Subterfuge
Title: Subterfuge
Author: shimotsuki
Format: One-shot
Rating: PG
Warnings: Mild violence
Prompts: Healing Paste; Fred/George, Mad-Eye; think; action/adventure
Word Count: 3036 words
Summary [revised]: Tonks answers a summons from Remus. It's the first she's seen him since he left to join Greyback's pack, and George Weasley, along to help out, picks up on some puzzling undercurrents. Meanwhile, no matter what happens, they can't endanger Remus's cover, and they can't be seen doing magic at all...
Author's Notes: This is my first attempt at a/a, so concrit is very welcome. Thanks to godricgal, mrstater, jncar, ladybracknell, and eshesh for helping me toss some ideas around. (I'm still hoping to do a twins'-Order-training-gone-wrong fic someday.)
Subterfuge
The bell tinkled over the shop door at number 93, Diagon Alley. George handed his customer's basketful of Wildfire Whiz-Bangs to Verity to wrap and glanced up in time to see Tonks slip inside.
She looked a bit distracted, but she caught his eye and smiled, pushing a lock of mousy brown hair behind one ear. "Wotcher - George, isn't it?"
"Hi, Tonks. Right as always." He grinned. She was the only one outside the family who could reliably tell him apart from Fred.
George bowed the Whiz-Bangs customer out and walked over to where Tonks was poking halfheartedly at the display tables. "Is there something I can find for you?" He grinned again to hear himself say those words - his chest still swelled every time he thought about the shop. Their shop. He and Fred had really done it. (Well, with a lot of help from Harry, of course.)
"It's my dad's birthday." Tonks examined a Never-Snore Nose-Pinching Pillow and set it back down with a chuckle. "Thought he might like a Wheeze or two." She picked up a small telescope and started to look through it.
"Careful -" George had suddenly realized what she was holding, but it was too late.
Wham.
"Ow!" Tonks looked over at him, her right eye blackened and puffy.
"Sorry about that," George winced. He reckoned Tonks had enough trouble with bruises; she didn't deserve an encounter with a punching telescope. He reached into a drawer under the sales counter and pulled out a tiny tin. "This Healing Paste will get rid of the bruise, but it'll take about an hour. Unless you can hide the bruise yourself?"
Tonks shrugged, not looking at him, and smoothed the Healing Paste over the skin around her eye. It glowed red and faded away. "I haven't really been able to change my appearance much, lately."
George remembered Mum saying something about that. Tonks did look rather peaky, with her pale face and limp brown hair. Even her eyes had lost most of the sparkle that had made her so much fun to be around all last year. It was hardly surprising, though, he decided. She was doubly involved in the war, between her regular Auror work and her role in the Order. That was bound to be exhausting.
"Mr. Weasley! What's that?"
He looked up to see Verity staring at the shop door. Something silvery poured in underneath - a Patronus. It circled once or twice around Tonks and disappeared into the back storeroom before George could make out what shape it was.
"I think I have a confidential message." Tonks was looking at him hesitantly. "Do you mind if I follow it back there?"
"Be my guest," said George, virtually quivering with curiosity. She gave him a perfunctory smile and went after the Patronus.
In almost no time at all, she was back, looking unsettled. "It was a message from Remus."
George's eyebrows went up. He'd heard from his parents that Lupin had left on some new difficult, dangerous undercover mission.
Tonks went on, her voice a bit steadier now. "He says he's not in danger, but he needs help. He asked me to come right away and bring backup." She paused, looking at George thoughtfully. "Will you come along? It sounds like we only have to meet up with him and collect something he wants the Order to have."
George drew himself up to his full height, such as it was. Just the other day, he and his twin had been talking about how they wished the Order would take them more seriously. "Oi, Fred!" he called over his shoulder, toward the little office tucked into one corner of the shop. "I'm going with Tonks for a few minutes, if you see what I mean." He nodded to Verity, who was still gaping slightly at the crack under the door where the Patronus had appeared. "Back in a mo."
