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Chapter Text

After the unfortunate events that happened in Old Corona, Varian found himself locked away in a cell. All he had wanted to do was free his father from the amber. Ending up in the position of the villain, Varian gets betrayed. How could his friends not help him in his most desperate time of need? 

Varian’s efforts to free his father by using Rapunzel’s hair to break the amber had failed.  He tried to take away things she loved, and failed as well. Is there anything he could do right? Or was he always destined to disappoint himself over and over. All he had remembered was getting his wrists shackled together and whisked away to a cell with Ruddiger. 

He attempted regicide, betrayed his kingdom, took the queen as prisoner, and hurt his friends and family. He could never forgive any of them. They made him the villain, it was their fault. Wasn’t it? 

Varian’s first thought after being shoved into a prison cart had been: the cart itself was way too old to transport a dangerous criminal. If this cart has been transferring anyone other than a weak murderous 14-year-old with the world’s weakest arms, they could easily just bust down the door. 

But, alas, this was Varian, and even in his most enraged state he wouldn’t even be able to open a jar of persevered pickles. Okay, maybe that was a huge exaggeration but Varian in his current state was not in the mood for anything but self loathing. 

As the prison carriage bounced against the dirt roads leaving Old Corona, Varian looked out to see lanterns shining on the horizon. Glistening in the now sunrise, lanterns danced overhead taunting the alchemist’s very existence. He. Was. Furious. 

How dare they celebrate a moment like this?! How DARE they get to waltz away happy, pretending my life, my town, my father, everything wasn’t just destroyed! 

Ruddiger saw the reddening of his friend’s cheeks and swiftly patted Varian in hopes of soothing him. Varian’s clenched jaw, furrowing brows, and tears leaking into the corners of his eyes clearly indicated this was, in fact, not helping. 

Like a sudden bolt of lightning, Varian’s eyes lit up, startling Ruddiger who ran down his friend and sat curiously in front of him. Tilting his head, Ruddiger gave a confused yet intrigued look prompting Varian to elaborate. Varian took notice of his friend’s questioning and began, 

“Well, Ruddiger, Corona may have us in custody for the moment…” Varian smirked wickedly, and Ruddiger did not like where this was going.

“But, as we had previously observed, they are idiots when it comes to security. Sure, we’re locked up but you want to know what they forgot?” Varian quietly chuckled as Ruddiger shook his head,

“They forgot to check me for any weapons.” Varian smirked as he reached into his pockets, despite his handcuffed hands, and pulled out a pink orb.

 Ruddiger scurried back onto Varian’s shoulders, half pleading with the boy to not go through with this, but the alchemist happily ignored him. When Varian got in his ‘scary mode’ Ruddiger knew there was no stopping him. All he could do was sit by and watch no matter how dangerous or explosive things got. 

Varian glanced around the small rickety cart, his eyes forming a plan. Ruddiger at this point was covering his eyes, unable to watch the disastrous chaos about to unfold. Varian shifted himself, feeling for some leftover sleeping dust. Obtaining the vile, his shackled hands were full. 

“Ruddiger hold this.” Varian said, holding up the pink goo bomb. Taking it, Ruddiger held it reluctantly. 

“Good. Now I just have to figure out where I put my ice bomb…” He half mumbled, feeling around his body with the sleeping particle vile in hand. 

“What are you doing in there?” A rough voice called from outside the cart. Varian felt his chest tighten, nerves overwhelmed him. There was always a possibility they were talking to someone else…right? 

The cart came to a sudden halt, causing the pair to stumble. Regaining balance, Varian overheard grumbles from the guards outside. 

“He better not be trying anything.”

“He’s too quiet for my liking.” 

“Wait, did you guys check for any weapons..?” 

Silence.  An awkward silence spread throughout the group. Varian couldn’t help but smile at the stupidity of the Royal Guard. This is just too easy. 

“Did you or did you not check for weapons…?” A gruff voice broke the silence. 

“I don’t remember, Sir. It was quite a blur.”

“Well I wasn’t assigned to handle the freak!”

That statement only cemented Varian’s hatred even more. He was going to make them pay.  

