Summary: Remus and Sirius are caught in a deadly memory unless Tonks can figure out a way to get them out.
Pensieve Moments
Mnemonic Cycle
Kreacher opened his eyes to enjoy the work of the pensieve, but as the thoughts were being pulled from Sirius Black, he realized he had an advantage. Just a snap of his fingers would fling the young master into corporeal form inside the pensieve. Wouldn't a son be eager for such a close inspection of his father's instrument? Yes! He snapped his fingers.
Black felt himself being pulled into the pensieve by the threads of his thoughts. His immersion became as complete as Lupin's. In the meantime, Lupin closed his eyes to try to focus his thoughts. It was the only way to stabilize the situation, although it meant the pensieve would not be destroyed. In the back of Lupin's mind was a blot of pink that oddly left him with some hope of getting out of this situation.
The men opened their eyes in synchrony and scanned the scene of their shared memory. Oddly, it had the effect of being in a dream where you watched yourself. It was a memory of a day at dusk that held each man's perspective clearly for their witness to see.
Tonks felt the vortex ebbing away as the scene crystallized. The two men were taking corporeal form inside the pensieve. It was dusk and she recognized the place as known as the Brimham Rocks. She understood the significance of it for her cousin. That's where he had been captured. But where was Lupin? Had she lost him in the vortex? She could only watch as the scene played out and hope that it would shift to Lupin's memory. Then she saw her cousin and realized this had to be someone else's view as well. Did Lupin watch his old friend be captured?
Sirius Black looked majestic as the wind swept the black robe around his lithe body. The natural grace of his gait was evident as he strode across the moor toward the large formation of rocks. His trim beard accented his handsome face and the chin held a familiar arrogant tilt, but the eyes were void of emotion.
"Remus Lupin, now why would you run away from an old friend?" taunted Black. He didn't think Peter Pettigrew had acted alone in destroying James and Lily. Lupin had to be behind it all; he was the smart, cool- headed one. The sense of betrayal cut into his soul. A lethal tone entered his voice when he added, "You knew I'd come for you, you coward!"
A man emerged from the shadow of an odd rock formation called the Druid's Writing Desk.
The man held little resemblance to the mild mannered Professor that most of them knew. The clothes he wore looked more like rags draping his gaunt body. His hair was long and the full beard obscured his face except for his eyes. Those orbs were cold and deadly as he faced his old friend.
"Yes, I knew you'd come, Sirius," said Lupin hoarsely. "For once in your life you're going to finish a job, aren't you?"
Black only responded with his wand. The energy flared forward, but Lupin deflected each volley that was sent his way with power of his own. The two men relentlessly cast spells and counter-spells, but neither one gained an advantage.
"They know each other too well," whispered Tonks as she watched in trepidation. This must be the mnemonic cycle that McGonagall had warned could happen. But if the men were in corporeal form, would they survive a vicious cycle of battle? The environment wasn't real, but the spells would be, as would any physical contact between the two. She had to keep a clear head and find a way out. Tonks forced herself to focus on the duel again. Was the memory vulnerable?
The duel carried the men to the Idol Rock formation of the Brimham Rocks. Lupin suddenly aimed the wand in his right hand in one direction while he cast a different spell with his left hand. Black swerved to avoid the spell cast by the wand, but was caught by the ricochet of the spell Lupin cast using wandless magic.
Lupin held the advantage as Black fell to the ground. Lupin stood over Black, but a look of sorrow suddenly filled his face. He knelt by his old friend and said, "I can offer the mercy of a quick death."
Black spat at the man. "That's what I think of your mercy, you wretched creature!"
Lupin closed his eyes for just a moment, but Black used that instant to kick at Lupin's weak knee. The man fell back in excruciating pain and found Black had his wand against his chest. The deadly intent was clear.
"I don't offer any mercy, Remus. I want to make sure you suffer pain," said Black as he called a cruciatus curse.
When the first wave of agony ebbed, the man's voice held no rancor. In fact, Lupin emitted a bitter laugh before saying, "Pain is nothing new to me, Sirius, and it's nothing compared to the loss of James and Lily."
