A/N: Wow, the Tonks/Lupin craze is really off… (Grin) I'm so happy with the reviews! Does this mean you all don't hate Elijah? Wow. Not what I expected. :D

Nymphadora85- Thank you so much! I try to update as soon as possible. :D

Slightly so- Of course Tonks still loves him… she just doesn't know it. ;)

Harrypottergrl19- Oh, don't die on me! Because then you can't read this chapter!

Agus- Thank you bunches!

Jessie McDonald- Thank you so much… I was also tired of all the five min realization stories. (Though a fair few did appeal to my Fluffy side.) :D You'll have to wait will the next chapter to have Remy and Tonks meet again. evil grin

Daniela- Thanks! I really did try to make this story stand out.

TrinityDD- Aww, thanks. Elijah is sweet, but… The question remains, who does Tonks belong with? (Waggles eyebrows)


Paper Moon

Chapter Three: In Denial

I thought when love for you died, I should die.
It's dead. Alone, most strangely, I live on.
Rupert Brooke

Tonks was pushing her food back and forth with her fork, her eyes on her plate.

Elijah wasn't speaking, but she really didn't notice. Her head was completely fuddled, and she wasn't thinking properly.

"You know, Tonks, you should really let some one else enter the conversation every once in a while…" Elijah joked, wiping his mouth with his napkin, and giving Tonks a smile.

"Huh?" She said stupidly. Elijah gave a chuckle, and took her hand.

"You're very distracted…" He said kindly, "What's the matter?"

"Nothing…" She said trying to smile.

"Did you have a row with Ginny?"

"Ginny? Oh no." She shook her head.

"What's wrong?"

"So Eli… I was thinking I need to go get a new sundress for the Party tomorrow. " She said sweetly trying to steer the conversation away. Elijah raised an eyebrow,

"What happened?"

Tonks sighed. No luck. Yet what was she supposed to tell him? The Man she loved since she met him had left her seven years ago and she had never known where he was till this day? And not only that he lived in London? Twenty minutes away! She sighed into her mash potatoes. No. After all she had never told him about Remus… It was a piece of her past that did not belong with Elijah.

She looked up at his bright blue eyes, and knew that he wasn't going to let up. She sighed, and leaned forward, and took a deep breath and slowly told him…

After long moments of story, She finished, a small something deep inside her cringing. She looked back up, biting her lip.

"So he was like a brother to you?" Elijah asked, eyes full of sympathy. "And he just left? Without saying anything? Where has he been?"

She had lied. Lied shamelessly, unblushingly, lied worse enough to make her own mother blush. After all, she couldn't tell Eli about Remus. It was mixing two worlds together, and she didn't want to know what sort of concoction it would make. Hiding shame filled eyes, she sighed. Merlin, she was a horrible person.

"I just heard about him today…He lives here in London and never wrote." She continued, glad that wasn't also a lie. This shouldn't have mattered. She didn't love Remus anymore. He had left her, and she had found Eli, who loved her and wasn't afraid of it or her. And she loved him… didn't she?

"I'm sorry, Love." Eli said reaching over and kissing her cheek.

Tonks smiled, but was extremely frightened to note… his kiss, which was usually warm, felt ice cold.

II.

"Okay Lupin, You can sit up now." The speaker buzzed.

Remus sat up, and stretched his shoulders, "Well that one was relatively painless…" He commented dryly into the white room.

A deep laugh came from the speaker, "I'm sorry, Lupin. Only a few more tests like that one and I'm sure I'll be closer."

"Funny Laurie, That's what you said six years ago." Remus muttered.

"Heard that." The white door swung open, "I swear Lupin, I've told you a thousand times… Lauren's a girl's name." A tall, broad shouldered man, walked in, a big smile on his tanned face "And you call me Laurie one more time, I'll hex you so bad your own mother won't know you."

"My Mother's dead…" Remus said raised an eyebrow, standing up, "But I know what you mean… Roberts."

Dr. Lauren Roberts Grinned, "Good man, Now… A few things about the test."

Remus sighed, and sat back down on the medical table, "This is the part I hate…" He muttered.

Roberts gave a sort of deep chuckle, "Sit quiet Lupin…" He flipped through his chart, "He marked a few things with his quill, before sighed, "Now...Your stats were way off normal… Anything bugging you?"

Remus sighed. He had hoped he could remain calm during the test, but Roberts seem to catch everything. It alsodidn't help that over the past six years that the two had formed a sort of friendship/bond over their work. The man had an eye for anything out of the ordinary. A good quality in a Doctor, and in a friend…just not today. Any day but today…

He rubbed his rapidly graying hair, "Just a few things on my mind." He said, unblushingly, a calm smile across his face.

Robert's raised one black eyebrow, "A few like what, Lupin?"

"I don't think that's needed for your test results, Roberts." Lupin remarked dryly, picking up his coat.

Roberts smiled grimly. The moment Lupin had arrived at his office, he knew there was something more to his past that the tidbits he offered. Yet the doctor had not been one to pry. If his friend didn't want to speak, then that's his choice. But that was before. There was something extremely wrong.

"I'm hungry… I'm going to lunch." Lupin said, giving his friend a smile.

"Good idea!" Roberts boomed, "I'm starved! And I know the prefect restaurant that serves wonderfulsteak. They even serve them pretty rare." Roberts continued, shrugging out of his white coat, "Tell you what my treat."

Lupin had known the last statement to be simply a formality. Part of his payment as a 'test subject' forthe doctor's study,Roberts let Lupin stay at his house with his wife and payed for most of his necessities, including food.

Still Lupin sent a searching look at him and sighed. There was no pushing Roberts when he wanted to talk about something.

"Fine. I could reallygo fora steak anyways…" He said grabbing his worn jacket. He held up a finger, "I have to write an owl first." He walked out.

"Ah, Beer and a steak it is!" Roberts boomed, fallowing him.

III.

The Burrow was quiet, most of her neices and nephews off to bed, their tired parents after them. Ginny was surprised they had a place for all of them in this house. She sighed, leaning against her fiancé legs. Shesearched through a list, as Harry leaned against the couch hands behind his head, half asleep with a smile on his face.

"Harry… Did you owl the flower shop?" Ginny asked, writing a couple of numbers on another sheet.

"Uh-huh…" Harry murmured, grinning more broadly.

"And the dress shop? Hermione's dress doesn't-"

"Fit, I know…" Harry opened one brilliant green eye. "I did it."

Ginny smiled, "What about Ron?"

Harry chuckled sleepily, settling against the couch in a more comfortable position, closing his eyes once more.

"Between us getting married, and Hermione's pregnancy… he's quiet stressed."

Ginny grinned, "I shouldn't laugh…"

Harry chuckled again, "Why? I did…"

Ginny poked him in a ribs, making him laugh. Harry pulled her back so she was leaning against his chest instead of his knees. She sighed, and snuggled in. Long moments passes before she spoke again,

"Have you talked to Lupin?"

Harry sighed, and nodded, "He's coming tomorrow…He promised."

Ginny nodded, and looked back at her papers. "I really hope she doesn't kill us for this."

Harry opened both eyes, "It'll be fine, Gin. Everything will be fine." He wrapped an arm around her waist, and closed his eyes again.

Ginny laid her head on his shoulder. "I hope so… " She whispered. "I really do."


TBC...