Chapter Thirty-Eight – A Question of Trust

Tonks walked down the street towards her apartment, feeling the crisp November air bite at her cheeks. She wasn't able to shake the feeling that she was being followed. 'Constant Vigilance,' she couldn't help but mutter to herself.

Very casually, Tonks walked into her apartment building. Once the door was closed behind her, Tonks scrunched her nose and morphed. She grew four inches, darkened her skin tone to match Kingsley's and gave herself some chin length braids. Then quickly transfiguring her robes to a more traditional muggle trench coat, she headed out the door again.

Whistling happily, Tonks retraced her steps when she saw what she was looking for. Savage was leaning against a tree, hiding his face by pretending to read The Sun.

She strolled nonchalantly past him, not even noticing him. Then Tonks stopped, morphing back to herself again, but with blonde hair. Savage didn't even notice. She walked right behind him and tapped him on the shoulder.

'Excuse me, do you have the time?' she asked, trying to hide the fury she felt inside.

Savage jumped. 'No, I don't-'

He froze when he saw her. A guilty look crossed his face. 'Tonks…'

'Are you going to tell me what's going on?' she asked in a low voice. 'Please, Savage. I deserve that much.'

'Not out here,' said Savage, his eyes darting around.

'There's a muggle pub down the street,' said Tonks. For a moment, she thought about inviting him inside, but changed her mind.

They walked swiftly towards the pub. Tonks ordered two pints and brought them to a booth. Savage looked around in amazement.

'Haven't you been in a muggle pub before?' asked Tonks. Savage shook his head. He looked at the beer in front of him. 'Guinness. Muggles know their beer.'

Savage took a careful sip and made a face. 'Not bad.'

Tonks drank close to half of hers in one gulp. 'You want to explain why you're following me?' asked Tonks. 'I'm trusting you to tell me the truth, Savage.'

'Why do you think you were placed on the Snape Snatching Team?' asked Savage.

Tonks shrugged and took another sip of beer. 'Because of my dazzling wit? My charm? My inability to stay up on my own two feet for any length of time?'

'Because of the rumors that you and Snape were sleeping together,' said Savage suddenly.

She had forgotten about those rumors. 'Those rumors are a year old. I haven't seen Snape since…it's been a long time,' said Tonks. The truth was that she had seen him only three nights ago for the first time since their night together in September. Nine bloody weeks.

'Well, Millstone has it in her head that you can lead us to Snape,' said Savage.

'How long have I been followed?' asked Tonks, taking a barrette from her pocket and putting back her bleach blonde fringe. Normally, if her hair was in her way, she'd morph it, but not in a muggle pub.

'Only a couple of days,' said Savage apologetically.

'Why now?' asked Tonks. Her initial anger had been replaced with sadness. Her colleagues didn't trust her. What was worse was that Tonks realized that she didn't deserve their trust anymore. Even though she was doing it for what she considered the right reasons, Tonks was lying to her comrades.

'Since you turned in that tip about the attacks in Diagon Alley,' said Savage softly. 'Millstone thinks Snape told you.'

Tonks sighed and rested her chin on her hand. Severus had told her. He had warned her that in the next few days, there would be an attack concentrated on Diagon Alley. He felt safe telling her seeing that numerous Death Eaters had the information and no one could pin the leak back to him.

The moment he had left, Tonks went to the Burrow and told Arthur, now the unofficial leader of the Order. Within hours, the Order had arranged guard shifts in Diagon Alley and Tonks promised to tell the Ministry first thing this morning.

'What do you think, Savage?' asked Tonks. They had worked together for almost a year and a half now. His opinion was important to her.

'I think you want this war over just like the rest of us,' said Savage thoughtfully. 'I don't think you would do anything to jeopardize that.'

'Thank you, Darrin,' said Tonks gratefully, looking him right in the eye. 'That means a lot to me.'

'What are you going to do?' asked Savage.

'I'm going to confront Millstone,' said Tonks, shaking her head. 'I should have realized something was up. She kept asking me questions about my personal life. Thank you for getting caught.'

Savage grinned sheepishly. 'I was paying too much attention to that damn tabloid.'

'Lives of the Royals are fascinating, aren't they?' grinned Tonks. But the grin quickly left her face when she realized what she was going to do.

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'Nora, can I speak to you?' asked Tonks loudly the next day. It was early in the morning and the Auror office was fairly empty.

'Of course, Tonks,' said Nora brightly. Too brightly. 'What can I help you with?'

