A/N: Thank you to all of you who reviewed.

I'm not loving this chapter, but I'm just getting it out of the way before moving on to the good stuff.


"Why are men so secretive, why are they afraid of the truth, sometimes even of themselves?
Why don't they want to admit that they would want to love with their entire being because this is everything that remains out of this vanity called Life?"
- Sorin Cerin


Chapter 3

Remus had lain awake most of the night, unable to sleep whilst his mind kept taunting him by flashing reminders of Tonks and her outfit and his conversation with Sirius. He was half afraid to go to sleep in case of what he might end up dreaming. When she'd walked into the kitchen that evening looking like she did, he had been terrified that she would be able to read the desire in his eyes. He'd turned his back to her and steadfastly refused to look at her again. A distinct sense of unease had settled on Remus for the remainder of the night. He'd known that he was attracted to her, but he had resigned himself to denying the attraction. What he hadn't expected was the sudden shot of lust that had coursed through him when he'd laid eyes on her or the anger he'd felt when Sirius had suggested that other men would find her attractive. And of course they would. Dressed like that they'd have to be blind not to! But the instincts that had risen in Remus were all too wolfish for his taste. He'd had an overwhelming desire to haul her into his arms and mark her as his for everyone else to see. A slightly sick feeling had set up residence at that point. He'd never reacted to anyone in that way before and he wasn't sure how to cope with it should it happen again.

At around four in the morning, he had heard Tonks stumble through the front door. How she didn't wake up Mrs. Black's portrait he didn't know. She'd tripped on the top stair and he'd heard a muffled "bollocks" before she continued down the hall. He'd smiled to himself; he could hear how carefully and deliberately she was trying to tread. But as she passed his room his smile faded abruptly. He could smell her. It had taken all his self restraint to stay in his room and let her pass.

As he dressed that morning he reassured himself that there would be plenty of other Order members present today to distract him from Nymphadora Tonks.

xXx

Tonks woke-up wincing. There was a shrill sound piercing the air. Blindly, she flung out an arm and ended up sending the alarm clock flying to the floor, where the shrill beeping ended in an ominous crash. Tonks risked opening her eyes, but the room seemed to have a distinct swaying sensation. She groaned and curled into a ball beneath the duvet. Her head was pounding and her mouth felt all fuzzy. She was never drinking again. She'd only intended to have a few drinks, but the club they'd gone to had had a two-for-one offer, and it had seemed silly to refuse. However, four trips to the bar and a few hours sleep later, her stomach seemed to disagree. With a sense of urgency, Tonks scrambled out of bed and felt an unpleasant lurching feeling as she stumbled on the duvet. She dashed across the hall to the bathroom and divested herself of her stomach's meagre contents, fortunately just reaching the loo in time. As she collapsed into a crumpled heap on the floor, she really hoped no-one was passing the bathroom at that exact moment.

As usual though, luck was against her, and a few minutes later there was a knock on the door. The sound echoed unpleasantly round her head.

"Go 'way!" came her muffled response from down the toilet.

"Now, now, cousin dearest. Is that any way to talk to the man who holds the cure to your ailments in his hands?" Sirius' disgustingly cheerful voice chided from the other side of the door.

Curiosity piqued, Tonks wrestled herself into a standing position and stumbled to the door. She pulled it open to find Sirius grinning. He brandished a glass of viciously turquoise liquid in front of her. She eyed it warily.

"Go on!" He jiggled the glass at her.

"What it it?"

"You probably don't want to know, but it'll stop anymore technicolor yawns." He nodded towards the loo.

Deciding she couldn't possibly feel any worse, Tonks took the proffered glass and downed its contents in several large gulps. A strange sensation came over her, but settled a few seconds later.

"Well?" Sirius was looking at her expectantly.

Tonks turned her pensive expression towards him. "Better I think. "She waited a few more seconds then gave a decisive nod and smiled. "Yes, much better ta."

"Phew. Thank Merlin for that!" A relieved expression came over Sirius' face. "When the recipe got to the bit about Hippogriff dung I had my doubts but…"

"Sirius!" Tonks reached out to smacked his arm, but Sirius had dodged out the way and was jogging down the stairs laughing. She was about to run after him when she caught sight of herself in the mirror and groaned. She wasn't going to risk running into anyone else looking like a banshee.

xXx

The kitchen was full of Order members and Remus was engaged in conversation with Arthur and Kingsley, but he was aware of the exact moment Tonks entered the room. She was in her usual uniform of ripped jeans and t-shirt, this one a cropped affair sporting the name of some muggle band he'd vaguely heard of. Her hair was a short mop of violet and her eyes looked impossibly huge and dark. Remus felt a little kick somewhere in his chest, but chose to ignore it. Pretending not to have noticed her, he saw her scan the room and head over to Sirius. She jabbed a finger in his chest and glared at him whilst apparently scolding him for something. Sirius looked appropriately contrite for about three seconds before laughing and pulling her round to sit on his lap in the large wooden armchair. Tonks laughed too and slung her arm round his shoulders.

