A/N: Yay, happy times for Remus and Tonks! This is how I imagine their first meeting could have happened. Don't worry, no love-at-first-sight, sparks-flying stuff. Just realistic interaction, I hope. Please leave a review!
Words: 1320
Characters: Tonks, Moody, Lupin
Time: Post-GoF, most likely
Genre: General, Friendship
Disclaimer: Everything you recognize belongs to J.K. Rowling, not me.
"Welcome to headquarters," Moody growled.
He led her inside with his hand around her wrist, a grip like carved wood, rough and unyielding. He pulled her across the threshold so hurriedly that she stumbled fantastically, earning her a snort of displeasure from her weathered mentor.
"Step carefully there. You never know what you might wake up."
"Wake up?"
Moody silenced her with a glare from his beady, dark eye, which was quite as intimidating as his false one. Tonks gave him a dutiful salute. Though it took nearly all her willpower, for she was bursting with questions and exclamations about this gloomy, secluded house that was apparently the headquarters for the Order of the Phoenix, Tonks remained impeccably silent and surprisingly light of step until they reached a brightly lit kitchen, and she felt Moody relax. A tired, disheveled, but kind-looking man sat at the long and otherwise empty dining room table. He was reading the newspaper and sipping from a steaming mug.
"Wow," Tonks breathed. "You know, Mad-Eye, you told me this place wouldn't be quite what one would expect, but this – it's a bit - a bit - "
Moody was off, bustling around in some corner, probably checking for unfriendly magical invasion of any kind, and thus not paying attention to her words. Instead, the man at the table came to her aid.
"Grim?" he volunteered.
"Grim!" Tonks said happily, snapping her fingers. "That's the ticket. Grim. It's a bit grim. Never been in a place so grim before, and I've had to have one-on-one meetings with him."
She dropped her voice to a stage whisper and jerked her thumb over her shoulder at Moody. When he growled "I heard that!" at her, both she and the man at the table shared an easy, knowing grin.
"I'm Remus Lupin," he said, extending his hand. "You must be the Auror that Mad-Eye has praised so highly."
In her haste to shake his offered hand, Tonks accidentally knocked over his mug. Appalled at herself, she dropped his fingers at once. "Oh, no, I'm so sorry – damn, I always do something stupid like that - " She felt her cheeks turning pink, along with a progressive, irritable brightening of her hair. Quickly she snatched up a nearby rag and tried to clear the mess she had made, but Remus's hand caught hers.
"No, please," he said. "I'll do it."
Before she could protest, he had wiped away most of the spilled drink. It was an odd, thick, grey liquid, still steaming even on the table, and she suspected Remus might even have used the sleeve of his already shabby robes to whisk it out of her sight.
"I'm really sorry," Tonks said again, imploring. Remus gave her a weary but genuine smile.
Leaving his newspaper forgotten on the table, Remus carried his empty mug to a cauldron sitting on the stove and refilled it with more of the steamy drink. As he went, Tonks couldn't help but study him – there were patches on his fraying robe and gray streaks in his hair, but he had to still be in his mid-late thirties. He held himself both smoothly and delicately.
"Done," Moody muttered, stumping over to him. "You alone at headquarters? I've got orders from Dumbledore, but I don't want to leave the place near empty."
Remus nodded, taking his seat again. "Alone save for Sirius, of course. Mad-Eye, is this the Auror you were telling me about?"
"That she is. Remus Lupin, meet Nymphadora Tonks, who - "
"Don't call me Nymphadora!" Tonks exclaimed, so furious that her hair turned violently purple. "Why'd you have to go and tell him that?"
" – who prefers to be called by her surname only," finished Moody in a rather pedantic manner, rolling both his eyes at her admittedly predictable reaction. Tonks sighed, shooting Remus an embarrassed glance. He was staring wide-eyed at her pixie-purple hair, one eyebrow raised.
"Oh, that," Tonks said, turning it bubble-gum pink once more. "Mad-Eye didn't tell you? I'm a Metamorphmagus. Sometimes I think that's the only reason he likes me, that one mildly unique and useful talent - "
"At least yours is a talent," Remus said, so quietly that she nearly didn't catch it. But before she could clarify, he continued, much more cheerfully this time. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Tonks. You're undoubtedly a much-needed spark of color in this dreary house."
"It is a nice shade, isn't it?" Tonks said, patting her head. "Mad-Eye doesn't approve of it. Says I attract too much attention."
"Between us – Mad-Eye doesn't approve of much of anything."
Mad-Eye growled again. "Do me a favor, gossip about me when I'm not right next to you."
Tonks nearly snorted, but restrained herself to a sort of muffled chuckle. Remus's eyes danced as they looked at each other, trying not to smile too much, like carefree children.
"Enough, you two," said Moody. "Remus, your orders. You're to try and get in with Greyback's inner circle this week. Well, 'inner' in the sense of his closest one hundred devotees, so you'll still retain a fair level of anonymity. Snape recommended bringing your own Wolfsbane. You'll leave tomorrow. Understood?"
The laughter had vanished from Lupin's face as quickly and wholly as if he himself had Metamorphosed. His expression was now drawn, resigned, exhausted. She noticed, for the first time, a faint scar across one rough cheek. When his eyes met hers, she thought he seemed almost scared. Tonks was rapidly trying to put two-and-two together in her head.
"Oh!" she burst out at last. "Oh, you're a werewolf!"
Silence. Dropping his gaze, Lupin nodded shortly.
"That's so wild," she said, intrigued. "I've never met a werewolf before. What's it like? Oh – no – I'm sorry, is that rude to ask?"
Belatedly she realized that Lupin was staring at her, bewildered and bemused, open-mouthed with surprise. Glancing to her side, Tonks noticed that even Moody looked different, impressed, though it was always hard to tell with him.
"Oh," she said into the quiet. "Are people supposed to be scared when they hear that?"
Remus blinked before seeming to find his voice. "Scared or horrified," he said, a little distantly. "There's a range of initial reactions. Few so easy and enthusiastic as yours. It was… a pleasant surprise."
"Well, you're welcome then, I suppose," Tonks said eagerly. "You don't look scary or horrifying, so that's that. Nothing you can do about a certain unusual happenstance at the full moon, right?"
Remus smiled faintly, but before he could say anything, Mad-Eye interrupted.
"Now that we all know each other's deepest darkest secrets, let's move on to business. Take a seat, Tonks."
It would have been easier and more practical to sit down where she was, but on impulse, Tonks hurried around the table and sat next to Remus. She had time for a quick grin at him before Moody demanded their full attention.