Categories > Books > Harry Potter > The Guardians of the Eternal Phoenix
The Beginning of Something Good
“Bugger!” Tonks hissed in pain as the mediwitch applied generous amounts of salve on the bruises that covered her left hand and leg.
“That’s one nasty curse you have been hit with, Tonks! The bruises won’t go away easily but hopefully with proper medication you can make them disappear within the week” the mediwitch explained.
Tonks nodded mutely. She was hurting badly and that too not just physically. No, she was hurt emotionally and it was all she could do to not breakdown and cry. She reflected on how things had escalated and reached this point.
Everything had started out well. As soon as she had graduated from Hogwarts, she had enrolled herself at the Auror Academy. To become a top-class auror had always been her dream. She was readily accepted by the Academy. She had been ecstatic but yet a small part of her had wondered whether it was because of her excellent NEWT scores or her morphing ability. She liked to think that it was the former but somehow she didn’t quite believe it.
Just as she had expected, auror training was bloody hard! The practicals were exciting but physically exhausting while the theories were just plain boring, at least that’s what she felt. Yet she persevered to achieve her dream and soon she had gained the reputation of being the best and meanest dueler in the batch. She had been extremely happy and proud of herself but wished for a friend with whom she could share her happiness with. It was a sad truth that despite being an extremely outgoing and cheerful person, she had no real friend. The other students of her batch either liked her or hated her but whichever it was, it was all for the wrong reasons. The girls were jealous of her shape-shifting ability and more often than not gave her the cold shoulder. The boys…the boys just wanted to get in her good books, then take her on a date and request her to re-model herself according to their wishes. It was always the same old routine!
One such guy, whose name was Carl (she couldn’t remember his surname), had been especially desperate. Tonks was loathed to admit that for the first few weeks she had fancied him and considered him as a potential boyfriend. Her illusions had quickly shattered when she realized that Carl was somewhat of a playboy, only a lot worse. I mean the other guys at least waited for the first date before stating their request, but not Carl! He would casually strike up a conversation with her or near her and suggest not so subtly about things she should change about herself to make herself more desirable! Of course, all that was stated in a polite manner! The nerve of that guy!
That day Carl seemed to have exhausted his patience. So he had approached her a few hours ago and expressed his wish to take her on a date. Naturally she had refused. Now any other guy would have taken the hint and backed off. But it seemed that Carl didn’t like doing things the normal way.
“I have been nice to you for the last few months. I deserve to go on a date with you,” Carl shouted angrily.
At this Tonks lost her cool. “Deserve? You don’t deserve anything! And about being nice, if making obvious suggestions about what things I should change about myself to make myself more desirable is your idea of being nice, then you are a bigger idiot than I thought. You should be thankful that I didn’t hex your mouth off when you dared to ask me for a date!” Tonks shouted back. She turned her back on him and stalked away. That proved to be a mistake!
The Banishing Charm hit Tonks hard and she crashed painfully into a nearby wall. Shaking the stars out of her head, Tonks barely dodged the next curse. It seemed that Carl had totally lost it. Tonks was soon on her feet and returned fire with a couple of stunners. Carl dodged them easily and responded with another banishing charm. What started out as a mere verbal argument turned into an all out duel. Their little impromptu duel had attracted a small crowd. The boys had obviously sided with Carl but to Tonks’ astonishment and disgust, even the girls seemed to be cheering for Carl. ‘I guess they hate me more than I thought’ Tonks mused as she dodged another curse.
Soon it became apparent to Carl and everyone else why Tonks was called the best dueler of the batch. Carl was barely defending himself from the onslaught of curses coming from Tonks. It seemed that it was only a matter of time before Tonks emerged victorious. However luck seemed to be against Tonks as her greatest nemesis made its appearance just as she was going to go for the kill. Tonks, clumsy as always, tripped and fell flat on her face. She had barely registered the roar of laughter her predicament had elicited when Carl seized his opportunity and disarmed her. However, it didn’t end there. Tonks’ world was consumed in pain as Carl hit her with some unknown curse, not once but twice.
As Tonks sat up gingerly with tears of pain and humiliation welling in her eyes, Carl swaggered upto her and whispered just loud enough for her to hear, “You should have accepted my offer Tonks. You should feel lucky that a guy as handsome as me and that too from a Pureblood family, wants to date you. I mean, just look at you! Can’t even duel without tripping over like an idiot! Have you ever looked at yourself in a mirror? You look like a bloody colorful clown only fit for a circus. If it was not for your morphing abilities, I doubt anyone would even look at you twice. So next time when anyone wants to take you for a date, you better accept it. It’s not like you would ever find someone who would look at you differently. Trust me Tonks, you would always be a clumsy and idiotic half-blood metamorphmagus to everyone!”
One by on the crowd dispersed, laughing and joking among themselves. Tonks remained sitting there, hugging her knees as silent tears streamed off her eyes.
“All patched up! You should be back to 100% within the week.” Tonks was shaken from her thoughts by the voice of the mediwitch.
“Thanks Jasmine” Tonks muttered before pulling on her shirt and jeans and rushing out of the infirmary.
“Poor girl!” Jasmine sighed sadly.
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Drake was busy cleaning up the dishes as fast as he could. He could of course use magic for the task, but unlike Tom, Drake liked to do it the muggle way. Tom had already gone up to bed and he planned on doing the same soon. He involuntarily let out a frustrated groan when he heard the door bell chime. ‘Just what I need! Another customer!’ Drake thought sarcastically.
“How may I be of…Tonks?” Drake exclaimed in surprise when the customer lowered her hood. However surprise turned into a frown when Drake noticed dried up tear tracks on her cheeks.
Tonks looked up, startled. “Drake? What are….you work here?”
“Yup, ever since the day we met. So, what brings you here at this time of the evening?”
A look of sadness took over Tonks and she seemed to be fighting back tears. “Nothing special. Just wanted to have a drink. One glass of the strongest you have, please” Tonks muttered tiredly.
Drake looked at Tonks worriedly before complying with her request. Tonks took her drink and drank it up in one go and ended up coughing heavily.
