Just Like Magic

Chapter 8 His Sister

Cassius' POV

I walk right behind Winnie into the kitchen as she flips around and grabs my forearm, pulling me further into the kitchen. She looks around my frame, I think, making sure that Randy is not here and is not listening in. She stands there just for a moment, and we hear nothing from the other room. So when it's good enough for her liking, she starts. "Ok, Cass... You need to tell me what happened. Who is this girl? Because from what I understand right now, you brought a complete stranger into the house... So you need to catch me up on the details... right now." She demands of me as I clear my throat.

"I know.... I know... I'm sorry... it's just that when I was leaving the bar after a couple of drinks and when I was walking back here, I saw Steely waiting at his spot. I curiously observed as he puts his arm out and got his hat back, but... when he did that, it brought her here and dropped her to the ground.. she was scared and said she didn't have any money... Then Steely yelled at her, thinking she was scamming him... So I paid for her... Then she was terrified of me and ran. So I had to make sure she was ok." I say as she interrupts me. "Yes, a woman running from you means... Yes, giant stranger, I want you to follow me." She sarcastically states as I glare down at her.

"I know, and I apologized about that.. but she was mad and tried to hit me, and I blocked her by stopping her hand in the air with my magic, of course. She was confused and didn't know what was happening... I made her levitate, and she freaked out more." I explain as she quickly states. "Well, maybe she hit her head when she dropped here from the portkey, and maybe it confused her."

I shake my head before saying softer than the rest. "I think she might be a muggle." she thinks about that for a second as her mouth opens then shuts.. showing she is thinking about my statement but that she doesn't know what to say, just like me. "No... Nah... Well... Really? Her reactions to my healing would make more sense that way... But... there is only one way to find out.. and that's by talking with her. But if she is. You know she can't stay here.. you know how much trouble we would be in just for hiding her from him. Did anyone see you bring her here?" She declares then asks as I shake my head.

"I know we could get in big trouble but I don't know if anyone saw me.. I was in a hurry trying to help her. I felt like I was under a time restraint with her being in so much pain." I declared as she nods, then groans out before pinching the bridge of her nose. She rolls her eyes then looks over at me. But I can tell by the look in her eyes what she is going to say.

"No way.. you can't do that Winnie.. I won't let you... The ministry is full of assh*les... and she... she seems nice." I say to her as she sadly looks up at me. "I know... she seems genuinely sweet." I nod with her as we share a small quiet moment together, thinking about just that, while she states even quieter than before. "You're not actually worried about getting in trouble are you?" I look over at her showing my obvious confusion as she giggles then says for clarification."You just have the hots for the beautiful stranger, huh?" The automatic smile that appears, gives her the answer she was expecting but I won't admit it out loud to her, so I shake my head. "I'm just trying to help her out." She laughs at me before spatting, "Don't you lie to me."

I chuckle at her as I say quickly. "I'm not against any ideas like that... but I did this because I wanted to help her... I knew inside of me that she needed help when I first saw her, and I couldn't get that feeling out of my heart... I can't hand her in. I have a strong urge that's telling me she needs me to protect her." I explain as she nods and thinks about that for a short moment before smirking at me.

She wiggles her eyebrows at me causing my eyes to roll back at that sight. "Fine, I'll admit something if you don't say anything else about it... Yes, I am interested in her... So shut up about it." I quickly admit to her as she nods with her eyes looking deep in thought.

"Ok then, let's go talk with her." She says, handing me a plate of food as she grabs some for herself. One after the other, we walk into the other room, prepared to start this subject that might be sensitive for her. The last thing I want to do is offend her. But if we're going to help her, then we need to know what we're getting into.

I watch as she stops right in front of her, she only pauses for a moment before a face-splitting smile emerges on her face while she softly states. "Ok, we will talk to her about it tomorrow." I walk right beside her as I follow the line of her gaze and notice a fast-asleep Randy.

"Ok. let's go eat in the kitchen," I say, turning away as she yells under her breath.. trying to get my attention as softly as possible. "Cass!" I turn around to look at her and notice her extended arm pointing down at Randy's stomach. The strings of her shirt have fallen to the side, exposing her stomach that's covered in bruises.

I suck in a sharp breath as I quietly step closer and lean down to get a better look... I'm not going to touch her, but I can see without moving the tons of strings hanging down from her shirt, that there are multiple bruises under some of the strings... I can count 7 of them, I think.

What would've caused all this? Someone must've been furious.. or maybe a bad car wreck... I don't know... Maybe there is more to this than we know... Is she running from someone? an ex? who? but she looks like she has had a horrible time with whoever did this to her.

I set my plate down before reaching over to her to grab the blanket on the back of the couch. I slowly unfold the blanket before flapping it lightly while letting it softly fall over her. She moves a little bit before letting out a deep breath and snuggling into the blanket. I smiled to myself before grabbing my plate and her empty one.

