There were mutters through the few spectators, and all members of the Wizengamot suddenly looked more interested until Kingsley raised his hand. "Appleson, proceed." Kingsley said when everyone quieted. A few Wizengamot members leaned forward to Marchbanks, whispering something to her.

Appleson looked unsure of how to proceed. He cleared his throat. "Mr Lupin, what do you mean by making such a claim?"

"It is not a claim." Remus said. "I was one of the werewolves arrested when they raided Fenrir Greyback's pack. I believe whoever published that article would have the list of known arrestees, I will be on it."

"I assure you, you must be mistaken-"

"I am not."

"There never was a Brutum, it is all a fabrication, possibly orchestrated by werewolf radicals who want to-"

"Minister, we have changed our minds. We would like to take a moment to discuss this and everything we've heard so far." Marchbanks said, standing slowly. "Minister, Appleson, if you would join us."

Kingsley nodded. "Of course, Madam Marchbanks. We can gather in the next courtroom."

As soon as the Wizengamot left with Appleson and Kingsley, Tonks was on her feet and heading for Remus. She heard her mother call for her, but ignored her. Harry was already talking to the Weasleys, who had moved to sit with him.

"What are you doing?" She hissed.

"Dora?"

"I thought you didn't want people knowing you were there." Tonks said, kneeling in front of him.

"Someone already decided to make the entire thing public, the Ministry will keep denying it-"

"So you're outing yourself as a prisoner?" She asked. "Why?"

"I've thought about it a lot." Remus said. "With how the trial was pushed forward, ahead of the trials of so many Death Eaters-"

"Wait, it was?" Tonks asked. "Dawlish never told me that-"

"He told me, when he came to let me know it was happening." Remus said. "He said the capture unit pushed so hard for the trial that the Wizengamot allowed it to be pushed ahead of the rest."

"Why wouldn't he tell me that? He told me about the trial-"

"I asked him not to even let you come." Remus said. "He didn't listen, obviously."

"Why wouldn't you want me here?"

Remus sighed. "Not just you. Harry, too." Remus said. "You divorced me, Dora, forgive me for thinking it was a bad idea to involve you in this-"

"Remus..."

"Dora, I understand why you requested the divorce, and I'm sorry I ever put you in this position." Remus said. "I've thought of you and Teddy nearly every day since you left. I know moving Harry away from London was for his safety from the Death Eaters, but it's probably also best he's been kept away from me too. I knew the things Appleson would ask about, he didn't end up asking everything I assumed he might, but I think he knew you and Harry weren't playing his game."

"Why would we?" She asked. "Everything you've done has been, you believe, for the best for others. Never for yourself. Everything we said was true, why would we have said anything to support Appleson's bullshit?"

Remus chuckled quietly. "That's why he tried to upset you so much, with the accusations of me keeping you hostage."

"Hostage." She scoffed. "How did he find out about our arrangement for hiding, anyway?"

"Your mother, I believe. She told me a lot of it, I told him and I guess he got the rest of the details from Andromeda when he spoke to her." Remus said. "Everything I told him was from you, Harry or Andromeda. I wish I could remember, I want to know my side of all of it."

"Maybe you'll remember one day." Tonks said. "What made you change your mind, why do you want people to know?"

Remus sighed. "Because I'm afraid that this is the start of it happening again. During my stay at St Mungo's, I've overheard the Healers and mediwitches talking. Werewolves are being arrested out of the hospital. They come for help and end up the capture unit's custody." He finally said. "And now I know you were right, the public should know. Whether or not they'll support it, they should know. Are you even allowed to be talking to me right now?"

"Probably not." She admitted, looking around the courtroom for a second. Her mother and Roofie were now talking with Harry, Healer Davis and Molly. Arthur, Bill and Ron were talking to Percy. "No one is here to stop me, though."

"Why did you say your middle name was stupid?" Remus asked suddenly and she turned back to face him.

"What?" She asked.

"Appleson- he said your middle name and I remembered that I did ask you about it once. You wouldn't tell me, you said it was stupid."

"Remus... I told you that when we were already married. How did you remember that?"

"I don't know, I just did. It came to me when he said it."

