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Chapter Three

Fairytales

Alexis and Sam walked hand in hand out of the bedroom dressed and ready to start the day. Stephan and Nikolas stood up as they walked into the living room.

--- "Now, I can hug my favorite cousin. It's nice to see that you've taken a liking to normal attire, Alexis."

Alexis smiled and rolled her eyes at the man.

--- "You know, Stefan, I only wear the towel on special occasions."

He wagged his finger at her and embraced her in a warm hug. While the two spoke on the phone regularly, they had not actually seen each other in some months; he missed her.

--- "I see we're beginning to mend the raven's broken wing?"

Alexis nodded her head as she thought about the conversation she had just had with her daughter. She needed to find a way to help the child realize how much she was loved. She passed her hand through her daughter's curls.

--- "I think it'll be a very slow process, Stefan, but I have faith in her; she's a fighter."

He gave her hand a squeeze.

--- "Like her mother."

She laid her hand on the side of his face, and gave him a kiss on the cheek.

--- "I had a lot of help from you, Cousin."

--- "And you will continue to receive that help. And now that this little one is in our lives, I have someone else to spoil."

He smiled at Sam, who looked away from him and leaned into the woman; the child did not allow Alexis to be detached from her. Alexis gave her a pinch under the cheek, causing her to laugh shyly in the presence of the two strangers she had just met. She leaned her face into Alexis' leg to muffle her laughter and shield her smile.

She lifted Sam up and rubbed her back.

--- "It seems this little chipmunk is a bit shy."

Sam laid her head onto her mother's shoulder and played with the back of her necklace. Stefan smiled at the sight.

--- "Motherhood fits you well, Alexis."

She smiled at him. For someone who had never had a maternal figure in her life, it was a bit surprising that she would be so good with a child. However, it seemed that one's innermost desires had ways of dictating her future actions. Growing up, Alexis may not have been given the maternal affections deserving of a child, but the love and affection she showed to her daughter was reflective of how she would have liked to have been treated by the people who took her into their home.

She gave Sam a kiss on the cheek, wiping the lipstick off.

--- "Well, it's pretty difficult to not love this little girl. She's quite beautiful and very sweet."

He nodded his head in agreement.

--- "She looks much like you did as a child."

She playfully smacked him in the arm causing both Sam and Nikolas to laugh.

--- "Geez, don't insult her, Stefan! My goodness, I was a pathetic little thing."

He looked at the child with her arms wrapped around a woman whom she barely knew, but appeared to nevertheless trust. He could not help but compare their budding relationship with that of his and her mother's.

--- "You were beautiful, Alexis."

Flashback

Mikkos walked into the Cassadine castle holding the hand of a four year old little girl with dark brown hair and eyes. She appeared to be traumatized and spoke to no one. When he brought her into the library where the rest of the family was seated, Helena instantly shot up in protest.

--- "What is that?"

He released the child's hand and walked to the bar and fixed himself a drink.

--- "That is a child, wife."

He kept his eyes glued onto the woman as he spoke the next line.

--- "Her name is Alexandra Davidovitch. She and her parents were just in a horrible car accident, and she was the sole survivor."

Their eldest son, at fourteen years of age, was as wretched as his mother; he glared from the girl to his father.

--- "And why exactly is she our burden to bear?"

Mikkos took a drink and continued to stare at his wife while answering his son's question.

--- "Because she is family. She is the daughter of my cousin."

The boy was incorrigible. He had already Stefan to deal with, although he was not much of competition in regard to his mother's affections, but now this child was to live in their home and take attention from him. He stared at her in disgust; it seemed in that instant that he hated the poor girl.

--- "And does she not have any other family?"

Once again, Mikkos stared at his wife without turning to look at his son.

--- "No. And there will be no more questions on the matter."

Mikkos sat in his chair in the corner of the room with a book in his hand disregarding the child who stood quietly at the entrance of the room. Helena glared at her husband and immediately walked out of the room to arrange a place for the child to sleep, ensuring that she bumped into the tiny thing on her way out.

