Cassie looked at the group of her friends, her coven. Through all of the bad things that happened the past few months they had all stuck together to defeat Black John, her father. She looked down at her and Adams clasped hands. ~I love you Adam. I can't believe we all made it. Actually yes I can, because we stood together. She told him with her mind and glanced at Diana, her best friend and 'sister'. 'Everything is going to be alright now.' she reassured herself. She smiled as she heard almost everyone come up with a reason to use the master tools. "Back to business I guess." she softly out loud and squeezed Adam's hand.
Susan watched the group get all excited about their own ideas for the master tools. She could actually care less what the coven did with them. She was much more interested in the coming Yule. 'I wonder what my mom is going to get me. Hopefully that cute peach cashmere sweater we saw a couple weeks ago on the mainland.' The bridge was in the process of being repaired so it wouldn't be long until she could go shopping again. 'Maybe I'll drag Faye. She needs something new to wear after doing the whole business suit thing to please Black John. Sure he was handsome but he was as old as the dirt in my back yard garden and now he's gone. Good riddance.' She smirked as Laurel brought up Environmentalism. 'Yeah right.' she suppressed a laugh. "I still want a birthday party," she mentioned for the second time as everyone babbled on about their ideas. Even Faye was back to her old self-talking about hexing people.
Sean looked down at the food in his lap as everyone discussed what they wanted to do with the tools. "I'll go with anything you guys suggest but a party does sound nice." he said somewhat cheerfully and smiled at Susan. He looked over to Cassie and Adam. 'Why does he always get the girls?' he thought with a sliver of envy as he looked away from the happy couple to Diana. 'Poor Diana, maybe she'll need a shoulder to cry on later. I've got a perfectly good shoulder.' He smashed down the rising hope blooming in him. 'Nah, Girls like her don't go for skinny guys like me. Hell she'll probably end up with Nick in the long run.' Sean took a bite of his sandwich and leaned back as talks of parties; hexes and the master tools flowed between the group.
Diana stood there and watched over the coven. She looked at Cassie and Adam. She was partly hurt but they were her best friends. Cassie was her sister. She was proud of Cassie. What she did took courage.
Faye wasn't even sure if she should be there. This girl had everyone fooled, especially after the whole thing with Ol' Blacky. Cassie had everyone wrapped around her little fingers, especially Diana. She smiled and nodded at a joke, but no laughter.
'This girls is like the sun. The just revolve around her every whim. Pathetic!'
Faye turned and headed to her car. She had plans to attend to...big plans.
Cassie watched Faye get up and start to her car. Glancing at Adam she gave him a smile and stood up. "Be right back." She followed Faye to the ebony haired girls car. "Where do you think you're going?" She asked, trying her best to keep her voice light and cheerful. Best to not let Faye feel cornered her claws were just as bad as her bite. "The picnic's not done and there's so much to plan. Didn't I say we all needed each other? That includes you too." 'Miss greater than thou.' she added to herself suddenly. If they were going to remain a strong coven they were going to have to stay united. She respected the fact that Faye loved her privacy but today was a day for celebration not differences.
Suzan watched Faye walk away and Cassie follow her. 'Wonder what's up with that?' she wondered. Shrugging she took a bite of her powdered doughnut and relished in it's sweetness. It didn't matter to her that she was always picked out about the sweets she ate, she felt she had a lovely figure. Plenty of the guys on the football team thought so. With a grin she remembered the time she had worn to many orange crystals and was almost mauled by the entire football team. 'Now that part of witch craft I like.' she thought happily.
Clearing her throat she tried to get anyone's attention that would listen to her. "I'm 'still' in favor of another party. Because of all this 'mess' the past couple of months we missed out on allot of party time and I know I'm not the only one who thinks that partying is what we do best. Especially when it's swimming in the winter. Right guys." She gave a wink to Sean who, she had noticed earlier, had glanced at her when she mentioned the word party.
Doug nodded his head. "I'm with Susan." He pushed his fist into the air with a yell, "PARTY!!!" His brother laughed with him.
"I agreed." Chris said. "We didn't get the skinny dipping at our party, so you guys owe us!!" He reached over to the portable boom box his brother and him and brought with them, and hitting a button, let loud music blare across the area.
Adam laughed at the coven members, but his eyes narrowed slightly as Faye walked away. He knew that deep down she was hurt, if not angry that she had to share the leadership of the coven with Cassie and Diana. He smiled softly at Cassie as she followed Faye. She had a heart of gold. There was no denying that. She had even made hard as coal Nick soften. He shook his head slightly in disbelief. They were together now. They didn't have to hide anything.
He turned his attention to Diana, standing there, the moonlight reflecting off of her long blonde hair. He would always care for her, you couldn't just throw those feelings away. Even though they had shared many kisses, and loving moments, in the end he realized that he loved her only as a sister. He knew that she too was hurt, and like Faye, Adam had no idea how to stop the pain.
Over at the edge of the gathering, Nick sat alone in the shadows. He took a deep drag off of his cigarette, holding the smoke in as long as he could before slowly exhaling. He ran a deeply tanned hand through his hair and sighed. No more soft and vulnerable Nick, hell that got your heart broke. He knew that Cassie and Adam would be together forever, their love was unbreakable.
And that's how Nick would be from now on to. You let your shields down and you got burned, simple as that. He flicked the end of the cigarette in the air, letting the ashes flow to the ground. Deep inside, Nick pretended that those ashes were his love for Cassie, letting the wind take them away.
Suzan smiled as Doug turned the music. "That's more like it Doug." she said standing up and hold a hand out to him. "Wanna dance blondey?" She gave him an alluring smile. 'This place is turning dull we need to lighten up.' She looked around Diana's backyard and saw Nick flick away his cigarette. 'Poor guy, Cassie hurt him pretty bad I guess. He's even gone back to smoking.' She tossed him a smile and winked. 'It'll be ok Nicky. Even if you do kiss like an iguana you're still hot.'
Sean watched Suzan stand up and offer Doug a dance. 'Lucky guy.' he thought sadly then shrugged. Standing up he made his way over to Laurel. "Care to dance environmentalist?" He asked and smiled what he hope was a dazzling smile.
Cassie watched Faye as she silently contemplate which nasty comeback to give the shorter girl. 'Come on Faye. Please.' she pleaded silently and smiled as she heard music start playing in the back yard. "Looks like the party started." she said cheerfully and nodded to the back yard.
A sneer crept it's way on her face, "You know, that's quite alright. I'll pass."
She turned and took a few steps toward her car and hesitated a moment. Without facing Cassie she said, "You know everything may be just peachy in that snow globe care bear world of yours, but out here things are still rocky."
Faye climbed in her car and gave Cassie a meaningful glance, "I'm not the only one who hurt people you know." She turned the key and the engine roared to life. "I'll catch you later Care Bear, I have things to deal with."
She pulled out of the driveway and headed home. Her mind was clouded in dark thoughts.
