Just The Way You Are: A Ronks Story

"I guess they do love me."

Dinner was a success, and Tonks finally got the pumpkin pie she wanted. Sirius seemed satisfied that he was able to put a decent meal on the table. Remus was the only unhappy one.

"Want to play?" asked Sirius, waving a dice at his friend.

"Play what?"

"Monopoly!" squealed Tonks. 

"Uh, no, and I think you've had too much pie, Tonks," said Remus. "And doesn't Monopoly last forever?"

"No, only like, four hours!" giggled Tonks.

"I'm going upstairs to read. Remember Tonks, come up if you get tired. Sorry was not a good game to use as a pillow, and I doubt Monopoly is." Remus stalked upstairs.

"What's with him?" asked Sirius, staring after Remus.

"Eh?" asked Tonks, whose face was practically inside of her glass of water. She was chasing an ice cube around with her tongue. "I lamost lot fit!"

"What?" asked Sirius.

Tonks sighed, and pulled her face up. "I almost got it. Are you deaf?"

"'lalalala' doesn't mean anything to me."

"It should."

Five hours later, Tonks could hardly keep her eyes open, and staggered up to bed. She stumbled in the dark hallway and fell over, hitting her forehead on a table. She whimpered, and lay there for a moment before dragging herself into the room and collapsing on the bed. 

Remus was engaged in his book, and his eyes were pinging back and forth across the page. He looked happy, although, Tonks noted, his eyes were wet. She curled up beside him and closed her eyes, snuggling into the blankets. Remus patted her on the head, and pulled an envelope out of his pocket. Suddenly, Tonks was wide awake.

"What's that?" asked Tonks, staring at the envelope.

"It's a letter. You know that."

"From who?"

"My..." Remus swallowed hard. "Parents." The werewolf whispered the last word, as if it were forbidden to say out loud.

"Oh yes, terrifying." Tonks nodded. "Letters from parents are always the worst. They're either writing to tell you how much they love you and can't wait  to pinch your cheeks again, or when are you going to get married and give them the grandkids they always asked for and won't want anyway after they're born, or that their house burned down and they're coming to live with you." Tonks shuddered. "I used to have nightmares about that last one. Now, not so much. Now it's that they get too old to live on their own. They might not make it out alive of the burning house, but they have a good chance of being alive if they're moving in because they're old."

"Um, okay." Remus eyed Tonks as if she had two heads and one of them was on fire. "But me and my parents, we don't have the best relationship."

"Ah, the singing Justin Bieber ornament," said Tonks wisely. "Destroys entire countries, that one."

"What, no! I mean, we don't always get along because of... a few things. But I assure you that it is not because someone forgot to give someone a singing Justin Bieber ornament for Christmas."

"Oh, no, it's not that. That theory only happens when someone does give someone a singing Justin Bieber ornament. The worst of all gifts."

"Uh, cool. But should I open it?"

"Yesssss!" said Tonks, throwing two handfuls of feathers in the air. They swirled through the air, a fluffy blizzard. 

"Where did you get those from?" asked Remus.