Disclaimer: No I suppose I'm not JK else this would be real, Luna and Draco would be making babies and Harry and Hermione would be riding off into the sunset. That tell you anything?
Claimer: I do own this idea though! Go me
A/N: This contains SPOILERS for the HBP. Read at own risk. Constructive criticism welcome, no flames.
Pairings: Remus/Tonks ... grr... and Snape/Tonks of course.
Set: A few days after Dumbledore's funeral I suppose.

He had betrayed everyone. He'd held their thoughts, opinions, plans and he had betrayed them. He had captured emotions in his pale, bony fingers and he had used them against those who thought him changed. Yes, Dumbledore really had fallen to the wand of Severus Snape.

In a perfect world, death wouldn't be becoming of such an honest, admired figure such as that of the Headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. The school with its huge reputation for brilliant Quidditch games, enormous rivalries and friendships, which lasted year upon year.

And yet, far away from the tears and the suffering of those who loved and cared for the old man was Nymphadora Tonks, sitting alone in her bedroom, whilst everyone else sat together downstairs. She held a red cushion to her knees, her legs pressed against her chest and stared into the walls of Charlie Weasley's old bedroom.

She had locked the door. She didn't want to see Remus, didn't want to talk to anyone who could bring fourth tears. Anyone who could unlock a secret part of herself that cried for those she lost.

She had cried for Sirius in this way. Alone, secretly. And then, Remus had put his arms around her and held her tightly, promising that he would look after her. But it didn't make everything okay. It wasn't as though she hated Remus, in fact, she thought she loved him. And that's what was breaking her heart.

She didn't love him, and her feelings lived with someone else.

Those feelings weren't supposed to be there.

Severus Snape, she supposed had a way with people. A harsh, patronizing, menacing way, which made her think about him to the point of insanity. She didn't want to think of a murderer, a liar, manipulator. And yet she did. Finally, she could cry.

She cried for death and she cried for broken loyalties. She cried that she had trusted Severus and everything he was, despite him calling her Nymphadora, despite him glaring at her clumsiness with obvious distaste. Despite everything, she still cried for him and she could hate herself for it.

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Severus Snape found it oddly comforting to be in a dark, stone room alone. Peaceful even, despite the stench of torture coming from the room beside it. A knock, and Narcissa strolled in; tears falling freely down her cheeks. "My son, Severus!" she shouted at him. "My son!"

Severus calmly walked toward her and took hold of her elbows. "Listen Narcissa and stop your crying right now!" She looked up at the man, biting back torrents of rage. "Your son is a fool. None of us..." he moved and slammed the door shut, before returning to face her. "None of us want to be here. Not you, not Draco, not I. We've got to keep up this pretence."

"Severus, I can't. I'd rather die to the Dark Lord than keep this up... I must tell him that I can no longer serve him I can't do this..."

"Don't be an idiot Narcissa! We were sent here to serve, and serve we must."

"They're torturing my son!" Severus nodded calmly and took a step back. Narcissa continued. "Don't you understand the pain of that? I know you're not a parent, but I love Draco with every essence of my being. I'm sure you've felt that."

"No. I haven't," Severus told her harshly. "But I do know one thing, people have been hurt and betrayed by me, and I've had to place loyalty with somebody I despise above the only person who trusted me. I don't want to be in this game anymore than you, and killing Dumbledore was the worst thing I had to do! I can still see his face... but tell The Dark Lord, and it'll be our dying faces he sees. And he won't mourn, but will laugh."

These words seemed to have some affect on the woman with a blonde hair sticking to her face, her eyes refusing to continue spilling tears. Narcissa nodded, and left. And carefully, Severus sat in his chair again, and went back to staring at the wall. Tonight, he would be leaving for the Burrow. Risking a capture that he wanted more than anything.

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Haunting dark shadows lingered on the walls of the Burrow's kitchen. Remus was upstairs in bed alone, since Tonks had sneaked away, desperate for quiet. She wasn't sure how late it was, merely knew Arthur was still out at the Ministry – poor man.

She'd been there herself, seen the state of disarray and panic. Seen the extensive files on the case, viewed the multiple lists of killings and patterns from the last time The Dark Lord moved fear and death through the land. She'd seen people working furiously to see if there was a pattern between known Death Eaters from before and now. She'd seen the growing list of the dead and had seen it with hurt in heart.

A knock. Several. Tonks looked up in urgency. "Who is it?" she called nervously.

"Arthur."

"Prove it."

"My dearest ambition is to find out how aeroplanes stay up. And you, Tonks?" Tonks sighed.

"I've always wanted to own a big house on a small island surrounded by sea."

"And now you may open the door." Tonks rolled her eyes at this rigorous routine, opened the door slowly, glancing over at the time, before a hand clasped firmly around her mouth. "Hear me out Nymphadora," he murmured in her ear. "Don't scream, please, don't scream."

