Chapter 13 - The Ultimatum

There was a stunned silence as everyone tried to comprehend what Professor Smith had just said.

"So...you're saying that I'm not real?" Tonks said slowly.

Professor Smith didn't answer, instead grimacing before bowing his head, gazing at the floor.

Ron snorted. "C'mon, Professor, you can't honestly expect us to believe that!" He grinned, as if expecting Professor Smith to admit that it was a joke.

"Ron," Hermione hissed. "He took an Unbreakable Vow!"

"Oh...oh yeah," Ron said quietly.

Tonks' mind was in turmoil. Professor Smith didn't think she was real...and he was telling the truth! How did that work? How was she not real? She had memories, a life. She had lived for two and a half decades, and knew many people who would back up her claim. But then, with a horrible sinking feeling, Tonks remembered the occasions where her memory failed her, when should was suddenly unable to recall a specific memory when she had been able to on previous occasions. Could this be what Professor Smith meant, that her memory failings were actually part of a falling facade?

No, she decided. No, that wasn't what he meant. She was a humanised version of Professor Smith's alien friend? Not a chance in hell.

"Did you really think I'd believe some hogwash like that?" she asked quietly, her purple hair beginning to lighten. "That I'm actually your alien friend? I can certainly tell what planet you're living on, Professor, because it sure as hell isn't this one! Aliens don't just turn into humans; you can't just rewrite biology!"

Professor Smith looked up, his eyes flashing dangerously, and for the first time it was evident his patience had run out. "I took the Vow for you," he pointed out, struggling to keep his temper in check. "You know as well as I do that if I had lied to you, I'd be dead right now. So you tell me, Tonks, if I did lie, and you're not my friend, how am I still standing?"

"The bloody Vow didn't work on you because you're an alien!" Tonks snapped. "Somehow you can bypass it."

Professor Smith sighed and screwed up his face in frustration. "Humans," he said furiously. "Why do you have to be so difficult?"

There was a brief silence.

"P-Professor," Hermione said tentatively, flinching when Professor Smith turned his angry gaze to her. "Harry, Ron and I – we travelled with you. You showed us how incredible the universe is. We trust you. But," she paused, biting her lip. "I just can't see how Tonks could be an alien. I mean, she has memories of her parents, she can remember growing up. Dumbledore can remember when she was teaching here!"

"That's because -"

"I know you know that you're right," Hermione said quickly. "But we don't. Could we, um, take the watch to Dumbledore and ask him to look at it? He'll be able to confirm your story."

"He's not here," Tonks said bitterly. "He left yesterday to go somewhere."

"Oh..."

"We could try...no, nevermind," Ron said suddenly. "Stupid idea."

Tonks wasn't having any of that. "'Stupid' is better than nothing," she said. "Spit it out."

"Well, I was just thinking, we could ask Snape. I know he's a git and everything," he added hurriedly, seeing the looks of incredulity on his friends' faces, "but he is the Defence teacher. He knows his stuff."

"I don't want him to get his grubby hands all over my personal life," Tonks snapped immediately. "No thank you!"

"Tonks is right," Harry agreed. "I'd rather wait till Dumbledore gets back."

Hermione was more hesitant to disregard Snape as an option. "I think Ron has a point," she said slowly. "I mean, what other choice do we have? We could all wait until Dumbledore gets back, but who knows when that will be? He could be away for a week. Do you really want to wait that long, Tonks?"

Tonks closed her eyes and groaned.

"Fine," she said through clenched teeth. "We'll go see the big bat. But you, don't you dare think about following us," she snarled at Professor Smith.

"Okay, then," Professor Smith said angrily. He walked to the door and opened it. "Okay," he said again, "I'll leave. But remember, Tonks, come and find me when you're ready."

And with that, he walked out of the room, slamming the door behind him.

"Fat chance," Tonks muttered immediately. "Like I'd ever go looking for him again."

"So, uh, Snape?" Ron asked.

Tonks huffed.

"Fine," she said again, standing up. "Let's go find him."

All was quiet in the Staff Room, with only the dim glow of a lamp illuminating the otherwise dark room. It was the perfect environment for one Severus Snape, who was relaxing on an armchair reading the latest edition of The Daily Prophet when the door slammed open. Lowering his paper, he glared at the angry science teacher standing in the doorway.

