Chapter Text
It should’ve ended there. Rapunzel with her newly gained wondrous power of the sun clashing with the darkness of Cassandra’s moon. The princess’s eyes were glowing with blazing gold as she was suspended in mid air, her seventy feet of hair lifting itself into the sky. The light surrounding her was almost enough to overcome the entire scene had it not been for Cassandra’s own spiral of brilliant blue hues, pining for their place in Rapunzel’s perfect circle of light. The moonstone wielder stood her ground firmly, her hands thrusting wildly, summoning more and more spikes of black rocks toward her sun wielding foe. And yet all the princess could keep her mind focused on in the midst of the chaos, was the two prisoners her former friend had trapped in her stony grasp. Varian, still fully entrapped in a cage of black rocks, shut his eyes and held his arm over his face to shield himself from not only the radiant flashes of magic that burned his eyes, but the cloud of dust coming as the rocks shattered from Rapunzel’s counterattacks. Eugene was still wrapped tightly in the rocks and did not have much of a different reaction from the caged alchemist. Though he, his own arms being restricted to his sides, could not shield himself from the wave and could only turn his head away. Had Rapunzel cared about anything beyond the two boys she considered her own close family, she might’ve seen the myriad of black and purple strings of magic intertwining, opening a gateway to the darker dimensions… unleashing a greater evil than she could ever imagine…
“Let… him… go!” Rapunzel cried out. Cassandra only gave a sly smile in return. The princess couldn’t win this time. Not against her power. As Rapunzel raised her hands and summoned her power and Cassandra did the same, two magnificent blasts of pure magic collided and a blinding light shot out and stung the eyes of all who witnessed it. It shook the black stone stronghold and sent such a shock wave that the previously unbreakable walls collapsed in less than a second. And with a decisive moment, a small amount of Cassandra’s power was severed from her as this blast hit the moonstone, and a crack of the once complete source of dark potential, broke off from the stone and shot away from its holder. Cassandra felt the unovercomable gravity of defeat come suddenly crashing down on her as her hand moved over her broken stone in shock. She couldn’t lose… This couldn’t happen… Not again. Cassandra’s eyes darted around quickly. As everything struggled to keep a foothold on the tower, the only thing steady was the beacon of ethereal light in the middle of it all, orchestrating this destruction… Rapunzel. After everything Cassandra felt herself grimace as she finally shut her eyes and shielded them with her arms, the gold and blue winds whipping her electric hair in and out of her face. After everything she worked to build, after everything she’d found rightfully hers, there was no way she’d let Rapunzel take it all away from her again. Of course, Cassandra had little time to think of this as the shock wave began pushing her and everything surrounding the epicenter off of the tower and sent it crashing to the ground below. But there had to be something she could hold onto. Rapunzel had everything… She always had everything. And Cassandra determined in those two seconds of intense thought that felt like a lifetime, that it was only fair to take something near and dear to the princess as a reminder that this battle wasn’t over. All bets were off now. Any speck of moral concern left her for these next moments. Cassandra would take everything Rapunzel thought to be hers. Her only question was, what could she really do now? Cassandra looked past the blazes of gold to see her rock traps begin to break away from her two prisoners. Eugene was the first to be free and quickly got firm footing on the ground. Varian was not so lucky…
“Agh! Eugene!” The young alchemist shouted as his cage began to collapse around him. Even if it was a trap, it had been the only thing keeping him anchored from falling. Eugene heard the boy’s cries and shouted back desperately.
“Varian!” With that word Cassandra could almost feel time stand still as the idea rushed through her head. At that exact moment, something struck inside Cassandra… that was it. Varian. Cassandra knew Rapunzel saw him as so much more than a close friend. From what she’d seen just in the past few days, the princess would protect that boy like a mother would her child. If there was one thing Cassandra knew she could take and keep from her… it was the boy. And suddenly time sped up again, knocking Cassandra from her thoughts as the blast simultaneously shot her and Varian off of the tower. Cassandra let out a loud scream as she began free falling three hundred feet toward certain death. She managed her panic. She had to think fast if she still wanted to win this. No time to wait. About a third of the way down, Cassandra mustered her strength and a large outcropping of black rock came from the side of her tower. Her body hit the hard surface and it broke her fall. It wasn’t a gentle landing by any circumstances and Cassandra nearly had the wind knocked out of her as she slammed onto it, but she had to come back to her senses as fast as she could. Cassandra shot up to her feet and used whatever was left in her to concentrate. She hadn’t seen what side of the tower Varian fell from, only heard his scream as he did fall. So she’d have to account for all angles.
“Crescent high above, evolving as you go…” Cassandra recited quickly. The tower began to rumble. She barely noticed the moonstone sparking from her usage of it despite it cracking. But Cassandra determined for the present time that if she could use it anyway, it hardly mattered. She could hear the continued screaming coming from Varian. By her estimate he was probably almost half of the way down. She’d have to do this right if she wanted to break his fall.
