Then Remus fell silent and allowed Tonks to continue, knowing that she was confused whereas, by now, he himself was simply incredulous. “What were they on about? What’s going on here?” When he didn’t answer, only stared at her seeming torn as to whether or not he should tell her what he was thinking, she began to get irritated. A new feeling began to fill her, forming knots in the pit of her stomach. “Remus, answer me. What the bloody hell is going on here?!”
“Well,” began Remus, trying desperately to keep his voice steady, but failing to hide the dread on his face. Tonks recognized it as the same dread whose icy fingers now grabbed hold of her heart. “It would appear that we,” he gestured between the two of them, “have somehow travelled back in time. And I would be willing to bet that it has something to do with that hourglass,” he said, pointing accusingly at the object Tonks held in her hand.
When he had first mentioned his idea that they had travelled into the past, Tonks’ face had gone white and she had stared at him incredulously, her jaw dropping in shock. Then again, it seemed to make sense; far too much sense for her liking. But as he continued to speak, her astonishment was quickly replaced by anger at his accusations.
“I told you not to touch it. I hadn’t even realized you’d taken it with you. I knew it would only lead to trouble. I don’t know why you picked it up; it was in the Black Family estate! Don’t you know by now that everything in that place is dangerous? I can’t believe you could’ve been so reckless!” He wasn’t yelling exactly; just scolding forcefully.
But Tonks hated being reprimanded; she was getting so angry that he might as well have been screaming. Every word he said added fuel to the fire she felt building inside her, and she felt like exploding, but she forced calm into her voice when she finally spoke up. “Alright, fine, you can blame it all on me; go ahead. But handing out blame won’t get us back to the right time. The less time you spend pointing fingers and getting your knickers in a twist, the sooner we can straighten all this out.” Remus glowered, but he had to concede; she definitely did have a point.
“Okay, okay,” he relented, holding up his hands in a peaceful gesture in order to placate her. “I’ll save my accusations for later. But in the meantime we should start brainstorming ideas on how we’re supposed to return to the present.”
They were both silent for a moment, but then Tonks’ voice cut across the quiet. “You haven’t got a clue what to do, do you?” she asked, raising her eyebrows and smiling slightly.
Remus looked sheepish. “Nope. No the faintest idea.”
And then Tonks burst out laughing. “Well, isn’t this just wonderful,” she guffawed, holding her sides as she burst into hysterics. “We’re stuck here in the middle of who-knows-when with no way to get back except for a time machine that we can’t even trust.” And her laughs suddenly became sobs as the tears cascaded down her face, and Remus stared in bewilderment, at a loss for what to do.
“It’s… it’s okay, Tonks, we’ll find a way back, I’m sure… we’ll get back to our time and everything will be all right again. Please, don’t cry…” he trailed off, looking lost. He reached out a hand and was about to lay it on her shoulder, but at the last second he seemed to think better of it, pulling away abruptly. Disappointment crushed her; he had been about to touch her! Why did he have to pull back like that? She just wanted him to hold her, to cradle her in his strong arms comfortingly, stoking her hair and telling her that everything would be alright, and yet he refused to so much as touch her. The crying intensified.
“Why is my life falling apart? I swear, the whole bloody world hates me! First Dumbledore dies, and now this…” and then an unexpected idea struck her.
Suddenly the crying ceased and her head shot up, a determined fire igniting in her eyes. “That’s it!” she cried, the trails left by her tears still clinging to her face. And then she uttered one word, the name of the one person she could count on to help them solve their problems. “Dumbledore!” she cried, smiling triumphantly at her revelation.
“Of course!” cried Remus, slapping a hand to his forehead. “Why didn’t I think of that? Obviously he’s still here in this time period. But…” he trailed off, his face falling ominously, and a dark cloud seemed to fall over the two of them, extinguishing the excitement of the moment as the bubble of anticipation Tonks felt rising in her heart seemed to pop.
“What?” asked Tonks in trepidation, the feeling of dread settling in her stomach once again. Why did her ideas always fall to ruin? She was now convinced that the world had turned against her. There was no other explanation for the fact that her life always took a turn towards disaster.