"Ah, Nymphadora," he greeted silkily. "Trouble with the students? How unusual."

"Can it, Severus," Tonks retorted. "I'm not in the mood for your nonsense today."

"Tonks," Hermione hissed, stepping into the room. "We need his help!"

Snape's eyes narrowed. "Miss Granger...and Mister Potter and Mister Weasley. To what do I owe the pleasure?"

Harry scowled, then winced as Hermione elbowed him in the stomach.

"Professor, please, we'd like your help," she said. "Tonks has a watch we thinks is cursed."

Snape's demeanour changed immediately – he sprung from his chair, suddenly alert.

"What?" he asked, very alarmed. "Show me!"

Gritting her teeth, Tonks took the watch out of her pocket and held it out in her palm.

Snape relaxed slightly. "If you can hold it, the curse musn't be too powerful," he said. "How long have you had the watch?" he asked.

"None of your business," Tonks said rudely, snatching her hand back. "All you need to know is that it's cursed."

Snape's lips curled into a thin smile. "Surely an ex-auror like yourself could determine that without my assistance?"

Tonks scowled.

"However, given the circumstances," Snape continued, "I will inspect your watch. We wouldn't like another dark object to have made its way into the school undetected, would we?"

To no one's surprise, Snape refused to look closer at the watch in the Staff Room, instead making them all follow him down to his office in the dungeons, claiming that it was safer, a statement that no one doubted. Despite his failings, Snape took safety very seriously.

"Put the watch on the table," Snape told Tonks as they strode into his office. "Now, what exactly do you want me to do?" he asked, lighting the candles in the room with a wave of his wand.

"Just see if it's cursed," Ron replied.

Snape's lips twitched. "I would have thought that after six years of magical education you would know that a 'curse' can mean many different things, Mister Weasley," the Defence teacher said irritably. "While I could easily read whatever thought is echoing around in that empty head of yours, the law dictates that I must instead restrain myself to asking you to clarify."

"We'd just want to know if it's been tampered in any way," Hermione said. "A general check for curses should suffice."

"If you say so," Snape said, almost boredly. Evidently he thought a general check was below him. Nonetheless, he raised his wand, pointed it at the watch and muttered several words under his breath; a magenta light began to glow from the wand's tip. Several minutes passed before the wand was lowered, its owner frowning.

"There's something in there," Snape said slowly. "Something alive like a...soul."

Harry blinked. "It's a horcrux, of course!" he cried, whacking his forehead with his hand. "Professor Smith's split part of his soul and put it in the watch, and that's what's been causing you trouble, Tonks! And I'll bet," he added, "that Voldemort wanted to do the whole regeneration thing after seeing Professor Smith do it last year, so he got Malfoy to steal it and bring it to him!"

"Professor Smith – horcruxes?" Ron spluttered in disbelief. "Seriously?"

"What the bloody hell's a horcrux?" Tonks asked, rather confused.

"An object you store a fragment of your soul in," Hermione explained, looking at the watch in disgust. "It's how Voldemort survived on the night he tried to kill Harry. As long as you have a part of your soul hidden away, you can't die."

"And Professor Smith did all that, just so he could control me?" Tonks said, her skin losing colour; she looked ready to faint.

Snape was listening to the conversation with thinly veiled surprise. "How do you know of these things, Potter?" he asked Harry, his eyes narrowed sharply.

"Err," Harry stammered, realising that he'd accidentally betrayed Dumbledore's confidentiality. He was only allowed to tell Ron and Hermione, and he'd just blurted it out for everyone to hear. Whoops. "Dumbledore told me," he finally managed to get out. "He's, uh, helping me understand Voldemort better."

"I see..." the Defence teacher said, unconvinced. He frowned. "And what does Professor Smith have to do with all this?" he asked. "Something you neglected to tell me, perhaps?"

Tonks' hair turned red instantly. "Listen, Severus," she growled. "We're asking for you to help us with one thing. Need to know basis only. And all you need to know is that the watch is cursed by a fragment of a soul, and that you're going to get rid of it. Clear?"

Snape smirked. "As you wish."