“Raise what lies beneath and let the darkness grow!” With the final words of the incantation, a circle of rock outcroppings suddenly shot out from all sides of the tower directly beneath her. Cassandra rushed over to the wall her outcropping came from and used her power to create a doorway inside the stronghold. She stepped in and onto one of the staircases she’d recalled climbing up earlier that day and further used her power creating windows at all angles. She dashed to each and every one looking to see if the alchemist had landed on any of her rocks. She began to panic when she did not see him.
“No. No. No No No…” Cassandra mumbled to herself. Maybe it was selfish desire and spite fueling her desire to keep Varian, but a small part of her still hoped at least that he didn’t fall all the way. He didn’t deserve to die… Just as Cassandra was about to give up all hope and just accept that Varian was gone, a small figure could be seen shifting on one of her outcroppings not too far beneath her. Cassandra was elated when she recognized the singular blue streak sticking out from the mop of jet black hair. She’d caught him. Varian was still beginning to sit up and he appeared confused as to why he hadn’t fallen to his death. Relief subsided and Cassandra grinned wickedly. The day wasn’t over yet. She could still claim a victory. Cassandra leaped out of the window she’d made and a little ways down, created a large spike coming from the wall of the tower. She gripped onto it, flipped her body around it to gain more momentum before finally shooting herself just on Varian’s outcropping. She landed on her feet and smiled as the dazed boy finally looked up at her. His hair and clothes were frazzled from the shock the wave had caused and his skin was smudged with scorches. His eyes widened with surprise underneath lopsided goggles and he pushed them back on the top of his head to gain a better look at the figure towering over him. His face suddenly changed to an expression of fear as he began to crawl back away from Cassandra as she stalked closer.
“Hey kid…” She greeted, coolly, intimidatingly. Varian’s back met the wall of the stronghold and he dragged himself to his feet once he realized he could not run. He was a bit more surprised to feel a shooting, grinding pain from his rib cage as he did so and bit his lip to suppress a cry. He gulped heavily and his lip quivered.
“C- Cass…” He stuttered out. He didn’t exactly know what was going on. Why he hadn’t fallen, why he suddenly felt immense pain in his chest, why was Cassandra cornering him now? “W-what are you-“
“Save your breath, Varian.” Cassandra cut him off before he could ask. Her hands came down and gripped each of his biceps, pinning him to the wall. Varian was too busy panicking to struggle. “If Rapunzel wants to take everything from me, fine. I’ll just have to take something from her…” Cassandra’s intentions suddenly became clear to Varian. He could feel himself trembling uncontrollably. He couldn’t go through this… not anymore.
“Cassandra… no…” Varian gasped out. He was hyperventilating. It wasn’t helping his ribs any. He was struggling to find the words as Cassandra forced his wrists in front of him and formed rocks around them. “Cass, please- Wait!” Varian struck a chord in Cassandra’s heart. Wait… That’s all she’d ever done. Well no more. She was through waiting. Cassandra grimaced harshly. She couldn’t contain her anger. Her next actions were almost completely out of her control. She felt her hands shake in her rage. She unexpectedly raised her hand and struck Varian across the face. Hard. Her strike withdrew a cry of pain from Varian and her armor had scratched his cheek three times below his left eye. Blood slowly began to trail from the cuts as Varian tried to recover from his shock, the stinging lingering for longer than it should’ve. Cassandra suddenly tightly gripped his jaw in her hand and forced him to look up into her eyes.
“If I were you, I’d stop talking, and start walking. Clear?” Cassandra ordered angrily. Varian did what he could to timidly nod. What had happened to her? Cassandra said earlier she hadn’t wanted to hurt him. Then again… she had struck him with the rocks… right where his ribs hurt now... Cassandra only thought about striking him for a few seconds. Why had she done that? It was almost like she lost control for a second. Cassandra brushed this thought away to consider later. She briskly turned Varian around so he was positioned in front of her and gripped his shoulders from behind. She could feel him tense up when she touched him. Cassandra was about to just create a doorway inside and get them moving before she heard a voice coming from beneath her.
“Just because we’re not there yet, doesn’t mean we’re not getting there eventually!” Lance? What was he doing here? Cassandra let go of Varian for a second to look beneath her. Further down the tower on a balcony, Lance, Maximus and the two girls Cassandra recognized as Angry and Red were all standing there arguing about which direction to go. They must’ve been here this entire time and just kept arguing about where to go so they never found their way to her. She rolled her eyes at the idiocy. Typical. But then again… she couldn’t resist sending a message. That was the point of this anyways. She looked over to Varian. She could tell he heard Lance as well. Because a small flicker of hope flashed in his wide blue eyes. Cassandra scoffed and used her powers to tighten the rocks binding his wrists, reminding him of his place. Varian gasped slightly at his new discomfort.
“Don’t even think about it.” Cassandra warned. She wasn’t about to have him calling for help until she wanted their attention. Varian shifted his head down and kept his eyes on his boots. And so Cassandra stood by. Lucky for her, Varian kept silent, and Lance and the others kept on arguing. She knew eventually Eugene and Rapunzel would come down and meet their friends. Sure enough, within the next two minutes she heard Rapunzel’s voice.
