Unseen Perspective

by TendraelUmbra

Not all wars are black and white, as Harry learns when the second war with Voldemort seems to be painted in nothing but shades of grey. In which Harry is confused, Tonks is overwhelmed, Barty is a genius, Snape hates everyone, Dumbledore is trying his best, and Voldemort is having the time of her life. fem!Voldemort

14. Overt Espionage

Content warnings for this chapter: Gore and needles

---

Once again, Harry had no idea where they were. They had arrived on another extremely well manicured lawn, though this one was far showier, and had… peacocks strutting about?

Actually, weren't only the males called peacocks? He vaguely remembered peahens being mentioned in a book about birds that he'd read when he was six or so. He didn't know what the species as a whole was called, though.

The manor that sat ahead of them was beyond ostentatious, with a façade made entirely of marble and gold. It looked far too big to be practical, stretching far to the left and the right. Harry was pretty sure he'd seen entire squares in muggle neighbourhoods that were smaller.

"Where are we?" He asked Voldemort.

"Malfoy Manor. Gaudy, isn't it? You know what they say — money can't buy taste. That said, the accommodations are nice and there's plenty of space, so I've been holed up here for a while. Come on, I'm sure we could both do with some lunch."

Harry didn't realise he was hungry until she pointed it out, but he couldn't ignore it once she did. He cast a Tempus charm as they walked through to the house, surprised to see that it was already two hours past noon. He must have really lost track of time, what with the… everything, and all he'd had since their early breakfast at Theo's place were a few cups of tea.

Voldemort pushed the large front doors open and shouted loudly. "We're back!"

"Over here!" A voice shouted from further in.

She led him through an unnecessarily labyrinthine series of rooms until they reached a sitting room near the back of the manor. A man and a… person… were sitting opposite each other, engaged in an energetic discussion.

Voldemort gestured to the man. "Harry, you already know Fenrir Greyback."

The werewolf nodded at him. "Good to see you."

"And this obnoxious arsehole is Rookwood, architect of insanity."

The person stood up, their height just shy of Voldemort's, giving Harry a good look at them. They had dark brown hair that was immaculately styled, short in the front with a long ponytail that further added to their androgynousness. They had hazel eyes lined with dark eyeliner, but didn't seem to be using any other makeup. Their figure was slim and their chest somewhat flat, their shoulders a bit wide, but even without the fidelius, Harry didn't think he'd be able to tell their gender. He remembered Delphini talking about how looking at them was like an optical illusion, how the masculine and feminine traits seemed to constantly switch dominance as one looked at them. It was an incredibly accurate description, though nothing could have prepared Harry for the disorienting experience of seeing it firsthand.

"Hey Harry." Rookwood said, their voice as androgynous as their appearance. "What are you doing here? I thought Voldie was just taking you on a short excursion and dropping you off again?"

"Things didn't go to plan." Voldemort explained. "So we had to drastically readjust our plans. Harry will be staying with us for the foreseeable future."

They didn't seem happy about that, though Harry had no idea why. He'd never met this person, so he didn't think he'd had an opportunity to offend them. Then again, maybe the displeasure wasn't directed at him, because they were currently giving Voldemort quite a look. "I assume that's why you need me, then?" They asked.

She nodded. "If you'd be so kind."

They rolled their eyes. "Fine, but you owe me for this. And so does she, for that matter. This is supposed to be my day."

"Don't draw me into your bizarre metaphysical arrangement, Rookwood, and it'll only be for a short while, anyway. Any idea where Barty is?"

Rookwood gestured to a door behind them. "Chef drama queen is in the kitchen, but good luck drawing him away for any length of time. He's chased out everyone who's tried going in there."

"I'm sure he'll spare a few minutes for me. I have some plans I'd like to set in motion before dinner, so it would help if someone besides me could give Harry a tour."

"Well, good luck with that."

Harry followed Voldemort into the kitchen, where the sandy haired man he'd seen Voldemort summon several times before, Barty, if he recalled correctly, was directing an army of house elves while tasting and adjusting the seasoning in a pot of gravy.

"Hi Harry, Voldie. I'm sorry, but can't this wait? The elves are decent cooks, but Lucius has had them making French food like its British food, giving us an underseasoned mess that combines the worst of both cuisines. I have to teach them all about the nuances of seasoning and flavour while cooking the meal."

Voldemort just rolled her eyes. "I'm sure that we'll be fine with a slightly bland meal, but I'd like it if you'd show Harry around while I handle some arrangements."

Barty looked at her with an aghast look. "Voldie, I'm not sure you want to imagine the monstrosities I've had to stop the elves from making. For all of our safety, I am not leaving this kitchen until the meal is done."

"I'll get Fenrir to keep an eye on them if it's really that important, but it is genuinely of utmost importance that I get certain things rolling as soon as possible. Can you please get Harry some lunch and then give him a tour?"

He sighed and took off his apron. "Fine. Better that your pet look them over than leave them to their own devices."

"Thank you. Harry, this is Barty Crouch Junior, one of my closest friends and confidants. Barty, you already know Harry Potter."

"Barty Crou-" Harry paused as he finally placed the man's face. He's seen the trial of Barty Crouch Junior last year in Dumbledore's pensieve. Then the implications of that name sunk in. "You're the one who entered me in the Triwizard Tournament!" He said accusingly.

Barty held his hands up. "Guilty as charged. Sorry about putting you through that ordeal, but you're a really hard person to get to. But hey, at least I helped you get through the tasks, right? Pointed you in the right direction of the summoning charm, helped that Longbottom boy get you some gillyweed, and even took out a bunch of obstacles in the maze for you. You're welcome, by the way."

"I was only in that situation because of you, so I don't think I owe you any thanks." Then the rest of what he said caught up with Harry. "Wait, you were Moody!?"

Barty made finger guns at him. "Bingo! Took a hell of a lot of polyjuice and some liberally applied self transfiguration to get it done, but we managed."

"Yes, well, you two can catch up while you take care of that tour — the last thing we need is Harry getting lost in this ostentatious mess of a house."

"Fair enough. Just make sure Greyback gets in here as soon as possible."

Voldemort put a hand on Harry's shoulder. "I'll be back later, okay? Shouldn't be more than a few hours."

He nodded at her as Barty turned back to the counter and began whipping up a sandwich. "I'll try to keep it light, since dinner will be ready in a few hours." He grabbed an apple from a nearby fruit bowl and snapped his fingers, causing the apple to fall apart into slices, which neatly arranged themselves on the plate next to the sandwich.

"Voldemort did similar things with cooking." Harry said as Barty slid the plate over to him.

"Where do you think I learned it from?" Barty commented as Harry took a bite of the sandwich, relishing the flavour of the roast beef.

"Why snap at all?" Harry asked after he swallowed. "I mean, when I did Voldemort's Blinking thing, I didn't need to do anything but focus on what I wanted."

Barty gave him a look. "Well, to be fair, freeform magic is different from wandless magic. The snapping isn't strictly necessary, but it's a symbolic gesture that helps you visualise the moment. Different people tend to have different quirks we use for wandless magic, but I learned from Voldemort, so I picked up hers."

"Right." Harry devoured the rest of the sandwich and picked at the apple slices as Barty went back to directing the house elves. Not long after Harry finished, Greyback came into the room, at which point Barty gestured for him to follow.

"The house isn't actually as complicated as it seems." Barty explained. "But the Malfoys are pretentious arseholes who like to feel superior to everyone, so the layout is magically made to seem confusing to anyone not familiar with it. Lucius says it's to protect them from burglars, but we all know he's full of shit."

Harry sniggered. "Yeah, that seems about right."

Barty smirked at him. "Right, so you will eventually learn how to get around, but it'll take time, and it wouldn't hurt to follow people around. You'll be rooming in the same general area that most of us are, though, so you can ask for help if you need it. You can also Blink, right?"

"Not consistently."

"Hmm… Well, if you ever get the hang of it, then it's honestly a better way to get around, since it bypasses the disorientation components of the wards. Voldie was able to navigate this area effortlessly on day one thanks to that. I, on the other hand, had to suffer. Such is my life."

"Um… right." Harry was pretty sure that this guy was a little melodramatic.

Barty continued on. "That said, I think Bellatrix made a map because she hated it so much, so we can check in with her. Gods know I could have used it earlier, but by the time we busted her out of Azkaban, I'd already gotten used to it."

If nothing else, it was reassuring to know that no one really liked the Malfoys.

Barty paused to knock on one of the hallway's many doors. "Oi Bella, you decent?"

