sleep
Narcissa
Her feet hurt. All she wanted to do was sleep.
When Narcissa was little, she often had trouble falling asleep. Sometimes she also had nightmares. But they all had them. She got used to them.
Narcissa had no idea how long she had been running through the forest. Her dress was dirty and torn. Her hair was a mess. Her mother would probably have had a heart attack if she'd seen Narcissa like this. Not that she really would have cared.
Now Narcissa lay wrapped in a blanket next to a campfire, trying to process the last few hours.
She had always known that her family wasn't quite right in the head, but after what had happened to Bellatrix, Narcissa really wouldn't have believed her parents capable of that.
So now she was out. Like Andromeda. Like Sirius. Just another scandal in the Noble and most Ancient House of Black. Narcissa almost laughed. Almost.
She was torn from her thoughts when she heard footsteps approaching. Wearily, she turned her head in the direction the sound was coming from.
When Narcissa had heard voices in the forest earlier, she had instinctively moved in that direction. But when she finally burst out of the bushes, she hadn't expected to find three teenagers all pointing weapons at her. Narcissa knew immediately that they must be demi-gods.
Just like her sisters, she was born with the ability to see through the mist. This had made her life very complicated and very interesting from the start.
But when she stood in front of the three soldiers, she had no choice but to take it all in as quickly as possible.
The boy first. He carried a strange-looking sword made of black metal, which Narcissa did not recognise.
The one girl was also armed, she carried a simple sword, probably celestial bronze.
The last member of the group was also a girl, holding the same sword as girl number one. She had pretty eyes.
Narcissa had tried to retain some of her dignity, even though she was clearly not in the best condition. She had stood up straight and spoken in a clear voice. Her parents would have been proud. She felt a little sick.
Now, as Narcissa lay next to the campfire, she could see who was approaching her. It was the girl with the pretty eyes. She sat down next to Narcissa and looked at her enquiringly. Narcissa sat up so that she was at the same height as the other girl. They sat in silence for a while until Pretty Eyes cleared her throat.
‘My name is Alice. Alice Fortescue.’
Narcissa remained silent. Alice Fortescue. She had never heard the name before, but Narcissa liked the sound of it. Alice seemed uncomfortable because she looked away when she started to speak again.
‘I just wanted to introduce myself. Because we already know your name.’
As she continued speaking, she pointed to the two others sitting on the other side of the campfire.
‘This is Barty and Dorcas. You can sleep with us tonight, but we'd be interested to know what you're doing out in the woods all alone at this time of night.’
Narcissa scoffed.
‘That's not really any of your business.’
Alice turned her head and looked her in the eye again.
‘We've given you food and a place to sleep. You at least owe us an explanation.’
Narcissa really didn't want to share her whole life story with these strangers. She had had a long day and even though she was grateful, Narcissa would certainly not divulge all her deepest secrets. She had kept them bottled up for too long for that. She turned her back to Alice.
‘I didn't ask for these things.’
Alice seemed frustrated.
‘Fine. Do what you want, we'll move on tomorrow. You can see for yourself how you get on.’
With these words, she stood up and made her way to the other soldiers. Great. Now Narcissa felt bad. So she held Alice back.
‘Alice?’
The girl turned back to her.
‘What?’
Narcissa isn't sure what to say. So she decides to keep it short.
‘Thank you.’
Alice nods at her.
‘It's all right.’
Narcissa thought she saw a small smile, but the moment had passed. Alice walked to the other side of the fire and sat down.
Narcissa closed her eyes, ready to get some sleep. Knowing, that she was far away from the house. She was safe.
The nightmares found her anyway.