[HPforGrownups] Tonks. There arn't accidents.

[Helen R. Granberry]

No: HPFGUIDX 78807


Just joined. Board is awesome. anyway, too the point.

I just re-read GOF and read OOTF (totally impressed, just awesome) 
but have questions about Tonks. She seemed to stick out for me as a 
distinct character who I expected to play a larger role. Then she 
doesn't. I think somethings up. Little details arn't dropped for no 
reason (quick Examples: knocking quirrel (the real culprit)over in SS 
when trying to stop snape from casting a spell on harry's broomstick, 
Mentioning the bugs in GOF that end up being Rita Skeeter) so why 
mention the clumsy nature and shape shifting? Is there any instance 
of an unsusual disturbance that might indicate clumsy tonks is 
tailing harry? What role do you think she will play in future books? 
Could one of harrys classmates, or some other character, be Tonks and 
he doesn't realize it? 

Any speculations?

Hi there ☺

I have a few Tonks related speculations. She is most definitely my favorite new character from OotP. She’s important, certainly, and like you I was surprised she didn’t take a bigger role in OotP. I was so afraid she was going to be EVIL, and was very glad she wasn’t. First and foremost, I think she is there to introduce the concept of the Metamorphmagus. 

Personally, I think Harry himself is a Metamorphmagus, given the incident described in the first book involving him re-growing his hair overnight. I thought it was significant that the first bit of Metamorphmagi magic we see is Tonks changing her hair. Given how it is reiterated over and over how difficult self-transfiguration is, I don’t think Harry re-growing his hair in PS/SS was typical accidental magic. Much like talking to the snake, it was indicative of a special gift.  
	
As for Tonks being someone posing as a Hogwarts student tailing Harry, I think it is possible, but if it is the case, it is a recent development. She has only been an Auror for one year, after all. I’ve heard speculation that she is Luna (impossible as they were in the same room in the MoM) as well as Neville because of the clumsiness (again, impossible for the same reason). I think the clumsiness may be because she changes bodies frequently and it is difficult to adjust going back and forth OR she is just naturally clumsy and her clumsiness may be something that could be used as a clue to give away her disguise later (or someplace in OotP... hmmm....). 

Another possibility, though unlikely, is Tonks as a potential LI for Harry. She’s cool, she’s an Auror (which Harry wants to be), she’s light hearted (unlike Hermione), she’s related to Sirius and she reaches out to Harry at a few different points in the book (offering to help him pack, trying to make him feel comfortable, reassuring him on not making Prefect, on the bus to St. Mungos, getting him the toy Firebolt Christmas present). She is 6-7 years older, BUT Harry is old beyond his years. His potential LI’s seem to be limited to Hermione and possibly Ginny as pretty much all of the girls Harry's age are light years behind him. He's got the weight of the world on his shoulders, and with the exception of Hermione, none of the girls in his age group are really his equal.  It's a stretch, but certainly a possibility. 

While Tonks is shown to be very clumsy, she is also shown to be quite capable. While on the job, she is very no nonsense (thinking taking the kids to KC and back to Hogwarts on the Knight Bus) and she holds her own at the MoM. 

Something else I noticed... in the Career Advice chapter, McG mentions no one had been accepted into Auror training in three years -- that would seem to coincide with the time frame Tonks would have begun her training. They don't let just anyone in, so clearly, she's a very intelligent, capable witch, despite being too much of a mischief maker to have made Prefect. 

There is more to her than meets the eye. I find myself reading her scenes over and over, trying to puzzle her out.

Helen