Confrontations ((Cassandra))

[alexandra]

A loud snap echoed through the quiet room as Alexandra annoyingly closed the book she had been reading. Everything seemed to annoy her anymore. Even though her and Pyro had somewhat resolved their issue, Alexandra was still a bit on the pensive side. It had been a frustrating day for the fifth year as she drifted about the Blackfire manor. Pyro had disappeared for the day and with the recent death of Charles, Lust had become scarce in the house, not that she had been around before. At least, when Charles was alive, Lust showed herself a few times a day, but now, she was nowhere to be seen. Alexandra did her best to stay away from Cassandra, who was suddenly calling herself Cassie... Alexandra found her roommate infuriating. The only thing that had jeopardized her and Pyro's relationship had been caused by the Gryffindor and Alexandra found no guilt in putting the blame squarely on Cassie's shoulders.

Without any knowledge of where the Gryffindor was, Alexandra found herself in one of the smaller libraries that resided in Blackfire manor. Her old love for all things Vampire had seemed to vanish and the only thing close to a hobby that occupied Alexandra's mind anymore was flipping, uninterestedly, through the pages of random books. A sigh escaped the red-painted lips of the fifteen year old. A look around the small library and Alexandra shrugged, her boredom driving her from her comfortable perch on one of the chairs beside the fire. A flip of her brown hair and Alexandra left the room, book tucked under one arm and the door snapping shut behind her.

The Blackfire manor was still a maze to her, even after the months she'd been there. Her time was usually spent on the second and third floors, her and Cassandra's bedroom, including Pyro's, are on the third and the many libraries are on the second. The house elves listened to Alexandra mainly because Pyro told them to, but also because Alexandra didn't treat them like slaves. Her upbringing had caused her to respect the house elves, considering she had been treated like one in her childhood. She wasn't incredibly sweet to them or anything, but she wasn't cruel either, and that made a difference to the creatures. So they bring her food, clean her side of the bedroom she shares with Cassandra, and do what she asks of them.

Ascending the stairs to the third floor, Alexandra took a quick turn into her bedroom. The room was empty of the betraying Gryffindor which suited Alexandra's needs just fine. She entered, tossing the book onto her bed for later use and went to her dresser, throwing a light sweater on over her black tank top. A glance around the room and Alexandra realized she had nothing to do. Her boredom had seeped so far into her attitude that she had an urge to get out, but nowhere to get out to! She sighed, falling down onto her bed, staring at a drawing she made and tacked to the wall.

[Cassandra Blackfire G7]

The black limo roared up the driveway to Blackfire manor. Eyeing the large home, it looked colder than usual. " Damn, this place still looks horrible even with the old man gone." Cass still remembered looking into his cold, dead blue eyes when she found him in his study. Only a few hours before that, she had been in an inflamed conversation with the man. The only thing Cass remembered was screaming as she fell to the floor. She had woken up with Pyro over her trying to shake her awake. Healers and Ministry wizards were running through the Manor at top rate speeds as they tried to revive Charles Blackfire. Lust, Alex, and Cass had all been crying. Pyro stood at the end of the hallway in dark shadows watching the proceedings. Since that night, Cass had been unable to sleep in her bedroom. She had seemed to float from library to library in an attempt to keep the monsters in the house at bay.

The limo stopped in front of the house and the chauffer opened the door. Jumping out of the car, she nearly ran to the front door to avoid the biting air. Cass let herself in and laid her jacket and purse on the table. "Nova, I need-," Cass cut herself off. Nova had been taken off by the ministry officials only a few days before. She missed the little guy. "Dalan, can you bring a cup of Earl Grey with lemon to the library in the west wing? I would like to be alone this afternoon while finishing Heart of Darkness." The house elf nodded and went about his task.

Cass headed towards her room; being careful to take off her wedge heels so she wouldn't make clacking sounds as she walked across the marble foyer. She padded her way up the stairs remembering to stay quiet. Lust had been a wreck for the past few days. Even thought Charles could be a cruel man, they had always seemed to be a somewhat loving couple. Cassandra had been careful not to disturb her over the last few days. She couldn't help but say a mental Drat! as she opened the door and found Alex in her bedroom. Cass tried to stay cordial as the girl stared bullets at her. "Hey, Alex? Whatcha doing?" Alex continued to stare. "Anyways, just wanted to tell you, I'm going to that big muggle mall in London tommorrow. You are more than welcome to tag along and such. I'm probably taking the driver so he can carry our bags." Cass left her sentence at sentence. Flopping down on her red bedspread, she pulled her heavy green sweater over her head. Continuing to undress, she began to search her closet for a sweatsuit that she liked to lounge around the house in.

