I'm not sure how this fic is going to turn out but the idea came into my head a while ago so I decided to finally attempt to try and write it. It's slightly AU ish. Yeah I don't really know.
Oh, does anyone have a better idea for the title of this story? I suck with titles so yeah suggestions please.
Full Summary: A year after Amelia Blake left Chance Harbor to get Cassie away from her lifestyle, she remarried. When Cassie's mum is killed, she decides to move back to Chance Harbor but after living with an abusive step dad for most of her life nothing will ever be the same... especially when she finds out who she really is. Will she be able to be part of and help the circle? Or will her life just continue to spiral downwards because of her past. How can she help them when shes the only one that needs saving. It won't be long before she breaks.
Little girl terrified.
She'd leave her room if only bruises would heal.
A home is no place to hide,
Her heart is breaking from the pain that she feels.
Cassie stood in her bedroom throwing her clothes and other belongings into her bags as fast as possible. She had to get out of there and fast. Her mother had only been dead a few days but she couldn't stay with her step dad. There was no way she was staying there any longer. For her whole life he had been abusive to her, throughout her whole childhood and up to now. She had the scars and bruises to prove it. But her mom never noticed, no. She was completely oblivious to the whole thing and now Cassie had no choice but to run. He would be returning home again soon, after his out burst earlier he had gone out, probably to get drunk. Cassie found her self instinctively reaching up and touching the fresh cut on her lip before looking in the mirror seeing the bruise that was already forming around her eye.
She didn't understand how her mom could marry such a monster, but then of course she never really knew about anything that was going on. Even when it seemed so obvious, that time he threw her down the stairs as a kid. He had said she tripped running around with her toys. She brushed any suspicions off, too blinded for her love for this man. Even a few years after that, when everything was getting worse, what was like a downward slope for Cassie turned into a steep hill, she was falling. Breaking apart and no one was there to help or notice. So when she ended up in hospital because of her step dad, she didn't say anything about him, there was no point. She said she was walking home and got attacked. Her mom would never believe her anyway, that was the one thing she had learnt from living with this man, that he would always be the one she trusted. Not her kid, her own flesh and blood.
Thinking about this the other day is when she made her decision. She couldn't stay here, it was bad enough with her mom here but now she was gone she didn't even want to think about what would happen. Yes she loved her, but times like this she couldn't help but blame her slightly for her screwed up life. She had phoned her grandma in Chance Harbor, asking if she could move in with her. Lying, saying that she couldn't bare to stay in this house or with him because of how much it reminded her, of her mother, and of course she agreed. So that's how it ended up now, as she limped around her room making sure she had everything she needed before she left... for good.
Her room was empty by now, as she stood in her bedroom door taking one last look around making sure she didn't miss anything. She started down the stairs slowly carrying the bags with her not wanting to take more then one trip knowing he would be home anytime now. Walking out to her car she placed them in the trunk before heading back inside to do one last sweep of the house. She had everything she needed, everything that actually meant something to her. She stood in the kitchen one last time sighing looking at the picture of her mother on the island in the middle of the room when she heard a door shut behind her. Spinning around to face him, fear instantly took over her body as he glared at her.
''Going somewhere?'' He asked taking a menacing step towards her, causing her to instantly back up.
''N-n-no'' She stuttered, her fear taking over as he took a few more steps towards her before reaching out and grabbing her wrist tightly as she yelped being pulled towards him.
''You sure about that?'' She nodded forcefully trying to find anyway out from this position. He sensed her fear, knowing something was up and determined to get it out of her he spun them both around slamming her into the wall pinning her there. His face only inches from her, she could smell the alcohol on his breath. It was a smell she had become used to over the years. ''Let's try that again, going somewhere?'' She shook her head again, you would think she would know better by now, after so many years of his abuse but she still tried to get out of it. ''LIAR'' He shouted striking her across the face as she whimpered, tears springing to her eyes. She looked up to meet his gaze, seeing the rage in his own. It was now or never, she had to get out.
''P-please don't'' She cried not wanting to know what was going to happen next. Looking at his eyes again she felt like she had shrunk as he towered over her. ''No please'' She cried again trying to regain her grip on reality and the situation so she could escape. The grip he had on her only tightened with each plea.
