A/N: This chapter takes place late September or early October of 1997.
Chapter 23
Some of the ensuing weeks passed very quickly, others painfully slowly.
One such week occurred when Andromeda found a note on her bedside table one morning. Her husband was gone, some of his belongings with him. She and Tonks and the Order tried to contact him and convince him to go home, but to no avail.
Andromeda was bereft. She tried to put on a good face for her daughter, but she never quite managed her habitual calm demeanor. She finally understood what Tonks had gone through the previous year, the incessant wondering about whether Ted was alive or dead, the ache that had taken up residence in the pit of her stomach for missing him.
Tonks was equally saddened. But her fear and grief were tinged with sublime joy. She was looking forward to ushering a new life into the world more than she ever thought she would. She knew her situation wasn't ideal, but those thoughts never stopped the hope and sense of purpose from welling up from some source of strength deep within her, that she didn't even know existed.
She also had tasks to keep her occupied. Despite the loss of her job, she was usually working from sunup to sundown. Along with her morning sickness, Tonks faced a schedule full of planning the Potterwatch broadcasts.
She had to admit that she loved Fred and George's idea. Although she disagreed with some of the codenames that they had all settled on and thought that Remus' of "Romulus" was bloody ridiculous, she knew that they had been thorough in the planning. Each of the several shows up to that point had gone off without a hitch.
Tonks and Remus were both deeply frustrated that the Order could do little more than lie low and sponsor a subversive wireless programme, but they had resigned themselves to hiding for the mean time and focusing their energies on buoying Andromeda's hopes and preparing themselves to become parents.
The latter sometimes annoyed Tonks to no end.
Glad as she was that Remus had returned from his horrible mission and much as she was rapturous that they were married, his actions often grated on her hormonally-raw nerves.
One day she was making tea when he was entering the kitchen after mother verified his identity. "Nymphadora, what are you doing?" he asked with some alarm showing in his voice.
"I'm a little concerned about your eyesight, Remus? What do you think I'm doing?" He didn't take the bait of her teasing as he normally would have.
His frown deepened. "You shouldn't be making tea by yourself. The boiling water." He moved to push her gently away from the stove, but she stood fast.
"I'm pregnant, Remus; I'm not an invalid. I've barely even started to show yet."
He kissed her temple. "I never meant to imply that." Pulling a book out from inside his cloak, he continued, "But I've been reading this, The Wizard's Guide to Pregnancy." He flipped to a marked page. "Chapter Two says that the first three months are the most important, and you had an especially rough morning."
Her annoyance subsided slightly at his tender look of concern. "I've been resting all day; I just needed to get up and move around." They were both standing in front of the almost-boiling kettle, arms crossed, determined that the other would move. "How was your talk with Minerva, by the way?"
"Not so good, and don't try and distract me." She finally relented and allowed herself to be led to the kitchen table. Remus returned a few moments later with the tea, cream and sugar, and some of her mother's pastries. Sitting down next to her, he wrapped a strand of hair around his index finger. "Did I tell you that the blue looks particularly fetching today?"
She had to chuckle. "Flatterer."
"Indeed. It's wonderful that I get so many opportunities to practice my craft." His tone dropped from teasing to earnest. "You really do look lovely."
She felt herself melt just a little inside. She murmured, "Thank you, Mr. Lupin."
"You're welcome, Mrs. Lupin." She kissed him softly.
Not wanting to become too sappy, she said when they broke apart, "So, you're meeting with Minerva?"
He grimaced. "Well, I was waiting at the designated spot in the Forbidden Forest, and I was starting to worry when she didn't arrive. But she got there eventually, looking flustered. Apparently, the Carrows are taking over discipline." Tonks shuddered at his tone. "It's everything Minerva can do to keep them from using Unforgivables on the students. Also, Neville and Ginny, along with some others who were in Harry's defense group two years ago, are stirring up trouble. She can't get them to stop; she fears that someone will be killed before they give in."
"What about Snape?" She spat out the last word.