“Guys!” The princess cried joyfully. Cassandra could hear the others joining in rejoices and congratulations at their supposed victory. But she wanted one of them to say it before she made her presence known. But as if fate had destined it, Rapunzel raised the question right then and there.
”Lance, I saw Varian fall off the tower on this side.” She said, “You caught him, right?” And that was her cue. Cassandra grabbed Varian and pushed him onto a newly created platform against the wall of the stronghold. She stepped on beside him, and used her power to move the rock rapidly down the tower wall. She stopped the rock as soon as they were alongside the balcony Rapunzel and her friends were standing on.
”Oh I wouldn’t worry about him, Rapunzel.” Cassandra replied, causing the princess to turn around and gasp. “Poor little Varian is right here with me. Safe and sound.” Cassandra mockingly patted the boy's head and he squirmed uncomfortably in her grip. Rapunzel reached out to him as Pascal glared from his best friend's shoulder and made threatening gestures at Cassandra.
”Varian!” Rapunzel cried before looking desperately towards Cassandra. “Cass, let him go, please!” Cassandra laughed and held Varian tighter.
”No, I don’t think I will…” Cassandra replied. “You see I just figured since you’ve got so many friends of your own, you wouldn’t mind if I borrowed one for myself. It’s only fair…” Rapunzel felt like crying and screaming out in rage all at once. This was all just about messing with her. Varian didn’t deserve any of this and Cassandra knew it. Rapunzel nearly pulled out her frying pan when she saw blood trailing down from Varian’s cheek. His eyes were wide and begging her for some kind of help. It was almost the same look he gave her that night of the storm when he came to her when the amber began encasing his dad. She’d let him down then, she couldn’t let him down a second time. Eugene stepped in front of Rapunzel before she had the chance to do anything rash. He glared at Cassandra with all the protective instinct in him.
“It’s over, Cassandra!” He roared. “You got the incantation! He’s of no use to you anymore!”
”I dunno, Fitzherbert.” Cassandra replied, thoughtfully. “If it makes you mad that I’m keeping him, I’d call that pretty useful. Besides, hostages are always good for insurance...” That last statement was a lot more menacing than the first. Especially since she had a spike of rock extend from her hand and she slowly edged the tip of it to Varian’s throat. The alchemist winced and shut his eyes in terror, tears blinking out at the edges.
”No, don’t hurt him!” Rapunzel ordered, a bit more pleading than she would’ve liked to sound. “Cassandra, whatever you want I’ll do it, just let him go!” Cassandra mulled the offer over in her head, humming as she did so. Rapunzel had never said that before. She only offered to talk it out or work through it with her. Never submitting to her wishes. Varian must mean a lot more to Rapunzel than Cassandra thought.
”What do I want…? Hmmm… Nothing at the moment, Rapunzel…” She replied. “But when the time comes, I think you’ll know better than to cross me…”
”Give Varian back, Cassandra!” Catalina shouted, uncharacteristically loud and assertive for her usual demeanor. Her eyes began to glow red and her teeth bared as her wolf side began to show. Varian was like her brother. She wasn’t about to let Cassandra take that away. Angry put a hand on Catalina’s shoulder as a warning.
”Slow down, sis.” She said, and pointed at Varian. The spike from Cassandra’s hand edged closer to his throat and was just touching the skin. Catalina retracted. As long as Cassandra had him like that, attacking her was risking Varian’s life. Her sister looked at her in understanding and the two held close to each other as they looked to Rapunzel. The princess had to have a way to save him. She had to. But unfortunately for Rapunzel, even with all eyes on her, she had nothing.
”I- I…” Rapunzel stammered as she tried to come up with a solution. Cassandra smiled as she realized Rapunzel was at a loss. Varian realized it too. There was nothing she could do to help him…
”As fun as this has been, princess, It’s late and we wouldn’t want to keep the kids up all night now would we?” Cassandra was referring to Varian, Angry and Catalina. “So I suggest we call it a night and you and your friends head on back to Corona while I take care of this one.” She nodded her head to Varian as she said that last part. Rapunzel couldn’t back down. She clenched her fists and glared.
”Cass… don’t make me-“
”Rapunzel.” A small, meek voice broke into Rapunzel’s threat and everyone looked to its source. Varian was looking at her through tired eyes. He’d been through so much that day. He tried to manage a small reassuring smile toward Rapunzel that he didn’t even know he needed himself. “It’s fine… I’ll be okay…” Rapunzel couldn’t believe it. Was he seriously telling her to…
”Varian… I won’t leave you behind!” She resolved.
”You don’t have a choice…” He argued back. He heard Cassandra laugh as he said what she’d wanted him to. It took what little courage he had left in him to glare up at her.
“Listen to the kid, Rapunzel. I may not have destroyed you today. But I got you to fight .” She said cruelly. “Maybe you were able to protect your lousy excuse of a boyfriend, but you couldn’t even save the boy you came here to rescue in the first place!” Rapunzel looked at Varian. He’d briefly let any inch of bravery leave his face and his fear was evident. Rapunzel could tell he was terrified and she couldn’t blame him. She heard Max grunt angrily and looked around. All of her friends seemed ready for a fight. But when she looked to the alchemist again, he only had one thing to ask.
