Intimate Confessions

Gijane

Disclaimer, Rating, Summary: See Chapter One

Chapter Notes: Dora's scene in Chapter Eight of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (American Ed, pgs 156-160). All text taken from the book is in italics. siriusgirl and I have often pondered what Aurors actually do. After much debate, I settled on Dora's original Patronus. I also made up the incantation for the Messenger Patronus. 'Nuntium' (sorry if I conjugated it wrong) means 'to send an official message. It's Latin (duh!) Evil, murdering Snape makes an appearance, nasty as ever.

Chapter Eight– Hogwarts Reawakens

Tonks was bored beyond tears. Night was beginning to set on the first of September while she sat in an Aurors meeting at the Three Broomsticks. Dawlish was just rambling on from the front counter, something about the Hogwarts Express pulling in soon. She had attended the school for seven years, so she knew when the train would arrive. She also knew to watch over the students as they disembarked. She was a professionally trained Auror after all.

Tonks caught Proudfoot's eye and he grinned at her. She followed the nod of his head and had to stifle a laugh as she saw Savage staring out the window, glassy eyed. Flicking her wrist, she sent a non-verbal spell his way that knocked his elbow off the back of his chair. His chin hit the top of it. She and Proudfoot had to bite their cheeks from laughing aloud as he struggled not to curse.

"In conclusion," Dawlish finished, "I would like everyone on their toes. The students are looking to us to keep them safe in these dangerous times." He beamed as his fellow Aurors clapped, not realizing they were mocking him. "Now, Nymphadora," he continued in a scathing tone. "Since you are a member of the Order of the Phoenix, will you please message the Deputy Headmistress to tell her that we are taking our positions?"

Tonks hear Proudfoot muttering, "Her name is Professor McGonagall. You're just bitter that a 75 year old woman survived your brutal attack on her, you prat."

She choked back a shout of laughter while Savage, still rubbing his chin, chuckled outright. Proudfoot, ever the perfect gentleman, opened the front door to the bar and allowed Tonks to exit first. As she passed him, he muttered into her ear, "He's just upset that Dumbledore hasn't allowed him to join the Order. Let's wonder why."

Tonks chuckled. "Shush, he'll hear! If you're reassigned who would be around to entertain me?" She scolded as they walked to the end of the high street to send Professor McGonagall the message.

Proudfoot chuckled as they reached the road that headed up to Hogwarts. Drawing her wand, Tonks cast her Patronus Charm and muttered the incantation"Patronus nuntium." A blast of silver shot out of the end.

As her Patronus gathered in front of her to receive its message, Proudfoot thought she was going to faint. "You okay, Tonks?" He asked.

Blinking, she turned to him, "I'm fine. Go to your position before Dawlish comes complaining."

"You sure?"

"Yes, just….go." Tonks turned from him to stare at her Patronus.

Proudfoot wanted to say something, but thought better of it. He turned away and walked off towards his position.

Tonks was in shock over her Patronus. Her chameleon was gone, and in its place was a wolf. Squinting, she realized it was not a common grey wolf, but in fact, a werewolf. A Patronus reflected a witch's personality.

"Remus." She muttered.

She smiled as her Patronus threw back its head and howled its recognition of her. It was her mate, Remus Lupin. Whispering her message, the werewolf streaked off towards the school. After it disappeared from sight, Tonks turned around and headed towards Hogsmeade Station. The scarlet Hogwarts Express was approaching.

She watched like a sentinel as the students debarked from the train. Now that she was alone, she slid back into her melancholy. She had gone to bed each night exhausted from trying to keep a cheerful face all day. Most of her co–Aurors knew something was wrong due to her unmorphed state, but they were smart enough not to say anything to her.

Most of the students turned away when they met her eye, taking in her Auror robes and badge, whispering to their friends, "Look, she's an Auror." She tried not to smile at their awe.

She smiled as Ginny Weasley walked by with a group of her friends, including Luna Lovegood. Ginny, knowing that Tonks was trying to act professional quickly waved. Her brother, Ron, ruined it by running up to the Auror.

"Hello, Tonks! How are you?" He gasped as Hermione Granger grabbed him by the back of his robes and dragged him off. Glancing over her shoulder, Hermione smiled quickly at Tonks, who was trying hard not to laugh at Ron's protests.

Slowly the station began to empty of students. Tonks greeted Neville Longbottom by name. He got some admiring glances from some other students because of her salutation. She paused as Draco Malfoy and his cronies strutted by laughing about something. She worried about what her cousin was up to. She then realized she had not seen Harry Potter yet.

She stepped up into the train. Walking down the corridor, she checked each compartment. She noticed one with the blinds were drawn on one, unlike the others.

Poking her head into it, she saw nothing at first. A bit of shimmer caught her eye. Feeling around she grasped an Invisibility Cloak and pulled. There, on the floor, was Harry.

