Chapter Ninety-Six

                                    

                                          
The sun is rising in the distance over the water of the lake, which is part of why Cassandra came to sit out here despite how chilly it is. She has wrapped herself in a sweater and has a mug of coffee held between her hands. It's so peaceful out here. So peaceful that she can almost forget about everything that's going on. Everything that has happened to her. Almost. She doubts she is ever going to be able to fully forget about dying. She can always feel it in her chest. Like an ache always there. She knows it hasn't been too long but she doesn't think that it is going to go away any time soon. It feels like it is an ache meant to last. A reminder of what she's gone through. She rests her mug on her knee to reach a hand to her chest. To draw her fingers across the space where Klaus tore out her heart. There is no scar, no mark to show what occurred, the spell that brought her back saw to that but she knows that it happened. She shakes her head and wraps her hand back around her mug. She is here to deal with what she went through and that means dealing with that ache. If it is always going to be there, then she is going to have to get used to it. She jolts a little when her cell phone pings with the arrival of a text message. She sets her mug down to check it. A message from Damon. She smiles a little and pushes herself to her feet. After her astral projection attempt yesterday, she wants to give it another shot. Though with an altered spell this time. Something that will use up less energy. She's spent the morning trying to work out the specifics and she wants to experiment with it. If it is going to drain her as much as it did yesterday, then it is not worth it. There has to be some middle ground.
........
The candles are still set up from yesterday, so with a wave of her hand, Cassandra lights them as she heads to the pile of pillows set up for her to sit on. She sits, crossing her legs to get into position, resting her wrists on her knees with her fingers pressed together. She lets out a breath and then inhales deeply. One breath after the other as she calms herself, reaching for her magic. Red mist sparks around her fingers as she begins to levitate.
......
Cassandra appears in the living room of the boarding house, where Damon is sitting on the couch with a drink clasped in his hand. He glances at her as he sees her form flickering in and out, the spell taking hold. She gives him a soft smile but he doesn't return it. After she left earlier, everything went wrong. That is one downside to Cassandra not being here. Their plans all suck and they have trouble doing anything without her guidance. He's joked about it a lot, but she is the best at planning.
"What's wrong?" She asks.
"I screwed up" He admits, setting his head back against the couch. "Told Sage what our plan was with the wood. I thought she wanted to help, but..." He snorts and rolls his eyes. Annoyed at himself.
"She went to Rebekah instead" Cassandra realises and Damon hums in agreement. He lifts his head to look across at her. Her visage is slightly more translucent this time around. Less magic pushed into it, and less need for her to appear fully here. Damon knew she was astral projecting, but Rebekah didn't.
"They burnt all the wood" He adds with a sigh. "I'm sorry, I really thought she was going to help, but it turns out she's got a thing for Finn" He groans. "Between Ally and Sage....." He complains.
"Have you heard from her?"
"No" He answers and shrugs a little. None of them were really expecting to considering she now has what she wanted. Kol. Hopefully, it means that the two of them have gone off to be far away from the drama. Doubtful. But they can hope. "I'll text her later" He leans forward onto his knees. "As nice as this is" He admits looking at her. "Kinda miss being able to touch you"
"I know" She assures him, moving closer to him. "I'm working on figuring it out" She crouches in front of him and hovers her hand over his cheek. The only downside of the astral projection is that she can't touch anything including Damon. Finding comfort in the quiet moments is something they have always done. But right now, neither of them can get that. The front door opens and closes before Elena appears in the doorway. There is a moment where she seems surprised to find Cassandra here before it fades. Cassandra stands and shifts away from Damon who rolls his eyes at the appearance of Elena.
"You're home?" Elena asks and then realises that her sister isn't fully there.
"Astral projection" Cassandra answers. "I'm still at the lake house....." She shifts closer to Damon. "With a bit of magic, I can project my astral form here, cheaper than a phone call, plus you know that the lake house doesn't always have service"
"Well, whatever" Elena mumbles and shakes her head. "You need to come back" Elena scolds her. Damon scoffs and rolls his eyes. He understands and supports Cassandra's desire for personal time away from excess drama. Picking and choosing what she involves herself in to keep herself involved but not overwhelmed. Cassandra snorts and raises an eyebrow at her sister.
"Elena, I died and I didn't deal with that" Cassandra reminds her. "And everything that has happened since has just been piling up behind it. If I don't take this time to work through all of that, then in a week, a month, or a year, I might buckle under it and then I will be no good for anyone.....I am sure whatever it is that is going on, you can deal with it without me" Cassandra flickers when she stands and then sighs. "I am not going to apologise for taking time to look after myself" She rushes out for Elena and then turns to Damon. "I'll call you later" He nods softly at her, understanding that she is losing control of her spell. Cassandra then disappears. Elena clenches her jaw before she turns to Damon.
"And you're okay with this?" Elena asks him. Damon scoffs as he pushes himself to his feet.
"I hate her being away" Damon offers. "But it's her choice and she needs this" He steps closer to Elena. "After everything you've done to her, you don't get to scold her on this" He starts to leave the room. "Or have you conveniently forgotten that her death was partly your fault?" He asks her, giving her a look before he leaves the room.