It was a cool, late April morning in the depths of the English countryside, the sun beginning to peek over the horizon. Inside a small cottage atop a small hill, gazing at the flames within the fireplace, sat an ordinary looking woman named Nymphadora Tonks.

She sat very still, completely unaware of her surroundings as she pondered the proposition that had come when three old friends had arrived late the previous evening to meet her new son Teddy. Her sheer relief at seeing them okay had quickly turned to apprehension when Harry, Ron and Hermione had asked to speak with her in private as her husband Remus tended to the crying infant at around 11 pm and told her of their plan.

"you're going to break into Gringotts?" she had asked slowly, as they finished explaining the reason for their unexpected call.

"yes" Harry had answered "and we need your help Tonks".

"I'm sorry Harry but I really don't see how I could possibly be of any help with this plan of yours" she had hastily told him, not understanding exactly what he was hoping to achieve by disclosing their plan to her.

"You see Tonks…" Hermione had started slowly as Harry and Ron exchanged a concerned look "We need to get into a specific vault, and obviously, we'll not be able to do that on our own, not without Polyjuice potion, and we really can't afford the time that would take".

"Whose vault are you trying to get into? I guess you want me to change my appearance to look like them. I have to know what they look like to do that you know" Tonks asked quickly, suddenly understanding that her invitation to embark on this mission was purely because she was a Metamorphmagus.

"Bellatrix Lestrange" Harry said quietly "There's something in her vault that we need, something important"

When Tonks had asked what it was, Harry, Ron and Hermione had hesitated, not wanting to go into detail without agreement that she would help them. Finally, after 10 minutes of prodding they had resolved to tell her everything and tell her everything they had.

Tonks had taken her leave shortly after, retreating to sitting room having promised to consider the proposal. There she had sat for the remainder of the night, trying to decide what to do with this newfound information and the proposal that she help them.

So that's what they'd been doing for the last several months. Hunting Lord Voldemort's hidden Horcruxes. She couldn't feign surprise at the revelation that he who must not be named had found some way to ensure the safety of his person, and through immortality no less! But the idea that three teenagers alone could possibly be his downfall? That was surprising indeed, but she supposed they don't believe they can do it alone, that's why they came her isn't it?.

Her attention snapped back to reality as the cry of her infant son echoed down the hall. She looked around the sitting room, its shelves and cabinets bursting at the seams with Remus' books and gadgets, Teddy's clothes and blankets strewn across the backs of the chairs, the only thing within the room that indicated her residence in the home a small frame atop the mantle, with a photograph of a happy couple and a small girl with dark hair. It was her and her parents.

She stood and made her way to the frame, staring into it as she pondered the decision at her feet. It was right before she left for school, Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, she was 11 years old and had had long hair as black as the night, with a narrow face and piercing black eyes. She couldn't remember exactly when she altered her appearance to the soft, rounded face she currently bore, her hair short and auburn.

She could hear Remus in the kitchen, sorting out supplies for Harry, Ron and Hermione's departure and hear the whispers of the teens in the hall as they tried to decide if they should bring up the mission to her again.

Her life had been strange, like she'd always been looking at the world through a hazy fog, never truly happy. She listened as the three teenagers resolved that they'd been mistaken in coming as they made their way towards the front door, Remus couldn't know about the plan, he'd surely try to stop them. As she heard their footsteps fade away, the door closing with a snap, she realized what she had to do.

Tonks grabbed her wand from the mantle and crept out of the sitting room, down the hall, passing the kitchen and closing the front door of the cottage behind her quietly.

She broke into a run as she took off after the three teenagers, she worried that they had already disapparated as she climbed the next hill, the cottage off in the distance behind her. To her relief she heard their voices as the reached the peak, disappointment lingering as they re-evaluated their plan.

"Tonks" Harry said, surprise in his voice as he spotted her walking briskly towards them.

"Wotcher Harry" she answered, coming to a halt "so what's the plan?"

"Not here" Hermione interjected quickly "We've been gone all night, we have to get back before Griphook starts getting ideas… we can't do this without him either"

"Griphook?" Tonks asked as she took the arm that Hermione had held out for her, the four of them disapparating with a sharp pop.