Perfect House Guest
Days turned into weeks, weeks into months, and months into years. Time slipped by, measured in the changing of the seasons, the lengthening and shortening of days.
Throughout it all, Andromeda was on the run, never letting her guard down, never staying in one place for long. A year passed but her determination to avoid her parents and maintain her freedom never wavered. She never stopped moving from place to place, changing aliases and appearances to stay under the radar.
The years on the run were tough and often lonely. There were moments of near-capture and moments of brief solitude. There were moments of quiet, where she could nearly hear her own thoughts, and moments of chaos where her heart was in her throat.
But through it all, there was always the thrill of the fugitive life. The thrill of having to think on her feet, of never being sure where she was going to end up, it was both exhausting and exhilarating.
It wasn't much of a life but it was better than the life her parents designed for her.
A life of a pretty bird in a cage, never let out, forgetting the feeling of truly spreading its wings.
Throughout her time on the run, Andromeda had brief moments of true freedom, moments when it felt like her soul soared. In these moments, she felt truly alive, despite the constant state of potential danger. She felt the rain on her skin, the breeze in her hair, the rush of adrenaline of a close call – things she might have taken for granted if she'd stayed in her parents' control.
These were the things that kept her going, that gave her the sense that she was indeed living, not simply existing.
The loneliness didn't get any easier with time though. There were moments when she missed having someone to talk to, someone to share experiences with, someone to just simply be with. But the fear of her parents – or anyone associated with them – finding her, kept her isolated. She had to be self-sufficient, even at the detriment of her own happiness.
There was some contentment in her own company but she missed those she had once known. There wasn't much time for goodbyes when she disappeared under the cover of night out of her dorm. It was perhaps one of the things she regretted most about leaving. Whenever she felt particularly lonely, her thoughts would often stray to those she left behind without a word.
She remembered the faces of her friends at Hogwarts, the familiar corridors where she had spent the best part of her recent years. There was a pang of guilt in her chest whenever she thought of them and how she'd left without a trace.
The feeling would always pass, replaced by a steely determination to keep moving forward, to keep fleeing.
But Andromeda had to stop running at some point. Surely?
– Görlitz, Saxony 1972
It had been a while since Andromeda had had any close calls or even spotted her parents hired help trying to track her. Maybe they had finally given up.
Andromeda had been in town under the name Lauren Hudson for about five months, which was pretty long for her usual schedule. But she was tired, more tired than she had ever been. She missed having a proper bed to sleep in, a place to call home. The constant paranoia and looking over her shoulder took its toll mentally as well as physically. For once in her life, she needed stability, even if it was just for a little while.
She kept to herself and worked as a waitress in a small café to make ends meet. The townsfolk didn't notice her too much and the café owner, an old woman endearingly known as Mama Cy, was kind to her, even though she was a little eccentric.
One mid-autumn afternoon, after finishing her shift at the café, Andromeda was walking back to the small apartment she had rented above a nearby bookshop. Something felt different, though. She couldn't put her finger on it, but she felt a bit... watched.
"Wotcha, Lauri." Perseus came swinging around the corner. The bright young girl was also one of Mama Cy's girls, quite an eccentric figure too.
Her lavender dreads smacked against Andromeda as she spun swiftly. Andromeda caught herself just as she was about to swear at the unexpected contact.
"Percy, you scared the living daylights out of me," she chided, her heart still racing.
"Oh, you're too jumpy, Lauri," Percy said with a light-hearted laugh, clearly finding Andromeda's reaction amusing.
Despite the fright she just received, Andromeda couldn't help but smile at Percy's cheerful nature. It was hard to stay grumpy around her.
"You're like a cat," Percy continued, grinning widely. "I could swear you have secret whiskers somewhere on that face of yours."
She attempted to poke Andromeda's cheek in jest. Andromeda batted Percy's hand away, but her smile widened at the girl's playful nature.
"No secret whiskers, I assure you," she said, the corner of her mouth twitching. "Just normal old boring human skin.”
"Boring? You could never be boring, Lauren. I bet you have all sorts of exciting secrets in that pretty little head of yours.”
Andromeda tried to maintain her aloof expression, but Percy's carefree demeanour was infectious.
"Secrets? Me? Hardly," she replied, affecting a nonchalant tone. But her eyes betrayed her, dancing with suppressed amusement.
"Oh, come off it," Percy said, not fooled for a moment. She stepped closer, her eyes narrowing as if trying to read Andromeda's mind. "I can practically hear the gears turning in there. A girl as mysterious and pretty as you? Definitely has secrets.”
Andromeda pretended to brush some invisible dust off her sleeve, trying to maintain an air of nonchalance.
"You give me too much credit, Percy," she said. "I'm just an ordinary girl, trying to lead an ordinary life.”
Percy chuckled, clearly enjoying the game. "Ordinary my foot," she said with a scoff. "I've seen how you move, how you carry yourself. There's a past there, a story. I can feel it. “
"Quit chasing ghost stories." Andromeda chuckled lightly, brushing her off. "What did you want anyways?"
Percy feigned indignation, placing a hand over her heart. "I can't just enjoy your lovely company?" she asked theatrically. But then she relented with a sigh, leaning back against the wall. "Alright, I did actually have a favour to ask you.”
“Of course.”
"I need a place to crash for a few days," she said in a hushed voice. "Mama Cy has a guest over. He's... Well, let's just say he's not the type I want to be around, if you catch my drift.”
"You should really just get your own place already, having you been boarding with Cynthia for years now?"
Percy shrugged, looking a bit sheepish. "Yeah, I know I'm a bit of a bird who won't leave the nest," she said with a laugh. "But it's cozy and... familiar, I suppose. And Mama Cy takes care of me."
“You abuse her kindness.” Andromeda pointed out bluntly.
"But that's not the point," she added, her expression turning serious. "I don't want to be anywhere near this guy. He's staying for a few days and I can't stand being around him. Can I please crash at your place? Just a couple of nights?”
Andromeda raised an eyebrow, looking at Percy closely. She was a bit surprised, but she knew Percy well enough to know when she was genuinely asking for help. After a moment, she relented with a sigh.
"Fine," she said, trying to sound put-upon, but a smile tugged at the corner of her mouth. "You can come stay with me for a couple of nights.”
Percy's face brightened, a wide grin spreading across her face.
"You're an angel, Lauri," she said, flinging her arms around Andromeda in a tight hug. Pulling back, she gave Andromeda a grateful smile. "Thank you, really. You're saving my life here.”
Andromeda rolled her eyes, but couldn't help but laugh as Percy hugged her.
"A slight exaggeration, but I'll take it," She straightened her clothes, feigning annoyance.
“I never exaggerate.” Percy insists.
"And remember, it's just a couple of nights," she added, giving Percy a stern look. "You're not moving in permanently, got it?”
Percy held up her hands in a gesture of innocence, still smiling. "Scout's honour," she said solemnly. "Few nights, that's it. And I promise I'll be a perfect house guest.”
Andromeda rolled her eyes but couldn't help a small smile. "That's what you always say," she teased, continuing to walk back home to her apartment, now with a plus one.