Cassie watched Faye pull off and sighed. "This is going to be tougher than I thought." she said softly walking back to the group. She couldn't help but smile as she saw people dancing. 'Now this is more like.' Sitting down back beside Adam she rested her head on his shoulders. "The mighty panther has returned to her den. She's in a fowl mood today," she told him as she lightly touched his hand. Closing her eyes she relaxed against him. It felt so good not to hide from everyone now and not worry about little spies seeing them and their relationship being used for black mail. They were finally free.
Faye flopped down on her bed. The house was too quiet. Once again her mom wasn't home. She glanced at her stereo and it turned on. Rob Zombie was blaring out of the speakers.
With a growl of boredom she picked up the phone and speed dialed Deb. The phone rang several times before the machine picked up. "Hey Deb, was wondering if you wanted to have a little fun tonight, but I suppose you'll be busy. Catch you later then."
After hanging up she tossed the cordless phone to the floor. 'There has to be something to do.' A smile dance about her lips as an idea crept into her mind.
"Nice."
Suzan smiled at Doug and bowed before walking away. She picked a spot a little bit away from the group and took her cell phone out of her pocket. Dialing Faye's number she waited for the other girl to pick up. "What mischief are you up to now girl? And why aren't you including me?"
"Well all your talk of parties, I decided to have a last minute pizza party. You wanna come?"
She made an appraising glance at her freshly polished nails. They were back to her usual blood red.
'Glad to be back to my usual self. Just felt weird to be working for the stuffed shirt, egotistical, freak.' She smirked inwardly...almost unaware of the voice on the phone.
"I smell a change on the wind my friend. Big changes."
Suzan raised a shapely brow tossing a lot at Deborah who looked bored out of her mind. "Who all do you want to invite? I'm sure Deborah will come just to get away from the goody goodies," she said in a hushed voice turning her back to the group. "And maybe the Henderson twins. Diana is talking to Nick so that leaves him out." Suzan wondered if Faye still had a thing for the ruggedly handsome Nick Armstrong.
Faye tried to sound uninterested, "Oh I guess invite Nick too."
One of her kittens climbed into her lap. It was purring loudly. She scratched under its chin and smiled. She kissed the kitten's nose and set it back on the floor.
Faye rose to her feet, "Make sure Cassie hears about it, but don't invite her. Ok?"
On the other side of the backyard Suzan smiled at Faye's comment. "Oh ok. I promise." As she clicked off the phone and walked over to Deborah. Leaning over she whispered into Deborah. "Faye's wanting to have a lil party, if you know what I mean and she wants you and Nick to come. Do you think you can arrange that?"
Deborah looked over at Suzan, wondering what the hell she wanted. Of course, the only reason she was really so hostile is, well... her arm. It had been broken in the whole thing between Black John, so that meant no riding her motorcycle for a while. She paid a little more attention, however, when Suzan spoke to her.
Deborah smirked. *One of Faye's parties,* she thought, musing about how long it had seemed like it had been since Faye had had one of her parties. She glanced over at her cousin, who was chatting with Diana, the queen of sweetness and light, then looked back at Suzan. "I'll try to convince him, but tell her I can't make any promises." She made a beckoning motion towards Nick, hoping he got the hint to come over; otherwise, she would have to go to him.
Sean watched Suzan stand up and offer Doug a dance. 'Lucky guy.' he thought sadly then shrugged. Standing up he made his way over to Laurel. "Care to dance environmentalist?" he asked and smiled what he hope was a dazzling smile.
Laurel smiled, and looked at Sean. "Sure, skeleton," she said, getting up after taking Sean's hand. As they danced, she listened to the words of the song, picking up the beat and humming it to herself. It was nice, after everything that had happened since the beginning of the year, to finally get a break from it all. No more Black John, and surprisingly, Faye had broken out of her trance state, taking her coven's side in the end over the evil.
She smiled at Sean; proud he stood up for himself as well. "So," she asked him, "how's it been going?"
Sean smiled down at her and shrugged. "Better now that everything's over. We can get back to being somewhat normal, I guess." Feeling completely silly he dipped the girl and brought her back up and grinned. His happy mood diminished a bit as the song ended. "So what do we do now? Now that the threat of Black John is gone?"
"We try to continue, I guess," Laurel replied, grabbing a bottle of water from a cooler and handing another to Sean, "form our traditions to explain Black John, not hide him from our future generations..." She sighed. "Perhaps improve things with the outsiders, to let them know that we just want to live our lives like everyone else in the world..." Laurel grinned. "...Protect Mother Earth?"
Sean nodded to Laurel taking the offered water. "That sounds like a plan." He said with a smile. 'Laurel's really got her head on straight. Some of the other's are probably thinking of 'different' ways to use the tools. Like the Henderson brothers or Faye." He looked over to Deb and the others and noticed that Cassie had walked over there. Nick seemed to be giving her the cold shoulder. Give a small shrug Sean decided to keep his nose out of their business. If it was any good then it would come out eventually and everyone would know. Looking back at Laurel he gave her a charming smile and asked. "Mind if I sit with you?"
Diana walked over to Nick, "Are you okay, Nick?" She smiled at him and watched the others having a good time.
Nick took another drag on his cigarette before dropping it to the ground and crushing the glowing red tip under his boot. "Just Peachy." He answered in reply to Diana's question. "Just peachy." He looked up at her, the moon reflected behind her, giving her hair an unearthrel glow. "The bad guy has been defeated once again, and Adam got the girl. Nothing different, nothing unusual.
He reached into the small cooler beside him and pulled a beer out. He offered one to Diana, then popped the top on his. "Didn't think you'd want one. You know we really need to change who's in charge of refreshments for these things. Soda and doughnuts just don't kick it." He titled his head back letting the cold liquid fill his mouth.
He shut the cooler with his other hand and looked up at Diana, wondering why she was really over there.
Diana shook her head at the beer. "No thank you. I know you hurt, Nick. I do to." She looked over at Cassie and Adam. "I'm hurt to."
Nick looked up at Diana, his eyes cold. "I don't hurt." He told her. He shook his head, and set the beer can on the ground. He stood up, and stepped on it, crushing it as easily as he had the cigarette. He picked it up and tossed it in the nearby trashcan. "Catch you later." He told Diana, brushing past her and headed towards Deborah's beckoning.
"What?" He asked when he reached her. He pulled another cigarette out of his pack and lit it. He had stopped smoking because Cassie had asked him. But her opinion didn't count anymore.
Opening her eyes Cassie followed Adam's gaze to Susan and then to Deborah. "Poor Deb. She can't wait to get out of that thing." Looking around for Diana she spotted her talking to Nick. Even though she belonged with Adam she still felt a little tug at the sight of him. 'Smooth Cassie, you just got the guy you've been wanting for so long and you're thinking about the guy you ditched a few days ago. Nice.' She was beginning to wonder if she was more like Faye than she wanted to believe. Pushing the thought away she looked back up at Adam. "So what's the plan for tonight? Want to go to the movies? We've never been to the movies you know? Or," she added with a sheepish grin. "We could rent a movie and stay at your house and watch it."