Something unpleasantly akin to jealousy rose in Remus at seeing them so comfortable together, laughing and smiling. They're cousins. He reminded himself. Cousins! He was being ridiculous he knew full well.

xXx

"So…have a good night last night?" Sirius asked with a mischievous glint in his eyes that Tonks knew well enough to feel uneasy. She was suddenly very aware that sat on Sirius' lap with his arms loosely clasped around her waist, she was trapped.

"Uh, yeah. It was fun. I haven't been out dancing for ages"

"Hmm. I'll bet you were beating them off with a stick dressed like you were…though hopefully not with your wand."

"A few guys tried it on, but I'm not really interested."

Sirius raised his eyebrows and asked "No one you're interested in at work then?"

Caught out by the genuine interest and hint of concern in his voice, Tonks replied candidly. "Not at work, no." Her gaze drifted towards Remus of its own free will. She heard Sirius give a soft chuckle and cursed herself as she saw that his gaze had followed hers.

"Yes, I had rather suspected that your affections lay with a more mature gentleman." Tonks blushed and looked away. "I think you're just what old Moony needs."

Tonks' snapped her head up to look at him. "What? You think he needs someone loud, tactless and hopelessly clumsy trailing round after him?" she asked, not quite managing to keep the slight edge of bitterness from her voice.

"No." Sirius replied slowly. "I think he needs someone funny, loving and full of life to bring him back into the world of the living. Someone to show him he's not just some worthless old werewolf."

Tonks sat up straight. "Of course he's not!" she declared indignantly.

"I know that, you know that, but muggins over there doesn't. It's what he's been telling himself for the past thirteen years and as much as I've tried to make him think otherwise in the past year, there's only so much a tired old convict can do. A pretty young witch on the other hand…well…" Sirius trailed off and gave her a grin that left no doubt as to what he thought she could do to improve Remus' outlook on life.

Tonks bit her lip. She couldn't deny that she was interested in Remus. Alright, if she was being honest, she fancied the pants off him. But that didn't mean he felt the same way. "Why me though?" She asked hesitantly. "Any number of women would jump at the chance to be with him."

"They probably would. Moony always has managed to attract girls with that tortured, brooding act of his. But you've got a distinct advantage."

Tonks' forehead furrowed in thought. "I do?"

"Uh huh." Sirius leant in and whispered in her ear. "Because he fancies you too."

Tonks pulled back slightly and looked at him in disbelief. But Sirius merely smiled and inclined his head slightly in Remus' direction. Tonks turned her head and just caught Remus looking at her and Sirius before he quickly turned away, with slashes of red colouring his cheekbones.

Tonks turned back to Sirius, dumbfounded. Sirius grinned and winked.

xXx

The plan to collect Harry from Privet Drive had gone off without a hitch and most of the Order had left Grimmauld Place after one of Molly's dinners.

"Wotcher, Remus." Tonks plonked herself down into the chair next to him, shuffling it closer until their knees bumped together.

Remus looked up alarmed. He'd been so engrossed in the book he was reading that he hadn't noticed her approach. He cleared his throat nervously. Last time he'd looked the kitchen had still been full of people, he was now uncomfortably aware that it was just the two of them. "Hello Nympha…Tonks." He caught himself just in time. A strange look passed over her face as he corrected his blunder with her name.

"Whatcha reading?" She inquired, leaning over him to try and read the title of the book he was holding in his lap.

"A treatise on the prohibition of pure-blood and half-blood marriages." Tonks made a disgusted face. "Not one of my own collection."

"Don't you ever get bored of sitting in this place, reading tripe like that?"

Yes, Remus thought. But there was no reason to let her know that. "Not especially, no." Liar.

She raised her eyebrows in scepticism. "Well it's not healthy. Sirius might not have a choice but to stay cooped up in here, but you do!" Her stern expression gave way to a sly smile. "In fact, I refuse to let you waste away in here Remus Lupin. I'm taking you out."


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