To James's immense surprise, Remus strategy of staving off Lily until the end of the year worked like a charm. When he broke the news to her a few days after his discussion with Remus she had been very sympathetic about his difficult situation. She had even apologized for being so pushy about it in the first place. James had only nebulously mentioned security measures they would have to put in place when he finally told her, because he wanted to avoid committing to the whole Unbreakable Vow idea at the moment. He still was not sure that they should go through with it. Fortunately, Lily had not asked what exactly he had in mind. He guessed that they would just cross the bridge when they got there.

Things had normalized between them after their talk and James had been very relieved about the change. For the moment he could just enjoy being with Lily again. Well, as much as he could enjoy sneaking around as she still wanted to keep things private. Also, she still was rather disapproving about their full moon adventures, but she refrained from commenting about it. Between Quidditch, his head duties, spending time with Lily and a torrent of homework, the weeks passed swiftly. Suddenly, the Easter Holidays loomed on the horizon and James was excited to catch a break. Even though he was not going to get much rest with the amount of holiday work the teachers had assigned in conjunction with studying for the N.E.W.T.s, he was still happy to get out of the castle. He loved being in Hogwarts, but it wasn't his home. His parents were thrilled to have Sirius and him back at home, of course. Lily had opted to stay at Hogwarts over the break, claiming that she need to have access to the library to study properly. James had pestered her about coming to stay at his place. After all, his family owned quite the extensive library themselves and they would have the added benefit of not having to tiptoe around their relationship. Sadly, Lily had refused, stating that her parents would never let her stay over at his house for the whole holidays and that she doubted that she would get enough studying done when he was around to distract her all time. James suspected that the latter statement was probably accurate. Well, there was nothing he could do about it. So, he had had stolen a goodbye kiss from Lily on the morning of their departure and had taken the train back to London together with Sirius, Marlene and Peter. Remus, like Lily, took his exams most seriously and therefore had decided to remain at Hogwarts as well. James and Sirius had teased him mercilessly about his studious character, but it was nothing their werewolf friend was not used to by now. He could take a good ribbing any time of the day.

It was on the evening of the third day of the holidays when James and Peter decided to take a few drinks in the Leaky Cauldron. Sirius and Marlene were out on a date and James had tired of playing exploding snap with Peter rather quickly. He was in the mood for some more entertainment. When they arrived at the rather dingy pub, it was crowded, smoky and loud: Exactly what James had been looking for. He and Peter took a seat at the bar and James quickly ordered both of them a firewhiskey. They had just finished their shots, when Peter pointed out a familiar face in the crowd.

'Look over there,' he told James. 'Rosier is here as well.'

James turned around and spotted the Slytherin right away. He was looking straight at Peter and him and was talking quietly to his two companions. James could only see the face of one: He was a nasty and broody looking bloke in his thirties. His stomach gave a nasty lurch at the sight. The group emanated a foreboding aura. James wondered whether the other guests noticed it as well.

'Who is this severe looking bloke with him?' asked James. 'He seems familiar somehow.'

'Isn't that Macnair?' asked Peter.

'Who?'

'Walden Macnair,' said Peter. 'Shady character. We spotted him once in Knockturn Alley, when we were looking for more material on our animagus transformation. Do you remember? It was in Timmon's Terrible Tomes. He was quite friendly with the owner.'

'Yeah, you are right,' said James. 'You have got a brilliant memory, Wormtail. I had forgotten about him altogether and I don't think I ever knew what he was called.'

'Well, I must be good in something,' said Peter, blushing a little.

'What do you think he is doing drinking with someone like Rosier who is much younger than he is?' asked James. 'If Macnair is as shady as you say, it cannot be anything good.'

'It can't be Death Eater stuff,' said Peter. 'They would not dare to talk about it in such a crowded pub, would they?'

'I wouldn't be so sure about that,' said James quietly. 'This place is packed and if they talk quietly enough, it will be quite hard to overhear them. Naturally, it would be smarter to meet in secret, but Rosier strikes me as sufficiently arrogant that he believes himself save no matter what. I doubt that he just happens to take a drink with someone like Macnair. There is something fishy going on here. Maybe we should try and listen in to them. But how would we do that?'

