A/N: This is a BIG remake of some of the previous few chapters. I deleted those and am going to give a more summarized version of meeting the Grangers. As to why I did that, I'm not really going to make excess bonus chapters outside of the normal story unless I KNOW I can stay consistent. When I think on the fly, I don't think too consistent. Anyway, here it is.

The day after we got off our flight from the U.S., Hermione was slightly miffed that I did visit exactly on Christmas. But I didn't necessarily care. I still showed up though, which is what really mattered.

Though she had a big grin from the expression on her parents' face when I showed up. Obviously they didn't believe their daughter when she said she met me. They, were proven wrong today. We spent about the whole day enjoying ourselves. I was glad when the Grangers went from excited fans of my work to people I actually felt comfortable talking to.

"They definitely didn't believe her when she said she knew you," Harry said when we got to my house.

"Yeah, no kidding. Of course, it would be hard to believe. I don't make a public appearance that often. Who's to say she happened to meet me and befriend me?" I asked rhetorically.

"Definite point there. Regardless, from what I've seen of Hermione, she doesn't seem like the type-" Harry was cut off by an alarm buzzing on my phone, indicating someone or something was approaching. I hit a button on my phone, and at an instant, camera monitors popped up from under the ground and it had an image of what was coming at us.

"What is it?" Harry asked me.

"Something's getting close," I said, typing at over two hundred words a minute, taking less than a second to pinpoint was coming at us. Three owls.

"It's only owls with letters. I'll let them in," Harry said, walking over to a window. I nodded and hit a button that let the defenses down so they could get in. "Surprisingly, you allowed that rather quick." I shrugged.

"To be honest, there isn't much threat that an owl posses. If it tries to attack me, I'll shoot it and cook it," I said, making the owls bristle before I smiled. "Just make note of that."

"I'm not surprised," Harry said, taking a wrapped object from the one addressed to him.

"Who's it from?" I asked him.

"Professor Snape," Harry said in shock. Then he began to read the attached note.

"Mr. Potter, I'm no man who is known for formalities or general gift giving whatsoever, so I'll just cut to the chase. Happy Christmas and I hope you enjoy my present."

Harry turned to the present itself and unwrapped it. It was a book. Occlumency: The Theory to Protect Your Mind.

"I read about that. Occlumency is mind magic to protect yourself from a Legilimens, who is trained in the art of Legilimency. To put it in simple terms, it allows a wizard to invade another's mind," I explained.

"So wizards can read minds?" Harry asked. "That makes me uncomfortable." I shook my head in a negative fashion.

"No, it's a lot more complex than that. Even magic can't break someone's mind to the point where they can read it like an open book. No, the mind is the best invention there is. It's a complex thing. It orders everything in the way of what we perceive as logic or right/wrong. Rather, Legilimency lets you read the emotions they are currently feeling or to simply find any memories. Not quite as advanced as mind reading, but it's pretty close. Occlumency is the counter to Legilimency. Even people who aren't wizards can learn the art, though will have to keep a focused state of mind," I explained.

"Wonder why Snape sent me a book on it?" Harry asked.

"Maybe he wants you to practice it. I'll do it along with you. It wouldn't hurt," I said.

"Yeah, I'll practice. Now, what about the presents you got?" Harry asked.

"Uh, from Professor Snape and…" The last name made me raise an eyebrow. "…Nymphadora Tonks."

The moment I said that name was the moment Harry's face broke out into a wide, devilish grin.

"Hmm. Maybe she likes me more than I expected," I said, deciding to grab Snape's letter.

"You have a tendency of doing that with some of us," Harry said.

I skimmed through Snape's letter. It was basically Harry's letter with my name. He wasn't kidding. He wasn't one for formalities. I then opened Nymphadora's letter.

"Let me get something clear. The only reason I labeled this letter 'Nymphadora Tonks' in the first place was because you're one of the few people to actually like it(I noted the grins on Harry's faces as I read this) and my mother pressured me to do so. More so after I told her you actually liked the name, so thanks for that.(Not really) On a separate note, Happy Christmas Robert! Your present is in the box (obviously) and I hope you like it. If you want to be generous enough to get me one, you can pick a time and place so we can talk about a subject unrelated to something violent. I would like to get to know a friend better without you always being in a violent mood, (which has been every time I meet you I might add). See you later maybe, Tonks." I finished. "Huh, that's an interesting way to end off a letter, though I'm not surprised."

