Nyctophobia | pjo x hp

CHAPTER 3

The changes hadn't been notable at first.
Azalea made sure to keep acting the same to keep the Dursley's from suspecting that she was rebelling.

So she kept them in the dark.

She followed the rules set by them, doing all chores as expected of her, making sure to keep her grades below Dudley, not talking to anyone. Making herself invisible.

Submissive.

As soon as the sun set and the moon came out she smiled. She would sit down crosslegged on the thin mattress, close her eyes and allow herself to feel. She focused on the hatred, the rage inside her, and let it form into a spark.

Letting the spark spread into every corner of her being, the warmth, the fire filling her, Azalea laughed.

She focused on turning the warmth into magic. She practiced making balls of light, setting one of her old drawings alight and mending the burns with nothing but a thought.

The darkness she had grown to fear morphed into a part of herself.

The sun had just begun its ascent in the morning sky, casting a warm, golden glow over the quiet suburban neighborhood.

Azalea, wearing a torn backpack nearly as big as her hanging from her shoulders, skipped along the sidewalk.
She always made her way to school nearly half an hour before Dudley, so he couldn't hurt her.

Her school was just a few blocks away, and she relished the short moments of splice where she wasn't being tormented.

As she strolled past a neatly trimmed hedge, something glimmered from the depths of a nearby bush. Azalea's curiosity piqued, and she halted in her tracks. Kneeling down and peering into the foliage, she spotted a silver necklace half-buried in the dirt and leaves.

With delicate fingers, she reached in and retrieved the necklace. It was a delicate chain with a tiny pendant that held a single, glistening blue gemstone. Azalea's eyes widened with wonder as she held it up to the morning light, causing the gem to catch the sunlight and dance with brilliance.

The moment her fingers touched the necklace, Azalea felt a strange sensation, as if a magnetic force were pulling her closer to it. It was an enchanting pull, like the tides being controlled by the moon. She couldn't explain it, but the necklace felt like more than just a piece of jewelry.

She examined the pendant closely, mesmerized by the depth of the blue gemstone. It seemed to hold secrets within its facets, secrets that whispered to her. Azalea's heart was filled with a mixture of awe and intrigue.

For a moment, she contemplated the necklace. It was unlike anything she had ever seen. She wondered how it ended up hidden in this bush, so close to her path to school. Could someone have lost it, or perhaps it was a secret treasure hidden by a mysterious stranger?

Azalea's heart was filled with excitement as she carefully tucked the necklace into her pocket, feeling the strange pull subside but not entirely disappear. She knew she couldn't wait much longer or else Dudley would catch up, but this discovery had added something special to her morning.

With a skip in her step, she continued on her way, feeling like she was now the keeper of a precious secret waiting to be unraveled. As she walked, she couldn't shake the feeling that the necklace held a deeper connection to her, a connection she was determined to uncover when the school day was done.

As the days shortend, her powers grew. With each minute spent in darkness her need for vengeance grew.

The Dursley's thought they had finally broken her, as she had stoped talking back. They thought her week and moldable. They were naive. Azalea would wait until they least expected, and then stricke. If she burned, they would burn with her.

"Girl"Vernon Dursley's screeched from beyond her cubbort door,"Get up you little freak. It is time for you to make yourself useful. Go make the dinner, and I better not hear any complaining. You should be grateful that I'm letting you out of your freakish cubbort at all after you burned breakfast this morning."

Sitting up, Azalea took a deep breath, making sure her face didn't portray the emotions she felt bubbling on her insides.

Just obey them she told herself. It will be over soon.

Pushing herself into the stepping still so she could see, she reached her hand out towards the knife stack, making sure not to cut herself on the sharp edges.

As she continued to cut up the vegetables needed, Azalea focused on her breathing. In one of her many nightly practices she had learned that the calmer she was, the clearer he head, the more she could accomplish.

Focusing was easy, but the relaxing portion was near impossible for her. It had been trilled into her that relaxation was to be punished.

Twisting the handle of the pan so that the melted butter would spread evenly, Azalea added the cut vegetables. She couldn't wait to get back into her cubbort to practice.

The power, the magic, was addicting.
She was able to mend all things broken, destroy them and make balls of light. When she wanted to, her room would darken with shadows. Locking and unlocking the hatch on the door became second nature to her.

She even manged to transfigure her blanket, making it hold more heat in as the days grew colder.

She was ready for the second part of her practice. She was finally ready to move onto living test subjekts.

9 Years Ago

Regulus Acturus Black had know pain all his live. He could probably call it his closet companion at this point in his life.
At first he thought his parents Crucios would be the most excruciating thing he would ever experience.

Then Sirius I will never leave you behind Black, his brother left him.

And then he fell in love with the sun. James Fleamont Potter, had lit up his world. Their relaitionship had sparked like a burning wave, completely surrounding him.

He had never felt more loved. More compleat. More innocent. More Free
And then the world had come crashing down.

James had realized he had joined the death eaters. He had cried and begged James to stay.
"I will always love you, but I can't stay Reggi. I'm so sorry"
Four Months later he had announcement his engagement to Lilly Evans.

Regulus knew he was nothing like his brother. It was something he prided himself on. He wasn't a stupid brash Gryffindor, he wasn't brave like Sirius or James. He was sly, he was cunning, he was resourceful. He knew how to survive.

Looking down into the endless blackness of the raging waves below him Regulus decided he was done fighting. He was going to be brave. Act before thinking.

As he feel, he thought of his brother.

A/N: don't worry, Reggi isn't dead:)

He's actually just about to meet Azaleas Godly-Parent (I'm super dooper excited to write that)

Can u guess what's going on with the necklace?

Comment and Vote pls<3

And I still really really need a beta reader? Pls? Anyone?