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Cassiopeia reaches up and brushes her finger along the spot were his dimple usually sits. ”It’s always been the personality that’s attracted me,” she informs Nic. She pulls her hand back and looks away once more.

”One braid is fine, and which every is more manageable.”

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Nic can’t help the little smirk het gets as she looks away after complimenting him. “Well, it’s certainly a good thing you have both then.” He says, brushing his thumb over Cass’ cheeks.

”Alright, let’s do a Dutch braid - that should help your hair at least try to tame itself.” He gently pushes on her to sit up.

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Cass’ blushed from Nic’s comment, finding it easy to do again with him after he had been so kind and gentle with her. She pushes herself up into a seated position and grabbed a pillow to squish while Nic worked on her hair.

”Tell me more about your Kiki,” Cassi asked.

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Nic kisses Cass’ cheek before he starts sectioning off her hair, getting it ready for him to start at the top of her head. He really enjoyed that Cass referred to his little sister as ‘your Kiki’. “Well, I think I’ve told you that she was the sunshine in people’s lives, but she also had a horrid stubborn streak before the diagnosis.” He starts twisting her hair into the braid as he talks.

“See, they wanted her to become a doctor too and she flat out refused. It was quite the argument she had with my mom that day… My dad and I could only just watch as they yelled at each other. That riff quickly subsided after the diagnosis, though. My parents didn’t care what she chose to do, just that she lived. She had told me she wanted to become an artist - she wasn’t sure what kind yet but… she was already so talented, I know she would’ve made a name for herself.”

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Cass plays with the pillow case while Nic talks and braids her hair. It’s quite a simple thing, but Cassiopeia was enjoying the calming effect it was having on her.

”Do you have any of her drawing books or anything?” Cass asked Nic curiously.

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“I’m sure my dad does - my parents didn’t want to get rid of anything of hers after… she passed.” Nic says, his smile turning a bit sad as he deftly finishes off the end of the braid and wraps the band around it securely.

“I still need to ask him about what he wants to do with his shop, my parent’s house…” Nic trails off as he remembers they were going to have lunch with his dad and Kiki tomorrow, but doesn’t say anything out loud. That might need to be postponed for now.

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Cassiopeia ran her hand over the back of her hair before she turned herself around and faced Nic. She took his hands in hers, sitting close enough for her crossed legs to rest on his.

”Maybe we could show some of the finished pieces to local art galleries That would be a good way to realize Kiki’s dream for her,” Cassi suggested. As for Ren’s shop and the house, Cassi didn’t have an answer for Nic. Those things would fall the way they needed to with time.”[/color]

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Nic brushes a hand over Cass’ hair very gently, as not to cause any more frizz, before he kisses her forehead. “I think that’s a great idea.” He glances at his phone wen it lights up and sees the time. He gets up and puts the hair supplies back under the sink before he crawls into the bed, under the covers. He leans back with his arm across the bed so Cass can lay on him if she wanted to.

“Let’s get you some sleep though, okay?” He smiles.

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Cassiopeia remains seated while Nic cleans up the hair supplies. As soon as he gets back into the bed, Wayland pops up and wiggles himself onto the pillows, so he can sleep near Nic but still gives room for Cassiopeia. Calypso opted for her own space on a cusion that is on the ground.

Cassiopeia crawled over when Nic laid down, extending his arm for her. She snuggled in close and rested her cheek on his shoulder. Cass placed a kiss on Nic’s throat before she flourished her hand and the lights in her room turned off.

”Night,” she whispered.

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Nic securely wraps an arm around her when she lays on him, kissing her head when after she kisses his throat. “Good night, my little tomato.” He whispers back, running his thumb over her arm slowly. As much as he wants to wait until Cass falls asleep to slumber himself, the long day takes its toll and he’s quickly out. His breathing is steady and low as he dreams.

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Cassiopeia fell asleep with a smile on her face, wrapped in the warm embrace of Nicholas, and under the protection of her three cats. She slept deeply and for a while, but the brain had a lot of information to process.

