Tonks had her fingers in Remus's hair, smoothing it back to lay flat. He closed his eyes and hummed contently while she worked. He'd survived another moon and he'd fully recovered from his near brush with death. He felt good, given the circumstances, and he could feel his cheeks inching up into a smile as his wife swept through his too-long hair. Tonks was radiant, having just entered her second trimester. Though she wasn't showing yet, her early nausea was gone and she seemed to be regaining the weight she'd lost from the summer.
"You're in a good mood," she mused, a bright grin playing at her lips.
"I get my wand tonight," he replied, nuzzling his cheek into her palm when she came to rest it on his jaw, "and I'm not in any pain." She kissed his forehead and before she could help him up, as was habit, he stood on his own and wrapped her in his arms. Her bubblegum pink hair tickled his nose; his hands skimmed over the smooth expanse of her lower back. He didn't hesitate in dropping his mouth to her neck, placing a few soft kisses along a winding path from her earlobe to her collarbone.
Tonks melted into him, releasing little moans as he traveled further down. He was already half hard, his body yearning for hers after weeks of neglect. He wanted to taste her, see her body writhing under his, losing control as he pleasured her, and he didn't care that they had an Order meeting in less than an hour's time.
"Remus," she gasped, as his lips came down to the swell of her breasts. His fingers trailed down to the top of her trousers, and with Tonks's ragged breathing spurring him on, he slipped them underneath the fabric.
"Tell me if I should stop," he murmured. With one of his hands holding her flush against him, the other migrated along her hip, inching closer to the heat he longed to touch. Tonks's breath hitched when his fingertips found the thatch of coarse curls between her legs, slipping further and further down until—
"Nymphadora!"
Remus whined against Tonks's breast.
So close.
"Fuck," Tonks groaned. "Mum said she'd come early."
Remus reluctantly removed his hands from her body. He had to reach below his belt to adjust himself, throbbing desperately for her, while she ran a brush through her hair and rezipped her trousers.
"Nymphadora!"
Tonks hopped on one foot to get to the door, putting one sock on after the other, and stuck her pink head out. "Coming, mum! Give us a minute!"
"Us?"
Remus's voice cracked. He hadn't spoken or seen Andromeda in weeks. He hadn't considered she'd be coming to the Order meeting or that he'd have to see her.
"It'll be fine," Tonks huffed, now pulling a heavy boot over her socked foot. "She wants to talk to us before the meeting."
"Your mother hates me."
Tonks hobbled onto her other foot and gaped at him. "She doesn't hate you . . . she's, er, had her issueswith you, but she doesn't . . . not like you."
Remus pressed his lips together and blinked twice at her. "Does she know about the things we've discussed?"
"That we're together for good?" Tonks straightened up and pushed her hair back behind her ear. "Yeah, obviously. Why else would I be living here? For the décor?"
"She's," Remus hesitated, trying to keep his tone level, "all right with it? Us?"
"Mum's got her moments." Tonks shrugged. "Wash up and come down? I told her we'd meet in the sitting room." She walked back to him and placed her hands on his chest. "Listen. Whatever she's got to say, it won't change anything between us. After the meeting, we're coming back and picking up where we left off, okay?"
Remus gulped, looking at the still-pink skin along her neckline, where he'd nipped at her. She closed her eyes and scrunched her nose, and a moment later, the marks vanished.
"Come down soon," she whispered into the shell of his ear. She winked and slipped out of the bedroom. Remus took a few minutes to adjust himself, wash his hands, and ensure his hair and clothes were neat. He didn't want his appearance to be one of the reasons the impending meeting would go poorly.
Dragging his feet down the gloomy, but surprisingly clean staircase, Remus walked into the sitting room to find it spotless, with Kreacher serving Andromeda tea in fine, filigreed porcelain teacups. There were stacks of tea cakes and biscuits surrounding her, and when the elf bowed at Andromeda, he then turned to Tonks and bowed to her as well.
"Er," Remus began, unsure, and was even more startled when Kreacher bowed to him in greeting.
"Master Lupin," Kreacher said, in his gravelly voice, with the tip of his nose brushing the floor. "Is Master Lupin requiring tea?"
"N-no—I can fix it my—"
Tonks shook her head violently, mouthing "no" and Remus forced a smile to his face and asked Kreacher to pour him tea. He watched the elf prepare a cup of expensive-looking loose leaf tea, with a spoonful of sugar and a splash of milk (how the elf knew was a mystery), and when Kreacher was done, Andromeda dismissed him, looking rather smug.
