Tonks and Lupin, Beginnings

A Moment:

Tonks left the room she'd been staying in at Grimmauld Place and walked down the hall. The place really looked great now. They'd finally cleared out the last of all the old dark family artifacts.
She couldn't believe Christmas was coming soon-she needed to start annoying Sirius about decorating.
She hummed Deck the Halls as she skipped down the long staircase.
Something she'd forgotten...she should NEVER skip down a staircase.
Her foot slipped on one of the steps and she went flying down the staircase, crashing into the wall opposite the staircase and smacking her head on it. She rolled over once, "Ow."
She lay there for a moment so her head would stop throbbing. She was seeing stars...that wasn't really a good sign.
She heard footsteps coming hurriedly. Remus Lupin bent over her, laying a hand gently on her shoulder.
"Are you alright?" His hoarse voice asked.
"Fantastic." She groaned.
He chuckled and moved around to help her up. He tripped on the shoe she'd apparently lost during her graceful decent of the staircase and fell right on top of her.
He caught himself on his hands just before the full of his weight would have been on her.
"Well hi." She said, laughing. "Sorry about my shoe..."
"Sorry I fell on you." He apologized, though it obviously hadn't occurred to him to move yet.
She looked into his eyes, shocked by how blue they were this close.
So shocked in fact, that she forgot the rule she'd learned at age six...staring is rude.
His sandy-blond hair, flecked with gray, was spilling onto his forehead and she noticed his scars, dark against his lighter, normal skin color, and fought the crazy impulse to trace them.
His eyes had a surprised, but soft look in them as they studied her face the same way she was studying his.
She blushed suddenly when she realized she was staring and glanced away.
Remus seemed to realize the same thing, and he jumped up, offering her his hand, looking a bit embarrassed.
She took it gratefully and allowed him to help pull her up.
"Thank you." She said.
She attempted to regain her balance but she swayed, her head spinning.
She lurched to one side and his arms came about her waist, catching her.
"Oi." She said, closing her eyes to stop the room from spinning.
"Did you hit your head?" He asked, sounding concerned.
She nodded, then winced. "Oh that was a bad idea."
Despite her spinning head, she couldn't help but notice how pleasant he smelled. Like the woods at night and Butterbeer and faintly of chocolate and...
Good grief, how hard did I hit my head? She wondered to herself.
He chuckled, "Come here." He said, helping her to a chair in the kitchen.
"Thank you," she said again, "sorry about this."
"Don't apologize, Tonks. This happens to everyone." He said kindly.
"Some more than others." She said.
He laughed and went to rummaging around, looking for something.
"Ahh," He said, apparently having found what he was looking for.
"Here we are," he walked over and handed her a rather large piece of chocolate.
Well...she did love chocolate, but, why?
She looked up at him, intending to ask.
"I haven't yet encountered anything that chocolate won't at least help." He said, smiling as he sat down next to her with a smaller piece of his own.
"Well that's good enough for me." She said, taking a bite and marveling, as she often did, at how wonderful chocolate was.
To her surprise, by the time she'd finished the chocolate, her head felt worlds better.
"Thank you Remus." She said, pleasantly surprised.
"Anytime Dora." He answered softly.
She looked over at him in surprise.
Did he mean to call her that? He looked like he didn't notice, and she wasn't going to say anything.
It didn't bother her; quite the contrary in fact...she rather liked it.
From that day on he always called her Dora, and every time he did, a little joy sparked in her, and her love for him started to grow more and more with each little look, stolen conversation, and act of kindness.