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I follow the night One day I'll fly away Why live life from dream to dream One day I'll fly away One day I'll fly away
Can't stand the light
When will I begin
To live again
Leave all this to yesterday
What more could your love do for me
When will love be through with me
And dread the day when dreaming ends
Leave all this to yesterday
Why live life from dream to dream
And dread the day when dreaming ends
Fly fly away
It all started on my seventh birthday. I had one of those typical swimming pool parties where all the mums and dads and kiddies show up to swim. To be honest I didn't really recognise many of the kids, I wasn't what you'd call "popular" at school, but Mother had wanted everything picture perfect and it wasn't my place to disagree. About one hour into this oh so perfect party I was walking round with one of Mother's china plates filled with treats for the party guests. I remember offering one to Amanda Jades, a snobby eight-year-old girl with a full posse of her own. She turned her nose up immediately and stuck her tongue out at me (quite an insult for a seven-year-old) before shoving me as hard as she could toward the swimming pool. I tripped backwards, the treats and china plate going flying as I caught my heel on the edge of the pool and my back smacked the water. What happened next was a blur of confusion to me. I remember the few seconds of being submerged and panicking as I kicked my legs trying to right myself. I remember a golden glow surrounding my body as I sank to the bottom of the pool. I remember pushing myself upwards from the bottom, blonde hair sweeping around my face and my newfound fin helping me break the surface of the pool water. I remember the kids screaming in terror, Mother crying over her china plate and Father instructing me to hold my breath underwater for five minutes. I didn't understand at that age that the average person couldn't stay underwater for that long, so I followed Father's bellowed instructions and dove back down to the deep.
iFifty eight elephants, fifty nine elephants, sixty elephants.../i
I counted to sixty- which I thought was pretty damn high at the time- five times before submerging near the marble steps leading out of the pool. Father immediately grabbed my arm and yanked me out of the water, causing me to trip and fall, without the use of my legs. He then threw me to the ground; scraping my forehead on the tarmac. I could see the golden glow surround me again, and I wiggled my toes, marvelling at the new skill I had. I lay there for a short while before peeking up at the scene around me. On the pool deck, there was a huge line of party guests, and at the front there was a man dressed in black robes, waving a stick as if conducting them all. I slowly watched every single one of my party guests be waved at, then escorted away from my house. As soon as they were all gone, Father grabbed my wrist and yanked me to my feet. I winced at the pain in my forehead and the new pain in my wrist…
"Her too." I heard Father growl at the man in black.
"Are you sure?" he replied. He sounded concerned for me and I bent my head down in shame, the way Mother taught me to.
"Just do it." Father growled again. The man in black sighed, rolled his sleeves up and held his stick up.
"Look at me Haylen," he muttered to me, before kneeling down to my level. I glanced up at him, terrified; I didn't know what was going on. Who was this man? What had he done to my party guests? I looked up at him, tears spilling down my cheeks. Father sighed, disgusted at my open display of hurt, and walked back into the house. I turned my glance back to the man in black.
"Shh," he soothed me, "I won't obliviate you." My brow creased at these words, I didn't know what obliviate meant. However, I hastily decided that I didn't want whatever it was done to me. The man in black pulled his hood back so I could see him clearly. He had a friendly, round face and a full head of ginger hair. His blue eyes were troubled and concerned. I stared at my feet again.
"Haylen. I'm going to try to get you out of here but if I can't, I want you to run. Remember this. Arthur Weasley, the Burrow." I looked up at him again, so confused at what was happening. A single tear trickled down Arthur Weasley's cheek. "What do you have to remember?" he questioned me.
"Arthur Weasley, the Burrow." I whispered, uncertainly.
"Good girl Haylen." I gave him a watery, toothless smile. He stood up and gave me a kiss on my cut forehead before waving his stick over it. I touched the spot where the scrape had been and couldn't find the cut, nor feel the pain. Mystified, I looked up at him.
"Don't ever speak about this. Okay, Haylen?" I nodded silently. He walked away from me, my guardian angel. Father exited the house again and grabbed me by the arm, dragging me towards the door.
Five years later, I was twelve and I had given up all hope that Arthur would ever rescue me. Those five years had been long and painful. Mother and Father had pulled me out of school after the swimming pool incident, and had home schooled me. For five whole years, sixty months, almost one thousand and eight hundred days, I had been alone. I had never seen someone my age. I had no idea whether how I wore my hair, or the clothes I wore, were normal or strange. Have you got any idea how that feels?
