The rage inside her still fueling her, Cassia flew down the street in hopes to reach her Grandpa Big Daddy's manor soon, desperate to get away from all the creeps that were around. Big Daddy and his wife, despite being some of the most wealthy fairies in Fairy World, lived in a rather ghetto part of town where fights and wand violence were a common thing around the busted down shops.
She checked her wand GPS as she kept flying, ignoring her phone as it blew up from texts from Cosmo and Wanda asking where she was. While she felt guilty that she had abandoned them and Poof, she needed answers and needed them now. Her grandparents acted like fools her entire life, so Cassia felt it was high time to confront them.
She kept flying, finally reaching the street that Big Daddy's manor resides, only for her to hear some punches and a man's voice from the dark alleyway near the gas station.
"Now listen, you ever steal and pick pocket from me again, you'll be sleeping with the fishes. Understood?", Big Daddy growled, holding a woman with straight, magenta hair and heavy make up on her face, now smeared from the punches she had received. Cassia stared for a few moments until Big Daddy looked in her direction, "Cassia! What are you doing here? You should be at home!"
"I came to look for you after what happened at dinner, and I wanted to talk-"
"Well, we can talk once we get inside. This is no place for a little kid.",Big Daddy said, "You shouldn't be out here by yourself kid? Where's your mother?"
"I left without them. I figured since no one in my family cares, then they wouldn't notice."
"What the hell are you talking about. They're your parents, Cassia. Of course they love you."
"But you guys' actions at dinner the other night clearly showed me you don't, and I came down to find out why.", Cassia said, her anger almost dominating her tone, "What did I ever do to you? What did I do to any of you?"
"Hey hey hey! I'd watch the attitude, missy! I don't take kindly to people who disrespect me.", Big Daddy snapped, furrowing his eyebrows to intimidate Cassia, "Let's just get inside. I don't want you out here."
Big Daddy flew Cassia down towards the manor, where he punched the gate code and led her down the long driveway, bringing her inside the large house with elegant, lavender walls and chandeliers hanging from the ceilings. Their floor was marble, and their couches and rugs were stainless, velvet pink. Big Daddy led Cassia into the kitchen before calling out for his wife.
"Yolonda! I'm home from work, and we have an unexpected visitor!"
"Make that two.", Yolonda said as she flew down the long, curved staircase with Linnie not too far behind her, his face looking a bit more bruised than last time. Cassia looked at his face with interest and when he saw her, he smiled gently. Well..at least she can confront 3 in 1 stone.
"Hi there sweetheart. How are you? Are you alright? Where's your mommy and daddy?", his sweet, soft voice asked as his arms reached out for her to hug him. However, this time she wouldn't budge. At this point, Cassia couldn't care less about hurting anyone's feelings. Seeing this, Linnie put his arms away before frowning sadly.
"Yolonda, why'd you bring him over here?", Big Daddy asked. Yolonda glared at him, yet had a somewhat worried look in her eyes.
"Well, Miguel, you know Nora? The lady you allegedly cheated on me with? This is her husband.", Yolonda explained, nudging at Linnie, "I had to step in and help him after I caught he nearly trying to rape him."r
"Wait what? Are you serious?"
"I'm afraid so. He also says that Nora's where he got all his cuts, marks, and bruises from. I decided to take him over here while we got in contact with the police.", Yolonda said before looking at Cassia, "Hey Cassia. What brings you buy? Where are your folks?"
"At home. I came over here myself because I want to talk to all 3 of you.", Cassia sighed, as Yolonda and Linnie took a seat, "There's something I've been meaning to ask all 3 of you."
"What is it sweetheart? Is something wrong? Are you hurt?", Linnie kept asking questions about her well-being which started to get on Cassia's nerves.
"No, I'm not sick ok? I'm fine. It's just...why don't you guys love me?"
The 3 of them looked at her silently for a little while, though Cassia crossed her arms, trying to stand her ground. Big Daddy and Yolonda looked shocked to say the least, but when she turned and saw Linnie's face look so broken hearted, Cassia nearly wanted to back out and apologize. But no, she needed answers and she wasn't going to keep being a doormat for them. All of the sudden, Linnie got up from his seat and sat on the one next to Cassia, wrapping her into a hug.
