"I'm not mad."
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Cassandra Hargreeves- or Number Eight as her father always called her- was the eighth member of the Umbrella Academy. Despite having powers, she had spent her whole life on the sidelines. She had been trained to fight, of cours...
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Cassandra absent-mindedly swung her legs off the edge of the bed as she waited for Klaus and Diego to come back. Klaus shuffled back into the room, sheepishly hugging his arms to his chest like an embarrassed child. He sat heavily down in the chair and sat stiffly, back straight and arms stuck firmly to his sides. Diego seemed not to notice as he started to wrap him back up in rope. Cassandra reached for a pillow and hugged it closely to her chest, fondly running a hand over the pillow case like a mother would her baby.
"You know, no...I think- I think this was...was a bad idea." Klaus stammered as he tried to wriggle free from his constraints but found he could not move. Diego stopped in his tracks, limply holding the rope aloft as Klaus continued to squirm.
"Woah, woah, what?" Diego asked him, confused, his tone bitter as if in betrayal. Cassandra pressed the pillow firmly to her.
"I need, just one more hit to ease me into it." Klaus bargained, still trying to wind his arms out of the rope but to no success, "That's what I need." he mumbled.
"Um. No." Diego replied firmly, pulling the rope tight again but it was too late. Klaus had wriggled his arms free and was untying the rope around his chest. The rope fell slack and tumbled to the floor. Klaus hastily kicked it off his feet and scrambled for the door.
"I'll be right back." Klaus muttered, not leaving a single doubt in anyone's mind as to where he was going. Cassandra caught him firmly by his bony wrist as she tossed the pillow aside, now turning her affection to her brother. She gently pulled on his wrist, leading him like a sheep to sit on the bed beside her.
"It'll work, Klaus." She said softly, staring into his dark brown eyes in earnest. "I promise. You can get through this." Cassandra spoke softly, rubbing the back of Klaus' arm gently with her thumb. He reached out for her other hand and held it strongly in his own, looking back into her cloudy grey eyes in a sort of plea. He needed her to be right.
"No, no, no, no. No. I need- no." Klaus, protested softly, shaking his head but never breaking eye contact. He needed her now more than ever and Cassandra needed to be needed.
"Yes, you do." Cassandra contradicted, her voice was still soft and persuasive. "You can do this, Klaus. And you will."
Klaus seemed to be settled by her words. For some reason, assurance about the future was always more believable coming from Cassandra, regardless of whether her siblings actually believed she could see the future.
"You baby him too much." Diego mumbled as Cassandra stood up, taking Klaus with her and lead him back to the chair. Klaus sat down slowly, his hand still clasped Cassandra's. His fingers intertwined with hers and wound around her like a vine around a stronger tree. Cassandra gently brushed a strand of his dark hair from his eyes and wriggled free of his grip.
"No!" Klaus suddenly screamed causing Cassandra to flinch.
"Sit down!" Diego protested, pushing Klaus back into the chair as he tried to stand, quickly binding Klaus' hands to the chair. Klaus tossed around like a maniac, desperate to get free. His wrists strained and tore at the rope, enflaring the skin.