“Shut it! Just make sure he doesn’t have any, GO.” 

As a guard nervously fiddled with the keys in an attempt to unlock the door, Varian readied himself with his sleeping dust, a pinch in hand. 

As the door swung open, a guard put one foot in the cart, and Varian without hesitation dusted the guards with the particles. One after another they fell instantly with a thud. Varian internally counted to himself waiting for the dust to subside. After twelve seconds passed, Varian fanned away the dust, and gracefully hopped out of the cart. 

Doing so caused quite the stir for the rest of the guards in front. As a guard bolted toward Varian with his sword swinging, the alchemist cocked an eyebrow. Unphased by the sword swinging and missing poorly, Varian threw a goo bomb at the guard. Reaching for another, which Ruddiger, who was now invested in this cell break, graciously handed Varian. He tossed it at another guard without a second thought. One fairly large guard came lunging at the teen, missing and falling directly face first into dirt. 

“Ouch.” Varian taunted as the large guard grumbled curses under his breath getting back up. 

“Come here you brat! I’ll kill you!” The large, now furious guard charged. Varian, amused, simply grabbed a pinch of sleeping dust and blew it in the guards face. 

Stepping over the now collapsed guards, Varian smirked, sleeking his way through a minefield of sleeping bodies.  

Ruddiger hopped off the teen’s shoulders and sprinted over to a fallen apple from an apple tree. Devouring it in one swift chomp. Varian walked over admiring the scene of his dear friend, despite everything, he still had Ruddiger.  Unable to stop himself from smiling and gloating, Varian laughed. Wanting to place his hands on his hips, but realizing he was in fact still restrained, he settled for a very awkward lean against the tree to catch his breath. Despite his excellent strategy skills, the one thing Varian forgot in his moment of victory was he wasn’t far from the fight (or now crime) scene that just occurred. From behind a frying pan bashed against the alchemist's head.Without warning a loud metal bang sounded and Varian was out like candlelight. 

——

The first hours spent in the cell were the worst. Once he had regained consciousness, Varian practically forced himself at anyone who passed by. Despite being shackled on his wrists and ankles, Varian flung himself in attempts to break free. Screaming and kicking (or trying to kick), the guards despite being strictly told to maintain their posts left the area in hopes he’d calm down. The time he spent fighting was a blur. His voice became hoarse from screaming, and his vision blurred. He passed out due to exhaustion later on. 

Eventually the alchemist woke up on the cell floor. Ruddiger was tucked under his arm, softly breathing in his sleep. Varian opened his eyes, blinking to adjust from the darkness. A cool breeze filled the dungeons, a chill that engulfed the teen’s body. His head throbbed, shaking off the pain slowly he felt his memory coming back. It was akin to a nightmare, he really had lost everything, except this was reality. Adjusting himself, he attempted to push himself off the ground. His knees buckled, pounding into the cobblestone floor. 

He didn’t have the strength to stand. The aching of his muscles and the sensation of bruises forming deflated the boy. Refusing to give in he tried again. Another failed attempt soared his mood even further. 

 Ruddiger woke up from the sound of Varian’s chains rattling. Ruddiger looked up at his friend and nudged his arm. Varian didn’t look over, he focused on the cell bars and the outside area. The dungeon was bleak, gray, and dark. Worn cobblestone flooring with years of clear aging covered the hall. Unlike Varian’s own knowledge of dungeons from books, there were no other cells in sight. Just his and a long hallway. A long, long, empty hallway. The air was damp, most likely due to this being a further level within the dungeons. High level threats most likely were sent here, which in all honesty made Varian want to laugh and cry simultaneously. 

A guard stood outside his cell scanning the hall. The guard turned to check on Varian, making eye contact.

Varian hated eye contact. Varian was startled by the guard glaring back, but tried not to show it. The guard, despite the mean glare, seemed less intimidating than the others. His slim build and long face had a weaselly charm. 

 Varian noticed the guard resembled Pete, a guard he has vaguely heard about through Rapunzel. 

“Pete is a sweet guy, with a soft spot, I’m sure you two would get along! I should introduce you sometime.” Rapunzel explained, putting her hand on Varian’s knee as they cleaned up a mess in Rapunzel’s room. Varian let out a smile and continued to scrub the floor. 

