Tonks was discussing with Sirius when Evey joined them in the dining room. It was early February, and the first time this year that Tonks had managed to clear an hour to visit her cousin.

"Tonks! Thank Merlin you're here!" Evey exclaimed.

Tonks glanced at her with narrowed eyes. "Alright, what do you need?"

She smiled sheepishly. "A really big favour."

"More presents?" Evey had been desperate to obtain Christmas presents for her new…friends, and she'd been beyond grateful when Tonks had offered to purchase them. Well, Tonks was always happy to help, especially if it was something as easy as going to Diagon Alley or the Muggle shopping centre. Besides, the poor girl must be feeling horrible, stuck here with only a brooding Sirius and two Death Eaters for company.

"Not exactly," Evey said with that same sheepish smile. She took a deep breath. "I need condoms."

Tonks stared at her in shock, mouth slightly ajar, then directed an accusing look at her cousin. "Oi, don't look at me like that!" Sirius said indignantly.

Evey laughed. "Yeah, it's not for him." She sat down across from Tonks. "It's uncomfortably weird to have to borrow money from the Order for that sort of things, but I'll pay it all back, I swear." 'Uncomfortably weird' was a mild euphemism, in Tonks's opinion. "It's probably best if you purchase a large amount right away. At least you won't have to buy more every week," Evey added. She sounded much more pragmatic, now that the word was out.

"Did someone say 'condoms'?" a voice called from the hall. Tonks tensed and held her breath, expecting the portrait of Mrs Black to explode in a cacophony of insults, but it remained blessedly silent.

A tall, lean figure appeared in the doorframe. It was the vampire, Dolohov. Though how much of a vampire he really was, Tonks didn't know. He ought to be asleep at this hour. He was grinning at Evey, but there was no sharp fang in sight. Tonks had already discussed these peculiar traits with Dumbledore, but the Headmaster had assured her that it was nothing to worry about. "Another present for me, darling?" he added teasingly.

Tonks felt herself blanch as she settled her gaze on Evey once more. No, surely she wasn't…not with him! The girl shook her head and let out an amused chuckle when she caught the look on Tonks's face. "Nope, not for him, either. Well, you're running out of possibilities," she told Tonks with a mischievous smile. "A hint: it's not Buckbeak."

Dolohov walked nonchalantly toward them. "It's a shame, really. Kids would make our life here less dull, I'm sure."

"I'm only eighteen, Tony," Evey pointed out with faint irritation.

"Aye, but Walden's not getting any younger," he countered wryly.

Merlin, she was involved with Macnair? Granted, he was the only other available man around, but…really? A Death Eater, and one who was twice her age at that? Well, that was hardly fair, coming from Tonks, but Evey was even younger than she was, and Macnair was a bit older than Remus, too.

Tonks turned to Sirius. "Did you know about this?" Crikey, did Molly know? Probably not. Tonks would have heard about it by now, if she did.

Sirius shrugged unconcernedly. "Found out a couple of weeks ago. So what? At least they have something to pass the time," he said bitterly. He was becoming depressed again, now that Harry and the others were gone. Tonks didn't know what she could do to cheer him up, though. She couldn't afford to come by the house often; as an Auror, she was on duty most of the time. She knew that Evey and Molly were doing their best to keep Sirius in good spirits – and to make sure he ate properly – but he was being uncooperative to say the least. Of course, Tonks understood why he was like that. To be cooped up here, in a place he loathed, filled with so many terrible memories, after spending over a decade in Azkaban for a crime he didn't commit… It had to be frustrating, and she was being polite.

Macnair joined them before Tonks could think of a reply. He took them all in with his mismatched eyes and finally settled his gaze on Evey. "Everything alright?" he asked her softly.

The girl blushed furiously and cleared her throat. "Yeah, sure. We were just talking about…Tonks and um…what she's been doing out there." And Tonks had thought that no one could be a worse liar than she was.