“Easy there!” Drake said, patting Tonks on the shoulder. He frowned when Tonks winced at the touch. “Tonks, what happened? Are you hurt?”
“Wha-? No,no, why should I be hurt?” Tonks looked distinctly uncomfortable. “Another glass, please!” Tonks gave a forced smile in an effort to show that she was perfectly alright.
After the fourth glass of Firewhiskey, Drake started to get seriously worried. It was clear to him that Tonks was hurting and was desperately trying to drown out her sorrow.
“Tonks, you have drunk enough for one night.” Drake said while gently grabbing her wrist to prevent her from consuming her fifth glass.
“No I haven’t! I still need more to forget my sorrows.” Tonks slurred. Apparently Tonks was not accustomed to such strong beverages.
“No, you have had enough. Look at you, you are already tipsy and you still have to apparate home. Any more tipsy and you are going to splinch yourself.” Drake said firmly.
“FOR HEAVEN’S SAKE DRAKE, STOP BEING AN INSUFFERABLE AND LECTURING BARTENDER AND JUST DO YOUR DAMN JOB!” Tonks burst out in anger, her hair taking on a blood red color.
Drake looked taken aback by the outburst. He gazed at Tonks for a moment before sighing and let go of her hand. “Of course! I am sorry Tonks. I guess I just forgot my boundaries.” Drake busied himself with the cleaning of the rest of the dishes.
Tonks gulped down her drink and got up. She swayed heavily on the spot and had to grab on to the counter to prevent herself from falling over. She tossed a few coins on the counter-top and turned around to leave all the while muttering something about ‘insufferable bartenders’. She had only taken a few steps before she collapsed on the floor, dead faint.
Drake let out a sigh and made his around the bar. He poked and prodded Tonks but found that she was totally in another world at that moment with no chance of returning to consciousness before morning. He picked her up bridal style, noticing how light she weighed, and carried her up to his room. He laid her down on the bed and was about to tuck her under the blanket when he remembered her wincing at his touch. Hesitation and curiosity battled with each other with curiosity finally emerging as winner. Drake slightly pulled up Tonks’ shirt sleeves and almost flinched at the sight of purplish-black bruises that covered her forearm. He stared at them for a moment before gently touching her forehead with a finger. Tonks’ body briefly glowed with a soft blue light. He then tucked her under the blanket.
“Sleep well Tonks” Drake muttered softly before leaving the room.
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Tonks woke up next morning to a splitting headache. “Damn! I feel as though an entire herd of Hippogriff is rampaging inside my head” Tonks winced and shielded her eyes against the bright morning sunlight streaming through the window.
A few moments later as Tonks took in her surroundings, she realized that she was not in her room but in someone else’s. More importantly she was in someone else’s bed. She quickly checked herself under the blanket and sighed in relief on finding herself fully clothed.
“You know Tonks, I may be an insufferable bartender but I am not that type of guy who takes advantage of a vulnerable girl.” Tonks looked up, startled and found Drake standing at the doorway with a vial in hand. Tonks looked slightly ashamed of herself.
“You had too much drink yesterday and passed out as a result of it. All I did was provide you with a bed to spend your night in. I assure you that nothing else happened that you would regret. Anyway, I made you some hangover potion. If you want, you may drink it.” Drake said, holding out the vial.
“Thanks!” Tonks muttered in a small voice feeling slightly ashamed and also a little guilty having spotted the sleeping bag on the floor by now. It was clear to her that Drake had spent the night on the floor. She sighed in relief as soon as the potion hit her stomach but then as the memories of the previous night flooded back to her, she looked up at Drake, stricken. Drake’s face however was betrayed no emotions.
“Are you hungry?” Tonks nodded, unable to look Drake in the eye.
“Alright, freshen up while I bring your breakfast.” Drake said and left the room.
Tonks sighed heavily. She had insulted Drake when he was just trying to look out for her. ‘Great job, Nymphadora!’
Tonks had just exited from the bathroom when he heard someone knocking at the door. “Come in.” Moments later Drake entered the room with her breakfast. He placed the tray on the bedside table and was about to leave when Tonks spoke up,” Umm Drake…” Drake held up his hand. “No need to apologize, Tonks. I know you were upset yesterday and I crossed my boundaries. I understand” Drake gave a small smile and left the room.
Tonks sat down heavily on the bed. She had sensed that Drake was hurt by her outburst even if he tried not to show it. She felt a little lost. She had no idea what she should do. ‘Maybe a full stomach would help me think.’ Tonks mused and began devouring the delicious looking breakfast.
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Tonks returned downstairs fifteen minutes later to find the pub bursting to the brim. She wanted to thank Drake for the breakfast and make another attempt at apologizing to him but found him to be surrounded by early morning customers. Drake appeared to be very popular among the people as he was being practically mauled over by the people while Tom was lazily surfing through the morning newspaper. Drake seemed to be full of energy as he catered to everyone’s needs with a smile. It was the same sort of smile he had given Tonks that morning, a smile that assured that everything was alright even if it was not. ‘Maybe I would return in the evening and thank him’ Tonks thought. Seemingly coming to a decision, she left the bar. Unbeknownst to her, Drake watched her leave with a sad smile.
Tonks apparated to her house and after a quick change of clothing, apparated to the Auror Academy. She was about to enter her first class when Jasmine caught up with her.
“Tonks, you forgot to take your potions yesterday” Jasmine said, handing her a bag of potion bottles.
“Oh! Thanks Jasmine….” Tonks trailed off. She had just noticed that her bruises weren’t hurting at all. In fact, now that she thought of it, they haven’t been hurting since she woke up that morning.
“Jasmine, come with me. I want to check something.” Tonks said and pulled a bewildered Jasmine to the infirmary. As soon as they entered the infirmary, Tonks locked the door and shed her clothing. Jasmine gasped in surprise and Tonks herself was shocked to see the absence of a single bruise on her body. All she saw was clear unblemished skin.
“How is this possible? Those were the result of a near Dark curse! No way can they disappear in under a day!” Jasmine stated in surprise as she examined Tonks.
