(no subject)
Who: Tonks and Albus
Where: A corridor in Hogwarts
When: After her planning session with Harry
What: Albus tells Tonks it's okay to grieve
Rating: G
Tonks walked down random halls, having left most of the planning in the capable hands of one of her father's closest friends. She finally found an empty corridor with a set of steps she could sit on to take a moment and collect her thoughts. Part of her didn't feel comfortable leaving the planning with Donald, but a small part of her was relieved that he would handle some of the bigger arrangements. She, of course, refused to let him handle some of the more personal aspects. The weight of everything that had happened in the past month finally crashed down upon her and tears welled up in her eyes. 'What I wouldn't give for a bottle of firewhiskey right now,' she thought dismally, patting down her robes for her cigarettes.
Albus patrolled the halls personally that night to release some nervous energy. He walked, for a change, without humming an unknown tune or a bounce in his step. The mischievous twinkle that he and his brother shared, however, still remained behind his blue eyes despite being somewhat diminished from the stress.
He moved purposefully, with his hands clasped behind his back. His gaze missed nothing, certainly not Tonks sitting rather conspicuously in an empty corridor. He studied her for a moment, his head tilting slightly as a look of worry flitted across his face. Albus cleared his throat to make himself known.
Tonks jumped at the cough and turned to see Albus standing nearby. "Albus," she yelped, leaping to her feet and straightening her robes while wiping the tears from her eyes. Her box of cigarettes chose to tumble out of her pocket and fell to the floor with a small thud. "I'm sorry if I'm not supposed to be here, but I couldn't think of anywhere else to go. I can't go home just yet to deal with Mum, and I don't feel like wandering around Hogsmeade or London." Merlin knows where she would end up if she chose to wander around. Probably passed out in the corner of a bar somewhere.
Albus gave a nod as he kneeled down and picked up the carton. Handing them over to her he continued, "Good Evening, Tonks, I believe these are yours." He paused, studying her again, "You’re always welcome at Hogwarts, you‘ve nothing to worry about from me."
Tonks took the carton from Albus, feeling her cheeks heat up from embarrassment. "Thank you, Albus," she said, stuffing it securely in her robe pocket. "And thank you for letting me stay here for the time being. Mum's still in a right state over things." Truthfully, Tonks hated how she felt like she had to be the strong one while her mother had all the time she wanted to grieve for Ted. "She spends most of her days crying or cleaning. I had to get away so I could plan-." She stopped, unwilling to bring her father's service up.
Albus nodded in understanding, "It’s a large responsibility, to be sure. Painful and unwanted." He hesitated briefly, "It was very difficult for me to plan my mother’s."
Tonks felt tears burning in her eyes again, and she tried to blink them back. "I don't think I can do this," she whispered. "Does it get any easier?" She wanted to know when it would be safe to break down and finally mourn.
"You’ll always miss him," Albus said slowly, "You’ll experience terrible moments of loneliness that you can’t quite explain, but eventually they’ll become less frequent. Your tears will flow less often, and you will heal, although as I said -- you will always miss him."
Unable to speak, Tonks nodded and slowly slumped to the floor, drawing her knees up to her chest. The dam that held back her grief finally broke and she started crying. "I-I-'I'm sorry, Albus," she choked out between sobs. "I should be stronger than this."
"Nymphadora," Albus replied in his stern Headmaster’s voice, kneeling next to her and placing and hand on her shoulder, "Mourning your father, crying over the loss, does not make you weak. It simply shows how much you loved him, and helps you release some of the turmoil within. It works for you, not against you."
Tonks sniffled and nodded, letting Albus know that she understood. "Part of me feels the need to be strong and stoic, for my mum's sake. After losing Dad and then me getting quarantined, I think it was too much for her to take. I had to be there to fill the void Dad left." She hoped it made sense to Albus, because it barely made sense to her.
Albus nodded, he knew that feeling all too well, "While you should be a daughter to your mother, you needn’t be her entire support system. I think right now she would want you to lean on her as much as she leans on you so she doesn‘t end up feeling inadequate."
