#cassandra driskell

[songsofacagedbird]

Who:  Elizabeth and Cassandra (+ Leo and Balo later on, @thexcowardlyxleo​ ) Where: The Grand Hall When: At some point during the convocation dinner

Despite the fact Cassandra had finally told Balo the truth about her biological father, she was going to try her best to keep her daughter away from finding out who it was, and that involved ensuring she didn’t get her hands on a copy of that book. She’d considered trying to grab ahold of the redhead who seemed all over her children’s social media page, try to convince her that it wasn’t in either of their best interest to let them find out, but from what she could tell from their admittedly brief interactions if something wasn’t in their best interest the girl would try her best to prevent them from stumbling into it. Which certainly gave her one less thing to worry about. Lance was an entirely different story, keeping it from him long term wasn’t going to end well, it was all a matter of figuring out how to break it to him, she supposed, in a way he wouldn’t go off the rails again.

She needed a glass of champagne. She smiles over to one of the other mothers when she takes one of the flukes, well, she didn’t seem like she was having the best time at this dinner either. At least Cassandra wasn’t the only one.  “I can’t believe we’re already back here, it feels like the year flew by.” Not quite, it’d seemed to drag on, without any end in sight.  As much as she’d missed her own children, them being home was bittersweet. They certainly had been safer when they were all away from home.  Still, she was keeping an eye out; if she could prevent it there wouldn’t be a repeat of what occurred last year. “Which one is yours? Or I suppose ones, actually, I have two currently in Luxor myself.” Small talk about children usually never hurt, maybe this would be one of the parents of the kids who were usually on her children’s social media feeds? It might be nice, to actually get the chance to talk to other parents for once without Lance hovering over her shoulder.

[ridiculousyoungicarus]

Task 002: Family

Warning - under the read more has lots of text and quite a few images.

There’s probably no one in the world Zander hates more than his father, Lance. At this point, he doesn’t even call him by anything really other than his first name to his face. Maybe it pisses the violent alcoholic off even more, but as far as he’s concerned, the man hasn’t earned that title. The relationship between the two isn’t pleasant in the slightest, it’s no secret that neither of them like one another. Lance because of Zander’s habit of intervening, for trying to protect his sisters and for trying his hardest to not let Lance hurt Balo as much as he actually wants to, and Zander for everything, including the incident where he was stabbed and needed surgery done on his arm. (Parent Ages/Birthdays? You’re lucky they have a FC: Josh Holloway)

While his baby sister may believe their mother has their best intentions at heart, Zander doesn’t buy it. Sure, Cassandra may be the better of their parents, but, he resents her for covering for Lance. For refusing to leave him, and for leaving her children to fend for themselves against him. Perhaps she didn’t intend to throw them under the bus, but she has over the years, and while he loves his mother, he’d be lying if he said he doesn’t try to avoid spending time with her like the plague. He blames her just as much as he blames his father for the treatment of him and his sisters over the years, and even if he hasn’t voiced it out loud to her, at this point, she knows it. (Parent Ages/Birthdays? You’re lucky they have a FC: Katheryn Winnick)

Maybe Grace and Zander don’t always see eye to eye on how things should be handled, their methods of going about situations at times can feel like polar opposites. Grace feeling manipulation is the best way to ensure the Driskell children are taken care of, while Zander personally isn’t a big fan of her tactics. However, there’s one thing they’ve never disagreed on over the years - the further Balo is from their parents, the better. This isn’t to say their relationship is tense, far from it, in fact, the older two Driskell siblings work together quite well once a middle ground is found. The process of finding that common decision can be tedious, however, once they do the two can be troublesome to stop. When they’re not working behind Balo’s back in hopes of protecting her, however, the two are pretty good friends. Zander’s even met Grace’s girlfriend a few times over video chat, and he was even the first person the girl came out to. Furthermore, Grace tends to be the first person he calls to vent - especially about Jack’s insistence on spending time with their sister. (Age: 19. Birthday: April 1st, FC: Elsa Hosk)

If Zander had to pick one person to be the most important person in the world to him, he’d probably pick his baby sister, Balo. He’s dedicated most of his life trying to make sure she’s safe and healthy, intervening when he thinks she’s in danger even if she doesn’t agree with him on his assessment. When Balo was in inpatient for her eating disorder, he took trips to visit her every chance he got, and he tries his hardest to put her needs before his own. However, given his focus is keeping her safe, he doesn’t always account for whether or not what he does upsets her beforehand. While he tries his hardest to comfort her when he’s aware of an issue, he’d be lying if he said he doesn’t realize that Balo is more likely to seek out people such as Jack rather then himself. At the end of the day, he’d do anything for her - making her a very valuable target if one ever were to try to hurt Zander. ( @songsofacagedbird​ )

[oficynome]

Hey, it’s Katie again and I’m way too weak for my own good? Opps. Anyway, here’s my boi, Zander. This intro is probably gonna be short af so sorry about that but I’ll be around to answer any questions you may have! Feel free to like this if you’re willing to let me slide into your dms to plot too. >.>

TWs: Child Abuse, Smoking/Tobacco Use

dominic sherwood. male. he/him  /  did i hear you say the stench of cigarette smoke clinging to leather jackets, falling asleep under the stars, and constantly ripped jeans? then you must be talking about nome, i’d recognize them anywhere. i’ve heard that the twenty four year old maintenance worker is a pisces and honestly, i see it. they’re known for being cynical and reserved, but their responsible and persistent tendencies make up for it. they’ve been working at du lac for one year and i think that their real name is zander driskell, but don’t spill.

