James could hear distant voices, but his brain was too foggy to understand anything. He felt very weak, much too weak to do anything more than lying on this soft bed. His left arm prickled slightly, but the discomfort was not too bad. He felt light headed and slightly disoriented. What was going on? He tried to remember what had happened to him, but his memories were treacherous and slippery. As soon as he tried to grip one of them, it slipped through his fingers and disappeared back into the vast space of his mind. It was rather frustrating, but James was not overly concerned. At the moment, he found it hard to worry about anything. In fact, despite his weakness, he felt happy. Had someone hit him with a cheering charm? It was warm in his bed and he was rather sleepy. Maybe he should just try and get back to sleep. Surely, whatever was going on could wait for some more time. He slipped back into unconsciousness.

When he woke next, his mind felt clearer and his body felt stronger. With great effort, he managed to open his eyes, only to find himself in a dark and blurry room which he did not recognize. Where was he? He gingerly sit up in his bed and tried to find his glasses. He could barely see the outlines of a small table next to his bed and reached over to it, groping for his glasses. Without them, he was not going to make sense of his surroundings. However, all he managed to do was to knock over a glass which had been resting on his bedside table. It fell to the floor and shattered loudly into pieces. James cursed softly and then yelped in surprise as when room suddenly was brightly illuminated. He shielded his sensitive eyes, but still tried to find out who had switched on the light. Was he not alone here?

'Relax, Prongs,' said a gruff voice. 'Everything is alright.'

'Sirius?' said James. His eyes had gotten used to the light by now and he was searching for Sirius in the room. He found a blurry shape in what probably was a chair opposite of his bed which may be his friend. Sirius snorted.

'I had forgotten how blind you are without your glasses,' said his best friend. 'I have got them somewhere around here. Hang on. Ah, here they are.'

Sirius walked over to James's bed and placed his glasses on his face. The room slid into focus and for the first time since waking up James could clear see his surroundings. He was in St. Mungo's. The plain white of the room was unmistakable. Memories rushed back as he processed that information. The fundraiser, the fight against the Death Eaters and his parents... Where were his parents?

'My parents, are they alright?' croaked James, suddenly realizing how dry his throat was. Sirius grinned at him and took out his wand. He repaired the shattered glass with a casual flick and then filled it with water. James took the glass and drank greedily.

'Slowly,' said Sirius. 'You don't want to choke on the water or upset your stomach. Your parents would skin me alive if you came to any harm during my watch.'

'Where are they?' asked James again, after emptying the glass. 'Are they alright?'

'They are fine,' said Sirius. 'Your mum was a bit worse for wear, but the healers patched her right up. Now they are back home, resting. I only took me three hours to talk them into going home. They were exhausted, but did not want to leave you alone here. So, I offered to stay and watch you.'

'Thanks,' said James. 'They probably could do with some rest. How long have I been here?'

'Close to two days,' said Sirius. 'You were unconscious for most of the time though. The healer said that this was a result of the nerve damage done by the Cruciatus Curse. They gave you some potions to fix it all up, but apparently the healing process is quite taxing for the body. They said that you would be alright, though. The damage is not permanent.'

'That's good,' said James. 'When I do get out of here? I have to get back to school today, haven't I?'

'Easy there,' said Sirius. 'The healers were hopeful that you could return to school on time, but they still have to verify that the healing process works as intended.'

'Alright,' said James. 'What's the time? The sky is getting light.'

'It is almost six in the morning,' said Sirius, checking his watch. 'Your parents will probably be here soon. I have told them that they should lie in, but they probably will not listen to me.'

'I see,' said James. 'Have they told you what happened?'

'A bit,' said Sirius. 'And I have read the papers. People are in uproar. The Death Eaters have really shown their strength this time. The fundraiser was rather well guarded after all. You made into the paper as well, by the way.'

'What?' said James. 'How? What did they write?'

'They mentioned you as one of the people injured during the attack,' said Sirius. 'The bloody hawks even somehow found out that you had been placed under the Cruciatius Curse. They probably have some sources inside of the hospital. Looks like your fifteen minutes of fame have started, mate.'

While James appreciated Sirius's attempt to lighten the mood, this was not the time for jokes.

'How many?' he asked Sirius.

