Darkness. Nothing but darkness. All around her, suffocating her. The darkness was choking her, strangling her, killing her. "I must be dying," thought Nymphadora Tonks. Everywhere she looked was the consuming darkness. There was no escape. But she wouldn't give up that easily. She wasn’t dead yet, was she? She could still get out of it. But there was nothing but darkness. Only darkness. But she had to get out of it. She had to find her husband and son. Darkness everywhere.
Wait; there in the distance was a light. Small, barely there, but there all the same. It was growing; slowly increasing in size. Coming closer. Causing the darkness to flee. Ever closer it came. Like a rescuer; a patronus to lead her out of the darkness. Soon it would be upon her. What would she do? They always said not to go into the light, but something told her that the light was better than the suffocating darkness. Closer, closer. She could reach out and touch it now. Closer, closer. Reaching, reaching. Her fingers touched the light, and the dark world around her exploded.
Light. Blinding light, and no darkness to be seen. Completely surrounded, not by the darkness, but by a colorful light that swirled like a thick mist. Tonks gazed all around her. She felt like she was underwater. Swimming in a lake of light. Swirls of different colors drifted around her. She saw a strand that was the same bright pink as her hair. She reached out to touch it and as her fingers brushed its surface the scene changed.
Now there were images floating along the walls of what seemed to be a shimmering dome. Tonks watched the pictures move and felt as though she was back at Hogwarts with all of its moving portraits and tapestries. A closer look showed her that the people and places in the images were familiar. She bit back a gasp as she saw her parents smiling out at her from one window. Her dad had been dead for five months, and seeing him staring at her was something of a shock. One window did show her Hogwarts, with herself participating in a Christmas party in the Hufflepuff common room.
There were more recent images too. She saw herself fighting Death Eaters along with other members of the Order, and speeding along on her broomstick with Ron Weasley disguised as Harry Potter. Tonks spun around and around admiring all of the windows. They all showed moments in her life. Some she remembered right away, and others seemed less important. It was her life, spread out before her like a Muggle movie. There she was changing her hair color on a whim, or creating impressive impersonations of the teachers behind their backs. People she loved, as well as a few she hated could be seen in all of the portraits. Tonks turned slowly around and saw him looking at her. His amber eyes searched hers and he reached out his hand to her. Tonks reached out to take his hand, and her hand broke the surface of the water like picture. She felt herself slide down into the depths.
Tonks floated down to solid ground. She looked frantically around for the man she had seen. She was in a dark alleyway, probably in London. She listened, but heard nothing. Then two figures walked out of the darkness. Tonks pulled out her wand to defend herself, but she had a suspicion that it wouldn't do any good here. They came down the alley towards her.
There he was; her best friend and true love, and for a year now, her husband. Remus Lupin walked quickly, his long stride leaving his companion far behind him. Tonks turned her attention to the woman following him, and she was surprised to see herself trailing after him. Tonks stared for a few moments at her doppelganger. It was really weird to see herself, her bright pink hair just the way she liked it. Where was she? And why were there two of her?
Out of curiosity, she reached out to take Remus's hand as he passed her. Her hand went right through his. Tonks decided to follow them, and try to remember what had happened. This was obviously something that had already happened. A memory. Her memory. Remus and the other Tonks were the only figures she could see, and they remained silent as they walked. They seemed to be following someone. Then the memory clicked. They were tracking someone. A Death Eater by the name of Avery. That's why she had seen Remus reaching out to her. This was an important memory in their relationship.
Now Tonks was really curious. She wondered what she would see that she had missed the first time. The memory figures followed the fleeting shadow ahead of them. They had slowed and were now side by side. Tonks stayed right behind them. There was a dead end alley ahead of them, and they would find a surprise waiting for them. But Tonks already knew what was coming. She knew how this story ended.
The three of them walked out into the alley, prepared to attack. But they were expecting one Death Eater, not five. Tonks watched as Remus and herself stood back to back in a defense position. They had not expected this, but they adapted quickly.
"Give up?" asked a masked man to Remus's right.
Remus answered for both of them. "Never."
Tonks felt chills go down her spine at his voice. Low and threatening; it said exactly what he felt. She saw the visible shiver on her double. She remembered that at this point she knew that she was falling for Remus, but was determined not to show him unless he felt the same way.
"Fine then," said the Death Eater. "More fun this way."
And then the curses started flying. Red and green splashes of light hit the walls around them and rocketed into the night. Worst-case scenario would be a London Muggle walking into the alley to investigate. Luckily, Tonks knew that wouldn't happen. Not tonight.
The memory Tonks and Remus fought back to back for most of the battle. Both dodged and deflected as one fighter. This was one of their many missions together, and each knew what to expect from the other. Tonks' double stepped forward to send a particularly nasty hex into the fray, and tripped right into a stunning curse.
Tonks grimaced as her doppelganger hit the ground. She hit her head, and Tonks knew that she had blacked out. This time she would watch, and see what happened. Remus stepped over his fallen partner, and shielded her with his body from the advancing Death Eaters. He sent countless spells into the mass of attackers and blocked many spells destined for Tonks with a shield charm. He even stepped in front of a few hexes when he could not prevent them from getting close.
All of this Tonks watched in amazement. She hadn't realized that most of his injuries from that fight were gained in her defense. Remus could have left when she fell instead of taking on five Death Eaters by himself. But he didn't. He stayed.
The Tonks on the ground stirred, but only Tonks noticed. The Death Eaters didn't see her as a threat. Remus had temporarily removed two of the attackers from the fight. Tonks's double, still lying on the ground, zapped two of the masked figures with a full body bind curse when she came to.
Tonks remembered the emotions that overrode her when she woke to find Remus protecting her from harm. As the Death Eaters Tonks had hit came crashing to the ground, Remus blasted the last one and sent him flying backwards into a brick wall. Tonks watched as he reached down to her double on the ground. That was what she had seen in the lighted dome.
"Are you all right?" Remus asked. Tonks saw the same thing she had seen in his eyes the first time. He cared. A great deal more than he let on.
Tonks's double nodded slowly. As long as he was with her, she would always be all right. It was then that she had realized how much she loved him, and had wondered if he felt something for her too.
The Death Eaters that had been stunned first were starting to stir. Remus had continued to hold her hand after he had helped her up. Now he and the memory Tonks glanced at the waking Death Eaters. With an unspoken understanding, they turned on the spot and disappeared. Tonks felt herself drifting up and out of the memory.
Out of the Darkness by phoenix_song197
Chapter Endnotes: More will be coming soon, please review and give me your thoughts!