Warnings;
. Swearing.
. Discussion of suicide.
. Death/Violence.
Anyway, enjoy the chapter!
The first thing Cassie felt was pain. It stung in her palms, ached in her knees and calves, and she had absolutely no way to describe how terrible it was in her stomach and ribs. It felt like she'd fallen from her window at Bargain Castle and had been unfortunate enough to survive such a drop.
Cassie twitched her index finger, a swell of anxiety unsettling her stomach when she felt a soft sort of material beneath her fingers. She pushed down a little harder, her hand pressing against a cushiony surface. It wasn't her poor excuse of a bed she was laying in, if it was she'd easily be able to notice the hard wood through the thin layer of blankets she wrapped herself up in each and every night. She had to be somewhere else, but where?
The little cat frowned, her brows furrowed as she attempted to regain her other senses. She strained to hear a voice, something to let her know exactly where she'd wound up, but there was nothing. Just an unbearable silence.
With nothing to hear, Cassie slowly inhaled through her nose and released, hoping a smell of some kind could help her figure things out. It was a relief to her when the stench of the ocean didn't pass through, a greater part of her overbearing worry soothed now that she knew she wasn't on the pirate ship again. The scent wasn't too displeasing, but it did leave a rather nauseating and bitter taste on the back of her tongue, and it was enough to get her brain functioning a little better. After all, there was only one place she'd been to before that had that smell.
She was at Helena's place. It wasn't a moment of utter joy, since Cassie could vividly remember the last meeting she'd had with the Queen of Hearts, but anything was better than Uma's pirate ship.
Now that she had a better idea of where she was, and how much danger she was in, Cassie took this moment to try and get her eyes working. A task easier said than done, apparently. Her lids felt heavy, the simple act of opening her eyes a little harder than she anticipated, and Cassie struggled to get them open.
When she eventually succeeded in the embarrassingly difficult task, she was disheartened to find her vision somewhat distorted. Everything was blurry, and the sudden itch didn't help either.
A faint scuffling sound reached her ears, and Cassie tensed, quickly shutting her eyes. Until she knew why she was here, and if she was even safe, she thought it best to play 'Sleeping Beauty' a little bit longer. After all, there was no guarantee she hadn't had some sort of scuffle with Helena again, and that the Queen had knocked her out with that awful liquid.
The noise grew louder, and soon enough Cassie could hear the creak in the floorboards as whoever it was came closer. She stayed as still as she could, pressing her palms and fingers flat against the surface beneath her as her limbs trembled. She was scared, but there was no way in Hades she was opening her eyes, and in her state she couldn't even begin to think about a plan of attack. She just had to lay there.
Whoever this person was, they didn't make much noise. If the flooring wasn't so poorly laid down then Cassie wouldn't even know they were there. They had to be small, possibly like her, or they might just be light on their feet. Either way, the little cat had no way of knowing and it irritated her immensely.
Cassie felt the warmth surrounding her body disappear, and she soon realised she must've been covered in a blanket. She was extremely relieved to find the room wasn't as cold as her hide away was: It was actually rather warm when compared to most places on the Isle. However, when the material was slowly and gently pulled away from her body, Cassie almost squeaked in protest when she came to the awkward realisation that she wasn't wearing her dress.
'Oh fuck, I'm naked,' she mentally gasped. It was one thing to be in a room and unable to defend yourself, but it was whole different thing to be naked in that particular situation. A situation that Cassie, with utter mortification, was currently going through.
The entire moment became even more unbearable when, much to the little cat's discomfort, the unknown person started touching her. It wasn't painful; Far from it, in fact. It was more of a gentle poking and prodding, soft fingers lightly smoothing over Cassie's middle section, and then a thumb rubbing her left eye. It was greatly uncomfortable, mainly because Cassie knew she had no clothes on, but not threatening.
Cassie kept her eyes closed and remained silent, her determination to stay alive overriding the curiosity to see who she was dealing with. She would've kept it up a little longer, too, if a sudden and intense cold hadn't come down on her stomach.
The Cheshire Cat's daughter couldn't withhold the hiss at the abrupt sensation, her eyes opening wide as her entire body jolted. Everything was clear this time, but her mind went into overdrive as she attempted to deal with the freezing object against her skin, and also figure out where the hell she was in Helena's place.
Before Cassie could even determine who'd come into the room, they were gone from sight. The only evidence they'd even been into the place was the large bag of frozen peas resting on her stomach: An object that Cassie was quick to remove.
With the person gone, and possibly running back to Helena, Cassie took this time to survey her surroundings. A quick look to the left gave her all the facts she needed to make a secure guess, the large divider beside her somewhat of a delighting sight. She'd been in this room. She knew this room. Now she just had to find her damn clothes.
Cassie sucked in a deep - and apparently painful - breath, her hands grasping at the fabric beneath her as she pulled herself up into a seated position. She fought hard to ignore the throb in her chest every time she breathed a little too deeply, and she winced at the strain in her stomach muscles when she finally sat upright.
"Hey there pussycat."
Cassie flinched and turned her head at Helena's chirpy greeting, a grimace of pain crossing her features as she carefully moved her legs. "Wha-" The little cat paused as a tickling sensation began in her throat, a raspy cough replacing her words.
"Here." The Queen of Hearts came further into the room, her boots thudding against the floor as she approached a small desk beside the little cat.
The coughing stopped, but the tickle was still there, and Cassie gratefully accepted the small cup of water handed to her. She hadn't realised just how dry her mouth and throat was when she first woke up, but every gulp of water was something akin to euphoric, and it made the little cat wonder how long she'd been in this room.
