Fate Awakened (Harry Potter Fanfiction)

Chapter 1: Grounded

1993 | Marauder Mansion, Borough of Islington, London

In the dead of a cold July night, the dim lamppost-lit streets of London were void of any noise, except for the sounds of the occasional passing car or stray animals. Among the rows of houses accommodating the city's sleeping residents, one in particular was unlike the others. This house, labeled Number 12, was expertly hidden from plain sight but if any magic user were to walk by (given they had previous knowledge of the building's existence), they would see the open window on the second floor and catch a glimpse of the still-awake girl leaning against the windowsill.

"Little one?"

Ashley turned towards the voice, smiling when her eyes landed on her groggy familiar curled up on her pillow. After shutting her window, she moved to the bed and sat on its edge, stilling so Moko could slither on over her lap. Fondly, she ran a finger down his scales as she listened to him scold her. He'd always been such a worrywart. He probably rivalled Sirius and Remus in that department. Maybe the overprotectiveness stemmed from the familiar bond, or maybe he was feeling lingering parental affections from having children of his own. Either way, Ashley couldn't find it within herself to complain.

"You should be resting." Moko softly hissed, "Why are you up?"

"Nightmare." Ashley answered.

"Again? I'm very worried about you. It's the fifth night in a row." Moko fretted.

Ashley bit her lip at that, thinking back to all the sleep she'd lost due to the constant nightmares plaguing her mind. She'd spent countless hours unwillingly staying up until sunrise, unable to rest easy. Really, it was all that crazy bastard, Graham's fault. The nightmares that she'd hoped would wane after leaving Hogwarts had worsened since she'd received his first threat. In fact, the threats were still an ongoing occurrence. Graham (alternatively known as He-Who-Must-Be-Eaten according to Moko) would send a brand new note depicting the ways he would hurt the Gryffindor Heiress nearly every week. Ashley, determined to keep the whole thing under wraps, could only burn the notes and ignore the underlying sense of dread that came with them. Alas, given Moko's initial awareness of the problem, she couldn't hide her true feelings regarding the matter when he was the one involved. Still, that didn't mean she wouldn't try.

"I'm fine, Moko." She insisted.

"Fine? You're not getting enough sleep. Eventually, glamours won't be enough to hide that." Moko bluntly pointed out.

With Ashley refusing to acknowledge the logic behind her familiar's response, silence befell upon the two of them. This marked the end of their conversation, much to Moko's displeasure. Placing Moko back on her pillow, Ashley checked the time with a spell and squinted at the bright numbers that indicated it was almost three in the morning. Considering Remus would be getting up early to make breakfast for their family, she had to at least pretend to sleep, in case he came to wake her up. She would never hear the end of it otherwise.

This was how she found herself tucked in under the covers a few hours later, eyes closed though still conscious, waiting for the opportune moment to finally get up. As soon as she heard Remus knocking and calling for her, she gave an affirmative shout and shot out of bed. She sped through her typical morning routine and, deciding to stay in her pajamas, focused on masking the signs of exhaustion on her face with a light glamour.

"Do I look okay?" She asked Moko with an expectant gaze.

"No." Moko deadpanned.

"Okay, rude. There's no need to lie, Moko." Ashley frowned, self-consciously checking her reflection.