⦂ boys' dorm

@－ ❛ ʜ ❜：henri knight。⁰⁴ “I like singing too, but playing the piano is what really relaxes me.” he replied, knowing he had only let a few people hear him sing or play any musical instruments, not sure if his mate had heard him or not. Usually he would stay alone in the music room at hours when not many students or teachers were around, sometimes in the middle of the night. The silencing charm on the music room would prevent anyone from hearing him, so he could go by unnoticed. He wished he could be as confident as Henri, but it took him longer to be comfortable around others, enough to show that side of him to them. Although Henri was trustworthy, and they have spent many years together as roommates and friends. “I could play it for you someday, if you’d like.” Cassian smiled shyly as the other leaned to kiss him, the unexpected compliment making him blush. He cupped his cheek and kissed him back, missing the lovely feeling of it the moment their lips separated.

“That is one of many instances when I think you’re hot, yes.” he grinned while tilting his head, looking at Henri with the adoration he felt for him clearly on display. He was not yet sure how Henri felt about him, whether Cassian was the only one with a crush or not. This he planned to find out, one way or another. “Clumsy mates that somehow have confidence that they will be safe and sound with each other in the end.” he laughed shyly, “we are something, huh?” he pretended to think about that question, looking at the ceiling before his eyes landed on the other. “Food fight?” he raised his eyebrows suggestively, chuckling “unless you’d like to kiss for a little longer?”

@－ ❛ ʜ ❜：cassian faye。⁰³ A soft laugh left Henri's lips as he heard Cass' words. "Thank you. I do enjoy singing a lot too. It is fun and it makes me relax a lot," he admitted. Sometimes when he was too stressed he started to sing and dance in the dorm, once or twice Cass had probably already noticed him doing that. He did not mind, he was not easily ashamed or embarrassed at all. He knew he could just be himself infront of the other. "Yeah, I think so," he repeated and looked at Cass. He noticed the other looking away and Henri gently held the other's chin,a smile on his lips. "Almost too pretty to kiss," he mumbled before he leaned in and kissed the other's lips. He had noticed the way Cass had looked at his lips and if he had not read it entirely wrong this was exactly what both of them wanted. It made Henri a little shy even though his action had beenr ather bold - and it also sent shivers through his entire body. Kissing Cassian was beautiful.

Hearing the other call him hot was something Henri had not seen coming and it made him blush. "Hot when I'm explaining things?" he chuckled and shook his head amused. He had expected everything but not that if he was honest but somehow he felt good. It was a nice compliment. "I feel safe around you too," he said gently and chuckled gently. "I guess we are both quite clumsy from time to time." In different ways but yet they both were quite chaotic. Not that he minded, it had not caused him any big trouble yet. "Guess we have to make the food look extra aesthetic then," he said, not really minding it. If it was delicious he was fine but he would put the extra effort to make it look good for the younger. "Mh, I'm not sure, do you have anything on your mind?" he wiggled his eyebrows a bit in a teasing way.

@－ ❛ ʜ ❜：henri knight。⁰⁴ ( SH ) Hearing Henri sing was endearing, everything about him was. "You sing so well, I'm not saying I'm surprised though! Your talking voice is also melodic." he complimented genuinely, enjoying that the other felt comfortable enough to sing around him. He wanted to let loose and be comfortable too, although that went against his nature sometimes, he still tried. Singing softly, but singing nonetheless. He was pleased at the expression on Henri's face as he his lips, Cassian feigned innocence and even pouted his lips, coming off as confused when in reality he knew he looked cute like this. More tempting. "Think so?" he looked away then to not give away his smile. "Pretty enough to kiss?" he asked, glancing sideways, gaze lingering on Henri's lips before he looked away again.

Cassian listened carefully, nodding. He had expected a short dismissive reply, which was not like Henri, so he judged himself for expecting his friend to be uncaring. Must be insecurities surfacing. "You sound so hot explaining things to me! Okay, dear. I know you will listen, that's why I'm bringing this up. You've always been there for me." he paused, taking in a deep breath as he turned his hand, so he could intertwine their hands. "I feel safe with you. I hope you feel safe with me too, despite how clumsy I can be sometimes." he huffed softly, caressing the back of Henri's hand. The food did look decent in his eyes, he would have given it more care if he had not been distracted. "I'm picky when it comes to the aesthetic of food. I take extra measure on visuals to make it look extra yummy, but you're right as long as it tastes good," he turned in his chair to look at the rice cooker as if from that distance he could see anything, which he didn't. "I think the rice would be ready soon." he guessed based on time and turned his head to the other, smiling shyly. "What should we do in the meanwhile?"

