Summary: Lupin, Tonks, Black. Housecleaning was never quite like this, but it gives Remus a chance at revenge on Tonks.

NYMPH vs WOLF
Metamorph-maidus

Grimmauld Place

"She's an Auror."

"I know."

"So we call her here and--"

"No."

"We need those rooms habitable for the Weasleys!"

"I know."

"Then quit being such a stubborn git."

"No."

"She might be able to order Kreacher around."

"I know."

"Then why don't you let me--."

"No."

"Come on, Moony! What harm could she do?"

"..."

"Never took you for a coward."

"..."

"We could give her the dirty jobs?"

"Payback?"

"Of course, although I trust you'll keep it within reason. She is my little cousin, after all."

"Padfoot, your little cousin managed to knock me breathless then knock me senseless within 5 seconds of our first encounter."

"You two seemed to be getting along in the garden," offered Sirius as he flashed his eyebrows suggestively.

"Getting along?" Lupin rolled his eyes. "I was restraining her from hunting down an Order member. I'm fairly certain I prevented Dung from being emasculated last night."

"Now there's a boon for the Wizarding world," replied his host sarcastically.

Lupin narrowed his eyes and said firmly, "The point is that she disrupted an important lesson."

Sirius laughed and said with a hint of pride, "She is my cousin." Then he looked at his friend closely. "Come on, Moony, where's your sense of humor?"

Gritting his teeth, Lupin finally admitted, "It got swamped with the bowl of peas she managed to dump on my head before dinner."

To his credit, Sirius managed to keep a straight face and offer his support knowing well of Lupin's lifelong aversion to peas. "But Tonks couldn't have known about your conditioned taste aversion. I'm sure she'd be in the same fix if she'd been force fed pea soup."

"Whoever says it has medicinal properties should have his mind obliviated. I never had such a horrible time recovering from a full moon as a child." A shudder ran through him at the memory.

"I appreciate your forbearance, Moony. So let's call up Tonks so that you can get your revenge, suitably restrained due to the fact she is my little cousin, while she helps us battle the house. Dumbledore put you in charge of the clean-up, so the call has to come from you."

Lupin was about to object, but then he did feel that he and Tonks had some unfinished business. Perhaps getting his revenge would give him closure? Then he could distance himself from her unsettling presence. He put his hand over his heart and gave a stately bow before walking away to summon Tonks via owl post.

As Lupin put quill to parchment, he wondered about his oscillating feelings toward Tonks. There was something at once very foreign and yet familiar about her. She and Sirius shared the same eyes, he thought, and the same tenacious spirit. But Sirius had never overturned a bowl of peas on his head, he thought grimly.

Lupin thought carefully about what to say to entice the young valkyrie back to Grimmauld Place. It was Order business in a manner of speaking and she was of the Black family line. That should overcome any reluctance to see him again, but then he smiled. His valkyrie had revealed a voracious appetite last night. He knew just the thing.

- - - - - - - - - -

Tonks' Flat

Nymphadora Tonks looked around her flat and sighed. She had three days off beginning today as compensation for the overtime she had spent on the Dimsdale assignment. She'd slept in late as a result and now at nine in the morning was hard pressed for something to do that was not directly related to her work at the Ministry.

"Could always tidy up the place," she muttered to herself as she looked around the colorful mess. Housekeeping was not her forte, although she did a good spell to prevent the accumulation of dust.

She had informed the Order that she would be available if needed, but doubted that anything would come of it although it was obvious that Grimmauld Place required more work before being a comfortable Order headquarters. She could feel the swell of Dark Arts in the house last night, but she expected to be the last person on the list that Lupin would call for aide. Then she heard the familiar pecking at her window indicating owl post.

Tonks opened the window with a flick of her wand and the owl tossed the scroll at her before zooming off again. She unrolled the note and read:

Miss Tonks,

The situation is dire and our need is urgent.
Bring a bucket for debris.
You know the address.

RJL

PS. M made sure we had leftovers
PPS. That includes treacle tarts.

"Molly Weasley's leftovers, eh? Okay, Professor, I'll bite, even if this is a ruse to get payback," smiled Tonks.

