Thank you so much for your reviews, favourites and follows so far! I believe I've replied to each review individually as I try to do but sorry if I've missed you out, I love your support all the same. :)
Please do read, enjoy and please do leave a review if you have a moment for the latest installment of this story.
Enjoy!
"Dora, come on love, we'll be late!" Ted Tonks called from the bottom of the stairs. Andromeda sighed heavily beside him as she put on her gloves, staring at a photograph on the cabinet by the front door. It was when Nymphadora was nine years old, amongst a small pile of Christmas presents, her hair half green and half red as she laughed up at the camera. A sad smile came to Andromeda Tonks' lips as she caressed the edge of the frame. She jumped as Ted came and placed a hand on her shoulder from behind her before rolling her eyes as she reached up to take her hand in hers, bringing his fingers to her lips as she kissed his fingers gently.
"You look sad." Ted murmured, leaning forward and kissing the woman's cheek.
"Well, my only child is going off and leaving me for the first time." Andromeda turned to face the man, forcing a small smile "I'm aloud to be a little upset."
"She'll be fine, Dromeda." Ted said.
"Yes . . ." Andromeda agreed "I'm sure she will . . . She— . . . She doesn't talk to me like she used to. She used to tell me every little thing that was going on in her life, now . . . She just sits in her room with her music and—well I don't know what she's doing in there. I'm worried—I'm worried she's—. . ."
"She's not about to run away from home." Ted chuckled, drawing his wife into his arms as he kissed her hair. "She's just, growing up. It's what children do. I bet you didn't want to talk to your parents about every little thing as you got older."
"Right," Andromeda scoffed "I never talked to my parents about my own private matters. But we're not my parents." She shuddered at the thought, wrapping her arms around her husband as she rested her head on his shoulder "I don't want Dora to grow up, not if she doesn't talk to us anymore. I don't want her to turn into me—or . . ."
"Personally, if she turned out to be a carbon copy of you I'd be proud." Ted said, shaking his head as Andromeda went to speak again "She's not going to turn into your sisters. Personally I think we share quite a few personality traits."
"You do." Andromeda sighed "But she is a Black, I can see it in her."
"She's a Tonks, Dromeda." Ted shook his head.
"Ready!" Nymphadora yelled as she bounded down the stairs, tripping on the last step and hitting the floor. She got up as quickly as she fell down, a sheepish grin on her face as she pushed her bright pink hair out of her face. "I'm okay."
"I told you not to run down those stairs anymore." Andromeda bit her lip to stop the laugh of amusement at the girl's behaviour, holding her hand out for the girl as Ted summoned Dora's trunk and owl.
"Well, I didn't break anything, not a scratch on me." Dora shrugged as she took her mother's hand "I'm fine."
"The indestructible Nymphadora Tonks." Ted laughed. "Can we go now?"
"Yes." Andromeda nodded. "Let's."
With the blink of an eye they were gone. Dora immediately let go of her mother's hand as her father appeared beside them, a grin split over her face as she looked around the bustling station. Children were everywhere, saying goodbye to their parents in front of the iconic steam train ready and raring to go to take Nymphadora Tonks for her first year of Hogwarts. Her first year away from home, away from her parents, learning magic with her own newly acquired wand. She couldn't wait. She turned to her parents, jumping at them both and pulling them close as she hugged them. She could guess the shocked look of her mother without seeing it, the same for the goofy grin of her father as he squeezed his wife and child tightly.
"I'll miss you Dora." Ted laughed before he let the girl go, ruffling her hair.
"Dad!" She whined before grinning up at him "I'll miss you too."
"Yes, well I'll miss you too." Andromeda smiled, kissing the girls head "Stay safe—Stay out of trouble."
"Of course." Dora said before with one last quick hug she took her cases and got onto the train, the moment she found a spare carriage she put her owl next to her seat, her trunk on the rack before she looked to the window. She waved to her parents, watching them waving back at her until the train pulled out of the station and they were out of sight.
"Hello." A boy's voice sounded behind the girl, making her jump before she turned around to see the red headed boy staring at her. He had clothes on that seemed at least one size too large, a tatty case that seemed as if it had been passed down at least a few generations before the boy had the misfortune to own such a battered looking thing. "Sorry, didn't mean to scare you."
"You didn't." Dora shook her head, going to sit next to her caged barn owl as the boy sat opposite her.
"I'm Charlie, by the way." The boy said "Charlie Weasley."
"Hi Charlie." Dora smiled slightly. "I'm Nymphadora Tonks."
"Nymphadora?" Charlie said "That's an . . . unusual name."
"I don't like it to be honest." Dora said, shaking her head.
"Well, can I call you Tonks?" Charlie asked. "It's a bit easier to pronounce and I reckon it suits you."
"Sure." Dora said, laughing slightly. "Tonks it is."
"So Tonks," Charlie grinned "what house do you reckon you'll be in?"