"Professor Smith wouldn't create a horcrux though, would he?" Ron asked as Snape walked over to a cupboard. "I mean, we travelled with the guy for weeks...I can't imagine him doing it at all."

"'Professor Smith lies'..." Harry reminded him. "Why couldn't he lie about this?"

"Because of the Unbreakable Vow!" Ron said exasperatedly. "It's impossible for him to lie!"

"Maybe he just didn't tell the full truth," Hermione suggested, shrugging. "We'll probably never know."

"I don't care what he said," Tonks muttered. "All I care about is the fact that he's ruined my life."

"Forgive my interruption," Snape said smoothly, "but would you like to continue anytime soon?" He was holding a small rectangular box in his hands, and it appeared to be made out of some sort of black rock. The air around it shimmered; evidently it had some strong spells surrounding it.

"What's that?" Ron asked.

"A new container for the soul in the watch," Snape explained. "If I am to extract it, I have to put it somewhere where it won't escape, and cannot be freed without difficultly. Now, quiet." He placed the box on the table next to the watch. Taking a deep breath, he raised his wand. "Extrahe animam," he intoned, and a wisp of blue light escaped from his wand and wound itself around the watch before dissipating.

"Has it worked?" Tonks asked quietly.

Snape nodded curtly.

Tonks let out a huge sigh of relief, conjured a chair and collapsed on it, muttering, "Thank Merlin." She buried her face in her hands, and a second later, a faint crying sound could be heard.

"What's that?" Ron asked suddenly, pointing at the watch. Strands of golden energy were sneaking out from under the watch's cover.

"Just the soul moving from the watch to its new container, Weasley," Snape said, unconcerned. "It will be over shortly."

"Oh yeah? Then why's it doing that?"

Everyone looked; instead of moving to Snape's container, the golden energy was coalescing just outside the watch, forming into a larger shape...the shape of a woman. The energy solidified, and the onlookers were able to make out finer details; the woman was wearing flowing robes, the collar of which extended above her head, curving outwards and then back in. Her eyes displayed immense intelligence, and her face was regal, cold and calculating.

"It's nice to be out of the watch," she said, stretching her arms. "Three million, one hundred and fifty three thousand, six hundred minutes is a long time to be cramped. Give or take a few weeks."

"Who – who are you?" Harry blurted, as he and the others stared up at the woman in complete shock.

"My name is Romanadvoratrelundar Heartshaven," the woman replied, her eyes focusing on Harry. "And no, I am not a fragment of the Doctor's soul."

"How did -?" Hermione began.

"Just because I'm trapped in a watch doesn't mean I don't know what's going on," Romana snapped. Her eyes narrowed. "I don't appreciate you all trying to remove me from my watch," she added. "I have the right to decide if that happens."

"Your watch?" Tonks said indignantly; tear stains running down her cheeks. "You've only been in it since Professor Smith put you in there a year ago!"

Romana rolled her eyes. "Human me is stupid," she muttered. "Did you not listen? I just told you I'm not a fragment of the Doctor's soul, and he sure as hell didn't put me in there either. And yes, my watch. I had it before you."

"Oh yeah?" Tonks snarled. "Prove it."

Romana raised her eyebrows, before smirking nastily. "Very well," she said, and with a snap of her fingers, she dissolved back into the formless golden energy, which hung in the air for a split second before shooting out and touching the foreheads of everyone in the room.

"I'm showing you your creation, Nymphadora Fredrica Tonks." Romana's disembodied voice emanated out from the energy. "I'm showing you your birthday."

Everything went black.

oOo

With a great sigh of relief, Romana watched as the TARDIS doors whirred shut, blocking out the view of the Workshops and the approaching guards. All she had to do now was find the Doctor and stop him from being an idiot and blowing up the war.

"Argh," she muttered, wincing in pain. The guards had managed to land a lucky shot as she fumbled with the TARDIS doors; thankfully their stasers hadn't been set to fatal, but given the circumstances, they might well have been. Regeneration wasn't something she could afford right now.

Her plan had been working; she'd desperately been trying to convince the Doctor not to use the Moment, even as he stole the weapon. But then disaster had struck. Guards had found them, and the distraction allowed the Doctor to give her the slip and make a run for his TARDIS. She would have followed him, but the guards got in her way, and she was forced to flee in the other direction. She made for the TARDIS workshops deep down below the Citadel, knowing it was her only chance of stopping the Doctor before he doomed them all.

