Chapter One: Work Complications.

Cloaks rustling could be heard as two people bustled down a corridor. Their hushed tones were filled with irritation as they tried not to interrupt the classroom sessions at hand.

"Severus, you can't ignore me forever." The voice of a female whispered loudly.

"Why not?" The tall man replied. He whirled around suddenly, His eye's bore down into the young woman. The electricity that sparked between them was almost visible. Her scowl met his look of mock disgust.

Severus Prince was possibly the most ornery man she'd ever had the chance of meeting. He had his good days but he chose to act as if those were bad. Just so everything looked as consistent with him as possible. No one ever expected the quick witted man to open up or sympathize with people. His rough interior led people to avoid him, just as he wished they would.

"As much as I'd love to stand here and waste my time, Nymphadora, I have better things to do."

"You call staring at your ceiling something better to do?"

"It is when the alternative is spending more time than necessary exchanging vernacular with you." She knew the truth behind his words. He just wanted to be left alone for a while.

"When you pull your knickers out of your arse let me know." Tonks said in terms he would understand. The eccentric woman turned around. It didn't surprise either of them when she tripped over her boots.

Nymphadora Tonks was the type of person you could see more than several times a day and never know it. Not that there was something unappealing about her. Her unusual ability to morph her appearance made her a difficult target to keep track of. She had a shining personality and was a brilliant communicator. She may be clumsy but was in no way incompetent.

Severus easily leaned forward and held her in his grasp. She hated when she did ridiculous things in front of the Potions Master. She believed it to be one of his favorite pass times to pick on her, just as he had done when she was his student several years back.

"Learn to balance on your own two feet." He remarked and gently shoved her away. He didn't want her to get the wrong idea if he held onto her longer than what was necessary. The raven haired man left her standing there as he continued stroll down the dungeon passageway.

Tonks sighed and began walking in the opposite direction back toward the main area of the dungeons. A presence of another person brought her from her thoughts.

"You shouldn't allow him to get to you."

Tonks nodded in agreement at the young brunette that stood before her. Her wild hair was pinned up in messy bun. The warm honey colored eyed that gazed upon her shone with mirth. The female that stood before her was tall. She was of average beauty. There was nothing about her that physically that jumped out and made people stare. It was the things that came out of her mouth that brought her to people's attention. She was intelligent and wore it on her sleeve like a badge of honor. There was no one who could stand in the way of her passion or her eagerness to learn. She was the smartest girl of her class and she would be damned if anyone dared to stand in her way.

"I know, Hermione." Tonks smiled sadly. "He just likes to frustrate me."

"It's his forte." Hermione said with a shrug. She knew her potions master well enough to know that he was always putting his best asset forward.

"Where's Draco?" Tonks asked looking around for the young man who was usually by Hermione's side when she was taking care of her prefect duties.

"He had something he needed to take care of."

"Make sure he isn't tinkering with any broken wardrobes again."

"If you can talk the professor into keeping his personality in line we'll have an accord."

"There's a fat chance on that happening." Tonks said sarcastically as she dusted off her cloak. "I need to get back to work before I get fired for lack of interest."

"Have fun with that." Hermione responded. The two parted and went their separate ways.

Severus felt a head coming on as he rubbed his temples. He'd come through his office door only to find himself stuck in the presence on Mad Eye Moody. He suddenly wished he hadn't left the lesser of the two annoying evils out in the corridor. Nymphadora at least was nice to look at and in desperate times was good conversation.

"You're being unreasonable," Severus heard Moody tell him when he turned the older man back in. "You could at least give her a chance to do something to help you."

"I do not require assistance." The younger man replied.

"So I can stick you out on the middle of nowhere and expect you to track someone down?" Moody said. "Your logic is sound my friend, but let's be realistic. She is good at everything you aren't."

Severus ran his fingers through his hair. Did people not understand the words 'day off' or 'go away'? He just wanted to be left alone. There was a section of his desk that held flasks. He picked one up and began to inspect the quality of it.

