A/N :: Well, well, well...Still reading? Lovely...Believe me, if you've come this far into our Cassius' story, you're going to want to stick around for more -- it only gets better from here!
We left of with dear old Draco stirring up some trouble for Cas, and paying the price -- whoa, a Slytherin being disciplined by Snape?? Who'd have thought that would ever happen? So, what's Draco's next bold move?
Crying to Daddy.
What a lovely opportunity for a little...family reunion...wouldn't you say?
Disclaimer: 'The Secret Tower' is an ongoing 'Harry Potter' fanfic series, and is not meant to be an exact replica of the original series. With the exception of a few, all characters were created by, and are property of, J.K. Rowling, author of the original 'Harry Potter' series. I claim no rights to any persons, places, or spells depicted in this story that were originally penned by Mrs. Rowling; only to those that are of my own creation.
Cassius was restless, slowly coming back to consciousness. Images faded in and out of her mind; flashes of a lovely woman with golden blonde hair and penetrating violet eyes; memories of seeing herself in the mirror as a child, watching her hair darken, over time, from its soft blonde into the black that was characteristic of the Villdawicks, until one day the reflection disappeared...And, underneath it all, a voice...always the same scratchy voice, calling out from some unseen corner...
Bloodbrat...
She awoke with a start, still reeling from the effects of the potion. Her eyes scanned the room quickly, frantically, and fell on Harry, who was watching her intently.
His eyes were worried, and he tried hard to smile as he leaned forward and whispered, "Alright, Cassius?"
She tried to nod, but her body ached, and her head felt too heavy to lift. Her eyes fluttered a bit, then closed once more, as she drifted back into sleep...
*
A hand on her foot jostled her awake, and she found herself face-to-face with...Malfoy. Her eyes shot around the room, worried, looking for help, but Harry had gone, and Madam Pomfrey was nowhere in sight. He narrowed his cold, hard eyes at her.
"Thought maybe we got off on the wrong foot," he said menacingly. "Figured we should try to...sort things out."
"What do you think you're doing?" she asked, her dry throat making her voice sound scratchy.
He leaned closer to her. "Making 'peace'," he replied. He extended a hand to her, but she merely stared at it.
"What is this supposed to be?"
"A truce," he said, "or more like...a deal. I'll promise to play nice, if you swear you'll get Snape to give back those ten points you cost me."
"What makes you think I want to make any kind of deal with you?" she snapped.
He smiled smugly at her. "You saved my life."
"That's because I had to."
He opened his mouth to reply, but was stopped by the sound of the door banging open. A tall man, with a pointed face and long, white-blond hair strode into the hospital wing, heading in their direction. His thick, black cloak billowed out behind him as he moved.
"I am horribly disappointed in you, Draco. Dragging me away from my work because you need me to come and clean up your mess..." Lucius Malfoy came to a stop in front of his son. "How very typical of you, boy. Though, I daresay," he added, an irritable note to his voice, "that perhaps Severus was a bit...harsh."
His gaze moved down, and his eyes widened slightly when they fell on Cassius, who was staring back up at him. He turned back to his son.
"This is the student that you have such a problem with, that you must put your House points at risk?"
"She's an absolute nightmare, Father," Malfoy said defiantly, sneering at Cassius. "Nothing but a foul, rotten, no-good little--"
"Now, now, Draco," Lucius interrupted, waving him off. "I won't have you using such crude language in the presense" - he looked back down at Cassius - "of a lady."
"But, Father--" Malfoy started, but Lucius stopped him once again with the wave of his hand.
"Run along, now, son. Get back to your classes," Lucius said cooly. "I will deal with the...troublemaker."
Casting one last dirty look at Cassius, Malfoy turned on his heel and stormed out of the hospital wing, leaving them alone. Lucius lowered himself slowly to sit on the edge of Cassius' bed, his eyes fixed on hers.
"My word," he said, his voice now sounding somewhat wistful. He reached out a hand, and laid it gently on her cheek. "How beautiful you have grown up to be..."
"Don't touch me!" she snapped, jerking her head out of his reach. Lucius recoiled slightly.
"What's this, then?" he asked, sounding bemused. "No 'hello' for your own father?"
"You are not my father," she growled, glaring at him coldly.
Lucius laughed, shaking his head.
"On the contrary, my dear girl," he replied. "You wouldn't be here today if it weren't for me."
"I know," she answered nastily. "And there aren't enough words to describe how grateful I am to you for giving me up."
"Giving you up?" he asked, looking taken aback. "I should say not. I simply placed you in the care of a seemingly...capable...individual. And I see Severus has done a rather fair job of bringing you up. Though, I must say," he added, looking her up and down, "it seems some of his...attitude...rubbed off on you..."
"DON'T TALK ABOUT MY DAD THAT WAY!" she shouted, pushing herself up into a sitting position.
"Excuse me? First of all, I will not tolerate being spoken to in such a way by a little girl such as yourself. Secondly, your precious professor is not your father, did you not hear me before? I am the one responsible for your mere existence."