@－ ❛ ʜ ❜：cassian faye。⁰³ "Then I'll think too!" Henri said, not really minding the music and in fact recognizing the song and joinging in right away. He loved music, he loved singing even though his voice was just average, at least to him. He grinned and helped Cassian prepare the food, however when he the other's finger, he noticed the younger one's eyes on his lip. And if he had not kept the eyes there for a second too long, Henri would have thought he imagined it. But clearly, he had not. He his lips and watched the other curiously. "You have quite some pretty lips, you know?" he said, wondering if Cassian thought of the same as he had. He was not too sure, yet, especially as he did not want to make it awkward, but then again Henri was used to awkward situation and ignoring them so there was that. No pain no gain, right? Or no risk no fun, whatever fit best.

"Stress can be emotional pain too, you know?" Henri said and tilted his head, looking at Cassian. "Sometimes life stresses you out to the point that it is emotional pain. And then you just... experience a lot of things. Bad things mostly. Or at least things many people consider bad, like hallucinations." But they were not bad, not always at least. Quietly he listened to Cassian and nodded then. "It will. But if it keeps happening, please feel free to talk to me, okay? I will make sure you are safe and sound and I will keep your secret but... please talk to me, okay?" He gently took Cassian's hand and squeezed it in a soft way. He wanted him to trust him, to know that he was there for him. He then noticed how the other cut the salmon and then realised he was using his accent - Henri loved it. A gentle chuckle left his lips and he shook his head. "It is fine. As long as it tastes good it can be as uneven as we want. This is our food, we can decide how it looks!" He grinned brightly at Cassian, feeling warm on the inside.

@－ ❛ ʜ ❜：henri knight。⁰⁴ ( SH ) It was less about Henri knowing whether or not how to use a rice cooker and more about Cassian wanting to about it. He stuck his tongue out and rolled his eyes while smiling. He was not as confident as Henri in cooking and prided himself instead in baking but unsurprisingly, they could not survive off of cake and cookies. So he was here, trying to get better at making a proper dinner instead of just grabbing whatever leftovers there were in the fridge. He hummed at first when he heard Henri's voice again, not quite registering it until it did. "oh! you can sing then if you want, that would be even better!" he hummed along to the song, although not too loudly. When the other's lips touched his fingers, lingering there for a second before they were gone, he had to blink a few times to stop himself from staring at Henri's lips and redirect his focus back at the veggies. Now he was wondering if he should ask another strange question and what kind of answer he would get to 'think it's normal that I have wanted to kiss you for a while now and I didn't because I'm scared it would weird you out?' he smiled instead and nodded.

“emotionally hurting?” that sounded plausible but he shook his hand to say no, before realizing he was waving around the knife and cursed himself, putting it down to be safe. “yeah it’s most likely stress, it’s not that I’m hurt inside.” a half-truth, but it should do. It was somewhat of a relief to know the other did not think of him as crazy, and if he says he had also experienced it before, then maybe it is not as bad as he thought. He overthought things a lot, after all, so he filed it away as being another symptom of his anxiety getting worse. “I saw her, yeah, but also I sometimes hear voices in my head that aren’t mine. Overthinking is annoying.” he shook his head, mustering up the energy to send the other a smile. “It’ll get better, I’m sure.” he got a large plate and put the thinly sliced vegetables on it to make space on the cutting board for the protein, then cut the smoked salmon. “These are being cut unevenly, noo” he pouted, his australian accent coming through more audible when he whined.

[sorry for the delay!]

@－ ❛ ʜ ❜：cassian faye。⁰³ The boop of his nose made Henri chuckle and he shook his head amused, looking at Cassian with a gentle expression. “Yes, of course,” he said and nodded. He totally understood what his friend was trying to say – they both were quite scatterbrained sometimes, at least when it came to their words. Well, Henri was sure he was not only scatterbrained with his words, but that was a different story. “We just have the cutest cats,” he hummed and tilted his head a bit.

