Disclamaire: Hades'Queen: Tonks please do me the favor of telling these
wonderful people what they already know.
Tonks: It would be my pleasure. I myself, Severus and anyone else that you may know do not belong to Her. Sadly they belong to another muggle by the name of J. K. Rowling. And as for a certain line, it is from the movie 'The Patriot'.
Hades'Queen:This line will be marked with a *.
Summary: Tonks and Severus have a chat and discuss what went wrong. Does this mean there's any chance for them? Read to find out!
A/N: Okay this is the sequel to 'My Little One'. I really like Tonks/Snape stories and therefore I write more of them than any other couple. So anyway this takes place the night after the tragedy. So this is somewhere towards the end of OoTP.
My Litle One Prt. II
Severus walked through the main hall and down to the kitchen of number twelve Grimmauld place. The air ouside was warm and the sun seemed to carress your skin. There was a small zephyr that roamed around carressing and playing with people's hair. You could literally smell spring in the air. And it enraged him. He hated this time of the year even more than Christmas and Valentines put together. Spring always seemed to bring back bad memories. Memories that should be left in the dark abyss of one's mind, forgotten and dusty.
He entered the kitchen and looked around. About half of the Order was present. Dumbledore had scheduled this meeting very hastily and it was to speak of the events that unfolded last night. Severus himself and the other Death Eaters where called, slightly after everything had happened, and every one of the Death Eaters had felt the wrath and anger of the Dark Lord. He repremanded and tortured them all for failing him. When torture hour was done he proceeded to think up plans to get the rest of his Death Eaters out of Azkaban.
That at the moment, however, was irrelevent. It would take days, weeks at the most, to get the Death Eaters out. At the moment all that mattered was what happened in the Ministry of Magic. The meeting wasn't going to be very long. Pretty much just updates and a head count. Dumbeldore wanted to make sure that his Order members where all acoutned for. This of course was something that Severus didn't understand. He was forced to ponder if in fact anyone had been hurt in yesterdays little battle.
He took a seat and noticed that many other Order members seemed to be walking in. Of course he imediately knew that three people where missing other than Dumbledore himself. Sirius Black, Remus Lupin and the object of his obsession, Nymphadora Tonks.
Severus had been intrigued with Tonks when he had first met her in her seventh year. You did not come across a metamorphmagus every day, you know. As time rolled on they developed a relationship that they hid from everyone for it was wrong and no one would understand it. Something had happened between the two of them after bieng together for two years. You see, he would not admit this to anybody, but he was a very jealous person. He did not like the fact that his darling Nymph had so many male friends and spent so much time with them.
Nymphadora, however, was a very headstrong person and did not like having to put up with his jealous rages. For over a year they had an off and on relationship. And after a year she got tired of it. She broke it off with him claiming that she had to focus in her auror training and had no time to deal with his puny imaturity. And so it was that they siest to be a couple. Severus had of course dreamt and thought of her often, but never saw her again. For a couple of years all he could do was think of her. He would often wake up from a dream and wished he hadn't.
After some years had passed, however, he began to burry this love for her under bitterness and sadism. If he could not have pleasure by being loved by the person he loved he figured that he should get it from watching others suffer. And that had set his heart at ease for many years. Until that faithful day at the end of July, that the cosmos desided to toss her back into his life.
That afternoon had been one of the most awkward of his life. Dumbledore had been planing the Order since Potter had told him that he had seen the Dark Lord with his own eyes. Severus himself believed it that very same day. He had been called by the Dark Lord on the very same day of the first Order meeting. The Dark Lord had totured him for a couple of minutes for not having gone to the first couple of Death Eater meetings and when he was done he was given instructions to watch over Dumbledore and scarhead. After having been at the meeting of Death Eaters for three hours he had imediately reported back to Headquartes and since there ws no time to change, for he was already late, he stepped into the meeting with his Death Eater robes still on.
When he walked into the meeting everyone turned to look at him and when they saw what he was wearing they all where shocked and had horror written all over their faces. Dumbeldore had than imediately introduced him as the Order Spy. He had looked around the room and he saw Black and grimaced. Than something caught his eyes. A horrified face that came along with long, aqua colored hair. He stared into her face, feeling that is was familiar somehow. There was something about this face, that he had never set eyes upon, that seemed vaquely familiar.
He had than been introduced to everyone, along with the young women whom he could not keep his eyes off of. She was introduced to him as an Auror by the name Nymphadora Tonks. He was shocked to say the least but of course would not let it show through. So the first meeting had come as complete shocker and a complete bore. There was nothing much interesting in the whole entire meeting on the count that there was simply not alot of information. It was pretty much all an introduction to the Order and how things worked. Of course any of those who had been in the original Order knew how everything worked.