Tonks gazed at her reflection in the mirror in shock before a sudden suspicion caused her eyes to widen. “Drake..?”
“Who?” Jasmine asked curiously.
Tonks hastily put on her attire. “I have to check something. See you later Jasmine!” She positively ran from the infirmary leaving an even more bewildered mediwitch behind.
Tonks arrived at the Leaky Cauldron moments later and immediately made her way over to Drake who, she noted with relief, was not busy at that moment.
“Hello Tonks, how may I be of service?” Drake asked with a smile.
Suppressing a wince at the formal greeting, Tonks pushed on, “Umm…can I talk to you in private for a moment?”
Drake looked thoughtfully at Tonks who shifted a bit nervously under his gaze. “Ok” Drake replied shortly and led Tonks up to his room.
“Take a seat.” Tonks sat on the edge of the bed while Drake seated himself on a chair in front of her and waited patiently for her to begin.
“Umm…first of all I would like to thank you for what you did for me even after I insulted you.” Tonks said looking at Drake.
“There is no need for an apology. I believe I already told you that.”
“Yes, you did but I don’t agree with you. True, that I was upset and drunk but still what I said was totally uncalled for. I want you to know that I didn’t mean those things.” Tonks said with as much sincerity as she could muster.
“Of course I know that you didn’t mean those things. But thanks for your apology. I know I shouldn’t have been…but I was a little hurt by what you said.”
Tonks looked down at her feet. “I know. I saw it on your face and I am extremely sorry for it….I suppose you are curious about why I was upset?”
“I will be lying if I say that I am not but you don’t have to tell me if you are uncomfortable about sharing it.” Drake smiled reassuringly.
Tonks nodded and looked outside the window, apparently deep in thought. After a few minutes Tonks began speaking and it seemed that she was merely thinking out loud. “Why did I have to be born as a clumsy metamorphmagus? Why couldn’t I have been just a normal girl? Why?”
“Tonks wha-?” Drake started to say but trailed off as Tonks turned to face him, her eyes sparkling with unshed tears. She swallowed heavily and told Drake about the incidents at the Academy. By the end of her tale, Drake was furious and it was only the sight of a sobbing Tonks that forced him to calm down instead of rushing off to the Academy and giving Carl a hands-on experience in ‘getting your ass cursed off.’
Drake got up and sat beside Tonks. He gave her a one armed hug around her shoulder in an effort to comfort her. Tonks tensed up momentarily at the unexpected contact but then relaxed in his embrace. “Tonks look at me” Drake gently requested. Tonks turned to look at him and was momentarily overwhelmed by the concern she saw in those mesmerizing blue orbs. Drake gently wiped away her tears before smiling, “Don’t let their foolishness and ignorance affect your views about yourself. They don’t realize how special you are and someday you will find that special someone who will look at you and see only Tonks. For the moment forget about those idiots. Concentrate on your training and become the best auror of your batch….Now smile, I want the Tonks who caused mayhem at Hogwarts back!” Drake added giving Tonks a warm smile.
Tonks felt warmth spread through her when Drake touched her cheek and her heart started beating a little faster. She was filled with renewed confidence at Drake’s words and gave him a watery smile. “How did you find out about my exploits?”
Drake chuckled. “Let’s just say that your Prof. Flitwick can’t hold his liquor very well.” Drake proceeded to tell Tonks about his conversation with Flitwick. By the end of the tale both of them were laughing hysterically.
“Umm Tonks,” Drake said after sometime, “I was wondering why Carl was asking you for a date. Didn’t he know that you are with Bill?”
“Was, I was with Bill. I broke up with that bigoted idiot a few weeks after you and I met.” Tonks laughed bitterly. “Turns out that my mother had been right about him all along. And his mother! Where to begin? The nerve of that woman, calling me a scarlet woman in front of all my classmates.” Tonks exclaimed angrily.
“Scarlet woman?” Drake asked confusedly.
“A whore, in normal terms!”
Drake’s eyes flashed with anger. His dislike for that woman had just increased another notch.
Silence fell between them. After sometime Tonks decided to break the silence. “Drake?”
“Hmm?”
“Will you be my friend?” Tonks asked nervously but with a hopeful look in her eyes.
Drake looked surprised by the request. “Are you sure you want an…what was it? Oh, yeah… an ‘insufferable and lecturing bartender’ as your friend?” Drake asked cheekily.
Tonks laughed and lightly punched Drake on the arm. “Prat!”
“Seriously though, I had always considered you as my friend since the day we met. I take it that you hadn’t.”
“I, um, I-I”, she didn’t know what to say. She looked away, feeling deeply ashamed. If she was honest with herself then although she had remembered Drake every time someone flinched at her name, she had never really considered him as a friend. In fact, for a time she had blamed him for her breakup with Bill. Why did he have to give her that advice? Why did he have to open her eyes? She was perfectly happy with Bill! Now sitting beside Drake in his room, those thoughts filled her with guilt and shame. Whatever Drake had done had all been for her wellbeing, yet all she had ever done was blame and insult him.
“To answer your question however, yes I will gladly be your friend for as long as you want me to be.”
Tonks looked up to see Drake smiling warmly at her, a smile that for some unknown reason made her heart beat slightly faster. She lunged at Drake and hugged him for dear life. “Thanks Drake!” Tonks choked out. Drake was a little taken aback by the hug but returned it gladly albeit a little awkwardly.
An hour later as Tonks prepared to leave, she remembered her actual purpose of coming there. “Umm Drake, did you by any chance do something about my injuries?”
Drake looked sheepishly at Tonks. “Yeah well I noticed you wince at my touch so I kinda figured that you were hurt. So I kind of peeked under your shirt sleeves…only shirt sleeves!” Drake added hastily at Tonks’ raised eyebrow. “Well I saw your bruises and I kinda healed them. I didn’t know if you were injured anywhere else so I applied the spell on your entire body.”
Tonks stared at Drake for some time with an unreadable expression before hugging him again. “Thank you Drake!” she muttered softly.
“No problem Tonks. After all, that’s what friends do.”