Her present seemed to be badly wrapped, cause it seemed as if the object in question took a specific shape. Sure enough the present was a pair of steel toed boots. The design was everything you can imagine in a traditional cowboy movie, but the design was quite elegant. Perfect attire if I actually ever decide to wear anything other something other than my Vigilante attire. Something about trench coats just attracts me to them. Plus everything else I wore made me look like a mercenary, which most have the talent of making themselves looking badass.

"Not a bad choice at all Nymphadora," I said, looking a boot over with one in the palm of my hand.

"You going to meet her?" Harry asked.

"Eh, why not? Think you'll be alright alone?" I asked him.

"What, I can't come along? You want your alone time?" he teased.

"Three is a crowd Harry," I told him.

"Yeah, I'll be fine. After all, I'm in a location just as isolated as Hogwarts and with more security than the biggest bank vault in the world several times over. I'll be fine," Harry explained. I gave him a two-fingered salute.

"Good. I'll be back then," I said, walking out.

I began to write a reply telling her to meet me at a restaurant I'm fond of. McDonalds. (Don't know if they have a McDonalds in the UK, but who doesn't like mother******* McDonalds?)

I tied the note to the owl that was still hanging around and headed to my underground garage and got a car out of there to take. Not like I couldn't park a jet in the parking lot.

I walked in a McDonalds and she was already waiting for me. Some part of me wondered how in the hell did she get here before me, but magic instantly reminded me how. I took a seat across her, but she didn't notice me yet.

"I'm right here," I said grinning. She quickly turned around and smiled at my eased posture.

"Thanks for taking some time out of your 'oh so busy schedule,'" Tonks said grinning.

I smirked and crossed a leg over the knee of the other before placing my hands behind my head.

"It's not that busy to be honest. At least anymore. So you wanted to know more about me. Before we start, I want to ask you one. What if someone notices what we're saying?" I asked her.

"Notice-me-not charms. They won't pay the least bit attention to our conversation," Tonks assured me. I nodded in satisfaction.

"Alright, fire away then," I told her.

"First of all, where are your parents?" Tonks said.

"Dead," I said simply. The sting was considerably less than usual when I said this after I actually mourned them. "Don't bother saying sorry. It's quite a pathetic sentence where I'm concerned."

"Pathetic?" Tonks asked in an incredulous voice.

"When you've heard it thousands of times from people you don't even know? Yeah, pathetic," I quipped.

"Ah. So that's a bit more understandable. Next, genre of music?" Tonks asked.

"I will forever be reminded, of how I struggled to survive," I quoted.

"Disturbed?" Tonks asked, making me nod. "Love the some of the songs, but they can get pretty dark at times."

"Which is a perfect description of me half of the time. I can relate to some of the songs," I said.

"I have no doubt that you can. Any others?" Tonks asked.

"I'll listen to any genre of music. So long as I like the song," I said.

"Same with me. Also, you've been at the school for months, and I've never seen you wear regular clothing," Tonks said, observing my clothing.

"That's cause what I wear at the castle is what I prefer to wear normally. Suits make me look like a rich asshole," I said simply.

"Well, you are a rich asshole," Tonks said cheekily, making me smile.

"I'm not an asshole. I'm only one if you piss me off."

"True. What do you do for a living? I mean, you don't expect me to believe you got this rich off sitting on your ass, do you?"

"If you did, you wouldn't be as smart as I thought. No, I work."

"Doing what?"

"Technology designing."

"You design technology?"

"Yes I do. I make quite a lot of money on it too."

"What's something you made?"

"This phone for example. Watch," I said, hitting a button on my phone.

All of the light in the restaurant went out before quickly switching back on. There was a small panic from the power surge, but people soon calmed down and returned to their conversations.

"All of the US, France, and recently is controlled by technology. Technology that was made by me and I can control remotely," I said, shaking the phone side to side.

"That's impressive. You're a smart cookie, aren't you?"