"Now that sounds like a plan." He told her as she mentioned staying at home. "I haven't got to snuggle with you since I met you." He laughed, but made sure his voice wasn't loud enough to carry to Diana. He was after all the closest thing the group had to a gentleman. "At least and not feel guilty about it."
"After things die down here, we'll run to the video store and I'll let you pick something out. Just please nothing to do with Witches."
Cassie laughed as Adam told her no witch movies. She blushed as she realized how loud she had laughed and smiled shyly at Adam. "I promise. No witch movies. What about Dracula 2000." she asked her eyes twinkling with mischief. It felt good to be at ease with Adam. She looked in the direction of Diana and Nick and caught Diana looking at them. She quickly looked away. "Is it always going to be like this... the guilty feelings?" She asked softly, trailing a fingertip along Adam's hand.
"I hope not, Cassie." Adam whispered down to her. "I really hope not." He watched as Nick walked away from Diana, and couldn't help but think that Diana was alone now. He tried to shake off the ridiculous thought. She still had Laurel and Melanie. And Adam and Cassie were still her friends. But he still couldn't help but wonder if he would have been as understanding if the roles had been reversed.
"I'm going to get something to drink. You want something?"
Cassie smiled at Adam and shook her head. "No I'm fine. I think I'm going to see how Deborah is doing." She told him as she stood up. She waited for Adam to walk away before making her way over to Deborah, Nick and Suzan.
Susan smiled at Nick as he walked up to her and Deborah and leaned in next to him and started informing him of Faye's party. "It'll be a lot more fun than this place don't you think Nicky?" She gave him a smile and looked over his shoulder, saw Adam leaving Cassie's side and noticed that the she intended to walk over to where they were. Making sure that her voice could be over heard she put a hand on Nick's shoulder. "It'll be just a small party, you know how Faye is. She's already chosen the list of people she wants there and you just happen to be on it." She tossed a glance at Deborah that said, 'Help me to convince him.'
Cassie stopped a few feet from the trio. 'A party... Faye's having one of her parties. Figures. I'm not going to this one.' She decided firmly but deep down she knew she probably wasn't invited anyways. She looked at Nick and waited for him to answer Suzan's question. 'Come on Nick don't go back to the way you were and don't get tangled in her web.' She stepped forward and smiled at them. "Hey why all the serious faces." she tried to say cheerfully and looked at Deborah. "How's the arm Deb? Better I hope." She slowly looked up into Nick's eyes. "Hi Nick." she said softly ignoring the stare she got from Suzan.
Suzan couldn't believe the nerve of this girl, well actually she could, Cassie was after all the daughter of one of the biggest nasties that ever came from the road. 'What is she planning on doing? Have Adam to herself and keep Nick on the side.' She couldn't help but admire Cassie in a way. After the junk that Faye, her and Deb had put Cassie through the minute she came here the other girl was still standing strong and now she was even one of the coven's leaders. Suzan began to feel a little guilty about the way Cassie had been treated but smashed them down. It wasn't in her demeanor to feel guilty about anything. She raised a shapely brow as she contemplated Nick. 'You gonna fall for her baby blue's again Nicky boy?'
"Faye's having a little bit of a party," Deborah answered, smirking a slight bit. Knowing about Faye's party had lightened her spirits concerning her arm, which still hurt. Luckily, though, she was now under the nice influence of some painkillers. She looked over at Suzan as she spoke, the girl's blue eyes sparkling.
The sight of Cassie coming over to their tiny little mini-clique hadn't escaped Deborah's notice. Her mouth was tempted to sneer a bit, knowing Cassie was a goodie goodie, but had a dark side to her as well, so the sneer remained hidden. Cassie had been there when it had counted for the fight, for the coven. Faye had been sucked to the other side. The only bitterness she held towards the girl was the way her cousin, who was like her brother, had been used. Nick had really liked Cassie. Now, he was just as jaded as before.
"It's getting there," she replied to Cassie, her voice cool, "but it could be better." She grimaced. "Still can't believe I was the only one who got trashed in that whole house disappearing bit." Then Deborah shrugged. "Guess there can't be much else to say about the whole thing."
Nick listened to what both Deborah and Susan were saying, ready to decline. But then Cassie walked over. Nick thought it would be easy to get over her. After all she had left him high and dry. "Sure I'll come." He answered, but his eyes remained locked on Cassie's. "Nothing better to do around this place anyways." He blew the smoke out of his lung, not in Cassie's face, but off to her side. "I'll get my things and meet you there."
Cassie couldn't deny that Nick's attitude toward her didn't hurt. Turning to Deborah she smiled. "Well I'm glad it's better than it was before. I'm sorry you were the only one that got hurt." 'She wasn't though.' Cassie added sadly. 'In some way we all got hurt. Diana lost Adam. I hurt Nick and killed my father.' This was the first time she actually freely admitted that Black John was her father. 'Why did it have to be him... why couldn't my mother just found a nice outsider like everyone thought she did?' Snapping out of her reverie she looked from Deborah to Suzan and finally to Nick. "Well I hope you guys have a wonderful time at Faye's. Her parties are always... interesting." She said with a small smile and started back toward Adam but changed her mind and went off towards the water.
Deb nodded, then glanced over at Cassie's face, which was recoiling from the smoke clouds that Nick blew past the girl. Her blue eyes shone with disappointment, but she seemed to recover quickly, and turned her attention towards Deborah then.
Sitting down on the sand she gave into the emotions she'd been feeling for so long and cried. Silent tears slipped down her face. 'Great.' she thought angrily to herself. 'That's it, be a cry baby.' Wiping the tears away swiftly she looked out to the ocean and marveled at the sunset. 'It's so beautiful here.'
Susan watched Cassie walk away and knew that Nick's standoffish attitude had affected the other girl. 'Good let her hurt as much as he does. People shouldn't play with other peoples emotions, well at least not there friends.' Glancing back at Nick she studied him for a moment waiting to see if he would go to the poor little Cassie. Deborah followed the same suit as Suzan, glancing at Nick after finding Cassie scrunched in a corner of the yard. Maybe they'd gone too far, but the girl just had to realize that she couldn't' get everything she seemed to want all the time. It just wasn't fair at all. Not to anyone, even though it was nice to get your desires. She smirked then, thinking again of Faye's party and the fun that would be had. Nick would be outnumbered; it would sure be an interesting time.
Laurel nodded towards Sean, and for a moment, paid attention to the conversation going on across the yard, between Nick, Cassie, Suzan, and Deborah. She frowned as Cassie walked away, looking seemingly fine, but Laurel saw the slight shaking of the girl's hands. What did they DO to her? She wondered, as Sean appeared by her side again.
