"Look!" James and Lily broke apart at Ginny's shout. With a bright blue spinning light, Harry and Hagrid dropped onto the grass. With one bound, Lily was had her son in her arms, before he could even get to his feet. James hurried forward and hugged them both. His family was safe.
Then Molly was there, demanding if they were alright and hugging Harry herself. James could tell Harry was feeling pretty guilty. "I don't know what happened to anyone else," he said, "Four of them chased us, it was all we could do to get away, and then Voldemort caught up with us."
Voldemort. James felt a chill pass over him.
"Thank heavens you're alright," Molly insisted.
"Haven't go' any brandy, have yeh, Molly?" Hagrid asked, "For medicinal purposes?"
Molly nodded and retreated into the house.
Ginny spoke up then, explaining to Harry what was going on. "Ron and Tonks should have been back first, but they missed their Portkey, it came back without them. And that one should have been Dad and Fred's, they were supposed to be third. You and Hagrid were fourth, and," she checked her watch, "if they made it, George and Lupin ought to be back in about a minute."
Remus. James' heart clenched, feeling rather guilty at his relief. After all, his family wasn't fully back together yet.
Molly reappeared carrying a bottle of brandy, which Hagrid uncorked and drank down in one gulp.
"Mum!" Ginny shouted, pointing. The familiar blue light had appeared. Remus and George were coming, but there was no time for relief. James knew at once that something was terribly wrong. Remus was supporting George, who was unconscious and whose face was drenched with blood.
James rushed forward and grabbed George's legs. He and Remus carried him into the house and into the sitting room, where they laid him on the sofa. As the light fell on across George's head, James heard Ginny gasp and felt as if the ground was falling away beneath him. A gaping hole was all that was left of George's ear.
Before he had time to recover from the shock, Remus grabbed him by the arm in a vice like grip and forced him back into the kitchen and against the wall.
Oh. Duh. Someone must have betrayed them; one of them could be a Death Eater in disguise. James should have checked before now.
"What did we all toast to in the Three Broomsticks the night before we went to train with Moody during the first wizarding war?" Remus hissed, "Answer me."
"Not one Death Eater's going to have a row at us, so long as we're together," James answered, stomach twisting at the memory. That had failed spectacularly.
Remus released him at once, though he remained tense. James turned to Lily, knowing she'd understand.
She spoke before he could ask anything. "I used to call you an arrogant, bullying, toe-rag. During fifth year, you would bribe Remus with chocolate to try and get me to go out with you during our prefect duties together," she added with a smile.
James couldn't help a chuckle at that; even Remus smiled.
"What creature sat in the corner the first time that Harry Potter visited my office at Hogwarts?" He asked Harry next.
"A grindylow in a tank, wasn't it?" Harry asked uncertainly.
Remus nodded, then explained what was with the questions and why Hagrid was exempt.
"None of the Order would have told Voldemort we were moving tonight," said Harry. James agreed with the sentiment. He trusted everyone in on the plan.
"You said Voldemort caught up with you," said Lily, reminding James with a jolt what Harry had said when he'd arrived. "What happened? He chased us for a while but pulled back not long after he arrived. Why?"
Harry looked relieved. He briefly explained what had happened during his flight.
"They recognized you?" Remus demanded, "But how? What had you done?"
"I..." Harry hesitated, "I saw Stan Shunpike... You know, the bloke who was the conductor on the Knight Bus? And I tried to disarm him instead of... well, he doesn't know what he's doing, does he? He must be Imperiused."
That was true. It had probably given him away, but it was the right thing to do.
Remus, clearly, disagreed. "Harry, the time for disarming is past! These people are trying to capture and kill you! At least stun if you aren't prepared to kill."
James recognized his friend's anger as worry; he had always disguised his fear with anger or irritability. Still, the coldness of his words (although not the tone) surprised him.
"We were hundred of feet up!" Harry insisted. "Stan's not himself, and if I stunned him and he'd fallen, he'd have died the same as if I'd used Avada Kedavra! Expelliarmus saved me from Voldemort two years ago!"
James glanced at Lily, at her strained face and worried eyes, and realized that she agreed with Remus on this one.
"Yes, Harry," said Remus, "and a great number of Death Eaters witnessed that happening! Forgive me, but it was a very unusual move then, under imminent threat of death. Repeating it tonight in front of Death Eaters who either witnessed or heard about the first occasion was close to suicidal!"
"So, you think I should have killed Stan Shunpike?"
"Of course not," said Remus, "but the Death Eaters, frankly most people, would have expected you to attack back! Expelliarmus is a useful spell, Harry, but the Death Eaters seem to think it is your signature move, and I urge you not to let it become so!"
"I won't blast people out of my way just because they're there," retorted Harry. "That's Voldemort's job! Besides, if I hadn't, he would have killed Mum and Dad. My 'mistake' saved their lives."