'James, no,' said Peter. 'Rosier has his eyes on us. He will notice if we try anything. We should just ignore them and take care of our own business. It is hardly smart to meddle in the affairs of the Death Eaters.'

'We can't just do nothing,' said James. 'Someone has to start pushing back against these gits!'

'The aurors do that,' said Peter. 'We are students, we should stay out of the war. It will find us soon enough anyway.'

'The aurors don't know that Rosier is a Death Eater.'

'We don't know that for sure either,' said Peter. 'Maybe he is just trying to appear well-connected and more dangerous than he truly. There could be a million reason why he is talking with Macnair today. We mustn't jump to conclusions. Hey, I just thought of something: There could very well be some aurors in here today. Maybe they have someone tailing Macnair.'

'Do you think so?' said James. He let his gaze sweep through the crowded pub. He didn't notice any on-duty aurors, but that didn't mean anything. If they had people watching the suspected Death Eaters, then they should be difficult to spot after all. Two wizards who were seated close to Rosier's table caught his eye. Both were in their thirties and were playing wizarding chess without talking to each other at all. They seemed rather alert though, maybe they were trying to listen in to Rosier's conversation. 'Yeah, it is possible. What do you think about the two wizards left of Rosier's table? They seem to be watching him closely if I am not mistaken.'

'Yeah, maybe,' said Peter ponderously. 'It is hard to tell though. I guess that is the whole point, isn't it? Nevertheless, we should stay away from people like Rosier. Even if he turns out not to be a Death Eater, he still gives me the creeps. I think he is touched in the head.'

'Why do you say that?' asked James. 'Rosier may be a pounce, but compared to people like Mulciber, he seems to be rather sane, doesn't he? At least he is a bloody sadist psychopath.'

'I wouldn't be too sure about it,' said Peter. 'I am not sure why, but there is something wrong with him. He is just so cold! Mulciber is a brute, Rosier seems to me like the type who likes pulling strings in the background. But I think he can be just as cruel as Mucliber and even more so.'

'Really?' asked James. 'I didn't know you knew him that well, Wormy.'

'I had a few unpleasant encounters with him,' said Peter vaguely. 'He and some of the other Slytherins like to think of me as free game when the rest of you aren't around.'

'Gits,' said James. 'Do you want me to take care of it? I may be head-boy, but I can still hex Slytherins into next week as long as I don't get caught.'

'Don't, I can take care of myself,' said Peter. 'The best way to deal with this is to ignore it. Rosier would love to get you stripped of your badge.'

'It boggles my mind that Rosier is most likely a Death Eater,' said James. 'I can't picture Voldemort recruiting seventeen year olds still in school. It is madness!'

'I think you are underestimating how committed You-Know-Who is to his cause,' said Peter. 'From what I have heard he has no reservations about who or what he uses to achieve his goals. Rumours have it that he has started recruiting werewolves. Just imagine the amount of chaos he can cause with a group of them at his disposal! If someone like Rosier wants to join him, why shouldn't he use him? The fact that Rosier is so young is a huge advantage. People like you are not going to take him seriously. It makes it much safer for him to operate.'

'It makes kind of sense when you put it like this,' said James. 'Do you think we can do something about it? I see no way to get the aurors interested in Rosier without solid proof and we don't even have of shred of that.'

'I don't think we can do anything,' said Peter. 'Rosier is no idiot. He will be careful not to appear too linked to the Death Eaters. It is one thing to have a useful reputation within Slytherin house and another to go fighting in Death Eater robes. Until he slips up, we cannot get the aurors involved.'

'We could keep an eye on him ourselves,' suggested James. 'We have got the map. It would be easy to track his coming and goings. Maybe we can see what he is doing and find some way to nail him.'

'Maybe,' said Peter dubiously. 'But we have our own lives to live and I don't want to spend what little free time I have staring at a piece of parchment on the odd chance that Rosier does something illegal which we can use. I mean, we still have to get proof and having seen him meet someone on the Map isn't it.'

