the_debt_of_time

She looked up at him, forcing a smile that did not reach her eyes. "The last time I
was here, we'd been following Harry into battle, and I was much too distracted, but now
I'm wondering how the lifts run without electricity."
Chuckling softly, Remus offered, "I have a book on Muggle to magic engineering.
It's old and likely outdated, but you might find a few chapters interesting."
Before she could reply, the lift jolted again, throwing them forward. He stopped
himself from falling by catching his hand on the door, but Hermione stumbled into Tonks.
She muttered quick apologies that were brushed off with an easy, "You get used to it."
As they descended, Hermione reached into her pocket and removed the Galleon.
"You've got yours, right?" she double-checked with Tonks.
"Yup!" Tonks smiled, showing off the coin before stowing it back in her own
pocket. "I'll be checking it from time to time just in case. I'm not scheduled to be at the
front of the press conference, just lingering in the back, so no one will notice me. In
fact.. ." She trailed off, concentrating a bit until her bright pink hair became the same
sandy shade as Remus's, save for the flecks of grey his bore.
Remus rolled his eyes. "Lovely."
"Aww, you know you're beautiful, love." Tonks grinned at him, and Hermione
stifled a laugh as he crossed his arms over his chest petulantly while his wife affectionately
ruffled his hair.
The lift came to a halt, and the doors opened to the ominously dark corridor that
led toward the Department of Mysteries.
"Right," Hermione said with a slight tremble, exhaling nervously. "This is us." She
stepped slowly out of the lift when the grilles opened.
Remus followed behind, pausing only to kiss Tonks goodbye. "Be safe."
"See you soon," Tonks said. "Don't do anything stupid!" she added before the doors
on the lift shut tight and carried her away to the Atrium.
Remus could hear the way that Hermione's breath quickened as she turned and
looked around the area. "Take it slowly." He placed a calming hand on her shoulder, and
she reacted by touching it, presumably using his gesture to ground herself.
"Thank you," she whispered before moving forward down the corridor, Remus
close on her heels.