-1You'll Never Have To
A/N: Sorry that this took so long to get here, but I had problems with my computer that were pissing me and my sister off. But we have a new comp, and we shouldn't have any problems in the nearby future.
This story won't last longer. With five days away from the opening of Hogwarts for Harry's sixth year, that translates to four more chaps after this one and an epilogue.
This chapter is from Tonk's POV. Here we go!
Chapter Six: Colorful Memories
Tonks yawned as she woke up. Opening her eyes slightly, she saw a set of numbers hovering above her wand, telling her the time. Deciding it was too early to get out of bed, Tonks pulled up the covers and snuggled back in the warm body behind her.
An arm connected to said body, wrapped itself tightly around her naked waist, pulling her flush against its chest. Placing her arm on top, she languidly stroked the knuckles of Harry's hand with the pad of her thumb. His other arm was serving as part of a pillow for her head. She felt one his legs wrap itself around hers, the dusky hairs sending up small shivers down her spine. Thinking that she was cold, Harry instinctively pulled her closer to his body.
She ran her fingers up and down and his arm, loving the feel of his body wrapped around hers. She came across the long gash that he had received at the end of his fifth year in the Department of Mysteries. One of the wayward spells that were flying around had nicked him and he hadn't noticed it until a day later.
Fifth year was when everything had spiraled out of control for her Harry. During the summer he kept having nightmares of the scene in the graveyard, sometimes that Diggory bloke dying, other times it was Hermione, Ron, or Sirius. Add that he was basically cut off from the wizarding world with no information being passed onto him, he felt isolated and alone.
Then the Dementors came, causing him to use magic to save the life of him and his cousin, almost resulting in his expulsion later on. Then for him to find out when he arrived at Grimmuald Palace that his friends had been hanging out together all summer, his emotions blew up along with everything else he was feeling.
At school, his fellow students turning their back on him, whispering behind his back that he was full of delusions. Those were the same people that would make a complete 180 degrees when they found out that he had been right all along about Voldemort being back.
And the icing on the cake was the fact that one of his nightmares had come true. The death of his Godfather Sirius had shook Harry to the core, making him sink into a well of despair of sorts. It had even unlocked his metamorphous powers, but in a way that was extremely cruel. He had woken up one night to discover that he had turned into Sirius. It took him about three weeks before they could finally get him to shift into another look besides his dead Godfather.
She felt him stirring behind her right now, his front lightly rubbing against her backside, his lips nuzzling the side of her neck in a lazy manner.
"What time is it…?" he murmured sleepily.
Picking up her wand, she waved it about and called up the time. It was 6:30 AM, 30 minutes since she had woken up. Laying her wand back down on the table, she put her head back down on his arm and told him the time. She heard him groan in displeasure, making her smile slightly.
"Too bloody early…" he said as he wrapped his arms around her body.
She turned around in his embrace and nudged his cheek with her nose, causing him to crack open an eyelid. "I have to go into work," she said.
"Just fire call them to say that you're sick and come back to bed," said Harry as he started to nuzzle her cheek. He was like a sleepy lion when he did that or a large kitten.
"Can't. Madame Bones wants me to give her a report on my assignment. Remember, guarding and teaching you?"
"Best thing to ever happen to me…" said Harry, his words starting to slur, a sure sign that he was falling asleep.
"Oh? Do tell Harry?" she said, knowing that when he was sleepy he was more prone to tell the truth.
"I got…my wish," he said, punctuating it with a yawn.
She nibbled on his earlobe and whispered lightly into his ear, "What wish?"
"Got to….spend time…with you…" he murmured before his breathing evened out, a sure sign that he was now asleep.
Kissing him on his brow, Tonks extracted herself from his arms slowly, so as not to wake him up. Once she was out of the bed, she opened her drawers, pulling out her knickers and clothes for the day and laid them out on the dresser. She didn't need to come out of the shower fully dressed or even in her knickers. Harry had done such a thorough examination of her in these past three weeks of Grimmauld that she was perfectly fine walking naked around him.
Going into the bathroom that was connected to her room, she pulled down the curtains around the upper windows, shutting out the light and casting the shower in dark shadows. Lighting up a few of the candles that she had left out from the bath that her and Harry had shared three nights ago, she inhaled the mixture of scents that wafted from them.
This was how she always took her showers, the little ritual soothing her every time. Reaching over, she turned the handle for the water to hot and stepped into the shower once it was. As she worked the floral scented shampoo into her hair, her thoughts drifted back to Harry.
When she had met him last year in order to take him to Headquarters, she thought he was shy, which made him cute when he blushed. That was all, she really didn't pay attention to him after that because she was five years his senior and doing anything with him would get her into a heap of trouble.