Codename: Nome Legal Name: Zander Kane Driskell Preferred Name when not using her codename: Zander Age: 24 Gender:  Male Sexuality: 99.99% certain Heterosexual but I’ve been surprised before with my muses. Date of Birth: March 12th Place of Birth: Saratoga Springs, New York Hometown: Saratoga Springs, New York Nationality: American

Languages: English, Icelandic Occupation: Maintenance Worker at Hotel Dulac

Father’s Full Name: Lance Driskell Father’s Status: Alive Father’s Occupation: Restaurant Owner Mother’s Full Name: Cassandra “Cass” Driskell Mother’s Status: Alive Mother’s Occupation: Waitress Driskell Siblings Oldest to Youngest:

Grace (25)

Zander

Balo (20)

Relationship Status: Single Health Issues: Other than a smoking addiction (cigarettes), tba! (I’m sure he has more, okay)

Quick History:

• Zander is Balo’s (LINK) older brother, so you if you’ve already read her intro - you have the gist of the dysfunctional Driskell family already.

• His sisters mean a lot to him,  when they were growing up he would intevene for them constantly - in various ways that still to this day Balo doesn’t quite realize.  Unlike his sister, he has scars (ONE and TWO) because of just how hard he did try to intervene and ensure they were okay.

• Unlike his sister, he really does not trust people easily.  He constantly is questioning people’s motives, and he truly doesn’t believe that people do things without wanting anything in return for their kindness. While he doesn’t always voice this opinion - you’ve got like ten dozen different brick walls to get through if you want to ‘inside his walls.’ It’s a work in process.

• That doesn’t mean he doesn’t care about people however. People like his sisters (of course) matter more than most people, but it’s very possible for him to care about people and not trust them (most, if not all of his friendship connections will be in this boat). This can be an issue of course, he won’t lie and be like “yeah I trust you” - even if you wind up in a relationship.

• He doesn’t really discuss his feelings, he expresses them, he feels them, but he doesn’t want to talk about them.  The answer to why are you crying is always “I’M FINE” unless you managed to get through his walls, doesn’t matter if you catch him in the act or not. He’s fine.

• The type of guy chilling out with a leather jacket but doesn’t own a motorcycle, please judge him for this - I beg of you.

• Really big into space, in fact he was going to be Astronautical Engineer (rocket scientist / rocket engineer) at first but he ended up opting for simple engineering in order to keep an eye on his younger sister.

• Moving to Iceland was his idea, Grace was safe in California but he was well aware his sister wasn’t, and it would take something big to get her away from their family. A hotel where nobody knew anyone’s real names was perfect as far as he was concerned.

• He’s still taking college courses, although there was a bit of a break because #LearningIcelandic

And yeah, this intro sucks. I’d love anything/everything for him, and I’m gonna be taking a “reply to starters with Nome” break for a tiny bit I think, or I’m going to do a mix of owed replies/starters and replying on him. It’s one of the two. If you want a closed with him, let me know!

[songsofacagedbird]

Self Para 003: But Don't You Waste the Suffering You've Faced, It Will Serve You in Due Time Word Count: 4,530 words Notes: I’ll probably reblog this onto Zander later too considering this is a duel POV one and he has his own section, although it is mostly Balo. Also this is pure angst, I’m sorry. I do feel like it is important to note that this self para did end up giving me second hand anxiety, so if you’re prone to anxiety right now or if you’re highly empathetic, please tread with caution. Thank you! TWs: Disownment, (Child) Abuse (mentioned, not actually occurring), Anxiety & Anxiety Attacks, Dysfunctional Family Dynamics, Suffocation (mentioned, not actually occurring), Blood Transfusions (mentioned, not actually occurring), murder / death (mentioned in threats)

Graduation was supposed to be exciting, a moment where she was bouncing off the walls as she eagerly said goodbye to this chapter of her life. So, why wasn’t Balo happy about it? It was almost as if she started to dread it more and more as the time passed, sure, she was relieved that it was almost summer vacation. She was still playing a certain phone call in the back of her head, how easy it could have been to- no, it didn’t matter. It didn’t do her any good to think about it, and so she shifts her attention back to packing up her room.

