𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗻𝘁𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 ⸻ 𝗱𝗼𝘂𝘅𝗶𝗲 𝗰𝗮𝘀𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗮𝗻 [ completed ! ]

𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐮𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐡𝐚𝐝𝐨𝐰𝐬

❝𝐰𝐚𝐢𝐭, 𝐬𝐨 𝐲𝐨𝐮'𝐫𝐞 𝐬𝐚𝐲𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐚 𝐟𝐚𝐢𝐥𝐞𝐝 𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐝𝐫𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐫'𝐬 𝐭𝐞𝐬𝐭 𝐬𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐧 𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐞𝐬?❞

❝𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐬𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐬𝐞𝐞𝐧 𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐨𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐟𝐢𝐟𝐭𝐡 𝐭𝐫𝐲.❞

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       "HERE. INGRID SAID you had to drink this. The red dahlia petals are supposed to help with your memory," Lina spoke as she stood next to Cassian's bed, the other sibling still lying down. In response, Cassian pulled the thick blanket over his head and grumbled something under his breath, but the witch was sure it involved a few curses. She forced herself to take a deep breath and not allow her temper to rise. Her brother needed this tea if he wanted to prevent another one of his possessions and she didn't need another member of her family to go through more pain.

       It was strange. As much as she could remember, her family line had faced so many hardships and it went beyond her own parents. She couldn't recall much of her mother's challenges, besides being raised by river spirits after being abandoned by her own mother and dying at the hands of Arius, but she knew there were more secrets about Mingxia that never came to light. Cassian had told her that their mother saved their father from an angered dragon and she had pleaded with the creature to spare mercy on Huizong.

       Perhaps Zhang men favored women who were gentle, yet were completely capable of turning the creatures made of magic against them.

       Cassian's reemergence had made Lina all the more confused. She had no recollection of his existence at all, seeing as any and all mentions of him were kept to a hush. From what he told her, he was taken by the Arcane Order as a punishment for one of their parents slaying an innocent magical creature. A blood debt, he had called it.

       A blood debt must be paid in blood.

       And it just so happened that the Order demanded the debt be paid with Cassian. Her brother refused to give anymore details relating to the Order taking him away, but the witch knew not to pry. She didn't want a repeat of what happened when she reunited with him months ago.

       All she wanted was to get rid of the boxes she had forgotten to throw out the night before, but as she did so, Cassian had jumped down from the roof above. There was a metal mask pressed against his face, but even with his eyes visible, she could see a resemblance between him and her father. His eyes held sternness and didn't leave any room for error. Like father, like son. The witch had tried to persuade him into leaving her alone and carrying on with his life, but her words meant nothing to him—and gods above, it annoyed her to no end.

       Cassian was determined to hurt her in any means necessary, whether that meant slamming her back into the alley dumpsters or slicing off her ponytail mid fight, finally causing her to retaliate back. She remembered how she disarmed him of his own blade and forced him against the wall of the bookstore, holding the knife almost to his lips when he merely licked the blood off it. Gods, he was disgusting. Before the two of them could continue their fight, Ingrid Fortuna simply opened the side door leading into the store and questioned why the older Zhang sibling was present.The only events that happened afterwards led to an intense argument between Ingrid and Lina.