Tonks waited while George put on his dragon-hide jacket - the breeding dementors made it quite chilly, even in August. Then he followed her outside. He got a good grip on her arm, and she Apparated them both out of Diagon Alley.
. * . * .
George blinked, trying to get his bearings. They had arrived in a clearing near the edge of an overgrown wood. The trees thinned out and disappeared just a little way beyond where they were standing, and a dusty lane led toward a muddy, weed-choked river. A cluster of derelict-looking houses stood along the river's edge. They were too far away to see clearly, but he thought there were several people moving around outside.
"Are we meeting Lupin here?"
"I'm not sure." Tonks frowned. "He moved out here a few weeks ago, but this is the first I've been back since he and Moody showed me the Apparition point. Moody's his primary Order contact on this mission - I'm only the emergency contact. I guess Remus couldn't reach Moody this time."
Tonks looked around again and sighed in frustration, running a hand through her hair. "Well, he's obviously not here, but his message didn't say where he'd be. I suppose we'd better start walking toward the houses to see if we can find him." She looked at George sideways. "That's Fenrir Greyback's pack out there, you know."
George stiffened, eyeing the distant moving figures. "No, I didn't, actually." So that's what Lupin's new mission was all about - he'd come to live among hostile werewolves. He felt a cold shiver crawl up his spine, and reminded himself firmly that werewolves were only people when it wasn't full moon.
Tonks shaded her eyes so she could peer out at the road. "Dumbledore wants Remus here to try to talk the pack out of going over to You-Know-Who this time. But Remus is much safer if the Death Eaters don't know he's here. He needs to be just one more werewolf, blending in. So these are the rules of engagement: No magic in front of anyone unless your life literally depends on it. Don't even draw your wand. It's essential for Greyback and the others to think Remus isn't having any contact with the wizarding community."
"All right." George kept a tight hold on his wand in the pocket of his jacket all the same.
"You ready?"
He nodded. Tonks started to lead the way out toward the lane, scanning methodically for danger in the standard Auror surveillance pattern she'd taught him once.
Just before they emerged from the cover of the trees, there was a pop of Apparition behind them, and a familiar hoarse voice called out, "Don't leave the wood!"
George turned around at once, but he froze when he saw Lupin. His former teacher had always been shabby and thin; now, after a few weeks on this mission, he looked positively ragged and gaunt. His cheekbones stood out sharply, and his eyes looked very bright. Tonks caught her breath - and lost her footing. She grabbed George's arm for support, clutching it hard enough to hurt, even through the dragon-hide leather.
Lupin gasped himself when he saw her bruised and puffy eye. He hurried over to meet them, eyes dark with concern. "Tonks, what happened? Have you been in a fight?" He reached out as if to touch her face, but then he seemed to change his mind, letting his arm drop back down by his side.
She laughed with a catch in her voice. "It's nothing. Just an unlucky encounter with a Weasley Wheeze." She nodded toward George. "I've put on some Healing Paste - be right as rain in an hour or so."
Lupin seemed to notice George for the first time. "Hello," he said with a reasonable facsimile of his usual friendly smile, "it's Fred, isn't it?"
"Actually, it's George." Lupin was right about half the time, which meant he was only guessing which twin was which.
Lupin chuckled ruefully. "Sorry, George." He sighed. "Thanks for coming with Tonks. I feel a little silly calling two Order members out here for a rather trivial errand, but given the nature of my new...associates, I thought there might be safety in numbers."
"Are they that dangerous when they're human?" asked George, glancing nervously at the houses by the river.
"Let's just say they're desperate people, and they're not particularly pleasant." Lupin seemed to be looking at something very far away. "Anyone who wanders through their - our - territory is likely to be robbed, and maybe roughed up a bit."
Tonks swallowed. "Are you doing all right out here?" Her voice was unusually soft.