"Honey...I do love you! I promise! What do you mean I don't love you? Of course I do, sweetheart.", he squeaked, hugging her as tight as he could before he pulled back, tears strolling down his eyes, "W-What's wrong? Why are you so upset? What can I do to make things better? Oh honey, I'm so sorry."
"G-Grandpa Cosma, just stop! Ok? Why don't we have an adult conversation instead of crying like a bunch of babies!", Cassia snapped, though a pinge of guilt hit her as Linnie kept crying, Big Daddy looking at Cassia warningly.
"I'm warning you Cassia. Quit the backtalk, now! I don't expect this kind of behavior from anyone, not even from children. Don't talk to him like that. Now...what is this about us hating you? Yolonda and I love you a lot Cassia, and we want you to be successful in life."
"It just seems like every time Poof and I come to visit, you're too busy to spend any real time with us. Like, you have all this time to go to parties, or go to some conferences and deal with waste, but there comes a time and a place where family gets involved, and lately, it seems like I don't matter to you..any of you."
"Oh sweetheart, of course you matter. I love you with all my heart.", Linnie said, trying to hug Cassia again, kissing her on the cheek. Big Daddy sighed as his harsh look melted, looking sadly at his granddaughter.
"Well..I can't get mad at you for having feelings..I do you mean by not spending any time with you? Don't I take you to the waste plants with me?", Big Daddy quizzed.
"Yeah, but it's as if we're your employees instead of your grandchildren. I like hanging out with you. I really do. Out of all my grandparents, you're the one that makes the most sense to me. But wouldn't it be nice to do something fun together instead of working all the time?"
"The trash business is constantly growing, Cassia. You know I don't have much room for breaks these days. I can't just stop working."
"I-I know. I'm just asking you spend some time with us instead of making us work for you. We don't mind helping out, but can we at least do something fun afterwards?", Cassia asked, her angered tone now fading, her voice getting quiet instead, "You know, make it seem you actually wanted to see us instead of acting like Poof and I get in the way?"
"Wait, what about me? I'm fun. Don't I let you guys order pizza and binge watch any movie you want?", Yolonda said, making Linnie's ears perk up.
"Even the R-rated ones?", he asked, "Dear, I don't think they should be watching those."
"Yeah well..haha..I'm sure Cassia's mature enough to handle it.", Yolonda laughed nervously before turning back to Cassia, "But come on, how can you say we don't have fun? I even let you guys stay up past your bedtime."
"But you're not there! You just throw us at the TV so you can go to your parties or clubs, or whatever you go to. You throw us aside as well! Like, we don't want to stop you from living your life but don't you think you have a family to be there for?"
"I..yea well..I am there!"
"Not to mention, all the nights you would be too drunk to really pay attention, although I'll admit you're not as bad as a certain grandmother of mine.", Cassia said, before the thought came to her head, "Speaking of, where is she? I wanted to speak to her too, and I figured since Grandpa Cosma was here, maybe she was as well."
"W-Well sweetheart..uhm..", Linnie stammered, trying to find the right words, "She..um..she's left for a little while. To uhm..clear her head. Please don't worry."
"Linnie please! You don't have to sugar coat it. She's gonna find out eventually. We might as well tell her the truth.", Yolonda sighed before looking at Cassia, "I turned her into a cockroach after she tried to attack your grandfather. I won't go into too much detail, but she went absolutely insane so I transformed her so she wouldn't hurt him."
"Pretty disgusting if you ask me.", Big Daddy growled, "I can't believe someone who'd hurt their spouse like that. Man, it was a good thing I left before things got serious."
"Yes, we're still not done talking about that, Miguel.", Yolonda frowned before looking at Cassia sadly, "I'm sorry Cassia. I thought you were ok with that. You and Poof did seem to enjoy yourselfs, and I thought you guys were trustworthy enough to have some alone time while I went out with my business. I figured you guys wanted a break from so much authority so I tried to be as laid back as possible, though I guess that made me irresponsible as well."