Macnair cocked his head sideways, as though he was wondering why Evey was lying to his face, but he apparently decided that it was of no importance to him. He sat down at the table and Kreacher materialised an instant later with a tray brimming with food. It smelled delicious and reminded Tonks that she'd only had a cup of tea for breakfast. The house elf directed a nasty glare toward her after setting down the tray, but he quickly decided that she wasn't worth his time. "Does the Master require anything else?" he asked Macnair in a grovelling voice. Tonks frowned. It was one thing that the elf had decided to put Macnair on a pedestal, and another that he called him 'Master'. He still referred to Sirius as his master, but he certainly didn't act as if it were the case.

Macnair glanced at Evey, who shook her head, then at Sirius, who grimaced. He turned to Tonks. "Want anything? Have you had breakfast already?"

"Oh, no, thank you. I've had some tea," she told him truthfully. Even if the house elf deigned to bring her something to eat, Tonks wasn't certain that she wanted to ingest it. She glanced at her watch. She was running late already. "I have to go, anyway."

"Good riddance," Kreacher muttered. "The blood traitor has no place in–"

"Thank you, Kreacher, we have everything we need," Macnair interrupted him smoothly. It was obvious that he was used to having house elves around, though he seemed to treat them much more amiably than any other Pure-blood wizard Tonks had ever met – Sirius included. Kreacher departed, grumbling indistinctly under his breath.

Tonks stood up and almost knocked an empty cup off the table in the process, but Sirius caught it. She gave him a grateful smile and assured him that she would come back as soon as she was able. She addressed Evey. "I will get your…um, things…and bring them as soon as I can," she said in a low voice.

"Cheers," the girl whispered. "I owe you, Tonks. If there's anything I can help with…" She trailed off, a wistful expression on her pale face; she knew there was nothing she could do, not from here, no more than Sirius could.

Tonks smiled apologetically. "I'm sure Dumbledore will let you know if there's anything," she said gently. Hopefully, it would all be over before anyone had to involve themselves in overly dangerous activities, but she doubted that it would be the case. Voldemort's Death Eaters and partisans were clearly working on something, possibly on several projects, but the Order was having difficulties obtaining reliable information, what with the Ministry refusing to acknowledge Voldemort's return. The Aurors who were also members of the Order had to work on the side and be extremely cautious.

Dolohov and Macnair had been unable to provide any substantial intelligence; they hadn't been at the cemetery last June, and Macnair had had little contact with other Death Eaters in the years since Voldemort had disappeared. They had, however, been able to confirm or infirm the identities of several suspected Death Eaters or partisans who worked at the Ministry. Tonks and Kingsley had been investigating the matter for months and had already managed to have two of those arrested for reasons other than any involvement with Voldemort.

It was not much, but it was something. In the weeks and months to come, Tonks knew, every scrap of information, every achievement, no matter how small, would count.

"Alright, what was all that about?" Walden demanded when Tonks had departed and Sirius had disappeared upstairs to sulk.

"V wanted Tonks to get her some condoms," Tony replied slyly before Evey could speak. She threw him a withering glare but felt herself blush at the same time. Blast the man!

"Good idea," Walden said simply. "Should have thought of that before."

"I've been thinking about it a lot, actually, but I couldn't just ask Mrs Weasley, could I?" Evey said. "Remus was there last week, but I didn't dare bring it up. I think he already has suspicions about us…" She trailed off, waving the thought away. "Anyway. The truth is, I don't even know what you people use for birth control."

"Us people?" Tony repeated with a smirk. "No matter how special you may be, pumpkin, you're still a witch. That, we know for certain, at least."

Pumpkin. That was a new one. Since Walden never called her anything cheesy, Tony had taken it upon himself to make up for the lack of ridiculous pet names. It amused him no end, especially when Sirius heard him. The poor man must be imagining wild things regarding what happened in their bedroom at night. Not that wild things didn't happen in there; it was just that they didn't involve Antonin.

She felt her cheeks heat up again and sighed with unconcealed exasperation. "What I meant – as I'm sure you understood – was that I have no idea what contraceptive methods are used by girls raised in wizarding households. We didn't get a Sex Education class at Hogwarts, though Merlin knows, it might have come in handy for some people." Teenagers in heat. Yikes. That last spring break had been particularly… Well, she could talk. She'd spent most of the holidays with George, despite her upcoming NEWTs.

"There are no spells, but a potion exists," Walden explained. "I think nowadays most witches know about the birth control pill that Muggles use, though. It's probably easier to obtain and cheaper, too."