Aftter the meeting was over many people stayed to socialize. He had looked around and soon spotted her with Remus and Sirius. He could see that she was vissibly paler and that the two men seemed to be overly concerned for her. The second he had seen Sirius put his hand on her shoulder in a way of comfert his hands had balled into fist and he felt a growl at the back of his throat. The thought of someone touching someone whom he still could not take off his mind infuriated him. Especially if that person was Sirius Black!
He stared at her and soon saw her cheeks turn pink. She looked around and her eyes, which at the moment where a strange shade of green, locked with his coal black eyes. He imediately noticed that she swallowed a lump in her throat and looked away. He wondered if she could sense his gaze upon her. Could that have possibly been the reason for her blush? He could feel a smile on the inside at the thought that he had an effect on her. He could feel his anger subside.
He continued to look at her. This time his gaze more intent and searching. He wanted to know what had changed about her. He wondered if she was the same Nymph he had always known and loved. The same Nymph that sent his blood to boil, his skin to itch, and his heart to jump like an insane Kangaroo. He also wondered if she was still a cluts with no elegance and no special way with words. Even if she was, that was one of the qualities that she lacked that he loved most in her. It's escence was missing and that was so endearing to him. Her constent blunders made his heart jolly, especially since he loved when she tried to fix them. Even with her faults she was perfect to him. Or maybed to be more acurate, Perfect for him.
For as much as she infuriated him, she could do just the opposite of that. She could make him smile when he was in one of his vile moods. She could make him feel passionate when everything in his body including his heart had gone numb. For that was precisely what she was doing at the moment. She was awaking something in him that had been aleep for many, many years. Something that he had forgotten how to feel. Something he forgot existed.
When he was finally able to stop staring at his precious jewel he walked over to the door. And as faith would have it she had walked toward the door at the same time. Making them bump into each other when they had reached the door. As he looked down upon her she turned her gaze to the floor, unable to meet his cold gaze. He stared down at her. She than finally looked up after a couple of seconds and straightened up. "Goodevening Severus," she said looking up at him.
"Miss Tonks," he responded in a business like tone. He wondered why he had responded like that. It seemed like it was instinct to act so cold and distant now. He had not even thought, he had just said it.
"You know I do not like MISS, Severus," she said lightly. "It's just Tonks."
"And how was I to know what you like and do not like MISS Tonks, when I have not seen you in over ten years?" he responded sharply. She looked down at the floor once again and stared at it for a couple of seconds.
"You're still on that, huh?" she said as she looked up into his eyes.
"And I see that you are not," he said and his eyes flashed over to Sirius as he said it. He saw Sirius talking to Remus and than turned to look back at the siren that he loved oh so much that stood before him. As he stared down upon her he noticed that she was looking at Sirius. She than turned her gaze to him and he could see them alive with a fire that he recognized from long ago. The defiant and angered gaze that she always fixed on him when he comented about her and her maled friends.
"If you are reffering to Sirius," she said steadily trying to control her rage. "Than you are mistaken. He's my Cousin!" he felt very surprised. He could not believe that his loved one was related to that oversized animal.
"You and that abysmal excuse for a man are RELATED?" he asked which caused her to frown.
"Do no insult him like that! Yeah Sirius isn't the nicest person in the world, but he is not a sorry excuse for a human bieng," she snapped at him in a rage filled whisper. He cought every syllable. He would dare not miss a thing she ever said to him. Even if it was an insult. As long as it was her lovely voice that uttered the words he would not miss it.
"Well I guess misbehavior runs in the family," he snapped back with a smirk on his face.
"Yes and so I'm led to believe that snarkiness runs in yours," she said coldly. This time he looked down. He felt angry at what she said, but it was very mild against the amount of shame he felt. Here he was standing before the person he loved the most and longed to be with and he was insulting her and her family. It was not exactly the way you show someone your affections. He looked back up at her and put a neutral look on his face.
"Well Miss Tonks, I really do not have the time to linger, to socialize. I do not have time to 'catch' up with past students of mine. So I bid you a goodnight Miss Tonks," he said and with a swish of his cloak he was gone. Later on that night he repremanded himself bieng so cold with her. He knew that he had messed up big time and that there was possibly no chance in her ever wanting to speak to him. And with that in mind he counted the days to the next Order meeting. He so desperately wanted to see her. Of course he never acted like that. He always left righ when the meeting ended and he always arrived on time, if not slightly late for having another 'social' gathering to be at. And when he did he noticed that she would often stare at him and he acted as he did not even notice.
For months he gave her little regard. As if he did not know that she was ever in the room. As if she where invissible. He of course knew that she watched every one of his moves carefully, seemingly entranced by his grace. He knew that she would never know how much that made him feel. She would never know that he even knew that she watched his languid moves. She would never know that it brought a smile to his heart that she still appreciated his grace and elegance.
