When it's Stronger than Fate
By: Raven in Red
Pureblood Ashantia Rivencraft has been betrothed to Draco Malfoy since the day she was born. What she originally sees as an inconvenient family honor soon becomes a bond so strong that it's stronger than fate itself. DracoOC. Covers all seven years, maybe beyond.
(Year 1) Chapter 1
My eyes snapped open to the usual morning screeching of Moonlight, our family's ancient mail-delivering owl. After blinking away the drowsiness, I dragged myself out of bed and let him in through my bedroom window, where he immediately dropped a letter into my waiting hands. When I saw the emerald-green ink and the official red wax seal with a very familiar crest, my heart skipped a beat.
I had been waiting for this day for all eleven years of my childhood so far, and I could hardly wait a moment longer. With my heart beating a mile a minute, I bolted out of the room, not caring in the least that I was still barefoot, bed-headed, and in my nightgown.
"Mother! Father!" I shouted, running straight to the dining room where I was certain my parents would be starting their usual breakfast. "It's here!" My mother and father looked less than impressed when I finally reached the dining room, completely out of breath.
"Ashantia," Mother sighed, placing her coffee cup to the side and pinching the bridge of her nose. "You know better than to leave your bedroom when you are not properly dressed."
"But-" I attempted to say in my defense. My father was much too quick for me.
"Ashantia!" he said harshly. "You know the rules!"
Such is the life of me, Ashantia Ardana, from the long-renowned pureblooded Rivencraft family. My mother and father give the word "harsh" a serious run for its money. They find every opportunity to criticize and/or correct me, on anything from my Quidditch skills to my clothing or hairstyles. Whenever I question their ways, they coldly remind me that they are dutifully preparing me for a life in the highly selective and highly competitive wizarding world that I have been so privileged to have a higher and more prestigious blood status in.
Oh, yeah – blood purity. That's just about all my mother and father talk about these days, since I would soon be faced with it when I began my years of magical education. To me, it's all a bunch of nonsense. Magical ability has very little to do with family pedigree and everything to do with talent, ability, and cleverness. Personally, I couldn't care less between Muggles, Half-bloods, and Pure-bloods. All I care about in a person is how they treat those around them. But, shh! Don't tell my parents I said that or I'll be in big trouble!
Crestfallen rom my parents' jabs, but not about to let it show, I trudged back up to my bedroom, where I tore open the letter with tears threatening to spill from my eyes.
Dear Miss Rivencraft,
We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Please find enclosed a list of all necessary books and equipment. Term begins on September 1. We await your owl by no later than July 31.
Yours sincerely,
Minerva McGonagall
Deputy Headmistress
For years, I had been told about Hogwarts, everything from what house (Slytherin) I would most certainly be placed in to how to make the "right" kinds of friends. All my life (yes, all my life), it was hardly anything but talk of blood purity at Rivencraft Manor. Nothing ever seemed to matter more than that, and it was always looming over my head like a threatening storm cloud.
Knowing I would have to face my parents at some point, I swallowed my pride and got dressed. There were no casual clothes in this proud household, so I settled for an elegant black gown trimmed with exquisite gold lace, which comprised the colors of the Rivencraft family crest. After fashioning my long black curls into a neat bun, I felt comfortable enough to join Mr. and Mrs. Ranford Rivencraft for breakfast.
"You have received your Hogwarts letter, I see," said my father, Ranford Rivencraft. He couldn't have sounded less interested if he had tried his absolute hardest. "That is good news indeed."
"Yes, Father," I replied stiffly, beginning to take tiny, formal bites of my breakfast, which was served by one of our house-elves.
"Your mother will take you to Diagon Alley to acquire your necessary school supplies very soon," said Father.
"Thank you, Mother," I said, nodding my "thanks" to the stick-stiff Ardana Rivencraft, the source of my second given name.
"I shall send an owl to the Malfoy family this morning once breakfast is finished so that I many spread this good news," Mother announced. I couldn't help but let an unamused sigh escape my lips.