Sirius had described a few of the escapades he and his mates had executed at Hogwarts. Lupin might not be a lecherous fiend, but he was a Marauder, as the fellows were known. Even Moody had cautioned her against Lupin's streak of mischief.

"I'll just be constantly vigilant," she told her herself. "Now, what to wear for such drudgery?"

She tied a bright yellow bandana around her neck in case she needed it later to cover her pink hair, then thought about protecting her eyes. "Right, might need goggles."

She snapped her fingers as she activated her accio spell. Rubber goggles, in a fluorescent pink, were immediately in hand, so she tucked them through a belt loop on her jeans.

She frowned as she tried to remember where she had put her cleaning supplies, but shrugged and instead transformed a coffee mug into a metal bucket. Then she tucked her wand into the tabs woven on the thigh of her jeans that served as a holster.

"Right, Professor R. J. Lupin, I'm ready for you."

- - - - - - -

Grimmauld Place

Tonks arrived at Grimmauld Place and knocked loudly on the door. That was her first mistake.

"Filthy half-blood shape-shifter..."

Lupin, who was dressed in jeans and a rather loose fitting, long-sleeved sHenley, opened the door as the harsh tirade filled the hallway.

Tonks winced at the screeching and hoped this was Lupin's idea of payback, but he merely gestured for her to wait, then loped off to help Sirius cast a silencing spell at a portrait. She cautiously moved forward as the men were talking.

"I thought the silencing spell would last," grumbled Sirius. He was going to go insane if that portrait continued to rant.

"I told you it was likely to be a limited fix," reminded Lupin. "We were lucky the spells lasted as long as they did last night."

Tonks cleared her throat to get their attention, then fell into her Auror mode of interrogation. "This portrait is repelling silencing charms?"

"Mummy Dearest always was a stubborn old witch," said Sirius with mock fondness.

"The duration of the spell has diminished every time we cast it," added Lupin.

"Then it's something inherent to the creation of the portrait, not the place on the wall?" asked Tonks as she approached the picture of the haggard woman.

"Dunno, we can't move the old b--bag," admitted Sirius glumly.

"So you can't move it; you can't silence it much longer. What about curtains?" Tonks turned to the men, who were looking at her as if she had odd colored hair. Which she didn't because once again she was wearing it pink.

"Curtains? Tonks, we didn't bring you here to redecorate." replied Sirius.

"But if you cast a permanent muffling spell on the some curtains--"

"That could work." Lupin was already nodding his head in agreement. "Muffling the curtains would decrease the noise to set her off and reduce the noise we hear if she does begin ranting."

Tonks merely smiled knowingly at the men as she swung the bucket loosely in her hand. Then she turned to walk away, but stumbled on a troll foot umbrella stand that seemed to appear out of nowhere. The bucket flew out of her hand and as she landed on her rear, she could hear it hitting something.

Clang!

Tonks refused to open her eyes for a moment. She could hear Kreacher cackling as Sirius took after the house elf. "How dare you bring that thing out! Tonks is a Black..."

So where was her bucket?

"How did you know my size?"

The muffled voice had a metallic tone to it, so when she bravely opened her eyes, she wasn't surprised to find Lupin lifting the bucket off of his head.

"Uh, good guess?" she ventured as she quickly sprang to her feet before Lupin could dangle her like some child. An apology wouldn't make any difference now, she was certain, nor would a pun about him looking pale. Still, she did notice that Lupin looked sort of attractive in a mussed up way. Wait. Had she knocked her head after all?

Lupin returned her bucket with one hand while he raked his hair off of his forehead with the other. She was at it again, disrupting his life by her mere presence, standing there looking young and innocent in the process. "Miss Tonks--"

"Ahem." Tonks cleared her throat as a subtle reminder to call her Tonks.

"Nymphadora," began Lupin again and felt some satisfaction when he saw her cringe at the sound of her first name, "you'll need an infinity charm on the bucket. We've got a lot of cleaning up to do."

"I'm not very handy with householdy spells," she admitted as she quickly tapped the rim of the bucket.

