Thanks to beta Kate Glasgow, readers, and reviewers
Disclaimer: umm not mine.
The bed was messed up and her hair looked about as good. She didn't care. Hair was an easy fix. She knew that when she made her hair short it wouldn't matter, so short was the way it was going to go. A clean room was also easy. She gave a sweep of her wand and it was clean. Her eyes betrayed the night of crying. That was easy to fix as well. By the time she was done, Tonks looked well rested and ready to take on the day. She ran down the stairs as if she was excited for the new day. Molly was puttering around in the kitchen. Arthur was chugging some coffee and getting ready to leave for work as Tonks knew she should be.
Remus, thankfully, was not to be seen.
Tonks slammed her body into a chair at the kitchen table. She levitated a cup of coffee over to her. The coffee felt good as it warmed her throat. The chocolate brown hair offset her shockingly strong green color. Knowing that today would probably be busy, she Apparated over to her flat for a change of clothes. Her flat was obviously in a state of neglect. Clothes were strewn everywhere, dust had settled on various pieces of furniture. She stumbled past the couch and almost slammed into the door of her bedroom as she tripped over a shoe whose match was elsewhere. Tonks vowed that she would come home during lunch and tidy up and take a nice hot shower. She knew that lunch would probably have to be taken at her desk or eaten on the way to someplace.
Her bedroom was rather dull. White walls with little to no paint created a small space barely big enough to store her mattress, her dresser, and a little TV, but it had considering how little she was there, it worked. Her closet was a nice walk-in. Most of the hangers didn't have anything on them. Laundry had taken a backseat to Voldemort. Everything had taken a backseat to Voldemort, she had moved into this little apartment a month before she joined the order and time became a thing of the past. She grabbed a pair of jeans and a plain red shirt and a blue robe. She dressed hurriedly as she went for the living room to get her cloak.
POP
Remus came stumbling down the stairs trying to wipe the sleep out of his eyes. It was late in the morning, around 9, and Remus was having the first good sleep he had had for awhile. Arthur and Tonks were gone but by now he was used to that. Whisperings of Voldemort had been about for awhile, and Remus suspected that the Ministry was finally wising up.
He knew he was going to have to go see Severus soon and get his potion. He had a week before his transformation. The Order had decided that it would be easiest for Remus if he could have an animal to communicate with while in his werewolf form. He was going to be locked up with Buckbeak in the attic.
Buckbeak had seemed depressed and confused since Sirius died. He would cry continuously and scratch at the floor, ram at the doors, and peck at the windows. Remus was hoping that his first transformation spent with the hippogriff would give them a connection and help them both get over the good friend. They both could use a new one.
Remus plopped roughly into one of the chairs in the kitchen of Grimmauld Place. He magicked a cup of coffee over to himself. He drank it black because he was too lazy to get sugar or cream. Molly came bustling in through the doorway. She instantly started to make an omelette for Remus. "Everyone's off at work-except for the children of course."
"Is Severus at Hogwarts? I need to start taking the Wolfsbane Potion. The full moon is next week," he warned her sadly.
"Yes, Severus has been up there all week. I'm sure he has your potion ready, dear." Molly said as she handed Remus his omelette.
"Thank you, Molly." Remus started to smile as the caffeine from his coffee started to wake him up.
"NYMPHADORA!"
Tonks jerked awake as Scrimgeour, the head of the auror department, yelled her name. Tonks was definitely sleep deprived and had accidentally nodded off at work.Scrimgeour was an asshole. He worked his aurors to the bone, even before there had been rumors of Voldemort's return. Everyone thought he enjoyed being a pompous blowhard. Tonks was a favorite one to pick on. She was clumsy and he always seemed to be around when she messed up. "Sorry, sir. I. .I didn't mean to fall asleep. I won't do it again. I promise." Tonks hurriedly apologized. She really didn't want a long tirade from him right now. Especially after what she heard last night.
"You know I don't like it when people don't take their job seriously. I expected you to be a little more on your toes considering the fact that your recent mistakes have been so hideous."Scrimgeour could hardly suppress the smile as he berated the auror. He displayed the gold pin, which told the world that he was the head of his department, proudly on his overblown chest. "You need to shape up or your position here may be in jeopardy." He smirked as he walked away.
"Dammit, Tonks. The last thing you need is to get fired. Voldemort is powerful again and you need to help The Order. You can't do that if you get fired from your job." She berated herself in her mind.
Remus pushed open the big doors to the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Visiting this hall was always a bittersweet experience. He loved being back at the school but he hated the memory of having to give up the most fulfilling job of his career, all because of the bigotry of a few "adults". As he descended the steps that led towards the dungeons, Remus began thinking about the greasy git. Severus and Remus were a lot alike when you got down to traits. They were both forced loners. They had both had a dangerous trick played on them. They both trusted the people that made them feel safe completely. That sometimes led them into trouble that they couldn't imagine.
A big difference between the two was that Remus needed Snape in order to ensure that he didn't kill someone and Snape didn't need him.
Remus loved the quiet of the school during the summer. House elves could be heard but there weren't any arguments between Slytherins and Gryffindors or Slytherins and Ravenclaws or Slytherins and Hufflepuffs. Remus listened to the slight echo of his steps as he descended into the lair of the Severus Snape. When he reached the door that led to the bat's lair, Remus pushed the door open to find Severus with his head down and muttering to himself as he worked on a new potion. "Your potion is on my desk."
Snape didn't look up as Remus walked to the desk, drank from the smoking goblet, and left the room. Snape would always be a quandary to everyone who encountered him. Remus didn't care to dwell on the snarky potions master.
He made his way out of the old castle and across the green grounds towards the gates. Those gates. The gates had been guarded by the dementors in Remus's year of teaching. Those dementors had almost hurt Sirius more than death did. Shaking his head, as if he could rid himself of such thoughts, Remus continued on his way to Hogsmead. A stop at the Three Broomsticks and then back to Grimmauld Place. Remus was bored with not being able to help The Order in the way Shacklebolt, Snape, or Tonks could help. He knew that his stigma with being a werewolf wasn't helping him at all. "Remus!" a voice called to him from behind.
"Mayla?" Remus asked uncertainly.
"Hi, I was just doing a little shopping. I'm about to get a drink. You want to get one with me?" Mayla asked forcibly.
"I was heading there just now. I was also kinda hoping that I'd run into you again. Not literally like last time."
"Well then let me buy this time, and we can talk." Mayla laughed.