Waiting for a distraction that was never going to come she brought her knee up to his crotch hard as he stepped back groaning. She made a run for it, towards the front door. She thought she was free until she tripped over something landing harshly with a thud, looking back from her position on the floor she saw him stood there with his foot stuck out. She started crawling backwards to get away but he just laughed, walking forward, yanking her up by her hair.
''You really think I'm that dumb?'' He said shaking his head and smirking. ''Just because your mom is gone you can leave? Your stupider than I thought''
''No'' She spat out through gritted teeth. ''You are'' and with that she used the remaining energy left in her body to push him off her with as much force as possible, making him stumble and fall to the floor. She looked at him once, kicking him in the side a couple of times before running out the door and to the car, jumping in she put the key into the ignition twisting it desperately as he ran out of the house behind her, only just managing to get away as he missed the door handle. She looked back as she drove off, at him getting smaller and smaller. She had succeed. She knew that he probably wouldn't look for her, it wasn't worth his energy but then again she had no way to be sure. He would find someone else as an outlet hopefully. Most people would feel free, happy that they got away. But Cassie knew her life was never going to be the same.
Hours later Cassie was just passing the 'Welcome To Chance Harbor' sign. She felt exhausted, she had only stopped to get more gas, wanting to get as far away from that place as possible, and now... she was finally here. She hadn't seen her grandma since her mothers wedding when she was just a kid, although she had spoken to her on the phone numerous amounts of times. So when she pulled up to the unfamiliar house, she didn't know what to expect. She just sat outside in the car for a while before finally building up the courage to go and knock on the door. She didn't have to do that though, before she had even got to the gate the front door opened and out came her grandma.
''CASSIE!'' She called half running down the small path to the gate where she instantly pulled her into a tight hug, not noticing her small cry of pain as she bit her lip trying not to cry. Eventually she pulled her back at arms length looking at her. ''What happened to you!?'' She instantly asked.
''I got into a small fight at my old school'' She lied smoothly, having years of practice.
''Oh'' She said simply looking down the road for a second before back to her granddaughter. ''It's so good to see you!'' She exclaimed suddenly. ''Come on let's get your stuff and take it inside'' Without another word she walked to the car picking up two of the three bags leaving Cassie to grab the final one and lock the car following her grandma up and into the house where she was lead upstairs into a bedroom.
''This was your mom's room'' She said smiling slightly as Cassie looked around the room curiously. ''We can move some of her stuff out if you need to'' Cassie just nodded not really knowing what to say. ''I'll leave you to get settled in... dinner will be ready soon'' She spoke before turning and heading back out the room leaving Cassie alone again.
Later that evening Cassie was sat with her grandma eating dinner. Well she wasn't exactly eating, more like pushing the food around her plate. Jane kept looking at her granddaughter worriedly. She knew something was off, something wasn't right but she couldn't quite put her finger on it and didn't want to ask questions in fear of pushing her away. She had noticed how Cassie seemed to flinch at sudden loud noises, how she would only speak when asked a question. Looking at her more closely all she could see was a broken, scared young girl but she had no idea what made her this way. It was more then just her mom dying, there was something else behind it but she had no idea what.
''Not hungry?'' She finally asked breaking the silence between the two. Cassie just shook her head in response not saying anything or looking up from her plate as she continued to push the food around on her plate. She couldn't help but sigh looking at the young girl in front of her. ''You can go upstairs if you want...'' She started catching Cassie's attention as she finally looked up for the first time that evening. ''You look exhausted'' She concluded.
''Yeah... I am'' Cassie's words seemed forced, like she wanted to say more but held it back. Standing up she grabbed her plate heading towards the kitchen. ''Thanks though'' She said smiling weakly at her grandma before emptying her plate in the sink, washing it quickly and heading straight upstairs into her room.
