12
DUMBLEDORE wound his slightly calloused fingers around the door that led to the Hospital Wing, well aware the hour was late, but the Hogwarts Headmaster had been standing in front of his office window now for hours, his phoenix, Fawkes, perched on his shoulder, meditating over the development that Hagrid's hippogriff had attacked not only Draco Malfoy but Auror Tonks as well.
He did not know what to make of this. Most assuredly, the Headmaster could be confident in that Draco's father, Lucius, would complain to the School Board of Governors and require disciplinary action, perhaps even leading up to termination of Hagrid's position as their new Care of Magical Creatures teacher.
His blood boiled within his veins at such a ridiculous idea. Professor Dumbledore still held the power to dismiss teachers, where applicable, and what had happened to the Malfoy boy and Miss Tonks had been an unfortunate accident, though he doubted the Board would see it that way.
Albus gave his head a curt shake to clear it, thinking that he would deal with that matter when the time came, but for now, there were more pressing matters on his mind.
Such as checking on their school's Auror and seeing how Miss Tonks was faring. His long gray robes swishing and billowing with his movements as he walked down the length of the Hospital Wing until he came upon the bed that he was looking for.
He halted at the foot of the bed, the edges of his long grey beard twitching without prompting as he looked at the most unusual, but not unpleasant sight before him, his cobalt blue eyes twinkling at the very sight.
There before him lay Auror Nymphadora Tonks perched silently on pillows piled high on the side of the narrow hospital bed, her face pale and drained of colors, giving the pink-haired Auror an almost ethereal, angelic appearance.
This illusion was only emphasized by the silk and lace white nightgown she wore. Her eyes were closed, her lips having regained some color. Professor Dumbledore did not bother to conceal his soft smile as his inquisitive gaze briefly wandered the length of the girl's body in an appreciative way, though his smile faltered at her arm in a sling.
Madam Pomfrey had mended the damage as best as she could, though there was no doubt in his mind Tonks would suffer. It wasn't going to be a pleasant recovery, but the girl should consider herself grateful that he had assigned Remus as her partner.
Albus could not quite shake the feeling that as long as Professor Lupin remained by Auror Tonks's side, the girl was in more than capable hands. Remus would look after Nymphadora.
Speaking of him…Albus's bright blue eyes drifted slightly to Tonks's right, seeing the most peculiar image in the entire world, something he had never set foot on in his long, weary years.
And something, Albus knew, he'd never see again in another thousand lifetimes. Nestled comfortably in the arms of Tonks lay a head of light brown flecked with bits here and there of gray.
Professor Remus John Lupin, werewolf, and an incredibly selfless and kind man with a good, good heart, was practically a wolf cub curled up in the young witch's lap as the pair slept.
His face seemed to bask in the warmth of his partner's soft stomach. His arms, whether the man was aware of it or not in his sleep, were encircled around the pink-haired Auror's waist, breathing hushed, the poor man's scarred shoulders softly rising and falling.
Remus was clinging to Nymphadora as a boy would to his mother, selfishly fencing her in his strong arms, absorbing the young witch's radiance and her heat solely for himself. Her purple-painted fingernails weaved in between his mats of thick brown hair.
Together, Dumbledore thought, they almost looked too perfect, which was an obscure thought if ever there was one at all. A wolf and a she-lion tangled in the hospital bedsheets in the most eccentric splendor Albus could possibly imagine for them.
It was almost so perfect that for a moment, the Hogwarts Headmaster knew he had made the right decision in appointing Miss Tonks as Mr. Lupin's partner for the duration of the year.
If this new development was anything for him to go off of, the two harbored romantic feelings for one another, though the question remained whether or not the two were aware of their feelings.
Professor Dumbledore sensed judging by the intimate way he had found them, that he supposed so.
If he had to hazard a guess, and he was quite good at guessing correctly, Lupin had stayed up during the night with Tonks until fatigue claimed him.