The door opened on its own, revealing a rather large bedroom with a king sized bed against the far wall and bookshelves lining the wall on the right. The left side of the room looked something like a science lab, the entire wall filled with a large workbench covered in beakers and phials. Several large leather chairs were positioned near the bookshelves and Bellatrix — because that could only be Bellatrix — was draped over one of them while reading a book. Literally draped. She was sitting sideways in the chair, one of her legs hooked over the arm and the other splaying off towards the floor. She flopped her head backwards over the other armrest. "What's up, Barty?"

"Can you give Harry one of your maps?"

Her eyes shot over to Harry. "I guess you'll be staying with us for the foreseeable future, then?"

Harry nodded. "Yeah, there were… problems."

She rummaged around in her pocket and tossed a piece of black parchment at him, which fluttered through the air until it landed perfectly in his hands. "That should prevent you from getting too lost around here. Draco and Delphini are in the game room if you'd like to hang out with them."

Harry shrugged. That sounded like as good a way to spend his time as any.

Barty led him to a room two doors down and across the hall first, tapping the blank nameplate on the door so it read "Harry". "This'll be your room for now." He tapped his wand to Harry's map, causing one of the rooms to change colour to green. "Hopefully you won't need any help finding it, but if you do get truly lost, then you can always call for a house elf. Just don't mind if they're a little lippy with you — Voldie and Bella have been trying to teach them labour theory in their spare time. It's been driving Lucius bonkers, though, which I'm pretty sure was their motive in the first place, so I'd say it's definitely worth a little lip from the house elves. Anyways, you can drop your trunk off and I can show you where Draco and Delphini are."

It was hard to tell exactly how many doors down the game room was, but according to the map, it was only two. Sure enough, Draco and Delphini were sitting at a table with a deck of cards.

"Go fish." Delphini said.

"I still don't understand why that's what you have to say when you don't have the card. It feels so… mugglish."

Delphini rolled her eyes. "Oh, I'm sorry, do you want me to make it more magical for you? Do you want me to say 'Go grindylow hunting' every time you don't have a card? That's three times as many syllables. Fuck off."

"But why fish at all? The cards have nothing to do with fish!"

"I don't fucking know, Draco! Excuse me for not having immaculate historical knowledge about a children's card game!"

"Am I interrupting something?" Harry asked. "Because, um, I can go if I am."

Both of their heads whipped around to look at him.

"Potter!?"

"Harry!? What are you doing here!? What hap-" Delphini cut herself off. "What did mum do? Did she kidnap you!? Oh, I am gonna…"

"No, no, she didn't!" Harry paused. "Well, okay, I think maybe technically she did, but it's sort of complicated."

Delphini crossed her arms. "Complicated. Complicated how?"

Harry sighed and sat down, not looking forward to explaining the events of the morning, but knowing that he'd have to talk about it eventually. May as well do it now. "Well, I suppose it all really started on the day Hogwarts was going to let out for break…"

It was far from the best retelling he could have done, since he had to keep going back when he remembered details he forgot to mention, but Harry did eventually cover all of the important points that he could remember. He went through everything from Snape's occlumency lesson to the chase through the woods, to meeting Voldemort at dawn, going to Theo's place, fighting the Order, dealing with custody, and then learning far more about Voldemort's personal history than he ever expected to know — though he kept the details light on that last part. He didn't really want to go into the horcrux thing (he was trying really hard not to even think about it) and that memory altering spell was not something that should be spread around, even in vague terms.

"And yeah, I think that about wraps it up." He said, leaning back against his seat.

Delphini raised her hand. "One question. Why!?"

"Um… why what?"

"Why did you think that any of this was a good idea!?"

Harry flinched back as she yelled. "Um… it seemed like a good idea at the time?"

"A good idea!? Harry, I'm not sure if you've noticed this, but my mum is a fucking psycho!"

"I'm sorry," Draco interrupted, "but can we go back to the part where Potter managed to replicate Voldemort's silent teleport?"

Delphini put her hands on her hips and turned to face him. "No, we can't Draco, because no one fucking cares! We're here to talk about the fact that Harry thought it would be a good idea to just up and vanish with Lady Voldemort! She could have, I don't know, killed you or something!"

Harry shrugged. "I mean, yeah, but I didn't think she would, and she didn't."

"I really think we need to go back to the fact that Potter was able to perform a feat that no one besides the Dark Lady has ever been able to accomplish." Draco insisted. "I think that's kind of important."

Delphini held a hand in front of his face. "Quiet, Draco, the adults are talking."

Harry snorted. Wasn't Draco the oldest one here?

"I mean, honestly Harry, she apparated you right into the middle of a huge group of Order members, had to confund a security wizard, and committed a clear violation of the Statute of Secrecy! How do you not see the problem!? You could have been seriously hurt or even arrested!"

Well, when she put it that way, it sounded kind of bad. But still… "I mean, it all turned out okay, so I don't see what the big deal is? I mean, even if we were arrested, it's not like the Ministry has a prison they can throw us in…" It was definitely harrowing to consider all the ways it could have gone wrong, though. If Kreacher had actually been dedicated to stopping him, he would have been in a lot of trouble. Harry… didn't like to imagine what it would have been like if he'd been rendered unconscious inside the fidelius, beyond Voldemort's reach. He didn't know how the Order would have reacted under those circumstances, and he didn't care to.

Delphini's eyes narrowed. "I felt that, you know. That twinge of anxiety."

"Look, I'd really rather not dwell on what could have gone wrong, okay? Today's been really stressful and I'd like to relax a bit." Harry said defensively.

She stared at him for a moment before sighing. "Fine, I guess you're off the hook. It wasn't really your fault anyways. Just don't let yourself be kidnapped again if the Order shows up."

Voldemort poked her head in the door. "Hey kids! I'm going to step out for a few, but I should be back in time for dinner. I've got lives to ruin and heroic plans to foil, y'know?"

Delphini gave a halfhearted wave. "Alright, seeya."

"Oh, and Harry, you have a visitor."

Harry perked up. Why would he have a visitor here and now?

He followed Voldemort, who opened the door across the hall. "She's just in here. I'll give you two some privacy. Be back in a bit!"

Harry entered the room, unsure of what to expect. Even after trying to figure out everyone who could be there to see him, he didn't expect the actual result. "Tina!? What are you doing here?"

Tina waved at him. "I could ask you the same question, Harry." She said teasingly. "But the simple answer is that Voldemort called on me after the… hectic day you had. She was sure that having a little therapy would help."

Harry regarded her with suspicion. "You said that you didn't know Voldemort."

She nodded. "And that is, technically speaking, true. I never personally met Voldemort until a few days ago. More generally speaking, though…"

She crossed her legs.

"Let's just say that it's… complicated."

---

Voldemort walked down the dungeon corridor of Malfoy Manor. As gaudy as the place was, there weren't many places with more secure dungeons. She paused outside the cell where Severus had been staying the past few days.

"Time to wake up, Severus." She said from the corridor.

When he refused to stir, Voldemort decided to take more drastic action. She Blinked inside his cell and lifted him up by the neck.

"I said it's time to wake up, Severus." She said much more coldly.

She dropped him into a heap on the floor, watching with glee as he struggled to regain his breath. "What the hell do you want, you madwoman?"

"Your eviction notice has come in, I'm afraid. It's time for you to leave."

He glared defiantly at her. "Finally going to kill me, then? Took you long enough."

She leaned down until she was inches from his face. "Oh Severus, why in the world would I kill you? Even if I were to ignore the fact that Harry said you didn't deserve to die, why should your torment get to end? There are much more creative things I can do than kill you."

"Going to torture me, then? Just stuff me full of pain until I wish I was dead?"

Voldemort hummed. "No, I don't think I will. See, the problem with someone like you, Severus, is that you don't care about things that would work on a normal person. You don't value your own life, nor do you care about things like pain. If I want to make you hurt, I have to be very creative. So instead, I'm going to let you go."

Severus stared at her. "You're joking." He deadpanned.

She laughed. "Not at all! You're just going to have to deal with some… complications I set up for you. You deal with them, and you're free to go."

"I'm not interested in playing your games, Voldemort."

"Too bad." She knocked him out and hauled his body over her shoulder. "Because we're playing anyway."

---

Cokeworth was truly a dreary place, Spinner's End moreso than any of the other areas. A grimy place that had been bathed in the waste of the industrial revolution and abandoned when the market moved on, leaving it an empty husk. The town's shopping centre was half abandoned, with only a few cheap take-out locations keeping it alive. A few convenience stores remained the only places to buy goods, furthering the area's insavourability. The town was the dying breath of a bygone era, a lingering remnant that had long overstayed its welcome.

