Title: Tug
Author: Mucada
Rating: PG
Dislcaimer: JK's
Summary: V. short, PWP. Though that I would address this, because it makes sense. "...and every time it did her heart would give in to this little tug." Remus;Tonks
Calling the moon,
Because I know what it's worth,
to tug at the seas and illumine the earth
-Dar Williams
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"How long did his directions say to stay on this road?"
"Um…" Fumbling for her wand and gathering the loose papers, she glanced over at her companion briefly, who had not taken his eyes off the dark road in front of them. "7 kilometers, and then a left onto a road that has an open market on the corner."
A pause, and then he answered slowly, "Are you sure, Tonks? Because we're about 10 minutes from the sea, and then there's no way we can turn left."
"Well, that's what it says," she said, slightly nervous. There was no way they could have missed a turn, because Remus kept having her reread the directions Mundungus had given them. She should never have trusted him, though; he had been stoned when he gave them to her three days ago. Now they were lost.
"Maybe he made a mistake," he said, leaning forward in his seat slightly.
"I was just thinking that. It is Dung after all."
He didn't reply but she could feel him silently agreeing. There was nothing else said as they both contemplated the situation: lost in a foreign country, at night. Tonks was also tired, and Remus had been driving for the past5 hours, so he must have been too. With that, she yawned, and rested he head against the seat and glanced over at the man next to her. He yawned as well, and she smiled.
"Why do people yawn after they see someone else yawning?"
"I'm pretty sure it shows empathy," he replied, not taking his eyes off the road. Was he nervous about driving? He didn't seem so, but Tonks never knew what to assume. Today she learned that he spoke fluent French, something she didn't even expect, and for some reason that knowledge kept repeating in her mind, and every time it did her heart would give in to this little tug.
"Does that mean you're compassionate?" she teased, easing closer to him. She meant to ask him about his knowledge of French.
"I don't know, Tonks," he answered conversationally, without looking at her. She watched in the dim light as a small smile came to his lips.
"Do mind driving?" she then asked, leaning forward to look at him more fully.
"Not at all. Do you think I'm a bad driver?" he asked, looking at her fully and raising one eyebrow.
"Well, I don't know how to judge that seeing as I've never driven a car before," she replied. He laughed lightly at something she didn't catch, and she felt the old car speed up.
"Remus!"
"What?" he asked innocently. He made it speed up again.
"Stop that! You'll get us killed," she scolded, gripping her wand tightly.
"Sorry, love," he said, trying to sound actually apologetic. She sat back in her seat.
"There's no way his directions were right," she concluded then, as the vast ocean appeared in the distance. "By the way, how did you know the shore was coming up?"
"I don't know," he said, in a voice that nonchalantly suggested anything more he said would reveal something about him she didn't know.
"You're a happy barrel of surprises, you know that?"
"You love it though."
"Unfortunately."
"Do you mind if we stop for a while up ahead?" he asked, as the road began to run alongside the coast.
"No, if you're tired we'll rest."
He drove their car a little further before he slowed down and pulled to the side, bringing them to a stop. The old car seemed to sigh and relax when he took the keys from the ignition, and she made to move closer to him, but he opened the car door. He got out without any notice to her.
"Remus?"
"Yeah," he said distractedly as he leaned against the closed door. His look was probably far off, and she could hear his voice as if he was preoccupied, through the open window.
"You all right?"
"Yeah, sure. I'll be right back," he said, without looking back. He removed his shoes and began to walk around the front of the car and off onto the beach. He walked rather quickly and awkwardly on the sand, and she couldn't make out anything from his body language as he approached the water. What the hell was he doing? She exited the car and followed, wrapping her –his- shirt around her body more tightly as the wind blew around her. She removed her shoes as well and tossed them through the open window into the backseat. The night felt clean and tranquil, and the sand was cool under her feet.
He had sat down on the sand, closest to the waves but far enough so he didn't get wet from the damp sand, and she joined him quietly, rubbing his back gently before she knelt down next to him. He touched her hip lightly and she rested her chin on his shoulder.
"Why are we here?" she asked in a low and cautious voice. She felt like they were approaching something, and if she expected him to speak French earlier she would have felt the feeling when he first talked to the woman in the store. Like she would allow herself to he surprised and shocked, even though it only made her feel excited.
"It's tugged on too," was all he said, resting his cheek against her short hair. She touched the side of his head, running her hands through his soft and shaggy hair. The waning moon reflected on their bodies and on the water, and she felt him sigh.
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