"But you are an Auror and adept at Defense Against the Dark Arts. The problem here is not just the bundimun infestation," said Lupin referring to the green fungus with eyes. "I'm sure you noticed this house is full of, shall we say, less than benign magic, if not actual Dark Artifacts."

"Right, so what's on the agenda?"

At this point Sirius rejoined them with a scowling house elf in his wake. "First we test your ability to order Kreacher around. That way we can break up into teams to tackle the rooms we need to clean."

"Charming fellow," said Tonks as she bent over to get a closer look at the house elf. Kreacher responded by crossing his arms over his chest and wrinkling his nose at her. Tonks sprang back and unconsciously took a step closer to Lupin. "What do I do?"

"Give him a simple command, like to come to your side," suggested Sirius.

"Kreacher, come here to stand to my left," ordered Tonks with her voice of authority she used during arrests.

Kreacher responded immediately by looking constipated, but alas, there was no movement of his limbs to obey her.

"Kreacher, come here now," repeated Tonks emphatically.

They could see a toe twitching on the house elf, but then he began muttering. "No, no, Kreacher will not listen to the git of a blood traitor. The filthy shape-shifting freak has no call on the noble bloodline of the Blacks."

"That's enough," said Sirius with a heavy sigh. "It looks like I'll have to direct Kreacher after all."

"It will just be a slight adjustment to our plans then," assured Lupin. He selected his next words carefully just to provoke Tonks. "Sirius, you can use Kreacher to tackle more of the rooms while your little cousin helps me clear out the larger infestations."

Tonks put her hand on her hips to interject a complaint, but Lupin merely looked to her, then deliberately to the bucket dangling in her hand. She huffed, "Fine, Professor, I'll be happy to give you a hand."

Or a dope slap for calling me the little cousin, she thought to herself, but she tried to make her face look as innocent as possible.

At his point Lupin used his wand to activate a diagram of the houseplan. The glowing blue lines demarcated the different rooms that were in turn filled with a translucent color code.

"The rooms in purple are not a priority for decontamination, so have been sealed. The green have been decontaminated. The rooms in yellow are safe with sufficient precautions. The seven rooms in red are the bedrooms that need to be prepared for the Weasleys and other guests we're expecting to house over the summer. It should take us about three days to complete, which will allow us to meet the deadline for the Weasley invasion in five. When a room is safely green--or at least a cautious yellow, the houseplans will reflect this."

"Right then," said Sirius "but first, I'm muffling Mummy Dearest. Come on, Kreacher, go find some heavy curtains."

As the grumbling house elf left with Sirius, Tonks could not help but feel relieved that Kreacher had not obeyed her summons. She turned to Lupin. "I'm ready for the fun to begin."

"Good," he said in reply. It was that faint smirk around his lips that made Tonks worry.

- - - - - - - - -

"Here's our first room," said Lupin as his hand reached for the doorknob. Then he stopped, turned to Tonks and said, "You might want to wait out here, wand at the ready."

Tonks was silent, but set down the bucket and pulled out her wand. She was feeling the surge of adrenaline that happened on her missions.

Lupin was about to turn the doorknob when he stopped again."If I tell you to run, you should obey me immediately."

Tonks nodded grimly, feeling her heart racing. She was an Auror; she should be the one on the line, not a civilian like Lupin.

Lupin turned the knob and Tonks heard the click as the latch was released, but instead of opening the door, the Professor stopped and turned to her one last time.

"One last warning about this door--"

"Bloody hell, Lupin, budge over and let me do my job!"

Tonks shoved past him toward the door, aiming her body at it at full force--and fell with unladylike grace onto the floor of the room. She managed to catch herself with her hands so that she wound up on all fours, but she turned to glare at Lupin over her shoulder.

"Sorry." Lupin's calm voice was calculated to be irritating "I was also going to tell you that the door opens on its own once you twist the door knob."

He set her bucket inside the threshold, but he cleared his throat when he realized he was staring at her bum and not her face as he spoke. Honestly, was he turning into an old lecher?

