The car 'landed' within a few hours right outside London, and then George had to help his father drive the car into the city and to Grimmauld Place. By the time the car was safely parked outside, it was raining in sheets. Tonks put Andromeda's hood over her head and used some of the excess fabric to shelter little Teddy from the cold rain (it may have been late spring, but this certainly wasn't a late spring shower). Andromeda allowed herself to become wet. Arthur took Ginny by the hand and Apparated to the front stoop of Number 12 (since Moody's death, it was the only way to get in). George followed. Andromeda looked at Tonks.
"It wouldn't do to stand out here and get sick," she said, motioning for Tonks to go first. Tonks looked over her shoulder and quickly Apparated to the stoop, and then she opened the door and went inside the musky old house.
She waited for the voice to ask "Severus Snape?" as was the trap set by Moody, but it did not come. Arthur must have de-activated the charm. Tonks moved forward, keeping her eyes on her baby. She heard a crack from behind her, and Andromeda materialized. She was soaked to the bone. Tonks made no move to try and dry her off.
Suddenly, a familiar shrill voice rang out. Tonks winced. She hadn't even had the chance to trip over the umbrella stand yet.
"ANDROMEDA TONKS!! HOW DARE YOU BRING THOSE MUTANT HALF-BLOOD FREAKS INTO MY HOUSE?! YOU BLOOD TRAITOR!! TAINTING THE HOUSE OF MY FATHERS, YOU BI—"
"Oh, go to hell, Aunt Walburga," Andromeda moaned.
"How DARE you speak to me that way?! BLOOD TRAITORS!! REFUSE! GARBAGE-COATED FREAKS!!"
Andromeda quickly drew the curtain to calm the portrait of Walburga Black down, and it took a moment, but it worked. "She needs to come up with new material," she muttered to herself.
The first three days at Grimmauld Place were utterly silent. None of the Weasleys spoke, and neither did the Tonks women. Arthur took Ginny up to Hogwarts several times to see Harry and join in some of the happier festivities, which were still occuring, but George, who still felt alone without his twin brother, stayed with the Tonks women at Grimmauld Place for the entire time. Tonks refused to leave her bed for the first two days, but on the third day after arriving, she ended up getting up and wandering into the kitchen downstairs.
The room held so many memories for Tonks. Although the room was dusty from lack of use, there were still traces of the last Order meeting scattered about. Hard to believe how long ago it was…there was an old issue of the Daily Prophet with some headline about Dumbledore's death dated in early July of last year. Remus was the one who'd last touched it before the meeting was adjourned. A few dirty plates, the leftover food on them turning grey and fuzzy, still sat at the end of the table, where Fred and George usually sat (they were never good about picking up). A book Hermione had been reading at the dinner table still lay open face-down on the table. It was actually gift for her seventeenth birthday from Arthur and Molly. Hermione never finished it.
Tonks looked over on the other end of the room, where a small fireplace and mantel sat. The mantel, which used to have pictures of all the 'good' Black family members sitting on it, were replaced immediately by Molly with pictures relevant to the Order of the Phoenix in some way. The first photo was a picture of the original Order. Remus was in the picture, of course, along with Sirius and many others. Tonks was not, as she was still too young to be an original member. The second one had the new Order. This was taken just after Tonks was inducted, and she stood right next to her beaming cousin Sirius. The difference between Sirius in both photographs was amazing. Sirius had aged so much in the decade-and-more between the photos. Remus looked different too. For one thing, the second photo had his hair shorter, and he was clearly thinner and scarred, and looked more weary. In the photo with her, Tonks looked young and full of life.
The third photo was Molly and Arthur's wedding picture. Again, Tonks was absent.
The fourth photo had the three Order members who doubled as Aurors: Kingsley Shacklebolt, Mad-Eye Moody, and Tonks, sitting by the fountain at the Ministry of Magic. A casual photo, Tonks could clearly remember the day this was taken. She thought now of Moody, who'd died this past year as well. She had been Moody's protégé, and very close to him.
The fifth photo was of James and Lily Potter, Sirius, Remus, and Peter Pettigrew (the jackass), all Order members, sitting at a fountain in Muggle territory and smiling, all five of them. Lily's stomach was slightly swollen…was she pregnant with Harry then, perhaps?
The sixth photo was Sirius, newly escaped from prison, Remus, and Arthur Weasley. Again, Sirius looked older and worn down.
The last photo (Molly must have put it up more recently) was of Tonks and Remus' wedding. Tonks' maid of honor was Hestia Jones, and she stood to Tonks' left, and Kingsley had been Remus' best man, and he stood on Remus' right. Moody had acted as Justice of the Peace and married them. Remus smiled, and Tonks looked about as happy as a clam.
Tonks had to turn away from this photo and retreat to the other side of the room. Andromeda had just come in, and Tonks quickly shoved her son into her mother's arm so she could fall into the corner and have another outburst. She sank against the wall and buried her face in her lap. Andromeda didn't lean down to comfort her, but instead took Teddy upstairs, where Arthur said he would set up a crib for the baby. Tonks just sat in the corner and cried.
After a moment, she felt a soft hand on her shoulder. Tonks looked up through her tear-drowned eyes to see George there, comforting her. He didn't say a word, but instead took Tonks in his arm and tightly hugged her. Tonks realized he needed this just as much as she did, and she didn't let go of him. She soon felt another set of arms embrace her. These arms were of Ginny.
The three of them sat on the floor in that small corner, hugging and crying, for two full hours, listening to the relentless rain pound against the window outside. Not one word was spoken the entire time.