She slowly walked over to one of her bags which contained her clothes, taking out some pyjamas she headed into the bathroom making sure she locked the door behind her. She looked at her reflection in the mirror again sadly before changing. Trying to avoid looking at her body which she new was covered in various bruises, instead she just kept her eyes on anything else in the room before she brushed her teeth and walked back into her room. Looking at the curtains she was sure she had drawn she walked over hesitantly closing them again. By the time she had put the clothes she was wearing into a bag and turned around, the curtains were open again. She noticed a boy around her age staring at her through the window opposite. She freaked instantly shutting the curtains harshly and quickly crawling into the bed under the covers as she crawled into a protective ball, the way she slept every night.
She didn't turn the side lamp off, she had slept with a light on every night since she was 7 when he came home one night drunk into her room. She woke up to his breathing, not being able to see anything she had turned the side lamp on seeing him just stood there staring at her. It had seriously scared the crap out of her, and now she never got out of doing it, even though he was at least a 7 hour drive from him, she didn't feel safe.
Sleep soon overcame Cassie, not realizing how tired she had actually been. Her grandma had soon came up the stairs to check on her, seeing her fast asleep she didn't want to disturb her by turning the lamp off. She must of left it on for a reason whilst she slept. She made a mental note to question her on that the next day but for now, she herself headed off to bed.
Cassie shot up from her slumber in a cold sweat, a scream stuck at the back of her throat. She could feel her whole body shaking and soon realized that she had tears trailing down her cheeks. Yet another nightmare had woken her up, she hardly ever got a peaceful nights sleep these days. She was used to running on a lack of sleep most days, no one ever seemed to notice, they just became used to seeing her so tired.
Her silent tears soon turned into full on sobs as the images of her nightmare replayed in her head. It was always him, always the same but from different ages, when she was only young or more recent nightmares. They constantly haunted her whilst awake and asleep. Even though she was miles away, she had no escape from him. He would always be able to hurt her, just by a memory. She just stayed curled up in a ball rocking herself back and forth as she cried.
After calming down and glancing at her alarm clock she decided there was no point in trying to go back to sleep, she would be waking up for school soon anyway. Her grandma had enrolled her at the local high school before she even arrived knowing that she would be coming. So with that in mind, she got up grabbing some clothes and headed to the bathroom for a quick shower before getting dressed and trying her best to hide the bruise on her face with makeup. Not succeeding very well she soon gave up and headed downstairs to see her grandma making breakfast.
''Morning'' She greeted her cheerfully.
''Morning'' Was all the teen mumbled back not looking up.
''You look tired'' She pointed out causing her to chuckle slightly. Oh if only she knew, she thought to herself. ''Here''' She spoke sliding a plate in front of Cassie. She wouldn't normally eat in the mornings but today she was starving after not having much dinner. She soon dug in munching her way through the food that she was cooked.
As soon as she was finished she cleaned her plate, thanking her grandma again before grabbing her bag and heading to the front door, not giving time for any questions to be asked knowing the look she was being given she wanted to get out as fast as possible. Still, leaving early she had a bit of trouble finding the high school so ended up arriving at the same time as everyone else as she headed to the principals office.
Even the quick conversation she had left Dawn slightly confused. Cassie seemed nothing like her mother. She looked scared, her eyes darting around the room every so often like she was expecting something to pop out. She had a hunch like Jane, something wasn't quite right with her but she didn't know anyone was feeling the same way and just brushed it off as first day nerves. Quickly dismissing Cassie and letting her go.
Walking to her locker she blocked out her surroundings and everyone around her. She hated school enough before and now she was in a brand new place with no idea what she should be doing. She stood there completely unaware to the conversation taking place across the hall.
''Hey. Have you seen her yet?'' Adam was questioning Nick.
''She got in yesterday'' He said simply as he closed his locker.
''And...''
''She got in yesterday'' Nick repeated shrugging before he turned and walked away leaving Adam stood there before he turned and also walked away in the opposite direction. Standing at his own locker he looked across the hall, staring at the girl who stood there. This was who they were all waiting for, to complete their circle but they had to make sure it was her first. After being caught staring he quickly turned, blending in with all the other teens as he walked off down the hall.