Stefan, their second and quite neglected twelve year old son, immediately felt a sense of compassion for the girl. He walked over to her.

--- "Hello Alexandra, I am your cousin Stefan."

The young girl kept her head down as the boy spoke to her, willing her tears to remain at bay.

When he realized that she was not responding to him, he took her by the hand showing her the different parts of the very large castle.

--- "I know it's really big, but don't worry, you'll quickly find your way."

She took a deep breath as she bit her lip looking around the dark and dreary new home she was to live in. Stefan, noticing her trepidation, bent down and tapped her on the chin.

--- "Don't worry, with me around, you'll never get lost. I'll help you."

Tears filled the little girls eyes, which she promptly wiped away.

--- "Thank you, Stefan."

He smiled at her and took her hand as they walked to the room Helena had chosen for her.

End of Flashback

Aside from his own son, Stefan saw Alexis, and not Samantha, to be two of the most important people in his life. He related to this woman and girl more than he did to any other person. Were it not for the relationship he had with Alexis, he too would have been unloved and cast aside. While Alexis sang his praises, and thanked him for every monetary donation to the building of her future, he wondered to himself if she ever realized that he was himself, forever indebted to her for teaching him how to love.

He smiled at the two and held up a bag.

--- "I've brought some more things with me for this quiet little bird."

Alexis shook her head; she did not know what else this man could possibly have brought for her.

--- "My goodness, Stefan, you're spoiling her. You've already gotten her so many clothes, one of which, I might add and as you may be able to tell, fits her quite well."

He held his hand toward the couch so that she would sit down.

--- "Please just have a seat Alexis."

She nodded her head and sat on the couch; Sam immediately held tightly to the woman and leaned into her, almost attempting to shield her face from her new cousins. Alexis gave her a kiss on the top of the head.

--- "It's okay, honey; Stefan and Nikolas love you."

There was that word again. Love. Sam sighed and used Alexis' suit jacket to further hide her face. Alexis shrugged to her cousin, and mouthed an apology.

He nodded and looked to his young son.

--- "Nikolas, would you like to give Samantha the gift you've chosen for her?"

The boy smiled.

--- "Yes Father."

He walked to his father who handed him the bag. He approached Alexis and his new cousin.

--- "Samantha, I've gotten you a gift that I hope you'll like."

Sam looked up at Alexis for reassurance; she had never before received so much in one day; she was beginning to feel overwhelmed.

--- "Mommy?"

Alexis smiled at her daughter.

--- "Go ahead, Sam."

She loosened her grip on her mother and apprehensively took the bag from the boy.

--- "Thank you."

She spoke as quietly as a mouse scurried through a house; she was almost afraid that if she spoke too loudly she might undoubtedly awake from this dream.

Nikolas smiled graciously and with the poise of a true Cassadine heir.

--- "You're welcome, Samantha."

She slowly removed the tissue paper from the bag, savoring every moment, and yet unsure of what to expect. When the paper was removed she reached into the bag and pulled out a stuffed mouse. She smiled shyly from the toy to Nikolas.

--- "Thank you."

Alexis rolled her eyes and spoke to Stefan in French.

--- "Of all things to get for my daughter, you buy her a mouse? Trying to be funny?"

Stefan smiled innocently at his cousin.

--- "Honestly, I did not choose the gift, Alexis. Nikolas thought that Samantha might like it. If you look at it, you will notice that it is from that fairy tale Cinderella. I believe that that mouse's name is either Jaq or Gus; it certainly is of no concern to me."

Nevertheless, having been called a little mouse all of her life, by a woman more hateful than Cinderella's stepmother, Alexis still did not care for her daughter having such a toy. But, as she watched her daughter holding the toy to her chest, and passing her little finger along its fur, Alexis could not help but allow the melting of her heart to wash away any feeling of resentment she harbored toward the mocking nickname; she smiled at her daughter.

