Sprawled in front of her favorite spot on the rug in front of the fireplace, Nova lay on her belly while Potato curled into a tight ball, resting on her back. The soft pressure of the sleeping kitten on her back had lulled Nova into a nap despite having woken only a couple of hours ago.
"She is exhausted," Rhysand chuckled as he stood with Feyre, Az, and Cas on the lip of the sitting room, "Who would have thought Ana could tire her out."
As it turned out, the governess was not one to sit for too long, and Nova had happily adopted task after task. Singing, dancing, sewing, or creating something chaotically inspiring from random art supplies. The joy in the activity usually outweighed the exhaustion, but it was Saturday. Ana was in her cottage today, and Nova deserved a break. At least, Feyre thought so.
Cassian, on the other hand, had another idea.
"Hey, Nova," Cas called to her, smirking as she twitched but didn't turn to look at him. "Want to go practice with your dagger?"
Slowly, Nova turned her head with a quipped brow. He'd gained her attention, and now he grinned and said, "Come on, just for a few minutes before lunch."
With considerable effort, Nova dragged herself from the comfort of her rug, leaving Potato snuggled into its fluffy fibers. She glanced over her shoulder and frowned with envy.
"We'll practice inside," Cas offered gently with a sympathetic smile, "So you don't have to be cold." As Cassian turned and left, Nova followed, leaving everyone in the sitting room as they sat around the coffee table to talk.
It wasn't until they entered a little indoor sparring area that some of Nova's energy started to return. Looking around, she inhaled the details of the room. She'd seen the door in passing but had never gone in, as Cassian had kept a lock on it. The door that had once been off limits hung open, and her uncle beckoned her to enter.
The scent of old rubber and dried sweat made Nova wrinkle her nose in distaste as she entered the mostly padded room. Various equipment hung securely to the surrounding walls, and while the space wasn't huge, it was big enough to house a weightlifting area, and- Nova gasped at the sight of the rock-climbing wall.
Cas chuckled as he nodded, hands on his hips, "I thought you might like that, but let's work on wielding a dagger first. When we're finished, then you can climb."
Huffing a sigh, Nova nearly crumpled to the ground, arms hanging loose at her sides with disappointment. Cas only chuckled as he crossed the room to a massive metal cabinet and pulled the squeaky-hinged door open to reveal a collection of blades. With interest, Nova moved closer. The weapons in the cabinet differed from those on the walls, mainly consisting of wooden poles and war hammers.
Turning her attention back to Cas, she watched him close and lock the swords and daggers securely behind the confines of the cabinet. Nova's interest wasn't completely lost as Cassian approached her, holding a long wooden box. With a tilt of her head, she eagerly watched him pull the lid back. A grin graced her lips as she gazed down at the familiar dagger. She'd first set her eyes on it only a week ago, during Solstice- it was the gift he'd given her.
Nova reached forward, but Cassian pulled back. "Nova, these are weapons, which are to be treated seriously and respectfully."
Tilting her head, she smiled at him, oblivious to his warning.
"I'm going to teach you how to wield this dagger because if you should ever need to defend yourself, we want you to have the skill to do so safely. Okay?"
"Okay," Nova repeated.
Pursing his lips, Cas nodded, glanced down at his belt, and frowned. He reached around himself and sighed. "I forgot the scabbard for it," he said, turning. He walked to the cabinet and set the wooden box on top before turning to Nova. "I'll be right back. You can climb on the wall, okay?"
"Okay," Nova repeated. Again.
The moment Cassian left the room, Nova started skipping toward the rock climbing wall but stopped short as a curious thought entered her mind.
That dagger was dangerously shiny and new.
Chewing her lower lip, Nova glanced at the doorway Cassian had disappeared through before she tip-toed across the padded ground and stepped in front of the cabinet. Reaching her arms up, she couldn't quite reach the wooden box, though her fingertips just skimmed the front edge of the box. Nova stretched to stand on the tips of her toes and tried again, brushing the outer edge again, with just enough purchase to slide the box to the far left side of the cabinet. From there, she extended her arms again and snagged it from the edge with a satisfied grin.
