Author's Note: Topless Tonks! Well, sorta. And there's a bit of implied past TonksxKingsley that I'll elaborate on when I come to re-write the earlier chapters. I know this one's a bit short, it was originally part of another chapter but it was to long as it was so I separated it.

Yes, I'm well aware I was gone longer than a week, as I said, my laptop was (and still is) broken so I can't use it for more than half an hour at a time.

With any luck, I'll have it finished before HBP comes out.

Much thankness for the reviews! Enjoy!

Mirror, Mirror

Chapter sixteen: Smitten

Tonks stood by her door and watched Remus as he decended the staircase and dissappeared round the corner. She inclined her head to lean on the door and sighed. She went back into her room, leaving the door ajar, suddenly aware of how horrible her clothes were. She pulled off her trainers, then her jeans, stiff with dirt and slipped on a pair of clean, linen trousers. Already she felt better. She tried to pull her arms out of her t-shirt but the pain was too much. She downed the last of the whisky and threw the glass bottle across the room. It collided with the full-length mirror with an almighty crash. Tonks swore. She considered ripping the tee, after all, it was pretty tattered already, but it was her favourite shirt. It wasn't anything special, just a medium green with nothing on the front, but it had been a gift. Sirius had given it to her for her last birthday, along with the picture disc vinyl she'd caught Remus with earlier that week. Apparently he'd bought it a few weeks before his imprisonment, and had saved it for her. He couldn't have bought the shirt himself, and Tonks suspected Molly had picked it out for him in an attempt to get her to wear something without an offensive slogan. No, she had to save it.

She made another attempt at getting it off, as a shadow appeared through the gap in the door.

"Oh, I'm sorry Tonks," Kingsley said, averting his eyes. "I'll wait out here."

"No, Kings, could you give me a hand?" She asked from the edge of the bed. He stayed put in the doorway.

"Oh come on you stupid git," she threw a small teddy at him, chuckling lightly. He did the strong silent type so well, she thought. She added with a wink "Nothing you haven't seen before."

Kingsley relented and entered the room fully, clearing away the broken glass with his wand. He helped Tonks pull her shirt over her head. She walked over to the wardrobe and pulled a pink button down shirt of it's hanger. She slipped it on and walked back over to Kingsley.

"Thank you," she whispered, and kissed him lightly on the cheek.

"This is ridiculous," she told him. "I'm an Auror for Christ's sake! I'm a bloody soldier and I can't even dress myself."

"Tonks, look at me," he held her shoulders tight. "Are you alright?"

"I will be," she smiled. He had seen that smile before.

"Why Tonks, you're smitten," he said. And about time too, he added mentally.

"Why yes, I s'pose I am," she replied, failing to hide the fact she was blushing terribly. "Shame about the timing."

"Well that never was your strong point," he said, trying not to sound bitter. "So is it official?"

"No, it's ... complicated."

"Looks pretty simple to me. You should have seen him earlier, Mad-Eye didn't want anyone going after you but he wasn't having any of it. Rescued you single handed, says alot to me."

"Yea, yea it does doesn't it." She smiled contentedly.

"You up for some English courage?"

"Tea and biccies?" Kingsley nodded. Tonks headed for the door but stopped in her tracks.

"Wait, Mad-Eye wanted to leave me there? I'm gonna kill the old bastard!"

Tonks tried to run towads the staircase, but her feet faltered. Kingsley put his arm round her, urging her to walk slower.

"Not today eh?" He said. "Least his heart was in the right place, the greater good and all that."

"Bollocks was it! I'd be surprised if his heart wasn't made of plastic." They both laughed and made their way carefully downstairs.