HIATUS - Ghosting Through Time (Niall Horan AU)

-five-

I think as I write more chapters, they get longer. Have you noticed? I'm really enjoying writing this fic btw. In case you guys wanted to know. Haha. I love writing supernatural, science fiction kind of fics. I hope you're enjoying it as much as I enjoy writing it. If not then it's okay because I'm still enjoying writing it.

-absoLouis <3

Who knew that breaking a child's spirit would hurt this much? Who knew that taking away a child's best friend would hurt this much? Certainly they did not.

--

Weeks had passed since Ann told Ashlee that Niall couldn't come back. Those weeks turned into months and Ann wasn't sure if throwing him out of her life was a good idea or not. Although he told her that they'd meet again one day, Ashlee waited at the patio table between the garden and the playground every day until midnight, her bum glued to the green patio chair she had painted for him. She'd sit in the chair with the daisy ring around her pinky finger, patiently waiting for the sudden gust of wind that would leave as fast as it came, waiting to see the bright blue eyes between the leaves of the flowers in the garden or the trees that led to the forest.

And every night, at the strike of twelve, the back door would open and a silent Ashlee would tread up the stairs and to her room without a peep to her sisters or father. It wasn't unusual that their father, Eugene, paid no mind to whatever they did, as long as they didn't bother him in his office. He was a big shot lawyer so he spent most of his time in his office sorting out his client's papers and writing down statements until they were perfect. He had to sacrifice all of his free time with his girls when his wife, Julia, had passed away during child birth. He had to work over time to support his four beautiful girls. He didn't hold a grudge against his youngest daughter but it did hurt a bit every time he looked at her because she was a spitting image of her mother, but because she looked exactly like her mother, he loved her much more.

--

When school started, the only thing about young Ashlee's routine that would change was instead of waiting in the backyard from noon until midnight, she'd wake up at the break of dawn, attend school, rush home to finish whatever school work she had to do, then go to the backyard where she'd wait.

--

It had been three months since she turned seven and Niall still hadn't returned to her, returned for her. The petals of the daisy ring were starting to fall off and the soft stem was starting to grow stiff. The stiffness of the ring brought tears to her eyes as she remembered how stiff Niall had suddenly become before he dispersed into thin air.

Ashlee sat at the window seat that looked out to the backyard where she twisted the ring around her finger, thoughts running wild in her mind. She wondered if he kept her ring wherever he was in the future, if she was really his princess, if he had found another princess in his time. The depressing thoughts slowly drained all the energy from her tiny frame. There was a knock at her bedroom door and for a moment, Ashlee was glad she didn't have to be alone with her thoughts.

"Come in." She said, and although her voice was just above a whisper, the door slowly opened. It was her oldest sister, someone she didn't want to see right now because she's the reason why Niall wasn't coming back. She told him not to come back. And because of that, Ashlee didn't care if she was left alone with her thoughts, just as long as she didn't have to look at Ann. In Ann's hands was a tray of food.

Ann made her way across the room, setting the tray down on the desk and pulled the desk chair close to the window seat. "How are you doing, love?" she asked quietly, sitting down in the chair. Ashlee returned her gaze back out the window, watching the leaves for the gust of wind she's been longing to feel that would bring her prince back.

"Fine." Ashlee said and Ann flinched at the amount of ice in her tiny voice for that single worded answer. Ann frowned, patting the younger girl's leg. Ashlee moved her leg away almost immediately.

"You might not understand it now, but what I did was the right thing." Ann began to explain but Ashlee snapped her head towards her sister, the sudden movement cutting off the words she was trying to find before she even thought them.

"Taking away my best friend was the right thing?" Ashlee asked, her soft voice solidifying in venom, much like the way Ann had talked to Niall the night of her birthday party. "How would you feel if I took away your best friend and told him to never come back?" She said, her quiet voice growing louder with each word. Tears welled up before the little girl's eyes and threatened to spill but Ashlee managed to blink them away as her tiny fists balled up at her sides.

It was at that moment that Ann realized Ashlee was not only hurt, but heartbroken. She hadn't meant to break her little sister's heart--if anything she was trying to save her the heart ache. She didn't want her baby sister to get use to waiting for this strange man to appear in their backyard. It wasn't healthy to let little Ashlee dream so big that her expectations would grow a thousand miles into the Heavens. But it had already happened before she even realized it.

Ann was silenced by the hurt resonating in her younger sister's voice and they were left in silence. She really hadn't meant to hurt her; it was the last thing she had ever thought of doing--to any of her sisters, much less the baby that looked like their mother. There were soft footsteps traveling up the stairs, growing louder and then suddenly stopping before Ashlee's bedroom door. It was her sisters, Marie and Lynn.

"Not now girls." Ann said, shooting them a stern look, but it had no affect on the girls as they rushed to Ashlee's side.

"The wind is going crazy outside!" twelve year old Marie exclaimed, her arms swaying outrageously as she tried to imitate the movements of the wind. Lynn nodded excitedly. Ashlee instantly looked back out the window and gasped when she saw something move behind the trees, tears that threatened to fall began free falling. She hopped off the window seat and ran down the stairs, jumping the last four steps in haste. Sprinting out the backdoor, she ran to the trees knowing what she was looking for.

She came to an abrupt stop when she found the source of the movements. At her feet was a yellow rabbit, hopping in the opposite direction of the blowing wind and falling onto its back. Despite the adorable scene before her, she couldn't smile. From her bedroom window, Ann watched as she saw disappointment paint her baby sister's features.

When the rabbit had managed to finally hop away, she heard the crunching of fallen leaves behind her and whipped her head around, almost giving herself whiplash.

"I told you we'd meet again one day. Did you miss me, princess?"