Voldemort had only been to Snape's residence a few times over the years, and every time she was struck by how… grey everything was. Like the ash from the now-abandoned factories had stained the area, the colour continuing to linger even though the source had been gone for decades.

She sighed and turned her attention to the task at hand. At least she'd never have to come back here again.

A wave of her wand sent all the furniture flying to the sides of the room, giving her plenty of space to work. She dropped Snape onto the floor and thought about where she should start.

Well, finding his wand should be a priority. She'd destroyed his primary wand back in the forest, but he was certain to have spares somewhere around here.

It took Voldemort fifteen minutes to find the concealed safe, and another ten to successfully break it open, but the interior not only had a few of his spare wands, but plenty of other incriminating objects as well. Fractal bombs were highly illegal, and notorious for being almost impossible to defuse. She'd just leave this open for the Ministry to find when they got here.

Well, with Snape's wand in hand, it was easy to enact the bulk of her plan. She fished a dose of polyjuice out of her handbag, plucked a hair off Snape's head, downed it in a single gulp and waited for it to take effect. Polyjuice wouldn't let her fake DNA evidence, but it would let her fake fingerprints and handprints, which was all she needed.

She transfigured her usual clothing into something more Snape's style, then set out on the street to look for suitable victims. Dumbledore had never approved of her killing, but he did teach her that if she had to kill someone, then she should at least make sure they deserved it.

It was with that mindset that she began strolling the streets of Cokeworth, looking for someone whom the world would be better off without. It took her longer than she'd have expected, but she did eventually stumble upon a small gang of three older boys — neighbourhood vandals who moonlighted in far worse crimes when they thought they could get away with it. Not her usual sort of target, but she figured these three would work well enough. She looked around, confirming the presence of several witnesses, then pulled out Snape's wand and pointed it at the boys.

"Imperio. Imperio. Imperio. Follow me."

She led the three of them back towards Snape's house, leaving them to linger in Snape's yard until one of the neighbours came outside. Voldemort then pulled a gun out of her handbag and shot the three of them dead in plain view of the neighbour. The neighbour panicked and ran back inside, leaving Voldemort time to drag the bleeding bodies inside and get to work. She shut all the blinds with a wave of her wand and started using their blood to inscribe runic patterns around Snape, leaving the clear impression of a sacrificial ritual. Then, for added flair, she decided to cut the bodies up to further the gruesome nature of the scene. She spread the limbs and entrails out in a way that she thought looked sufficiently artful, and nodded at her work. She smeared some of the blood and guts on Snape's hands and robes to further the impression of guilt, put the wand and gun into his hands, then set about on her last goal. She moved over to Snape's arm and pulled up the sleeve he used to cover his dark mark. She pushed her fingers against the skin, tugging at the magical signature that was clearly hers, until it came free with a gushing noise. Snape was bleeding where she'd torn out the dark mark, but that was no matter. Voldemort pulled the inky-black magic into herself, back where it belonged. She then disillusioned herself, then sat back and waited. It didn't take long for there to be a long, insistent banging on the door, which Voldemort took as her cue to leave.

Well, that should thoroughly ruin Snape's lives in both the muggle and magical worlds. He was sure to take the fall for all of those crimes across both worlds, and she doubted the Order would be willing to stick their neck out for him, given their already tenuous position.

She sighed wistfully as she Blinked away. Committing crimes was fun, but framing other people for them was even better.

---

"I'm going to need more explanation than 'it's complicated'." Harry insisted.

Tina just laughed. "I'd be surprised if you didn't. Well, let's start from the beginning. My name is Augustine Urielle Rowan. I am twenty seven years old."

"Not to be rude, but you seem a lot older than that."

She just laughed. "I do, don't I? Now why do you suppose that would be?"

Harry's brain ran through ideas. "Um… a time turner?"

She shook her head. "Not a bad guess, but not right either. I suppose I should elaborate by saying that I wasn't technically born, either."

That just made him more confused. "I have no idea."

Tina leaned in. "Tell me, Harry, what do you know about horcruxes?"

Harry paused. Well that wasn't a term he expected to encounter here. "It's… a way to become immortal. By killing someone, the soul can be split and, uh, housed externally. In an object or… in a person."

Her eyes glanced up to his scar. "So, she did tell you about that, then. Good. I was fully prepared to take her to task over this if she hadn't."

"Wait, you knew about this!?" Harry asked. "And you didn't even tell me!?"

"I literally couldn't have told you, Harry — patient confidentiality. If you had figured it out before she did, then I wouldn't have been able to tell her either. Anyways, while that description is mostly accurate, it fails to capture some of the nuances of the soul magic involved. See, murder is not the only way to split the soul — it's just the only way that's suitable for creating a horcrux. The murder is as much about providing sacrificial power to rebind the soul as it is to split it."

Well, that was interesting, but… "What does this have to do with you?"

She smirked at him. "We're getting there, Harry. Now, let me ask you a question. What do you think would happen if a soul was split cleanly in two, but one of the parts wasn't removed from the body?"

Harry thought about it for a bit. "I guess it would heal? I mean, I doubt that it would just stay torn in two forever…"

Tina nodded. "That's correct — the soul would eventually heal. However, what do you think would happen if the soul was stopped from healing?"

"I… have no idea." Harry admitted. "What would even be able to cause something like that?"

"We'll be getting there in a moment. So, what do you know about Rookwood?""

He blinked. That was one hell of a nonsequiteur. "I don't know much about them besides the fact that the…" Harry was about to say "dude", but the word slipped from his mind as soon as he thought it. "Um, that they fideliused their gender."

"I'm sure you've noticed how comprehensive the fidelius is. How any remotely gendered word just refuses to stick to them. There is a degree of subjectivity to it — people who truly believe that certain words are gender neutral can use them in reference to Rookwood — but it's fairly inflexible otherwise. Even people who've never met them cannot gender them, and, more notably, this ungenderable nature continues to apply even when they're in disguise. Under such circumstances, it stops being an obfuscation, and starts becoming an… identifying trait. I'm sure you can see how that could be a liability."

"Yeah…" Harry could definitely tell that Tina was going somewhere with this, though he couldn't tell where.

"So, shortly after they successfully fideliused their gender, they ran into the problem of being too identifiable due to the distinctness of that trait, and so they needed a new solution. They had no desire to undo the fidelius completely — they just needed a way to occasionally bypass the unsavoury side effects. Something like an… alter ego."

Harry's brain froze as he looked Tina up and down. He was pretty sure he knew what she was getting at now, but it still struck him as unbelievable. How would that even work?

"And that brings us back to the soul." Tina continued. "The soul is resolute and will always try to heal itself even from a complete bifurcation. The soul is also the core of the identity — it's what makes us us. However, you yourself are a perfect example of a way to stop a soul from healing." She pointed at his scar. "The fragment of soul embedded in your forehead is not the same soul that inhabits the rest of your body. As such, it has not merged with your soul, but instead remained separate. So, let me ask you another question, Harry. What would you get if you split a soul in two, and then altered one of the soul fragments so it was no longer the same as the other? A whole new personality and identity? What do you think you'd get?"

"I… have no idea." Harry replied honestly.

Tina leaned forward and smirked at him. "You'd get me, Harry. I was 'born' twenty seven years ago, on February 29th, 1968, when I was cleaved from Rookwood's soul and made into a whole new person."

"So… you're Rookwood?" Harry asked, still struggling with what exactly that meant about Tina as a person.

"I am not Rookwood." She said firmly. "But I was made from them, strategically altered in numerous ways until I was fundamentally different — a new identity. You look at me, Harry, and you see me as a woman. You could not do that if I was Rookwood."

He nodded. That did make sense.

"The gender identity was one of the first things they set about my personality, as having another persona with a fixation on androgyny would do little to aid them in going undercover. Unlike Rookwood, I'm content with a purely feminine form. I was not the only persona that Rookwood created, but I was the first, and I am the only one besides them to make extensive use of this body we share, mostly because I have an actual social life." She tapped her temple. "Unlike these losers. Julius Aristata, the one who wrote the book that helped you break your Trace, is another one of our alter-egos, but he spends most of his time ruminating in the back of our mind and only comes out when he has a new book to write."

"You don't look anything like Rookwood, though." Harry pointed out. "And you're like, a foot shorter."

Tina looked down at her hand and flexed her fingers. "Human transfiguration, though we've taken to 'borrowing' Voldie's Philosopher's Stone for more long term changes. Sustaining a full body transfiguration does use most of my magic, but I'm rarely in a position where I need it, anyway. Voldemort is the only person I know who can still make a decent combatant while sustaining an extensive full body self transfiguration, but she's also one of those select few with ungodly strength. You know she was at the Battle of Nurmengard? When Grindelwald was defeated?"