"Better?" the Queen quietly inquired, and Cassie nodded, wiping the remainder of liquid from her chin with the back of her right hand.
"Thanks," she muttered, handing the cup back to Helena. "How long have I been here?"
Helena gave a shrug and perched at the edge of the bed. "About two days." It was said so simply and casually that Cassie had to repeat it in her mind just to make sure.
"T-two days?" she repeated, earning a small nod from the other girl.
"Yup."
Cassie, her dark eyes locked on Helena's. "I've never slept that long before," she admitted with a mumble.
"Well," the Queen dragged out with a long-winded sigh, leaning back on her right hand. "You came here beat to shit, passed out before I had a chance to find anything out. But Sophie said your curse takes a lot outta you, so put those two together and it's kind'a surprising you didn't stay down longer."
The very fact that she'd turned up at Helena's doorstep beaten didn't quite affect the little cat as much as it should have. What did meet its mark, however, was the mentioning of her curse, and that a person called 'Sophie' somehow knew something about it.
"Who the fuck is Sophie?!" she exclaimed, wildly waving her right hand. "And why does she know about me?!"
"I can deal with a lot of shit, okay? Bruises, cuts, broken bones. But what am I supposed to do when some kid shows up outta nowhere, passes out in my salon, and then changes into a cat a few hours later?! I had to call for backup," the Queen stated firmly.
Cassie pouted in annoyance, and soon gave a small huff of acceptance. She couldn't change anything that'd been done, or somehow go back in time and tell Helena not to call in strangers to deal with her bruises, so, all in all, she just had to go with it. Cassie just prayed that this wouldn't come back around and bite her in the ass.
"So, whose kid is she?" she inquired with slight curiosity. She hoped that, by learning the parent of this 'Sophie', she could better prepare herself for any threat.
"No ones," replied Helena, and Cassie tilted her head in question. "Her parents aren't here. There's this teacher at Dragon Hall, he teaches kids with former-magic parents how to use Science rather than magic. Guy's from Auradon. Asshole actually volunteered to be here, can you believe that?" Helena laughed, and Cassie rolled her eyes in disbelief. "But Sophie's his...apprentice, I guess. She helps him out and shit."
Cassie nodded in slight understanding. "Right. But that still doesn't explain why she came to look me over," she pointed out.
"Look, seeing you change into a cat? Weirdest shit I've ever seen, and trust me when I say I've seen some strange things on this Isle. I thought that after that 'bibbidy-bobbidy-boop' moment the magic would somehow clean you up, but it didn't. I did what I could but I don't know anything about cats, or how to help them heal, so I went for help." Helena squinted for a second, mulling something over in her mind. "Well, I sent for help."
"Hmm, you'd think that there'd be some perks to a magical curse, right?" the little cat half-heartedly remarked, her eyes downcast. "So, why Sophie? Magic-Man too good to come help me himself or something?"
"Actually," the Queen began, and with slight reprimand. "He has a lot of shit going on. He teaches on the Isle, and he has a few other things running on the side. Sophie might have her quirks but she's good at what she does. And she's been keeping you alive, so show some damn gratitude."
Cassie wrinkled her nose in disapproval, her displeasure at having been scolded evident. She hadn't been talked to like that since her father left, and she hated that the Queen was the one to do it now. However, Helena did make a good point. Whoever this 'Sophie' person was, she'd come all the way to Helena's salon and had helped keep Cassie up and running while the little cat was comatose. The least Cassie could do was show some 'thanks' and stop being so defiant.
"You're right," the little cat mumbled, toying with the edges of her hair. "So, where is she?"
Helena pursed her lips and spared a glance at the doorway. "Outside," she explained, turning back to face Cassie. "She wants to look you over, but she won't do it if you're gonna be a douche about it. So be nice, or I'll throw your ass back out onto the street."
Cassie squeaked in slight offence, her mouth open as she prepared herself to voice her disapproval, but the Queen was off the bed and out of the room before she had a chance to do so.
"Asshole," the little cat mumbled, gently scratching her fingernails against the soft bedding beneath her.
After a small moment or two, Cassie heard the familiar thuds of Helena coming back, and she looked up as the Queen came into the room again.
"Sophie's gonna look you over, so behave." Helena quickly narrowed her eyes in Cassie's direction, patiently waiting for a nod from the little cat before turning to the doorway. "Come in, Soph'."
There was a small scuffling sound, the quieted footsteps soon far from thought as Cassie finally got to see the girl who'd been taking care of her.
'Holy shit,' she thought, her brows raising with a mixture of disbelief and surprise as the stranger came into the room. Obviously there weren't many 'healers' on the Isle, and Cassie hadn't been too sure what to expect when she finally saw this 'Sophie', but this hadn't ever come into her mind.
Even before Helena had given her a small 'heads-up' about the Magic Man and his apprentice being from Auradon, Cassie would have known right away that Sophie wasn't from the Isle. The little cat couldn't see much of Sophie, since the girl wore a large, red cloak that seemed to drown her entire frame from sight, but the jittery movements she made was enough of a 'red-flag' by Isle standards. She kept her face hidden beneath the hood of her cloak like she was hiding away from the world outside: A hard thing to accomplish when wearing such a bright and bold colour on her back. She was practically a walking target.
"Cassie, this is Sophie. Sophie, you know Cassie." Helena made the introductions when it seemed neither girl were eager to speak up and do it themselves, and Cassie couldn't help but roll her eyes.
