“Things fall apart; the center cannot hold" RP for auror_aura

[true_marauder]

He ran as fast and far as he could, his flight ended when he tripped over something and landed on his side on the forest floor.  Not thinking about running meant thinking about other things, and he hadn't even managed to halfway sit up when the contents of his stomach unleashed themselves on the base of a tree.  Wave after wave of dry heaves

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[auror_aura]

Her sleep was always troubled, lately, but it was worse around the full moon. Tonks spent a lot of time trying not to think about this, but more often than not on the night of the full moon she ended up awake and pacing the floor of her room in the Three Broomsticks.

Tonight was no different, so when the faint pop of Apparition happened in the corridor outside, just after dawn, followed by a couple of muffled thumps, she heard them and immediately grabbed her wand.

She opened the door carefully, glancing up and down the corridor, trying to spot the source of the noise. There was a figure huddled on the floor. Wand still out, she crouched nearby. Whoever it was, was shaking.

When she reached out a hand, his head tilted a little and she let out a surprised gasp.

"Remus!"

[true_marauder]

Someone was talking to him, but the voice sounded far away and muffled. He considered, briefly, opening his eyes to see who it was but that would take too much effort. Honestly, he didn't care who it was or what their intention was. A killing curse would not be unwelcome.

"Where?" His voice was low and raspy. He asked only because it seemed he should, not because he cared.

[auror_aura]

"Safe," Tonks replied promptly, helping him up and leading him into her room. "You're with me now, Remus." She hesitated only briefly. "You're with Dora. C'mon, lie down..."

[true_marauder]

"Can't be with Dora. Have t' keep her safe. Only way to..." He allowed himself to be led, not noticing his surroundings, only vaguely feeling the heat of the hand on him. "Not safe if she's near me. No one is."

[auror_aura]

Tonks nearly laughed, or cried. Maybe both. Even delirious, he was determined to try and protect her by keeping them apart.

"Shh, Remus. Don't talk. We're perfectly safe, we're in Hogsmeade. I'll take care of you, sweetheart." Her hands ran over his body, checking for injuries almost of their own accord as she continued to quietly soothe him with words.

[true_marauder]

"How'm I Hogsmeade? Shack?" The Shrieking Shack was in Hogsmeade, wasn't it? Made sense if it was a full moon tonight, didn't it?

His injuries weren't much more then scratches and small cuts, other then a jagged wound on his arm from the fall, and between the warmth of the room and the soothing touch his trembling was fading. Touch, which was so familiar. "Dora?"

[auror_aura]

"Yes, Remus. Dora. You're not at the Shack. You Apparated right outside my door. Dunno how you did it."

She healed most of the cuts, though the bigger one she found some gauze and wrapped it up. She was used to doing things like this, for herself and others. Came with the territory, being so clumsy and an Auror to boot.

She knew she shouldn't but the temptation was too great to resist; she pressed a kiss to his forehead and smoothed his hair back carefully. "You need to rest."

[true_marauder]

"I had to get away. Couldn't... there was so much blood and I..." His hand clenched at the hem of her shirt, desperately needing the life line. "I couldn't stop it."

For the first time he opened his eyes all the way and looked up at her. "I couldn't stop them."

[auror_aura]

Fear clenched her stomach and sent ice down her back at his words. She held his hand tightly.

"You need to sleep, you can tell me what happened after you've rested..."

[true_marauder]

He shook his head. "Can't sleep. If I sleep I'll dream, and I'll keep seeing it."

[auror_aura]

Her hands ran over his face, down his chest. She was now simply reassuring herself that he was really here, and still alive.

"What happened, sweetheart? Whatever it was, it wasn't your fault."

[true_marauder]

"I should have... I knew they were planning something for tonight, but I couldn't get the name, couldn't warn them. I could only follow. I took Wolfsbane this time, so I could be aware, and maybe..." He pulled back, his eyes closing as he remembered the chase, the arrival at the little house on the edge of the woods that reminded him of his own childhood home. Someone else had been there, because it had been a spell that caught the house on fire, sending the occupants outside. And the growls; he could still hear the growls.

"But it wasn't enough. Too much blood for someone so small."

[auror_aura]

Biting her lip, Tonks wrapped her arms around Remus, pulling him close. She didn't say anything; she didn't need to. She had a feeling she knew more or less what he was talking about. And if that was the case, the best thing she could do right now was just be there.

[true_marauder]

"He was five, younger even then I was. I don't know if Greyback made a mistake or if he never intended to..." Greyback. The bastard had laughed once the shift from wold to human was complete. Laughed, even as blood dripped down his chin. If he'd had his wand at that moment Remus would have cast an Avada without a second thought.

"His oldest sister Katherine was a student when I taught. There was another sister, and then..." He swallowed hard, trying to get rid of the taste of bile in his mouth and licked his dry lips. "I don't know what his name is. I watched him die and I don't even know his name."

[auror_aura]

"I'm so sorry." She couldn't help shuddering a little at the mental images his story conjured. How could there possibly be people in the world capable of such things? She held onto Remus even tighter, as though doing so could somehow make things better.

[true_marauder]

"Sorry?" he questioned, not comprehending why she was apologizing, not to him.

"S'not your fault. Mine, and his and... I should write my report for Albus. There was a wizard there, s'one to start the fire and send up the Mark. I..." But his arms and legs were so heavy and he couldn't make his hand let go of the material of her shirt.