bruises - james potter

eighty-six

( chapter eighty-six )

CASSIOPEIA BLACK AWOKE WITH A START, a cold sweat lined her forehead and her neck throbbed and ached, as if her mother had actually had her hands around it only moments before.

Her mind was fuzzy, and her ears were still ringing due to her screams that now seemed a whole world away.

Cassie's eyes wouldn't focus on her surroundings, she didn't know if it was because of the tears that were spilling from her tear ducts or because of the way she felt as if she was still slipping from reality to fantasy.

A soft voice was coming from somewhere besides her, speaking some words that her mind wouldn't make sense of.

She lay there for what felt like hours when in reality it was only a few minuets, before her mind began to clear ever so slightly and her eyes began to focus.

Nova was standing besides her, her arms wrapped around herself and a few stray tears falling down her cheeks, wetting her light eyelashes as they did so.

"Nova?" Cassie asked, her voice sounded hoarse and dry. She made way to sit up, but Nova was quick to push her down again so that she didn't move from laying down.

"Stay laying down, Cass, you shouldn't be sitting up right now."

Nova glanced over the other girls body, worry filled her eyes, she was looking for any more harm to her other than the evident bruising that was already making its way onto her neck.

She had woken up when she heard Cassie sounding as if she was choking, and was quick to get out of her bed and to Cassie's side. Even if they weren't on speaking times, Nova knew of Cassie's home life - things she had gathered from a few of the nightmares she had where she wouldn't wake up and instead just keep calling for her parents to stop, or things she had gathered from the way her and her siblings were when going back home.

And Nova knew that she would never leave Cassie to face one of her nightmares alone, knowing just how damaging to her they could be.

Nova had almost cried out in shock when she saw that Cassie's own hands were wrapped around her neck, and although it took a few minuets, Nova released her throat from her own grasp.

Cassie had woken up not long after that, but she hadn't spoken until even longer after.

Cassie nodded, not trying to get up again, her head was still fuzzy and she felt as if her whole body was throbbing.

"Wh-what happened?" Cassie asked after a few minuets of silence had passed, it wasn't an awkward silence, but it also wasn't comfortable. Nova was now sitting down on her bed, which was right next to Cassie's, the mattress dipped slightly under her weight.

"You had a nightmare." Nova replied, looking down at her fingers and beginning to fiddle with the lace on the bottom of her nighty with a frown adorning her features.

"Oh," Was all Cassie replied with, turning her head from looking at the celling to the girl besides her.

"You look pretty when you smile." Cassie commented, looking at the frown on Nova's face.

Nova let out a watery chuckle and shook her head, shaking off the confusion she felt as Cassie continued to speak to her.

She then smiled slightly.

"You look pretty all of the time." She responded, looking at Cassie who was looking right back at her.

"I know."

Nova let out another watery chuckle, Cassie following suit not long after.

For Nova, it felt odd. Laughing with Cassie as if nothing had happened to them, as if Nova hadn't been so stupid, if they had still been friends and would always be.