Harry nodded. "Yeah, but I don't see why that's a big deal. I mean, Dumbledore did most of the fighting and was the one to actually beat him, right?"

Tina gave him a look. "Harry, I want you to consider something. Most people, had they been in that situation with Dumbledore, would have been a hindrance. They would have been people he had to protect, additional targets for Grindelwald to go after. And then consider that Voldemort, eighteen years old and freshly graduated from Hogwarts, was not only present in that battle without being a liability, but was able to effectively assist him against a wizard of incredible strength wielding one of the most powerful artefacts to ever exist. That, I think, says more about her power than any of her more recent feats."

"Right…" That actually was kind of crazy, come to think of it.

She sighed and leaned back in her chair. "But I digress, we've gotten rather off topic. We aren't here to talk about me or her, but you. You've experienced a major upheaval in the middle of an already tumultuous time, so it's important that we make sure you're adjusting well and that some of your previous issues aren't resurfacing. You mentioned getting dissociative episodes in the past, so it's important that we make sure that they don't return. If you experience an intense dissociative episode, please come find me or Rookwood. They'll bitch about it, but they will hand control of our body over to me if it's an emergency. Alright?"

Harry nodded. He didn't really see what the big deal was, but she probably knew better than he did on this front.

"Good. Now, why don't you start by describing the events of the day to me, and we can try to work out how you were feeling at each point so I have a better understanding of your current emotional state."

He sighed. Where to even begin…?

---

To say that the Order of the Phoenix was restless would have been an understatement. It had been hours since Voldemort had appeared in the middle of the street and whooped their collective arses, and while most of them had retreated back into Grimmauld Place, several of them, Dumbledore included, were still working on cleaning up the damage.

Needless to say, Tonks didn't like it. While actually scoring a hit on Voldemort had been cathartic, it didn't outweigh the devastation that she'd wreaked on their surroundings. The fact that she was willing to act so brazenly didn't bode well for them in the slightest. Voldemort had been laying low for months, and if she was willing to be so blatant, then this meant that she was about ready to publicise her return. If the Ministry had actually had time to prepare, then things might be okay, but they'd spent the last six months with their head in the sand, and they were about to be caught flatfooted.

So, to repeat, Tonks didn't like it.

She tried resolutely to ignore the voice in the back of her head that said that the Ministry winning wouldn't be a good thing, that she'd just been further reinforcing the power of a corrupt regime. That voice hadn't been there before Voldemort had barged into her life, and she wasn't about to let that woman get into her head anymore than necessary.

It was nearly evening when Dumbledore finally came inside, looking older and wearier than Tonks had even seen him. He slumped into his seat at the end of the table and turned to face them.

"The Ministry," He said solemnly, "has chosen not to press any charges at the current time, though only just barely. There was just enough evidence pointing to the presence of another person that they were willing to write it off as a matter of self-defence instead of 'reckless endangerment of the statute of secrecy'."

"What about the apparition trace?" Sirius asked, determination etched into his features. "Did anything come up on that front?"

Dumbledore shook his head. "There were remnants of a portkey field at the location, but I believe it was a diversion. I did find a witness who mentioned two people matching Harry and Voldemort's description getting into a cab, but they didn't get a look at the driver or the cab number, so that's a dead end."

"Did you take that witness to the aurors?" Moody asked. "Might get them to change their tune about Voldemort's return."

Dumbledore glared at him. "I did not, Alastor, because I barely avoided being arrested, and I am quite certain that that is mostly because the Ministry does not have a prison in which to keep me! I did not wish to give them reason to change their tune by continuing in my insistence that Voldemort has returned, a fact about which they remain in steadfast denial. Moreover, we must assume that Severus has been compromised as well. The Ministry is searching for him for reasons I remain unaware of, and I was forced to testify under veritaserum that I have no idea of his whereabouts and have not seen him for several days."

"I'm sorry." Sirius said seriously. "But I couldn't give a shit about Snivellus, and we're ignoring the most important point here. What happened with Harry? You told us that he'd be safe with his relatives, but Voldemort taunted me with the fact that she'd been showing up there for that entire time. How was that possible?"

"And you're just willing to take her word at face value?" Dumbledore shot back. "Scrutiny is more vital now than ever, now that she's been able to lead us so far astray. If she is telling the truth, though, then the wards…" He paused. "If Voldemort truly did not wish Harry any harm, then using his blood in the resurrection ritual may have allowed her to completely bypass the protections. I cannot say for certain, unfortunately."

Any further discussion was interrupted by the distinct crack of apparition in the main hall. Tonks silently jumped to her feet, wand in hand, and Sirius, Moody, and Dumbledore had done the same. They all quietly crept to defensive positions within the room, and were ready to attack when the door slammed open, and a very dishevelled Snape barged in.

"Where is Potter?" He demanded.

Dumbledore made eye contact with Snape and remained that way for some time, no doubt using legilimency to verify his identity. Eventually, they both relaxed, some of the tension bleeding out of them — though not much.

"It's him." Dumbledore confirmed. "What happened, Severus?"

"Where. Is. Potter?" Snape repeated.

"Gone. Spirited away by Voldemort herself sometime this morning, though we're missing many of the details."

Snape looked at him for a moment and sighed. "No wonder she 'let me go', then. The lid's already been blown clean off."

"Where the hell have you been, Snivellus!?" Sirius yelled. "We haven't heard a word from you since you dropped Harry off after that occlumency lesson! Did you have a hand in this!? I swear to gods, if you…"

"I didn't drop Potter off here, you filthy mutt!" Snape yelled back. "Because I had just been electrocuted and kidnapped by the Dark Lady herself! An event which only happened because I stumbled on some rather incriminating memories in Potter's mind! If you want to know how he got here, you should start by asking her!"

The fight vanished from Sirius's expression and he slumped over in his chair. "How could this have happened?" He muttered.

"I don't know, and I have bigger issues on my mind at the moment, given that I'm wanted by the muggle police for a triple murder and by the aurors for three uses of the Imperius, endangerment of the Statute of Secrecy, possession of illegal objects, and use of an illegal sacrificial ritual to remove my dark mark! Apparently, the Dark Lady thought it proper to ruin my reputation in every way she could think of before letting me go."

"Seems like an awful lot of trouble to go through." Moody remarked. "Why not just kill you?"

"Because Potter," Snape said with a sneer, "Told her not to, and apparently she's willing to keep her word with him."

"Enough!" Dumbledore shouted, quieting everyone else in the room. "There will be plenty of time to deal with our differences later, but for now we must assess all the facts to determine our current position. Things are more tenuous than ever at the moment, so it is vital that we act decisively. Severus, please tell us everything you've learned, and then we can fill in on what's happened on our end."

Tonks watched as Snape sat down at the table and began his explanation. "I didn't get to see much, but I did get to see enough. Potter has been communicating with the Dark Lady for months now. She appeared at his house at least a few times, and even introduced him to her daughter."

That was interrupted by numerous shouts of "Voldemort has a daughter!?", which… yeah, Tonks had to agree — Voldemort really didn't seem the type to want kids of her own, nor the type to take the… necessary steps. Of course, magic did provide ways around those, so it wasn't totally off the table as a possibility.

"Delphini Riddle." Snape said. "I'm not sure the name is familiar to any of you?"

"Harry's penpal!?" Ron blurted out. Upon seeing the looks he was getting, he flushed a bit and continued. "Uh, Harry had a penpal he was writing named Delphini. Said she was from Durmstrang and that they met last year during the tournament. I… didn't think to ask any questions beyond that — his business, and all."

Dumbledore nodded. "I'll see if I can fetch any records relating to her. It's a cast in the dark, but we don't have a lot in terms of options."

"Beyond that, Potter seems to have been piecing together the Dark Lady's motivations." Snape continued. "I hardly think it's surprising that someone like him would find himself in agreement with her particular brand of anarchism."

"Anarchism?" Lupin asked. "I thought she was a blood purist?"

Snape gave Dumbledore a pointed look. "You didn't tell them." He said flatly.

"I have no desire to peddle the lies she tells those in her inner circle." Dumbledore replied resolutely. "Make no mistake — whatever she has said, her true goal has always been the selfish pursuit of power."

Tonks… wasn't too sure about that, actually. She couldn't say with any degree of certainty, but what she'd seen of Voldemort's personality and beliefs could be read as being anarchist. That didn't make her right, of course, but it was definitely a possibility.

(Tonks tried very hard not to think about five days ago, when the aurors had been called to evict a woman and her newborn child for failing to keep up with rent. She had nowhere else to go, but they couldn't just let her get away with not paying. The line had to be drawn somewhere. Nevermind that it had been five days before Christmas and the middle of winter.)

