T is for Tonks

Chapter 4 - Of Quidditch and Herbology

When Tonks awoke the following afternoon, she found that Grimmauld place was deserted. Assuming that Sirius had gone up to feed Buckbeak (his stolen hippogriff who was stowed away upstairs), she made her way to the kitchen to fix herself something to eat. 

Over the next week she hardly spent any time at the safe house, for which she was somewhat glad. It wasn't that she wanted to avoid Remus or Sirius, it was that she didn't exactly know what to say to Remus after the conversation they had shared the other night. She didn't want Sirius asking any questions either. Between working 5 shifts a week at The Ministry, and completing her duties for the Order of the Phoenix, she only returned to eat and sleep.

It became obvious to Tonks half way through the week, when she still hadn't seen Remus around the house, that he had left. When she asked Sirius over him, he shrugged and said "its that time of the month for Remus." as if him turning into a werewolf was as mundane as a girl getting her period. Tonks didn't know how she hadn't realized that before, if she were honest.

She returned to the house on Sunday night having working overtime, after a recent raid of an ex-Death Eaters house had turned up some strange goods. Tired of pestering the Office of Improper Use of Magic to examine the items that had been uncovered by Dawlish, her co-worker, Tonks simply took the items to Mad-eye. 

The look that Mad-eye gave Tonks was one of pure anger as she had knocked a candle over, setting one of his books alight, as she entered his office. Once she had explained the situation, Mad-eye seemed happy to look over the items and told her that he would let her know when he had finished. It was quarter to midnight when Tonks carefully shut the front door behind her, trying desperately not to wake up the old hag's portrait. Creeping towards the kitchen to make herself a cup of tea before bed, she noticed that there was light spilling out from under the door of the drawing room. She realized that Sirius must still be awake.

Indeed, Sirius was sat in an armchair in front of the fire reading a piece of parchment and nursing a glass of fire whiskey. He looked up as she walked in. "you look a state." He pointed out. 

It was true. She was wearing black leggings and a white dress shirt that had once belonged to her dad. She also donned her pink leather robes and her lilac hair was in two messy plaits at her shoulders. "There's going to be a meeting on Monday night. Mandatory. So you want a drink?" Without waiting for an answer, Sirius magicked a glass and poured a neat measure of Firewhiskey. Tonks sat in the squashy armchair opposite him and accepted the glass gratefully.

"How was your day, Sirius?" Tonks asked, trying to be bright and cheerful.

The man scoffed. "It was wild. I went to Hogsmeade and had a beer in The Three Broomsticks and saw a goblin and a centaur get it on with each other. Then, when I got home, the darling Kreacher had made me a three course meal." He mused sarcastically whilst Tonks giggled. "It was shit." He said plainly.

Tonks raised her glass. "To shit days." They both downed their drinks laughing. 

Sirius poured them both another as Tonks started to ramble. "You know, when I was in Hogwarts, I thought the job of an auror was to catch bad guys and look good doing it." She confessed. "In reality, there is so much more paperwork, so many more rules. If I wanted to crash through the window of Malfoy Manor, then i'd have to fill out a health and safety permission form. Only have it be disapproved on the premise of "what's wrong with the front door?". It's madness!"

Sirius was chortling to himself, holding his tummy. He regained some dignity and held up his glass to his lips.

"Speaking of madness, there's a reason that they call Alastor "Mad-Eye". One time he broke into my mum and dad's house you know? Just to tell me that he needed me to come to the office and sign some paperwork. My mum nearly transfigured him into a chair." Tonks was crying laughing, as she recounted the tale.

Breathlessly Sirius sat up from his previous keeled-over position. "That man truly terrifies me. I can't imagine what it was like having him as a Hogwarts Professor." Sirius seemed to re-think his choice of words. "Well you know? Even if it wasn't the real Mad-eye."