Saturday, 7 September 1991

A cool breeze swept over Tonks's face as she strolled down Diagon Alley. The shops to her left and right were humming with weekend shoppers. Flourish and Blotts were advertising a signed book event. Tonks recognized the face of hair guru Gilderoy Lockhart on the posters; a long queue of middle-aged witches stood outside, clutching copies of his newest book, Glamorous Goop . Tonks rolled her eyes and kept moving.

Florean Fortescue's Ice Cream Parlour was overrun by families as usual. Tonks's hand came up to hold her abdomen. It was too early to know if she was pregnant, and as she surveyed the dozens of children with pudgy, sticky hands, and their fatigued parents, wiping away their chubby cheeks, she sighed and wondered how soon she would join their ranks.

As she approached the corner to turn down another lane, a burst of crying startled her. A little boy had tripped and spilled his ice cream on the cobblestone. Tonks watched his father scoop the boy up, vanish the mess, and return to the counter with the boy still screaming. When she had turned the corner, Tonks could see the boy's father rubbing his small back in circles and shushing him. A vision of Remus doing the same thing popped into her imagination.

Though Tonks hadn't known Remus for long, his gentleness toward her had given her an idea of what he would be like as a father. Though he was attached to his work, he was kind. He spoke warmly of his goddaughters and their families. Tonks looked forward to meeting Remus's best friends soon, if only briefly, so that she and Remus could find a cat to bring home.

Tonks peered up at the paw-shaped Marauders' Mart sign. Once a mystery, the logo finally made sense to her. The circle in the center of the paw was the moon, charmed to show the cycle with its waxing and waning crescent. The first "M" had antlers, the first "a" was in the shape of a dog, and the second "a" was in the shape of a rat. Remus hadn't wanted a wolf anywhere in the logo, so they settled on a paw print for him with a round hole in the center for the moon's cycles.

From where she stood, Tonks observed the gold shopkeepers' robes through the window. There were only three workers, and she easily guessed who they were. The tall man with messy, jet-black hair was James. Tonks's mother's cousin, Sirius, had equally raven-dark hair but his was shoulder-length and neat. The plump, mousy-looking man behind the till was Peter. All three of them were engaged with customers, and even more shoppers were wandering around the store. It wasn't as busy as Remus made it out to be.

Speaking of her husband, Remus was nowhere to be found. Tonks had expected his absence from the sales floor. He would be in the back, working on building the inventory. Tonks was going to go inside to find him, but a boisterous group of young wizards nearly knocked her over on their way inside the shop.

"Sorry, so sorry!" called a haggard witch.

"Stupid boys," muttered a young girl, who followed the witch into the shop.

The young wizards immediately took up the attention of the shopkeepers. Tonks glanced down at her watch. She had waited until half past noon to get to Diagon Alley, and while she wasn't surprised that Remus wasn't waiting for her outside the Marauders' Mart, the arrival of new customers would mean she'd wait longer.

Tonks shoved her hands in her pockets. The new group of customers spread out and Tonks watched the three men go after the family and reorient them toward the children's products.

Sighing to herself, Tonks turned around and made her way to the Magical Menagerie. She would buy supplies for the new cat while she waited, and in an hour, she'd come back to the Marauders' Mart to collect her husband.

Remus cast the last charm on a set of enchanted kitchen scissors. It was a newer product, inspired by Lily and Amelia's suggestion to have a set of scissors that could change blades with the tap of their wands, but would be dull if handled by children. The final charm, the Marauders' Mart logo, was engraved along the scissor handles. Remus had never been fond of it, but it was better to have a paw print than a wolf anywhere near the Marauders' emblem.

The shop was quieter than he had anticipated. At twelve o'clock however, when he was scheduled to meet Tonks, a string of customers came in and Remus felt he had to restock the instant cameras. They worked like Muggle Polaroids, but the film inside was magicked to develop into a moving image just moments after the picture was taken.

