Warning, if there is romance is not going to be "Twilight" style which is obssessive and fast grown love, they can't fall in love after two meetings. Also, there will be swearing and various topics will be discussed.
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Thanks to my beta reader Ayres Kelle and SarcasmSpeaksVolumes!
Jake woke up. The dream was still fresh in his mind, and it was not until his mind got clearer that he realized it was that; just a dream. The room was dark but not completely, he could see the silhouettes of the other beds and he could hear the breathings of the children asleep; there was another noise, however, a continuing sob, one that he knew all too well.
He swallowed hard, concern clouding his mind. He checked to see if anybody was awake, or worse, if they were being watched again but that was not the case, so he slid off his bed and walked to where he knew she would be. He did this slowly so as not to scare her; she was already in a fragile state. Once he got to the bed he peeped under it and saw her thanks to the light filtering from under the bedroom door.
Cassie was under her bed bracing her legs, her face buried between her knees trying to make the crying stop. Jake felt his heart sink. He was barely seven but he was very mature for his age, after all growing in a place like that did that to them. Cassie was five, two years younger, but she was also mature; even more than kids Jake's age. She was very strong as well. Most kids had not been able to stand what Cassie did one time, and she had been put to it at least once a week lately.
"Cass," he whispered low. The little girl froze for a second before she recognized him. She lifted her face and gave him a little smile.
"Jake," She was so happy to see him that she put her suffering a side, something Jake was grateful for.
Jake returned her smile, "Make some room" he said and she instantly complied, moving so he could get there with her.
"It wasn't so bad," Cassie said when he was finally lying next to her.
"Did they do it again?" he asked with a frown, knowing she was lying.
Cassie nodded and took one arm from her legs holding it in front of him. Jake took her hand with tenderness and examined the wound closely. He could see a deep burn going from her wrist and to her elbow; it was the same as the last ones. Jake felt his anger rose but said nothing; instead he kissed her palm and wished for it to heal as he always did. For some reason it seemed to work, and after a few hours the mark was gone.
"Thank you," Cassie said smiling. How she could always smile in spite of everything was a wonder, one Jake always welcomed.
"What do you think they are trying to do Jake?" Cassie asked after a moment of silence. She had known for a long time that they were all there for a reason. They were special, they said. She couldn't remember when she got there although she knew it had been around two years ago. She couldn't recall anything before that time, only after the first session.
A man had taken her to an empty room with other people. He had been nice and comforting but something hadn't felt right. The place had been surrounded by a dark and oppressing energy, and she didn't like that. Even when they had made deep cuts in her hands and ignored her pleads, they still behaved nicely towards her, tried to keep her calmed. They did not want to hurt her they said, nor to the other kids, but they were the means to an end, one they had to accomplish.
A few days had passed when she met Jake. Ever since she got to the house she chose to stay alone, she used to sit in the same spot and played whatever she liked. One day she was building a brick house with a patio, garage, and pool when she felt eyes on her. She turned and saw a kid she had noticed before, he was quiet but didn't need to talk much, he liked to play in a table at the left of the room with some other kids. He smiled at her and she smiled back before she went back to her game.
The next day she saw him in the small dining room, and when he caught her glance she smiled again and nodded hello, he smiled back his eyes warmer that time. That same day when she sat in a corner to play he sat with her and played in silence, she didn't question him nor did he questioned her. When play time was over they went together to class and began to talk. Soon they found out that the talking was even more comfortable than the silence and they shared everything, making a promise to always be honest and hide little if nothing, either good or bad.
"I don't know," he said "but it's changing don't you think?" He had noticed how things had began to slow down. It had been months since they brought back another kid, and although the times Cassie had been taken had increased, the other kids had been left alone. Jake did not like what they were doing to her but he had a feeling it would come to a stop.
Cassie nodded again but her mind was far away. She yawned and Jake put his arms around her making off his chest her pillow and in less than a few seconds they were both asleep.
John Blackwell watched the scene with mild interest from behind the door, a window spell allowed him not to be seen by the kids.
The prophecy was false; five years of research had come up with that result, Cassie's last experiments minutes ago had proven that. How or why such a lie became so important in history was of little importance now. All the time and effort had been for nothing. After some deliberation, all participant witches agreed to let the children go; with their memory wiped of course. Normally they would not have cared less about rat labs but this was not the case, this were witches. Maybe not as strong as them but witches nonetheless and they had earned the right to live. Cassie however was different, she was his daughter, and she would grow up to be an extremely powerful witch. She had already proven this by her resistance to the curses they had put her under, surviving with nothing but a small burn that healed in little time. She was special, there was something else about her, he knew it and respected her for that.
Blackwell had had many children for this task but the weaker ones had died and he did not mourn them. Did he love Cassie? He cared for her yes, and was proud that his own flesh and blood was such a feisty and mighty witch, but he did not know if he could love nor did he care either.
"Are they ready?" a red haired woman dressed in black jeans, a white t-shirt, running shoes and a parka, asked. He nodded and she called the others who soon appeared at his side.
The job was quick; they put the children in an induced dream and worked on the spell that would delete the memories from their time there so they could return to their families without being able to disclose any information of what had happened. However, Blackwell would not let Cassie to go back with Amelia; he knew her too well and was sure she would be stupid enough not to let Cassie know about her inheritance, not even the magic from Amelia's side.
She would grow to be a complete ignorant of her powers and he could not allow it. It wasn't just morally wrong but also dangerous. If Cassie grew unaware of her magic she would have no idea of how to use it, let alone control it, it could be extremely dangerous for her.
The preoccupation that had assaulted him when he realized this would be the case was dissipated two months ago when he heard that Amelia had given birth to another child, a boy son of Conant. Now the circle was complete and Cassie wouldn't have to return so that it would be so. Although it was slightly disappointing that there was no Blackwell blood in it he was comforted by the knowledge Cassie was the rightful member of the circle and she just had to go back for the boy to be casted away. If that was not the case, he would kill the boy and problem solved. Nevertheless he knew this would not happen since he didn't want Cassie in that circle. So he would delete her memories of her previous family, making sure she did not try to go back to them.
Now that the Armstrong boy would return he had to make sure Amelia would stop looking for Cassie, and the most effective way was by faking her death. He already had the corpse of a dead girl which he would curse and would be, for all purposes, Cassie. His daughter, since he could not carry a child with him, would be raised by a coven that would provide her with not only the skills she needs but also the love that any child can desire, for he was not ignorant of this fact, and he had once been a child just like Cassie.
"What are you doing?" a sleepy childish voice asked them. John, who had been checking on the work of the rest before he went to Cassie turned around and faced his daughter. She seemed calmed, she always did little brave thing never showed any fear, but he could tell she was worried. As she stared at the witches working, Cassie held the asleep boy next to her tighter.
Blackwell walked toward her with a sympathetic smile and said, "Nothing honey," in his mind chanted a spell and as he ran his fingers down her cheek he told her "Go back to sleep" and although it took some seconds Cassie fell asleep, her head resting on the little boy's chest.
He stood up and casted the spell that would make them forget.