Remus voiced his concern regarding the plan. “How are we going to get to his office without attracting attention?” he asked. It was a fair question, and Tonks had no idea as to what the answer was. It seemed as though that arrangement had gone down the drain all too quickly…
She looked down at her feet despondently, put-out for a moment and hanging her head, before she looked up again and suddenly a slow smile began to stretch across her lips, her eyes lighting up. Perhaps this plan would work after all. “I think I have an idea…”
***
Tonks looked up at him morosely and whispered softly, her voice barely audible, “I can’t do it.”
“What do you mean, Tonks?” asked Remus concernedly. “Of course you can. You can do anything you put your mind to; I’m confident in your abilities. Really,” he added firmly when she stared at him dubiously. “You can do it.” He reached out a hand and touched her shoulder, squeezing it gently and smiling at her. “I know you can.”
Something fluttered in her heart at the soft confidence in his voice and the way his warm fingers felt as they pressed against her shoulder. His smile made her stomach flip-flop and she suddenly felt a strength growing inside of her that had been absent for such a long time. She squared her shoulders resolutely and then walked over to the statue, ducking behind it. She heard Remus chuckle from the other side of the stone figure. “Tonks, what are you doing?” he questioned with laughter in his voice.
Tonks rolled her eyes, although she knew he couldn’t see her. “When I change,” she began matter-of-factly, “my clothes won’t fit me anymore. I don’t want to be standing in the middle of a school hallway in robes that are falling off of me.” She poked her head out over the statue and glared at him threateningly. “Now don’t you dare look, Remus Lupin.”
He laughed again. “I won’t look. I promise,” he smiled.
After a few seconds of waiting in patient silence, Remus heard his companion’s slightly muted voice drifting out to him from behind the statue. “Er… Remus?” she asked uncertainly.
“Yes?” he replied, wondering why she hadn’t come out yet.
“Would you happen to know any tailoring spells?” she asked meekly, obviously embarrassed at having to ask such a question. Remus just laughed.
“As a matter of fact,” he began, “I do. I happen to be in need of them quite often.” He obviously intended for this to be a joke, but Tonks wasn’t very amused. She hated it when he tried to make light of his monetary situation. Especially since it was one of the excuses he used when giving her reasons why they couldn’t be together.
But she quickly got over her displeasure at his bad attempt at a joke. “Well, would you mind having to do a couple more?” she asked tentatively.
“No; I wouldn’t mind at all. I’ll be happy to help, especially if it’s for a good cause. Such as our return to our own time.” When she remained crouched behind the statue, he called out, “Come on out, now; I can’t do it when you’re hiding behind Beavis the Boring.” Tonks snorted; she found the statue’s name rather amusing.
Remus kept his eyes on the statue, and a figure slowly stood up, the top of its head poking up over the top of the Beavis, who had been a short man. The person who emerged was a lot shorter than the one who had originally entered into the shadows behind the statue, but that wasn’t the only difference, and neither was it the most noticeable; nor the most astonishing. The figure that came out into the light where he could see her seemed to be a completely different person.
The hair had changed from a mousy brown color to a much longer, sleeker black mop with gentle waves and the skin tone was decidedly darker than before. The height change was astounding, and the curves had been enhanced. Last but not least, the woman had seemingly transformed into a girl; she appeared to be much younger. In fact, she looked like she was only around sixteen or seventeen years old. Her robes were practically falling off of her. It was quite a comical sight, really, but Remus held back his laughter and pulled out his wand, closing his eyes and concentrating on how he wanted the clothes to look before muttering a spell under his breath.
When he opened his eyes, the clothes were once again a practical size. He looked at her more closely, and what he saw made him gasp. The person standing before him was so familiar; a fissure of pain ran through him like a cold sliver of ice in his veins. He never would forget that face; it had been haunting him since he was sixteen years old. And suddenly he knew that it would be a long time before he and Tonks finally returned to the time in which they belonged. The answers to all of the questions that had been tormenting him since he was in his sixth year at Hogwarts abruptly fell into place, and all of a sudden he understood.
He had to use all of the willpower he possessed in order to stop himself from crying out and running toward her, wrapping her in a tight embrace, but he managed to restrain himself. It was one of the hardest things he had ever done. Could it really be…?
