Wretched little beggar

Of Weird Walls And Trains

Merry Christmas everybody! Here's another present for you all.

Step. Step. Step. One foot in front of the other. Focus. Run. Don't think about anything else than running.

She dodged into an alleyway, and rested against  the wall a few seconds to catch her breath. But the footsteps were getting closer - they were closing in. She propelled herself off the wall and went on sprinting.

This couldn't last forever, M reasoned. It had to finish one way or another. Either her chasers would tire and give up, or she would. But the young girl knew that there was no chance of the later. She wouldn't stop. She wouldn't. The people chasing her might be four times her age, and the strength that comes with it, but she was more agile. More persevering. Maybe quicker too, this had been her childhood after all. Running after various crimes in the London streets. But to be fair, this time it wasn't exactly her fault. She'd just been in the wrong place at the wrong moment.

She’d been walking back to her sleeping place, after visiting Jo, when she’d decided that she wouldn’t be able to sleep yet. So she’d decided to go visit a few old … friends.

The young girl had been minding her own business, maybe harmlessly stealing a few purses, when a cold hand had clasped against her mouth, pulling her into an alleyway. M had coldy assessed her situation. Her aggressor had probably thought she was a harmless lost little girl, an easy prey. He was up for quite a surprise. At first, she’d let herself be taken without fighting, because she knew that her assaillant would then relax, thinking he had already won. But as soon as she was in the alleyway, and that the man holding her had loosened his grip, she’d kicked him hard in the stomach and took off sprinting.

Of course, she could have stayed and fought him, M was confident enough that she could have taken him, but it was late and she didn’t really want to get into even more trouble. Her day had already been strange enough.

So there she was, an eleven years old running from two middle aged men (another had been hiding behind the first). Finally, the footsteps faded behind her. The young girl stopped, out of breath. She scanned her surroundings. She was standing on York Way, next to Kings Cross station. Which meant she was literally on the other side of town from where she was headed.

She could have gone back, and walked there, but she had already been tired, and the run hadn't let her better off. She just walked into some small dark dirty impasse, rested her head against the wall, and fell asleep.

'' -Papa! Look what I found!

-That's really good Em! ... But not good enough is it? Two wallets won't save me will they? This is all your fault. I'm dead because of you. You were there, yet you did nothing. Is this what I taught you to be? A weakling? You're a disappointment. A disgrace. You killed me. It's all your fault. You don't deserve to be alive. I should have left you die. ''

-No! No! please! I'm sorry papa!

Silent tears were running down the girl's face. She wiped them angrily and stood up. Nightmares again.

M looked around, unsure where she was. She wasn't scared though, it wasn't the first time she'd fallen asleep in a random place. As she stepped out of her dirty alley, she remembered the events that had happened the previous night. It was partially her fault, she reckoned. She'd allowed herself to become distracted, her head had been swimming with all her discoveries of the day.

Her stomach grumbled, and she let herself a minute to yell at herself. She'd had gold coins! Real gold coins! But instead of spending on something useful, like food, a new blanket or new clothes, she'd spent spent buying a useless, stupid, magic wand.
Had that even been real? Or had it all been a dream? I mean, magic! Who would believe in that?