“They’re hosting a father's day's brunch, and I don’t want to go.” She tells the teddy bears on her shelf, knowing full well they can’t respond. But, that was what made telling them easy, they couldn’t react poorly to any secrets she whispered to them, they couldn’t worry about her, or say something that made her feel guilty for coming to them at all.

And despite how safe it was to talk to inanimate objects about everything, she’d much rather talk to Leo. He understood, probably more than anyone expected him too. Maybe they’d be able to find their own corner of the brunch on Sunday, say Zander was their father so they wouldn’t be excluded or something. Although, she was probably expected to sit with George and Jack, which, considering she’d heard through the grapevine he’d dumped Juliet, well, Balo wasn’t exactly excited to sit at a table with Jack and their adoptive parents in general after everything that had occurred the past several months, but especially now.

Maybe that made her a bad daughter, but, it was far from the first time she’d been one, and she’d doubted it’d be the last. After all there was a reason her own parents hadn’t wanted her, and she supposed that only made it worse. She wasn’t going to see her mom, she doubted Will could afford to fly in again, and Grace probably was going to try to protect herself. What was there to be excited about? She survived her last year at Luxor, but she’d survived plenty of bad situations before, it wasn’t worthy of celebration.

The shirt in her hands falls to the floor. Wait, what was that? Her head whips in the direction of the noise. Who was knocking on her door? She hadn’t been expecting anyone. Still, she picks up the article of clothing, quickly trying to fold it to pack before she forgot it.

“Balo, open up, we have a surprise for you!” Ches, but, what did she mean by a surprise? What had she roped Zander or Collen into this time? Balo sets the shirt onto the pile before she walks over to her bedroom door to open it.

Wait. Was that Grace and Will?

“Ohmygosh!” Balo throws herself at Will before reaching out to try Grace into a group hug, clinging to them closely. “When you guys hadn’t said anything, I thought that you weren’t-  because mom and dad-” She can’t help the tears rolling down her cheeks, the way she holds onto them even tighter.

“There, there.” Grace pats her back awkwardly, “we’re here. That’s what matters.” She’d never been the best with these kinds of emotions, Balo knew that, but she appreciated the effort, the attempt to comfort her. “But you might not-”

“What Gracie is trying to say is, we’re not the only surprise.” Will interrupts, “and they’re not all good. Lance is not happy I came.” Wait, why would Lance care? Unless…

Balo let’s go of her siblings immediately, turning to look at Zander and Ches. “What did you two do?” She hisses at them, but neither of them seemed keen either. Okay, so Ches hadn’t decided to do something like trying to repair family relationships, and while she feels guilty for even considering, for a moment, that Ches was capable of being so dumb. She knew that Ches didn’t always think through her plans to help, but she wouldn’t, not if she thought it’d hurt Balo.

“There’s a Father’s Day brunch, Balo. I didn’t do shit. Luxor sent out the invitation for me.” Zander groans, “but it’s going to be fine, because that means mom is coming too, which means he can’t really hurt her for talking to you right? There’s too many eyes. You can ask her all the questions you’ve been meaning to-”

“Yeah, Sherlock, until they go home.” Grace huffs, glancing over to Zander with a perplexed expression. “Did you even think before you opened your mouth?”

“She’s talking about leaving him, in case you didn’t get the memo, Grace. I know California is so great you can’t be bothered to pick up a phone call-”

“Enough.” Will interrupts the two, giving both Grace and Zander a look. “Mom has always done what she’s wanted to. If she’s decided to take a risk, it’s because she felt it was safe enough for all of us to take. She wouldn’t have helped Ches with my plane ticket if she didn’t want me here, I’m pretty certain Lance coming is the only thing she wasn’t counting on.” Wait, their mother had helped with getting Will here?

“The father day brunch invitations were already sent out, and Lance had told Zander he was coming, in my defense. This was all Mrs. Driskelll, I only provided the capital.” Ches defends herself before Balo can even glance at her. The redhead’s expression was too guilty, but Balo doesn’t have it in her to reassure her friend right now. It wasn’t like she could blame her for Lance showing up, not even if she had reached out to her mother before that point. He was like a ghost, he’d always come back to haunt her. She was the fool for thinking that she’d be free after he'd disowned her.

“How bad is it going to be if dad sees us together?” Balo questions, shifting awkwardly. Suddenly the bad gut feeling was only even more intensified. What were people going to say with Lance Driskell here after her secret reveal? Everyone knew her father was abusive now, no, she couldn’t-

She turns quickly, darting into her bathroom and closing the door behind her. Her knees sting as they hit the tile, desperately trying to find a quiet corner to tuck in onto herself and hide. She can hear them discussing who’s going to come in and check on her, whispering among themselves. A door opens, but much to her surprise it’s not the one to the bathroom. Although it opens a few minutes later, and the person who sits down beside her is the one person she’d never expect to see now.

“I’m sorry I couldn’t be here sooner, bambi.”