All my life, my mother had been going on and on (and on) about a young man by the name of Draco Malfoy whom they had betrothed me to when I was hardly more than an infant. The timing was perfect; he would be starting at Hogwarts at the same time that I would be. To be honest, I had never had any problem with the situation, knowing that I had to preserve my family's high honor at all costs, but it's certainly awkward for a young woman who had not even begun her worldly education to know exactly who she would be marrying.
"I am certain the young man will be eager to meet you," said Father, staring at me with daggers in his eyes. "And I am certain that you will impose only the best impression of this honorable family."
"I'll do my best," I grumbled, beginning to push my remaining food around my plate as I had suddenly lost my appetite. "When am I to meet him?"
"Soon enough," Mother said, effectively ending the subject. I was left to merely sigh to myself and wait patiently for the days to pass.
It was a mere two months' time, which felt more like two years, before I was whisked away to Diagon Alley at the end of August with Mother to shop for my required school supplies. Well, minor correction: my mother overloaded my coin purse with gold Galleons and handed me my supply list before sending me off on my own to practically fend for myself. If it hadn't been for my elder brother Edgar's advice, which he had sent me via owl two mornings prior, I would have completely lost myself within minutes.
Speaking of my brother, don't get your hopes up and think that he's any better than my parents, because he certainly is not. Edgar Rivencraft is about as stoic and emotionless as a man can get, except for maybe my father. Also, he was already sixteen by the time I was born so he was pretty much just another adult in the family instead of a normal brother.
I floated in and out of the shops like a pro, following Edgar's checklist of tips to the letter and purchasing everything from potion-making supplies and books to my very own tawny owl named Ladybird. However, what interested me the most was the acquisition of my very own wand.
I was told by the elderly Mr. Ollivander that it measured ten inches in length, was comprised of sturdy sycamore wood, and possessed a core of unicorn hair. While the handle was pin-straight and smooth, the shaft was twisted into a beautiful, delicate spiral with an elegant silver inlay following the entire length of it. However, the best part about it was that its "brother" that shared a core from the very same unicorn as mine would be starting at Hogwarts right alongside me.
At long last, my shopping was complete and I trudged back to my awaiting mother, ready to head back home for one last week before departing for my very first term at Hogwarts, where I would soon be meeting the young man who would become my husband one day.
This was going to be quite a year…
What I certainly did not expect was to run into Mrs. Narcissa Malfoy when Mother and I reached Platform Nine-and-Three-Quarters for my first-ever journey to Hogwarts.
"Narcissa, hello!" Mother cried out, embracing the equally stiff-looking woman and kissing her formally on the cheek. I eagerly looked around for her son, and Narcissa was quick to catch on.
"Oh, Ashantia, dear," she said, patting me on the shoulder, "Draco has already boarded the train, but he is very eager to meet you."
"Thank you, Mrs. Malfoy," I said, blushing my embarrassment for the whole world to see. "I cannot wait to meet him as well."
"Ashantia!" Mother snapped, causing me to give a startled yelp in response. "You know not to speak to a stranger until you have made a formal introduction! Is that clear?" I could do nothing but stare at my harsh mother with a pained expression on my face. She had a knack for striking me down to the status of a helpless infant with just one bit of criticism.
"Ardana, dear," Narcissa interjected, placing a soothing arm around my shoulders while furrowing her eyebrows at my mother, "I am sure your daughter meant no disrespect." In just a few short sentences, I already preferred Narcissa Malfoy to my own mother, but that came as no surprise to me.
Mother gave Narcissa an icy look; clearly, she did not take well to being corrected in public. Like a lost puppy, I looked up to Narcissa, silently begging for help.
"Why don't you board the train, dear?" she suggested, bending down to give me a friendly hug. "Your mother and I will chat some more. Have a lovely term!" I didn't even utter the smallest goodbye to my mother before I grabbed my things and rushed onto the scarlet-red Hogwarts Express with tears threatening to spill from my eyes.
I ended up sitting alone in an empty compartment, but I didn't really care much. After all, I didn't want to make my introduction to the other Hogwarts students in the shaky, teary-eyed state that I was finding myself in at that moment.