“Well I better go back to the Academy and explain my absence before they decide to kick me out of there. Thanks again Drake!” Tonks gave Drake another brief hug and left.
Little did she know that the friendship she had formed that day will change her life forever. Will it be for the better? That remains to be seen!
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Drake appeared out of thin air in the middle of Hogwarts grounds. The weather was slightly chilly but otherwise the day was perfect. Drake gazed at the medieval castle that looked majestic and imposing against the backdrop of sunny clear blue sky. He could see students making their way towards the far side of the ground dressed in red or green. The atmosphere was one of excitement.
Drake’s purpose was however hardly to admire the castle or its students. No, he was there at the invitation of his friend Harry to watch and cheer for him as he played his first ever quidditch match. Drake had been in constant correspondence with Harry since the day the Hogwarts Express left platform 9 ¾. Some of his letters had made Drake smile fondly, others had made him laugh out loud and still others had made him frown worriedly.
Harry had been ecstatic that he had been sorted in Gryffindor (Huh! So apparently I am brave!). He had complained heatedly about their potions master who apparently made his scar hurt and seemed to loath him for some unknown reason (Or maybe he is just plain grumpy, the git!). In some of his letters he had stated happily about making some new friends. Ron Weasley, one of those friends, had come to his compartment with the excuse that everywhere else was full! (Such a liar!). Harry assured Drake that he was keeping a wary eye on him but he was fun to be with if you could ignore his laziness and awful table manners and a few other not so good qualities. His other friend, a muggleborn witch named Hermione Granger was polar opposite to Ron (Man, that girl is a goddamn human library!). The friendship had occurred under dire circumstances, well at least if one considered defending oneself and at the same time as rescuing a girl from a twelve feet tall mountain troll as a dire circumstance! Drake had been more than a little surprised when Harry wrote that he had also formed a sort of secret friendship with a girl from Slytherin. Apparently they had bumped into each other in the library. Yeah right! Like Drake was foolish enough to believe that! Drake had teasingly asked in his return letter why Harry had chosen to bump into a girl and not a boy! Drake had laughed himself silly when he imagined the color of Harry’s face after reading his reply.
Harry had been extremely happy when he got selected for his House team. He had also expressed his dislike about a boy called Draco Malfoy and worry about Ron, Hermione and Neville’s unfortunate rendezvous with a Cerberus. That piece of news had made Drake think that perhaps his hunch was right after all. Drake had enquired whether Harry had been neglecting his training among all the excitement. Harry’s reply had been quite boastful. He had let Drake know that he had developed some serious muscles, something that the local girls hadn’t failed to notice, much to his discomfort. His weight had also increased by 5 pounds and he was top of all his classes, even potions! (I guess Snape’s taking pills for heart ache!)
Drake was roused from his thoughts by the sound of a whistle. “Aw shit! The match’s already started!” Drake cursed himself before hurrying off towards the quidditch pitch.
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Harry marched out to the pitch behind the rest of his team and was greeted by equal measures of cheers and boos. He looked around in search of a familiar face but was disappointed when he realized its absence. ‘Maybe he is busy at the bar’ Harry thought in an effort to rationalize the absence of his friend.
After the customary handshaking (or was it handcrushing?) between the captains, the team kicked off into the air and Harry felt all his worries leave him. His sole focus…to catch the snitch before the opposing team’s seeker.
The match progressed and despite the rough playing tactics of the Slytherin team, Gryffindor was leading the match 40-20. Harry still hadn’t spotted the snitch but he was searching frantically for it. He looked around and spotted Ron, Hermione and Neville cheering from the stands. It was at that moment when he felt that something was off. His brand new nimbus 2000 wasn’t responding to his commands. Instead it was jerking erratically like a mad bull whose sole purpose was to throw off its rider. Now that was a thought Harry didn’t want to entertain. For God’s sake, he was over 100 feet above the ground! As if sensing his thoughts, the broom redoubled its effort and a particularly violent jerk left him hanging off the broom, only holding onto it with one hand.
The crowd didn’t seem to have noticed his predicament. ‘Great! So much for being the youngest seeker in the century! I guess they only notice a seeker when he catches the snitch’ Harry mused as another violent jerk almost made him lose his grip. A few minutes later the crowd had gone silent. ‘Finally! Now will someone please get me off this thing!’ His teammates tried to but his broom rebuffed their attempts by jumping out of their reach while steadily climbing higher and higher. ‘Hello! You are going the wrong way. Lower would be better!’ The broom stilled. Just as Harry let out a sigh of relief, the broom shook violently and Harry finally lost his grip. The crowd shrieked in horror and Harry closed his eyes awaiting his impending doom. He desperately prayed to any deity that existed to save him. ‘I am too young to die!’ Harry thought desperately.
Harry suddenly found himself slowing down. It seemed that someone has heard his prayers. He felt himself land gently on something warm and solid. Wishing that it was not a dream, Harry cracked open his eyes and found himself looking at clear blue sky. He turned over and was startled to find that the warm and solid thing was a shimmering and transparent yellow disc that was hovering in midair. Harry felt that there was something oddly familiar about it. It was as if he had felt similar warmth somewhere else. His eyes widened as realization hit him. He looked around and below him frantically and all his suspicions were confirmed when he spotted a familiar looking figure waving at him from the back of the stands. He turned around at a whizzing sound and saw his broom racing towards him before coming to a standstill beside him. Harry regarded the now innocent looking broom with some apprehension before glancing at the stands. The brief nod of the figure was all the confirmation he needed and he climbed back on the broom and kicked off. “Thanks Drake!” he muttered before resuming his search for the elusive snitch.
A/N: Annnnd that folks, is the end of this chapter. Boy was it hard! Romance is totally out of my element having never been in a relationship myself. But reading a few stories do help!
All of you may have noticed that I am basically following the canon storyline(with some twists of course) and overlapping it with totally A/U events. I will assume that you all have read the HP books because I will not be going into details of the canon storyline and only mention those parts which are important for the plot.
Can anyone guess who the Slytherin girl might be? The next chapter will probably mark the end of Harry’s first year but I am not sure. I never plan out my chapters in advance!