"You're the one that's been taking care of me?" the little cat inquired, though she knew the answer already. In truth, she just wanted to make 'small talk' to fill in the awkward silence they were currently engulfed in.
The girl, Sophie, gave nothing but a small nod in response, her fingers slowly dragging the hood away from her face and over her head. It was obviously a way for her to better assess Cassie's injuries, but the little cat was rather grateful to now be able to see the girl's features a little easier.
She was a little thing. Smaller than Cassie. Her skin was pale, an obvious Isle-trait since the grey clouds constantly hid the sun from the residents. Her brown hair was frizzy and had a slight curl toward the end, the edges barely meeting her shoulders. Small details that Cassie didn't quite care for. What did catch Cassie off guard was the delicateness of Sophie's face, and the flicker of concern she found in the stranger's blue eyes. People on the Isle didn't even show concern for their own family members, let alone a stranger.
"H-how do y-you feel?" she finally spoke, her voice hushed and gentle. Sophie struggled to keep steady eye-contact with the little cat, her eyes constantly flickering to Cassie's nose or cheeks.
"Breathing hurts," the little cat managed to reply, somewhat astounded by the evident shyness in the other girl. How the Isle hadn't eaten her up yet, Cassie had no idea.
Sophie nodded and looked down toward the floor, where Cassie had shoved the bag of frozen peas. She silently kneeled and retrieved the object, bunching it up in her small hands as she came back up to her full height.
"Is that necessary?" whined Cassie, almost pleading with Sophie and Helena to keep the wretched thing away from her body.
"Don't be such a pussy," the Queen remarked, chuckling to herself at the small pun. "It'll help keep the swelling down, right Soph'?" The littlest of the three gave a nod, and Cassie groaned.
"Fine." The Cheshire Cat's daughter gnawed at her lower lip, and gripped the bed sheets with her fingers, reluctantly allowing Sophie to gently hold the freezing bag of food against her ribs.
"J-just hold it t-there," she quietly instructed, and Cassie did as asked, holding the uncomfortable object with her right hand while Sophie began to inspect her other injuries.
"So," the Heart girl breathed with a sigh, moving to perch at the bottom of the bed. "What the hell happened to you?"
Cassie inhaled a deep breath, a flicker of a grimace crossing her face at the Queen's question. "I don't really remember," she mumbled.
"Was it Harry?" the Queen inquired, and Cassie lightly shook her head.
"No...I mean, some of this-" she sharply nodded toward her middle section, "-might be because of him. But he left."
Helena tilted her head and surveyed the little cat's body, her eyes narrowed as she thought to find a helpful reply. "How much of this is pirate boy's handiwork?"
Cassie pursed her lips and looked down, scanning her form and all the injuries she could fully take note of. "My knees," she mentioned as she spotted the grazes. "He threw me on the floor after I clawed him." She gently smoothed the fingers of her left hand over her stomach, her skin deeply tinged with purples, blues, and yellows. "He kicked me, I know that." With each recollection of the painful blows Harry had given her that night, her hand moved, searching out the wounds he'd inflicted. "My head."
"Damn," remarked Helena. "He really went for it, huh?"
"Nah," the little cat lightly objected. "If he really wanted to make it bad, I wouldn't be here. He just wanted me pinned."
"Well, there has to be more to this story, pussycat. When you came here you were bleeding all over the place. Whoever did it, they wanted you dead." Helena crossed her arms and shuffled around on the edge of the bed, sceptically scrutinizing Cassie's face.
Cassie said nothing in reply, instead diverting her gaze to the off-white bed sheets as though they were the most interesting thing in the world. Her behaviour was... strange, to say the least. Something else must've happened that night, something Cassie wasn't telling her.
"All done." Sophie's voice was barely audible, but amongst the tense silence she was heard loud and clear. "Y-your ribs will clear up on their own, b-but you can't put any strain on yourself." Her words were directed at Cassie, who gave a small nod to show she was listening. "Breathing might be a bit h-hard, but you should be okay from now on."
"Can I climb?" the little cat asked hesitantly.
"Not without hurting yourself," the other girl replied with a small, sympathetic smile.
Cassie nodded and looked down, her mind frantic with worry. If she couldn't climb, how was she supposed to get home?
"If that's all then I-I better go." Sophie reached back and took hold of the hood of her cloak, drawing it up and over her head to hide her once more.
"Actually," said Helena, jumping to her feet as the smallest girl moved to leave the room. "His teeth are getting worse." She waved a hand toward the divider screen a few paces across from Cassie's bed. "If you know anything that might help."
Cassie curiously watched as the Queen of Hearts lightly shuffled from foot to foot, chewing the inside of her cheek as she stared at Sophie. She was clearly desperate, her tone of voice taking on the usual plead Cassie rarely heard around the Isle. It was a strange thing, to see someone so capable of violence and brutality showing such vulnerability.
"I-I don't have anything on me right now," the mousey girl apologetically answered, and the disappointment on Helena's face became evident as her eyes dropped. "But I can find something."
"Really?!" The Red Queen beamed, her shoulders sagging in utter relief at the other girl's reassurance. "Thank you, Sophie."
The little one gave a small, and rather bashful, smile. "It's alright. I-I'll be back in a few days to check on Cassie."
"Oh, I won't be here," the little cat blurted loudly, earning the attention of both girls. "I'll be gone as soon as I'm...uh-" she quickly looked down, "-dressed."
"Bullshit," the Queen crudely remarked, rolling her eyes. "She'll be here."
"O-kay," muttered Sophie, moving toward the exit. "I-I'll see you in a few days, then."