"Oh, I'm fine." Lupin's smile had just a tiny tinge of bitterness now. "I'm not so good at the robbery and roughing up, mind you, but I'm not bad at scavenging for scraps in town." He nodded toward the hazy skyline of an ugly industrial sprawl that squatted a little farther down the river. "I'm starting to get a reputation for bringing back useful things." He turned back to Tonks and scrutinised her, taking in the thin face and the brown hair. His eyes narrowed. "How are you doing? Are you Metamorphosing yet?"
Tonks looked down and scuffed at fallen leaves with the toe of one boot. "No."
Lupin frowned, all bitterness gone from his eyes. He reached out again, and this time he did touch her, giving her shoulder the briefest of squeezes. "Have you seen a Healer about it? Do they know what's wrong?"
Tonks raised her head and glared at him, her mouth a thin, tight line. "What do you think is wrong?"
This time it was Lupin who frowned and looked away. George had no idea what they were talking about, but he was pretty sure both of them had forgotten he was standing there. The silence stretched out uncomfortably.
Finally, Lupin broke it. "I need to get back to the river soon, or someone might miss me. Here - this is why I called you. Can you take this back and keep it somewhere safe for me?"
George stared. Lupin was holding out his wand.
"No." Tonks had gone completely white. "No, Remus. The plan was for you to hide it in the woods nearby, so you'll have it when you need it."
"I know." Lupin was smiling grimly. "But there are Death Eaters around here more and more often these days, meeting with Greyback and his inner circle. They spend a lot of time in the woods, and I'd hate for one of them to do a Sweep spell and find my wand. I'd much rather have it safe with you."
"I won't let you give it up." Tonks had her hands on her hips, and her eyes were furious. "If you don't have it someplace where you can reach it, you can't send a Patronus for help. You'll be completely alone."
Now Lupin's jaw was clenched, and his eyes were stony. "That's still better than letting the Death Eaters find it and destroy it, or use it to hunt me down." Tonks was shaking her head, her eyes filling with desperate tears. Lupin's face softened a little. "It'll be all right. I can leave notes for Moody at a place we've arranged, and if I'm in real danger, I can always Apparate out."
George watched the two of them staring stubbornly at one another, neither one willing to budge an inch. It would've been funny, if this whole conversation hadn't been so ruddy frightening.
All at once, the silence was shattered by a harsh shout. "Oi, Lupin! Where've you got to?"
"George. Diagon Alley. Now." Tonks snapped the words out, her eyes never leaving Lupin's face.
"Not without my partner." George managed to keep his voice from shaking. "Come on, Tonks."
Footsteps crashed through the underbrush, not very far away. "Lupin! You there?"
Lupin caught her by the shoulder again. "Please, Tonks. Take the wand and get out of here." His voice was low and desperate.
But it was too late.
Two scruffy-looking men burst into the clearing, one tall and one stocky. Tonks shoved George in the opposite direction. "Run. Get out of sight and Apparate back!" she hissed.
There wasn't a lot of time to make a decision.
George ran.
. * . * .
There was nothing in the world but his feet pounding on the leafy ground, on stones and the roots of trees. Each gasping breath was a hot knife in his chest. And still the short, burly werewolf was right behind him - he was a lot faster than he looked.
George had to slow a bit to scramble over a huge fallen tree. He had almost cleared it when his pursuer lunged and caught the back of his jacket, yanking him to the ground. Without even thinking, George turned and brought the side of his arm down on the werewolf's wrist, in his best Beater style. The man yelled in pain and anger and took a step back, letting go. George kicked at him, sending him off balance, and the werewolf crumpled to his knees.
It wouldn't slow the man down for long, but it was enough. George sailed over the fallen tree and ducked behind a boulder. He could hear the werewolf's crashing footsteps coming after him again, but he was still out of sight. He closed his eyes, calculated feverishly, and Apparated.
. * . * .