Cassie was left slightly confused and scared. She really didn't know why he was staring at her and she didn't want to know. She just wanted to keep to herself so she could go back home- well to her grandma's house. The day was already starting to frustrate her as she struggled to open her locker. She jumped when she noticed someone standing next to her as the girl spoke up.
''So you're the new girl'' She stated causing Cassie to turn and look at her along with her friend.
''Er, y-yeah that's me'' Cassie replied feeling awkward. She didn't like confrontations with anyone.
''You're very pretty'' Cassie's mind quickly drifted to when her step dad had said this once before shoving her into a wall and walking away. She quickly shook her head shaking the memory. She was confused when the girl looked at her locker as her and her friend both smiled. ''Try it again'' She spoke before the pair walked off down the hallway leaving a even more confused Cassie as she turned to her locker which now opened.
''That's Faye'' Yet another voice spoke as she jumped again. She was starting to hate this even more with every second that passed. ''Resident bad girl''
''She's convincing'' Cassie muttered looking down at the floor.
''Hi, I'm Diana'' The brunette spoke causing Cassie to look up again and meet her eyes.
''I'm Cassie-''
''Cassie Blake, I know your grandmother, it's a really small town'' This just freaked her out even more. ''Hey, what happened to your face?'' Diana asked but before she could get a response the bell rang giving Cassie an excuse to get away without having to answer any questions or accept an offer from Diana to meet at the boathouse later.
The turn of events had been nothing but eventful for Cassie. First being questioned by Faye and her friend who's name she learned was Melissa. Also being confronted by who she now knew was Adam's father and to top it all off, her car had caught fire when she tried to leave and she couldn't escape. Leaving Adam who somehow managed to get the door open just as the fire seemed to be blown out somehow. She didn't know what to do after that but run, she didn't like being around these people they scared her but she didn't know why. This only lead to another nearly sleepless night.
The next day Cassie was walking around the town, she wanted to avoid confrontation as much as possible but she had to speak to her grandma about something whilst she still had the courage to do so. Running around a corner she ran into a body causing her to scream, feeling a firm grip on each of her arms she tried to back away. When released she turned around terrified, about to make a run for it when she saw Diana blocking her path a worried look on her face.
''Cassie, are you alright?'' She questioned immediately. She really didn't know what to say so just stood there in silence letting Diana lead the conversation. ''There's something I wanted to show you'' She spoke, upon realizing she was waiting for her permission she nodded and Diana quickly took her hand leading her off.
After what felt like walking for ages through the woods they came to a clearing where there was an old abandoned house. Taking one look at it Cassie started to back away forgetting that Diana was still holding her hand from leading her here. Sensing her discomfort she turned around to look at her.
''It's okay Cassie'' She smiled reassuringly but Cassie couldn't help but feel scared. It was just natural for her to feel like this all the time. So when being dragged into the house to be quickly in a room with 5 other people she didn't know how to react. Taking in each of their faces she realized over the past two days she had spoken too, or seen all of them already.
She wasn't sure what happened next, everything seemed to pass in a blur. She wasn't paying that much attention to what was being said, all she could do was freak out as she looked around trying to find an exit. She felt trapped; she hated this feeling. More memories flashed through her head of times where she had been cornered by him, it was a often position for her to be in and she hated it. She could feel her chest start to tighten slightly as she continued to look around the room until the words that left Faye's mouth pushed her over the edge.
''You're a witch.'' She started glaring at her like it was the most natural thing in the world. ''You're a full blooded, hundred percent witch. We all are. There done'' Those words seemed to rip away any grip of reality Cassie had left. Feeling her chest tighten even more she started to struggle for breath, backing away from the 5 faces all focused on her. She kept backing up until she hit a wall, the others stepped closer to her, intentionally to stop her from running not realizing the effect they had on her as she slid down the wall hiding her face protectively trying to breathe. When she saw someones feet only a step away from her she really freaked.
''STOP'' She shouted feeling tears pooling in her eyes. ''D-don't'' Cassie cried weakly her breath becoming more jagged and sharp as images of her step dad continued to flash through her head, tearing her apart each time. Diana noticing that something was wrong was the first to take action.
