If you were falling, then I'd catch you...
Tonks tripped over that cursed troll leg in the hall again. What else is new? She thought to herself as she picked herself off the floor, groaning a bit, she had smacked her knee pretty hard on her way down. She could now feel it swelling. Fantastic. Tonks brushed her bright, bubblegum pink hair out of her eyes and tried to compose herself once more before heading into the meeting, that she was no doubt late for. The hall was dark and quiet. Had she really not disturbed that blasted picture on the wall? That's what she called luck, something she didn't experience very often.
Just as she was opening the door to the dining room Remus lupin rounded the corner, coming from the kitchen. "Wotcher, Remus" tonks said grinning, it always cheered her up to see those warm, chocolate brown eyes. "Oh, hello there nymph- tonks" Remus caught himself and gave her a smirk, one that must've melted the hearts of all girls when he was a young maurader, and probably still did.
She gave him a playful wink and opened the door the rest of the way and made her way to sit at the table in between mad-eye and Sirius, who smiled at her and kicked her from beneath the table, "Fall again?" He whisper-teased her, as everyone else had already started the meeting. "Mmm, only because your choice in decor is absolutely horrific, cuz'" Tonks replied, playing. Sirius only gave his cousin a smirk before returning his attention back to the meeting.
Could this get any longer? Tonks thought to herself as the meeting dragged on. This one had to be the longest yet. She bounced her leg up and down, having had too much coffee, and no doubt caffeine, that morning. She looked up and down the table, pausing on each and everyone of her friend's faces. There was mad-eye, who was looking concentrated, and a bit paranoid. There was Sirius who was taking a swig from a bottle of fire whiskey and grimacing at the burn as it went down. Molly was just two people to the left of her, holding Arthur's hand as he kissed her forehead.
Then, she allowed her eyes to wander to Remus, who was gazing into the fire, lost in thought, apparently. She loved how the fire reflected in his amazingly brown eyes. She never noticed how he had little wrinkle, smile lines around his eyes. Which made him look extremely lovely. She also noticed he had one long scar running from his cheek bone down to the corner of his lips. His scars didnt mar his gentle features, though. If anything, they made him look so much more- She was startled out of her thoughts when she realized most of the order was looking at her. "What?" She asked, a bit embarrassed, hoping no one realized what- or who she was looking at.
Kingsley cleared his throat and in his deep, soothing voice answered "Dumbledore asked if any new happenings of interest had occurred at the ministry recently." Tonk's felt her cheeks go up in flames, Kingsley had noticed. Crap. She decided to play it off, "oh, yeah, umn... Sorry, I was actually just thinking about an interesting report I got today. Apperantly, a whole muggle apartment was lost. Yes, lost. It just isn't there anymore. The muggles are just completely baffled. The ministry is claiming it was just a practical joke that some teenagers did...but, fudge seemed awfully... Worried? So, I'm not quite convinced." Tonks said all of this with grace.
Everyone started murmuring amongst themselves about this incident and Tonks sighed, pleased that she seemed to pull it off. She didnt completely lie, though. It really had happened... She just hadn't been thinking about the case. She wasn't sure WHY she had been thinking about how handsome Remus was, it wasn't like she normally did that. She had now been part of the order, therefore knowing Remus, for a grand total of a month, and as it had occurred to her that he was attractive, and they had become fairly good friends, she never got lost in thought about him... She internally shrugged and glanced back over at him without thinking and he caught her eye. He smiled and casually turned his head back to his right, so he was looking at Kingsley again. Had he been looking at her?
Sirius, Mad-Eye, Remus, Emeline Vance, and Tonks were the only ones left, lounging at the table. Everyone else had already headed home, seeing as it was midnight. Tonks had work in the morning, she really better get going she thought, but she was having too much fun! Sirius was teasing Mad-Eye about being constantly vigilant and she was sure that he had a bit too much to drink as he had been hitting on Vance quite a bit, and Remus couldn't quit laughing, she was laughing so hard her sides had started to ache, and Remus was wiping tears of laughter from his eyes. Just as the last round of laughter died down Mad-Eye slid his chair back with a squeak and told everyone he had better get going since he had to go to work early on in the morning.