The Hogwarts Headmaster suppressed a breath when Nymphadora's hand slowly stroked its way across Remus's tangles of short brown hair that would be needing a trim soon, and before the young woman could open her eyes at the perception of someone staring at her intimacy with her partner in her arms, Professor Dumbledore's smile widened as the old man turned on the heel of his boots and exited the Hospital Wing, silent as the night that engulfed the rest of Hogwarts and retreated to his office, all the while not able to stop his rather incessant, wide smiling.
Wait until Professor McGonagall learns of this…
Tonks could not remember the last time she'd felt this happy and free, and light as a feather. Was she floating?
No, it was only the Wales countryside breeze. It enveloped the young witch like a soft blanket. It played with her short shaggy pink hair, tousling the layers of her haircut away from her face and pinked her already-flushed cheeks. Her hand was warm, she discovered.
It was wrapped in Remus's strong, if not slightly calloused grasp. Sighing contentedly, she stopped alongside the familiar path on which they walked. Though she had not traversed this path before in her life up until this point, it felt…familiar to her. The meadow standing before them was a tranquil, welcome sight, where the wildflowers overlooked the vast hilly countryside.
Leaning back against her partner's scarred but slightly muscular chest, she felt his arms encircle her waist and pull her to him. Tonks squirmed, pivoting in the man's ironclad hold and their gazes locked and their eyes finally met.
She smiled longingly at Remus, and the man did not hesitate to meet her unspoken invitation by pressing his lips to hers. Tonks allowed it to happen.
Encouraged it, in fact, wanting the man to explore every inch of her tingling skin that felt like it was to spontaneously combust. It was only the two of them up here on top of this hill, though from where they were standing, Tonks felt that, as long as Remus was by her side, then she might as well be on top of the world.
Then she saw themselves, laying together on a blanket that one of them (probably Remus, though she didn't see which of them did it) conjured to sit underneath the shade of a willow tree.
She felt his weight pressing down on top of her, both of them eager for the passion the intimacy of their closeness promised.
His lips met hers with fervor and then—
Tonks bolted upright from her sleep, gasping, searching desperately for air to return to her heaving lungs, sweat beaded along her browbone in little dots.
The sudden rush of blood to her brain and fiery heat to her cheeks as she sat up straight against the pillow made her head spin. Dizzy and staring straight ahead of her into the darkness, Tonks quickly realized she was semi-conscious, half in the dream.
Tonks blinked as she felt something warm and wet slide down her cheeks and when she lifted a slightly shaking finger to her cheek, she was surprised to discover that she had cried in sleep.
She had dreamt of intimacy so many times before, but it had not been with Remus, but rather, with Ollie, that betrayer, that snake in the night.
Tonks sincerely hoped she never saw him again, for if she did, she'd aim a well-deserved Bat Bogey Hex straight at the man's chest for the pain that he had caused her.
After a few moments, her initial shock wore off and the realization that it was just a dream dawned on her. Her breaths slowed, her racing heart slowly returning its beats to normal at last, and as Tonks sanguinely lifted her head and looked around the otherwise deserted Hospital Wing save for her and Remus, in some illogical part of her brain, Tonks could not quite shake the feeling as if the walls had eyes, and that, with just one look of her current flustered state, at the pinkness in her cheeks, the whole of Hogwarts would know of her private thoughts.
That he'd know. That she was, like it or not, beginning to care for her new partner so early on into their appointed time together was somewhat disconcerting for her, and she didn't know what to do.
"It was just a dream," Tonks whispered to herself, giving her head a curt shake to clear it, though as for her shocking partner in her truly delish dream, Tonks tried to rationalize that after everything she and Remus had undergone within just the last few weeks of their partnership, first with their misunderstanding, and then earlier today during the botched wrangling of Buckbeak, that Professor Lupin's appearance in her imagination was simply her mind playing tricks on her, making a sport of her new feelings.
He had been present in her thoughts since the first night of their partnership when the pair had made amends in his office.
