Just The Way You Are: A Ronks Story

Tonks's Tale

"Didn't you have to pick up something from your parents?" asked Remus. He, Sirius, and Tonks were huddled around Sneakers, watching her sleep.

"Oh yeah," said Tonks. "I'm going now. Anyone want to come with?"

"Okay," said Remus.

"I'll stay to watch the puppy," volunteered Sirius.

"See you later!" called Tonks. She'd grabbed some new sneakers from her room, and donated her black ones to Sneaker, who seemed to feel that the shoes were meant for her.

"How many pairs of black sneakers do you have?" asked Remus.

"Quite a lot," said Tonks, grinning.

As they turned the corner, the sprinklers turned on. Tonks screamed and raced through the shooting water, with Remus at her heels.

"Well..." puffed Remus. "That... went... well."

Tonks looked at her soaked hoodie. "Not really," she said sadly. "I'm cold." Tonks pulled the wet fabric away from her.

Remus shrugged. "Why don't we run there? That'll warm you up."

"Oh," said Tonks. "Okay." Tonks took the lead, because she actually knew where she was going. Tonks was surprisingly fast, and Remus found himself having to work hard to keep up with her.

"Any. Chance. You. Could. Slow. Down?"

Tonks slowed to a halt as she waited for Remus to catch up. "You need to exercise more," smirked Tonks.

"Some of us. Are. Not. As fit. As you." Remus doubled over, trying to catch his breath.

"That much is clear," said Tonks, rolling her eyes.

"Hey!"

"There's my parent's house," said Tonks, pointing at a neat yellow house, with carefully trimmed bushes, and an abundant crop of flowers growing there too.

"Wow," said Remus. "They clearly put some work into their house!"

"I know," said Tonks, as she rang the doorbell. "When I was little I would play hide-and seek with myself in the bushes. Of course I never found myself, but that was part of the fun!" 

The door creaked open, and through the screen, Remus saw a kind-looking man with blond-brown hair. He had a nice smile, and his eyes, although blue while his daughter's were brown, shone with the same energetic light. "Hello, Nymphadora!" he said.

Tonks's face reddened. "Da-ad! It's Tonks!"

"Oh, I see. Your name changes constantly. Like technology these days. I just can't understand it..."

Tonks's face was on fire. Ted must have noticed, because he said, "Oh, I'm embarrassing you in front of your friend, aren't I?"

"Yes!" snarled Tonks through gritted teeth. "And you've called me Tonks ever since I was five!"

Ted ignored his daughter, and now looked past her at Remus. "And this must be the Remus that I've heard so much about. Tonks says you're a great friend, and-"

"Just let us in," growled Tonks.

"Oh... and about your other tennis shoes," said Ted a bit sheepishly. "Your mother lost them."

"I give up," sighed Tonks, storming back down the sidewalk. 

"Wait!" called Ted. "She also made some apology lemonade! Why don't you and Remus come inside and have some?"

Tonks stopped in her tracks. 

"That girl loves lemonade," whispered Ted to Remus. 

"Do you want to, Remus?" asked Tonks.

"Do you?" asked Remus.

"Well... I wouldn't mind. I guess." Tonks headed back to the house. 

Ted smirked. "She guesses." He opened the screen door. "Come in, Remus."

Remus stepped awkwardly into the house. Everything was nice and neat. But not neat enough to make it feel fancy. It just felt... tidy and cozy. A white metal spiral staircase curled up. Twinkling, colorful lights were twisted around the banister. On the white couch were a few yellow-and-white striped pillows. A yellow knitted throw blanket  was draped over the couch. It wasn't hard to see that Tonks had clearly had a nice childhood.

Tonks came into the house and slammed the door. ("Don't slam the screen door, Nymphadora")

"My name. Is. TONKS!" yelled Tonks.

"Calm down," said Remus. He patted Tonks on the head.  "Now, am I going to spend the rest of this visit standing here?"

"No," said Tonks. "Come on." Tonks grabbed Remus's arm and led him into a bright, airy kitchen. White, yellow, and metal seemed to be a theme in Tonks's parents' house. The chairs were metal, white, and had yellow cushions, giving the house the impression of being bright and cheery.

"Sit down, guys," said Ted, gesturing to the chairs around the table. Tonks slumped into a chair, and Remus took the one next to her. Ted handed lemonade around, and pretty soon, Tonks's stormy expression had vanished, and she was her usual cheerful self again.

The kitchen had glass sliding doors that gave anyone there a great view of the sea-blue pool. Ted pointed outside. "When winter's over, I ought to invite you two and Sirius over for a swim party. Wouldn't that be fun?"

"No," said Tonks. "That would not be fun."

Ted shrugged. "It was just an idea. But I do know for a fact that Sirius just loves showing off his 'Impressive'," Ted made finger quotes, "swimming skills." He paused to take a gulp of lemonade. "I remember, shortly before Sirius got arrested, Tonks here was seven, I doubt she can remember, but-"

"I remember," Tonks cut in.

"You do?" asked Ted, looking surprised. "You go ahead and tell it then."

"So, one day, my parents' hosted a summer party. And Sirius wanted to go swimming. I did too, because it was so hot, and I had been stuck in the house all day, cooking, and preparing for the party. So, Sirius got in the pool, along with some of the cousins on my dad's side, and I did too, and we were all having a good time when..." here Tonks took a long swallow of lemonade.

"Hey, you can't leave me like that!" protested Remus. 

"It's called suspense," said Tonks, laughing. "A baby bird fell into the pool! Well, it didn't exactly fall into the pool. It hit the water at the exact spot and moment that Sirius was coming up for a breath of air, and it hit him on the head. AND, that isn't even the best part! It tried to fly away, but its claws got tangled in his hair, and he started screaming so loud that the neighbors looked over the fence. As the poet that lived next door stated, 'As a fire engine, loud and clear, that man's scream will haunt my worst nightmares, and I shall drown in his cries, only to be awakened and brought back to life'. That guy never really made sense, but it was a funny poem, and I even wrote it down!" Tonks ended her story, and sat back in her chair, looking satisfied.

"And that was the story of Sirius and the pool, as told by Nymphadora Tonks," said Ted. He got up and collected empty glasses, and dumped them in the sink. "For Andromeda, later," he explained. "I"m far too lazy to do the dishes myself!"

After they'd left the house, Tonks and Remus were both smiling happily, thinking of Sirius being attacked by the baby bird.