“You can’t win today.” He said, “I know that. But Rapunzel… promise me that when you can… you’ll help me .”
”And when have you known Rapunzel to keep her promises…?” Cassandra questioned Varian, obviously taunting them both for Rapunzel’s promise a little over a year ago to help him and his village only for her to turn him away at his time of need. This misstep had been enough to turn Varian against her before. But despite this, Rapunzel had come through for him. And he wasn’t about to give up his faith in her. He ignored Cassandra and asked again.
”Promise me, Rapunzel.” Varian pleaded. Rapunzel looked at her friend, and then at Cassandra. The two women glared at each other. Rapunzel knew what this was all about. Cassandra just couldn’t let her win. She had to claim some victory in the depths of her losses. Today Varian was that prize. Rapunzel didn’t want to allow it, but it was like Varian had said. She didn’t have a choice. She couldn’t fight Cassandra like she had earlier when she could hurt Varian. None of them could. Rapunzel gave a heavy sigh and tears began to roll down her cheeks.
”I promise… ” She gave her word. Cassandra grinned. Rapunzel lost… there was only one thing left to do.
”We'll see you another day, princess.” She said before using her power to collapse the rock balcony Rapunzel and her friends were standing on. They began the hundred foot fall with a scream.
” No!” Varian cried out and struggled against Cassandra, though she held him securely. The two watched as midway through the fall, Rapunzel’s hair began to glow and move all on its own. She was able to will her hair into encircling all of her friends who were luckily all in close proximity. And so the unbreakable shell was created and once they finally collided with the ground below, they were protected. Rapunzel’s hair fell back to her sides and all of her friends were left completely unharmed. Varian let out a heavy sigh only to bite his lip in pain as the breath moved his chest. He still didn’t know why there was pain there. Cassandra herself was not too concerned with that as she leered down at her enemies. She knew they wouldn’t attempt to come up. Not tonight, probably not even tomorrow. So with nothing else to do, she opened a doorway inside the tower from her platform.
”Inside. Now.” She ordered Varian as she finally released him from her grasp. Varian nearly scowled but Cassandra shot him a serious glare that told him he better not test her. So he let his face fall, defeated, and obediently trudged inside the tower. Cassandra took one last look down at Rapunzel.
”Until we meet again…”
Rapunzel could barely contain herself for more than two seconds. And that’s all it took from her falling from the tower and hitting the ground to curl in on herself, shout hatefully into the night sky and began sobbing uncontrollably. She felt Angry put a hand on her arm.
”It’s okay, princess...” Angry reassured her. Though she couldn’t believe it. She shoved away from Angry and stood up angrily.
” Nothing about this is okay!” Rapunzel yelled. “Cassandra has full control of the moonstone and we failed to save Varian! The entire reason we came out here, and we failed! And now he’s just stuck here and it’s all my fault! Does that sound okay to you?” Rapunzel paused as she realized Angry seemed scared of her. Everyone was looking at her, bewildered. She was usually so optimistic. And here she was shouting in a rage. She took a deep breath and ran her hand over her face, trying to stop more tears from falling. Angry and Catalina gave each other disheartened looks. They hadn’t seen the majority of what happened against Cassandra, but they knew for a fact it can’t have been good. That and they’d only seen Varian for a little over a minute and they could tell from his appearance that his experiences had been everything short of pleasant. Angry shuddered when she remembered the blood streaming from his face. Had Cassandra really done that?
”But I guess there’s really nothing we can do now…” Lance was the first to say what they were all thinking. And just like that the hopelessness dawned on all of them. They lost… Varian was in Cassandra’s clutches and as long as she was willing to use him as a hostage, they couldn’t do a thing about it. Rapunzel shrugged, half heartedly.
”No. I guess there isn’t.” She answered Lance. Eugene dared to give his girlfriend some comfort and offered his hand with a compassionate, but equally saddened expression. This time Rapunzel accepted the gesture a bit more easily. The couple looked up towards the tower. It felt like just that afternoon when they’d all stood at the foot of the fortress for the very first time. It seemed even more overwhelming and menacing than it had before.
”Eugene… I’m sorry I yelled I just-“
”Don’t apologize, Rapunzel.” Eugene interrupted, albeit kindly. “It’s been a rough day…” Rapunzel shut her eyes and frowned. It was all so confusing, still. To comprehend how Cassandra could do such things… and how Rapunzel could fail Varian during his time of need for a second time…
”Yeah, it has…” Rapunzel agreed dejectedly. Eugene looked at her sadly. The sun shining light he always seemed to see radiating around her was dim as her hopes were crushed by the darkness. He couldn’t say he felt much different. Some twenty sixth birthday this turned out to be. But this wasn’t about him. Rapunzel needed reassurance more than ever right now. He took both of her hands and turned her to face him.
