It’s the unknown that draws people

Cassandra "Cassie" Cresswell. 26. Archaeologist. Explorer. Witch. Original Hybrid. var sc_project=11275944; var sc_invisible=1; var sc_security="af59b68a"; var scJsHost = (("https:" == document.location.protocol) ? "https://secure." : "http://www."); document.write("");

[cassandracresswell]

mendozaxmaya‌

Maya was horribly singing along to Taylor Swift loud and drunkenly, swaying along to the songs. She didn’t like Taylor Swift that much, but she didn’t care as she sang, danced and nearly fell on her ass. She turned to the person and just raised her glass as she sang again. ‘What’s your favorite Taylor song?” she shouted over the music as she went back to singing horribly again.

As the music festival went on Cassie was able to get used to the booming music, large crowds, and everything that came along with it. Now she could enjoy herself without getting a splitting headache for staying around more than an hour. She smiled at Maya when the woman turned to her. “Shake it off! It’s so uplifting, I love it! I hope she plays it, I know it’s not one of her new ones anymore.”

[cassandracresswell]

pippawilde‌

Pippa was finally back to letting loose, her siblings doing their own thing and their parents being their usual wrecked selves meant that Pippa zero cares. She downed another shot, the music pulsing through her veins as she allowed the alcohol to hit her system. “Another!” she demanded, not even sure if there was even anyone around her at the time, “I need another, and then I wanna dance.”

“Do I get one too?” Cassie came up beside her friend, weaving through the crowd until she came to a stop right next to Pippa. “I’ll only take one, I pinky promise. I double pinky promise that I’ll dance the night away with you.” She was hoping the little bit of alcohol would take the edge of her senses. Monster Jam was always so much more overwhelming than the town’s other events.

[cassandracresswell]

warricrwclf‌

If there was one thing Gemma enjoyed, it was a good party. If Monster Jam was anything, it was one big massive party. As soon as she’d arrived at the event, she grabbed a cheap beer from one of the stands and moved in the direction of whatever music piqued her interest. She was in front of one of the stages, dancing to her hearts content when she spotted someone nearby. “Come on, grump! It’s not a party if you’re just standing there!” So, maybe she’d already had a few drinks before showing up, but who could really blame her?

Monster Jam was louder and busier than any of the other events that Hollow Grove hosted. Far more supernatural’s came from around the world to take part in the festival. It meant a countless amount of overwhelming new sounds and smells. Even though she was certain that her control wasn’t about to slip the original hybrid still needed to take a moment to try and refocus. She wasn’t paying attention to a thing that was happening, instead trying to tune everything out, and then Gemma was beside her. A small smile spread across her lips. “I’m enjoying the moment. Living in the present. You know, the thing everyone is telling us to do these days.” 

[cassandracresswell]

amberhorne‌

@cassandracresswell

“I never really had the chance to do this before.” Amber began, placing the plate of cookies, store bought of course, on the coffee table that sat in front of the couch. Grabbing the remote, she moved around to take a seat next to her friend and offered the other a smile. “Never really got the chance.” It was a lie. She had never done the whole…movie girls night thing before mainly because she had never really had friends. Even in New York, friendship was a strange and foreign concept to her, though she had been working on it. And Cassie? Cassie was easy to be friends with. Kind and thoughtful, always easy to talk to. Amber very much so trusted the other woman and was comfortable being around her in a way that she wasn’t with most people. “So I’m really excited! Which movie do you want to start with?”

“You haven’t?” Growing up with three sisters Cassie had experienced many different girls nights, including nights that didn’t end until the very early hours of the morning. She didn’t press or question why, she simply made a resolve that she’d invite Amber for even more movie nights until the other woman became sick of them. “Then it’s settled, we’re doing weekly to make up for lost time. We can even have themes! Romcoms one week, scary movies next week, action movies where the poster has a huge explosion they’re all looking away from the week after.” She giggled at her own joke, leaning forward to pluck a cookie off the plate. “Let’s start with Get Smart, that one’s hilarious.” 

