31. Battle Royale

Her Monday meeting with Remus never happened.

On Monday morning, Tonks was at the Ministry of Magic, immersed in a report about some Irish bloke who was smuggling Dark Detectors across the border into Northern Ireland.

"Does he know Mundungus?" Kingsley asked, reading over her shoulder.

"I don't know," she mused. "There's plenty of smugglers out there, you just happen to know Mundungus."

"Yeah, but Mundungus is well connected in the smuggler circle," Kingsley laughed.

She snorted. "The smuggler circle?"

Kingsley shrugged. "It sounds neat."

"Fair point, though. Where does Dung get all his stuff?"

"I don't know, go investigate it!"

"That's what I'm trying to do!"

Scrimgeour poked his head out of his office. "Is everything alright, Auror Tonks?"

"Yes, sir," she replied, flashing a brilliant smile at him.

"Good," Scrimgeour said, nodding.

She and Kingsley burst into laughter and returned to their files.

It wasn't until just around noon when a silver ball of light blasted into the room and delivered a message that only she could hear.

"Department of Mysteries," it spoke in the voice of Severus Snape. "Now. Potter and his friends are there under the impression that Black is there. Several Death Eaters are there as well. Going for the prophecy. Black, stay back. Dumbledore's orders."

She knocked over an entire desk of stationery as she stood up immediately.

"Where are you going?" Murphy asked.

"It's an emergency," she replied hurriedly, and she rushed out of the Auror Office.

Kingsley appeared in a moment, as did Mad-Eye, and the three of them raced down the corridors. Right outside the Department of Mysteries were Remus, and, to their great dismay, Sirius.

"What are you doing here?" hissed Tonks. "Dumbledore said to stay back!"

"Harry needs me!" spat Sirius. "I'm not going to sit back and watch like it's some sort of cinema!"

"It's going to be your fault if you die," Remus said in a cold voice. "If you die in this battle, and Harry knows that you could've survived, think about how much trauma that would cause him."

"I'd rather that happen than him not survive at all!" Sirius raged. "Don't stop me now, we're only wasting time!"

"Do you understand exactly what you're doing, Black?" Mad-Eye growled.

"Of course I do!" shouted Sirius.

"You're capable of making your own decisions, then. It's your call. Come on." He led the rest of them into the Department of Mysteries.

"Which door?" Kingsley asked.

Mad-Eye pointed to a black door, much like the rest of them. "That one."

Mad-Eye and his magical eye were basically an unstoppable force, so they headed towards that door.

Doors led to doors, and doors led to more doors, and finally, two doors took them to the Hall of Prophecies.

"Bombarda!" shouted Tonks to one door, while Sirius did the same to the other, and they blasted open to reveal the sight before them.

She could see Harry and Neville and several other lifeless forms on the ground, whom she could only assume to be the rest of them. There were several Death Eaters in black cloaks and masks, all of whom were staring wordlessly at the arrival of the Order.

"Stupefy!" Tonks shouted, sending a jet of red light towards Malfoy, hitting him square in the chest and knocking him off his feet, just as the rest of the Order started raining spells down towards the Death Eaters.

Only the Order could do it, she reflected, with such impeccable aim, hitting the Death Eaters in exactly the right places, with exactly the right spells, at exactly the right time. Through the corner of her eye, she saw Harry diving to dodge a Stunning Spell that had been sent his way, when Bellatrix screamed from below her.

The reviled woman whom she had hated with a passion through all her life was standing below, cackling and shrieking, starting to send curses up her way. The height gave Tonks an advantage, and she deflected the first round of curses and sent her own wave of curses down towards Bellatrix.

"Blood traitor!" shrieked Bellatrix, sending a jet of green light towards her.

"Reducto!" she yelled in response, directing the spell towards the stone steps that were situated directly above Bellatrix. Bellatrix managed to dodge the rock avalanche that cascaded down onto her.

It was a war of curses as she battled valiantly, trying her hardest to figure out what was going on with the others.

"Crucio!" Bellatrix screamed, and Tonks barely dodged it.

"Petrificus Totalus!" she shouted, momentarily freezing Bellatrix before the latter broke free of the curse, though not before Tonks saw that Mad-Eye was on the ground, his head soaked in a pool of blood, his magical eye missing from its socket.

"Crucio!" Bellatrix repeated, and this time it hit its mark.

The caster of the spell, along with the magnitude at which it was cast, magnified the intensity of the pain. Her bones were on fire, and she wanted more than anything for it to stop, for it to go away. There was nothing in the world, just the pain, a million knives ablaze, piercing her skin. She writhed and wriggled on the ground, barely making out the sounds of Bellatrix's triumphant cackling from below.

And then, as quickly as it had come, it disappeared, and Bellatrix had blood dripping out from both of her eyes. It was a horrid sight, and Tonks, still a little shaky, took the opportunity to hurl more curses at Bellatrix.

