding, until finally he got out. He was disgusted with himself, he couldn't remember what had happened, but he had ideas in his head that it had been him who had done that, who else could it have been? There was no one in the room. And even if it wasn't him, he had just left that girl alone in the room and told no one, he didn't even know if she were dead or alive.

- - - - -

"You horrible man!" James' mother cried the next day. "I can't believe you would do something like that."

James looked at his parents wide-eyed. "Mum..."

"Get out!" she shouted at him. "I don't want you in this house."

"Dad…" he tried again with his father.

"You heard your mother. We don't want here James. We've always put up with your nonsense but this is taking it too far."

"But…"

"James, go!"

Tears stung James' eyes as he went upstairs and packed a rucksack full of a few clothes and personal belongings. He tried to talk to his parents before he left but his father was busy comforting his mother who was in floods of tears. Even the house elves wouldn't talk to him as they lined up to watch him go. The whole attitude of the house had become rather subdued. James reached the door and turned back to look at the house. He bent down and said to the head elf, "Tell them…Tell them I'm truly sorry."

Then, with one last look around his childhood home, James left, never to return again.

He apparated to Sirius' house.

"Padfoot?" He croaked.

Sirius appeared immediately. "James! Please, don't tell me it's true."

James hung his head in shame. "I don't remember…"

Sirius snorted, "Don't pull that shit on me, Prongs. Everyone knows about this now, everyone's seen the Prophet. Just tell me the truth; I'll stand by you no matter what."

"Me too," Remus said as he stepped forward behind Sirius.

"And me," squeaked Peter who brought up the rear.

"I am," James said. "I don't remember anything that happened."

"James, don't be stupid, of course you do," Remus stated.

James let out a groan. "I wish I did, I wish I knew. Then at least when I get thrown in Azkaban I'll know it's the right punishment."

"It's not going to come to that," Sirius said.

"Of course it is!" James exclaimed. "She's in critical condition, not expected to live the rest of week."

"She was well enough to be interviewed by the Prophet," Peter pointed out. "And Skeeter did write it, you know she exaggerates."

"But everyone believes her, even you guys, and I don't even know if I did it. Oh, I have to go; I need to do something to prove I couldn't have done this."

He was about to disapparate when he Sirius speak. "No, if you go anywhere they'll get you. Just tell us what happened and we'll help you."

James frowned but relayed what little he did remember; when he was done he looked straight at Sirius. "How long are they going to be?"

It was Sirius' turn to hang his head in shame as he tried to avoid his best friend's hard stare. "About two minutes," he muttered.

James nodded, "Its ok, I understand."

"Well you shouldn't." Sirius growled. "We're Marauders, we don't betray each other," he gave a cold look at Peter, who had been the one to inform the Ministry when James had first arrived, and at Remus whose idea it had been in the first place. James couldn't see the look on Sirius' face when he looked at Remus but Remus nodded in response to whatever it was.

"He's right," Remus spoke up. "We don't. Go, we'll say Peter got confused or that you escaped before we had chance to put the charm on you. Keep moving, but don't apparate, they can track you. Transform if you must."

James smiled at his friends. "Thanks guys, I swear if I could, I'd die for you all."

Sirius looked at his best friend before quickly hugging him, not caring how un-manly it seemed, he was like a brother to him. "Don't do anything any more stupid, ok? We'll try and sort everything out. Use the mirror if you remember anything or need any help."

James nodded before looking at each of his three friends. "I solemnly swear I am up to no good," he told them with a heartbreakingly heavy smile before he vanished from their sight.

"Mischief managed," the three who remained said solemnly. The second they finished speaking five loud pops sounded and a voice boomed.

"James Potter, stay where you are, you are wanted by the Ministry for questioning about a rape and attempted murder. I repeat stay where you are, you cannot escape."

"Too late boys," Sirius said, smiling at the irony. "He escaped before we could even get the charm on him. Looks like you're going to have to use someone else to get him."

The leader of the Ministry group glared at the smug look on Sirius' face, tempted to arrest him for preventing the course of justice but that wasn't his job. "Guess we will," he muttered before signalling to move out.

Five pops sounded again and Sirius turned to look at Peter and Remus. "What?" he asked at the appalled look on Remus' face.

"Don't antagonize them, they're already on red alert, they can arrest anyone for practically anything now."

Sirius shrugged, "How long are they going to hold me for telling the truth?" He pointed out. "And besides, it's you two they should arrest, turning on your friend like that."

Remus sighed wearily. "Sirius we went through it and all agreed, we thought it was for the best."

"No," Sirius said as he headed back to the kitchen to get a snack. "You two decided and thought it was for the best. Not once did I agree to it, but it doesn't matter, James is free for a little longer and that's all that matters."

"Yeah," Peter said slowly. "But is it really such a good thing? They're only going to come down harder on him if and when they find him."

Sirius shot him a dirty look but inside he knew it was true and as the three boys tried to work out a way to help clear James' name with just the few facts he gave them and their knowledge of him, a heavy sinking feeling in the heart came across all three of them.

Back to now: Sneaking out of the barn before day break so as to avoid its farmer owner, James cut his leg on a rough piece of wood. He cursed quietly and looked down at it, it was a small cut but it was bleeding profusely. Wincing he hurried off the large field, deciding to tend to his leg once he was on the road again, if he slowed down now the farmer might catch him and he was in no state to fight back.

He got off the field but didn't stop, he'd been doing this for a few weeks now, and he knew the drill. Stay in any one place for only a few hours and then get moving again, distance yourself a couple of miles before stopping again, that way people are less likely to spot you. And so far that had been true, few people had seen him, and those who did paid little attention because of his haggard appearance. He was a beggar to them, a homeless man you are to pay little attention to in case their problems spread to you. He preferred it this way, no one would recognise him and so he couldn't be tracked down, but of course, he would have preferred it more if none of this had happened. This life, it wasn't one anyone should live, especially not him. Local Quidditch Team captain, Auror-in-training and a very popular guy with the guys and the ladies; that was who he was, not this poor snivelling excuse of a man.

He'd lost track of how many days he'd been avoiding the world, how long it had been since he'd last showered and had a proper meal, the whole ideas of them seemed like far-away possibilities, dreams of a mad man. He was barely surviving and doubted he would be at all if it weren't for his special ability, and for more than once he was glad it was kept a secret from the Ministry. His ability to change into an animal, his animagus form of a stag that he learnt in his 5th year at Hogwarts, was an ability only his three closest friends knew about, and that was only because they too were illegal animagi. Done to keep Remus company on his werewolf nights, James, Sirius and Peter decided to keep Remus company without the risk of becoming werewolves themselves. For years they tried until finally they managed and the stag, the dog and the rat were finally able to be with their friend on some of the hardest nights of his life. It was a hard and dangerous task, and for it the Ministry prefers to keep track of all animagi so that they can tabs on their use, James and his friends, however, remained unregistered. This was coming in handy now as James was able to shift into his animal form and scout for food in forests and woods without the risk of being spotted by people, it also came in handy on those occasions he came close to being caught by the Ministry.

He reached a small country road and saw a small wooded area across the lane. Changing into his stag form, James cautiously walked across the road, there was only one car but he had never liked walking in public areas as a stag, it made him uncomfortable. So carefully he walked and, about one metre from the other side, a car hurtled into his side and the next thing James Potter saw black.