”Hey… look at me, Rapunzel.” He instructed gently. “You’re right. Things aren’t ‘okay’ right now. But we are not giving up. Maybe we got literally knocked down today but I promise you that we are going to get Varian back. Everything is going to be fine…” Rapunzel only barely nodded. She wanted to believe Eugene, really she did but… it was just too hard to hope right now. Right now it was just easier to accept the loss and call it a day…
”We should head back to town…” Rapunzel suggested, wiping her tears away on her sleeve. “It’s late and we can’t come up with a plan while we’re all exhausted like this.” With that she trudged over to Maximus. The horse neighed concerningly and Pascal patted Rapunzel’s shoulder and hugged her neck. The princess barely took notice of either. Lance, Angry and Catalina all looked at Eugene. He only sighed and began filing behind Rapunzel. It hurt him to leave Varian, but it was all they could do for now. Catalina caught up to Rapunzel’s side and was walking beside her.
”Who’s gonna tell his dad?” She asked. Rapunzel paused in her steps. She hadn’t even thought about Quirin. What would he say when he found out his son was kidnapped because of her and that they’d failed to save him? It was all too much for Rapunzel to think about. Before she could have another breakdown, Eugene stepped between them and held Rapunzel close.
”We’ll reconvene in the morning, kid.” He answered. “Right now we all need to rest…” He continued holding onto Rapunzel as they walked along. Lance was the last to look at the tower of black rocks and think of his friend, trapped up there alone with that crazy moonstone infused witch. And just as he said earlier… he was helpless to stop it. Lance breathed out and let his shoulders slump in disappointment as he turned and followed his companions back toward Corona.
”Yeah. Rest… it’s all we can do.”
Varian was more annoyed at this point than anything else. Yes he’d been kidnapped for the second time in the past few days, he was pretty sure he was injured with no idea whether the abuse would stop, he had no clue how long he would be with Cassandra or what his dad was going to say when his friends could finally save him… but he was exhausted and Cassandra was making him walk up all these winding stairs all over again. Varian was pretty sure Cassandra didn’t even have to use stairs too. Her powers could create rock platforms that she could just move up. He briefly thought about just stopping in his tracks and telling Cassandra that he wasn’t going to let her drag him around. But just as he was too tired to climb these stairs in the first place, he was far too tired to deal with how Cassandra would respond to his rebellion. So he just kept walking along. Cassandra kept a tight grasp on his shirt collar and pulled him behind her to ensure he kept up. This was especially irritating to Varian but it’s not like he was in any position to complain. Within the next seven minutes they finally reached the top of Cassandra’s now partially destroyed stronghold. Varian was noticing how Cassandra seemed more anxious than she’d been before. He looked down at the moonstone over her heart and was startled to see it sparking unstably. Upon closer inspection, he came to the realization that it had cracked. He wondered offhandedly if that would affect her powers. More importantly, if he was in any more danger now. So far her powers didn’t seem to be any different than they’d been before. She came to the same realization and calmed down after that. Varian must’ve been slacking in his steps as he thought because he felt Cassandra harshly yank him forward. He stumbled forward a bit more until Cassandra suddenly stepped in front of her, her arm going in front of him defensively.
”What?” He asked, still not sure why Cassandra had so quickly changed pace. He looked ahead of him and realized what she’d seen. Above their heads purple magic was warping in a dark cluster of sparks. The wind whipped his hair lightly around until the magic stopped. A small, familiar looking girl with now dark purple features matching her similarly colored old fashioned attire, came down from the cluster and breathed a satisfied sigh.
“At last… the clash of sun and moon has released me from my prison…” Cassandra stared on in surprise as she looked at her mysterious companion, now changed. What was she talking about? The girl was looking over her now physical form and grinned evilly. “It’s good to be back.”
“You…” Cassandra said. It was about here Varian recognized the girl as well.
“Wait… you were the girl in my drea-”
“Cassandra…” The girl interrupted him. She moved toward the moonstone wielder slowly, entirely overlooking her prisoner. “Isn’t this just wonderful?” Cassandra seemed very confused, as if she wasn’t sure that what she was looking at was even real. Her hand moved away from Varian as she reached out to the girl she was certain had only appeared to her as a ghost.
“But- but you’re-”
“Real?” The girl answered for her, and chuckled giddily. “Yes. When your power clashed with Rapunzel’s, it was enough to open the rift between our worlds and bring me back into the physical realm.” Varian was probably even more confused than Cassandra was. But he did know that this must’ve been why she appeared in his dream. She needed him to give Rapunzel the fourth incantation. When that combated Cassandra’s power, it was enough to bring her into their world. Though he still wasn’t sure how much of this he was even supposed to be hearing. How did Cassandra know this girl… unless…
“You were who she was talking to.” Varian said, “When Cassandra was talking to someone I couldn’t see or hear… it was you.” The girl finally looked to Varian, her brows raised in intrigue. She gave that same cracking smile she gave Varian in his dream. He almost stepped back, frightened, but Cassandra gripped his arm and held him in place.
“Clever boy…” The girl remarked eerily. Varian nervously writhed in Cassandra’s grasp. There was something about this girl. She was dealing in something much darker than he could understand. How could Cassandra have been speaking to her non physically? How could the girl have invaded his dreams? Something told him there was much more going on than he’d originally thought.
