Huffle Tonks Story

Huffle Tonks Story by Fernwithy

Summary: “It was decided that Hufflepuff would make fine Jedi, archaeologists, and alien finders, while Gryffindors could perhaps do well fighting against things that had knives on their fingertips. Ravenclaws were only for the serious sorts of films, and Slytherins were gaily relegated to serving as magical nannies for the children of stuffy bankers, to be blown about by umbrellas in the wind.” Oneshot, 2,030 Words.

Why You Should Care: This is light, fuffy fair that has no broader purpose than to have a bit of fun with Tonks and her Hufflepuff contemporaries, and in that it does its job splendidly.  In the Harry Potter books, we spend so much time with Gryffindors looking out at the other houses that it’s really refreshing to have the chance to experience one of the other houses; to see what being in that house means to them and what they think of the others.  Superbly characterised as all Fernwithy stories are.

Why You Might Not Care: A bit of pointless fun, but well worth it.

A Matter of Opportunity

A Matter of Opportunity by Shimotsuki

Summary: Remus is worried about Teddy, but Tonks is worried about Remus, and circumstances lead her to try something she’s never done before. She can only hope they are ready for it. Oneshot, 2,390 Words.

Why You Should Care: Mostly because I haven’t rec’d a Remus/Tonks in a little while and angsty!Remus fretting over baby Teddy’s first full moon delights me. I also quite enjoyed the interaction between Tonks and Wolfsbaned-Wolf Remus. Nice, cute, and fluffy.

Why You Might Not Care: What do you mean Remus and Tonks died in Deathly Hallows? Psht, like even. Unashamed denial-fic.

The Final Stage

The Final Stage by Another Dreamer

Summary: 12 Grimmauld Place is nobody’s idea of the perfect place for a party. Yet that is where Sirius Black, Remus Lupin, and Nymphadora Tonks find themselves spending the fourteenth anniversary of Voldemort’s defeat. Overwhelmed by memories of that Halloween night, the three just want to drink brandy and forget. Oneshot, 4,727 Words.

Why You Should Care: This is one of those lovely little plotless character genfics that I always gravitate toward, the value of which lies in what is said (and sometimes what is not said) rather than what is done.  Just as Sirius and Remus are trying very hard not to think about it, this story dances around the edges of what it’s trying to say, and also just like Remus and Sirius sometimes can’t help but think about it, so this story sinks just deep enough into its subject matter to make it seriously worthwhile.

Why You Might Not Care: Low on the action-packed, high on the subtle character sketch.

Seven Photographs

Seven Photographs by Casira

Summary: Glimpses of our heroes at the end of the battles and beyond, as they face what’s lost and what’s to come. Oneshot, 8,300 Words.

Guest Rec’d By: Kira

Why You Should Care: Written shortly after the release of DH, casira writes seven separate scenes that, frankly, JKR should have written, and succeeds just as if Jo had written it herself. There’s Remus and Tonks’ death; Minerva and Hogwarts directly after the battle; Hermione’s parents in Australia; George returning to WWW’s alone for the first time; Kingsley and the rebuilding of the MoM via Potterwatch; Ginny, Neville, Luna, and Andromeda discussing post-war plans; and finally, Harry visiting Snape’s grave. In a style very reminiscent of Jo’s, casira really wraps the HP series up well with a touch of everything that made it successful in the first place: brilliant character interaction, gripping action, laughter, family, and sacrifice. A brilliant pre-epilogue.

Why You Might Not Care: If you didn’t like the way DH ended at all, then this may not be your cup of tea.

Stacked Against

Stacked Against by Lady Bracknell

Summary: At Bill and Fleur’s wedding, Ron seeks advice from the two people he knows who have faced the obstacles he thinks are in front of him, and finds that Gryffindors are nothing if not lucky in love. Oneshot, 3,889.

Why You Should Care: Lady Bracknell takes her well-used pen — so deft at spinning Remus/Tonks — and creates a Ron/Hermione fic that is just as wonderful.  Charmingly canon characterisations paired with canny heart-to-heart discussion, plus just enough of the Remus/Tonks interaction we expect from Lady Bracknell to be the icing on the cake.  Should prove sigh-worthy for Ron/Hermione shippers and Remus/Tonks shippers alike.

Why You Might Not Care: Written the spring before Deathly Hallows was released, and takes place at Bill and Fleur’s wedding, which in this incarnation is not crashed by Death Eaters.  Not that that’s anything close to a good enough reason.