Nodding, Laurel cleared a space for him. If you could ignore the leanness, Sean wasn't bad looking. Just a little scrawny. Unlike the other males of the coven, he wasn't gorgeous in the same way they were, so therefore didn't get nearly as many girls throwing themselves at his feet. There had been some, of course, but none he'd wanted. "Go right ahead," she told him, "I don't' mind." She gestured towards Cassie. "What do you think happened there?"
Nick watched Cassie walk off from the group and shrugged. What did she expect, for him to just drop all of his feelings just like she did? He managed a half smile at Suzan and Deborah, "I'll see you there." He turned away from them and headed not towards Cassie, but towards Faye's house.
Adam had noticed but not heard what had happened between the group. He felt the anger rising in him. He cut Nick off, grabbing him by the arm. "What the hell did you do to her?" He asked, nodding his head in Cassie's direction.
"I didn't do anything." Nick said, jerking his arm out of Adam's grasp. The two boys stood there, eye to eye, as if in a stand off. Neither one of them seemed willing to be the first to break away.
Chris noticed the rising air of electricity growing around them. Hell you didn't need to be a witch to know when an explosion was on its way. He hated to see the coven break up as soon as it really got together. It was too cool. He ran over and grabbed Adam by the arm, pulling him away from Nick. "Let's Dance!!!" He hollered as Doug cranked the music up even higher.
He jerked Adam around in a circle, his dance antics nothing but goofy. "Come save me Cassie!!" He yelled to the girl. "Adam's stepping all over my feet!!"
Adam laughed at Chris, but his eyes cut over to Nick. He had a feeling that there was nothing but trouble, especially if he went with Faye.
Nick glared back at Adam before turning and heading down the road to Faye's. He knocked on the door once, and leaned against the doorframe.
Sean shrugged as Laurel asked him what he thought. "There's no telling with that group and things aren't really peachy since Cassie broke it off with Nick. He really likes her you know." Sean looked at Laurel and smiled. "When Nick gives up something like his heart it's well, it's a big thing. She got under his skin I can tell just by the way he looks and even glares at her and Adam. He's hurt but Nick will be ok, he always is. Now Diana... I feel really bad about what happened to her. Her and Adam were like Ken and Barbie for years." Sean glanced toward Diana and then to Adam who at the moment was glaring at a retreating Nick.
Laurel knew. She'd seen Nick depressed, she'd seen Nick mad, she'd seen him indignant. But with Cassie, he seemed to change into someone different. Someone likeable. He'd been in love, and there was no denying that when Cassie broke it off, no matter why or how she had done it, it had cut him to the core. He'd gone back to who he was before her, with a little extra jaded-ness on top if it. She smiled sadly as Sean continued.
Especially after finding out all of the background on what Black John DID, Laurel thought, her mood saddened as she thought about it, Switching girlfriends like that on Nick and Deborah's parents... but they were under his spell, and weren't in control of themselves. That certainly explained some things about their parents, that's for sure.
Cassie heard Chris's laughing voice over the roar in her head and looked up to see him dancing with Adam. Smiling she stood up and pushed her dark thoughts away. She saw Nick out of the corner of her eye walking in the direction of Faye's. 'Like a lamb to a slaughter, good luck Nick.' She thought sadly. Running up to Chris and Adam she took Adam's hand and pulled him away from Chris. "Let's dance you and I." she said softly in his ear and pulled him close. "I'm ready to get out of here, some of the group is going to Faye's for a little 'party' and I'm sure Laurel and Mel will stay with Diana." She kissed him softly on the cheek while they danced, enjoying the skip in her heart from just being close to him.
Adam held Cassie tight even though the music was fast. "Let's go then." He said in her ear. "Do you want to tell them that we're leaving?" He asked her as he pulled his keys from his pocket.
"You don't have to tell them what were going to do though." He told her, wiggling his eyebrows. Raj heard the keys jingle and jumped up from his resting place. He bounded over to him and patiently waited.
Suzan watched the interaction between Adam and Nick with interest. When Nick stalked off she glanced at Deborah. "Sooo you think we should head to Faye's now or let her have some 'time' with Nick?" She asked with a grin.
At first, Deborah shrugged. She wasn't sure if she was quite ready to go yet, but then again, she'd rather have company arriving at Faye's than nothing. "Sure, what the heck," she told Suzan, accepting the girl's help up, "let's blow this pop stand."
Faye began to sift through her closet to find an out fit. She wanted something particularly spicy.
All the while her kittens sat on her bed watching her go through her wardrobe. They obviously thought their human had gone entirely insane.
Finally she settled on a little number. A tight, leather, mini skirt. A flowing red silk shirt with a deep V-neck. A silver anklet with tiny bells wound around her right ankle. About her neck was an amber pendant, inside was an entrapped baby scorpion. She also wore small-hooped earrings.
She smiled inwardly at the thought of how much the amber pendant had cost. Funny how something the size of a dime could oh so much more.
Faye padded, barefoot, to the pantry to fetch the candles. She spent just as long arranging the candles as she had picking her clothes. Everything had to be just right.
Her mother had come home for a short time. Faye wasn't too surprised when her mother said she had a boyfriend and was going to stay at his house that night. Her mother was apologetic, but Faye couldn't have cared less.
'You may be old, but you still have the looks mom...go use em.'
Faye's mother left her fifty dollars for dinners and to rent some movies before she left. As soon as her mother was gone she went to putting the finishing touches on the house.
Faye answered the door with a cat-like smile. "I didn't expect you so soon. Haven't even ordered the pizza yet, but that's ok. It gives us some time to talk."
She ushered him into the living room. "Do you want something to drink? Beer? Wine?"
She paused a moment. Something was wrong. She stood close to Nick, looking into his eyes. "What do you want to happen tonight Nick? This is a night for my friends. Susan gets her men, Deb gets a laugh, and I get away from Care Bear and Diana. What do you want?"
"A beer would be fine." Nick said coming into Faye's house. He sat down on the living room couch and started to put his feet up on the coffee table. Then, remembering whose house he was in, stopped and ended up crossing on foot over his knee.
"I don't know what I want, Faye." Nick said softly, not really caring if she heard him or not. He chuckled, "But the being away from Cassie is a bonus."
Faye returned from the kitchen with an icy mug of beer and a glass of wine. "I know I not exactly the most cuddly person and all," she paused as she handed him the beer mug, "but I'm here for you Nicky. I'm here for all my friends."
She sat down next to him, the sterol turned on with a glance. It quietly played a song by Nirvana. She sipped at her wine a moment. "Don't want you to get the wrong idea." Her smile was sincere.
"If you do want something, just let me know. I'll get whatever you want. Figure it's about time I act like a friend."
She stood up and walked to the kitchen. "What kind of pizza you want?" She shouted from the kitchen.
'I'm going to make it up to you Nick,' she thought as she dialed up a pizza parlor.
'A petite little brunette.' Nick answered her in his head. "Anything with meat is fine. Glad it's not Laurel ordering." He called out to her. He took a long drink of the beer, and laid his head back on the couch with a sigh.