“This stain sure is tough, but I have the perfect way to fix it.” Varian pulled out a bottle of a solution he had made, and poured it on the floor. The stain disintegrated within seconds and Rapunzel was in awe of Varian. 

“Great job, Varian! I seriously don’t know what I’d do without you.” Rapunzel said cheerfully. 

It is not like that anymore. Just forget about it, Varian. 

He refocused on the guard staring at him. 

“Prisoner 01024, your breakfast will be ready in a minute.” Pete looked up and down the dirt covered boy. 

Prisoner 01024? He knows who I am! Or at least should....Seriously for that I should use my— where is my—my alchemy! Varian thought then frantically looked around his waist for his supplies. 

Pete noticed the prisoner looking around at his waist line, “your weapons were confiscated, along with the rest of your materials.” 

Varian gave Pete a sharp glare. Pete did not react, seemingly uninterested and turned away from the cell. Varian knew he had to rebel somehow, he needed to get out as fast as possible. Rapunzel and this kingdom couldn’t just get away with treating him this way. He had to show them, somehow. Varian glanced over to a wooden board or what the guards saw as a bed. Chains held it up bolted to the wall. The board was worn from age, much like most of everything in the cells. It collected dust and cobwebs, eerily showing that this cell hadn’t been touched in sometime. 

Try to get up. 

Varian spoke to himself internally, pressuring him to move his aching body. He placed his hands on the ground and slowly brought himself upward. He stood, feeling the weight of his whole body. Chains clashed together against each other, an echo rang through the cell. Varian kept slowly inching his way toward the board, scowling at the ground. Despite his body’s protests Varian pushed through the pain. Ruddiger looked up and stepped back from the struggling alchemist. 

Varian lifted his leg to step forward, but his chains stopped right in front of the board. He attempted to tug on the chains more to move closer, they didn’t budge. 

“Hey! These aren’t long enough.” Varian’s voice rose in anger. 

Pete turned, looking at the boy then shifting his attention to the chains. 

“Sorry bud, but we cannot give you longer chains right now.” Pete sighed looking back at the struggling boy. 

“Why not?!” Varian shouted. 

“Because, it was a concern about you taking apart materials. We cannot let you move around until you are on better behavior.” An annoyance in Pete’s voice rose. 

Varian, ignoring Pete’s slight, tried to move forward and grab the bottom of the board.  Pete glanced over to see the boy forcefully pull himself forward. Varian felt a tug on his wrists. 

What is it now? 

He looked back and noticed new shackles on his wrists. He thought they had taken them off after he got in yesterday. The guards must have put them on when he was asleep as more restraint. 

Varian railed himself to the board, but was pulled back. His wrists and ankles were starting to hurt more, blistering at the force. Once more, he pushed his body at the board but this time he fell down on to the ground and hit his head. 

———

Rapunzel sat in her room looking out the window. The window had been quickly sealed and repatched by castle staff during the battle. Apparently they noticed the forceful and poor escape job Rapunzel’s crew had done.

If anything, Rapunzel admired the efficiency and kindness of the staff, reminding herself to thank each and every one who helped. 

Her blonde hair draped over her frame like a blanket. She donned her usual purple lace up dress. Despite her regal outfit, the princess was worn from exhaustion, slumping over atop her cushioned window seat. 

Her heart weighed down from fighting the day or technically hours before given the fight hadn’t ended until sunrise. Her royal schedule was put on hold for the time being in order for recovery. The whole castle seemed to be in quite the stir when everyone had returned from battle. Rapunzel vaguely recalled maids tending to her almost immediately as she stepped foot into the castle. Blurry worried faces smothered her until Eugene had been back to fend off the crowd. They had made their way to Rapunzel’s bedroom where she instantly passed out into a needed rest. 

As soon as she had woken up that morning, Rapunzel felt a pained sensation of dread. Aching muscles and forming bruises caused her to cringe with each movement. Looking out toward the kingdom below her window, Rapunzel felt disdain. The kingdom applauded the crown’s victory after the battle. Below the citizens waved flags bearing Corona’s sun crest in the streets. 

