Here, Kitty, Kitty

Nothing Personal

Warnings:
. Swearing.
. Angst.

The suffocating and unnerving tension in the air was so thick that not even Helena's trusty knife could cut through it. It was clear on each of their faces that they hadn't anticipated Cassie's refusal to answer Harry's question, and the obvious bewilderment each 'captor' expressed was - at least to Cassie, quite hilarious.

Much to the little cat's slight astonishment, it was Helena who came to her senses first, the Queen of Hearts dropping to her knees in front of the bucket Cassie had puked into only moments ago.

"Don't be stupid, pussycat," she said, the softness of her voice somewhat tainted by the subtle threat that Cassie immediately noted. "I mean, you're what...like, fifteen?"

"Sixteen," Cassie corrected with a small shrug.

"Okay, sixteen. You've been hiding on this Isle for sixteen years, I didn't even know you or your daddy were here until Hook told me. And you can keep your identity a secret." The Queen of Hearts was desperate, her wide eyes frantically darting between Cassie and the pirates. "Just tell us who spelled you. You do that, and Harry will keep his mouth shut," she seethed the last word with a firm glare in the red pirate's direction, her features switching back the minute she faced the little cat. "Please."

Cassie gave a small huff of feigned annoyance and slumped back into the chair they'd tied her to, her dark eyes staring up at the ceiling. Hateful words and violent threats she could handle...to a certain degree, anyway. Heartbroken expressions and begging, however, were rather foreign to her.

The Cheshire Cat had been dubbed a criminal and thrown on the Isle, yes. Did that make him a criminal? No. From what her father had told her he was far from a villain, and he hadn't raised her to be one either. His main priority had been self-preservation, and he'd instilled the same habits and mindsets onto his daughter. He'd been a master trickster back in Wonderland and he often enjoyed the suffering of rather unpleasant people, Helena's mother included, but he hadn't been cruel, in fact he'd treated Cassie with an astonishing amount of affection and 'love' when she was growing up, and so she'd never quite found the need to cause harm to others.

Cassie was a little odd when compared to the other villain children on the Isle. She wasn't good, but she wasn't entirely bad either; She just was. Never in a million years would she willingly risk her life for someone she didn't know, and though her 'urges' were selfish and unneeded they kept her happy and sane. However, she'd never hurt someone else for the fun of it, and she wouldn't go seeking a fight merely for the sake of boredom or as a way to keep up some foolishly made reputation. She could be harsh if the situation demanded it, a small fact Harry should be well acquainted with by now, and she had no issue with being violent if she was cornered. But Cassie could be kind and understanding, her complete willingness to give Helena the little bracelet she'd had made for her son a clear example.

The Queen of Hearts had her flaws, but even Cassie had seen the adoration and love she held for her baby, two things the Isle was severely lacking. Helena might have her reasons for wanting to get off the Isle, but the most noticeable of all was that she just wanted to get herself and her little one away from danger. And though Cassie herself wasn't a mother she couldn't help but sympathise just a little, and to now see the Queen herself on her knees - and begging no less...well, it truly hammered the nail in harder.

Cassie knew full well that if she did know someone on the Isle with magic then she would have gotten herself off the damned Island way before Harry found her, and that - if she had known of Helena and Gilzean then, she would have gladly taken them with her. But the harsh reality of it was that no one on this Isle had magic, and the only being capable of letting them out was the Fairy Godmother, who was busy living it up in the land of happiness right across the pond. The little cat didn't have magic and she didn't know anyone with magic, but there was no way in hell she was admitting it to these three.