The tears start to fall even harder as she hears that voice, as delicate fingers tuck her blonde hair behind her ears. She can’t even bring herself to look, she wants this to be a bad dream, because that’d be easier to face than the reality of the situation. “Why didn’t you want me?” She sobs, even though she certainly didn’t want to know the answer.

“I have wanted you since the moment I knew I was pregnant with you, and that has never changed.” Cassandra Driskell reassures her daughter, continuing to stroke her hair. “Everything I have ever done was to protect you, but, I’m starting to realize I didn’t go about this the right way.”

“You think?” Zander shouts from the doorway, okay, he definitely hadn’t been the one to go grab her mother. Wait if Cass was here?

“Is he already here too?” Where was Grace? Did Will wander off? Ches- immediately, Balo has the motivation to move despite the fact she’s only getting more panicked by the second.

“I can see everyone, they’re safe, little one.” Her mother reassures her, reaching out to pull her into her arms. Immediately, Balo relaxes into the embrace, continuing to sob as her mother tries to comfort her. “I can handle Lance, you don’t have to worry about anything. I’m sorry I had to cut contact, I was trying to do what was safest for you, with how angry he was... it was better directed towards me, and only me.”

Wait, Lance had gone after her because of Balo? This was her fault, it was all her fault, again she’d failed at being a good daughter. But before she can apologize, Zander’s right there. “It was safer for you. That’s what it’s always been, an attempt to protect yourself.” He hisses, “you never loved her, or me, or Will, or Grace. We were just convenient for you.”

“That’s not true-” “Then why the fuck didn’t you leave him?”

Was Zander crying? Balo glances over to her brother, reaching out for his hand as he tries to wipe the tears from his eyes. She knew better than to draw attention to it, that pointing it out would only make things worse.

“I was scared he’d come after you, that he'd kill us for leaving him.” Cassandra’s voice shakes, for the first time her mother doesn’t seem nearly as composed as she always did. “I did try to leave once, when you and Gracie were babies. But, I couldn’t- not after I found out about Balo. There was no way I could take care of the three of you on my own. I could barely afford to take care of the two of you, and Lance- he’d promised... and I was stupid enough to believe him.”

“Is it awkward if I leave and let you guys discuss this as a family?” Ches calls to them awkwardly, “because I’m pretty sure I’m not supposed to be here for this.” For a moment, Balo laughs, but before she can say anything. Zander is answering.

“Stay, I need you to stay. Don’t fucking leave me, Chessie, please.” He sounds so broken, and immediately Ches is coming to join them on the bathroom floor. How long would it be until Will and Grace tried to crowd in here with them? Was there even enough room?

As if Grace can read her mind, she’s calling to them from the doorway. “Well, we can’t all crowd into Balo’s bathroom, so if we could move this to the living room, that’d be great. Especially if she has to stay.” Despite the snide comment geared towards Ches, Grace had a point. Balo forces herself to get up off her bathroom floor -  trying to shove the fact she would rather hide in a bathroom than face the first genuine family discussion they’d ever had in her life aside.

This was for the best though, right? Finally getting everything off of their chests, working through at least part of the past 20-or-so-years of trauma. Sure, there was no chance to fix things, but perhaps trying to talk would bring some sense of closure, answer the questions that’d been eating at her for months.

Her mother owed her, all of them, that much.

—

It seemed like the more Zander talked to his mother, the more conflicted about her he’d become. Even hours after their chat, getting dressed for the convocation dinner, he wasn’t sure what he thought. On one hand, he was glad that he was wrong about so many things with her - that she'd been willing to admit to her many, many faults as a mother. That she acknowledged how much she’d hurt them, and she was sorry, and she was going to try to be a better mother going forward. That she’d only signed those papers to ensure Balo was provided with a life she could never give her, that she knew about Grace’s girlfriend and that she supported them full heartedly - despite the fact their father certainly wouldn’t. That it wasn’t her choice to send away Will, and she’d been sneaking him money because he was her son - a fact Zander had never known until William had brought it to the table himself.

His mother wasn’t evil, she had good intentions, he could see that now, but that didn’t erase the damage she’d done unintentionally to her children. She could have gotten them out there, she should have gotten them out of there.

So why was he willing to forgive her?

He throws the tie down in frustration, before he forces himself to lean down and pick it back up. Where the fuck was Ches when he needed her? Elliot’s, probably, actually, knowing her she’d gone right back to his room as soon as she dropped Clover off at the lake house for a couple hours. Drew and Clarissa were watching the dogs this weekend during the dinners and ceremonies, something about using the time to socialize Clover with other dogs while she had them around, and he supposed that made sense. Treadwell was certainly not a bad dog to socialize with, and while he didn’t know much about Ester, it was Effie’s - so it likely wasn’t demonic.

He doesn’t even question if he should interrupt Ches and Elliot before knocking on the door. “Elswood, help! I can’t get my fucking tie.” He calls out, “I keep suffocating myself.”

