Chapter 16: The Mate Mark

Remus truly did not know what to say. He knew that he was in part responsible for Tonks's hatred for werewolves. It did not surprise him that she was a werewolf hunter. He did not blame her for her choice either. Remus felt he could not blame Tonks for something he caused her to do.

"I had a hunch," Remus said smartly.

Remus wished only he could forget that terrible day over ten years ago.

"I was looking for the one who attacked me," Tonks explained. But I've taken down so many werewolves I don't want to stop. The problem is I killed three children."

Remus couldn't bear to blame Tonks. "I forgive you. Greyback bites children. I can imagine what happened."

From behind them, Cassiopeia was screaming again. "SIRIUS, NO!"

Tears welled up in Tonk's eyes. "That boy was three years old, though. He didn't deserve to die."

Tonks buried her face in Remus's chest. Remus was dumbstruck. Tonks didn't even remember him, and she was touching him.

"But you are redeeming yourself," he comforted. "You are taking care of Cassie and her baby."

"SIRIUS!" Cassie wailed.

Tonks and Remus looked over at Cassiopeia, whose face was twisted, as if in pain.

"She does that a lot," Tonks said simply.

"Well, that's not good," Remus said in concern.

"She's dreaming about him," Tonks said.

"Dreaming? Sounds like a nightmare," Remus said, concerned.

Tonks held onto him as if she didn't want to let go. "You could say that."

"I'm going to wake her," Remus said at last. "She can't scream like this. I don't think this is good for the baby."

"No, don't, please. Don't leave me," Tonks pleaded, her voice like a frightened child.

"It'll only take a moment. I promise," Remus said.

"No, she needs to sleep. She'll quiet down soon. I'm used to this. She wakes me up all the time," Tonks told him.

"I can't bear Cassie screaming like that," Remus said with compassion. "I promise I'll wake her and come back."

Without another word, Tonks quitted the room. Remus then felt guilty and followed her.

"Wait," Remus said. "Come with me."

"No, you do it," Tonks said.

"Alright. Give me a moment," Remus said.

Weeping, Tonks stood out in the hall.

Remus knelt by Cassiopeia. "Cassie, sweetheart, wake up."

"No…my baby…Sirius! SIRIUS!" Cassiopeia screamed.

In that instant, Tonks entered the room again. She was no longer crying, but her eyes were red and stinging. "You have to tap her on the shoulder. That's the only way she'll wake up."

"Thank you for telling me," Remus said politely as he tapped Cassiopeia's shoulder.

In that instant, Cassiopeia snapped awake.

"Nice to see you joined the living, Aunt Cassie," Tonks chortled.

"Another nightmare," Cassiopeia panted.

"A bad one at that, but it was only a dream. Go back to sleep," Tonks said gently.

"I can't," Cassiopeia protested.

"If you don't, Sirius will have my head," Tonks said.

"I can't because the baby won't stop kicking," Cassiopeia groaned.

Tonks knelt and placed her hand on Cassiopeia's belly. "This child is going to be a fussy one. Hey, little one, you need to calm down, or your mummy will get sick."

"Thank you, Nymphie. I still can't sleep," Cassiopeia said.

"Cassie, you need your sleep," Tonks told her.

"I can't!" Cassiopeia protested. "If I sleep, I'll have that dream again. I can't watch the Dementors hurt him."

"Have you tried eating chocolate before you sleep?" Remus asked thoughtfully. "A lot of bad dreams come from Dementors being near."

"Remus, I have been eating chocolate like a hippogriff eats ferrets. It doesn't help!" Cassiopeia said in frustration.

"How about thinking about a good memory, like when you conjure a Patronus?" Remus suggested.

"How?" Cassiopeia demanded, "I don't know where Sirius is. I don't know if he's safe. What if he got the Kiss?"

Cassiopeia ran her fingers through her short mop of hair. "How can I think good thoughts if I'm worried about my husband?"

Remus smiled. "How about when you, James, and Sirius took Severus and dunked his head in the toilet? You told me to keep watch, and I just sat there reading a book."

At the mention of Severus, Cassiopeia shuddered. "Don't say Severus. I can't bear to imagine what he'll do to me, Sirius, or our baby."

"Yeah, but you have to admit that was funny," Remus said with a slight chuckle. "Then Lily came in saying how immature James was. Then she came out asking why I even hung out with them."

"I helped because Snape insulted Sirius," Cassiopeia said, a hint of resentment in her voice as she yawned. "Wouldn't happen to have chocolate, would you?"

Remus ignored her request and simply kept trying to cheer her up.

"How about when Lily first made fun of Snape with us," Remus said, laughing a little. "She was blushing so much."

"Stop talking about Snape! Ahh!" Cassiopeia exploded.

"What about Lily stealing back the map for us when Filch took it?" Remus suggested wistfully. "She looked like she was going to be sick. She was never good at being bad."

"Don't talk about her either!" Cassiopeia groaned. "Owww! Oww!" Remus, I don't feel so good."

"Okay, how about when Tonks was five and no one could find her because she turned herself into a cat and ran outside and up a tree?" Remus asked.

