Fun? What's that?

[Andromeda Tonks]

Andi blushed at the first hint of his teasing smile. It was true, simply saying that it was "good to see him" was a pale reflection of the truth of her feelings. But she wasn't sure how it would sound if she said that she had missed him. Would she seem too eager? Too attached? Would she scare him off?

She wasn't quite used to feeling like this. The uncertainty, the excitement at seeing him, the way her knees felt like they were made of jelly... It wasn't like her. She had always been the tomboy, laughing at the other girls as they got giggly and shy around boys. And now, here she was, doing the exact same thing. Although, at least she wasn't giggling.

As he complimented her, however, she felt her heart beat quickening in her chest. She wasn't really used to getting a lot of compliments, either. "Thanks," she said. Keeping her tone light, she added, "You're not so hard on the eyes, yourself."

[Ted Tonks]

He raised an eyebrow in her direction, taking another sip of his drink. Truth be told, he liked that she didn't giggle. He had dated a leggy, blonde airhead or two, so he didn't have a lot of room to speak, but Andromeda was tough as nails, sure of herself, confident enough that she didn't care if she had a guy's attention or not, and certainly pretty enough that she usually did. At least, that's how he saw her, and while he might have been hoping she'd throw her arms around him, he was genuinely happy with the welcoming he got anyway.

His chest puffed out a little at her comment, and he shrugged. "I try." He swiveled his seat so he was again facing her, perpendicular to the bar, and his grin was back. "I brought you something back from my travels."

[Andromeda Tonks]

Andi couldn't help the way her eyes lit up when he said that he had brought her back something. It wasn't because he had brought her a gift, really. Although she was sure whatever it was would be nice, the part that made her heart soar with excitement was just the simple fact that he had thought about her while he had been away. He had thought about her enough to bring something back for her. Something that Bella could never truly understand was that it really was the thought that counted. And he had thought about her.

"Really?" she asked, grinning like a fool. "You shouldn't have." It was an obligation to say that... but of course, whatever he had brought her she would accept gratefully. And treasure it... whispered the tiny little voice in the back of her head. Oh, yeah... she definitely couldn't say that, or he'd surely be running for the hills...

[Ted Tonks]

"Yes, I should have," he said with a decisive nod. "Made me think of you when I saw it, so I had to get it. He felt absolutely foolish for what he was about to give her, but he'd already committed to it, and couldn't back out now.

He pulled a small box from the inside of his robes. It was plain white, not wrapped and made up in any special way. When he set it on the bar in front of her, his free hand scratched the back of his neck, the universal symbol of being unsure.

Inside was a small music box that would fit in the palm of her hand, made to look like a little ocean scene, with two Greek characters, a girl and a boy on a rocky shore. He would wait until she opened it to explain why he had thought of her when he saw it.

[Andromeda Tonks]

Andi's cheeks were burning as she picked up the small box and turned it over in her hands. Her mind kept running over the words he had said... that it had made him think of her. Although she didn't yet know what it was, the idea of it made her smile. Of course, she supposed there was still the possibility that the object that had made him think of her was something ugly, like a ceramic frog or something ridiculous like that. But she wouldn't know until she opened it, right?

Looking up at him with a smile, she gingerly tore open the paper, revealing a small music box. "Oh!" she gasped, running her finger over the detailing in the small carving. "It's lovely," she said. "But why did it make you think of me?"

[Ted Tonks]

He wondered briefly if she was humoring him. Maybe, in her head, it was some kind of ceramic frog. He wanted to roll his eyes at himself for this thought. If she liked it, wonderful. If not, he'd have a better idea next time.

He leaned towards her slightly, reaching out and turning the object in her hands so that the two figures were facing her, keeping his eyes on her as she did so.

"It's a story from Greek mythology... which I'm sure you've heard thousands of times. Perseus," he pointed at the man on the box, "was on his way home from killing Medusa when he saw a very beautiful princess chained to a rock on the shore." He pointed to the woman now. "When he asked the princess her name, she said Andromeda." He smiled, actually proud of himself at this point, and sincerely, sincerely hoping she liked it. "You."

[Andromeda Tonks]

Andi couldn't quite breathe when he looked into her eyes like that. His eyes were like the color of the sea after a storm, and sometimes she thought she wouldn't mind drowning in them. She was breathless as he told the story of the music box, even though she figured out the way it was going to end before he got there.

With a playful smile, she nudged his arm. "And does that make you Perseus?" she asked teasingly. "You know, namesakes aside, I'm hardly the chained-to-a-rock damsel in distress type..."

[Ted Tonks]

"I can be Perseus if you want me to be," he said, wiggling his eyebrows playfully. At her next comment though, he was quiet for a moment before he nodded.