"Bye Sophie."
Cassie glowered at the older girl, and Helena returned the look with as much determination.
"I'm not staying here," the little cat instantly protested the moment Sophie was out of view. "I have to go home."
Helena gave a chuckle and stretched across the bottom of the bed, a single brow raised as she smirked at the little cat. "Oh, you're staying here," she stated.
"Look, I'm grateful you let me stay here, but I can't stay here longer."
"Why not?"
"Because I don't know you!" she exclaimed with a laugh of disbelief. "I don't trust you, either." Maybe she should've been a little worried about offending the Queen in some way, but for the time being she didn't quite give a shit. Cassie didn't want to stay in the Heart household. She just wanted to go home.
"You wanna walk outta here? Be my guest. There's the door. I'd love to see you walk around in the state you're in, and I kind'a wanna see how far you get wearing nothing but your birthday suit."
Cassie growled at the mention of her state of undress, along with the slight remark about her painful injuries, and she quickly pulled up the blankets to cover herself. "Where are my clothes, anyway?" she grumbled, petulantly crossing her arms with a small huff.
Helena clucked her tongue and gave a small shrug. "I threw them out."
"Y-you got rid of my clothes?" Cassie gaped, her dark eyes widening as the Queen nodded. "Why?!" She desperately patted the top of her head, a lump growing in the back of her throat as she realised her 'ears' were gone.
"They smelt like blood and they were torn to shit. Don't worry though, I've got some stuff here for you." Helena obviously couldn't understand why the little cat was in such a state of despair, and Cassie had to ignore her inner-voice telling her how stupid she looked right now. "Don't worry, they're in the drawer," the Queen mumbled with a groan.
Cassie turned her watery eyes toward Helena. "Huh?"
"Your...uh, trademark," the Queen said pointedly, her eyes flickering up to the space Cassie's 'ears' should have been. "They're in the drawer." She gave a nod toward the bedside table, and Cassie jumped into action, a small gasp of pain escaping her lips as she leaned over to rummage through the drawer.
It took only a few seconds, but the little cat couldn't withhold the wave of relief she felt as her fingers found the familiar fabric. She withdrew the item and leaned back in the bed, a saddened smile tugging at her lips as her fingertips smoothed over the 'ears'.
"They're too pretty to throw away," the Queen said quietly, and Cassie raised her head. "Plus it's pretty evil to take someone's mark. It's like my necklace." Helena raised a hand to the choker around her throat. "Or Gil's pendant. Harry's hook." Cassie took immediate note of the less-than-subtle accusation, her eyes dropping back to her own 'mark'. "Uma's necklace."
"How did you even-" Cassie's flustered rant halted before it began, the cogs of her mind turning as she attempted to guess who'd told Helena about 'The Challenge'. "Gil," she muttered in realisation.
"Yup." Helena shook her head in Cassie's direction. "I don't know what you were thinking."
Cassie sighed. Helena was now the second person to - more or less - voice how stupid Cassie had been by taking Harry's hook. It'd seemed like a good idea at the time, and a sure way to cause pain to the psychotic pirate. Now, though, Cassie was starting to see exactly how idiotic she'd been by taking it. Even without Harry's beating a few nights ago, she'd have come to that realisation. However, fully digesting the fact she'd made a stupid decision on her part was a rather hard and bitter pill to swallow.
"I, uh...I don't know. Seemed like a good thing to do at the time, I guess," she pitifully replied. "I'm not a bad person, but I've never hated someone more than I hate Harry." Cassie kept her eyes trained on her 'ears', the ability to divulge her thoughts and feelings a little easier to do when she wasn't staring at someone dead on.
"He brings out your 'villain'," the Queen stated firmly, and Cassie raised her head, confusion and questioning swimming in her eyes.
"My villain?" she repeated, unable to comprehend what Helena was saying to her.
Helena shuffled around on the edge of the bed until she was sat straight, her legs crisscrossed in front of her. "Yeah, your 'villain'." She used her fingers to mark the air-quotes as she said villain, but Cassie remained utterly clueless as to what she was attempting to explain.
The little cat blinked. "I don't follow."
"Okay," the Queen of Hearts mumbled as she sucked in a large breath, clearly preparing herself for - what Cassie suspected was - a long-winded explanation. "Us 'villain kids' aren't actually villains. We're raised by villains, taught how to act like villains, but we're never a true villain. Because our parents had something we never got to have." Helena stopped, but whether it was for dramatic effect, or for Cassie to pipe up, the little cat had no idea. "Heroes."
Cassie groaned and shook her head. "You're supposed to be explaining this to me, not making it harder."
"I'm getting there," the Heart girl assured her, and Cassie rolled her eyes. "Our parents had a hero, someone they despised more than anything else. Someone that was so good, or pretty, or whatever else that it drove them into villainy. Every major villain on this Isle has their own hero. Maleficent has Sleeping Beauty...or her parents, I guess. Frollo has the Gypsies. Gaston has King Beasty, or anyone that questions his skill on pretty much everything. Every villain has a hero."
"But there aren't any heroes here," the little cat pointed out.
"Exactly!" exclaimed Helena, as though it were the most obvious thing in the world, when it was anything but. "There are no heroes here. That's why half us V.K.'s are always classed as disappointments to our parents, because we don't have that one person to focus our evil ways on. We don't have that one person that makes us want to rip this damned Isle apart until we find them, or take down anyone even remotely close to them to inflict some pain. We're a bunch of villains without a hero to defeat, it's no wonder we're all so fucked up."