And guys, please review. They are like energy drink to us budding authors! Enjoy!
“Bugger!” Tonks hissed in pain as the mediwitch applied generous amounts of salve on the bruises that covered her left hand and leg.
“That’s one nasty curse you have been hit with, Tonks! The bruises won’t go away easily but hopefully with proper medication you can make them disappear within the week” the mediwitch explained.
Tonks nodded mutely. She was hurting badly and that too not just physically. No, she was hurt emotionally and it was all she could do to not breakdown and cry. She reflected on how things had escalated and reached this point.
Everything had started out well. As soon as she had graduated from Hogwarts, she had enrolled herself at the Auror Academy. To become a top-class auror had always been her dream. She was readily accepted by the Academy. She had been ecstatic but yet a small part of her had wondered whether it was because of her excellent NEWT scores or her morphing ability. She liked to think that it was the former but somehow she didn’t quite believe it.
Just as she had expected, auror training was bloody hard! The practicals were exciting but physically exhausting while the theories were just plain boring, at least that’s what she felt. Yet she persevered to achieve her dream and soon she had gained the reputation of being the best and meanest dueler in the batch. She had been extremely happy and proud of herself but wished for a friend with whom she could share her happiness with. It was a sad truth that despite being an extremely outgoing and cheerful person, she had no real friend. The other students of her batch either liked her or hated her but whichever it was, it was all for the wrong reasons. The girls were jealous of her shape-shifting ability and more often than not gave her the cold shoulder. The boys…the boys just wanted to get in her good books, then take her on a date and request her to re-model herself according to their wishes. It was always the same old routine!
One such guy, whose name was Carl (she couldn’t remember his surname), had been especially desperate. Tonks was loathed to admit that for the first few weeks she had fancied him and considered him as a potential boyfriend. Her illusions had quickly shattered when she realized that Carl was somewhat of a playboy, only a lot worse. I mean the other guys at least waited for the first date before stating their request, but not Carl! He would casually strike up a conversation with her or near her and suggest not so subtly about things she should change about herself to make herself more desirable! Of course, all that was stated in a polite manner! The nerve of that guy!
That day Carl seemed to have exhausted his patience. So he had approached her a few hours ago and expressed his wish to take her on a date. Naturally she had refused. Now any other guy would have taken the hint and backed off. But it seemed that Carl didn’t like doing things the normal way.
“I have been nice to you for the last few months. I deserve to go on a date with you,” Carl shouted angrily.
At this Tonks lost her cool. “Deserve? You don’t deserve anything! And about being nice, if making obvious suggestions about what things I should change about myself to make myself more desirable is your idea of being nice, then you are a bigger idiot than I thought. You should be thankful that I didn’t hex your mouth off when you dared to ask me for a date!” Tonks shouted back. She turned her back on him and stalked away. That proved to be a mistake!
The Banishing Charm hit Tonks hard and she crashed painfully into a nearby wall. Shaking the stars out of her head, Tonks barely dodged the next curse. It seemed that Carl had totally lost it. Tonks was soon on her feet and returned fire with a couple of stunners. Carl dodged them easily and responded with another banishing charm. What started out as a mere verbal argument turned into an all out duel. Their little impromptu duel had attracted a small crowd. The boys had obviously sided with Carl but to Tonks’ astonishment and disgust, even the girls seemed to be cheering for Carl. ‘I guess they hate me more than I thought’ Tonks mused as she dodged another curse.
Soon it became apparent to Carl and everyone else why Tonks was called the best dueler of the batch. Carl was barely defending himself from the onslaught of curses coming from Tonks. It seemed that it was only a matter of time before Tonks emerged victorious. However luck seemed to be against Tonks as her greatest nemesis made its appearance just as she was going to go for the kill. Tonks, clumsy as always, tripped and fell flat on her face. She had barely registered the roar of laughter her predicament had elicited when Carl seized his opportunity and disarmed her. However, it didn’t end there. Tonks’ world was consumed in pain as Carl hit her with some unknown curse, not once but twice.
As Tonks sat up gingerly with tears of pain and humiliation welling in her eyes, Carl swaggered upto her and whispered just loud enough for her to hear, “You should have accepted my offer Tonks. You should feel lucky that a guy as handsome as me and that too from a Pureblood family, wants to date you. I mean, just look at you! Can’t even duel without tripping over like an idiot! Have you ever looked at yourself in a mirror? You look like a bloody colorful clown only fit for a circus. If it was not for your morphing abilities, I doubt anyone would even look at you twice. So next time when anyone wants to take you for a date, you better accept it. It’s not like you would ever find someone who would look at you differently. Trust me Tonks, you would always be a clumsy and idiotic half-blood metamorphmagus to everyone!”
One by on the crowd dispersed, laughing and joking among themselves. Tonks remained sitting there, hugging her knees as silent tears streamed off her eyes.
“All patched up! You should be back to 100% within the week.” Tonks was shaken from her thoughts by the voice of the mediwitch.
“Thanks Jasmine” Tonks muttered before pulling on her shirt and jeans and rushing out of the infirmary.
“Poor girl!” Jasmine sighed sadly.
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Drake was busy cleaning up the dishes as fast as he could. He could of course use magic for the task, but unlike Tom, Drake liked to do it the muggle way. Tom had already gone up to bed and he planned on doing the same soon. He involuntarily let out a frustrated groan when he heard the door bell chime. ‘Just what I need! Another customer!’ Drake thought sarcastically.
“How may I be of…Tonks?” Drake exclaimed in surprise when the customer lowered her hood. However surprise turned into a frown when Drake noticed dried up tear tracks on her cheeks.
Tonks looked up, startled. “Drake? What are….you work here?”
“Yup, ever since the day we met. So, what brings you here at this time of the evening?”
A look of sadness took over Tonks and she seemed to be fighting back tears. “Nothing special. Just wanted to have a drink. One glass of the strongest you have, please” Tonks muttered tiredly.
Drake looked at Tonks worriedly before complying with her request. Tonks took her drink and drank it up in one go and ended up coughing heavily.