"No, you're right. I think, at one time, you must have been her." He gave her a thoughtful look. He wasn't stupid, and the Blacks were quite a well known family. Her spunk and ideals must not have been viewed well, especially if the recent altercation with her father was any indication. He also knew that he would not be looked well upon by her family either. In a way, that made her a princess, chained to a life she was not destined to live. Or maybe he just read too many fairytales.

"But I think you broke those chains long before your Perseus ever had a chance."

[Andromeda Tonks]

Andi stared at him, losing herself in those eyes. His words were perfect, they showed her that he really got her, more than just about anyone else she had ever known. "That's beautiful," she said softly. Unconsciously, she moved closer to him, looking up into his face. "I love it."

She wondered if he knew that she was really saying "I love you." They hadn't said that to each other yet, but in that moment, she knew, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that it was true. She was head over heels in love. It made her want to scream and run around like a giddy schoolgirl; she felt so light and free.

Leaning up on her tiptoes, she moved closer still, and pressed her lips against his.

[Ted Tonks]

(OOC: Have they kissed before?)

He chuckled, and almost quipped that if he had known his assesment of her would have been enough, he wouldn't have bothered with the gift, but the look in her eyes and the way she moved towards him kept him quiet.

She suprised him with that kiss, though he would never be able to explain why, and he kissed her back with no hesitation, bringing a hand up to cradle her neck.

He smiled into her lips a moment later and pulled away. "Now that's more like it, Ms. It's Good To See You."

[Andromeda Tonks]

(Hmmmm... let's say no..)

Andi couldn't believe she had just kissed him. It was the first time they had kissed, unless you counted the chaste peck on the cheek she had given him after their first date. But after this kiss, that one no longer seemed to count for anything at all.

She'd never felt anything like this, and it both scared her and excited her. A little part of her was nervous and wanted to run away, like maybe she was falling for him too quickly. She wasn't sure whether it was the alcohol or the gift, or just the thrill of seeing him again when she wasn't expecting it, but she was feeling more than a little reckless tonight. Because of all this, she had been overtaken by her emotions and kissed him. Now that she had done it, she had no regrets, except maybe that she hadn't done it sooner.

As he teased her, she laughed. In fact, it was almost--but not quite--a giggle. Looking up at him, she pressed her lips together. "Well, it is good to see you," she defended. "You have no idea how good. Believe me, it's a much nicer greeting than the one I gave the guy who was next to me earlier."

Her earlier encounter with the other guy, and with Bella now seemed a distant and meaningless memory. She felt stronger and braver with him there, especially when he looked at her like that. "Actually... I missed you while you were gone," she admitted, the words slipping out almost against her will.

[Ted Tonks]

Ted couldn't really believe she had just kissed him either, but whatever trepidations he might have had were put to ease. She wasn't making excuses to leave, there was no look of regret in her eyes, none that he could see anyway. Her laugh alone made him smile. There was no way she could know how beautiful she was, he thought.

He frowned when she brought up another guy. "Was he bothering you?" Ted asked, that macho need to protect coming out a little, and the unspoken, 'I can take care of him,' was laced with the question. To his credit, he didn't say it outloud. Then he remembered the look on her face when she had first turned to him, and the frown was gone, replaced with a somewhat proud smile. "No... you took care of him, didn't you? That explains why you looked like you were going to give me quite a tongue lashing."

He couldn't help the way he looked at her, feeling like something of a schoolboy himself, though he tried to come off a lot cooler than that. "Yeah?" he asked, finishing his drink before he decided that, given the way things were going tonight, he could risk getting brave with his next question. "How much did you miss me?"

He did not give her a chance to answer, however. He nodded towards the floor. "Fancy a dance?"

[Andromeda Tonks]

Andromeda smiled when he guessed that she had chased off the offending party. He knew her well enough to picture her reaction. And it didn't matter that the guy had eventually been dragged off by Bella, the point was that he was right.... she had set him straight well enough, and she didn't really need him to rescue her. But a secret part of her rather wished he had been there to chase the guy away, just as Kyle had done for Amelia.

"Yeah, I told him off," she admitted. "And yes, when you first got here, I thought I was about to have a repeat of the incident. I'm really glad it was you."

How much had she missed him? More than she wanted to admit. While he'd been gone, she had thought about him often, thinking of the things she wanted to tell him, or just wanting to see his face. In truth, she had feared that he would have forgotten about her while he was away. Or worse, that he would have met some beautiful, exotic girl and fallen in love with her instead. Andi had never thought of herself as being particularly beautiful. She had always been the plain one compared to Bellatrix and Narcissa.

