give me a night filled with stars *

As the night slowly began to descend over the lake, Katherine couldn’t help but come to a pause on the rocks along its shores. The sun created such a beautiful glow over the mountains that it was impossible for anyone to be outside and not take notice of the majestic scene that was being created in the heavens above. She was quite a distance from the nearest section of the town that bordered the shores of Lake Louise...away from the lights that polluted the sky. But close enough to the lake itself that Katherine could feel the last warm rays of summer washing over her skin.

She had gotten out of her shift at the hospital a little early because of a quiet night, and according to her supervisor, she looked as if she needed a break. Go home, she had been told. Get some rest. And perhaps she ought to have done just that.

But she hadn’t.

Instead she had Apparated out to a distant corner of the lake, an area safely wrapped up in the forest. She had found herself a rock on the edge of the lake, set her things down and curled her knees into her chest so that she could watch the sunset in silence. It wouldn’t be too much longer now before the darkness would overtake the light and everything around her would grow dim. She would need to be conscious of making sure that she didn’t make her brother worry...but until then, she could just enjoy the beauty of nature.

Dark brown eyes drifted a little, looking toward a specific section of the mountains. If she were to venture that way on foot, she would find herself on the way back to Hollow Creek. It was a number of days journey ahead, but she was pretty sure that she would never forget her way there. How could she, when Hollow Creek had been involved in so many important milestones in her life? It had given her the tools that she needed in order to go to Alora Jane and begin her training as a Healer. It had provided her with the drive that she needed to do well in all of her classes so that she could be properly considered for the position! It had given her time with Cami…

But it had taken things away from her as well. Or, more correctly, some of the students had.

Kate gave her head a little bit of a shake, trying to shut out the memories. Nearly a decade later those voices still haunted her, teasing and taunting about the way she had looked. Picking apart all of her imperfections before her eyes so that she truly understood just how ugly she was. Reminding her that she was the black sheep among her brothers.

”Stop,” Kate found herself pleading quietly as the voices began to rise in her mind. She pressed her forehead to her knees, attempting to hide. ”Please...leave me alone…”


WORD COUNT: 504
TAGGED: OPEN

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[attr="class","liamtitle"]Kate + Liam

[attr="class","liamsubtitle"]give me a night filled with stars

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Night’s descent was falling slowly, giving time for the fading sunlight of the day to glow above and through the tree line. All of it was enough to stun someone with the beauty of nature. This was the reason that Liam used his rare chance of having a vacation to visit the mountains near Lake Louise. He had taken a week to go hiking and camping in the area he had explored in his childhood. There was always a lurking feeling that an owl or other creature would descend upon him with a message from his governmental overlords, recalling him. Thankfully, no such thing happened. He was able to enjoy nature at this own leisure, which was why he was still walking around this late. This was the last day of his vacation, and so he was a little reluctant to reach Lake Louise where it would end. [break][break]

Liam was following a trail that led around the lake, giving a scenic view every now and then. Every so often he would squint his eyes at the setting sun’s light, cutting through the trees to blind him. When he realized it was getting dark enough, he knew he needed to be prepared. He ruffled through his bag, looking for a flashlight. He had to reach past the tent and everything else that was stuffed into the enchanted space. When he got the flashlight, he twirled it in his hand before pulling his bag back on. Then he carried on with his adventure, ready for the inevitable end. [break][break]

As he walked, his thoughts would always linger how he could improve his life. Especially the things he planned to do as soon as he returned to civilization. Whether he would actually make these improvements was the real problem. He could imagine them all he wanted, but as long as he did nothing, then he would just return to the cycle. The main topic entering his thoughts was that he would return to an empty apartment. While he would never admit it, the fact that he was not very social was a big problem for him. He did not visit his family very often, not since he began working with National Security. Maybe I’ll get a dog or something… he thought, before realizing that he would need someone to care for the animal when he was on extended travel for work. All these thoughts faded away as he reached one of the scenic outlooks, a little way away from the lake. It reminded him of the first time he saw it.[break][break]

The water was still and acted like a perfect mirror for the sky above. There was also the orange glow, though that too was disappearing. He paused for a moment, wanting to take in the image of it all. The first time he had been here was while he was still a student. His first adventure. Just remembering that made other memories from school surface. Liam scratched his eyebrow before swatting away those memories. Nothing good would come from getting stuck in his old school days.[break][break]

Returning to reality, Liam noticed that someone was down by the lake. It took a second for his eyes to adjust and for him to see the figure sitting at the edge. It was a little strange to him. Most people would not be down visiting at this time of day, the trails would not be friendly to evening travelers, let alone the insects. Probably because his mind was still connected to school days, he remembered a mythical creatures lesson, about the type of creatures that came out in the evening in the mountains. Not that any would appear this close to No-Maj territory.[break][break]

Liam walked the distance along the trail so that he could get to the lake. He approached the place where he thought he had seen the figure from before. When he reached it, he saw they were still there. He made no attempts to hid his presence. The small rocks rustled under his shoes as he stepped ever closer.[break][break]

“Good ev…” he started to say before stopping. The figure had spoken, telling him to stop and to leave them alone. Alright, he thought, realizing that maybe the woman wanted to be left alone. He could do that. He turned to keep walking towards the town. “Sorry for bothering you.”[break][break]

__[break]
Tagged: Katherine Lennox [break]
Notes: Hope you don't mind my jumping in, if you want anything changed or something, let me know! :3

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When she heard a voice appear from behind her, Katherine gasped sharply and turned around with wide eyes. The voices in her head were one thing. But she certainly hadn’t expected there to be another living soul out there with her tonight.

”N-no!” she called quickly, trying to recover from her shock. ”I’m sorry. I didn’t mean-...I didn’t think that anyone-...”

Now she just felt like a fool. An absolute, bloody fool. Letting the voices in her head take control like that when she was sitting out in the open, completely exposed and vulnerable? What had she been thinking?! Now this person was sure to think that she was absolutely mad, especially with the way that she had turned around so quickly and tried to assure him that he didn’t need to go. A total stranger and she had invited him to hang around as if it was the most natural thing in the world.

With her cheeks flushing horribly, Katherine quickly dropped her hand and turned a little bit more to look at the person who had approached her. Was that-... ”I...I know you, don’t I?” she asked him quietly. A hand lifted, tucking a loose strand of hair behind her ear and out of the way of her vision. Even in the fading light of the day, Kate was still fairly certain that she had seen his face before. Perhaps they had been in school together. That would make some sense...unless of course he had been a patient at the hospital. And if that was the case, then she was likely going to look even more mental.

Perfect. Just perfect.

Her eyes narrowed a little more, trying to determine the details of his face. He-...he truly did look familiar. And yet she couldn’t figure out how she knew him. Or where she might have known him from. ”I apologize for before. I wasn’t expecting anyone to be here and it-...it has been a really, really long day. I’m just feeling a little overwhelmed I suppose.”

It was a miserable excuse, really. But the best one that Katherine could come up with one the spot in a futile effort to cover for her earlier mistake. Obviously she should have just gone home and run the risk of her brother coming home to find her instead. It would have been less mortifying than being found by someone else.

WORD COUNT: 412
TAGGED: @liam