Cassiopeia managed a slight smirk. "That was funny. Oh, I don't feel so good."

Remus took her hand. "Calm down. How about when Tonks would change her hair every five minutes to anger her mother?"

Cassiopeia smiled, but it faded quickly. "That was funny. Remus, I really don't feel so good."

"In what way?" Remus asked.

"I feel like I'm burning. My stomach doesn't feel right either," Cassiopeia replied.

Remus laid his hand on Cassiopeia's head. "You don't have a fever…Hold on."

Remus fumbled in his pocket and pulled out a healing potion. "Drink this."

Cassiopeia took the small vile of potion and quickly quaffed it down. Cassiopeia sighed with relief.

"You should be fine now," Remus told her.

"What about the baby?" Cassiopeia asked, her hand on her belly.

"It will be fine," Remus reassured her.

Tonks hurried to Remus and Cassiopeia. "Aunt Cassie, will you be alright till I get back? I'm going to walk Remus back to his office."

"Let me go with you," Cassiopeia pleaded.

"No, I want to talk to Remus alone," Tonks said.

"I need to do something," Cassiopeia said.

"Like what?" Tonks asked.

"Something to keep me awake," Cassiopeia replied, yawning wide.

"Cassie, you need to sleep," Tonks said.

"I can't sleep! I don't want to," Cassiopeia said, her voice shaking.

"You have to," Tonks said. "If you don't, Sirius is going to kill me."

Cassiopeia shook her head. "No. I'll only have that nightmare again. I don't want that."

"Cassie, you're staying here and that's final!" Tonks said firmly. "You forget all too well that you are only here because of that child."

Tonks softened her tone. "I'm only thinking of what is best for the child, and that is you sleeping."

Cassiopeia shook her head again. "I'm sorry, but unless you can take away the nightmare, I won't. I can't bear watching my husband get hurt, dream or not."

Tonks hair turned an angry, scarlet red. "Fine, make yourself sick, but know this: if you're sick, the baby is sick as well. And we wouldn't want that, would we?"

Tonks then went to her drawer, pulled out a chocolate bar, and tossed it at Cassiopeia. "There, since you're just going to steal it once I'm out of the room. Maybe it will get you to sleep, too. It's help every other night."

"With all due respect, I can't help the dream. I want to sleep, but I can't," Cassiopeia said apologetically.

Tonks eyes flashed angrily. "Oh, shut up. You are driving me insane! I haven't been able to sleep in weeks. And don't go telling me to blame Sirius cause I know it's his fault. But seriously, if you kept your mind off Sirius for a little while, you wouldn't be having these nightmares."

Tonks took handfuls of her angry red hair in frustration. "I can't eat, sleep, or go about working without worrying. I think someone is going to find out. You keep me up, steal my food, and chocolate. I can't function anymore!"

Tears seemed to be watering in Tonk's eyes. It was clear to Remus and Cassiopeia that Tonks was wearing down.

"I'm sorry, Nymphie," Cassiopeia said softly.

"Just sleep, please," Tonks begged in annoyance. "Don't say you can't. You can, you just don't want to. In fact, you just don't want to be here at all."

"That's not true," Cassiopeia argued. "I am grateful to be here."

"Don't lie. You'd rather be with Sirius," Tonks said.

"I want to be with him, yes," Cassiopeia admitted. "But I like being with you. I'd be dead by now if it weren't for you."

"Well then, do as I say and go to sleep," Tonks said.

"Alright," Cassiopeia sighed.

"I'll be back," Tonks said.

Finally, Cassiopeia lay down and began to doze off. Remus and Tonks were praying that for once, she slept soundly this time. Once Cassiopeia was asleep, Remus and Tonks headed out to the hallway to Remus's office. Tonks was very suspicious of Remus. She did not know this man, but she felt that she did. She was curious as to how he knew her.

"How did you know all that stuff about me?" Tonks asked suspiciously, "I've never met you before that other day, but you know a lot of events in my past."

"Cassie told me," Remus said quickly.

"Why don't I believe you?" Tonks questioned dubiously.

"She did," Remus said, "You left the room."

"No, it's something in your eyes. It tells me you're lying," Tonks said.

Tonks then walked forward, stopping directly in front of Remus. Remus accidentally collided into Tonks, sending her to the floor.

"Sorry," Remus said, his scarred face turning red. "How's Cassie? Is she asleep?"

"Probably by now, yeah," Tonks replied, getting to her feet. "Don't change the subject. You knew me when I was little, didn't you? And don't lie to me."

Tonks pulled out her wand, pointing it between Remus's eyes. "Just who exactly are you?"

"No need for a wand," Remus said calmly. "I did know you. I was best friends with Sirius, Cassie, and your mum and dad."

"Then why can't I remember you?" Tonks asked. "OWW!"

Tonks clutched her arm from a sudden pain.

"I don't know why you can't remember," Remus said. "What's wrong with your arm?"

"It's nothing," Tonks said dismissively.

Tonks pulled up her sleeve, revealing an X-shaped cut. The cut looked fresh and bloody. "It's just a cut that never healed from a werewolf attack when I was eleven."

"That's a mate mark," Remus said.