"Sooner or later you're going to be stuck with her whether you like it or not," Moody leaned against the door. "That's just the way things are."

"You put me in a very unyielding situation, but by any means I'd rather be able to say I chose to work with the ditz," If agreeing would save his the irritation of people knocking on his door to discuss his female friend then he would bite the bullet. Severus pulled another flask toward him. "Granger."

"You already know that one's perfect." Moody grunted. "If I ever meet another person like her, I'll kill 'em off."

"There is only so much you can handle from one insufferable know-it-all." He decided to leave off the fact that over the years he'd noticed that she wasn't all that insufferable. He didn't want Moody to get the wrong impression. "It doesn't matter how she is brilliant."

"Did you just compliment Ms. Granger?" Moody said, tilting an eyebrow in question.

"I must be getting sick," Severus mumbled, placing the top back on the flask.

"You may need to see a doctor. Start saying Tonks isn't insufferable and then I'll start to be concerned."

Severus snorted. He would never admit that Nymphadora Tonks was no long the peculiar child he'd watched Andromeda and Theodore Tonks coddled. Nor was she the confused teenager that stumbled into his potions dungeon praying that he wouldn't make her his target. No, she was neither of those. She had matured into quite the young women. He found himself fond of her to a certain extent despite the way he expressed it.

Severus pulled another flask toward him.

"Mr. Longbottom," He opened the flask and a vine shot out the top suddenly.

"It figures, that boy has an eye for plants," Moody grinned.

"Obviously because of it he will fail potions," Severus tossed the project into the garbage cauldron. "If Alice was in her right mind and saw this she'd put her foot up his arse."

Moody shook his head. It was sometimes amusing to see Severus so unaware of the affects he has on his younger more impressionable students and it saddened some of his peers. They left him alone giving into the fact that a little tough love never hurt anyone.

Moody got up from his seat in front of Severus's desk. He shook his head sadly.

"Try not to treat all of your students like your father treated you," he said opening the door.

"Do not speak of a man you know nothing about," Severus snapped his mood quickly darkening. His irritated attitude shifted to one of his most undesirable dispositions.

Moody left without another word. That was not a subject he cared too stick his nose into for fear of getting it blown off.

"I hate that man," Severus growled and before his self control could stop him, the potions master kicked over his desk. The potion flasks spilled everywhere. Only one remained unbroken.

"Granger!" He growled. He couldn't even unleash his anger without someone mucking it up with their so called brilliance.

It took Tonks a few weeks to want to be in the presence of Severus again. The over abundance of missions she had thrown at her also helped her keep her thoughts away from him. Tonks stretched as she walked around Hogwarts in search of one of her favorite people, even if he was a grumpy old man. She smiled; he hated it when she called him that. Of course she didn't think of him as on old man but rubbing him the wrong way genuinely was always at the top of her list.

The smile that covered her face had been plastered there since earlier that morning when she'd completed a very tough assignment. It probably wouldn't have been so hard had she not been so clumsy but she shrugged. It ended well and that's all that mattered in her opinion.

She descended down the stairs that led to the dungeons. She wondered why her ornery friend was so pale all the time. He didn't spend enough time outside at all.

An explosion rocked her and the corridor. She found herself losing balance and being tossed into the nearest wall. Smoke clouded the hall and she felt herself getting dizzy. Students poured from the dungeons trying to escape the nauseous gas that threatened to smother them.

A redhead that she knew well ran passed her. She grabbed his arm. It was Ronald Weasley.

"Where's Severus?" Tonks asked. "He's still inside, we were trying to help but he said the gas was poisonous and to get out."

"Thanks." Tonks said. She released him and was thankful the hall was relatively clear now. She pushed some of the students who were lagging behind. She coughed as she entered the classroom. The smoke was heavier here. She was overwhelmed by the feeling to vomit and did so; she scanned the room with squinted eyes. She saw a figure slumped over near a cauldron that was covered by a cloak stopping the smoke from seeping out quickly. The cloaks owner was unconscious and Tonks cursed the spells that prevented apperation. Her strength threatened to fail her as she went to retrieve the man but she refused to let weakness consume her. If she didn't act fast her companion could lose his life.