"Yes I am. You have to be to be in business I'm in. Anything else?"

"Have you dated anyone?" Tonks asked with a cheeky grin.

"No. Never had the time," I said, scratching the bottom right corner of my mouth with a thumb.

"Really?" Tonks asked, obviously surprised. "How do you not have the time?"

"I just don't. Plus I've got plenty of baggage on me, and no one wants that. Next question," I said, wanting a change of subject. I was NOT treading into that territory.

"Alright, food?"

"Don't have one. Too many to choose from."

"Well, at least we know you don't pick favorites. Uh, I'm out of questions."

"Well, how about every question I answered for you, you answer for me."

"Why not? Uh, my mom's a witch and my dad's a Muggle, which makes me a half-blood. My dear mum got denounced from the family for marrying my dad." My eyes widened.

"Why would they do that?"

"Simple. He's a Muggle. The Blacks were all about 'pure-blooded beliefs.' Which means anyone who isn't a pure-blood is inferior of being wed to a Black. My mother disagreed, so they denounced her. Half of the family tree is full of incest products."

"Honestly, I don't give a shit about incest. Or gays for that matter. If, and only if it's all about the right reasons. That is not a good reason," I said, my mouth curling into a frown.

"You honestly don't care about any of that?"

"If you love someone, no matter who it is, where you come from or where you're going doesn't matter. Age, gender, blood. It's all irrelevant in the such case of true love. At least, this is what I think. I've seen a lot of shit where people interfere with the lives of people where who they love does not concern them. Even family and friends don't have a say in that, much less a stranger."

"Suppose you're right about that. I'm glad you have optimism like that. Even people who are open to stuff aren't as supporting," Tonks told me in an admiring tone.

"It's just how I am. I accept people who they are. That can be good or bad depending on who that person is. Alright, next."

"Um, I can't say that I can pick favorites as far as songs go, but I do like Disturbed, which you could probably assume from the fact I knew what song lyrics you were quoting." I nodded in satisfaction, gesturing for her to continue.

"Well, if you remember, and of course you do, I told you that I planned on becoming an Auror once out of school. It's going to require a lot of training once I get out of school, but I'm pretty sure I can do it," Tonks said in a determined tone. I nodded respectfully at her.

"I have no doubt you can. You look like a determined one. Just work on those 'two left feet' as you call them," I said, using finger quotes.

"You pickpocket, but can you actually sneak around without anyone hearing you?" Tonks asked, raising an eyebrow.

I crossed my arms, leaned back in my seat, and met her stare with one of my own.

"You think I was lying?" I asked. My tone was curious, with a touch of amusement. "I really don't see the point of lying about my own abilities."

"Don't think you were lying. I just want to see you prove it."

"That's honestly going to be pretty hard to prove in the current situation," I said dryly.

"I get that. But whenever there's a chance to prove it, I want proof."

"If the situation calls for it, you shall have that proof," I said, nodding.

"Alright, time for the next question. Yes, I have dated a few times. Two of them were Weasleys, but that's something I'm not going to get into."

"You dated some of Ron's brothers? Huh," I said, my tone curious.

"What's 'huh?'"

"I'm just thinking if they're anything like Fred and George, you found your soul mate," I said dryly. Tonks threw her head back and laughed at my statement.

"Alright, lets finish the last question. Like you, I have no favorite food. There are just too many to make a decision."

"God did put so much good food on this earth for us to pick a favorite," I said, checking the time on my phone for the time. "We've been here for only five minutes and discussed everything. You want to do something else or what?"

"Something else? Just what are you suggesting?" Tonks said, wiggling her eyebrows. I smirked at her insinuation.

"Trust me, you aren't ready for something of this gratitude. Get your mind out of the gutter."

"That's where I spend half of my time in. You should try it. It's really fun," Tonks said enthusiastically.

"No thanks. If you don't mind, I'd rather keep my mind on the straight and narrow for now. Now be serious. What do you suggest we do?"

"Is this a date?" Tonks asked cheekily.

"Again, I'm asking you to be serious. Please oblige me for one day."

"Fine. How about we actually order some food? Talking brings an appetite."

"I'm pretty sure it brings more of a thirst, but whatever. You never were normal."