Cassiopeia woke in the middle of the night, thoughts and visions plaguing her. She moved her head to see Nic was still with her, so she carefully moved off the bed and slipped out into the hallway. Max jumped off the chair, landing soundlessly on the floor, and followed his sorcerer through the house.

Cassi walked to her front door and opened it. She left it wide open as she descended her front steps and walked across the street in bare feet to the park. Max stopped on the front step, hopped onto the railing, and watched her. From this vantage point, he could keep an eye on Cassi while also altering Nic to his presence should the human come looking.

Cassiopeia followed a path onto the lawn, stopping when her feet sunk into the ground and she sat down. The wind greeted her as an old friend, wrapping around her in a hug before playing with her hair. It rested around her, waiting.

Wayland stirred after Cassiopeia had left. He yawned and stretched before hopping off the bed and wandered through the house. He found the front door opened and Cassi walking across the street. Wayland dashed back inside, ran up to Cassi's room, and hopped back onto the bed. Wayland started to meow and nudge Nic's arm, his face, and walked back and forth across his pillow, trying to wake him up.

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Something tickled Nic’s face and he tries to roll away from it in his sleep before realizing where he is and that the bed is missing an entire person. He sits up, taking Wayland with him. “Oh, you were the tickler I see.” He says to the cat, setting him down and following his lead. Down the stairs they went and out her open front door, noticing Max already outside.

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Max glanced over at Nic and purred before turning his head to look towards the park where Cassi was. The cat looked back at Nic before hopping off the railing and walked back into the house.

The wind shifted around Cassiopeia once Nic emerged from the house, and moved towards Nicholas. The wind greeted him much in the same way, wrapping around him once and fluffed his hair before drifting back towards the park.

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Nic can’t help but look around wide-eyed - is the wind… greeting him? He follows the breeze, chuckling softly at the notion that this element is playing with him. Soon his feet pad on the lawn as he approaches his girlfriend who sits on the ground. Nic crouches next to her, gently placing a hand on Cass’ shoulder. “Is this that ‘dancing under the moon’ thing I always hear about?” He teases in a soft whisper.

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Cassiopeia smiled, running her fingers through the grass. ”If being plagued by nightmares and waking in the middle of the night to come sit in a park is what is needed to lead to dancing under the moonlight, then yes,” Cassi said and looked up at Nic. ”Sit with me.”

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Nicholas doesn’t hesitate to join her on the grass, stretching his legs out in front of him. He uses one hand to lean on while his arm goes around Cass’ shoulders. “I know this is a silly question, but are you okay?” He turns his head to look at her.

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Cassiopeia leaned into Nic’s side when he joined her. She delayed answering his question in favour for a story. ”When we first moved to Scotland, I had a hard time staying inside. I always felt so claustrophobic. In the beginning, the coven would panic and search for me, but after a couple of months, they would send someone out to come find me, and bring me back once I was ready. I’ve always felt calmer outside and with nature. Over the years I got used to living inside, but I’d rather be outside.”

Cassi shifted and looked up at Nic. She stretched her neck and kissed his chin. Cassiopeia continued to run over her fingers over the grass and flowers started to grow. She plucked one from the ground and handed it to Nic.

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Nicholas rubs his thumb on Cass’ arm while she talks, nodding. He’s only known her a short time and understands this fact about her and her love for the outdoors. He takes the flower from her, dramatically bringing it to his nose and breathing it in. “I love the way you turn stereotypes on their heads. A novel idea, for the girlfriend to get the boyfriend flowers.” He kisses Cass’ cheek before tucking the flower behind her ear.

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Cassi laughed and rested her hand on Nic’s leg. ”I never was one for tradition,” she declared.

She fell silent, thinking about how true that statement was. If she had just listened to her grandmother, to her family, she would be with Caden right now and everyone would be alive still. Or would have been alive for longer.

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Nic places his other hand on her hand, tilting his head to rest on Cass’ head. “Penny for your thoughts?” He asks softly as he closes his eyes.

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