She was relieved that she didn't have to answer the question, as he asked her to dance. "I'd love to dance," she replied, tucking the music box into the inner pocket of her robe and placing her hand in his.

[Ted Tonks]

"He didn't cause any trouble, did he?" Ted asked, serious again. Whether or not Andromeda could take care of herself, he still wanted to be sure she was all right. Granted, he couldn't blame whoever the guy was for showing interest in her, but he could blame him for making her uncomfortable.

In some ways, though, he did sort of wish that she needed him more than she did. He couldn't explain his need to protect her, except that he wasn't sure anyone ever had.

He nodded when she put her hand in his. "Good," He replied, his hand squeezing hers gently as he lead her to the dance floor. The club seemed to be a rather popular place that night, but Ted found a little spot for them.

It was a little known fact that Ted was actually quite a good dancer. His mother had practically had him in lessons since he could walk. It wasn't something Ted kept secret or anything like that, it just hardly ever came up in converstion.

In fact, he was pretty sure that Andi didn't know, and he secretly hoped he could impress her with it.

He was smiling again when he turned towards her, and a new song started up.

[Andromeda Tonks]

Andi was slightly breathless as he led her out to the dancer floor. While she liked the idea of dancing with him--someone had once told her that dancing was the only way to be completely intimate with someone while in a room full of people--the truth was, she was not very good at dancing. In fact, she was really pretty clumsy at times. It was another thing that had always set her apart from her sisters--graceful, perfect Narcissa and smooth, deliberate Bella. Then there was Andi, who charged through in a way that was anything but delicate, knocking things down in her wake. She had been getting a little better lately, but dancing... well, that would certainly be the test, wouldn't it? She just hoped that, if she was terrible and awkward and stepped all over his feet, that it wouldn't turn him off.

As the song started, she began to panic. She looked up at him nervously, biting down on her lower lip. "I have a confession to make," she said sheepishly. "I don't actually know how to dance."

[Ted Tonks]

Ted laughed, and instantly felt bad for doing so at her admission. "I'm sorry," he said instantly. "I didn't mean to laugh. I bet... I bet you are much better than you think you are," he told her, and pulled her a little closer.

He had laughed because he simply didn't believe her. Of course, she could dance like an elephant, and he would still be completely enchanted by her.

But he also laughed because of the perfect opportunity this presented him.

He moved closer to her so that he could speak in a quieter voice... A more gentle voice, and still be heard above the music and the crowd. "We can go back to the bar if you want. Or... I could teach you."

[Andromeda Tonks]

Just having him that close to her was reason enough to get over her fear of dancing. It was hard to concentrate, and she found that she didn't really mind. While she wouldn't necessarily have chosen to have a dancing lesson in the middle of a crowded dance floor, the way she was feeling tonight, she was willing to give it a try. She just hoped she didn't make too much of a fool of herself.

She felt her knees going weak again as he spoke to her in a voice like warm velvet. It didn't even matter what he said. "I wouldn't have said yes, if I really wanted to be sitting back at the bar," she said teasingly. She kept her hand on his arm. "Please, teach me. That is, as long as you don't mind if I'm as graceful as a bull in china shop...."

[Ted Tonks]

He decided against telling her that even if that were true, about her being like a bull in a china shop, he would still have a hard time finding her anything but perfect. For all the confidence and bravado he liked to show, she made him just as nervous and weak in the knees as he did her.

"I don't mind, I promise. Though I still think you underestimate yourself," he added.

Being in a nightclub here wasn't exactly the muggle, classical lessons he had grown up with, but he could translate well enough.

He smirked, remembering the opportunity this was for him, and put his hands on her hips, turning her around and stepping up behind her. "Close your eyes," he said.

[Andromeda Tonks]

How was she supposed to concentrate with his hands on her hips like that? She was hyper-aware of his presence and his touch; so much so that everything else had ceased to exist for her. The music was was just a fuzzy noise in the background, and she forgot all about the other dancers all around them.

She looked over her shoulder at him, trying to keep a playful smile on her face. "Close my eyes?" she said doubtfully. "Why? Shouldn't I be able to see, in case I'm going to run into anyone?"

[Ted Tonks]

He shook his head, smiling back at her. "We're not going anywhere. And I won't let you run into anyone."

Thank God, Merlin, whoever, that she was responding so well to him, or he would have made a complete fool of himself a few times over by now. And how was he supposed to pay attention to anything when she was so close, and her hair smelled that good?

Dancing, he reminded himself. Yes, that's what they were doing.

"We're going to have to get a little closer," he said, gently tugging on her hips to bring her body flush against his. He moved slowly, though, and was very attentive to any negative reaction she might have had.

"Trust me?" he asked.