Black slapped the man sharply across the face. "How dare you say their names!"
"I would have died before betraying James and Lily," said Lupin wearily. He sounded tired of living and exhausted of emotion. "I always thought you would have done the same, Sirius Black."
In the next moment, the moor was filled with the chants of from the Wizard Hunters and the scene faded.
As Tonks watched the scene, she wondered how Lupin had survived this encounter with her cousin, but in the next moment, the mnemonic cycle began again. She clutched her head as she felt the pensieve's need to weave her terror into the scene, but this time, Tonks didn't give in to the despair.
"You are an Auror. Your duty is to protect," she told herself. "Protect those you serve. Guard the ones you love." She opened her eyes and forced herself to watch the scene again as she realized she did have one advantage in this dark creation of the pensieve. "Guard the ones you love."
Tonks held onto one thought. She would not lose these men she loved to this Dark Force. The pensieve wanted terror, anger, despair and guilt. But she would not give in to those negative emotions. How to break a cycle? By adding a new element into the motion, throwing a nut into the gears as it were, but that was her speciality.
"You've gone mad, Tonks," she told herself, "but one nut coming up!"
The duel had carried the men to the Idol Rock formation again. She could see Lupin was still mobile, but favoring his injured knee. She knew she had to be patient and insert herself at the optimal moment or Sirius could kill both of them. She waited until Lupin had the advantage and prayed his injured knee wouldn't be the event that broke the cycle.
Tonks sighed in relief as Lupin again stood over Sirius Black with that sorrowful expression. But this time, a streak of pink swept across his vision as Tonks interceded.
"Remus, you love him. This is just a memory. Hold on to that and we can break this cycle!" cried Tonks as she as she threw herself between the men.
The flash of recognition raced across Lupin's face as he watched Tonks take Sirius by the hand.
"You have to help us, Sirius. This memory is the illusion! Remus Lupin is precious to you; don't destroy him!"
Sirius blinked as the face of a grown up Nymphadora Tonks loomed above him. What was he doing? Where was he? He looked behind her shoulder at Remus Lupin as the illusion of the memory began to fade. The man's hair shortened and the beard fell away to reveal the concerned face.
Sirius blinked. "Tonks? Remus, I'm--"
"No, don't let dark thoughts touch you," she whispered as she helped Sirius stand.
"We can end this now, Sirius," said Lupin as he put his arms around their shoulders. He understood now how to succeed in the spell that would destroy the pensieve. "We can break this pensieve if we focus on the thoughts we'd use to call our Patronus."
Sirius and Tonks nodded firmly. They closed their eyes and retrieved the memories that had built their bonds of trust, friendship and love.
"Memoria recido!"The vortex whirled around them again, but Tonks began to sing as the trio bent their heads together. The men could hear the melody in her smooth low tones while the tempest howled around them in an effort to reassert the pensieve.
But Tonks had chosen her song well and she could soon hear the men's laughter as they joined her for a repeat of the verses. The Hogwart's School song had rarely been sung with such harmony--and to a single melody.
Their times at Hogwarts had been amongst the happiest for them all and, although Tonks had been there a decade after the Marauders, she had bright images in her mind of stories Sirius would tell her of his adventures. The three humans standing together resembled one of the Brimham Rocks' formations. They remained solid against the tempest that swept around them. But like a rock in the storm, the power of the pensieve just surged then fell away and collapsed into itself.
Looking into the bowl, Kreacher was shaking his head, then clutching it as the pain began to tear through it. The magic of house elves was different than that of the human wizards and witches. Moreover, he did not have the power to manipulate three such powerful beings when they worked in concert. He felt the implosion of the pensieve just before he popped out of the chamber to seek his sanctuary.
Slow cracks began to appear on the basin of the pensieve. The first rune was torn asunder, followed by the adjacent symbols. Soon the bowl splintered into shards as three adult humans seemed to emerge out of the remains.
The three were breathing heavily, but Lupin maintained the presence of mind to chant a lamina spell to shield them from the falling shards. The shell protected them as Tonks led them out the door. Once through the doorway, the entrance also collapsed with one last shimmer.
x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x
Alastor Moody stomped into number twelve Grimmauld Place. The portrait of Mrs. Black began ranting, but Moody just snarled at her and said, "Shut it, you old bag!"