There was a dull thumping sound on the door, and she turned on the scanner screen, only to see that the guards had gathered outside the TARDIS and were attempting to gain entry to the time machine. Ignoring the searing pain in her abdomen, she moved around the console, quickly trying to get a lock on the Doctor's co-ordinates. There – one of Polarfrey's moons. Wasting no time, she immediately set the co-ordinates and commenced dematerialisation. With a jolt, the engines kicked in and the familiar wheezing, groaning sound began. She bowed her head. She had escaped Gallifrey. She was safe.

CRASH

Suddenly, the TARDIS lurched forward, as if hit by a powerful external force. The Cloister Bell thronged ominously in the background, and numerous warning lights lit up on the console. With a growing sense of horror, she watched as the destination co-ordinates flickered and changed rapidly. Something was interfering with the helmic regulator!

"No you don't!" Romana said fiercely, and she grabbed hold of the console and tried valiantly to bring the unfamiliar TARDIS under control. There was only one reason the TARDIS would be going haywire like this: the Doctor had used the Moment, and the temporal shockwave caused by the explosion had rammed into it, damaging the navigational circuits.

"Come on!" Romana groaned, but it was no use. The TARDIS was spiralling out of control. "Some help, please," she pleaded faintly, hoping the TARDIS would hear her. The golden glow of regeneration energy was now visible around her hands, and it was creeping into her peripheral vision as well. It was too late. She had failed.

The TARDIS hummed faintly, and much to Romana's surprise, the co-ordinates stabilised. The TARDIS had heard her! Unfortunately though, they no longer lead her to the Doctor. Instead, they read: Earth, 20th Century, England. She moaned in disappointment and anger, but there was nothing she could do to change the situation. Regeneration was almost upon her – her head felt like it was on fire, and she was beginning to feel woozy; regeneration was known to affect one's cognitive abilities both in the initial and latter stages of the process. She didn't have long, but she couldn't afford to give in to the pain. If she was headed towards Earth, there was only one thing left to do.

Ignoring the searing pain that had now reached every inch of her body, Romadvoratrelundar watched as the Chameleon Arch lowered from the ceiling. The TARDIS would land on Earth, and knowing how TARDIS Matrices existed outside the timelines, it was almost guaranteed that the Doctor would visit the landing site at one point or another. All she had to do was wait, but she couldn't do that as a Time Lady. Any surviving Daleks would be out hunting for the remaining Time Lords, and other species who happened across them wouldn't be happy to see them either, not after the War. No, she'd have to go undercover to avoid detection. She'd have to become human.

She stumbled over to the apparatus as the TARDIS shook violently yet again. At this rate, she'd be lucky if she made it to Earth at all. Her hands shaking, she placed the Arch over her head and locked it in place. Sweaty fingers fiddled with the controls, setting them to human. All the while, a raging battle was taking place in her mind. Could she do it? Could she become human, with the risk that the TARDIS could be wrong, that the Doctor would never find her, and that she might live out her human existence without becoming aware of who she really was? She let out a cry of pain; it was almost impossible to think.

Gritting her teeth, she made up her mind and pressed the button.

Pain, unimaginable pain, was the first sensation she felt as the Chameleon Arch activated, its high-pitched whir resonating through her brain. Dimly, she was aware of her regeneration finally beginning in full, the golden energy erupting from her neck and arms. Amidst the pain, she could feel the changes taking place; she was shrinking, her hair growing longer, down to her shoulders. Yet something was wrong. Her mind was running away, trying to choose what appearance her body should take, trying to take absolute control over the change, like her first regeneration. The pain from the Chameleon Arch increased, as though trying to take these aspects into consideration when writing her human persona.

Agony flashed through her chest as one heart began shrinking and shrivelling away, it was too much; she closed her eyes and screamed...

oOo

Tonks eyes flew open. "Wha- what the hell was that?" she asked shakily.

"Your creation." The golden energy had reformed into Romana's shape again. "Six years ago, I used the Chameleon Arch to become you. What you all just saw was the memory of the event."

"I think I'll stick to a pensieve, thanks," Harry muttered, rubbing his forehead. "Even the diary was better than that."

