"I shouldn't have agreed to Fudge's request to come to Hogwarts to become a Defence Against the Dark Arts professor!"
Early the next morning, everyone in the hospital wing was awake, and Tonks lay on the bed, looking at her heavily bandaged body, regretting deeply.
"I knew this day would come…" she said in despair. "Just look at Alastor; he resigned a year ago and he's still not completely rid of the curse."
"Stop talking nonsense," Moody said sternly beside her. "Getting injured is inevitable for an Auror; this has nothing to do with the Defence Against the Dark Arts curse."
"Then why is Kingsley unharmed…" Tonks said, pouting.
"Because he's strong enough," Moody said. "Whether it's Kingsley, Remus, or Sirius, they are at their peak. They have enough energy and reflexes to contend with the Death Eaters."
"And you should be the same." Moody's tone suddenly became much more serious. "You're too lazy and haven't fully utilized your advantages. As a natural Metamorphmagus, going head-to-head with enemies is the most foolish thing to do… why don't you disguise yourself as a Death Eater?
"Also, where's your vigilance? I remember when you first joined the Aurors, I reminded you countless times to always be ready to cast the Iron Armor Spell during combat…"
The ward seemed to turn into a classroom, as Moody unreservedly pointed out all the mistakes Tonks had made before, making her cheeks blush.
"Death Eaters all wear black hoods and masks…" she argued. "Our clothes are different; even if I change my appearance, it won't work."
"Oh, is that so?" Moody said coldly. "Seems I'll have to visit Minerva. She hasn't taught you how to transform your clothes in class."
"I can attest, that was taught in third year." Kael laughed as he came to visit them.
To add conviction, he even took out his wand and tapped his clothes lightly. The original school robe instantly turned into a pure black cloak identical to that of a Death Eater.
"Tsk tsk," Moody said calmly, "Looks like I wronged Minerva…"
By now, Tonks had turned her head and started pretending to sleep, ignoring the two completely.
She had just wanted to thank Kael for saving her life earlier, but now it was even.
For a moment, everyone in the ward laughed.
Just as Lupin entered, hearing the laughter in the ward, he asked curiously, "Did I miss something?"
"Here's what happened," Ron quickly said, "Just now Professor Tonks…"
"Assistant, that's important." Tonks couldn't pretend to sleep any longer and opened her eyes, saying loudly, "Also, if you dare repeat what just happened, I'll assign you ten times the Defence Against the Dark Arts homework. That, I can definitely do."
Ron immediately shut his mouth.
"And the rest of you too…" she glanced threateningly at Kael and Hermione.
Kael shrugged indifferently and wisely chose not to provoke her further.
However, Lupin didn't seem particularly interested in the answer either. He placed the candies he bought from Hogsmeade on the table and smiled, saying, "Looks like you're recovering well. I was just discussing with Sirius whether we should send you to St Mungo's."
"Please don't," Tonks shook her head repeatedly, "I hate the smell of St Mungo's. Here is nice enough, at least there's none of those mixed Magic Potion scents."
"Alright then," Lupin said, "As long as Madam Pomfrey has no objections, that's fine."
"I don't want to go to St Mungo's either," Ron said.
"That's not for Sirius and me to decide," Lupin shook his head. "Where you go is up to Arthur and Molly, and they're on their way now and should be here soon."
"Oh, I'm definitely going to get scolded!" Ron groaned, covering his head with the blanket.
"Hermione…" Lupin continued, "Are you sure you won't tell your parents?"
"Please don't," Hermione quickly said. "They are Muggles, completely unaware of the Magic Realm, and knowing won't do any good, it'll just add worries. Plus, I'm almost recovered; there's really no need to tell them."
"This… alright then."
Lupin hesitated for a moment, then nodded.
Hermione was indeed the one with the lightest injuries, and she could be discharged today; however, Madam Pomfrey insisted she stay a few more days.
"I still want to thank you for saving us, Kael," Moody suddenly said. "If it wasn't for your timely arrival, we wouldn't have escaped."
"It's nothing," Kael shook his head.
"You really shouldn't be a minister's assistant," Moody said with some regret, "The Auror Office is the best choice for you; you'd shine there."
Honestly, Kael didn't want to be either a minister's assistant or an Auror, but there wasn't much choice.
So without waiting for Moody to continue, Kael took the initiative to change the subject, turned to Lupin, and asked, "Where's Harry? Didn't he come back with you?"
"No," Lupin filled Tonks' empty cup with water, "He said he had something to ask the headmaster. He left before you arrived and didn't accompany me to Hogsmeade."
"I see."
Kael wasn't surprised that Harry went to see Dumbledore. What surprised him was that Madam Pomfrey actually let him go, but it might have been by Dumbledore's request.
Harry had Voldemort inside his head, which was practically an enhanced version of the Imperio curse. Without the headmaster intervening, there was no way that Madam Pomfrey would have allowed him to leave.