Tonks, thinking she was in an unflattering position, quickly gained her feet only to find Lupin pointing his wand at her. She hadn't expected him to be so direct about getting his revenge.

"Don't move," said Lupin in a very quiet voice.

The air gained a sulfurous odor. Tonks blinked as she looked into his eyes and saw the fire demon reflected there. She was beginning to feel the heat of its flame as it loomed behind her. She knew that it would embrace her if she made any large movements, so she slowly began moving her wand to point behind her. She murmured, "I can help you if you don't blink."

Lupin understood that she was going to use the reflection from his eyes to gauge where to cast her spell. He gave the slightest nod, and watched while she tipped her wand to point behind her while she counted off with the fingers of her free hand.

One. Two. Three. Tonks hoped that Lupin knew enough to cast the right spell. It was best to make the demon be consumed by his own fire. She thought, "Cremo vulcanus."

The demon flared for a moment, then diminished into ash, leaving the two combatants coughing.

"You didn't think to mention there was fire demon in here?" asked Tonks a bit peevishly.

Lupin just shook his head and said, "We had it contained until a few moments ago. I was expecting--duck!"

"A duck?" Tonks asked in confusion as she heard Lupin slam the door shut.

She was a bit too late in obeying his directive. A disc of floating gelatin skimmed across the top of her head and left a residue on her hair as she dodged. "Yuck! Gloplins."

"This is what I was expecting by the way." Lupin began aiming at the floating gloop as he explained. "We managed to contain the fire demon, but then the gloplins came out of their dormant stage, so we couldn't finish him off."

"What a wonderful way to spend my day off," muttered Tonks as she quickly tucked her bandana over her hair before joining the fray.

Gloplins looked like translucent green jellyfish filling the air. The silly appearance masked their deadlier qualities: asphyxiation. They would attach to the face and flow down the windpipe. The room seemed to suddenly fill with them; thus, it took a couple of hours before there was nothing but the goo on the floor.

"Perfect, we're surrounded by green muck," groaned Tonks in dismay. She flicked her wand to open the door for some air now that the immediate danger was over.

"Not to worry," Lupin replied. A quick flick of his wand sent the remains of the gloplins into Tonks' bucket with a final squelch.

"Slimy things! I can still feel them--Augh!" Tonks had walked to a bureau that had a mirror above it and looked at her hair peeking out from her bandana. She ripped it off and scrunched her face, but to no avail. Her hair color was now green.

"Problem?" asked Lupin mildly. This had worked out better than he could have hoped. He had expected to have to nudge one of the gloplins her way just enough to touch her hair.

"My hair is Slytherin green!" Tonks was raking her hands through her hair. "It's all green and, and spiky!"

"It was spiky before; it just looks like an evergreen now," commented Lupin. "Don't fret, it's a side effect of direct contact with a gloplin. It will fade through the day and you'll have complete control over the color by, er, tomorrow morning. It will just resemble pea soup by tonight."

Tonks narrowed her eyes. "Retribution to fit the crime, Professor?"

"I did warn you," said Lupin as he put his hands palm out. He told himself not to smirk one iota.

"Tell me. Does your middle initial stand for Juvenile?" asked Tonks sweetly.

"No, it's simply John," replied Lupin with exaggerated courtesy.

"Well, Remus John--look out!" Tonks called as she pointed behind him.

Lupin was slow to respond since he suspected this was simply a ploy on her part to make him look foolish. The lethifold swooped just above Lupin, appearing like a dark cloak gracefully falling on the floor. Muggles mistook it for a cloak floating on the wind before it wrapped around them and smothered them. Lupin managed to dodge it just as Tonks called forth her Patronus, but found that he didn't need to call his own.

The silvery butterfly and the dark cloak did a macabre, whirling dance for a moment, but soon the shining wings of the Patronus were all that were left. The butterfly might seem fragile, but the protection it offered was very strong.

"Good work. The fire demon was probably escaping being suffocated by the lethifold," said Lupin. Then he fingered his chin and added, "Only three cases like that have been documented."

"Well, Professor, you can now add the fourth," said Tonks as she wiped her brow and tied her bandana back around her head. She took a few deep, calming breaths, but then she caught sight of the emerging form of a massive, black hound in the hallway beyond the open door of the room.