At that moment Dumbledore walked into the room meaning the meeting would soon begin. He looked around and realised that at some point during his reverie Lupin had come in and taken a seat. He stared at the werewolf and wondered what was wrong with him. He had dark circles under his eyes and there was a strange haunted look in his gaze. He stared at the floor with glazed eyes and had a far off look in them. He breathed in slowly and very deeply. He had his hands crossed over his chest and his legs where gathered up to his chest. He had only ever seen him this way once and that was in their second year. He did not remmeber where or why he had sat and looked like he was now, but knew that it was because there was something seriously hurting the lyncanthrope.
He than reluctantly turned his gaze to Dubledore who was now standing before the order with grief filled eyes. Severus could feel a panick begin with in him. He wondered what had happened the night before that had caused the Headmaster to look so grave. He looked around the room and realised that his beloved was still not in the room. He prayed that nothing had come to his little one. "I have some," Dumbledore began gently. His tone was monotonous. Severus looked up at him and stared. He prayed with every fiber of his bieng that Nymphadora was allright. And as much as he fought himself, he could not stop horrible pictures of his beloved being tortured out of his mind. "Very sad news that I must report to those who do not know what happened at the Ministry of Magic last night. One of our own," he started his voice becoming steadily stronger. Severus began to inhale sharply. "Is gone forever. Sirius Black fell beyond the veil and we will sadly never see him again."
Severus sighed in reliefe that nothing bad had happened to his precious. That she was fine. However, he could feel a nasty clench in his stomach. Sure he hated Black with every fiber of his being, but he did not wish him dead. He felt a small part of his heart or maybe in his soul become a sudden dark abyss. The whole in which he held Sirius. He knew he would miss Sirius because he loved to piss him off. He love to see him angry and he very much liked to bicker with him. Without Sirius who would be left? Lupin? Lupin was much to mild to ever get caught in a battle of wits with him. Lupin had more wits than Black and Lupin would no let himself be overcome by his rage. Black had truly left a whole in him. A black whole that was sucking in other sentiments in its mysterious dark abyss.
How would Tonks feel about this? Who would come and pick up the pieces of her broken heart? Who would place it together and cover it with duck tape? Who would possibly mend it and make Sirius become something etheral to her? Who would make her realise that he was not completely gone? That as long as his memory resided with her than he would not leave her?
Dumbledore continued to speak of how Sirius death had come about, but he was only half listening. He got the jest of it. Tonks was just so on his mind at the moment that he could not completely focus on what was bieng said.
"Such reckless hate," he heard a whisper off to his side. The whisper was harsh and raw. He turned to see Lupin who was still sitting in the same position, still looking at the floor with his glazed eyes. He was shaking his head solemly. Severus could see the tears threatening to break from the dam that the werewolf had built up. For the first time in his life Severus felt pity. He wondered how hard this was on Lupin. Lupin who had no more friends left. To be left behind with nothing and no one was something that was truly horrible.
"Although Sirius will be dearly missed," he said over the sniffles. "He will not be forgotten, of that I'm sure. And there is one other person missing in this room. I'm sure many of you have noticed." Severus could feel his breathing stop and stared at the Professor intently. "Nymphadora is currently in St. Mungos. Bellatrix has unfortunately hit her hard with a curse and she's currently being treated. She should be out and about in just a couple of days."
Severus breathed in. He had to see her. He just simply had to see for himself that she was fine and he would soon see her up and about again. That he would soon see her walking around and bieng her usual springy self. When the meeting was over, which seemed to take hours to him, he imediately got up and headed to St. Mungos. He wanted to make sure she was just fine as soon as was humaly posible. He rushed into St. Mungos and hurriedly asked the medi-wtitch and asked her for Tonk's room. When he was told he imediately made his way to her room.
When he stepped into the doorway he froze. He could see her lying in her fourposter. She had her own room, which, made him fell better ever so slightly. She was currently curled up and facing away from the door. He could not tell if she was sleep or if she was awake. He slowly and very noiselessly walked over to her and peered over her. He could see that her eyes where closed. He walked around and pulled up a seat to her bedside. He sat down and looked into the face of his soon to be tainted muse.
She looked so peaceful sleeping there. Her breathing was slightly labored, but other wise than that she looked fine. Her hair was still short, spiky and a very violent shade of purple. He looked into her very peaceful face and sighed. He was happy to see that she was fine. He saw her eyes flutter open. They suddenly opened wide, she tried to sit up, but her face twisted in pain and she laid back down. When the pain had passed she had looked back up at him.
"What are you doing here?" she asked surprised to see him. He stared into her face and stood up.