He would get over Cassie. Hell he didn't love her, he had just grown kinda fond of her in the short time she pretended to like him. He wondered briefly what Faye was up to. Being...well, sweet. But Nick had grown up with Faye. He knew that looks could be deceiving. He took another drink, starting to feel the slight buzz.
Susan watched the group get all excited about their own ideas for the master tools. She could actually care less what the coven did with them. She was much more interested in the coming Yule. 'I wonder what my mom is going to get me. Hopefully that cute peach cashmere sweater we saw a couple weeks ago on the mainland.' The bridge was in the process of being repaired so it wouldn't be long until she could go shopping again. 'Maybe I'll drag Faye. She needs something new to wear after doing the whole business suit thing to please Black John. Sure he was handsome but he was as old as the dirt in my back yard garden and now he's gone. Good riddance.' She smirked as Laurel brought up Environmentalism. 'Yeah right.' she suppressed a laugh. "I still want a birthday party," she mentioned for the second time as everyone babbled on about their ideas. Even Faye was back to her old self-talking about hexing people.
Sean looked down at the food in his lap as everyone discussed what they wanted to do with the tools. "I'll go with anything you guys suggest but a party does sound nice." he said somewhat cheerfully and smiled at Susan. He looked over to Cassie and Adam. 'Why does he always get the girls?' he thought with a sliver of envy as he looked away from the happy couple to Diana. 'Poor Diana, maybe she'll need a shoulder to cry on later. I've got a perfectly good shoulder.' He smashed down the rising hope blooming in him. 'Nah, Girls like her don't go for skinny guys like me. Hell she'll probably end up with Nick in the long run.' Sean took a bite of his sandwich and leaned back as talks of parties; hexes and the master tools flowed between the group.
Diana stood there and watched over the coven. She looked at Cassie and Adam. She was partly hurt but they were her best friends. Cassie was her sister. She was proud of Cassie. What she did took courage.
Faye wasn't even sure if she should be there. This girl had everyone fooled, especially after the whole thing with Ol' Blacky. Cassie had everyone wrapped around her little fingers, especially Diana. She smiled and nodded at a joke, but no laughter.
'This girls is like the sun. The just revolve around her every whim. Pathetic!'
Faye turned and headed to her car. She had plans to attend to...big plans.
Cassie watched Faye get up and start to her car. Glancing at Adam she gave him a smile and stood up. "Be right back." She followed Faye to the ebony haired girls car. "Where do you think you're going?" She asked, trying her best to keep her voice light and cheerful. Best to not let Faye feel cornered her claws were just as bad as her bite. "The picnic's not done and there's so much to plan. Didn't I say we all needed each other? That includes you too." 'Miss greater than thou.' she added to herself suddenly. If they were going to remain a strong coven they were going to have to stay united. She respected the fact that Faye loved her privacy but today was a day for celebration not differences.
Suzan watched Faye walk away and Cassie follow her. 'Wonder what's up with that?' she wondered. Shrugging she took a bite of her powdered doughnut and relished in it's sweetness. It didn't matter to her that she was always picked out about the sweets she ate, she felt she had a lovely figure. Plenty of the guys on the football team thought so. With a grin she remembered the time she had worn to many orange crystals and was almost mauled by the entire football team. 'Now that part of witch craft I like.' she thought happily.
Clearing her throat she tried to get anyone's attention that would listen to her. "I'm 'still' in favor of another party. Because of all this 'mess' the past couple of months we missed out on allot of party time and I know I'm not the only one who thinks that partying is what we do best. Especially when it's swimming in the winter. Right guys." She gave a wink to Sean who, she had noticed earlier, had glanced at her when she mentioned the word party.
Doug nodded his head. "I'm with Susan." He pushed his fist into the air with a yell, "PARTY!!!" His brother laughed with him.
"I agreed." Chris said. "We didn't get the skinny dipping at our party, so you guys owe us!!" He reached over to the portable boom box his brother and him and brought with them, and hitting a button, let loud music blare across the area.
Adam laughed at the coven members, but his eyes narrowed slightly as Faye walked away. He knew that deep down she was hurt, if not angry that she had to share the leadership of the coven with Cassie and Diana. He smiled softly at Cassie as she followed Faye. She had a heart of gold. There was no denying that. She had even made hard as coal Nick soften. He shook his head slightly in disbelief. They were together now. They didn't have to hide anything.
He turned his attention to Diana, standing there, the moonlight reflecting off of her long blonde hair. He would always care for her, you couldn't just throw those feelings away. Even though they had shared many kisses, and loving moments, in the end he realized that he loved her only as a sister. He knew that she too was hurt, and like Faye, Adam had no idea how to stop the pain.
Over at the edge of the gathering, Nick sat alone in the shadows. He took a deep drag off of his cigarette, holding the smoke in as long as he could before slowly exhaling. He ran a deeply tanned hand through his hair and sighed. No more soft and vulnerable Nick, hell that got your heart broke. He knew that Cassie and Adam would be together forever, their love was unbreakable.
And that's how Nick would be from now on to. You let your shields down and you got burned, simple as that. He flicked the end of the cigarette in the air, letting the ashes flow to the ground. Deep inside, Nick pretended that those ashes were his love for Cassie, letting the wind take them away.
Suzan smiled as Doug turned the music. "That's more like it Doug." she said standing up and hold a hand out to him. "Wanna dance blondey?" She gave him an alluring smile. 'This place is turning dull we need to lighten up.' She looked around Diana's backyard and saw Nick flick away his cigarette. 'Poor guy, Cassie hurt him pretty bad I guess. He's even gone back to smoking.' She tossed him a smile and winked. 'It'll be ok Nicky. Even if you do kiss like an iguana you're still hot.'
Sean watched Suzan stand up and offer Doug a dance. 'Lucky guy.' he thought sadly then shrugged. Standing up he made his way over to Laurel. "Care to dance environmentalist?" He asked and smiled what he hope was a dazzling smile.
Cassie watched Faye as she silently contemplate which nasty comeback to give the shorter girl. 'Come on Faye. Please.' she pleaded silently and smiled as she heard music start playing in the back yard. "Looks like the party started." she said cheerfully and nodded to the back yard.
A sneer crept it's way on her face, "You know, that's quite alright. I'll pass."
She turned and took a few steps toward her car and hesitated a moment. Without facing Cassie she said, "You know everything may be just peachy in that snow globe care bear world of yours, but out here things are still rocky."
Faye climbed in her car and gave Cassie a meaningful glance, "I'm not the only one who hurt people you know." She turned the key and the engine roared to life. "I'll catch you later Care Bear, I have things to deal with."
She pulled out of the driveway and headed home. Her mind was clouded in dark thoughts.
Cassie watched Faye pull off and sighed. "This is going to be tougher than I thought." she said softly walking back to the group. She couldn't help but smile as she saw people dancing. 'Now this is more like.' Sitting down back beside Adam she rested her head on his shoulders. "The mighty panther has returned to her den. She's in a fowl mood today," she told him as she lightly touched his hand. Closing her eyes she relaxed against him. It felt so good not to hide from everyone now and not worry about little spies seeing them and their relationship being used for black mail. They were finally free.