Apparently his tone and magic eye were sufficient to silence Mrs. Black today. Now that she was mute, the old Auror could hear the chorus of a very familiar song. Merlin's beard, they'd all gone mad!
"Hello the house!" called Moody.
"We're up here, Mad-Eye!" The announcement was followed by a giggle.
"I know that, you daft girl. There's so much magic lingering about you that I spotted you as soon as I entered, not to mention the howling you're doing now," grumbled Moody as he made his way up the stairs. He peered at the trio cautiously as he inspected them.
Sirius Black had a tangled mop of hair, Nymphadora Tonks looked like she'd put her hair up a vacuum hose and Remus Lupin had obviously injured his bum knee again. Moody shook his head and said, "Lupin, can't you stay hearty and whole for just one month?"
"Uh, I think my lycanthropy pretty well limits that," replied Lupin with a smile. "Did the Headmaster send you?"
"I told Albus I'd check up on the puppies," confirmed Moody. "Why were you singing the Hogwarts' song?"
The trio just laughed and, although each took a turn trying to explain, no one could get out the full explanation. Moody became exasperated and said, "Fine. Black, you take Lupin to his room and see to that knee. Tonks, you debrief me while you make some tea for us."
Tonks stood up pertly as she and Sirius helped Lupin to his feet. "Mad-Eye, you actually trust me to brew tea?"
"Right, what was I thinking?" said Moody with a nod. "I'll make the tea while you debrief. Come on."
Tonks tried to regain her composure as Moody prodded her down the hall, but she did turn and wave to her companions as if they were still students at Hogwarts with two going to the infirmary and the other offering the explanation for their mischief. It was a memory all too familiar to each one, so another burst of laughter rang in the corridor.
"I might need to alert St. Mungo's," muttered Moody as he poked Tonks in the back with his wand to get her to quit waving to the men.
Fifteen minutes later a sobered Tonks had explained the events that had lead to the destruction of the pensieve. She squirmed a little as she considered whether to ask a question of Moody. Even if he hadn't been there, he was likely to know.
"Mad-Eye, what happened exactly when Sirius was captured at the Brimham Rocks? The memory never showed the Wizard Hit Squad that was sent after him." Tonks bit her lip, but she wanted the complete story now.
Moody sat back as if considering what to tell her. He cleared his throat and finally explained. "The Wizard Hunters put surveillance on Lupin thinking to use him as a bait for Sirius Black. He was the only one left of that circle of friends, so Lupin would either help Black or be his next target."
"So they weren't going to protect Remus, just use him?"
"A werewolf would be acceptable collateral damage, Tonks," explained Moody. "And Lupin knew full well what was happening. He didn't want things to end like they did with Peter Pettigrew with all the innocents killed, so he lured the parties involved to the Brimham Rocks. The Muggles wouldn't be out on that cold day."
"But Sirius got there before the Wizard Hunters," said Tonks.
"Lupin has a knack for manipulating a hunt," responded Moody. "And make no mistake, Tonks, at the time, he wanted to kill Sirius Black. But, if he failed, he knew that your cousin would be trapped at the Brimham Rocks and that the Wizard Hunters would find him."
"What happened? Sirius was about to kill Remus when the memory faded," said Tonks.
Moody sat quietly for a moment, but his magic eye was spinning as if the memory was still something that pre-occupied his mind. "We came upon them as Black raised his wand against Lupin. I think Lupin must have told him something that made him hesitate. Then stunning spells were flying at them, mine included, but some of the Hunters were enthusiastic about using other curses."
Tonks swallowed as she understood the implication. The Hunters would have license to unleash some formidable curses.
"I finally put a stop to it and walked up to where the bodies were lying." Moody took a deep breath. "I found Sirius Black had fallen over the body of Remus Lupin. At the time I thought it was Lupin's luck."
"But it wasn't luck, it was friendship," said Lupin as he walked in leaning on his cane with Sirius at his side. They had listened to Moody relaying the details to Tonks before entering. Lupin slid into the seat beside Tonks, treating his knee gingerly, while Sirius took the seat at the head of the table.
