Tonks lived in a small flat a few miles outside of London. Remus had visited often when he and Tonks were together so he had no trouble Apperating there. He knocked on the door. To his surprise, it opened almost immediately.
"Wotcher, Remus."
"Tonks. What do you hope to accomplish by impersonating Hermione and I?"
She glared at him coolly. "Hello to you to. Are you talking about the Daily Prophet? If you want to treat Hermione like you did to me, that's your own business. Don't come around here blaming me for it. I don't fancy morphing into you or your bushy-haired wife."
"You know as well as I do that I would never lay a hand on Hermione."
Tonks brandished the newspaper in front of him. "Not what it looked like. Not pleased with the new girl?"
Remus was glaring furiously at her. "She's not "the new girl." She's my wife and I would die before I harmed her. Whatever you are trying to do – leave her out of it!"
"I'm trying to make sure you don't hurt another poor girl like you hurt me."
"Tonks," Remus looked pained, "I understand that you are upset that I didn't forgive you. You cheated on me and that's something I cannot forgive. I'm sorry."
"I could care less if we got back together. Do you think I want to stay with a half-breed like you? I'm trying to make sure everyone knows what you are. You try to be Remus Lupin, the tame, quiet man, when what you really are is a monster, and not just at the full moon. How you treated me was horrible, Remus. I don't want anyone else to go through that."
Remus started walking back out the door. This conversation wasn't going anywhere, nor did he expect it to suddenly improve. He had never been anything but respectful to Tonks, even after he found out she had been cheating on him. However she saw it was another matter. Tonks shouted after him, "The best thing for Hermione is you locked up in Azkaban! You'll do worse than hit her next time."
Remus spun back around, wand out. He took three long strides towards Tonks so that there was less than a foot between then.
"I have never and will never hurt her!"
Tonks didn't say anything, she merely raised an eyebrow at him. Remus stormed out of her house. As soon as he left, Rita Skeeter lifted the Disillusionment charm.
"That will make a lovely addition to the article."
Remus came back to his house rather disgruntled. He found Hermione standing in the middle of a pile of discarded Howlers. The floor and table were littered with them. She saw Remus come in and immediately ran over to him.
"How did it go? What took so long?
Remus looked uncomfortable. "Um…I stopped to see Tonks before I saw Dumbledore..."
"What happened with Tonks?"
Remus sighed. "Nothing. She said that I deserved everything and that she was innocent. Dumbledore said he'd look into it, but until then he doesn't want to rush into accusations against another Order member. Besides that, Tonks can't morph into two people…either she had help or it wasn't her at all."
"Someone could have been using polyjuice…maybe just as a joke?"
Remus shook his head. "Polyjuice potion doesn't work with – with werewolves. It would be like using the potion for an animal transformation"
"Interesting. I never knew that."
"Most people don't. There aren't a large number of werewolves and we are't exactly desirable to turn into."
"So how else could they be impersonating you – if it isn't Tonks?"
"I don't know. It will probably just blow over. Tonks – or whoever – got their kicks. I doubt they'll keep doing it."
"So until then we just deal with the hate mail?"
"It's been that bad?"
"A few curses. One pixie. Other than that it was just typical rants."
The hate mail – support mail in Hermione's case – stayed strong all throughout Christmas. Hermione and Remus had planned visit the Burrow and Grimmauld Place, but the steady flow of owls and Howlers that followed Remus around convinced them otherwise. There was no need to dampen everyone's Christmas spirit listening to curses and swears. Hermione had gotten accustomed to negative publicity after her stint with in her fourth year, so the stream of Howlers – and the fact they weren't for her – didn't phase her. They had started to get to Remus, however. He was no stranger to public dislike, but normally he was cursed out in public, not this stream of letters. He spent most of his time locked in his study, leaving the window open despite the cold. Constant, insulting screams echoed through the house.
Christmas morning, Hermione sent Remus' owl out to deliver the presents she had wrapped. She grabbed Remus' gifts: a few new books he had been interested in, some new quills, and a gigantic box of Honkeyduke's best chocolate. She knocked tentatively on Remus door.
"Come in."
Remus was standing by the window, holding a letter and the morning's newspaper.
"Merry Christmas!" She held out the boxes in her arms.
He looked up at her in surprise. "Oh."
"You didn't expect presents? It is Christmas after all. Ron, Harry and Ginny, Sirius and the others' presents are all downstairs if – " Hermione broke off. "Are you alright, Remus?"
"I – I have a gift for you but…" he looked around at the mess of fallen Howlers. "I seem to have misplaced it." Remus was still refusing to let go of the papers in his hand.
Hermione placed the presents she was holding on the corner of the desk. "Don't worry about it. Want to tell me what's so important that you're holding?"
Remus hastily shoved the papers inside his robes. "They're – I need to talk to Dumbledore about it. I – I'll be back, Hermione. I'm so sorry."
Hermione raised an eyebrow, then walked over and kissed him, her hand slipping into his robe. She pulled out the crumpled letter and the Daily Prophet. "Let me read them and I'll go to Dumbeldore with you."
Remus shook his head. "This – no stay out of this. I – I was afraid something like this would happen sooner or later. I should have known better! I shouldn't have let you be involved with – with someone like me!"
He grabbed his wand and with a crack, disapperated leaving Hermione in the middle of the room, surrounded by piles of smoldering letters, clutching crumpled papers in her hands.