[cassandracresswell]

pippawilde‌

Her mom being back in town had brought up a lot of feelings, and the fact that she had actually not bailed yet was disconcerting to the woman. She was trying hard to retain some normalcy, despite the fact that the Wilde house of their childhood had returned in full force, with Ray and Martha’s parties back, and Pippa trying to spend her time keeping Aly out of it. Her brothers seemed to be a lost cause, Matthew and Cameron living for the chaos that their parents brought down on the family. But Pippa only remembered the issues they brought, the drama, the heartbreak when it all came crashing down. So, when Aly was occupied elsewhere, Pippa did what she did best: she worked. Leaning on the counter of the apothecary, she was flipping through the sales receipts to track what they’d made when she heard the doorbell indicating that someone had walked in. “Hey! How are you doing today? Do you need any help?”

“Yes, I need a tour of the whole place. Top to bottom.” Cassie teased. She tried to keep a serious expression on her but it fell apart within thirty seconds. In its place, a wide smile spread across her lips. Coming into the Apocrathy used to make Cassie’s heart ache, each item she used to frequently buy a painful reminder that she was no longer a witch. But she’d come to terms with the fact that she was no longer a witch. Now she could come into the store without batting an eye. “I was passing by and wanted to pop in, say hi, save you from any crazy customers and see if there’s anything new I could grab for Issy.”

[emmasawyer]

@cassandracresswell

[cassandracresswell]

kitsiparker‌

Enchanted Gardens was somewhere Kitsi felt like she never got to visit enough; there was just something calming about standing amongst the colourful blooms scattered throughout the shop.  When she had taken over running the hotel she had considered letting the bouquets within die naturally, but her parents who still lived onsite would never let it happen.  Finally though it was time for a fresh set and she let out a sigh as she looked about her.  “You know I never really know where to start with all this choice.” 

The last thing that Cassie needed to do was buy more plants but that’s exactly what she was doing back in Enchanted Gardens. She was going back and forth between two potted plants. When she’d come in Cassie had told herself she could only leave with one more plant but that resolve was quickly crumbling. “Neither do I. I’ve already got way too many flowers. I told myself I’d only get one more, half of the rooms at my house are full of them by now. But that just means the other half still needs flowers right?”

[cassandracresswell]

untriggeredtessahastings‌

Tessa eagerly waited in line for one of her favorite Carnival rides–The Twister. Truly, she likes all of the fun thrill rides, but the Twister held a special spot in her heart. She could remember making her dad ride it until he threw up… Honestly, she wished he were still around so she could tease him about it. Still, she didn’t let the memory discourage her from riding it. As she made her way towards the front of the line, she realized that the person behind her would probably be stuck riding with her. She turned around, offering them an easy smile. “Are you a screamer?” she asked, referring to how people respond to the rides. “I tend to laugh a lot when the adrenaline hits, so apologizes ahead of time for how that sounds.”

Cassie was trying her best to enjoy the carnival. This year her control was far better than it had been in the past. All the sights and sounds were constantly hitting her senses but it wasn’t getting to the point where she felt overwhelmed. Eventually, she let herself get in line for a ride, picking The Twister on a whim. “I don’t know if this is going to freak you out but I haven’t been on a ride like that since I was turned.” She admitted to Tessa with a sheepish smile. “There’s a very good chance I’m just going to freeze and make no sound at all.”

[cassandracresswell]

danielle-onthego‌

There was light jazz playing in the background, the block party had just begun and it was a band playing, possibly as a warm-up for the crowd, before the more upbeat people took the stage. Danielle secretly enjoyed that kind of music, it had always brought her to a more calm state of her mind and simply allowed her whole body to destress. She walked up to the nearest stand, just flicking through some gadgets as she waited for a place to free, so she could sit an enjoy the music more. She didn’t exactly see what she was looking at, so she was taken almost by surprise when she felt someone tugging the thing. “Hey!” She muttered.

There was so much going on around her Cassie didn’t know where to focus her attention. Her attention was focused on a group playing a game nearby, a smile on her lips as she watched them laugh and have fun. At Dani’s exclamation, she pulled her hand back from the object. “Oh my gosh, I’m so sorry! I wasn’t paying attention at all.” She started to apologize immediately, taking a step back to show she wasn’t going to keep trying to take it. “Even with heightened senses, I don’t know what’s going on around me.” She made a half-hearted joke.

