Author's Note: Written for…
Written for…
Romance Awareness. Prompt: wings change color when you meet your soulmate
Worth the Wait
651 words
"They're ugly," Tonks said, pouting at the reflection of her new wings. They were bony with pale skin stretched over them, like a newly hatched bird. There was no sign of feathers anywhere on them.
"They won't be for long, dear," her mother told her, spreading oils over the wings while her own glorious violet wings reached out to pull Tonks closer. "Soon you'll have wings as white as snow, and you'll be concerning yourself with finding your soulmate."
Tonks pulled a face. She didn't care about finding her soulmate, she just wanted a pair of strong, colorful wings so her classmates wouldn't laugh at her when she went off to Hogwarts.
:-:
By the end of first year, Tonks was the only girl in her dorm with white wings. Josie's had changed color on the train, and Diane's when she partnered with a Slytherin in Transfiguration. Rachel's had finally changed to a lime green when she accidentally bumped into a fifth-year in the hall.
The dorm suddenly became a gossip den as the girls giggled late into the night about their intended mates. Tonks couldn't care less. She was more concerned with whether the wings were strong enough to carry her weight. She was desperate to try flying but Madam Hooch had kept them all grounded or insisted they use brooms until their wings grew a bit more.
The only perk she could see to finding her soulmate was changing wing colors. The soft feathers of her wings rustled as she thought about it. White was boring. She wanted something bright and colorful like her hair!
As quickly as the thought crossed her mind, Tonks sat cross-legged on her bed, wings wrapped around herself. She concentrated on the stark white feathers as she would her hair, until colors spread through them and soon she was sporting the only pair of rainbow wings she'd ever seen.
:-:
Her abilities made her the best auror, she was told. Glamouring could last on faces for a few hours, but it was tempermental on wings. Tonks had learned over the years how to color, shrink and enlarge her wings and as such was the only person who could perfectly impersonate another person.
But when the job was done and she was alone in her small flat and she let the charms fade away, the color would melt out of her wings and they'd be left blank.
:-:
It seemed to Tonks like her entire life had been leading up to joining the Order. It was what she was meant to do.
Gatherings were always a little awkward though. Molly and Arthur would be there with their deep brown wings, and Remus and Sirius with their identical navy ones. Almost everyone else had blank ones too, but Tonks kept hers a warm buttery yellow speckled with pink to match her hair. She took great pride in them, despite the missing feathers from flying into buildings and trees when she was in a hurry.
Ordinarily she didn't care how others viewed her coloring, until the day when Bill Weasley brought his coworker to join the Order. She was the most beautiful woman Tonks had ever laid eyes on, with clear blue eyes and the fluffiest, best-kept wings in the room.
Tonks stumbled her way over to the woman to introduce herself to Fleur, her own wings perking up excitedly, but the moment their hands met, Tonks felt a warmth spread throughout her wings. She looked back to find her coloring fading away until the feathers were left a cherry blossom pink. When she turned back to Fleur, hers were the same shade.
"Zey are beautiful," Fleur said quietly as the rest of the team took notice of the change.
"So are you," Tonks told her, thinking of how the pink was the perfect shade against Fleur's yellow locks. It had been worth the wait to find that perfect color.