“I actually know how to use rice cookers, no matter how new or not,” Henri laughed and shook his head amused as he started to clean the rice with the proper equipment. Eventually he put it into the rice cooker and turned it on. It was a fancy one, however it was easy to use. He might have grown up in a house full of magic people however his parents made sure they all knew how to use muggle-technique. And he was glad because it had always helped him and aside from that it had gotten him into his rabbit holes of “how does xyz work” when using the internet. It had given him adventurous nights and he probably knew how to use a lot of things he had never even once seen in his life, at least not in person. “Oh, I often sing myself,” Henri admitted but still some music on the other’s phone and humming to it. Cooking was actually something that kept his thoughts calm and did not make it jump from one place to another and he was even surprised when Cassian offered him some food. He chuckled and then ate it out of the other’s hand, his lips slightly touching Cassian’s fingers when eating it. “Tasty!”

For a moment he looked surprised at Cassian when he heard the next words and he tilted his head. “Rarely but… sometimes I guess?” Henri said, however it had not happened to him in a long time. “Like… when I am really stressed and hurting inside, emotionally,” he admitted, remembering how he had once seen Jacob when he had definitely been alone. It had luckily never happened again but damn it had scared him. “Aside from that… no. But I think it can happen.” He tilted his head and looked at Cassian, a frown on his lips. “You saw your mother, did you not?” he asked, putting the pieces of the puzzle together way too easily. But despite the fact that he often seemed zoned out he easily gathered information and realised things – most of the time at least. “No need to feel like you are getting crazy or anything. Because you are not.”

@－ ❛ ʜ ❜：henri knight。⁰⁴ cassian nodded, taking in what henri was saying while not quite understanding it as he could not relate. He was not someone that distracted people around him, most of the time, he would go unnoticed as he preferred to stay quiet in the bigger crowds and blend in with the rest. But his mind was in the clouds sometimes, which was something they shared. “hm as long as you know what I’m trying to say, mate. I’m not the best at wording my thoughts.” he shrugged one shoulder, not having meant to call it a bad thing and hoping it did not offend him. He blinked at the poke and smiled again, “yeah, she’s been with me through it all and yes! they are very adorable. just like you.” he booped henri’s nose back, as revenge for the other messing up his hair. It was not styled, but now it looked even more puffy.

He chuckled at the petname, it was not often that he called henri baby. It had come to him naturally, maybe because of feeling soft. In the kitchen, he had taken most of the ingredients out of the fridge and put them on the table. “Okay, I think we have the necessary stuff. be careful while cooking the rice, the rice cooker looks new.” he joked while looking around for the cutting board and a bowl to wash the vegetables in. “if you want to have background music while we work, you can play something on my phone,” he diced the bell peppers, eating a piece of it and offering one to henri. “say ahh.” he cooed while holding his arm outstretched. One common thing that happened while cassian cooked or baked was that he kept eating while working. He remembered the last time he made an apple pie and kept eating the apple dices and had to peel more apples once the final amount filled only half of the pie crust.

It might not have been the best time to bring it up, but he was curious and did not when would be the “right” time to talk about it. So he went for it, glancing at henri by his side before focusing his eyes on the knife and cutting the cucumber into thin slices. “have you.. I mean..has it ever happened that you had vivid illusions in real life, like seeing something that doesn’t exist or hearing a voice when there was no one around?” biting his lip, he felt like he sounded crazy. “I want to say maybe it’s stress from studies but I don’t know..that seems unlikely.” almost nicking himself with the knife, he stopped for a moment until his focus was on the task at hand again before continuing.

@－ ❛ ʜ ❜：cassian faye。⁰³ “It’s not even talking bad about me, it’s just the truth,” Henri chuckled amused. “It’s just part of me, I’m just a walking distraction. Or no, more like walking distracted, otherwise it means I am distracting the people which… is not exactly wrong too.” He laughed and shook his head. He knew with his changing bright hair colours he was pretty good with distracting people – aside from the fact that his simple existence already distracted people, he was loud and easily excited after all. “I am glad you get distracted easily too, at least we get distracted together then!” He chuckled and nudged the other gently, smiling warmly at him. “But yeah, we can just adore each other but I might have to kiss you more often then,” he added, letting Cassian knew that he really enjoyed kissing him.

A soft hum left his lips as he watched the other. “I already met you in this adventure so it is definitely good,” he hummed and poked the other’s nose slightly, feeling warm and happy. He was still worried, a little bit, but seeing Cassian like this made him relax a bit. “Oh? So you are more happy when your cat is around? That is understandable, I am more happy when Cassiopeia is around too! They are adorable so of course we love them!” He grinned brightly and ruffled Cassian’s hair. “Honestly, sometimes all I want to do is give them all my attention.”