[cassandracresswell]

theresaxrutherford‌

“Tell me this is the best or worst idea you’ve ever heard,” Theresa told her companion after setting down the huge folder on the table. “I’ve been thinking about doing my own wine-just one, I don’t wanna do a whole set of them, but just one, a nice little red wine.”

“A good idea! You should absolutely try it. It gives you the chance to do something new. And you can make a couple different ones even if you only plan on settling with one, just to try them and get to experiment with a few different flavours.” Cassie didn’t know much other than the very basics when it came to making wine but she couldn’t see a reason why Theresa shouldn’t try it.

[cassandracresswell]

emmasawyer‌

“I thought that werewolf powers meant that struggling with corks were a thing of the past,” she muttered with an irritated frown, a light growl passing her lips as she struggled with the cork stopping her from relaxing after a long day with a glass of wine like she’d planned. “This is why I usually stick to spirits,” she grumbled. 

“I think it just means you’re better at breaking the top of the bottle off when taking out the cork doesn’t work.” She teased, holding out her hand to take the bottle of wine from Emma. “There’s a trick to it, or so they say. Maybe youtube will help us figure it out.” 

[cassandracresswell]

ohastings‌

“I don’t think it’s naive,” Oliver shook his head, furrowing his eyebrows. He wasn’t smiling anymore, thinking of distant memories. A younger him, annoyed and restless when his mother stopped to talk to people in the street, seemingly uncaring about the groceries he held in his hand. She’d had nothing but quiet disappointment in him whenever Colton had brought him home from another shenanigan. She’d remembered so many details about all of her children, understanding they weren’t all the same. 

Fiona Hastings had done it because that was the way she’d been raised, presumably, the way she’d tried to raise her children ( they hadn’t all listened— he was proof). Cassandra Cresswell, on the other hand, used kindness not as a default measure, but as a choice. “You’re going to break, someday,” Oliver told her. “If you keep holding on to your kindness that way, and tie your entire identity to it, then someday you’re going to let it go and spin out. There’s gotta be more to you than how nice you are to people.” 

Cassie watched the way his expression changed, how his eyes were distance like he was watching something far away instead of what was in front of them. She wondered what memories he was lost in, and nearly asked him. But she caught herself before the question could fully form on her lips. Was it a step too far? She was still afraid that saying one wrong thing would make him realize he was out of his mind for getting close to her after what she’d done to him.

“Maybe.” Her lips twisted into a small frown. Twice she nearly had, probably more than that if she was honest with herself. And that’s why she’d told Dara it was okay to sink her to the bottom of the ocean, seal her in a pit with concrete or do whatever was most effective when the day came. “Probably. Maybe one day I’ll feel safe enough to start travelling again. I still want to be an archaeologist.” Maybe in a few centuries when the artefacts were time periods she’d lived through Cassie would lose interest. “I guess I’m still trying to figure out who I am now. More than two years and I don’t really know.”

[cassandracresswell]

corarcand‌

Coralie wasn’t sure if it was a person, or a pile of books addressing her. She met the pair of eyes peering over the top, and offered a wide grin. It wasn’t often that her love of books was matched, or rather matched so obviously. She’d never fault anyone who couldn’t pick just one, who’d happily get lost in between the pages and tumble out the other side looking for more. It was a miracle Coralie only had one book, and hadn’t found herself in a similar situation.

“Please, you’re not disturbing me.” She made room in the aisle, pressing her back against the shelf from which she’d pulled her own book. Her brow furrowed, her bemused look softened by a smile. “While I don’t actually believe there’s such a thing as overboard, not when it comes to reading, that is quite the endeavor. You sure you can tackle all of that?”

To avoid causing an absolute disaster she carefully set the stack of books that she’d been carrying on the nearest flat surface. Making her way through the shelves without bumping into someone or something and starting a chain reaction of events that ended with every bookshelf on the floor had been a mini-miracle. She placed her hand on top of the small stack, leaning back enough so she could read the titles on the spines of the books.