Tonks grabbed his hand. "Your memories can't be gone forever, then. You just need to trigger them, somehow." She said. "And then maybe they can be used to show that you didn't go with Petra willingly-"

"What if I did?" He asked. "Dora, we don't know-"

"I happen to know how disorienting that day was. There is no way you woke up and walked off unless someone was forcing you." She said. "Angelina Johnson saw you get hit, you hit the ground pretty hard. The force of the spell combined with how you must have been thrown, there's no way you walked anywhere, I'm sure of it. Maybe it's a head injury that's caused this lapse in your memories-"

"Healers have healed anything they could find, Dora."

"But you remembered that thing with my middle name."

"Dora, I don't think it matters anymore. If the Ministry gets their way today,-"

"They need a scapegoat to look good to the public and the Wizengamot, Remus. We're going to keep fighting this."

"So, you don't believe Petra after all?" He asked, frowning.

"I don't know." She said. "Should I?"

"That's a choice you have to make yourself." He said. "I can't tell you what to believe."

"No, but you can tell me everything. Be an open book for once." She took his hand. "What's the murder they've added on to your charges? I know it's likely just some false story, but please... for once, be open with me. I want to help you."

Remus was quiet for a moment. "I met him in Brutum, I didn't know him before then."

Her heart skipped a beat. "The man they accused you-"

"Of killing, yes."

"Why?" It was all she could ask. She didn't really want to know, but knew she needed to understand. "Why would they accuse you-?"

"I was involved with his death. He was older, had just been bitten. He had never transformed before. He was already thirty nine. Werewolves usually try to infect younger victims, they can handle transformations as they age. Biting someone older is risky. They don't always survive the initial bite or the first transformation, neither do kids under a certain age. Over five, under twenty are the safest ages. That's what Greyback always said, anyway."

"And?"

"He was weak because of his symptoms, he was in pain and he begged me." Remus said. "I thought about it all night, how I had suffered, but could not remember all of my earliest moons- which are said to be the worst- and how they changed as I did when I was getting older."

"Changed as you aged?"

"Yes, as I grew up, so did my transformed state. It allows our bodies to get more used to it. That doesn't happen for people infected as adults. It's more traumatizing." Remus said. "I guess... I justified it by saying that he may have died during the transformation anyway."

It was quiet for a moment as she tried to understand everything he had just said. "How?" She finally asked. "How were you involved?"

"I didn't lay a hand on him, but that's not what the capture unit is saying." Remus said. "He was desperate, he hung himself using the fence."

"Remus, that's suicide. You watched a man commit suicide, that's not murder."

"I could have helped him, talked him out of it-"

"Remus... no. You couldn't have. Some people can't be helped."

"I should have tried."

"You're not a murderer, Remus. You watched a struggling and desperate man commit suicide." Tonks said. "That's not murder."

"The Wizengamot may not see it that way. They want to convict werewolves, they will change the narrative to do so, and I did nothing to stop Dominic."

"Dominic? Dominic Wiggleswade?"

"Yes, how did you know?" Remus asked, worry flashing over his features. "Has it been mentioned anywhere-?"

"I spoke to his father. He said you'd know Dominic."

"He has asked me to speak out about Brutum before." Remus said. "Dempster is a saint of a man who has never regarded what I did as murder."

"Because it's not. How did he know?"

"He contacted me when he began looking into Brutum, I suppose I was the only werewolf he could find. It was actually while I was teaching at Hogwarts that he finally found me." Remus said. "We met, and he mentioned his son. I thought he already knew, or suspected. I told him everything."

"And?"

"He thanked me. He said he knew his son wouldn't have wanted to live a life of such torture, that he knew what I knew- he likely could have died during transformation. He thanked me for not letting his son die alone. He asked if I'd speak out about Brutum, but I said I couldn't."

"And now you are."

"The world will still consider me a murderer, I am sure of it. Dempster may have forgiven me, but I have never forgiven myself. I just don't know how the capture unit knows. They're going to make it look like I sought Dominic out to kill him."

"But you didn't-"

"And what proof would there be that I did not?"

Tonks was quiet for a moment. "Your memories-"

"Can be altered and are unreliable."

"Is this why you've mentioned Brutum now?" She asked.

"I figure, if Appleson is going to mention Dominic, Dempster deserves the truth about his son to be known. They all do, whether or not they were terrible people."

"You seem sure about this." Tonks said. "Are you?"

"I think so. The Order is about fighting injustices, something has to be done for the innocent werewolves-"

"Remus, that's it! That's why Appleson targeted you- the Order is a threat to his department. He is the one fabricating all of this, he knows people trust you and the Order-"

"It doesn't matter. A lot of what he's said about werewolf behaviour isn't false." Remus said. "There will never be enough people who trust werewolves enough to make a difference."