Faye flopped down on her bed. The house was too quiet. Once again her mom wasn't home. She glanced at her stereo and it turned on. Rob Zombie was blaring out of the speakers.
With a growl of boredom she picked up the phone and speed dialed Deb. The phone rang several times before the machine picked up. "Hey Deb, was wondering if you wanted to have a little fun tonight, but I suppose you'll be busy. Catch you later then."
After hanging up she tossed the cordless phone to the floor. 'There has to be something to do.' A smile dance about her lips as an idea crept into her mind.
"Nice."
Suzan smiled at Doug and bowed before walking away. She picked a spot a little bit away from the group and took her cell phone out of her pocket. Dialing Faye's number she waited for the other girl to pick up. "What mischief are you up to now girl? And why aren't you including me?"
"Well all your talk of parties, I decided to have a last minute pizza party. You wanna come?"
She made an appraising glance at her freshly polished nails. They were back to her usual blood red.
'Glad to be back to my usual self. Just felt weird to be working for the stuffed shirt, egotistical, freak.' She smirked inwardly...almost unaware of the voice on the phone.
"I smell a change on the wind my friend. Big changes."
Suzan raised a shapely brow tossing a lot at Deborah who looked bored out of her mind. "Who all do you want to invite? I'm sure Deborah will come just to get away from the goody goodies," she said in a hushed voice turning her back to the group. "And maybe the Henderson twins. Diana is talking to Nick so that leaves him out." Suzan wondered if Faye still had a thing for the ruggedly handsome Nick Armstrong.
Faye tried to sound uninterested, "Oh I guess invite Nick too."
One of her kittens climbed into her lap. It was purring loudly. She scratched under its chin and smiled. She kissed the kitten's nose and set it back on the floor.
Faye rose to her feet, "Make sure Cassie hears about it, but don't invite her. Ok?"
On the other side of the backyard Suzan smiled at Faye's comment. "Oh ok. I promise." As she clicked off the phone and walked over to Deborah. Leaning over she whispered into Deborah. "Faye's wanting to have a lil party, if you know what I mean and she wants you and Nick to come. Do you think you can arrange that?"
Deborah looked over at Suzan, wondering what the hell she wanted. Of course, the only reason she was really so hostile is, well... her arm. It had been broken in the whole thing between Black John, so that meant no riding her motorcycle for a while. She paid a little more attention, however, when Suzan spoke to her.
Deborah smirked. *One of Faye's parties,* she thought, musing about how long it had seemed like it had been since Faye had had one of her parties. She glanced over at her cousin, who was chatting with Diana, the queen of sweetness and light, then looked back at Suzan. "I'll try to convince him, but tell her I can't make any promises." She made a beckoning motion towards Nick, hoping he got the hint to come over; otherwise, she would have to go to him.
Sean watched Suzan stand up and offer Doug a dance. 'Lucky guy.' he thought sadly then shrugged. Standing up he made his way over to Laurel. "Care to dance environmentalist?" he asked and smiled what he hope was a dazzling smile.
Laurel smiled, and looked at Sean. "Sure, skeleton," she said, getting up after taking Sean's hand. As they danced, she listened to the words of the song, picking up the beat and humming it to herself. It was nice, after everything that had happened since the beginning of the year, to finally get a break from it all. No more Black John, and surprisingly, Faye had broken out of her trance state, taking her coven's side in the end over the evil.
She smiled at Sean; proud he stood up for himself as well. "So," she asked him, "how's it been going?"
Sean smiled down at her and shrugged. "Better now that everything's over. We can get back to being somewhat normal, I guess." Feeling completely silly he dipped the girl and brought her back up and grinned. His happy mood diminished a bit as the song ended. "So what do we do now? Now that the threat of Black John is gone?"
"We try to continue, I guess," Laurel replied, grabbing a bottle of water from a cooler and handing another to Sean, "form our traditions to explain Black John, not hide him from our future generations..." She sighed. "Perhaps improve things with the outsiders, to let them know that we just want to live our lives like everyone else in the world..." Laurel grinned. "...Protect Mother Earth?"
Sean nodded to Laurel taking the offered water. "That sounds like a plan." He said with a smile. 'Laurel's really got her head on straight. Some of the other's are probably thinking of 'different' ways to use the tools. Like the Henderson brothers or Faye." He looked over to Deb and the others and noticed that Cassie had walked over there. Nick seemed to be giving her the cold shoulder. Give a small shrug Sean decided to keep his nose out of their business. If it was any good then it would come out eventually and everyone would know. Looking back at Laurel he gave her a charming smile and asked. "Mind if I sit with you?"
Diana walked over to Nick, "Are you okay, Nick?" She smiled at him and watched the others having a good time.
Nick took another drag on his cigarette before dropping it to the ground and crushing the glowing red tip under his boot. "Just Peachy." He answered in reply to Diana's question. "Just peachy." He looked up at her, the moon reflected behind her, giving her hair an unearthrel glow. "The bad guy has been defeated once again, and Adam got the girl. Nothing different, nothing unusual.
He reached into the small cooler beside him and pulled a beer out. He offered one to Diana, then popped the top on his. "Didn't think you'd want one. You know we really need to change who's in charge of refreshments for these things. Soda and doughnuts just don't kick it." He titled his head back letting the cold liquid fill his mouth.
He shut the cooler with his other hand and looked up at Diana, wondering why she was really over there.
Diana shook her head at the beer. "No thank you. I know you hurt, Nick. I do to." She looked over at Cassie and Adam. "I'm hurt to."
Nick looked up at Diana, his eyes cold. "I don't hurt." He told her. He shook his head, and set the beer can on the ground. He stood up, and stepped on it, crushing it as easily as he had the cigarette. He picked it up and tossed it in the nearby trashcan. "Catch you later." He told Diana, brushing past her and headed towards Deborah's beckoning.
"What?" He asked when he reached her. He pulled another cigarette out of his pack and lit it. He had stopped smoking because Cassie had asked him. But her opinion didn't count anymore.
Opening her eyes Cassie followed Adam's gaze to Susan and then to Deborah. "Poor Deb. She can't wait to get out of that thing." Looking around for Diana she spotted her talking to Nick. Even though she belonged with Adam she still felt a little tug at the sight of him. 'Smooth Cassie, you just got the guy you've been wanting for so long and you're thinking about the guy you ditched a few days ago. Nice.' She was beginning to wonder if she was more like Faye than she wanted to believe. Pushing the thought away she looked back up at Adam. "So what's the plan for tonight? Want to go to the movies? We've never been to the movies you know? Or," she added with a sheepish grin. "We could rent a movie and stay at your house and watch it."