"I just wanted to make sure that you where all right," he responded lightly. Than he cleared his throat and returned his features to their usual cold snide ones. He looked down at her. "And now that I have seen that you are perfectly fine I will be leaving."
"No wait," she said reaching out an grabbing his wrist. She held it so gently. He looked down at her small hand that grasped his wrist. He felt a shiver run through his body at her light warm touch. "Is everyone all right?" she asked looking into his eyes with her ice blue gaze.
"You know Ice blue is not your color. It is far to cold for you," he said as he looked into her eyes. She rolled her eyes and srewed up her face ins concentration. When she looked back into his eyes her eye color was a honey brown.
"Is everyone all right?" she asked.
"For the most part, however," he said very slowly and gently. He looked down and away. He was not able to say this. He than turned back to her. "I'm not so sure if I'm the right person to tell you this. Perhaps it should be someone closer to you."
"Severus, I love you, how much closer can it get," she burst out exasperatedly. He looked at her in shock and she rolled her eyes again. "As if you didn't know!" He shook his head no. "Come on! You can't possibly be that dense when it come to love. Severus I've watched your every movement for the past year or so! How could you not see that I still have feeilngs for you."
"Than why did you brake up with me?" he snapped.
"Because jealousy is unbecoming," she responded irritatedly. She than looked at him. "I, however, wonder do you still feel the same for me?"
"With every fiber of my bieng," he responded. She smiled weakly at him and he looked at her with love in his eyes. They where sparkling as if his eyes where saffires. She let go of his wrist and wrapped her tiny finger around his hand. He in turn held her small hand in his. Hoping to keep it safe from the world. He than looked down and away in grief. He could not tell her what had happened to her cousin. Not the one that she held oh so near to her heart.
"Severus, please tell me," she pleaded. He turned to look at her. He could not tell her. But the look of need on her face made him weaken.
"Tonks I would like you to first understand that this does not please me at all to say. I was hoping to never have to say this. We did have our differences, but I would never wish this on him. There is nothing he could have ever done that would have made me wish or even crave his death," he said slowly. Tonks frowned knowing that something very big was coming. "Sirius and Bellatrix where dueling yesterday in the Ministry of magic as I'm sure you well know," he started slowly. He looked away unable to hold her increasingly grave gaze. "Bellatrix hit him with a curse and well.... he fell," He continued turning to look at her. She was looking at him very gravely. He knew that she was wishing that this would not head the way she knew it would. She prayed that what she thought had not actually happened. But deep down she knew what he was about to say. She knew what he had to tell her. "Beyond the veil."
He looked at Tonks intently. It seemed to take a minute for it to register. She slowly rose a bit, wincing in pain and leaned against the headboard. She could feel hot tears prickling in her eyes. She just did not wish to believe what she knew was true. Fact was Fact, no matter how hard someone would wish it to be false. And not matter how hard she tried to tell herself that he was not dead, that she would walk into Grimmauld again one day soon and see him sitting in the chair laughing at something idiotic, but she knew THAT was false. She knew it and it hurt.
He could see her body begin to tremble. He could see tears making their way down her lovely face. He sat on the edge of the bed and pulled her into a hug wrapping his arms and cloak around her tiny frame. She did not refuse him. She burried her face into his shoulder and began to sob. Her body wrakked with trembles and he could do nothing but hold on. "It's not fair," she cried into his shoulder. Her cry was muffled, but still managed to reach his ears just fine.
"It will be fine Dora," he whispered gently into her ear. His voice was soft and velvety. "Bellatrix will get what she deserves and you will see that he did not die without a cause." She pulled away enough so she could see into his face.
*"Why does man always thinks he can justify death? He can not,"* she said shakily, her voice breaking from the imense pain and grief she felt. He looked into her eyes.
"Because it helps," he responded simply. "You will make it through this Dora," he said wiping her tears away with his thumb. He did it so gently that she could hardly feel it. He rested his hand on her face, his finger tips in her hair. He than noticed that her hair was long and light brown. It was in waves that semed to reach down to the small of her back. Her eyes where the same as before. All in all she looked simple, but beautiful.
"Will you be there for me?" she asked sniffling.
"Yes I will," he responded carressing her face. She smiled wearily and he placed a chaste kiss on her mouth. When he pulled away she looked him in the eyes.
"I would like to present to you the true Nymphadora," she said to him. "This is it," she motioned to herself. He smiled to her. "I guess I'm truly all grown up now."
"My Little One is all grown up," he said smiling at her. She still seemed to be 23, but she waa actually turning 32 very soon. She still seemed so young, so small and fragile to him. And for that reason she was his Little One. She would always be that to him. He would always feel the need to kep her safe from the world. And that was the way he liked it. That's the way he wanted it. And that's the way it was.
THE END (Liked it? Well PLEASE REVIEW! Also please make the review about the story and not my abysmal editing skills.)
