Chapter 40

Chapter 40

The two wolves

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HP.5, Chapter 21: “The Eye of the Snake,” near the end of the chapter. The part where Harry dreams he is a snake, wakes up, and they go to Dumbledore’s office.

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—Finally —said Tonks, dropping a parchment onto the table with a soft thud.

A satisfied echo seemed to linger in the kitchen.

It was thick paper, crowned with ornate, ostentatious golden lettering. Her rotation completion certificate.

Sirius looked up from his newspaper and let out a mocking whistle.

—They let you out of the labyrinth alive?

—With my sanity mostly intact.

The headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix was unusually quiet that night.

Outside, snow gathered along the window sills, and the pale moon cast its dim light over the grey, austere façade of Grimmauld Place.

Inside, the fireplace crackled with a warm fire, and the scent of Firewhisky filled the kitchen, where Tonks and Sirius sat, ready to share a quiet evening.

—You don’t look too terrible, Black —Tonks teased, watching her cousin lean back with careless ease—. I thought confinement was hitting you harder.

—Always so charming, Nymphadora —Sirius replied with a crooked smile, clearly enjoying the chance to annoy her.

Before Tonks could fire back with something sharper, the kitchen door burst open.

She turned at once, her eyes widening in surprise.

—Remus! I thought you were on watch.

Her smile widened. It always happened—every time he walked into the room.

Remus closed the door behind him, brushing the snow from his coat before removing it with slow, deliberate movements.

—No —he murmured, his voice rough—. Arthur swapped shifts with me.

His slumped shoulders and exhausted expression spoke of sleepless nights. Dark circles marked the skin beneath his eyes and, although his hair had always been streaked with grey, that night they seemed more pronounced.

And yet, when his gaze met Tonks’s, his expression softened, and he offered her a small smile, as if he didn’t want to worry her.

Remus moved closer to the fire and began rubbing his hands together, trying to warm himself.

He seemed to be trembling slightly.

He looked so cold that Tonks could almost feel it from where she stood. She had to make a conscious effort not to go to him, not to wrap him in an embrace and warm him herself.

Instead, she pressed her lips together and crossed her arms, forcing herself to stay still, trying not to make her intentions too obvious.

—This will help —said Sirius, extending a glass of Firewhisky.

Remus accepted it with a slight nod and sank into the chair beside his friend, letting out a quiet sigh of relief.

Tonks looked away, feigning indifference, but her heart was still beating far too fast.

—So, how’s the pack? —Sirius asked at last, a mix of curiosity and skepticism in his voice.

Remus rubbed his temples with his fingers and sighed.

—Same as always. Most of them are too desperate to see beyond their own needs. I tried to reason with some of them… but it wasn’t enough.

—Did anyone listen? —Tonks asked softly.

Lupin hesitated for a moment before answering:

—Perhaps. A couple of them. But I doubt it will lead to anything. Fear is a powerful weapon.

Sirius snorted, leaning back with weary disdain.

—That much we know. Especially with the useless government we’ve got.

No one contradicted him.

Silence settled over the kitchen as the three of them drank. The firelight cast shifting shadows along the walls, and for a moment, Tonks allowed the calm to wrap around her.

She glanced sideways at Lupin, watching the way his long, slender fingers gripped the glass, his eyes once again lost in the flames.

She smiled, just a little.

Ever since he had begun his excursions with the werewolves, he spent many nights away, and she couldn’t help but wonder if he was all right, if he was cold, if he had eaten. And although that night he looked more exhausted than ever, at least he was there. Safe.

And that reassured her.

Then he moved, setting the glass down on the table.

—I need to send a message to Dumbledore —he murmured, drawing his wand.

Tonks straightened slightly, watching him with quiet attention.

—Expecto Patronum —he said firmly.

From the tip of his wand, a silvery mist burst forth, quickly gathering into a spectral form.

A wolf, long-haired and majestic in bearing, crossed the kitchen with elegant movements.

Its light filled the room with a silvery glow that contrasted with the warm orange flicker of the fire, casting a beautiful interplay of light and shadow with every step it took.

Tonks followed it with her eyes, fascinated.

—Beautiful specimen.

Lupin turned his head toward her.

Tonks was watching the wolf with that familiar spark in her eyes.

—I wasn’t trying to impress you —he murmured, though he couldn’t quite suppress the hint of a smile.

—Shame —the Auror replied with feigned disappointment—because you did.

Before Lupin could reply, Tonks had already drawn her own wand, a mischievous smile playing on her lips.

—Expecto Patronum.

Another wolf appeared beside the first. A she-wolf.