"You don't know that."

Remus laughed bitterly, pulling his hand away from her finally. "You truly are naive, Dora. The amount of faith you have in people is astounding." He said. "It's one of the things I love most about you, but it is a dangerous trait to have."

"I told Harry something almost identical a few weeks ago." She said quietly.

"Neither of you saw what the end of the last war did." Remus said. "It is only natural you'd both expect things to be different than they are."

The door opened and Marchbanks entered with Kingsley. "The Wizengamot would like to meet with Remus alone." Marchbanks said. Tonks straightened up.

"There needs to be a witness present at any trial." Tonks argued.

"They are insisting." Kingsley said. "They said it is not a continuation of the trial, they just have some questions for him before we resume."

"I don't like that." Tonks said.

"It's alright, I'm fine with that." Remus said. "If it helps."

Tonks grabbed his hand. "Are you sure? It could be some kind of trick-"

Remus squeezed her hand. "It's alright." He said, standing. A mediwitch hurried over and helped him follow Marchbanks.

"What do you think will happen?" Tonks asked Kingsley.

"They don't want Brutum exposed." Kingsley said to her. "The Wizengamot does not remember it, any of their members who may have been involved must have been Obliviated, but they do want to know. They just don't want the public to know the extent."

"So what are they asking Remus, then?"

"I don't know." Kingsley said. "Are you alright?"

"I guess I just thought that things would be different with an Order member as Minister."

"They will be, I have some things in the works."

"I have a hard time believing that." She said. "It's not- it's nothing against you, Kings. I just hate this feeling... that the Order is still fighting."

Kingsley nodded. "In a sense, we are." He said. "We didn't get control of the Ministry last time, this is new territory, but we will fix things."

"I hope so." Tonks said. "It doesn't feel very promising."

It was hours later that the doors opened again and the mediwitch helped Remus back in, followed by the Wizengamot and Appleson. Appleson looked furious, but wiped the annoyance from his face when he realised everyone was staring at him.

"We will be continuing the trial, but any questions about Brutum will be barred from today's proceedings, pending a full investigation." Marchbanks said once everyone had taken their seats again. Tonks wanted to go back to Remus to ask what had happened, but knew she'd have to wait to find out. He looked a little less tense than before, while Appleson looked like the vein in his temple may explode. She really wanted to know what had happened. "It has been decided to dismiss the murder charge, due to the circumstances surrounding Dominic Wiggleswade's demise being unsuspicious. Appleson, you may proceed."

"Oh, thank God." Harry muttered.

"He could still be sent for life." She whispered. "But it does sound promising."

Appleson was facing Remus again. "When did you first meet Auror Tonks?"

"I believe it was the end of June of 1995, but I don't know the exact date."

"What were the circumstances?"

"She was brought to an Order meeting by Alastor Moody." Remus said.

"What were your first impressions?"

"Uh, not much at first, I thought she was charming. We didn't really speak until a few meetings later. She was gone pretty quick after the first one, I believe she had to work, since she left with Kingsley."

"Is that when you marked her as a mate?"

"That is not how it works." Remus said. "Even today, she has never been marked by me. A werewolf has to bite his mate to mark them. While it would mean she was next to untouchable by other werewolves, it would not stop one of them from killing her if they chose. Many werewolves will mark their mates, to make sure everyone knows that person is untouchable. I have never done this to Dora, and never planned to."

"When did you become interested in her?"

"I don't know for certain. At first, we just saw each other at meetings. And then she'd come by for visits between meetings, if she was off of work early enough. She liked visiting her cousin, but he had taken to drinking and was often not good company. We began to talk, she was frustrated by her work some days, I had my own problems. Talking to her was easy."

"And that's all it was? Talking?"

Remus was quiet for a moment. "Yes." He said and Tonks felt relieved. She had been dreading that kind of question, but she knew Remus was a private person. He was unlikely to tell anyone they had started sleeping together only a few months after meeting, because it was no one's business.

"And when did 'just talking' become marriage?"

"I am not sure when exactly the transition began." Remus said. "One day I asked her to dinner, just us, away from the Order, and she said yes. And we started spending time together a lot, just us two. I suppose it grew from there."

"Grew into what?"

"Obviously murderous intentions." Harry muttered under his breath and Tonks had to stifle a laugh at the unexpected remark.

