Tonks choked back a laugh in spite of herself. "Would you really?" she said, wiping her eyes with her sleeves. "I'd almost like to see that. The fake belly bit. I think an actual scarlet letter is a bit outdated." But eventually she shook her head. "It's all right, Remus. Really. It's awful, but there isn't anything to be done about it now, and even if there was, I don't think I'd go through with it. Everyone will stare and form opinions as much as they bloody well please. There isn't a damn thing anyone can do about it, and I've been through worse." She sighed. "Minerva hasn't fired me yet, so I'm taking that as a good sign."
Just the thought of telling her parents made her queasy. "I'm sure they'll want to help too," she said. Her mother may have been a little old-fashioned, but Tonks knew she loved her unconditionally. "That's sort of what I'm afraid of. My parents taking over. Don't be surprised if you get an owl or a note from one of them, all right? And if you do, let me know as soon as you get it. The last thing I want is for them to interfere and make things even worse. I'm just afraid they'll try to fix things and put pressure on me--on both of us--and make me feel like a shite parent and--I don't know. Meddle and make a mess of things, I suppose." She nodded. "Hogwarts is best. If other parents can trust us enough to send their children here for safe-keeping, it's certainly good enough for me. I'm thinking of getting everything bought and set up in March or so, before I get so big that I can hardly move. If that works for you, I mean."