The Black Sisters

seventy-two

Dorea eventually left her cardboard paradise. Bringing a few boxes with her back to her dorm. She couldn't sleep that night. Sleep was Dorea's favorite escape. Most of the time Dorea would go to sleep early and wake up late because of her dread to wake up and find a new sun in the sky.

Terrified to face the voices, face the eyes again. Dorea had a knot in her stomach as she laid under her to hot sheets. She would see her family tomorrow at the train station. She had no clue what she was going to do. She had no clue what her next step was.

Was she going to run from them like a coward or would she face them and join them to save Regulus. Would she run and never reach their hands and ruin regulus or would she run and they catch her ruining regulus' life. It seemed bad any way. There was no way out. There was no way to escape the growing guilt. No way to escape the ruining of peoples lives.

Sweat dropped onto her eyebrows. She laid as still as a board. Listening to the careful breathes of her room mates sleeping. She didn't know what she was to do but she had to prepare for the worst.

The door opened suddenly and Dorea sat straight up, startled by the noise.

"hey sorry" Georgia said, georgia was one of her roomates. They never really spoke.

"hey"

Those were the only words the two exchanged but dorea hurried out of her hot bed and hurried to the door, slipping past the hinges. She rushed out of the common room and into the freezing hall.

She wandered the halls finding herself at the foot of the astronomy tower.

She heard laughter and talking up at the top.

It was regulus.

Regulus was at the top of the astronomy tower with some lover boy. Dorea would ruin her own life if she saved theirs. But she'd ruin theirs if she saved herself. It was bad all around.. She heard the happiness in both of their voices.

She hurried away.

She couldn't listen to their voices; so full of love and joy.

She didn't know what she would do. She didn't know how she'd pull it off, not ruining anyones life.

Dorea rested her back against the stone walls as she stared out an open window blowing warm wind to the castle. The stars were covered by clouds that night. The moon was a cresent. The world felt muffled as her eyes weighed more and more.

As she dozed off she heard footsteps. She never got a minute of interrupted sulking did she. But she simply let her eyelids fall and her head switch off.

***

Seph walked the halls, unable to sleep. She stopped at a corner when she heard a thud.

She peered over the corner and saw a limp with sleep dorea. She rolled her eyes.

She knew how awful she'd been to dorea, and still didn't know why she did it. But when the amortentia had smelled just like her, she couldn't take it. Seph crouched down in front of Dorea. She never could escape Dorea's presence.

She brushed dorea's curls behind her ear. Seph felt so strange when she was with the girl. So she thought maybe if she made Dorea hate her she wouldn't feel so light headed. It didn't work. Everything drew her to Dorea.

Her freckles, and brown hair, her eyes and her small hands were so perfect. Dorea wasn't perfect, but she was perfect in Seph's eyes.

"hello?" Dorea mumbled sitting up, as she opened her eyes she saw Seph sitting in front of her.