Helena surely knew how to make a good point, but that still didn't help Cassie understand how Harry brought out her own inner 'villain'. He wasn't a hero; Not by a long shot. She hadn't even known him long enough to develop some kind of deep-rooted hatred, though her current feelings toward the hooked pirate were a close second to that. She was so, so confused, and Helena wasn't making things any clearer for her.
"Not many V.K.'s have their own 'hero'," the Queen continued. "All we really do is run around this place messing things up. It's like we're all...lost, somehow."
"Look I get that. What I don't get is how Harry fucking Hook is my 'hero'," the little cat vented, the frustration at not knowing what the Queen was trying so hard to explain nagging at the back of her mind.
"Cassie, your 'hero' doesn't actually have to be an actual hero, they just have to be that one person you can't stand. The one person who gets under your skin without even trying, or without even doing anything! It doesn't matter if you've known them for a day or a year, it takes nothing more than a look for that button to get pushed. You see them and it's like every bad thing that's ever happened to you is somehow their fault. Being nice when they're around just isn't an option, because that nagging voice in your head controls everything and all you want to do is push and push until something happens."
"You, uh, sound like you know the feeling," the little cat hesitantly pried, the sincerity and passion in which Helena discussed their 'hero' too believable to be an exaggeration.
"That's 'cause I do," the Queen freely admitted, stunning Cassie for a moment or two. "But we're not talking about me right now, we're talking about you."
Despite the urge to sway Helena from the rather uncomfortable topic they'd wound up discussing, Cassie knew not to press further. The last thing she wanted, or needed, right now was a showdown with the Queen of Hearts: Especially in her state.
"So let's say Harry is my 'hero', or whatever. How do I stop it? I'm not a villain, Helena. I did a stupid thing and now I'm paying for it, and that's all. So how do I end this?"
Helena paused to think over the little cat's words, her eyes rolling skyward as she wracked her brain. "I don't know. I mean, you could kill him. Though that does seem a bit far-fetched, especially for you," she replied, her eyes roaming Cassie's small form with something akin to judgement.
"Wow, thanks," the little cat deadpanned.
"There has to be a reason your weird little mind has put a target on Harry specifically. Think hard about it, what does he have that you don't?"
"Power," she muttered thoughtfully. "Strength. Friends. A reason to live."
"You don't have a reason to live?" Helena frowned, her tone taking a strange gentleness that Cassie still found unnerving.
"There's a reason Harry didn't kill me that night," she nervously revealed, her stomach turning and twisting as she thought back on everything he'd said to her that night. "My dad left me. I have no idea who my mom is. I live alone in a fucking attic. No one even knew who I was before I met Harry, and even now people still don't know who I am. I have nothing to lose, and what's worse is that Harry knows that."
"Cassie," the Queen cautiously whispered, her brows furrowed as she eyed the little cat. "What happened the other night?"
The Cheshire Cat's daughter gave a small, disheartened sigh, her vision clouding as tears sneakily began to surface. "I-I get this feeling sometimes, I've had it for years now, usually before I fall asleep. It's like this...ache, right here-" she placed her left hand against her chest, "-and I don't know what it is, or why it comes. When it does it's like my head just won't shut up, and it gets so fucking loud sometimes."
"Kitty-Cat," muttered Helena.
"I tell them to be quiet and let me sleep, but they just won't stop. They make me think about my dad and why he left. They make me think about all the things I could have if I didn't have this fucking curse. I just want them to stop."
"Cassie," the Queen demanded, finally pulling the little one's attention. "Whatever happened to you the other night, it wasn't an accident, was it?"
Cassie sniffled and quickly raised her hands, wiping the tear tracks from her face. The memories of everything that happened after Harry left hadn't been there when she first woke, but they'd been quick enough to make a reappearance. And though she feared showing any trace of vulnerability around the Queen, she couldn't quite fight against the idea of letting her thoughts flow free for a little while.
"It was easier than I thought it'd be," she whispered, finally meeting Helena's gaze. "All I had to do was throw on some of my 'special things' and go for a walk. I don't know how many there were, or if I'd seen them around. One minute I'm walking along the main street and the next..." she trailed off into a long sigh, vague memories of that night fluttering through her mind. "I don't know."
"You mean you tried to-"
"I guess I'm just a coward," the little cat said loudly, effectively ending Helena's startled realisation. "I couldn't do it myself. But all I could hear in my head was Harry, and I needed it to stop."
Helena pursed her lips and leaned back, somewhat surprised to now find that Cassie's 'attack' was actually a suicide attempt. Everything she'd seen from Cassie since meeting her was a 'fight' in some way, and the Queen couldn't quite comprehend the thought of the little cat not wanting to stick around anymore.
"I told Harry to kill me that night," she admitted. "I thought if I just stayed still for one second then he'd actually go through with it."
"He knew what you were doing," the Queen commented, and Cassie nodded.
"Yeah. I guess I was stupid for thinking someone on this Isle could show a little mercy."
Helena scoffed. "Harry's not known for his mercy, pussycat. If you'd put up more of a fight that night, made him think you wanted to live, he would've gone through with it. There's no fun in killing someone who wants to be killed."
"That's the most fucked up thing I've ever heard."
"But it's true." Helena sighed and shrugged. "It's how things work here. Some of us do bad things to survive, and other people - like Harry, do it for the thrill of it. It's not right, but it's what we do."
Cassie gave a dejected nod. "So, what happens now?" she asked.
"Two options, I guess. First, you stay here for a few days until Sophie comes back, wait for the all-clear and then go on your way. You'll go back to wherever you came from, probably start taking things again, and go back to your old life."
