*It's taken me longer than expected to post this. Now that Jo has posted the incredibly wonderful biography of Lupin on Pottermore, this story is going to diverge quite a bit from Lupin canon (if you consider Pottermore canon, as I do). I'll stick to canon as much as possible, but I'm also going to go with the story of Lupin and Tonks' relationship as I envisioned it before Pottermore.

Lupin POV

The first thing I noticed when I noticed when my eyes fluttered open was the start of a massive headache. The second thing I noticed was the corner of a book digging into my neck. I slowly pushed myself into a seated position. Sirius was next to me, starting to stand up. I was so confused that it didn't occur to me to panic over why we'd both been knocked to the ground.

Sirius pulled me to my feet. He was grinning from ear to ear. "See, Moony, I told you she'd still be angry about the toy broom I broke. I swear, Dora, it was an accident."

"What are you talking about?" I muttered as I closed my eyes and rubbed my forehead. I reached for my wand but the holster was empty. Neither was my wand on the floor where I'd fallen. Panic starting to set in, I frantically pawed the ground around me hoping that my wand was somewhere within reach. A voice from across the room cleared its throat. I looked up to see Moody waving four wands at me.

He strode over to me, but didn't give my wand back to me. "Figured you three would best be wandless for a bit. Make sure she doesn't kill you next time."

Everything came rushing back to me. We'd been waiting for Sirius's cousin's daughter to arrive. When someone came in the door, we assumed it was Moody, so Sirius didn't bother transforming into his animagus form. Could we have been any more idiotic?

I glanced back at Sirius. He had his hands on the girl's shoulders - I couldn't remember her name - and was talking to her quietly. She half looked like she'd been hit in the head, her eyes wide and amazed.

"When did you get here? I don't remember seeing you," I asked Moody.

"About fifteen minutes ago. Walked in just as she'd stunned you." We'd been lying on the ground unconscious for fifteen minutes? My eyebrows raised in surprise. Noticing my reaction, Moody remarked "Thought it was better to convince Tonks that Sirius wasn't actually a murderer and you weren't aiding and abetting his escape. Sure was something to see how she took both of you down. Didn't even blink." He chuckled at the memory. Part of me thought I'd laugh at this in a few days too, but at the moment, with my pounding head, it didn't seem all that funny.

"Stun first. Question later. Clearly you taught her well," I quipped. Moody beamed, oblivious to the sarcasm in my voice. Then again, what she did wasn't precisely wrong. If we really had been criminals, her reaction was textbook perfect. I was more embarrassed than angry.

A few moments later, Sirius and the girl walked over to me. I was leaning against the wall, holding a piece of ice I'd summoned from the kitchen against my head. I jumped up as they approached and dropped the ice to the floor.

"Remus, I'd like to introduce you to my little cousin, now that she's not trying to kill us," Sirius grinned. The girl blushed. "This is Nymphadora or Dora. And this is Remus Lupin."

"Tonks. It's Tonks. I go by my surname." She held out her hand. She winced slightly when she shook my hand, which was wet and freezing after holding a block of ice. "I'm really sorry about stunning both of you. I was shocked...I didn't even realize what I was doing. I should have stopped to think."

Most of my irritation disappeared as I stared at her with fascination. I remembered Sirius saying that she was a metamorphmagus. I'd never met one before. I wondered whether this was her "natural" look or whether she'd morphed herself in some way.

Tonks looked like she was in her early twenties. Sirius had thought she was seven or eight the last time he'd seen her so that made sense. She was about half a head shorter than me and had spiky, blinding neon pink hair. Presumably the pink hair was not natural, although there was an oft-teased girl a few years younger than me in school who was born with hair a sick shade of green. Tonks's face was a contrast to her bright hair. Her features were small and delicate, making her look vulnerable. Except for her eyes. Her eyes were kind, genuine, and fun, but also fierce and daring. Even though I'd barely met her, I sensed that, morphed or not, her eyes reflected who she really was.

Sirius cleared his throat behind me and I realized that Tonks was waiting for me to say something. I could feel my face flush slightly, but I pretended that the awkward silence had never happened. "No apologies necessary," I said, smiling. "It was our fault. We didn't think you'd arrive so soon, so we weren't prepared. Usually, I explain things first and then introduce Sirius."

"Well, you can blame me for that too. I think I broke half of Kingsley's house in the five minutes I was there and he figured we should leave before I finished off the rest." She grinned sheepishly. "Did you hit your head very hard? Should you lie down?" She put her hand up to the bump on my head where I'd been holding the ice. The warmth of her hand felt even better than the cold.

"I'm fine. Nothing more than a headache."

