A/N: I don't own Harry Potter or any related characters
Word count: 398
In the night, she broke the window, slipped out and marveled at the amount of stars she'd never been able to see before. She'd looked at them through the window, trying to see whole sky at one time, but it was impossible.
Now, the vastness of it all sent a thrill of awe down her spine. This world was so much bigger than she'd remembered. She'd only been a child when she'd been locked inside for something she hadn't been able to control. Now, now everything was going to be different, she'd made that choice herself.
There was something magical about being out in the cold winter air, seeing the clear sky with her own eyes and knowing, if she went back inside, there was a chance she'd never see it again. Everything had been an accident, but no one seemed to realize it. She hadn't meant to hurt them, but they'd been trying to hurt her, and it had been an accident.
Now, Papa was gone, locked away for defending her, for hurting those who had tried to hurt her. She hadn't asked him to do that, but it was his job to protect her, wasn't it?
Mama kept her inside all the time, making sure she was fed, but Ariana longed for something more. She wanted to not be afraid of her own powers, the powers she'd used before. Slowly, little by little, she'd started learning to use them, stealing her brothers' school books when they weren't looking.
She could tell even her brothers were afraid of her, seemed to avoid doing anything that could upset her. She wanted to tell them she was learning to control it, learning to release the power slowly so no one would get hurt again. But she was afraid they'd tell Mama and she'd make sure Ariana lost her access to her books, to the only thing that was keeping her from losing her mind.
These were the reason she had to do it, had to leave, Ariana didn't know which would be worse, being without her family or being with it. All she knew was she was special, she'd done something special, even if the world seemed to want to deny it, and she was going to make her own path. The stars sparkled as she started walking, her buckled shoes crunching the snow and ice beneath her feet.