During her month stay at Headquarters, she would notice him looking at her. And when she looked at him, he would blush and look away, pretending not to notice her. She thought it was cute of him to have a crush on her, the boy-who-lived had a crush on her. Sirius kept laughing it up during their midnight talks, along with Remus pointing how Harry seemed to get awfully stiff when she walked in.
She didn't do anything to make him think that she liked him back, but one time she did give him a smile and his whole face flushed as he grinned back at her. Then during Christmas time when she accepted Sirius invitation to stay with him during the holidays, she didn't think anything of it. That is until she saw Harry there too and she remembered that he was staying with Sirius this year, something that Sirius never failed to mention as it brought a smile to his face.
It was a week into the Christmas break that her and Harry were alone at the kitchen table for breakfast, both having woken up early. She remembered that he was incredibly shy and barely managed to get out two words in five minutes. She broke the ice by asking him what his favorite breakfast meal was. From that they had their first real conversation, with him smiling the whole time. It was infectious, that grin of his, and she found herself smiling sometime after he started to.
Rinsing the last of the conditioner out of her hair, she turned off the water and stepped out of the shower. After drying herself with a towel, she started to dry her hair as she walked out of the room. When she was in her natural form, which she was in right now, she had no problem walking. When she was in her work form, the willowy version of her, her balance was all wrong because her center of gravity was off. She wouldn't even attempt to dry her hair and walk at the same time when she was in that form, she had once and she still had the scar from that nasty fall.
She stopped at the side of the bed, watching her lover. He was curled up in the blankets, hugging a pillow close to his body. She took a good long look at his naked body, memorizing how utterly cute and sexy he looked right here at this moment. She leaned down and kissed him lightly on the lips, her pink hair that was cropped to her chin, slightly brushing his nose and cheek.
She pulled back and went over to the dresser. She looked at the mirror in front of her and concentrated on slimming her body down to that willowy figure. Her breasts shrunk down, hips becoming more narrow, her belly shaving itself off. Since she was a field auror, there were times when she needed to chase down the bad guys and she could run faster in this form than her natural one.
She picked up her knickers, a plain white, and put them on. Taking her pantyhose, she slid them up her legs and when she straightened up, Harry was standing right behind her. One arm snaked itself around her waist, pulling her flush to his chest like earlier. His other hand came up to cup her breast, slowly massaging it. She saw in the mirror as he sensually licked her earlobe, the sensation causing her to shudder.
"Change back," he practically purred into her ear.
Tonks knew that he had started to like her when she was in this form, since this was the way she always looked when she saw him. She also knew that that Chang girl that he kissed during Fifth year had a body type similar to her when she looked like this. But on the night they first slept together and he saw her in her natural form, he practically jumped her, kissing her frantically.
Every night since then, when it was just them two, she would be in her natural form. He pushed his hips into hers, his front brushing her backside and she could feel him erect. The fact that he was hard and that he would basically become like an animal when she changed into her natural look, had her rubbing her legs in excitement.
Leaning her head back on his shoulder, she whispered in his ear, "I have to go to work…"
She heard him breathing heavy, felt him twitch. She bit her lip to stop from moaning as he rolled her nipple between his thumb and forefinger. She felt him nipping at her jaw line before he whispered in that sexy purr of his, "How much time?"
She couldn't stop from moaning as the hand that was on her hip, snaked its way down into her panties and started to stimulate her sex. She whispered breathlessly in his ear as she grounded her backside into him, "Not…enough…"
She only heard his moan as a warning before he spun her around and crushed his lips onto hers. She was backed up against the dresser, those hands running down her body to cup her bum and to lift her onto the dresser. She ran her hands into his hair, getting a tight grip and kissing him back just as fiercely. When the need for air came, she took advantage of the break to murmur against his lips, "I have to go…" In response, he pulled her flush against him. She moaned into his ear as she felt the length of him brushing her inner thigh.
"Hurry back…" he breathed into her ear. With a final, searing kiss that left her panting for air, he pulled back and walked into the shower she had just vacated. Using her powers to get rid of the blush, she cast a couple of cleaning spells on her lower body before finish getting ready.
When she had her Auror robes on, she stormed into the bathroom and pulled back the shower curtain. She only saw him pleasing himself for a moment before she yanked him by the neck and kissed him as he had kissed her. When she was done, she nipped at his lips and whispered huskily, "I'll try…"
She gave him a flirtatious wink and walked out of the bathroom, switching her hips with great emphasis, assuming her natural form just for her derriere. She heard a long, suffering groan. Smirking, she turned back to her work form and turned on the spot. In front of the Ministry Fountain, she walked towards the elevators to deliver her report to Madame Bones, thoughts of tonight running through her mind.
