Kindred | Hogwarts Legacy

Chapter Thirty-One : Surviving

"Sabrina? Are you up here?"

She heard Sister Margaret's voice calling from nearby full of concern, but Sabrina stayed silent, preferring to just ignore the nun and sit and wallow in her self-pity a bit longer as she sat on the large wooden crate she had placed herself upon.

She heard Sister Margaret's steps finally stop next to her. "I found you."

"Do you want some sort of prize?" Sabrina snipped, not caring about how harsh she sounded right at that moment.

Sister Margaret sighed, moving her skirts a bit before she sat down next to the teenager. For a minute they sat in silence, staring ahead over the dreary gray London skyline before them. Sabrina always felt like the roof was the perfect place to think and ponder, but now her thoughts were full of nothing but pain and anger and frustration. It was hard to think clearly when her mind was like this.

"Have I ever told you how much you remind me of my older brother?" Sister Margaret began, breaking the quiet between them. "Whenever Theo was angry or upset, he always used to find the highest place he could and just run away. Sometimes we would go hours without seeing him and our mother would have to go yelling for him."

"At least he had a mother looking for him."

The nun looked at her, seemingly like she was going to say something but then thought otherwise before sighing again.

"One day I'm going to run away from here," Sabrina told her, still angry but now determined. "One day, I'm going to cross those iron gates and you will see no more of me. And the rest of the world will keep moving as it does, and I'll disappear into nothing. Because that's all I am."

"You know that's not—"

"No, Sister, I don't!" Finally, the wall within Sabrina broke and she could feel her emotions finally overcoming her. And she didn't care. "How in God's name would I know that if all I'm being told is how worthless and pathetic I am?!"

"Sister Mary only wants—"

"That is bullshit and you know it!"

"You watch your language, young lady." Sister Margaret's voice was harsh and stern as if daring Sabrina to keep going.

Sabrina didn't listen. "And now you're starting to sound just like her! You don't fucking care either!"

"Sabrina Pryor—"

"STOP CALLING ME THAT!" Sabrina could feel the hot tears coming down her face. "That is not my name, it's just some stupid name you nuns gave me because I am NOTHING! That's all I've ever been is NOTHING!"

The nun's face had hardened, her lips pursed and her eyes fuming as she took every ounce of patience within her to keep her composure. "Are you quite finished?"

For the moment, Sabrina was. She sat defiantly, refusing to look at the nun and see how riled up she had made her.

"Despite what you think, Sister Mary is trying to help you. By you taking these obedience lessons and learning how to cook and clean and keep a house, she's trying to help you—"

"Be a sheep?"

"Survive."

Sabrina still didn't look at the nun.

"The world is dark and cruel and harsh, especially for women of little to no status like us. By learning to be a servant, Sister Mary is trying to teach you how to live and get by. If you can be hired as a maid or a nanny, you can have a warm roof and food and a way to keep living."