“But how are you-” Before he could ask any more questions, the girl looked back to Cassandra and interrupted him again.
“You see now, Cassandra… Rapunzel is more powerful than we thought.” She said, “But now that I’m finally here, we can begin a better plan. One that will ensure that you can take everything away from her.”
“And how do I do that?” Cassandra asked. Varian couldn’t believe this. This girl only just now appeared physically and Cassandra just went with it. It was obvious to him that Cassandra was being manipulated by this girl Varian assumed had to be a magical being from a realm outside their own. Varian’s only question then was why? Why was this girl so desperate to come to this world that she would manipulate Cassandra, and then manipulate him in his dreams for the fourth incantation? He was certain at this point that while Cassandra only saw the girl on her side, she was definitely playing both fields to some extent to get what she wanted… but now that she was free in the physical realm, why continue siding with Cassandra? Who was she…?
“It’s clear now that simply destroying Rapunzel will not suffice. To break her, to finally repay her for taking your life away from you, you must take the very people she’d die to protect.” Varian felt himself filled with dread as it dawned upon him. Cassandra smiled.
“ Corona…” She answered.
“No!” Varian found himself blurting out as he looked up to Cassandra with wide eyes. Varian still had very little understanding of what was going on. But he knew some things. He knew that Cassandra’s plan for revenge must’ve been about her mother, the woman called ‘Gothel’ that had stolen Rapunzel and left Cassandra behind. The princess had told him that part. He also knew that if Cassandra was planning to take all of Corona, it would be a complete catastrophe. “Cass, you can’t do this. You have to see that this girl is-“
“Cassandra… I’d have thought you’d have more control over your prisoners than this.” The girl said chidingly as she sauntered over to Varian with a disapproving look in her eyes. “They are expected not to speak unless instructed to do so.” He glared down at the girl but still feeling very commanded in the presence of both her and Cassandra, opted to keep his mouth shut. The girl grinned.
“That’s better…” She taunted. Varian had to bite his tongue to keep from quipping back. She’d freaked him out in his dream, now she was just irking him. Making fun of the fact that he had lost any free will. But strange as it was, Varian could almost compare the feeling she just gave him when she chastised him, to the same feeling when a mother corrects her child for doing or saying something wrong. Varian remembered feeling the same way when the Saporian, Andrew used to reprimand him for stepping out of line back when Varian was still allied with him and the other Saporians. Like he was some kind of little kid. And the feeling was just as humiliating and annoying as that had been. Cassandra groaned in irritation but seeing the matter was settled, she looked about her stronghold. She raised her hand and the walls began to rise again as she repaired the areas that had been broken from her battle with Rapunzel. It took little time for everything to reassemble. Varian felt a sense of dread come over him as he saw her rocks block off the space above him and shut out his only clear view of the sky. His only unobstructed view of the world outside. As the throne room was reconstructed, Cassandra began walking Varian out, leaving the girl in the center of the floor.
“We’ll discuss the details later.” Cassandra said. “This was all a lot to take in and I’m calling it a day.” She was exhausted from the events of the day and though interested, found herself much too tired to discuss the logistics of taking over a kingdom. Varian wasn’t feeling much differently. Cassandra could feel him going kind of limp in her grasp. No matter how scared or panicked he was, he was just as fatigued as any of that. Varian almost wanted to say something more about the girl but by the time he’d thought about it, Cassandra was already leading him down more stairwells and a hallway, just as dark looking but strangely illuminated as the throne room through windows letting in the moonlight and reflecting the blue glow of the rocks. Grand rock pillars held up the ceilings above with sticking out spikes interspersed on the floor. Personally he was amazed Cassandra had put so much detail into this tower when it only took her a little more than a minute to build.
“Varian.” He jumped slightly when he heard Cassandra address him. She was looking down at him strangely. If he didn’t know any better he’d almost say she looked guilty. She must feel different about speaking to him alone than speaking in front of that girl or Rapunzel. “Look, I’m sorry about that hit earlier. I got flustered but I shouldn’t have done that. It was going too far.” Varian found himself suddenly very annoyed. That had been too far? She’d apologize for hitting him, but not for using him as a hostage? It was almost laughable. He looked away from Cassandra bitterly, not really wishing to get into any sort of conversation with her. Earlier today that’d resulted in getting hit in the chest with rocks, and slapped in the face. He wasn’t about to risk more abuse. Fear was the main motivator there, but he’d be lying if he said there wasn’t some anger too. Who wouldn’t be even a bit angry about being nothing but hurt, silenced, and taken prisoner by someone who used to be their friend? Varian was barely sure if there was any of that part of Cassandra left anymore. Cassandra took another look at the cuts she’d made on Varian’s cheek and stopped the boy’s steps to inspect them. She took his face in her hand and looked them over.
“It doesn’t look too bad..” She said, considering the deepness of the cuts and how much blood had been drawn. “I’m sure tomorrow I can get some stuff to clean it up and bandage it.” Once again Varian was almost fuming on the inside. How two-faced could she get?! He quickly turned his face away from her, breaking out of her hold as he did so. Cassandra groaned.