"And you are?" Tonks asked rhetorically.

"Don't put words in my mouth. I did not insinuate that I was anything of the sort. I'm far from a paragon of normal, or what is perceived as normal anyway, but I do know what 'normal' is, and we are far from it. You're a wild card, and I'm the young soldier."

"You delivered that in a way that I can actually understand, even though you used giant words plenty of times."

"I have an extensive vocabulary. I could use even bigger words, but I wouldn't want to send you brain in circles."

"What are you insinuating?" Tonks asked, sounding slightly offended.

"I'm not insinuating anything. Most people don't have anywhere need the extensive vocabulary that I have that's all. It's no offense against you or your intelligence. I know you're a smart girl."

The calm tone I stated this in and the compliment itself caused her to relax.

"Sorry. I've been under a lot of judgments that I'm an airhead."

"I don't think that. Not even close. Honestly, I couldn't give a shit what people think of me. The problem is with me? People know I'm all brains. They figure that one person either lies on one side. Never any others. Like, if a person is strong, they don't have the brains or emotional range big enough to fill a tea cup. If a person is smart, they have that side covered and is emotional sensitive. With emotional sensitive people, they have brains, but no brawn. Never any combination other than the ones I just mentioned. Me? I've got brains and brawn, but fewer morals."

"Yeah, I can see that. It's never too good to assume, but it seems to work with you," Tonks said, making me smirk.

"That's because my assumptions are analytical at best. I observe the situation as much as I can before making a judgment. Most people don't do that."

"'Most people' as you call it, don't discover a magical castle that was deemed impossible to discover in terms of Muggles centuries ago."

"Quite. Though you have to thank Mundungus for that. If it wasn't for him trying to make an international form of making money, I wouldn't have been able to do it. I assume you're able to turn regular money into Galleons, Sickles, and Knuts?"

"Yes. This makes it easier for parents to buy their kids' supplies if they're Muggles. Pure-bloods like Draco Malfoy," Tonks said, obvious disgust in her voice. "Share Salazar Slytherin's views that if you're raised by Muggles, you're not worthy to be in this school. God, I'm ashamed to be the cousin to a racist asshole."

"You're cousins?" I asked, raising my eyebrows in surprise. This I did not expect.

"Yeah. My mother is sister to Malfoy's mum, which makes us cousins by blood. Again, I'm ashamed of that fact," Tonks said, face palming.

"It's ok. You turned out perfectly well Nymphadora. And Malfoy? Goodness, he's a waste of skin, organs, and bones."

She flinched slightly from the use of her name, but smiled at my opinion of Malfoy.

"But at the same time, I don't blame him for the way he is."

"You don't? Oh, Malfoy's dad," Tonks said, immediately catching on. I nodded.

"He was raised by parents who taught him those beliefs, so I can't blame the child, but I will sure as hell punish him for enforcing those beliefs."

"I'm pretty sure you've done that quite a lot already."

"I believe that enough is never enough. As you've probably seen, it hasn't been nearly enough to make him learn. You try anything, I'm going to kick your ass. Plain and simple," I said dryly. Tonks let out a loud laugh at my wording.

"Just like I hex the shit out of anyone who calls me Nymphadora besides my mother. Well, that's until you came along," she said as an afterthought.

"Cause I actually like the name?"

"Cause you're the only one besides my mother who didn't necessarily mean it in a tone that means harm. That's why I don't let people know my first name. If they do find out about it, I give them a warning to not use it again. I don't warn again," Tonks said stiffly.

I laughed at her methods. I mean, I really threw my head back and just started laughing for what seemed like over an hour.

"I like you. I really like you. You don't take shit from no one when you've already warned them. That's something I can easily relate to. Malfoy should know that by now," I said.

"Yeah, the only difference is my curse just a small bit of pain and maybe some embarrassment later. Your version of recompense..." Tonks shuddered, leaving the sentence hanging. I just shrugged.

"But another difference is that I don't hurt people for calling them by my name," I said, tweaking her nose. "The only problem you could cause concerning names is if you called me out of my name. Then we have a problem."

"Regardless of what other people might think, you're a hell of a time."