Gods, what Tonks would do for some moral simplicity right now.

"Voldemort is very much an anarchist." Snape insisted. "I have no doubt that she merely intends to sit back and watch the country burn for her own amusement once she's done."

"And that day will not come to pass." Dumbledore said firmly. "But I am absolutely certain that her ultimate goal is power, no matter what values she claims to espouse."

Snape's eyes shot around the room, quickly taking in each member of the Order before his gaze settled back on Dumbledore. "You haven't told them at all. You haven't told any of them. You've been so certain that you know Voldemort best that you're refusing to pass on valuable information."

"Severus…"

His first slammed down on the table, making several people jump. "Is this a game to you, Albus!? I've provided you with intelligence for years, and half the time it seemed like you did nothing with it! Is this why!? I thought you were overly cautious about maintaining my cover, but now I can't help but wonder if you just ignored some of what I said because it didn't fit with your worldview!"

"Severus!" Dumbledore barked, though Snape ignored him.

"I told you when and where the Bones family was going to be attacked, and you just sat there! I told you that she'd made the Prewett twins into a target, and you did nothing to protect them!" He pulled out his wand and pointed it at Dumbledore, causing all of the Order to tense. "Is this why she's dead, too!? Did I sell my soul to you for nothing!? Answer me, old man!"

Moody covertly shot a stunning charm at Snape's back, causing him to fall over, unconscious.

"Told you he was a loose cannon." Moody said gruffly. "He's a liability now, more than anything. Wanted criminal, unhinged, violent, impulsive, and knows far too much."

"Severus is merely under a lot of stress." Dumbledore said calmly. "But you are right that he is no longer useful to us in the ways he once was. His allegiance is known to Voldemort, and he's wanted by the Ministry, preventing him from acting on our behalf in more conventional ways. We cannot simply throw him to the kerb, though…"

"Why not?" Moody asked. "Just wipe his memories of anything sensitive. Aurors do that with decommissioned officers all the time."

"Severus has a much more firm grasp of occlumency than anyone I know. Even if we could successfully navigate his defences, I am doubtful that he doesn't have contingencies in place. Severus was never fully comfortable with his position in our allegiance…"

"So we keep him in a locked room somewhere until we figure out what to do with him, then." He turned to Sirius. "Call your blasted elf and make him useful, for once."

Despite his despondent mood, Sirius couldn't keep the grin off of his face at the thought of siccing the Black's demented house elf on Snape. "Kreacher! Find somewhere to keep him where he can't escape and isn't a threat to anyone in the house."

Kreacher appeared with a pop and bowed. "Kreacher will take care of the greasy bastard man. The dungeons have already been prepared."

"We have dungeons?" Sirius muttered as the elf vanished, taking Snape with him.

"So what's our new plan of attack, Dumbledore?" Moody asked. "Our entire plan was based on intel that your pet Death Eater was giving us, but we don't know if anything he was being told was true. What she told him about her plans for Potter sure weren't."

"Our first priority should be getting Harry back." Dumbledore said firmly. "Harry has been kidnapped and is still legally required to attend school. If we report him missing, then it might be enough to get the Ministry to open their eyes to what's going on. At this point, any disruption to Voldemort's plans is welcome."

At that moment, an owl swept into the room and dropped an envelope in Dumbledore's lap. Tonks wasn't sure what said envelope contained, but it was certain to be bad news.

Dumbledore gingerly opened it and read the letter within. He hung his head and wordlessly handed the letter to Sirius, who then read it.

"What do you mean 'withdrawn'!?" Sirius shouted. "Who the hell is 'Emily Evans', anyways!? Both of Lily's parents were only children!"

"The Ministry evidently does not see it that way." Dumbledore replied. "I'll need to do more research, but I heavily suspect that Voldemort had this planned out in advance."

"Harry hasn't taken his OWLs yet! He can't be withdrawn!"

"It's uncommon, but it is possible for children to be homeschooled in magic. So long as Harry takes his exams this summer, then everything is above board."

Sirius leaned over and clenched his fists. "So what do we do?"

"I have no idea. I fear that we have been thoroughly outmanoeuvred." Dumbledore said as he slumped over in his chair. "I haven't the slightest idea where to go from here. There are far too many unknowns for us to act decisively. Without any sort of window into Voldemort's motivations, we cannot truly predict what her next action will be, save that she obviously plans to publicise her return soon, and will no doubt do so with her usual flair for violence."

An idea occurred to Tonks. A very, very stupid idea, but try as she might, she couldn't talk herself out of it. They were really pressed for options, and as idiotic as this idea might be, it was definitely their best chance.

"Well…" She said slowly. "You may not have a spy in Voldemort's ranks now, but you do have someone in a prime position to become one."

Most people stared at her, not understanding her intentions, but Dumbledore and Moody caught on immediately.

"Do you really think you're up for that, girl?" He asked her.

Tonks crossed her arms. "We'll just have to see, won't we? We can't afford to be fighting blind at this stage, and Voldemort has already shown interest in recruiting me. I'm the best bet we have."

"Voldemort will no doubt find the timing suspicious." Dumbledore said calmly. "Having an enemy operative interested in joining her so soon after their last spy was lost? You will no doubt be required to prove your loyalty to her cause."

"I can take it." She said, despite not being at all sure if she could take it. Only time would tell.

"Voldemort is an unparalleled legilimens. She will no doubt attempt to access your thoughts at some point should you join her."

"I can keep her out." Tonks insisted, feeling much more confident in that answer. Her atypical approach to occlumency had befuddled countless legilimens before. One of the few spec ops cases she'd been assigned to was an abnormally capable legilimens who was using his power to enthral others to him to create some kind of cult. Tonks was the only person whose head he wasn't able to get into, and the only reason said mission succeeded. "Try me."

Dumbledore sighed. "As foolhardy as this may be, you are right that we are low on options. I will be testing your occlumency defences myself. Ready yourself!"

---

"...and that brings us to now." Harry concluded.

"Well, it's certainly been an eventful one, hasn't it?" Tina replied, scrawling several things down in her notebook. "And how are you feeling about all of this?"

Harry shrugged. "It… doesn't quite feel real, honestly? I mean, I woke up early this morning expecting to have a short chat with Voldemort, and several hours later I'm trying to run from all my friends and she's blowing up a street to fend off the Order. There was just too much going on."

Tina nodded. "It's hardly surprising. You went through quite a lot of life-changing events in a manner of hours. While it is good that Voldemort told you both about the horcrux and her personal history with Dumbledore, the fact that she did so right after you'd already experienced a major upheaval is less than ideal timing on her part."

"I mean… I guess. I feel like I just need time to let it sink in."

Tina hummed. "Well, why don't we talk about something else. What do you want to do for these next few months, since you won't have school and all?"

Harry froze as he tried to figure out an answer. "I…have no idea. Hogwarts is… well, it's the only thing I'm used to, really. Basically my entire life has been either being at Hogwarts or trying to survive the Dursleys, with a few odd events in between. I don't really know what to do. I mean, I guess I still have to learn, but how?"

"It may have escaped your notice, Harry, but you are currently stuck in a house with many of the most talented magic users in this part of the world. Voldemort, Rookwood, myself, Barty, Bellatrix, Dolohov, and so on. Just because you're not in school doesn't mean you won't be learning. After all, Delphini hasn't been attending school these past few months, and I daresay she's learning far faster than she was at Durmstrang. Knowing Voldemort, it wouldn't surprise me at all if she's got several special lessons lined up for you, especially after you managed to replicate her Blinking skill."

He shrugged. "I guess. I don't want to bother any of you, though."

Tina laughed. "Believe me, Harry, it won't be a bother at all. Many of the people here will be more than happy to teach you about their specialties in magic. It would be like if someone asked you to explain the intricacies of quidditch. Academics really enjoy talking about things that interest us."

"What interests you?" Harry asked, curiosity getting the better of him.

"Clinical psychology, of course. Well, psychology in general, but especially clinical psychology. I can teach you some basics, if you're interested."

Harry shrugged. "Maybe, I don't know. We'll see."

She laughed again. "Well, it's something to consider. Now, how are you feeling?"

"Better, I guess? There's still a lot to take in."

"Take all the time you need, Harry. Like I said, you experienced a number of major upheavals in a short period of time. You're going to need time to adjust."

"Yeah, I know. Talking about it did help, though."

Tina smiled. "It usually does. If you don't mind, though, we really should end this now. Rookwood is pestering me for control of our body back."

