My full time job has been psychotic, I'm sorry for lack of updates!

Out of the shadows

The morning is breaking

And all is new

The plastic chair was uncomfortable but it was a mild annoyance compared to the ache and burning in her arm. It was unbearably itchy beneath the thick bandages, but none of this mattered to Tonks. She could handle a scratch.

All that mattered was that she was sitting on a hard plastic chair in St Mungo's because Remus was with Healers in the room behind her.

With the rise in attacks and werewolf victims starting in 1995, St Mungo's had dedicated an entirely new floor to the care of the victims and other werewolves. Tonks wasn't sure the ward cared for many werewolves when the Ministry was under Voldemort's control, as any newly infected would have been pressured to join his ranks, but now the ward was focused on helping attack victims and newly infected werewolves.

She knew this was where the Werewolf Services Office would be most helpful- providing resources to newly infected werewolves would be detrimental to ensuring attacks became less frequent. If they had help, they may not join packs like Greyback's.

She had briefly spoken to the Head Healer of the floor, who had studied werewolves a lot in his youth before becoming a Healer. He had been the first to volunteer to work on this floor and became Head Healer of the floor quickly, and Tonks was relieved when they met and he came across as sympathetic to werewolves. Her biggest worry had been that someone who held prejudice against werewolves would be in charge.

She hadn't had a choice, though, but to bring Remus in.

Facing Petra and realising what the plan was, Dora had had to make a quick decision. She couldn't leave Remus. Something had been wrong with his eyes, she was able to see it when she approached.

She had been able to flee the five werewolves when they started to transform, but Petra had been a step ahead of her and placed an Anti-Apparition charm, forcing her to flee on foot.

She had circled back, aware of the risk, but she didn't want to lose Remus again. It had been pure luck that the first werewolf she came across was Remus himself. Whatever ailed his eyes gave her an advantage, but she still needed three curses to bring down the massive wolf, the third one knocking him away from her just after his claws caught her in the arm. She dreaded to know how he would react when he realised he had injured her.

Howls filled the air around her as she approached the unconscious form, the scent of her blood likely alerting all of them to her location.

She had seen Remus transformed only once before, but the colour of his wolf's fur was similar to his hair colour and his muzzle showed signs of grey. The fact this werewolf seemed to be unable to see her, but was hunting with its muzzle towards the ground as if smelling for its intended victim, she was certain this was Remus.

Luckily, she had found the edge of Petra's Anti-Apparition charm.

Roofie had been beside himself when she dragged the massive form across the boundaries, but eventually helped her move Remus down to the secured cellar to wait out the night.

The next morning, Remus did not regain consciousness and Dora was worried her curses had been too much for the already frail man.

And now she was waiting to hear if he had survived. Roofie had taken Teddy to Andromeda for her, saying he would tell Andromeda she had been called to work for an emergency.

Tonks appreciated that, because she wasn't sure she could tell anyone Remus was here, only for him to die. She wanted answers first.

Especially for Harry.

She knew, of all people, Harry should be told. He deserved the chance to be here, even if Remus was dying, to say goodbye properly.

The door opened behind her and she jumped to her feet, facing the Head Healer. Healer Davis gave her a small smile.

"He is very weak, but he should survive." Healer Davis said. "His eyes do not respond to outside stimuli as they should, I believe his vision has been impaired somehow, but I could not find a physical cause. He will need to remain here until I am confident he is strong enough to survive another transformation."

"Has he woken?"

"Not yet, but I am confident he will. I don't know what another transformation will do, as it is clear his condition has been worsening over time and your curses are the least of the concern. We'll be giving him strengthening draughts until we are comfortable with his condition."

"Can I go in?"

Healer Davis nodded, opening the door again and leading her into the dimly lit room. "We believe keeping the room darker is best until we know just how bad the condition of his eyes are." Healer Davis explained. "I'll leave you with him, and if he wakes, you can send for me with the mediwitch in the hall. She'll find me."

Tonks nodded. "Thank you."

Healer Davis gave her a nod and left. Tonks approached the bed, sinking onto the edge of the bed. His hand was bony and cold in hers. This was the thinnest she had ever seen him, even after he spent all of those months underground with the werewolves, though she knew he had sneaked away from the pack multiple times throughout that year.

He was bruised, beaten and barely resembled the man he had been when she last saw him before the battle.

But he was here, alive. Tears burned her eyes and she never wanted to leave him. She was afraid that if she did, he'd disappear again.

Tonks reached one hand towards his cheek, cupping his face in her hand, brushing her thumb over the thick stubble. She leaned forward, pressing a kiss to his chapped lips. "Healer Davis says you should make it, please don't make him a liar." She whispered, leaning her forehead on his. "We need you, Remus, we all need you. Teddy is getting so big, you'd be so amazed by him. And Harry needs you. No one else can help him and I think he doesn't want to say anything, but he's struggling. He needs you so badly, Remus."

She straightened up, tears hitting her cheeks. "And I need you. You wouldn't believe what happened the night you disappeared and I feel terrible for it, Remus, but we're here now. We made it out of the war and now we're supposed to grow old together."

