Remus opened his eyes in Tonks' bed. He had thoroughly enjoyed staying in her flat. It was far nicer than the semi-derelict cottage he owned in Yorkshire, and he had the benefit of having Order members nearby for company. It made him wistful for normality; this was the closest he had gotten since he had resigned from his teaching post at Hogwarts.

Remus also enjoyed staying in Tonks' flat because it felt as if he were close to her, by being close to her belongings, her cat, her cheerful decorations, and her delicate scent that lingered over all the surfaces. It was most noticeable in her bedclothes; despite having washed them before using them, her delicate scent remained on all the surfaces. It was a comforting, albeit arousing, scent, that left him waking most mornings with an uncomfortable tension in his tattered flannel pants.

This particular morning, Remus turned over in the bed and found a tuft of pink hair looking back at him, instead of the amber eyes he had gotten accustomed to. He moved with a start – had Tonks returned? He looked over the locks of pink and saw Tonks nearly as he had dreamt of her. She was barely clothed, sporting a black bra and pajama shorts. A few bruises and cuts marked her skin; he would attend to those later, if she let him. He had the urge to touch her, just to confirm it was real, until his conscience got the better of him.

He very carefully got up from the bed, adjusting his clothes to hide the now painfully hard erection he held in his pants. Tonks had been sleeping beside him for who-knows-how-long and he had been both blissfully and cursedly unaware of it. As he was now awake, he took the opportunity to give himself the coldest shower he had taken in years, attempting to become more presentable to her. The cold water was moderately successful at curbing his desire, so he decided to concentrate his efforts on fixing Tonks breakfast.

After what seemed like an eternity, Remus could see movement from Tonks' bed.

"Remus?" she called.

"I'm here, Tonks," he replied. "I've made you breakfast."

"You did?" Tonks squealed from behind the screen. She must have forgotten what she was wearing, because she stepped out from behind the screen without having put more clothing on.

Remus looked away immediately, blushing furiously.

"Oh, shit," said Tonks, looking down at herself and blushing furiously herself. "I was completely knackered when I came in last night. I must've forgotten." She hastily turned back behind the screen and grabbed a jumper and threw it over herself.

"Better," said Tonks. "Properly dressed and ready to eat. Where's Ophelia?"

"She's here with me in the kitchen, Tonks. She and I had a nice rhythm in the mornings." He bent down and scratched the cat's head. "As for you, I hope you like what I've made." Remus set out two plates laden with waffles and bacon. He swept his eyes over her frame. "I've been worried about you. You're looking peaky."

Tonks beamed at him leapt over her armchair, toppling it over, and crashing into Remus. She wrapped her arms around him with a force that nearly knocked him over. Remus felt her warm body against his own. The delicate scent of Tonks that he had gotten accustomed to was now overwhelming him; he drew his arms around her and bent down to draw her into his own embrace. His hands brushed against her waist, exposed by the jumper that had crept up a few inches.

"I'm so glad you're back," he whispered. "I was so worried." He realized they'd been embracing for longer than he meant to, and let his arms go at his sides, without letting go of her gaze.

"I'm glad to be here," Tonks said. She was beaming at him. She softly punched his shoulder, saying, "And you really didn't need to give me chocolate, Remus. It did help a lot though."

"I like to keep chocolate on my person," mused Remus. "You wouldn't believe how many times it's come in handy." He pulled out a slab of chocolate from his pocket and winked.

"Let's save that for after breakfast," said Tonks. She grabbed his sleeve and pulled him towards her small kitchen table. "You spoil me, you know."

"It's my pleasure," he replied. "I rarely get to care for others like this." He continued, "But enough about me – how did you make out from your tour of the giants?"

Tonks animatedly shared the whole adventure to Remus. He was both alarmed and impressed that she had shown such nerve in presenting the gift to the Gurg right away. His awe of her grew deeper as she discussed all the preparations she had done before going on the mission; her professionalism and skill shone through every word she spoke. Tonks discussed the supposed Death Eaters, and Remus said, "That last one is Peter Pettigrew, I'm sure of it."

