A/N: This chapter was a bit more difficult and a tad bit longer.

Disclaimer: If I was Rowling I wouldn't be bummed about having to spend a truckload of cash on a new retainer.

Happy Reading!

The Move

Remus thought that Tonks' flat was a lot nicer than he had expected. No, it didn't have flowing fountains and house elves everywhere, but still, it was nicer than any hotel he'd ever stayed in, and it was very, well, Tonks. Each of the walls was painted a different color in the sitting room, which was where he stood with his singular bag with his clothes and supply of cleansing mints, among other things. He shifted it in his hand rather uncomfortably; he had been almost hoping that the place wasn't nice so he wouldn't be tempted to stay long-term. If Tonks would let him, of course, but she seemed to be faring pretty well after the horrible breakup.

"So, what do you think?" she chirped.

He slowly turned around, bag in hand, and sought for the right words.

"It's very… charming," he said. "Very you. I especially like the walls."

She chuckled. "Yes, that was fun. Sorry about the mess, by the way." Before he had time to comment she had taken him by the sleeve (very unromantic, thought Remus gratefully) and was leading him into the hallway.

"The kitchen branches off the sitting room here," she pointed to the room as she spoke and Remus had time to glimpse a very messy kitchen with pots and pans piled in the sink. "And the loo is right there. Oh, here's my room, come look!"

She pulled him into her room and he raised his eyebrows. He thought the room was very nice, if a little too spacious. Then again, she had taken up the space quite nicely by throwing an assortment of clothes in every which direction. His eyes swept the room, taking in everything from the hammock hanging in the corner to the green and blue striped underpants laying on the bookshelf. The bed, donned with a red silk comforter, was a king size.

"So," he said conversationally, "do you sleep diagonally?"

"Huh?" she looked confused.

"Well your bed is enormous. I figured you must sleep diagonally to need a bed that size."

"Oh, no, that's for all the men I bring home with me." She shoved him playfully and teased, "Just wait to you see your room."

"Now I'm afraid," he commented, but she had already pulled him off again and across the hall.

All in all, his room was much like hers, only a bit smaller with a queen-size bed instead of a king.

Tonks nudged him in the ribs with her elbow. "Not bah, eh?

He scratched his chin thoughtfully and replied, "Well," here, a hint of sarcasm, "I'd prefer the king-sized bed, but this'll have to do."

She laughed, her shoulders shaking, and said, "We can switch if you want – I know you're only accustomed to the very best, what with having stayed at Headquarters. If you want, I can find a House Elf and chop off it's head to create more décor."

-

In the kitchen Remus decided that he was going to have to fix a few things before he could live comfortably. No, he was not a neat freak, exactly, but he usually did the dishes and didn't exactly like the sound of his trainers sticking to the floor with every step. Tonks didn't seem to mind though; she went straight to the stove and tapped the teapot with her wand.

He felt slightly awkward, as he didn't know what was expected of him, but then he reminded himself that he was staying with Tonks, not Barty Crouch Senior. He crossed the room and sat down on the couch, only to find that something was already sitting on it. He jumped up. Sitting curled up on the couch was a large dog – not Great Dane big, but pretty large nonetheless. It had a sleek body like a greyhound and a forked tail like a krup.

"Oh, hello," Remus murmured. "I didn't know Nymphadora was seeing someone."

He gave a yelp as a wet sponge that smelled of fish connected with the side of his head.

"Shut up Remus."

He chuckled and offered a hand to the dog. "What kind is it?" The dog wagged its forked tail and licked his hand, sending flecks of spittle all over.

"A lot of things, but mostly he's a whippet," Tonks said over her shoulder, pouring tea into two cups with little bears painted on them.

"Mostly, I see."

"Yes. His name's Devo."

Remus laughed at that and was suddenly glad he'd chosen to stay with Tonks – she provided much more comic relief and she really did seem to be over him, and that was always good motivation for him to get over her.

Tonks brought out the tea and they sat together at the scrubbed kitchen table. She eyed him dutifully over the rim of her teacup, trying to guess what the man in ragged clothes was thinking. He seemed perfectly happy and passive.

"So," he said slowly, eyes roaming the room.

"So," she echoed, not looking away from him. He took a deep sip of tea and she took this opportunity to ask, "Have you ever had a girlfriend?"

He gagged on his tea and swallowed his mouthful, scalding his throat raw. "Of course I have!" he gasped.