Tonks felt the familiar panic rising in her chest. She had been bitten very badly as a child. The recent battles in the room had set her nerves just a bit on edge, so it was only understandable that a grown woman, an Auror, no less, suddenly scrambled up the nearest object she could find: Professor R. J. Lupin.

"Eeei!"

Lupin felt as if he were being attacked by a banshee since Tonks was screaming in his ear after she straddled his back. He could feel the panic in her heart because her chest was currently pressed against him. In fact, he automatically wrapped his arms around her legs seeing as how the rest of her seemed to have a precarious grip on him.

"What the?" Lupin managed to get out before he saw the problem.

The bearlike dog suddenly stopped and bared his teeth. While Lupin recognized the smile, all Tonks saw were the gleaming canines.

"Eeieieiei!"

Lupin swore he would be deaf in both ears now that Tonks' had shifted to scream at the other side of his head.

The dog suddenly sat on his haunches and cocked his head with his tongue lolling off to one side as if amused.

"Snuffles, show Tonks who you are before I'm permanently deaf and crippled."

Tonks watched in wonder as the black dog transformed into Sirius Black. She was peering around Lupin's head to ascertain that it was her cousin now standing in the hallway.

"Sirius Black! Why didn't you--" began Tonks with a yell. Then she noticed her perch wincing, so ended with a harsh whisper, "-- tell me you were an Animagus!"

"Didn't I?" asked Siruis with a look toward Lupin for confirmation, who returned a shrug. "Must have slipped my mind. Oh, well, sorry, but I have to chase down those erklings. Don't want the young ones to end up as their supper, do we?"

He quickly changed back into Snuffles and was soon out of sight, although now he was howling as he gave chase.

In the meantime Lupin could feel Tonks collapsing against him as her cheek fell against the nape of his neck. He stood silently for a moment, but then cleared his throat before saying, "You can come down now."

Tonks jerked her head up suddenly. Lupin had felt so warm and solid that she was a bit reluctant to leave. However, it was yet another childish position that he had found her in. "Sorry."

Lupin released his hold on her legs to allow her to slide off of his back. Given her reaction to Snuffles, he could just imagine how terrified the girl would be if she ever saw him in his werewolf form. So his voice held nothing but compassion when he asked, "Bad incident with a dog?"

"I was about seven when the Rotweiler attacked me. Never saw Mum so upset; she killed the dog before she even realized she could cast a killing curse." Tonks took a deep breath and added, "It practically ripped my left ear off. I would have had scars on my face if my abilities as a Metamorphmagus hadn't begun to emerge beyond changing my hair color. It helped the wounds heal. I can barely see them now."

Lupin merely nodded and Tonks knew that with the scars he carried on his face, he probably understood better than most how such an incident could leave a life long effect.

"Well," said Lupin as he released a long breath, "how about some lunch before Snuffles raids the kitchen? I've known Sirius to work up quite an appetite in his canine form."

"I've got dibs on Molly's treacle tarts!" exclaimed Tonks as her eyes resumed their familiar gleam before she turned to race to the kitchen.

Lupin followed at a more leisurely pace after closing the door behind him. He was the only one who knew where the treacle tarts were hidden.

- - - - - - - - - -

The meal was a pleasant respite with the men relating the story of exactly how Sirius had escaped Azkaban and the events during Harry's third year at Hogwarts. Lupin also insisted that Sirius transform into Snuffles at intervals to help Tonks get accustomed to his Animagus form. After their spot of lunch and relaxed conversation with Sirius, they resumed their attack of the room.

"What do we battle next?" asked Tonks as they stood outside the door.

Lupin conjured two spray bottles and gave one to Tonks. "Doxies. It should be a small nest in the window. Nothing major. Shield charm up? Let's go."

Tonks didn't try to force the door open this time, but managed to kick the bucket she had left inside. It rolled merrily until it stopped abruptly when it hit the legs of the bed.

A flurry of dark flying shapes suddenly rose from the bed and swarmed around them in response. Lupin shut the door quickly and took aim. Disgruntled doxies were as fun to deal with as their human counterpart.

