Smile Like You Mean It
April 17, 2026
Late at night
As with many nights, Silas found himself awake after most people were already asleep or settling down. Tonight, he hadn’t even bothered to try to sleep. It had been a bad week for nightmares so far — not that he ever really got a break from them — and the idea of dealing with that again could not yet be overcome by his tiredness. So, as he typically did, he was searching for a distraction — an escape. Tonight’s came in the form of rule-breaking and the dumb idea to mess around on a broom. He just needed to get outside first.
Sneaking out of the common room had become like second nature to him early on. Hell, he had snuck out within the first few days of the school year. It was a necessity for him — while the gloomy aesthetic of the Slytherin common areas had started to grow on him a little bit, he still thought they were rather depressing, and he didn’t want to be in the dungeons when he was struggling with nightmares and bad memories. Unfortunately for him, that was pretty much always.
Thankfully, Silas had entered Hogwarts with all the skills required for sneaking out. It was something he was already extremely used to doing at home — making his footfalls ever so quiet to avoid drawing his father’s attention, learning the ins and outs of the environment (such as what creaked), moving while distractions such as someone snoring were ongoing… these were things that just came naturally to him, strengthened by necessity. He grew up practising it all, intentionally as well as less so. Transferring that to Hogwarts was an easy enough step.
Once Silas finally slipped outside, he breathed a sigh of relief. The cool air washed over him, bringing him some small peace. He looked around, eyes adjusting to the darkness that was interrupted only by the dim glow the moon cast across the land. One hand slipped into the pocket of his trousers while the other wrapped more tightly around the handle of his broom. He started walking aimlessly, not knowing where he was going, simply… going. The grass was soft beneath his feet and the absence of light pollution was so unlike the city he was used to. He supposed it was pretty, being able to see so many stars, but it also felt lonely and empty in a way that his busy city couldn’t.
For the millionth time, he wished that he didn’t have to be trapped here. He wanted the freedom and friendships of home. But being “home” would mean that he would have to deal with his father, with the unbearably tense house that had felt soulless and empty ever since the brightest light it had known was extinguished that September day in 2018: the day that had irrevocably changed the lives of Silas and his father forever. Silas had only been four, too young to understand that all life could be drained from a household in such a short moment, but he had been forced to learn that. And, ever since that day, he had been running.
All he could really do was keep running. He wasn’t ready to confront any of it yet. That was what he was doing here, as well — avoiding it all, always avoiding. He lifted a hand, running his fingers through his hair as he gazed down at his broom. He was getting ready to mount it, now that he was far enough away from any obstacles like the castle or trees, when a sudden sound caused his head to jerk upwards.
@Hazel Nelson
Late at night
As with many nights, Silas found himself awake after most people were already asleep or settling down. Tonight, he hadn’t even bothered to try to sleep. It had been a bad week for nightmares so far — not that he ever really got a break from them — and the idea of dealing with that again could not yet be overcome by his tiredness. So, as he typically did, he was searching for a distraction — an escape. Tonight’s came in the form of rule-breaking and the dumb idea to mess around on a broom. He just needed to get outside first.
Sneaking out of the common room had become like second nature to him early on. Hell, he had snuck out within the first few days of the school year. It was a necessity for him — while the gloomy aesthetic of the Slytherin common areas had started to grow on him a little bit, he still thought they were rather depressing, and he didn’t want to be in the dungeons when he was struggling with nightmares and bad memories. Unfortunately for him, that was pretty much always.
Thankfully, Silas had entered Hogwarts with all the skills required for sneaking out. It was something he was already extremely used to doing at home — making his footfalls ever so quiet to avoid drawing his father’s attention, learning the ins and outs of the environment (such as what creaked), moving while distractions such as someone snoring were ongoing… these were things that just came naturally to him, strengthened by necessity. He grew up practising it all, intentionally as well as less so. Transferring that to Hogwarts was an easy enough step.
Once Silas finally slipped outside, he breathed a sigh of relief. The cool air washed over him, bringing him some small peace. He looked around, eyes adjusting to the darkness that was interrupted only by the dim glow the moon cast across the land. One hand slipped into the pocket of his trousers while the other wrapped more tightly around the handle of his broom. He started walking aimlessly, not knowing where he was going, simply… going. The grass was soft beneath his feet and the absence of light pollution was so unlike the city he was used to. He supposed it was pretty, being able to see so many stars, but it also felt lonely and empty in a way that his busy city couldn’t.
For the millionth time, he wished that he didn’t have to be trapped here. He wanted the freedom and friendships of home. But being “home” would mean that he would have to deal with his father, with the unbearably tense house that had felt soulless and empty ever since the brightest light it had known was extinguished that September day in 2018: the day that had irrevocably changed the lives of Silas and his father forever. Silas had only been four, too young to understand that all life could be drained from a household in such a short moment, but he had been forced to learn that. And, ever since that day, he had been running.
All he could really do was keep running. He wasn’t ready to confront any of it yet. That was what he was doing here, as well — avoiding it all, always avoiding. He lifted a hand, running his fingers through his hair as he gazed down at his broom. He was getting ready to mount it, now that he was far enough away from any obstacles like the castle or trees, when a sudden sound caused his head to jerk upwards.
@Hazel Nelson
Second student character of Ruby Cazares | Staff account: Taros Quintero | iNPC: Valeriy Viktorovna Reznikov
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