Walkin' After Midnight

close your eyes and fall asleep, pray to god for no bad dreams

The flame just overtook the rag in the bottle. The heat near Helley’s hand was intense but she knew what she needed to do. Pulling her arm back she threw the half-empty bottle of rum. It flew through the window of the Leaky Cauldron, smashing its way through the fragile stained glass window until it hit a table on the other side. The glass bottle of the rum smashed and the flame of the alcohol soaked rag met the alcohol that once was held in the bottle. A bright light lit up the bar, the undeniable sight of flames could be seen through the broken window, growing bigger, spreading quickly until there was an explosion. Helley smirked. That would get that smug prick’s attention. Unless he died. Win-win. The bar was really going up in flames now. There were people inside, screaming, falling out of the doors trying to get away from the attack. But she didn’t see him. Helley couldn’t see that smug face. Did the shit head need saving? Helley really thought he was more capable than that. She stood, waiting, watching as people came to her, screaming for help, their faces charred, clothing melting on to skin. Every face that came at her was one she had seen before, they all had pained expressions and they all were making noises. Helley started to listen to them all, she could make out what the were all saying "You did this." She felt the overwhelming pang of guilt hit the bottom of her stomach, "You should have saved us." said another, coughing, fighting for air, then a lone voice came out of nowhere. "Why didn't you save me?" Helley looked down to a little girl, she had blood down her face, her skin was blistered and bubbled from the heat of the fire, what little hair she had left was singed and as Helley looked at her face it blistered and melted more and more until she fell on the ground. Helley looked around. Everyone was silent and stood upright, burnt, broken bodies all looking at her. She took a step back and fell over something large, something solid.

Gripping the sheets of her bed tightly, Helley sat up quickly in her bed, kicking the sheets around her for a second. She had a cold sweat all over her body, her chest was rising and falling rapidly as she panted, her eyes trying to adjust to the darkness of the room. Another nightmare, not as bad as the others but still no walk in the park. She took a few deep breaths and tried to unclench her jaw, but no matter how much she tried she kept clenching up. She concentrated on her breathing for a few more moments until she got out of bed, grabbed her wand, and walked across her room. She opened the door to the hallway and there wasn't a sound in the small flat she shared with Izzy and Silly. Helley left her room door open and made her way to the bathroom, turned on the light and immediately got in the shower. "It was just a dream." She told herself, sticking her face under the water - a mistake. She could see their faces again. The little girl who she'd later found out was only seven years old. Helley opened her eyes as she pushed her face through the water, letting the spray flow over her. She tilted her head up to see a small black spider in the corner of the shower and she made no attempts to squish or remove the small creature, instead she looked ahead at the wall for a while and kept on breathing as steadily as she could.

After her shower Helley wrapped herself up in a couple of towels. She went to her room and turned the light on and looked about. Her bed was a mess, the sheets looked as if they had been pulled off and her duvet was half on the bed, the other half on the floor. She gave her wand a flick and her bed started to strip itself while Helley made her way to her closet and picked out an outfit. And incredibly generic black top, black jeans, black socks and black boots. There was very little colour to Helley's wardrobe and she liked it that way. Black hid the blood better, it was easier to clean and she never had to worry about it not suiting her. It was an easy colour to buy and it meant everything she owned matched everything else.

Dressed and out the door, Helley had left a little not to Izzy letting her know she'd left early for work. She knew Izzy would just worry if she left without a word so she left with nothing but her cloak on her shoulders for warmth from the near-freezing cold air and her wand, for obvious reasons.

Without thinking about where she was going, Helley found herself at The Leaky Cauldron, staring at it from the muggle side of the world. There were a few dim lights in a couple of the upstairs windows, lighting the stairway for any guests that were staying, but the place was as it always seemed to be - a little glum and depressing but sitting peacefully on the cusp of the magical and muggle world. Helley shivered a little in her cloak, she should have worn a winter one, or even put on a decent coat but she'd not really thought much about what she was going to need when she'd left home. She folded her arms under her cloak, watching The Leaky for a little longer, wondering what she was going to do with herself next. It was the early hours of the morning, she didn't want to go home and risk waking Izzy so really, she supposed, her only other option was actually work.

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