'In private if you don't mind,' said Tonks with a smile.

'My office,' said Nora. Her demeanor changed instantly. She now looked at Tonks just slightly suspiciously.

The door of Nora's small office closed with an authoritative bang. Tonks didn't bother to sit as Nora settled herself behind her desk.

'You don't need to have me followed,' said Tonks, crossing her arms over her chest.

'I don't know what you're talking about,' said Nora in a clipped voice.

'I caught one of them red handed yesterday and they confessed,' said Tonks. 'I know I'm being followed and I want it to stop.'

'Then tell me who your contact with the Death Eaters is,' said Nora at once.

'You know I'm not going to do that,' said Tonks. 'All Aurors have contacts in the underground. You know how it works. I say who my contact is and I'll never get any information again.'

Nora drummed her fingers across her desk. 'Is your contact Snape?' asked Nora.

'I'm not saying who it is,' said Tonks.

'I'm going to be completely honest with you, Tonks,' said Nora, all traces of warmth gone from her face. 'You've been under suspicion since Snape killed Dumbledore.'

'Why?' demanded Tonks.

'You were sleeping with him,' accused Nora, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

Tonks held out her hand angrily. 'That was a rumor.'

'Do you deny it?'

'Of course I deny it!' said Tonks frustratedly.

'Will you take Veritaserum to prove it?' asked Nora, eyeing her carefully.

'No,' said Tonks simply. 'I'm an Auror. My word should be enough.'

'And if it's not?' challenged Nora.

'I've been a good Auror, Millstone,' said Tonks, lowering her voice. 'You have no reason beyond a bloody rumor to suspect me of anything.'

'I would prefer if you cooperate,' said Nora softly. 'And if you don't, I could throw you in Azkaban, you know.'

'Yes, you can,' said Tonks heatedly. 'But the Aurors I work with trust me, even if you don't. I don't think you'll find anyone willing to take me there.'

'I'm suspending you without pay for the rest of the month,' said Nora, leaning back in her chair. 'Once December comes, we'll review, and we'll see if you're willing to give up the name of your contact.'

Tonks laughed bitterly, shaking her head.

'Get out of my office,' said Nora. 'Don't come back until you have something to tell me.'

'Am I still going to be followed?' asked Tonks.

'That's for me to know and you to try to discover,' said Nora.

'Once I leave this office, you won't be able to find me again until I come back,' said Tonks. She would morph as often as she needed to in order not to be followed.

'You really shouldn't say things like that, Tonks,' said Nora quietly. 'It's attitudes like that why no one trusts shape-shifters.'

'I'm a Metamorphmagus,' said Tonks through clenched teeth, before turning on her heels and walking out the door.

Tonks practically ran out of the Ministry, not quite believing what had just happened. If the Aurors didn't trust her, what about the Order? Did the Order still trust her?

More importantly, how would she get word to Severus not to come to her bed sit again? If she was still going to be followed, he absolutely couldn't come to her flat. Maybe she could word an owl just the right way…That wouldn't work. She couldn't imagine that he would allow an owl to get anywhere near him.

Tonks started walking briskly and found herself in front of the muggle grocery store that Remus worked at. He had moved up the ranks very quickly at the store. Remus started bagging groceries, then moved up to a check out clerk and now worked in customer service. He still hated everything about the job, but the manager was understanding at the full moon and he had been gainfully employed for six months now.

Without thinking, Tonks marched inside, oblivious to the stares that her lime green bob was getting. Remus was sitting behind the counter, laughing with another clerk. When he noticed her, Tonks realized that he didn't look too pleased.

'I'm going to go have a fag,' said Remus quietly to the other man, who nodded.

Remus picked up his dark green cardigan from the back of his chair and struggled to put it on. 'Follow me,' he said to Tonks.

She followed Remus into the back room of the store and through a maze of boxes. After they made it outside, Remus took his time taking out his cigarette and lighting it.

'What are you doing here?' asked Remus, taking a drag. As was his custom, he offered her a puff, which Tonks always refused.

Tonks looked around to make sure they were alone. They were. 'Do you trust me?' she asked softly. She felt her eyes brimming with eyes and at that moment, hated herself for them.

'Where did that come from?' asked Remus.

'Please just answer the question,' said Tonks, sitting down on a crate.

Remus sat down on the crate besides her, leaning against the brink wall, bringing one knee up and resting his foot on her crate. 'Course I trust you, Clumsy,' he said gruffly.

