Disclaimer: Same old. I don't own it; it's all JKR's.

A.N. I am utterly amazed at the response this fic has got! It's a great boost for moral!

Guess what! I'm one today! A year ago today I uploaded the first chapter to my fanfiction 'Night Time Tortures' which was the first fanfic that I ever wrote on my own! So, care to tell me if I've improved any since then?

In fact I'd have probably updated last week had I not been on Duke of Ed practice. That included setting frying pans on fire!

So thanks for all the reviews from you guys!

S-S Shipper: I loved putting in Lupin's mid-life crisis in chapter one! He's so much fun! This is defiantly my new favourite ship! Thanks for the review and I hope you like this chapter!

ultra-violet-catastrophy: Excuse me? Remus is the best? What happened to your beloved Draco? LOL! Thanks for the review! I'll be sure to be at karate on Tuesday! Thanks and enjoy!

Ladyphoenixquill: Sentence structure, eh? That's one I haven't heard about before! I'll be sure to take a look! Thanks! Tell me what you think of it in this chappie! Thanks for the review!

Blue Eyes At Night: Yep! They are so incredibly cute! Thanks for the review and tell me what you think of this chapter!

suckr4romance: I'm so glad to see these two together! I'm also glad to see you reviewing! It's nice to see a name I recognise! Thanks for the review!

KrazyShadowNinja: GO YOU! YOU PUSHED THE BUTTON! MWAHAHAHA! Well, I'm updating so you can push the button again! Thanks and enjoy!

bee: Thank-you! Thank-you very much! (does Elvis pose) Thanks for the review!

Sparkle: Ah, interesting starts are always the best! Hopefully I can keep the rest interesting too! Thanks so much!

nycgrl: Thanks! Ted is so cool! Well, that's my views on him anyway! And Andromeda is my favourite out of the Black Girls (shortly followed by Bella) so I had to put them in! Lupin is so sweet! Thanks!

Moonlitesadness: I've said it before and I'll say it again; I love Lupin's mid-life crisis! Kicked the bucket- such a nice way to put things! Thanks for the review and I hope this chapter pleases you!

& that would be me…: I'm updating! LOL! I'll try not to let you down! Trust me; I'll keep this up if only for that reason! Thanks so much!

Rubine Goslay: Thank-you! The fact that Tonks was attacked by her own flesh and blood is a fact that I find disgustingly intriguing! Bella certainly is my favourite bad-girl! Thanks for the review!

delumacar: I hope this is soon enough! Thanks!

AbitheuUnited: Thanks! I'm glad you think it's interesting! Thanks, enjoy and please review!

MistyRiver: Hey! You reviewed Sabacc! Thanks for two things. One: for teaching me how to spell, including the word 'private'! Two: for reviewing!

xanya-forever: What you put in your review got the point that you like this across, and that makes me happy! Don't you dare die of tiredness! I need you to read and review! Thanks! P.S. You don't need an excuse to read HBP again. I've done so several times since I got it!

Thanks guys!

Survivors Guilt

Remus had reached the third floor when he saw someone he recognised. Two someone's as a matter of fact. Ted and Andromeda Tonks, both looking happier than when he had last saw them, but that wasn't saying much.

"Remus!" Ted called out jovially. His face split into a wide grin. "Back again, eh? Should I be worried about your intentions towards my daughter?" He winked, telling Remus that he was joking, but Moony's heart gave a little flutter.

"Ted, Andie! Good to see you!" Observing them, Andie looked tired but the light had returned to her eyes. Ted was now back to his usual joking self. "How is she?" It was obvious who he was talking about.

Andie sighed. "She's alive and kicking but… she's upset about Sir- him," she said this while blinking back her own tears quickly. "I think she'd like to talk to you- you know, could you tell her what happened?"

A lump rose in Remus's throat. Not trusting himself to speak, he nodded. Ted rested a hand on his shoulder. "I think she'd like to see you, whether you could tell her or not," the older mans voice was gentle and Remus was thankful for it. He nodded again.

Andromeda took his hand, squeezing it. "Remus, I can't thank you enough for what you've done."

Giving her a confused look, he found his voice. "Uh… What have I done?" He asked awkwardly.

Andie smiled as she spoke, "You've been there for her," she gestured up the stairs, "and you've been a good friend- to all of us."

"Oh, uh, you're welcome."

Ted grinned, "Well Remus, we'd best be letting you get on. We'll see you around?"

"Yeah, see you later." It was as he walked up the final flight of stairs that he realised that he had been acting like a nervous school boy.