Tonks bit her lip and gave a shuddering sigh, wiping away her tears with the sleeve of her robes. "You're probably right," she mumbled. Her mother hadn't been very approachable, though, only perking up in activity to clean the house for the hundredth time since the events with the virus began. "Mum and I never really talked about things after I was quarantined. She and I had a row right after he died and that was it. I suppose we should talk about this."
"It will stay like it is until something is done," Albus said simply.
Tonks nodded. "I just hope I can pry her away from cleaning. She's nearly polished the silverware to splinters." She gave Albus a shaky smile. "It's how she copes." She didn't want to talk about how she usually coped. Chain smoking and drinking herself to oblivion weren't exactly healthy for her.
"To each his own. We all have our methods, don’t we?" Albus reassured, "I’m sure you’ll manage just fine in getting through to her."
"I probably should go talk to her. I've been rather quiet the past few days," Tonks said. She had a good relationship with her mother, and the two of them could talk things out and realize that neither of them were alone in their pain. "Thank you for listening, Albus." She pushed her limp brown hair behind her ears and stood, holding out her hand to help him up.
Albus took the offered hand with a slight smile, "Thank you, Tonks, and I’m always happy to listen."
Tonks returned the smile and dusted off her robes. "And thank you for agreeing to speak at the service. Dad always liked you. Mum will be happy to know as well, once I tell her."
"Your father was a good man, and I’m honoured to speak at his service. It is the least I can do for him and his memory," Albus answered
"I should probably head home," Tonks said. "Mum and I have a lot to discuss." She hoped everything went well between them. They'd probably talk things over, flip through their old photo albums, have a good laugh at some of the pictures, and cry at some of the others.
Albus nodded, turning slightly, "The fireplaces will be open for you to use floo, then. I wish you well."
Tonks waved goodbye to Albus before walking down the corridor. She felt a bit better after talking about things. Perhaps she could do the same for her mother when she flooed home.
Where: A corridor in Hogwarts
When: After her planning session with Harry
What: Albus tells Tonks it's okay to grieve
Rating: G
Tonks walked down random halls, having left most of the planning in the capable hands of one of her father's closest friends. She finally found an empty corridor with a set of steps she could sit on to take a moment and collect her thoughts. Part of her didn't feel comfortable leaving the planning with Donald, but a small part of her was relieved that he would handle some of the bigger arrangements. She, of course, refused to let him handle some of the more personal aspects. The weight of everything that had happened in the past month finally crashed down upon her and tears welled up in her eyes. 'What I wouldn't give for a bottle of firewhiskey right now,' she thought dismally, patting down her robes for her cigarettes.
Albus patrolled the halls personally that night to release some nervous energy. He walked, for a change, without humming an unknown tune or a bounce in his step. The mischievous twinkle that he and his brother shared, however, still remained behind his blue eyes despite being somewhat diminished from the stress.
He moved purposefully, with his hands clasped behind his back. His gaze missed nothing, certainly not Tonks sitting rather conspicuously in an empty corridor. He studied her for a moment, his head tilting slightly as a look of worry flitted across his face. Albus cleared his throat to make himself known.
Tonks jumped at the cough and turned to see Albus standing nearby. "Albus," she yelped, leaping to her feet and straightening her robes while wiping the tears from her eyes. Her box of cigarettes chose to tumble out of her pocket and fell to the floor with a small thud. "I'm sorry if I'm not supposed to be here, but I couldn't think of anywhere else to go. I can't go home just yet to deal with Mum, and I don't feel like wandering around Hogsmeade or London." Merlin knows where she would end up if she chose to wander around. Probably passed out in the corner of a bar somewhere.
Albus gave a nod as he kneeled down and picked up the carton. Handing them over to her he continued, "Good Evening, Tonks, I believe these are yours." He paused, studying her again, "You’re always welcome at Hogwarts, you‘ve nothing to worry about from me."
