Title: Just the way you are.
Author: LupinLovesTonks
Rated: T due to future situations
Disclaimer: HP & all others are trademarks of JK Rowling. No profit is made from the use of these trademarked entities. No animals were harmed in the typing of this fic. Void where prohibited, see store for complete rules and details. Any similarities to actual events are strictly a coincidence.
AN: Please see my forums for replies to any comments/questions made in reviews.

Chapter Five
Tonks shivered in spite of the warmth of her flat. It felt like a dementor was standing in her flat at that particular moment. She was still trying to piece together exactly what had just happened. One moment she was able to play her part of the cool calm girlfriend. The next she had shoved Richard away the second he had lifted her blouse too high for her liking.

He had persisted, yes. But when she kept shoving him away each time he tried, he became rather furious. Of course, it didn't help that lately Remus had been on the underground every single morning. She never would have guessed Richard would have suspected anything of it. Remus would watch her with that certain glimmer in his eyes; she would do her best not to notice but never could help but grin ear to ear the whole trip.

"Is it that man?" Richard had demanded.

Perplexed, Tonks had asked the obvious question, "What man?"

"The one from the tube," Richard had snapped.

Of course, Tonks had done her damnedest to play it off as if she had no idea what Richard had been talking about. After she had made him leave, Tonks had paced and paced some more. Then she had pocketed her wand and left her flat, seeking the only place she truly felt at ease as of late.

Number 12 Grimmauld Place.

888

Remus poured himself another glass full of brandy and carefully set the container back where it had come from. It wasn't very often he indulged himself in the drink. Unless, as the case was tonight, he was particularly stressed because it was almost a week from the next full moon.

Tonight he would be able to drink his brandy in peace and quiet. Had he waited to attempt the next night, he would have had to put up with the snarky comments from his wolf. And snarky comments were not what Remus wanted to be thinking of at that particular moment. He preferred thinking about the lovely little nymphet that had pretty much leapt out of nowhere, grabbed his heart, and ran off giggling.

Of course, she also claimed he did the same -- without so much giggling but the comparison still stood firm in Remus' mind. The way Tonks had described it made him sound more sly and wolfish about the way he captured her attention. One could describe their relationship at the moment as serious -- if one could truly ever laugh as much as the two of them did and still be considered "serious," that is.

Over a month had passed since the day Tonks had been accepted into The Order. And what a fun month it had been too, Remus thought, slightly smiling in spite of himself. Not that they had gotten too carried away. Sure there had been nights she came over to see him at Grimmauld and of course those nights had almost pushed Remus to the brink of his sanity with wanting to do more than their clothed bodies could tolerate.

They had tried to keep it quiet from the others, but of course Sirius' big mouth had pretty much ruined that idea. Luckily none of the Weasley children had been around so they were spared the mental image of their professor having any sort of sexual life, or almost-sexual life as was his case.

Remus jumped slightly when a pair of hands clapped down over his eyes. "I was just thinking of you, Nymphadora," Remus grinned.

"Ha!" she laughed. "I finally snuck up on you."

Remus shook his head. "I jumped just so you would think you had." Tonks hurried around the back of the sofa and leapt into his lap, successfully straddling him. For a moment, he had caught her playfulness, but one look into her eyes and he knew that it was merely a façade. "What's wrong?"

Tonks sighed heavily and pursed her lips. "Richard is being an old git again. I can't wait for him to make a mistake so I can be done with him once and for all." She sighed again. "And I came here because I didn't feel like being at home. I thought I could make much better use of my time and skills here with you." She adjusted her weight a little better on his lap and grinned widely. "So, what were you thinking about me? Anything naughty or kinky?"

Remus placed his hands on her waist and pulled her flush against him. "Isn't it always?" he asked.

"I think I need to take a shower," Tonks said, pulling herself off of Remus' lap. "I smell like icky Richard slime." She visibly shuddered and twitched a few times for dramatic effect.

Remus frowned. He worried about Tonks. Her task with The Ministry had the potential to be rather dangerous, Kingsley had explained all the details and it had served no purpose other than to make Remus worry even more about Tonks being left alone with Richard. It was why he had taken to keeping watch over her during the mornings and when she had to meet Richard again around three. Of course, Remus wasn't too sure she knew about him following her during her afternoon shift.

Tonks leaned in and lightly brushed her lips over his. "Don't worry about me Remus," she said softly. "He didn't do anything out of sorts."

Remus sighed heavily and lightly patted Tonks' hip. "Go get your shower then love. I'll be in my room waiting for you." He pulled her back into his lap and kissed her, she seemed to melt into his arms, and he could even feel her smile against his lips. So, he knew everything was in fact okay and she was able to take care of herself.

Tonks gave a soft laugh and pulled herself out of his lap again. "What to join me in the shower?"

Remus looked the young woman over. Gods only knew how many times she had offered that same suggestion in the past month, each time Remus knew his answer had to be the same, "Not yet."

And just like the last times she had asked and he declined, Tonks gave a slight pout but grinned widely and excused herself, greeting Sirius as he walked in and she walked out. Sirius had a cocky little smile on his lips.