Other students passed my compartment from time to time, but one look at me was enough to send them shuffling away without a second thought. All my life, I'd had that effect on many of my peers. My mother explained that they were merely intimidated by my high status. I called it being so struck down by my own family that I hardly had any defenses left in me, which turned me into nothing but a miserable mess, quite frequently as a matter of fact. Maybe Hogwarts would finally be the sanctuary I had long been dreaming of, but for now I just had to wait a little bit longer.
"Excuse me?"
A kind voice broke me out of my trance of hopelessness, so I wiped away my tears as best as I could and smiled at the girl in front of me. She definitely looked friendly.
"Are you alright?" the girl asked. "I was walking by and I saw you crying and I just wanted to make sure- Oh! I've forgotten my manners!" This girl was talking a mile a minute, but since she was already being so nice to me, I decided that it didn't bother me in the least. "I'm Hermione Granger." She held out her hand for me to shake.
"My name is Ashantia Rivencraft," I said, shaking her hand politely and smiling at the prospect of finally meeting a new friend.
"That's such a pretty name!" Hermione gushed. "I've never heard a name like that before!"
"Well, thank you," I said brightly. I couldn't help but notice that Hermione was the first person to ever give me a legitimate compliment. "You have a very pretty name as well."
"Oh, thank you!" said Hermione, smiling brightly. "Do you… mind if I sit down?" I was not about to turn down a gesture of friendship, so I eagerly made room for her.
"Are you a first-year as well?" I politely asked.
"Yes," said Hermione. "I had no idea until I got my letter, though. I'd never even heard of Hogwarts before! It just sounds so fantastic!" True to my upbringing, it took me no time at all to peg Hermione as a Muggle-born.
"I've always known about it," I said. "I guess you could say I've been trained for this very day from the day I was born."
"Oh, wow," said Hermione. "Are your parents a witch and wizard?"
"Yes," I said. "My family is probably centuries old, which they constantly remind me of, and all they ever do is prep me for high society, which I couldn't care in the least about."
"My parents are both normal," said Hermione, albeit somewhat sadly. "I guess you would call them Muggles."
"There's absolutely nothing wrong with that," I insisted, bringing a smile to my new friend's face. "So, what do you like to do?"
"Oh, my goodness, I love to read!" Hermione exclaimed. "I'm almost always reading when I've got the spare time!"
"Really? I love to read, too!" I was thrilled to share a favorite pastime with my new friend. "I spend so much time in my bedroom when I'm at home, but I have a whole arsenal of books to pass the time."
"Listen," said Hermione. "Why don't you come sit with me and some other new friends I've made?"
"I would love to," I said gratefully. In a flash, I gathered up my purse and school bag and happily left my empty compartment behind. However, as Hermione and I were making our way down the train, the sight of a particular boy with blonde hair and black robes made me stop dead in my tracks.
We blurted each other's names at exactly the same time. In front of me was the one and only Draco Malfoy, the young man that I would be marrying in just about six more years… the boy that my fate as a Pureblood was forever tied to.
Hermione stepped to the side as Draco attempted to make small talk with me. "It's… nice to meet you, Ashantia," he said nervously. "I've heard… so many things about you."
I spent a good several seconds just opening and shutting my mouth in an attempt to force some sort of response from my lips, but to no avail. Finally, I managed to say, "I'm sorry; I have to go." Once I was safely back at Hermione's side and walking with her again, I breathed a sigh of relief.
"Who was that?" asked Hermione.
"Remember when I said that my parents have been training me for high society?" I sighed. Hermione nodded, so I announced in a loud whisper, "That boy is the man that my parents have betrothed me to!"
"Oh, my goodness!" gasped Hermione. "Are you serious?"
"Dead serious," I said, sadly nodding my head. "All they talk about is preserving the family honor, and that's why I'll be marrying him."
"Wow…" Hermione was clearly caught off guard. "Have you at least met him before?"
"No," I sighed. "Back there, that was the first time I've ever laid eyes on him up close."
"You've never met him before?" asked Hermione, her eyes wide. "Never?"
"Never," I repeated, shaking my head. "Welcome to the life of a pureblood."
Author's Note: Hey, everybody! Thanks for stopping by to read the first chapter of a story that I've been aching to start for years! Let me know what you think!