On my twelfth birthday I got a letter through the door. My first ever letter, addressed to me. Mother grabbed it from me when she caught me staring at it wide eyed; quickly opened it and scan read the letter. I waited patiently in anticipation. She passed it to Father. He didn't even bother reading it; he merely tore it up then stuck it into the blender. I watched my letter turn to pulp. Father wrote a reply on a tattered piece of rough paper and stormed out of the house. Mother emptied the blender into the bin before storming out after him. I looked around the house anxiously, jumping when I heard a tapping behind me. I spun round and saw a tawny white owl at the window. I closed my eyes and hid under the table. I wasn't allowed to answer the door to people and I was uncertain as to whether I was allowed to answer the window to owls. I counted to ten slowly.
iEight elephants, nine elephants, ten elephants…/i
I opened my eyes. The owl was still there. I cautiously approached the window and swung it open. The owl flew in and landed on the marble kitchen table. It held a leg out for me, which had a letter attached to it. I giggled nervously at the owls actions, it did look rather silly. I walked to the owl and undid the tie on its leg. The letter was addressed to me.
iHaylen, go into the river at the back of your garden. Do not worry about Mr and Mrs. Keyes, they have been distracted. Hedwig (the owl) won't leave until you have gone to the river. Put this letter and as many clothes as you can fit into a bag that will stay secure whilst you swim. When you get to the river let the golden glow do its work and swim until you see a red windmill. We will meet you there.
Arthur./i
Stunned, I began to gather my belongings into a leather bag that tied across my chest and checked the clock. I had spent three quarters of an hour already. I yanked open a kitchen drawer and grabbed a couple of photos, not even noticing what they were of, just thinking that one day I may need some memorabilia. I felt a catch on the bottom of the drawer that wouldn't let me open it. I could have left it but something compelled me to try.
"Open." I muttered. And suddenly the catch open. I grabbed the photos beneath it and stuffed them in my bag. I made my way across the kitchen then paused. If Mother and Father ever caught me I would be punished. A small part of me thought that I was leaving my home, and that Mother and Father weren't that bad, that I was making a big deal out of nothing. But as I caught my reflection in the kitchen window I saw the burns down the sides of neck where Mother had punished me for not cleaning the oven as well as I should have done. If you lifted my top you could still see the footprint where Father had kicked me into my room. It was my time to fly away. I scurried out of the back door and ran across the garden, with Hedwig on my tail. I jumped into the river, hurriedly waiting for the golden glow to happen as it had five years ago. Two years ago it almost happened in the bath but I remember mentally shaking it away so it wouldn't. I looked down at my legs. Legs not fin. It wasn't happening. I clambered out of the river again, Hedwig looking at me strangely as I did so. I thought deeply for a second. Two years ago in the bath I had been naked in the bath and I was scared because I heard Mother walking up the stairs. Three years before that I had been pushed and I was in my kiddie's bikini. I stripped off my white t-shirt, tattered shorts and knickers. I heard a shout from the house, they were home. I screamed, leapt naked into the river and began to swim as fast as I could with the current. I felt the golden glow engulf me, and my fin helped me speed up. I swam away from the house, the garden and from Mother and Father.
I don't know how long it took me to get to the windmill but when I got there, it was deserted. I panicked, looking around from the edge of my riverbed. I pulled myself out of the water and sat on a large rock in the middle of the river, staring off into the distance, wondering whether Arthur would come. I thought back to his letter.
iWe will meet you there./i
It had said we. I folded my fin so that I could hug the part where my knees used to be and lay my head on its snakelike surface. The length of my fin is a dark green with a tint of black, and at the bottom it splays out into the main part of the fin. That part is a dark black that shimmers different greens as the light catches it. I stroked my fingers idly over the scales and closed my eyes as the sun bathed me. What if they found me? What if they wrote that letter themselves so they could punish me? Panic gripped me and I began to sob. The sun was hidden behind a cloud and I covered my naked chest as I began to grow cold. I heard a gasp behind me. I turned my head quickly to see a boy, just older than me I guessed, with long red hair and blue eyes. His mouth was hanging open as he stared at me, taking in my dark fin; long dirty blonde wet hair that trailed down to my belly button, as I'd never had it cut. He turned his head, looking for something and I saw the back of his ears redden from his blushing. I gathered my hair in my hands and pulled it back anxiously and his eyes widened. I suddenly realised the nakedness of my chest and gasped, turning to get ready to dive into the water and swim away from my embarrassment.
"Wait." I heard him croak. I stopped, hesitant and unsure of what to do. He held out a hand to me and I darted into the water and swam to the river side. I closed my eyes as the warm golden glow brought me my legs, and I staggered up the beach-like side of the river. I nearly collapsed at the boy's feet but he caught me, pulling me upright. He looked at me, I was now completely naked and exhaustion was overcoming me due to the long escape from the house. He yanked off his blue jacket and wrapped it around me; it covered the whole of my body. Then he put one arm under my legs and one supporting my neck like a baby, and lifted me up. I nuzzled to his chest and whispered to myself,
"Arthur Weasley, the Burrow." Then passed out from exhaustion.