--- "What do you have there, chipmunk?"

Sam smiled with tears in her eyes at her mother.

--- "It's a mouse… from Cinderella."

Alexis was shocked that the child even knew who Cinderella was. It was a miracle that Evelyn had allowed her even that small sense of normalcy.

--- "Wow, I didn't know that! Do you like Cinderella?"

--- "Hmm-mmm."

Stefan chuckled to himself as he moved from the chair onto the coffee table in front of Alexis and Sam. He held out a beautifully wrapped box to Sam.

--- "Well, it's a good thing you like fairy tales, Samantha, because I think you'll especially like this."

Sam hesitantly turned herself in Alexis' lap and took the gift from Stefan.

--- "Thank you."

He smiled at the small girl.

--- "Be careful, Samantha; I'm afraid it might be slightly heavy."

She smiled as she quickly scooted herself back against Alexis. As painstakingly as she had opened the first gift, she did the same with the second. She slowly removed the bow, and handed it to her mother. She then undid each taped section, careful not to tear the delicate paper. Finally, when she removed the box from its wrapping, she bit her lip, almost afraid of what might be inside. Alexis placed her chin on top of her daughter's head.

--- "Go ahead, chipmunk. Open it."

Flashback

It was a cold Christmas season in New Jersey, where the family had been living. Four year old Sam, who had learned in her pre-kindergarten class that all children received presents that time of year from Santa Claus, was excited at the prospect of receiving something for Christmas. Being that she was so young, she had no recollection of her previous Christmas to know that she had never before received a gift. In fact, the McCalls never bothered to decorate for a holiday which seemed to remind them of the fact that they had no money to spend on their two brats: one who was, according to Evelyn, to stupid to know the difference, and the other who was an extra mouth to feed that they could have done without. Sam, not knowing any of this, happily brought her Christmas artwork home with her to show to Cody (even at such a young age, she was well aware that Evelyn had no interest in her schoolwork).

She found him sitting in the kitchen when she returned from school and ran into his arms.

--- "Cody!"

Neither parent ever required the girl to call them anything but their first name. On Cody's part, it was not because he did not love her; he simply knew that he was not the kind of man who deserved the title, 'Dad' or 'Daddy.' Evelyn, on the other hand, had no love for the child. She was not interested in having a child who shared no genetic make-up with her, and whom she did not carry for nine months in her womb, to call her mother; for as much as she did not view Sam as her daughter, she certainly did not need the girl to view her as anyone but someone who occasionally fed and clothed her.

Cody lifted the girl up and placed her on the counter.

--- "And how are you today, marshmallow?"

She shrugged her shoulders.

--- "Okay."

She took her bookbag off and pulled out the colorings she had done that day in school.

--- "Look at what I did! Isn't it pretty?"

He looked at the picture and smiled.

--- "Yes it is! That's very nice."

--- "Do you know what it is?"

He poked her playfully in the stomach.

--- "Of course I know what it is, silly! It's a tree."

He did not want to clue into the child that it was a Christmas tree, hoping that she would not ask him to get one; the family simply could not afford it. However, being a child, Sam believed others to not know yet what she had recently learned in school; it was her job to share with others what she had learned.

--- "It's a Christmas tree, Cody!"

He scratched the side of his face.

--- "Are they even supposed to be teaching you about Christmas in public school?"

She shrugged her shoulders and proceeded to tell the man about what she had learned.

--- "And you know what, Cody?"

--- "What?"

She smiled widely, displaying unbrushed teeth, before leaning in to tell him the next part as though it were a secret.

--- "You put presents under the tree."

Evelyn walked into the room and noticed the picture of the colored Christmas tree. She rolled her eyes as she walked to their empty refrigerator. She glared at the little girl.

--- "Samantha, let me explain something to you. Do you see this fridge?"