'How many what?'

'How many people were killed?' clarified James. 'How bad was it?'

'Nine people were killed,' said Sirius. 'First one was the healer, the rest security wizards of the hotel. When the aurors arrived, the Death Eaters fled the scene. All of them got away. More than fifty people were injured, but only a few of them as seriously as you were.'

'Bloody hell,' cursed James. 'These bastards! It is about time that the Ministry did something against them! I can't believe that they have not managed to even catch one of them. What are the bloody fools doing all day?'

'The prophet said that it could have been much worse,' said Sirius. 'Apparently the Death Eaters were "holding back" or something. Sounded like a load of rubbish to me, though. Killing nine people hardly seems holding back to me.'

'Well,' said James, thoughtfully. 'I suppose the prophet is right. The Death Eaters only killed Matthews with the killing curse. If they had started tossing that around, it would have been a massacre.'

'They used the killing curse?' asked Sirius, looking pale. 'They kept that one out of the prophet. Damn it, James, what were you thinking seeking a duel with a Death Eater? If he had taken the duel seriously, you surely would have been dead by now!'

'How did you know that I duelled a Death Eater?' asked James.

'I overheard an auror telling your parents,' said Sirius. 'Apparently, he saw the very end of the duel when they entered the hall. He was stressing how incredibly brave it was of you to take on the Death Eater. Incredibly stupid seems more fitting to me.'

'Hey,' protested James. 'What are you on about? You have been saying again and again this year how much you want to fight Death Eaters and now you are chewing me out because I did not take a Death Eater attack lying down? Seems rather hypocritical to me, Padfoot.'

'Fighting and getting yourself killed are two different things,' said Sirius haughtily. 'You should have kept your head down and made sure that you stay alive to fight another day. Dying does not help anybody.'

'Right,' said James, rolling his eyes. Sirius was probably just trying to say that he had been worried about James. Showing emotions was not his best mate's forte, so he tended to embed them in rather cryptic statements. Fortunately, James had more than enough experience to see through his friend's behaviour. 'You know you can just tell me that you were worried about me. I am not going to hold it against you.'

'How was the duel?' asked Sirius, ignoring his last statement. 'I mean, it is obvious that you have lost, but I have always wondered just how skilled these Death Eaters are. Were you able to stand your ground?'

'No,' said James glumly. 'He was a much better dueller than I was. He probably could have killed me a dozen times during the duel if he really wanted to. I got in a cutting charm, but I think I only managed to land it because he underestimated me. I doubt that he would have made that mistake against an auror.'

'Bloody hell,' said Sirius. 'I guess Moony was right all along: It would be wise for us to stay out of the conflict and leave it to the professionals. But doing nothing does not sit right with me. Maybe there is something else we can do...'

Before, James could think about a reply to that statement, a brief knock on the door broke the silence in the room. The door opened immediately afterwards and a healer entered the room. He was accompanied by a nurse carrying a breakfast tray as well as James's parents.

'Here we are,' muttered Sirius, checking his watch. 'Six o'clock sharp and they are here already. Unbelievable...'

'I have to protest again,' said the Healer to Mr. Potter. 'The visiting hours only start in two hours. I have no idea what you have told Healer-in-Charge Wood, but it is absolutely unacceptable. How are we supposed to do our job if visitors swarm this place?'

'Your protest is noted,' said James's father. He looked very tired and older than James had ever seen him. However, his eyes were still sharp behind his glasses, even though they were currently rather cold. 'I assure you that we are not going to cause any problems. But you are free to discuss the issue with Wood. And if you do, kindly tell him to come around for dinner next Friday. I forgot to tell him yesterday.'

James had to suppress a smile at the horrified look on the healer's face. His father had clearly outmanoeuvred him. It was not surprising. His father had always had a very cunning and political mind - he had once told James that the Sorting Hat had in fact considered to put him into Slytherin - and was very well connected as a result of his time in the auror department. A regular healer was no match for him.

The healer mumbled something about not wanting to disturb Wood and then focused his attention on James.

'Ah, Mr. Potter,' he said. 'It is good to see that you are awake. I am healer Wayne Smith and I have been responsible for your treatment since you arrived at the hospital. How are you feeling?'

