and then the mirror crack'd for side to side

Storm ground her teeth together hard. Why the hell did she spend so much time outside lately? She was mad at herself. Not just for that reason, but for everything.

Maybe it was her fault. Maybe if she stopped acting like a victim, her older brother would leave her alone. It was worse than ever now. Was he right? Was Storm a coward?

She wanted to throw something. What was going on? Why was she like this? Storm could have chosen a better future for herself. She didn't have to be like this.

She didn't feel like Storm Everlee.

She felt like the broken shell that once was Storm Everlee.

Storm didn't like what she had become, but there was no changing it.

The girl fell to the ground and began to weep.

Charlotte read the letter again, smiling at her family's caring words. Her brother supported her so much these days she almost didn't even remember the time she got her letter and all the big fights happened. Almost, because, of course, that was all still inside her mind, she only chose to ignore it.

She took out a quill, a piece of parchment and a bottle of ink as she sat down in a nearby bench to reply to the letter. She missed them a bit, though she had only just seen them the past break. But it was always like this, after breaks she seemed to miss them the most.

Quill nearly hitting the parchment, her head shot up and she stopped when she heard someone crying. It was a girl on the ground, near where she was. So distracted, Charlotte hadn't even noticed her. She put her things back on her bag and bit her lips. . . Should she talk to the girl, or not? She didn't want to bother her - she obviously needed some space. But she couldn't see people cry and not do anything about it.

"Is everything alright?" she asked quietly, stepping closer to the girl. Well, of course things weren't alright, but she wouldn't come up to her asking what had happened.

Crying was hell. At first, Storm couldn't do anything than sit on her knees sobbing softly into her hands and getting tears everywhere. She started losing her breath, past caring if anyone heard. The Gryffindor would deny it in that case.

When she heard someone speak, the small redhead quickly sat up and wiped her eyes on the back of her hand. Storm pressed her lips tightly together to not give in to the lump of tears that was forming in her throat.

Keep it together, Storm told herself firmly. No one can know.

"Of course everything's alright," she snapped once she coud speak again. "Why wouldn't it b-be?" Storm pressed her hand over her mouth. Tears were filing her eyes again and threatening to spill over. The redhead didn't dare turn to the person. No way was she going to let someone know about this.

Charlotte watched the girl and desperately wished she could find a way to help her. She'd always been very shy when it came to talking to people she didn't know, and, though she always wanted to comfort the person, her shyness usually got the best of her and she just left them alone, telling herself that it would be better not to get involved. It wasn't her business, and if they didn't want anyone to know, she wouldn't press.

When the redhead denied, as expected, the Ravenclaw almost did just the usual - walked away, after telling her that if she needed anything, she would listen or do what she could to help. Something about seeing her break down, however, kept Charlotte on the same spot, afraid to move closer but, at the same time, not wanting to move back.

"You're crying," she stated, but not in a way that made it seem like it was something to be ashamed of, "Something's not alright." Hesitantly, she took a step forward and looked down at the girl, "What's wrong? If-If you don't want to tell me, it's alright, but I-I just, I just want to help in any way that I can."

Storm listened, pressing her hand tighter to her lips to stop the threating sob from escaping them. Why didthe person want to help her? She was supposed to be alone in the world. Alone. Didn't the girl get that?

"I-I," the redhead stuttered, "I just can't take it any more."

Charlotte frowned and took a few more steps, until she was close enough to knee on the ground and see the redhead's face. "Can't take what?" she asked softly, her eyes filled with concern, "What's wrong? Tell me and I can help you, then everything will be better."

"You can tell me," she assured her, "I won't tell a soul if you don't want me to."

Storm merely shook her head. "No. I can't say. I don't want to. It's between me, myself and I." She sniffed silently. The Gryffindor had decided to brave it and keep it to herself.

She wiped her eyes, feeling really guilty about the girl having to see her cry.

"But if you can't take it anymore. . . " Charlotte trailed off, not wondering whether to continue or not. Hesitantly, she opened her mouth once again, "Wouldn't it be better to tell someone else? Maybe lift the weight off your shoulders. It could be a stranger, like me, someone who doesn't know your story, someone who won't really judge." She bit her lips, "Or, it could be a friend of yours. A person you really trust."

"But if you don't want to," she added quickly, "I mean, it's fine, it's your choice. I'm really sorry to be pushing you, you didn't want to talk about it an-and here I am, it looks like I'm prying, I-I'm really sorry."

Storm laughed sarcastically. "People. They don't, they won't, understand. Not at all. Strangers, you're the only one to talk to me in a long time. Friends, I don't really have them. Don't trust anyone, either."

"Don't worry yourself," she said with a shake of her head. Then she remembered something, and grabbed the front of the girl's shirt, pulling her so that their faces were close.

"If you tell anyone, anyone about this," Storm said in a low, threatening whisper, "I'll personally see to that you regret it. Do you understand me?" She shook the girl once, not letting go.

"I-I'm. . ." Charlotte wasn't sure what to say. She was the first person to talk to her in a long time? She opened her mouth to try to mutter something that actually made sense this time, but never got a chance. The young girl gasped when she was pulled by the shirt, eyes wide and hoping the girl wouldn't hurt her. She didn't. Well, alright, being pulled by the shirt wasn't exactly the most comfortable thing, but she was glad she didn't hit her or anything like that.

The Ravenclaw nodded, now wondering if it was a good idea. She'd always been a coward, and the girl was starting to scare her, but something, again, made her stay. And it wasn't just the girl's hold on her. "I swear I won't tell anyone. I don't even have anyone to tell."

Staring as intensely as possible, Storm refused to let go, even after she had what she needed. She wanted to make it very clear that the girl would be lucky to be alive if she breathed a single word. Very reluctantly, the Gryffindor let go, still keeping her lips in a snarl.

He expression softened a little, but hardly. "No one to tell?"

Charlotte kept her gaze fixed on the older girl, wondering how someone could seem so strong and brave, but at the same time so vulnerable and broken. Seeing those two sides of the redhead made Charlotte want to listen to her story even more, want to help her become her old self again, even if she did not know who that was.

She relaxed a bit when she was let go, hating the feeling of weakness she had felt moments before. It reminded her of her encounter with the fire boy, less than a year before. The Ravenclaw shrugged, "It's not like I have many friends... At least, no one close enough to share secrets with. Maybe one, potentially, but I guarantee I will not tell anybody unless you ever give me permission to."