Tonks grumbled under her breath as she and Dunne did rounds of the castle grounds. Moody wanted the aurors to stay and keep an eye on Hogwarts until they could verify that the letter had come from Hermione and what she said was true.

"I don't understand why you aren't happier," Dunne said excitedly. "You-Know-Who is gone! Can't you feel it? We're free!"

She looked up at the beautiful, clear sky. The storm had passed and the full moon hung in a velvety star strewn sky. It was a night when one could truly believe all was right with the world.

"If he really is gone, I want to be with Harry and Ron and Hermione, I want to know what happened," she told him, impatiently. "I shouldn't be here."

"I'm sure we'll have answers soon enough."

He doesn't understand, she thought angrily. These are my friends, I want to know what's going on, I need to know. This could mean a whole new life for Remus and me. And what will Harry do now? What did he see?

"Did you hear that?"

Tonks looked up at Dunne's question. "What?"

"That."

There were explosions followed by multi-colored sparks being shot into the air of Hogsmeade.

"Their celebrating," Tonks said.

Dunne grinned. "So it's true."

"Appears to be."

"I'm sure we'll receive official word soon."

"Yeah." Tonks felt a tightening around her chest when she heard a faint howling from somewhere within the woods.

"Is…is that him?" Dunne asked.

"I don't think so, he shouldn't be in the woods. It's probably Fang."

There was a rustling in the shrubs nearby.

"Lumos!" Both aurors called out in unison.

The light beams from their wands lit the trees and shrubs around them.

"Probably just a chipmunk or something," he muttered.

"Yeah. Why don't we split up?" Tonks suggested. "We'll cover more ground that way."

"Are you sure?"

She shrugged. "Yeah. I mean, it's over, I don't think any Death Eaters are stupid enough to try and get into Hogwarts now."

"Okay. Just holler if you need me and let's not get too far apart. You go to Hagrid's hut and I'll go as far as the stables and then we'll meet back here."

"Sounds good to me."

Tonks continued to shine her light on the ground in front of her as she walked. The sounds of celebrations floated over the trees from Hogsmeade. It did raise her spirits to hear that. If only Remus could be here to share this moment with her.

She whirled around and aimed her wand at the bushes behind her when she heard a rustling. Just as she was about to call out for Dunne, a squirrel raced out and up a tree.

"It was your idea to split up," she mumbled.

A screech echoed above her, causing her to jump and look up. Hedwig, her wings spread wide as she circled, flew toward her. Tonks felt her heart race. This was it. This was Minerva's note to let her know it was official, it was over. She held her arm out, signaling for Hedwig to come to her.

The next thing she knew, Tonks was face down in the dirt, a great weight on her back and her wand several feet away, well out of reach.

"What the hell?"

Hot breath caressed her neck and a deep growl filled her ear.

Fear washed over her. "Remus?"

But she knew it wasn't him. The creature leapt off her back and she could sense him circling her. Tonks slowly pushed herself to her hands and knees only to have it rush her and knock her onto her back. She groaned and wrapped her arm around her sore ribs.

The wolf leaned into her line of vision, drool dripping onto her cheek. She lifted her hand, about to call her wand when the wolf scratched her arm, breaking the skin deeply and drawing blood.

Tonks screamed in pain and fear. She was sore, her arm throbbing. The wolf smacked her hard across the face with his paw. More pain and her vision clouded as tears streaked down her face.

"Tonks!"

"Here!" She called to Dunne. "It's Greyback!"

The wolf threw his head back and howled, a loud, terrifying sound. He looked down at her with what could only be described as a look of triumph and opened his mouth. Drool dribbled onto her face and neck as he lowered his head, savoring the moment.

Tonks squeezed her eyes shut and whimpered quietly.

But the bite didn't come. There was a bark, a growl, a yelp, and a terrible scuffling sound.

With trepidation, Tonks opened her eyes. She turned her head to the left and saw two wolves fighting. Jaws snapped and claws flew.

Dunne ran over, his wand held out straight in front of him.

"Wait!" She called out weakly. "One of them is Remus!"

The animals rolled on the ground together, fur flew and a drop of blood hit her forehead.

Please hear me! She mentally pleaded. "Remus! Stop!"

The smaller of the two wolves lifted his head and looked at her. The other wolf took the opportunity to grab the smaller one by the front leg and bite down. Remus howled in pain.

"The one on top…that's Greyback."

Dunne steadied his wand in both hands and called out, "Stupify!"

Greyback stiffened and fell over.