She was going to be working alongside the man for months, hoping to find some way of arresting Sirius Black and bringing the mass murderer to justice for his heinous crimes against those poor innocent twelve Muggle souls he'd killed in broad daylight.
It was only natural that she would think of the man from time to time, she rationalized.
Lost in her thoughts again, Tonks stared straight ahead as her eyes dilated in the darkness, grateful she had calmed the worst of her shock as well as her racing heart.
Tonks was quick to create a story that was plausible enough for her own mind to accept its unexpected intimacy with Lupin. Now comfortable with the fictitious storytelling, Tonks briefly allowed her mind to slip unbidden back to the events of her dream, seeing once more the luscious meadow they'd laid in, feeling his body next to hers, how his lips moved softly in a kiss.
Tonks blinked, her almond-shaped, pale gray orbs widening in surprise as she realized she was breathing heavy, what she was doing to herself, and biting down on her lower lip in a near fit.
Her hand was clutching onto fistfuls of her white silk lace nightgown she wore until a good portion of it was bunched in her hand and pulled almost uncomfortably tight across Tonks' hips.
Tonks forcefully gave her head a curt shake. Stop it, she ordered herself. Her embarrassment quickly gave way to anger. The young pink-haired witch blinked tiredly as she was quick to realize that, though she was sitting up, her body felt heavy.
She blinked once, twice, her sight clearing somewhat through the heaviness of her sleep—or was that the Sleeping Draught's aftereffects—though not entirely.
How long had she been knocked out?
Tonks raised her uninjured, pale hand and rubbed away the sleep that clung to her lashes, stifling a huge yawn with the back of her hand. She groaned, aware of the stiffness that settled in her joints and bones, feeling as though someone had taken a hammer to the back of her skull.
Yet, Tonks wanted nothing more than to move, to stretch her legs and take a walk down the corridors.
A sudden sharp intake of breath, almost a grunt, one that had not come from her, startled the young witch awake, her pale gray-blue orbs widening open in shock and surprise at the loud noise.
Immediately, she sat up straight, grimacing at the white-hot flare of pain her injured arm, now trapped in a blue sling, sent as a bolt of lightning up and down her spine, and she gritted her teeth in the effort to keep from crying out in pain to alert whatever—or whoever—happened to be in the room with her now.
Her eyes flitted across the dimly lit Hospital Wing in astonishment, unable to pinpoint the source of the strange noise.
An icy coldness spread across her chest and Tonks could once again feel her heart rate rapidly increase, until it was little more than a throbbing, corded mass of muscle that just wouldn't quit.
She did not know who—or what—was in this room with her.
What if it's Sirius? Tonks's conscience, that snakelike voice of fear, tormented her, and sent a new swell of panic through her veins, chilling her insides, rendering her frozen to her very spot.
Tonks froze as she saw a towering silhouette lingering in the Hospital Wing, unstirred, unmoving, and silently watching her.
Oh, my Merlin, she swore internally, her fear worsening.
She knew that tall, imposing, somewhat gangly and thin frame, yes. Sirius Black had somehow infiltrated the castle and was silently spying on her and—and…
But Merlin's Beard, she had to get up and apprehend him, injured arm notwithstanding! He had broken into the castle and somehow gotten past the Dementors!
His cheekbones were sunken in and emaciated, his pale gray orbs that were so much like hers, flecked with just a tint of blue, were boring straight into hers, antagonizing and looking angry.
Though before Tonks could so much as make a move to bolt from her bed, another noise startled her so badly she almost cried out in shock, and she angled her head downward and glimpsed a familiar shade of light brown hair flecked with premature grey.
And felt the tempered strength of a hand clutching her own. "R—Remus?" she whispered, her eyes widening at the unusual, but the not unwelcome sight of the young wizard and werewolf sound asleep in her lap, his arms wrapped around her waist, clinging to her as though Tonks were his final lifeline, yes.
