Stress Relief

Well, time for another chapter - hope you enjoy. Hate to say it, but I think the next chapter may be a few days away - I gotta work tomorrow and friday after studying, so time is gonna be short. I\'ll try though, I promise! I quite often write on the bus, but perhaps not too surprisingly, I get a few odd looks! I think I\'d better try wipewipe that grin off my face... :)


Tonks sat once again on her bed, once again her face streaked with tears. This is getting utterly ridiculous, she thought to herself. I’ve probably cried enough to fill up the lake at Hogwarts by now. Molly Weasley sat with a comforting arm around her, but Tonks was barely listening.
“You know, dear, Arthur didn’t mean that those two .. idiots fighting was your fault. Goodness, men can be silly sometimes. Take Arthur, for instance, when he first met me…”
The motherly woman droned on, but Tonks had to admit she hardly heard a word. Snape and Sirius had been fighting over her, no matter what Molly said, that was clear. And, Tonks had to wonder, would Snape really bother wasting that much energy if he didn’t indeed care for her?
“And then he says to me, Molly, what do…”
Perhaps. It was true that Snape and Sirius seemed to find any excuse to fight with each other, though up until now they had only been verbal assaults. Maybe she wasn’t the reason they were fighting – more the excuse.
“And then Richard Bones asks me…”
But Tonks had caught that look in Snape’s eye when he’d found it was her holding him back from throwing any more fists. He had definitely been concerned. Maybe I should give him a chance to explain himself, Tonks thought, feeling a little upbeat. That can’tt mut much more, can it?
“So, you see what I mean about men now, dear?” Molly asked, smiling softly at her.
“Perfectly, thank you Molly. I believe I need to have a word with Severus.”
“Are you sure about him, Tonks? I m he’ he’s not exactly… uh… boyfriend material is he? It’s a bit old for you, don’t you think, dear?”
You might’ve said that about plenty of the men I’ve been with, Tonks thought angrily. How about your son, Bill? He a good boy? She caught herself before she said anything nasty though.
“Guess I’ll have to find out,” was Tonks’ reply. She stood up, hinting that it was time Molly left, then paused. “Actually, Molly. I need a favour.”

Snape trudged up the stairs to Tonks room. He was almost there when Molly Weasley, in her outrageously loud patched pinafore, came around the blind corner at the top, colliding with her sons potions master.
“Oh my!” gaspgasped, grabbing the handrail to steady her self. “I am sorry, Severus.”
“Quite all right, Molly,” Snape replied, but there was a definite bitter tone to his words. He stepped around her and finished his journey to Tonks’ room. Snape tapped gently on the wooden door, then waited somewhat impatiently for a reply. When none came, he banged louder.
“Tonks?! I wish to talk with you!” When still there was no reply, Snape tried the door handle. The door opened easily, and stepping inside Snape immediately saw that the room was empty.
“Dammit!” he swore under his breath.

Snape checked the living room first. Thhe fhe found Sirius and Lupin. Sirius, though sure to send Snape some menacing looks, did not betray Mr Weasley’s prior warning any further, and kept his mouth firmly shut. The sharp looks Lupin shot the two of them possibly added to Sirius’ relatively civil manner, however the fact that Sirius had a tissue stuffed up each nostril to stop the bleeding was undoubtedly the main reason he was silent. Not bothering to ask them where Tonks was, knowing that it would only stir up more trouble than Snape needed at the moment, he headed for the study. He stood out in the hall, peering into the busy room. Inside were most of the Weasleys, in fact, all of them except Ron, by the looks of things, and that blasted Potter. Snape slunk off down the hall before he was seen. He tried each of the bedrooms in turn, coming up completely empty handed. He approached the last room, and with out a thought that someone might actually be in there, he flung the door open. Banging on the rest of the doors had become tiresome and unnecessary. However, the second the door flew open, Snape wished he had stopped to knock.
“Professor Snape!”
There, wide eyed, lay Hermione, her legs wrappedhtlyhtly around Ron’s waist. Ron, staring at his professor with his mouth hanging open like a trout, had his lily white bum in the air, obviously about to take another plunge into the girl.
“Very attractive,” Snape sneered, the shock lifting from his mind. “For Merlin’s sake, the the bloody door! Can’t you even do that, Weasley?!” Snape slammed the door behind him, and couldn’t help the smile that crept to his lips. That was going to be excellent ammunition for the impending school year. He could see it now ‘I said a small amount, Weasley! Surely you know what small is?’ Mm, yes, that would be most satisfying - watching the little twerp squirm in his seat and seeing Miss Know-it-all’s face turn the colour of her lovers hair.
The thought of torturing students slipped too quickly from his mind though, to be replaced with the fact that Tonks was no where to be found.

