Disclaimer: I do not own any of these characters; they all belong to J.K. Rowling. I'm just borrowing them because there's not enough time between the books. I'll return them when I'm done.
It was summer of 1982. It would be time to go back to Hogwarts for many young witches and wizards soon. Nymphadora Tonks, or just Tonks to anyone who'd known her long enough to have her bite their heads off about her name, was staring out the window of her little apartment in London. She wouldn't have to go back, considering she'd graduated the fall before. She was now well on her way to becoming an Auror, and she was somewhat sad, somewhat glad she wouldn't be going back to Hogwarts this year.
On this hot summer day, she was bored, so she decided, since the day was new and fresh, to go for a walk in the streets. Maybe she would go to the Leaky Cauldron for a pick-me-up after her stroll. She pushed her now-bubblegum pink hair out of her face. Who knew what it would be next!
Tonks was a Metamorphmagus, meaning she could change her appearance at will. Today, though, she felt like going au natural as she threw on her Weird Sisters t-shirt. She was fresh out of Hogwarts and was ready to take on the world of Aurors, and quite proud of the fact. She would start her Auror training in the fall.
Idly she stopped and wondered what happened to the four boys that she'd known of her last years at Hogwarts. She'd only met one of them, but oh the stories! She knew the whereabouts of three.
James Potter was dead, killed seven years before. This everyone knew; it was such a big thing. Everyone knew about little Harry Potter, and how he'd disappeared. Nearly no one knew where he'd gone, only that he'd gone out of all sight and public eye.
Sirius Black, his supposed best friend, was in Azkaban for the murder of another of the four boys, Peter Pettigrew. All they found of Pettigrew was his index finger. Tonks had heard the stories many times, but never believed it. Sirius Black was her cousin, seeing as her mother, Andromeda Black, was Sirius' favorite aunt.
All this she knew either from family or from the newspapers. However, she had no idea the whereabouts of Remus Lupin.
Ah, Remus John Lupin. The smart, quiet one. He always had this dangerous edge about him, though. The thought of the boy made her grin sheepishly. She'd only met Remus once, for about an hour (enough to learn his name, remember what he looked like, and he taught her a spell she now found very useful, especially to her prospective line of work), but she'd gained such a fancy to him, she wished she'd had more time to get to know the young man. He always had a thoughtful and mysterious air about him.
She snapped out of her reverie and scampered down the stairs, into the warm sunlight, and basked in it for a moment. It felt good on her heart-shaped face, and a slight smile came to her lips. She spread her hands out, sunning her palms in the open air. She was lost in a giddy little world as she felt the rest of the world disappear for a moment.
"Nymphadora?" she heard a voice say quite close to her. It snapped her out of her trance. She opened her eyes, ready to tell off the person who had dare say her first name. Her voice caught in her throat, however, when her eyes met with the dark, thoughtful eyes of Remus Lupin. "Nymphadora Tonks! How you've grown."
"R-Remus!" she exclaimed, purely out of shock. She put her hands down and a slight blush colored her cheeks. "What are you doing out and about?"
"I was heading to the Leaky Cauldron," Remus said in a soft voice. "And yourself?"
"Funny! That's where I was headed myself!" Tonks said, not thinking about telling him off about using her first name. The thought hadn't crossed her mind since she looked into his eyes.
"Well, then, would you care to join me?" Lupin asked, increasingly more relaxed than when she'd met him before. She tilted her head slightly at him, but was merely happy to be invited to take some of his time.
"I'd love to!" Tonks quipped, a smile budding widely on her face. Her cheeks were rosy and flushed as she stepped in line beside Remus. The man kept stealing glances at Tonks, and she had noticed, a grin spreading wider on her face.
"You seem quite happy, Nymphadora," Remus remarked, and Tonks just let out a little giggle. "Any…particular reason I may need to be aware of?"
"Content to be spending quality time with someone I like," she said with a shrug. Remus laughed.
