I'll Be Home For Christmas

Tonks felt the sunlight beat down on her eyelids and stifled a groan. First day of Christmas break and she'd forgotten to pull the curtains across her window. You'd think a fourth year would be in the habit of pulling the damn curtains, but you'd be wrong. She pulled her pillow from under her head and smothered out the light. Ahh, darkness. She started to drift back into her world of dreams.

"Come on, Tonks! I'm waiting for you!" Charlie held out his hand, which held a Snitch. Tonks huffed and puffed to keep up, but she wasn't any faster on the ground than she was in the air. He was going to go without her, she knew it. Why couldn't he just wait for her?

Charlie kissed her.

"Geeaaack!" Tonks sat up straight and sent the pillow flying. She was breathing as though she's just run from Hogwarts to the Burrow. What the bloody hell was that? Charlie kissing me? Tonks tried to get out of bed for a glass of water. She discovered too late that the sheets had wrapped themselves around her legs, tumbling to the floor with a loud KA-THUD!

Her mother was outside her door in an instant. "Nymphadora? Are you alright? I heard a noise." Tonks threw her hands in the air and silently asked for sanity.

"Fine, Mum. I'm fine. Just fell out of bed." Andromeda was apparently not satisfied with that answer and opened the door anyway. "Mum, I've explained this. Nothing in this bedroom can hurt me more than I do to myself on the Quidditch Pitch. I don't need you to come in every time you hear me make a noise. Usually I'm just falling over. Got it from Dad." Tonks started unwrapping the sheets from around her legs. Her T-Shirt and boxers revealed themselves, to Andromeda's dismay.

"Nymphadora, I bought you that lovely nightgown at the beginning of the year. Have you outgrown it already?"

"No, Mum, I just like wearing these clothes. Dad bought them for me. This Culture Club is his favorite Muggle band." Tonks held out the T-shirt, showing her mother the face of Boy George, the lead singer. Andromeda didn't know if the person on her shirt was male or female, but had learned not to ask such questions.

"Who mentioned Culture Club? Could it be my Quidditch Beater?" Ted Tonks had gotten up for coffee and seen his two favorite girls sitting on his daughter's floor. "Nymphadora, did you fall out of bed?"

"Yes, Dad. Had a startling dream, is all." Ted smiled, helped her up, and could see by her eyes that she didn't want to talk about this dream in front of her mother.

"Have those all the time. Andromeda, why don't I take Nymphadora out for breakfast? It's her first day home, and you know I love to spoil her with Muggle pancake houses." Andromeda smiled and nodded. Tonks leaped and hugged her father.

"Daddy, you're the best! Pancakes, pancakes!" She bounded into the bathroom to start getting ready. Her parents both smiled at their daughter and each other. Ted went to get dressed himself, and Andromeda decided to go back to bed. They would bring back her favorite breakfast, like always. She would pretend to be nosy about what they talked about, like always. They wouldn't tell her a thing, like always. Traditions were good.