Haphephobia

Adeline

The picture is Adeline.

 It was a cold and quiet day. The sun hadn't managed to break through the clouds, it's thick white cloth hovering over the world like a cold embrace. Silvery-blue eyes were staring intently at the sky. These eyes sparkled with curiousity and wonder, a gaze both admiring and judging. The person whose eyes these were was perched atop a small, snow-covered branch in a forest. A girl. She appeared to be around fifteen years old, the curious eyes portraited in an angelic face. Her plump, pale lips were curved in a slight smile. Her porcelain, pale skin smooth and spotless. Her cheeks had the faintest hint of a roze colour from the cold breeze, a breeze that ran through the long, cascading white hairs running down her head. Slight movements were found under this curtain of white, two pointy elven ears peeking just through the silkiness. Her skin had goosebumps everywhere from the obvious winter cold, only a thin, torn black dress hung from her thin frame. The dress was short, it's fabric worn throughout the years and cuts were littered all over it. Her feet were bare, and one could only wonder why this peculiar girl had not yet frozen to death. She was underweight, and it was almost painful to look at the bones that poked against the skin, as if about to pierce through. Yet the girl seemed disturbingly at peace with her unhealthy condition and way of living, as if she hadn't known any life but this one. Laughter was heard in the distance, finally gaining the girl's attention. Her gaze shifted from the sky, towards a bustling pathway. 

Children of all ages, wearing dark coloured robes and dragging trunks with them, were running down the pathway towards the train-station at the end. An amused expression flickered over her angelic features as she let herself drop from the branch, soundlessly landing on the snow covered ground unharmed. Hogwarts had ended another schoolyear, and all students were send home for a vacation before the new year began. Her bare feet slowly covered in snow as she walked closer to the edge of the Forbidden Forest, leaning sideways against a tree as she admired the view. A longing filled her silvery eyes, the smile that once graced her lips long gone. Oh how she longed to be a student there. To create ever-lasting friendships and bonds, to be able to converse verbally and hug others. But alas, she was never meant to have that, it seems. And she would just have to accept that. Without another thought, the mysterious girl turned away from the edge and went back to the depths of this mystic and dangerous forest. Her home. As if she was made to do this, the girl ran up a tree and perched atop a branch as she took in her surroundings. Her eyes closed as a gentle breeze blew through her hair, allowing her ears to twitch and take in her surroundings. The soft, faded clattering of water soon reached her and she could not help but smile softly at that. She was near the Lake, one of the few sources of water actually drinkable in this forest. Not wasting another second, the girl jumped to another branch and ran across it's twigs and leaves. Repeatedly, she manouvered to another tree and ran across the branches as if it was the most normal thing to do. Not once losing her balance or footing, her breathing even and calm, it only took her a handful of minutes before she reached her destination. The Lake. 

Calmly, she remained on a branch and allowed her gaze to wander the grounds. Apart from a few deer, the surroundings seemed calm and safe. She dropped herself from the tree and squatted down the moment she landed, rolling over her shoulder to catch the impact of landing. No sounds were made as she stood up and ran her fingers through her white hair, undoing the locks of any dirt or twigs. She seemed to almost hover towards the edge of the lake as her feet were hidden by the thick layer of snow, squatting down. She pressed her right palm on the lightly frozen water and closed her eyes. A familiar tingling spread through her fingers before a heat emitted from her skin, melting a decent hole in the ice. Satisfied with her work, the girl reached both hands in the freezing cold water and lifted them to her face. Leaning down just the slightest, her pale lips eagerly slurped the water from her cupped hands, which by now were shaking. Yes, the cold was getting to her now, but she needed to decently hydrate first before focusing on the warmth problem. As she felt like she had clenched her thirst sufficiently, she took a moment to stare at her reflection in the frozen part of the lake. She did not like the girl that stared back at her. It was, to her, the perfect example of an empty, soulless, worthless mess. With a grimace and a determined spark in her eyes, the girl stood up and turned away from her own image. Disgusted. Instead, she was met with a peculiar sight. 

In the midst of all the white from the snow was a black dot, rapidly coming closer to the Lake. This intrigued her, for no creatures besides animals seemed to visit this part of the forest. Her curiousity getting the better of her, the girl swiftly climbed up a tree and sprawled out across its branch, resting on her stomach as she studied the figure that now came into view. It was a human, a man. He wore black robes, raven black hair and held what seemed to be, a basket. But what intrigued her most was the paleness of his skin, and the sadness and anger in his dark eyes. Vaguely, in the back of her mind, she knew he had to be a teacher at the school she had seen the children depart from earlier. There was no other place he could have come from, all civilization too far away. The dark man squatted down infront of a particular bush, delicately and carefully picking off some of the frozen berries. She arched a white eyebrow at his actions, debating on warning him. These berries were poisonous, and looked very similar to the ones that weren't. But alas, this man seemed certain these were the ones he needed. Frustrated, the girl let out a sigh and allowed her fingers to thoughtlessly play with the locket that hung from her neck as she soundlessly dropped down from the tree once more. It was a silver locket with a blue symbol on it, and in thin cursieve it read 'Adeline.' Her name.