It was odd, watching as Tina shuddered and opened her eyes again, the look completely different. Her usual warm body language was replaced by the cold and aloof demeanour of Rookwood.

"This part is always the least pleasant." They said as they slowly set about transfiguring their body, shooting up a foot in height and their openly feminine traits fading into androgyny, and their hair darkening to brown. Once that was done, they pulled out a compact and began wandlessly applying their eyeliner. Satisfied with their work, they closed the compact with a snap and looked to Harry. "Come on, dinner should be ready soon, and Barty's pretty damn delicious."

"Uh… you mean his food?" Harry asked.

Rookwood nodded. "That too."

---

This was stupid. This was very, very stupid. Tonks was well aware of that, yet she didn't stop. The only thing that gave her pause was the thought of explaining what she was doing to her mother, and even that wasn't enough to make her stop.

It was night now, almost midnight. Dumbledore had tried to get into her head for hours to no avail, and it was only then that he deemed her ready to make contact.

Tonks walked into her flat for the first time in months, not willing to trust its security after Voldemort's break-in. Now, that lack of security was exactly what she needed.

She watched the lights flicker on and stood in the middle of her sitting room. "Voldemort! Show yourself!"

For a minute, Tonks was worried that she'd been too paranoid in her assessment of Voldemort, but that fear was dashed as a loud crack of apparition sounded from behind her.

"You called, Nymphadora?" Voldemort asked as she leaned against the wall.

"So you did rig some listening charms in here." Tonks said, feeling vindicated by her paranoia.

"Of course I did. Nothing suitable for full eavesdropping, but enough that I could come if you called me." She crossed her arms and leaned forward. "And here we are."

"What are you playing at, Voldemort?"

Voldemort floated off the ground and shifted her pose so she was lying flat in the air, hovering around Tonks's eye level. "I could ask you the same question. Calling me here in the middle of the night right after I trounced the Order? Have I finally shaken your trust in the system?"

More than Tonks would care to admit, but there was no way she was going to say that. "What is your plan for Harry?"

Voldemort rolled over onto her back, her head stretched back so she could keep looking at Tonks. "Make sure he's educated and cared for. Keep him safe. You know, normal parenting stuff."

"What the hell would you know about parenting?"

Voldemort flipped back on her stomach. "I do have a daughter, you know, and much as she finds herself aggravated by me, I think I'm doing a decent job. Besides, someone adopted me, so I'm quite sure my experiences as an emotionally abused orphan will translate well."

"Who the hell adopted you?" Dumbledore had mentioned that Voldemort was an orphan, but not that she'd been adopted.

She just smirked. "An old man with more kindness than sense. But I digress, I daresay that you didn't call me here to ask about my past. You want to know about Harry. Did Dumbledore send you to make contact with me? To see that his little chosen one is alright?"

"I came by myself." Tonks lied. She could feel Voldemort prodding ever so slightly at the edges of her mind, probing to see she was lying or not. It was easy to warp the architecture of her mind to make it seem like the truth.

Voldemort was grinning. She was always hard to read, so Tonks couldn't tell if her deception was successful or not. "And what do you want, Nymphadora? What has you going behind the Order's back to reach out to me?"

"I want to know what you're playing at, Voldemort." She said firmly. "Fighting off the Order in broad daylight? Adopting Harry Potter? There's a bigger plan here, and if you want to win me over, you're going to need to give me some degree of assurance that you're not just planning to kill him later on."

"It wasn't supposed to go like this…" Voldemort muttered. "My plan was to drop Harry off and leave no one any the wiser, but the business I needed him for took longer than I expected, and I lost track of time. As for the adoption…" She paused. "Like I said, someone adopted me, back when I was a fucked up kid in a bad situation. I'm not sure there's a universe out there where I'm not at least a little fucked in the head, but having someone looking out for me helped… temper my worst aspects. You can't blame a gal for wanting to pay it forward."

Tonks eyed Voldemort, trying to take that in. This was the tempered version of Voldemort?

The silence continued to stretch on, and Tonks began to dread what Voldemort was about to do when she broke the silence with a laugh. "You know, Nymphadora, you're a very, very good liar, but I can tell when something is too good to be true. It can hardly be a coincidence that you show up so soon after Severus's cover is blown. I definitely give you props for trying, though."

Shit. Tonks had to wing this, fast. "I think you're forgetting something, Voldemort. The Order might be blind without Snape, but so are you. You might have spies in the Ministry, but the Order is far more rigorous and much more tightly knit. Maybe I am here to spy for them, but if I'm not, can you really afford to turn me down?"

Voldemort's look turned appraising, calculating. "You will be expected to tell me information you learn during Order meetings. You understand this?"

Tonks nodded.

"You'll be expected to prove your loyalty to me, even through acts you might find reprehensible. Are you alright with this?"

Another nod.

"And you will be expected to engage in sabotage both in the Order and at your place of work. Are you willing to do so?"

Tonks paused slightly, but nodded again.

Voldemort hummed. "Are you a mind mage, Nympadora?"

"I'm an occlumens." She replied. "I also know a little bit of legilimency."

"Any good with memory charms?"

"All aurors are required to know how to obliviate someone in case the obliviation squad is busy. I won't claim to be an expert, but I think I'm as good as I can get without being an expert."

"Does Dumbledore trust you?"

"As much as he does any other member of the Order."

Voldemort grinned again. "Congratulations, Nymphadora. You just became invaluable to me. Do you have any plans for the rest of the day?"

"I want to make sure that Harry's fine, if that's alright with you. Consider it a reassurance that you're not leading me on."

"Of course." Voldemort held out her hand. "Welcome to the team, Nymphadora."

Tonks took her hand and shook it. "If we're going to work together, then call me Tonks."

"Tonks it is, then."

Tonks braced herself as the stomach twisting sensation of apparition tore them both out of her sitting room.

What in the world had she gotten herself into…?

---

Tonks tried to prepare herself for anything when she arrived, unsure what to expect from Voldemort's safehouses. She wasn't prepared for what actually awaited her on the other end.

"You're staying with the Malfoys?" She asked.

Voldemort shrugged. "Lucius has a lot of space. He also keeps a well-stocked pantry and gets really offended by the company I tend to keep, which is practically its own reward. Besides, my own safehouses are far too well secured to keep large numbers of people there for an extended period of time."

"Right…" She just had to focus on breathing and remain calm, no matter how insane this was.

"I'll take you to Harry and leave you two alone for a bit, lest you think my presence is pressuring him. Come find me once you're done, as there's one final piece of business we need to take care of before you go on your way."

Tonks took a deep breath. One thing at a time.

The first proper room they went through upon entering the house was a formal sitting room with four people in various states of inebriation. Lucius was passed out and snoring loudly, while Narcissa was sitting in a chair next to him, relentlessly giggling at nothing in particular. On a sofa across from them, Fenrir Greyback was talking with a short and incredibly drunk woman with dirty blonde hair.

"I think you've had enough to drink, Tina." The werewolf said to her.

"Excuse me." The woman slurred. "I have barely drunk anything. Rookwood did most of the drinking, and look where it got them! Blacked out! Such a lightweight. Back in my university days, I did a lot worse and I still got my degree."

"I don't even know where to start arguing with you about that." Greyback replied before turning back to his own glass.

Tonks regarded them all with some degree of suspicion. Even as harmless as they seemed, she couldn't let her guard down.

Voldemort led her through an unnecessarily labyrinthine series of hallways as she spoke. "Last I checked, Harry was 'hanging out' with Draco and Delphini, playing various games. Delphini was trying to get them to play Risk, but I have no doubt that Harry and Draco found the game impossible to follow and moved onto something else."

"Delphini is your… daughter?" Tonks asked. "I wouldn't have thought you were the type."

"I'm not." Voldemort replied without missing a beat. "But Bellatrix was insistent, and it didn't involve us doing anything… nasty. Besides, I do enjoy her company quite a bit now that she's an adolescent and can actually hold down a conversation."

"Right…"

Voldemort stopped outside of one of the many doors in the hallway. "Well, here we are. I'll come get you in around twenty minutes so we can wrap up that final item of business, then you can be on your way."

And with that, Tonks was alone, deep in enemy territory, with no one to rely on but herself. She wondered if she'd have to grab Harry and run, and how far she'd get if it came to that. She'd wager that her odds weren't good.

Well, whatever. Tonks steeled herself and went into the room, where three teenagers were sitting around a table. Draco Malfoy played two cards face down in the centre of the table. "Two fours."

"Bullshit." The girl, who could only be Delphini, replied without missing a beat.

"Dammit! How can you always tell!?"

"Your emotions are an open book." She replied. "Seriously, you broadcast every action you take before you do it."