“I know you’re probably pretty mad at me right now.” She said, “But I didn’t have any other choice. I couldn’t just let Rapunzel win. And I needed leverage for when I face her again.” Was she seriously trying to justify herself to him? Cassandra grimaced. How pathetic could she get? It’s not like he’d come to see it her way. She’d threatened his life. She certainly wouldn’t have killed him, no matter what she wanted Rapunzel to think. He’d have no use for Cassandra if he was dead. But she could understand how frightening that must’ve appeared. It was no wonder if he was angry about that… Still, she couldn’t stand him being so cold toward her. At least she thought so. He was either being icy or just too scared to speak to her. Before, he’d tried to reason with her. Even if she didn’t listen, it was something.
“C’mon say something.” Cassandra said, almost begging. Varian looked down at his boots. Did he dare say it? Eventually he couldn’t hold back and answered quietly.
“I was under the impression that prisoners don’t speak unless instructed to do so.” Varian replied, sarcastically citing what the girl had said earlier. Cassandra was wounded by the statement and him referring to himself in that manner but tried not to let it show as she hardened up again.
“Don’t be like that, Varian.” She said, “That isn’t how this is…”
“Oh so then you’d let me go?” Varian asked, a small bit more accusingly than before, even if he hadn’t intended it. Cassandra rolled her eyes.
“You know I can’t just-“
“Then that’s exactly how this is.” Varian replied in an odd mix of anger and saddened resignation.
“Okay fine. Look at it that way if you want.” Cassandra relented frustratingly, realizing she couldn’t exactly argue. She continued leading him a little ways more down the hallway until coming to a stop in front of a section of the wall. She used her power and moved that section up to reveal a small room made entirely of her rocks, illuminated only by the slivers of moonlight shining through the bars of a small window. It honestly reminded Varian of his cell back in prison. Then again he supposed that was the point. With a wave of Cassandra’s hand, she removed the restraints from his wrists and he immediately got to rubbing them as soon as they were free of the rocks binding him. His wrists had gotten more sore after Cassandra tightened the cuffs earlier.
“I’ll come back in the morning with something for those cuts.” Cassandra informed him, gesturing to the marks on his cheek. “I’ll probably bring some food too. if I can manage it, I’ll throw in some stuff to make sleeping a bit more comfortable. Rocks don’t exactly make for the best of beds.” How or why Cassandra would manage any of that, Varian didn’t know at the moment. He felt her gently push his shoulder as an indicator for him to step inside the room. Seeing no use in fighting he did so.
“So I’m just gonna be locked in here, then?” Varian asked. Cassandra crossed her arms and gave a firm look. As long as Varian wasn’t completely ignoring her, there was no use trying to appear soft. Not that she really had at all.
“Better than being locked in a cage and put outside.” She reminded him. “Unless you’d prefer that…” Varian rolled his eyes and backed off. He supposed if he was going to be here for awhile this was definitely better than that confined cage she’d put him in earlier. He decided to try and settle down at least a little and with his back to the wall, slid down to a sitting position. He hadn’t of course, expected a stabbing pain to come when his rib cage shifted and he found himself nearly doubling over and crying out. Cassandra raised a brow in confusion and concern.
“Varian…?” She asked. She wasn’t aware he’d been hurt deeper than what she could see.
“I'm fine..” He insisted through gritted teeth. He’d felt similar pains earlier, it can’t have been too bad. Cassandra stepped in beside him and crouched down to meet his eye level.
“Kid, if you think I’m that stupid we have a problem.” She said, deadpan. Varian inched away from her, his hands moving down to his sides and his legs stretching out in an attempt to get more comfortable.
“It’s nothing, Cassandra.”
“ ‘Nothing’ doesn’t make you cry out like that when you move.” Cassandra argued back. She was about to do some further inspection and moved her hand to his chest. Suddenly Varian pushed her hand away and moved his arm over his ribs, shielding himself from her reach.
“Don’t- Don’t touch me… Please ...” He’d meant to sound more assertive then scared. But he didn’t want the interaction to go any farther. Deep breaths in a futile attempt to calm himself and ease his pain began making his ribs contract faster, causing him even more suffering. Cassandra was getting tired of his stubbornness. She had half a mind to pin him down right now and check the area that way. But she knew this would only make him more scared and thus harder to deal with. She couldn’t blame him for wanting her to leave him alone. This was pretty uncomfortable for both of them. But as long as she didn’t know what was going on, they risked ignoring an injury that was more serious. She had to get him to see reason.
“Varian, if you don’t let me look then we don’t know how bad it is.” She said, trying her best to appeal to him. Varian frowned.
“I’d know. I can check myself.” Varian argued back. He bet his own scientific knowledge was enough to make an accurate diagnosis. Cassandra felt otherwise.
