Rating:
PG-13
House:
The Dark Arts
Characters:
Draco Malfoy Nymphadora Tonks
Genres:
Drama Angst
Era:
Multiple Eras
Spoilers:
Philosopher's Stone Chamber of Secrets Prizoner of Azkaban Goblet of Fire Order of the Phoenix
Stats:
Published: 07/18/2004
Updated: 07/19/2004
Words: 7,301
Chapters: 5
Hits: 1,570

Requital

AmethystPhoenix

Story Summary:
Sequel to Avocado. The past comes back to haunt Tonks when Charlie is murdered by none other than her cousin Draco. But is everything what it seems? Or is there more to the story?

Chapter 02

Chapter Summary:
Sequel to
Posted:
07/18/2004
Hits:
151
Author's Note:
This is the sequel to my fic,


REQUITAL

Chapter Two: The Past

"Hey, Nymphadora!" Nymphadora turned and was surprised. Draco was running toward her, a giant grin on his face, his hair flopping around innocently. Narcissa Malfoy stood in the distance, looking miffed. Nymphadora decided to not pay any attention to her. "Nymphadora, remember me?"

"Draco," Nymphadora gasped. Draco, her cousin who thought the Killing Curse was a game he and his father would play. Draco, the boy who would become a murderer. But it wouldn't necessarily turn out that way, Nymphadora reflected, stealing another glance at Narcissa. Maybe if she...

"You remember me!" Draco said.

"Well, I can't forget you, can I?" Nymphadora said, grinning. Yes, he hadn't been corrupted yet; she still had a chance. "Mum and I decided to stop in for some last minute Christmas shopping. We can't find the perfect present for my dad."

"I'd get him a snake," Draco said conspiratorially. "I heard Salazar Slytherin, the man who made Slytherin House," Nymphadora smiled a bit at the childish language, " could speak to them."

"Well, that's nice," Nymphadora said distractedly. "There's Charlie... want to come with me to see him?"

Draco's expression turned sour. "No, thanks," he said coolly. "I expect my mum's going to want me to go back... I'll see you later!"

*

"Mum, why do you bake so many biscuits all at once?" Nymphadora said, rolling her eyes at her mother, who was at the oven, baking yet again. It was the summer after her fourth year at Hogwarts.

"In case we have company," Andromeda replied.

"Even an army couldn't eat that much," Ted Tonks said, chuckling, from behind his copy of the Daily Prophet.

"You'd be surprised," Andromeda said vaguely.

The doorbell rang. The three looked at each other. They certainly weren't expecting anyone. "Nymphadora, why don't you get the door? It looks like these biscuits will be useful after all," Andromeda said with a smile.

Nymphadora made her way to the door, crashing into a shelf (her mother sighed in exasperation from the kitchen) before making it to the door. When she opened it, she was shocked to see a practically bouncing Draco and a much less enthusiastic Narcissa. "Come on, Dobby!" Draco said impatiently, beckoning to something hidden behind him. "She's opened the door!"

"Draco," Narcissa warned, sounding rather bored.

"But Mummy..."

"Master Draco must remember his father's command to call his mother 'Mother' and not the childhood name he is using right now," a house-elf dressed in a ragged pillowcase squeaked, coming out from behind the boy.

"Narcissa," Andromeda said coldly, coming up behind Nymphadora. "What a surprise."

"Andromeda," Narcissa spat back. The two sisters frowned at each other silently for a moment, then Narcissa added, "Is that a Muggle apron? For actual cooking?"

"Why, yes it is," Andromeda said coolly. "Why?"

"Mummy, can we go in now?" Draco asked, pouting.

Dobby squeaked. "Dobby has to punish himself! He has failed!" He began knocking his head against the side of the house. "Bad Dobby! Bad Dobby!"

"Dobby's a bit stupid," Draco informed Nymphadora as he dragged the house-elf into the house by the back of his pillowcase. "He likes to hurt himself."

"Now, Draco, you know it is the house-elf's duty to do his master's bidding," Narcissa chided, but Nymphadora saw a glimmer of actual fondness in her eyes as she watched her son.

"Yes, Mother."

Dobby sighed with relief.