"So, what was that all about? The invite for a shower and you turned her down?"

"Sirius, what did I tell you about my love life?" Remus grumbled, pulling himself to his feet. "We're not to that certain point in which we take showers together."

Sirius mocked Remus slightly. "This is aggravating Remus. I know you want to, unless your mad you can tell she wants to… Why won't you?"

Remus shook his head slightly, "It's no business of yours Sirius," he retorted then walked out of the library and up to his room. He heard the tell-a-tale sounds of the shower being started, which meant he had about twenty minutes to get everything perfect and ready.

He had wanted several candles, set up all around his room. Instead he'd had only two candles and managed to duplicate them to the point he got the desired effect. After a few more, well placed spells he had a variety of different colored candles scattered around. With a snap of his fingers, the candles gave the usually miserable room a romantic glow.

Remus hadn't known she would show up this particular night, he had prepared just in case. Then again, there was seldom a night as of late that she didn't show up. A part of him felt well knowing that he was able to provide Tonks the comfort she needed after a long day on her watches.

He looked around his room and wondered what else the room needed. His eyes fell to a bouquet of flower Molly had put in his room earlier that week. The flowers were a little parched and easily crumbled into his hands when he picked them up by the wilting blooms. He scattered the flowerets all over his bed and surveyed his work.

It was as perfect as he could get it. For a moment he wondered if there were still any of the candies Molly had made in the kitchen, but a knock at his door told him that it was a little too late to check and see. Remus turned and ran to the door and barely opened it. His mouth instantly went dry at the sight of Tonks in nothing more than an over-sized, pink, silky bathrobe.

"Molly gave it to me," she grinned, twirling the tie playfully. "What do you think?" She made a slow turn to show off her new article of clothing, Remus just blinked continuously until she gave a laugh. "I like it too."

Remus stepped aside and opened the door to his room. He heard Tonks gasp in surprise as she walked in. Her eyes were widened in wonder and her mouth was slightly opened as she took in the glow of the candlelight. Remus closed his door and made sure the lock was firmly latched. He leaned against his door and waited to see if she would have anything to say.

After a couple of minutes, Tonks turned to face him and threw her arms around his neck. The coolness of the water that had plastered her silky robe to her body sank through to his skin. She kissed the side of his neck then planted small feathery kisses all over his face.

"I am such a lucky girl," she said after she was done.

Remus brought her hands to his lips and gave both of them a kiss. Wordlessly, he led Tonks over to his bed. Tonks gave a small squeal of delight when she saw the flower petals all over his bed. Remus had barely had time to sit on his bed before she leapt onto his lap, knocking both of them flat onto the bed. Her excitement was easily translated to him by her kiss.

Tonks finally sat up, straddling his hips. There was a glint of mischievousness in her dark eyes. "If I didn't know better Mister Lupin I would say you were trying to seduce me," she grinned.

"And I would have to say that everyone was wrong about you. You are indeed a very observant young woman," Remus replied with a hint of amusement in his tone. He didn't know if the soft gasp that escaped Tonks' lips was one of honest surprise or if Tonks was giving in lieu of being a mock surprise.

When her cheeks took on a soft pink glow, Remus knew that the small gasp had indeed been one in complete and honest surprise. He propped himself on his elbows and gazed up at her. "You don't mind that I am trying to seduce you, do you, Nymphadora?"

A wide smile went across Tonks' lips. "Of course not. It's just… I've never been seduced by the man of my dreams before." She shivered slightly and gave a soft laugh. "It's kind of exciting. Candlelight, flowers on the bed, the sweetest, handsomest," she put a finger to his nose in an almost defensive manner "-- and don't you dare correct my grammar Remus John Lupin -- man I have ever had the fortune of meeting."

Instead of playing Tonks' grammar game, Remus just yanked her back down to him and kissed her. To call him nervous would be an understatement. He was nervous for several reasons, but the primary cause of his nervousness was the fact he didn't want to do something wrong and ending up having his "perfectly planned" night turn into a big fiasco.

Tonks began saying something, which was instantly muffled by their connected lips. She pulled away and sat up on his lap again. "Well?"

Remus blinked several times. "I'm sorry I was too busy kissing a very lovely young woman to understand what you were saying."

Tonks thought for a moment. "Don't worry about it." She waved her hand dismissively. "I'm just going to rip your clothes off now."

"I haven't that many clothes Nymphadora," Remus said with an innocent tone. "So please don't rip them too much."

Tonks grinned and grasped the front of his shirt. She pulled him to sitting up and started to unbutton the shirt. Her hands were shaking almost to the point that the simple task was a bit of a complication. She hooted with victory when she finally managed to release the final button and slid the shirt down his arms. At that point she gave a squeal of annoyance.

"I forgot about the bloody wrist buttons!" she exclaimed and quickly set to releasing the buttons at his wrists.

When his wrists were finally free, Tonks snatched the shirt away and threw it off over her shoulder. Her eyes widened slightly as she took in the various scars on Remus' arms and chest. Remus closed his eyes lightly when she let her fingers softly brush over each of the scars.