“I would know too. Even if it was internal. I’d just need to see the impacted area.” Cassandra retaliated. She’d grown accustomed to all sorts of injuries while training for the guard. And she knew plenty of ways to help them. “Besides, who can actually leave this tower to get what’s needed to treat it?” Varian felt himself bristle as she played her own right to leave whenever she pleased over his at the moment. He crossed his arms and childishly leaned away from her. He wasn’t about to let her take all of his free will. If this was the only rebellion he had the energy to put up then so be it. Cassandra sighed heavily. This would go on forever if she couldn’t convince him sooner or later.
“Varian, what if it’s serious?” Cassandra prompted him to think. “If I can’t see, I won’t know how to help you and you could maybe even die.” Dramatic, sure. But perhaps it would make Varian think of a bigger picture. He only intensified his glare.
“Yeah because you can’t have your hostage dying before you can get anything out of it…” Varian ended up surprising himself with that snippy, anger fueled remark. He looked to Cassandra who was now giving him a more stern look then he’d ever seen before. It reminded him of his position and he shrunk back fearfully.
“ Varian…” Cassandra warned. He was beginning to see that if he kept fighting her now, she’d probably end up forcing him to let her look anyways. He groaned and moved his arms away.
“Fine…” He whined. “But I’m telling you, it’s nothing.” Realizing she’d won, Cassandra began lightly pressing down on different areas of Varian’s chest to try and find where he’d been injured as she now knew had to be the case. It didn’t take long because as soon as her hand met the space right beneath his collar bone, he cried out again and was trying to hold back tears.
“See, I knew it.” Cassandra said. She saw Varian’s face contort in discomfort as she began undoing the buttons of his vest and shirt while he didn’t say a word of protest. Not like that was really an option. It was violating, Cassandra knew, but she couldn’t risk him being more hurt. As soon as she was able to move away the fabric from his chest, she was extremely startled by the first sight. It took her a moment to even process the horrible injury she knew could have only come from her. Large blotchy red and purple bruises practically covering the light skin on Varian’s left side. Bit of that carried into his middle and even up to his collarbone where she’d initially caused him to react to touch. The bruises came in increasing severity from the bottom to the area, all the way up his chest. Like he’d been struck with something several times over with a worse blow coming just above the last one. Due to his thin physique, Varian’s ribs were visible underneath his skin. Not by too much but enough to know this kid definitely didn’t eat enough. To Cassandra’s shock, some parts of the ribs looked slightly out of alignment from where they should be. It became clear to the two of them that Varian’s pain had been due to numerous fractured ribs of varying degrees. Varian seemed incredibly distraught upon seeing the full extent of the damage. He wasn’t going to die, but it definitely hadn’t been nothing. And yet both he and Cassandra knew exactly when and how this happened. When she hit him with that stream of rocks back when he was trying to reason with her. Varian soon connected the dots. Cassandra had done this to him. Even after she said she didn’t want to hurt him she’d done this and then hit him across the face. He couldn’t trust her. He quickly moved away from her and covered his exposed injury again. He felt the pain as he moved but didn’t care. He just didn’t want to be close to Cassandra after seeing just how much she did to him. She was much more dazed and lost in her own guilt. She hadn’t meant for it to hurt him so much… How could she have done this?
“Varian I…” She trailed off. At a loss for words, even a simple apology seemed too little for such a grave misstep. She’d intentionally hit him with those rocks. And then hit him again in the face. Both times she hadn’t meant for it to do much and yet both times it seemed her attacks had broken more than she wanted. Either skin… bones… or trust. She looked back over to the cowering boy. His eyes were wide with fear and his stance was alert and defensive. Every minute all she’d seemed to do was hurt him in some way. He wasn’t even supposed to be involved in this. Cassandra was fighting Rapunzel, not him. Part of Cassandra wanted to hug him and apologize countless times… but the practical side of her stopped those thoughts immediately. She couldn’t feel sorry now. This was her war against Rapunzel. The princess had an army of friends at her disposal and she should’ve known better to think there wouldn’t be losses. Varian was Rapunzel’s loss. Cassandra couldn’t stop to feel sorry for him in any sense when this was what her victory should look like. Her rivals fell as her power ascended… Even still. Varian was just a kid. But a kid who’d chosen his allegiances poorly and paid the price. Besides. This would be the extent and the end of his pain wouldn’t it? Now that he was away from Rapunzel, he was out of the fight. At least until she needed to use him again. That’s how Cassandra would look at it. It didn’t make her feel any better to think about it for now, but she’d understand as this went along.
“Cass…” Varian said her name warily to snap her out of her slight trance. He’d seen guilt graze her features again. Perhaps she was seeing how all of this was wrong. How that girl was only playing her. Though it would appear not. Cassandra rose to her feet and sighed.
“I’ll bring some stuff for that too in the morning.” Cassandra assured him. “Until then, don’t move too much and try to rest. You’ve had a long day.” She moved back over to the opening and prepared to fill it and lock the boy inside the small room. She gave him one last regret filled look. His own eyes only reflected more fear and disbelief as she finally sealed this decision. She shut her eyes tight and when they opened again, the regret was gone, leaving only stone resolve.
“You’ll understand one day, Varian.” And with that she shut the cell, leaving him in darkness.