"Love, I suppose." Remus said, though he sounded a bit annoyed. "I realised I had true feelings for her when she returned from a mission. I hadn't seen her in two weeks and I missed her terribly. She came to the house, she had a black eye and looked so tired and was griping about needing a shower- she had just spent days wandering the countryside with Kingsley following leads, I gathered- and yet, when she saw me, she gave me the most brilliant smile. I can still see it now, her hair changed to a nauseatingly bright pink, and I realised then... I returned her feelings."

"She had already admitted to you that she had feelings for you?"

"She had told me before she left that she had feelings for me."

"She approached you first."

"In a sense, yes."

"This was before you joined the werewolves again, correct?"

"Yes."

"And you already knew she was a Metamorphmagus?"

"Everyone did, yes. We had to verify each other's identities and that was the easiest way with her."

"Did you ever research Metamorphmagi?"

Remus frowned. "I never thought to."

"At the time, what did you know about them?"

Remus was quiet for a moment. "I suppose, what everyone else knew. She could change different aspects of her appearance at will."

"Is that still the extent of your knowledge?" Appleson asked.

"I- no, I guess it isn't." Remus said. "I had vague understanding when we first met, and then I slowly learned more as we spent time together. I know that she can become completely new people, voice and all, whenever she sees fit. I know it takes energy and the full changes can't be indefinite, but tiny things could be kept permanently without her having to constantly keep focus on it."

"What about animalistic changes?"

"I'm not sure I understand."

"If she could so completely change herself, would that extend to animalistic forms?"

"I never asked, that is something she would have to answer." Remus said.

Tonks frowned. She wondered why Appleson was asking Remus about this and hadn't asked her. Appleson gave a small nod before continuing. "Mr Lupin, you were approached a couple of months ago with divorce papers. You signed them with no objection and agreed full custody of your son would go to Auror Tonks. Why is that?"

"I- uh, I didn't want to, but I wasn't going to refuse. If that's what Dora wanted, I know Teddy is better off with her. She can provide a more stable life than I can."

"There were concerns raised from statements made by werewolves recently brought into the custody of the Ministry. Do you know what they were, Mr Lupin?"

"Yes."

Appleson pulled a new file from his robes, opening it. "Multiple werewolves have stated that there has been interest in Auror Tonks and young Teddy Lupin, due to their abilities to control their appearances-"

"Unsubstantiated." Kingsley said. "I read those statements and they are all from these werewolves overhearing someone else. It sounds like a mere rumour."

"Forgive me, Minister, but where would the werewolves have gotten the identities of Auror Tonks and young Teddy Lupin, if not someone who knew them personally? Auror Tonks, one could argue, would be more known as an Auror- but how would they know that Mr Lupin had a son?"

"The Lupins were attacked very shortly before Teddy's birth." Kingsley said. "The Death Eaters who did so would have been able to relay the information back to the others, and likely would have done so because Auror Tonks was being hunted by Bellatrix Lestrange. Fenrir Greyback could have overheard it. As for Teddy's actual identity, his name was never mentioned by the werewolves, not until a threat was sent to Auror Lupin directly, after Mr Lupin was already in St Mungo's. Teddy's name could have been heard at the hospital by anyone."

"My main concern, Minister, is the statements all say the same thing-"

"Yes, we are aware of the statements." Kingsley said. "There is no proof a Metamorphmagi would be able to control their transformations to become weapons for the pack to use. This was a similar discussion the Order when Auror Lupin first joined us, that while we had to be careful of who she encountered because there was signifance interest from the Death Eaters to recruit her, there is still one thing everyone forgets: if a Metamorphmagi does not want to morph, they simply won't, rendering this desire to use them as weapons pointless."

"Whether or not they would want to is not my point, Minister-"

Kingsley slapped his hand down on the stand in front of him. "Auror Lupin, have you ever been able to transform into an animal, even a single feature?"

The Wizengamot turned to face her and Tonks shook her head. "No, I am unable to and there's never been one in history who could. It's why the Ministry took away the Beast classification in 1912 and the Being classification in 1927. They stopped tracking them after that, but hundreds of years of records show that it's never happened-"

"Hundreds of years of records with people the Ministry could not accurately track." Appleson said. "All it took was one simple change and a name change and the Ministry would lose track of a known Metamorphmagus."

"Appleson, we need to hear proof of the charges." Kingsley said.

"Actually, Minister, I believe we've heard enough." Marchbanks said and a few Wizengamot members nodded. "We will reconvene at noon tomorrow."