"Condoms are still the most common method of contraception, though, as far as I know. We're not that backward, you know," Tony said with a grin.

"Some of you apparently are," she told him sweetly.

"So," Walden broke in before they could start bickering, "did you learn anything interesting from Tonks, or was it all about the condoms?"

"She didn't stay very long," Evey said defensively. Bloody hell, she should have thought to ask about what was going on. All they had to go by was the Daily Prophet and occasional scraps from Sirius. Remus hadn't told them anything they didn't know, and Mrs Weasley either didn't know anything, or she chose not to share in her knowledge with them.

Walden shrugged. "She probably wouldn't have said anything important, anyway. She doesn't trust us, and she knows that you would have told us."

"I think she might have let something slip if we'd pestered her a bit," Tony said. "She seems a bit distracted, that one. I wonder how she even became an Auror in the first place."

"By being the incredibly smart and capable witch she is, and by studying hard?" Evey said, arching an eyebrow. Tony seemed to have trouble accepting that women could hold any sort of position that might put them in danger. He still took every opportunity to try to divert her from working with Walden in the future. Honestly, he was worse than Mrs Weasley, sometimes. Not backward at all, Evey thought wryly.

Tony opened his mouth to argue but Walden raised his hands. "Can you quit squabbling for five minutes?" He looked sternly at them both in turn. "Good thing we're getting condoms, because if kids behave anything like you two…"

"Oh no, kids are much worse," Tony said. "But you've already mastered what I call the 'Molly look', so it shouldn't be a problem. Evey can be the good cop, you'll be the bad cop, and I'll be the amazing godfather. I'll put Sirius to shame." He sighed dramatically. "Well, in his present state, it's not much of a feat, admittedly."

"Give him a break," Evey said. "We're all he's got right now, so it's no wonder he's down in the dumps, the poor thing."

"To be fair, he's not trying to be anything but depressed. I mean, we're all stuck here, but do you see me moping about?" Tony asked emphatically.

Evey snorted. "If there had been a cheerleading squad in Azkaban, you would have been leading it. The only times you ever grumble is when I have the last word in an argument."

"Which never happens," Tony cut in happily.

She rolled her eyes. "Besides, your whole family's here. Sirius has no one. Harry is at Hogwarts for another four months, Tonks has been here thrice since I've arrived, and Remus only comes once in a blue moon. Pun intended."

"Merlin, you're hilarious," Tony said flatly. He grinned a second later, though. "Hey, I know what we should do! We should duel. All four of us, you know, to get some practice."

Walden and Evey mulled it over for a moment. "That's actually not a terrible idea," Evey said eventually.

"It might even qualify as a good one," Walden admitted.

"Don't say that! You know how he is. He'll get cocky."

"I'm always cocky," Tony said. He stood up suddenly. "Well then. I'll, um, let you interrupt Sirius's daily despairing session to tell him about my brilliant idea and, um…I'll wait for you in the living room. I need to…tidy up a bit." He was out of the room before either of them had time to protest.

"Do you know what he's doing in there?" Walden asked. "What he's working on?"

"He promised it was nothing that could explode, but that's all I know. He's being more secretive about this than about the Ancients."

Walden shrugged. "Guess we'll find out when it's ready. Or when it explodes." Evey arched an eyebrow. "It wouldn't be the first time. He always assures me that his little projects won't cause major property damage, but I've had to rebuild our garage more times than I can count."

"At least it keeps him busy..." Evey sighed. "Let's hope Sirius agrees to practicing wth us. He really needs the distraction." Otherwise it would be a matter of weeks before he finally snapped and left the house, against his better judgement. Evey was certain that he would, because she'd contemplated the idea herself. They all had. But to a man who'd spent a third of his life in prison, the appeal of the outside world must be even stronger. It was a wonder that Sirius hadn't fled on Buckbeak's back weeks ago. Hopefully, practicing would keep him safely contained at the Headquarters a little while longer.

Besides, Evey, for one, could certainly benefit from duelling practice. She should have thought of that earlier. She'd never duelled against anyone in her life, and she didn't want to find herself facing Greyback and being completely useless again.