Esmeralda stared nervously at her roommate, Snow White. Snow White was twirling a pocket knife in her hand, while staring into space. When Snow White was around other people, she was lively and sweet; but when she was safely hidden in their room, she mentally checked out and just played with that pocket knife. Esmeralda had tried talking to her, but the only thing she had learned so far was that she was here because someone tried killing her.
"Snow White?" Esmeralda said, carefully. "How are you doing?"
Snow White didn't say anything, or even acknowledge Esmeralda.
Esmeralda didn't know how long she was going to be forced to stay here, but there was no way she could handle spending every night with a roommate that freaked her out.
Esmeralda cleared her throat. "Did you get any visitors today?"
Snow White slowly shook her head. Esmeralda took a deep breath before continuing. This was the most interaction she had gotten from Snow White since they became roommates two weeks ago and Esmeralda wanted to proceed cautiously to keep her from shutting down again.
"My boyfriend, Phoebus, came to see me today," Esmeralda said. "He and I have a son, ya know. That's why I'm here, actually. My parents sent me here because they were ashamed that I had a baby not only out of wedlock, but also while I was still a teenager."
Snow White stopped twirling her knife and faced Esmeralda. "Pray your boyfriend doesn't marry another woman who then tries to kill your son." With that Snow White lied down on her bed and rolled over so she was facing the wall.
Esmeralda stared at Snow White in horror. Why would she say something like that? She thought. Then it dawned on her: Snow White's step mom must have been the one who tried to kill her. Esmeralda's horrified expression melted into one of sympathy. She couldn't imagine what it would be like to have someone in your family try to kill you.
Esmeralda shook her head, trying to banish the thought. Her room suddenly felt like a black hole for happiness and she had to get out. She looked at the clock and was relieved to see it was only nine-thirty; she still had a half an hour until lights out. She quietly snuck out of the room and made her way down the hall. As she approached the main staircase she noticed there was an unmarked door tucked back in the corner. She looked around to make sure none of the staff was around, then quickly opened the door and slipped inside. She was surprised to see it wasn't a room but another staircase. The stairs were narrow and the only light was a dim glow coming from the top of the staircase.
Esmeralda slowly walked up the stairs. She kept her hand on the wall to the right of her to guide her way. As she neared the top of the stairs, the light became brighter and she could see more clearly. She started to round the last turn, but stopped suddenly when she saw someone sitting on the stairs. It was a young girl who couldn't have been older than fifteen or sixteen. She was bent over, looking at something on the step below her, with her long red hair falling in her face.
Esmeralda tried to get a better look at the girl, but her movement caught the girl's eye and she snapped her head in Esmeralda's direction. There was no recognition in her blue eyes, but it was more than just because they hadn't met before. To Esmeralda, it looked more like she had never seen another human being before.
"Hi there," Esmeralda said, gently. "What's your name?"
The girl dropped whatever she was holding and ran up the stairs, away from Esmeralda. Esmeralda glanced at where the girl was sitting and realized she had been writing something on the step in chalk. Esmeralda walked up to the step and saw she had simply just written a lower case letter 'a'.
Esmeralda suddenly remembered that she had to get back to her room before lights out and she turned and made her way back down the stairs.
:::X:::X:::X:::
Ariel peeked around the wall of the staircase just in time to see the dark-haired girl hurry back down the stairs. Why did she come up here? She thought. She left right after I did, so she must have wanted to see me. She must know about me and came to stare at me and watch me like the doctor and minister do. Why else would she have come? Ariel wrapped her arms around herself as she thought about the way the some of the staff look at her. It was always the same: a mixture of fear and anger. She slid down the wall and sat down on the step. She rested her forehead on her arms and squeezed her eyes shut. But, as usual, as soon as her eyes were closed, the screams filled her head again.
"Ariel?"
Ariel raised her head and looked up at her supervisor, Mulan. Mulan gave her a sweet smile and Ariel smiled back at her. Ariel liked Mulan; she was always kind to her and didn't treat her like some of the other people there did.
"Ariel, it's time for bed," Mulan said.
Ariel nodded and followed Mulan up the rest of the stairs. Ariel stayed in an isolated room, away from the rest of the boys and girls. Sometimes Ariel got lonely and wished she could join them, but she wasn't allowed. Maleficent told her it was in everyone's best interest if she stayed away from everybody else, but she never explained why.
Ariel changed into her nightgown and climbed into bed. Mulan said good night to Ariel, then left the room, locking the door behind her. Ariel waited a few moments to make sure Mulan was gone, then she got out of bed and walked over to the window. It was a small window, only about a foot wide and maybe three feet tall. It provided her with enough air, but wasn't big enough for her to be able to fit through it. Maleficent and the rest of the staff were always afraid that Ariel would try to escape. But, they didn't know that she didn't have anywhere to escape to.
Ariel pressed her hand against the cold glass and pushed open the window. It was a chilly night, so Ariel knew she wouldn't be able to leave the window open for long. Ariel didn't mind, though. She just wanted to listen to the water for a couple minutes before going to sleep. The sound of the waves crashing against the shore reminded Ariel of her home and she longed for things to be the way they used to be.