Apparating into the middle of a thicket was not usually a good idea, but this time, scratches were a small price to pay for good cover. And this was perfect. George was only metres away from Lupin and Tonks, who were still where he'd left them - it couldn't have been more than two or three minutes ago, despite what it felt like - and the tall, rangy-looking werewolf.
The werewolf who had a struggling Tonks by the arms.
"Bit suspicious, isn't it?" he was saying to Lupin. "You go wandering off, and these strangers turn up."
Lupin shrugged, his lip curling. "They're nothing to me. I was just trying to see what they'd got."
The other man sneered. "You? You never get anything off anyone, and suddenly you're going after two at once?"
"I thought it was just the girl," Lupin improvised. "The boy surprised me, turning up all of a sudden."
The stocky werewolf came limping back into the clearing. "Lost him," he grumbled.
George saw Tonks and Lupin exchange the tiniest of glances.
"So now it is just the girl," said Lupin. He walked up to the taller man and stared him directly in the face. "And I believe I found her first. Let me finish what I started. I haven't even seen what she's got in her pockets yet."
Tonks was still struggling, but George could see she wasn't really trying very hard - although she did manage to clip her captor in the shin with a heavy boot. The man cursed, and shook her absently, his eyes on Lupin.
"Look," said Lupin suddenly. "If I were in league with her, would I have blackened her eye?"
The werewolf laughed. It was a harsh sound, and not very pleasant. "Naw, I reckon not." He looked at Tonks, and then shoved her at Lupin. "All right. You did find her first - I guess whatever she's carrying is yours. But come on back to the river when you're through. Some of the blokes are looking for you."
Lupin held Tonks by the arms, much as the other man had done. She kept up her pretense of trying to break free until the two men from the pack were lost to sight.
. * . * .
Lupin let go of Tonks as soon as it was safe. They looked at each other for a minute, breathing hard.
"Here," she said shakily, pulling some crumpled Muggle notes out of her pocket. "You'd better have nicked something off me."
Lupin looked like he was about to protest, but then he nodded and stuffed the notes into his own pocket.
"You lot all right?" George picked his way gingerly out of the thicket.
They started at the sound of his voice. "We're fine," said Tonks. "You okay?" He nodded, but she looked him over anyway. "Your jacket's a bit ripped."
George shrugged. "It's nothing Madam Malkin can't fix."
"We'd better go." Tonks turned back to Lupin. "They'll come looking for you again."
Lupin reached out and touched the side of her face very gently, just as he had almost done before. "That black eye may have been our salvation," he said, his voice uneven. "It made them think I really was roughing you up." He swallowed. "Good thing the Healing Paste takes time to work."
She nodded, her eyes closed.
"Tonks," he said, very softly, "please take the wand."
She opened her eyes and looked at him steadily, saying nothing.
"I need it to be away from these woods. And -" his voice caught. "I'd feel better if I knew you were the one that had it."
"Me?" She gave him a complicated look that George didn't know how to read.
"Yes, you." Lupin gave her the tiniest of half-smiles. "That's why I sent for you instead of Moody today. You're my best mate."
"Oh." Her face seemed to fall when Lupin said best mate, but then she shook herself and studied his expression carefully. "If you really want it away from here..."
"I really do," he said, mimicking her tone, his smile a little broader now.
Tonks smiled back, although it was a bit watery. "All right, I'll take the wand. But you have to promise me you'll come home safe when this is all over, so I can give it back to you."
He sighed. "I can't promise anything like that, and you know it."
Tonks rubbed her face tiredly, but then she held out her hand. Lupin placed the wand in it. She tucked it carefully away, deep in a pocket of her robes.
"I need to get back," said Lupin. "You two be safe, and give my best to the Order."
"Bye, then," said George.
Tonks didn't say anything. Lupin looked at her one last time and turned away.
George waited to Apparate until Tonks gave the word. The last thing he saw before he vanished from the wood was Lupin, thin and worn, trudging down the dusty lane toward the river.
