End of a Nightmare (Picnic at Hanging Rock Fanfic)

End of a Nightmare

The manner in which paths entwine is a mysterious business. Sometimes, a person's path literally and figurately crosses in the middle of the night with the ghostly followings echoing through history yet sometimes such a fate is avoided by mere fractions of a second, or in the case of Sara Waybourne, her path in the middle of the night came mere fractions from crossing the paths of one Hester Appleyard in her hunt for the unknown figment haunting her school.

Yet, despite the mere fraction preventing Sarah from falling into the clutches of the headmistress of Appleyard College preventing the young girl from the unsavory fate of falling out of the tower, Sarah's night didn't pass as by as a blissful dream yet remained a nightmare of her own making, what with the darkness she feared coming in from all sides as the girl hurried after the phantom of her brother, her previous dreams created by her guardian dashed upon learning he'd abandoned her.

From the darkness, the poor child found no escape and settled down into the coldness of the woods, distraught as she always was, what with the strictness of the school looking over her along with the banishment of a teacher who understood her better than anyone else, the phantom of her brother's shadow having been seen now haunting her young mind as the hopes started cascading quickly.

Fingers found a stone, playing with it, her mind wondering if the stone sharp enough to cut flesh, wanting anything to desperately cut away the negative feelings plaguing her mind, rushing through her head as she struggled to keep herself sane. Nothing hindered her, gone was she from the woman who regaled her constantly regarding infections created by the self-harm, never addressing the actual problem of what plagued the child's mind enough to harm herself so.

The fingers didn't move, either dully because the stone was itself dull, or if it was sharp enough her young mind remained focused on the phantom of her brother's shadow coming and rescuing her. Or perhaps her fingers remained to numb, her eyes fluttering shut as she fought back the urge to sleep, particularly not knowing what manner of creature might come out late at night, the disappearance of the other girls still fresh in her memory.

"Good graciousness," came the voice of a man, obviously surprised at seeing such a young waif of a child out in the wilderness, particularly after everything going on at the girls' school.

"Albert..." came the name from Sara's tongue, yet she knew the person in question was not, in fact, her older brother which she sought in the night. There did come some form of recognition in the man's voice, but the next thing her mind registered was finding herself waking up in a warm bed, the sores on her feet from having tried traversing the wilderness for so long wrapped now in bandages, but the man in question – she perhaps had seen him before, cleared his voice while a woman looking around the same age hovered nearby.

"Now what, pray do tell, is a young lady doing wandering through the wilderness in the middle of the night, particularly when three other girls have gone missing."

"Albert," Sara muttered. "I'm looking for my brother. I need to find him."

The man glanced over at the woman. "Could it be possible?"

"Stranger things have happened of late."

"It still doesn't explain why a young lady is out and about."

Sara's mouth clamped shut, the fear of being sent back raging through her head. In no way did she want to go back to Appleyard College, the thought of the punishments and solitude waiting for her plaguing her mind.

"Well..." the man said. "Perhaps I should call upon Mrs. Appleyard."

"Please don't!" The words came in a panic. "I must find Albert! I do not want to go back there."

"Well, I certainly don't trust that woman," the woman said to the man who was likely her husband. "There are just things that don't add up for a finished lady running a finishing school."

If only Sara might tell them the things she suspected, yet even she didn't begin putting together what she knew. The man though didn't seem convinced. "Surely to be in said school, given Albert's former status, you must have a guardian."

"He's gone. Left me, and I'm..." Sara paused. "I don't want to go back to the orphanage."

"I see. Who is your legal guardian?"

"Mr. Cosgrove."

"Jasper Cosgrove?"

"No way that man would simply abandon a child," the man's wife said.

"No, though he is a bit flighty in the head. No, since apparently, you are to be sent back to the orphanage by Mrs. Appleyard, I don't see why you can't stay here, though you must act like a proper fine lady."

"I'm not very good at that. My posture is horrible."

"Well, at least she's honest. We'll fix that."

Sara suddenly felt the place she found herself far worse. "You mean a posture board? It doesn't help, and I was left strapped to it last time."

"First focus on getting better, but we'll contact Albert once we can. We might not be on speaking terms with our nephew, but we did promise Albert to keep an ear out if we heard anything about you."

Relief washed over her. "Then it was Albert I saw? At the finishing school?"

"Yes, but coming out here..."

"I didn't have much choice. I needed to catch up to Albert, but I didn't."

The two muttered with each other, yet let her be. A few days passed, with no word being sent to the school of her whereabouts, though the local doctor did come around, but then..."

"Sara!"

Hearing Jasper Cosgrove's voice was definitely a surprise as he hurried into the room, grasping her hands. "I am so sorry for forgetting the day of the year, but for leaving you in such a state."

Sara of course wasn't sure she wanted to go back with the man, still remembering how he'd abandoned her, unsure if the man and woman who found her simply convinced him to take her back because that's what looked good. Her mouth remained mum.

"I hear you found Albert, which means we've another addition to the family."

She still wasn't sure as he patted her hand.

"Don't worry. I know I need to regain your trust yet again, my dear girl, but the Flitzhubert have promised me to see to your care while I am gone."

"I'm not really good at the finishing stuff," her eyes glanced at the two who lurked in the hallway, just out of sight. "But can I draw again? I wasn't allowed to draw anymore."

"Yes, yes my dear. I'll see to it you've plenty of drawing supplies to your heart's content. Not that I'm trying to buy you off, but I am so glad to hear you're safe. I don't know what I would have done, or even the nice de Poitiers. She and the local watchmaker, can't quite remember his name, were definitely worried, but for Mrs. Appleyard to lie and say I'd already picked you up..."

"She said..."

"You need not worry about her, but you and I will wait for Albert to return, but I've heard he's got major plans for making a home with you once he gets back, and I plan on making sure those dreams come true." The man patted her hand. "Now rest. Rest my dear. Your nightmare is finally over."