Cassie furrowed her brows, both curious and a little worried about the second option Helena had in mind. "Or?"
"Or," the Queen stressed, a smirk pulling at her lips as she leaned in closer to the little cat. "You can stay here, with me. I can teach you how to live like we do; Us V.K.'s. I can give you clothes, food, and - most importantly, a reason to fucking live." Helena seemed very excited at the idea of teaching a younger Isle-resident her wicked ways, but Cassie needed a bit more convincing.
"I'm not a villain, Helena!" Cassie exclaimed. "I can't hurt people or kill people without having a good reason to do it."
"Cassie, you've been stuck in the in-between for too long, and it's making you miserable. If surviving was all you wanted to do then you wouldn't have let Harry get to you so bad, and you wouldn't have gone out that night. Harry has Uma and the pirates, they're his group; His allies. He made a name for himself but he had a little help along the way. Let me do that for you."
"Why?" demanded Cassie. "Why do you want to help me? You don't even know me." What Helena was offering sounded good enough, but Cassie had to cover all bases in this situation. She couldn't just jump into what the Queen was asking of her without knowing her intentions first. She had to make sure this wasn't just some kind of trick.
Helena slowly tilted her head, her eyes diverting to the bed as she pondered Cassie's question. "Because I know how it feels. That empty feeling that just won't go away. I've been where you are and I know how unbearable it is, and I found someone back then. Someone who showed me how to run through this Isle and make it my playground. Someone that gave me a reason to leave this damned house every day. Plus, things have got a little too boring around here, I could really use the distraction."
"But Harry-"
"He won't know shit until we want him to know," the Queen briskly interrupted, diminishing the little cat's objection before she could even start. "You're not evil but I've seen some of your tricks, pussycat. If we do this then no one can know, you won't tell anyone and neither will I. It'll be our little secret."
Cassie's mind was torn in two. One side of her wanted to take Helena's offer, the very idea of one day finally ridding herself of this unyielding pain and showing the Isle exactly who she was causing a swell of excitement to build in her stomach. On the other side, however, the uncertainty of it all chewed away at the back of her mind, continuously whispering that there was no true way of knowing how this would all play out. She hated the thought of going home and doing what she always did, knowing full well Harry was enjoying her suffering on his side of the Isle. But if she did this, and it worked, then surely she'd eventually have something to live for, and Harry would be all too willing to take it away.
"Don't think about it, Cassie," urged Helena. "Close your eyes and take a deep breath." Cassie did as requested, her eyes fluttering shut as she inhaled a deep and soothing breath. "Good, now answer every question without thinking it. Can you do that?"
"Uh-huh."
"Good. Don't think about it, just say one of the options. Do you understand, yes or no?"
"Yes."
Helena gave a small chuckle. "Okay, here we go. Night or day?"
"Night."
"Cats or dogs?"
"Cats."
"Ears or tail?"
"Ears."
"Up or down?"
"Up."
"Freedom or power?" Helena sped up her words now, fiercely determined to help Cassie finally come to a decision on what she wanted to do.
"Freedom."
"Love or hate?"
"Hate."
"Do you hate Harry, Yes or no?"
"Yes." The little cat frowned at the mention of the pirate, but quickly cleared her mind as Helena fired the next question.
"Does he scare you, yes or no?"
"Yes."
"Do you want my help, yes or no?"
"Yes." Cassie's dark eyes widened as the word passed through her lips, a slight nausea stirring in her throat as she realised the choice she'd just made. She stared at the girl sat in front of her, the Queen's lips growing into a large and satisfied smile.
"There's your answer, pussycat."
~...~...~
"Tell me where ya got it from!"
"I told you already, I found it."
"Liar."
Uma yawned and leaned back against the stairs leading up into the hallway, repeatedly twiddling and releasing her braids as she waited patiently for Harry to finish up. She clucked her tongue against the roof of her mouth, her eyes rolling back to stare up at the ceiling as the prisoner's screams echoed through the room a few feet ahead.
Uma had long-since lost count of how long her first-mate had been down here. At first, she'd assumed Harry needed a little 'time-off', so to speak, and after all the work he'd been doing over the previous days she'd simply shrugged it off and let him do as he pleased. Now, however, she knew with certainty that whoever he'd brought down to the cell had somehow triggered his terrifying temper, and by the sounds of things Harry was obviously straightening himself out. But he'd been down here now for at least a few hours, and it was starting to worry her.
When Harry started up with the questions again, Uma finally decided it was time to put an end to this. She was tired, having spent the day working her ass off in the shoppe again, but she wouldn't be able to sleep without knowing exactly what her first-mate was up to at this late hour.
"Harry," she called out, her arms crossed firmly against her chest as she walked into the room. She spared a quick glance at the man who'd been unfortunate enough to piss off her best friend, resisting the small urge to gag when she saw the horrific state he was in.
"Captain," the first mate greeted in return, momentarily turning away from the poor man tied up to the cell bars.
"Who the hell is this guy?" she asked, waving a hand in the direction of the unknown man.
"I dunno." Harry shrugged, reaching over to a nearby crate. "But I foun' 'im with this." He tossed the object in Uma's direction, and the Captain quickly surveyed the item between her fingers.
Uma frowned and tilted her head, carefully running her thumb along the bloodied - but still beautiful - piece of jewellery. "What's this?" she inquired, quickly looking up at her friend.
"Well, Uma, it's a bracelet," he sassed, and she rolled her eyes.
