Moody's Favor – Chapter Two
By: Starr2
Three hours later, all paperwork had been signed, all forms filled out, and all papers authorized. Now Remus was alone in his house with Ashlynn. Everything seemed abnormally silent and surreal as he mounted the stairs. It hadn't really sunk in yet that he had a pre-pubescent child to care for. He was a parent. Sirius had always joked that out of all the Marauders he was the most likely candidate for fatherhood, but Remus had never really anticipated having children.
Not that he didn't want a couple of rugrats of his own. He loved kids – that was why he had gotten so much enjoyment from teaching Defense Against the Dark Arts. But he had always assumed being a werewolf ruled out all potential of falling in love and having children. He had also always assumed that he would never be able to adopt because the Ministry wouldn't entrust a werewolf with a young witch or wizard, but as Ashlynn was a convicted Death Eater, this was obviously a special circumstance.
"Ashlynn?" he asked cautiously, stepping into her room.
She was lying on the bed, propped up on her elbows. As Remus entered the room straightened up, regarding him carefully.
"Hey," he greeted, stepping over to sit on the end of the bed.
"Hi," she said quietly.
"So its official now. I'm your guardian."
He got no response, but he wasn't really expecting one.
"Is that alright with you?" he asked carefully.
She nodded, and he was relieved.
"When do I have to go back to school?"
"Not for a few weeks yet. Dumbledore wants to get everything in order first."
"I'm going to need some stuff, you know. Like clothes, for instance. The house caught fire after they found my parents. The Aurors thought it was probably arson on the part of one of the Death Eaters. Anyway, all I have are these robes and shoes."
Remus scrutinized her worn out garments. Her sneakers were Muggle-made, faded with age and wear. There was a hole in the right shoe where the cloth met the rubber sole, and Ashlynn's foot was poking out of the opening. For the first time he noticed that her faded black work robes were riddled with patches where they had been mended. It was obvious even to Remus, whose wardrobe was by no means of the latest fashion, that she needed some new clothes.
"Well, Moody left money to buy you some new things. I suppose we'll have to go to Diagon Alley."
"Really? Right now?"
"I suppose," Remus replied.
Uh-oh. The girl who was five minutes ago silent and aloof suddenly had a familiar glint in her eyes. It was the look many of his former students got on Hogsmeade weekends. The teenage craze to shop. Gulp.
"Let's go into Flourish and Blott's! Or the quidditch shop!"
Remus smiled in amusement as Ashlynn rambled on, her eyes sparkling with enthusiasm as she took in the familiar haunts of Diagon Alley.
"First we have to get you some clothes," he reminded her. "You don't even have any pajamas."
Obviously slightly disappointed, Ashlynn nodded and followed him into the second hand robe shop. Moody had entrusted to Remus a sum of money for new things, but it was by no means a fortune. Robes at Madam Malkins could be terribly expensive at times.
The shop was slightly musty, filled with the peculiar smell of mothballs and handed down clothing. A few witches were browsing through the long racks of clothing, no doubt picking up things for their children.
Ashlynn immediately honed in on the girl's section, Remus trailing behind.
"You need school robes first," he said, as she began to eye a rack of shoes.
Ashlynn expertly plucked a couple robes off the rack. Both were Hogwarts' uniform robes, one still sporting a Ravenclaw crest.
"That one still has the crest on it," he pointed out.
"It's okay. I'm a Ravenclaw," she informed him. "I'm a definite bookworm."
Remus realized with a jolt how little he knew about his young charge. He made a mental note to ask her more about herself later.
"Oh! Look at these pajamas! Aren't they adorable?" Ashlynn cooed, holding up a pair of light blue pajamas speckled with tiny white clouds. "They're soft, too! Don't you think they're cute?"
"I guess," Remus shrugged, not very interested in girly fashions.
"Typical guy," she smiled.
Remus's arms quickly began to fill up with purchases – several more pairs of P.J.'s, all adorned with cute little pictures or animals; some Muggle blue-jeans, unraveling at the hem ("They look cool that way!" he was told.); numerous shirts, some Muggle, some wizarding; and a few pairs of shoes.
"Enough clothes," he said firmly, as Ashlynn's eyes began to wander toward an expensive looking leather coat. They exited the shop as quickly as possible, lest Ashlynn spot another article of clothing that she would just have to have.
The next stop on their outing was Flourish and Blott's, the wizarding bookstore. Ashlynn would need new schoolbooks to replace those torched in the fire. As Remus plucked second hand books of the shelves, his charge wandered over to inspect a pile of fiction books.
"Ashlynn! C'mon, we don't have all day," he chided.
"Can I have this? Please?" she begged, running over clutching a book entitled Magical Creatures of Europe.
"I suppose," Remus sighed. "But that's it. I mean it."
Whoa! Did I just say that? I sound like Mum! He thought, smiling to himself.
"Oops!"
Remus whirled around from where he was standing at the counter of the Apothecary. Ashlynn was standing ankle-deep in cauldrons, all of which had just tumbled to the floor.
"Pick them up," he instructed, turning back to pay the clerk.
He listened to a cacophony of crashes and clangs as she went about righting her mess. The clerk smiled in sympathy, and Remus managed a wan smile in return.
After what seemed like an eternity, he returned home with Ashlynn, sighing in exhaustion. As his young charge bounded upstairs to put away her new purchases, he sank onto his couch. It had been a long day. Remus checked his watch. He had been a parent for exactly three hours.
Why did it seem as if this day had lasted an eternity? Ugh. And he still had to fix dinner for the two of them. What did she like to eat? Was she allergic to anything? Why was this parenting business so tiring, anyway?
As Remus rose resolutely from his perch on the couch, he made a mental note to call his mother and tell her thank you. After all, she had raised him for eighteen years, and he was withering after just three hours!
Author's Notes: Just a friendly reminder to please review! Any suggestions about future bonding activities between Remus and Ashlynn are much appreciated, as are any other ideas, feedbacks, or nitpicks. Also, any ideas for a room makeover and a sleepover would be very helpful, as that will come up in a few chapters.
Very important announcement (for me anyway): I need a beta reader for this fic. Not so much a nitpicky grammar person, since I am one of those people most of the time, but someone to help me nail down characterization and plot developments. I tend to rush things a bit.
I also need another beta reader for an original fic (Which is already completed and ready to be posted). It is somewhat long, and the job would entail mostly character development advice.
If anyone is interested in either job, drop me a review or e-mail me. (My e-mail is available in my profile. Just put "Beta Reader" or something similar as the subject so I won't accidentally delete it. Thanks!)
And apologize for this horrendously long author's note!