Draco begrudgingly took the pile of cards in the middle and Harry put three cards face down in the centre. "Three fives."

Delphini stared at him, her expression filled with scrutiny. She looked down at her hand, then opened her mouth to say something, but closed it and played a single card face down. "One six"

"Um, am I interrupting something?" Tonks asked, causing all of their gazes to shoot up to her.

"Tonks?" Harry asked. "What are you doing here? How are you here?"

"It's… a long story. Are… are you okay?"

He shrugged. "I'm exhausted, but fine other than that. It's been a long day."

"Is there a reason you're so nervous?" Delphini asked. "Seriously, you're really nervous. Are you okay?"

"I'm fine." Tonks replied. "Just a little in over my head."

Harry looked like he was about to say something, but Delphini cut him off. "You're my cousin, right? The metamorph auror?"

"Uh…" Tonks hadn't actually considered her relationship to this girl, but she supposed that was right. "Yeah, I am."

The girl stared at her for another few moments before shrugging. "Well, we were going to finish up the game we were playing, but we may as well wrap up early. Cheers."

She dragged Draco out of the room, leaving Tonks alone with Harry. An awkward silence hung in the room as Tonks tried to figure out her next course of action. Harry spoke up before she could figure anything out.

"So… I'm guessing you wanted to talk with me?" He asked. "Delphini must have picked up on that."

"Is she a legilimens?" Tonks asked. She hadn't felt anything probing at her barriers, but who knew what a child of Voldemort was capable of.

"She's… I think she said it was being an empath?" Harry said. "She can just naturally tell what other people are feeling. She was telling me about it at dinner, since sometimes thoughts and feelings get muddled together, making her pick up some really detailed thoughts on occasion."

Great, so Tonks not only had to deal with the most talented legilimens in this part of the world, she also had to deal with an adolescent empath. She could deal with that later, though, since Voldemort said she'd be back fairly soon. "How are you doing, Harry?"

He blinked, apparently surprised by the question. "Fine, I guess. I've had a really long day and I'm getting really tired, but I'm fine other than that. Dinner was really tasty, at least. I might feel worse tomorrow once everything's had a chance to sink in. Tina said I should talk to her if things ever start to get bad."

"What about earlier today! What happened! Did Voldemort do anything to you? Are you under the imperius or something?"

Harry crossed his arms. "I was able to throw off the imperius curse when Moody tested it on us last year. I think if I was imperiused, you'd be able to tell. As for today, well… She wanted me around to persuade someone, and after that, well, things happened. She took me to the Ministry to get the custody thing sorted out, then we went to some Chinese place for tea, then we talked about… stuff."

"What kind of 'stuff'?" Tonks asked, trying to look for any red flags.

He glared at her. "It's really none of your business. It was really personal stuff about both of us, and I don't want to share any of it, nor do I think Voldemort would want me to do so."

"Harry, I don't know if you've noticed, but Voldemort is a terrorist. She has killed a lot of people."

"I know that!" Harry shouted. "I watched her kill someone this morning! But as bad as it is, at least she's doing something! Last I checked, the Ministry was too busy pursuing a grudge against a fifteen year old to address the systemic corruption plaguing them, let alone to fight off the Dark Lady that I tried to warn them about!"

"The Ministry is complicated, Harry. These sorts of changes can't just happen all at once."

"And how many more people would be hurt in the meantime?" He asked. "Not everyone out there has people with tremendous power watching their back. What would have happened at my trial if I didn't have both Voldemort and Dumbledore watching my back, because I bet it wouldn't have been pretty. Hell, even you joined up with the Order instead of trying to fight Voldemort through the Ministry."

Tonks actually flinched at that, especially since she'd had similar thoughts recently. "So what, you just decided to join up with her?"

"I'm not the sort of person who can just sit by when there are problems that need to be addressed. Maybe you are, but I'm not. I may not be a political whiz like Voldemort or Delphini, but I know evil when I see it. The Ministry is evil."

Well, Tonks had to hand it to him — Harry Potter wasn't a half-bad debater, especially for a teenager. Of course, it didn't help that her heart wasn't really in the arguments she was presenting — not anymore. She was mildly tempted to try a spot of legilimency to try and get more information, but that was a gamble she wasn't willing to take.

"Hello Harry, Tonks." Voldemort said as she strode into the room. "Harry, shouldn't you be heading to bed? It is past midnight."

He yawned. "Yeah, I suppose. G'night."

As soon as he left the room, Voldemort spun around to face Tonks. "Well, we have one final order of business to take care of. I am sorry to twist your arm like this, but I doubt you'd agree otherwise."

That… did not fill her with confidence.

Tonks followed Voldemort through another labyrinthine series of hallways as she tried to figure out what awaited her. Some sort of interrogation, perhaps? That wasn't out of the question.

Voldemort led her through a door and Tonks froze at the sight of the person on the other side. She looked so much like her mother, but thinner and slightly more angular, like a slightly warped reflection. For the briefest of moments, fear overrode Tonks's rationality, and she was afraid that this whole thing was a test she'd failed so that her mother could tell her how disappointed she was in her life choices. Rationality won out as she got a better look at the woman, but there was no mistaking her identity.

"Tonks, meet your aunt Bellatrix. I'll leave the two of you to get acquainted."

Bellatrix looked up from the bench where she was working and smiled. Oddly, she was wearing a white lab coat, like the ones worn by muggle doctors or scientists. "So, you're Andi's girl? Um, you are a girl, right? I don't want to be presumptuous, and I know metamorphs can be fluid about those kinds of things."

"Um, I don't much care, but I do tend to lean that way, so yeah, I guess." Tonks didn't feel particularly strongly about gender. Even her pronoun choice was born more of convenience than anything, since she did tend to present feminine.

Bellatrix rooted around on her workbench and pulled up a few medical devices. "Do you mind if I take a look at you and possibly a few samples? Children of Magus are rare enough that I've never been able to do a comprehensible study to catalogue their various biological quirks."

"Umm… What's a Child of Magus?" Tonks asked as Bellatrix began prodding at her, apparently taking her lack of objection for consent.

"It's an old term for metamorphs." Bellatrix explained as she used callipers to take several measurements. "Magus was the original metamorph, back when humans first learned to use magic. He's still around, if you know where to look for him."

Well that wasn't something she'd ever heard before. "It never even occurred to me that magic would have a start." She said honestly. "I mean, how long ago was this?"

Bellatrix hummed. "We aren't exactly sure, but sometime between fifty and one hundred thousand years ago? It was after the great African migration, so humanity had already spread across the globe, but it's hard to get an exact estimate. Calendars hadn't even been invented yet."

"Right…" It still was weird to think about.

Bellatrix wrote down her various measurements on a notepad. "Tell me, how much are you able to stretch the limits of biology with your shifting? I've heard that some metamorphs can use their powers to take on unconventional morphology, such as elongated limbs or abnormal slenderness that should logically displace various internal organs."

"I… haven't tested it?" Tonks said, wondering why people would do that to themselves. It sounded uncomfortable. "The most I've done is impossible skin, eye, and hair colours."

"Hmmm… I'd like to test that, but I'd need access to a CT machine to get good readings. What about taking on non-human characteristics? I've read mixed results on that."

"Um, I have tried that, but it's kind of impossible to take on fully nonhuman characteristics. Like, I can web my fingers like a frog if I want to, but they're still human fingers. I tried doing wings once, but they were really just fucked up hands that I made on my back. It was a rather gross experience."

"I'd need to run some tests, but I have some theories about how one might bypass that restriction. Speaking of tests, are you willing to give me a blood sample? Also, are you afraid of needles? I really hate it when people pass out when I try to draw blood."

"Um, I'm not afraid of needles, but I've only just met you and I'm kind of wary about giving you a blood sample? I've heard about some rather nasty things that blood magic can do."

"Blood magic is just normal magic enhanced through sacrificial power. A sacrifice of the self, so to speak. Anyone studying anatomy should know that."

"I've… never studied anatomy."

Bellatrix looked up from her notepad, clearly not understanding. "But… you're a metamorph. Your powers are based on anatomy. Why would you not study it? Why would you handicap yourself like that?"

"Because it never really interested me?"

She sighed and walked over to her bookshelf, before looking back at Tonks. "Andi married a muggleborn, right? Please tell me she at least sent you to primary school."

"Um, yeah, I went to primary school. Why?"

"Good, so you're not totally ignorant." Bellatrix grabbed a few books off of the shelf. "These are some anatomy primers I've collected over the years. They should cover all the basics, then I can direct you to some more advanced material."