"This is your idea of a small nest?" asked Tonks in exasperation. Really, Lupin was lousy at reconnaissance.

"I didn't realize they'd claimed territory from the curtains to the bed covers," responded Lupin. "Their eggs must have hatched after we contained the fire demon and eliminated the globlins."

"Typical, solve one problem only to create another," said Tonks. Then she realized they could use their height differential to a strategic advantage. "Keep your spray pattern above them and I'll get them from below."

Lupin nodded, but even with this effective strategy, it was three hours before they saw the last doxy drop. They also managed to disable a variety of items charmed with dark magic that the doxies had hidden in the curtains and bed covers.

"That's it, I think we've got them," said Lupin as he tossed the last black, hairy body into the bucket.

Tonks' only response was to collapse on the floor and stretch. "Oh, that feels good."

She looked so comfortable that Lupin also lay back on the floor to catch his breath, although he was careful to avoid invading Tonks' personal space. He knew the doxies were only one of the problems remaining in the room. In fact as he looked up, he could identify their next task.

"Open your eyes, Tonks, and look up. What do you see?"

"Eyes. Hundreds and hundreds of eyes," groaned Tonks. "Don't tell me, Remus. Bundimun?"

"We'll need to clear them out, but that should finish the room. "

"All right--Ouch!" Tonks suddenly sprang up and began shaking herself as her hands swiped at her bottom.

Lupin sat up and told himself not to laugh. Seriously. The sight of the shimmying young Auror with a doxy biting her bum was NOT amusing. "Hold still so I can spray the doxy."

Tonks quit shaking and swiping, but she muttered, "It hurts. Pull the thing off!"

A quick spray took care of the doxy, but then Lupin realized he was faced with a dilemma. "Er, I'll have to pry the doxy off."

Tonks knew she was turning pink. Worse, it probably clashed horribly with her evergreen hair. "It's going to hurt, isn't it?"

"I'll be gentle," assured Lupin, but tugged the doxy off without warning. It wasn't revenge for yesterday's slap, he told himself, it was simply best to move quickly when dealing with doxy bites.

"Ow," grumbled Tonks. The sting was horrible, but she didn't want to cry in front of this man.

"Ahem, now we have to, uh, administer the bite remedy and, um, seal the puncture," said Lupin, but now it was his turn to look a bit uncomfortable. "Best that you lie on the bed and, er, expose your, uh, the bite."

Tonks stood very still for a moment. Lupin wondered if she had been listening, then felt compelled to offer, "I'll go get Sirius if you prefer."

"No, I'd rather moon you than my cousin," mumbled Tonks. She fell on the bed on her stomach and gritted her teeth as she pulled down her jeans over her rump.

Lupin stared for just a moment before taking the small potion bottle he was carrying in his pocket for just this type of emergency. He took a deep breath and was pleased that he could move deftly to apply the remedy with the medicine dropper, but there was one last step.

"I'll need to seal the wound," he explained to the silent Tonks. That would require direct physical contact. "Unless you'd rather leave it alone."

"I hope you're appreciating the irony of this?" murmured Tonks. Yesterday she was slapping him for allegedly goosing her and today she needed his touch. The universe had a perverse sense of humor.

"Believe me, it's the only thing I can appreciate," agreed Lupin.

Tonks stiffened, thinking that he was casting aspersions on her feminine attributes. She gritted her teeth and urged, "Just get this over with."

Lupin willed himself to completely ignore the expanse of smooth, nicely toned skin in his view. It was awkward enough that he would have to cup her with his palm to cast the spell. Perhaps if he did it quickly? No, that would be like a slap on the rump and he knew where that would get him.

Tonks could hear Lupin clearing his throat before she felt his palm gently grazing her skin. She could feel the warm hand even through the sting of the bite he was healing. For his part, Lupin focused on the healing spell, not the fact that he'd never, ever touched a woman's padded bits. Nicely padded, in fact. Damn, his touch was making her squirm.

"That should do it," said Lupin after clearing his throat and moving away from Tonks quickly. "I just need to wash up."

