The Five Remus-and-Tonks Rules of Thumb

[author_by_night]

(Disclaimer: Not based on or inspired by any specific fics; simply done as a guide.)

1.  Remus really does love Tonks. Really.

Remus wouldn't just "pretend" to love Tonks while really wishing she were Sirius. However, it is fine, if one wishes, to write a past relationship with Sirius, as long as you do not try and tell me that JKR's having Harry notice Remus and Tonks holding hands meant Tonks had put Imperius on him.

2. You must not make Tonks a ditz.

She's an Auror. On a similar angle, do not make Remus someone who Tonks had to teach to laugh; considering some of his actions in PoA, I think he's already got a sense of humor. 

3. Sirius's last name is not "Who?"

Consider this scenario:

Remus: BoohooSiriusDIED!

Tonks: ...oh. Who was he again?

Remus: *Senselessly snogs Tonks*

Come on, R/T shippers! If Tonks was that disrespectful about it, there's no way Remus would continue to date her.

Furthermore, no matter how you see Tonks and Sirius in terms of closeness, as Hermione said, "that's not the point, he was her cousin!" Even if Ron 
was right about them never having met (which I really doubt, but you never know), there's still going to be the fact that a long last relative died. 

4. The Potters died YEARS ago.

I highly doubt Remus cries over them every night. I'm sure certain things have brought painful reminders, but people generally move on. My Dad lost
a very dear friend, incidentally around the same age as Remus would've been, and he doesn't, to my knowledge, cry about it every night.

5. Remus is not a Pound Puppy every Full Moon.

And Tonks isn't going to chase him around the yard with a stick.

Follow these guidelines as a field guide. Please. ;)

Comments

[ehnel.livejournal.com]

That people make those assumptions really startles me. I keep on thinking the fandom can no longer surprise me, but something new keeps appearing.

I don't read much Remus/Tonks (matter of fact, I don't read any ... apart from canon ;) ), but I think it would be a really sweet pairing if written well.

[author-by-night.livejournal.com]

It can be very well written, indeed. :)

[sea_thoughts]

Remus: BoohooSiriusDIED!

Tonks: ...oh. Who was he again?

Remus: *Senselessly snogs Tonks*

Come on, R/T shippers! If Tonks was that disrespectful about it, there's no way Remus would continue to date her.

*sniggers helplessly* Reminds me of that wonderful fic I found through Gun: "Woe and doom," said Remus. And yes, there's no way Remus would date Tonks if she was like that.

4. The Potters died YEARS ago.

I highly doubt Remus cries over them every night.

I personally think he has a special day to remember his loved ones, as you know. :)

[author-by-night.livejournal.com]

*sniggers helplessly* Reminds me of that wonderful fic I found through Gun: "Woe and doom," said Remus. And yes, there's no way Remus would date Tonks if she was like that.

"Woe and doom"???

Linkage, please? Don't worry, i won't be too hard on the author. (Actually, in those cases I generally end up not reviewing, because nothing I say is going to sound positive or gentle).

[a-t-rain.livejournal.com]

Oh, it's an intentional parody. thunderemerald wrote it ages ago. I haven't been able to find it by Googling, but she'd probably be happy to link you to it if you asked her.

[sea_thoughts]

It's a deliberate spoof, if you couldn't tell. ;) That's just one of the things that made me laugh out loud. If you find that entry where she lists all the things she hates about RT, there's a link to the story. :)

[author-by-night.livejournal.com]

Ooh, thanks.

And you'd think I'd assume it's a spoof, but to be honest, I've seen those types of fics where the author was perfectly serious.

[mafdet.livejournal.com]

*laughs at Pound Puppy*

I hate it when people get Tonks' and Remus' characters way off. Tonks is not a silly airhead; Auror is a notoriously hard career to break into and she had to get at least five NEWTS. As for Remus, he was a Marauder, and PoA amply demonstrated that he was anything but a stuffed shirt.

[author-by-night.livejournal.com]

Exactly. You want ditz/stuffed shirt, write Romilda Vane / Ernest MacMillian.(And even then, most people simply are not one dimensional).

[iesther.livejournal.com]

hahhahahahahahhah exactly!!

[snorkackcatcher]

Hmm. You know, that really would be worth writing for the comedy value alone ... :)

[gijane7702.livejournal.com]

OMG!!! That's great!!

I needed a smile after getting burned this morning...thanks :)

~C

[author-by-night.livejournal.com]

Thanks, you're welcome, and sorry you got burned! Ouch! Literally. ^^

[gijane7702.livejournal.com]

Not literally...

I got some nice reviews this morning (note scarcasm)

[zoepaleologa.livejournal.com]

I feel your pain at seeing a decent canon het pairing between two interesting grown ups turned into a teeth aching treacle fest, or worse still with said interesting grownups behaving in a way that humans just don't.

[author-by-night.livejournal.com]

I see it a lot... not just with R/T, either. I won't even go into what a lot of trioshipfics have done to the trio...

[ani-bester.livejournal.com]

You are a wonderful wonderful person for writing this.
And the pund puppy part made me snort milk up my nose, so extra points for that!

[author-by-night.livejournal.com]

*Laughs*

[pickleprincess.livejournal.com]

I truly appreciate this guide. I was about to give up on fandom R/T forever...

Although truth be told, I was a closet supporter of the Imperius curse thing for awhile. After all, it's difficult to throw away 4ish years of shipping - no matter how obviously canon this new relationship happens to be.

[airriphlyer.livejournal.com]

On a very random note, I love the picture that goes along with "bored"

♥

[godricgal.livejournal.com]

Amen to all of those, and I could add a few more besides.

[iesther.livejournal.com]

hahah i coulent stop cracking up as i was reading this. haha

i ship tonks and remus. =)

i ave ental image of them in my head and they are SOOO cute together haha

[dweo.livejournal.com]

Word to all, but I'm I terrible if I actually would like to see Tonks chase him around the yard. ;)

[ozma-katiebell.livejournal.com]

AMEN!