Tonks: It would be my pleasure. I myself, Severus and anyone else that you may know do not belong to Her. Sadly they belong to another muggle by the name of J. K. Rowling. And as for a certain line, it is from the movie 'The Patriot'.
Hades'Queen:This line will be marked with a *.
Summary: Tonks and Severus have a chat and discuss what went wrong. Does this mean there's any chance for them? Read to find out!
A/N: Okay this is the sequel to 'My Little One'. I really like Tonks/Snape stories and therefore I write more of them than any other couple. So anyway this takes place the night after the tragedy. So this is somewhere towards the end of OoTP.
My Litle One Prt. II
Severus walked through the main hall and down to the kitchen of number twelve Grimmauld place. The air ouside was warm and the sun seemed to carress your skin. There was a small zephyr that roamed around carressing and playing with people's hair. You could literally smell spring in the air. And it enraged him. He hated this time of the year even more than Christmas and Valentines put together. Spring always seemed to bring back bad memories. Memories that should be left in the dark abyss of one's mind, forgotten and dusty.
He entered the kitchen and looked around. About half of the Order was present. Dumbledore had scheduled this meeting very hastily and it was to speak of the events that unfolded last night. Severus himself and the other Death Eaters where called, slightly after everything had happened, and every one of the Death Eaters had felt the wrath and anger of the Dark Lord. He repremanded and tortured them all for failing him. When torture hour was done he proceeded to think up plans to get the rest of his Death Eaters out of Azkaban.
That at the moment, however, was irrelevent. It would take days, weeks at the most, to get the Death Eaters out. At the moment all that mattered was what happened in the Ministry of Magic. The meeting wasn't going to be very long. Pretty much just updates and a head count. Dumbeldore wanted to make sure that his Order members where all acoutned for. This of course was something that Severus didn't understand. He was forced to ponder if in fact anyone had been hurt in yesterdays little battle.
He took a seat and noticed that many other Order members seemed to be walking in. Of course he imediately knew that three people where missing other than Dumbledore himself. Sirius Black, Remus Lupin and the object of his obsession, Nymphadora Tonks.
Severus had been intrigued with Tonks when he had first met her in her seventh year. You did not come across a metamorphmagus every day, you know. As time rolled on they developed a relationship that they hid from everyone for it was wrong and no one would understand it. Something had happened between the two of them after bieng together for two years. You see, he would not admit this to anybody, but he was a very jealous person. He did not like the fact that his darling Nymph had so many male friends and spent so much time with them.
Nymphadora, however, was a very headstrong person and did not like having to put up with his jealous rages. For over a year they had an off and on relationship. And after a year she got tired of it. She broke it off with him claiming that she had to focus in her auror training and had no time to deal with his puny imaturity. And so it was that they siest to be a couple. Severus had of course dreamt and thought of her often, but never saw her again. For a couple of years all he could do was think of her. He would often wake up from a dream and wished he hadn't.
After some years had passed, however, he began to burry this love for her under bitterness and sadism. If he could not have pleasure by being loved by the person he loved he figured that he should get it from watching others suffer. And that had set his heart at ease for many years. Until that faithful day at the end of July, that the cosmos desided to toss her back into his life.
That afternoon had been one of the most awkward of his life. Dumbledore had been planing the Order since Potter had told him that he had seen the Dark Lord with his own eyes. Severus himself believed it that very same day. He had been called by the Dark Lord on the very same day of the first Order meeting. The Dark Lord had totured him for a couple of minutes for not having gone to the first couple of Death Eater meetings and when he was done he was given instructions to watch over Dumbledore and scarhead. After having been at the meeting of Death Eaters for three hours he had imediately reported back to Headquartes and since there ws no time to change, for he was already late, he stepped into the meeting with his Death Eater robes still on.
When he walked into the meeting everyone turned to look at him and when they saw what he was wearing they all where shocked and had horror written all over their faces. Dumbeldore had than imediately introduced him as the Order Spy. He had looked around the room and he saw Black and grimaced. Than something caught his eyes. A horrified face that came along with long, aqua colored hair. He stared into her face, feeling that is was familiar somehow. There was something about this face, that he had never set eyes upon, that seemed vaquely familiar.
He had than been introduced to everyone, along with the young women whom he could not keep his eyes off of. She was introduced to him as an Auror by the name Nymphadora Tonks. He was shocked to say the least but of course would not let it show through. So the first meeting had come as complete shocker and a complete bore. There was nothing much interesting in the whole entire meeting on the count that there was simply not alot of information. It was pretty much all an introduction to the Order and how things worked. Of course any of those who had been in the original Order knew how everything worked.