Tonks took the carton from Albus, feeling her cheeks heat up from embarrassment. "Thank you, Albus," she said, stuffing it securely in her robe pocket. "And thank you for letting me stay here for the time being. Mum's still in a right state over things." Truthfully, Tonks hated how she felt like she had to be the strong one while her mother had all the time she wanted to grieve for Ted. "She spends most of her days crying or cleaning. I had to get away so I could plan-." She stopped, unwilling to bring her father's service up.
Albus nodded in understanding, "It’s a large responsibility, to be sure. Painful and unwanted." He hesitated briefly, "It was very difficult for me to plan my mother’s."
Tonks felt tears burning in her eyes again, and she tried to blink them back. "I don't think I can do this," she whispered. "Does it get any easier?" She wanted to know when it would be safe to break down and finally mourn.
"You’ll always miss him," Albus said slowly, "You’ll experience terrible moments of loneliness that you can’t quite explain, but eventually they’ll become less frequent. Your tears will flow less often, and you will heal, although as I said -- you will always miss him."
Unable to speak, Tonks nodded and slowly slumped to the floor, drawing her knees up to her chest. The dam that held back her grief finally broke and she started crying. "I-I-'I'm sorry, Albus," she choked out between sobs. "I should be stronger than this."
"Nymphadora," Albus replied in his stern Headmaster’s voice, kneeling next to her and placing and hand on her shoulder, "Mourning your father, crying over the loss, does not make you weak. It simply shows how much you loved him, and helps you release some of the turmoil within. It works for you, not against you."
Tonks sniffled and nodded, letting Albus know that she understood. "Part of me feels the need to be strong and stoic, for my mum's sake. After losing Dad and then me getting quarantined, I think it was too much for her to take. I had to be there to fill the void Dad left." She hoped it made sense to Albus, because it barely made sense to her.
Albus nodded, he knew that feeling all too well, "While you should be a daughter to your mother, you needn’t be her entire support system. I think right now she would want you to lean on her as much as she leans on you so she doesn‘t end up feeling inadequate."
Tonks bit her lip and gave a shuddering sigh, wiping away her tears with the sleeve of her robes. "You're probably right," she mumbled. Her mother hadn't been very approachable, though, only perking up in activity to clean the house for the hundredth time since the events with the virus began. "Mum and I never really talked about things after I was quarantined. She and I had a row right after he died and that was it. I suppose we should talk about this."
"It will stay like it is until something is done," Albus said simply.
Tonks nodded. "I just hope I can pry her away from cleaning. She's nearly polished the silverware to splinters." She gave Albus a shaky smile. "It's how she copes." She didn't want to talk about how she usually coped. Chain smoking and drinking herself to oblivion weren't exactly healthy for her.
"To each his own. We all have our methods, don’t we?" Albus reassured, "I’m sure you’ll manage just fine in getting through to her."
"I probably should go talk to her. I've been rather quiet the past few days," Tonks said. She had a good relationship with her mother, and the two of them could talk things out and realize that neither of them were alone in their pain. "Thank you for listening, Albus." She pushed her limp brown hair behind her ears and stood, holding out her hand to help him up.
Albus took the offered hand with a slight smile, "Thank you, Tonks, and I’m always happy to listen."
Tonks returned the smile and dusted off her robes. "And thank you for agreeing to speak at the service. Dad always liked you. Mum will be happy to know as well, once I tell her."
"Your father was a good man, and I’m honoured to speak at his service. It is the least I can do for him and his memory," Albus answered
"I should probably head home," Tonks said. "Mum and I have a lot to discuss." She hoped everything went well between them. They'd probably talk things over, flip through their old photo albums, have a good laugh at some of the pictures, and cry at some of the others.
Albus nodded, turning slightly, "The fireplaces will be open for you to use floo, then. I wish you well."
Tonks waved goodbye to Albus before walking down the corridor. She felt a bit better after talking about things. Perhaps she could do the same for her mother when she flooed home.