A half hour after he'd finished enchanting the new cameras, Remus heard the boisterous sound of children. Expecting the Potter or the Black broods, he popped his head out and found a family he didn't recognize. James and Sirius were excellent at guiding children to more age-appropriate gadgets, while Peter took on the remaining customers. Remus didn't want to disturb his friends by announcing that his wife was waiting for him, so he returned to the workshop to get ahead on inventory for the next week.

With another pair of enchanted scissors ready, Remus sighed and sat back on his bench. The bell that trilled whenever the shop door opened rang multiple times in a row. He could leave a note at the bench, he supposed, but he didn't want to slip out without warning at least one of his friends. His watch showed it was one, and his stomach growled.

The shop was still abuzz with shoppers, Tonks had to be running out of patience, and he hadn't brought anything to eat.

Remus glanced at the shelves around him; they were low on their charmed hairbrushes. When combined with Sleakeazy's, the hairbrushes could style any kind of hair. While Gilderoy's Glitzy Hair Gel attempted to compete, the Marauders' line of Sleakeazy's hair products reigned. Remus stood to find the box of Muggle hair brushes he would enchant, but the storeroom door burst open.

"What do you—"

Rather than one of his friends, it was his wife bursting through, with sunset orange hair and wearing a frown.

"Tonks! What are you doing here?" he asked, having expected one of his friends to need a stocked product.

"I came to find you," said Tonks. "I was waiting by the till and the bloke—Peter—said he'd come get you once he had a minute, but it took forever and I decided to come here myself." Tonks brushed strands of orange hair away from her face. "You're not upset, are you?"

"No, of course not, but—"

Tonks peered down at her watch. "It's two hours after your shift was supposed to be over. I got to Diagon Alley an hour ago."

Remus deflated. "I'm sorry."

Tonks's frown grew deeper and walked closer to where Remus stood in front of his workbench. It was littered with mirrors, parchment, and film. As she approached him, Remus couldn't help the way his eyes roamed over her body.

It wouldn't do to ogle his wife, not even when her shirt was cut so he could appreciate her cleavage.

"And?" Tonks said, looking up at him with disappointment.

Remus's throat bobbed. "It's been hard to get away from the lads—"

"But you said we'd get a cat today."

Remus nodded and pressed his lips together. "Yes, I did."

"Do you want me to tell your friends that it's time for you to go?"

"No—" Remus inhaled sharply. Tonks's eyes were narrowed and they glittered with barely concealed anger. "No, let me—"

"Moony!"

Tonks whipped around. James Potter had his head in the doorway, looking equally as startled as Remus felt.

"Miss?" James looked Tonks up and down. His eyes traveled back to where Remus stood. "Moony? Is there something—"

"Prongs," said Remus, clearing his throat, "this is my wife, Nymphadora—"

"—it's Tonks, Remus—"

"—who prefers to go by her surname, Tonks," Remus finished. He gazed down at Tonks with a fond smile; he'd gotten to call her Nymphadora in bed last night, and she hadn't refused when her name slipped off his tongue the second time they'd had sex. "Well, half her surname. She took mine and made hers Lupin-Tonks."

James beamed and stepped through the door with open arms.

"Mrs. Moony!"

"Tonks, please," she said. Tonks gave James an awkward hug. Remus stepped forward with a peculiar pang in his chest.

"What brings you here, Tonks?" James asked, flashing her a bright, crooked smile. "Getting a little time with your husband?"

"Actually," said Tonks, "Remus promised we'd get a cat today. He also said his shift was over at eleven."

"Is it eleven already?" James adjusted his crooked glasses and peeked at his watch. "Blimey, it's past one!"

The door flew open again. This time it was Sirius, whose frown turned into a giddy grin upon seeing Tonks.

"Nympha—"

"Tonks," Tonks said tiredly. "I never liked what Mum named me."

Sirius hugged Tonks tightly. Remus came closer to them; the pang in his chest had returned.

"I didn't expect to see you today," Sirius said warmly. "I thought we'd all meet up tomorrow, at the Potters'—"

"That was the plan," said Tonks, the annoyance evident in her tone. "The plan today was for me and Remus to get a cat. I've been waiting for him and—"

The door swung open again. This time it was Peter, who was sweating heavily and red in the face.