“Feeding the baby sounds good,” Henri joked and held onto the other’s arm, smiling warmly. It made him excited and warm and he was looking forward to it. “Hopefully we do find quite a bit,” he said as he looked around and nodded then, opening a few cupboards once they were in the kitchen. “They are well-stocked so I guess cooking is possible!” However that made the possibility of burning the kitchen down higher too, but they would see about that.

@－ ❛ ʜ ❜：henri knight。⁰⁴ He smiled happily at the thought of cuddling Henri while he slept, they would cuddle often but to hug him like a plushie the whole night sounded like a cure to all of his issues and if Henri felt better sleeping with someone close, then it was a win-win situation. “Take all the time you need and I will too,” he chuckled at the rest “I hate to do this but I will have to fight you if you talk bad about yourself.. then again, I get distracted easily too, I will get distracted that you got distracted in the first place.. yeah this doesn’t make any sense anymore.” he laughed quietly and face-palmed “forget that, let’s just continue with expressing the adoration part.”

He smiled as Henri’s smile was contagious and nodded. “That’s a good way of living your life. May you have an amazing adventure with many happy memories my dear~” he said in a singing tone. “a gentle queen, aww she’d very much like to hear that title. I don’t judge..ok I judged a little but because I’m not independent and I have made the discovery that there is a strong correlation between her presence and level of my happiness.” he could not help but laugh out loud at his own crazy claim but his mate would understand how much Cass loved his cat, so it was easier to tell him things like this.

There was a moment where they stared at each other until the other remembered why he came back to their shared room and it turned out to be for napping which is reasonable, studying was exhausting. Cassian stopped himself from feeling too guilty and smiled widely instead, cheeks heating up at the cute peck. “No more studying! It’s time to feed you, baby, let’s go.” he hugged the linked arm around his own and guided them to the kitchen. “Ok let’s put all the ingredients we find on the table,” he said, putting his phone on the table with the list of the ingredients open, reading through them, and going to check the fridge.

@－ ❛ ʜ ❜：cassian faye。⁰³ “I understand that,” Henri said gently and looked at the other. He totally got what Cassian meant. Especially when he was feeling down he often needed a break, some happiness to get his thoughts off before he could actually speak about what was going on inside his head. “So don’t worry, okay? If you wanna talk, you can talk. And if you do not, I will definitely not pressure you into talking.” He gently poked Cassian’s nose and smiled at him before he ended up nodding enthusiastically. “Yes, please feel free. I always do sleep better with someone around as well,” he then said, giving away something he rarely ever told anyone. He had a good sleep, yes, but he always felt better when someone was cuddling him. “I will come to you and talk to you,” he then said. “But it might take some time.” He chuckled and shook his head amused. “I am saying that. I get so easily distracted it is hilarious.” He blushed a bit. “I adore you too, I hope you know that.”

A soft laugh left Henri’s lips and he shook his head amused. “You know my entire life is an adventure, right?” he chuckled and nudged the other gently. “Celine is a gentle queen who needs her space, don’t judge her. One day I bet Cassi will be like that too.” Honestly he did not mind as long as Cassiopeia grew up healthy and happy. He chuckled when he heard that Celine had tried to bite Cassian’s nose and somehow that fit. “You should not have napped when the queen demands her food,” he laughed and looked at Cass. “Ah, Cassi is fine. She is with Mal right now,” Henri hummed softly.

Seeing Cassian clap his hands was so cute and made Henri’s heart warm up and he nodded. “Okay, lets go,” he nodded and got up, humming softly. He then blinked when he heard Cassian’s words, already having forgotten what he had wanted to do. He had to think about it and then laughed. “I was studying and honestly I was about to just nap the day away because I did not want to study so this is a lot better.” He grinned and hugged Cassian’s arm before he tiptoed and pecked Cassian’s poke. “So take me out to the kitchen, dear gentleman, I request no more studying!” He knew all the answers to an okay grade anyways.

@－ ❛ ʜ ❜：henri knight。⁰⁴ Cassian felt bad for worrying Henri and his protective nature wanted to keep the other happy instead of bringing up his problematic parents. Maybe he would one day, but he will need a lot of alcohol and tissues around, and he could not afford to do that today. "I know..it's not that I want to hide anything from you, you know. I just want to be happy today. I might need to sleep next to you tonight though, hope you won't mind me hugging you so much." he smiled back and pecked Henri's lips. "Yes, you can come to me whenever you want! I'll be here to comfort you and remind you how much I adore you! and who says you're not good with words? because they are lying!"