. * fin * .
Author: shimotsuki
Format: One-shot
Rating: PG
Warnings: Mild violence
Prompts: Healing Paste; Fred/George, Mad-Eye; think; action/adventure
Word Count: 3036 words
Summary [revised]: Tonks answers a summons from Remus. It's the first she's seen him since he left to join Greyback's pack, and George Weasley, along to help out, picks up on some puzzling undercurrents. Meanwhile, no matter what happens, they can't endanger Remus's cover, and they can't be seen doing magic at all...
Author's Notes: This is my first attempt at a/a, so concrit is very welcome. Thanks to godricgal, mrstater, jncar, ladybracknell, and eshesh for helping me toss some ideas around. (I'm still hoping to do a twins'-Order-training-gone-wrong fic someday.)
Subterfuge
The bell tinkled over the shop door at number 93, Diagon Alley. George handed his customer's basketful of Wildfire Whiz-Bangs to Verity to wrap and glanced up in time to see Tonks slip inside.
She looked a bit distracted, but she caught his eye and smiled, pushing a lock of mousy brown hair behind one ear. "Wotcher - George, isn't it?"
"Hi, Tonks. Right as always." He grinned. She was the only one outside the family who could reliably tell him apart from Fred.
George bowed the Whiz-Bangs customer out and walked over to where Tonks was poking halfheartedly at the display tables. "Is there something I can find for you?" He grinned again to hear himself say those words - his chest still swelled every time he thought about the shop. Their shop. He and Fred had really done it. (Well, with a lot of help from Harry, of course.)
"It's my dad's birthday." Tonks examined a Never-Snore Nose-Pinching Pillow and set it back down with a chuckle. "Thought he might like a Wheeze or two." She picked up a small telescope and started to look through it.
"Careful -" George had suddenly realized what she was holding, but it was too late.
Wham.
"Ow!" Tonks looked over at him, her right eye blackened and puffy.
"Sorry about that," George winced. He reckoned Tonks had enough trouble with bruises; she didn't deserve an encounter with a punching telescope. He reached into a drawer under the sales counter and pulled out a tiny tin. "This Healing Paste will get rid of the bruise, but it'll take about an hour. Unless you can hide the bruise yourself?"
Tonks shrugged, not looking at him, and smoothed the Healing Paste over the skin around her eye. It glowed red and faded away. "I haven't really been able to change my appearance much, lately."
George remembered Mum saying something about that. Tonks did look rather peaky, with her pale face and limp brown hair. Even her eyes had lost most of the sparkle that had made her so much fun to be around all last year. It was hardly surprising, though, he decided. She was doubly involved in the war, between her regular Auror work and her role in the Order. That was bound to be exhausting.
"Mr. Weasley! What's that?"
He looked up to see Verity staring at the shop door. Something silvery poured in underneath - a Patronus. It circled once or twice around Tonks and disappeared into the back storeroom before George could make out what shape it was.
"I think I have a confidential message." Tonks was looking at him hesitantly. "Do you mind if I follow it back there?"
"Be my guest," said George, virtually quivering with curiosity. She gave him a perfunctory smile and went after the Patronus.
In almost no time at all, she was back, looking unsettled. "It was a message from Remus."
George's eyebrows went up. He'd heard from his parents that Lupin had left on some new difficult, dangerous undercover mission.
Tonks went on, her voice a bit steadier now. "He says he's not in danger, but he needs help. He asked me to come right away and bring backup." She paused, looking at George thoughtfully. "Will you come along? It sounds like we only have to meet up with him and collect something he wants the Order to have."
George drew himself up to his full height, such as it was. Just the other day, he and his twin had been talking about how they wished the Order would take them more seriously. "Oi, Fred!" he called over his shoulder, toward the little office tucked into one corner of the shop. "I'm going with Tonks for a few minutes, if you see what I mean." He nodded to Verity, who was still gaping slightly at the crack under the door where the Patronus had appeared. "Back in a mo."