(Scene Break)
She was finally finished with her report with Madame Bones, the numerous questions and interruptions extending what was supposed to be a one hour meeting to three. Right now, instead of being on her way to Grimmauld and to what would be a marathon of shagging with the boy-who-lived, she was being called into the Head Auror's office.
She was standing in front of the redwood door, a plaque sign reading "Rufus Scrimegour, Head Auror". Knocking twice to announce that she was there, she waited until the door opened up on it's own. All the curtains were drawn closed, the sunny skies that weather maintenance had chosen today, blocked. A single light was on his desk, a stack of papers near it, a set of hands leafing through them at a rapid pace.
"Sit down. Be with ya in a moment." he said in a gruff voice.
She sat down like he said, choosing one of the high backed wooden chairs instead of the posh, leather ones. She hadn't met the man personally and she wanted to stay alert, the uncomfortable chair would help her to do that. She took a moment to study him. He had long tawny hair that went past his shoulders that was paired up with a beard. Gave him the appearance of having a lion's mane.
She remembered what Moody had told her about him. A man that took a hard-nosed line to Death Eaters, some political ambition, a lot of power behind his spells coupled with low mobility made him a tank when he was in the field as an Auror.
She snapped to attention when he laid his quill on the desk. His hands linked together and settled themselves on the table and he stared at her with a hard look in his eye.
"Why'd ya choose that chair, lass?" he said in a Scottish brogue that was similar to Moody's.
"Chair's uncomfortable, can't fall asleep in it, help me pay attention to what you have to say."
"Good answer. Do ya happen to know why I called ya in here?"
"No, sir."
"Anyone around here with half a brain, can tell ya that Fudge is on his out," he said with a grim smile. "What they won't tell ya, is that I'm hoping to replace him."
She had to have a talk with Moody over his information. Hoping to becoming Minister of Magic, is not a minor political ambition.
"The only problem with that is that I have to lay all my cards on the table. If I don't become the new Minister, I'm out of a job. The election to select an interim Minister takes place in three days. So as what could be my final order of this government, I am going to give you your new assignment that will become effective as soon as you are done with your current assignment."
A new assignment? At least it didn't start until she was done guarding Harry, "A new assignment, sir?"
"Yes. It has come to my attention, the importance that Mr. Potter has in the wizarding world. Whether he likes it or not, he is a key public figure and if something were to happen to him, public morale would hit an all-time low. Can ya imagine what the public would do if they discovered that Mr. Potter was in the clutches of the Dark Tosser or if he had been murdered by followers of the dark?"
She could imagine very well. Their would be a mass panic if the boy-who-lived died. Even though he's just a teenager in age, people still expect him to save them from the evil of the world. And she knew the prophecy that concerned Harry and Voldemort. If it was true, the world would be in much greater danger than they knew.
"Ya see it, don't you? A slow blanket of fear creeping over their eyes, the dark forces growing more bold, mass rioting in the streets as things took a turn for the worse. It may be a stretch, but so far all the evidence in the DoM points a theory involving a certain prophecy down there. One that had Mr. Potter's and Voldemorts name on it. Something that was so important to him that Voldemort came waltzing in here in person."
Moody also forgot to mention how smart he was. Scrimegour was really hitting the nail on the head, making her wonder who else had figured this out.
"So, Auror Tonks, your new assignment is as follows: You will handpick, three other Aurors to accompany you to Hogwarts. You will form a security detail there at the castle, while you personally will continue to be Mr. Potter's bodyguard. You have already proven to be an effective bodyguard, having kept Mr. Potter safe at Privet Drive #4 until July 31st, the both of you moving to an undisclosed location that no one involved with your assignment has been able to ascertain."
"Why me, sir? I'm sure there are people that are more qualified," she asked. Not that she didn't mind the assignment. How could she? To be able to stay with Harry, even in Hogwarts.
"As I have already said, you make an excellent bodyguard. Your metamorphous powers allow you to easily blend in with the Hogwarts population and to ascertain any viable threats towards Mr. Potter from within the school. Also, from your reports, it is easy to see that you have established a friendship with the boy and he will need a friendly ear in the coming months."
There wasn't much to go on with that last sentence, but it was the way he said "ear" that caught her attention, "Are you asking me to spy on him?"
He gave her a piercing look then, his hazel eyes staring right into hers before he smiled, "Smart lass. I can see why that suggestion didn't sit well with ya."
She made sure to look confused, "Sir?"
"Ever since you've walked in here, your robes have been open at the neck. You can see just the edge of a hickey, an impressive one at that. From your reports you have only been in contact with one other person, which is Mr. Potter. So, either you're in a sexual relationship of some kind, or you have another person with you that can be detrimental to Mr. Potter's safety. Now, which is it?"