“Do you like it?” asked Tonks, breaking into his reverie and shaking him from his thoughts and back to reality. “I’ve even picked out a name for myself so that nobody will recognize me. I’m Jenny Lark,” she announced proudly, spinning around so that he could see all of the aspects of her disguise. “I haven’t been able to morph in so long, no matter how hard I’ve tried, and now, suddenly, it just seemed to work!” she cried, jumping up and down and clapping her hands ecstatically. “It’s wonderful to be in control of my own powers again.” This was quite a drastic and refreshing change from the miserable, bland Tonks he’d been seeing as of late.
Remus cleared his throat, but his next words still came out slightly hoarse. The revelation of her name had just proven his theory correct, and he was both astonished and incredulous. “How,” he began faintly, before starting again in a stronger, smoother voice, “How will you learn to respond to that name? I mean, aren’t you used to your own name?”
“Well… just between you and me, when I was a little kid, I told all of my Muggle friends that my name was Jenny. I hated my real name, so I made one up for myself; a normal one. It wasn’t until Hogwarts that I started using my surname, so I’m used to being called Jenny, too. I trained myself to respond to that name a long time ago, and I’m sure that, since I was so young at the time, my brain will still recognize that the name is referring to me.”
“Oh, that’s… good.” Remus really didn’t know how else to respond to this story; he was still disoriented as he recovered from the shock of seeing Tonks’ transformation.
“Yep. Well, I should probably make my way to Dumbledore’s office. The sooner I get there, the sooner we can leave,” she said, smiling and making her way down the hall. And Remus wished that he could tell her to stop, to wait, because he knew that getting her hopes up now wouldn’t do her any good; they would only come crashing back down again when she found out that their return would be a long time coming. He was torn; a part of him wanted her to stop, to come back and avoid the disappointment of having her hopes dashed, but another part wanted her to go so that he didn’t have to explain his reason for calling her back, revealing everything about what had happened to him in his sixth year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.
***
On her way to the headmaster’s office, Tonks ran into one of the last people she wanted to see. She walked as quietly as possible as she passed Professor McGonagall, trying her hardest to blend in with the wall, but she should have known she never could have escaped the woman’s sharp, observant gaze. McGonagall saw her in her peripheral vision and whipped around to stare at Tonks; the metamorphmagus’ heart seemed to sink to her feet. Blast it all!
McGonagall considered her appraisingly, looking her up and down. “Who, may I ask, are you?” the professor enquired sharply, raising her eyebrows.
“Oh,” Tonks stuttered, momentarily stunned into silence. And then her brain kicked in and she remembered the story that she and Remus had fabricated before her transformation, just in case this kind of a situation arose. It was a good thing they had planned so well. “My name is Jenny Lark. I’m on my way to see the headmaster right now, actually. I’m a new student, and I’m hoping to be able to attend this school for the upcoming term.”
“Ah, an exchange student,” McGonagall said; it was more of a statement than a question. “Hogwarts does not allow exchange students,” she said in a clipped tone.
“Well, I’m not an exchange student, per se,” said Tonks slowly. This part of the plan hadn’t been figured quite so clearly, because she had not been expecting to run into someone so inquisitive. She really should have been more prepared for various situations, but this little trip into the past had been a bit… unexpected. To put it nicely. “You see, I’ve been home schooled , but my parents were recently attacked… by Death Eaters,” she mumbled the last two words and willed herself to look upset, which wasn’t very hard taking into account her recent depression.
Professor McGonagall’s face suddenly softened with compassion as she looked at Tonks. “I’m so sorry to sound so insensitive, Miss… Lark, did you say? I didn’t mean to be brusque. On account of all the Hogwarts staff, I welcome you to our school.”
“Thank you, Professor,” she replied humbly. “There’s no need to apologize.”
McGonagall looked surprised that the girl was so understanding and had forgiven her so easily. She would have thought the Tonks would be angry.
“Sorry, Professor, but… what’s your name?” she asked meekly.
“I’m Professor McGonagall, and I teach Transfiguration. I look forward to seeing you in class, Miss Lark.” And with that, the far younger Professor McGonagall strode off down the hall and out of sight. Sighing in relief at the close call, Tonks continued on her way to the headmaster’s office.