It was endearing to see the other agree easily to travel with him and even potentially get in trouble for stealing a dog. “We will go on an adventure for sure. She’s not like Celine who acts like royalty and sleeps all day. I swear I only saw her twice today, one time for her food and once because she wanted to bite my nose while I napped..” he did not really mind as much as he was making a big deal of it. However, bickering and complaining about the tabby cat was fun, specially if he was to say it to her face. Cass suspected she understood him very well as she would turn her back to him and meow grumpily. “How is little Cassiopeia?”

Cassian clapped his hands too automatically, stomach growling at the thought of delicious food. They would have to look through the many fridges and cabinets in the kitchen, but it was rather a simple recipe. He got up from the bed and shivered slightly, already missing the warmth of the fluffy blanket. “Yes, let’s go.” he grabbed his hoodie from his bed and made it for the door. “Oh wait I didn’t ask..why were you back by the way? am I dragging you out when you wanted to come and rest in your room?” he stopped suddenly by the door and pouted his lower lip out.

@－ ❛ ʜ ❜：cassian faye。⁰³ Tilting his head a bit Henri kept his eyes on Cassian. He could see that the other was not entirely okay, not really fine yet, but he did not want to pressure him into telling him about it. “You know, it’s okay if you are not okay. You don’t have to talk about it or anything, I’m not good with that either but if you just want to be here and not be okay, that’s super fine.” He leaned forward and pecked Cassian’s nose gently, showing him a soft smile. “Maybe I’ll manage to come to you when I don’t feel okay next time. I’m just really not good with words and such.” He huffed a bit and looked at the other, a little shy now.

An amused chuckle left Henri’s lips as he heard the other get so excited over kidnapping Berry. He had considered stealing the dog for a few hours only but if a few days could work and make Cassian happy he was very up for that too. He shook his head a bit and hummed. “We should totally do that. Go on an adventure with Berry!” If he was honest he would do the same. Just get the pet and enjoy themselves. Give the parents some fear, after all they seemed to clearly deserve it after all. “So once we go on vacation in Australia, mission kidnap Berry will be part of it.” It was nice to see Cassian so happy when talking about his dog, it seemed to be something he held dear to himself.

Henri nodded, agreeing. Yeah, as long as they did not get in trouble, at least. He chuckled and watched the other, tilting his head a bit as he waited for Cassian to find something to make. “Oh? Smoked Salmon and mango poke bowl sounds amazing! And yes, we will add rice!” He clapped his hands in excitement and got up, grinning at how excited the other got. “Okay, then we just need to go get to the kitchen and hope they have all ingredients there!” Because otherwise they would have to go shopping and he was not sure how well that would go with two chaotic boys like them. But he was sure they would find a way.

@－ ❛ ʜ ❜：henri knight。⁰⁴ Maybe Cassian has been missing his mom for a long time, he does not even remember the last time he felt close to her. All his life, he had imagined for a version of her that did not exist and longed for that ideal version of his mom to be a real. If only she had been more accepting of him, more loving, then maybe he would not have needed comfort and assurance from others. From Henri. He willed the negative thoughts away before they brought his mood down. "Mhm I trust that you will be there for me. I'm okay." he swatted playfully at Henri's hand when the other booped his nose and laughed softly, booping his cheek as revenge.

Cassian nodded happily at the thought of his mate playing with Berry. They both loved animals so much, which reminded him of Celine and little Cassiopeia, and he wondered where the two babies were. He has been too occupied to notice their whereabouts. Maybe their pets were on a romantic rendezvous which really meant cuddling under the bedsheets if not under the bed itself, he chuckled at that thought. “Steal him? Yes! Why didn’t this brilliant idea come to me first? oh what if I steal him away forever?” he gasped and wiggled in the bed excitedly for a while, making a mess of the blanket Henri had so nicely draped over them and once he calmed down, he whined “but my parents would know I did it, and they’ll come back for Berry. A few days it is then.”

“Right, it won’t be our first time and surely not last. As long as we don’t get in trouble,” Cassian nudged him and got up from the laying position, looking for his phone to search for a recipe. He looked through the recipes and found it hard to just pick one, they all looked so good. When did he get so hungry? “Hm favorite dessert..oh there are so many hmm maybe chocolate and strawberry mochi? But I love berries and fruit pies too! What’s your favorite?” he found a recipe after scrolling for a while, and showed it to Henri. “Okay, how is this? Smoked salmon and mango poke bowl, we can make rice too. I could chop the vegetables, just give me the knife~” he grinned, bouncing on the bed.