…

This time, Remus walked straight on in. Tonks was lying on the bed staring at the ceiling looking as pale as she had been when she was unconscious. Tears spilled down her cheeks.

"Hello Sleeping Beauty," he greeted her, wondering why his face felt hot.

Turning her head to the side, Tonks blinked and rubbed her face then replied with a forced cheerfulness, "Wotcher Remus!"

As he took a seat next to the bed she struggled into a sitting position. Surveying her for a moment or so, he took in the smoky grey eyes, filled with a pain he had never seen in them before and the mousey brown hair that she had apparently inherited from her father.

There was an excruciatingly long silence between the two. Lupin waited for Tonks to make the first move.

"Remus…"

"Yes?"

Tonks sighed then asked, "So, how are you?"

Cracking a grin Moony replied, "Well, I'm not the one lying in a hospital bed 'Dora." It also posed as the same question that she had asked, and he knew she would understand.

'Dora' muttered something about infuriating men and horrendous nicknames for a fleeting moment but a ghost of a smile appeared on her face. Then she said warmly, "I'll survive thanks."

They lapsed into another agonising silence. Neither could make eye contact. The smile on Tonks' face melted away.

"How?" It was she who spoke and she did so with a voice unlike her own, so distressed was it.

During their silences Remus had pondered how exactly he was to answer the question when it arose, but it seemed that the string of words formulated in his mind had Apparated out the window.

"Um… well, after you were taken out," he struggled to remember the exact occurrence of the events that had resulted in Sirius's death, "Sirius- he jumped right up and started fighting Bellatrix Lestrange." At this Tonks let out an audible groan. "He- he fought well, but- but she cornered him." By now Remus was struggling to keep his voice level and was stumbling over his words. "She threw a curse at him-"

Tonks cut him off. "Avada Kedavra? I swear, I'll Avada Kedavra her!" The words were spoken with such hatred yet such compassion, Lupin hesitated before continuing.

"No- I don't know what it was, but-" he prepared for the worst, "but it knocked him through that veil, the one that-"

She finished the sentence for him, "The one the separates life and death." Tonks' voice was hollow and she stared straight ahead with large blank eyes, her face impassive.

He had expected her to cry, to shout, to scream curses about how unfair it was, to ask why he hadn't stopped it happening; nothing could have prepared him for the next four words that came out of her mouth.

"It was my fault."

It took several moments for the blunt statement to sink in. When it did he stared at her in horror. How could she say such a thing? He must have heard it wrong!

"What!"

Her face was still blank but emotion had returned to her voice. She sounded disgusted with herself and amazed that she could have let it happen. "It's my fault he's-" dead didn't seem to be just right. She couldn't comprehend with that yet. "Gone," she finished off dejectedly.

Remus would have found the absurdity of the sentence hilarious had the person who was 'gone' not been his best friend. "How- how do you work that out!" he stuttered in disbelief.

Tonks, who had been staring at the wall determinedly and fiddling with the bed sheet, turned to look at her friend and partner who became blurry in what vision she maintained as her eyes filled with tears for what felt like the thousandth time since she had been informed of her cousin's death.

"I was fighting her," her voice was filled with contempt as she referred to her Aunt. "I'm an Auror! I'm supposed to defeat Dark Wizards and Witches and lock them up in Azkaban! Not get half killed by them! Not let others be killed by them! It's my job and I failed!" By the time she had finished her rant her voice was raised, however not overly so. Tears of grief mingled with tears of anger as they cascaded down her cheeks. Instinct led Remus to brush them away with his hand.

It was here and now in St Mungo's that Nymphadora Tonks broke down, grieving for her cousin and friend. Her head fit neatly into the crook of Moony's neck where it rested on his shoulder. Her hands grasped his fraying robes, clutching them as if for dear life and through her wracked sobs she breathed in their familiar, comforting, musky smell.

Remus hugged her gently; the gesture itself told his crying companion that it wasn't unbecoming of an Auror to pour out her troubles on an old friend every now and then.

'Yeah Moony,' the saner part of his brain sneered. 'Old! That's what you are! And her? She's young and full of life! What are you? A poor decrepit Werewolf!'

Shutting that piece of terribly truthful information away he resorted to comforting his friend.

A.N. Righty-oh! What did you think? Rather morbid there at the end but I'm sure that there's going to be some humour involved in the next chapter! I'd give you a teaser but that means having to figure out the exact wording of a whole new chappie!

Anyway, please review!

Sweetdeath04