Families celebrated below, hugging and cheering. Rapunzel knew her friends and family were proud of her….but at what cost? She had lost a close friend that she trusted. Losing trust within herself as she had let him down, and broke a promise. She had sworn to never break a promise, it was something she prided herself on. Now, her own moral compass has shattered, she didn’t have it in her to celebrate. 

Her mind replayed the moments of the night before. The kidnapping, the planning, the fight, the rocks. Rapunzel’s mind wandered to the young boy’s distraught expression. His screams of agony in the altered automaton. His tear-stained face, prominent dark circles, and dirty clothes. How he fought the guards violently kicking to escape before they placed him into custody. The cart as it drove away, with the dark silhouette of his tiny frame. The notice of calling guards from an attempted escape. A frantic sprint to see him knocked out from Lance’s frying pan blow to the head. The forcefulness in Cassandra’s voice as she ordered the guards. 

He looked so small. So scared. 

Rapunzel couldn’t stop her mind from racing. 

Was this all her fault? Did she actually ruin his life? Rapunzel put her hands over her eyes and let out a stream of tears. 

She heard a knock on the door, and sat upright rushing to wipe her tears. 

“Is everything okay in there?” Let out a familiar soft voice. 

Rapunzel looked over to her door and tried not to sound shaky. “Yes, just...allergies.” Rapunzel sniffled. 

The door knob turned, and Queen Arianna opened the door. She stood in the doorway looking at her daughter from across the room. 

She noticed her daughter's red eyes, and tears. 

“Sweetie, oh goodness. Are you okay?” Queen Arianna said walking over to the window. 

“I’m fine- I mean, I’m just upset about everything that happened yesterday and how,”

Rapunzel stopped to look at her mother. 

“I am so sorry mom. I didn’t mean for you to get involved and—“ 

“It is not your fault Rapunzel. You have the right to be upset, but you did nothing wrong.” The Queen placed her arm on the princess. 

“Mom, a part of me wants to see him.” Rapunzel paused watching her mother’s eyes. They widened ever so slightly, then quickly readjusted to a Queenly neutral. Rapunzel knew her mom would still be recovering for a long time. She was kidnapped, of course she wouldn’t be comfortable with the idea of her daughter visiting her previous captor. Rapunzel took a breath, clasping her hands together and continued,

“To talk to him, to just make sure he is okay.” 

“I know,” Arianna weakly smiled, Rapunzel could tell her mother was braving through the stress, “Let’s go talk to your father and work something out with the guards.” 

“Really?” Rapunzel couldn’t help but smile. Despite all the stress the Princess still had hope. It was what she was known for, that undying glimmer of hope in the darkest of times. 

Arianna got up gently and walked to the door. Rapunzel followed her mother out as they both made their way to the throne room. 

Walking through the lavish hallways, Rapunzel still saw remains of the automaton attack. The Queen purposely avoided going down hallways with rubble, but Rapunzel still managed to catch glimpses. Each time was a reminder of the sheer severity of what occurred. The Princess paused, staring at a chunk of wall softly resting on the ground. Arianna noticed the sudden hesitation and turned to see her daughter still, in thought. Walking over, the Queen gently placed a hand on her daughter’s shoulder. 

Blinking suddenly, Rapunzel shook herself back to reality, 

“S-sorry! I just…” her eyes trailed off until quickly coming back to her mother’s, “I… I am just overwhelmed” She sighed, her eyes trailing back to the piece of rubble. 

“I just don’t understand— no I mean I do understand, but I just can’t accept that that was really him.” Rapunzel began, “He was so different when I first met him. He was so full of life, so energetic, basically bursting from floor to ceiling….” Her gaze softened as she frowned.

 “The kid I saw the other day was not Varian.” She said firmly. “Mom, I am scared. I am scared that he’s gone. That there’s no going back after last night. That he’ll always hate me!” Rapunzel admitted, her eyes now red with tears. 

