The shock that registered across Cass’ face was enough to make Vince second guess his own brutality. Maybe… he’d crossed a line there, outing their truth in front of Lissington like that. Maybe… that hadn’t exactly been his cleverest moment. (Even if Vince trusted Lissington with his life, it didn’t mean Cass would understand that, or even know. He’d all but thrown Cass like a piece of chum to the sharks in the blonde’s own twisted mind, even if any objective party could see how innocently nonchalant Gus would be, had to be, about all of this. He was the most sincere, innocent, trustworthy person on the face of the planet… but that didn’t mean squat to Cassian. The blonde didn’t know him like Vince did.) The pain that contorted his handsome features dug at Vince like a blade through the intestines, but he held his own and continued to snap at the Gryffindor’s ankles, still furious.

In retrospect, he should have seen it coming.

He didn’t. But he should have.

In theory, Vince ought to have known on some level that Cass would not let his blasé attitude go by, unchecked. He was the first and foremost closest person to the blonde, or at least had been until recently. Vince knew up close and personally what Cassian’s rage looked like, what damage the blaze could do when left to the open wind. There wasn’t anything in him that believed Cassian could, or would ever hurt him, and that was Vince’s sore miscalculation. It would seem, at the end of the day, he was no more important to Cass than anyone else.

Snorting at the other’s response, Vince wasn’t prepared for the advance that came so swiftly. He’d been focusing on a nasty retort, ready to slice back at the blonde that he didn’t want or need anything, that was the point! (However untrue.) He missed the exact moment Cass reared up and his arm coiled before it blasted Vince in the face so hard, the Slytherin literally didn’t know what hit him.

Vince landed on the ground with a major thud, his nose cracking against his skull. Mother-bloody-fucking Merlin cocks! Immediately he felt the warmth of blood spread all across his face as if a tap had been opened, and Vince brought up a hand almost as if to catch it. The pain hadn’t yet registered, shock still reverberating through his skeletal system. Somewhere in his tumble, the Slytherin had slammed his head back against the bloody tree too, and he propped himself up now on an elbow, other hand still pressed to his face. His eyes watered instantly, pain finally shooting all through his skull and down his back at the force of Cass’ hit. Green eyes, bloodshot and furious, gazed up at Cass through long lashes and the pain was palpable in his expression. Not physical, emotional.

Cass had… actually… hurt him? Never in a million years would Vincent have ever thought the blonde capable of such a thing. Not really. Not… like this. The pain of that realization, of their actually having shattered whatever it was they’d had before, finally sunk into Vince’s system. He’d denied it before. Surely whatever it was that had broken between them could be fixed? Now Vince was starting to realize, he wasn’t so sure that was true. Emotional anguish ripped through the Slytherin and Vincent felt his temper - and fear - flare in response. (He’d never been good at keeping pain locked inside, instead lashing out to dispel it and dealing with the repercussions later.) Reaching for his wand with his bloodied hand, Vincent shot a nasty quick spell in the blonde’s direction before Cass could advance on him again. “Impedimentia!”

As the spell hit its target, Vincent shuffled back and away from the blonde quickly. His heart was racing, adrenaline pounding so loud through his core that Vince wasn’t sure what was going on with his pain receptors anymore. He knew he had to go to the infirmary though, else this was going to keep bleeding and likely heal badly. He could feel himself wanting to tremble as fear too swelled, the shock that Cass had actually hit him still tumbling through the Slytherin’s mind. He stood and shot one last furious glare in the Gryffindor’s direction. “Stay the bloody hell away from me, Cassian, I mean it!" he snarled. “We’re finished.”

And with that Vincent left everything behind to make his way back towards the castle.

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