Written for:
Hogwarts Assignment 5 |Astronomy, Task 1, Mercury|- Write about someone getting wrinkles.
Writing Club |Showtime, Act One|: That Would Be Enough- (word) fragment
Roald Dahl Day: Technicolor creamery - Write about Nymphadora Tonks
Back to School Event: 11. (dialogue) "If you haven't noticed, I am a woman now. I wear a bra!"
Are You Crazy Enough to Do It?- 560. (title) Love Knows No Boundaries
Monthly Oneshot Exchange—September- (word) fireplace
Word Count: 593
For Danie via the Monthly Oneshot Exchange—September.
Sorry, for some reason I couldn't really get inspired by your prompts, but I did my best. This is the product. Enjoy!
Remus and Nymphadora are having a dispute. Again.
"Tonks, I'm too old for you!" he says frustratedly, dragging his hands through his tousled hair. "And you're too young! You don't deserve someone who is almost twice your age."
The air is charged with electricity; sizzling and crackling. The fire burns steadily in the hearth, imploring them to make a decision.
Remus is stubborn but Nymphadora is a firecracker. Her hair is a blinding orange and her eyes are an arsenic green, flaming with anger.
"If you haven't noticed, I'm a woman now! I wear a bra!" She's too incensed to be embarrassed.
"Nymphadora, I—" he breaks off, rubbing his temple tiredly. All of this back-and-forth is wearing him out. His face is wrinkled with stress and exhaustion. Dumbledore's death has taken a toll on both of them, but especially him.
He sinks into a chair, staring forlornly at the fireplace as Nymphadora softens.
"I'm sorry, Tonks," he mutters, looking lost, "but I can't."
"You mean you won't," she retorts obdurately. "I don't care what you are or how old you are, I love you. I fell in love with a man who is brave and doesn't back down because of society's expectations."
Remus remains silent, his gaze darting between the fire and the Auror, both urging him to make the right decision. Either choice would cost him something, so he had to weigh the pros versus the cons of each choice.
"I'm not young, Tonks," he says finally. "I mean, look. I'm developing wrinkles. I'm a werewolf. The world considers me an outcast, and all three of my best friends are either dead or as good as dead."
He takes a fragment of a mirror out of his pocket and stares into it, counting the wrinkles on his face.
Seven. James and Sirius would be laughing at him right now. They'd had an ongoing bet to see who developed wrinkles first and Sirius had bet on Remus. He had technically won the bet, but it had died with both of them.
He sets the mirror and looks at his lap. Nymphadora says nothing, casting her eyes down. Disappointment and resignation dig a pit in her stomach and she turns to leave.
"And yet," he continues, and Nymphadora's heart lifts with anticipation as she spins back around, "I have fallen in love with a headstrong, compassionate, vibrant young woman who stands for what she believes in. And if she believes that we can make a relationship work, than I have to believe her."
Nymphadora's heart soars and her face splits in two with a brilliant smile. She has to restrain herself from throwing her arms around him. She beams, her hair cycling through a myriad of shades. Pink, green, back to orange, red, and finally to its regular shade of bubblegum pink.
"I love you, Nymphadora Tonks," he concludes, a wide grin stretching out on his lips, his face looking a decade younger from the light shining from it. "Thank you for believing in me. I probably would've been lost without you."
"Anytime," she says happily.
He holds his arms out invitingly and she practically leaps into them, embracing him with so much enthusiasm it almost sweeps him off of his feet.
She buries her head into the soft fabric of his woolen sweater, inhaling Remus's warm and comforting scent: chocolate and wood.
Remus doesn't hesitate to wrap his arms around the woman he loves, marveling how someone like him could've found love in the form of a selfless, giving woman.