“One of these days you need to learn how to tie your own tie.” Ches calls back. Well, at least he knew her well enough to guess where she was. She comes out into the hall to take the fabric from him, shaking her head a little. Wait, was she wearing yellow? That was new. “You’re going to talk to your brother this time, right?” He had been supposed to during Thanksgiving, he’d told Ches he was going to. Hell, she’d even dragged him to William in an attempt to get them to talk, and he’d gotten cold feet.

“Will he even want to talk to me?”

“You’ll never know unless you try. He’s your brother, and from the way he talks about you... yeah, in my professional opinion, yes. He does.” She informs him as she ties his tie for him.

“Your professional opinion?” “I really should start charging you for all these therapy sessions.” “That’s cute, Elswood, real funny.” “Thanks, I’ll be here all day!”

In all seriousness though, Ches had a point - even though it was obvious she was joking from her demeanor. “I’ll talk to him. So, about Elliot’s dad... should I be wishing you luck or...?”

“No luck needed, now go talk to your brother.”

As soon as the tie is finished, she’s heading back inside, not giving him much of a choice in the matter. Whatever she was up to inside was clearly more important- no, him going to talk to his brother was more important. Why did she always have to have a point? He huffs a little as he goes off to try to figure out where William was. “Will, can we talk?” He asks the moment he spots the man in the grand hall, chattering with Cassandra and Balo. “Alone. It’s important.”

“Of course.” Concern crosses the older boy's features as he lets Zander lead him off. “What’s up?”

“I’ve been a horrible brother-” He doesn’t get to finish the statement, the apology before the shock on William’s face takes him aback. Had he grown another head? He might as well have if the look his brother was currently giving him was any indicator.

“What?”

“I’ve been giving you shit for years, and it hasn’t been fair. I don’t call nearly often enough, and when I do it’s to tattle on Balo or because I’m having a crisis of some sort.” Zander points out, “and I can barely call you my brother some days after...”

“That doesn’t make you a horrible brother, it’s okay, Zander.” Will goes to pull him in for a hug, squeezing him tightly. “I know these things are hard for you.”

“I was jealous of you.” “I know.” “You aren’t mad?” “Not in the slightest. I understand why. Taking care of Balo was always your thing, and then suddenly there’s someone else stepping in and doing that too. If the roles were reversed, I’m not sure I would have taken kindly to my adoption either.”

It’s almost as if a weight is lifted from his shoulders at the genuine assurance that William didn’t hate him for what he’d put the man through, and not only that, but he understood. “I’ve done a lot of fucked up shit, Will. There were posters...”

“I know. That wasn’t your best moment, and in that moment you were acting like a horrible brother, but that doesn’t make you one.”

“It hurt, when you got sent away, didn’t it?” Of course it did, why was Zander asking this as if he didn’t already lay in bed at night and imagine how much he’d hurt William by growing even more distant after he was shipped off, and it’d only gotten worse when he’d seen how badly Balo had taken everything. No matter what Will was telling him, he was a horrible brother. A good brother wouldn’t have left him alone through that, a good brother would have...

“It did, but you needed to protect yourself too. We didn’t exactly have a normal upbringing.” Will points out, “again - I understand. Lance stabbed you, Zan. That’s more than enough reason to not upset him more.” Was he going to be okay with Lance here? Zander rubs the back of his neck as he starts to question how safe having Will here actually was. While he was actually glad to see him, he couldn’t imagine how hard of a decision this was for him. To stay safe, or walk back into the lion's den.

“Are you worried about... you know?” “Scared shitless. But it’s worth it. If I’d thought you’d be okay with it, I would have come last year. But I didn’t want to overstep...”

“I’ve regretted not inviting you.” Another regret that kept him awake, not just because he thought that Will was better at protecting Balo - they’d already talked about that. The only thing he’d been able to get out during Thanksgiving, come think of it. “I’m sorry, for how I’ve treated you Will. I love you, you’re my brother, and I’m sorry I wasn't better at expressing that sooner.” Again, Wiliam hugs him, and this time Zander hugs him back - a bit awkwardly.

“I forgave you years ago, just stop being a stranger. I want us to be mates.” Friends? He could do that.

“Mates, or mateys?” He jokes without thinking. For a moment, he worries that he’ll offend Will, but the boy chuckles, pulling away and patting him on the back.

“Why not both? I am the captain of the Flying Dutchman.” “Don’t let Ches hear you say that.” “Trust me, I know. Now come on, let’s go find Gracie. She’s terrorizing the other one you and Balo hang out with, the boy... Collen?”

Well, he couldn’t leave her to do that now, could he? And Zander has no issue following after William, feeling like for the first time - things with him and his brother were actually good. That there was no ill-blood lingering, that moving forward they actually would be friends.

If only he’d talked to him during Thanksgiving, it would have saved him a lot of sleepless nights.

