The Worst Christmas
by TheRealXenocide

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, the book series of that name, or anything related to it. I am not making any money off of this story. This is a story written just for fun.

Note: This is my response to the December story challenge from the group formerly known as PinkHairGreenEyes. I'll not give the new group's name here, as the old group was deleted by Yahoo without good reason, and I don't want to give the $$ who filed that complaint a roadmap to our new home.

Yes, I know I'm a bit late with this. But I have good, family related reasons.

Challenge Details - December Story Challenge: A "Harry" Christmas

Any rating and no word count limit.

It's the Christmas hols, but Harry isn't spending it anywhere he has before (during the holiday). Things are tense and he's unsure if he's going to make it through to the new year. Tonks isn't sure how to handle this latest development, but she's going to try.

Required phrases in a story:

"That's what you meant"

"There's only one way you're getting out of this"

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And now, the story.

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"Wotcher, Harry. Having fun?"

Harry looked up at Tonks as she approached. The look on her face showed the same expression of concern that most of The Order had been giving him, which caused him to groan. He'd specifically chosen this corner of the room to try to avoid everyone pitying him, and who should find him but the person he least wanted to be pitied by.

Normally, he liked being the center of her attention. She was one of the few Order members who hadn't managed to hack him off in the year-and-a-half since Sirius died. When Harry told a gathering of Order members what the prophecy said, she was the first to suggest that Harry should be directly involved in Order meetings. She even withstood a rant from Molly without changing her position. She'd earned his respect and friendship. That was part of the reason why seeing that look from her was more of a kick in the gut than it was from the others.

"Oh, yeah, I'm having a great time." He answered in an obviously sarcastic tone. As much as he liked her, right now he didn't want anyone near him. Yet, he was surprised to notice a small part of himself wishing she'd ignore his rudeness and stay.

She gave a single, half snort chuckle. "You should know by now that tone doesn't work on me. Bunch over." She'd barely given him time to react before moving to sit with him on the quarter-circle bench that Harry was on. "Look around you, Harry." As she said that, she swept her arm to indicate the whole room. Harry couldn't help but notice that she'd kept her arm low and tight to her body, as if trying to avoid attention. He felt a bit of gratitude for that. "They're all trying to enjoy themselves."

Harry did glace around the room. It was the drawing room of Malfoy Manor. Draco, the last Malfoy alive and supposed enemy of Lord Voldemort since summer before sixth year, had invited most of the Order of the Phoenix and the D.A. to his manor for a group Christmas celebration. Of course, not everyone could make it. But enough did to make the secondary purpose, a large meeting to get the two groups better coordinated, still practical.

Harry thought for a moment, then decided. "You want to know what I see?" To his surprise, she actually had to think about that for a moment. Then, with what he could only describe as a nervous expression, she nodded. "Over there," he nodded to indicate the far left from the corner they were sitting in. "I see our host for the evening, Draco Malfoy, talking to Dumbledore, who seems to think we should all trust Draco. And why? Because Draco killed his father after Lucius killed his mother on Voldemort's orders, orders first given to Draco." He shook his head in disbelief. "I'm I the only one who sees that if he'd been assigned to the other death-eater job that day he probably wouldn't have given a damn?"

Tonks shook slightly, remembering that Voldemort had ordered two deaths after the Department of Mysteries. In addition to several blasts of the cruciatus curse, he decided to use Bellatrix Lestrange to teach everyone else a lesson in the price of failure. He ordered the deaths of her sisters, Narcissa Malfoy and Andromeda Tonks. Tonks had been there, and still had nightmares about that day. Andromeda was hosting an outdoor party to honor a newlywed couple, the bride being the only daughter of her closest school friend. A dozen death-eaters, led by Bellatrix, crashed to party. Enough of the party goers fought back to keep it from being a massacre, but not enough to make them run without a fight. When they were finally driven away, three Death-Eaters lay stunned or otherwise unconscious. However, they had succeeded in their task. There were four dead from the party. Andromeda, her husband Ted, one of the bride's best friends, and the young bride herself. Tonks lost her mother and her father in the attack.

Sadly, it was the young bride's death that reunited the Weasley family. She was Penelope Clearwater-Weasley, wife of less than a month to Percy. Still deeply hurt by his father's words during there last argument, Percy couldn't bring himself to tell his family that he'd finally proposed to Penny, nor invite them to the wedding. In his grief, however, he couldn't refuse his mother's comfort.

"I think you're half right, Harry." Tonks finally answered. "He probably would have gone to kill my mum. But when he found out what happened to his mum, he would have reacted like he did. You haven't known him as long as I have. He was always a rotten little brat, but his one true soft spot was his mum." Harry's doubt must have shown. "Some of the cousins wondered if Lucius was the only Malfoy male she took to her bed." Harry snorted at that. "But it wasn't like that. In a home and family that had been about nothing but power for generations, those two loved each other as a family should. THAT'S why they stuck out, and it's why Draco went against everything he'd ever believed when they killed her."