'Yeah, you are probably right,' said James. 'It just frustrates me so much that we cannot do anything about all these junior death eaters running around Hogwarts. Rosier, Mulciber, Avery and Snape are well on their way to become Death Eaters and there is no one even trying to stop them! They are going to be torturing Muggles with a year at most. And everybody in the bloody school knows about it!'

'Well, we can't punish people for something they might do in the future,' pointed Peter out. 'Maybe they will decide on a different way. I think Snape cares more about Muggles than he lets on. He was friends with Lily for years after all.'

'He still thinks that she is scum,' said James. 'He called her a Mudblood after all. No, Snape is as far gone as the rest of them. I think he even is the worst part of the bunch. Greasy git.'

Peter just smiled knowingly at James and said nothing.

'Peter,' said James suddenly. 'Look, Macnair and the other man are gone.'

He jerked his head over to the nearby table, where Rosier was now sitting on his own, sipping on his firewhiskey. The Slytherin noticed James looking and gave him a cold smile. He raised his glass in a mock salute. James felt very cold all of sudden.

'Weird,' said Peter. 'Where did they go?'

'I think we should get out of here,' said James, dread pooling in his stomach. He was not sure why he was so spooked all of a sudden, but seeing Rosier on his own had given him a very bad feeling. 'I feel like something bad is about to happen.'

'What?' said Peter. 'But we have barely finished our drinks. Is this because of Rosier? Come on, we are in the middle of a crowded pub. He cannot do anything to us here. He was probably just finished with Macnair and his two companions buggered off.'

'I know,' said James, looking around frantically. 'I just have this feeling that something is up. Come on, Peter let's move.'

'Sounds to me like are having a panic attack, mate,' said Peter looking rather concerned. 'You need to calm down. Should I put a calming charm on you?'

'I am not having a panic attack,' snapped James. 'I am just listening to my gut that is all.'

He extracted his money bag out of his robe and banged some sickles on his table to pay for this drink. He rose quickly and pulled on his cloak.

'Come one, Peter,' he said. 'We are leaving.'

'Prongs, come on,' said Peter. He took another look at James's face and sighed. 'Fine, but I still have to pay.'

'Hurry up,' said James. His hand grabbed his wand in his pocket tightly. On a deeper level, he knew that he was probably being irrational, but the rest of his mind bubbled with a mixture of anxiety and elation. Something was going to happen, he could feel it in his guts! He didn't what it was, but he wanted to get out of here before it arrived. The pub suddenly seemed stifling, too close, too hot and way to full. He made his way to the door and wrenched it open. The cool spring air blew in his face and steadied him a little bit. He stepped outside with Peter hot on his heels.

'There,' said Peter when they were clear off the pub and James had stopped moving. 'Do you feel better know? I am telling you it just was a panic attack. Seeing Rosier spooked you and you are overreacting. It is perfectly normal, I get spooked all the time. You are going to be alright.'

Just as James was about to answer, a streak of red shot through the air and hit Peter straight in the chest. He went out light a light and crashed to the cold stone floor. James cursed and whirled around looking for the attackers. He only barely managed to block the stunner meant for him with a hasty shield charm. Another curse flew at him. This time, the spell had a rather menacing looking deep purple colour. James decided not to try to block it and instead rolled out of the way. At least he had been able to spot his attacker in the glow of the curse. He was standing a few feet away, wearing a dark robe and a skull mask on his face. A Death Eater! James felt a chill running down his spine. The last time he had duelled one of the dark wizards, he had been defeated and he had no desire to repeat the experience. He probably should get out of here, but he didn't think that the Death Eater would just let him apparate away in peace. Especially not given that he had to take Peter with him. There was no telling what the Death Eater would do to his friend otherwise. No, he had to fight even if he only managed to buy some time. Someone was bound to notice the duel and call the aurors. It was a rather busy evening for the Leaky Cauldron after all. James shot a stunning charm at the Death Eater, who managed to deflect it with a lazy wave of his wand. James was not surprised. The Death Eaters had plenty of practice in duelling. Before James could launch another attack, the dark wizard answered with a series of curses. James did not know what exactly he was up against, but he managed to dodge or block all of the spells. He was just starting to feel smug about his proficiency, when the Death Eaters cast a Cruciatus Curse at him. He threw himself to the ground and the curse missed him by an inch. The impact knocked the wind out of him though and he felt panic climbing in him. The next curse was bound to hit him if he didn't do something drastic. Panicking, James shot another stunner at the Death Eaters. His opponent casually cast another shield charm not all impressed by the attack. However, that left James time for another spell. There was no way he would be able to hit the Death Eater directly as long as the shield charm was active. So, he aimed his next spell on the ground the Death Eater was standing on instead. The smooth stone turned to slippery, slightly slanted ice within a heartbeat. The Death Eater hadn't noticed a thing. He raised his wand with a flourish, preparing to curse James for possibly the last time. However, his forceful motion disrupted his balance on the treacherous ground. He swayed and fell hard, crumbling in a tumble of limbs and cloth. James jumped up from the ground and cast a disarming charm. The Death Eater made a grab for his suddenly animated wand, but missed. James caught the small piece of wood easily.