Tonks groaned. She really hated homework. "At least tell me this doesn't have a due date."

Bellatrix waved her hand. "Just do it as soon as possible. Reading a textbook takes, what, a day? But you've got work and stuff, so I'll understand if it takes longer than that."

Tonks had never, ever read a textbook in a day, but it didn't seem smart to correct Bellatrix about that.

Bellatrix held up a thin rubber tube with a needle on the end and smiled. "Now, how about that blood sample!"

"You aren't going to do anything… weird with it, right?"

"Just some standard blood composition tests, maybe extract some DNA. Science has progressed quite a lot in the past decade, so I'll have to see if there's anything new to test for. Unfortunately, a lot of that is going to have to wait, as we have nowhere near the necessary equipment to do all the tests I want to. Apparently, a new version of the electron microscope was invented a few years back, and I've been dying to get my hands on one. Insulating it from magic would be a pain, of course, but it would certainly be a better use of the Black fortune than sitting in a vault doing nothing. Of course, Sirius has sole control of the funds, so I'll have to make up with him first, but one thing at a time. After all, you…" She paused. "What are you doing here?"

"I'm sorry, you're only asking this now?"

Bellatrix shrugged. "It didn't really occur to me." She conjured a chair with a wide left armrest and gestured for Tonks to sit down. "Pull up your sleeve and keep your arm still. This will be slightly uncomfortable."

Tonks winced as the needle pierced her skin. "I'm here to… replace Snape, I suppose."

"Ooh, the double agent! That's always a risky one to play, but the adrenaline rush can be worth it. That said, I was never too good at it. Once I got bored, all bets were off. So, where do your loyalties lie, if you don't mind me asking?"

Tonks sputtered. "I'm not just going to tell you that!"

Bellatrix shrugged. "Can't blame me for asking. Not that it really matters, though — if you aren't loyal to us, then Voldie let you get this far because she thinks she can win you over. It's a measured gamble on her part, but she's very good at reading people. And done." Bellatrix put a cotton swab to the wound and pulled the needle out. "You can heal that, right?"

"Yeah." Tonks flexed her powers, shifting the tissue closed.

"Fascinating." Bellatrix pulled out her wand and began casting some analysis spells at the area. "Can you heal any wound like that?"

"Magical wounds are harder, but yeah. I've never tested against dark magic, but I'm not sure if it would work in that case."

"It might work if the affected area was completely excised and then regrown. I'd have to track the spread of dark magic through the area to determine the answer."

"Not something I'm willing to test." Tonks said defensively.

"A pity." Bellatrix looked at the phial of blood, swirling the burgundy liquid around in the tube. "Are you willing to give me a sperm sample?"

Tonks immediately had a coughing fit. "I'm sorry?"

"I mean, you are a metamorph, so surely you can adjust your equipment if you want to. It would be interesting to cross-reference the DNA there with that in your blood."

Even with her powers, Tonks couldn't stop the blush from spreading across her face. "I am not answering that question."

"That's a shame. I'll need your help for some more tests later on, partially in testing sympathetic responses. Speaking of which…" She plucked a hair off Tonks's head and sealed it in another phial. "I'll want to keep track of this one too. Hair might be different, since the cells are dead, but that doesn't stop you from transforming it, does it? Utterly fascinating from a biological perspective."

"Um, I guess. Never really thought about it."

Bellatrix sighed. "My work is so underappreciated."

"I appreciate your work." Voldemort said as she appeared in the air next to Tonks, causing her to jump.

"Yes, but you're the only one!" Bellatrix moaned.

"At least more people are interested in your stuff than Rookwood's alter ego. She's drunk off her arse and bemoaning the lack of people here interested in her specific field of psychology."

"Better her than me." Bellatrix muttered.

"Not a fan of alcohol?" Tonks asked as she stretched.

"Alcohol is disgusting. Besides, I don't trust putting something in my body if it's also used as a sterilising agent."

"Odd reasoning, but alright. How about you, Voldemort? Is there a reason you're not drunk like everyone else?"

Voldemort shrugged. "I don't trust anything that impairs my judgement. Alcohol does have a nice taste, but on the rare occasions that I drink, I usually take a sobering potion right afterwards."

So Voldemort basically never had her guard down. Great.

"Now then, Tonks, it is getting rather late, so you should be heading home to wherever you're staying. You were very hard to track down after you abandoned your flat."

"That was by design."

Voldemort grinned. "I'm well aware. Just be prepared, because the next time you arrive, I expect a full rundown of the Order's moves and plans so we can prepare ourselves. The big reveal is about to happen, after all."

Bellatrix waved casually as she prepared some materials on her workbench. "Take care, Tonks. Oh, and tell Sirius I said hi!"

Tonks apparated away several times, scoured herself of any potential tracking or listening charms, then apparated several more times. She finally appeared in the attic of Grimmauld, laughing to herself as she slumped against the wall.

"That was the stupidest thing I've ever done."

She tried to process that she not only managed that, but got away with it.

"And now I have to keep doing it for the foreseeable future."

Gods, she was so stupid.

---

Voldemort grinned as she stared at the spot where Tonks disappeared from. That went beautifully.

"Enjoying your gamble?" Bellatrix asked as she turned off a bunsen burner that had been boiling one of her various solutions.

"Immensely." Voldemort replied. "The Order would be blind without Severus, but we need a decent resistance. There are a lot of people on 'our side' that we need to get killed, after all."

Bellatrix cast a stasis charm over her work space and threw her lab coat and goggles onto a nearby coat rack. "So, when are we making the big move?"

"Two weeks after the new year. The fourteenth, specifically. We'll also be initiating that… secondary operation I mentioned at the same time."

She tensed and crossed her arms. "I'm still not happy with your plan for that, in case you were wondering. She's still just a kid."

Voldemort resisted the urge to groan. "I know that, but her being a kid is exactly why she's the only one who can pull this off. Besides, if there's any silver lining to today's events, it's that Harry will be able to watch her back. According to Peter, he has a number of objects that substantially reduce the risk of the mission."

"The fact that you planned the mission without Harry and his various artefacts is sufficient reason for me to not like it."

"I did have plans to rope him in as an accomplice, but today's events greatly simplify things on that front."

Bellatrix strode up to Voldemort and glared up at her. "I swear to gods, Voldemort, if something happens to my daughter because of this plan…"

"She's my daughter too." Voldemort said defensively. "I may not be good at conventional parenting, but I do my best to care for her."

Seeing that Bellatrix was still glaring at her, Voldemort grabbed the other woman and hugged her. That usually seemed to work wonders. Hugs were great.

Sure enough, Bellatrix slowly began to relax in her grip.

"You don't hug Delphini like this." Bellatrix mumbled.

Voldemort chuckled. "The one time I tried, she shrieked and squirmed out of my grip. Come on, let's get to sleep. It's late, and we have a lot to plan for."

"Right, I guess we do. Goodnight."

"Goodnight."

---

A/N (Tendra): Well, I didn't expect Christmas day to take this long. It's been, what, thirty thousand words? I expected it to be much shorter, but length has a way of getting away from me. This supposed to be part of the previous chapter, but gods, splitting it up really was for the best.

One of the oddest things about being a writer is the difference in pacing. When writing this chapter, I thought that the pacing was abysmal, but reading it afterwards, I thought it was fine. Ironically, the hardest part of this story to get right was Harry arguing with Tonks. Harry hasn't been present as a non-POV character for much of this fic, so it was odd trying to write him from an external perspective.

Anyways, this is the part of the fic where Tonks really gets to start playing her role in the story, acting as the double agent who replaces Snape. Of course, Voldemort has her own plans.

For those of you who didn't already figure out Tina's identity, here it is. I'm not sure if anyone predicted the nature of what she is, though. If you're wondering how she managed to attend university despite sharing her body with someone else, just assume that shenanigans were involved.

The final scene in the chapter is honestly my favourite. Voldemort and Bellatrix are really cute together.

Feel free to join my discord server at 6YwQewK. We share memes and talk about politics a lot.

E/N (Xgenje): I am really jealous of the title 'Architect of Insanity'. Guess I will just have to settle for Chaos Incarnate.

I have been spending some time thinking back on how Ten has managed to make all this work well into a well written story. I have come to the conclusion that Ten's story writing ability is just Bullshit.

But siriusly, join us at the Discord. I promise not to fully drown you with memes. Oh! And join the Asylum, it's the 'fun' part of the server.

E/N (MANNAT): It's chapters like this that make me really appreciate the nuance of this story. The characters feel so multifaceted and it really contributes to making it an enjoyable narrative to follow. You really get invested in these complex characters and it makes even the mundane scenes enjoyable to read!