Harper smiled bitterly to herself as she looked at Aria, who was sitting dumbstruck on a chair, hair half undone.
She said, "Bet when you helped me change you thought all those marks were the boys' doing. You know, boys are idiots. All boys are idiots. But girls....." She shook her head, "They can be truly evil."
"What...what..." Aria was at a loss of words.
Harper: "It's a rare sight to see you at a loss of words. Everyone's life is not a bed of roses you know."
Aria was so dumbstruck by Harper's story that she did not care for this remark.
Bella's determined face flashed across her eyes. She had a bit of a temper, sure, but Aria had never thought her to be capable of anything like this.
"What happened after that?" Aria managed to get out.
Harper shrugged, "You basically know the rest of the story. Someone put a handkerchief wet with sleeping potion as I was returning after dinner yesterday. The next thing I knew, I was tied to the tree and those girls were looking mockingly at me. One of them said, 'Let's see if Stephen will want you after this.' She slapped me across the face and they left. You... know the rest."
Aria was silent as Harper finished her story.
She said after a long time, "Why? Why are you telling me this?"
Harper shrugged, "Don't know. I did not feel like I would be satisfied by getting the Professors involved. I won't be satisfied if those girls were only punished or expelled."
Aria's eyes narrowed, "Why me?"
Harper: "You are the strongest person I know. Physically, and mentally. Which brings me to the second thing I came to say."
"There's more??!!" Aria was a little scared. What had Harper gone through this past year.
Harper smiled, "You don't need to look so horrified. I only wanted to apologise."
"Apologise?" Aria was taken aback. The last thing she expected Harper to do was apologise.
Harper nodded, "I've been nothing but horrible to you. And you've been nothing but nice to me. Don't think I'm saying sorry because I want you to help me. I'm leaving the academy at the end of this month anyway."
Aria frowned, "You're leaving?"
Harper continued, "Yeah. I'm not cut out for this life. The only reason I came here in the first place was because of Jacob, there's nothing to hide from you anyway, and I ..."
Harper's voice choked as she continued, "I saw him with your friend the other day. The daughter of the commander, you know. So.....
I'm leaving."
Aria was silent. No one could fail to recognise the love in Jacob's eyes when he looked at Helen. Not even someone in denial.
Harper continued, "So, the only thing I wanted was for someone to know my story before I left. And also to mend my relationship to you."
Aria was shocked as Harper suddenly got to her knees and touched her head to the ground, "Aria, I'm really sorry for everything I did when I was at war with myself and projecting onto you. I'm sorry for having pushed you over the edge. I'm sorry for only seeing the good parts of your life and thinking that you did nothing to deserve them. I know now, there is balance in life. No one can walk through a path of roses without getting thorns in her feet. I'm sorry Aria."