Aftter the meeting was over many people stayed to socialize. He had looked around and soon spotted her with Remus and Sirius. He could see that she was vissibly paler and that the two men seemed to be overly concerned for her. The second he had seen Sirius put his hand on her shoulder in a way of comfert his hands had balled into fist and he felt a growl at the back of his throat. The thought of someone touching someone whom he still could not take off his mind infuriated him. Especially if that person was Sirius Black!
He stared at her and soon saw her cheeks turn pink. She looked around and her eyes, which at the moment where a strange shade of green, locked with his coal black eyes. He imediately noticed that she swallowed a lump in her throat and looked away. He wondered if she could sense his gaze upon her. Could that have possibly been the reason for her blush? He could feel a smile on the inside at the thought that he had an effect on her. He could feel his anger subside.
He continued to look at her. This time his gaze more intent and searching. He wanted to know what had changed about her. He wondered if she was the same Nymph he had always known and loved. The same Nymph that sent his blood to boil, his skin to itch, and his heart to jump like an insane Kangaroo. He also wondered if she was still a cluts with no elegance and no special way with words. Even if she was, that was one of the qualities that she lacked that he loved most in her. It's escence was missing and that was so endearing to him. Her constent blunders made his heart jolly, especially since he loved when she tried to fix them. Even with her faults she was perfect to him. Or maybed to be more acurate, Perfect for him.
For as much as she infuriated him, she could do just the opposite of that. She could make him smile when he was in one of his vile moods. She could make him feel passionate when everything in his body including his heart had gone numb. For that was precisely what she was doing at the moment. She was awaking something in him that had been aleep for many, many years. Something that he had forgotten how to feel. Something he forgot existed.
When he was finally able to stop staring at his precious jewel he walked over to the door. And as faith would have it she had walked toward the door at the same time. Making them bump into each other when they had reached the door. As he looked down upon her she turned her gaze to the floor, unable to meet his cold gaze. He stared down at her. She than finally looked up after a couple of seconds and straightened up. "Goodevening Severus," she said looking up at him.
"Miss Tonks," he responded in a business like tone. He wondered why he had responded like that. It seemed like it was instinct to act so cold and distant now. He had not even thought, he had just said it.
"You know I do not like MISS, Severus," she said lightly. "It's just Tonks."
"And how was I to know what you like and do not like MISS Tonks, when I have not seen you in over ten years?" he responded sharply. She looked down at the floor once again and stared at it for a couple of seconds.
"You're still on that, huh?" she said as she looked up into his eyes.
"And I see that you are not," he said and his eyes flashed over to Sirius as he said it. He saw Sirius talking to Remus and than turned to look back at the siren that he loved oh so much that stood before him. As he stared down upon her he noticed that she was looking at Sirius. She than turned her gaze to him and he could see them alive with a fire that he recognized from long ago. The defiant and angered gaze that she always fixed on him when he comented about her and her maled friends.
"If you are reffering to Sirius," she said steadily trying to control her rage. "Than you are mistaken. He's my Cousin!" he felt very surprised. He could not believe that his loved one was related to that oversized animal.
"You and that abysmal excuse for a man are RELATED?" he asked which caused her to frown.
"Do no insult him like that! Yeah Sirius isn't the nicest person in the world, but he is not a sorry excuse for a human bieng," she snapped at him in a rage filled whisper. He cought every syllable. He would dare not miss a thing she ever said to him. Even if it was an insult. As long as it was her lovely voice that uttered the words he would not miss it.
"Well I guess misbehavior runs in the family," he snapped back with a smirk on his face.
"Yes and so I'm led to believe that snarkiness runs in yours," she said coldly. This time he looked down. He felt angry at what she said, but it was very mild against the amount of shame he felt. Here he was standing before the person he loved the most and longed to be with and he was insulting her and her family. It was not exactly the way you show someone your affections. He looked back up at her and put a neutral look on his face.
"Well Miss Tonks, I really do not have the time to linger, to socialize. I do not have time to 'catch' up with past students of mine. So I bid you a goodnight Miss Tonks," he said and with a swish of his cloak he was gone. Later on that night he repremanded himself bieng so cold with her. He knew that he had messed up big time and that there was possibly no chance in her ever wanting to speak to him. And with that in mind he counted the days to the next Order meeting. He so desperately wanted to see her. Of course he never acted like that. He always left righ when the meeting ended and he always arrived on time, if not slightly late for having another 'social' gathering to be at. And when he did he noticed that she would often stare at him and he acted as he did not even notice.
For months he gave her little regard. As if he did not know that she was ever in the room. As if she where invissible. He of course knew that she watched every one of his moves carefully, seemingly entranced by his grace. He knew that she would never know how much that made him feel. She would never know that he even knew that she watched his languid moves. She would never know that it brought a smile to his heart that she still appreciated his grace and elegance.