@－ ❛ ʜ ❜：cassian faye。⁰³ Gently Henri kept playing with Cassian’s hair, hoping it would give him some comfort he was not exactly good with providing. “Sometimes the people on the outside have it easier to understand because they are not the ones it is happening to,” he said gently. However he did understand how painful family could be to a person. “I am sorry you are missing her. And if there is anything I can do to distract you, I will.” He smiled and poked Cassian’s nose gently, smiling warmly. He liked being able to be here for the other, holding him and giving him support when he needed it. “You do?” Henri said surprised, not having expected those words but they filled him with happiness. “I am glad. Always feel free to call me if you need me, even if you just want a hug or a kiss, okay?” It meant a lot to him, more than he could express.

“Oh? Yes please show me Berry,” Henri said, his eyes shining brightly at the thought of a dog. Even though he had a cat he did love dogs dearly too. Any kind of animal just filled his heart with joy and he could talk about them for ages if he got too excited. Animals were his comfort place, most times. “Maybe we can kidnap Berry,” he said and looked at Cassian, mischief in his eyes. “Just for an hour or two.” He was not sure if Cassian’s parents deserved a shocker like that but if they did, he was totally down for it. As long as the dog was not unhappy with it but he was sure that the moment Berry saw Cassian he would be all happy and overjoyed. At least every time Henri saw Cassian it caused such a reaction in him. He was always happy to see him.

Amused Henri laughed and shook his head a bit. “I mean, we could always try and make that food. And if we burn the kitchen, well, but then we can just make something easier.” After all they had magic to put it out and restore whatever got damaged – most times it worked at least. “Poke bowls sounds fine to me too. Do you have a recipe or should we look for one?” he asked as he gently squeezed Cassian close, getting a little excited to prepare something nice with the other. Just spending time with him was good, no matter what they were making. “And should we make some dessert? What is your favourite one?” Maybe Cassian liked some dessert they could actually manage to prepare – and if not maybe Cassian could ask or bribe whoever was currently in the kitchen.

@－ ❛ ʜ ❜：henri knight。⁰⁴ Cassian was holding his breath as Henri mentioned his family, it wasn't so often that the other opened up about his parents and to think he saw happy memories. Waking up from those dreams must be agonizing, he thought. Even though he was curious, he didn't push Henri for more, he trusted that his friend would talk with him whenever he wanted, when he felt was the right time. For now, he would enjoy the attention, the hand brushing through his hair and the little peck left on his nose. "Maybe I am missing her..you seem to understand what's going on with me more than I do." he huffed, pouting his lip at Henri. "Thanks for being here. I always feel more secure at the thought of you." he held onto Henri's hand and played with his slender fingers.

He stared as it took a while for the offer to make sense in Henri's mind, he didn't have to answer verbally at the question, so instead he nodded while smiling. Of course, he would love to travel with Henri. For one, he enjoyed travelling and this was his hometown so even better. Secondly, he wanted to make up for lack of bonding time they have had lately. "No, I don't think I'll meet the oldies more than 10 minutes. I'd mainly go to see our little Berry. Remind me to show you the photo of my little pupper later...he's not little, but he will always be in my heart." he got distracted thinking about Berry, the biggest downside of not visiting home was not seeing the family dog. He was sure Henri would coo over Berry once he would show him the photos.

Cassian chuckled at the teasing tone in the other's voice, and he wiggled his eyebrows, playing along. "Why does it sound like you have something in mind already?" he then considered the options and found himself stressing over what australian foods could they make. "hmm well when it comes to australian food grilled fish, squid or any other seafood is an option. But again we might burn down the kitchen if they let us close to the fire. Meat pies are pretty popular, my mom used to make those all the time." he hummed, tapping his fingers on the soft blanket while he kept on thinking about food and growing more hungry imagining it. "ok, let's just say we make poke bowls. Nothing too difficult and we won't get in trouble for making a mess of the kitchen."