"When you get to know me I am. Well, when you get to know me now. Before, I would never agree to have a conversation with anyone. But after Christmas, some things change," I said, looking over to the counter. "I really think we should order some food. I really think we've taken up enough of the owner's hospitality."

Before Tonks could speak, her stomach let out a loud growl. She blushed at her stomach's attitude. I grinned.

"Yeah, we definitely need to order. What do you want?" I asked.

"Just a Big Mac meal with a coke," Tonks said.

"Alright. I'll be back," I said, walking to the counter. At my approach, the cashier's eyes got wide and he started paying attention.

"Can I get a Big Mac Meal and a Ranch BLT meal? Coke and Dr. Pepper for the drinks." I told him.

"Of course. Coming right up," he said, ringing up the price. "Ten dollars and seventy-three cents." I put a 100 on the counter and walked away without bothering for change.

"I got another question for you," Tonks said. I nodded to show my acceptance. "Do you normally pay a hundred bucks for a ten dollar meal?"

"Yes," I said in the bluntest voice I could summon.

"Why? That's ninety bucks right there," Tonks questioned with a dumbstruck expression.

"Technically, it's eighty-nine dollars and twenty-seven cents. And I do that cause I have plenty of money."

"Yeah, but even rich people get their change back."

"Yeah, well I'm too damn rich for my own good. So I really don't care. A hundred dollars for me is a penny in a Republican's eyes if you know who those are. That's how rich I am.

"That's rich."

"No kidding."

"Oh, did I ever tell you about my little talent?"

"Talent? Unless the talent involves being beautiful, smart, generally funny, and a fun person to talk to, then no. You haven't."

"Charmer. No that's not the point. Under the risk of surprising everyone here, lets take it outside," Tonks said, standing up.

I shrugged and followed her outside. Once outside, her face screwed up into a pained expression before her hair changed to a blond color. A big contrast from the pink she normally wears. The sudden change startled me for a second. Then I remembered the term Metamorphmagus in a book I read. In simplest terms, they're shapeshifters.

"You're a Metamorphmagus?" I said, my eyes wide. Tonks smiled widely before nodding.

"About the first time I've caught you off guard, but yes. I am. I don't really change much. The only thing I essentially change is my hair and the size of my breasts."

"I assume you made them smaller."

"What makes you come to that conclusion?"

"Well, they're already small enough, so I wouldn't imagine they can't really be smaller at your age."

"You were looking at my breasts?" Tonks asked, raising a questioning eyebrow.

"I can remember every detail about a person's face and body. More specifically, I glanced at your breasts. I don't necessarily cross that bridge out of respect."

"Or the lack of testosterone you seem to lack when it comes to lust of the female population," Tonks said, crossing her arms.

"Lust is something I'm not tempted by. Self-control is something that would do people well. Now lets head back in. I don't want to miss the food," I said, walking back into the shop and holding the door open for Tonks. "After you."

"You're so much of a gentleman, it's insane," Tonks said, walking through the door.

"That's because I was initially raised to be a gentleman. This is just simple stuff," I said, sitting at a table and crossing my right leg over my left knee. Tonks again took the seat in front of me.

"Why can't more people be like that?"

"Because not all people are raised with those ideals into their heads. Like there's fact that some people walk around like the world owes them something. Like the world owes you anything. Peh," I said, swiping the air in front of me to emphasize my point.

"Malfoy," Tonks coughed out in a not so subtle way.

"It's not just him in this world. But people who were raised like him. Everything is handed to them on a silver platter. That is the worst thing you can do for a child."

"Luckily, I wasn't raised like that, you weren't, or even Harry it seems like." My face became a nasty grimace at the memory of the Dursleys.

"Quite," I quipped. Then a call of our number meant our food was ready.

"Keep the change. I don't care," I said, grabbing our food and walking back to our table.

He looked at me like I was the most insane person in the world. But he eagerly took the money. I sat down and placed the food down, both of us immediately digging in.

If Tonks had any concern with how she looked once before, apparently she doesn't when she's eating.

"There's this little invention called a napkin Tonks. I'd recommend you use it before face is covered in the 'special sauce,'" I said, my tone suggestive.