''Guy's back up you're scaring her'' She stated standing in front of her protectively as the others all seemed to back up. Seeing that it had no effect she knew they needed to leave. ''I think you should wait outside for a minute'' She continued they all nodded and left apart from Melissa who stood watching curiously. ''Cassie?'' Diana spoke crouching down in front of the girl.
''No no no'' Cassie was muttering to herself as she rocked back and forth which was starting to scare both the girls along with the fact that if she didn't calm down she would most likely pass out.
''Cassie it's Diana'' She reached out slowly taking Cassie's arms ignoring her struggle and moving them so she could see Cassie's face. Her eyes were shut tightly as she shook her head back and forth, tears falling from her close eyelids. ''Cassie!?'' Diana's concern for the girl only increased as the color started to drain from her face.
''P-please d-don't'' Her voice was shaky. ''I'm S-sorry'' She continued which was what made Diana realize she wasn't scared of her at the moment, her mind was elsewhere. Probably re-living something from her past which only worried her even more.
''Melissa come here hold her hands down'' She instructed as the girl quickly came over doing as she was told. Diana hesitantly put a hand gently on either side of her face, trying not to hurt her because of the bruise. ''Cassie open your eyes'' She said calmly but got no response. ''Cassie open your eyes!'' She said louder as Cassie's eyes suddenly shot open. The two girls found it impossible to not notice the terrified look in her eyes. ''It's just us ok. You're safe'' She said. ''Cassie breathe okay'' She said becoming scared by the girls uneven breathing. ''Come on Cassie Breathe'' She almost pleaded sending a worried glance at Melissa who just mirrored her expression. Cassie's eyes met Diana's as she stared at her for a moment before trying to focus on her breathing.
After what seemed like an eternity her breathing returned back to normal. The tears were still falling freely from her eyes as she looked at Diana who shifted next to her on the floor as Melissa sat in front of her. Putting her arm around the scared girl she mumbled a ''No'' before falling into Diana's side in tears. She sat there shocked for a moment before rubbing the girls arm soothingly. She had barely known this girl for a day but seeing the state she was in she felt terrible for her and what she had gone through. Without warning Melissa stood up and nodded at Diana before walking out the house and closing the door which only caused Cassie to jump.
''Cassie what was that about?'' She asked concerned for the girl who she considered a friend. ''What were you remembering?'' She pressed.
''No'' She said again. ''I d-don't want to talk about it'' You could hear the pain in her voice as she spoke.
''Cassie you need to talk about it to someone''
''No!'' She said louder before letting out another sob. ''Please no'' Her voice grew quiet again. ''I don't want to think about it anymore. I'm free now'' She mumbled the last few words confusing her even more but Diana had her suspicions about what had happened. She wanted to confirm it for herself though and decided it would have to wait for another time.
''Is it something to do with that bruise you have?'' She couldn't help but ask and upon feeling her nod into her chest, she felt like her heart was breaking slightly and in response she wrapped her arms around the girl tighter only causing a cry of pain to come from the girls mouth causing her to let go shocked. Knowing instantly there was more to this she stood up, pulling Cassie to her feet as well. ''Show me'' She demanded not actually expecting her to comply. With shaky hands Cassie reached down to the hem of her shirt, fiddling with it slightly before pulling it up to expose her stomach. Diana quickly walked around taking in her back as well as she felt a wave of sadness flood over her. Cassie let the shirt drop again looking down at the floor.
''Who did this too you Cassie?'' She questioned but got no response. ''Is this the first time it's happened?'' She asked again, needing to know the answer.
''Yes'' Cassie said blankly lying but Diana didn't know that. She would never know that, well at least that was what she thought.
It was all fine for a few more days, Cassie stayed away from everyone including Diana and Melissa, even though she seemed to trust those two more than the others. But then her grandma had asked her to stay with Cassie whilst she was away for the weekend knowing something was wrong and not wanting to leave the girl alone. Diana quickly agreed, not knowing what she was getting herself into.
Things went downhill from there. She couldn't hide her past forever, especially when someone was looking for her, the person she tried to escape from but she didn't know that. Still, that's when the nightmares became a problem and Cassie had to come up with something to cover it up, and fast.
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