There was a knock on the door and she stood as it opened, wiping tears from her cheeks. Proudfoot and Savage entered, looking apologetic. "Tonks, we need to talk with you." Savage said.

"Right now? It can't wait?" She asked.

The two Aurors exchanged looks. Savage closed the door behind them, muttering a spell. "We can do it here, that's alright, but it is very important."

She didn't like the way they were standing or the looks on their faces. It was all too official.

"Alright, then, what do you need?"

Savage pulled a folder out of his robes. "We were able to arrest three werewolves at the location you gave to us." He said. "When we were questioning them, they said they were working on Fenrir Greyback's orders."

"Fenrir Greyback is dead, they are working for his mate now."

"They have a different story." Savage said, looking uncomfortable. "They say Remus has taken on Greyback's role."

"Look at him! He is in no condition to do anything, let alone take charge of a pack of werewolves!"

"We can see that, but if they mention any of what they told us to the Werewolf Capture Unit, you and Remus could be in big trouble." Proudfoot said. "Were you aware that werewolves could be born?"

"Greyback was never bitten." Savage said, when she frowned. "His mother was a werewolf, his father a muggle. Needless to say, the conception wasn't on a full moon, so a litter of proper wolves weren't born-"

"I was under the impression they couldn't be born, unless it was a full moon." Tonks said, but the idea of it frightened her- what if she and Remus had more children? "What does this have to do with anything?"

"We were told that the pack is interested in born werewolves, particularly if they can control themselves." Proudfoot said.

"I'm not understanding, lycanthropy can not be controlled-"

"I don't think the pack believes that. You and your son's abilities have been mentioned at great length, our prisoners have said. If they intend to insist Remus is the current alpha, the mention of you and your son's abilities is quite concerning."

"It wouldn't matter, would it? We are not born werewolves." Tonks said. "And neither of us can turn into animals of any form at will, I imagine lycanthropy wouldn't change that."

"Has Remus ever talked to you about the pack?" Savage asked.

"No, he never wanted to." Tonks said. "He always said he was ashamed of them and of living among them."

"We will need to question Remus when he wakes up. I'm sure you understand." Proudfoot said.

"I do, but he's not the alpha-"

"I understand why you would think that, Tonks." Savage said. "However, we have werewolves saying otherwise."

"I understand that, but this is Remus we're talking about." Tonks said. "He's been fighting against Greyback's allies, why would he take over for Greyback? I am telling you and he'll tell you the same thing, Greyback has a mate. She is in charge of his pack now."

"Speaking as a friend and not an Auror, Tonks, it is a little concerning." Savage said. "He's been missing for months and the first contact you get leads you right into the hands of five werewolves on the night of a full moon. We have werewolves claiming he is the new alpha and that he's brought up your abilities a few times. It sounds to me as if he is perhaps planning to-"

"Shut up, Jack, it is not Remus behind all of this!" Tonks snapped.

Proudfoot stepped forward, raising one of his hands towards Savage slightly. "This is a rather sensitive subject, Jack. Tonks knows her husband better than the Ministry will, and she was face to face with the pack last night. All we can hope is that we will find out the truth." He said. "For now, Tonks, give your regards to Remus when he wakes and let him know we will need to speak with him. And stay safe, if the werewolves are interested in you and Teddy, it's still not safe for you."

Tonks nodded. Savage looked like he wanted to say something, but decided against it, turning and opening the door. Proudfoot looked apologetic, giving her a quick nod before following Savage.

Tonks had never thought about what Petra would do now. She didn't think about how Petra had promised to ensure the public thought Remus was in charge of Greyback's pack and now...

Petra had been right about one thing, that the Order would rally around their own as needed, and it would be needed now. Kingsley would be his biggest advocate, she knew. Remus and Kingsley had grown quite a bit closer over the last couple of years and Kingsley knew things about Remus that even Tonks didn't. She knew they had encountered each other during some "Auror business" once or twice after the first war but neither man had told her more than that.

She would have to write to Kingsley and to anyone else she could think of who would stand by Remus' side and help them convince the Ministry that he wasn't a pack alpha. He so famously abhorred werewolf life but anyone who didn't know him personally might not believe it, as most witches and wizards still did not trust werewolves.

It had hurt to know that Savage, despite being so friendly, clearly still had misgivings about werewolves. She supposed that wasn't unusual. Tonks herself had also held her own prejudices until she met Remus and realised not all of them were the big scary monsters whispered about by witches and wizards. Remus hardly fit into the stereotypes of the beasts described by the girls she shared a dorm with in Hufflepuff. He certainly didn't fit any of the descriptions of the killers that the Auror department and, previously, the WCU had hunted down.

It would be a fight, but she was sure there would be a lot of people who would stand up for Remus.

Especially Harry.

She pulled out her wand, focusing as hard as she could. It took a few tries before her patronus form, but Remus' survival after all these months helped.

Her patronus disappeared after a moment, off to summon Harry, and she headed to the reception area to wait for him.

Barely fifteen minutes later, Harry was stepping through the entrance.