Tonks closed her eyes and breathed a sigh of relief. Remus wouldn't lie to her. 'Thank you,' said Tonks gratefully. 'I've been followed by Aurors for the last few days.'

'What for?' asked Remus, sounding indignant.

The tone of his voice made Tonks smile. 'They think I can lead them to Snape.'

'Can you?'

Tonks looked at Remus sharply. 'No,' she said simply. It wasn't a lie. She couldn't lead anyone to Snape. He came to her, not the other way around. 'Why would you think that?'

Remus shrugged. 'I heard the rumors like everyone else, about you and Severus,' said Remus, blowing smoke up over his head. 'Harry tells me that you keep bringing his name up when you're working on non-verbal spells.'

'Severus and I became friends last year,' said Tonks, sighing slightly. It felt good to admit this to someone. 'Good friends. I guess I take that into consideration when I think about everything that's happened.'

'What do you mean, what happened?' asked Remus, throwing his cigarette to the ground and stamping it out with his foot. 'He killed Dumbledore.'

'I know,' said Tonks. That was a statement of fact that couldn't be refuted. 'Say I killed Dumbledore, wouldn't you wonder what happened? Wonder if Dumbledore knew something you didn't? Things aren't always black or white, you know.'

'For the purpose of this discussion, I'll agree,' said Remus in an even tone. 'Because I trust you and our history, I might be able to give you the benefit of the doubt.'

'That's what it's like for me,' said Tonks, knowing full well that she was giving Remus far too much information. But truly not caring at the moment. 'Things aren't always as they seem.'

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Even though Tonks might be suspended as an Auror, that didn't mean she was going to stay away from a possible fight. Severus told her four days ago that there would be an attack

And tonight was the night. There was no doubt in her mind. There was a tension in the air that hadn't been in Diagon Alley the night before. Her hand tightened around her wand as she carefully glanced at the faces around her, looking for anything that didn't seem right.

She walked past the Weasley twin's shop. Fred and George were both inside, wearing their matching magenta robes. They both had moved a great deal of inventory to the back, so there would be less of a chance of having their entire stock destroyed. And they both planned on defending their store vigorously.

Aurors and Enforcers strolled down the street, all giving Tonks a nod as they past by. Tonks herself wasn't wearing her Auror robes, seeing that she wasn't technically on duty. Instead of navy blue robes, she wore her favorite bright purple robe. The patches on the robe were different blues and greens. Not needed, generally Tonks kept her robes in very good condition, but she liked the added colors.

Tonks was grateful that there didn't seem to too many shoppers tonight. At least-

A woman's scream caused the hair on the back of Tonks' neck to stand on end. She whirled around and saw Death Eaters pouring out of the walkway that connected Knockturn and Diagon Alleys.

Tonks almost had to laugh out loud when she saw them. It was a small walkway, the Death Eaters were met head on when they passed into Diagon Alley. The Aurors there were able to stun the Death Eaters easily. There were only five…

Immediately, Tonks looked around. This was a set-up. She crouched low and looked around, trying to see if anything was amiss.

Every single one of her senses was on alert. To her left, she saw that another Auror had done the exact same thing. It was Savage.

They saw each other at the same time and smiled. 'Doesn't feel right, does it?' asked Savage in a low voice.

Tonks shook her head and thought of Balin, Savage's four month old son. The much hoped for son after three girls. She forced herself to think of other things. That line of thinking would get her in trouble…

There was barely enough time to cover themselves with a shield charm when the explosion happened.

Tonks looked down Diagon Alley and saw that half of Gringotts had been blasted away. Both she and Savage waited until the ruble had stopped, then ran towards the destruction. Aurors and Enforcers were scattered everywhere. This was exactly what the Death Eaters wanted. Chaos.

'Damnit, Severus,' muttered Tonks under her breath. He didn't mention anything about explosives. He simply said that there would be an attack. Why couldn't he have given her more specific information?

But that was her last thought before the second explosion caused her to slip into unconsciousness.

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A/N – So I decided to get a head start on my New Year's resolutions. (Or I'm starting really late. Depends which way you look at it.) I made a big ole list yesterday. I should have done this forever ago, but I'm going to start replying to all reviews. Because you guys rock, and I don't show y'all the love nearly enough. So if you've been reviewing and are suddenly like, 'why is this crazy girl replying all the time?' This is why. I want to show you all how much I appreciate you! I love writing fan fiction, and you guys make it that much more fun!