“Easy there!” Drake said, patting Tonks on the shoulder. He frowned when Tonks winced at the touch. “Tonks, what happened? Are you hurt?”
“Wha-? No,no, why should I be hurt?” Tonks looked distinctly uncomfortable. “Another glass, please!” Tonks gave a forced smile in an effort to show that she was perfectly alright.
After the fourth glass of Firewhiskey, Drake started to get seriously worried. It was clear to him that Tonks was hurting and was desperately trying to drown out her sorrow.
“Tonks, you have drunk enough for one night.” Drake said while gently grabbing her wrist to prevent her from consuming her fifth glass.
“No I haven’t! I still need more to forget my sorrows.” Tonks slurred. Apparently Tonks was not accustomed to such strong beverages.
“No, you have had enough. Look at you, you are already tipsy and you still have to apparate home. Any more tipsy and you are going to splinch yourself.” Drake said firmly.
“FOR HEAVEN’S SAKE DRAKE, STOP BEING AN INSUFFERABLE AND LECTURING BARTENDER AND JUST DO YOUR DAMN JOB!” Tonks burst out in anger, her hair taking on a blood red color.
Drake looked taken aback by the outburst. He gazed at Tonks for a moment before sighing and let go of her hand. “Of course! I am sorry Tonks. I guess I just forgot my boundaries.” Drake busied himself with the cleaning of the rest of the dishes.
Tonks gulped down her drink and got up. She swayed heavily on the spot and had to grab on to the counter to prevent herself from falling over. She tossed a few coins on the counter-top and turned around to leave all the while muttering something about ‘insufferable bartenders’. She had only taken a few steps before she collapsed on the floor, dead faint.
Drake let out a sigh and made his around the bar. He poked and prodded Tonks but found that she was totally in another world at that moment with no chance of returning to consciousness before morning. He picked her up bridal style, noticing how light she weighed, and carried her up to his room. He laid her down on the bed and was about to tuck her under the blanket when he remembered her wincing at his touch. Hesitation and curiosity battled with each other with curiosity finally emerging as winner. Drake slightly pulled up Tonks’ shirt sleeves and almost flinched at the sight of purplish-black bruises that covered her forearm. He stared at them for a moment before gently touching her forehead with a finger. Tonks’ body briefly glowed with a soft blue light. He then tucked her under the blanket.
“Sleep well Tonks” Drake muttered softly before leaving the room.
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Tonks woke up next morning to a splitting headache. “Damn! I feel as though an entire herd of Hippogriff is rampaging inside my head” Tonks winced and shielded her eyes against the bright morning sunlight streaming through the window.
A few moments later as Tonks took in her surroundings, she realized that she was not in her room but in someone else’s. More importantly she was in someone else’s bed. She quickly checked herself under the blanket and sighed in relief on finding herself fully clothed.
“You know Tonks, I may be an insufferable bartender but I am not that type of guy who takes advantage of a vulnerable girl.” Tonks looked up, startled and found Drake standing at the doorway with a vial in hand. Tonks looked slightly ashamed of herself.
“You had too much drink yesterday and passed out as a result of it. All I did was provide you with a bed to spend your night in. I assure you that nothing else happened that you would regret. Anyway, I made you some hangover potion. If you want, you may drink it.” Drake said, holding out the vial.
“Thanks!” Tonks muttered in a small voice feeling slightly ashamed and also a little guilty having spotted the sleeping bag on the floor by now. It was clear to her that Drake had spent the night on the floor. She sighed in relief as soon as the potion hit her stomach but then as the memories of the previous night flooded back to her, she looked up at Drake, stricken. Drake’s face however was betrayed no emotions.
“Are you hungry?” Tonks nodded, unable to look Drake in the eye.
“Alright, freshen up while I bring your breakfast.” Drake said and left the room.
Tonks sighed heavily. She had insulted Drake when he was just trying to look out for her. ‘Great job, Nymphadora!’
Tonks had just exited from the bathroom when he heard someone knocking at the door. “Come in.” Moments later Drake entered the room with her breakfast. He placed the tray on the bedside table and was about to leave when Tonks spoke up,” Umm Drake…” Drake held up his hand. “No need to apologize, Tonks. I know you were upset yesterday and I crossed my boundaries. I understand” Drake gave a small smile and left the room.
Tonks sat down heavily on the bed. She had sensed that Drake was hurt by her outburst even if he tried not to show it. She felt a little lost. She had no idea what she should do. ‘Maybe a full stomach would help me think.’ Tonks mused and began devouring the delicious looking breakfast.
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Tonks returned downstairs fifteen minutes later to find the pub bursting to the brim. She wanted to thank Drake for the breakfast and make another attempt at apologizing to him but found him to be surrounded by early morning customers. Drake appeared to be very popular among the people as he was being practically mauled over by the people while Tom was lazily surfing through the morning newspaper. Drake seemed to be full of energy as he catered to everyone’s needs with a smile. It was the same sort of smile he had given Tonks that morning, a smile that assured that everything was alright even if it was not. ‘Maybe I would return in the evening and thank him’ Tonks thought. Seemingly coming to a decision, she left the bar. Unbeknownst to her, Drake watched her leave with a sad smile.
Tonks apparated to her house and after a quick change of clothing, apparated to the Auror Academy. She was about to enter her first class when Jasmine caught up with her.
“Tonks, you forgot to take your potions yesterday” Jasmine said, handing her a bag of potion bottles.
“Oh! Thanks Jasmine….” Tonks trailed off. She had just noticed that her bruises weren’t hurting at all. In fact, now that she thought of it, they haven’t been hurting since she woke up that morning.
“Jasmine, come with me. I want to check something.” Tonks said and pulled a bewildered Jasmine to the infirmary. As soon as they entered the infirmary, Tonks locked the door and shed her clothing. Jasmine gasped in surprise and Tonks herself was shocked to see the absence of a single bruise on her body. All she saw was clear unblemished skin.
“How is this possible? Those were the result of a near Dark curse! No way can they disappear in under a day!” Jasmine stated in surprise as she examined Tonks.
Tonks gazed at her reflection in the mirror in shock before a sudden suspicion caused her eyes to widen. “Drake..?”