"It's not that..I just wish you and Grandpa Big Daddy would spend more time with us when we come over. We don't get to visit that often anymore now that Poof and I are getting older and busier. That's all I'm asking.", Cassia said, "And it seemed like at Grandparents day, none of you wanted to be there. You were all too busy focusing on whatever Mama Cosma was saying. It's like she's the center of the universe or something!"
"Well dear..she's not exactly the easier person to ignore..believe me, I know.", Linnie whimpered.
"And you know, that's another thing.", Cassia said, now directing her attention towards Papa Cosma, "Why are you so passive when it comes to her? I know you have a temper, and I know you can snap on people if needed, so I'm not sure why you didn't put her in her place. I don't wanna get in your business or anything, but I wanna know why Mama Cosma can get away with bloody murder at this point?"
"W-W-Well..honey I...you know she's a lot stronger than I am, both physically and magically, and you know i-it's hard for me to get angry. I-I'm just so focused on being afraid of her and trying to keep her in a good mood so she doesn't get upset."
"But things don't have to be this way, you know. The only reason they are what they are is because you let them, and you keep wondering why we don't visit unless our parents make us.", Cassia complained, with Linnie frowning sadly once more.
"I-I know sweetheart. I'm sorry. I do love you and Poof. I really do. B-But I'm just so scared and I don't know what to do."
"That's why we've gotta get the police involved, Linnie.", Yolonda said, frowning sadly, "I know you don't want her to go to prison, but eventually, she's gonna get so angry, she'll kill you and then you won't be there for your kids or your grandkids. How can you be there if you're gone?"
"I..y-you're right..", Linnie sniffed, his body shaking, "I-I can't believe I'm so irresponsible."
"Hey, quit beating yourself up. It ain't gonna do you no good.", Miguel said before turning to his wife, "Have you two filed a report?"
"No. I've been trying to get him to calm down before we went. He's still quite shaken up. I even offered him some of my wine, but he doesn't drink.", Yolonda said, watching Linnie's body continue to shake, hugging himself for comfort. Cassia, feeling guilty over rejecting him earlier, reached out and hugged him, allowing his arms to wrap around her, his body slowly stopping. His breathing relaxed as he rubbed her back, squeezing her softly. After a little bit, Linnie became calm as the two separated, smiling gently at Cassia.
"Thank you, Cassia. I really needed that. Oh, you have no idea how much I love you. You know, I'm sorry for how I acted at dinner. I really did want to come see you and Poof, but things just got out of hand..I'm so sorry."
Just as Cassia was about to say something back, she heard a loud pounding sound coming from the front door of the manor. The 4 fairies stared at the door to find a shadows with large, curly hair floating in front of it, smashing her fists against the frame until she busted the door down, looking at Yolonda and Linnie with absolute fury in her eyes. Her cyan dress was coerced in mud stains and flies circled around her, letting in a putrid smell as she charged towards the kitchen. Linnie pulled Cassia close to him, hugging her tightly against his chest to protect her.
"You..you fucking BITCH!", Nora yelled towards Yolonda before Miguel stopped her, pushing her away from his wife, "Look what you did to me you FUCKING CUNT!"
"Uh uh! Get the hell away from my wife! No one disrespects her like that!", Miguel yelled, making Nora's angered look mold into one of false shock.
"Wait what? You're married to her? But I thought you loved me? So..you're cheating on me?"
"What the hell woman? We weren't even dating! It was a one night ordeal, and I never intended on getting together with you, as I was married! But while we're on the subject, why don't we talk about YOU and YOUR cheating, you hypocrite."
"Pfft yeah right..he doesn't love me. He doesn't care about me. I would hardly count what we did that one night as 'cheating'."
"But you're still married to him! So yeah..it counts since you asked me to have sex with you."
"Oh come on, we would've made wonderful kids.."