Tonks hoisted the man over her shoulder. He was heavier than she expected. All the muscles he kept hidden under his cloaks made it difficult to determine his weight. He mind was too foggy to even attempt to use magic. Her vision blurred as she made it out of the classroom, the urge to vomit again made itself present. She couldn't stop to give herself that relief. She climbed the stairs as quickly as she could, which in her opinion was much too slow. She finally made it to the top of the stairway before she collapsed onto her knees. People were by her side in seconds, lifting the unconscious man off of her shoulders and helping her to feet. Tonks shoved the person away as the contents of her stomach again emptied itself on the floor. Her head reeled and she fell backward into unconsciousness.

Cool hands pressed themselves to her forehead. She wanted to open her eyes, give the person that was touching her some indication that she could feel them but her body refused to cooperate.

"Relax," She heard Severus tell her. She felt him wipe away strands of her hair from her face and tuck it behind her ear. His hands left her forehead and a fresh rag replaced them.

"It seems Longbottom read somewhere that datura stramonium would improve the quality of his work," his soft voice informed her. "What the little fool didn't know was that it's highly toxic and can be fatal if exposed to it for long periods of time."

"How are you feeling?" Tonks asked him. For once she was happy that he could read her mind. She knew he had a frown on his face. She could hear it in his voice.

"I've gone through worse," He replied. "I'm more concerned about you."

Tonks again tried to open her eyes and she had better results this time around. Her eyes fluttered open and she took in the sight of the potions master. His face was ashen and he looked as if he hadn't slept in a few days. He looked into her eyes, his dark brown orbs held a hint of apprehensiveness. He looked upon her much like a man who kept vigil over his ailing partner.

She smiled at him weakly, she was thirsty. Severus disappeared from her sight as he went to go get the thirst quenching liquid she desired.

As Tonks' awareness of her environment increased she looked around and took note that she was not where she expected to be. The bed she laid in was one she had seen plenty of times before but had never gotten the chance to test try. The mattress below her was extremely comfortable. Her body was slightly lower than her extremities. Her head and arms were propped up comfortably on pillows.

Severus blocked her vision of the room again and held a mug to her lips. She suspected there was more than water in the container but she drank it regardless. He was careful to only give her small amounts as she sipped at the contents in the mug.

A warm tingling sensation spread through her body and she instantly felt a lot better. Tonks sighed contently and snuggled back into her blankets. The mattresses compressed a little as Severus sat down on the bed next to her. She barely noticed he took her temperature; Tonks was out like a light in seconds.

Severus sighed. It angered him how much he let the little brunette affect him. He got up from his spot on the bed and donned his cloak. He left his bedroom and exited the dungeons. He was running out of chlorella and needed more desperately.

He cursed Tonks and her willingness to risk her life for his. People wondered why he didn't want to work with her. He was well aware of the fact the young woman would gladly give her life for his. This in his judgment was ludicrous. Still she had put her life at risk and it had saved his own. He supposed the least he could do was show gratitude and nurse her back to health.

Severus shook his head.

"I hate heroes,"

Tonks woke up again a few days later to someone stroking the hair from her forehead. This seemed like the older man's favorite way of rousing her. She groaned and opened her eyes. She wasn't as weak as she had been a few days prior. She didn't understand how Severus was up and walking around when he'd been exposed to a greater concentration of the noxious gas.

Sitting up proved more of a challenge than simply opening her eyes and swallowing. His strong arms held her as she slid into an upward position.

"How does your head feel?" he asked softly.

She hated the way the mere sound of his voice affected her. It was gentle and still full of trepidation. She gave him a small smile and accepted the drink he offered her. She nearly gagged on the disgusting drink but like a good patient she forced it down.

"You must tell Rosethorn to find a new favorite herb," Tonks said. Her face turned upward in displeasure.

"I'd rather you told her," he said, taking the mug from her shaky hands. "You should eat something."