"Wotcher, Harry." She said as she cast the counter charm to unfreeze him. He sat up, wiping the blood off, and looked up at her. "We better get out of here, quickly. Come on, we'll jump."

She turned and entered the corridor, hearing Harry hurriedly following behind her. Pulling open a door, she leapt onto the platform, which was quickly sliding away as the train began to move out of the station. Harry followed right behind her, staggering a bit on his landing. He turned and watched the train pick up more speed and disappear around a corner.

Tonks silently handed him his Invisibility Cloak knowing he must be both angry and embarrassed to be discovered in such a position by her.

"Who did it?"

"Draco Malfoy," said Harry bitterly. "Thanks for…well…"

"No problem," said Tonks, without smiling. She knew Harry was peering at her in the growing darkness, trying to figure out what was wrong with her. "I can fix your nose if you stand still."

She bit back a smile at the look of terror on Harry's face. He didn't seem to think that was a good idea, but he stood still and closed his eyes.

"Episkey," said Tonks. She bit back another smile as Harry raised a hand and gingerly felt his mended nose.

"Thanks a lot!"

"You'd better put that cloak back on, and we can walk up to the school," said Tonks, still unsmiling.

As Harry put his Invisibility Cloak back on, Tonks cast the Messenger Patronus Charm again, but non-verbally telling her Patronus what to do.

"Was that a Patronus?" asked Harry. Tonks knew he had seen Dumbledore send messages like that.

"Yes, I'm sending word to the castle that I've got you or they'll worry. Come on, we better not dawdle."

They set off toward the lane that led to the school.

"How did you find me?"

"I noticed that you hadn't left the train and I knew you had that Invisibility Cloak. I thought you might be hiding for some reason. When I saw the blinds were drawn down on that compartment I thought I better check"

"But what are you doing here, anyway?" Harry asked.

"I'm stationed in Hogsmeade now, to give the school extra protection," said Tonks.

"Is it just you who's stationed her, or-?"

"No, Proudfoot, Savage, and Dawlish are here too."

"Dawlish, that Auror Dumbledore attacked last year?"

"That's right."

Tonks and Harry silently continued up the lane, following the freshly made tracks of the carriages drawn by Hogwarts' Threstals. She knew that he was still trying to figure out what had happened to her. Finally, they made it to the gates. Harry pushed the gates, but they remained shut.

"Alohomora!" he said confidently, pointing his wand at the padlock, but nothing happened.

"That won't work on these," said Tonks. "Dumbledore bewitched them himself."

Harry looked around. "I could climb a wall," he suggested.

"No, you couldn't," said Tonks flatly. "Anti-intruder jinxes on all of them. Security's been tightened a hundredfold this summer."

"Well then," Harry said starting to feel annoyed at her lack of helpfulness, "I suppose I'll just have to sleep out here and wait for morning."

"Someone's coming down for you," said Tonks. "Look." A lantern was bobbing at the distant foot of the castle.

Harry waited until the light was ten feet from him, then he pulled off his Invisibility Cloak so that he could be seen. Both he and Tonks recognized the hooked nose and greasy black hair of Severus Snape at the same time.

"Well, well, well," sneered Snape, taking out his wand and tapping the padlock once, so that the chains snaked backward and the gates creaked open. "Nice of you to turn up, Potter, although you have evidently decided that the wearing of school robes would distract form your appearance."

"I couldn't change, I don't have my-"Harry began, but Snape cut across him.

"There is no need to wait, Nymphadora, Potter is quite-ah- safe in my hands."

"I meant for Hagrid to get the message," said Tonks, frowning.

"Hagrid was late for the start-of-term feast, just like Potter here, so I took it instead. And incidentally," said Snape, standing back to allow Harry to pass him, "I was interested to see your new Patronus."

He shut the gates in her face with a loud clang and tapped the chains with his wands again, so that they slithered, clinking, back into place.

"I think you were better off with the old one," said Snape, the malice in his voice unmistakable. "The new one looks weak."

As Snape swung the lantern about, Harry saw, fleetingly, a look of shock and anger on Tonks' face. Then she was covered in darkness once more.

"Good night. Thanks for…everything"

"See you, Harry." Tonks called. She whirled around angrily and stomped off towards the village.

She made her way towards the Three Broomsticks were Madam Rosmerta was renting her out a room. Wearily, she climbed the stairs. She drew her wand and opened the door.

She quickly showered and changed into her nightclothes. Opening the shutters, she stared at the waning moon. Somewhere in Britain, Lupin was recovering from another brutal full moon.

Closing the shutter again, she climbed into bed. She cast the Patronus Charm one last time, smiling as the werewolf shot out from her wand. It sat at the foot of the bed and howled its recognition of her again.

Last thing Tonks remembered before she drifted off into sleep was muttering, "Good night, Remus."

Two hundred miles away, Lupin, hovering in a cave with his fellow werewolves, muttered sleepily, "Good night, Nymphadora."

TBC