A/N: For later on in the chapter: Resident Assistant (RA) refers to a supervisor in dorms. If you've gone to college you know what that is. They're there to supervise the people in the dorms. It's a job that is usually done by an a graduate student or upper classman.

Chapter Two:

…Heat was washing over her in waves, hotter than ten thousand forges. Glancing back she saw thick smoke hovering strangely still over the flames, as there was no wind to blow it. Just as she thought that, a faint brush of a breeze touched her arm. Oh, no.

As if it had been waiting for just that moment the fire roared like a lion and jumped as powerfully as a cougar into the treetops. With much roaring and crackling it leapt through the branches like a monkey. She knew with dreadful certainty that she could not out run it. The fire drew nearer. Nadia prepared to die -

With a bolt and a scream, Nadia's head burst away from her pillow like a diver desperate for air. Sniffing the air she panicked. Smoke! Breathing deeper she relaxed. No, there was no fire. It was the of smell old smoke. Panting heavily she used her bed sheet to wipe the sweat from her forehead with shaking fingers. She was alone in an unfamiliar room. It had new-looking walls and two bright windows letting in early morning sunlight. Where was she? Sitting still, Nadia thought back to the night before. Catherine went back to get her chalk after curfew. Her nightmare, the fire, and running, was all a little hazy. The memory was like a blazing ball of fear with a few scary pictures to emphasize the point. She was alone in strange room after a terrifying night. Nadia did not like that one bit.

Standing quickly from her bed she noticed that she was still dressed in her dressing gown. As she reached down to snap off a stray thread, Nadia realized that it was her nightgown that smelled of old smoke. Smoke from the fire last night. A heavy fear filled her heart at the mere thought of the fire. Where were the others? Were they alright? Abandoning any thoughts of finding some proper clothes Nadia stepped quietly to the door and slid it open. Like the room it was new looking and well kept so it was no surprise to her when it opened silently.

With a cautious eye, for she had no idea where she was or if she was aloud to be out of her room, Nadia crept through the long hall, her bare feet making only a rough whisper against the cold stone floor. On either side of her white doors were spaced at even intervals, all the identical, like little toy soldiers standing in a row. The first door she passed was silent, as were the next two. The fourth was home to a hopeless wail that caused shivers to race up and down her spine. Hurrying on Nadia passed one filled with hushed whispers. She passed a few more silent doors then - a horrible yell stopped Nadia in her tracks. Frozen with fright Nadia's eyes darted around. Only when she was sure no one was coming did she inch nearer to the door at the end of the hall. There were more of the painful yells, and as Nadia approached she could make out a few more voices. More yells, then a high pitched wail – a baby's wail - filled the hall.

With a grin Nadia hurried on. Where were they? Peeking into the doors in the next hall she found a library, a desk room, two washrooms, a room with a frail looking lady in it who coughed in her sleep, and more empty bedrooms. Just as Nadia was exiting a strange room that was filled with nothing but shelf upon shelf of bottles she spotted a man walking towards her. Freezing Nadia's eyes widened. Turning on her heel she ran for it. Naturally, the man followed. Who wouldn't chase down a strange girl who acted as if she had just stolen something?

"Hey! Stop!" he hollered after her. Nadia was terrified. Running into the room she had woken up in she slammed the door shut and bolted it.

"Hey!" exclaimed the man, turning the doorknob. "Open up!" Glancing down the hall for a nurse or someone who could help him, he noticed what wing he was in. "I don't mean you any harm." He said softly through the door.

With shaking fingers Nadia opened the door the smallest of slivers. One large brown eye peered at him hesitantly. "Who are you?" she asked. Her voice was soft and barely loud enough to hear.

"I'm Briar. I've been working on restocking the doctors with medicine."

"Doctors? Am I in a hospital?" the eye widened.

"Yes. This is Winding Circle Hospital. Are you new here?" Briar's eyes had stopped searching for someone to help him out.

"I must be. I only woke up here this morning, sir." The eye left and for a moment Briar thought he had frightened her off somehow. Then the door opened and he saw her beckon him in. He was barely over the threshold when she shut the door behind him. Sitting himself on the bed he watched her go to stand beside a window.

When she did not speak Briar decided to start the conversation. "Why were you running from me? You didn't steal anything, did you? Because taking medicine that isn't prescribed to you is really dangerous."