"You taught at Hogwarts a few years ago didn't you?" she asked. "I recognize your name. You're a - " I waited for the expression on her face to turn to horror as she connected my name and what I was to the man standing in front of her. But she continued to look open and friendly even though her cheeks turned a little pink. She evidently decided not to finish her sentence. "You taught my brother Robbie. He was a seventh year. He said you were one of the best teachers he'd ever had."

Now it was my turn to look embarrassed. "That was very kind of him to say. Robbie was a lot of fun to teach."

"You don't have to lie, Remus. Robbie was a mouthy brat and you were glad to be rid of him." I looked up at her surprised. She was grinning slyly, her eyes twinkling. I could definitely see the resemblance to her brother.

On my first day teaching, Robbie spread a thin layer of orange marmalade all over my desk chair. I caught it before I sat down thankfully. The attempted pranks continued throughout the year. Gluing my briefcase shut. Remotely launched water balloons. Whoopie cushions. To Robbie's great frustration, he didn't trick me a single time. It got old after awhile. More than anything, I was irritated that a seventh year kept pulling stunts that my friends and I had done when we were eleven. The Weasley twins, in contrast, came up with pranks so brilliant that I never failed to respect the chaos left in their wake.

"Well - er - if I'm going to be honest, I was chatting with Professor Flitwick in the staff room once complaining about Robbie. He told me that I should be happy his older sister had already graduated, because she was a thousand times worse." I winked at her.

She laughed. "I knew I'd left a mark. I heard Professor Binns still fades in and out anytime my name is mentioned." She raised her hand back up to my head. I was so shocked that she was willing to touch me despite knowing that I was a werewolf that I jumped back. Her brow furrowed with concern. "I'm really sorry. Are you sure you're feeling all right?"

"Y- Yes, thank you. I'll be perfectly fine in an hour or two." She looked doubtful. Sirius stepped in between us, put a hand on her shoulder, and led her towards one of the chairs in the center of the room. Kingsley was sitting in the other one.

When we'd all gathered in my pitiful sitting room, I turned to Tonks and said, "Let's get back to the reason you came here. Please forgive the lack of furniture. I don't have company very often." I pushed a stack of books together, transformed it into a long, cushioned bench, and sat down.

"This is your flat?" she asked.

I nodded and shrugged. "It's not the nicest place I've ever lived but it's better than sleeping outside. I expect I'll have to leave soon. The landlord is getting suspicious that I have a dog."

Sirius leaned back on the bench and smirked. "Woof," he mouthed.

We spent the next hour huddled together telling Tonks as much about the Order as we could and debating what she could help with first. Kingsley was planning to bring her into the Sirius Black search. He was a little concerned that Scrimgeour would balk at having a family member directly involved in the search for Black but hoped he could persuade him. It would help deflect any questions over why Kingsley and Tonks were suddenly spending more time together.

Kingsley and Moody left a little after five. Tonks stayed to talk to Sirius. She lobbed question after question at him. Everything from his escape from Azkaban to his experiences in the first Order to his memories of her mother. She was so energetic, so curious with her questions that Sirius couldn't resist answering everything she asked. Even things he'd refused to tell me.

Sirius was mostly a stranger to Tonks. After he ran away from his parents, he adopted himself into James' family. Andromeda was one of the few Blacks he still spoke to, but their contact was limited to Sunday dinner three or four times a year. Tonks only had a few memories of him, but apparently they left quite an impression. She and Sirius laughed hysterically as they told a disjointed story that made sense only to them. Something about chasing a dog with a broom or maybe they put the dog on the broom. I only followed half the conversation. Now that I wasn't distracted by the Order meeting, my headache returned in full force.

I glanced through a book on healing spells halfheartedly while they chatted. I was really thinking about whether I wanted to steal a few cans of soup from a Muggle supermarket or scrounge through the dumpsters behind the Italian restaurant down the street. Which was worse: guilt or humiliation? Bill Weasley thought he could access Sirius's vault at Gringott's without arousing much attention, but it would probably take a few more days. It was too bad Hermione's cat wasn't around. I was counting the minutes until I could afford to buy something, even if it meant relying on my friend's generosity.

"Oi, Moony. Dora - er - Tonks wanted to ask you something," Sirius said, jolting my attention away from my growling stomach. I looked up from the book I wasn't actually reading to see both of them turned towards me. I didn't think they still realized I was here.

"Hmm? Oh, sorry. Sure, ask away," I replied.

Tonks said nothing at first. She looked more timid than she had with Sirius. Blushing slightly, she stammered, "Well, it's just that - my brother mentioned that you were a...werewolf," she gulped the word out. "And I've never met anyone who was a - … I've always wondered - But I can understand that you might not like talking about it. I don't want to pry."

I bit back a smile. I'd only known Tonks for a few hours and already I guessed that she was the type of person who usually did not hesitate to pry. "Feel free to ask me whatever you'd like. I don't mind. On the contrary, I wish people would actually ask questions about werewolves rather than making their own assumptions."