Eventually Snape found himself in the kitchen, defeated.
“Pot of tea, Severus?” Molly called from the kitchen. Snape hated to accept anything from those blasted Weasley’s but…
“Yes, thank you Molly. I believe that is what I need.”
Molly pointed her wand at the porcelain tea pot, and set the steaming pot along with a cup on the table before Snape. She settled into the seat opposite him. Snape poured himself a cup, took a sip and placed it quickly on the table as he felt the liquid searing his throat on the way down – much too hot. He uneasily realised that Molly was still staring at him. Snape bit his tongue, mulling his words over until they sounded respectable before saying, “Can I help you with something?”
“Oh! I don’t know.. well, I was just talking with Tonks, and uh, she’s quite upset, Severus.”
“Tonks? You were talking to her?” Snape leapt to his feet demanding, “Where is she? I’ve been searching this whole bloody house for her!” And had to endure your sons naked arse
“Uh, I’m not exactly sure where she went. Didn’t say. Said she be back soon, though.”
“Oh.” Snape sat himself back down, his stomach sinking again. “I suppose I’m going to get the usual motherly talk now? I’ll save you from wasting your time Molly – I am perfectly aware where you stand on this issue – you’ve made it quite clear. And I think perhaps Tonks has too.” There was a sad note in his voice.
“Oh, no!” Molly said insistently. Then, suddenly fidgety, she added “I mean, I talked with Tonks and I think she’s still interested, Severus. She’s just … afraid that you … you just want to… well, you know…”
“Hardly!” Snape growled. “I dare say if that’s all I wanted Volde…You Know Who would’ve made one of his … servants available.” Snape saw Molly cringe in disgust. “No, Molly, Tonks is quite different. I’m sure you don’t want to hear it, but I love her.”
“Really?” Molly’s eyes twinkled in delight.
“Yes, really. That girl is a wonder – she’s so beautiful, so kind and such a good friend to me… how could I not fall for her? Merlin, listen to me, I sound like one of those bloody kids… no offence.”
Molly didn’t seem to take any notice of this. Before Snape even realised what had happened, she leaned across the table and kissed him – and not a motherly peck on the check eithernapenape reeled back in horror.
“Molly! What the hell do you…”
“Oh, Sev, it’s not Molly, it’s me!” Molly’s face laughed then wrinkled its nose. Molly Weasley morphed into none other than Tonks. “I love you too, Sev!”
Snape stared at her in shock – unsure whether to be angry at her deceit or overjoyed at her revelation.
Slowly his face softened to a smile. “You have no idea how relieved I am to hear that, you little scamp!”

Bogan - thanks for reviewing again! Ahhhhhh, I just love reviews... that make me all tingly...

April Grey - thank you too! I\'ve been reading you fic \'A delicate obsession\' and it\'s brill! I totally recommend this to everyone!

GX-Silver - There be some more fights yet between those two bafoons! Can\'t see that dog letting go of the bone that easily. Glad you enjoyed!

Amethyst - Some hexes would have been fun - perhaps later when Molly isn\'t watching! I thought that the fight would be perhaps a little ... more primal than magic. Your story sounds interesting - I\'ll email you!

Jaelyss - Ah, don\'t worry, I have plenty of room for smut too! Perhaps things are looking up for the pair...?

Alana - yeah, perhaps Sirius got off a little lightly... thanks for reading my other fic!

Tiffany - tonks and Sirius - yeah, that is icky, but kinda necessary for my plot - promise it won\'t get too nasty though! Thanks for reviewing!


I\'ve started an NC-17 Yahoo group for Tonks/Sev stuff - I know there\'s a couple of other groups for these two, but they\'re all r-rated and I just can\'t help myself...LOL... so if you want to join your most welcome...and I\'d really like a picky to put on the front page, so anyone who\'s artistically inclined feel free to send me one or you\'ll have to put up with one of mine and that ain\'t a pretty idea! http://groups.yahoo.com/group/snapetonks/