"Now that sounds like a plan." He told her as she mentioned staying at home. "I haven't got to snuggle with you since I met you." He laughed, but made sure his voice wasn't loud enough to carry to Diana. He was after all the closest thing the group had to a gentleman. "At least and not feel guilty about it."
"After things die down here, we'll run to the video store and I'll let you pick something out. Just please nothing to do with Witches."
Cassie laughed as Adam told her no witch movies. She blushed as she realized how loud she had laughed and smiled shyly at Adam. "I promise. No witch movies. What about Dracula 2000." she asked her eyes twinkling with mischief. It felt good to be at ease with Adam. She looked in the direction of Diana and Nick and caught Diana looking at them. She quickly looked away. "Is it always going to be like this... the guilty feelings?" She asked softly, trailing a fingertip along Adam's hand.
"I hope not, Cassie." Adam whispered down to her. "I really hope not." He watched as Nick walked away from Diana, and couldn't help but think that Diana was alone now. He tried to shake off the ridiculous thought. She still had Laurel and Melanie. And Adam and Cassie were still her friends. But he still couldn't help but wonder if he would have been as understanding if the roles had been reversed.
"I'm going to get something to drink. You want something?"
Cassie smiled at Adam and shook her head. "No I'm fine. I think I'm going to see how Deborah is doing." She told him as she stood up. She waited for Adam to walk away before making her way over to Deborah, Nick and Suzan.
Susan smiled at Nick as he walked up to her and Deborah and leaned in next to him and started informing him of Faye's party. "It'll be a lot more fun than this place don't you think Nicky?" She gave him a smile and looked over his shoulder, saw Adam leaving Cassie's side and noticed that the she intended to walk over to where they were. Making sure that her voice could be over heard she put a hand on Nick's shoulder. "It'll be just a small party, you know how Faye is. She's already chosen the list of people she wants there and you just happen to be on it." She tossed a glance at Deborah that said, 'Help me to convince him.'
Cassie stopped a few feet from the trio. 'A party... Faye's having one of her parties. Figures. I'm not going to this one.' She decided firmly but deep down she knew she probably wasn't invited anyways. She looked at Nick and waited for him to answer Suzan's question. 'Come on Nick don't go back to the way you were and don't get tangled in her web.' She stepped forward and smiled at them. "Hey why all the serious faces." she tried to say cheerfully and looked at Deborah. "How's the arm Deb? Better I hope." She slowly looked up into Nick's eyes. "Hi Nick." she said softly ignoring the stare she got from Suzan.
Suzan couldn't believe the nerve of this girl, well actually she could, Cassie was after all the daughter of one of the biggest nasties that ever came from the road. 'What is she planning on doing? Have Adam to herself and keep Nick on the side.' She couldn't help but admire Cassie in a way. After the junk that Faye, her and Deb had put Cassie through the minute she came here the other girl was still standing strong and now she was even one of the coven's leaders. Suzan began to feel a little guilty about the way Cassie had been treated but smashed them down. It wasn't in her demeanor to feel guilty about anything. She raised a shapely brow as she contemplated Nick. 'You gonna fall for her baby blue's again Nicky boy?'
"Faye's having a little bit of a party," Deborah answered, smirking a slight bit. Knowing about Faye's party had lightened her spirits concerning her arm, which still hurt. Luckily, though, she was now under the nice influence of some painkillers. She looked over at Suzan as she spoke, the girl's blue eyes sparkling.
The sight of Cassie coming over to their tiny little mini-clique hadn't escaped Deborah's notice. Her mouth was tempted to sneer a bit, knowing Cassie was a goodie goodie, but had a dark side to her as well, so the sneer remained hidden. Cassie had been there when it had counted for the fight, for the coven. Faye had been sucked to the other side. The only bitterness she held towards the girl was the way her cousin, who was like her brother, had been used. Nick had really liked Cassie. Now, he was just as jaded as before.
"It's getting there," she replied to Cassie, her voice cool, "but it could be better." She grimaced. "Still can't believe I was the only one who got trashed in that whole house disappearing bit." Then Deborah shrugged. "Guess there can't be much else to say about the whole thing."
Nick listened to what both Deborah and Susan were saying, ready to decline. But then Cassie walked over. Nick thought it would be easy to get over her. After all she had left him high and dry. "Sure I'll come." He answered, but his eyes remained locked on Cassie's. "Nothing better to do around this place anyways." He blew the smoke out of his lung, not in Cassie's face, but off to her side. "I'll get my things and meet you there."
Cassie couldn't deny that Nick's attitude toward her didn't hurt. Turning to Deborah she smiled. "Well I'm glad it's better than it was before. I'm sorry you were the only one that got hurt." 'She wasn't though.' Cassie added sadly. 'In some way we all got hurt. Diana lost Adam. I hurt Nick and killed my father.' This was the first time she actually freely admitted that Black John was her father. 'Why did it have to be him... why couldn't my mother just found a nice outsider like everyone thought she did?' Snapping out of her reverie she looked from Deborah to Suzan and finally to Nick. "Well I hope you guys have a wonderful time at Faye's. Her parties are always... interesting." She said with a small smile and started back toward Adam but changed her mind and went off towards the water.
Deb nodded, then glanced over at Cassie's face, which was recoiling from the smoke clouds that Nick blew past the girl. Her blue eyes shone with disappointment, but she seemed to recover quickly, and turned her attention towards Deborah then.
Sitting down on the sand she gave into the emotions she'd been feeling for so long and cried. Silent tears slipped down her face. 'Great.' she thought angrily to herself. 'That's it, be a cry baby.' Wiping the tears away swiftly she looked out to the ocean and marveled at the sunset. 'It's so beautiful here.'
Susan watched Cassie walk away and knew that Nick's standoffish attitude had affected the other girl. 'Good let her hurt as much as he does. People shouldn't play with other peoples emotions, well at least not there friends.' Glancing back at Nick she studied him for a moment waiting to see if he would go to the poor little Cassie. Deborah followed the same suit as Suzan, glancing at Nick after finding Cassie scrunched in a corner of the yard. Maybe they'd gone too far, but the girl just had to realize that she couldn't' get everything she seemed to want all the time. It just wasn't fair at all. Not to anyone, even though it was nice to get your desires. She smirked then, thinking again of Faye's party and the fun that would be had. Nick would be outnumbered; it would sure be an interesting time.
Laurel nodded towards Sean, and for a moment, paid attention to the conversation going on across the yard, between Nick, Cassie, Suzan, and Deborah. She frowned as Cassie walked away, looking seemingly fine, but Laurel saw the slight shaking of the girl's hands. What did they DO to her? She wondered, as Sean appeared by her side again.
Nodding, Laurel cleared a space for him. If you could ignore the leanness, Sean wasn't bad looking. Just a little scrawny. Unlike the other males of the coven, he wasn't gorgeous in the same way they were, so therefore didn't get nearly as many girls throwing themselves at his feet. There had been some, of course, but none he'd wanted. "Go right ahead," she told him, "I don't' mind." She gestured towards Cassie. "What do you think happened there?"