"Stupefy!" Bellatrix was knocked back, but soon regained control and sent a curse flying her way. Tonks dodged the worst of it, but it left a grazing scar on her cheek.

"Impedimenta!" she yelled, just as she felt a throbbing pain in her thigh, blood gushing out from a gash there. "Stupefy!"

She was not going to succumb to the pain. No. Harry needed her.

"Episkey!"

The wound cleared somewhat, though her legs were still drenched with blood.

"Scourgify!"

As the blood siphoned off her legs, she noticed Bellatrix getting up again, having been hit for the third time by her Stunning Spell.

"Blood-traitor! Dirty filth! Just like your mother!" screeched Bellatrix.

"Shut up!" roared Tonks. "Crucio!"

She shifted her wand ever so slightly to her right as she finished the spell, so that as Bellatrix dove to her left to dodge the spell, she was hit with it.

As Bellatrix lay writhing on the floor, howling with pain, Tonks glanced around desperately.

Sirius was still alive, dodging the many jets of green light that were being shot his way. He met her eye and gestured to the side. "Macnair!"

She spun around to see the Death Eater running towards Harry wildly. "Petrificus Totalus!" she shouted in unison with Sirius, as Macnair crumpled to the ground, motionless.

"You dare…"

It was Bellatrix, who had been relieved of the Cruciatus Curse as soon as Tonks had cast the Body-Bind Curse on Macnair. "I will kill you!"'

"You'll die trying," spat Tonks, and full-fledged war began.

Green. Red. An occasional yellow. White. Blue. Black. Flashes of light were erupting from both sides, with the incantation being screamed or shouted or sobbed, in perfect harmony with the spell that was cast. Dodging and deflecting, shattering and piercing, screaming and yelling, cursing and abusing, hiding and running, watching and casting. There existed only one thing, and it was Bellatrix. Tonks needed to kill her. For all of the people she had killed, tortured, ruined. For all of the people who she would kill, torture, ruin. For the Order. For Harry and his friends. For Remus. For Sirius. For Kingsley. For Mad-Eye. For anyone who would, in some way, be affected by her.

"Crucio!" shouted Bellatrix. Tonks barely swerved it, a stone column shattering behind her.

"Stupefy!" she cried, and Bellatrix was lifted off her feet and thrown against the ground with mighty force.

She saw Remus duelling Dolohov, and she shot a Body-Bond Curse at the Death Eater.

"Are you okay?" Remus called to her as Dolohov crumpled to the ground.

"Fine!" she shouted back, just as Neville let out an ear-piercing scream and Bellatrix made to get up again.

"Petrificus Totalus!" Bellatrix shouted, and Tonks was frozen in place, toppling to the ground.

"Finite!" Remus yelled, and she was able to move again. She shot him a silent thank you, and they both sent Stunning Spells at Bellatrix, who managed to deflect them.

"Avada Kedavra!" Bellatrix shrieked in rage.

Tonks ducked the green jet of light that was shot her way.

"Stupefy!"

"Stupefy!"

The two Stunning Spells met midair and exploded, engulfing the Hall of Prophecies in a hazy smoke that made it difficult to discern exactly who they were trying to curse.

"Don't!" screamed Dolohov, as someone presumably made to shoot. "Our number is limited!"

A Death Eater from just behind Tonks stirred. She shot a hex at him and he was still.

"Accio proph…" began Dolohov, but just as the smoke cleared, Sirius hurtled into him, knocking him to the side and preventing the Summoning Charm from being completed.

"Harry, get out of here!" Tonks shouted, but she was unsure if he had even heard her.

From the corner of her eye, she saw Dolohov approaching Harry with his signature curse. As a Shield Charm sprung into place, she sent a Stunning Spell at the Death Eater, causing him to go flailing backwards, minimizing the impact on Harry.

"Petrificus Totalus!" Harry shouted from somewhere.

"Stupefy!" shrieked someone, and Tonks was blown off her feet.

Bellatrix was back. In an effort to get up from the pile of debris she had landed in, she hoisted herself back onto her feet and shot a flurry of curses back at her.

"Crucio!" shrieked Bellatrix. "Accio prophecy!"

"Protego!" yelled Tonks, directing the shield towards Harry, so that the prophecy did not fly towards Bellatrix.

"Crucio!" shouted Bellatrix, at the same time that Tonks shouted, "Stupefy!"

Tonks fell to the ground, the impact of her second Cruciatus Curse of the day unbearable.

And then the world started to black out, the last thing she heard being the anguished screams of a very distressed Harry.


A/N: It's short, I know! But the rest are going to be normal length. Next up is one of my personal favorites, in which Remus visits Tonks in St. Mungo's and does a few things for her. Stay tuned for chapter 32!

This story is going to be completely published in a matter of weeks, and I can't believe it. How time has flown! Everyone who's been reading since the beginning, and everyone who hasn't, I hope you've been enjoying it! Please leave a review and let me know how it is! Thank you to everyone who has reviewed so far :)