Tonks waited while George put on his dragon-hide jacket - the breeding dementors made it quite chilly, even in August. Then he followed her outside. He got a good grip on her arm, and she Apparated them both out of Diagon Alley.
. * . * .
George blinked, trying to get his bearings. They had arrived in a clearing near the edge of an overgrown wood. The trees thinned out and disappeared just a little way beyond where they were standing, and a dusty lane led toward a muddy, weed-choked river. A cluster of derelict-looking houses stood along the river's edge. They were too far away to see clearly, but he thought there were several people moving around outside.
"Are we meeting Lupin here?"
"I'm not sure." Tonks frowned. "He moved out here a few weeks ago, but this is the first I've been back since he and Moody showed me the Apparition point. Moody's his primary Order contact on this mission - I'm only the emergency contact. I guess Remus couldn't reach Moody this time."
Tonks looked around again and sighed in frustration, running a hand through her hair. "Well, he's obviously not here, but his message didn't say where he'd be. I suppose we'd better start walking toward the houses to see if we can find him." She looked at George sideways. "That's Fenrir Greyback's pack out there, you know."
George stiffened, eyeing the distant moving figures. "No, I didn't, actually." So that's what Lupin's new mission was all about - he'd come to live among hostile werewolves. He felt a cold shiver crawl up his spine, and reminded himself firmly that werewolves were only people when it wasn't full moon.
Tonks shaded her eyes so she could peer out at the road. "Dumbledore wants Remus here to try to talk the pack out of going over to You-Know-Who this time. But Remus is much safer if the Death Eaters don't know he's here. He needs to be just one more werewolf, blending in. So these are the rules of engagement: No magic in front of anyone unless your life literally depends on it. Don't even draw your wand. It's essential for Greyback and the others to think Remus isn't having any contact with the wizarding community."
"All right." George kept a tight hold on his wand in the pocket of his jacket all the same.
"You ready?"
He nodded. Tonks started to lead the way out toward the lane, scanning methodically for danger in the standard Auror surveillance pattern she'd taught him once.
Just before they emerged from the cover of the trees, there was a pop of Apparition behind them, and a familiar hoarse voice called out, "Don't leave the wood!"
George turned around at once, but he froze when he saw Lupin. His former teacher had always been shabby and thin; now, after a few weeks on this mission, he looked positively ragged and gaunt. His cheekbones stood out sharply, and his eyes looked very bright. Tonks caught her breath - and lost her footing. She grabbed George's arm for support, clutching it hard enough to hurt, even through the dragon-hide leather.
Lupin gasped himself when he saw her bruised and puffy eye. He hurried over to meet them, eyes dark with concern. "Tonks, what happened? Have you been in a fight?" He reached out as if to touch her face, but then he seemed to change his mind, letting his arm drop back down by his side.
She laughed with a catch in her voice. "It's nothing. Just an unlucky encounter with a Weasley Wheeze." She nodded toward George. "I've put on some Healing Paste - be right as rain in an hour or so."
Lupin seemed to notice George for the first time. "Hello," he said with a reasonable facsimile of his usual friendly smile, "it's Fred, isn't it?"
"Actually, it's George." Lupin was right about half the time, which meant he was only guessing which twin was which.
Lupin chuckled ruefully. "Sorry, George." He sighed. "Thanks for coming with Tonks. I feel a little silly calling two Order members out here for a rather trivial errand, but given the nature of my new...associates, I thought there might be safety in numbers."
"Are they that dangerous when they're human?" asked George, glancing nervously at the houses by the river.
"Let's just say they're desperate people, and they're not particularly pleasant." Lupin seemed to be looking at something very far away. "Anyone who wanders through their - our - territory is likely to be robbed, and maybe roughed up a bit."
Tonks swallowed. "Are you doing all right out here?" Her voice was unusually soft.