Sam looked up to Cody who nodded his head for her to respond.

--- "Yes."

Evelyn took out a gallon of milk, opened and smelled it. She scowled at Cody, before looking at Sam.

--- "Unless Santa Claus, or whoever the hell your school is telling you is supposed to bring you gifts for Christmas, plans on paying for the electricity bill and filling our fridge with food, there won't be any gifts in this house. Perhaps if Cody here weren't such a waste of f*cking sperm, some of the food in that God damned fridge wouldn't be spoiled."

She then walked up to her husband and emptied the gallon the spoiled milk over his head.

--- "There won't be any presents in this house, little girl. It's not like you deserved them anyway. Now, clean this mess up."

She walked out of the room screaming obscenities and leaving Sam in tears. Cody patted the child on the back and lifted her off the counter.

--- "Why don't you go put your things away? I'll clean this up."

Sam nodded her head and walked out of the room.

Instead of doing as he said, however, Cody slipped out of the back door and disappeared from the house until after Christmas. When Evelyn later went into the kitchen and discovered that the milk was still all over the floor, she beat the little girl for disobeying her orders.

End of Flashback

Sam sighed and opened the box to find a beautifully hand-drawn book of fairytales. She had never seen anything so beautiful. She was almost doubtful as to whether or not the gift was truly hers.

--- "Is-is this for me?"

Stefan patted her on her knee.

--- "There is no other person in this room deserving of such a book."

She frowned at the man. She wondered if this could possibly be some form of a joke.

--- "But what about Mommy?"

Alexis gave her a squeeze.

--- "Sam, I'm a bit too old for that, but I can read it to you before we go to sleep tonight."

She shook her head and slipped off of Alexis' lap to hand the book back to Stefan.

--- "I don't deserve this."

He refused to accept the book. He instead scooted over on the coffee table and patted it for Sam to sit. He looked over to Alexis who tried to conceal the fact that she had begun to cry, and over to Nikolas who quietly sat in his chair reading a book of his own.

--- "Samantha, this is a gift to you, from your cousin Stefan. I'm giving it to you because I thought it would make you happy."

She held tightly to the book keeping her head down.

--- "It does."

He wanted to reach for her and hold her in his arms, but he was afraid of how she might react, so he simply continued to speak.

--- "Well Samantha, it makes me happy to give it to you. I think you deserve it because you're a very nice little girl who makes your mommy Alexis happy as well."

She looked over to her new mother seeking confirmation; she had not yet decided that she believed anything this kind man was telling her, but she was slowly beginning to believe that the woman did not intend to lie to her. It did not mean that she trusted Alexis entirely; it simply meant that she knew in her heart that being a kind woman, Alexis would not willfully lie to her.

--- "I make you happy?"

Alexis nodded her head and gave the child's tiny leg a squeeze.

--- "Very happy, honey."

Sam looked at her for a moment wondering if what she said could possibly be truthful.

--- "But you don't know me."

Alexis took the book from her daughter's hands and placed it on the coffee table. She pulled her back into her arms.

--- "Baby, I know you more than you can believe. I know what you're going through because I've been there. And you know what? Stefan was there for me the way he wants to be here for you. And remember everything I told you in our room?"

Sam played again with her mother's necklace before looking at her.

--- "That you love me?"

Alexis smiled sadly at the girl.

--- "Yes. I love you more than anything in this world. And you know what else? I'm not the only one who loves you; Cousin Stefan loves you as well. And when you love someone, sometimes you give him or her a gift because you know that it'll make him or her happy. I think that's what Stefan and Nikolas were doing. They want to make you happy because they love you."

Everything that Sam had ever known about life was being thrown out of the window and was being replaced by things she had never before experienced. She nodded her head before turning around to look at Stefan; she smiled at him.

--- "Thank you, Cousin Stefan."

He tapped her nose before handing her the book.

--- "You're very welcome. Now, would you mind if I spoke to your Mommy alone?"