"Have we got any more—"

But Peter stopped when he saw Tonks.

"Miss! Err, Mrs. Remus—"

"It's Tonks," said Remus, seeing Tonks huff shortly. "My wife."

"Can Remus go?" Tonks said irritably. Her hair had shifted to an acid orange. "Do you really need him to make more of whatever this is supposed to be?" She picked up a wooden blob, the beginnings of a new charmed dragon toy for children.

"I'm ahead on our inventory," Remus informed his friends, "and I restocked the cameras and got more scissors—"

"Go, go, go!" James waved him off. "We're not as busy as we thought we'd be."

Sirius peeked through the small window into the sales floor. "We should be getting back—"

"Toolkits!" Peter smacked his hand on his forehead. "I need two sets of the deluxe charmed ones—"

Sirius flicked his wand at a shelf and one blue box zoomed down into Peter's hands.

"Only the one?" Peter said, dismayed. He met Remus's eyes. "You don't have time to make one more—"

Remus glanced at Tonks. Her hair was growing auburn, which caught the others' gazes, but it made Remus more uneasy.

"I could—"

"I'll do it," James said, cutting Remus off. "You do the self-cleaning, self-sharpening, self-storing charms?"

"Childproofing, fireproofing, and waterproofing," Remus added.

"Prongs, you do that," Sirius said. "I'll help Wormy with the customers so Moony and Nym— Tonks can get their cat."

James took up Remus's usual position at the workbench. Sirius and Peter went to the floor, while Tonks stood with her arms crossed over her chest.

"Should I wait outside?" she asked.

Remus shook his head and removed his work robes. It took less than a minute to gather his scant belongings, remind James of the additional charms on the deluxe toolkits, and sweep out of the shop through the backdoor with Tonks at his side.

Her hair had softened to a light reddish-brown and the anger was leaving her expression. As Remus led Tonks up the narrow alleyway between the shop and the next building over, he heard her stomach gurgle.

"Tonks, are you hungry?" he asked tentatively, reminding himself that Lily had said ' when in doubt, never do anything on an empty stomach .'

"A little," she replied curtly.

"Can we get something to eat before we look for a cat?" he suggested. "I didn't bring lunch with me."

Tonks's expression eased. She bit the inside of her cheek, but she nodded. "There's a newish place up the other lane, Barty's Bistro?"

"Not there—" Remus cleared his throat. Barty's Bistro was run by Barty Crouch Jr. and his wife; they made it clear to Remus that he was not welcome at their establishment due to his 'dangerous condition.'

"Why not?" Tonks frowned at him. "You've been there?"

Remus inhaled harshly as they stepped out of the alley and into the sunlight. "Once. We went there after one of our busier days. They refused to serve me."

Tonks narrowed her eyes. "What do you mean, they 'refused to serve you'?"

A charged silence hung between them. Passers-by moved past them, some of them were fellow shopkeepers or workers, who recognized Remus (most avoided his gaze), and others were simply shoppers, unaware of what he was.

"You see, it's perfectly legal to refuse someone like me," said Remus. "Barty's Bistro is one of many."

Tonks blinked confusingly up at him. "What? Because you're a were—"

"Yes," Remus cut her off. "I'm not welcome there. James and Sirius complained—they always do—but it doesn't change anything. It's the way it is."

"That's not—" Tonks's hair turned limp and mousy brown. "That's not fair."

Remus's shoulders slumped forward and he put his hands in his pockets.

"It's the way it is."

"Okay," Tonks sighed. "Where can you eat?"

"The Leaky, Kapoor's, Pandora's Pies, anywhere in Muggle London—"

"What about the pub up the other way—The Sphinx?"

"I'm sorry," Remus murmured. "They won't have me either."

Tonks's mouth was set in a thin line. Her eyes glistened but she shook her head and morphed her hair to a pastel pink.

"Muggle London, then. Anywhere you like."