"Oh, I'm fine." Lupin's smile had just a tiny tinge of bitterness now. "I'm not so good at the robbery and roughing up, mind you, but I'm not bad at scavenging for scraps in town." He nodded toward the hazy skyline of an ugly industrial sprawl that squatted a little farther down the river. "I'm starting to get a reputation for bringing back useful things." He turned back to Tonks and scrutinised her, taking in the thin face and the brown hair. His eyes narrowed. "How are you doing? Are you Metamorphosing yet?"
Tonks looked down and scuffed at fallen leaves with the toe of one boot. "No."
Lupin frowned, all bitterness gone from his eyes. He reached out again, and this time he did touch her, giving her shoulder the briefest of squeezes. "Have you seen a Healer about it? Do they know what's wrong?"
Tonks raised her head and glared at him, her mouth a thin, tight line. "What do you think is wrong?"
This time it was Lupin who frowned and looked away. George had no idea what they were talking about, but he was pretty sure both of them had forgotten he was standing there. The silence stretched out uncomfortably.
Finally, Lupin broke it. "I need to get back to the river soon, or someone might miss me. Here - this is why I called you. Can you take this back and keep it somewhere safe for me?"
George stared. Lupin was holding out his wand.
"No." Tonks had gone completely white. "No, Remus. The plan was for you to hide it in the woods nearby, so you'll have it when you need it."
"I know." Lupin was smiling grimly. "But there are Death Eaters around here more and more often these days, meeting with Greyback and his inner circle. They spend a lot of time in the woods, and I'd hate for one of them to do a Sweep spell and find my wand. I'd much rather have it safe with you."
"I won't let you give it up." Tonks had her hands on her hips, and her eyes were furious. "If you don't have it someplace where you can reach it, you can't send a Patronus for help. You'll be completely alone."
Now Lupin's jaw was clenched, and his eyes were stony. "That's still better than letting the Death Eaters find it and destroy it, or use it to hunt me down." Tonks was shaking her head, her eyes filling with desperate tears. Lupin's face softened a little. "It'll be all right. I can leave notes for Moody at a place we've arranged, and if I'm in real danger, I can always Apparate out."
George watched the two of them staring stubbornly at one another, neither one willing to budge an inch. It would've been funny, if this whole conversation hadn't been so ruddy frightening.
All at once, the silence was shattered by a harsh shout. "Oi, Lupin! Where've you got to?"
"George. Diagon Alley. Now." Tonks snapped the words out, her eyes never leaving Lupin's face.
"Not without my partner." George managed to keep his voice from shaking. "Come on, Tonks."
Footsteps crashed through the underbrush, not very far away. "Lupin! You there?"
Lupin caught her by the shoulder again. "Please, Tonks. Take the wand and get out of here." His voice was low and desperate.
But it was too late.
Two scruffy-looking men burst into the clearing, one tall and one stocky. Tonks shoved George in the opposite direction. "Run. Get out of sight and Apparate back!" she hissed.
There wasn't a lot of time to make a decision.
George ran.
. * . * .
There was nothing in the world but his feet pounding on the leafy ground, on stones and the roots of trees. Each gasping breath was a hot knife in his chest. And still the short, burly werewolf was right behind him - he was a lot faster than he looked.
George had to slow a bit to scramble over a huge fallen tree. He had almost cleared it when his pursuer lunged and caught the back of his jacket, yanking him to the ground. Without even thinking, George turned and brought the side of his arm down on the werewolf's wrist, in his best Beater style. The man yelled in pain and anger and took a step back, letting go. George kicked at him, sending him off balance, and the werewolf crumpled to his knees.
It wouldn't slow the man down for long, but it was enough. George sailed over the fallen tree and ducked behind a boulder. He could hear the werewolf's crashing footsteps coming after him again, but he was still out of sight. He closed his eyes, calculated feverishly, and Apparated.
. * . * .