Tonks wasn't sure if his usage of the word "please" was the calming phrase, but as he closed the door, she didn't back away, didn't make a sound as his cold hand left her face. "You look awful," he said softly, studying her dull brown hair and eyes, her pale complexion.

"You don't look so good yourself Severus. What are you doing here? Gonna murder Harry in his sleep?"

"I knocked on the door if you hadn't noticed. Would I have done that if I was going to do such a thing?" Tonks silently admitted defeat as Severus strolled towards the living room and sat down. Cautiously, Tonks sat opposite him, her wand at the ready. Snape smiled at her, taking out his own wand and placing it on the table, closer to her. Tonks glanced at it cautiously.

"I could be shouting bloody murder right now," she informed him.

"But you're not."

"I need answers," she replied.

"And answers, dear Tonks, you are going to get." She swallowed hard, waiting. "I didn't kill him in cold blood, I did it with so much remorse you'd probably never understand how I did it. How I could just take him down with just two cold, calculating words."

"But you did." Severus nodded at her words.

"I did. I did it because Dumbledore wanted me to do it. We had an Unbreakable Vow on the matter. If it ever came down to me having to prove allegiance to Voldemort, then, I would kill him."

"You need a witness," Tonks reminded him.

"Yes... the problem with that is, he's dead. Yeah, Sirius Black. He was our witness. A strange choice you're thinking, and believe me, I thought so too. I wouldn't trust him with a glass of Firewhiskey, let alone a secret as strong as that. But he'd protected the Potters and both Dumbledore and I knew he'd guard it with his life. Unfortunately, that life's been taken."

Severus moved slightly, causing Tonks to sit up in alarm. "Don't panic," Snape told her, handing her a piece of paper. Tonks carefully undid the red bow that held it together and opened it up, studying it.

"I need to check the authenticity," she said, carefully doing numerous spells with her wand. Snape sat back and watched her with amusement. "I'm sure there's some kind of lie... Dumbledore wouldn't... he wouldn't leave us, Harry like that... he'd have told someone, he must have seen another way out..."

"There was no other way out Tonks, and he and I knew it. So did Black. There is another that knows. Phineas Nigellus, the portrait that moves between here and Dumbledore's office. He was also present. You may of course, take up the issue with him in due course."

"Okay, say I believe you, that explains the killing right?" Snape nodded. "Why are you risking your alliance with The Dark Lord to be here?"

"To stage a capture so I could hide was one of many. The main of course, to prove my innocence."

"And what other reasons are there?" Tonks persisted. "You said there were many reasons."

"Indeed. To give Harry Dumbledore's final word is one. Oh, and I have some vitally important information for The Order."

"What is it?"

"All in good time, Tonks, though this interrogation is most brilliant. You are a wonderful Auror. Now, let's talk about you. You look ill." Tonks glanced at her knees, and then back at his hands, checking he was making no move for his wand. She still had no trust for him, and in the darkness penetrating the room; she found it increasingly tense to be with him.

"I'm okay."

"You always are. You've lost your spark Tonks. Anyone can see it. You're with Remus of course..." He studied her for a moment. "But your heart says differently... you give away too much Tonks, you wish to belong to another." Tonks finally stood up, furious.

"Stop acting as though you know anything about me! You know nothing!" She whispered it, so angry that he could detect the emotions she'd been hiding for days. For a moment, Snape looked as though he'd push the table separating them to the other side of the room and grab her, probably kill her, but then he regained his normal composure.

"Whatever you believe. Now, would you like the credit of being my captor? We can explain the truth tomorrow morning when everyone wakes up. Or would you rather you didn't have to tie me up so we can continue talking long until morning when, I'll be tied up by someone else and questioned for hours." Tonks frowned.

"It's funny how your face changes when your brain thinks so much," he murmured. "You'd better learn to control your emotions Miss. Tonks, or people will start to read you like a book."

"Like you are already, you mean!" Snape nodded.

"Exactly so." Tonks toyed with a number of scenarios carefully, thinking every possibility though.

"I'll bind you and stay up. It seems safer that way."

"As you wish Nymphadora." He took a seat, and carefully, she performed many spells upon him, before picking up his wand and putting it in her own pocket. She carefully walked towards him.

"Nothing personal," she muttered. "But I need to check your pockets." He nodded, an indication it was fine. Swallowing hard, Tonks pulled out everything she found in his pocket including a few pages torn out from a Potion's book and a few keys. "Always wondered what you kept in your pockets Severus. Apparently nothing interesting." He made a small noise, and then closed his eyes for a few seconds.

"I'm sorry it has to be this way."

"That was totally out of character," Tonks pointed out, sitting down.

"On occasion, I like to surprise."

"You're definitely going to surprise people in the morning."

"I'm glad you're not feeling as nervous around me." And with that he fell silent, and stared up at the ceiling, leaving Tonks to sit and wonder how he could read her as well as he did.