"Kreacher has warmed up to Sirius as of late," Andromeda explained. "He's been ordered to be the model elf to those Sirius has welcomed as friends and family."
"It's so weird," Tonks said, dipping her biscuit into her tea. "When did that happen?"
"About a week ago," replied Andromeda. She met Remus's eyes. Her face was unreadable, and Remus suddenly missed his father-in-law's steady, calming presence. Tonks gripped his free hand, giving him a bit of courage.
"Hello, Andromeda," said Remus, setting his teacup down shakily. "It's nice to see you." He winced; the way he'd spoken, it sounded more like a question.
"Good evening, Remus. Nymphadora tells me you're looking forward to fatherhood. Is that so?" Andromeda sipped her tea primly, looking every bit the perfect pureblood witch she was raised to be.
"Yes, I am. I—we—are going to have a daughter." Remus glanced down at Tonks's seemingly flat stomach, wishing the child could speak for herself. "I wasn't expecting this at first, and it was quite a shock, admittedly . . . but I am happy. I'm also grateful to be alive . . . to have your daughter be my wife . . . to have this opportunity at a family. I'm going to try very hard to be a good husband and father."
Andromeda scanned his face several times. He got the feeling that she might be reading his mind, though he didn't think she was a trained or natural Legilimens, but it was unsettling all the same.
"Will you look for employment?"
"We, er, discussed it the other day," he replied. Tonks nodded encouragingly. "I applied for a few short-term editing posts. It's not much, but it'll bring in some pounds. Strictly speaking, we don't need the additional income, but I'd like to help." He offered Andromeda a slight smile, feeling his neck flushing and the heat rise in the room under his mother-in-law's scrutinizing eyes.
"How will you occupy yourself in the meantime?"
Tonks cleared her throat loudly. "This isn't a job interview, mum. I thought you came over to check in on us before the meeting."
"Perhaps I can phrase it another way," Andromeda said, after taking another sip of tea. "Will you be going on any Order missions?"
"Yes?" Remus turned to Tonks, searching her face for an answer. "I don't see why not?"
Andromeda frowned at this. "I wouldn't think that's the wisest idea, if you'd like to stay alive."
"Excuse me?" Tonks flared her nostrils at the implied slight. "My husband is perfectly capable of defending himself."
"Well," Remus said, rubbing the back of his neck, "that's not entirely true. It took a while to heal from the, ah, incident . . . I haven't had my wand in a month . . . I don't know if I'm strong enough for dueling to the death."
"As I suspected," Andromeda said airily. "Then I suggest that both your sakes, you ought to announce the pregnancy at the meeting tonight."
"Why?" Tonks pouted. "I'm barely three months."
"Because you shouldn't be going on missions, Nymphadora, and if you aren't going, Remus will stay with you. No one will fault you for protecting the life of your child."
Remus started to speak but Tonks barreled on.
"But mum, I barely leave the office. Your sister's dead. Who's coming for me?"
"Voldemort—"
"You-Know-Who—"
Remus and Andromeda spoke simultaneously. He shook his head and extended his hand, gesturing for her to continue.
"I knew enough of my sister's activities with him," Andromeda said quietly. "He won't have taken her death well. He is not a forgiving man and he will take it out on all of you before destroying me."
"Voldemort will come after all of us," Remus affirmed, nodding understandingly at his mother-in-law, grateful he had something to agree on. "We won't go on missions. We'll do what we can for the Order from here."
Tonks looked as if she wanted to fight, with her nose scrunching up and her lips curling down, but Remus squeezed her thigh, seemingly calming her.
"Fine," she sighed dramatically. "Surveillance at the Ministry, here I come." She blew emerald strands away from her face and sulked, hunched over and mumbling to herself.
"Is there anything else we should know?"
Andromeda set her teacup aside. "Not for the Order or your safety. I presume you'll be having the baby here?"
"Huh?" Tonks lifted her head and gave her mother an incredulous look. "You mean to say I need to give birth in this haunted house? Not St. Mungo's?" Remus cleared his throat and adjusted his collar. Tonks looked sideways at him and back at her mother. "Is it because he's a werewolf?"
"Darling, even if he wasn't," Andromeda said, with a hint of exasperation in her tone, "what makes you think that You-Know-Who wouldn't try to hurt you or your baby there? In the end, it wasn't even safe for your father."