“Rapunzel,” The Queen embraced the princess in a delicate hug, “We don’t know exactly what drove him to do everything he did… but we do know that despite his many crimes he is still a child. He’s grieving. I don’t intend on letting him off the hook completely but we will see to it that he gets the help he desperately needs. Maybe through time he’ll come back.” Arianna offered, despite her own hesitations, this is what Rapunzel needed to hear from her mother. 

Truthfully Arianna had gotten hurt, more importantly she had new traumatic memories to push through. What her daughter needs right now is support, the Queen knew this, she just hoped these fears would subside quickly so she could move on to life again. Someone had to shoulder this burden, Arianna knew that usually meant as Queen you bury it down and move on. She just hopes she really can move on..

After their conversation the Queen and Princess found themselves entering the throne room. Fredric could be seen conversing with Nigel and the Captain of the Guard near the thrones.

 Rapunzel followed her mom into the room, a room where just a few hours prior the kingdom prepared for an impromptu war. A knot twisted her stomach as she slowly approached, trying to compose herself the best she could. Rapunzel knew her dad was strict, so this conversation would need to be played with grace. 

 The king looked up, his normal exhausted expression from a typical day looked like it had tripled. His eyes weighed his face down, dark circles outlining sleepless nights. His wrinkles are somehow more prominent than before, lining his face with worry lines. As Arianna spoke, Rapunzel’s hearing was impaired. All she could hear was a slight ringing and her heart in chest. The suffocation of the heartbeats made their way up to her throat as if caught. She swallowed as eyes turned to her for questioning and back to her mother. Taking a breath she focused in on the conversation again. 

“Do you think it is possible they could talk? Maybe they could work everything out and—“

“No. Do you not understand, he is a criminal now. Sure he is a kid, but he caused our kingdom far too much pain. I want Rapunzel nowhere near him!” The King said in a serious, demanding tone. Nigel nodded his head in agreement. Arianna felt the severity of the situation looming over her head. Somewhat deflating, Arianna looked toward her daughter’s misty green eyes. She could sense tension rising.  

“I have to talk to him! Sure what he did was wrong but, he is still my friend and a good person deep down. I need some time with him and maybe we can—“ 

“No! That is enough Rapunzel. You are going nowhere near him, he is a danger to all of us! The guards will make sure you do not visit him.” He turned to the Captain. The Captain returned a nod curtly. Despite his injured state, the Captain managed his composure in a wheelchair. Despite it being used temporarily, the mere sight of the Captain in a wheelchair clearly showed the Kingdom was attacked brutally and this conversation was over. 

“Dad! That’s not fair! Are you seriously going to do this again? You don’t understand that avoiding him is only going to make it worse!” Rapunzel looked into her father’s eyes, pleading for a flicker of compassion.  

“Sweetie, just listen to her. She needs to—“ Arianna tried but was swiftly interrupted.

“No! How are you agreeing with her? He is the one that kidnapped you and almost killed you. You both are not going anywhere near him.” The king finalized. 

—-

Rapunzel sat on her bed alone. Her mind couldn’t stop racing. She needed to follow those rocks, she needed to find where they led. She needed to leave Corona. She needed to save her home, her family, her kingdom, everyone. 

 Rapunzel took a quill and wrote a letter. She addressed the letter, 

“Dear Varian,”

Chapter Text

Dear mom, 

It’s me, Rapunzel! It’s been two weeks since we left and I am feeling a little homesick already. Everything out here is so exciting though! So, at least I can be positive about that.

 Cassandra is very nervous about this trip, she says we have to be alert at all times. Personally, I think she is being a bit paranoid. So far it’s been so great out here!  It’s sooo beautiful! I doubt anything super crazy will happen. 

Eugene has been super sweet and keeps finding me flowers he thinks I’ll like. My favorite so far is this beautiful orchid. I think my goal is to make everyone flower crowns with all the flowers we find along the journey. Would you like one? I’d love to make you one. I’m making that my little craft for the journey! I am keeping up my journal entries just like you did. Honestly, it feels so nice to be carrying on your tradition. I’ve always secretly longed to experience things like you did. Now that I’m exploring on my own it feels like a dream! I can’t thank you enough for letting me go. 

How is dad? Is he holding up with me being gone? Tell him I love him and I’m being as safe as possible. I know he gets worried but I’ve been pretty certain I can handle this. 