At that moment Dumbledore walked into the room meaning the meeting would soon begin. He looked around and realised that at some point during his reverie Lupin had come in and taken a seat. He stared at the werewolf and wondered what was wrong with him. He had dark circles under his eyes and there was a strange haunted look in his gaze. He stared at the floor with glazed eyes and had a far off look in them. He breathed in slowly and very deeply. He had his hands crossed over his chest and his legs where gathered up to his chest. He had only ever seen him this way once and that was in their second year. He did not remmeber where or why he had sat and looked like he was now, but knew that it was because there was something seriously hurting the lyncanthrope.
He than reluctantly turned his gaze to Dubledore who was now standing before the order with grief filled eyes. Severus could feel a panick begin with in him. He wondered what had happened the night before that had caused the Headmaster to look so grave. He looked around the room and realised that his beloved was still not in the room. He prayed that nothing had come to his little one. "I have some," Dumbledore began gently. His tone was monotonous. Severus looked up at him and stared. He prayed with every fiber of his bieng that Nymphadora was allright. And as much as he fought himself, he could not stop horrible pictures of his beloved being tortured out of his mind. "Very sad news that I must report to those who do not know what happened at the Ministry of Magic last night. One of our own," he started his voice becoming steadily stronger. Severus began to inhale sharply. "Is gone forever. Sirius Black fell beyond the veil and we will sadly never see him again."
Severus sighed in reliefe that nothing bad had happened to his precious. That she was fine. However, he could feel a nasty clench in his stomach. Sure he hated Black with every fiber of his being, but he did not wish him dead. He felt a small part of his heart or maybe in his soul become a sudden dark abyss. The whole in which he held Sirius. He knew he would miss Sirius because he loved to piss him off. He love to see him angry and he very much liked to bicker with him. Without Sirius who would be left? Lupin? Lupin was much to mild to ever get caught in a battle of wits with him. Lupin had more wits than Black and Lupin would no let himself be overcome by his rage. Black had truly left a whole in him. A black whole that was sucking in other sentiments in its mysterious dark abyss.
How would Tonks feel about this? Who would come and pick up the pieces of her broken heart? Who would place it together and cover it with duck tape? Who would possibly mend it and make Sirius become something etheral to her? Who would make her realise that he was not completely gone? That as long as his memory resided with her than he would not leave her?
Dumbledore continued to speak of how Sirius death had come about, but he was only half listening. He got the jest of it. Tonks was just so on his mind at the moment that he could not completely focus on what was bieng said.
"Such reckless hate," he heard a whisper off to his side. The whisper was harsh and raw. He turned to see Lupin who was still sitting in the same position, still looking at the floor with his glazed eyes. He was shaking his head solemly. Severus could see the tears threatening to break from the dam that the werewolf had built up. For the first time in his life Severus felt pity. He wondered how hard this was on Lupin. Lupin who had no more friends left. To be left behind with nothing and no one was something that was truly horrible.
"Although Sirius will be dearly missed," he said over the sniffles. "He will not be forgotten, of that I'm sure. And there is one other person missing in this room. I'm sure many of you have noticed." Severus could feel his breathing stop and stared at the Professor intently. "Nymphadora is currently in St. Mungos. Bellatrix has unfortunately hit her hard with a curse and she's currently being treated. She should be out and about in just a couple of days."
Severus breathed in. He had to see her. He just simply had to see for himself that she was fine and he would soon see her up and about again. That he would soon see her walking around and bieng her usual springy self. When the meeting was over, which seemed to take hours to him, he imediately got up and headed to St. Mungos. He wanted to make sure she was just fine as soon as was humaly posible. He rushed into St. Mungos and hurriedly asked the medi-wtitch and asked her for Tonk's room. When he was told he imediately made his way to her room.
When he stepped into the doorway he froze. He could see her lying in her fourposter. She had her own room, which, made him fell better ever so slightly. She was currently curled up and facing away from the door. He could not tell if she was sleep or if she was awake. He slowly and very noiselessly walked over to her and peered over her. He could see that her eyes where closed. He walked around and pulled up a seat to her bedside. He sat down and looked into the face of his soon to be tainted muse.
She looked so peaceful sleeping there. Her breathing was slightly labored, but other wise than that she looked fine. Her hair was still short, spiky and a very violent shade of purple. He looked into her very peaceful face and sighed. He was happy to see that she was fine. He saw her eyes flutter open. They suddenly opened wide, she tried to sit up, but her face twisted in pain and she laid back down. When the pain had passed she had looked back up at him.
"What are you doing here?" she asked surprised to see him. He stared into her face and stood up.
"I just wanted to make sure that you where all right," he responded lightly. Than he cleared his throat and returned his features to their usual cold snide ones. He looked down at her. "And now that I have seen that you are perfectly fine I will be leaving."