“Who?” Jasmine asked curiously.
Tonks hastily put on her attire. “I have to check something. See you later Jasmine!” She positively ran from the infirmary leaving an even more bewildered mediwitch behind.
Tonks arrived at the Leaky Cauldron moments later and immediately made her way over to Drake who, she noted with relief, was not busy at that moment.
“Hello Tonks, how may I be of service?” Drake asked with a smile.
Suppressing a wince at the formal greeting, Tonks pushed on, “Umm…can I talk to you in private for a moment?”
Drake looked thoughtfully at Tonks who shifted a bit nervously under his gaze. “Ok” Drake replied shortly and led Tonks up to his room.
“Take a seat.” Tonks sat on the edge of the bed while Drake seated himself on a chair in front of her and waited patiently for her to begin.
“Umm…first of all I would like to thank you for what you did for me even after I insulted you.” Tonks said looking at Drake.
“There is no need for an apology. I believe I already told you that.”
“Yes, you did but I don’t agree with you. True, that I was upset and drunk but still what I said was totally uncalled for. I want you to know that I didn’t mean those things.” Tonks said with as much sincerity as she could muster.
“Of course I know that you didn’t mean those things. But thanks for your apology. I know I shouldn’t have been…but I was a little hurt by what you said.”
Tonks looked down at her feet. “I know. I saw it on your face and I am extremely sorry for it….I suppose you are curious about why I was upset?”
“I will be lying if I say that I am not but you don’t have to tell me if you are uncomfortable about sharing it.” Drake smiled reassuringly.
Tonks nodded and looked outside the window, apparently deep in thought. After a few minutes Tonks began speaking and it seemed that she was merely thinking out loud. “Why did I have to be born as a clumsy metamorphmagus? Why couldn’t I have been just a normal girl? Why?”
“Tonks wha-?” Drake started to say but trailed off as Tonks turned to face him, her eyes sparkling with unshed tears. She swallowed heavily and told Drake about the incidents at the Academy. By the end of her tale, Drake was furious and it was only the sight of a sobbing Tonks that forced him to calm down instead of rushing off to the Academy and giving Carl a hands-on experience in ‘getting your ass cursed off.’
Drake got up and sat beside Tonks. He gave her a one armed hug around her shoulder in an effort to comfort her. Tonks tensed up momentarily at the unexpected contact but then relaxed in his embrace. “Tonks look at me” Drake gently requested. Tonks turned to look at him and was momentarily overwhelmed by the concern she saw in those mesmerizing blue orbs. Drake gently wiped away her tears before smiling, “Don’t let their foolishness and ignorance affect your views about yourself. They don’t realize how special you are and someday you will find that special someone who will look at you and see only Tonks. For the moment forget about those idiots. Concentrate on your training and become the best auror of your batch….Now smile, I want the Tonks who caused mayhem at Hogwarts back!” Drake added giving Tonks a warm smile.
Tonks felt warmth spread through her when Drake touched her cheek and her heart started beating a little faster. She was filled with renewed confidence at Drake’s words and gave him a watery smile. “How did you find out about my exploits?”
Drake chuckled. “Let’s just say that your Prof. Flitwick can’t hold his liquor very well.” Drake proceeded to tell Tonks about his conversation with Flitwick. By the end of the tale both of them were laughing hysterically.
“Umm Tonks,” Drake said after sometime, “I was wondering why Carl was asking you for a date. Didn’t he know that you are with Bill?”
“Was, I was with Bill. I broke up with that bigoted idiot a few weeks after you and I met.” Tonks laughed bitterly. “Turns out that my mother had been right about him all along. And his mother! Where to begin? The nerve of that woman, calling me a scarlet woman in front of all my classmates.” Tonks exclaimed angrily.
“Scarlet woman?” Drake asked confusedly.
“A whore, in normal terms!”
Drake’s eyes flashed with anger. His dislike for that woman had just increased another notch.
Silence fell between them. After sometime Tonks decided to break the silence. “Drake?”
“Hmm?”
“Will you be my friend?” Tonks asked nervously but with a hopeful look in her eyes.
Drake looked surprised by the request. “Are you sure you want an…what was it? Oh, yeah… an ‘insufferable and lecturing bartender’ as your friend?” Drake asked cheekily.
Tonks laughed and lightly punched Drake on the arm. “Prat!”
“Seriously though, I had always considered you as my friend since the day we met. I take it that you hadn’t.”
“I, um, I-I”, she didn’t know what to say. She looked away, feeling deeply ashamed. If she was honest with herself then although she had remembered Drake every time someone flinched at her name, she had never really considered him as a friend. In fact, for a time she had blamed him for her breakup with Bill. Why did he have to give her that advice? Why did he have to open her eyes? She was perfectly happy with Bill! Now sitting beside Drake in his room, those thoughts filled her with guilt and shame. Whatever Drake had done had all been for her wellbeing, yet all she had ever done was blame and insult him.
“To answer your question however, yes I will gladly be your friend for as long as you want me to be.”
Tonks looked up to see Drake smiling warmly at her, a smile that for some unknown reason made her heart beat slightly faster. She lunged at Drake and hugged him for dear life. “Thanks Drake!” Tonks choked out. Drake was a little taken aback by the hug but returned it gladly albeit a little awkwardly.
An hour later as Tonks prepared to leave, she remembered her actual purpose of coming there. “Umm Drake, did you by any chance do something about my injuries?”
Drake looked sheepishly at Tonks. “Yeah well I noticed you wince at my touch so I kinda figured that you were hurt. So I kind of peeked under your shirt sleeves…only shirt sleeves!” Drake added hastily at Tonks’ raised eyebrow. “Well I saw your bruises and I kinda healed them. I didn’t know if you were injured anywhere else so I applied the spell on your entire body.”
Tonks stared at Drake for some time with an unreadable expression before hugging him again. “Thank you Drake!” she muttered softly.
“No problem Tonks. After all, that’s what friends do.”
“Well I better go back to the Academy and explain my absence before they decide to kick me out of there. Thanks again Drake!” Tonks gave Drake another brief hug and left.
