"Do you think I haven't thought of everything?" Alice retorted with both frustration and a tiny hint of desperation. "That I haven't gone through what scholarships are available to me and what I would need to receive them? That I haven't tried to figure out another alternative for well over a year now? This has always been the deal. If I made prefect I could stay, if not that was it. There's too many variables and too much risk."

The shopkeeper came bounding from the backroom as the volume of her voice increased and Alice flashed an apologetic half smile before turning back to him with her smile instantly gone. "This is my reality, Cameron. It's my own fault to have ever dreamt outside of my limitations."