Remus and Tonks walked back into the alley behind the Marauders' Mart. He offered her his arm, and to his surprise, she took his hand instead. With a turn on his heel, he Apparated them away with a crack and landed near a Neapolitan-style pizza place he'd stumbled upon in his early twenties. Tonks had no objections to it, and within minutes, they were seated at a table for two and had ordered something to eat.

"Is it really legal for them to refuse you?"

Remus had fixed his gaze on Tonks's. Her dark eyes were no longer glistening, but they were crinkled in the corners.

"Unfortunately, yes," replied Remus. He took a swig of his drink and set it down with a clank against the metal table. "Werewolf rights aren't a priority. They never have been."

"Why don't you fight it?"

Remus laughed darkly. "You don't think my friends have tried? The Potters and the Blacks take it up every year with the Wizengamot. They've been at it for years."

Tonks's face fell further. "I didn't know."

"It's not fine, but I'm lucky," Remus said. "I've got a good job, friends, a home, Wolfsbane Potion—" His heart fluttered when he realized he had even more. "And you, of course," he finished.

"And me," she murmured. Their food arrived promptly, and as Tonks dug into her pizza, making the little noises that Remus had now identified with her pleasure, he wondered if she would be willing to sleep with him again that evening.

Tonks set her pizza down after a slice and a half and said, "Is that why don't you hire more workers at the shop? Because they don't want to work with someone like you?"

Remus dabbed at the corners of his mouth with a napkin. He tapped his fingers against his glass as he thought of what he'd say.

"We've never tried, to tell you the truth," he ventured, "it's always been just the four of us. We didn't think we'd grow so fast, and if we did, their kids might want to work with us."

"Whose kids?"

"Everyone's," Remus replied. "I suppose that would include ours, if and when the time comes."

"What if the kids don't want to work at the shop?"

Remus didn't know what to say. He and his friends had always imagined that the next generation of miniature Marauders would take up their work.

"It could be the four of you and more, couldn't it?" Tonks continued. "I've got friends who probably wouldn't care that you're a werewolf."

"It's James and Sirius's shop."

"But you invested in it too," Tonks countered, "so you must have a say in how it operates."

Discomfort pooled in Remus's abdomen. "My share is the smallest."

"Smaller than Peter's?"

"Peter's wife invested more of their gold. For their son, I believe."

"You didn't want to do the same?"

Remus stifled a groan. The shop's plans were fixed; as soon as the kids were old enough, they'd join the adults in part-time work. James, Sirius, and Peter knew that not all their children would want to work with them, but with ten between the three men (and soon to be thirteen, once Lily and Amelia gave birth), the odds were good that at least a few of the next generation would want to take over the shop.

Remus, assuming he would have no children and no family to pass savings or a share of the shop to, had put in enough gold to ensure he'd have a way to keep feeding himself and paying for his Wolfsbane Potion until his body finally gave up on breathing.

"Remus?"

"Sorry—" Remus let out a slow breath through his nostrils. "I contributed very little. It didn't make sense for me to invest more than I needed, for myself."

"Oh . . . right." Tonks picked up her half slice and took a slow bite. "What about now? Will you invest more?"

"Do you want me to do that?"

Tonks shrugged. "Up to you and the others, I s'pose?"

There was a bite in Tonks's speech. Unsure of how to resolve her apparent discomfort, he thought to switch subject.

"Did you find any cats you liked at the menagerie?"

Tonks's expression brightened at once. "What if there were two kittens I really liked?"

Remus had never had luck with cats, but if two cats would make Tonks happy, he would endure their hisses and scratches for her sake.

"I've heard it said that two are better than one," Remus offered. Tonks smiled then, with the toothy grin that made his heart leap.

"I asked the witch at the menagerie to set them aside for us," she said. "They're littermates, a brother and sister. The ginger one's the boy and the black one is the girl. They're so sweet and fluffy, Remus, just wait until you see them!"

Remus continued eating his lunch as Tonks described the kittens in detail. He wasn't quite paying attention as well as he should have been—watching Tonks's eyes sparkle as she recounted the kittens' antics was mesmerizing—and anyway, he would have time to get to know the cats once they returned to the menagerie. For now he was content to see his wife in a happier mood, and set aside all the other topics for debate.