'It is over,' he said, panting from the effort of the duel. 'Don't move. I will not hesitate to curse you. The aurors are bound to come soon. You are going to spend quite some time in Azkaban.'

The Death Eater laughed quietly.

'Do you think so, Potter?' he said in a rough, slightly cracking voice. 'You are not the first person telling me that. So far, I have always managed to wriggle free.'

'Why did you attack me and my friend?' asked James. 'Seems like a foolish thing to do in plain sight.'

'It seemed like a good idea at the time,' said the Death Eater carelessly. 'You know that we have had our eyes on you for quite a while, boy. You think you are so clever, aren't you? Staying on the fence like that. Teasing us with your supposed loyalty, only to either work against us or doing half-assed jobs. I figured it was about time that I had a small chat with you.'

'Well, that hasn't worked out so well, has it?' said James tartly.

'We will see about that,' said the Death Eater, sounding more amused than ever before. 'I have to admit that it was a clever trick you did just there. Not too shabby for a school boy. But you are no practiced dueller and you have forgotten a quite important rule.'

'Do you think you are going to distract me with your vague babbling?' asked James.

'No, I think my mate is going to stun you any moment now,' said the Death Eater. 'You should always check your surroundings in a duel, boy.'

James barely had time to feel shocked about that announcement, before a spell slammed into him and everything went black.

The first thing James noticed when he regained consciousness was his pounding head. He wanted to raise his hand to check for any injuries but discovered that he could not move his limbs for more than an inch. A stab of panic flooded through his brain and he struggled to open his eyes. It took a conscious effort, but eventually he managed to get his lids to cooperate. He was in a dark room and apparently alone. His glasses were still on his face, even though they were slightly askew. Looking down at his body, he discovered that he was bound to a chair with some kind of silvery rope. Suddenly, he remembered what had happened to him: The Death Eaters had captured him! What there they going to do with him? And where was Peter? Was he in the room as well?

'Peter?' croaked James through his parched throat. 'Peter, are you here somewhere?'

No answer. James felt a wave of dread wash over him. What had they done to his friend? Peter was a half-blood and thoroughly unremarkable. The Death Eaters had no reason to keep him alive. In the best case scenario, they had just left him there on the street before the Leaky Cauldron. In the worst case, they had decided to get rid of him. The thought made James stomach turn. The sound of a door slamming against a wall made him jump. Suddenly, he could make out a distant argument.

'Are you utterly mental, Macnair?' hissed an angry voice. 'Why did you decide to attack the Potter boy? You know the Dark Lord's orders! The Potters are potential allies and not your playthings! Do you think he is more likely to join us if we abduct him during a pub crawl?'

'Shut your mouth Nott,' grumbled a familiar voice. It was the one of the Death Eater he had duelled. That meant his attacker had been Macnair. 'Who do you think you are talking to me like this? You are in no position to lecture me.'

