Chapter Sixteen
Cassie's feet ached. Her entire body, in fact, ached. She kicked her shoes off by her front door and waited there, listening to the excited chatter coming from the living room, where everyone had surrounded Edmund. He seemed to have mostly snapped out of his love of Bella, and was more than happy to be back with his brother and sisters.
Cassie leaned against the wall. It was already past midnight. She had only twenty-four hours to send them home, but she knew she couldn't do it easily. She hated to have to send them away, but she couldn't let them die either. Letting them go was the only option.
Peter popped his head around the door. "Are you coming in?" he asked. "Edmund would really like to talk to you properly... Cassie? Are you crying?"
Cassie turned away. "No," she said quickly. "Of course not. I'm just tired. Go back to Edmund. I'll be there in a bit."
Peter called after her but Cassie left him to run upstairs. She escaped to her bedroom and slammed the door shut behind her. Peter knocked on the door as Cassie was wiping away her make-up, but she ignored him.
"Cassie?" he called softly. Eventually, hearing no reply from inside, he opened the door himself. "What's going on?"
Cassie sighed. "It's over now, Peter. Time for you to go home."
"Is that why you're sad?" he asked. "Or did something else happen when we were separated?"
"No, Peter," she said. She began unpinning the clips from her hair - a simple diversion to distract her from the pain of what was about to come. "I just think it's time for you to go."
"We can't," Peter said. "We can't just leave you. Bella will kill you!"
Cassie scoffed. "So, what are you saying?" she cried. "I can't look after myself? I'm that useless?"
"No," he began, "that's not what I meant-"
"Bella is my friend," said Cassie. "She won't hurt me."
"Have you gone mad?" Peter hissed. "She is no more your friend than she is mine!"
"I beg to differ. You don't know her like I do."
Peter shook his head. He couldn't believe a word he was hearing, and still she continued.
"And neither do you know me," Cassie added. "I've put up with you all for long enough, and it's time it all ended. I want you all home by tomorrow."
"Cassie..."
Her hair now scraped back into a bobble, Cassie stood up to face Peter. She could feel her chest burning as though she wanted to cry and she was amazed at herself for managing to at least appear calm.
"You think I'd put up with you freaks if I wasn't getting something out of it myself?" she demanded. She saw Peter flinch as she said it but she had to carry on. "You got me exactly what I wanted, Peter: I'm best friends with Bella Cullen. I'm almost there. The throne is almost mine. I'm so close I can taste the honey, Peter! I already have the crown. Once you weirdos are gone, I can finally be Queen Bee."
Cassie thought Peter would burst into tears. His cheeks were burning red, and he cleared his throat as he looked at her.
"You don't mean that," he said softly.
"Don't I?" Cassie felt like she was ramming a knife into Peter with every word but it was necessary. She had to do this. They had to leave.
"Poor Peter," she chided. "Poor, deluded Peter. Did you really think I had feelings for you? That I loved you?" Cassie laughed coldly. "I'm the Mary-Sue, Peter. I don't date losers."
Peter licked his lips slowly. "Forgive the misunderstanding. You won't have to wait until tomorrow. We will... leave tonight."
Cassie nodded. "Thank you," she whispered, but Peter was already gone. She ran to the door quickly and locked it shut before she burst into tears. She could feel her heart breaking. She would never see them again. No Hermione or Susan or Lucy. No Peter. She turned and slid down the door and sobbed on the floor.
"Cassie?"
She held a hand over her mouth to quieten her sobs. From the other side of the door, Hermione called her name again.
"Go away," Cassie cried. Please go away.
"Cassie, what's going on?" Hermione asked. "Peter said we're leaving. I don't understand. What happened?"
"Go away, Hermione!" Cassie cried. "You just can't leave things alone, can you? You're so insufferable! It's no wonder Ron won't go out with you!"
