Of Pomegranates

Of Pomegranates-

The kitchen was empty when Tonks arrived downstairs; she had slept in, so everyone had already eaten breakfast and gone.

Well, almost everyone. The house was unnaturally silent, but Tonks knew that Snape was around, closed off in the tiny potions lab beyond the kitchen, and she had passed Remus, reading in the living room, on her way down. She idly wondered when Remus had woken up; usually, she was an incredibly light sleeper but she didn't recall hearing him leave the room in the morning.

She yawned, glancing around, noting the pile of dirty dishes in the sink and the chairs pushed in haphazardly at the table... typical post-breakfast morning clutter. A kettle sat on the stove, steam still issuing from its spout; Tonks grabbed a mug and poured herself a cup, sipping at it as she nibbled on a piece of toast someone had left behind.

Her eyes fell on a stack of cartons in a corner of the kitchen. She hadn't noticed them when she came in, but perhaps that was because she had still been half-asleep; the tea, while not very strong, had woken her up effectively since then. They seemed oddly out of place, a high cardboard-box tower in the corner, and it took her a few seconds to remember that Snape had brought them along with him the previous night, citing that he needed some very rare ingredients for a potion he was working on.

Tonks snorted. If apples and oranges (as the boxes stated) were rare ingredients, then she was a hippogriff.

She meandered over to the boxes; she was still hungry and couldn't find any more toast. An apple sounded very appetizing, and surely, Snape wouldn't miss just one. Reaching into the topmost box, she grabbed the first fruit that her fingers brushed and pulled it out. She was about to bite into it when she noticed that what she held wasn't an apple at all, though.

It was a pomegranate. It wasn't particularly red; semi-ripe, it still held faint traces of green. Tonks stared at it, then peered back into the box; it was full of the strange fruit. She smiled. She remembered a distant uncle, some relative from her father's side who lived in Africa who would always bring around a box of pomegranates when he came to visit; she had been very fond of the fruit as a child, even if her mother would despair of the yellow stains that were left on her hands afterwards. And she laughed when she recalled reading something about the properties of pomegranates, back when she was studying exotic substances during Auror training... her mother would have probably had a fit if she knew what the fruit was most famous for.

She was reaching into the box again when she heard someone cough behind her; she almost dropped the fruit she held in her hand as she turned.

'Does Snape know we have a resident thief?' Remus asked, the corners of his lips twitching in a smile as he leant against the doorway.

'What Snape doesn't know won't hurt him,' she replied, turning her back to him and rummaging in the box. She could hear his footsteps clicking on the floor, and the scrape of a chair being pulled out; the breath on the back of her neck made her jump, but she refused to turn around.

'What are those?' Remus asked from behind her, resting his head on her shoulder and looking into the box. Tonks raised an eyebrow as she glanced back at him.

'Pomegranates.'

'Are they edible?'

'Yes.'

'Fair enough,' Remus said, backing away. Tonks grinned to herself as she heard his footsteps retreating; a sudden idea crept into her mind, almost as quietly as Remus had crept up on her.

'Have you ever eaten a pomegranate, Remus?' she asked, pulling out one that looked at least redder than the first; they were all semi-ripe but at least this one looked a little better than the rest, even if it would still taste a bit odd.

'No,' was the reply, and she turned around, holding out the fruit.

'Well, then. Have one. They're really good,' she said, crossing over to the sink and washing it. She rummaged around in the drawer for a knife, dropping a couple of spoons in the process.

'Er...'

'It's not a choice,' she added when she saw Remus's dubious expression. She vaguely remembered watching as her uncle split the fruits down the middle and scooped out the tiny red beans into a bowl; splitting it was easy enough, but finding no bowls, she decided that the pomegranate's hard shell would have to suffice instead.

'Oh.'

Tonks chuckled as she watched Remus tentatively dig his spoon into the half of the pomegranate that she set on the plate in front of him. He lifted out a few of the small red beans and sniffed them in a move that reminded her uncannily of Moody.

'It won't poison you, you know,' she said conversationally, picking up her own spoon and proceeding to pick out the fruit. A few of the beans squirted red juice at her and she pulled a wry face as she wiped at the spots on her robe before looking up at Remus again. He was staring at his spoon, and for a second, she wanted to laugh because he had a distinct air about his face of someone about to hanged. He sighed resignedly as he stared at his spoon, apparently contemplating it.

'I know it's not poisonous,' he said finally, glancing up at Tonks. She immediately assumed a passive face, forcing down the laugh that was bubbling up inside her; it was harder to control her voice, though.

'But?'

Remus returned to gazing at his spoon warily. 'But I can't help wondering if someone might have... er... tampered... with it,' he said softly, grinning. Tonks shot him a look of mock injury.