Variations on a Happily Ever After

Variations on a Happily Ever After by GM Weasley

Summary: All was eventually well, but it took nineteen years to get there. Drabble Collection, 7,400.

Why You Should Care: This is a wonderful series of drabbles centered around the women of the Harry Potter universe and life beyond the epilogue. Insightful, thoughtful, and occasionally even mundane, these little snatches of the painfully ordinary process of moving on after the end of the story are well worth your time. Angelina’s thoughts on her wedding are particularly well done.

Why You Might Not Care: These drabbles could have been tighter, and occasionally they suffer from awkward syntax. A couple of passes from a sharp-eyed beta would have alleviated this problem.

A Little More Time

A Little More Time by Jess Pallas

Summary: Was it possible to save two lives without altering history? Was it possible to give them a future twenty years after they had supposedly died? Teddy Lupin thought so…. Novel Length, 120,029 Words.

Why You Should Care: This, I suppose, technically classifies itself as AU, though to be fair there’s actually nothing in it that contradicts the canon of the books — that is, after all, rather the whole point. This is one of the only Remus-and-Tonks-didn’t-die fictions I’ve ever read, and it is by far my favorite. The characters are well realized and the plot is engaging — the young man Teddy Lupin has been especially lovingly crafted to inherit pieces of both his father and his mother. Remus and Tonk’s relationship has received the same kind of attention, and in a lot of places I forgot that it wasn’t JKR I was reading.

Why You Might Not Care: NoblePrat!Remus ahoy! I love him and feel canon justifies him, but some people might not agree. And if NoblePrat!Remus bothers you, there’s a good chance NoblePrat!Teddy will too….

Awards: 2008 Hourglass Award, Best AU Fic — Second Place

The Taste of Love

The Taste of Love by Playground_Love

Summary: A short glimpse into a young woman who traveled from frivolous flings to a devouring love. She comes to see that love builds upon itself and that spiritual relationships can’t exist without the meaningless ones that came before them. Oneshot, 1,810 Words.

Why You Should Care: Remus/Tonks from Tonks’ perspective, and it’s neither over-angsty, over-lovesick or over-pashy (if you’re not familiar with the term – I only learned it yesterday – a “pash” was a British sixties term for crushing on a teacher. Or maybe you all know it, and I’m being totally patronising. Hmm.), it’s just beautiful, sweet and a little poignant. Nice Remus, nice Tonks, beautiful imagery (I loved the idea of ‘lips like tin’). Playground_Love is known for a beautiful way with prose, without being too purply. A pleasant read.

Why You Might Not Care: R-rated due to graphic…kissing. Basically. Also, you might hate Remus/Tonks, or it might just be too plotless for you. But otherwise, enjoy!

Rhapsody in Blue

Rhapsody in Blue by Copperbadge

Summary: Remus has decided it’s time to cure Tonks of her awkwardness, the only way he knows how. Oneshot, 6,001 Words.

Why You Should Care: This has got everything a Remus/Tonks shipper wants, including friendship, clumsy Tonks, intellectual Remus, romance, sex, and dancing. It also has a brilliant and frank exchange about half-way through about the land-mines of being a werewolf, and the quiet, polite prejudice Remus has grown accustomed to from his friends. But mostly because it’s written by Copperbadge, and you mostly can’t go wrong with things written by Copperbadge.

Why You Might Not Care: Remus/Tonks in this one, and there’s a section of NC17-ish material which is not overly explicit, but probably not something you should read at work.

Note: Due to a complete lack of internet connection this weekend, I ended up not being able to rec until I got to work. These have been backdated for the sake of my own brain.

Eight Little Deaths

Eight Little Deaths by Ms Spell

Summary: “La petite Mort, the French say.” Drabbles, 521 Words.

Why You Should Care: Drabbles done the way drabbles are best; precisely short and wrapped from top to bottom in theme.  Ms Spell knows very well how to wield this weapon and she tells the story of Remus and Tonks from start to finish.

Why You Might Not Care: Very short drabbles ahead.  Also Remus/Tonks as a heads up for all you rabid Remus/Sirius shippers out there.

Letters from the Exile

Letters from the Exile by MsSpell

Summary: The correspondence surreptitiously exchanged between Tonks and Lupin with the help of the Order members, during the year he worked as a spy among the werewolves. Oneshot, 3,017 Words.