"Nymphadora? George? Ginny?"
Andromeda's voice was what woke the threesome, who had literally cried themselves to sleep right in that corner of the kitchen. Ginny's head was in Tonks' lap, Tonks was sitting up against the wall, and George was sprawled out at Tonks' feet, curled up in a loose version of a fetal position. Tonks looked out the window. The rain was relentless, but as it was coming on nightfall, it was getting harder to see.
The three woke up and immediately scrambled to their feet. Andromeda turned to the two redheads.
"Your father wants to see you upstairs," she instructed. The siblings left the room. She then turned to her daughter. "Follow me."
Tonks obeyed as Andromeda guided her down the corridor…and began taking her through some unfamiliar twists and turns.
"Mum, where's Teddy?"
"Arthur put him to sleep, he's still napping," answered Andromeda.
"Where are we going?"
Andromeda stopped in a large, musky-smelling bedroom. "This was—"
"—Aunt Walburga's room," Tonks finished, looking around. "Why are we here? No one at Order meetings ever came in here."
"You'll see," Andromeda, said, almost with a mischievous twinkle in her eye. She went to the armoire door and opened it. She shoved aside some old-fashioned robes and revealed a small, narrow stairwell. Tonks gasped.
"Why….where does that…what does that…how come…" was all she could utter. Andromeda seemed to know what she was trying to ask.
"No one in the Order knew about this place…well, save for one," Andromeda answered. "Lumos," she whispered, taking out her oak wood wand. The wand lit up, and Tonks began following Andromeda down the staircase.
"Dumbledore?" asked Tonks.
"Of course not. This is the Black Family Home, so—"
"—Sirius knew about this place," Tonks replied. Andromeda nodded. "What about Remus? Or Molly?"
"No Order member but Sirius knew about this place, you understand?"
"Why? Why are you taking me down here?"
"We need to have a chat with someone."
Tonks didn't ask any more questions. Her voice was so strained from her mass sobs and cries, she didn't want to screw it up even more.
Upon reaching the bottom of the staircase, Andromeda led her daughter into a small room with portraits hanging on all four walls. All of them were of Blacks. Deceased Blacks. Even the disowned Blacks had their pictures on this wall. Tonks shuddered as one particular picture caught her eye.
Bellatrix was sleeping in her portrait. Wait…how could she have a picture down here after only one day of being dead?
"How…how come Bellatrix is…it's only been…?"
"It's a family secret," Andromeda answered. "It's a mystery. But every time a blood Black dies, their portrait is immediately hung here. The door will be locked until it is up. Even the disowned Blacks are here, because blood is even thicker than Aunt Walburga's head. Nymphadora, welcome to the Hall of Blacks."
Tonks gaped at the walls of her deceased ancestors. Many looked at her strangely, a few smiled pleasantly at her and nodded there heads, and a few were snoozing away as if no one was there. It occurred to her that she was half Black herself. It made a cold shudder fall down her spine. It was odd. Tonks never considered herself to be a Black. Yet, disowned or not, these men and women were her ancestors, and some of those portraits looked like they'd been there for centuries.
Andromeda continued. "When I die, my portrait will hang here. Even though you're only half Black, your portrait will hang here too, because you still have the blood in your veins. Teddy's picture will too, and so will any children he has one day. And, I much as I wish it weren't so, Draco Malfoy and his children as well."
Tonks felt her skin freeze as one particular name immediately came to mind. "So…Sirius' portrait is—"
"—right here," Andromeda finished, pointing to a medium-sized portrait of Sirius Black from the chest up. He seemed to be reading a book. Andromeda cleared her voice, and Sirius looked up, smiling.
"What took you so long?"
"You know very well what we're going through," Andromeda said. Tonks looked almost horrified.
"Tonks, how are you feeling?" asked Sirius. Tonks, going white as a ghost in the face, shook her head. Hearing his voice was almost surreal. It made her eardrums throb…or maybe that was something else…what should she SAY?
"Terrible."
Sirius nodded, understandingly. "I figured as much. But if it's any consolation to you, Remus is doing just fine, Tonks. He's chatted with me and James all day about you and Teddy as if you two were the Queen and King of the Universe. He's doing well. Be happy with that at least," Sirius said. Tonks was unresponsive. She was still drinking in the sound of her dear cousin's voice.
"And Ted? Is here there?" asked Andromeda. Tonks looked up hearing her mother mention her father.
"Ted talks about you so much, and about the years I missed watching you grow up, Tonks. Sometimes we can't get him to shut up, really," Sirius said, smiling. Andromeda smiled, but Tonks didn't.
"That's exactly what Ted would do. Has he told you about the time he got us lost on a hike and Nymphadora found the way home?"
"Oh yes!" Sirius said, grinning. "It was a scream!"
As Andromeda and Sirius carried on a conversation like two old buddies, Tonks felt the need to interrupt, or else she felt she was going to explode. "Mum, you really think I'm in the mood for this? You really think I can handle this right now?" Tonks began shaking again.
"Nymphadora, you're acting like a—"
"—Mum, just let me BE! I don't want nor need any of this group therapy damnation! Leave me ALONE!" Tonks shrieked, turning to run back up the staircase, tears flooding her eyes again. Sirius suddenly called out.
"What if I could tell you I know where you can find Remus?" he called. Tonks stopped dead on the first stair, and turned slowly around.
"Remus is dead," Tonks said with a low voice.
Sirius nodded his head. "Yes, but that really doesn't matter, does it? After all, it didn't stop me…"