Tonks pursed her lips into a thin line, her gaze flitting from the figure shrouded in shadow in the doorway before darting back to Professor Lupin. She cocked her head to the side so she could see her partner more clearly.
The poor man was nestled beside her, his head practically buried in the crook of her left shoulder. He was turned in such a way so that Lupin's peaceful face was facing in Tonks's general direction. The man was fast asleep.
All the premature aging lines of worry and stress had practically melted away, leaving his pale skin smooth, unwrinkled.
His scarred mouth was tilted slightly in a faint smile, and every now and then, his hand holding onto her uninjured hand would give a faint, barely noticeable squeeze of reassurance.
Tonks bit down on her bottom lip and felt her head whiplash sharply upwards when she heard a scuffling sound come from the entryway of the Hospital Wing, and she moved so fast to regard her own bloody cousin standing in the door that a neck muscle pulled, sending a jolt of white-hot pain up her neck and around the shell of her right ear.
She suppressed a yelp and rubbed at the back of her neck gingerly, and as she felt her facial muscles harden as she looked again towards the door, cursing herself.
Sirius had vanished. And Tonks had allowed him to get away.
Merlin damn him. And damn me, she swore internally, hating that she had been so focused and preoccupied with thoughts of not wanting to disturb her partner, she'd let the man get away.
Injured or not, she was still an Auror, and Tonks did not think she could live with herself if she allowed the man who had escaped Azkaban Prison and had now infiltrated Hogwarts, yet meant to be another impossible feat that he had somehow achieved, to escape her clutches a third time. No way, she thought bitterly.
Tonks, as best as she could with her uninjured hand, gingerly removed Remus's head from her lap and allowed his head to fall gracefully back against the pillow that she had been using, swinging her legs over the edge, reaching for her wand that had been resting idly on the night table beside the Hospital Wing bed.
The young pink-haired witch stifled the urge to growl in frustration and tugged on a lock of her short pink hair as she turned on her bare heel once she reached the threshold of the corridor, trying to determine if Sirius had gone to the left or right.
She felt foolish and powerless against her own damn thoughts. This would not happen again, Tonks told herself.
It bloody well could not. She would fill her mind with the task at hand.
Nothing and no one would interfere with her mission to apprehend Sirius Black, not even Professor Lupin, no matter how much she believed she was beginning to like the man. No one.
"Lumos," she murmured through gritted teeth under her breath and was rewarded for uttering the incantation when a bright ball of white light burst from the tip of her wand, allowing her to see.
Tonks needed to just pick a direction and start walking, damn it, and damn her own cousin for getting one over on her.
Tonks glanced to the left and right, to make sure that nobody else was about. If Black really had breached the castle walls, she wanted no one else to get hurt.
But nothing greeted her but silence. She was alone. Letting out an unsteady sigh of anger, Tonks stormed down the east wing corridor that led to the dungeons, not really sure why her legs were leading her there.
As she walked, carefully and methodically, having to hold both her wand and a fistful of her long silk and lace nightgown with the slight train so as to avoid tripping over the damn thing, Tonks could not keep her thoughts from drifting to Remus again.
She hoped the man wouldn't wake and discover her missing. Tonks supposed it was bad enough she'd left her bed in the Hospital Wing without at least waking him up to let him know what was going on, that his former old friend may have breached the security measures of Hogwarts, but he'd looked so peaceful.
Tonks had not wanted to disturb the man's rest, and she could not quell the surge of anger that rapidly rose within herself as she reached the dungeons and looked around once more, staring bitterly down the corridor, seeing no trace of Sirius Black.
"You too, are a night wanderer, it would seem, Miss Tonks."
Tonks barely stifled her scream of surprise and flinched as a voice coming from directly behind her appeared out of nowhere, clear, and present.
Whirling around on her bare heel, Tonks glanced up and was surprised to see none other than the Divination Professor, Professor Sibyl Trelawney, standing in front of her, teetering slightly, perhaps from a little too much indulgence of Fire Whiskey, but nevertheless smiling at Tonks.
