Timeline: After "Sweet Home Sleepy Hollow".
Jonas: Jonas blinked and stared at the ceiling, He never noticed just how much he could see in the dark until then. The pointy eared mutant pushed himself up from the uncomfortable stiff couch, then wiped off the dust that got on him. "Dusk?" he called, "Olly olly oxen free! Hello?!"
Cassie: A bundle of raven hair appeared from behind the doorframe lying down the hallway. "I'm over here," the girl it belonged to called back at him, her voice echoing through the old house. "Are you finally awake, sleepyhead?" She didn't wait for a reply. "Come, you've got to look at this!" And with that she disappeared again.
Jonas: Jonas stretched as he followed her, turning round the corner of the doorway and stopping for a second, not seeing or hearing her at all. "Duuuusk, where aaaare yoouuu?" he asked and started to stalk through the hallways and into one room then the other, a smirk forming as he thought he found her and then tried to give chase.
Cassie: Flitting out of view once more, she skipped from one piece of furniture to the next. A think cloud of dust filled the air when she pulled one of the white sheets off the well-worn secretaire. "Everything is how I remember it," came her excited voice. "I feel like taking a stroll through my memories."
Jonas: Jonas round the corner and smiled, waving away the dust then asked, "Want me to play the stuffy dad or the dirty old uncle?"
Cassie: Slender fingers stroked over the uneven surface, feeling every crack and splinter in the dry wood. "Why do you think my dad was stuffy?" She showed Jonas a wry little smile, even though her gaze seemed distant. "I don't think he ever was. In fact... he's rather quirky..." The next moment, her footsteps already echoed through the next room.
Jonas: Jonas quickly skipped around furniture to get to the next room, giving a cough as more dust came into the air with more furniture being uncovered. "So you want me to play the quirky dad or the dirty old uncle?" he asked. "I'm starting to think that maybe.. I'm not that much older than you. Actually... I think I should be younger than you."
Cassie: "And I think he does something with..." Her pace quickened as she aimed for the large object dominating the room. As she lifted the dusty sheets, a set of piano keys was revealed. Several were missing, having left empty gaps. "Music! Yes, that's it! He's a musician!"
Cassie: Tapping some of the keys made it painfully obvious the old instrument hadn't been tuned in a long time, but that didn't darken the girl's exhilarated mood. She looked back over her shoulder to give Jonas an appraising look, rounding it off with a smirk. "Only if you don't count the time you've been buried alive."
Cassie: Turning around, she tapped a finger against her chin, looking the pale boy up and down again. "You may be right, though," she added, before skipping past him again.
Jonas: "Well, so far we can say that talent for music skipped a generation." Jonas mocked, turning to follow Dusk again, "I wonder if I play any music." he pondered outloud.
Cassie: "Why don't you give it a try?" The girl suggested, as she dashed down the curved flight of stairs. The massive but old wooden handrail creaked ominously when she hopped up on it to slide down the rest of the way. "That's the best way to discover something about yourself!"
Jonas: He turned again to look back at the piano. Then stepped in front of the keys, and experimentally tapped at some. He cocked his head and sat down before trying out to play on it again. "And apparently I know how to play the piano... but I'm no expert."
Cassie: "Did you get lost in there," she called up the staircase, not waiting before she opened the door and slipped out the back. "You should come out into the garden." For a moment, she stood on the patio and let her gaze wander across the veritable maze left by wildly growing shrubs, small fruit trees, and crumbling walls.
Jonas: Jonas pushed himself up and closed the keys before going after Dusk again, looking at the garden. The little bit of moonlight did give it a magical feel to the wild looking garden. "Looks like you'll need ten green thumbs if you want to subdue this garden."
Cassie: "Or just another pair of helpful hands," she replied, having hopped up on one of the small stone walls to balance along its length with outstretched arms. "Why would you want to tame it, though? Isn't it just perfect the way it is?" She performed a handstand and gave Jonas an upside down smile. "I can remember all the grand adventures I had here as a child."
Jonas: "I bet you had names for each adventure as well. The tenacious tales of tetanus," Jonas joked, "The ludicrous legend of lockjaw." He stepped past the thorny bushes of some roses, finger tapping over the spiky branches. His hand jerked away when something squeaked and flapped away.
Cassie: "Don't forget the joyful journeys of the jackrabbit," she commented, now balancing on only one hand, her other limbs stretched outward. For some reason, that reminded her of something. No, someone. "Don't tell me you didn't get scrapes and bruises as a child." She snickered at Jonas. "Everyone who didn't had a boring childhood, I say."
Cassie: She performed a cartwheel to stand upright again. "There was only one time I became a little worried, and that was when I fell into our well - but it turned out alright, and that's how I learned that no matter what, somehow I'll always land on my feet in the end." Blindly somersaulting off the wall, her backwards leap took her up onto the branch of a gnarled tree.