"In that second before I would have killed Remus, I realized that he wasn't a traitor. When he said he would have died before betraying James and Lily, I saw the truth of it in his eyes." Sirius then added, "I felt the first stunning spell and deliberately fell so I would cover Remus. from any more"
"You bore the brunt of the curses?" asked Tonks, but Sirius just shrugged.
"I was hit by several stunning spells and would have been too drained to protect myself," admitted Lupin as he squeezed her knee gently. He looked at Sirius and said, "That was the part of the entire episode that puzzled me for almost thirteen years. You see, Sirius Black the Murderer should have put me in harms' way and used me as a shield. But Sirius Black, my friend, he would have protected me."
Tonks released a huge sigh, "If I hadn't witnessed it, I wouldn't have believed it."
Sirius waved his hand and said, "It's all water under the bridge now."
The moment was broken by Mrs. Black's screeching voice, "How should I know where that blood traitor is? Nothing can be urgent if his attention is needed..."
"I better go see what it is," said Sirius as he rose.
Moody stopped him and offered his flask, "Here, better take a nip before you deal with her."
Sirius took a large gulp of the fluid before walking out. Moody put the hipflask back while Tonks leaned into Lupin's shoulder. She closed her eyes and murmured, "At least it's over. It's been such a long day I feel exhausted."
Lupin just squeezed her shoulder and began grilling Moody about his knowledge of pensieves. The two were engaged in quite an academic argument when Sirius walked back into the room with an ashen face.
"Sirius, what's wrong?" said Tonks as she sat up alert and ready.
"It's Arthur Weasley. He's been attacked while on guard duty at the Ministry," said Sirius. He continued to brief them on the information at hand.
As soon as Sirius finished his report, Moody stood up immediately. "Up with you, Tonks. We need to check this out while the trail is fresh."
"Has Molly been informed? Is anyone with her?" asked Lupin as he also rose.
"You best go, Remus," said Sirius firmly. "I'll be fine."
Lupin and Tonks shared a concerned glance, so Sirius quickly added, "I've got to get ready for company, now go."
Lupin walked to the floo leaning heavily on his cane with Tonks by his side. "Go to my flat once Molly can go to St. Mungo's. You'll need to rest."
"Right," said Lupin. He looked over Tonks shoulder to note the other men were averting their gaze and kissed her quickly. "Thank you, Nymphadora. Good luck."
x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x
An exhausted Nymphadora Tonks slipped into her bed in the early morning hours. The night had been a frenzy of activity, but two arms dragged her into his embrace, so she smiled.
"How's the knee?" she asked sleepily.
"I'll be using my cane until Christmas. Sirius knows all my weak points," murmured Lupin as he nuzzled her hair. "Find anything?"
"Nothing definite. We cleaned up signs of Arthur's presence in front of the door. Moody found some scales with his eye, but not enough to patch together a trail," Tonks yawned widely.
"I won't be able to escort the Weasleys to St. Mungo's to see Arthur," said Lupin with a sigh. "The healer said I better stay off this knee for the next three days.'
"Hm, looks like you'll be my captive. Don't fret, though. I'll be gentle." He could feel Tonks' grin as she kissed him. Then she added, "So, how was Molly?"
"Molly was a rock. It's odd how she can be so distressed at the illusion of death, but when it's at her doorstep, she's a model of courage. She kept a cool head. Reminds me of someone."
Tonks felt his embrace tighten around her and let the warm feelings flow into her. It was the only way to fight the darkness.
The EndAuthor Notes:
My version of how Sirius was captured and role Lupin played in it. I'm sure I'm not the only person who's offered a similar scenario and if I veered from canon a bit, then please leave it to creative license.
I love the Hogwart's School song, so I thought it would be effective. Hope the rescue wasn't too corny, but at least, I had fun writing it.
The intent was to set up events leading up to the Christmas Holidays. Now I need to update Seducing a Nymph with a chapter, then get onto the real seduction.
Thanks for being patient and reading. Fluff next time.