Lupin walked to the door in the corner that opened into the connecting bathroom. He washed his hands and then splashed cold water on his face. He was convinced that the universe had a perverse sense of humor and he was destined to be the butt of its jokes.

- - - - - - - - - -

Five hours later, Lupin and Tonks were still dealing with the bundimun infestation. A short dinner break had been their only interruption. They were wearing goggles to protect their eyes from the fallout of their latest operation, his with dark blue frames while she had donned her pink ones.

"You don't have to stay. I can finish it by myself," said Lupin

"I'll stay," declared Tonks as she put more effort into her spells.

"Stubborn," murmured Lupin. He wasn't sure if he was referring to Tonks or the bundimun. She had been acting peevishly towards him ever since the doxy bite. And now her hair had begun to turn the color of pea soup. He was grateful that the bandana covered most of it.

Tonks ignored his comment, but stepped back with her hands on her hips. She pulled her goggles down around her neck and said, "You know, I swear there's just as many now as when we started. It's as if they're multiplying."

Lupin turned to her and pulled down his goggles as well. "Of course! Their reproductive cycle, the heat earlier from the fire demon probably set it off."

"Is there any way to stop it?" asked Tonks as she sat down on the floor and wrapped her arms around her knees. Her arms were tired, her hair was puky green, and she was still disgruntled about the doxy bite incident. The only good thing was that her bum wasn't sore.

"Freezing charm might do it," said Lupin as he leaned against the wall.

"Oh, sit down, would you? I hate the way you loom over me," grumbled Tonks. "Did you have to be so bloody tall?"

Lupin was not one to lose his cool over insults, but the long day was taxing him. Furthermore, her comments made him feel like the awkward, gangly youth he had been, especially around girls. He realized his head was tapping the wall lightly in his irritation. "If you don't like me looming over you, why don't you leave?"

"Because I stay with a job until it's done regardless of whom I am partnered with," she responded tersely.

"I follow the same policy." Lupin crossed his arms to prevent himself from hexing her straight out the door.

"Imagine that? We have something in common."

"Nasty, shape-shifting freaks," mumbled Kreacher as he walked by the door of the room. "Sullying this Noble House of Black with their presence..."

The reluctant partners suddenly looked at each other. They realized the house elf was referring to both of them: shape-shifters. It was something else they held in common, but it also meant that each knew what it was like to be an outcast.

Tonks bit her lip in regret. "Look, how about we set a freezing charm on the ceiling tonight? The bundimun will probably fall off easily tomorrow morning."

Lupin nodded his agreement. He pushed off the wall and then he saw Tonks lift a hand toward him in a silent request for help up. He had convinced himself that she had found his touch so repulsive earlier that she was angry. Her gesture clearly indicated this might not be the case.

His hesitation made Tonks frown and she almost withdrew her hand. Obviously he thought she lacked the feminine qualities to evoke common courtesy. Fine, she didn't need his help anyway.

But before she could pull back, she felt him take her firmly in hand and pull her to her feet.

"Ready?" he asked as he let her hand fall away once she was standing.

"I'll take the far side," offered Tonks with a nod of her head.

They completed the freezing charm in moments, but then Tonks grinned and added some writing in fluorescent pink over the sheen of glistening ice that now covered the ceiling. She wrote with flourish.

"Tonks Territory." She glanced at Lupin with a bright challenge in her eyes.

"Hmph," grunted Lupin before he labeled his side with neatly measured, luminescent blue letters. "Lupin Land."

"But it's my window," said Tonks with a note of triumph.

"But it's my lavatory," pointed out Lupin with satisfaction.

"But my door leads into the room," observed Tonks with a smirk.

Lupin actually laughed at her resourcefulness, but had to point out, "Fine, I'll allow access to the loo in exchange for access to the room, but you're not getting into my bed."

Lupin had made the remark because the bed fell into Lupin Land, but the bright flush on Tonks face made the Professor realize the innuendo--or was it an insult? She was confusing the hell out of him again.

"Well, Professor, good night then. I leave you to your bed," said Tonks "I'm sure it's a lonely one."

