strayed too far (open)

[phaedra iris greyback]

Phaedra knew…she just knew there was work back in the castle. It was her job and there was always something to do somewhere in that school. Filch had been falling behind in his old age and by the time he retired, the dust was so thick in some places, you had no idea what was underneath it. Oh, the advantages of being young and strong; there were rooms available again that hadn’t been touched in a generation or three easily, simply because they had been filthy and beyond unusable.

That sort of dust didn’t just choke memories though, it made people sick and the last thing she needed was to get sick (not that she could recall a period of illness lasting more than a day or two) and to let things start falling behind again. Whoever had been there between the old squib and her hadn’t done much in the way of putting things right either. Still, for now she needed to be outside and breathing in clean air. Oh, and a chance to rediscover parts of the lake were always going to be a welcome chance.

She had always liked the lake, though the astronomy tower windows had always been preferable, and it was probably one of the better spots to be in the winter. It was quiet, but pretty enough and the cold tended to keep people in, so the chance of being interrupted was slim. True, it wasn’t yet freezing with snow set to fall at any moment, but it was no July heat wave either. It was…passable. Yes, that was the word she was looking for. It was passable and she was happy here. She was not a miserable creature as some would have you believe, but her introversion and apparent inability to put together more than a five word sentence painted another picture all together. She merely enjoyed her own company more than that of other people. Others couldn’t be trusted to not hurt her or trip her up or leave.

still, she thought to herself, gazing out across the oddly still surface of the lake it’s a lonely way to live. Sitting down, she pulled her knees up and buried half her face in her knees. Very lonely. But…surely it’s better to be lonely than in pain, right? With a sigh, she went back to hugging her knees, somehow blissfully unaware of the world around her. Practically an invitation to join her.