'Weak,' said James. 'And my arm is very tender.'

'Both perfectly normal,' said Smith. He waved his wand in a complicated pattern over James. Various small bubbles shot out of it and hung in the air for a moment. They had different colours: Most of them were shades of blue, but James could see some yellow and violet ones as well. He did not know what they were supposed to mean, but apparently the meant something to Smith. He mumbled something under his breath and then flicked his wand again, making the bubbles disappear in the process.

'Well, that looks quite alright,' said Smith. 'The nerve damage done by the Cruciatus Curse is healing nicely. It will take about a week until everything is normal again. You will most likely experience subnormal sensitivity to touch and pain as well as mild problems with hand eye coordination in the meantime. You have to rest and stay away from anything overly taxing, especially any physical activity. The healing of your arm has been rather difficult due to the nature of the curse which was cast upon you. Fortunately, we were able to heal the bone cleanly, but there still is some lingering tissue damage which will heal on its own over time. You have to make sure that your left arm is not overworked during the next few weeks. I was told that you play Quidditch: You should not play during the next week because of the nerve damage and afterwards you should ease into it, because of your arm. You should do short practice sessions and avoid any damage to your arm caused by bludgers or falls. I will write a letter to your school matron. She is supposed to supply you with nerve healing potions as well as strengthening solutions for at least the next two weeks.'

'Does this mean that I am well enough to return to school?' asked James. He could hardly believe it. He did not feel strong enough to spend his days studying. However, he strongly preferred school to the hospital, so he was not complaining. He was rather surprised that St. Mungo's was freely releasing him already. He had after all been subjected to one of the unforgivable curses.

'Well,' said Smith, with a dark look at James's parents. 'In my opinion, you should stay in the hospital for at least one more week, so that we can keep an eye on you. However, your parents were strongly against that and wanted to take you home. Apparently, they feel that they can offer better care there.'

James's lips twitched and he had a hard time from keeping a grin to appear on his face. His parents had always been very fussy whenever he had been sick. He could vividly imagine his mother berating the healer about how to treat him properly. He supposed this was a result of him being an only child and that his parents had never expected to have any children at all after having been childless for so long.

'We argued quite a bit about this and in the end decided on a compromise,' continued Smith. 'Hogwarts has a rather competent matron who will know what to do if you are getting worse. Therefore, I am allowing you to return to school. However, you will have to report to Miss Pomfrey every evening until she deems you completely healed. Do you feel up to getting back to Hogwarts?'

'Yes,' said James quickly. He certainly had no desire to remain here any longer than necessary. Pomfrey would take good care of him, even though she tended to be rather strict. She'd probably make him stay in the hospital wing if he so much as coughed in her presence.

'Brilliant,' said Smith, but his voice was rather cold. Apparently, he took Mr. Potter's meddling in his affairs as a personal insult. 'You should eat your breakfast and take the potions we have prepared for you. You are scheduled to be dispatched from the hospital in two hours. Have a nice day.'

The nurse left the breakfast and the potions on James's bedside table. James noted that she was very pretty with her shiny chestnut brown hair, big blue eyes, a button nose and a slender figure. She could not be much older than he was. He could feel blood rushing in his face at her intense gaze.

'You should take the small vial before eating and the big one afterwards,' she said in a melodic voice. 'Be sure to eat up, your body is going to need nutrients to repair the damage.'

'I will,' said James weakly. She gave him a big smile, before walking over to healer Smith. They bade their goodbye and left the room. Sirius let out a whistle after the door had closed.

'Maybe there are perks to staying in St. Mungo's after all, Prongs,' he said. 'She certainly is nicer to the eyes than Pomfrey is. And she seemed much nicer too.'

'Don't be crude, Sirius dear,' said Mrs. Potter. She walked over to James and gave him a tight hug. 'I am so glad that you are alright Jamie! Your father and I were so worried!'

'It's alright, mum,' said James, returning the hug. 'I am fine.'

'Obviously, you are not,' said Mr. Potter gruffly. 'You are pale as a sheet, James. You should drink your potions and eat something. Victoria, give the boy some room.'