"Hmm." Nova hummed softly as she opened the box and withdrew the dagger. It looked similar to the knives in the kitchen that Elain showed her at the House of Wind. She'd used the word sharp continuously. Letting the box drop to the ground, Nova examined the intricate instrument. Gliding her finger against the blade, she let out a soft gasp as a sharp, burning pain sizzled through her body. Frowning, she stared at her hand and watched the blood run down the length of her finger, down her hand, and dripped onto the floor. "Oh…" She murmured before bending down, reaching for the wooden box that would house the dangerous artifact.
"NOVA!" Cassian's bellowing roar shook Nova to her core.
Trembling the dagger in her hands, she tried to stop herself from dropping it, afraid it would fall onto her bare foot, and grabbed the blade. Hissing from the sting, she fumbled the dagger again, and this time, it did fall, catching the meat of her left thigh, sliding briefly down her calf in a skid, narrowly missed her ankle, then clattered to the ground.
Cassian charged forward; his brow set into a deep scowl as he curled his lip and shouted, "I TOLD YOU-" His eyes widened as he took in her fearful expression. Nova, dripping in blood, stared up at him as though he were a monster from her nightmares.
"Nova…" Cassian tried again more calmly as he stepped toward her, hand outstretched, but Nova, heart hammering against her ribs, ducked away from his reach and took off at a full sprint. Losing purchase on the floor, she slipped on her own blood, colliding with Rhysand at the door before she could make her escape.
"What's going on?" Feyre asked, ducking under his arm to take the scene with wide, wild eyes. They'd heard Cassian first, but now the assaulting scent of Nova's blood was everywhere. "What the hell happened?!"
Despite her injuries, Nova squirmed against her father's hold, and it was because of her injuries that Rhys didn't keep a tight hold on her. Afraid he'd hurt her if he did. A second later, Nova managed to squeeze out of his grip and bolt down the hallway, where she disappeared into her room.
Throwing open the window seat, Nova swiftly hunkered down inside and closed the lid with a resounding bang. Inside, in the dark, she took slow, deep breaths as her body shook and goosebumps covered her flesh. It took a long minute for her heart to quiet enough to feel past the panic and realize the sharp burn trailed up her leg and into her hands. Only when the pain turned into a throbbing ache did tears fall down her cheeks.
"What. Happened." Feyre asked Cassian again, staring at the Illyrian Warrior, one of her best friends, standing in a trail of her daughter's blood.
Cassian's features crumpled into regret as he shook his head, feeling the heavy weight of their stares on him was worse than any injury he'd sustained in the past. "I scared her…" A muscle feathered in his clenched jaw as he took in a deep breath. "I caught her holding the dagger when I told her not to touch it and…"
Running his hand down his face, Rhys nodded, though he said nothing to Cassian. He said out loud, "Az, call Madja. I'll check on Nova…" He turned without another word and walked down the hall toward Nova's room, leaving Cas and Feyre in the training room.
"I'm sorry, Feyre…" Cassian whispered in a broken voice. "I…" He trailed off and swallowed back the lump in his throat. "I wasn't thinking, I shouldn't have charged in like that…"
Taking a slow, deep breath inward, Feyre nodded. "I think we all know Nova can create trouble when she can't find it," she rubbed the space between her eyes, "Yeah, you could have handled it differently, but," she loosed another sigh to calm the rage that stormed within, the maternal rage that couldn't see justification. "It could have very easily happened with anyone."
Feyre frowned at the despair in Cassian's eyes.
"I shouted at her the first time we met her," Feyre reminded him gently, "Remember when she almost touched the bonfire? I scared her away, too."
"She wasn't holding a weapon at the time, Feyre."
"It's not about that," she shook her head and sighed, walking toward him to place a hand on his shoulder, "You acted out of instinct to protect her. What happened can't be changed, but she needs to see you're still her uncle Cassian, who loves and protects her."
A feral scream ripped through the townhouse, and Feyre cringed and said, "I imagine Madja is here."