"What? I don't understand," Tonks said, perplexed.

"When a werewolf finds a mate, they mark them. A werewolf can kill its mate, but the mate can't kill it," Remus explained. "Who marked you?"

"You mean like a friend mark because my friend Aaron gave me one of those on my shoulder," Tonks said, revealing her shoulder.

"No, a mate mark as in love," Remus corrected her. "That is a friend mark."

"I don't even know who marked me. I guess the werewolf who attacked me when I was eleven," Tonks said. "Is that bad?"

"Depends on the werewolf," Remus shrugged.

"I wouldn't know… OWW!" Tonks shrieked.

"You should get that wrapped up," Remus suggested. "I'll stay with Cassie."

"It's fine," Tonks said. "It usually only hurts when I'm in danger."

"Why don't I go watch her anyway?" Remus asked.

"Cause you need sleep," Tonks replied flatly.

"She sounds like she's wearing you out," Remus said in concern.

"Only a little," Tonks said.

"Don't lie. You sound tired," Remus said.

"Look, I'm fin-"

Tonks didn't finish her sentence. Incredibly exhausted, she nearly fell into Remus's arms.

"You go sleep because you can," Remus said out of compassion, "I'll watch Cassie."

"No, it's a full moon tomorrow. You need all the sleep you can get," Tonks argued.

"I insist. You've been watching her all the time," Remus said.

Tonks nodded and started to walk away. Suddenly, as she was barely two steps away, Tonks fell over in pain, holding her arm. "REMUS!"

"What?" Remus asked.

"Is it supposed to hurt this much?" Tonks asked in pain.

"No. Go see Poppy," Remus told her.

"You're a werewolf. Can't you do anything?" Tonks wanted to know.

"There's nothing I can do," Remus said, shaking his head. "Go see Poppy."

Tonks sat up and sighed. "Okay, I have a confession to make. I'm terrified of hospitals."

Remus rolled his eyes. "Just go see Poppy. You sound like Cassie."

"No, I'm serious. The only way anyone has been able to get me into a hospital was if I wasn't awake for it. I was a candy striper but only for about 4 months before I quit because the job only increased my fear every time I went there," Tonks explained.

"I'll go with you, but I'm going to watch Cassie. You need a break," Remus said, concern in his voice.

"Unless you plan on knocking me out, you won't get me near the hospital wing," Tonks said stubbornly. "My arm should be fine, honest."

Tonks's words were empty, as she was screaming again.

"Alright, but I insist on staying with Cassie," Remus said firmly.

Remus and Tonks hurried back to her office. Cassiopeia was still asleep when they entered. Tonks went to her bed while Remus took his turn watching Cassiopeia. Remus thought about the trouble he had put Tonks through with her marks. He felt so guilty knowing he had caused her so much pain. Nearly half an hour later, Tonks was at Remus's side, and her arm was bloody again.

"Remus, we might have a problem," she said gravely.

"What?" Remus asked in shock.

"Are you blind?" Tonks demanded. "I think my arm got worse."

"Go get that wrapped up now!" Remus said instantly.

"Yeah, that's going to look nice. Me walking around with my arm practically drenched in blood," Tonks sneered.

"Go see Poppy now!" Remus said urgently.

"Are you deaf, too?" Tonks asked in jest. "It's going to look bad with me walking around with my arm like this. Why can't you just do it?"

Remus sighed, knowing Tonks was right. "Alright, give me something. Cloth, anything."

"It's in the top drawer," Tonks said.

"Alright," Remus said.

Remus opened the drawer and found some linen bandages. He gingerly tied them around Tonks's arm.

"Cassie's fine. She slept," Remus reassured Tonks.

"Good," Tonks said in relief. "I don't get it. It only does that when…never mind."

Tonks looked away from Remus, her face going as red as her angry hair.

"SIRIUS!" Cassiopeia shouted.

"Now you see what I have to deal with?" Tonks asked in annoyance.

"May I say, she's pregnant. She can't help it," Remus said in compassion.

"You would be saying the same if you heard her scream Sirius in your sleep," Tonks said pointedly.

"Maybe," Remus said pensively. "But try to give her some pardon."

"Yeah," Tonks said, her tone unreadable.

Tonks tapped Cassiopeia on the shoulder. "Aunt Cassie, do you want me to sleep next to you?"

"Thank you, Nymphie. I'd like that," Cassiopeia said gratefully.

"Okay," Tonks said, lying down next to Cassiopeia. "You mind watching over both of us, Remus?"

"Not at all," Remus said graciously. "Besides, Sirius will kill me if I don't protect his cousin, his wife, and his unborn baby."

Tonks laughed lightly. "Thanks."

With that, Tonks and Cassiopeia fell asleep side by side. Remus watched over them. As he watched them sleep, Remus thought. He hoped Cassiopeia and her baby would be reunited with Sirius. He thought about Tonks and her mate mark. He only hoped she would forgive him for what he'd done. Most importantly, he hoped he could forgive himself.

A/N: Once again, thank you to my lovely readers. I don't know where this story would be without you. Thank you to my buddy Roza Anne. Keep reading, reviewing, and enjoying!