Sam bit her lip and looked up at Alexis. She was terrified to leave the woman's side for fear that everything that had happened from the night before to now would disappear. After experiencing such kindness, she did not want to go back to life with Evelyn and Cody.

--- "Mommy?"

Alexis gave her a kiss on the cheek.

--- "Sam, I'm not going anywhere. Okay? Why don't you and Nikolas go to our bedroom and look through the book Cousin Stefan bought for you? Or you can have Nikolas show you what he's reading? I'm going to make you a bowl of cereal."

Sam nodded her head and slipped off her mother's lap and walked over to Nikolas who was already standing and waiting for Sam to lead him to the bedroom. As they were leaving the room, Alexis called out to Sam.

--- "Hey, Samantha?"

She stopped and turned around.

--- "Yes?"

--- "Mommy loves you, okay? I love you very much."

Sam bit her lip, nodded and walked into the bedroom with Nikolas.

Alexis hid her face behind her hands as she cried. It broke her heart to think that her daughter was subjected to the same kind of cruelty as she had been as a child. She found it unfathomable how a person could treat an innocent child with such spite. She cried for the fact that her daughter was unable to understand what it meant to be loved, or to receive a gift.

Stefan wrapped his arms around her. He shook his head at the merciless hands of fate that allowed such a life to repeat itself.

--- "It's alright Alexis."

She cried for a few moments before moving from his arms.

--- "You should have seen what she looked like when she was brought here. She was filthy, she hadn't been bathed in days, her teeth were disgustingly filthy, her clothes smelled. My goodness, I don't even know the last time that she had eaten! Stefan, her little body is riddled with bruises and scars."

As he listened to her speak, Stefan grew more and more incensed. If the McCalls had been anywhere in the vicinity at that point, he was certain he would have murdered them with his bare hands. He had vowed to protect Alexis all of her life, and therefore had made the same promise to her daughter; it was evident that he had failed to keep his promise. He could only be grateful that the child was finally out of harms way and back where she belonged.

--- "Look, Alexis, she's out of their house. For whatever reason Evelyn had enough mercy to give her back to you."

Alexis reached for a tissue and wiped her nose.

--- "Sure, but for how long? I mean, I don't even know where this woman lives. She apparently got kicked out of her home and is living with her sister. When I asked her for her contact information, she said she would be in touch. That's what she said in the letter, and next thing I know, a few hours later I've got this beautiful child in my arms. What happens if she suddenly decides a few hours from now that she's changed her mind and now wants to take Sam away from me? Stefan, I don't have any rights to that child."

Stefan stood up and paced the room.

--- "Well, clearly you're not to give her back."

She leaned back into the couch and nodded her head.

--- "I would sooner die, than give my daughter back to those bastards."

He pointed at her.

--- "Don't say that. You give up your life, Alexis, and that child is right back in those animals' hands. You fight for your child to the deaths, but make sure it isn't yours. Those people, if I can help it will lose their lives long before you ever will."

She bit her lip and looked up at the man she had always viewed as her brother. He was fuming.

--- "Stefan, what am I going to do about Mikkos and Helena?"

He thought for a moment. This was a delicate situation; his mother would have no problems attempting to convince his father to cut Alexis off and allow her to raise her bastard on her own. He could hear her now saying that it would serve the little mouse to learn how to be an adult and struggle for once in her life. It truly disgusted him how evil his mother was.

--- "Naturally, Father may have you give the child back. He will not want you to raise her."

Alexis stood up and began to set a bowl out for Sam to eat breakfast.

--- "You know what, Stefan, I don't give a damn what Mikkos has to say—"

--- "You better start caring Alexis because you've got your daughter to think about. Right now, you're a student with a lot of responsibilities. Yes, you make some money at your internship, but it isn't enough to raise a child."

She shrugged her shoulders.

