FLUFF ALERT!

A Game of Give and Take

"...so Molly made me get rid of the Extendable Ears when Mad-Eye mentioned the invisible chastity belt."

Tonks was telling Lupin about what the girls had overheard of the Talk as they walked down the street in the rain. "I decided to sit in with Fred and George while you and Moody had your discourse about the Seven Sex Fiends."

"Sometimes I wonder about him," admitted Lupin, "But for every instance he's too paranoid, there's another three where it's worth listening to his cautionary tales."

"He put the fear of casual sex into Fred and George, I think," said Tonks with a wink. "Anyway, I grabbed a few Forgetful Frogs and went back to Molly and the girls for a bit until I went down to find you."

"The whole episode is probably best forgotten," agreed Lupin.

The gentle rain came down as pedestrians made their way home to their dinners. The street was busy, but the tall man stopped abruptly and turned his companion to face the window display of a closed shop.

"Remus, why did you stop?" asked Tonks.

Lupin didn't reply, but merely tilted the umbrella a bit so to block them from view of the street. Only the mannequins in the window could witness his intent.

"I've been wanting to do this since I saw you today, but I figured Moody would flame me where I stood." Lupin then bent his head to kiss Tonks thoroughly.

When he finally pulled away, Tonks' eyes were bright. "Walking in the rain, kissing under an umbrella. Why, Professor Lupin, I do think you're a bit of a romantic at heart."

"Would you rather I were a quidditch player?" he asked with clear skepticism.

Tonks controlled her mirth as they resumed their walk. "What would you like for dinner?"

"Why don't we pick something up at the grocer ahead? I'd feel less of a freeloader if you let me cook."

"You're not a freeloader, Remus," said Tonks as she stopped abruptly. "Consider it compensation for letting me use the Wolfshadow amulet on our missions. That's worth a lot more than a few dinners here and there and you know it."

"I don't want remuneration; I just want you to be safe. You're a valuable member of the Order," he began, then noticed the little wrinkled tilt to her nose. "And your well-being is personally important to me."

"That's exactly the way I think about you, so no more talk of freeloading. I'm just making sure a valuable comrade isn't skipping meals." Tonks flicked his nose and walked toward the grocer.

- - - - - - - -

Dinner progressed without any mishaps or scorched noodles, so the couple was soon enjoying their bit of chocolate for dessert on the sofa. Tonks was comfortably settled into the crook of his arm. Lupin's legs were propped on the coffee table, and Tonks had decided they would make a great cushion for her own.

She wiggled her toes as the last of the chocolate dissolved and said, "I think it's time we call our meeting to order."

"So what exactly is the lesson plan tonight?"

"Well, I could go change into some sexy, filmy negligee," said Tonks in a seductive whisper as she trailed her hand down his shirt. She smiled when she saw him swallow.

But then Tonks sat up and primly put her hands on her lap. "But this is supposed to be about you seducing me. I'll make the first time simple. Your task, my dear Professor, is to properly distract and at least partially disrobe a poor, tired Auror after a long day at work."

She had not changed out of her official uniform of Oxford shirt and trousers. In fact, she had taken great effort in making sure every single button was secure. Her smile dared him to succeed.

Lupin fingered his chin for a moment as if considering. "This could be a challenge."

Then he merely pointed the index finger of his left hand in a quick flick down her front. Tonks looked down in surprise as her shirt became neatly unbuttoned, but then she heard Lupin snap his fingers sharply and felt her bra unclasp at the signal.

"You mean like this?" asked Lupin rather innocently.

She gasped as she put her hands across her torso. "Remus John Lupin, you put things back right now. You're cheating."

"But your instructions didn't specify--"

"No magic but what you manage to create on your own." She looked at him in reprimand, but was actually impressed by the future possibilities. "Now, put it all back. These are hands-on, practical lessons. I'm sure tales of Sirius' conquests gave you some knowledge of what to do with a woman."

"Yes, ma'am," he said with a sheepish smile and then merely clapped his hands sharply. All was repaired in that instant.

"Venificus primo showoff," she muttered, but her lips were quirked into a slight smile.

"It's handy after transformations," admitted Lupin, but the shadow of pain belied his words.

Tonks realized that the injuries he incurred as a werewolf sometimes left him unable to use his hands for the common tasks such as dressing. She took his hand in hers and spread his fingers. "You have beautiful hands, Remus. Just focus on touching me tonight."

She threaded her fingers between his, but then moved them slowly up along his digits. She let her fingers caress his fingertips and palm. He had closed his eyes at the contact, so she leaned in to whisper. "See what I mean?"

Lupin opened his eyes and slowly traced the contours of her face. His finger lingered against her lips for a time before he tilted her chin with his hand and captured her lips with his own. The back of his hand trailed lightly against her and he smiled when he heard her gasp.

He pulled back to watch the expression on her face for a moment as he caressed her. Her responsiveness was thrilling and gave him confidence to release the buttons confining her throat. He felt her hand reach up to gently stop his progress.

"You have to give a little, too," said Tonks. She pulled the loosened tie from its collar and released the buttons at the collar of his shirt. "You have the most enticing throat, Professor. It should be very sensitive."