Then following my sister into the kitchen to eat. As we enter, Winnie automatically says, because she has no control over that mouth of hers. "Ok.. something is going on with her," Winnie sits down at the table and then takes a bite. I sit down next to her and reply. "Yeah, probably.. are you ok with that?" I ask her as she shrugs her shoulders. "Well, you know me... I love to help... but if she is a muggle and we get caught, we're in big trouble... you realize that?" She asks as I quickly nod before shoving a forkful of food into my mouth. "Giving her up just doesn't feel right.. you know what I mean?" I ask her as I take another bite, she does the same saying back, "Yeah, I get it... we'll figure it out as we go.. I guess.. Well, at least once we figure out more about her." She looks like she is thinking just as hard as I am about some type of solution for her.

But to say I'm worried for her is a complete understatement. Our President for Magic at our Ministry put out a no-muggles order on our entire space of this magical world. Mostly because a long time ago, the last time our cover was accidentally blown for this magical world. The Muggles ended up going on a full manhunt for our magical kind... It was so bad that our people and even creatures were being captured to be frivolously experimented on, as if their sacrifice and torment meant nothing to the people doing the research. They had so many questions that couldn't be answered without experiments being performed on all of us.. So many were killed.

They were tortured and used for so long that we were told there was no way we could live in a life together with muggles, without being hurt by those monsters, because all they care about is themselves and what we can bring to the table for them. That was so long ago, but too many lives were lost to take the risk and test out the theory today. Plus it took many more years to get the world back to a normal standpoint and back out of sight from the muggle world. We just stay hidden in every way possible now, just frightened at the possibility that our cover could ever be blown. So we make it look as if we don't exist, and magic is just a myth. Especially since all we have heard for so long is how demented and monstrous every single one of them are. Now thinking about the conversation I had with Randy involving the bear mace, so maybe its true. I just don't get any bad feelings when it comes to her.

This has been a way of life for us for so long now, being at peace in our magical bubble and I suspect that things will never go back to the ways they used to be before this type of lockdown on our kind... This is so normalized now that it's taught in our schools of how to deal with a muggle.. What steps to take for safety. We have been taught to fear them and nothing more. But the laws indicate that if any muggles are found, it is ordered that you have to take them to the Ministry.

They don't want them getting the information of our world back out to their world. The fact that we are still here with tons of magic flourishing in every aspect that it can, is something that others might want to know.. giving them the motivation to hurt us and our world once again.

So if you don't bring them in once found, and they find out... there will be hell to pay for putting the world we know at risk.. This is a big step to take for a stranger.. but like Winnie said, we will decide what to do as we go. We don't even know if she is a muggle.. So we sit there in a comfortable silence just thinking to ourselves as we take one bite after the next.

We are broke out of our food trance by screaming that can be heard in the other room. So we both jump up from the table with wands automatically coming out as we run into the other room. My gaze shoots to everything in the room, quickly figuring out that there isn't anyone else in here, just Randy. She is screaming in agony as she cries in her sleep. "She is having a night terror." my sister explains as I stare down at her, not exactly knowing what to do to help.

I kneel down next to the couch as I try to nicely wake her up. "Randy... it's a dream.. wake up... You're ok." I say to her as I try to shake her awake. Her hands quickly grip my arms as she holds on tight as if I'm her last lifeline. "No.. no.. please.. not again... please... You're dead... this is supposed to stop because you're dead.. why can't you leave me alone." She begs and cries, I keep pulling her into me as she trembles in my hold. "Please stop," she begs, sounding so tormented, clenching my heart as if she is squeezing it herself. I look up at my sister, and she looks just as horrified as I feel.

With my hand wrapped around her torso and my other one over the back of her head, I'm rocking her as if she is a baby, trying to soothe the nightmare in her mind. "Randy, you're ok," I say into her ear as she gasps awake with a jump, but I hold her as still as I can in my arms now. She wakes and looks around at us, hovering over her. I watch as her face instantly transforms into a shade of red I have never seen on a woman. "Oh man... was... I.. was I yelling?" She asks as I sadly nod. "Oh... I'm so sorry... I.. oh... I... I have to go." She says, trying to sit up as she groans, still showing her body is still soar, but doing better.

"No... You're ok... I swear.. stay here.. get a little more sleep, and then I can help you get where you need to go tomorrow... it's late." I tried to explain, but she still looked mortified. "It's ok... I swear." My sister adds on to my explanation, trying to help me convince her. Her eyes pan back and forth between us before she nods. "Thanks." She softly says under her breath.

I try to stand and help get her back on the couch out of my hold. She tightens her arms around me once more. I can feel her still shaking, so I feel that I have to ease her mind. "Don't worry, I'm not going anywhere. I just need my food... I'm starving." I explain as my sister says helpfully. "I'll grab it for you."