Smaller, more energetic, with a light, carefree gait. Barely touching the ground, she bounded forward to sniff the other Patronus with palpable, playful enthusiasm, so different from the calm, almost solemn composure of his.

Tonks smiled and crossed her arms, satisfied.

—I wasn’t going to let your Patronus steal all the attention.

Lupin watched in astonishment as his wolf stood still for a moment, assessing the newcomer, before she leapt at him, circling him with delight, bounding and trying to catch his luminous tail.

Then, a burst of laughter broke the silence.

—Merlin’s beard! —Sirius exclaimed, laughing loudly—. I’ve never seen two Patronuses interact like that!

Tonks flushed, but didn’t stop smiling.

She hadn’t expected that reaction, but she didn’t mind it at all. It felt as though her Patronus were a reflection of her feelings—of the embrace she hadn’t given him, of the things she hadn’t said.

Not yet.

Lupin, however, went still.

His eyes remained fixed on the two wolves, watching them interact with far too much… ease.

Too much harmony.

A knot tightened in his stomach.

It was a sign, too obvious, too dangerous to ignore.

He knew that the walls he had spent years building so carefully were on the verge of collapsing.

Tonks was getting dangerously close. Too close. And that could not be.

—Looks like they get along well —Sirius remarked, in a tone that pretended innocence, though the sidelong glance he gave Lupin revealed he knew exactly what he was witnessing.

—Of course they do —Tonks replied with a wink, never taking her eyes off the wolves.

Lupin didn’t answer.

He focused on his glass of Firewhisky, feigning indifference, though the faint flush on his cheeks betrayed him.

Sirius crossed his arms and watched them with a satisfied smile, as if he had just confirmed a long-held suspicion.

—Well, it seems Christmas won’t be the only reason for cheer in this house —he murmured casually, making sure his friend heard him.

—What was that? —Tonks asked, as her Patronus circled her one last time before dissolving into a shower of silvery light.

—Nothing, nothing… —Sirius replied lightly, though his knowing smile lingered as he stood up from the table.

He stretched lazily and cast Lupin one last meaningful look before leaving the kitchen, muttering something about reports that required his urgent attention.

But Lupin knew it wasn’t true.

The silence he left behind settled heavily in the air.

Lupin exhaled slowly and turned his attention back to his Patronus, shaping the message for the Headmaster.

When he finally looked up, he found Tonks watching him. She was smiling—but there was something more in her expression.

A heavy expectancy. Almost tangible.

She looked at him as if she too had realized that what they had just witnessed between the two wolves was not a coincidence.

No.

It was a truth. One neither of them dared to put into words.

—Can we talk for a moment? —he asked, his voice low but firm.

Tonks raised an eyebrow, surprised by the seriousness in his tone, but stepped closer at once.

Lupin drew in a breath, gathering his thoughts.

He knew what he had to say. He had repeated it in his mind over and over again.

But when he looked at her, his throat tightened.

The warm firelight danced across her face, casting reflections that made her eyes glow, so warm, so full of emotion, of present and of future.

And that smile.

That damned smile that unraveled his self-control and stirred a longing his reason could not contain.

—What were you going to say, Remus? —she asked, leaning slightly toward him, her eyes half-lidded, as if she expected his next words to be exactly what she wanted to hear.

Lupin looked away for a moment, trying to steady himself.

The words that had echoed so clearly in his mind only seconds before had vanished.

Completely eclipsed by the red of her lips.

—I… —he began, but his voice sounded hollow even to himself.

He was lost. Entirely. Undone, captivated by her.

—Remus… —Tonks said softly. And close.

Too close.

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HP.5, Chapter 22: “St Mungo’s Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries,” from the beginning up to the moment when Dumbledore sends Phineas Nigellus to alert Sirius.

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And then Sirius burst into the kitchen, pale as paper.

—Arthur Weasley’s been attacked! —he exclaimed, almost breathless—. Phineas Nigellus just told me.

Lupin and Tonks looked at each other for a brief instant, the attempted conversation forgotten.

They both knew where Arthur Weasley was that night. And what he had been doing.

Tonks was the first to react.

Her face paled slightly, but her eyes burned with firm determination.

The warmth in her expression vanished, replaced by an unyielding seriousness: the look of an Auror used to dealing with urgency.

There was only action left.

Without a word to Sirius, they hurried to grab their cloaks and rushed out into the night.

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AUTHOR’S NOTE:

Yes! The reason I wanted Tonks to have a wolf as her Patronus was, in part, so I could write this scene.
I’m joking… sort of. Because, honestly, I think a wolf suits her much better from the start than a hare.
But then… what will her Patronus change into?
You’ll see 😏

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