That was a low blow. What little color was left in Remus' face left it, leaving him paper white.
"It's done," Lily broke in, quietly. "We're all here. It doesn't matter anymore."
Hagrid finally succeeded in squeezing through the door, staggered to a chair, and sat down, only to have it collapse.
"Will George be ok?" Harry asked the room at large.
Remus sighed, his frustration visibly melting away. "I think so, although there's no chance of replacing his ear, not when it's been cursed off..."
Scuffling from outside broke off the conversation. Remus dived for the door, Harry leapt over Hagrid's legs to follow him, and James and Lily rushed after them.
It was Hermione and Kingsley on their thestral. Hermione immediately flung herself into Harry's arms, but Kinglsey raised his wand threateningly at Remus. "The last words Albus Dumbledore spoke to the pair of us?"
"Harry is the best hope we have. Trust him," Remus answered.
Gee, no pressure Dumbledore, James thought. Although, now that he did think about it, maybe Dumbledore was telling them in a round about way not to protest too much when Harry told them he was going off on his own.
"It's them, I checked," Remus said, as Kingsley turned his wand on the Potter's.
"Alright, alright!" said Kingsley, putting away his wand, "But somebody betrayed us! They knew, they knew it was tonight!"
"So, it seems," said Remus, "but apparently they did not realize that there would be seven Harry's."
"Small comfort," Kingsley snarled. "Who else is back?"
"Only us," said Lily indicating herself and James, "Harry, Hagrid, George, and Remus."
Hermione stifled a moan behind her hand.
"What happened to you?" Remus asked.
"Followed by five, injured two, might have killed one," Kinsley reeled off. "I was expecting to see You-Know-Who after a while, but he never showed."
"Lily and I saw him about half way through," James said, "But he left pretty quickly. He must have thought Harry would be with me." Which was exactly why he wasn't. James suddenly remembered something, something crazy, something he had forgotten in his worry. "Guys, he can..."
"Fly," interrupted Harry. "I saw him too."
"So, he left to follow you," said Kingsley, "What made him change targets?"
"Harry behaved a little to kindly to Stan Shunpike," said Remus.
"Stan?" Hermione spoke up for the first time. "But I thought he was in Azkaban?"
Kingsley laughed harshly.
"There's been a mass break out of Azkaban, Hermione," said James quietly. "The Ministry's been keeping it under the wraps."
"Travis' hood fell off when I cursed him," said Kingsley, "He's supposed to be in there too. But what happened to you Remus? Where's George?"
"He lost an ear," said Remus.
"Lost an..." Hermione repeated in a high voice.
"Snape's work," said Remus.
James cursed under his breath. With a flash of red hair, Lily disappeared into the house.
"Snape?!" Harry shouted. "You didn't say..."
"He lost his hood in the chase. Sectumsempra was always a specialty of Snape's. I wish I could say I paid him back in kind, but it was all I could do to keep George on the broom, he was losing so much blood."
As silence fell, James turned and followed his wife into the kitchen. She stood in a corner, leaning backwards against the counter, one arm wrapped around her stomach, the other hand covering her eyes. Her hair hid her face.
James crossed over to her side and leaned against the counter beside her, their arms brushing. He did not know what he could say to make things better or even easier for her. He could not say that it wasn't really him, because it was. And he could not say that their friendship had been real because that would hurt, and if it wasn't real that would hurt worse. James had learned with his past betrayals that while death was terrible, there really was nothing to be said for betrayal. Death left a horrible wound that would scar, but betrayal was an attack that would never heal, never truly stop hurting.
James would kill Severus Snape himself for causing his wife to learn that.
After a few minutes, Harry entered the kitchen and went through to the sitting room without saying anything. Lily looked up with dry eyes and looked at James. Without saying anything, they followed hand in hand.
"Did I hear someone else in the yard?" Ginny was asking.
"Hermione and Kingsley," said Harry.
Today was the first time James had seen the pair of them together since they had started going out (excepting Dumbledore's death), although he knew they had ended it. He could see it though, in the way they looked at each other as if they could never look enough. He remembered staring at Lily that way. Actually, he still did.
A great crash came from the kitchen, breaking James out of his thoughts.
"I'll prove who I am, Kingsley, after I've seen my son, now back off if you know what's good for you!"
James knew quite well that only his kids could make the mild-mannered Arthur shout like that. He and Fred burst into the sitting room, white faced, but unhurt.
"Arthur, thank goodness!" Molly sobbed.
"How is he?" Arthur dropped to his knees by George's side, but James' attention was focused on Fred. He was hanging over the back of the couch, his horrorstruck gaze on his twin's head. James had never seen Fred so silent.
As if he could sense his brother's presence, George stirred.
"How do you feel, Georgie?" Molly whispered.
