A/N: So...long time no write. I hope you all enjoy this chapter, we are almost through Order of The Phoenix canon. I should be writing more now that the bleak winter is over and I feel more alive. (Also if anyone is interested in reading other work by me, I have a book on Amazon, just google Intertwining Souls: The Ballad of Bronwyn and Bowen. Its on Kindle, but the app for computer is free, so you don't have to have a tablet or ereader or whatever to read it. And I am looking into other forms) Enough shameless promotion, lets get on with it.

There were some things that Tonks could not get used to, even after all her years as an Auror. She could not stop her reaction every time they were called to a crime involving children, mask the sadness that came over her, as her male collogues did. She hated being woken in the middle of the night to respond to a threat alert; each time felt extremely rude, and the fact that it seemed to be happening even more of late did nothing to dispel this feeling. And she could not, would not and did not ever want to, get used to having to go to Azkaban. She knew the people there logically deserved being shut in with the horrors the Dementors inflicted on their minds, but in recent years she couldn't enter the prison without thinking of Sirius and how he had to spend almost thirteen years locked in there for something he hadn't done. It made her wonder how many other people were in there for crimes not committed.

At least I know the people I'm here for tonight are guilty, without question. She pulled her cloak more tightly around herself, wand gripped in a steady hand; she was anything but calm though. She'd gotten the order to report a half hour ago, the voice floating in through the flu as she sat in her kitchen and stared at the cold cup of tea in front of her on the table. She'd moved quickly as soon as she'd heard King's voice, his easy tone tinged with urgency. Upon arriving at the ministry he had quickly ushered her up to their offices, which were in a calamity, and then had just as quickly explained to her what was going on.

"Merlin's saggy balls," was all she'd been able to say.

So now here she was, sent to investigate Azkaban, before joining the rest of the Aurors in their search. Scrimgeour had requested her and Kingsley be with him especially and she wondered if it was so he could keep an eye on her.

"I can't believe this," she murmured as they followed the Dementors down the fetid corridor between cells. Kingsley glanced at her, but Scrimgeour kept his gaze ahead.

"Believe it Tonks."

She shook her head but didn't say anything more. They reached the cells they had been sent to investigate, but as she had privately suspected, they found nothing. Just that the cells had been opened and no one seemed to know how it had been done.

"Auror Shacklebolt, I would like you to accompany me back to the offices, show me the progress you have made on the whereabouts of Sirius Black. Auror Tonks, you will head to Hogsmead and find Aurors Dawlish, Williamson and Robards. Robards will give you further orders." Scrimgeour directed in his brusque manner as the three of them exited the prison. Tonks immediately felt the hollow feeling growing in her chest dissipate a little as the direct influence of the Dementors lessoned.

"You think Sirius Black did this?" she found herself asking, despite the voice in her mind that oddly sounded like Remus, telling her to shut her trap. "Broke out this many people, single handedly?"

Scrimgeour fixed his jaundiced gaze on her. "I do not know, Auror Tonks. What do you think? You did grow up with him; in fact you were very close once. And one of the detainees that have escaped is his cousin, as well as your aunt. Do you think he's capable of this, as our Minister believes?"

Tonks held his gaze, refusing to be intimidated. "I don't know sir; I really can't speak to Black's motivations. I once thought he didn't have the capability for murder in him, or the ability to do such dark magic. I just know what these prisoners are like; I was involved in a lot of their captures and trials sir and I can tell you that it won't matter who it was that broke them out, it won't change what it is they do now."

Scrimgeour continued to eye her, his gaze penetrating and then he turned to Kingsley. "Meet me in the office Shacklebolt." And then he turned on his heel and was gone with a crack.

Kingsley turned to her then, "I don't think you helped yourself out there any Tonks; he'll be even more suspicious of you now."

Tonks glared out at the sea, battering away at the cliff they stood on. "I don't care, he knows where I stand, and I made that abundantly clear when I talked to Williamson. I'm tired of playing this game King. I'm not like you; the long con has never been my way. Look, we both know that Sirius had nothing to with this, can you maybe suggest to Scrimmy that our time would be better spent putting what we know of these people to use to find them. You know it's a waste of time to focus on where Sirius might be."

King smirked slightly, "Yes, but that would involve actual Auror work wouldn't it? Doesn't seem to be the Ministry mandate anymore. I better get to the office and you best be getting off to Hogsmead. Of course if you stopped anywhere else along the way to make enquires, well you were just taking initiative weren't you." And then he too was gone, the only sign of his presence the loud crack that echoed in the cold sea air.

Tonks stood there for another moment, trying to collect her thoughts. Okay, so ten Death Eaters, including your psychotic aunt and her husband, break out of Azkaban or more likely are let out by the Dementors, who have, as Dumbledore has been suggesting for months, sided with Voldemort. You know that Sirius didn't help them and you know that they are not likely to make a move tonight, not when there is so much activity in trying to find them. They'll lay low for a few days and then the fun will begin. But they must have something big planned. Would they stay together though? She sighed and shook her head as if to dislodge her thoughts and cast them away to the sea. First things first, she thought, stop by mum and dads quickly; get them to ward everything just in case dear aunt Bella takes it into her head to come pay a visit. Then to Hogsmead for all the good it will do, then to the office to look through all the old files; it's a good thing I keep everything and that I took all of Mark's files to my cubical after he died. This is going to be a long night.+++