"I…" stammered Tonks, unable to think of anything else to say to the Divination Professor, whose bug-eyes were staring at her extensively, curiously, through her thick, Coke-bottle lenses.
Though, much to the young witch's surprise, the older witch merely proceeded to raise her thick, dark eyebrows in mock concern and let out a dark, somehow omniscient little chuckle.
"Fear not, my child. Your secret is safe with me, Miss Tonks."
"M—my secret?" Tonks breathed, not at all sure what to make of the Divination Professor's remark. "I—what do you mean?"
The Auror was so flustered and caught off her guard, that it did not take her long to recognize she'd forgotten proper edict and had neglected to call Sybil Trelawney by her title of 'Professor.'
Tonks huffed impatiently, all the while craning her neck behind the Divination Professor, struggling to see down the dimly lit corridor, the only light in the dungeons currently provided emanated from the lit torches in their sconces hung on the walls, and the lit tips of both Professor Trelawney and Tonks' wands.
She had no time for this! Sirius Black was probably still somewhere in the castle, and if she didn't get to the man in time, then there was no telling what was to become of the poor students!
"It is too late for that," Professor Trelawney spoke up in a grim voice that suddenly did not sound like the Professor's voice at all. "The man has already fled, my dear," she murmured, disgruntled.
"What?" Tonks demanded, rapidly feeling her temper swell, feeling a sheen of sweat start to throng on her forehead as perspiration.
She swallowed a lump in her throat that formed. Although Professor Trelawney was not directly facing Tonks, her profile was turned to the side and shrouded in shadow, and the older woman lifted her hand to abruptly silence the young girl.
"You need not trouble yourself. Mr. Black will return, two more times as a matter of fact," the Divination Professor spoke up in a hoarse sounding voice that Tonks was quite sure the copious amounts of Fire Whiskey that Trelawney had consumed had nothing to do with (Tonks could smell the whiskey spirits on her breath), as the Divination teacher turned around to face Tonks.
She swore she saw Professor Trelawney's mouth twitch in a smirk. "Think of the last two times you encountered him as a test."
Tonks was so utterly confused, not to mention a little scared. A test?! And what the hell did she mean, he would come back? Two times?! Tonks was utterly floored as her mind felt like it was reeling, and the young Auror felt herself stagger backward. Tonks herself had never taken Divination as an elective during her time as a student here at Hogwarts, but that did not mean that she did not hold respect for the professor in front of her.
The other teachers on staff did not seem to like Sybil Trelawney much, particularly McGonagall, Tonks noticed, but that did not mean that they did not respect the Divination teacher.
There was a reason Dumbledore appointed her to teach the subject, Tonks had to remind herself, and forced her racing heart to try to calm down. It felt like she was about to have a panic attack.
"H—how do you know?" she managed to gasp out weakly.
The older witch smiled softly to herself as if enjoying some private joke to herself before turning around to look at Tonks directly. Bathed in shadow though she was, it was difficult for Tonks to make out her features, but Tonks could tell well enough that though her subject was met with scorn, she was a kind-hearted woman, and that was reason enough for her to trust her.
"You may be observant, Auror Tonks, but I am too. I have foreseen it in my tea leaves," was all Professor Trelawney stated.
Tonks furrowed her brows, lowering her wand slightly, not sure what it was the Divination teacher seemed to want with her. It seemed an eternity before Trelawney found her voice again.
"I take it you do not approve of Mr. Black's actions, my child."
Now, Tonks's frown deepened.
Even though in her mind, it was Remus Lupin who had been mistreated the most by Sirius Black's actions, the man had been his own friend, after all, Professor Trelawney was speaking as if she was not bothered by Sirius's actions, how he'd murdered those Muggles, in the slightest, a fact which the young Auror found disconcerting.