[alexandra]

The silence in her bedroom was so large that it was almost deafening. Alexandra's boredom caused her to sigh continually and glance around the room at the walls her and Cassandra decorated. A sudden thought besieged the girl as she lounge there, her and Cassandra, though naturally enemies by their houses, did have a lot in common. By looking at both sides of the bedroom, Alexandra realized, possibly for the first time, that her and Cassandra had the same taste in music, movies, even Quidditch teams, judging by the posters on the wall. She felt her eyes roll and her mind try to dismiss the thought. She was to hate Cassandra, there was nothing more but enmity between them and that was the way Alexandra felt.

When the door opened, the noise was so loud compared to the silence of the room that Alexandra felt herself jump, startled, and look to the doorway, her eyes wide. When she saw that it no one other but her wonderful roommate, she sighed and turned back to the wall, trying to ignore Cassandra's presence, but something made her look back at the girl she shared a room with. Her eyes slowly, angrily, moved back to the face of Cassandra, who seemed to be trying her best to stay out of a fight. That surprised Alexandra, who wanted nothing more but to scream and yell at her for the thing she'd caused. Instead, Alexandra continued to glare daggers at the girl, as she entered the room. A hello came from her, but Alexandra ignored it and continued to glare. Without so much as a pause, Cassandra suggested, in a rather forced offhand way, that Alexandra tag along with her to the Muggle mall the next day. With disgust Alexandra turned away, grunting with disgusted amusement. She ignored Cassandra as she changed her sweater, but instead worked through her words, trying to find some hidden meaning. When nothing came to her, she bit her lip, looking back over at the Gryffindor.

"Why?" was all she could manage without saying anything that would start a fight. However, the question came from her mouth in the tine of a complete insult, spitting it out as if it left a foul taste in her mouth. She was puzzled, confused, and angry. Cassandra was the first person to surprise and furiate all at once. She didn't know what to say or do and was so confused that all she could react with was anger.

[Cassandra Blackfire G7]

Cass looked unabashed at Alex's angry retort. "Well, why not?" Cass scrunched up her nose and threw her hands up in the air. "God, I was just trying to be nice. You know, we are living together in the same room. Sometimes, it's worth it to be hospitable. I know how much alike we are, Alex. I'm just sick of us playing this who hates who more game we play." Cass finished getting dressed and moved towards her dresser mirror. "Besides, it's never fun to shop alone. However, you probably figure shopping at a muggle mall is slumming." She ran a large paddle brush through her black locks. "I find it fun. Meghan and Melodey said they would meet us there if you want. They probably only want to window shop the boys." She turned back to Alex. "If you want to stay here, you are more than welcome too."

Walking over to her closet, Cass kept her back to the Slytherin girl. She pulled a large black bag out of the top of her closet and sashayed across the room back to her bag. Dumping out her old purse, Cass began to transfer the things now on the bed the new bag. "Ugh, I would really like a new black purse. This is so last season." She tried to continue the idle conversation. After several more moments of silence, Cass whipped around to look at the girl. "Alex, get over yourself. You don't have to be so dramatic. You dropped yourself into a family of snakes. Don't sit there and blame me just because you had a fight with Pyro. Your a Slytherin and would of done the exact same thing if the positions were reversed. You're more mad because I exposed a side of Pyro that you didn't want to see." Cass turned back to the bags on her bed. "You all act so surprised that I could be so viscious, but I am a Blackfire. Every single one of us are the same. All cut from the same cloth. None of you should be surprised."

[alexandra]

Alexandra chose to remain silent, which was a wise choice on her behalf. While Alexandra was a person of very, very few words, Cassandra was the opposite. It was amusing the the Slytherin as Cassandra began her ramblings. First, she threw out an angry "why not!?" to which Alexandra rolled her eyes annoyingly. The girl could be so immature, Alexandra thought, but there wasn't much time for thoughts as Cassandra was continuing with her tirade. Alexandra listened, anger and amusement perfectly mixed among her emotions. The fact that Cassandra thought they were alike instantly angered Alexandra. Her enmity with her roommate declared that there was no way that her and the Gryffindor were alike, although she knew it were true. They were alike, but she hated to admit it.

Alexandra found that Cassandra made a lot of noise when she was upset or angry. She was changing her sweater and her voice was going up in tempos as her anger rose. She went to her dresser, loudly grabbing a brush and running it through her hair, all the while assuming that Alexandra thought muggle malls was "slumming." This annoyed the Slytherin beyond all that Cassandra had said previous. It was so infuriating to Alexandra that people really thought her a stereotypical Slytherin. So what that she was put in that house? Does it really mean that she hated Muggles? She practically lived like one during her childhood years and during her summer holidays, having lived in Muggle London. It annoyed her that Cassandra felt they had so much in common, but never took the time to find out how Alexandra felt about Muggles before making assumptions.