When Tonks reached the gargoyle outside of the staircase leading up to Dumbledore’s office, she realized with a sinking feeling that she didn’t know the password. She swore under her breath before trying a few possibilities. She knew of the headmaster’s affection for Muggle confections, so she began to list off every one she knew. “Chocolate kisses… Mars Bar… Hershey’s Bar… Chips Ahoy… Three Musketeers… Milky Way”” and with that the gargoyle sprang aside, allowing her access to the rotating spiral staircase. She ascended and reached the door at the top, lifting her fist before gathering up the courage to knock, rapping her knuckles tentatively against the wood. She didn’t bother with the knocker; she always managed to pinch her fingers when she did.
“Enter,” called a familiar voice from the other side of the door. Slowly, she turned the knob and pushed, letting herself into the spacious room and looking around at the furniture, the familiar phoenix, and all of the magical gismos spinning on the professor’s desk. It was exactly the same as she remembered it from her time.
She stepped forward boldly and straightened her shoulders as she looked resolutely over the desk at her mentor. It was so good to see him again, alive and well. She took a deep breath and began to speak. “Hello, Headmaster,” she began purposefully. “My name is Nymphadora Tonks and I am from the future.” Might as well get it out in the open right away and avoid beating around the bush. Just as she had expected, Dumbledore didn’t look remotely surprised.
“Well, hello, Nymphadora. How may I help you?”
“This,” she announced just as bluntly, getting straight to the point, “Is the object that has sent u… me back.” She strode forward and held it out to him, and he took it and began to examine it closely. “It was not ou… my intent to travel back in time; it happened quite by accident, really. I didn’t want to attempt to use it in order to return, just in case something else went wrong. Actually, I’m not even sure this object is capable of returning me to the future.”
As Dumbledore turned the hourglass in his hands, he spoke to her softly without looking up. “I believe you are correct in the assumption that this object is only useful to send people backward in time. It was wise of you not to try to use it in an attempt to get back to your own time.”
“Would you happen to know any means by which w… I would be able to get back?” she asked hesitantly, dreading the answer as soon as she saw the flash of sorrow in his eyes.
“I am afraid that it may take time to return you to wherever you came from, Ms. Tonks,” he replied sadly, watching as her face fell in trepidation. She had been counting on his immediate knowledge of what to do. She didn’t know what she was going to do. “It will not be impossible,” Dumbledore continued, “but it will take time. I would say that, by the look of you, you are around sixteen, so you must have come from fourteen years in the future?” At her stunned look, he explained, “I am aware that your present counterpart is two years old.”
Ah. That explained his uncanny knowledge. “But you are a metamorphmagus,” the old man continued, “So it’s rather difficult to tell you true age.”
“Well, I’m definitely not sixteen anymore,” she laughed. “Actually, I came from the year 1997.”
“And why, may I ask, did you take on the appearance of a teenager?” he questioned curiously, though not at all rudely.
“Well, sir, I didn’t want to attract attention to myself, and this is a school for teenagers,” she explained. “Actually, I came up with a cover story. I told Professor McGonagall that I come here after having been home schooled all my life due to a Death Eater attack on my parents. My cover is Jenny Lark.”
“Ah. Well, Jenny, would you mind terribly if you had to keep up your cover for a little while longer? You see, as I said before, it may take a while to find a way to send you back, and since it seems that my Transfiguration Professor already knows the story, it might arouse suspicion if you simply disappear.”
“Wait,” said Tonks slowly, her stomach feeling like a dead weight. “How long do you propose I would have to stay here before you find a way to send me back?”
“I’m sorry, my dear, but I really don’t know. In the meantime, you are welcome to attend Hogwarts for the upcoming term; actually, I encourage you to do so. It would not lead Minerva to becoming suspicious, and I daresay you might get lonely without any company in a time that is foreign to you. I’m sure one of our professors would be willing to take you shopping for your school supplies in Diagon Alley. You can borrow some money from me; Lord knows I don’t need all of it. I hope to see you during the school year. Until then, however, I would like to examine this hourglass more closely. Would you mind terribly if I held onto it for a little while?”
Tonks snorted but quickly tried to hide it with a cough at the risk of sounding rude. “Not at all, Headmaster. It’s really of no use to me.”
“Thank you,” the old man beamed, and Tonks couldn’t help but smile back. As she was about to close the door behind her, he called after her. “Good luck, Jenny.”