Work Text:
Alexandra Cabot and Casey Novak were infamous for their rivalry in the world of Storybrooke University’s School of Law.
Alex, the prim and proper niece of renowned Judge William “Bill” Cabot had always been a highly intelligent young lady, who operated with an effortless grace that irritated Casey to no end.
Casey - bright-eyed, stubborn, and fiercely intuitive - had managed to work her way into such an elite school on a scholarship. She constantly found herself fuelled with the urge to prove herself to the rest of the entitled, snooty assholes in this place, one of whom being Alex Cabot.
Alex despised Casey… which worked out well because the redhead hated Alex too.
She resented the way the blonde walked around the campus as though she owned the damn place.
She abhorred the way the Cabot family had, no doubt, bought Alex her way into the university, meanwhile Casey had leapt through countless hoops to even be considered for a place here at all.
She loathed the way her breath would hitch when Alex flashed that annoyingly smug little smirk at her during classes, along with staring her down with those stupidly captivating blue eyes whenever she had the chance.
But most of all? She despised the way that their teacher, Professor Moredock, had partnered herself and Alex together for their latest assignment - a mock trial in which both girls were to serve as joint-prosecutors. The redhead heavily suspected that he’d done so on purpose. Especially after what had happened the week prior; the two women had managed to break their current high-score for the number of no-holds-barred fights between them during class.
Quite frankly, seventeen disputes in sixty minutes might as well be a new world record.
He had probably thought this assignment would allow them the opportunity to settle their differences, but all it was doing so far on Casey’s end was tempting her more and more to take a softball bat to Cabot’s head and hit a home run.
The mock case they were prosecuting was a standard homicide. Despite the blatant facts pretty much confirming to Casey and Alex that the perp had done it - the most damning piece being a security photo of the defendant purchasing a shovel less than a mile from where the victim’s corpse was found - there was still not enough to make an airtight case. Even the photo itself was flimsy, the quality was grainy and the defendant's face was partly covered by a baseball cap.
Which was exactly why Casey had shoved Alex out of the room where themselves and their classmates had all gathered to do a quick practice ‘rehearsal’ together. The actual mock trial assignment, which Moredock would be assessing, was to be taking place the next day. Everybody in the class was hoping to avoid a crappy grade. Therefore, they had all agreed to meet for a brief practice in order to ensure that things would go smoothly for the real deal tomorrow. And it had been going well so far, until the middle of rehearsing the cross-examination. Alex had brought up the photo, catching Casey completely off guard. Before the blonde could even sit back down, Casey had led her out the door and around the corner of the hallway.
“I can’t believe you sandbagged me. I thought we agreed that introducing that photo could blow our whole case!”
“Relax, Novak-“
“It’s circumstantial at best. You didn’t think to confer with me, your co-counsel?”
“You know, believe it or not, there’s actually a point to every choice I make-“
“Oh, I highly doubt that, Princess.”
“I-“ Alex stopped. Her eyes grew dark as the unfamiliar nickname rolled off of Casey’s tongue, a dangerous hint of challenge on her face that was almost begging for the blonde to snap back with a rebuttal. “What?”
“You heard me,” Casey shrugged, folding her arms across her chest. Alex stared for a few seconds, letting her gaze pierce through the redhead. Licking her lips, she stepped forward.
“Princess? Is that what you think of me, Novak?” she murmured with a tilt of her head as she slowly walked towards Casey with a look on her face that caused the redhead’s stomach to flip against her will.
“Wh- I…” Casey stuttered as she took a step back. She mentally smacked herself for getting tongue-tied all of a sudden, finding it harder and harder to focus on coming up with an answer as the other woman approached her with such a predatory glare. She backed up another step, but Alex continued to draw closer.
“Well?” the blonde asked airily, as if she wasn’t less than an arm’s length away from Casey. The redhead took a final step, at which point her back became acquainted with the stone wall.
“Your uncle’s title is the only reason you got in. Everybody knows that,” she managed to breathe out, Alex barely a step away from her now. She swallowed quietly as she heard a small laugh escape the other woman, followed by another one of those damn smirks.
“Y’know, if I didn’t know any better, Novak… I’d say you were nervous right about now. Do I make you scared? Is that it?” Alex mocked, absolutely revelling in the way she was having such an effect on the other woman.
“Please,” Casey scoffed, attempting - and failing - to hide her unease with a roll of her eyes. “I’ve had hallucinations from a softball concussion that were scarier than you.”
The redhead could’ve sworn that Alex cracked a tiny smile after she’d said that, but before she could ponder it any further, the blonde was invading her space again and all thoughts in her mind were wiped completely away.
“If you say so,” Alex replied, unconvinced. “And in that case… a word of advice, Novak? From a princess to a… well, you.”
Casey didn’t respond to the clear dig in that last part. Her mind was preoccupied with the fact that Alex was now leaning completely into her. She felt the warm tickle of the blonde's breath on her ear as she began to murmur into her skin.
“In the room back there? That wasn’t even the mock trial- if you’re stressing this much over a practice run, you won’t stand a chance in the world of law. Next time, spare me the lecture on circumstantial evidence for when we do the real thing in front of Moredock.”
Casey could’ve sworn she’d felt something graze lightly against her neck before Alex detached herself completely from her. However she didn’t move to check, or even attempt to say anything, fearing that she would collapse right then and there if she tried.
“See you back in there… co-counsel,” Alex rasped, before turning on her heel and sauntering away. But then, right before she pivoted the corner to enter into the room, she turned back to Casey. “And for your information, Novak… I didn’t get in here on Uncle Bill’s status. I’m saving that kind of leverage for a day in the future where it’ll come in handy.”
“Meaning what?” Casey mumbled, her brow furrowed as her hazy mind attempted to play catch-up.
“Meaning… when we both end up real lawyers a few years from now, you better hope you never go up against me in court. I’d kick your ass on a real case.”
With that, Alex continued walking, knowing damn well that the redhead was watching her from behind as she made her way back to their classmates.
Once the blonde was gone, Casey peeled herself from the wall and exhaled, her mind short-circuiting from what had just happened. Running a shaky hand through her hair, she caught a glimpse of herself in the reflection of a glass display cabinet. Her face and neck were completely flushed. Casey seethed at the fact that she’d let Alexandra Cabot, of all people, see her in such a state.
She didn’t even want to think about the fact that the very same woman had been the one to elicit that reaction from her in the first place. The redhead growled at the notion as she fixed her hair before stomping her way down the hallway and back to the room, muttering profanities under her breath regarding a certain little infuriating blonde.
God, did she hate her.