"Maybe. But I have a hard time trusting him."

"Is he the only problem today, Harry?"

Harry gave a derisive snort. "Hardly. Moving a little to the right, we come to a trio featuring two of my three ex-girlfriends. First we have Luna, who must have finally gone around the twist judging by the way she's looking at Draco." Tonks tried to bury a snicker. "Then there's Ginny, and I still have no idea what I was thinking there."

"Ginny's a nice girl." Tonks cut in.

"She's too much like the twins. It was like dating George." Tonks snorted. "And finally there's Ginny's current boyfriend, Neville. I hope he realizes what he's in for."

"He's stronger than he looks. Besides, I think he's got bigger problems from the brothers, don't you?"

"After the way she tore into them about their treatment of Dean, they've been too scared to interfere." He turned his head slightly. "Over there by the fireplace, we see Ron and Hermione, my two best friends since first year, who are now officially engaged. Mrs. Weasley still doesn't approve, but she hasn't dared say anything to them since the day they announced it."

"I've never seen anything like it. One of Molly's boys actually fought back."

In Harry's opinion, 'fought back' was sorely understating it. "I still can't believe she could have misread him like that. If she'd just kept her tirade to him, he'd probably just stood there and taken it as always. But she just had to start in on Hermione." He shook his head. "Did she really not know how madly protective he is of her?"

"Don't tell anyone, but I had my wand ready to stun him near the end."

Harry looked sideways at Tonks. "You weren't the only one." Her eyebrows arched, but he went on. "I'm glad Hermione and Mr. Weasley were able to step in. They probably saved that family."

"Speaking of lovely couples," Tonks cut in, obviously trying to cheer things up, "over on the other side of the fireplace are Dean and Padma."

"Yes, let's talk about them. Dean broke up with Ginny after the skirmish we had with the Death Eaters outside Hogsmeade end of last school year. During said skirmish, he sees Padma take what he believes is a fatal blow from Dolohov's organ cutting spell. He then kills Dolohov with Gryffindor's sword, which he unconsciously summoned. The battle's still going, and I lose track of them at that point until after the Order shows up and the Death Eater leave."

"They weren't hard to find then." Tonks remembered. "His cries could be heard halfway across the village. I'm sure I even saw water in Moody's real eye when we found them."

"It didn't stop him from putting Dean in a total body bind."

"It was the only way to shut him up long enough to tell him that she was alive."

"But her spine's so messed up that she may never walk again. Not even magic has helped."

Tonks couldn't help but notice that Harry seemed even more depressed than before when he spoke of Padma's injury. "It doesn't seem to have shaken Dean's feelings."

"Of course not. He's not to blame for it."

Tonks threw her hands into the air. "Bloody hell, Harry, not this again." She looked him dead in the eyes. "I thought you'd gotten past that. YOU did not hurt Padma or anybody else that's been hurt or killed by them. Not Dennis, not Penny, not my mum and dad, not Sirius, and not Cedric. None of them are your fault. Damn it Harry, you KNOW this already." That's when it came to her, and she spoke much gentler to him. "What's brought this back, Harry?" He tried not to let it show on his face, which only made it all the more obvious. "You've seen something, haven't you?" She knew that Harry's Occlumency was good enough to keep Voldemort's attacks out. But thanks to the scar, he still saw about one or two visions a month that Voldemort didn't know he was broadcasting. This only happened when Voldemort's emotions were particularly strong, and it always left Harry drained. How is it they hadn't seen it before?

Harry looked like he was debating something. "He's launching a new offensive New Year's Eve, and it's because of me."

"Harry, don't say that."

"He's going to attack the people he thinks will cause me to come out where he can face me. And he knows the trump card to play."

"Harry, you know Dumbledore's been expecting something like this. Just tell him, and he'll get everyone to safety."

"No, he can't. Voldemort will threaten everyone. But he'll send almost everything, including himself, after one person. The one he knows I'd sacrifice everything and everyone to protect. Even myself."

The tone in Harry's voice shocked her as much as his words did. "Harry, who . . ."

"I have to go." Harry said as he stood abruptly.

Harry's sudden movement was noticed by many in the room. His speedy walk toward the exit gained more attention, as did Tonks pursuit. "Harry, stop. Damn it, Harry, you need to OOF!"

She was cut off when she collided with something. Something she quickly realized was Harry. "What the HELL did you do?!?" Harry asked her, now blazing with anger.

"I didn't do any thing."

"It was us, Harry." Fred cut in. He flinched when Harry looked at him.

"We weren't trying for you, mate," George continued, "you just walked under there at the wrong time."

"What are you . . ."

