Every Tear Falls Down For a Reason (But I Promise I Won't Cry For You)

9

Nymphadora Tonks was confused. Amelia Bones, Director of the DMLE, and her boss' boss, had just popped by her cubicle and invited her over for dinner that night. That in itself was strange, considering she was just a recently graduated Auror. She hadn't worked here long enough to be personally singled out by the head of the department, she thought. Although she knew she was valuable, as a metamorphmagus, that still shouldn't warrant being singled out like this. But because she had been invited by her boss, she couldn't exactly refuse, even if she had wanted to. Perhaps it had something to do with how she had spent her days off over the summer. Teaching Harry and his friends had been truly enjoyable, maybe Director Bones wanted to talk about that, or maybe it was thanks for taking the time to teach Susan some defense?

Shrugging her shoulders, Tonks got back to work. Whatever the reason, nothing would be accomplished by worrying, so she returned to the paperwork on her desk.

XXX

Tonks was exactly on time, as she stepped out of the Floo with a grace that usually seemed to be lacking. Looking around the sitting room, a knot she hadn't even noticed in her stomach loosened slightly as she saw both Sirius and Remus sitting on the sofa, the former with an arm around Amelia's shoulders as he laughed at something Remus had said.

Amelia looked up and smiled at her Auror. "Ms. Tonks, thank you for coming," she said, standing up to greet the young woman.

Tonks tripped forward slightly, ignoring Sirius' snort and Remus' smile, as she shook Amelia's hand. "Thanks for the invitation," she replied. "Though I will admit to some confusion over why."

Amelia nodded her undestanding. "We will get to that soon," she assured, "Though I think we should eat dinner first, and leave the serious discussion for later, and if you even try to make a joke about your name here, Sirius, you will be sleeping alone for the foreseeable future," she added without even turning around.

Sirius closed his mouth immediately, and elbowed Remus in the gut when the werewolf unsuccessfully tried to hold back a laugh.

Any further conversation was cut off as the fireplace flared again, and Kingsley Shaklebolt stepped out. Amelia went to greet him, and Tonks took that opportunity to say hello to her cousin and a certain handsome werewolf that she couldn't stop thinking about. Of course, they deflected any subtle questions about why she was there.

One of the Bones house elves popped in a few seconds later to inform them that dinner was ready, so they all moved to the dining room, where they partook in a light but truly delicious meal. Conversation was informal around the table. Kingsley seemed to have a better time of relaxing than Tonks. Or perhaps he had been invited over for dinner before, and didn't read too much into it. But then, Kingsley had been an Auror much longer than she had.

When the meal was over, they all adjourned to the informal sitting room, a different room than the sitting room Tonks had Flooed into. She was amazed at the size of the estate, it really was impressive. But then, the only other ancestral homes she had ever visited were McGonagall Castle and Grimmauld Place. Grimmauld was dark and depressing, though she did like McGonagall's home. The Bones Estate was a little smaller, but had the same comfortable feel. As the daughter of a disowned Black, she had not had much interaction with any of the Pureblood circles, so she hadn't seen any of their fancy homes growing up. She had enjoyed her quiet lifestyle with her parents, and their home was comfy and lived in, but she knew that her mother often hurt over her family. When Sirius had become the new Lord Black, and proceeded to invite Andromeda back into the family, while simultaneously disowning Belatrix, Tonks knew her mother had been overjoyed. Even though most of their family was dark and just plain embarrassing, there was a certain social stigma involved with being a Black. Sirius hadn't quite decided what to do about Narcissa yet, though he had asked Andromeda for her opinion on the matter. Tonks knew her mother was torn, and she wasn't sure if they had reached a decision yet. It might depend on if Lucius was ever actually unmasked as a Death Eater.