George's fingers groped for where his ear used to be. "Saint like," he murmured.
Ok, what?
"What's wrong with him?" Fred asked, pure terror on his face, "Is his mind effected?"
"Saint like," George repeated, more clearly, opening his eyes and looking at Fred. "You see... I'm holy. Holey, Fred, geddit?"
Molly sobbed harder than ever, but James couldn't help but laugh. The twins truly were the Marauders natural successors. Magical mischief making was in good hands.
Color flooded Fred's face. "Pathetic," he said, "Pathetic. With the whole wide world of ear related humor before you, and you go for holey?"
"Ah well," said George, grinning, "you'll be able to tell us apart now, Mum." He looked around. "Hi, Harry... you are Harry, right?"
"Yeah, I am," said Harry.
George found Lily and James as well. James gave him a cocky smirk, though his heart wasn't in it. "Well, at least we got you back ok," said George to Harry, "Why aren't Ron and Bill huddled around my sick bed?" James' heart sank.
"They're not back yet, George," Molly said, quietly. George's smile faded. Of course it did, his oldest and youngest brothers were nowhere to be found.
James couldn't stay inside any longer. He had to be out there waiting for the others. He left through the kitchen and into the yard. Kingsley was pacing up and down. Remus stood still, scanning the sky.
Ron and Tonks should have been back first. At the rate things were going, they'd be back last, if they were back at all. James shuddered. His son's best friend, and his best friend's wife. They were both family to him. And what of Bill and Fleur? They were going to be married in a few weeks. It wouldn't be fair if anything happened to them. And he had known Mad-Eye and Mundungus for years. So far, they had been lucky, but was it really likely that they could all walk away from a fight like this?
A visible shudder ran through Remus' body. At once, James stepped forward, gripping his friend's shoulders. "They'll be back," he said, bracingly, "She'll be fine. Tonks knows her stuff; she'll be back. Any time now." Remus did not answer or look at him, but he didn't shrug him off either.
Lily slipped her hand into James', and together they stared at the sky. Hermione, Harry, Ginny, and Hagrid stood nearby, keeping vigil.
Where were they?
As if in answer to his unspoken question, a broom materialized above them and streaked towards the ground.
"It's them!" Hermione shrieked.
And there they were, landing before them. James breathed a sigh of relief. Only four more to go.
"Remus!" Tonks cried, staggering into his arms. Remus said nothing, simply held her.
Ron walked towards Harry and Hermione, mumbling, "You're ok."
Hermione flew at him and hugged him. "I thought... I thought..."
"I'm alright," said Ron, patting her on the back. "I'm fine."
"Ron was great," said Tonks, finally letting go of Remus. "Wonderful. Stunned one of the Death Eaters right to the head, and when you're aiming at a moving target from a flying broom..."
"You did?" asked Hermione.
"Always the tone of surprise," Ron said, "Are we the last back?"
"No," said Ginny, "We're still waiting for Bill and Fleur and Mad-Eye and Mundungus. I'm going to tell Mum and Dad you're ok, Ron." And she disappeared inside.
"So, what kept you? What happened?" Remus demanded, his hours of worry coming out as frustration.
"Bellatrix," said Tonks. James felt a flash of fury at the name. "She wants me quite as much as she wants Harry. Remus, she tried very hard to kill me. I just wish I got her. I owe Bellatrix. But, we definitely injured Rodolphus. And then we got to Ron's Auntie Muriel, and we'd missed our portkey, and she was fussing over us..."
Remus nodded, but didn't say anything else.
"So, what happened to you lot?" Tonks asked, looking around.
Everyone told their stories. Kingsley then had to leave to get back to the muggle prime minister. Molly and Arthur came out to thank Remus and Tonks for getting their sons home safely.
Just when they were about to tell Ron what had happened to George, a thestral appeared above them. Bill and Fleur, thank heavens!
"Bill!" Molly cried, embracing him.
Looking directly at his father, Bill said, "Mad-Eye's dead."
James felt like he couldn't breathe. Lily's grip on his hand tightened to painful levels. Mad-Eye Moody was dead? How could it be? Dumbledore had gone, but Moody? He had survived so much. And now he was dead. Bill told them that he had been killed personally by Voldemort after Mundungus ran for it.
At last, it seemed to dawn on them that there was no point standing in the yard anymore. They all trooped into the sitting room. "What's wrong?" Fred asked, laughter fading from him and George as they took in everyone's faces, "What happened? Who…"
"Mad-Eye," said Arthur, "Dead."
There was a moment of silence. Tonks and Hagrid were crying silently. Bill crossed to the cupboard and passed around glasses of firewhiskey.
"Mad-Eye," he said.
"Mad-Eye," they all chorused, and drank. The toast to the fallen. James couldn't help but wonder how many of the people in this room would live past the end of the war.