@－ ❛ ʜ ❜：cassian faye。⁰³ Carefully Henri held Cassian close, careful but tight. He could feel how the other was wrapping himself around him and Henri did the same, pulling his friend into a full body hug and keeping him all warm and wrapped. He also pulled the blanket around them to give the other some kind of safety Henri might not be able to give. He wasn’t the best in comforting people but he really wanted to offer Cassian all kind of support he could. “I sometimes dream of my parents. It’s not a secret we don’t have a good relationship and yet sometimes I dream of them, how my mom calls me to get the hot chocolate she made or something. It’s just the brain tricking you into something you still remember and maybe hold dearly.” He brushed through Cassian’s hair. “She is your mom, of course you miss her. Sometimes it just gets to your heart.” He pecked the other’s nose in a gentle way and looked warmly at him. “She was there your entire life, of course you sometimes miss her. No need to feel sorry. It’s okay to just let it happen. You are safe right now so it’s okay. I’m here. I’ll catch you.” Physically as well we emotionally.

The offer to be taken along to Sydney surprised Henri and he blinked, tilting his head a bit. “Are you sure?” he asked but oh he would love it. He loved travelling a lot and going somewhere with Cassian would be fun and enjoyable. “I’d love that, yes. I’ve never been to Sydney before.” He had travelled a lot with his parents but he had never been to Australia. “We should do that. However if you meet your parents, warn me. I’m not… not good with parents.” He huffed slightly and looked away for a moment, his own hold a little tighter on Cassian. It was a part of him he rarely showed anyone but he wanted to be honest with the other. He did not want to hide anything from him.

A small chuckle left Henri’s lips and he shook his head amused. He liked the petnames, they fit and it was making him feel soft. “Something fun, huh?” he teased as it did sound a lot more suggestive than the other might thing. “A walk or baking sounds good. We could also see if we can cook, make something you used to eat in Australia?” he asked curiously. “However I have to remind you how chaotic and headless I can be. Just in case we end up ruining every possible kitchen gadget around us.” He grinned amused. It would not be the first time that an attempt of baking or cooking ended in chaos however more often than not it had turned out to be a success.

@－ ❛ ʜ ❜：henri knight。⁰⁴ Taking one glance at his roommate and seeing the obvious display of worry on his face made Cassian want to take back all he said. He did not like worrying his friends for no reason, this time he blamed his foggy mind and the slip of the tongue. Next time, he will not make the same mistake. However, the touches were appreciated, now more than ever. It would have broken him completely if he had reached out for Henri’s hand, just for him to disappear too like his mother. He desperately needed something real to ground him and the cuddle was just what he needed. Cassian wrapped his arms around Henri’s waist and held him close, hiding his face in his friend’s clothes, which were not as fluffy as they usually were. Cassian would sometimes steal his roommate’s fluffy oversized sweater when he was away, they were so comfy and made him feel safe.

His voice was muffled once he started speaking. “I guess I was used to seeing her often, being here so far away from my home is getting to me. I don’t know why it’s happening now..” he did not think of his parents that often and did not care what they were doing. At least, that was what he kept telling himself, that if they did not want him for who he was then they had no place in his life. And for what reason things were getting out of control, he had no idea. He shook his head and scooted back to let Henri lay comfortably on the bed, an excuse to wrap his whole body around his friend. “Maybe I miss her homemade food,” he smiled, trying to lighten up the mood. “I do want to go to Sydney at some point..hm maybe next holidays? Would you come with?” he asked excitedly and pointedly ignoring the comment about meeting his mother. The truth would be that no, she would not want to meet him.

Cassian’s smile became sincere as the other wiped the drying tears and held his cheek. What would he do without his mate? he knew what Cassian wanted even without him saying anything. “You’re doing enough by existing, cutie! Hm maybe we could do something fun? Like bake something or go out for a walk in the forest? I would suggest pulling a prank if I felt better, since it’s been a while since we caused some chaos. but that can wait.” anything to keep his mind occupied at this point, he was just happy at the thought of spending more time with Henri.

@－ ❛ ʜ ❜：cassian faye。⁰³ There was clear worry in Henri’s eyes, displayed so vividly that for a moment one could be worried it would just jump out of his face and into someone’s face. It was not the first time that Henri saw someone cry, or that he saw Cassian cry, but it still broke his heart to see the usually confident and warm guy all crumbled together, covered in tears and sobbing. For once Henri was glad that his attention span had given up on him and that his brain had jumped tracks to go up to the boy’s dormitory just to find the other here. Gently he held Cassian’s hand, rubbing it. And then he pulled him into a hug – how could he not hold the other when he knew Cassian clearly needed it?