—

“There’s one more thing I want to talk to you about, Balo. Now that your siblings aren’t here...”

Balo blinks, turning her attention from walking Will and Zander walk off to her mother at the words. What was there to discuss that they couldn’t say in front of her siblings? Surely she didn’t mean- for a moment she starts to panic, glancing over her shoulder for Lance but there’s no sight of the man. “It’d be better if we discussed this someplace a bit more privately.” Her mother adds, as if she wasn’t already panicked enough.

Still, she follows her mother when she leads her to someplace quieter, only breathing when she realizes Lance is nowhere in sight. Safe, they were safe. “Is everything okay, mom?”

“No, not really.” Cassandra confesses, “there’s something I’ve been meaning to tell you, about your father.” Wait, was her mother going to tell her who it was? For a moment, she feels a bit of excitement at the chance of finally finding out who it was, while it’d been eating at her since she’d put two and two together in Japan. “I haven’t been completely honest about who your biological father was. I was seeing someone when I was separated, that part isn't a secret, your father is completely aware I was. But I was trying to protect you...”

“Why would you have to protect me, if Lance knew he wasn’t my father?” Wait, Lance knew, right? Wasn’t that why he treated her even worse than the other Driskell children?

“I... might have not mentioned that fact.” Well, that made things interesting. Was he aware now? He had to have figured it out at some point down the line, right? “You don’t seem surprised. How did you figure it out?” She seemed concerned, almost confirming her suspicions that Lance knew.

“I needed a blood transfusion when we were in Japan, Zander couldn’t donate. My blood type isn’t a match to either of you....” She explains, tucking some blonde hair behind her ear. “I wasn’t sure if I could ask, when we were all together, and I just got you back, I didn’t want to- I don’t want you to leave again, so I thought if I just didn’t- you know?” She can’t help the tears rolling down her cheeks again, or the guilt she feels when her mother moves to try to wipe them away again, pulling her in for a hug and stroking her hair, whispering reassuring words she couldn’t quite make out completely over her own sobbing.

“I’m not going anywhere ever again, I promise.” Cassandra whispers, continuing to stroke her hair. “I’m so sorry you had to find out like that, bambi.” And she seemed genuinely apologetic, a bit too focused on reassuring Balo to continue on about what she wanted to say. And Balo clings to her mother even tighter at the promise she wasn’t leaving, how was she supposed to know that? She wasn’t supposed to leave her in the first place.

How was she supposed to trust something wouldn’t tear them apart again?

“Did he ever-” Could Balo even ask that, if her biological father ever wanted anything to do with her? Cassandra sighs, pulling away to look her in the eyes.

“It was safer for everyone involved if there was no contact. But, bambi, I’m not sure you’re ready for the answers to your questions.” She wants to protest, tell her mother if she was old enough to tell, surely she was old enough to know why he wasn’t involved, or who her biological father even was, but she relents, deflating as she realizes she wasn’t going to find out who it was from her mother anytime soon. “I’m sorry, I know this isn’t what you want to hear, but baby steps. He was a good man...” She trails off, and when Balo glances over her shoulder, she immediately understands why.

Was she supposed to say hello? What was the best way to handle Lance Driskell at the moment? “Balian.” He greets her, “how about I walk you and your mother back to dinner? It’s about to start, isn’t it?” Wait, was he being nice? Confusion fills her features immediately, but she doesn’t protest when he offers her an arm. This was too private, if she upset him... “You wouldn’t happen to know why your classmates are giving me strange looks, would you, lass?” He whispers in her ear as soon as she’s close enough to, his voice sending a shiver down her spine.

“Someone dug up old court records, tried to use them against Zander and I. We’ve been trying to do damage control ever since, but not everyone believes us it was a one off.” Balo whispers back, hoping the lie isn’t too obvious. Where was Zander and Will? Even Jack right now would be better than being alone with Lance and Cass. “I swear I didn’t tell anyone anything, dad.” He seems calm, but, when it came to her father, sometimes she wouldn’t know she was in trouble until he striked, and the inability to tell if she was safe, or in extreme danger, only made her even more frightened. Where was Leo? She wanted Leo, right now.

“Don’t let it happen again.” He believed her, and it suddenly feels easier to breathe. “Oh, and Balian?” As soon as the relief came across her, it was gone as it became apparent he wasn’t finished with her quite yet. “If you ever step out of line again, I’ll personally ensure you will never speak to your mother again. Do I make myself clear?” There’s a threat there, she knows it, and she’s immediately nodding along.

“Yes sir! I won’t, I promise.” She couldn’t, and once they reach the grand hall, she drops his arm.

“Good, it was nice to see you again. Come along, Cassie.” Lance doesn’t give her much room to say much else, not that Balo wanted to, and as soon as they’re gone, she can feel the tears welling up in her eyes again. Leo, where was Leo? She scans the grand hall, trying to see if she can find him but before she can get very far, there’s another person coming up to her.