Damn. He was really smart. She hung her head, looking down at the floor, trying to think of something. Before she could say anything, he spoke up again, "I see that it is option number one. Is that right, Auror Tonks?"
He got her. He had seen the hickey and she had to have gotten it from someone. If she said it was Harry, she didn't know what would happen. If she said it was someone else, it could be seen as not taking her job seriously and she could get fired. So she just decided on the truth. She nodded.
She saw him lean back in his chair, looking at her shrewdly, probably thinking of how to fire her.
"Most people in the Ministry would look down upon this relationship you have started with Mr. Potter. Legally, he is an adult in the eyes of the state, having inherited the title of Baron Black and you have done nothing illegal. However, this could compromise your duty. Wouldn't you say, Auror Tonks, that that would be the majority of opinion of the higher ups?"
"Yes, sir, but the thing is…"
"Save it, Auror Tonks. The way I see it, this relationship gives you even more incentive to make sure nothing happens to him. Am I right?"
Her head shot up so fast, the she heard a slight crack from her stiff neck, "Sir?"
"You have nothing to worry your pretty little head over, lass. As I said, this will give you another reason to keep him alive, allowing you to do your job a little better. Just don't let your emotions rule you and I'll have nothing to say about it. You have your new assignment, Auror Tonks. While you're here, I would like you to pick out your three new team members. Dismissed."
She stood up and gave him a salute before walking out, her body on auto-pilot. Scrimegour had found out about her and Harry. He found out and he hadn't done anything. And knowing that, he still gave her the new assignment to stay on as his bodyguard.
The only thing that could go wrong, was if Scrimegour lost the election and left. She could be reassigned and she would have to go without Harry for a couple of months. But with a high caliber assignment like this and her success in keeping him safe over the summer, there was a chance the assignment would continue even if Scrimegour was out.
Well enough about that, right now she had to pick out the rest of her squad, give them the assignment and hopefully get back to Harry before lunchtime.
(Scene Break)
It was midnight. She had wasted close to four hours looking for qualified Aurors to go on the assignment with her, weeding them out, weighing their pros and cons, fighting abilities and whatnot. She had selected Cadet Alex Stone, female, early twenties, fresh out of Auror school. Quick on the draw, with good magical spell vocab, young enough to blend with the students and become friends with some of them in order to harbor information.
2nd year Auror, Harvey Winston, male, her age, packed power in his spells, keen mind, able to pick up lies by body language. He was just too serious in her opinion, but she needed someone like that in order to discern any real threats.
To round out her squad, she had gotten Moody to come out of retirement to join her on this assignment. That eye of his would be able to see through the walls and rooms of any suspicious people in the castle. It would just be a bother when she would want some alone time with Harry and she was bound to get that time with him.
It had been about seven at that time. She was about to go back to Grimmauld when news of an attack on a muggle village came through the wire. Her and her new squad mates rushed over there and she was stuck in a firefight for close to an hour. Another hour spent after that cleaning up the wreckage and helping the wounded until they could transfer the wounded to St. Mungo's.
Then she had to spend even more time at the Ministry, filling out her report, writing down the names of her squad mates for the assignment, in triplicate, and all the other little tedious things they never tell you about in the academy. She was finally done with the paperwork. Setting her quill down, she arched her back, hearing several pops and creaks. Rubbing her neck with one hand she turned off the lights with the other and left her cubicle.
She was standing in front of the fountain again. She looked at the statue, having been fixed shortly after the battle that Dumbledore and Voldemort had here. She looked at the corner of the fountain where Harry told her he had been at, watching as the two dueled. It was also where he had been possessed for a short time.
Tossing a galleon into the fountain for good luck, she cleared her head of those grim thoughts and apparated straight into her room at Grimmauld. And the subject of her thoughts was lying down on her bed, stripped bare, the blankets strewn around him, some of his hair falling in front of his eyes. As she stepped closer to the bed, he cracked open an eye and gave her a lazy smile.
"Stuck at work?" he said.
"You have no idea. Tell you about it tomorrow," she said. Stripping off her clothes and knickers, she changed back into her natural look. She kept her eyes fixed on his as she did so, watching as a hungry glint appeared in them. She laid down on her side, her back to his front. His arms came to snake around her waist and he curled into her body.
His lips nuzzled her ear, his hot breathe sending shivers down her spine, making her smile, "Night Nymph…"
She snuggled back into him, "It's Tonks…," she said. She heard his breathing even out before hers did the same and then they were asleep.
A/N: Okay people, another chapter done. We have five more chapters in total after this and then we're done. I tell you now that there will be a lemon in the next chapter. And I mean a full blown one, not just some teasing.
Did I make her side of how she felt for Harry in the beginning believable?