She runs out of the room to do just that, which is nice of her. Randy shyly states to me as she slowly lets go of my shirt before trying to straighten what she was holding so tightly in her shirt-wrinkling grip. "I'm sorry... You just... I don't know... I... Feel comfortable... with you." She says, pushing herself away from me, looking reluctant the entire time, while not making any eye contact, as if she is embarrassed of her natural reactions to me.

"It's ok... I don't mind, I swear... I'm just happy you're ok... I was worried." I say back as she nods and then glances back up at me. I do what I can't seem to resist at the moment, and that is to ask about this. "Does that happen every night?" She looks surprised by my blunt question but sadly nods as I feel my chest compressing at that thought.

"Have they been happening for a while," I ask, and she softly replies under her breath. "Years now that I know of... That's when I was told about my screaming." I understand that, so I nod. "Does that have to do with your bruises?" I ask, taking a huge leap out there, hoping she doesn't push me away, then run full speed.. again.. it might be way too soon for a conversation like that.

She self-consciously covers her stomach, causing me to feel awful about me pushing into her life, making me feel as if I need to backtrack so I don't make her feel worse. "I wasn't like... looking for it... I just saw it as I was laying the blanket on you." I reply as innocently as I can. She just looks at me and then at the floor before she whispers out. "Some of it has to do with the dreams." I keep nodding casually, trying to help her feel as comfortable with me as she can. "Ok.." I say, getting ready to ask more into it, but I see her gaze leave mine and then look behind me. I hear the thumps of my sister's feet approaching.

"Here's your plate, Cass... how about we play some music since the fire is on." I nod at her as I turn my back to Randy, leaning up against the couch that she is lying on. I look back at her in my peripherals. "Just lay back down and get some sleep... You're safe here." I say to her as she nods and lays down, pulling the blanket up and over her body, straight to her chin.

Once she looks comfortable, I turn back, grabbing my food and eating. Trying to be as casual as possible. I feel eyes on me, so I glance up looking at my sister, who looks intrigued but doesn't say anything. She eats her food as I do the same while we listen to the music and fire that play a song together, making the room comforting in more ways than one.

We finish cleaning our plates as we sit back watching the flames dance to the music. I always loved my sister's flames better than anyone else who makes them. Hers always seem to look like they're dancing, no one else's just hers. I don't want to stare at Randy and make her uncomfortable, but it's been a little while since she made a sound.. I'm curious if she is asleep again. I slowly turn around, trying to be as quiet as possible. I can feel her breath fanning off of my cheek as I notice she is passed out directly behind me. I smirk to myself before turning back to look at the fire.

"So I know this is the crazy part of the day.. but other than this, how was it? Did you end up going?" She asks me, and I know exactly what she is talking about. "What do you think?" I ask as she scoffs loudly, but I shush her before she wakes Randy up.

"You went there?!" She whines out, hitting her feet on the floor hating that I gave her the time of day. "Of course I went there... what else would you have expected from me? I needed the closure." I state as if it's obvious.

"She doesn't deserve to talk to you and know how much you're affected by her actions, no matter how long it's been.. She can't be trusted she has lied to you so many times while she was cheating on you.. and she might have stolen your job!" She explains this as if I didn't already know it.

"Well, I'll find out how they want to handle this.. But she doesn't have a job anymore, apparently... when I punched my boss for sleeping with my lady at the time.. I guess it opened a whole can of problems for the herbology center. That's why I haven't heard anything from any of them.. I got my order to stay away as an internal investigation is done.. but supposedly they will contact me after.. But Bindy said that she was let go the next day.. and she apologized and talked about how much she missed me and didn't mean to.. that she just wanted the promotion, and that was her way of getting it, I guess.. but somehow, it was still a mistake." I declare casually, not trying to care, but we both know I'm still hurt by it.

"Please tell me you don't believe any of that." She begs of me as I nod at her. "I don't.. I know since she was so willing to throw everything out for a promotion that I mean nothing to her.. but that's the closure I needed... I told her not to talk to me anymore and have a good life." I explain to her as she nods and thinks about that. "Good, I'm glad to hear that.. I always hated her... and so did mom." I nod and chuckle at that. "Ya, mom won't keep telling me that she is happy that I'm done with her and keeps reminding me of the ways she hurt me so I won't be tempted to go back.. But I keep telling her I don't want to go back.. and today, talking with her proved that to myself, too."

She pats me on the shoulder as she stands up. "Well, I'm so happy to hear that... and, this was interesting, to say the least... but I'm exhausted and need some sleep... are you headed to bed?" Winnie asks me as I nod, but stay where I'm at. "Are you going too?" she asks curiously. I shake my head. "No, I'm going to sleep out here," I say as she puts her hands on her hips and glares at me.

"She says she feels comfortable around me and I don't want her to be scared if she wakes up again... So I'm going to stay on the floor... I'll be fine right here for a night. Night sis." I say as I snap my fingers to get my pillow and blanket from my bed. They appear on my lap as I wave over my shoulder at her until her footsteps leaving the room is all that's heard besides the popping of the fire.