“Hey there, buttercup!” Emmett greets her, although his expression quickly shifts when he notices her crying, the mirth that seemed to sparkle in his eyes getting replaced with someone much more serious. “You can come hang out with Cam and me, if you’d like.” And while she’d much rather hide behind Leo, the offer to have someone with her until more people arrived, and it wasn’t just a handful of them in the grand hall, wasn’t something she could bring herself to deny.

“Please?”

“Always. If you want to stay with us in the city this summer or anything, really. I know my father offered you an internship.” He had missed the memo; she didn’t want to discuss that, didn’t he? Still, she nods. She had been offered a design internship with The Elswoods, and she still couldn’t bring herself to say yes. After all, how much of it was them actually being impressed by her talents, and how much of it was nepotism? She wasn’t sure how much Ches had whispered in his ear.

“Can we discuss this later?” “Of course, come on. Camellia has more animal pics for you.” Now, that was a subject she was more than happy to discuss. She follows Emmett quietly, hoping that he wouldn’t be too offended; she wasn’t her usual excitable self at the moment. She had way too much on her mind to wear that mask at the moment.

Now all she needed to do was hope that somehow, she’d be able to find the energy to put it on before everyone arrived.

[songsofacagedbird]

Would you rather only listen to country music or cut off your ears?

“So my mom actually likes country music, and I don’t mind it, so I’d go with the country music. Plus, even if you hated it, cutting off your ears is a bit too much. Don’t you think? It’d be a chance to expand your horizons and learn to appreciate what other people love, and you didn’t state a time frame, so what if someone cut off their ears, and it was only for a few hours. That’d be so sad...”

[ridiculousyoungicarus]

ALL YOU COOL PEOPLE, YOU BETTER LEAVE NOW 'CAUSE IT'S ABOUT TO HAPPEN!! It’s your girl Katie, sliding in with one of my favorite children, Zander! This is Balo’s big brother, so... if you’ve already read her bio you’ve got a hint on what’s about to go down. Anyway, settle in, grab your popcorn, and judge me for spending six hours planning an injury for a muse, it’s gonna be a bit of a ride.

TWs: (Child) Abuse, Graphic Injury Depiction, Alcoholism (His Father's), Weapons (Knives), Stabbing (Being stabbed), Scarring, Surgery, Tobacco (Smoking)

Is that ZANDER DRISKELL? Wow, they do look a lot like DOMINIC SHERWOOD. I hear HE is an EIGHTEEN year old SENIOR who originally attended LUXOR Academy. Word is they are a REGULAR student. You should watch out because they can be CYNICAL and RESERVED, but on the bright side, they can also be RESPONSIBLE and PERSISTENT. Ultimately, you’ll get to see it all for yourself.  [KATIE, 23, EST, SHE/HERS]

Last Edit: 8/26/2020

❆ basics;

Full Name: Zander Kane Driskell Age: 18 Birthday: March 21st, 2002 at 05:16 PM Sexual Orientation: Bisexual, Biromantic (I swear every time I try to make a straight muse, they’re like “NOT TODAY SATAN” and end up being bi. I don’t know why or how, just that this is like the 50th time it’s happened.) Relationship Status: Single Occupation: Student Nationality: American

❆ classes;

 - Shakespearean Studies

- Astronomy

- Probability

- Spanish

- Physics

- World History

- General PE

❆ extracurriculars;

Baseball (Pitcher), National Honor Society, Book Club

❆ background; Place of Birth: Whatever fairytale land Balo came from aka Rochester, New York Hometown: Saratoga Springs, New York Traumas: Abuse (Constant/Ongoing - from his father) Addictions: Tobacco (Smoker)

❆ physical;

Face Claim:  Dominic Sherwood Eye Color:  1 pure blue, 1 blue and brown (sectoral heterochromia) Hair Color:  Brown (although he’s dyed it blonde before to match his sisters) Height: 5’11” Weight:  180lb Tattoos, Birthmarks, Scars, etc:  Zander has a few scars! (ONE and TWO) He’s also recently gotten his first tattoo. (LINK - slight nsfw warning, it’s the best pic of it I could find) (I’ll update this as he gets more because… at some point he’s getting more)

❆ zodiac;

Tropical

Sun: Aries Moon: Gemini Mercury: Pisces Venus: Aries Mars: Taurus Jupiter: Cancer Saturn: Gemini Uranus:  Aquarius Neptune: Aquarius Pluto: Sagittarius Lilith: Pisces N Node: Gemini

Placidus Orb

I ASC: Virgo II: Libra III: Scorpio IV: Sagittarius V: Capricorn VI: Aquarius VII: Pisces VIII: Aries IX: Taurus X MC: Gemini XI: Cancer XII: Leo

❆ relatives;

Father’s Full Name: Lance Driskell Father’s Status: Alive Father’s Occupation: Restaurant Owner Mother’s Full Name: Cassandra Driskell Mother’s Status: Alive Mother’s Occupation: Waitress at a local diner (not Lance’s place) Siblings: 1 Older and 1 Younger Sister, and an adoptive brother he selectively counts Driskell Children Oldest to Youngest:

- Ivan Marsden (22, kinda banished thanks Lance ya prick)

- Grace Driskell 19, in California for school)

- Zander Driskell

- Balo Driskell (LINK)

Here is a link to the Driskell family page if you’d like to know more about his family. (Yes, his is different than Balo’s!)