"I am aware of that fact," Cassius shot back at him, her eyes flashing with hatred. "Did you think it would be kept a secret from me for all of these years? No, my dad told me everything, how you let those monsters murder my mum, and take me away...How you refused to take me in when I was returned to you..."
"I had no choice, girl," Lucius offered, his face white with anger. "My family--"
"I WAS YOUR FAMILY!" she screamed. "Or did you forget about that during those years I was held as a slave? Do you know what those creatures did to me? Are you aware of the things I have to deal with now because of it?"
He stared at her, his mouth hanging open, shocked by her furious outburst.
"You may be partly responsible for my birth," Cassius continued, her voice dripping with suppressed rage, "but you are not my father anymore."
"Now, look here, young lady--" Lucius began, his face twisting in anger.
"What's going on here?" said a low, cold voice from the door. Cassius threw back her covers and leapt from her bed. She ran down the aisle and threw her arms around Snape's neck as he entered. He embraced her, his dark eyes fixed on Lucius. "What are you playing at, Malfoy?"
Lucius got to his feet, raising a hand to point a finger at Snape. "What have you done to my daughter?" he asked, accusingly.
"The very best I could," replied Snape, releasing Cassius and gently pushing her to the side so that he could face Lucius head-on. "Given the circumstances."
"You've turned her completely against me!" Lucius raged, moving forward quickly.
"He's done no such thing!" Cassius cried, glaring at him angrily. "Never once has my dad said an unkind word about you. He has always held you in greatest regard, more so than you ever deserved, and he's made you out to seem a decent man. It was I who decided that you aren't worth even the second it would take to spare you a thought."
"Cassius, darling, go and lie down. You need to rest," Snape told her gently, but she shook her head.
"I won't! Not as long as that man-" she jabbed a finger in Lucius' direction "-is here."
Snape turned to Lucius. "I think that it would be best that you go, Lucius. She is still obviously suffering the effects of the Confusion Draught..."
"I am NOT!" Cassius cried, turning on Snape. "I simply won't have this man saying such horrible things about you, I won't have it!"
"It's alright, little love," coaxed Snape. "I will deal with your father."
"HE IS NOT MY FATHER!" she screamed again, causing a murmur of shock to arise from the portraits.
"Calm down, darling. Do as I say," Snape replied, easing her in the direction of the bed. She relented, casting Lucius a nasty glare as she passed him.
"She takes after her mother, I see," Lucius said to Snape, his rage easing. "The same fire, the same tenacity."
Snape gave Lucius a slightly cold, tight smile. "She has alot of you in her, as well..."
Lucius seemed to have picked up on the slight note of disdain in the professor's comment, and he returned Snape's forced smile with one of his own. "Obviously. How else would she be able to stand so firmly behind her own decisions?" He moved in the direction of the door. "I must thank you, Severus. You have done well with her, despite her obvious misgivings about her true parentage. I don't hold that against you, mind you..."
Snape shook his head, the corner of his mouth curling up in a sort of sneer. "I never suspected that you would."
"Of course you didn't," Lucius replied cooly. He glanced over at Cassius again, who was just climbing back into her bed. "As it is, though, considering her presence is already known...perhaps it may be time to let my little...secret...come out into the open, don't you think?"
Snape looked at him carefully. "What do you mean?"
Lucius looked at him, a smirk on his thin lips. "Perhaps it's time I take over with the care of the girl."
Cassius' head snapped up. "What are you talking about?" she cried.
"I am your father--"
"STOP SAYING THAT!"
"--and I think it would be best if I take you out of this place, and bring you home, where you belong."
Snape's mouth dropped open. "What?! No...no, you can't do that!"
Lucius turned on him, his eyebrows raised. "Can't I?"
"No...she must stay here...she's a student...and..." Snape's voice trailed off.
"And, what?" asked Lucius.
"And...she belongs with me," replied Snape, his voice dropping, suddenly cold and hard.
Lucius' eyes widened with surprise. "I beg your pardon?"
Snape glared at him, anger flashing in his eyes. "She stays here."
Lucius laughed, waving his hand. "I think that decision is up to me." He turned to face Cassius, who was on her feet again, her face white. "Prepare your things, girl. I will return after sundown to collect you...and take you home."
Cassius rushed around the bed, her eyes wide with fury. "NO! I won't go!"
"You aren't going to be taking her anywhere," said Snape. "She is my daughter, and I won't allow it."
"Oh, so she's your daughter now, then, is she?" retorted Lucius, his voice thick with false friendliness. "We'll see about that." He looked at Cassius. "I will be back tonight. Be ready."
With that, Lucius Malfoy smirked and gave a seemingly courteous nod of his head, then turned on his heel and strode out of the room, leaving Snape and Cassius to stare helplessly at each other.
"Daddy..." Cassius said in a strained voice. Snape moved toward her, and took her into his arms, kissing the top of her head. She could feel him shaking slightly as she laid her head on his shoulder, tears in her eyes.
"Don't worry, little love. He won't get away with this..."
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