Remus Lupin was a somewhat tall man, still somewhat young-looking for being thirty-two. His brown hair had inconspicuous flecks of gray in it, but unless it was gleaming in the sun, it wasn't too noticeable. He walked with a slow stride as if every step counted. Tonks kept glancing over at him, and smiling.
"So, are you still attending Hogwarts?" Remus asked in a conversational tone. Tonks grinned widely.
"Nope! I graduated!" she said proudly, puffing out her chest. Remus looked slightly awed.
"I'm impressed, Nymphadora; what are you doing now?" Remus inquired.
"I'm, uh, training to be an Auror," she said rather sheepishly. Everyone who she had told had laughed in her face, because they thought 'how could a clumsy young girl like that become an Auror?' Tonks was bracing for a laugh, but Remus looked slightly bemused.
"Interesting path; do you still remember the Patronus Charm I taught you?" he asked, thoroughly interested. Tonks grinned, if possible, wider than before. Her face, frankly, was glowing like the full moon.
"Of course! I'd never forget it," she quipped, and Remus smiled again. He still had that thoughtful and reserved gleam in his eye.
"Good, because I'm sure you'll use it," he said with a smile as he glanced up and realized they had reached the shabby outside of an inconspicuous pub. "Ladies first." He smiled, and she grinned.
"Silly," she quipped, but went in the door, holding it open for Remus. They'd reached the inside of the Leaky Cauldron and chose a spot to sit.
Tom came over and asked what they would take to drink. "Just a butterbeer, thanks," Tonks said with a grin.
"And you, sir?" Tom asked Remus.
"I'll have the same," Remus replied. Tom nodded and went behind the bar, pulling out two bottles. He uncapped them and came back, handing them to the pair, opened. "Thank you, Tom."
"You're welcome sir," Tom drawled, and withdrew to the bar once more. Tonks smiled and took a swig of butterbeer; enjoying the pleasant, warming sensation it always gave her, even in summertime when it was sweltering. She closed her eyes and savored the taste on her tongue for a moment.
"Enjoying yourself?" Remus asked. Tonks, again, opened her eyes and blushed.
"Yeah…it's been a while since I've had a butterbeer," she replied, running her hand through her pink hair, somewhat sheepishly. "So, what have you been up to, Remus?"
"I've been…" Remus paused a moment, as if in thought, then continued. "I've been assisting the Ministry in whatever way I can." He nodded.
"Oooh, sounds important!" Tonks replied.
"I suppose," Remus said in return. "It's not all that glamorous; not so much as it sounds." Tonks smiled.
"Whatever you say, Remus," she said.
They talked, mostly about Tonks' last years at Hogwarts and what exactly Remus was doing for the Ministry. He seemed a bit standoffish at this point, answering with vague answers and responding in questions. Tonks just decided to move to another subject, avoiding Remus' life pretty much all together.
The time passed quickly, and they both had gone through half a dozen butterbeers, and Remus glanced around the pub, noticing that very few people were still there.
"Nymphadora, any ideas if it's a full moon tonight?" Remus asked conversationally, though his brow had begun to sweat slightly.
"I believe it is; why?" Tonks replied.
"No reason...one more question. Do you happen to have any idea what time it may be?" Remus inquired. Tonks' lips twitched.
"No idea; ask Tom," she suggested. Remus waved over Tom and the barman came.
"Tom, do you have any idea what the time is?" he inquired.
"Why yes, sir; it's nine-thirty," Tom replied. Remus' eyes got wide as he glanced outside. It was dark.
"Thank you, Tom; sorry to cut this short Nymphadora, but I must be leaving," Remus said in a somewhat nervous voice.
"I'll walk you out," Tonks suggested.
"No no no, I'll be fine, thank you; I had a wonderful time today," Remus said, picking himself off the chair and walking toward the door. "Maybe we'll run into each other again soon," he said over his shoulder.
"I hope so, good night, Remus," Tonks said, but Remus was already out the door. She heard a wolf howl, but thought nothing of it. She wouldn't see Remus for months after that little chance meeting, and poor Tonks was even more in love than ever.