“That does sound like homesickness,” the older said, hugging Cassian close and rubbing his back. He knew he was a little bit skinnier and smaller than Cassian but right now he just wanted to be strong and supportive for Cassian, giving him a shoulder to cry on and holding him. Gently he rubbed the other’s back, not knowing how to comfort people but he had read a lot and watched quite many movies so maybe this was not the entire wrong way. “You have not seen your mom in a while, have you?” He was not entirely sure if Cassian had contact to her or if he could just go and see her, if he was honest. Family was such a sensitive subject to Henri, especially since last summer, that he often just avoided it but it also ended up in him not getting important information from his friends and the people he dearly loved.

“Do you think visiting her or Sydney would be a possibility?” Or maybe they could just have a meeting in the room of requirements, maybe that could work? Or he would just get them all together and cheer Cassian up, make him feel at home. He himself had always liked not being at home, had liked being away from the people even though he enjoyed the building he had grown up but he also knew people were different and felt differently about things like family and home. And while Henri was a very free spirit and enjoyed travelling and could make himself at home so very easily he knew that many others could not do that. “Is there anything I can do to make it better?” he asked, whipping Cassian’s tears away gently and cupping his cheeks.

@－ ❛ ʜ ❜：henri knight。⁰⁴ It was starting to happen at random these days, without anything triggering the effect. It would happen when he would be deep into studying for his herbology exam, or at times when he would be giving Celine, his chubby cat, her treats, or during any mundane everyday tasks. They became less frequent when he took his anxiety pills, but there were days he kept forgetting to take the medicine. Today was one of those days..and for the love of Merlin, he cannot understand why cleaning up his side of the room was stressful enough to give him another vision? He considered asking Leo about the numbing potion he had come up with, perhaps the potion came with fewer side effects.

It went like this. The second he heard the voice of his mother, he whipped around fast to look for a howler, excited and scared. However, to his surprise, there was no sign of a howler and the door and windows were all shut. He heard no footsteps outside the door as most people must have gathered in the common room and Henri would not prank him with his mother’s voice. Henri was mischievous but not mean. Fatigue must have been getting to him, he shook his head and continued to fold his clothes to have something to do with his hands. It was then when he saw his mother sitting on his chair, behind his desk. Shocked, he stared at her. “mum, how are you-” ‘there is no way, she should be in Sydney’ he thought. He sat down on the bed and clenched his hands while staring. Did the imaginary her need to look at him with such disgust? Couldn’t at least the phantom of her be a loving mother?

Cassian had not seen her in over two years and this is how he had to meet her. In his own messed up way. As soon as he called out to her, she disappeared, making him choke on a sudden sob. He cried for a long time while staring at the vacant place where once the ghost of his mother sat. Henri’s voice pulled him out of the trance at last; in any other circumstance he would smile and lie that he was okay and nothing was wrong, but this time he knew he could not fake happiness so he held onto Henri’s hand and sighed. “I thought I saw my mum. I think I’m getting homesick, I’m not sure what it is.” he trailed off.

@－ ❛ ʜ ❜：cassian faye。⁰³ Just chilling within the common room with all the familiars and other students was something Henri really enjoyed. He liked people around him and he liked the chitter-chatter of their voices or their desperate sighs filling his mind. It kept him somewhere grounded, most times, before his head just ended up somewhere in the clouds while he was supposed to read for history or potion or any other class. He had a hard time following whenever it got boring so he had to reread anyway and finding ways for him to stick to it without floating somewhere, at least metaphorically.

However before Hongjoong had even started his readings he had realised that his clothes were uncomfortable, his socks not fluffy enough and that he wanted Cassiopeia, his black cat, with him. And maybe he could just read up in the boy’s bed room, curled up in his bed and, probably, going to fall asleep anyways. But then again who cared, he did not have any other class today and he was not planning on leaving the common room aside from getting food, maybe, or sneaking around and chatting with the ghosts that appeared at night. There were a handful and Henri had made it his job to talk to each and every one of them. Every single one of the ghosts that existed in the confinement of this castle’s grounds.

Just when Henri walked into the room he however noticed another person. Usually it was rather empty at this time of the day, people studying or having extra curriculars or just meeting with people but this time he was not alone. There were tiny sobs coming from the person he had expected last to see with tears on his beautiful face. “Cass?” Now that was a surprise. He frowned and put his books on his bed before walking to the other, gently touching his shoulder and a little unsure if this was okay. “Hey, what happened?” He knew he was not the best with comforting people but he cared for Cassian and the other looked so fragile and vulnerable, it hurt Henri to see him like this.