"Is that the one that betrayed James and Lily, instead of Sirius?" asked Tonks.

"Yes," he replied, "better you than me to be there. He is one of the few persons I would ever allow myself to inflict violence upon." His face was stony.

"I gave all this information to Dumbledore," said Tonks, "even before I gave it all to the Ministry. I hope we can do something with it."

"If I'm not mistaken, Dumbledore will have had Hagrid looking into giant settlements as well," said Remus. "Let's hope he has better luck with them than you and your Auror friend."

"Ugh, Alfie," said Tonks. "He's an alright bloke, but after a few days of the cold and wind, he became insufferable. He had the audacity to ask if I was single."

"Are you?" inquired Remus. The words came out before he could stop himself. He must have seemed no better than her co-worker, and immediately added, "No need to answer if you don't like, though." His mind was reeling with the possibilities; he mustn't care, he shouldn't care, it wouldn't matter, it could never be.

Tonks giggled. "I am, I'll have you know," she revealed. "It's one thing to ask a friend over breakfast, and quite another to ask a coworker when you're smashed together in a cold, damp crevice." She continued, "I didn't want him getting any ideas, you know?"

Remus understood, and noticed his knuckles clenching against the table as he imagined Tonks with this faceless coworker; he mustn't care, he shouldn't care, it wouldn't matter, it could never be. The thought of her with another man in a dark, secluded place set his heart on edge; you must let her go. She will never be happy with you. She could never be happy with you.

"I'm glad you were able to survive the ordeal," commented Remus. "Both the giants and the co-worker."

"One mission down, several more to go," sighed Tonks. "At least I'm off for a few days before they send me off to the goblins."

"Goblins?" asked Remus. "At Gringotts?"

"We're starting with them for now. If we suspect any suspicious activity, we might have to see them in Egypt," responded Tonks. "I hope it doesn't come to that. I can't imagine an overheated Alfie will be any better than a frozen one."

Tonks and Remus had finished their breakfast. Remus took the plates and set to washing them, taking care to place them in the cupboard after drying them. Tonks gazed at him. "Thank you, Remus," she said. "You really, really didn't have to do any of this."

"Again, it's my pleasure," he said. "I do have some good news for you, though."

Tonks sat up in her chair. Remus continued, "In a week or so, we'll be collecting Harry Potter from his relatives' home in Surrey. Now that you're back, would you like to join the Advance Guard?"

"Of course!" cried Tonks. "I've been dying to meet Harry for ages!"

"I'll settle it with Sirius and the Order, and we'll make sure you'll be joining us," said Remus. "Come by Headquarters when we call, so we can make the arrangements for him and his family."

"Thank you, Remus!" Tonks grinned wildly at him again, and he felt his heart pounding harder in his chest.

"You're very welcome, Tonks," said Remus. "For now, I must head back to Headquarters. I am very thankful you came back in one piece."

"Is there any way I can thank you for all you've done for me?" asked Tonks. "You just did me so many favors. I have to thank you somehow."

Remus hesitated. He saw Tonks' earnest expression, and knew she wouldn't back down from her offer. With a smile, he said, "I like chocolate," and winked at her.

"Chocolate." Tonks smiled broadly again. "Expect some from me soon."

Remus stood up and gathered his few belongings to leave Tonks' flat. There was a pang in his heart now that he was leaving to go back to Headquarters to sleep. He would miss the glimpse he got into Tonks' bright, cheerful world. He would miss the little things that reminded him of her, in all her beauty.

A tug at his sleeve brought him out of his thoughts. Tonks wrapped her arms around him for another embrace. She stood up on her toes, as she had done before, and said, "Thank you, Remus. I'm so lucky to have you." He could feel the warmth of her body against his again, the warm breath from her mouth tickling his ear. It took significant effort to keep himself from kissing her. As he felt the rising tension in his trousers once more, he broke the embrace. He blushed lightly, and murmured, "I'm lucky to have you, too, Tonks." With that, he opened the door and back to Headquarters.