She had caressed him lightly with her fingertips, but now she leaned into him and entwined his neck with her own. Tonks felt a shudder run through him at the warm contact of skin against skin. They remained still as they absorbed the intimacy of the contact. Then she moved to gently rub her cheek against his. She was determined that he understand the pleasure that could be found in a simple touch.

After a time, Tonks didn't say a word, but pulled back a bit while Lupin waited patiently. She showed him what she wanted and again stopped to see how he would follow through. He surprised her by first nibbling along her ear and lashing out to taste her skin of her earlobe with his tongue. Then, just like she had done, he continued along her jawline while his hands occupied themselves elsewhere. The woman was a wonderland of sensations.

Lupin couldn't believe he'd ever denied himself such a simple pleasure. He brought a hand to caress the nape of her neck. Her low moan made him smile, but when he moved to kiss her lips, he got distracted by the lovely expanse of skin on her throat. He left a trail of kisses up her neck, to her mouth, and then back down as the pulse point on her throat drove him to explore the rhythm.

His hand finally lingered at the next button of her shirt. Lupin pulled back to look at Tonks to see whether to proceed.

Tonks's eyes fluttered open and she caught his satisfied smile. She suddenly looked concerned and bit her lip.

Lupin was perplexed by her response. How had he mucked things up in so short a time? He asked her urgently, "What's wrong?"

Tonks couldn't help herself. Damn, she knew she was ruining the mood, but the words just leapt out. "Time to release the quaffles."

Without missing a beat, Lupin said, "I was going straight for catching the golden snitch actually."

She wasn't sure who was laughing more, but Lupin managed to recover first and moved the giggling woman to lie on the sofa.

He used a stern voice to say, "I'm adding a bylaw to our club. All mention of quidditch related terms is prohibited during lessons."

"Oh," she whined. "And here I was about to comment on your broom--"

Lupin did the only reasonable thing and attacked her mouth with a kiss. Tonks seemed happy to let the topic drop.

His fingers traced the contours of her face for a moment before dropping down to release the remaining buttons. After that, he lost himself in exploring her body, still amazed that she would allow him such free access. There was no magic greater than this, he thought, as Tonks moaned softly in pleasure.

Remus held her closely as she clutched at him. Her response made him feel powerful, as if her very existence would rely on his touch. Could a woman like Tonks actually need him? The thought made his heart swell. He kissed her deeply and was content to just have her lying against him for the moment.

Tonks closed her eyes and just enjoyed the comfort of his warmth. This had been the easy part, she thought. There was never any doubt that she would respond to his touch. Now the question was, would he actually let her touch him as intimately?

She adjusted their position on the sofa and faced him. She whispered, "It's my turn now."

The frown quickly flickered across his face. "Nym--"

She put her finger against his mouth and said, "It's only fair, Remus."

Her mouth came down on his as her hands started their task. She brushed against his chest while she attacked the long, slender throat. Unlike the rest of his body, there were few scars here. Her hands fluttered across his chest to open his shirt. She could tell that in spite of the scar tissue covering his body, there was sufficient sensitivity to respond to her caress.

She tugged at his shirt to completely remove it, but noticed how he shifted his shoulders to prevent this. Patience, Tonks. You would have to fall for a guy with hangups about his body! He had to learn that he would not be rejected. So she settled for letting her hands run up his bare back under the shirt and felt him relax to her touch.

She kept bringing her body closer to his until she was embracing him. Again they remained still as they enjoyed the direct contact of skin, but she moved enticingly against him. He caught her in a kiss that revealed his need, so she continued her gentle persuasion.

Ever so slowly, she crept toward her goal, distracting him with kisses, urging him to continue his caresses with her response. Finally, she whispered, "Do you think about me, Remus?"

"Yesss," came the response. She had kissed a sensitive spot and he hissed at the new sensation.

"Good. Think about me now. Think about what you can do to me," she said as she took control of him with her touch. "Think about that feeling and surrender to me."

And so he obeyed her soft urging and his mind emptied of everything but her touch. His thoughts were soon floating in the sweetest sense of oblivion. All he could do was hold her tightly, but his woman's contented sigh assured him that it would be enough for now.

- - - - - - - - -

Tonks smiled at the progress they had made tonight as she felt Lupin curling around her as they lay in bed. His embrace was more intimate, although they both still wore t-shirts and pajama pants to bed. She rubbed against the flannel covering his legs and began humming softly.

"What's that?" he murmured. Lupin's mind was still floating and feeling very languid. He almost thought that he was dreaming.

"Just an old Muggle song," she whispered. "You can't hurry love."

He let his mind drift to sleep with that thought.

The End

Author Notes:

Yup, nothing but fluff. Hope I succeeded in keeping it PG-13.

About Blackpool. I used the town because of the HP Lexicon, but did find it amusing that David Thewlis is from there.

Thanks for reading and reviews. I'm glad the humor came through in the first chapter. Travels mean I won't be posting for about 10 days or so. Need to do something about the afternoon Tonks and Lupin spend helping clean Number Twelve Grimmauld Place.