Tonks quirked a brow at the Divination teacher as Sybil wobbled her way somewhat precariously towards a nearby bench, and patted the seat next to her, motioning for Tonks to join her.
She did so, albeit reluctantly, feeling her shoulders slump in defeat as Tonks recognized her words were correct. Sirius was gone, but if her words rang true, then he'd return two more times.
And both times, Tonks would be ready for him when he did.
As Tonks settled herself on the cold stone bench next to the Divination Professor, smoothing the skirts of her silk and white lace nightgown, Tonks heard herself speak as she found her thoughts.
"I thought that what my cousin did to those poor Muggles was a disgrace to the name of wizard, Professor. Yes, you could call me displeased with my cousin's actions, Professor, to put it politely…"
This time, the Divination let out a slurred-sounding chuckle. "'Disgrace to the name of wizard,' indeed. That is quite something that not even I could come up with something like it. It truly is a tragedy, what happened, if you believe the stories. But things...aren't always what they seem, dear. You would do well to remember that, child."
Tonks was becoming more confounded by the Seer the longer she spent around her, but also more intrigued, against her better judgment, which was telling her to march herself right back up to the Hospital Wing before Professor Lupin discovered her missing.
But something, an aura, perhaps, that was radiating from the Seer and Divination Professor compelled Tonks to stick around. Despite the slurred edge to her voice, nonetheless, Sibyl Trelawney's voice was warm and inviting, suggesting a life teeming with vitality and experience. She wondered what she had Seen.
Experience danced on the professor's lips like a curious child, and this fact made Tonks want to truly open up to someone else. To her. Tonks took a moment to formulate her thoughts.
"I—I didn't want to believe my cousin could be capable of such violent, gruesome murders, Professor," began Tonks hesitantly, fidgeting with her fingers as her hands rested nervously in her lap as she crossed one foot over the other, wincing at her arm in its sling, not used to the constriction of the damned old contraption. "I thought that by coming here, assigned to Hogwarts, that I could catch him. I want the entire rest of the wizarding world to see Black for what he is. A cold, cruel, and ugly human being."
So engrossed in her own thoughts, Tonks failed to notice the Divination Professor had been staring at her rather pensively. Tonks shifted in her seat to look towards the older witch, blushing swiftly before pointedly looking away, turning her gaze towards the dungeon corridor that she'd been intent on searching for Black before she had unexpectedly encountered the Professor.
"I'm sorry, Professor," she began, her voice shaking from raw emotion, but the Seer and Divination teacher interrupted her.
"You have nothing to apologize for, child, there is nothing wrong with being passionate. I encourage it, as a matter of fact. I am flattered that you think so, though I caution you against making a premature judgment on Mr. Black. I cannot explain it myself, but he is…changed, but I do wonder what your new partner, our Defense Against the Dark Arts Professor, would have to say about the revelation that the two of you are blood cousins?"
Tonks gasped as she swore she saw a twinkle in the older woman's eyes as Trelawney let out a dark little chuckle of amusement, not sure how to respond to such a wild statement.
In truth, she had been wondering the same damn thing, and the fact that the professor had brought it up now, had caught her off guard, and as such, the young witch had no response to give.
"How did you know that I haven't told Remus yet?" Tonks demanded, narrowing her gray eyes in suspicion towards Sibyl.
The Divination Professor made an odd little noise that sounded like a snort as she clutched onto her half-empty sherry bottle.
"My subject here might be met with scorn and ridicule from the other teachers, Miss Tonks, but that does not make me ignorant. People, save for my students, hardly notice me, but you could say it works to my advantage. It is truly astonishing the amount of information and news you pick up when you listen…"
Despite the slight slur to her lilt, Tonks listened, captivated by the Seer's voice. Even in a slightly inebriated state, Trelawney was surprisingly clear and eloquent, given her current state, yes. It seemed a few moments before she spoke up again, this time, in a much quieter, more subdued voice than before she'd spoken.
