“A friend who you got pregnant?” She raised her eyebrows at me.
“What makes you think I got her pregnant?”
“They way she wrote to you. It’s not too hard to tell, Moony. Or should I call you Remus.”
______________________________________________________________________________
“So, your real name’s not Moony.”
It wasn’t a question. Now I’d done it. I thought she might tell, so I tried to cover.
“It’s just a nick name, you know, like the story of Rome? I had a twin, and he found me when I was in my werewolf form after we had a fight about who owned my dad’s place. But when he came to apologize, I killed him,” the words shot out of my mouth as fast as they came to my brain. Thank God for history classes.
“You’re a really bad liar, Remus,” Kris said, looking at me funny. “So why change your name? Hiding something?”
“N-no,” I stammered.
“Liar.”
I sighed. “Promise you won’t tell anyone. I could get in a lot of trouble if the others found out who I was.”
“Oh, I won’t tell anyone. What do you take me for? An idiot?”
Yeah, she reminded me a lot of Tonks.
“So do you have a last name, Remus?”
“Will you stop calling me that? I’m trying to keep my identity hidden. Just call me Moony,” I snapped.
“Ah, staying incognito, are we?” She winked at me.
“Yes. And I can’t tell you my last name, someone might hear.”
“So write it down.”
“What if I drop the paper and someone finds it? Then they’ll go after... her to get to me.”
“You’re paranoid...” She paused and thought a moment. “Wait... I know who you are. You’re the Remus who worked for Dumbledore. You were Defence Against The Dark Arts teacher a few years back! I remember the picture! I thought I recognized you! You’re Remus Lu-”
I slapped my hand over her mouth. Someone could be hiding nearby, listening in on our conversation.
“Don’t say anything more about me,” I hissed. “I’m here to work, and I can’t afford my cover to be blown.”
“Okay, okay. I’ll keep quiet, Moony.” She winked again, and for some reason, that put me at ease.
______________________________________________________________________________
The voice grew louder. I couldn’t stand it anymore. The things it said scared me. Not just about Remus, but about the Order. Every time I had to go to a meeting, it would get excited that I might be going to an Order meeting. And when I would actually be going to an Order meeting...
I had to talk to someone. I hadn’t told anyone yet. Christmas holiday was coming up soon, and we were all meeting at the Weasleys. Remus would be there. I’d talk to him about it when I saw him.
Remus. Just the sound of his name made my stomach do flips. In a good way, of course. I missed him so much, and I hoped he would be excited about our baby. We would have to start thinking of names!
Maybe after my dad, if it was a boy. Ted. Teddy Lupin.
The day I arrived at the Burrow, I was surprised to find that Harry, Ron and Hermione would not be joining us. Molly was really torn up about that. But as people started arriving, her spirits brightened a bit.
When Remus showed up, though, it was a different story. Not for Molly, for me. Why? Because there was a girl with him!
Remus smiled and walked over to me.
“Hi.” He hugged me and kissed the top of my head.
“Hi...” I returned the hug. “Who... Who’s that with you?”
“Her name is Kris. She’s a werewolf too. She had no where to go, no family or anything, so I invited her along.”
“Oh... okay...”
“Tonks,” he looked at me, his eyes almost pleading. “It’s not like that. She’s just a girl. Plus, I love you, and the fact that we’re having a baby proves that.”
We’re having a baby. We’re having a baby? He’s not the one getting fat and eventually having to go through the pain of birthing! And “just a girl”? Tonks, he thought you were just a girl! The man’s cheating on you and you know it!
“Yeah, sure...”
I didn’t know what to think. He told me one story, but my head told me another.
“Tonks. Trust me.” And right then, he kissed me. He kissed me like I would have killed for before we got married. One that told me he had missed me, that he had waited for this moment since the day he left.
I drank him in. I loved the man. For once, the voice was silent. Sweet silence. I was me again. No confusing voices, no troubles or cares in the world. Just me and him, together.
After we broke apart he said, “Hey, your hair’s pink again.”
I smiled. Of course it was. I was with him, and I was happy, but all that came out of my mouth was, “Yeah.”
We sat down for our “Welcome Dinner”, as Molly called it, Remus introduced Kris to us all, and, as soon as he could, Arthur took Remus aside. I couldn’t hear what they were saying, but from the expression on Arthur’s face, it wasn’t a happy conversation.
After dinner, Molly showed us all to our rooms, Remus and I were sleeping in Fred and George’s old room.
“What was that about?” I asked Remus.
“What was what about?”
“At dinner, with Arthur.”
“Oh, he didn’t think it was smart to bring Kris to an Order ‘meeting’.”
I hated to not take Remus’s side but, “He’s kind of got a point. I mean, we don’t really know her, much less trust her.”