…

A few days later, it was finally the night of the Order meeting to discuss the plans for Harry's route out of the Dursleys' home and to Grimmauld Place. Remus woke late in the afternoon, after sleeping in from an overnight shift at the Hall of Prophecies. The afternoon sun streamed through the window, and a soft tapping at the window suggested something waiting for him. He crossed over to the other side of the room and opened the window. A startled screech owl flew into his room, perching itself on the old desk. It arrived with a wrapped package.

Remus untied the package and found a note. The owl remained on the desk, looking rather pleased with itself. He recognized the loopy scribbles as Tonks' handwriting. He excitedly opened the note and read:

Dear Remus,

It's my turn to write a stuffy letter. I wanted to thank you for all you did for me and Ophelia on my mission. First, you can't say no to anything in this letter, or I'll hex you. Second, the package of chocolate is from yours truly. It's the only thing you said you would want. Third, the owl is now yours. I got her for you so you can send me your own sappy apology notes without resorting to the Weasleys' owl. Write back with her name, so I know what to call her.

Yours,

Tonks

P.S. Seriously, don't you dare refuse the owl. You deserve it, and you know it. I'll bring her cage to you tonight at the Order meeting.

Remus' jaw dropped. Though he had anticipated chocolate from Tonks as a thank-you for caring for her cat, being gifted his own owl felt like too much. It was overly generous of her to give him such a gift. The owl was happily hooting on his desk, as if to tell him that she was pleased to be here on Tonks' behalf. If she had chosen this owl, Tonks had evidently chosen one with as much personality as she could find. He could only gape at the hooting owl, a living symbol of Tonks' generosity.

He stood in front of the owl, note held in his hands, speechless. The owl nipped at his hand, and he began to pet her head. "You'll be needing a name, won't you?" he said softly to the owl. He paused for a moment, deep in thought. "Would you like to be called Lyra?" he asked the owl. The owl bobbed happily on the desk. "Lyra it is then," murmured Remus.

He found parchment and pulled out a quill. His joy of having his own owl was great indeed, and he found himself unable to adequately articulate his thoughts. After much thought (and strewn pieces of parchment), he had completed the letter.

Dear Tonks,

Words cannot express how grateful I am to receive such a lovely gift. I would insist on your returning the owl, but I know you better by now and to do so would be to insult you. I have decided to call the her Lyra. I'm looking forward to seeing you tonight.

Yours,

Remus

He tied the parchment to Lyra's leg and told her, "You know who this goes to, don't you?" Lyra bobbed her head and swept off through the window. Remus was still speechless as he saw Lyra flapping in the distance.

…

Remus dressed himself in preparation for dinner and the Order meeting tonight. They were to strategize how best to collect Harry from the Dursleys' home. He drifted downstairs to the kitchen, where Molly and Sirius were deep in preparations for the meeting.

"Molly, may I help you with anything?" Remus asked.

"No, dear, why don't you help Sirius?" Molly replied. She was busying herself with dinner for a crowd, and appeared to be quite capable of doing the task on her own. She pulled Remus in closer and whispered, "Sirius is in a foul mood tonight. See what you can do." Remus nodded, and then turned to Sirius, who sat at the table.

"This is fucking killing me," grunted Sirius. "I can't do a damned thing for Harry."

"I know, Sirius," said Remus. "It has to be this way."

"Does it?" pressed Sirius.

"We have to trust in Dumbledore's plan," replied Remus.

"Easy for you to say," said Sirius. "I'm locked away here while you and the others scuttle around."

"I know it's frustrating, Sirius-"

"-frustrating doesn't begin to cover the fucking half of it."

"Harry will be here soon," Remus said, "that will help, I know."

Sirius was about to begin protesting when the kitchen door slammed open and several pairs of feet thundered down the stairs. The Weasleys and Hermione had come to grab what they could of dinner, their chattering filling the room with laughter. Once they had begun to ascend the stairs, the door slammed again to reveal yet another stampede of footsteps. This time, the footsteps belonged to fellow Order members: Albus Dumbledore, Sturgis Podmore, Emmeline Vance, Arthur Weasley, Kingsley Shacklebolt, Severus Snape, Mad-Eye Moody, and Tonks.