She heard Hermione burst into tears and heard her footsteps pounding on the floor as she ran away. Cassie buried her head in her hands and cried for as long as it took them to clear together their things, and then finally she heard the front door slam.
Her eyes were red and blurry, and she held a hand over her mouth to stop from crying out as she watched them from her bedroom window. 7 figures slowly trudging away from her home, their faces pressed with sadness and worry, which even she, from her lookout, could see.
Peter Pevensie walked the slowest and would glance over his shoulder every so often to look back at the house and at the window at which she stood, but each time she would sink back into the shadows, consumed by the darkness as her heart was consumed by sorrow.
She leaned back against the wall, her eyes now wet with tears but unable to produce any more, her body limp yet aching, occasionally shook by a loud sob. At first it would seem as though she did not feel it, so consumed by her grief that the smallest of touches upon her body went unnoticed, but there could be no mistaking the turn of Cassie's head as she looked upon the person beside her, and the faint smile tugging at her lips.
"Tess," she said, and a fresh load of tears poured forth from her eyes.
The woman beside her squeezed Cassie's hand. Tess Clare (neƩ Durbyfield, which had once been the most noble house of D'Urberville) wiped Cassie's tears with her own handkerchief and waited with her in silence until she had finished sobbing.
"Oh, Tess," said Cassie, when finally she could breath enough to speak, though her voice shook and she occasionally had to take pause to hiccup. "What do I do?"
Tess rubbed Cassie's shoulder gently in reassurance. "What can you do?" she asked softly. Her voice was cool and quiet and gentle, and the very thing Cassie needed in that moment. "You made Isabella a promise."
"I don't want to die," she said. "I don't." She was sobbing violently again, until Tess finally took her shoulders and forced her to stand still and straight.
"We can go with them," said Cassie through hiccups. "We can go with them to Narnia or Hogwarts or even Finchley!"
Tess shook her head. "I am already dead," she told her. "I'm just a figment of your imagination. A real figment of your imagination. The rest of them are not. They are very real, and this danger that they are in is very real. You can help them."
But Cassie was shaking her head in an almost violent fashion. "I can't do this," she cried vehemently. "I can't! I don't want to be a vampire, Tess. I don't."
Tess took Cassie's hand in hers. "You're so brave, Cassie," she whispered. "So brave. You can do this. Think of all the good you'll do because of it."
"I love them," said Cassie. "I love them all, and I would die for them."
"As they would die for you," Tess told her. "Just think. Don't think of tomorrow, but think of yesterday and the day before and the day before that. Think of the laughter. Think of how they warmed your heart. Think of raindrops on roses, and whiskers on kittens. And you will walk to Cullen Castle with me by your side, with your head held high and your pride so very intact."
Cassie sniffed and nodded, smiling brightly though her swollen, red eyes gave her away. She nodded slightly.
"Raindrops on roses?" Cassie said quietly.
Tess nodded, then began to softly sing:
"Raindrops on roses,
And whiskers on kittens,"
Then Cassie continued the melody:
"I'm human tomorrow,
I haven't been bitten."
Tess:
"We're going to get through this, we're going to sing,
About all our wonderful, favourite things.
Angel Clare's bright smile
,"
Cassie:
"And Peter Pevensie's laughter,
Baking cakes with my mother,
And licking the bowl after.
My paper donkey,"
Tess:
"And my wedding ring,
These are a few of our favourite things."
Cassie:
"Star Trek with Lucy,
And Teen Mom with Susan,
Chess with Hermione,
There's no substitution.
They were my best friends, my reasons to sing.
They were a few of my favourite things."
"In the morning, one bright morning,
When there's no more bad,
No Edward, no Bella,
And my friends are back here,
Then I won't feel so sad!"
As they sang, they left the house, and Cassie resolved to leave her every fear behind when she closed her front door for what was to be the very last time - and so, courageous and with her pride and dignity still fully intact, she made her way to Cullen Castle to meet her density.