Tonks did not miss the innuendo of the phrase and glared at me, but the redness of her face made that glare lose any effect. I held out a napkin and she grabbed it before furiously wiping her mouth.

"I think I preferred you when you just didn't talk at all," Tonks said.

"Aw, you know you love me," I said in a as-a-matter-of-fact voice.

"Jury's still out on that. Right now I absolutely despise you," Tonks said sternly.

"Guess what? Don't give a shit," I said in a pleasant tone.

"Does anything I say bother you?" Tonks asked, throwing her hands up in frustration.

"Nope!" I said in the same pleasant tone.

"Damn you! I give up!" Tonks exclaimed in frustration.

"Again, not going to Hell anytime soon," I said, checking the time on my phone. "We've been here for over a half hour. Didn't really feel like it."

"Time does fly when you're having fun. You're frustrating, but fun to talk to." I raised an eyebrow.

"Pot meet kettle. I think we look quite black," I said, leaning back and putting my thumb and index finger under my chin as if I was in thought. Tonks let out a snort at the old phrase.

"That's one way to put it. I'm sure you're ready to go."

"You said it, not me," I said dryly before grinning. She attempted to swat me, but I held her hand with my thumb and index finger. I waved my left index back and forth.

"Uh-uh. Not gonna happen," I said, my tone amused.

"Another thing. Is it humanely possible to catch you off guard?"

"It's statistically unlikely, but you never know," I said shrugging. "But in all seriousness, I do need to go."

"You've things to do?"

"Well, for one I have Harry at my house. Doesn't really make me a good host if I'm not there. Plus there's some work that I need to get done that I'm already working on."

"All right Mr. Working Man. I'll leave you to it. Can you at least show me where you live before you go?"

"Sure. But make sure not to tell anyone where I live," I said, throwing away our trash and I went to my car. If you can count a Lamborghini as just a car.

"Show off," Tonks said as soon as she saw the car.

"What can I say? I like to get around fast. Don't you dare take that out of context," I said, as soon as Tonks was about to speak. Tonks crossed her arms and glared at me.

"So it's ok for you to do it, but not me?" she asked.

"I didn't say it wasn't already for you to do it. You can always choose to ignore the request," I said, getting in the car. As soon as I put the keys in the ignition, a man came up to me and held a gun to me.

"Get out," he ordered.

I gave him a bored look before breaking my window and grabbing the gun of his hand and shooting him in the knee. There was a panic from the gunshot, but I didn't really care.

I opened the door and grabbed the dude from the back of his neck before holding him up in the air.

"Do you really think it's fun to try and steal someone's car? Not in the slightest you bitch," I snarled. The pressure on my neck was getting tighter as I could see him turning purple from the lack of oxygen.

I let him fall to the ground and held his neck, grasping for as much air as he could.

"L-look, I'm sorry man. I'll just leave," he said, attempting to dash away but I grabbed him by the collar of his jacket and choke slammed him onto the hard pavement. The intention and the achieved effect was to break his spine.

"You're crazy," he groaned out painfully.

"Not crazy. I'm a vicious son of a bitch. It's something you're going to learn in the worst way," I said, before turning him over while forcing my knee on his elbow and breaking his arm with a sharp snap. "C'mon Nymphadora."

She followed, though her movements were slow. I'm pretty sure it was shock from the situation.

"Is that how you normally handle people?" Tonks asked.

"Yes. Worse depending on what you do," I said, speeding through the street and a high speed, dodging cars easily.

"Damn dude. And could you slow down before I end up with vertigo," Tonks said, looking slightly sick.

"Oh, sorry," I said, slowing the car down to a fair speed.

"I was prepared to jinx the guy, but you did something way more... intense," Tonks said in a light tone.

"That's life. Well, my life. Kill or be killed. And occasionally maim And I have no problem with that," I said in my commonly used emotionless tone.

"Here we go again," Tonks muttered.

"This is what happens when something serious comes up. I'm all soldier," I said, pulling up to the hill that carried my house. "We're here."

"Here? There's nothing here."

"Of course not. My house is up the hill. Are you prepared for a thirty minute walk up the hill?"

"Walking? Ugh," Tonks complained.

"Or would you rather I carry you?"