She had cast the last taunt over her shoulder as she had rushed out the door, but her words found their mark.

- - - - - - - - - - -

She was out the front door before Lupin could make sense of what had just happened. And although her remark about the lonely bed had cut, he couldn't deny its accuracy. It was obvious Tonks couldn't believe any woman would be attracted to him. He leaned back against the wall and sighed. He couldn't deny the accuracy of that, either.

"Touché, Tonks," said Lupin as he quietly tapped his head against the wall.

Wait. How could he have insulted her with a sexual innuendo that negated the sexual intent? It wasn't as if she wanted to--No. Don't go there. But as usual, his imagination refused to comply. He wished he could erase the memory of her skin and the feel of her warm body under his hand.

He shoved himself away from the wall. "Right, that's the closest you'll ever get to a girl, Lupin. You should appreciate your luck."

But the man wasn't smiling as he walked away.

- - - - - - - - - - -

Tonks' Flat

Tonks took a long, soaking bath and dressed in her favorite pajamas, the ones covered with racing broomsticks. She looked in the mirror and flicked at the collar. So what if she wasn't the epitome of femininity? She just liked to be comfortable.

She approached her bed and threw herself at it with a groan. "Lonely bed. Right, you're one to talk, dearie"

She hugged her pillow, then slammed it on her face. Why couldn't she just keep her mouth shut around Lupin? And trying to apologize would only make it worse. Tonks mumbled to herself, "Wotcher, Remus! Gee, sorry about inferring that you're a loser who can't get a date. Takes one to know one, right, mate?"

"Yeah, right," she said as she tucked the pillow back under her head. And so what if that lycanthrope of dubious lecherous intent didn't find her attractive? That's the way she wanted it. Absolutely. Even if he was warm and comfortable and solid--

"No, no, no! He's just too bloody tall!" She smothered her face with a pillow again, but failed to drown out her thoughts. Lupin had very beautiful hands...

End of Chapter

Minor edtis.

Author Notes:I hope you don't find Tonks too cruel. It's all defensive; she's just used to dealing with people who have a much larger ego than Lupin. And I hope you didn't think Lupin was bullying Tonks. I just want to highlight his sense of mischief. The chapter was edited to embellish Tonks' meeting Sirius, her mother's favorite cousin, but these are minor.

Thanks to Harry Potter Lexicon for ideas about the erklings, lethifold, bundimun and doxies (although we saw them in Book 5). The other critters and spells were not canon.

In response to questions. This is a different take on the characters, so the Patronus for each had to change. I based that on a more fragile image, although others have used a butterfly for Tonks. It wasn't metamorphosis that made it fit. It was the fragility. Likewise, the fragile firefly, which I know are called glow worms in England. Further, the female glows, the male flies, but Lupin's firefly arose from a childhood incident that I will describe in a subsequent story.

Yes, I intend to give you a glimpse at Lupin/Tonks throughout Book 5 again. A lot of the chapters will provide details of their early days. The previous couple was a lot stronger because I thought all we'd ever get was signs of them showing up together, not the all out romantic turmoil we got from Book 6. Having said that, my beta and I worked out a plotline that would throw even a strong couple into kilter, but you'll have to wait a while for that. But, yes, I think I'll be able to do some stories to fill in gaps for Book 6.

Sirius still doesn't realize how adamant Dumbledore is about his not leaving number twelve. It's early yet, so unfortunately as time progresses, his brighter spirits will diminish. But, I like to write for the interludes when he's a bit perkier. I probably won't write independent stories about Sirius and Emmeline, but I found it interesting that by Book 6, both of the characters have been lost. They'll be showing up in the background in this one.

Don't know how much I'll use Moody. I might not tackle him much until after I see him on the big screen. At this time I don't intend to follow through with the venificus primo background on Lupin, but I have another story that should fit. Be patient; it'll come.

As usual, THANK YOU for reading and the wonderful welcome to the story. Your comments leave me feeling like I've just met up with old friends and gained some new ones along the way. I hope the characters can still make you smile, although I am aiming to tug at your hearts as well.