Silvery ropes shot out of Dunne's wand and tied the wolf's legs together and his muzzle closed.

Her eyesight starting to darken, Tonks held out her uninjured arm. Remus limped toward her, his bloody snout nearly touching the ground as dragged himself over. The last thing she felt as consciousness slipped away was his body falling beside her, his head landing on her chest.

It was quiet, eerily so as Tonks slowly became aware of her surroundings. Her right arm was stiff and sore, her head felt woozy, and her ribs throbbed with her heartbeat. She blinked a few times and the room came into focus around her. The walls and ceiling were a stark white, the entire room sterile. She turned her head slowly and saw a wizard with his head wrapped in bandages, asleep in a bed not far from hers.

She was in a room in St. Mungo's.

Her mind began to clear and what had happened rushed back to her.

Her throat was dry as she croaked out his name. "Remus."

"You're awake."

Tonks turned her head again and saw a Healer standing at the foot of her bed, smiling down at her, a chart in his hand. "What?"

"You're awake. You've had a steady stream of visitors in here all night waiting for you to waken. One gentleman stayed by your side for over two hours before I sent him away."

"Remus?"

"Uh, no, his name was Paul."

"Remus Lupin. I need to know about Remus Lupin." She said desperately. "What time is it? Is he here?"

"Lupin." The Healer touched a finger to his lips as he tried to remember where he had heard that name. "The werewolf?"

She nodded.

"Yes, he is on this floor, in the room with other werewolf injuries. We've had a large number of bites lately, although I've heard that the man doing that, uh, Greyback, has been captured."

"How is he?"

"He's under Ministry guard and is expected to be taken to Azkaban by the end of the day."

"Not Grayback," she said, exasperatedly. "Remus."

"He's resting now. But you need to worry about yourself, you were attacked by a werewolf."

Tonks brought her uninjured hand to her throat. "Was I bit?"

"No. But you were rather beaten up. You had several cuts and bruises, the worst being on your arm. We've healed it the best we can, but it will take some time. We don't believe any of his saliva entered your bloodstream, so you won't be transforming. You had two crack ribs, we were able to heal those, but you will be sore for a while. Most importantly…"

Both the Healer and Tonks looked toward the door when it flew open. Somewhere in the hall a woman called out, "Sir! You can't go in there."

Ignoring her, Remus limped into the room. He cradled his left arm to his chest and he was dressed in St. Mungo's hospital pajamas. He was pale and drawn, a long cut down his right cheek, a smaller one across his nose, and bruise on his chin. The edge of a bright white bandage showed from beneath the collar of his shirt.

Tears flooded her eyes and a lump formed in her throat when he stopped by her bed.

"Was she bit?" The words sounded as though they were torn from his raw throat.

The Healer shook his head, "No. She has minor injuries, but overall she was very lucky."

Tonks held her uninjured arm out and Remus clasped her hand in his.

Seeing the interaction between the two of them, the Healer smiled. "You must be the father."

Remus scowled. "I am not her father."

"No, no, you misunderstand me. I'm talking about the baby."

Remus and Tonks tore their gazes from each other and stared at him.

"What?" Tonks asked.

"I take it you didn't know. Don't worry, the baby is fine, you were both very, very lucky."

"I'm…I'm pregnant?"

"Yes. We're putting you at about five weeks along."

Remus shook his head disbelievingly. "No. We used a contraceptive charm."

"It only takes one time to forget." The Healer pointed out.

"No." What color was left in Remus' face drained completely, leaving him as pale as death.

With a flick of his wand, the Healer brought a chair behind Remus and pushed against his knees until Lupin fell back into it. "Put your head between your knees, breath slowly."

"I'm not going to pass out," Remus snapped.

Tonks laid the hand Remus had dropped on her flat stomach. I'm pregnant. Remus and I are having a baby! The thoughts raced excitedly through her mind.

"I have other patients to see," the Healer said, reattaching Tonks' chart to the foot of her bed. "If you need anything, the call button is there."

Tonks looked at Remus and waited for the door to close behind the Healer. He sat beside her bed, his face in his hands. "Remus?"

"You can't be pregnant," he groaned. "I can't have this baby."

Her heart stopped. "What?"

"This can't be. I can't be a father."

"You're in shock," she said, trying to convince them both. "You don't know what you're saying. Remus, we're having a baby. This is wonderful news. Five weeks ago…that would have been before the last full moon. It must have been that night you…you met me at the door. That wonderful, passionate night. We made love and from that we made a baby. This is wonderful. I love you, you love me, and we'll love this child."