'Remus John Lupin, I don't believe I've ever been so insulted in all my life. Humph! And to think that-'

'Okay, okay!' he laughed. 'I just tend to be cautious when eating strange, exotic fruits I'm offered by beautiful young women,' he said, winking, ducking as she swatted at him playfully with her spoon.

'Flattery will get you nowhere, Lupin,' she said, trying her best to look stern, but she couldn't help but blush, the heat rising into her cheeks unbidden.

'Oh, really?'

'Really, Remus. Really. Now are you going to eat that or do I have to force it down your throat?'

She didn't bother to hide the sly grin that was creeping across her face as Remus raised his spoon to her, closed his eyes and quickly pushed it into his mouth. She watched him intently, stifling a laugh as he wrinkled his nose but still chewed the seeds, swallowing them with a little difficulty.

'Well?'

'It's a little... bitter,' Remus replied, the puckered look still lingering about his face as he smiled wanly at Tonks.

Tonks nodded, amused. 'They're supposed to be like that. Bittersweet. Pity they're so rare around here, though.' She picked up a seed from her own plate and nibbled at it in a casual manner, letting the bitter tang travel over her tongue

'Yeah. Pity,' Remus echoed, his agreement sounding half-hearted. He glanced down at the fruit again, picking at it. 'But it's not that bad...'

'Once you get past the fact that your mouth feels like you've been sucking on a sour lemon,' Tonks finished, grinning. 'Actually, that one's not fully ripened yet, otherwise they're more sweet than bitter.'

Remus picked up his spoon again. Tonks could see the indecision on his face, but she said nothing, willing herself not to laugh as he debated whether or not to take another spoonful of the pomegranate. Eventually, though, he did, and for a while there was no sound except the mild crunching of seeds as he ate the fruit in silence. Tonks could see that the look on his face was less pronounced, as if he was getting used to the taste- in fact, it seemed as if he was actually enjoying it, considering the rapid pace at which he was eating, despite his initial lack of enthusiasm.

She smiled, a crafty, mischievous smile. She had barely touched her own half, only picking at a few seeds now and again, her attentions for the most part occupied by Remus devouring his half of the pomegranate. She waited until he was almost done before she decided to say anything.

'You know, Remus, the pomegranate's supposed to have a lot of... beneficial properties.'

'Like what?' Remus asked mildly. 'Excuse me, but I'm not very good at remembering the beneficial properties of most things.'

Tonks suppressed a giggle as she noticed that the juice of the fruit had turned his lips an unnatural red. Fighting to keep a straight face, she said, 'Well, it's supposed to purify the blood, so it's used in a lot of blood-replenishing potions and anti-venom treatments. It also regulates bowel movements.'

Across from her, Remus raised an eyebrow. 'Regulates bowel movements?'

'Yeah. But it's mostly known for being a natural aphrodisiac,' Tonks continued, waving her hand dismissively in the air. She smirked at Remus as she waited for her words to sink in. His eyes widened and the spoon slipped from his fingers, clattering on the floor loudly, and Tonks was sure that if she had to hold her laughter any longer, her lungs would burst.

'It's a natural what?!?' he almost shouted, and Tonks had to let out a short chuckle at the incredulous look on his face.

'Aphrodisiac, Remus,' she repeated, rolling her eyes. Swiftly rising to her feet - and knocking over a glass of water in the process- she pushed her almost uneaten half of pomegranate at Remus. She grinned widely as he backed away from the fruit as if it was going to explode if he got too close.

'Aph- aph- aphrodisiac?!?' Remus sputtered, looking slightly ill. He made as if to get up from the table, pushing his chair back and rising halfway out of his seat. He glared at Tonks as she moved towards the door hurriedly, her lips still twisted in a mischievous smile. She paused at the doorway, her hand resting on the handle.

As she looked back at him from her relatively safe spot in front of the kitchen door, a devious thought blossomed in her mind. She knew that she was risking it, that she would definitely pay for her cheek later but the sight of Remus trying to keep himself cool (while his face steadily turned various shades of pink) was too tempting for her not to try.

'Don't get yourself in such a twist... old man,' she drawled, watching him carefully. His head snapped up at her words, and his mouth hung open; he looked positively scandalized.

'What?!?' he choked out, taking a couple of steps towards her menacingly. 'Whatdidyoujustcallme?!?'

'Uh oh... time to go, girl,'

she thought. Taking one last fleeting glance at Remus (now completely red in the face), Tonks fled, giving into the urge to giggle helplessly as she heard him giving chase. His footsteps were slower than hers, but even as she darted up the stairs, she could hear him growling out a belated response behind her.

'Old man? Old man? I'll give you old!' he shouted, 'I'll show you old, Nymphadora Tonks!'

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fin

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