Remus' heart swelled as he saw Tonks descend the stairs. Her hair fell down to her shoulders in loose waves, today in a rich ruby. She trailed behind Snape, who eyed Remus and Sirius with a look of deep loathing. By contrast, Tonks beamed widely at them both, pulling a chair in between the both of them to sit for dinner. Remus couldn't help himself; he began grinning stupidly at Tonks as she sat down beside him. Remus heard Sirius mutter, "Like fucking teenagers, you two." Remus' face grew pink, and he sobered his expression to plan for the task ahead.

"Alright, you lot," started Moody. "We need to get Potter out and to Headquarters safely and quickly." He continued, "We can't use Floo powder, with the grates being watched. We can't all Apparate at once without suspicions. We'll have to fly."

"What will we do about the Muggles?" asked Kingsley.

"I've got an idea!" exclaimed Tonks. She quickly grabbed parchment and started to furiously scribble on it. A few taps of her wand later, she presented the parchment to Sirius to read.

Sirius read, "Dear Mr. and Mrs. Dursley, you are hereby cordially invited as finalists to the All-England Best-Kept Suburban Lawn Competition. Your outstanding commitment to lawn-keeping has impressed us deeply, and we look forward to having you and your family join us."

The entire room (with the notable exception of Snape) roared into laughter. "This is beautiful," said Sirius, holding back tears from his laughter.

"Dursleys taken care of, then!" said Tonks, proudly. "I'll have this sent by Muggle post and we'll be free to collect Harry on Sunday."

Over dinner, the plans were finalized. An Advance Guard was established to escort Harry from Privet Drive to Grimmauld Place, and for now, the Order could wait for the next task.

…

It was finally time to collect Harry from Privet Drive. Sirius was in a foul mood again; Kingsley had had to tell him again that he could not join the Advance Guard.

"Harry will be here soon, Sirius," said Tonks. "We'll make sure he arrives safely."

"She's right, Padfoot," assured Remus. "I'm rubbish at flying and I wish it could be you over me, but I promise we'll get Harry here in one piece."

Sirius remained surly and grunted in assent when the others left to collect Harry.

Remus and the others stepped out of Headquarters and down to the square. They cast various disillusionment charms on themselves, and set off in the night to get Harry. As they were kicking off, Remus couldn't help but notice Tonks looking back at him. Could it be…?

…

The Advance Guard had safely collected Harry and were now back at Grimmauld Place. Remus had just sat through a particularly grueling conversation with fellow Order members and nearly all the kids. Harry had wanted to know what was happening and inevitably, Molly and Sirius had gotten into a row over what he should know. Remus hated becoming the negotiator between the two, but had assented to Harry knowing some, but not all the information Dumbledore had given them.

Harry and his friends trudged back upstairs quite unwillingly, leaving the adults in the room unsettled, and in Sirius' and Molly's cases, fuming. Remus and Tonks motioned to Sirius, to bring him upstairs to rest. The three of them went upstairs to the drawing room, as they had done many times before after an Order meeting. The three of them talked late into the night, retelling the events at the meeting, until their voices were hoarse and the candlelight had all but extinguished itself.

Remus noticed Sirius falling asleep on the faded velvet sofa. Tonks summoned a thick blanket, and lay it over Sirius' frame. She beckoned Remus out of the drawing room and out to the landing.

"He's been through so much, hasn't he?"

"12 years at Azkaban and a new prison in his childhood home aren't quite what he had planned for his life, I think," commented Remus. "That takes a toll on him."

"He's still handsome, isn't he, even after Azkaban?" mused Tonks.

Remus felt suddenly bitter at this comment. Of course she fancied Sirius; it could never be him, the werewolf. He retorted, angrily, "He always got the women."

Tonks scrunched her face in anger and struggled to keep her voice level. She said, coldly, "You'd know perfectly well who I've fallen for, if you weren't too busy feeling sorry for yourself to notice."

She turned around and rushed downstairs. Remus stared blankly at the place where she had stood, jaw now dropped. It couldn't be.