"Oh, no! I didn't take anything! I was looking for my family. Sixteen girls, all under fifteen and over five years old, plus a kindly lady named Iva Haythorn and a cook named Margret Pearl. Have you seen them?" Though she didn't mention the fire, Nadia still had to surpress a shudder of fear as the thought touched her mind again.

"Oh! You're from the orphanage. The one that caught fire!" Nadia kept the fear from her eyes and hid her shaking fingers by smoothing out her nightdress.

"Yes. Do you know where they are? I would really like to see them, sir." Looking up from her dress she gazed hopefully at Briar.

"Sure. It's just a ways down this hall."

All the women from the orphanage were safe and sound. And later, after an afternoon of nurses checking up on them to make sure the smoke hadn't affected them too badly, the entire group was sent off to the dormitories with a syrup to take nightly to heal any minor smoke damage to their lungs. It was nighttime and, once again, Nadia was trapped in the same nightmare.

…The fire drew nearer. Nadia prepared to die -

Screaming Nadia woke her dorm room at three in the morning. Around her, her family jumped out of bed panicking, all looking for a fire that wasn't there. A bleary eyed Resident Assistant (see authors note at the top of the chapter) burst through the door. "What's wrong?!!"

"N-nothing," stammered Nadia, the eyes of the entire dorm room fixed upon her. "J-just a n-nightmare, m-ma'am. I'm sorry for the d-disturbance." The RA glared at her ill-temperdly.

"Very well, get back to bed." She grumbled, turning on her heel to slam the door shut behind her. The girls around Nadia all made there way back to their beds, a few glaring, annoyed at her, but the majority seemed truly sympathetic. "Night Nadi'," whispered Catherine from above her.

"Night Cat," she whispered back, closing her eyes as tears threatened to fall. She was so embarrassed! Above her the mattress squeaked as she sensed Catherine falling back to sleep. All around her girls were falling back into slumber, yet Nadia felt wide-awake. The haunting dream was fresh in her mind, as was the terrifying memory of the fire. It had become much clearer since that morning in the hospital. Sticking her hand out in front of her face she tried to make out the shape in the darkness of the room and change her thoughts from where they were heading.

Slowly, very slowly, Nadia drifted off into a troubled sleep.

The next night was the same, as was the next, and the next one after that. Soon the girls of room nine were no longer sympathetic when she woke them up, screaming loudly at god-awful hours of the morning. It was easy for anyone at Winding Circle to tell who belonged in the girls dorm, room nine, as they were all walking around with dark bags under their eyes, half asleep, and horrible grouchy. It was on the fourth night of being awoken by Nadia's screams in a row that the RA decided enough was enough. As she barged into the room, her frilly nightdress swirling around her legs, she grabbed Nadia by the arm and jerked her out of bed. The girls around her stared, wide-eyed, but none moved to stop the angry RA from dragging Nadia out of the room.

"This is it!" the RA was muttering wildly under her breath as she stormed through the halls at inhuman speeds. "Bloody screaming every night! Not a wink of sleep!" Down four flights of stairs, through another long hall, past the laundry room, the nurse's office, the front door, dinning hall… jogging through a courtyard the RA led Nadia along, the grip on her upper arm never faltering, up some more steps and down another hall until they were stopped outside of an important looking office. "Wait. Here," the RA panted, pushing Nadia onto a bench, before rapping smartly on the door. After a LONG pause it was opened and the RA stepped inside, shutting the door behind her with a snap.

Tears filled Nadia's eyes as she slumped against the wall, rubbing her sore arm. She never meant to be such trouble! She hated the nightmares. She didn't mean to wake everyone up! But it wasn't like she could just stop sleeping! She had already tried that, and still she would sneak into slumber and wake everyone one up anyways. Glancing at the door she wondered who the angry RA was talking to. It was obviously about her, and it was obviously bad. Crying silently now Nadia bowed her head and covered her face in her hands. How much worse could the night get?

A/N:

Please, do review, I've quite a number of reads, much better numbers than for by Back Lily story, and unfortunately, even fewer reviews! Now that you can see more of the story, perhaps you have enough of an opinion to review. And I do make a habit of visiting my reviewers profiles too! Review me and I'll review you!