'Of course I am,' said Nott heatedly. 'I told you to wait for me, didn't I? I was only gone for five bloody minutes and somehow you have not only managed to start a duel with Potter in the meantime, but you also managed to lose it. If I hadn't come back in time, you would be on your way to Azkaban by now.'

'I had everything under control,' said Macnair. 'I would have hit the kid with a spell any second.'

'Keep telling yourself that,' said Nott. 'Maybe you will even believe it one day.'

'Bah,' growled Macnair. 'Don't go around lecturing me. You were not supposed to just slink off into the night, doing Merlin knows what. We were supposed to go straight back to headquarters and relay Rosier's information to the Dark Lord. If you hadn't left me alone, I never would have encountered Potter in the first place.'

'Speaking of our Master,' said a third, cool and smooth voice. 'As both of you still haven't reported back to him, I have taken the liberty to write him a letter. He wrote back just a few moments ago.'

'Malfoy, you bloody idiot,' said Nott. 'Please tell me you told him that everything is under control! He doesn't need to know about our encounter with Potter until we have figured out what to do with the boy!'

'You want me to lie to our master?' said Malfoy with obviously fake shock colouring his voice. 'My, my Nott, and I thought you were a loyal servant to the cause. I wonder what his Excellency will think about that.'

'In contrast to you, I am not a fool,' said Nott impatiently. 'The news Rosier has given us is bad enough. Recruitment is stalling at Hogwarts. Most of the pure-bloody Slytherins are sympathetic to our cause, but they shy away from openly joining us. We have a few new members, but nothing major. The other houses, naturally, are even more hesitant, so the Dark Lord will not be pleased. I doubt that news about how we have captured the heir of a prominent house on a spur a moment decision is going to cheer him up. He had his own plans for the Potters.'

'Yes, and we are going to accelerate these plans,' said Macnair. 'We have to been too soft towards the Potters. They claim to be interested in our cause, but never actually deliver anything except for words. And in return we have promised them safety. That is not how this works! They need to proof their devotion to the Dark Lord or be considered the enemy.'

'That wasn't your decision to make!' growled Nott. 'The Dark Lord was fine with taking a slow approach on the more wary pure-bloody families. The Potters have been Gryffindor's for centuries and have been quite pro-Muggle in the past. Do you think they were going to jump at the chance to join us? Fool, we need to gather allies by convincing the traditional families and not by strong-arming all of them! Our revolution is about securing blood purity in the first place! There are few enough pure-bloods left in Britain, we can't just start murdering everyone who doesn't support us.'

'And why ever not?' asked Macnair. 'It is not as if we haven't done it before. Remember Richard and Margaret Bones? The Dark Lord himself killed them and they were as pure-blood as they come. Sometimes you have to prune the garden to make sure that everything grows as expected. We are not merciful, Nott! We destroy our enemies without hesitation. And the Potters are the enemy, never forget this! They may be craftier than we have anticipated, but we mustn't let them trick us. Don't you see? They are playing us! Richard Potter is a sneaky old bastard. He knows exactly how to behave to appear sympathetic to our cause, so that we keep his family save. I am betting you anything that he is really working with his old pals in the auror department to stop us!'

'That seems unlikely,' drawled Malfoy. 'If Potter senior is as smart as you paint him to be, which I consider highly unlikely by the way, then he would want to avoid getting entangled with either side of the conflict. His behaviour only makes sense if he wants to stay neutral. Working against us together with the Ministry would counteract this purpose.'

'Exactly,' said Nott. 'He is just trying to be careful, that is all. I can't fault him for that. Maybe he lacks conviction in the superiority of a pure bloodline, but that hardly matters. There are a lot of Death Eaters who have joined up because they were hoping for a personal advantage rather than to express their beliefs. We even have half-bloods for Merlin's sake! I think the Potters can be valuable allies and we should not alienated them. Let us oblivate the Potter boy and set him free. It is for the best.'

'The Dark Lord will never stand for this,' said Macnair. 'He would want us to hold onto Potter and to use him as a bargaining chip to get his family in line.'

'Well, you are about to find out what he wants,' said Malfoy silkily. 'He is on his way.'