George interrupted Harry. "Look up, Harry." Both Harry and Tonks looked. There, hanging in the doorway, was a large piece of mistletoe. "We were trying to catch Ginny and Neville, and . . ."

"WHAT?!?" Ginny cried out in outrage.

"You can skin us for interfering later, Ginny." Fred cut her off. "Right now, we need to get Harry and Tonks out of it."

"And how do we get out of this, boys." Tonks asked, clearly aggravated.

"Well, there's only one way you're getting out of this." Fred answered.

"It is mistletoe, after all." George added.

Tonks closed her eyes in disbelief. Remus spoke before anybody else. "They have to kiss each other to break the spell. That's what you meant, isn't it?"

Everyone looked at Fred and George. "Right in one." They said in unison.

Tonks stood there for a moment, then sighed in resignation. Turning to face Harry, she said. "Well, at least those two idiots kept you from storming off." It wasn't until she finished that sentence that she saw how badly Harry was shaking.

Before she could react, Dumbledore spoke. "What's wrong, Harry?"

"No. No, I can't."

Remus came and grabbed Harry's shoulders. "Harry, please tell me. There has to be more to this than . . . what you told me over that bottle of Fire Whiskey."

Molly looked like she wanted to say something to Remus about Harry drinking, but held her tongue at a look from Albus.

"He's coming, Remus." Harry's voice was shaking, but understandable. "New Year's Eve, he coming for everyone I care about. But it's all fake, all but one." Harry looked Remus straight in the eyes. "He KNOWS, Remus." The shock on the man's face made it clear he knew what Harry meant. "I don't know how, but he knows."

Before Harry could react to stop it, Remus quickly gathered Harry in an embrace. "I won't let it happen again, Harry. Trust me, trust all of us. It WILL be different this time."

Dumbledore, who had been watching the exchange carefully, finally spoke. "We will, of course, have to put some protection on the false targets. But I offer you the full resources of the Order in protecting the real target, Harry." Harry's eyes met Dumbledore's. Harry felt sure that the older wizard knew exactly who that was, despite the fact that Harry hadn't said a name yet.

"The D.A. will be with you too, Harry." Ron spoke up. He and Hermione had come to an agreement that Hermione would second Harry in training and recruitment, and Ron would in battle and planning. "I mean, most of the fake targets are probably D.A. anyway, so it should be easy enough to put together." Ron had blamed himself for not foreseeing the trap that became the battle that killed Dennis Creevey and paralyzed Padma Patil. Harry was glad that Ron was allowing himself to think of strategies again.

"Before we can plan anything, Ronald," Professor McGonagall interrupted, "Harry and Tonks will have to . . . break the spell." With the large number of Weasleys around, Professor McGonagall decided that it would be more practical to refer to them by their given names. But only their FULL given names, much to Ginevra's dislike.

"I can't. I just can't." Harry said softly.

"What, am I that ugly?"

Before Harry could answer, Dumbledore spoke. "Harry, please look at me." He tried not to, but did anyway. "You, more than anyone else, should know the potential cost of secrets. Particularly secrets where somebody's life may be at stake."

Seeing Harry deflate in defeat, Tonks turned to Dumbledore. "Would you mind telling me what that's supposed . . ."

She was cut off by Harry, who surprised her with a quick, but firm kiss on the lips. "It means," Harry began, "that it's you." Tonks saw a tear rolling down his check, with more threatening to join it. "Voldemort knows that you're the one I'd sacrifice everything to save. He knows I'd die to stop him killing you. He knows I'd die if I lost you."

Tonks eyes grew wider with every word. "Bloody hell." She finally managed. "Harry, are you saying what I think you're saying?"

Harry nodded. "I love you. Voldemort knows. And for that, he's coming to kill you." Before anyone could respond, Harry turned and walked, slowly, out of the room.

It took a moment for anyone to speak. Finally, Luna's voice cut the silence. "Go to him." For once, she sounded like she knew where she was.

Tonks snapped out of her daze upon Luna's voice. "You're the one who seems to always know what to say. You should go."

Luna smiled her usual serene smile. "Thank you, but it isn't really my place this time, is it?"

"Tonks." She turned to the new speaker, only realizing after she turned that it was Molly Weasley. Her dread upon this discovery was tempered when she recognized the look on Molly's face. It was the one reserved for moments of greatest worry. "He can't be alone like this, and you two need to talk. Go to him. Please."

"We can begin some of the planning without you two, as I believe Ronald is already doing." Dumbledore said, causing Ron's ears to turn red. "You will not be disturbed," he said those least three words in a commanding voice, then returned to normal tones, "so take whatever time you need."

Tonks was amazed. Harry's surrogate mother and surrogate grandfather had both effectively given her a blank check to do whatever she felt necessary to help Harry. "Thank you." Not able to make herself say more, she turned and sprinted toward the only place she could imagine Harry would go.