Eleven hours later Tonks sat at her desk skimming quickly through the files she had on all the Death Eaters that had escaped. Some of the information was paltry, but a lot of it was good. She might not have been the Auror to capture all of the ten, but she had been there with Mad Eye and Mark and King and Frank Longbottom when they had made the captures; she had written up Mad Eye's reports on them a few times and she had been in court for about half of the ten's sentencing's. She stifled a yawn, ignoring the black and white photo of Antonin Dolohov that leered up at her, and closed his file to move onto the next one. Liam Semple. He glared up at her from his photo, his one good eye piercing; she could almost hear his voice, words he'd yelled at her as he had been hauled off to a cell to await his hearing, "Nymphie…Nymphadora. I'll make you pay, you cur loving bitch!" She stared down at his photo, almost as if she were daring him to try something. She didn't need to read his file, she knew Liam Semple's case like she knew the back of her hand or the freckles on Remus' shoulder. She had been the one to take his eye, she had been the one to chase him down and it had been her testimony that clinched his fate. She knew the places he liked to go and she knew the people he knew.

"Hey, didn't you used to date that guy."

Tonks whirled to find Williamson standing behind her, looking at the photo on her desk. He smiled sheepishly; he looked exhausted. "Sorry, you were really out of it there. Didn't mean to startle you."

She waved a hand excusingly "Don't worry bout it. Yeah, like eons ago; I was a kid. Ours was a very hate/ hate relationship…I took out his eye, he gave me a scar on my shoulder, I caught and arrested him, he threatened to get back at me. I haven't thought of him in years really, but now he's out…"

"You think he'll come at you?" Williamson sounded genuinely worried.

He's not that bad a sort, she thought looking at him, just got caught up in Scrimgeour and Fudge's games. "Don't know; but I'm not taking any chances though."

He nodded, but made no move to either leave her cubicle or indicate why he had come in the first place. She looked back at her files, pressing her lips together in thought. "You want to help me look through these? I know Fudge is convinced that Sirius Black is the mastermind behind all this, but there might be something in here that could help locating the escapees."

"Sure," He looked surprised to be asked, but pulled up her extra chair anyway and sat beside her.

"You can start with those," she indicated the stack of files to her right. "They're Hawksley's files."

They worked in silence except to throw a likely theory or two back and forth and she was glad for it. There were days when she fiercely missed Mark, missed the ease of their partnership, and today was definitely one of them. He would have known what to do; he would have been able to see the bigger picture, even if he too would have believed that Sirius was the mastermind behind the escape. So she welcomed Williamson's help, even if she still wasn't too sure about him, because he at least wasn't dismissing her work out of hand.+++

By that night Tonks was beyond exhausted. She had been working for 24 hours straight, going up and down the country and back and forth to the office. No one seemed to be bale to find any leads and she knew this was because everyone was so convinced that Sirius Black was the rallying point for the fugitives; no one wanted to see what was right before their eyes, but she hoped that they would soon be asking themselves what was being planned that needed Ten of Voldemort's most loyal peons.

She apparated to her parents house to check that they had indeed placed the wards she had asked them to, reinforced them as much as she could and then bid them a quick goodnight, before apparting to the square outside of Grimmauld Place. She knew she was taking a risk; anyone could have seen her, but she knew the street well now and hoped her hunch that no one would be about was correct. The first words out of Sirius' mouth when she finally entered the kitchen were,

"You look bloody horrible Nymphie."

Remus, who had been waiting for her there before he headed to his guard duty, shot his friend a look and quickly stood to help her to a chair; she hadn't realized that she was wobbling.

"Ta love," she murmured as she sat and promptly rested her head against the worn wood of the table. "I am bloody knackered; and we found nothing, just as I knew we would."

"Kingsley told us; you just missed the meeting, although I was surprised that he was able to get away." Remus pushed a cup of tea in front of her and she willed herself to sit up and sip it.

"Its cause he's Scrimmy's golden boy; no one ever questions anything he does. Its good though; one of us has to stay above suspicion and with Scrimgrour suspecting me of trying to commit crimes against the ministry-"

"You are committing crimes against the Ministry. In fact, your committing three right now. Aiding a fugitive, being in the company of a werewolf and giving out ministry intelligence" Sirius pointed out. He seemed in a contrary mood that night and she suspected it had to do with his name, once again, being linked to dark goings on. The prophet was on the table and the pictures of the Death Eaters glared up at the three of them.

"I've been to my parents, told them to ward the house," She yawned, one hand rising to cover her mouth and almost upsetting her tea.

"I've done ours over, just in case. And the ones here have been reinforced." Remus stood, his hand squeezing her shoulder lightly. "I've got to go, Dumbledore wants us taking longer shifts. He thinks that their next move will be on the Ministry. Try and get some sleep before you have to go back in."

After he left she and Sirius sat in silence, she finishing her tea and he contemplating thoughts he hadn't dined to share yet. Finally, just as she was planning to make a move and head upstairs to sleep, he said, "My cell wasn't that far from dear old Bella's. I remember when they brought her in; it was the last time I remember feeling anything but apathy in there. She used to mutter in her sleep; I could hear her just as clear as when she was screaming. I remember when I escaped; I could feel her eyes on me as I slunk by. She never said a word though, she could have, she could have called out," he shook his head, his gray-blue gaze, so like her own, far away. "That woman is madder than a box of hares Tonks; I know you know, but take how barking she was before they threw her in there and magnify that a hundred times."

Sirius stood, looking as drawn and tired as she felt. "Best go get some sleep Tonksey. I have a feeling we're all going to need all the strength we can get for what's to come."