"Would you like a biscuit, Draco?" Andromeda said.

In response, Draco dashed into the kitchen, finding the tray of freshly-baked biscuits almost immediately. "Thanks," he said, before literally diving into the biscuits. He emerged with two of them in each hand, and he took turns taking bites from each one. "We didn't see you at Diagon Alley, so I made Mother take me here. Father doesn't know, because he's at the Ministry."

"So you're Draco," Ted said.

"Are you Nymphadora's father?" Draco inquired. "Father says that you're not worthy of magic, but I think you're nice. You look nice." He nodded, as if he were revealing a big secret. "Father's not very nice," he whispered.

"Draco!" Narcissa was frowning now. "We're going," she added abruptly. "Come, Draco." His jaw dropped.

"No!" he said. "I don't want to go home yet!"

"You're going, and that's final," Narcissa replied, fixing him with a steely gaze. "Let's go." Draco scowled and followed his mother out the door.

"Wait," he said, dashing back into the kitchen and returning to his mother with a handful of biscuits. "Thank you, Aunt Andromeda," he said brightly, waving the biscuits as he followed his mother out again. The door slammed behind them.

"Strange, aren't they?" Ted said, frowning.

*

The next time they met, Nymphadora was home for the summer holidays after her fifth year. She spotted a familiar blond head bobbing as the owner talked animatedly to two boulder-like (and probably equally stupid) boys who didn't seem to be taking in a word he was saying. "Draco!" she called.

Draco turned. "Oh. Nymphadora," he said, sounding less excited than he had the last time they had seen each other.

"I was hoping to run into you," Nymphadora said. "Mum baked these for you." She handed him a parcel of biscuits.

"Thanks," Draco said. He pointed at the other boys. "These are Vincent Crabbe and Gregory Goyle." He pointed to Nymphadora. "This is my cousin, Nymphadora."

"Hello," Crabbe said dully. Goyle just grunted.

"Father's friends with their fathers," Draco whispered so that only Nymphadora could hear. "We're here with Theodore Nott and Blaise Zabini too... I don't know where they went. Probably tried to escape from those two." He nodded at Crabbe and Goyle.

"I see," Nymphadora said. Nott, Crabbe, and Goyle...Well, this was getting harder for her.

"Your friend's not here, is he?" Draco asked anxiously.

"He's not my friend anymore." Nymphadora scowled. "We had a falling out over something stupid. He wants to go study dragons. That's such a dangerous and stupid job."

Draco pursed his lips. "I don't think so," he said quietly. "Dragons are nice." Then he brightened up. "So, you're not friends anymore? That's brilliant. Never liked that Weasley person much." The bounce had before seemed to return. "I'll see you, Nymphadora; we have to meet Mrs. Goyle in the Leaky Cauldron in a few minutes."

Nymphadora watched Draco leave, a grin on his face. Well, at least one good thing had come from her argument with Charlie.

*

Over the next two years, Nymphadora and Draco wrote to each other often. Draco often asked about Hogwarts, what it was like there. He mentioned a few times about his father's wishes to send him to Durmstrang, but in the end, Narcissa convinced him to send Draco to Hogwarts.

Nymphadora didn't see Draco until she had to catch the train to the Auror Academy, the day he would be boarding the Hogwarts Express for the first time. Recently, his letters had become colder, more remote, and there were frequent mentions of Muggles and Muggle-borns being inferior to wizards, which Nymphadora found unsettling.

It was by random chance that Nymphadora (or Tonks, as she now preferred to be called) found Narcissa Malfoy standing with her son's trunk as Draco talked to his father for a moment. The platform for Tonks' train, 10 ¾, was just past Platform 9 ¾, and she was having a hard time getting through all the Hogwarts students.

"Hello, Tonks," Oliver Wood greeted as he wheeled his trunk past her. "Hopefully we'll win the Cup back is year... Ever since Charlie left two years ago for the dragons..."

"Yeah," Tonks said. "Well, I'm headed off to the Auror Academy. I'll see you around, Oliver." Oliver nodded and left, which allowed Tonks to move towards her aunt, uncle, and cousin.

"Draco!" Tonks called when Draco got out of his conversation with Lucius.