“No, definitely not.” She laughed, admitting the truth. “I’ll probably end up putting more than half of them back. Most of the time I’m really good at making decisions, but not when I’m in a book store apparently. Have you read any of these? Maybe that’ll help make my decision a little easier.”

[cassandracresswell]

ryan-carrcll‌

“Figure I’m pretty used to heat,” he shrugged with a grin. After all, Ryan did run a bit hotter than most creatures. “Give me dry heat any day of the week. At least it’s somethin’ you can breathe in. Humidity, though?” He shook his head. “Nah, fuck that stuff. It’s the worst.”

“So if you can’t stand it then the rest of us will almost certainly be puddles.” The heat was something Cassie had been forced to get used to while doing research in the tropics, but almost all the tolerance had disappeared in the years since she’d come back to town. “Oh yeah, I agree one hundred percent. Once, I was in the Amazon. It was so humid I wasn’t sure if my hair was wet from sweat or from the moisture in the air. It was awful.” She shuddered at the memory. “I think the ocean keeps things pretty regulated here.” 

[cassandracresswell]

corarcand‌

There was something about bookstores; something even better about small, privately-owned bookstores. It was in the smell of dust and paper, and they way odds and ends could be found tucked in various corners, or wedged on unlikely shelves. Coralie loved it when there were as many tables stacked with crooked book towers as there were bookshelves. She loved it when the edges of the pages were turning yellow with age, and the corners were dog-eared and well-loved. Coralie loved bookstores.

Which is why it was no surprise to find her spending a late Thursday evening at Wicked Good Books, tucked back in the stacks with her fingers running lightly along the spines of the fiction section, a content smile on her face. It was just the right kind of quiet, only the occasional shuffle and ring of the front door’s bell to signal other customers coming and going breaking the silence. It left room for her to wonder; wonder about the new town she’d found herself in, and all of the little pieces she’d explored that made it what it is.

And how this was probably one of her favorite pieces so far, in the running with the historical museum, and the university. For the first time since she’d arrived, her shoulders dropped, the tension eased, and she pulled a book off the shelf, just getting lost in the intro to an old Brontë novel when the ring of the bell pulled half of her attention.

Cassie was a firm believer in the statement that there was no such thing as too many books. Every few weeks, if not sooner, she was back in the bookstore looking for something new. Most of the time it was before she’d managed to finish the ones she previously bought. When she couldn’t travel reading was her form of going on an adventure. With her belief she’d be able to keep control firmly shaken she wasn’t about to leave Hollow Grove anytime soon and that meant more books were her only way of going on a trip.

She made her way through the many shelves of books, picking a few out to skim the back cover before either placing them back or keeping it in her arm. By the time she made it to the back in search of a quiet place to read through the first couple pages of each book to decide what she wanted to keep, both her arms were completely full. When she made eye contact with Coralie she gave a small, sheepish smile. “I may have gone a little bit overboard. I promise I’ll be quiet, I won’t disturb you.”

[cassandracresswell]

ryan-carrcll‌

Padding to a halt at the edge of the sidewalk, Ryan pulled out his headphones and hooked them against the collar of his sleeveless shirt. “You know,” he begins, taking a deep breath to try and calm his rapidly beating hear. “This weather is so much nicer than Cali. Running outside in July would be a death sentence.”

“I think you’re the first person today that, no this week, that hasn’t told me it’s too hot.” Cassie laughed. She was just happy for the sun, thrilled that it wasn’t rainy or gloomy. The winter had dragged on forever and now she was going to take full advantage of the warm temperatures. “Do you like humid heat or dry heat?”

[cassandracresswell]

auggiegraves‌

“Yeah, I guess you’re right there.  They always say you should just canon dive in so it hits you all at once.  Lord knows I’ve done it plenty of times myself,” he agreed.  With the heat the water had warmed against his skin and he was already struggling to remember why it would be a bad idea to pour the rest of the water over him.  “Maybe I should head to the Falls…” 

“The falls is a great idea.” Cassie was quick to endorse it. She spent plenty of her summers at the falls, nearly more time than she spent in the pool at her parent's old house. “The walk will feel like it takes three lifetimes but once you get there, it’ll all be worth it. You should make a whole day out of it.”