Hi Guys!

I'm so sorry for taking so long to upload! My muse disappeared and left me stranded. This chapters not as good or as long as I had hoped but hey, its a start...

Thanks to everyone who reviewed the last chapter!

Usual disclaimer applies...


Remus glanced over to where Tonks sat slumped in her chair. His eyes skimmed over her dull rose coloured hair to linger on her own pale gray eyes that stared tiredly into her butterbeer. Remus realized that the cheerful and interested show she had put on during Harry's collection had just been a good cover up for the stress she had really been feeling.

He watched as a smile pulled at her mouth and her eyes lit up as she once again declined food from Molly. Her familiar laugh carried over to where he was sitting but as the Weasley matriarch turned her back, the fire in Tonks eyes died and her smile was replaced with tiny stress lines that framed her lovely mouth. Lines that shouldn't appear on a face so young.

Making a split second decision, Remus got up and walked over to her, all the while extremely conscious of Sirius' eyes on him. He sat down without looking at Tonks, although he could feel her, along with Sirius, Kingsley, Hestia, Molly and Arthur, watching him curiously. He took a sip of tea and ignored them; hoping Tonks would understand that he didn't want to talk to her with everyone else listening. She seemed to get the idea because she turned her attention back on the drink in front of her.

Sirius flashed Remus a lopsided smile before clearing his throat loudly. "So Kingsley, Just in case someone happens to ask me, where am I currently in hiding? According to the Auror office?"

His question caused a series of laughs and eye rolls before Kingsley launched into a long winded speech explaining the details on Sirius' case in the Aurors offices. Molly sighed slightly, her shoulders drooping as she readied herself for a typical Kingsley speech, but she gained some of her enthusiasm when Hestia asked her for her grilled potatoes charm.

Once he was sure that no one was watching, Remus turned to Tonks. She smiled warmly at him which Remus had to tell himself did NOT cause a strange swooping sensation in his belly.

"How you doing?" He murmured, just so she could hear.

Tonks gave him a look of polite puzzlement. "I'm fine," she replied just as softly. After watching her, Remus knew that the forced bright smile that accompanied her words meant that she was feeling the exact opposite.

He inclined his head slightly. "When I first started in the Order, I felt like I had gotten myself in way over my head. I think the reality of what you're doing only sinks in later, after more than a few sleepless nights." He gave a humourless smile, "And I didn't even have to worry about a day job."

Tonks gave a light laugh. "Remus, I'm fine. I know everyone thinks that just because I'm young, I can't cope. But really-"

She stopped talking when Remus caught a strand of her hair between two fingers. They both stared at the lock that had been so vivid just that morning but had faded by the night light.

Tonks' eyes flickered to his, their pale depths panicked at the idea that someone might have found the crack in her cheerful front.

She swallowed hard and cleared her throat, "I'm fine." She pushed herself away from the table, away from Remus, and flung her magenta cloak around her shoulders. "Night all!" She called, only a hint of weariness in her bright voice. The room's occupants called back as she left the grim house, leaving Remus to stare miserably at her half-drunk butterbeer while Sirius shot him an extremely frustrated glare.