Samantha Cassidy

It had been a rough few weeks for Samantha, and perhaps that was the only reason that she had succumbed to the anger that Vhalla so desperately was trying to bring out in her. Perhaps it was that she couldn't remember the last time she slept through the night, and she certainly couldn't remember the last time she ate a good meal. Perhaps it was because she was sure she was going crazy. Everywhere she looked she could see their shadows. In the middle of the night she could hear their voices. She wasn't safe, and Frost had told her so. She should have always known that they would come back for her one day. And she did know that, now. All Samantha had wanted to do was be kind and loving and sweet in the way that her parents had taught her, and look at the messes it continued to get her into. She had lost her life over it, and now being sweet to Vhalla had ended up with the woman breaking into her apartment in an attempt to harm her. Someone who she had considered a friend - a best friend - had betrayed her.

Perhaps that was why she allowed her power to lash out once more. That brief second was all she needed to knock Vhalla off her feet and have her pinned to the ground. Or rather, not so much pinned as had that dagger that Vhalla had just armed her with poised at Vhalla's throat. It was only when she was sure she had the upper hand did Sam release her hold on Vhalla's emotions as her own emotions threatened to spiral out of control. She was angry, she was hurt, she was confused. But if Vhalla wanted her to harm her, then she would. Because Vhalla wanted to hurt her. Because Vhalla knew the one thing that could bring Samantha down and she... she was probably working for them. Of course she was. They would want someone close to her. Someone to sell her out and let them know exactly what it was Samantha was up to. Exactly what they could use to bring her to them. It was that alone that had her pressing that dagger down to break skin.

What she was surprised by, however, was precisely how calm Vhalla's voice was when she began to speak. Samantha's hand trembled on the dagger as she listened. "I don't believe you. I don't. I..." She started, her hand loosening near Vhalla's throat. That was what she would have to say if she worked for them. She couldn't let Samantha know that she was on to them. No... No, she'd want to continue to be Samantha's friend. "I'm not paranoid," Samantha said immediately, though she couldn't deny the way that Vhalla's words soothed her. She wasn't her enemy - but she was, she attacked her. Vhalla wanted her to attack her? That didn't make any sense. None of this made any sense and Samantha couldn't figure out what was going on. Why would Vhalla want her to harm her? Samantha didn't hurt anyone. Not on purpose.

"D... don't praise me for hurting you," She said pitifully as she allowed Vhalla to pry the blade from her fingertips. A pathetic noise escaped Samantha's throat as she scrambled backwards, putting her back against the frame of her bed. The Faerie Queen pulled her knees up to her chest, the girl breathing heavily as she struggled to understand what was going on. Her creators weren't in Sacrosanct? No, they had to be. Frost had said so. She'd seen images of them. They were watching her. "You just weren't looking good enough. They're here. The Council said so." She reached up to run a hand through her already messy hair. The Fae Queen looked manic and hysterical and frankly, she didn't care. None of this made sense. None of it fit into what she could understand. For a moment, Samantha tensed as Vhalla settled beside her, though she made no moves to pull away.

Samantha leaned forward, putting her head against her knees as she struggled to simply take deep breaths. It took several minutes before her breathing was under control and the empath was able to reclaim control of her own body. Vhalla... Vhalla didn't work for them. Vhalla couldn't. Vhalla had done nothing but prove love to her, but that still didn't explain... Samantha shook her head. No, it did explain. Samantha had to learn to protect herself. Samantha had to be able to fight and keep herself safe. Still, Samantha said nothing as she pushed herself to her feet and walked towards the bathroom. She returned only moments later holding her first aid kit, which she set next to her on the floor as she settled in front of Vhalla.

"Give me your hand," Samantha said firmly as she reached out, taking her injured hand into her own. Samantha said nothing as she cleaned those wounds on Vhalla, wrapping both her hand and neck in a bandage before she finally set back. "I don't have healing powers, unfortunately. But you're a witch. You heal significantly faster than fae do. Did you know fae heal slow? I'll have bruising for weeks, I'm afraid." She glanced up as she finished her sentence, her lip twitching up into a teasing smirk. "I'm not angry with you." Samantha said finally as she stood up in front of Vhalla. "I'm not exactly happy with you, but I'm not angry." She reached down, grabbing Vhalla by her uninjured hand to hoist the assassin to her feet. "We'll clean this up later. For now, I want coffee."

Samantha didn't hesitate as she pulled the woman out of the room and down that metal staircase. The queen only released the assassin to push her into one of the barstools as she made her way into the kitchen. Samantha didn't speak as she busied herself with making coffee. In fact, she didn't look up at all until she placed that steaming mug in front of Vhalla, pushing creamer and sugar over towards her. Samantha herself simply held the mug, waiting patiently for her friend to do as she wished with the condiments before she would retrieve her own. Instead, she stood there contemplating everything that had happened tonight and how she felt about it all.

"I'm a little paranoid," Samantha said very softly once she finally spoke. And it was true. She was entirely so, but she had been given reason to be, hadn't she? Frost had said so. "I trust what Frost said to me, though. He has no reason to lie to me." She bit her lip. "They may not be in the city currently, but they're looking for me. And you... you want me to be safe." She reached up to run a hand through her hair once more, sighing heavily. "I don't want to hurt you, Vhalla. I won't hurt you like that again. But if teaching me to fight will help you feel better, then I'm listening."