James sighed softly. Now he had no choice but to eat each and every bit of this breakfast, even though he did not feel like it. His mother would pay close attention to him and would scold him if he left as much as a crumb. His stomach felt rather queasy, but he nevertheless reached for the small vial. He did not bother to read the label. Instead, he uncorked it and downed it in one go. It tasted rather minty and not at all unpleasant. That was surprising, healing potions were not known for their good taste after all. Instantly, heat spread out in James's body and his stomach settled a bit. That was not too bad. He reached for a piece of toast, spread some butter on it and took a tentative bite. After chewing and swallowing, he suddenly realized how hungry he was. He demolished the slice of toast in record time and quickly moved onto his scrambled eggs.

'Good,' said Mr. Potter. 'The potion seems to be working. Let's see how you look like after you have eaten, James. We can still keep you in the hospital if you prefer to.'

'It's fine,' said James. 'I am glad to be out of here. I will be fine at Hogwarts.'

'You can always stay at the manor if you still need some rest, Jamie,' said his mother. Sirius snickered softly at the nickname, but a glare from Mrs. Potter shut him up.

'I think, I should get back to school,' said James. 'I don't want to draw more attention to this attack than necessary.'

'Prongs, you were attacked by a Death Eater and cursed with the Cruciatus,' said Sirius. 'The Death Eaters will hardly feel even more vindicated because you stay home for a week.'

'There is more,' said James. 'When the aurors arrived, I was already beaten. The Death Eater fighting me had just stopped the Cruciatus when another Death Eaters showed up and told him that they had to leave. The first Death Eater wanted to kill me before leaving the area, but the second one stopped him. He told him that he was fighting James Potter and that they had plans for me. Than the two of them left and I fell unconscious.'

His mother gasped at that information and clapped a hand over her mouth. Sirius cursed loudly and rather colourfully. His father, however, only looked thoughtful.

'What do they mean that they have plans for you?' asked Sirius. 'Are they dumb enough to think that you of all people will join them?'

'Maybe', said James. 'I think that are rather interested in drawing our family into their cause. We are pure-bloods after all.'

'But we have been labelled as blood traitors for a long time,' said his mother. 'Maybe they have already planned something horrific for you, Jamie. We have to be careful! Richard, we have to review the security measures of the manor. Until we are sure that our home is secure, Hogwarts is probably the safest place for James to be.'

'That's probably a good idea,' said Mr. Potter. 'I am not sure that we ought to assume the worst, but we should certainly be careful. James, you should keep your head down at Hogwarts, as I have already told you during the summer. I was rather pleased about the lack of letters from McGonagall in which she lists your misdemeanours and I would prefer it to stay that way. You should keep away from the Slytherins and all other potential supporters of Voldemort. Try to appear neutral in that conflict. I know that it is not easy for you, but revealing your true intentions does not do you any good.'

'Yeah, alright,' said James. 'I will try to keep up the charade, but I am not going to walk away when I see any purists tormenting muggle-borns.'

'Fair enough,' said his father. 'I just want to buy us some time. I am sure that Voldemort's luck is going to run out soon. The Ministry will start to take the threat seriously after the attack on the fundraiser. He cannot hide from the aurors forever. As we used to say in the department: A criminal has to get lucky every time, we just have to get lucky once. If things go the right way, he will be in prison way before we can get sucked into this ridiculous conflict. The Potter family has lost enough members fighting dark wizards. We must not get involved until we have to.'

James had trouble sharing his father's enthusiasm. Sure, it certainly was a possibility that Voldemort was caught, but the Ministry's less than stellar performance in this conflict, did not bolster his confidence in the institution. Still, he had to admit that it was a rather prudent strategy, even if it went against his instinct.

'I understand,' he said.

'Richard, do you think that there is any way we can help?' asked his mother. 'Staying on the side-lines is all well and good, but the strategy will only work if they actually catch this lunatic. We would have to be discreet, of course, but maybe we can donate some money to the auror department or something.'

'Maybe...' said his father thoughtfully. 'I am going to see if I can have lunch with Scrimgeour. I still know him from my time in the department. He is a good auror and his heart is in the right place. Sirius, I need you to take an eye on James while he is on Hogwarts. While I don't believe that someone will actually break into the school, it would be foolish to assume that all students are saints. With the Death Eater's threats in mind, James should not gallivant around the school on his own.'