"These are the typical scar patterns on werewolves," she said softly, her voice sounded awed as if she were a child exploring a new forest. "It's where their skin has to tear in order to accommodate the transformation." Her soft warm lips touched his chest as she gently kissed each of the old scars. She repeated the gesture on his shoulders and arms.

Remus let his eyes open. He had expected to perhaps see her eyes full of pity, but the dark eyes were rimmed with traces of tears and full of an emotion Remus preferred to go nameless at that moment. He captured her lips and kissed her deeply.

This time it was his hands that were shaking, as he lifted them to shoulders of the over-sized robe and slowly began to slide it from Tonks' shoulders. Tonks offered assistance in the fight to get her arms free from the sleeves so that the robe was gathered around her waist. Her skin was still cool from where she had long been out of the shower, but it seemed to warm quickly as soon as it touched his.

A wave of warmth spread through Remus that first moment their chests had touched, naked skin to naked skin for the first time. He could feel something shifting within himself and knew that soon he would be hearing the whispers of the wolf inside of his mind. Tonks muffled something and pulled back.

"Do you want me to have the long black hair with the pink in it?" she asked softly. "If you want me to I will."

Remus shook his head and quietly replied, "No. You're perfect just the way you are right now."

For a moment, Remus thought he had seen tears form in Tonks' eyes again, but she had rubbed her eyes with her hands and the appearance of the elusive tears had gone away. She cupped his face in her hands. "Right now Remus, everything is perfect. Something has to end up going wrong because everything is just too perfect."

Remus put a finger to her lips. "Shh. Don't jinx it."

She was right of course, everything was indeed perfect. Even to Remus everything was perfect. He couldn't have asked for anything to be better than it was. Even the imperfections of the moments to pass had been just right. Every whisper of his name that rolled from Tonks' lips had touched the right place next to his ear. Each touch of his hand had brought the ideal reaction from the young woman in his arms.

And nothing went wrong.

888

She was joyfully singing the tunes of Singing in the Rain once again. Only thing was, this time it wasn't because of a kiss. -- Well, in the long run it wasn't because of a kiss, even though there had been plenty of those -- Tonks had thought she had experienced pure, unadulterated, bliss from Remus' first kiss, but the kiss had been nothing compared to what had recently occurred.

And now, he was trailing a few steps behind her, walking her back to her flat. When she would occasionally whirl herself around a light pole to hit a particularly joyful note in her song, she would see the amused smile on his face. Which then she would run to him and embrace him as she kissed him. Then the light pole would become a temporary brace for her backside as he returned the kiss.

Tonks knew she was perhaps being a little childish about it, but she didn't care. She felt free of any sort of inhibitions that the world may have thrust toward her. It also felt good to know she was bringing that smile to Remus' face and that he wasn't thinking she was being out of sorts for it. In fact a time or two he was more than willing to be her dance partner during her performance.

They reached her flat long before she wished they would have. The building loomed before her like a prison. She sighed heavily and clung to the front of Remus' coat, nuzzling her nose into his chest, breathing in his scent as if it were the last time she would be able to do so.

"Oh I wish I could have stayed at Grimmauld tonight," she huffed. "I don't want to be here tonight. I want to be cuddled up in a warm bed with you again."

"I know," Remus replied quietly, running his fingers over her hair. He was quiet for a long moment then suggested, "I could stay with you tonight and just apparate out in the morning before Richard arrives…"

At this point Tonks wanted to jump up and down and have a temper tantrum like a little three year old. "Don't tempt me like that Remus," she pouted. "It's too risky."

"I'll walk you to your door then love," Remus sighed, his arms around her protectively.

Of course, Remus had to practically drag her to her door. Tonks didn't want to go, she wanted to stay out on the streets kissing him a little more. She didn't want to tell him goodnight or goodbye yet. When they reached her door, Tonks latched onto Remus. She didn't want to let him go from fear that if she let him walk away she wouldn't see him again.

She couldn't explain it; it was just an over-whelming feeling of foreboding. Even when she gave him that one last kiss goodnight, she lingered a little bit longer than she ordinarily did before. "I don't want you to go," she whispered.

"I have to Nymphadora," Remus replied in her ear. He stroked the side of her face longingly as he softly kissed her down her throat.

Something just didn't feel right at that moment. Every last moment seemed as if it were going to be the last they would have together. Tonks couldn't help but wonder if Remus felt it to and that was why he was not putting up much of a fuss with her wanting to draw the goodbye out a little bit longer.

Remus put a finger under her chin and made her look up into his eyes. His mouth tried to form words. Three times he stopped himself before a sound could make its way out of his mouth. In the end, he just brushed his lips over hers and whispered, "Goodbye Nymphadora. I will see you tomorrow morning on the underground."

Tonks regretfully unlocked her door and went into her flat. When it became apparent that Remus was waiting for her to shut her door, she did so and slowly turned the locks. She rested her forehead against the door and couldn't help but wonder why she had the sudden doubt that Remus would not be on the underground come morning.