"I don't know . . ." Dora sighed, she knew what house she wanted to be in, what house her Aunt had encouraged her to go to. But she was unsure if she wanted to share her plans with the boy or not. "What about you?"
"Well, all my family have been in Gryffindor." Charlie shrugged "So I reckon I'll go there too most likely."
"Really?" Dora asked, unable to help but wrinkle her nose slightly.
"What?" Charlie raised an eyebrow at the girl. "What's wrong with Gryffindor?"
"Well my Au—" Dora stopped herself short before she carried on "Well my friend, she says that Gryffindor's are a bit dumb, all bull headed, they have a hero complex—and that's just for starters."
"What does that even mean?" Charlie frowned, confused.
Dora shrugged. Truth be told she wasn't entirely sure what it meant either, she had heard her Aunt say a lot of things and she didn't always understand it. Though Aunt Bellatrix did explain herself most of the time though she still didn't always understand. She had soon learned to pretend to understand all that Bellatrix was saying and to just go along with it, she suspected her Aunt may know what she was doing but she didn't care. So long as her Aunt still kept talking to her like an adult and being her friend. "It basically means that you shouldn't want to be a Gryffindor."
"Well, ouch." Charlie said. "They're not bad you know, Gryffindor's. It's the Slytherin's you've gotta look out for."
"There's nothing wrong with Slytherin's." Dora glared, her bright pink hair tinging red.
"Wow . . ." Charlie motioned to the girl's hair "How did you?
"I'm a Metamorphmagus."
"A what?"
"A metamorphmagus."
"What does that mean?"
"It means I can do this." Dora smirked, screwing her features up as her hair changed to a long curly black, her eyes gaining a purple hue, her facial features sharpening slightly. She giggled as she saw the look of awe on Charlie's face.
"Wow . . ." Charlie breathed "That's amazing."
"Thanks." Dora shrugged, before she looked down to her bags. If her Aunt was right—and her Aunt was always right—it wasn't wise to become friends with a potential Gryffindor.
"Do you wanna play a game of exploding snap?" Charlie asked with an innocent smile.
"No." Dora shook her head, reaching down into her bag for her favourite book. "I'm fine."
"Oh . . ." Charlie said "That book looks . . . old."
"It is." Dora said, opening the first page. There on the inside cover read 'Property of Bellatrix Lestrange, Slytherin' followed by 'Property of Nymphadora Tonks . . .' underneath. She ignored the looks of her fellow carriage mate, not wanting to talk to him anymore for fear he'd try and sway her from her determination to be in Slytherin and hate Gryffindor. He sure didn't seem that awful, but if her Aunt said that Gryffindor was bad then they must be. Right?
Nymphadora walked into the great hall full of nerves. Her hair was a bright pink, though as much as she tried to stop it going pure white the odd streak still slipped in. There were so many people around her, sitting at four tables in a sea of red, blue, yellow and most importantly green. She couldn't help but let her gaze linger on the table that contained the house she had already set her sights on. The Slytherin table seemed to be far more daunting than the rest, though perhaps that was just her imagination? She had talked with her mother days previously about the different houses, a conversation that didn't quite go as she had hoped . . .
"Mum?" Dora asked as she entered the living room, slipping into the seat on the sofa next to her mother as she sighed and put down the latest pair of Dora's trousers that she had been given the duty of fixing after a fall. "Can I talk to you about something?"
Andromeda tilted her head as she looked to her daughter, smiling slightly as she reached out and moved the stray hair from her face to tuck behind her ear. She couldn't help but laugh slightly at her daughters wrinkled nose of a reaction "Is this about school? It's okay to be nervous, Dora."
"I'm not nervous." Dora said defiantly.
"Of course not." Andromeda replied, trying to keep the amusement from her features. "What did you want to talk about?"
"Well . . . School—but not because I'm nervous about it."
"Of course not."
"Can you tell me more about the houses?" Dora said, staring at her hands in her lap "You were a Slytherin, weren't you?"
"Yes . . ." Andromeda sighed "But that doesn't mean you will be, nor that you should want to be."
"But Gryffindor's are brave—to a point of being stupid. Ravenclaw are just a bunch of smartasses—and I'm not that smart. Hufflepuff—Well I suppose Dad was a Hufflepuff but . . . Slytherin's are like snakes ambitious, cunning, resourceful, smart . . ."
"And dangerous if you get too close . . ." Andromeda breathed, never expecting her daughter to come out with such things "Where did you hear that? Who taught you that."
"No one." Dora shook her head quickly, looking away from her mother "I—I read it in a book, I think, Hogwarts: A History, maybe."
"Right . . ." Andromeda frowned, "Dora, Slytherin's can be very . . . prejudice. They mainly consist of purebloods and they don't take kindly to anyone who isn't one of them."
"They hate Muggles and Muggleborns." Dora nodded "But I'm not a muggleborn or a muggle. I'm a half-blood and that's not that bad."