"I know what it is, dumbass. What's this got to do with anything?" She scowled and looked back down, twisting the bracelet back and forth.
Harry took a few steps back and perched himself at the edge of the crate, eyeing the bound man for a moment or two. "I've seen it before. I was gonna nick it when I saw it, 'cause it's got yar colours an' all." Uma couldn't help but smile at that, her fingers lightly smoothing over the pale-blue gems attached to the golden ring of the bracelet. "But before I 'ad a chance ta even try it, I got taken out... by my hook."
'Oh shit,' Uma thought with a slight grimace, her arms dropping back to her sides as she put the pieces together in her mind.
Two days he'd gone without saying her name, or any mention of her at all really. Not since the night he'd come back after being temporarily held captive by the little cat. It had surprised her greatly that he was so quick to forget, especially since her first-mate adored ranting and raving about the idea of hurting whoever had done him wrong, but she'd just gone ahead and assumed he was too busy to even spare the little one a single thought. With how he was behaving at the moment, though, she had to guess that it was something more than that.
"This is Cassie's?" she asked, though it leaned more toward a statement than a question. Uma already had an idea of why Harry was so pissed off with this guy, but she had to hear it from him first.
"Aye," he confirmed with a sharp nod. "It was in 'er 'stash'. In 'er attic, at tha dragon lady's house." Harry had told her all about Cassie's choice of a 'home': More specifically how damned hard it was to actually get to where she slept. And Uma couldn't deny that she'd been somewhat impressed by the little cat's hiding abilities. It wasn't a place anyone would think to search, and she had to wonder how the guy Harry had tied up even thought to look there.
"He says he found it on the street, huh?" she muttered, slowly approaching the man tightly bound to the cell.
"Yup."
Uma stopped moving when she felt she was close enough, and took note of the bruises and cuts littering the man's body. He had to be in his early twenties, at least, and from the state of his clothes she guessed that he was just another thief running around on the Isle. She didn't know him, and she certainly hadn't ever seen him before on this side of the Isle, but she couldn't help but pity him.
"Hey, wake up asshole," she said loudly, smacking the back of her hand against his bruised cheek in an effort to catch his attention.
The stranger groaned, and grumbled incoherently, his eyes fluttering between closed and wide open. "Who the fuck are you?" he spat.
"I'm the Captain of this ship," she proudly declared. "And I get a say in how long this-" she gestured toward his battered body with her hand, "-goes on. So truthfully, where did you get this bracelet?" Uma raised the object for him to see, allowing him a moment to fully take in the sight of it before she lowered her arm again.
"If I tell you will you untie me?" he asked, a small droplet of blood trickling down the side of his mouth as he spoke.
"On our code," she promised. "I swear that if you tell us-" she quickly waved a hand toward Harry, "-where you got this, then we'll untie you." She could clearly see the hesitation in the man's expression, his half-lidded eyes continuously darting between herself and the first-mate.
"Fine," he eventually agreed, almost begrudgingly. "We snagged it two days ago. Me and a few others found this girl wandering around, wearing more than a few pretty things. We got what we wanted and left, split the stuff between us to sell."
Uma warily looked back at her first-mate, a little unsure of how he was going to take this. Harry seemed okay; He simply leaned forward and stared at the stranger, listening intently to the story he was telling. However, Uma knew better than to go by looks alone, and that even when he looked like he was fine he was far from happy.
"Look if it's yours then take it. I got more, and the girl's not gonna come looking for it if that's what you're worried about."
Uma winced at the stranger's attempts to distance himself from the dangerous situation he'd wound up in, knowing full well that he was only throwing himself deeper into it. If she'd been in that position she would've kept her mouth shut, and only answered when someone asked a question, but this guy clearly wasn't used to being held captive by pirates, and he was letting his mouth run wild.
The crate Harry sat on creaked as he relieved it of his weight and slowly stood, readjusting his fingers around the handle of the bloody hook as he came closer.
"What did she look like, this girl?" the Captain inquired, subtly taking small steps back so she didn't startle the stranger.
"I dunno… small. Wore a lot of black. Pretty little thing, actually." The stranger frowned, his eyes widening as he looked at the two pirates. "She a friend of yours?" He at least had the sense to look shameful at the thought of hurting someone they called a 'friend', but Uma knew he'd already sealed his fate.
"Not so much of a friend, really," the first mate finally spoke, leaning his left side against the cell. "More of an...acquaintance. She's been causin' a bit o' trouble aroun' 'ere actually, an' it's been a bit of a pain in tha rump. Ya sure she's not gonna come lookin' for 'er things?"
The stranger frantically shook his head as much as he could manage. "No, I swear. She's been dealt with."
It was almost painful to watch, but it was all Uma could really do. This stranger had no idea what was going on, or who he was dealing with, and he was way too overeager to get out of his predicament. Whatever he did on the Isle, he was obviously unused to being dealt with by higher villains, and Uma could only guess that he was simply accustomed to small thugs and ruffians on the streets. He was way out of his depth, and soon enough he was going to drown.
"Dealt with?" repeated Harry, his lips twitching at the corners. "Ya sure? She's a bit of a fighter that one, kind'a like a cockroach. Ya think ya've got it but they always come back aroun'."
It was evident that Harry knew exactly what had happened to Cassie that night, but his twisted mind couldn't just get an answer and be satisfied by it. He wanted to drag this out for as long as he could, make this stranger think there was hope when really there was none. He took 'playing with your food' to a whole new level, and Uma never did quite understand how he had to the patience to make it last so long.