Shaking his head, Remus pushed himself to his feet. "I…I have to go. I need to think."

The first licks of panic hit her. "Remus? Where are you going?"

"I just need to think. I…I can't be a father. I'm dangerous."

"You said once that you couldn't be my lover because you were dangerous, look at how well that turned out."

"No, Tonks, don't you see?" His voice rose slightly as his composure began to slip. "You took your life in your own hands when you wanted to be with me. But this…this child….it will be helpless and totally dependent on us. I could hurt it."

"You're not making sense!" She cried. "You haven't hurt me, you've never hurt anyone! Why would you start with our baby?"

"Are you sure it's my baby?"

The tears that filled her eyes were hot with pain and anger. If he had taken a knife and driven it through her heart, Tonks was sure it wouldn't have hurt as much as his words had. "That's a horrible, hurtful thing to say! You know it is! You're behaving like a coward, Remus. I never thought you could be like this. I don't know what you're so afraid of, why you would want to hurt me like this. I didn't get pregnant on my own, this is just as much your responsibility as my own. I know we're both surprised and more than a little scared, but I love you enough to know that as soon as you're thinking clearly again, you won't mean that."

"Tonks…"

"I don't want to see you right now." She turned on her side, her back to him.

He didn't say anything else, but she could hear him shuffle across the floor and the door snap shut behind him.

For several, painful minutes, Tonks quietly cried into the ancient pillowcase she rested against.

The door opened again, but she didn't turn.

"Tonks?" Molly Weasley asked. "Are you awake dear?"

Wiping her eyes on the corner of the pillowcase, Tonks took a deep breath and rolled over. "Molly, how are you? Are Harry and Ron here?"

"Yes, they're on this floor, the other end of the wing."

"How are they?"

"Ronald had a concussion, a broken leg, and several bumps and bruises, but he'll be all right. Hermione hasn't left his side, sweet girl. Arthur and the twins are with him now as well."

"And Harry?"

Molly sighed tiredly. "He's in worse shape. The poor boy hasn't regained consciousness yet, they aren't quite sure what happened to him and since he isn't awake, he can't tell them. Ginny is with him now, the healers can't even get her to leave his side. How are you doing, dear? I heard you were attacked by Greyback. He didn't…bite you, did he?"

"No, he was playing with me a bit and was about to bite me when Remus…" The rest of what she was going to say got stuck behind the painful lump in her throat.

"Oh dear," Molly gasped, clasping Tonk's uninjured hand in both of hers. "Did something happen to Remus? I hadn't heard."

"Oh, Molly, I don't know wh-what t-to do," she sobbed.

"Tonks, dear, what happened?"

"I'm pregnant."

"Oh. Oh, wow."

Tonks nodded, wiping her eyes on the bed sheet.

"And Remus?"

"He j-just left. I didn't know, Molly, I didn't know. We were so careful and we just found out when the Healer told me the baby was all right. He said he couldn't be a father and he left."

Molly shook her head. "That doesn't sound like Remus at all."

"I know. It…it was like…like he was someone else."

"He's just surprised, dear, this is a highly emotional time for us all. Remus is a smart man, once he thinks it through, he'll be thrilled. He has always been so patient, so good with the children at Hogwarts and when we were at Grimmuald Place together. Just give him some time."

"I've been so patient with him and he has been fighting me all the way. He had a million excuses why we shouldn't start seeing each other and it took Dumbledore's death to show him that life was too short to deny himself happiness. And we were happy, Molly, these last few months have been like nothing I have ever experienced before. I can see myself spending the rest of my life with him. But, once again, he pushes me away, he runs away."

Molly sat on the edge of Tonk's bed and slipped her arm around her shoulders, hugging her close in a very maternal way. "Remus is a good man, you know that even better than I do. He's had a surprise, give him some time to deal. He loves you, anyone who looks at the two of you can see that."

"I know."

"If you need anything at all, Arthur and I are here for you."

Tonks leaned her head against Molly's shoulder. "Thank you."

"Do you want me to send Bill to find him?"

"No, thank you, though. I want Remus to come back on his own."

"And he will. I know he will."

"I'd like to see Ron and Harry," Tonks said, pushing aside the covers.

"You're looking rather pale, dear, are you sure you're up to it?"

"I have to do something, if I lay here and think about the baby and…and Remus, I'll just get upset again and I hate crying."

"All right, dear, but let me get a wheelchair for you."

"Thank you, Molly, for everything."

Mrs. Weasley hesitated a moment and laid a hand on Tonks' shoulder, squeezing gently. "We're all in this together, dear."