2003
Tonks threw back a shot of Firewhisky and stared into the mirror above Aberforth's Pub Counter. The 150 Proof Liquor washed down the back of her throat with it's distinctive warmth. She didn't care if it could cause her to go blind. She didn't care if it could burn a hole in her throat if given the right opportunity.
If she was completely honest, as she stared back at herself, she honestly just give a damn anymore. The giving a damn part of her had died earlier that day.
It had been 5 years. 5 LONG years since her First Love, Remus Lupin, was murdered in the Final Battle, while trying to protect an innocent child. The night after the Final Battle, she had cried herself to sleep in her Mother's Arms, and was basically an emotional wreck.
Yeah, she had moved on somewhat. But a part of her would always belong to Remus. In her emotionally wrecked state, she had turned to Harry to help get through her Loss. With his help, she had been able to get over his death.
And as an unexpected side effect of that, she and Harry had become great friends.
Soon though, she had begun to develop feelings for another man. That was what had her emotionally wrecked once again. He was interested in another woman.
Why wasn't she good enough for him? Why couldn't he see how much she loved him?
She yelled, "Aberforth! Get me another round!"
Aberforth, dutifully, gave her one, but not before giving a look that said to himself, "Yep. She's heartbroken. Best call him before she gets too drunk for me to handle."
As Tonks proceeded to attempt to drink her sorrows away, he excused himself to go to his personal Fireplace, where after throwing in a bit of Floo Powder, said, "Yeah? Harry, you best get here as quickly as you can. She needs you bad."
After removing his head from the Fireplace, he went back to making sure that Tonks didn't try anything stupid. More specifically, to make sure she didn't do something that might result in her sharing a cell with her deranged Aunt.
Within 30 minutes, Harry walked through the door, went straight to Aberforth and asked, "What's going on?"
"You need to help her out Mate. She loves you bad. You need to make her right." replied Aberforth.
As Harry looked at Tonks, Aberforth explained quietly, "Women are kind of like Goats. They all have their little quirks. Hers? Hers is that she needs to know she's loved. Now you go comfort her."
Harry nodded in reply before walking up her. "Uh, Tonks?"
Tonks whipped around with bloodshot eyes and demanded, "The Bloody 'Ell do you want? Shouldn't you be with that Bitch?"
"What?" asked Harry, genuinely surprised.
"That Bitch you were talking about Lunch! The one you love with all your Heart! Who is she?" yelled out the drunken Auror.
Harry then realized what she was talking about. She must have overheard him talking with Ron. He replied, "Tonks, the woman I love with all my Heart is right here, yelling at me and drunk."
Tonks was about to scream again, with her normally bubblegum pink hair growing out into curls and becoming pitch black, eerily reminding Harry of Bellatrix Lestrange, before she realized what he meant, and it became shoulder length and ocean blue.
"What?"
"Tonks, I love you with all my heart. And I always will. You understand?" admitted Harry firmly, but softly.
Without warning, Tonks glomp hugged him and drew him into a deep kiss, which he immediately returned. Tonks then broke it off, and said, "Harry, don't take what I'm about to do as what I think of what we just did."
With that, she unceremoniously turned around and puked on top of the Pub Counter. Harry, with a deadpan reply, said, "It's just the Firewhisky Tonks. Now come on. Let's get out of here. Thanks Aberforth!"
8 days later
"Come on! Is that all you got?" screamed out Antonin Dolohov as Tonks cast a stunner at him, before deflecting it with a shield charm.
"Dolohov, I'm warning you one last time. Drop your wand, and surrender. If you do, I won't kill you!" yelled out Tonks, aiming her wand at the Original Death Eater with hatred in her eyes. She was trying her best to ignore the fact this man killed Remus Lupin and left her Son without a Father. So far, it wasn't working.
"Yeah right!" yelled out Dolohov mockingly. "You would really let the killer of your Precious Husband Live?"
In the Final Battle, when everyone had been distracted with stunning and recapturing Bellatrix Lestrange, about 5 Death Eaters had managed to escape Capture or Death. Though she would never admit it to anyone, Tonks had been hoping she could kill Dolohov for what he did.
The only reason she held back was because if she killed him in cold blood, she'd be just as bad as him.
A bludgeoning curse hit her as she was lost in her thoughts and threw her back to the ground, knocking her wand out of reach from her out-stretched hand. As she struggled to get to it, the Death Eater walked slowly up to her and raised his own wand. With an evil grin, he said, "When you see him, tell your Half-Breed Husband that I said Hi, will you?"
Right before he could cast the Killing Curse, he heard a noise behind him. It was the unmistakable sound of someone apparating. As he was about to turn around, a voice came to his ears. It said, "When you see your Master on the Other Side, tell him I said to Bugger Off."