“Don’t worry about it, Tonks. She’ll be fine. You won’t even notice she’s here.”
I shrugged. “Okay.”
“So? Got any name ideas?” Remus asked, breaking an uncomfortable silence.
“I thought maybe Ted. Teddy Lupin, if it was a boy,” I replied, smiling.
“And if it’s a girl?”
“Haven’t really thought about it...”
“What about Nymphadora.”
I rolled my eyes in an extremely exaggerated fashion. “Oh, God no. I would never give someone that name. It’s just cruel.”
He laughed. “I always thought it was a good name. All the women I’ve ever known who have that name are beautiful people.”
“Remus, I’m the only women you’ve ever met with that name.” I raised my eyebrows at him, still smiling.
We fell asleep that night, both of us happier than we had been in a long time.
The next morning, Remus shook me gently until I was awake.
“Tonks?” he asked.
“Hm?”
“We should get up. There’s a meeting this morning.”
A meeting? Get up girl! It could be important! We have to know important things!
“Can’t we be a little late?” I mumbled.
“We’re already a little late.”
“Ugh...” I sat up and ran a hand through my hair, then laughed when I saw Remus. He had the worst case of bed head I had seen since I moved out of my parents’ house.
We walked downstairs and sat at the kitchen table as Molly put huge plates in front of us.
“Eat up,” she said.
“Thanks, Molly,” Remus said.
The rest of the Order members missing filled in after us, and when everyone was seated, Kingsley started the meeting off by saying, “We have estimated that You-Know-Who has at least twenty spies in the Ministry right now.”
There were groans and sighs of frustration.
Arthur and Kingsley started telling us a plan, mostly to do with the people who worked in the Ministry. We were to watch for strange activity by people in our departments, and listen for odd orders from department heads. Arthur said there was a high chance You-Know-Who would try to take over department heads.
I was only half listening, because, again, I was getting a splitting headache. The voice was talking again too.
You don’t really think the Ministry would find out if they had spies coming in? Come ON, they’re not that stupid... Well, maybe they are...
“Tonks? Are you all right, dear?” Molly asked.
I had groaned, and my head was in my hands.
“What? Yeah... I’ve just got a headache,” I said slowly.
“Why don’t you go lay down and I’ll bring you some soup?” Molly offered.
“That’d be great.”
I made my way up to the twin’s room and sat down on the bed.
The voice was laughing. I had no idea what was so damn funny, but It had obviously found my pain hilarious.
Molly came up with soup a few minutes later, telling me not to worry, that it was common in pregnancy to get headaches like I was getting. I nodded, thanked her for the soup, and she left.
After I finished the soup, I layed down and closed my eyes. That was when I learned something was really wrong.
I drifted off to sleep, and instantly, I started dreaming. I was with Remus, and he was holding our baby. It was a boy, and he was so cute. His hair was changing colours too! Then, the sky turned black and a ring of fire surrounded us! We tried Apparating out, but couldn’t. We were trapped.
Bellatrix Lestrange and several other hooded Death Eaters walked through the fire towards us. The grabbed us, and began to torture Remus and the baby. They made me watch. I tried fighting against the arms that held me, tried to get to Remus and my child. I screamed, flailed my arms and legs, but the Death Eaters wouldn’t let go. They made me watch.
Then, Bellatrix laughed at me and said, “They’re not worth it,” and laughed.
It was Bellatrix. Her’s was the voice that had been tormenting me for so long.
I was being shaken awake. Different hands were holding me, I saw, when I opened my eyes. They were Remus’ hands.
“Tonks! What’s wrong?” he asked, worry framing his face.
“N-nothing... just a bad dream.” Lots of people were in the room, watching me. I realized I was shaking, and my face was wet with tears.
Remus looked at the others and asked for them to leave. They left, and he turned to me. “What happened in your dream? You were screaming.”
“You were there, and the baby too. Then fire... and Death Eaters... and... and...” I broke down. I couldn’t take it. The voice, headaches, dreams, him not being there all the time, it all came rushing out of me in the form of tears and shaking. I buried my head in Remus’ robes and he held me as I cried for almost an hour.
“Shhh,” he told me a few times. “It’s all going to be okay. It was just a dream.”
I don’t know exactly what happened next, but I’ll describe it as well as I can.
There was a flash of light, but Remus must not have seen it, because he didn’t flinch, he just held me, after that, I don’t know what happened, but I do know, I was not in the same room anymore. I wasn’t at the Burrow anymore.
I was in a huge bedroom, sitting on the largest bed I’ve ever seen in my life. The bedposts were made of a dark wood, and carved into four snakes. The bedspread was silk, and a deep shade of green, as were the floor length curtains. The walls were covered in shelves holding instruments that I had never seen before.
“Looks like the spell worked for Bella,” a woman with bleach blonde hair said. “Welcome.”