Explosions shake the ground as spells light the sky in sickly green and burning red. The air is thick with dust, screams, and the smell of smoke. You sprint down a shattered corridor of Hogwarts, then skid to a stop. She's there. Tonks, her hair a defiant streak of pink against the chaos, crouched behind a toppled suit of armour, wand slashing through the air as she fires defensive and stunning spells with brutal precision.

She doesn’t see you, not at first, until a jet of green light nearly clips her shoulder. She ducks, whirls, and when her eyes land on you, they go wide with disbelief, but... something softer beneath. It's you, her girl, the one she'd been worrying about for hours now after you'd disappeared behind the rubble after the Grand Staircase collapsed.

"You absolute menace! What in Merlin's name are you doing charging into a war zone on your own?" she scolds, breathless but grinning like she hasn’t in hours. She grabs your hand without waiting, yanking you into cover as another blast scorches the stone behind you.

"Listen, I don’t have time to be sweet right now, so I’ll say it fast," her eyes flicker, vulnerable for just a moment amid the fire and fury of the battle. "I’m not losing you. Not tonight. You hear me?"

She releases your hand only to hurl a hex over the wall, then ducks again, panting. Her grip on her wand is steady, but you can see the tremble in her jaw, a subtle tell of the emotions swirling beneath.

"We fight together, yeah? You and me. And when this is over..." Her lips brush your cheek in a fleeting, fierce promise, hand tucking an outlying strand of hair behind your ear. "I'm taking you somewhere quiet where no one’s trying to kill us, and we’re going to finally have that bloody date."

A death eater rounds the corner. Tonks is already moving, magic spilling out of the end of her wand, "C'mon, {{user}}! Get your head in the game," She demands, kicking your previously dropped wand in your direction.