Azriel and Rhysand had to pry Nova from her hiding place in the window seat, which had been the equivalent of bathing a cat. In their wrestling match to subdue her, Rhys and Az were not unscathed. They both sported claw marks against their face and neck, covered in her blood from the transfer of her soaked clothing.
Eventually, Feyre and Mor, who Az had also called for assistance, held Nova in place as Madja guided Nova's mouth to the tonic that would ease her pain. In the time it took for Nova to finally relax against the now-stained mattress, everyone was in shambles.
How could one girl create so much damage?
"She's our daughter," Rhys replied with a crooked smile.
Nova wasn't asleep, but she may as well have been with how still she was. While the boys cleaned the training room, Feyre and Mor cleaned the bloody footprints that led to Nova's bedroom and helped Madja clean Nova herself. She didn't object but let out an occasional whine when Madja dabbed something stinging against her open wounds.
"She'll need time to rest," Madja said as she closed off the last bit of exposed flesh.
Feyre tore her attention away from Nova's right leg, which had already scarred over from the bear trap those few short months ago.
"Feyre," Madja said gently, smiling, "Nova will be okay. Her injuries are superficial; the dagger didn't cut deep enough to cause any real damage, but she'll have pain for some time. I can leave the tonics on the nightstand."
Swallowing harshly, Feyre nodded with a tight-lipped smile. "Thank you…" She glanced up at a hulking figure in the doorway. Smiling gently at Cassian, she pursed her lips, "Hey…" Madja left before Feyre could continue. Waiting until she and Mor were gone, she said, "You talked to Rhys?"
Cassian nodded and rubbed the back of his neck. "He pretty much said the same thing you did," he let out a heavy sigh, "Still feel like shit thought." Frowning, he looked down at Nova, who was awake and staring at the window. The impression of her bloody handprints was still part of the cushion.
"I think you should take this one," Feyre said as she stood, leaving them to join the others.
Cassian waited a moment, internally willing Nova to look his way. When she didn't, he shook his head and crossed around her bed to stand, where she vacantly stared. But when he settled in front of her line of sight, she turned her head to stare the other way.
"Really?" Cas asked, unable to stop a small smile from curving his lips. He started to return to the other side of her bed, but as she had done before, she turned her head to look the opposite way. "Nova…" Cassian frowned before sinking to his knees at her bedside. "How am I supposed to apologize if you won't look at me?"
With slow reluctance, Nova turned her head just enough to give him a side-eyed glance. Cas didn't miss how her lower lip trembled, nearly breaking his soul in two. His heart ached as heat gathered behind his eyes.
"I never wanted you to be afraid of me," Cassian's voice was a gentle caress, "I'm sorry I frightened you…" He frowned when she still didn't look at him. "You scared me too, you know."
Finally, Nova turned her head enough to look at her uncle, hesitating, ready to turn back if she saw any hint of the rage returning. The memory of him rushing toward her, face flushed and teeth bared, resurfaced. Tears brimmed her eyes as she searched his face for the man who had sent her running in a blind panic.
"I'm so sorry, Nova," Cas whispered. "I'm so sorry I scared you. That you got hurt." He swallowed. "I shouldn't have yelled like that, but when I told you to use the rock climbing wall, you didn't listen."
Nova frowned, her voice frayed and weak. "Sorry…" She looked down at his hands where the Siphons sat before slowly allowing herself to reach forward and touch the stone with her bandaged hands.
Furrowing his brow, Cas took her injured hands gently between his large ones. He pressed a kiss against her wrapped knuckles.
"Hm, how about this," he offered a gentle smile, "I'll try not to lose my shit, and you try not to be so mischievous."
"Ah, shit," Nova repeated, and Cas laughed, shaking his head.
"Your parents are going to actually kill me one of these days."
Nova giggled; that grin of hers spread wide, sending relief through the tightness that had settled in Cassian's chest. Leaning forward, he pressed a tender kiss to her forehead before settling in the chair next to her bed, holding her bandaged hands until she fell deeply into a dreamless sleep.