"I think that you should tell Professor Lupin, Miss Tonks. You hesitate, but you might find yourself surprised at his answer."
"Mmm?" Tell him what?" Tonks stammered, suddenly feeling her face drain of color.
What on earth was there to tell the man? She slowly swiveled her head to regard the Divination teacher, beginning to feel uneasy, not sure where the witch was going with this.
"Oh, never you mind, dear. You'll know soon enough," she replied airily, setting down the empty bottle of sherry by her feet and brushing her palms on her skirts. "Now, Miss Tonks," continued Professor Trelawney, turning to face the witch directly this time. "I think you should go back to the Hospital Wing now. You don't want anybody to catch you out and about in the middle of the night, roaming about places where you ought not, especially while injured," the Divination teacher murmured, looking at Tonks's wounded arm in a sling. "That looks like it hurts, dear."
It did hurt. It hurt like hell, and Tonks hated she'd be wearing the sling for a few weeks, at best, though it had hurt worse when Madam Pomfrey had mended her arm with the essence of Dittany.
It stung and was going to scar, and it had taken both Professor Lupin and Hagrid to hold her down while she worked.
Though before Tonks could open her mouth to reply in an attempt to steer the conversation away from her injured arm, the strange Divination Professor proceeded to wink at her, smiling.
"Would you like for me to tell you your fortune, dear? It's the very least I can do, you were kind of sitting me while I…while…"
Professor Trelawney's voice trailed off as she glanced down at the empty sherry bottles at her feet. Sobered up, is what Tonks imagined the older witch wanted to say but instead chose not to.
"My—my fortune?" repeated Tonks softly, blinking owlishly at the older witch, wondering if she had heard Trelawney correctly.
Professor Trelawney's lips twitched upward in a kind smile, her eyes twinkling in the light cast from both of their wand tips.
"I can see that, at least, has piqued your interest. Very well."
Before Tonks could protest, much less utter a single syllable, the Divination Professor took hold of Nymphadora's hand, and gazed deep, almost in an intimate manner, into Tonks's pale gray eyes. It was as if she were searching for something, and it unnerved Tonks, though she had no time to question it as she spoke up.
"You will find happiness, Miss Tonks," murmured the Divination in a hoarse, raspy voice, narrowing her eyes, her piercing gaze intense, as if bearing straight through her soul. "But not in the way you will expect it to happen. Love, true love, I see it in your life, a true rarity in this world, child, so cherish it. You'll feel a rare, pure, and powerful love for someone and the man—"
Just as Tonks had been intently listening to the Seer's so-called 'fortune,' the Divination Professor let go of Tonks's hand, as though the very touch of her skin against her own had burned her, an immensely disturbing expression flitting across her face.
"Wh—what is it?" stammered Tonks worriedly. "Professor?"
But Professor Trelawney had already molded her features into a mask of perfect indifference, calm serenity, as they both stood from the bench, with Sibyl wobbling slightly as she did just so.
"Nothing, child," the Divination teacher replied in a nebulous tone. "I—I just saw something in your future that I was not expecting at all. But…nothing you should trouble yourself with just yet, though there will come a time regarding Black when you must make a choice. I've seen two alternate paths that you could take, Miss Tonks, though which one you choose is up to you and remains to be seen. I don't know which path you will take, dear, and when the time comes, you won't have much time to make it, but know that it concerns a matter of life and death. But you do not need to worry about that, for now. Not yet anyway. And rest assured, dearie, you'll find that love and happiness in your life that you seek. That is all that matters…"
As Professor Trelawney started to stagger her way further down the dungeon corridors, Tonks pondered over her 'future.'
Yet again, Tonks found herself in a unique situation where somebody had attempted to comfort her, but it had only succeeded in bringing her more confusion and a sense of unease.
She blinked owlishly at the Professor, staring at her, and was surprised when the Divination teacher called to her over her shoulder, pausing halfway down the hallway to look at Tonks.