At that point, Miguel lost all his cool, he and Nora erupted into a fist fight, both able to strike punches in their eyes and stomach, causing each of them to have bloody noses and their eyes going black. After Miguel shoved Nora into the dining room table, Nora turned around and shoved Miguel into a wall, slapping and beating his face as if he were a punching bag. Yolonda screamed as she tried to separate the two, only for her to get punched and knocked out in the process, enraging Big Daddy as the two of them hit harder, tackling and cursing at each other, with Linnie watching in fear..and in anticipation. It was as if now that he knew the police were investigating the case, there was something he wanted to say before Nora gets busted. He was angry but nervous, holding back all he wanted to say as he watched them tear at each other. He didn't want to scare Cassia, and also didn't want to receive a large beating if the police didn't arrive on time.
Just then, as he tried to coax Cassia upstairs, he saw one of Nora's fists hit Cassia in the face, causing her to fall down on her head, her nose now bleeding.
"Cassia! Sweetheart, are you alright? Oh dear..uhm..honey, why don't you run to the bathroom and hold a rag over your nose for a bit until I come up for you. I-I really don't think you should be here for this, my love", Linnie asked, his tone sickly sweet, but Cassia saw an aura around him, scaring the shit out of her.
"Uh..y-yes sir! Right away sir!", she yelped as she flew up stairs to the guest bathroom, while Linnie turned around, casting an angry glance at the fighting, "ENOUGH!"
The fighting ceased immediately and the two stared at Linnie, Nora still holding her arrogant look while Big Daddy started at Linnie, shocked and a bit nervous.
"NORA, I'VE HAD ENOUGH OF YOU! THE BEATINGS..T-THE CONSTANT YELLING AND SCREAMING. YOU JUST HIT A FUCKING CHILD! HOW DO YOU THINK THAT'S OK?"
"Oh come on Linnie, she was in the wa-", Nora said before Linnie slapped her.
"NO, SHUT YOUR BITCH ASS UP FOR ONCE IN YOUR MISERABLE LIFE!", Linnie screamed, not even bothering to catch his breath. He got up close in Nora's face, allowing his exceptionally tall height to tower her as he clutched her shirt, "How would you like it if I smashed you around! Huh? How could you do that to someone so defenseless? Who doesn't deserve even a lick of what you fucking put me through. She's your grandchild for god's sake! How dare you stand here and act like hitting a child is ok! What the FUCK is wrong with you?"
"Linnie I-"
"I SAID SHUT UP, NORA! I'M TIRED OF YOU!", he screamed again, before taking a deep breath, a sadistic smile on his face as he dropped Nora, "Now, I'm going to take care of my baby, and then I'm going to the police, something I should've done years ago but was too stupid to do, and if you don't want me to beat the ever living shit out of you when I come back, I'd advise you leave..NOW!"
With that, Nora quickly left the house, leaving Big Daddy's jaw to drop as Linnie turned his heel away, headed towards the bathroom to hear some sniffling noises, Cassia's eyes a bit red.
"Aww..sweetie, it's ok. Everything's ok now. Here, let me see that nose.", Linnie took her head and had her remove the rag. The bleeding had stopped and Linnie rubbed his fingers against her nose. "Well dear..nothing's broken. I think you just need to take a pain reliever after dinner, sweetheart."
"O-Ok.."
"Aww honey come here.", he said, hugging her again, "I'm so sorry I scared you. I-I was hoping you wouldn't hear me but I guess I was too loud. There there now..it's ok. Please don't cry. Uhmm..come on, why don't you and I go get some dinner so we can get you your pain reliever? We can drop you home afterwards and explain the situation to your parents. But please..it's going to be ok. I promise sweetheart."
Cassia nodded sadly as Linnie led her down the stairs. The 4 of them decided to eat out at a italian restaurant before Cassia was sent home, getting hugged by a worried poof as she got ready for bed.
"Sissy!", he cheered, hugging her, "What wrong?"
"Nothings wrong..it's fine. Everything's fine now.", Cassia said, smiling a bit as she crawled in bed, "Let's just say we aren't gonna have to worry about Mama Cosma anytime soon."