❆ misc;

Pinterest Section // Musings Tag // Playlist

- Zander really doesn’t trust easily and he constantly is questioning people’s motives, he doesn’t think the majority of people do things for him without wanting something in return and while he doesn’t always voice this opinion - you’ve got like ten dozen different brick walls to get through if you want to get  ‘inside his walls.’ It’s not impossible by any means (in my solo writing, there have been two non-sisters muses who’ve pulled it off, it’s 100% possible to do so) but it’s not easy.

- That doesn’t mean he doesn’t care about people however, he does feel empathy for others and it’s very possible for him to care about someone and not trust him. (Example: he can think of you as a friend but still be wary about your motives). Until he sees you at your worst / your rock bottom / he’s positive he knows what you’re capable of, he’s going to think you’re capable of horrific things, sorry.

- He doesn’t really discuss his feelings, he expresses them, he feels them, but he doesn’t want to talk about them.  The answer to why are you crying is always “I’M FINE” unless you managed to get through his walls.

- His sisters are very important to him, he’s in constant contact with Grace (just like Balo - is) and he tries to keep an eye on Balo when he can, intervening in ways she won’t find out about if he feels like he needs to. His parents? Not so much.

- He… may have a motorcycle stashed somewhere near campus.

- Zander’s usually willing to tutor if he knows a subject and you have a way of paying him. Something needs to pay for that motorcycle.

- Really big into space, he’s going to be Astronautical Engineer if he gets his way. (rocket scientist / rocket engineer)

❆ bio; TWs: (Child) Abuse, Graphic Injury Depiction, Alcoholism (His Father's), Weapons (Knives), Stabbing (Being stabbed), Scarring, Surgery, Tobacco (Smoking)

"Live your life 'cause when it's done, you ain't got no other one. When they sing for you, don't let them sing the blues."

Ever since Zander was a child, the Driskell name has always felt like a weight. Perhaps it was thanks to his mother, the reminder that as the only son it was his job to keep an eye on his sisters, perhaps thanks to his father, stumbling in with the stench of alcohol on his breath. Either way, even from a young age, he could always feel a weight on his shoulders. It was his job to make sure Balo was ready for school, to help Grace with her math homework when he struggled and help her with dinner. It became easy to resent them, his father for all the harm he caused, for the broken bones and terror he left in his wake and his mother for putting her head in the sand. Sure, his mother worked a lot, made sure to get her children gifts with her tip money, and she loved them enough to intervene when she was home, but she never left, never hesitated to lie each and every time one of the children went into the emergency room after yet another night where Lance drank and had the hankering to hear screaming.

Their parents would never protect them, so he made it his job. While Grace could handle herself, the youngest of the three children (Balo), needed someone to step in and intervene. It only became more and more apparent the older they became, especially after Balo saying a bit too much lead the family into moving in a hurry before anyone could get the ball rolling to properly look into what was going on in the Driskell's home and they moved to Saratoga Springs, NY.  However, the more he tried to protect Balo, the more their father tried to hurt her, and the more Zander had to intervene. When Lance adopted Ivan for appearances this became a easier task as the older boy helped him out with keeping Balo out of trouble.

The day he started to attend Luxor and had to leave Balo behind for a year was one he dreaded, and no amount of phone calls to his little sister made the school someplace he truly was okay with being while he was there, so he avoided everything and kept his head down. The only friends he needed were the book club and his teammates on the baseball team, and even then - most were nothing more than an acquaintanceship. It was easier that way, even after Balo followed him to the school the following year, it was the spot he was content with. Other than when his sister would convince him he had to meet her friends or he had to go to a social event, he was more than happy to stay out of it completely and focus on his studies.

The day he got badly hurt in a 'friendly wrestling match' wasn't a surprise to anyone while at home during the summer break after his sophomore year. The fact Zander came into the emergency room with a knife embedded into his left bicep, however, raised several eyebrows. For once in his life, he didn't comment on the excuses his mother spun, or try to help with an explanation on 'who did it.' He just quietly went through the required surgery and hid his breath of relief when the full range of motion returned in his arm after recovery. He tried to act as if he was oblivious to the deals that were made, his father attending AA in exchange for the state not pressing the charges Zander refused to press for the sake of his sisters.

He's been at Luxor ever since he started, other than an occasional school break, and getting to go home during the mandated stay over the summer to help with the schools merging due to having prior commitments to work for his father.