Apparating into the middle of a thicket was not usually a good idea, but this time, scratches were a small price to pay for good cover. And this was perfect. George was only metres away from Lupin and Tonks, who were still where he'd left them - it couldn't have been more than two or three minutes ago, despite what it felt like - and the tall, rangy-looking werewolf.
The werewolf who had a struggling Tonks by the arms.
"Bit suspicious, isn't it?" he was saying to Lupin. "You go wandering off, and these strangers turn up."
Lupin shrugged, his lip curling. "They're nothing to me. I was just trying to see what they'd got."
The other man sneered. "You? You never get anything off anyone, and suddenly you're going after two at once?"
"I thought it was just the girl," Lupin improvised. "The boy surprised me, turning up all of a sudden."
The stocky werewolf came limping back into the clearing. "Lost him," he grumbled.
George saw Tonks and Lupin exchange the tiniest of glances.
"So now it is just the girl," said Lupin. He walked up to the taller man and stared him directly in the face. "And I believe I found her first. Let me finish what I started. I haven't even seen what she's got in her pockets yet."
Tonks was still struggling, but George could see she wasn't really trying very hard - although she did manage to clip her captor in the shin with a heavy boot. The man cursed, and shook her absently, his eyes on Lupin.
"Look," said Lupin suddenly. "If I were in league with her, would I have blackened her eye?"
The werewolf laughed. It was a harsh sound, and not very pleasant. "Naw, I reckon not." He looked at Tonks, and then shoved her at Lupin. "All right. You did find her first - I guess whatever she's carrying is yours. But come on back to the river when you're through. Some of the blokes are looking for you."
Lupin held Tonks by the arms, much as the other man had done. She kept up her pretense of trying to break free until the two men from the pack were lost to sight.
. * . * .
Lupin let go of Tonks as soon as it was safe. They looked at each other for a minute, breathing hard.
"Here," she said shakily, pulling some crumpled Muggle notes out of her pocket. "You'd better have nicked something off me."
Lupin looked like he was about to protest, but then he nodded and stuffed the notes into his own pocket.
"You lot all right?" George picked his way gingerly out of the thicket.
They started at the sound of his voice. "We're fine," said Tonks. "You okay?" He nodded, but she looked him over anyway. "Your jacket's a bit ripped."
George shrugged. "It's nothing Madam Malkin can't fix."
"We'd better go." Tonks turned back to Lupin. "They'll come looking for you again."
Lupin reached out and touched the side of her face very gently, just as he had almost done before. "That black eye may have been our salvation," he said, his voice uneven. "It made them think I really was roughing you up." He swallowed. "Good thing the Healing Paste takes time to work."
She nodded, her eyes closed.
"Tonks," he said, very softly, "please take the wand."
She opened her eyes and looked at him steadily, saying nothing.
"I need it to be away from these woods. And -" his voice caught. "I'd feel better if I knew you were the one that had it."
"Me?" She gave him a complicated look that George didn't know how to read.
"Yes, you." Lupin gave her the tiniest of half-smiles. "That's why I sent for you instead of Moody today. You're my best mate."
"Oh." Her face seemed to fall when Lupin said best mate, but then she shook herself and studied his expression carefully. "If you really want it away from here..."
"I really do," he said, mimicking her tone, his smile a little broader now.
Tonks smiled back, although it was a bit watery. "All right, I'll take the wand. But you have to promise me you'll come home safe when this is all over, so I can give it back to you."
He sighed. "I can't promise anything like that, and you know it."
Tonks rubbed her face tiredly, but then she held out her hand. Lupin placed the wand in it. She tucked it carefully away, deep in a pocket of her robes.
"I need to get back," said Lupin. "You two be safe, and give my best to the Order."
"Bye, then," said George.
Tonks didn't say anything. Lupin looked at her one last time and turned away.
George waited to Apparate until Tonks gave the word. The last thing he saw before he vanished from the wood was Lupin, thin and worn, trudging down the dusty lane toward the river.
. * fin * .