"You should head on back up to the Hospital Wing, dear. You've already spent too long down here. I'm sure Madam Pomfrey and…others, are no doubt wondering where you are and are missing your absence as you are still, like it or not, quite injured."
Glancing up, the professor's words quickly snapped the young witch back into reality. She was right, she had to get back to the Hospital Wing before Remus woke up and discovered her missing.
"Thank you," Tonks called out down the hall, careful to keep her voice low, not wanting to alert anyone else to her presence. "It was wonderful to sit and talk with you, Professor Trelawney. If you ever want some company, you know where to find me, mum."
"That is most generous of you, child, I shall keep that in mind. Now, you should get out of here, you're already late as it is!"
Tonks nodded, smiling at her, before turning away and heading down the dungeon corridor to head towards the stairs.
As she glanced back over her shoulder, Tonks stopped dead in her tracks. It was as if Trelawney had never been here in the first place. "Weird," she whispered to herself before turning to head up the stairwell that would take her to the Grand Staircase.
Tonks mulled over her 'fortune' as she climbed, not really sure if she believed in fortune-telling or destiny or fate, but something had been disturbing enough, whatever Trelawney had seen, to trouble her. It was, in her mind, more than a little unnerving…
Though the moment she stepped one foot off of the topmost step of the dungeon stairwell, her wand clutched at her side in her wand hand, simultaneously holding onto a fistful of her silk white lace dressing gown so as to not trip over the long train, an angry voice made her stop dead in her tracks, immobile.
"Where did you disappear to, Dora? Did you really think that I didn't know you had left the Hospital Wing?" Came his voice in what Tonks could only describe as a low, angered little growl.
His voice sounded rough, coarse, grating, almost…wolfish.
Tonks felt her breaths catch in her throat as she squeezed her eyes tightly shut. The young witch swore her heart itself faltered and stopped. What followed that was the longest, most awkward pause in her entire adult life as she swore she felt the blood pumping furiously through her veins, it was that silent on the first floor.
For a moment, Tonks wondered if she'd imagined Lupin. And then he spoke, shattering that hope.
"Did you really think that I didn't hear you, Tonks?" he muttered, his voice coming from directly to her immediate left.
Lupin sounded dangerously calm, and Tonks would have almost preferred it if the man would just scream and shout at her.
Tonks parted her lips to speak, but couldn't even form a reply, she'd gone tongue-tied. She was much too gobsmacked. This could not be happening. Now, what the hell was she going to do?
The young witch cringed, slowly opening her eyes as she turned at the waist and turned to find herself face-to-face with Remus, and he did not look at all pleased to see her out of bed.
"Would you care to explain to me, Tonks, while you are still injured and healing, and remain in a critical condition and need to be resting, what is so important to cause you to get out of bed?" Remus demanded, the edges of his voice clipped and hard.
He sounded disappointed with her, as though he had expected more from his partner, and Tonks felt a fiery heat creep to her cheeks. It took her a moment to recognize it was a shame that she felt.
So engrossed in staring at her partner and struggling to form response as to why she had left the Hospital Wing, left him, that neither one of them noticed the Divination Professor standing in the dungeon stairwell entryway, shrouded in shadow, watching the scene unfold before her.
After a moment, Professor Trelawney turned away, a crooked half-smile on her lined face.
"Most interesting. Nymphadora Tonks," she muttered as she walked away back down towards the dungeons, hellbent on rummaging through Snape's stores to see if the Potions Master had anything which she could take to stave off her hangover.
You may survive us yet. There's hope for both of you…
Only time will tell whether or not he'll be the one.
Poor Tonks seems to take after Harry in terms of her 'talent for trouble.' hopefully she can calm Remus down and the two can come to an understanding.
Chapter 13 deals with the pair of new partners coming to a mutual understanding with one another, as Tonks struggles with her feelings of guilt and feeling like she is a liability around Lupin as she deals with the aftermath of Buckbeak's physical attack on her.