--- "Stefan, I'm not giving Sam up. I failed her once before, I'm not doing it again. I allowed Mikkos to tell me that she would be given to a nice family, and instead she was given to these people who've done nothing but abuse her and make her feel worthless. I'm sorry, but if I have to struggle on my own raising my daughter, I'll do it. I don't need to live in this lavish apartment; I can live in a studio. She would be far better off in a cramped apartment with me, than in some house with those people. Besides, I already have a job lined up in New York for after graduation."

He sighed; she clearly did not understand how difficult raising a child would be, especially one with emotional problems.

--- "Alexis, I don't know if you've noticed but that child is glued to your side."

She rolled her eyes.

--- "Believe me, Stefan, I've noticed."

--- "Well, you just accepted a job at a firm where you will undoubtedly be working fifty and sixty hours a week. When will you see your daughter?"

She had not thought about that. There was no way she would have her daughter be raised by nannies as she and Stefan had been brought up because Mikkos was too busy to give a damn about them, and Helena simply did not give a damn for anyone outside of Stavros. Moreover, she could not afford one anyway, so her other option would be day care. Either way, she could not leave her daughter for that long.

--- "I suppose I didn't think about that. Stefan, I'll figure something out."

He sighed.

--- "I never took you as someone who was naïve, Alexis—"

She immediately became defensive as she poured the cereal into the bowl.

--- "I'm not!"

--- "That's how you're acting! What are you going to tell Father if he stops by on one of his unannounced visits and sees Samantha here? That she's a roommate? Or a fellow law student? My goodness, looking at that child, anyone with half a brain could tell that she is your daughter."

Alexis put the box of cereal down and began to pour milk into the bowl. She knew that it was not going to be a simple task raising her daughter with the amount of responsibilities on her plate, but she certainly was not going to allow a man who had betrayed her so horribly to dictate her life.

--- "Well, what pray tell, would you like me to do, Stefan?"

He watched her for a moment before chuckling.

--- "The first thing would be to stop pouring milk into the child's bowl."

Alexis had absent-mindedly poured milk into the bowl until it overflowed.

--- "Sh!t!"

He handed her a dishrag.

--- "The second thing, would be to not say anything at all."

Alexis carefully cleaned up the spilt milk; she did not want any to spill onto her suit. She skeptically looked at her cousin.

--- "Weren't you just telling me that Mikkos could stop by unannounced and see Sam? Wouldn't that be worse than actual telling the son of a b!tch that the child he threw to the dogs is back where she belongs?"

Stefan pressed the bridge of his nose.

--- "Alexis, you're a smart girl, but right now you're allowing your anger to stop you from thinking logically about the situation."

She stopped what she was doing and waited for the revelation of her cousin's big plan. He cleared his throat.

--- "Every month, Father sends you a check to cover your expenses and gives you a certain amount of pocket money, does he not?"

She nodded her head, so he continued.

--- "So, I suggest that from now until he realizes that Sam is in your care, you live on a very frugal budget. Save every penny that you can, including your paycheck. If when he discovers her here, he decides that he will no longer support you, you will have had money put away to live on until you can get on your feet. And before you say anything, I will from this point forward be putting some money aside for you both in an account which neither Mother nor Father can touch, even if they freeze my accounts."

Alexis walked over to her cousin and gave him a kiss on the cheek.

--- "You really are too good to me. But, Stefan, if they freeze your accounts, what will you and Nikolas live on?"

He laughed aloud.

--- "Nikolas is the only grandson of the great Mikkos Cassadine, and that bastard Stavros is rotting in hell; and much to Mother's chagrin, I am the only son remaining. I think that it is safe to say that even if he were to freeze my access to the Cassadine money, he would still provide for my son and me. Don't worry about us, Alexis. Take care of that beautiful daughter of yours."

She smiled sadly at him as she watched Sam and Nikolas return to the living room.

--- "That's all I ever wanted to do, Cousin."

Happy New Year! I'll see you all on the other side!