"I'd rather be carried."

"Too bad. Get some leg power."

"You're cruel. Not even including what just happened."

"If you're going to uphold the law, we're in trouble if you complain for having to walk up a hill. I pity the Auror who has to train you."

"Ok, fine. I see your point," Tonks said, crossing her arms before taking a deep breath. "Let's go. And are you just going to leave your car there?"

"No. It teleports back to the garage after I'm done."

"Why can't we just teleport along with it?"

"For one, it takes the exact amount of time it takes for us to get up here. Two, you're lazy and need the exercise. And three, the teleporter was only calibrated to teleport the car. Not anything in it. I'm pretty sure if we tried, part of us would be there and the other parts in the garage." Tonks shuddered.

"It's a lot like if you Splinch yourself with Apparation."

"Yes, exactly like that. Though there's no way to reverse the process, so that's why. I'm working on a teleporter that can teleport people as well. So far, I haven't made much progress," I said, sighing.

"You'll get it eventually. After, I'm pretty sure all the stuff you invented wasn't in a day, right? If you say yes, I'm going to call you a liar on this."

"Well, all of my other inventions were actually invented in a day, but planned for weeks. This requires more than just theory to invent. I need to experiment with the different versions I'm trying to make."

"How do you test this? I'm not really sure if people are lining up to be split into pieces across the globe," Tonks said in a dry tone that makes me proud.

"No, they aren't. Rather, I have to test it on corpses, which is horrible on the nostrils." Tonks' face twisted into a disgusted one.

"All for science, huh?"

"That's one way to put it. Now I think we ought to focus on getting up this hill," I said, moving in strong strides.

"One more question. What else are you working on?"

"Classified information. Only that it involves a near unbreakable metal."

"Are you making weapons?"

"It has a bunch of uses, and one of them do involve weapons. Now lets focus on the hill."

"Fine then. Can we at least talk on the way? I get bored easily."

"If you're on the job, you're going to want to stay quiet so your culprit won't detect you. Apply that situation here."

Tonks seemed to be irritated, but she didn't argue. We spent the last twenty-five minutes walking up the hill in silence. And we finally made it to my house. The irritation on her face was replaced by astonishment at the sight of the place.

"Yeah, it's impressive. It's a complete replica of my parents' place. I love this place," I said, walking in the door.

"I would too if I had a place this nice. Living it up a little too much for your age, aren't you?"

"Believe me Nymphadora, that's not the only reason."

"Gah, stop calling me that! I know you like it, but I still hate it!"

"You just need to get used to it," I said. "Believe me, I do like the name. You just hate it because what people make of it. And probably how ridiculous it must be to spell, but learn to like your own name."

"I'm afraid that's not going to happen."

"Well, I'm certainly not going to stop calling you Nymphadora," I said, making Tonks groan.

"I was afraid you would say that. And since you've got the reflexes of a cat times one hundred, I can't really jinx you for calling me that. God, this sucks," Tonks said, collapsing on one of my couches. Unfortunately, there was someone already sitting there.

"Ah!" Harry yelled. Tonks jumped up as if electrocuted and stared at the eleven year old in question.

"Oh. Sorry Harry. I'm pretty exhausted because this guy..." she jerked her thumb at me. "...made me walk all of the way up here."

"You know you need the exercise. Plus, I'm trying to stop you from being lazy."

"I call it house elf labor. But your house is quite impressive. I'll be off and try not to turn Harry here into a house elf," Tonks said, Apparating before I could say a word.

"God, she can be frustrating sometimes," I said, rubbing my temples.

"You know you love her," Harry teased.

"Do I needle you about Hermione? No. So back off before I return the favor." Harry shut up, though he still had that damned smirk on his face.

"I'm getting to work. And tomorrow..." I said with an evil smirk. "...I'm getting you into shape."

The smirk disappeared on his face faster than a flash of lightning. I started laughing evilly before heading down to the basement.

A/N: You can't say I wasn't working here. Goodness, this chapter came out longer than expected. But it's finally done, and I hope it placates you. I kind of think it went in circles a bit, but I just hope you like it nonetheless. I'll see you all next time! Though the amount of words are crazy. Almost 6000! Good Lord.