There was something different about Harry as he rushed towards her- something more relieved, slightly less tense than the high strung boy she had been working with. "Is he alright?" Harry asked before she could speak.

"He should be." She said, gesturing for Harry to follow her. "He's not awake but hopefully he wakes soon..."

"What happened? Where has he been?"

"I don't know the details but he was with a pack." She said. She didn't really want to elaborate much more but she knew Harry would want to know and if they were to ask Harry to speak on Remus' behalf, he deserved to know too.

"A pack? He was with werewolves again? Why?" Harry asked.

"I don't know." Tonks said, turning to him. "I want to ask him when he wakes up but he's... you might be asked some questions, Harry. There's an investigation and some people are claiming Remus has taken over Greyback's pack."

Harry stared at her. "That's ridiculous."

"I have a feeling things are going to get more ridiculous, especially if the attacks continue. The Werewolf Capture Unit is going to be reinstated and from what I've always understood, they don't care what a werewolf has or hasn't done. They'll hunt them down regardless."

"Then, the war hasn't changed anything for werewolves. It doesn't sound like things have changed for many people at all." Harry said. His tone was filled with disappointment.

Tonks shook her head. "Not yet, Harry, but we're still trying. Things weren't perfect for a couple of years last time, it's going to take time."

"But after everything... does the Ministry really believe Remus would take over for Greyback?"

"Depends on who you ask, but that's why you are important, Harry. You and the kids he taught during his year at Hogwarts. Order members, the Weasleys... Remus has so many people who can speak up for him and that's what werewolves need right now. If no one defends Remus, no one will defend other werewolves either and then things will never change."

Harry nodded. His eyes flickered to her arm. "Is that from-"

"It's just a scratch." Tonks said quickly. "It was Remus, but if he doesn't remember doing it, I'm not going to tell him he did it. He'll never forgive himself."

Harry nodded again and she continued walking, leading Harry back to Remus' room. "His room is dark, Healer Davis noticed some damage to his eyes. I noticed something strange yesterday when I saw him, but we don't know what's happened yet." She said, opening the door and gesturing Harry through. "If he wakes up, Healer Davis doesn't want the lights bothering his eyes."

"Was it a curse?"

"No idea, hopefully Remus knows so the Healers can reverse whatever it is." Tonks said.

Harry stared at Remus for a minute before speaking again. "I thought he was dead, that we would just never have his body back." Harry said finally and then he paused again. "I didn't want to tell anyone, but I didn't just see my parents and Sirius. Remus was there too and the way he spoke... I thought he had died too, especially when Angelina said..."

Tonks didn't know what to say. Harry had briefly told Kingsley, the Weasleys and her what he had experienced that night, but he had never mentioned Remus.

"What did he say to you?" Tonks asked.

"He was sorry, that he wouldn't get to see Teddy grow up." Harry said, sinking into a chair. "He didn't mention you so I thought he didn't know about you yet but then you woke up and I figured that was why he hadn't mentioned you."

"Why didn't you tell me?"

"I didn't- I don't know. You believed he was alive and I didn't want to believe he wasn't." Harry said.

Tonks was quiet for a moment. "Why did you see Remus with the stone, anyway? I thought..." She looked towards Remus. "There has to be an explanation."

"What if there's not?"

"There has to be. Things don't just happen, there has to be an answer. I just hope Remus has the answers we need."

For two weeks, Tonks returned to Remus before and after work. Harry visited often, as did many Order members. She got more worried as more time passed without any improvement in his condition. Stunning spells had killed people before, when used on people who were frail or ill. The idea that Remus may never wake up terrified her.

After everything they had been through, she couldn't stand the idea of losing him now.

By the third week, he had already begun to look more like the Remus she knew. He had been given potions constantly and had gained a small amount of weight, no longer looking skeletal. His obvious injuries healed, but Healer Davis said his eyes showed no improvement.

One night, shortly after she and Harry arrived, Remus shifted, his eyes opening. His eyes darted around the room, but Tonks wasn't sure if he was actually seeing anything.

"Remus?"

His voice was weak when he spoke. "Tonks? Is everyone okay?"

The use of her maiden name took her by surprise, as he hadn't called her Tonks since before they got married. After they first met, he had slowly switched to using her first name, even when she scolded him and then she became 'Dora' to him. He rarely called her Tonks.

"We're all fine, but the Ministry has questions-"

"Bill, too? Did he get help?"

Tonks and Harry exchanged looks. "What do you mean?" Harry asked.

"Harry? Are we still in the Hogwarts infirmary?

"Harry, can you go and get Healer Davis?" Tonks asked. Harry nodded and left quickly. "Remus, you're in St Mungo's. You haven't been at Hogwarts for nearly six months, since the battle."

"Six months? Why did you let Harry leave? He shouldn't be unprotected-"

"What exactly do you remember last?"

"We were called to Hogwarts, Death Eaters got in somehow- Albus is dead and Bill got attacked, but I don't know what happened to me-"

"Albus died a year and a half ago, Remus."

Even when the dark comes crashin' through

When you need someone to carry you

When you're broken on the ground

You will be found