Open Up Above it All

[Delilah Thorne]

[set during the Yule ball]

Delilah couldn't shake the feeling like she was doing something wrong. She had come up to the north tower to get as far away from people as she could but when she closed her eyes she could swear that she still heard music. With a frustrated sigh she closed her book and instead looked out one of the big windows and watched the moonlight shimmering off the lake. She just wanted one night of peace between school and home. Classes were over and she was glad to be done with them, at least for now, but it was just a matter of time before she would be back home, and she wasn't sure which she would prefer right now. There was one thing she was certain of, she did not want to be at the dance. She felt awful after fighting with Ivy and yelling at Sawyer. She knew she simply stood up for herself but it still felt awful and didn't want to face anyone tonight. She didn't want to show up to the dance without a date, again. It was just sad now and she didn't want to pretend and talk to some boy in the faint hope that he might ask her to dance. Worse yet she didn't want to run into Hester. For a moment Delilah closed her eyes and wished she was back home in England where the cold and snowy weather would match her mood better than this warm summer night.

 

[Alison Urquhart]

Alison had decided she had no interest in attending the Yule ball. Lack of a date wasn't the sole reason for missing the event but it had been a contributing factor. The truth was, despite having attended and enjoyed the ball in previous years, she wasn't a formal dance girl and without a compelling reason to be there, she felt much better about spending her evening roaming the halls as going home for Christmas wasn't an option for her. Daring not venture onto the lower floors of the castle for fear of running into students dressed to the nines she decided to go up and find a nice perch at the top of the North tower so she could stare out the window. It seemed she hadn't been the only one that night to have the same thought and when she arrived at the top floor of the tower, someone was already sitting at one of the big windows looking out at the grounds below. "I didn't think anyone else would be up here," She blurted out.

 

[Delilah Thorne]

Delilah's eyes opened quickly when she heard another voice. She hadn't heard anyone coming up the stairs, probably because she was too wrapped up in her own pity party. She recognized the girl as one of her roommates although they had never really talked before. "Neither did I." she said quietly, but it still felt too loud for such a quiet night. "Are you avoiding the dance too?" she asked, despite the answer probably being obvious. There were only so many reasons to be up in the towers tonight.

 

[Alison Urquhart]

Alison nodded simply in response to the girl's question. She already regretted making the journey up the tower as company had been something she had hoped to avoid, otherwise she'd have just gone to the dance. "It's not really my thing," Alison added looking around for another ledge to sit on where she wouldn't intrude too much on the space of the other girl. She went over and sat down leaning back against the cold stone of the wall and looked out of the window. It was an incredible view from so high up and Alison couldn't help but reflect on how small her issues were. Was it so bad to put on a dress and go dance? Maybe, she had no one waiting in the Great hall hoping to see her so what did it really matter. "What's your excuse?"

 

[Delilah Thorne]

Delilah wasn't sure what to do about this sudden intrusion to her space. She had hoped that with the dance she might finally have some time to herself but it was silly to think that she would be the only one that might be trying to find the same thing. As much as she wanted to tell her to go find somewhere else to sulk, she knew she couldn't. Delilah considered her answer and could understand her reasoning. When the question was turned back on her she hesitated. She wasn't sure just how honest she wanted to be with a roommate she had only ever really seen in passing. "I don't really want to see anyone right now." she admitted quietly.