Liquorice Honey (Rewritten Version)

Chapter II

With an aching pain in the pit of her stomach, Hyacinth landed unceremoniously in a heap on the ground, dragging those usual sighs from her mother.

"Still as frightfully clumsy as last time, I see," her mother sighed, shaking her head in distaste, "to your feet. We have things to do, Hyacinth!"

"Um, yes, mother," Hyacinth stumbled to her feet, the pain in her stomach making it difficult to stay steady.

She tried to grab onto her mother as she lurched forward, desperate to stop herself from hitting the ground once more; but her mother snatched her porcelain arm away from her daughter's hand, forcing her to take the brunt of the concrete straight onto her head.

"Do stop falling, dear," her mother said through gritted teeth, her smile fading by the second, "we are busy. Come."

Her cold fingers wrapped around her daughter's now twisted wrist, making her wince; but she daren't mention it, lest her mother not allow her to get a wand whatsoever.

It was her one way ticket away from all of this; she needed that wand, so she had to pander to her mother's needs.

Somehow.

As it was tapped against the wall, Hyacinth mused about her mother's wand; she'd seen it the odd few times, and she'd always thought it to be gaudy. Though she had no knowledge of what wood it was, it seemed to shimmer in the darkness, like a clear sky encrusted with false stars. Somehow, it made sense that such a horrible looking item had chosen her mother, even all of those years ago.

The wall rolled open, and it felt as if all of the brick had tumbled straight into Hyacinth's stomach; she hadn't seen this many people in one place in her life.

Were they her age? Perhaps they were here for the same reason?

"Stop shaking, Hyacinth, you strange creature," her mother chided, still not relinquishing her grip on her daughter's wrist, "nobody will talk to you if you insist on being so odd."

That was, in some sense, what the tiny girl wanted.

She'd never even spoken to a child her age before; her only social contact was with her family, and...a cousin, one she hadn't seen for many years now.

She found herself reminiscing about her as she was frogmarched past the seemingly endless string of stores; her aesthetic was perfect, with every item of clothing matching the shade of violet she loved. She'd bring picnics of food more magical than even the people that surrounded her, a smile of true affection always plastered on her face.

Finally, the words slipped out; "mother, why doesn't Opal come and see me anymore?"

No words left her mother's mouth; she tightened her grip around Hyacinth's wrist, saying shortly, "She isn't well enough to see you. Not anymore."

Hyacinth blinked in surprise; Opal had always been in the best of health, skipping around like a unicorn, treating her like a princess...she'd never had a problem before, so...

This may have just been another one of her mother's lies; Hyacinth shook her head at her own thoughts, casting that aside. Today was not the day to argue with her superior.

She walked quietly again, trying not to let her mind wander too far out of the realm of her current vision; today was meant to be a happy day, after all. Not one to dwell on the past.

"If you're really that bothered, dear, she does still attend school," her mother spoke in her best attempt at a soothing tone, "she'd be in her fourth year now. I hear she's a truly prodigious student, in the time she's not in the Hospital Wing."