Tonks's chin quivered. With the brightness leaving her hair, she nodded.
"Molly and I will be here. If you wanted to give birth in Devon, that's also an option."
"No, here's fine." Tonks sniffled and glanced around the room. "If Kreacher cleans it up, it won't be so bad."
"I'll help," Remus offered. "We can turn the room next to ours into something even cozier." Tonks shrugged at him. He wasn't fond of having his child born in a house that had a mind of its own, but as long as they were safe, he could cope.
The squeaky, cheery voice of Dedalus Diggle made its way to the sitting room from the foyer, interrupting their teatime. Kreacher appeared a moment later to announce the arrival of guests, and with further snaps of his little, leathery fingers, their tea and snacks cleaned themselves up.
"Kreacher," said Andromeda, "will you see to it that the house is spotless? Clean enough for a baby to be born here?"
Kreacher looked between Remus and Tonks, his eyes narrowing suspiciously, but appeared to swallow his discomfort.
"Of course, Mistress Andromeda," he agreed. "Kreacher lives to serve the House of Black." He vanished a moment later.
Remus led Tonks and Andromeda out of the sitting room and down to the kitchen, where others were already gathered. Sirius and Kingsley, both looking worse for wear, sat side by side, nursing equally tall glasses of firewhisky. Remus and Tonks took their places next to Sirius, and as others arrived, Remus was greeted warmly by everyone (save for Severus).
Dumbledore began the meeting. It was all as Remus expected: Death Eater attacks were on the rise, werewolves were escaping from the encampment or their guardians and joining forces with Voldemort, and the Minister was barely able to keep things under control. Voldemort was biding his time, supposedly residing at Malfoy Manor, waiting for the right time to strike.
The Headmaster made no mention of Sirius and Kingsley's physical condition or the appearance of a heavy ring on his good hand. It came time to turn over the meeting to announcements, and after Sirius made the announcement to plan for taking Harry and the others to Platform 9 ¾. When he came to Remus and Tonks's roles, Remus interrupted him.
"Actually," Remus began apprehensively, "Dora and I won't be able to go—you see, she's pregnant—"
At this, most of the Order clapped loudly, sending congratulations their way. Even Mundungus winked at Remus, while the others wished their best and smiled along. When the hubbub died down, Remus continued.
"—we want to lay low until the baby's born. We'll do what we can for the Order from here, but neither of us will go on missions anymore." Remus turned and took Tonks's hand, intertwining his fingers with hers. A pretty bloom of color rose to her cheeks, making her rosy in the firelight. "After all that's happened, I don't want to lose my family."
Tonks beamed at him and kissed his cheek. He felt a pleasant heat spread throughout his body; how hadhe almost given it all up?
He was unaware of what happened after the announcements ended. He was astonishingly giddy, getting to stand next to Tonks and share what news they had with the others.
"Yes, we're so very excited."
"It's a girl! I hope she's beautiful, like her mother."
"We don't have any names yet, but we'll find one."
"I am indeed a lucky man, thank you."
It was Poppy who came to see them last, holding a rectangular box under her arm. Remus had forgotten about his wand, but the sight of the box filled him with an even greater sense of joy.
"I'm happy for you both," the matron greeted, kissing Remus on the cheek. She pressed the box into his hand and held his arm for a moment. "Don't forget, Mr. Lupin. You're loved by many." She patted his arm and joined Minerva on their way out of the kitchen.
Sirius, Kingsley, and Andromeda were deep in conversation. Remus suspected his mother-in-law knew more than she let on, regarding the others' activities with Dumbledore, but he didn't press the matter. They caught him staring at them and their conversation stopped.
"We'll be going, then," Sirius said, yawning. "Can I tell Harry and his friends about baby Lupin?" He gestured at Tonks's midsection.
"I don't see why not, if the Order knows." Tonks shrugged and moved to say goodbye to her mother for the night. Remus couldn't hear what they said to each other, but Andromeda finally smiled. Mother and daughter embraced and then Tonks closed the Floo, grinning mischievously at him.
"I hope you're not tired," she said, ambling up to him with darkened eyes. "I wanted to pick up from where we were a few hours ago."
Remus's heart began beating louder. "Do you mean . . . you want to . . .?"
Tonks grinned and Remus took her hand, eager to follow her upstairs for a night of pleasure.