Cassie: "See?" Flashing a grin, she held out her arms and performed a little curtsey.
Jonas: "I really can't remember any kind of injury." he said, then jumped on to the broken wall, then off of it again. He wondered for a second, then picked up a loose brick laying on the ground. He lifted it and brought it down on another brick and broke both. "Hey look, I'm strong again."
Cassie: Watching him from her high up perch, she slightly tilted her had. "I also don't feel cold and weak anymore," she said after a brief moment, turning her hands in front of herself as she studied them. Shadowy spirals played around her fingers. "In fact, I feel much more... alive."
Cassie: "And I think I know why that may be," the girl added, before turning her head to look up at the moon, shining through tattered clouds.
Jonas: "Yeah, I'm allergic to ice cream and you had a twenty four hour head cold." Jonas said, nodding. "Well, that or the sun is evil." he quickly added.
Cassie: "Why yes, of course it is!" She chuckled and shifting to sit down on the tree branch, her legs dangling in the air. "Can't you feel it? We're so much more lively in the dark." Taking a deep breath, she let her gaze wander across the wild garden and the old house. "Tell me this isn't our element."
Jonas: "I like the whole idea of seeing in the dark." Jonas added. "Oh, should we then be supervillians instead of superheros?" Jonas asked.
Cassie: "Tempting," she commented, right as she let herself tip backwards. The impending fall was prevented by her legs, bending her knees around the branch to let her swing upside-down instead. "We would make fantastic villains, don't you think?" Her raven mane swung back and forth as she revealed a mischievous grin. "You the brawn, and I the grace."
Cassie: Still dangling like a bat, she tapped a finger against her chin. "We would need a proper name, though. Something catchy, and fitting, too." She sucked on her lower lip. "How about... the Darkchild Duo?"
Jonas: "Better than The Darkies." Jonas sat down on the broken wall, "Oh oh oh, can I be... THe Shadowking... no, wait, that sounds too ridiculous."
Cassie: "Besides, that would totally be me, anyway. Just as a queen, you know?" She snickered as she commanded a shadowy tendril to curl through the air and tip Jonas's hat into his face.
Jonas: Jonas shook his head and pushed his hat back up. "Shadow...boxer?" he suggested, holding his fists up.
Cassie: "Ooh, how about... Night Thrasher?" She offered another cheeky grin, then let herself drop from the tree branch. Spinning mid-air, she managed to land on her feet. As she straightened her back, her eyes fell on the large, circular window protruding from underneath the house's roof. "...my old room."
Jonas: Jonas turned and looked up at the window. "Time for the Darkly Duo to investigate. Come Shadowqueen, to the girl's room." With that Jonas started heading back to the house.
Cassie: "Don't think only girls slept there, though." She chuckled and took after Jonas, quickly catching up to him. On their way to the door, they came past a tall sculpture made from bent, rusty wire. "This looks familiar," she commented, slowing her pace. Reaching out, she touched the cool metal with her fingertips. "Yes, my mother made this. She made all kinds of things like that."
Jonas: "...some people are too creative. How many times did you cut yourself on art whlie living here?" he asked as he turned to go on to Dusk's room. "Hey... what did you mean with not just girls slepped in your room?"
Cassie: "Maybe all those rusty spikes and sharp edges where the reason I was... " Her voice trailed off as she stared at the wooded field surrounding her old home. "...I was taken away." The rush of memories flooding her mind was almost dizzying, nearly causing her to stumble up the stairs when she blindly walked back to the house.
Cassie: She quickly shook off the troubling thoughts and focused on the path ahead. "Hm? As, that..." The frown on her face was replaced by a light-hearted grin. "I guess that's not exactly right, because there never was much sleeping going on."
Cassie: Suddenly, she started up the flight of stairs with a snicker. "Last one upstairs is a foul troll!"
Jonas: "No fair! You don't look anything like a troll!" Jonas called as he tried to keep up. THey ran in the house and up more stairs, heading straight for the one room.
Cassie: "You make the sweetest compliments," she remarked between taking breaths, both of them bounding up the stairs as their footsteps echoed through the big, empty house. Even with her head start, it quickly became apparent that he moved just that much faster than her, his scrawny legs allowing him to take long, powerful leaps.
Cassie: So she naturally did the first thing that came to her mind - and cheated. A swirl of black mist surrounded her, before the dark cloud vanished, only to reappear a moment later right in front of the door to her room.
Jonas: "No fair!" Jonas yelled when Dusk disappeared. By the time he got to the room, the door was already open. He peeked inside, "So, back to my original question, boys allowed in your room?"
Cassie: "No," the girl replied, an impish grin curling her lips. Then she reached out to take Jonas by the hands and drag him into her room. "You're not the first one I sneak up here, however. And right now, I believe there's only a very slim chance for us to get found out."
Jonas: "..oh.. um... okay." Jonas said, suddenly feeling a little weird about the situation. "So... hey... guess that's your bed then." he said as he got pulled towards there. "Um... how many guys you had in here again?"