Why You Should Care: I hate Remus/Tonks. For no real reason. But I love this fic. It’s perfect; romantic, honest and fresh. The characterisation is startlingly good: none of the letters in this epistolary fic are signed, and yet there is no difficulty in distiguishing character — both Remus and Tonks have such strong styles and characters. Remus’ cutting nature makes this a little sad, while Tonks’ bluntness makes it a little bit funny and, frankly, it feels like how Remus/Tonks may have actually happened, as opposed to the disjointedness that is canon. The awkward end scene is suitably cute and then entire sense is far less forced than canon. A rare gem.

Why You Might Not Care: Sometimes Tonks is irritating. Like, very. And this fic feels a litte rambling in places. But nothing so bad as to deter one from reading.

Five Ways of Growing Up Between the Wars

Five Ways of Growing Up Between the Wars by Penknife

Summary: Five ways Tonks might have met Percy over the years. Oneshot, 2,653 Words.

Why You Should Care: Written from Tonks’ point of view, Penknife finds the foils and parallels between two characters that couldn’t be more different, yet still share a few underlying similarities. It’s interesting to see the random momentary connecting of two nearly-complete strangers. In addition, Penknife’s high calibre of writing makes this one just that much better– for all her slash-fic, it is Penknife’s gen-fic that affects me the most.

Why You Might Not Care: Um…? Nope, I’ve got nothing.

Up All Night

Up All Night by Gilpin and Mrs. Tater

Summary: The night before Harry’s hearing in OotP and, for Remus and Tonks, it really was asking for trouble to go out like this. Risky and unprofessional. In fact, anything might happen… Romantic Comedy, 51,093 Words.

Why You Should Care: Because I love stories like this, that take a brief and completely perfunctory exchange and give it a backstory and a different sort of weight. Now, every time I read the beginning of Chapter Seven of OotP, I’m going to remember this story and smile. The characters are well constructed, and the dialogue is spot on in every scene. Remus and Tonks shine as real people tripping their way across the muddled waters of any friendship-turned-romance, and the bit characters — Sirius in particular — have not underperformed, either. It’s also a great example of a well done co-authored story: the authors have melded their styles and ideas so well that it really only seems like one of them wrote it. And, you know, because I think it’s been a little while since I’ve recced a Remus/Tonks, and that just won’t do.

Why You Might Not Care: Remus/Tonks, for those who prefer Remus shipped with someone else. Some might say it’s a tad anti-climactic (and they’re not necessarily wrong) what with the addition of the last chapter, which stretches out the ending a bit more than was perhaps necessary, but for me it’s a minor quibble.

Five Dead Women

Five Dead Women by Snegurochka

Summary: Five vignettes, seemingly unrelated and featuring diverse Potterverse women, explore the link between these women that will answer the question: why are five of them dead? 6,400 Words.

Why You Should Care: There’s something beautiful about a fic that draws subtle links that are canon, but never before apparent. Snegurochka’s style is haunting and tense, the fic is laden with symbolism and suspense. It’s been cleverly crafted, you can see the amount of premeditation and effort in the structure and the reader really appreciates the writer’s work.

Why You Might Not Care: It’s symbolic and beautiful. but tends to get carried away in itself – this fic could do with an edit and a good cut. But it’s worth it, trust me.

Prophetic

Prophetic by Furiosity

Summary: “Through exploding snarls of spell-light, she saw Dolohov and Remus, locked in combat.” 500 Words.

Why You Should Care: There’s just something about this one that appeals to me, though I’m not entirely sure what, exactly, it is.  Here and there the largely straight-forward text is sprinkled with interesting visuals and phrasing.  I like that it’s almost too short; Furiosity resists the urge to hang too long on any one moment or allow Tonks’ thoughts to get too maudlin.  It’s actually a very physical piece for it’s short length, with smooth, uncluttered action that befits the final battle of Deathly Hallows, and the final moments of Remus and Tonks.

Why You Might Not Care: I’m not sure.  I feel some people will think it unremarkable, and maybe it is at that, a little.  Something about the author’s style appeals to me, I think; all simple narrative mixed with clever and original description.

Nicknames

Nicknames by Helena McKennon

Summary: Remus Lupin doesn’t like calling her Tonks. Oneshot, 1,978 Words.

Why You Should Care: Oh, the things we let the people we have crushes on get away with! This little fanfic is a wonderfully nostalgic and delightfully flirtatious interlude between Remus and Tonks, and also a consideration of the meaning of the names we are given versus the names we adopt for ourselves. Sweet, and not so fluffy that you gag.