As she said this her stomach called out a ferocious growl. She smiled at him sheepishly and blushed.

"You're so pathetic," He told her in the most non serious voice he had. He wasn't low enough to attack the girl while she was at her worse.

Her waved his hand and a bowl of fruit appeared on the bedside table next to her. He didn't want to give her anything to heavy.

Tonks summoned all the strength she had to eat the pieces of delicious goodness in front of her. She suspected his reasoning behind the choice was the water content but she wasn't going to complain. She was going to start whining if she had to stay in this bed any longer. As much as she enjoyed being in Severus' bed, it just wasn't how she envisioned being there for the first time.

"You've envisioned being in my bed some other way?" He asked before he could stop himself. He wasn't suppose to just be handing out in someone's mind but hers was always the most entertaining when she zoned out and her body when into auto pilot. It was a very rare sight to see Tonks contemplative, but whenever she was it was definitely time to do a little more than eavesdrop.

"Bad monkey," Tonks scolded.

"Answer the question,"

"No," Tonks said. "And stay out of my head. Privacy invading git."

She watched as Severus' face turned up in a scowl. He didn't like that answer very much. With a wave of his hand the bowl of fruit in Nymphadora's hand disappeared.

"That's not fair," she pouted. "You can't throw a fit when you don't get what you want."

"I don't throw fits Nymphadora,"

"Well I do so give it back," She whined. She wasn't above using any means possible to get on the older man's nerves. It usually worked but sometimes it was harder to get him to give her, her way.

"Ander my question and I'll let you have the fruit back,"

"Yes," she answered plainly. He didn't say she had to give him details. "Now hold up your end."

He sighed and waved his hand. A new full bowl reappeared on the side table. The hungry woman grinned happily and began eating. She felt so much better, she wondered if the fruit was pumped up with something. Severus wasn't above putting something in her food. He must have learned that from her mother. It was a trick Andromeda picked up when Young Tonks was ill and refused to take anything to relieve her suffering.

"I bet countless women have been in this bed," she said between bites. "You're such a man whore Severus,".

She wiggled her eyebrows and he tried to hold back a grunt. There had been no women in his bed. He refused to taint his mattress with the scent of a female he deemed unworthy. Nor would he allow a random female to touch him in anyway he deemed inappropriate.

"How many when have been where is none of your concern."

"It's kind of creepy you know," she thought she'd be annoying, if only for a little while. He would eventually send her back to sleep. "knowing that my ornery professor probably bedded half the female staff maybe a few students."

"Silence!" He demanded.

"Oh come on," Tonks pressed. "You can't possibly tell me it isn't true,".

"It isn't," He snapped. "Stupid girl."

"Do you prefer to take a male?" she asked, her face turning serious.

She never considered Severus could be gay. Yes he was particular with the way he looked. Always dressed in the finest robes and his hair was always tidy. His facial hair was always trimmed neatly. In all the years she'd known him she'd never seen him look in the least bit scruffy. Well, as long as he hadn't gone to see the dark lord before hand.

"Don't be ridiculous," Severus said. "I prefer females,".

"Then what is it?"

"It's none of your concern," he huffed. "Now finish that and go back to sleep."

She pouted but knew not to press her luck. She was too sick to fight him off if he got any bright ideas to hex her.

Severus sat in the chair that was located in the left corner of the room. Next to it was a fire place that was currently lit by burning wood. He picked up a book but Tonks couldn't tell what it was and began reading.

She silently finished her fruit and the bowl disappeared. She yawned before sliding back down between the sheets. Sleep consumed her a few minutes later.

Severus put his book down when he heard her breathing even out. That nosy brat's questions had rubbed him the wrong way. To make sure assumptions based on his age was ridiculous, for all she knew he hadn't had a single partner in his life. That of course wasn't true, but he wasn't in any mood to let her in on this fact.

He titled his head forward and brought up both hands to massage his head. His life was about to get difficult.

--

What's in store next for the potions master and his metamorphmagus?