Draco turned around and stared at her in confusion. "Who are you?" he asked incredulously.

Tonks realized her mistake. She grinned. "It's me, Nymphadora... I just decided to change into my school appearance. Much better than the one my mum makes me wear, huh?" She flaunted her cropped red hair.

Draco shrugged. "What are you doing here?"

"I'm off to Auror Academy."

"What are you going there for?" Draco asked, almost derisively. A shadow of a sneer was on his face. Tonks suddenly felt uncertain as Lucius raised an eyebrow at her.

"Obviously because I want to become an Auror," Tonks said.

"I knew that." Draco turned back to his parents, looking bored. "I'll see you at Christmas," he said indifferently. Tonks saw something flicker in Narcissa's eyes, as if she had been hurt by her son's apathy. Lucius, on the other hand, looked proud.

"Have a good term, Draco," Narcissa said, administering a peck on his cheek.

"Mother," Draco said, sounding annoyed. "Don't do that!"

"Narcissa," Lucius said stonily.

"Of course," Narcissa said, sounding choked up. Tonks bit her lip.

"Well, I'll be going, then," she said tentatively. "I'll see you, Draco. Aunt Narcissa, Uncle Lucius." She nodded and walked away.

As the students boarded the train, Tonks heard one annoying girl's voice shriek, "Hi, Draco! Remember me? It's Pansy... we met at that party last year!" Tonks blocked the sound out. The voice of Pansy Parkinson was not one she wanted to hear.

*

"Mum, I don't need pink robes," Tonks snarled, pushing the revolting thing away from her. Andromeda scowled and replaced the robes. It was the summer after her first year at the academy, and her mother was taking her on a Mother-Daughter shopping trip.

"It looks so good on you, though!" Andromeda said. "Well, if you keep your natural look...Why do you insist on changing your appearance every few hours?"

"It's efficient," Tonks said breezily. "Aurors need to disguise themselves."

"You're a trainee still," Andromeda pressed. "You're perfectly beautiful the way you are."

"I look like a doll," Tonks gritted. "That's why I don't like it."

"But dolls are pretty," Andromeda said, sighing.

"That's why. You know what, I think we should go to the apothecary; I ran out of that stuff for the Polyjuice Potion we're supposed to be making this summer..." Tonks rushed out of Gladrags before Andromeda could stop her.

"It's such a mess in there," Andromeda said, glaring at the apothecary and sighing.

And then Tonks had the luck to trip on a cobblestone. It wasn't just that, but she crashed into someone. A very blond someone. Lucius Malfoy glared at her, looking very tall from her position, flat on the ground. He jerkingly extended a snake-headed cane to help her up. Tonks scowled. He was offering her a cane, not a hand.

She grabbed onto the cane and got to her feet. "Sorry, Uncle Lucius," she said sheepishly.

"Hello, Lucius," Andromeda said mechanically.

"Andromeda. And Nymphadora. Charming to see you," Lucius said.

Tonks noticed that Lucius wasn't alone. "Hello, Draco," she said brightly. Draco was standing next to his father, his hair slicked back instead of being allowed to flop around. He was taller, almost as tall as Tonks, who had never been very tall, but he was nearly seven years younger.

"Nymphadora," he said blankly. He scowled. "It's Malfoy now," he added, sounding quite whiny. "I don't want to be called..."

His father's cane whapped him on the shoulder, and he quieted.

"Well, Nymphadora and I have to go," Andromeda said nervously, eyes darting between the two Malfoys.

"Tell you what," Tonks said, "Does anyone want to stop in the apothecary with me?"

"I will," Draco said coolly.

The two started for the shop. Tonks blinked at the box under Draco's arm. "What's in there?" she asked curiously.

"Nothing," Draco said.

"Okay..." Tonks replied. "All I need is some boomslang skin; I'll be quick about it." She dashed into the store, concentrating on not hitting anything. She bought the boomslang skin and hurried back out again, only hitting one bucket on the way. That was a new record.

"Done?" Draco asked, sounding bored. Lucius motioned towards him, and he nodded once before leaving with his father.

"Bye," Tonks said quietly. Draco probably never heard.

Tonks knew Lucius had won. Draco would become what he was destined to be.