Alexandra was about to speak on this annoyance, but Cass beat her to it. The girl was suddenly talking about malls as if she were in love with them. The tone of her voice softened naturally when she mentioned how Meghan and Melody could join them. Alexandra rolled her eyes yet again, thinking oh great... more chatty, boy-hungry teen girls. Cass began to move her things from one purse to a different, which also annoyed Alexandra. A sigh escaped her lips, causing Cass to flare up and call her dramatic.

Her recent accusations included that Alexandra would have done the same and that she was only angry... blah blah blah. Alexandra was becoming bored at this point. She felt like they had already had this fight before, even though it hadn't before that day. Finally, Alexandra stood from her bed, going to her mirror and brushing her hair, ignoring Cassandra's presence. Her eyes watched herself through the mirror as she put up her hair, slowly, as if Cass weren't there.

Finally, when the silence became too much for both of them and Alexandra's hair in a high, neat ponytail, she turned to Cassandra, her brown eyes showing a mix of emotions.

"OK Cass... First of all, never assume I am like every other mindless Slytherin. I happen to like Muggles as much as any wizard, they are all people to me, so the next time you say something about me, you better get all your facts straight, OK?" She took a deep breath, trying to quell her anger, "And for your information, I wouldn't have done the same thing if I were you. Pyro isn't a bad person, he's family, and you should have considered his reasons for not telling me before you ran your big mouth."

[Cassandra Blackfire G7]

Cass chortled a laugh at Alex's exclamation. "Honey, I spent over two years trying to make nice with Slytherins to only have that thrown back into my face. Seriously, Alex, fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me." Then, the topic of conversation came to the book. She honestly wished that was over and done with, but she had to live with the consequences of her actions. Cass' tone suddenly turned serious as her mood became more sullen. "Don't play innocent with me, Alex. You could be just as conniving as Pyro. My cousin and I have a long history together, and I know very well how nice he can be. We Blackfires aren't known throughout history for our grace, charm, or generosity. No, we are only known for our cunning, disgraces, and evilness."

She closed her eyes and plopped down on her mattress. "You all act so surprised that I would go that far to get that book. Do you have any idea how much dark magic is in it?" She opened her eyes to look down at her palm. Still there was the scar that the book had given her the first time she had touched it. "It makes no matter to any of you what I wanted it for. I didn't want to destroy it or anything. Pyro could of had it back after I was done with it. I only needed it for one thing."

Cass plugged on. "Still, I guess it doesn't matter. I talked to one of the Professor's the other day. They say you can't bring back the dead, but I don't believe them. I mean, we are wizards for Merlin's sake. We can do anything. Anything at all. It surprises me sometimes that I had all this power in my hands. I went to that muggle school for years and took all a whole bunch of crap because I was 'odd.' Sometimes, I wish I could just...." Cass took out her wand and demonstrated her last point. She pointed at a stuffed animal on the floor and made a sound like an explosion.

[alexandra]

Alexandra couldn't help but roll her eyes and turn to look at Cassandra with a face that clearly showed her shock and disgust at her comment. The first thing that angered her was that Cassandra called her 'honey.' What!? Alexandra was annoyed to the point of shocked anger. Then there was the second stereotype of Slytherins that came from her mouth. Before the conversation moved on, Alexandra could feel the angry words shoot from her lips.

"Excuse me!? Honey?" The tone of her voice was all she needed to get her point across without elaborating, but the anger wasn't descending, "And don't tell me you tried to be nice to me. I never remember you ever trying to be friends with me and even if you did, you should know that I'm not the sort of person who warms up to someone very quickly. I don't laugh about people. I don't spread rumors. In fact, i don't say more that 10 words to people on the first meeting. You and Pyro are the only people I've talked to very much. So don't you dare stereotype me again!"

Her words didn't seem to make any impact, however, as Cassandra went on from the mention of the book. Her words didn't anger Alexandra and seemed silly enough to her that she remained silent and just rolled her eyes. Cassandra sighed a bit dramatic, adding more annoyance to Alexandra's already mixed emotions, and said something about being surprised that everyone was shocked about her being cunning. Alexandra sighed softly, sitting next to Cassandra and shaking her head.

"I wasn't surprised one bit, Cassandra." She said, her voice softer, but the anger still evident, "The only thing that surprised me was how you act like you're a part of this family already. Ever since I came here, you've been nothing but horrible to me and, I admit, I haven't been much better. But you seem to have hated me and I know you haven't known about your relation for that long. It may feel like a while, but you've definitely adapted well. What happened to those years that you spent with your parents? Or with your friends in Gryffindor? I may not like them, but I know they all aren't condescending or mean. How could you throw away all your goo habits, just because you're in a new environment? That's what surprised me. You're two-faced, Cassandra. You act like those around you while keeping the real you for certain people. It isn't really fair, is it?"

Alexandra felt her anger flare and she stood, crossing to the window and glaring out the glass. As Cassandra went on with her rant, Alex just stared out the window. She didn't want to speak anymore. She hated talking. She hated how her anger could erase her self control so much.