Nick watched Cassie walk off from the group and shrugged. What did she expect, for him to just drop all of his feelings just like she did? He managed a half smile at Suzan and Deborah, "I'll see you there." He turned away from them and headed not towards Cassie, but towards Faye's house.
Adam had noticed but not heard what had happened between the group. He felt the anger rising in him. He cut Nick off, grabbing him by the arm. "What the hell did you do to her?" He asked, nodding his head in Cassie's direction.
"I didn't do anything." Nick said, jerking his arm out of Adam's grasp. The two boys stood there, eye to eye, as if in a stand off. Neither one of them seemed willing to be the first to break away.
Chris noticed the rising air of electricity growing around them. Hell you didn't need to be a witch to know when an explosion was on its way. He hated to see the coven break up as soon as it really got together. It was too cool. He ran over and grabbed Adam by the arm, pulling him away from Nick. "Let's Dance!!!" He hollered as Doug cranked the music up even higher.
He jerked Adam around in a circle, his dance antics nothing but goofy. "Come save me Cassie!!" He yelled to the girl. "Adam's stepping all over my feet!!"
Adam laughed at Chris, but his eyes cut over to Nick. He had a feeling that there was nothing but trouble, especially if he went with Faye.
Nick glared back at Adam before turning and heading down the road to Faye's. He knocked on the door once, and leaned against the doorframe.
Sean shrugged as Laurel asked him what he thought. "There's no telling with that group and things aren't really peachy since Cassie broke it off with Nick. He really likes her you know." Sean looked at Laurel and smiled. "When Nick gives up something like his heart it's well, it's a big thing. She got under his skin I can tell just by the way he looks and even glares at her and Adam. He's hurt but Nick will be ok, he always is. Now Diana... I feel really bad about what happened to her. Her and Adam were like Ken and Barbie for years." Sean glanced toward Diana and then to Adam who at the moment was glaring at a retreating Nick.
Laurel knew. She'd seen Nick depressed, she'd seen Nick mad, she'd seen him indignant. But with Cassie, he seemed to change into someone different. Someone likeable. He'd been in love, and there was no denying that when Cassie broke it off, no matter why or how she had done it, it had cut him to the core. He'd gone back to who he was before her, with a little extra jaded-ness on top if it. She smiled sadly as Sean continued.
Especially after finding out all of the background on what Black John DID, Laurel thought, her mood saddened as she thought about it, Switching girlfriends like that on Nick and Deborah's parents... but they were under his spell, and weren't in control of themselves. That certainly explained some things about their parents, that's for sure.
Cassie heard Chris's laughing voice over the roar in her head and looked up to see him dancing with Adam. Smiling she stood up and pushed her dark thoughts away. She saw Nick out of the corner of her eye walking in the direction of Faye's. 'Like a lamb to a slaughter, good luck Nick.' She thought sadly. Running up to Chris and Adam she took Adam's hand and pulled him away from Chris. "Let's dance you and I." she said softly in his ear and pulled him close. "I'm ready to get out of here, some of the group is going to Faye's for a little 'party' and I'm sure Laurel and Mel will stay with Diana." She kissed him softly on the cheek while they danced, enjoying the skip in her heart from just being close to him.
Adam held Cassie tight even though the music was fast. "Let's go then." He said in her ear. "Do you want to tell them that we're leaving?" He asked her as he pulled his keys from his pocket.
"You don't have to tell them what were going to do though." He told her, wiggling his eyebrows. Raj heard the keys jingle and jumped up from his resting place. He bounded over to him and patiently waited.
Suzan watched the interaction between Adam and Nick with interest. When Nick stalked off she glanced at Deborah. "Sooo you think we should head to Faye's now or let her have some 'time' with Nick?" She asked with a grin.
At first, Deborah shrugged. She wasn't sure if she was quite ready to go yet, but then again, she'd rather have company arriving at Faye's than nothing. "Sure, what the heck," she told Suzan, accepting the girl's help up, "let's blow this pop stand."
Faye began to sift through her closet to find an out fit. She wanted something particularly spicy.
All the while her kittens sat on her bed watching her go through her wardrobe. They obviously thought their human had gone entirely insane.
Finally she settled on a little number. A tight, leather, mini skirt. A flowing red silk shirt with a deep V-neck. A silver anklet with tiny bells wound around her right ankle. About her neck was an amber pendant, inside was an entrapped baby scorpion. She also wore small-hooped earrings.
She smiled inwardly at the thought of how much the amber pendant had cost. Funny how something the size of a dime could oh so much more.
Faye padded, barefoot, to the pantry to fetch the candles. She spent just as long arranging the candles as she had picking her clothes. Everything had to be just right.
Her mother had come home for a short time. Faye wasn't too surprised when her mother said she had a boyfriend and was going to stay at his house that night. Her mother was apologetic, but Faye couldn't have cared less.
'You may be old, but you still have the looks mom...go use em.'
Faye's mother left her fifty dollars for dinners and to rent some movies before she left. As soon as her mother was gone she went to putting the finishing touches on the house.
Faye answered the door with a cat-like smile. "I didn't expect you so soon. Haven't even ordered the pizza yet, but that's ok. It gives us some time to talk."
She ushered him into the living room. "Do you want something to drink? Beer? Wine?"
She paused a moment. Something was wrong. She stood close to Nick, looking into his eyes. "What do you want to happen tonight Nick? This is a night for my friends. Susan gets her men, Deb gets a laugh, and I get away from Care Bear and Diana. What do you want?"
"A beer would be fine." Nick said coming into Faye's house. He sat down on the living room couch and started to put his feet up on the coffee table. Then, remembering whose house he was in, stopped and ended up crossing on foot over his knee.
"I don't know what I want, Faye." Nick said softly, not really caring if she heard him or not. He chuckled, "But the being away from Cassie is a bonus."
Faye returned from the kitchen with an icy mug of beer and a glass of wine. "I know I not exactly the most cuddly person and all," she paused as she handed him the beer mug, "but I'm here for you Nicky. I'm here for all my friends."
She sat down next to him, the sterol turned on with a glance. It quietly played a song by Nirvana. She sipped at her wine a moment. "Don't want you to get the wrong idea." Her smile was sincere.
"If you do want something, just let me know. I'll get whatever you want. Figure it's about time I act like a friend."
She stood up and walked to the kitchen. "What kind of pizza you want?" She shouted from the kitchen.
'I'm going to make it up to you Nick,' she thought as she dialed up a pizza parlor.
'A petite little brunette.' Nick answered her in his head. "Anything with meat is fine. Glad it's not Laurel ordering." He called out to her. He took a long drink of the beer, and laid his head back on the couch with a sigh.
He would get over Cassie. Hell he didn't love her, he had just grown kinda fond of her in the short time she pretended to like him. He wondered briefly what Faye was up to. Being...well, sweet. But Nick had grown up with Faye. He knew that looks could be deceiving. He took another drink, starting to feel the slight buzz.