Little did she know that the friendship she had formed that day will change her life forever. Will it be for the better? That remains to be seen!
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Drake appeared out of thin air in the middle of Hogwarts grounds. The weather was slightly chilly but otherwise the day was perfect. Drake gazed at the medieval castle that looked majestic and imposing against the backdrop of sunny clear blue sky. He could see students making their way towards the far side of the ground dressed in red or green. The atmosphere was one of excitement.
Drake’s purpose was however hardly to admire the castle or its students. No, he was there at the invitation of his friend Harry to watch and cheer for him as he played his first ever quidditch match. Drake had been in constant correspondence with Harry since the day the Hogwarts Express left platform 9 ¾. Some of his letters had made Drake smile fondly, others had made him laugh out loud and still others had made him frown worriedly.
Harry had been ecstatic that he had been sorted in Gryffindor (Huh! So apparently I am brave!). He had complained heatedly about their potions master who apparently made his scar hurt and seemed to loath him for some unknown reason (Or maybe he is just plain grumpy, the git!). In some of his letters he had stated happily about making some new friends. Ron Weasley, one of those friends, had come to his compartment with the excuse that everywhere else was full! (Such a liar!). Harry assured Drake that he was keeping a wary eye on him but he was fun to be with if you could ignore his laziness and awful table manners and a few other not so good qualities. His other friend, a muggleborn witch named Hermione Granger was polar opposite to Ron (Man, that girl is a goddamn human library!). The friendship had occurred under dire circumstances, well at least if one considered defending oneself and at the same time as rescuing a girl from a twelve feet tall mountain troll as a dire circumstance! Drake had been more than a little surprised when Harry wrote that he had also formed a sort of secret friendship with a girl from Slytherin. Apparently they had bumped into each other in the library. Yeah right! Like Drake was foolish enough to believe that! Drake had teasingly asked in his return letter why Harry had chosen to bump into a girl and not a boy! Drake had laughed himself silly when he imagined the color of Harry’s face after reading his reply.
Harry had been extremely happy when he got selected for his House team. He had also expressed his dislike about a boy called Draco Malfoy and worry about Ron, Hermione and Neville’s unfortunate rendezvous with a Cerberus. That piece of news had made Drake think that perhaps his hunch was right after all. Drake had enquired whether Harry had been neglecting his training among all the excitement. Harry’s reply had been quite boastful. He had let Drake know that he had developed some serious muscles, something that the local girls hadn’t failed to notice, much to his discomfort. His weight had also increased by 5 pounds and he was top of all his classes, even potions! (I guess Snape’s taking pills for heart ache!)
Drake was roused from his thoughts by the sound of a whistle. “Aw shit! The match’s already started!” Drake cursed himself before hurrying off towards the quidditch pitch.
xxxxxxx
Harry marched out to the pitch behind the rest of his team and was greeted by equal measures of cheers and boos. He looked around in search of a familiar face but was disappointed when he realized its absence. ‘Maybe he is busy at the bar’ Harry thought in an effort to rationalize the absence of his friend.
After the customary handshaking (or was it handcrushing?) between the captains, the team kicked off into the air and Harry felt all his worries leave him. His sole focus…to catch the snitch before the opposing team’s seeker.
The match progressed and despite the rough playing tactics of the Slytherin team, Gryffindor was leading the match 40-20. Harry still hadn’t spotted the snitch but he was searching frantically for it. He looked around and spotted Ron, Hermione and Neville cheering from the stands. It was at that moment when he felt that something was off. His brand new nimbus 2000 wasn’t responding to his commands. Instead it was jerking erratically like a mad bull whose sole purpose was to throw off its rider. Now that was a thought Harry didn’t want to entertain. For God’s sake, he was over 100 feet above the ground! As if sensing his thoughts, the broom redoubled its effort and a particularly violent jerk left him hanging off the broom, only holding onto it with one hand.
The crowd didn’t seem to have noticed his predicament. ‘Great! So much for being the youngest seeker in the century! I guess they only notice a seeker when he catches the snitch’ Harry mused as another violent jerk almost made him lose his grip. A few minutes later the crowd had gone silent. ‘Finally! Now will someone please get me off this thing!’ His teammates tried to but his broom rebuffed their attempts by jumping out of their reach while steadily climbing higher and higher. ‘Hello! You are going the wrong way. Lower would be better!’ The broom stilled. Just as Harry let out a sigh of relief, the broom shook violently and Harry finally lost his grip. The crowd shrieked in horror and Harry closed his eyes awaiting his impending doom. He desperately prayed to any deity that existed to save him. ‘I am too young to die!’ Harry thought desperately.
Harry suddenly found himself slowing down. It seemed that someone has heard his prayers. He felt himself land gently on something warm and solid. Wishing that it was not a dream, Harry cracked open his eyes and found himself looking at clear blue sky. He turned over and was startled to find that the warm and solid thing was a shimmering and transparent yellow disc that was hovering in midair. Harry felt that there was something oddly familiar about it. It was as if he had felt similar warmth somewhere else. His eyes widened as realization hit him. He looked around and below him frantically and all his suspicions were confirmed when he spotted a familiar looking figure waving at him from the back of the stands. He turned around at a whizzing sound and saw his broom racing towards him before coming to a standstill beside him. Harry regarded the now innocent looking broom with some apprehension before glancing at the stands. The brief nod of the figure was all the confirmation he needed and he climbed back on the broom and kicked off. “Thanks Drake!” he muttered before resuming his search for the elusive snitch.
A/N: Annnnd that folks, is the end of this chapter. Boy was it hard! Romance is totally out of my element having never been in a relationship myself. But reading a few stories do help!
All of you may have noticed that I am basically following the canon storyline(with some twists of course) and overlapping it with totally A/U events. I will assume that you all have read the HP books because I will not be going into details of the canon storyline and only mention those parts which are important for the plot.
Can anyone guess who the Slytherin girl might be? The next chapter will probably mark the end of Harry’s first year but I am not sure. I never plan out my chapters in advance!
And guys, please review. They are like energy drink to us budding authors! Enjoy!
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