[solo thread, side story, continued from here: https://bywitandwhitby.rpginitiative.com...61#pid6561]
[Content warnings: reference to child abuse, teenage pregnancy]
When Anne arrived at the station, she was sweating and panting. She took a moment to catch her breath, but then ran through the building and on to the platform, where a train was waiting for the steam locomotive to change from the rear to the front. Most people had boarded already, though some were still saying goodbyes.
“Alice! Alice!” Anne shouted out, running along the platform and looking for her sister. Alice was not there. Anne stopped at the end of the train and rested her hands on her knees, closing her eyes and catching her breath once more. She was used to long days of labor and she was strong, but she never did much running, and her corset made her feel out of breath easily.
Anne finally rose again, turned, and slowly walked back past the train, looking inside through the windows. Suddenly she caught sight of her sister in one of the third class compartments. The girl sat by the window, pale and miserable, her checked shawl wrapped around her shoulders. She seemed hardly aware of her surroundings, until she spotted Anne. Alice sat up, frightened, and shook her head wildly. But Anne ran to the door and hurried in. “Alice!” she shouted, pushing her way past a man without even apologizing. “Alice!” she shouted again, when she had reached the compartment. A woman sitting opposite of Alice looked up disapprovingly. “Alice! Have you lost your mind! This is not t’ solution!” The woman cleared her throat
“Anne, get off the train! It’s about to depart!” her sister hissed. She was trembling and her hands clutched her shawl so tight that her knuckles were white. “I’m so sorry, but I have to go. Father… everyone… I can’t bear to face ‘em, Anne! I have no life here!”
The woman cleared her throat again, but Anne gave her a ‘shut up of die’ glare, before turning back to her sister. “You’ll break father’s heart.”
“I’ll do that either way. Oh, Anne. If you knew the full story, you’d want me gone too. It’s better for everyone!” The woman got up and left them with a final angry stare that was entirely ignored. “Now get off the train,” said Alice, “before it departs.”
“Not without you! It ain’t better!”
“Anne, plea-,”
“You’ll break my heart as well!”
Her sister looked at her, mouth slightly open, and tears welling up in her eyes. Her lip began to quiver. “Oh Anne… Don’t say that…” she said weakly
“It’s true! I’ll die from missing you, and from worrying sick about you!” It wasn’t a lie. The thought of sleeping alone in the bed at night, without the comforting warmth of her sister beside her, a sister of whom she wouldn’t know whether she was alive, or safe, or even where she was… How could she survive that? “Where will you even go!?”
“It don’t matter, Anne! Away from here! I don’t want to leave you, but I have to!”
“We’ll find a solution…”
“I’m a few months along, Anne! I can’t hide it any longer! If father…” she gasped and her whole body seemed to shake. “He’ll beat me to death…” She put her face in her hands and began to cry.
“Don’t say that!” There was the sound of a whistle outside, but Anne sat beside her crying sister and pulled her into an embrace. “He’d never do no real harm.” But a terrifying series of memories forced their way into her mind. She pushed them away. “He’d be disappointed and angry maybe, but he loves you. He wants you to be alright.” Yet she felt sick with anxiety at the mere thought of putting herself in her sister’s shoes and having to tell father. Her sister sobbed.
There was another whistle.
Alice suddenly sat up. “Anne! Go!”
“I won’t!” Anne said, though she was panicking.
“Go!”
“Not without you!”
A loud, long whistle. And then there was no choice. The train began to move. The noise of the wheels being set in motion and picking up the pace drowned out all other sounds for a minute or so.
Silently, Anne watched as the abbey grew smaller and then disappeared along with the rest of town, when they turned a corner. She had never traveled further than Sandsend, three miles out of Whitby, and she had never traveled out of town in this direction. Already everything looked unfamiliar. She turned to her sister. The two girls stared at each other in silent horror. Alice’s hand found Anne’s and they both held on tight.
[Content warnings: reference to child abuse, teenage pregnancy]
When Anne arrived at the station, she was sweating and panting. She took a moment to catch her breath, but then ran through the building and on to the platform, where a train was waiting for the steam locomotive to change from the rear to the front. Most people had boarded already, though some were still saying goodbyes.
“Alice! Alice!” Anne shouted out, running along the platform and looking for her sister. Alice was not there. Anne stopped at the end of the train and rested her hands on her knees, closing her eyes and catching her breath once more. She was used to long days of labor and she was strong, but she never did much running, and her corset made her feel out of breath easily.
Anne finally rose again, turned, and slowly walked back past the train, looking inside through the windows. Suddenly she caught sight of her sister in one of the third class compartments. The girl sat by the window, pale and miserable, her checked shawl wrapped around her shoulders. She seemed hardly aware of her surroundings, until she spotted Anne. Alice sat up, frightened, and shook her head wildly. But Anne ran to the door and hurried in. “Alice!” she shouted, pushing her way past a man without even apologizing. “Alice!” she shouted again, when she had reached the compartment. A woman sitting opposite of Alice looked up disapprovingly. “Alice! Have you lost your mind! This is not t’ solution!” The woman cleared her throat
“Anne, get off the train! It’s about to depart!” her sister hissed. She was trembling and her hands clutched her shawl so tight that her knuckles were white. “I’m so sorry, but I have to go. Father… everyone… I can’t bear to face ‘em, Anne! I have no life here!”
The woman cleared her throat again, but Anne gave her a ‘shut up of die’ glare, before turning back to her sister. “You’ll break father’s heart.”
“I’ll do that either way. Oh, Anne. If you knew the full story, you’d want me gone too. It’s better for everyone!” The woman got up and left them with a final angry stare that was entirely ignored. “Now get off the train,” said Alice, “before it departs.”
“Not without you! It ain’t better!”
“Anne, plea-,”
“You’ll break my heart as well!”
Her sister looked at her, mouth slightly open, and tears welling up in her eyes. Her lip began to quiver. “Oh Anne… Don’t say that…” she said weakly
“It’s true! I’ll die from missing you, and from worrying sick about you!” It wasn’t a lie. The thought of sleeping alone in the bed at night, without the comforting warmth of her sister beside her, a sister of whom she wouldn’t know whether she was alive, or safe, or even where she was… How could she survive that? “Where will you even go!?”
“It don’t matter, Anne! Away from here! I don’t want to leave you, but I have to!”
“We’ll find a solution…”
“I’m a few months along, Anne! I can’t hide it any longer! If father…” she gasped and her whole body seemed to shake. “He’ll beat me to death…” She put her face in her hands and began to cry.
“Don’t say that!” There was the sound of a whistle outside, but Anne sat beside her crying sister and pulled her into an embrace. “He’d never do no real harm.” But a terrifying series of memories forced their way into her mind. She pushed them away. “He’d be disappointed and angry maybe, but he loves you. He wants you to be alright.” Yet she felt sick with anxiety at the mere thought of putting herself in her sister’s shoes and having to tell father. Her sister sobbed.
There was another whistle.
Alice suddenly sat up. “Anne! Go!”
“I won’t!” Anne said, though she was panicking.
“Go!”
“Not without you!”
A loud, long whistle. And then there was no choice. The train began to move. The noise of the wheels being set in motion and picking up the pace drowned out all other sounds for a minute or so.
Silently, Anne watched as the abbey grew smaller and then disappeared along with the rest of town, when they turned a corner. She had never traveled further than Sandsend, three miles out of Whitby, and she had never traveled out of town in this direction. Already everything looked unfamiliar. She turned to her sister. The two girls stared at each other in silent horror. Alice’s hand found Anne’s and they both held on tight.
