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Chapter 640: Nymphadora Tonks
🕑 Added 2019-10-31 19:38:35 +0000 UTCAs before, the Shrieking Shack was still very disordered. Paper was peeling from the walls, there were stains all over the floor; every piece of furniture was broken as though somebody had smashed it. The windows were all boarded up.
Apart from Sirius's brief stay there last year, no one had entered the house for more than 30 years.
The Shrieking Shack, also called the haunted house by Hogsmeade’s residents, was rarely approached. But the yells and shouts that villagers often heard were actually Lupin's voice in the form of a werewolf. When he was at Hogwarts School, this was where he had to come every full moon night.
Sirius was very familiar with this place. During the break, he told Evan, Harry, and Hermione about their past in the school.
Harry listened very carefully. He wanted to know more about his father.
At noon, the four of them ate at the Three Broomsticks Inn.
Many students had gone back to school early. It was January. The temperature outside was too cold to have any fun.
They didn't see Colin, Ginny, and Gabrielle, and they didn't see Ron. Nor did they know where he and Lavender had gone.
In the afternoon practice, Evan would Apparate with Hermione. That was the first time for him to take somebody else with him.
Evan was going to make a real long-distance Apparition, probably because he had just heard Sirius recall the past, and was sad, he took Hermione to directly Apparate into the store in Diagon Alley and appeared in front of Lupin.
Naturally, Lupin looked in surprise at the two people who suddenly appeared in front of him!
"Good afternoon, Lupin!" said Evan with a smile.
"Hello, Professor!" Hermione looked around and was happy with Evan’s success.
Just in a moment, the two of them came from Hogsmeade to Diagon Alley.
"Evan, Hermione, how did you..." Lupin couldn't believe it, pushing aside the thick data in front of him.
"It’s Apparition. We just wanted to come over and see you!" Evan explained, "We’ll be right back!"
"I've heard of it, but I didn't expect you to learn it so quickly," said Lupin, "but I think what the two of you are doing is really risky. It's irrational. How can Sirius help you cheat the Ministry of magic? Apparition is very dangerous. There are many wizards every year..."
Before he had finished speaking, the door of the office was suddenly pushed open.
"Remus, who are you talking to?!"
In came a young witch, dressed in fashion and looking very beautiful!
She had a pale heart-shaped face and very attractive dark twinkling eyes.
Like Lupin, she was equally surprised to see Evan and Hermione. "Hey, who are these two children?"
"Evan Mason and Hermione Granger, I told you about them before," said Lupin softly, introducing the two sides, "This is Nymphadora..."
"Don’t call me Nymphadora, Remus," said the young witch with a shudder. "It's Tonks!"
"Nymphadora Tonks, who prefers to be known by her surname only," finished Lupin.
"So would you if your fool of a mother had called you ‘Nymphadora,’" muttered Tonks, looking closely at Evan and Hermione. "So, you are the Evan Mason?!"
"It's me!" Evan nodded and looked at the witch opposite, realizing who the girl was.
According to her generation, she should be Sirius’s niece.
Her mother, Andromeda, was a member of the Black family, the cousin of Sirius. But like Sirius, she was considered a shame and a traitor because she was born in the old and noble Black family, but married a Muggle-born wizard, Ted Tonks.
If Evan was not mistaken, Tonks should have just become an Auror, a colleague of Sirius. He couldn’t see why she was here, and Lupin thought the same.
"Tonks, why are you here?" He couldn't hide a slight smile for Tonks on the corner of his mouth.
"Today is the weekend, I have a rest and I’m free. I just wanted to come and see you!"
He couldn't help smiling again to Tonks.
They seemed familiar to each other. Evan was keenly aware that the situation was a bit tricky, and it seemed that Tonks was secretly in love with Lupin!
He could see that Lupin was also very fond of her. Otherwise he would not have this expression.
With Lupin’s rigorous character, he would not allow any irrelevant person to enter his office casually.
"I heard that the Ministry had been very busy recently, and the Aurors had been sent out..."
"Don't mention it, until now, the old man Scrimgeour has only assigned me such trivial things as smuggling crucibles, which is absolutely boring!" Tonks said nonchalantly, eyeing Evan and Hermione with great interest. "By the way, you two should be in school. Why are you here?"
"That’s because..."
"I see … Apparition!" Tonks did not seem to be surprised. "I’ve been involved in this matter and asked to cooperate with him on the Apparition test list. His name has been added, and I was wondering how he was doing. So, you’ve already begun to learn Apparition?!"
Evan nodded again. He had hoped Sirius could have been more discreet. It was best if the fact he was practicing Apparition was not known by anyone else.
Lupin looked frustrated, too. It was like she and the charming Sirius had been rather close.
"That’s amazing. No wonder everyone says that you’ve got great talent," said Tonks cheerfully, "At your age, there was no way to talk about Apparition. I didn't even know a few real spells. My teachers always said... "
"All right, Tonks, they’re going back soon. Please stay with Hermione for a while. I have something to say to Evan," said Evan.
"Okay!" Tonks led Hermione to the round table by the fireplace and turned out a pot of tea and cake.
The two of them chatted together. A second later, Tonks's hair turned from purple to bubble-gum pink.
"How did you do that?" said Hermione, gaping at her.
"I’m a Metamorphmagus," she said, looking at her reflection in a small mirror and turning her head so that she could see her hair from all directions. "It means I can change my appearance at will."
"I know this magic can help users change their physical appearance. This is a very, very rare magic."
"I was born one. I got top marks in Concealment and Disguise during Auror training without any study at all, it was great!" said Tonks proudly.