"Never...again," Ron agreed, slightly breathless.

Snape, on the other hand, was slowly backing away. "I don't know what you're all playing at," he said, somewhat fearfully, "but this cannot go on. The Headmaster must know." With that, he turned, threw open the door and hurried away. No one bothered calling him back; they were all focused on Romana.

"Erm, Ro – Romana?" Hermione asked tentatively. "Um, thank you for showing us that memory, but I think you might have made a mistake. You see," she continued, flinching as Romana narrowed her eyes, "Tonks can remember her family, a whole and full life. If she really was created by you, wouldn't she only be able to remember things after a certain point?"

"Yes and no," Romana replied. "Everything before she turned eighteen was fabricated by my TARDIS to help me assimilate into human society. The perfect cover story – even she didn't know it wasn't true." She gave Hermione a wry smile. "If you ask her if she can remember her life before her eighteenth birthday now, you'll find she's having difficulty."

Hermione glanced at Tonks, who bowed her head. What Romana said was true, and there was no avoiding that fact.

"I'm sorry, Hermione," Romana said sadly. "But Tonks is me, and I am Tonks. It's objective fact, and there's nothing you or anyone else can do to change it. Now," she added, speaking to the whole room, "no matter what you do, you won't be able to remove me from the watch. Try it again, and I may just take back my body without Tonks' consent."

"You wouldn't!" Hermione gasped.

"I would," Romana said simply. "But I'm willing to let Tonks decide on her own." She turned to Tonks. "Nymphadora Fredrica Tonks, you have one day to make up your mind. If you decide to stay as a human and continue you existence on this small rock in space, give the watch to the Doctor. I'll make sure he doesn't try anything. If you decide to sacrifice yourself and become part of a greater whole, then open the watch. You'll die and become part of me. You have twenty-four hours."

A second later, the golden energy began to flow back into the watch, and in a matter of seconds, Romana had dissolved completely, leaving Tonks alone with Harry, Ron and Hermione.

"Twenty-four hours," Tonks murmured, aghast. "Twenty-bloody-four hours." She looked despairingly at the trio for help, but all they could do was look awkwardly at their feet. It was up to her to make the next move.

Author Note: Things are heating up - not long to go now! Will Tonks be able to make a decision before her 24 hours is up? And if so, what decision will that be? It might not be what you expect, either!

Another thing to note is that Romana didn't have to become human. Despite what she thought, she would have been fine staying as a Time Lady and living on Earth. The reason she did decide to use the Chameleon Arch, though, is mostly because the initial stages of regeneration were clouding her judgement somewhat - I tried to hint at that in the chapter, but the it'll come up again in a later chapter.

Replies to reviews:

Fate of Chaos: The Doctor's not especially good at being subtle. He does like to draw attention to himself after all!

SuOmAlAiNen92: River hasn't appeared in any of my stories; she was mentioned in Mystery of the Blue Box, and was mentioned in this story for the first time last chapter. Yes, the trio were present when the Doctor explained the situation; both the Doctor and Tonks know and trust them well enough to let them stay for something that important.

MrsDalek: As you saw, Tonks didn't react all that well, though at this stage she's more in denial than anything. Deep down she knows everything that the Doctor and Romana have said is true, but she doesn't want to accept it and face reality. Thanks!

Nikki Pond: Well, like you pointed out, he was under a magical oath to tell the truth; he didn't really have any other choice! And, yes, while he is being selfish and arrogant...isn't he like that most of the time anyway? :p Glad you like his 'Professor Smith' alias! I must admit I'm rather fond of it myself...reminds of when the Doctor travelled with Ace; she always called him 'Professor'.

Wonderbee31: Funnily enough, Tonks' metamorph abilities were actually the inspiration for the story. I just randomly thought 'what if Tonks was a metamorph because she was actually a Time Lady who regenerated while using the Chameleon Arch?', and the story grew from there. So yes, you're correct in thinking that the metamorph ability is an offshoot of regeneration. It's hinted at in the flashback sequence in this chapter, but will be explained in full later on.

sci fi sammy: Thanks! Yeah, Tonks is criminally underused in both the books and movies. Oh well, that's what fanfiction's for! Thanks once again!