Before Antonin could respond with a curse, Harry Potter yelled, "Sectumsempra!"
As the Death Eater bled out from the wound cast to his neck and collapsed, Harry walked over to Tonks and helped her up.
Later that night
"You sure you're OK, Harry?" asked Tonks as she and Harry snuggled each other on the couch. She knew that Harry had, in his career as an Auror, never intentionally killed someone before. And even though he had killed Voldemort, it was different than defeating a Dark Lord.
"Tonks, I'm fine. Yeah, I don't like the fact I had to take a life. But he would've killed you if I hadn't. And he probably would've killed someone else too." replied Harry, trying to calm the older woman down.
The truth was, Harry felt like he wanted to vomit. It was never an easy decision or act to take a life, and not one he ever took lightly. Yeah, he had killed Voldemort, but that was different. Voldemort pretty much killed himself by having the curse rebound at him.
But Dolohov had been up close and personal. He had intentionally taken a life. He had…
Tonks pulled him out of his thoughts before they could go further by pulling him in for a deep, passionate kiss.
Breaking it off, Tonks said, "I love you so much, Harry."
Smiling, Harry replied, "Tonks, if you were in trouble, and even if I had to fight off all of Hell, I'd come For You. And no one else."
"I'll always have your back too, Harry."
Without another word, they fell asleep in each other's arms.
12 days later
"This is for my Brother you Bastard!" yelled out Rabastan Lestrange as he shot off Killing Curse after Killing Curse at the Boy-Who-Lived in an hair brained attempt to avenge his dead Brother and Master.
Harry had been walking through Diagon Alley, minding his own business and had recently gotten a new Snowy Owl to replace Hedwig, when Rabastan had appeared out of nowhere and started attacking him.
"Lestrange, stop that right now!" yelled out Harry as he dodged the Unforgivable Curses, all the while holding onto his owl, whom he had decided to call Luna.
"I won't stop until you're dead!" yelled out Rabastan, with a crazed look in his eye. With that, Harry pulled out his own Wand and started casting stunners and disarming curses at the Former Death Eater. He'd like to avoid killing someone today.
Suddenly, before Rabastan could return fire, a sound caught his attention. He turned around and saw Nymphadora Tonks standing there, with a smirk on her face. She said mockingly, "Get away from my Boyfriend, Uncle Rabastan."
As she said that, Rabastan looked to her. Then to Harry. Then back to her. Then he burst out laughing. "Oh that's a good one! You're actually dating the Boy Who Lived? The One who killed my Master? That's rich!"
"I'm not kidding, Rabastan." coldly said Tonks, giving her estranged Uncle her best Death Glare. Having spent many hours interrogating her Aunt Bellatrix, she had picked up on the art of giving Death Glares. Though she would never admit it, least of all to that Psychopath, she was grateful for having learned the art.
Just as Harry was about to cast a curse, Tonks said, "No, Harry. I got this."
This caused Rabastan to laugh again. He asked, "Tell me, Nymphadora, would you die for your Friends and Family?"
For some reason, this caused Tonks to laugh. This confused the Death Eater and he asked, "What's so Funny?"
Tonks continued to laugh, before she pulled out her own wand and said, "No, I wouldn't die for my Family. But I'd Kill for them!"
But before Rabastan could raise his wand, she yelled out, "Incarcerous!"
As Ropes flew around the Death Eater, she said, "Fortunately for you, I'm on Duty, and killing you would only give me a shite-load of Paperwork."
"Thanks Tonks." said Harry as Tonks put her wand away. She smiled and replied, "I'd say this makes us even Harry. And just like you, I will always have your back and come for you."
15 Days Later
"Are you both ready to do this?" asked Aberforth as he scratched his Beard, standing before the about to be wed couple. In addition to being a Bartender and Goat Farmer, he was also licensed by the Quibbler to be an Ordained Minister.
Ron was Harry's Best Man. Hermione was Tonks' Maid of Honor. All of them were in their Best Dress Robes. It was indeed a blessed event.
As both of them nodded, Aberforth asked, "Harry Potter, do you take this Woman to be your Lawfully Wedded Wife?"
"I do." with that, Ron handed Harry the ring and he slipped it on Tonks' hand.
"Ms. Tonks, do you take this Man to be your Lawfully Wedded Husband?" asked Aberforth once again. He had declined to mention her first name, as he personally didn't feel like meeting his Maker that day.
"I do." likewise, she was handed her ring and placed it on Harry's hand.
Smirking the smirk he was known for, the aged Wizard said, "Then by the Power Vested in me by God and the Queen of England, I now Pronounce you both Man and Wife. Have at it!"
As Tonks and Harry kissed for the First Time as a man and wife, both knew one thing for certain. No matter what, come Hell or High-water, they'd always come for the other and have their backs. That was true love if Aberforth had ever seen it.
The End.