Why You Might Not Care: Like many character pieces, this is a conversation between two people that has been lifted out and highlighted. It does not, perhaps, dig as deep as such character oneshots should, but I find fluffy things rarely do. I enjoyed it none-the-less, and any Remus/Tonks fan will too.

In Your Room

In Your Room by Lady Bracknell

Summary: Remus can’t say he anticipated this reaction to him being outed as a werewolf and splashed all over the front of the newspaper, but he can’t say he doesn’t like it. Drabble, 724 Words.

Why You Should Care: It’s a brief, warm peak into Remus’ head; what one person often considers the end of the world, the other thinks of only as a passing and unremarkable aside. Sweet, passing anxiety.  There is sex, but it’s the work-safe sort (if you know what I mean).

Why You Might Not Care: It’s very short, but it seems somehow exactly the right length.  In not elaborating and waxing on about the issue, Lady Bracknell actually helps make Tonks’ point.  I suppose if you’re underage then you shouldn’t read it, but the sex here is certainly no worse than you’d see on daytime TV or in movies — I wouldn’t worry about it.

Lost and Found

Lost and Found by Thirty2Flavors

Summary: “They’re scared of us, he thought. They were scared of grief. Perhaps they thought it contagious.”  At Peter’s funeral, Remus finds comfort from the strangest of places. Oneshot, 3,082 Words.

Why You Should Care: I secretly adore fics where Remus and Tonks interact when Tonks is a young girl — perhaps mostly because I get a little bit of a wicked grin thinking about how Remus must feel thinking back on times like this once he put a bun in her oven —  and, obviously, because I not-so-secretly adore fics by Thirty2Flavors.  I really love little Nymphadora here, and her spunky, innocent take on Remus’ situation.  There are some incredibly accurate remarks about funerals in general in this piece, and how people never know what to say to real grief.  Lighter than you think.  Uplifting, even.

Why You Might Not Care: If you’ve read a lot of Thirty2Flavors’ fic, you’ll no doubt notice this is one of her older pieces, and in places the word play and language is not as cunningly created as we have come to expect of her later fics.  The story does not suffer from it, however, and the central theme is as solid as ever.

Secrets

Secrets by Salt-Rose

Summary: Everyone has their own secrets. Remus and Tonks slowly share theirs. Drabble Collection, 3,262 Words.

Why You Should Care: This is an absolutely lovely series of drabbles about the relationship between Remus and Tonks — the complications of it, the simplicities, and the things you try really hard to keep from happening that can’t be stopped and happen anyway. Glorious little scenes about the process of discovering someone else. Just enough angst to constantly remind you it’s a Remus/Tonks fic, which is what — I think — what makes the ship so enjoyable for most people….

Why You Might Not Care: Had enough of Remus/Tonks yet? If so, this is probably not a good place to go to get away from it. This is exactly the opposite of that. This is 100% Remus/Tonks. Cranky Remus/Sirius shippers beware, though there is a little throwaway for the Remus/Sirius shippers that made me smile. This is apparently incomplete — the author assures us there will be more — but each drabble is self contained, so not being complete doesn’t really affect your enjoyment of it. You’ll probably finish and long for more, though.

Sitting in a Tree

Sitting in a Tree by Wild Magelet

Summary: Of the many perils associated with dating Nymphadora Tonks, Remus Lupin discovers that buying her an appropriate gift for Valentine’s Day may be the most daunting.  Oneshot, 5,109 Words.

Why You Should Care: A little Remus/Tonks interlude.  The dialogue exchange between the two of them is fantastic — Remus is Very Remus and Tonks is Very Tonks.  The age difference here is noticeable — even in the conversation — but I like this fic all the more for it, because Wild Magelet finds the ways in which the two of the work despite the gap.  This fic has been made fundamentally A/U by virtue of Deathly Hallows, but not in any way that’s really important.  It is canon in all the ways that really matter.

Why You Might Not Care: Remus might appear to some to be a little rougher around the edges than canon, but I think this is a fair version of him.  I think Tonks is dead accurate.  Not quite fluffy, this fic contains the sort of romance that only happens in real life — the boring, simple, basic kind that lives in off-the-cuff conversations and small gestures.  There is nothing grandiose or sweeping here, only a comfortable, familiar reality.