It was like I turned a switch. Tonks' face shifted from nervous to eager. I could almost see her mind turning as she tried to decide which of a dozen questions she wanted to ask first.

"How did it happen? How old were you?"

At least that was an easy one, if not pleasant.

"When you were a kid, did anyone ever tell you that if you didn't behave a werewolf would sneak into your bedroom at night and bite you?" Looking a little puzzled, Tonks nodded. Sirius scoffed. "That's almost exactly what happened to me," I said. Ironically, my parents never said that to me when I was a kid, but I'd heard it a thousand times as an adult. One man, who must have been the world's worst parent, actually dragged his screaming toddler over to me in a shop and tried to get me to scare the boy out of his tantrum.

"I was four," I continued. "You've heard of Fenrir Greyback, I presume." Her face darkened knowingly. "My father worked for the Ministry. The Department for Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures, ironically. Greyback was brought in after two Muggle children died. The Ministry quite rightly suspected him. My dad was the only person not convinced that he was a homeless Muggle who was in the wrong place at the wrong time. He was sure that Greyback was a werewolf and made some…rather unfortunate comments to that effect. At any rate, the Ministry let Greyback go and Greyback decided to get revenge for the things my father said."

Tonks listened to me with rapt attention. She scooted her chair closer to me and leaned forward, watching me with a mixture of pity, horror, and curiosity. This wasn't a story I enjoyed telling, but something about her made me feel comfortable.

"The night before the next full moon, Greyback really did climb through my bedroom window and attacked me. Luckily, my dad woke up when I cried out and burst into the room before Greyback could kill me." Although whether it was lucky or unlucky that dad found me in time was a question I often debated.

Tonks's eyes were full of tears. She wiped her eyes with the back of her hand. She almost looked like she wanted to hug me, but surely that was my imagination. "Do you remember much of it?" she asked.

"Not a bit, actually. My parents always told me it was a tragic accident and I believed them. About fifteen years ago, Greyback tracked me down and told me most of it himself. Tried to convince me that he'd done me a favour," I spat out. "My mum told me the rest of the details after that."

Eager to move on, I asked "What else would you like to know?"

"After that, most of my questions sound pretty stupid, so..." Her voice faded away. I shrugged and gestured her to ask anyway. She took a deep breath. "I read a lot of contradictory things in school and Auror training about werewolves in their human state. Let's see...do you always have a sense of smell as good as a wolf's?

I laughed. What a different direction to go in. Tonks was startled briefly, but joined in once she realized I wasn't laughing at her.

"I don't think so although I can't remember being any different. Of course, when Sirius goes long enough without a shower..."

Sirius growled in protest and tossed a book at my head. "Speak for yourself, wolfie."

"How about your eyesight?" Tonks continued.

"Nope. I just barely avoided having to wear glasses."

She was on a roll now. "Do you prefer raw meat?"

I wrinkled my nose and laughed more. "No. And I don't know anyone who does. I guess if I was going to choose, I'd prefer it to be rare, but honestly you could burn it for all I care. I'll eat anything that's put in front of me."

The questions came fast and furious. She even surprised me with a few stereotypes I hadn't heard before. Whoever wrote the werewolf chapter in the Auror training materials must have never met one. Either that or he was in a creative mood. Tonks seemed more at ease and even I was having fun. It brought back memories of James, Sirius, and later Lily (I purposely omitted Peter from my mind), some of the only people who ever seemed more intrigued than horrified upon discovering that I was a werewolf.

Tonks was almost out of breath by the time she got through her mental list of questions. Still, I noticed a gaping hole. The dragon in the room.

"You can ask, you know. I don't mind," I said, looking her in the eye.

"What do you mean?" she asked, a little too quickly. I smiled knowingly. Looking as awkward as she had at the beginning, she whispered "Have you ever bit anyone?"

That was what everyone really wanted to know. Whether they loved you or hated you.

Trying to keep my voice light, I said "I don't think so. I'm almost positive I haven't."

"But you don't know for sure?"

"Well...I don't remember ever biting anyone. Most of my memories of being in wolf form are pretty hazy, so I can't say for sure. But no one has ever reported that I bit them. And I just feel like I'd know."

"And on that note," Sirius said loudly. Tonks and I both jumped. "I'd like to bite into some dinner. You should get home, Dora. Remus may be too squeamish to scarf down a human, but I'm hungry enough to try."

Once Tonks left, Sirius dropped back onto the bench. "So mum," he grinned at me. "What's for dinner?" I pulled out my wand as I walked to the door and vanished the bench from underneath him so he slammed to the ground.

"What would you prefer?" I asked, halfway in the hall. "Dry dog food or wet?"