"Really?" the stranger asked with slight surprise. "She didn't seem like a fighter...hell, she didn't even try and stop us. No noise, no fight, nothing. It was like she wanted it to happen."
The unknown man didn't notice the quick glare on Harry's face, but Uma did. It was swift, and he masked it well, but not well enough for her to not see it. Either way, it was a bit of a sick relief to now know that she could go to bed soon.
"So, can you untie me now? Ya know, like you promised." The stranger diverted his gaze to Uma, who quickly placed a reassuring smile on her face.
"Just like we promised. Harry, cut him loose."
Harry raised his hook to cut through the ropes, and the stranger dropped to the floor the second he was free from the binds, a pained grunt escaping his mouth as his body met the wooden floor with a loud thud.
"Thank you," he gasped, rotating his sore wrists as he rested his back against the cell behind him.
"Don' thank us, lad." Harry wasted no time, swiftly lowering himself to his knees to meet the man's gaze. "We said we'd let ya loose, not let ya go." Before the stranger had time to question the first-mate's abrupt statement, Harry gripped the stranger's throat with his right hand and - after pulling back his left arm - forced his hook into the man's stomach.
"Y-you-" his strained words were ended as Harry put more strength into his arm, sinking the hook in further with a disgusting squelch.
"Tha little kitty's life wasn' yars ta take," the first-mate told him, finally showing the stranger just what he thought of the man's actions that night. "It was mine."
Uma yawned and gently rubbed her eyes, tapping her foot against the floor as her impatience grew further. It should've horrified her, or at least sickened her to some degree, but she was used to this from Harry. He wouldn't ever change and she wouldn't try and change it either, just as long as it didn't bring too much trouble to their lives.
It came as a huge relief when the stranger finally succumbed to Harry's aggression, his head drooping to the side as the startled gaze he once held slipped into complete emptiness.
"You really think she's dead?" the Captain tiredly asked, stumbling to her feet.
"I dunno," the first mate admitted with a mutter, using the stranger's shirt to wipe his hook clean. "I doubt it."
Uma nodded, twisting a single braid with her fingers as she thought. "You believe him? About Cassie wanting to die?"
"Hard ta say, but it's a possibility," he replied, raising to his full height. "She wasn' exactly in tha bes' frame o' mind when I left 'er."
"Next time you wanna make someone suffer by leaving them alive, make sure they're not stupid enough to go and get themselves killed first," she snickered, earning a playful glare from her first-mate.
"Eh now! 'Ow was I ta know she'd go lookin' for trouble? It was a firs' for me ya know!"
"Yeah, I get it." Uma tamed down the laughter as she turned back to the stranger. "You gonna clean this up?"
"Nah, 'm tired. I'll get one o' tha newbies ta do it," he said in reply, running a blood-stained hand through his hair.
Uma nodded in understanding. "Sure. What're you gonna do about Cassie?" She knew that if the little cat was really gone then she wouldn't have to worry about her first-mate. He'd fume and vent for a few days, but eventually he'd get over it. What concerned her was what he'd do if Cassie was still alive.
"Hmm, I dunno. If she's gone then there's not much I can do about it. But if she's still kickin' then I'm jus' gonna 'ave ta keep a close eye on 'er, ain't I?" He gave a small shrug and moved toward the exit, unaware of the worry he'd instilled in his Captain.
"Yeah," she sighed, slowly following behind. "That's what scares me."
AN;
Hello my wonderful readers!
First of all, I'm so sorry that I haven't updated in a while. Real-life can be a bit of a dick sometimes and I struggled with getting this chapter done, but here it is! And I promise I'll do my best to update sooner.
Second, I know there's not much going on in this chapter, it's pretty uneventful compared to the others but there had to be some kind of middle-ground and I thought Cassie deserved a little break. I really do hope none of it seems too rushed or forced, since I really did try my best to make this as interesting as I could, and I do hope you guys enjoy it.
Review Acknowledgement Time;
Shipperandfanficer15; Thank you for your review! And I'm so glad you're enjoying this story, and I really hope you like this chapter.
Mrs Trunks Brief; I'm so pleased to find that people are actually enjoying this story despite it's dark themes, and I'm glad you're enjoying it so far. Thank you for checking out the other stories as well, they're in serious need of re-writing but I hope you like them. I really hope you like this chapter, and thank you so, so much for your review. :)
biankies; Thank you for your review! I hope you like this chapter.
Guest; I'm really happy you're enjoying the darker themes of this story. Obviously 'Descendants' is a Disney movie, so we don't get to see how hard life is on the Isle, and I really wanted to try my luck with a story that covered the truly evil parts of the Isle. I'm also happy to know you're enjoying my OC, especially since keeping a character morally neutral when writing about a place as horrible as the Isle is pretty hard. I really hope you like this chapter, and thank you so much for the review.
Sasha2702; I'm glad you're enjoying everything so far, and your thoughts on Cassie are pretty spot on. She hasn't had it as harsh as some of the others have, but she's developed some issues from her decision to hide away on her own. And yes, the Isle-residents in this story are pretty cruel and twisted - Harry especially. Thank you so much for the review, and I hope you like this chapter.
I Swear I'm going to read that; I'm so glad you like it! I really hope you like this chapter. And thank you for your review. :)
slyKat28; Thank you for your review! I'm really happy you like the story so far, and I hope you like this chapter.
Anyway, please leave a review or PM to let me know what you think about this chapter. And much, much love to everyone who've favourited and followed, thank you!
(Any typos or misspells will be removed once I've had a proper read-through. If you notice any then let me know. Thanks!)