As he passed Tonk's chair he gruffly squeezed her shoulder, which she assumed meant some form of affection. She was one of the few people he cared for, she was one of his favorite students during auror training, she had too much spunk to dislike, he always said. She smiled up at him amd said goodbye. Soon after that Vance excused herself and got up, "I'd better get going, too! I can't believe the time. We will have to do this again, soon. Walk me to the door, Sirius?" Tonks and Remus exchanged smirks as Sirius turned a lovely shade of red and got up to let her out. As soon as they were out of hearing range one loud bark of laughter came forth from Remus's mouth.
Tonks loved his laugh, it was so deep and genuine. It was hard not to simply enjoy the sound of it. Tonks looked at him and smiled, "Seems like I'd better send a patronus before I drop by next time, if you get what I mean" she said while giggling. Remus blushed a bit, he was rather private, she had noticed. "Yeah, and I'll most likely get all the details, knowing padfoot!" He joked back. Tonks grinned and got up, "tea?" She asked as she started looking for a teapot. "That would actually be quite ni-" He got cut off by a loud CLANG as she accidentally dropped the newly found pot on the cement floor.
Tonk's hair turned a bright shade of peach, her embarrassed color. Way to go, Tonks. She grimaced and picked it up, morphing her hair bubblegum pink, again.
She glanced up at lupin, who was looking at her with a soft smile on his lips. She tucked her hair behind her ear, mumbling a sorry, slammed the teapot on the stove and turned it on. "How do you like your tea?" She asked, getting out a sugar dish and rooting in a drawer for a spoon. "Guess" was all he answered with. Tonks looked at him with surprise, since when was he so relaxed? "Fine, sweet." She answered. He seemed to have a thing for sweets, so she put two spoons of sugar in his mug and four in her own. She was a bit of a sugar maniac. The teapot whistled its high pitch scream.
Tonks dropped her mug out of shock. Peach. Again. Sirius came into the kitchen calmly, as if he expected things to break when she was around. She looked at the floor, but Remus was already up, muttering repairo. "Well, okay then...Thanks...Here" Tonks mumbled, still embarrassed by her clumsiness, while she poured some tea into Lupin's mug and handed it to him. He looked down at her, only a foot away and thanked her in a soft voice. Tonks felt her stomach twist. Her stomach twist? Since when did that start happening, Nymphadora? She thought to herself. Quite embarrassed, and trying to keep her hair from morphing again, she decided it was time to leave, "Well, I'd better get going! Thank you again, Sirius. I had a really good time! We will 'have to do this again'" she said while she and Remus chuckled at the look on Sirius's face.
"'Least I can get a date!" He said poking her in the ribs.
She giggled and hugged him before grabbing her coat and headed for the hall. "Wait, I'll lock you out" Remus said while getting out of his chair. "Constant vigilance" Sirius said, winking at her. She nodded, trying to look serious, letting out a giggle. She and Remus were walking down the unlit hall when she felt his hand brush her back and even though she was sure it was an accident, it surprised her and she forgot to look for that darned troll leg.
She started to fall over it when she felt a pair of large, warm hands, wrap themselves around her middle, catching her. She sighed with relief. "Caught you" she heard Remus's playful voice in her ear. Feeling his warm breath on her neck. She straightened up and turned around a bit, though he still hadn't let go. Butterflies erupted at the feeling of his warm hands on her back. "Heh, yeah... Thanks. Next time I might not be so lucky" she said smiling. He grinned and let her go quickly, once he realized what he was doing, he took two steps back and ran his hand trough his thick sandy brown hair that had just a few grey spatterings throughout it. He chuckled and gave a true marauders grin, a teasing glimmer in his eye, "Eh, if your falling, I'd catch you" he said. He leaned around her as he said it, unbolted and opened the door for her. "By the way, you are right...I like it sweet." He said with a wink. As she stepped out into the cold night she thought to herself, I think I just fell...