Tonks smirked.

"A real girlfriend?"

"Yes, Tonks, a real girlfriend," he said.

"How do you know it was a real girlfriend?" she pressed, suppressing a grin at his loss for words. He shrugged and she figured he didn't want to go into it. He wasn't the type to talk about his relationships of the past as it was, never mind go into detail about them... not that she wanted to hear steamy details or anything. "Did you kiss her?"

"Of course," he replied simply, risking a sip of his tea.

"Did you shag?"

Again, he gagged on his tea and burned his throat. "Does it matter?" he gasped.

"Yeah. How else am I supposed to know if you've had a real girlfriend?" Tonks reasoned.

Remus stood and siphoned away his tea with a flick of his wand. He bowed gratefully to Tonks, who clapped a hand over her mouth to stifle a giggle, and made for the door.

"I'm dreadfully tired after the move," he said in his hoarse, polite voice. Tonks bit back the comment that had jumped to her tongue – that he had only brought one bag – and nodded her approval. He continued, "I think I'll just kip in for the night. Good night."

"Bye," Tonks replied. "I probably won't be here in the morning – I have work."

"But of course."

When Remus had disappeared Tonks picked up her silver spoon and examined her reflection in the mirror. She was feeling happier than she had felt in the longest time, so why wouldn't it work? She figured it was worth a try. She screwed up her face and when she opened her eyes she was thrilled to find that her hair was short, pink and spiky.

"That's better," she sighed happily, and began to get ready for bed.

-

Tonks rolled out of bed the next morning, wondering if the previous day had been a dream. Only a peek in the guest bedroom would tell for sure. After dressing and preparing for work (the kitchen showed no sign of a guest, though she was unable to tell due to the vast amount of dishes), she tiptoed down the hall and stopped outside the guest bedroom door, which was slightly ajar. She brought her head close to the door and gently pushed it open, knowing that it would not creak. Her heart nearly stopped.

Remus Lupin was sprawled out, front-down, on the guest bed. He was shirtless, as if seeing Remus in one of her beds wasn't a good enough surprise. The bedclothes were pulled up just past his waist and his head was turned to the side, and Tonks could see several long gashes across his otherwise smooth back, presumably from either his school mischief or from the time he spent underground with the other werewolves. Resisting the sudden urge to go over there and trace the fine scars with her fingertips turned out to be harder then she'd expected and she forcefully reminded herself that Remus was not, well, hers. Not yet. There was still plenty of work to be done.

"Okay Tonks, pull yourself together and get to work," she told herself in an inaudible whisper, turning her back to the door and clenching her fists at chest height. She took a deep breath, chanced one last glance at the sleeping figure, and apparated with a crack.

-

The first thing Tonks thought when she walked into her kitchen was that she had apparated to the wrong place. The floors were waxed and clean so that her feet did not make a sticking sound when she walked. The sink was empty and the dishes were all put into the proper places. The laundry, even the clothes splayed out on the sitting room floor, was done. The countertop was sparkling clean. And, sitting on the settee with a cup of tea and Devo's head on his lap, was Remus. He smiled pleasantly at Tonks, who looked absolutely dumbfounded.

And the first thing he said, after having spent the day cleaning and slaving over a hot wand was, "How was work?"

Yup, she thought. I must be at the wrong place.

"What happened?" she asked in confusion, her eyes taking in every aspect of her impeccable flat.

Remus chuckled and summoned a cup of tea from the spotless kitchen. It floated towards her and she took it without really thinking about it. She crossed the room, wondering if she was in the right place, and sank beside Remus on the settee.

"I did a little tidying up," Remus said with a shrug, as if he cleaned houses all the time.

Tonks turned to him, her face still looking rather shocked. She still felt rather shocked, to tell the truth, and she wondered how she would manage in this new environment.

"Marry me, Remus," she said flatly.

"Now Tonks, remember what we said," Remus said in a falsely reprimanding voice, and they both laughed.

That night, as Tonks crawled into her bed, which had been made and was devoid of clothing, she remembered her plans for the following day. While she hadn't been planning on having Remus at the house with her when she'd excepted, she had a feeling that her family wouldn't mind all that much.

She rolled over into the fetal position and fell asleep shortly after.

A/N: Sorry about the cheesy name for the dog. I always wanted a Whippet named Devo.