"No wait," she said reaching out an grabbing his wrist. She held it so gently. He looked down at her small hand that grasped his wrist. He felt a shiver run through his body at her light warm touch. "Is everyone all right?" she asked looking into his eyes with her ice blue gaze.
"You know Ice blue is not your color. It is far to cold for you," he said as he looked into her eyes. She rolled her eyes and srewed up her face ins concentration. When she looked back into his eyes her eye color was a honey brown.
"Is everyone all right?" she asked.
"For the most part, however," he said very slowly and gently. He looked down and away. He was not able to say this. He than turned back to her. "I'm not so sure if I'm the right person to tell you this. Perhaps it should be someone closer to you."
"Severus, I love you, how much closer can it get," she burst out exasperatedly. He looked at her in shock and she rolled her eyes again. "As if you didn't know!" He shook his head no. "Come on! You can't possibly be that dense when it come to love. Severus I've watched your every movement for the past year or so! How could you not see that I still have feeilngs for you."
"Than why did you brake up with me?" he snapped.
"Because jealousy is unbecoming," she responded irritatedly. She than looked at him. "I, however, wonder do you still feel the same for me?"
"With every fiber of my bieng," he responded. She smiled weakly at him and he looked at her with love in his eyes. They where sparkling as if his eyes where saffires. She let go of his wrist and wrapped her tiny finger around his hand. He in turn held her small hand in his. Hoping to keep it safe from the world. He than looked down and away in grief. He could not tell her what had happened to her cousin. Not the one that she held oh so near to her heart.
"Severus, please tell me," she pleaded. He turned to look at her. He could not tell her. But the look of need on her face made him weaken.
"Tonks I would like you to first understand that this does not please me at all to say. I was hoping to never have to say this. We did have our differences, but I would never wish this on him. There is nothing he could have ever done that would have made me wish or even crave his death," he said slowly. Tonks frowned knowing that something very big was coming. "Sirius and Bellatrix where dueling yesterday in the Ministry of magic as I'm sure you well know," he started slowly. He looked away unable to hold her increasingly grave gaze. "Bellatrix hit him with a curse and well.... he fell," He continued turning to look at her. She was looking at him very gravely. He knew that she was wishing that this would not head the way she knew it would. She prayed that what she thought had not actually happened. But deep down she knew what he was about to say. She knew what he had to tell her. "Beyond the veil."
He looked at Tonks intently. It seemed to take a minute for it to register. She slowly rose a bit, wincing in pain and leaned against the headboard. She could feel hot tears prickling in her eyes. She just did not wish to believe what she knew was true. Fact was Fact, no matter how hard someone would wish it to be false. And not matter how hard she tried to tell herself that he was not dead, that she would walk into Grimmauld again one day soon and see him sitting in the chair laughing at something idiotic, but she knew THAT was false. She knew it and it hurt.
He could see her body begin to tremble. He could see tears making their way down her lovely face. He sat on the edge of the bed and pulled her into a hug wrapping his arms and cloak around her tiny frame. She did not refuse him. She burried her face into his shoulder and began to sob. Her body wrakked with trembles and he could do nothing but hold on. "It's not fair," she cried into his shoulder. Her cry was muffled, but still managed to reach his ears just fine.
"It will be fine Dora," he whispered gently into her ear. His voice was soft and velvety. "Bellatrix will get what she deserves and you will see that he did not die without a cause." She pulled away enough so she could see into his face.
*"Why does man always thinks he can justify death? He can not,"* she said shakily, her voice breaking from the imense pain and grief she felt. He looked into her eyes.
"Because it helps," he responded simply. "You will make it through this Dora," he said wiping her tears away with his thumb. He did it so gently that she could hardly feel it. He rested his hand on her face, his finger tips in her hair. He than noticed that her hair was long and light brown. It was in waves that semed to reach down to the small of her back. Her eyes where the same as before. All in all she looked simple, but beautiful.
"Will you be there for me?" she asked sniffling.
"Yes I will," he responded carressing her face. She smiled wearily and he placed a chaste kiss on her mouth. When he pulled away she looked him in the eyes.
"I would like to present to you the true Nymphadora," she said to him. "This is it," she motioned to herself. He smiled to her. "I guess I'm truly all grown up now."
"My Little One is all grown up," he said smiling at her. She still seemed to be 23, but she waa actually turning 32 very soon. She still seemed so young, so small and fragile to him. And for that reason she was his Little One. She would always be that to him. He would always feel the need to kep her safe from the world. And that was the way he liked it. That's the way he wanted it. And that's the way it was.
THE END (Liked it? Well PLEASE REVIEW! Also please make the review about the story and not my abysmal editing skills.)