Cassie: "For what kind of girl do you take me," she asked, looking over her shoulder with a cheeky smirk curling the corner of her mouth. "Besides, who keeps count of such things, anyway?" She strolled towards the large window, the moonlight shining through the dusty glass to bathe the room in silvery light. "A beautiful night, don't you think?"
Jonas: Jonas had to nod, then shifted a little closer to Dusk. "It sure is. I'm trying to do the math here... if the house is full of dust... and how you're how old again?" Jonas ended up next to Dusk.
Cassie: "I'm... not sure," she replied, leaning closer to the window to catch a glimpse of her reflection. "I don't look that old, do I? My parents must have left not long after I did." Cocking her head, her brow furrowed. "I wonder where they are now."
Jonas: "I'm still trying to understand how you got so many guys in here while so young." Jonas pondered outloud. He was about to sit on a chair, but it was covered in dust, so he decided to go for the bed, pulling the sheet covering it off.
Cassie: She turned around and tilted her head, offering Jonas a half-smile. "Perhaps I'm just naturally charming." Her deliberate pace slowly took her through the unevenly shaped room, the roof above lending it odd angles. The tips of her fingers brushed over the few belongings she had left behind, each one summoning vivid mental images of her past.
Cassie: "Maybe you haven't noticed yet," she continued, the faint smile turning into a shrewd grin, as she slowly stepped up behind the sitting boy. "Then again, the last couple of days have been quite exciting, haven't they?" Her fingers touched his shoulder.
Jonas: "Um... yeah, they were.. I guess." the pale mutant suddenly started getting a little more colour in his cheeks. The way she was standing so close, lightly touching him. "Are... are we... oh..." he said as he felt her fingers running along his neck, just staring up at her like a deer in headlights.
Cassie: "You wanted to know how I lured all those boys into my room, didn't you?" An impish smirk curled the edge of her lips, as she gracefully shifted on her old bed. One swift motion made her slide across his haggard legs and straddle his bony hips. "How about I show you?" Slender fingers stroked down the sides of his face and came to rest on his shoulders.
Jonas: Jonas couldn't form a single sentence. He just breathed shallow breaths, eyes darting all over her and ending up just looking at her face, and then slowly sank backwards into the soft bed while his hands came up to hold on to Dusk.
====== A couple nights and days later ======
Cassie: Vivid dreams caused a restless sleep, her slender form writhing on top the dusty mattress of her old bed. Her head turned from side to side, a bare chest heaving underneath the bleached sheets. You have slumbered long enough, lost one, the voice echoed through her mind. Time to wake up.
Cassie: The girl's eyes flew open and she rapidly sat up, a gasp coming across her lips. Strands of black hair partially concealed her pale features. Rise and shine, the familiar voice said, and she looked for its source, finding it in the form of the black raven perching on the headboard of her bed. We should go home now.
Cassie: "But I am home," the girl replied, speaking out loud as she fixed the strange bird with a confused look. Are you?
Jonas: Jonas opened his eyes, squinting them as he watched the black thing perching right above him. He mumbled and turned on his side, trying to snuggle Dusk, but she was already sitting up. "You need to make the thing talk out loud, otherwise it looks like you're talking to yourself... makes you look crazy." he told her.
Cassie: "You're right, it's not..." She muttered in response, oblivious to Jonas' presence, her gaze distant. "Not anymore..." Her eyes appeared to light up with a lively sparkle. You have found your past, now you need to reclaim your future.
Cassie: As if snapping out of a trance, she finally registered the boy lying by her side, naked just like her. A wry smile brightened her expression. "But that is exactly what I'm doing," she told Jonas, before she bent down to press a tender kiss to his lips. "Come, we need to get going now."
Jonas: Brows furrowed and he pushed himself up, "Already? I just got used to staying here. Where we going?" he asked. What little moonlight that filtered through into the room in the morning showed just how thin and wiry he was built, taught muscles quite visible under the pale skin. "Plus I thought we're night people now, sun's coming up soon." he complained.
Cassie: "Aren't you eager to see our new home?" she asked in return, an inscrutable smile playing across her lips. Holding out her hand, the black bird hopped up the length of her arm to perch on her shoulder. "A little bird whispered some secrets to me."
Jonas: "I thought this was my new home." he grumbled, making a face. "Okay, fine, where we going now?" he asked, shifting on the bed to sit more comfortably.
Cassie: She slipped out of the bed and took a couple graceful steps over their discarded garments, lying scattered about the floor. The first thing she picked up from the nearby chair was her top hat. "To Salem, of course," she replied, sending Jonas a grin over her shoulder.
Cassie: Turning around to face him, she flipped the hat up onto her head, the other hand resting on her hips. "By the way, my name is Cassandra," she revealed. "Cassandra St. Commons. You may call me Cassie."