'I don't need a nanny,' said James, but his father and Sirius just ignored him.

'I will make sure that he is save, I promise,' said Sirius, standing a bit straighter than he normally did. James rolled his eyes. Despite his love for trouble, Sirius tended to be quite well-behaved to his parents. James suspected that his best mate was eager to feel part of a family. No matter how often he claimed not to care about his family, James knew that the rift between them was hurting Sirius. Especially because it had also caused him to lose his brother. Regulus was a sore subject for Sirius and James strongly suspected that he cared more for his brother than he let on. It was fortunate that Sirius got along so well with his parents. Maybe his family could mend the wounds Sirius's original one had caused.

'Good boy,' said his father. 'I knew I could count on you. You may not be a Potter on paper, but you will always be welcome in our family. You do know that, don't you?'

'I do,' said Sirius thickly. He looked truly grateful and slightly teary, so James decided to divert the attention away from his friend. Sirius hated to appear weak.

'Do Remus and Peter know that I am alright?' he asked. 'Sirius told me that the paper mentioned my injury and they may still be worried about me.'

'I have already written them a letter,' said his mother. 'I have to say, I am rather disappointed in the Prophet. They did not even ask us for permission whether they could write about your condition! You may be of age, but we are still your parents and you were hardly available for comment. How dare they invade our privacy like that? As soon as you are back at Hogwarts, Jamie, I am going to write them a howler. You should be free to tell only the people you want to know about that dreadful night. By now, the rumour mill at Hogwarts will probably have twisted the true event beyond recognition.'

'What do you know about the Hogwarts rumour mill?' asked James, astonished.

'While I am not that young anymore, I also attended Hogwarts,' said his mother pointedly. 'And even in my days, students loved to gossip about almost everything. I suspect it possibly was even worse back then. With all the arranged marriages around, every new day could bring some completely unforeseen new couple. I doubt that things have improved since then.'

'Were there a lot of rumours about Mr. Potter and you, Mrs. Potter?' asked Sirius innocently. James had to stifle a snort. Leave it to Sirius to take that conclusion from his mother's comment.

'As a matter of fact there were,' she said with a huff of annoyance. 'Somehow people got the idea that my parents were only marrying me to Richard, because I was already pregnant. By another men no less. Scandalous, just scandalous.'

James had to stifle a smile at the look of outrage on her face. Apparently, the old wounds still had not closed completely. He glanced at Sirius and warily noted the dancing amusement in his friend's eyes. The git was enjoying this far too much.

'I completely agree,' said Sirius with a surprisingly straight face. 'What a ridiculous rumour to spread. Surely, they did not dare dragging your name through the mud as well, Mr. Potter.'

'Fortunately not,' said Mr. Potter. 'I probably was not that interesting to the rumour mongers.'

'Oh really?' said his wife, looking at him sharply. 'And what about Vivienne Malfoy?'

'Viktoria, I have told you time and time again that these rumours lacked all foundation,' said his father.

'They were surprisingly presistent,' said Mrs. Potter. 'Completely baseless rumours rarely are.'

'I am afraid, I have lost track of the conversation,' said Sirius, with a slightly puzzled expression on his face. 'Who is Vivienne Malfoy?'

'She is not important...' said Mr. Potter, but was interrupted by his wife.

'She was a year below us and in Slytherin,' she said. 'Very pretty if you like that pale and blonde look the Malfoys have. According to some, Richard and she had a rather steamy affair during their time at Hogwarts. Nothing was ever proven, but the rumours remained.'

'They were utter rubbish and still are today,' said Mr. Potter. 'And it is all water under the bridge now. Vivienne has been married for close to fifty years now. We should let the rumours die.'

'That sounds like a very wise idea,' said Sirius sagely, causing James's restraint to snap. He burst out laughing and thereby also sent Sirius over the edge.

'Very funny,' said Mr. Potter after the two of them had calmed down. 'I am glad that the two of you can find mirth in our misery. Well, I am going to make sure that they will release you today, James. Finish your breakfast and get dressed, we are leaving as soon as possible. Come on, Victoria.'

He and his wife swept from the room. James watched them leave and shared another look with Sirius, which promptly caused them to burst out laughing again. It felt good to be able to laugh, as it made the tension bearable.