"Minerva simply shook her head. We only had a few minutes; we can't risk too much."
"I wish that there were more I could do. I could…"
"No, Nymphadora, I know what you're thinking. You would want to try and infiltrate the school." He looked at her pointedly, and she nodded. "I wouldn't send anyone in there. We have few enough members as it is. Hard as it is we must wait; we have to save our strength for the end."
"I know." She tugged at her hair. "It's just so frustrating."
He wrapped his arm around her shoulders. "I feel the same. We simply have to hope for the best."
She teased, "Since when are you such an optimist?"
He replied without missing a beat. "Since my life has become a series of blessings." They smiled at each other and fell into a comfortable silence, sipping their now lukewarm tea.
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A few weeks later, the next broadcast of Potterwatch was set to occur.
"Everyone ready?" asked Lee Jordan. "Three, two, one…Good evening, everyone, and thank you for tuning into Potterwatch. This is your faithful correspondent, River. I have three guests tonight. Our reporter is Renegade, who has the regrettable duty of announcing the most recent deaths the Ministry and the Daily Prophet refuse to recognize."
"Wotcher. Sadly, several remains of Charity Burbage, the Muggle Studies teacher at Hogwarts who went missing a few months ago, have been found and identified. She not only died at the Chief Death Eater's hands, but she was ignominiously eaten by his snake, Nagini. In other news, two more families of muggles have been found dead in their homes. Their law enforcement officers have been unable to determine the cause of death, but members of the Order of the Phoenix have discovered that Killing Curses were used." Tonks still shivered at the thought. She had investigated the crime scenes with Remus. "More Muggle-borns and various magical beings are rounded up by the Ministry, in the name of registering and protecting them, everyday. We who resist must try and do everything that we can to help each other in the face of this persecution."
"Is that all, Renegade?"
"Yes, River. I'm done."
Lee cleared his throat. "Our next guest is Royal."
"Hello, everyone. As Renegade mentioned, anyone who is not a pure-blood witch or wizard is in grave danger. We need to remain united or we are surely lost. If you have muggle neighbors, place protective charms around their houses. Help a muggle-born escape the Muggle-born Registration Commission. Don't let anyone convince you that only wizardkind matters. That is all I have to say."
"Thank you for the speech, Royal. Our final guest tonight is Romulus with the ever-popular 'Pals of Potter.'" Tonks barely repressed a snort and earned herself a glare from Remus.
"Thank you, River."
"Do you still maintain that Harry Potter and Sirius Black are still alive?"
"I do. There is no doubt at all in my mind that their deaths, especially Harry's, would be proclaimed as widely as possible by the Death Eaters if it had happened, because it would strike deadly blow at the morale of those resisting the new regime. 'The Boy Who Lived' remains a symbol of everything for which we are fighting: the triumph of good, the power of innocence, the need to keep resisting."
"And what would you tell, Harry and co. if you could?"
"I'd tell him we're all with him in spirit." He continued to tell of several arrests that had been made among Harry and the Order's supporters. "I have no more to say for tonight."
"Well, that concludes tonight's broadcast. Keep fighting the good fight, and remember that we are not as alone as the Death Eaters would like us to believe. There are those that will not rest until the Chief Death Eater is deposed and can never rise again. May we live through this darkness to find the light. The next password will be 'Grimmauld.' Good night, stay safe and keep the faith." They turned off their equipment and prepared to leave the old warehouse.
"Your sign-off was lovely, Lee." He grinned in thanks.
They all staggered their exits by ten minutes and walked in different directions before Apparating a few blocks away. Remus offered Tonks his arm and she settled her hand in the crook of her arm as they set off.
A/N: I don't know anything about Metamorphmagi and pregnancy, but I imagine that Tonks would still be able to morph small things, like hair and eyes, if not her body. The Potterwatch broadcast is paraphrased from the one in chapter 22 of DH, which actually occurred in March, except Remus' words are direct quotes.
There will be four or five more chapters and an epilogue. I'm almost done!