"Not that bad?" Andromeda couldn't help but furrow her eyebrows in confusion at the girl, wondering where on earth she had gotten such ideas from as it was definitely not a book. She thought back to wonder if the girl could have got hold of any of her old diaries, though they were warded in so that was near enough impossible. "Dora . . ." Andromeda sighed as the little girl looked up at her, an innocent smile on her lips as she looked up to her with a tinge of purple in her eyes. "You can be in whatever house you want to be—I don't care, your father and I will love you all the same . . . do you want to be in Slytherin?"
". . . Yeah." Dora nodded, frowning as her mother winced slightly "Is that wrong?"
"No, sweetheart." Andromeda sighed, pulling the girl into her arms as she hugged her close to herself. "Just be careful. If you are a Slytherin it may not be easy."
"But I'm powerful," Dora shrugged "I have my morphing. So it won't be too bad, they like purebloods because of power, right?"
"Right . . ." Andromeda breathed, staring ahead as she continued to hug her child. "But—Just be careful. Please."
"I will, mum." Dora sighed, leaning up and kissing her cheek. "Love you."
"Love you too . . ." Andromeda replied, frowning after her daughter as she got up and skipping from the room.
Nymphadora clung to the inside pockets of her robes, as she was sure her name would come up soon. She knew her mother clearly had reservations about her choice of house but she was determined. Aunt Bella said it was the only house she could be in. Aunt Bella was smart and she was a pureblood Slytherin, she liked her, why wouldn't the rest of the Slytherin's?
"Tonks, Nymphadora." Professor McGonagall called out, looking over to the child.
She took a deep breath as she walked towards the small wooden stall placed facing the entire student body. Merlin why did it have to be so nerve wracking? She sat carefully on the chair, determined not to trip or fall and make a fool of herself already. Before she knew it the old sorting hat was placed on her head, the brim coming down to cover her eyes as she screwed them shut.
Ah, an old voice sounded in hear head Tonks, eh?
Dora took a deep breath, thinking hard in her mind Slytherin, please, Slytherin. Just put me in Slytherin.
Slytherin? . . . Yes, I can see the ambition, the cleverness and determination . . . but I also see the kindness, loyalty, dedication . . . all those traits make me more inclined to put you in Hufflepuff.
"No." Dora couldn't help but whisper out loud, biting her lip as she thought hard again Please, not Hufflepuff. Slytherin, it has to be Slytherin. I want to be in Slytherin.
Are you sure that is what you want? Or merely what you think you want?
Please. Dora bit her lip so hard she swore if she didn't stop she would make it bleed Slytherin, I do want to be in Slytherin. I have to be in Slytherin.
Fine, if you feel that is best . . . the voice paused for a moment before suddenly the loud yell reverberated around the Great Hall "Slytherin!"
Nymphadora couldn't help but let out a sigh of relief as the hat was pulled off of her head. She jumped off the seat, walking over to the table of her new classmates. Though they did cheer as they had for the other students Dora couldn't help but notice the cheer was slightly less for her, some of the children giving her sideway glances of distaste. She took a deep breath, looking down the table back to the sorting as she tried to ignore the stares. Her mother was right; this wasn't going to be easy.
"Ha!" Bellatrix couldn't help the bark of laughter she let out as she read the newest letter from her niece. She smirked as her husband jumped in his chair, looking at her with a frown.
"What?" Rodolphus asked, setting the morning's paper down. "That's a letter from the girl, isn't it? What has a half-blood eleven-year-old got to say that's so funny?"
Bellatrix sighed, getting out of her seat as she went to her husband with a smirk on her lips. She sat on his lap, letting him wrap an arm around her as she rested her head on his shoulder. "She's not just a half-blood, Rod." Bellatrix purred "She has power, a power that our lord can use."
"Yes yes," Rodolphus rolled his eyes, taking the letter from his wife's hands as he scanned the parchment "and a Slytherin . . ."
"Yes." Bellatrix giggled "It seems someone listens to what Auntie Bella tells her to do."
"It doesn't seem like she's having much fun." Rodolphus chuckled.
"No," Bella shrugged "but it's her first night, she'll learn to fit in. I'm sure she can make some friends if she tries hard enough . . . and if not . . . well, it is easier if I am her only friend. She listens to me well enough at the moment, perhaps being isolated from her peers works in my favour."
"You are a devious little mix, Bellatrix Lestrange." Rodolphus smirked, leaning down and pressing his lips to the woman's own.
"Mmm." Bellatrix mumbled against him "You forgot smart, powerful, manipulative, sexy—" Bella shrieked in amusement as the man suddenly pulled her closer to himself, kissing her neck.
"I love it when you're planning something, that evil glint you get in your eyes."
Bellatrix smirked, taking his chin in her hand as she made him look up to her, looking deeply into his eyes before she kissed him passionately. She believed she deserved a little celebration over what was seemingly going to be such a roaring success. Nymphadora Tonks would certainly be a perfect servant for The Dark Lord by the time he returned.