How is the kingdom? Anything new? How is everyone…I hope everyone (including Monty) is recovering from everything…

I’ve been thinking about this a lot…any rocks make their way to Corona? If so I hope they are not doing any damage to anything. How is Old Corona? I know you briefly mentioned before I left about cleaning it up. Though most of the Old Coronians fled or found shelter in makeshift homes for now, I wonder if any stayed? Or if anyone is hurt..? I trust you and dad know what to do and how to help everyone. I’m so proud of you both for being so strong these last crazy weeks.

Anyways…

Trust me when I say I don’t like talking about it either.. but, how is Varian? I wrote him a letter that I left in my room.. I’m not sure if I should give it to him, or even if he wants to see me. 

Sometimes I just think about everything that happened, and if I’m being completely honest I feel like you are the only one I can talk to about this. Cass is still angry at him (no surprise there), Eugene just says what I want to hear... (telling me it wasn’t my fault). Everyone says Varian snapped and it’s his fault. But, I have a real question I feel like I can ask you. 

Was it my fault? I regret things I did. Maybe I should’ve checked on him more often. I was just so caught up…

Ah! Sorry this got a little somber. This letter was supposed to be fun. On the bright side, Lance stopped snoring and Cass has stopped threatening to attack him from sed snoring. Right now everyone is asleep, it’s late now that I think about it . I should probably get to bed as well. 

I hope you are all doing well, I’ll write to you soon! 

With love, Rapunzel. 

—

Queen Arianna closed the letter and folded it gently. She looked over to her left and looked at her side table. She reached over and opened the drawer which let out a small creek. She quickly slid the note into her side table and turned her head over to Fredric, who lay beside her. He’s still asleep, that’s a relief. 

Arianna put on her shoes and took a cape from her wardrobe and headed to the door. The room was dimly lit by the moonlight, making the room have an almost eerie quality. She looked out the window, which was open to let air in. The stars reflected in the water at the overview of the kingdom. The land gave an impression of peacefulness, but something stirred underneath. It was just a feeling of course, but it loomed over the Queen’s mind. 

She made her way through the hall, holding the cape folded under arm. She tried to avoid guards as much as possible, she managed to for a bit. Her shoes made small clicking noises against the floor. Pictures of distant family members and pictures of past rulers hung in rows. The castle has always been overly decorated with flowers and fancy trinkets. Arianna knew her family didn’t need them, but she got used to having so much. Sometimes she had to remind herself where she came from. Deep down, it was clearly unnecessary, but she’d never admit it out loud. Part of her liked it, considering she didn’t grow up like this.

 She headed to a stairway leading to the cellars. Building up, a slight overwhelmed feeling grew. Arianna was used to composing herself, deep breaths and putting on her “queen face”. She was used to looking calm, even when she wasn’t. The only times she ever let that emotional wall down was when she was alone.

Making her way down, taking deep breaths, Arianna made her way down the spiral staircase and to a door. 

Stan the guard was standing at the entrance. Arianna straightened her spine and tried to present regal. She needed to look confident. 

“Your majesty! Wh-What are you doing here at this hour?” Stan asked, startled by seeing royalty up this late. 

“Shh.” She hushed the guard urgently  “I need to go to the cells..but I need you to not tell anyone.” She bit her bottom lip nervously. 

Stan raised his eyebrows with confusion, tilting his head that he didn’t understand what she was doing. 

“You cannot tell anyone, not even Fredric.” Arianna ordered calmly. She felt so on edge for doing this, deep down she knew defying her husband would cause a stir. Her conscience was screaming; you have to do this. She clasped her hands together trying to relieve some nerves. 

“What do you need to do? Are you sure you are in the right place? I don’t think you want to go there..it’s not a place for royalty.” He tried to explain but saw his words would not break the Queen’s determination. 

“I need to see Varian.” Arianna whispered. 

Stan’s eyes widened, “But, your majesty— the King gave orders to the guard…I can’t deny orders from him.” His eyes trailed off nervously, suspecting what she’d say next. 

“Well you can’t deny orders from me either.” She lifted her chin and straightened her spine making herself taller. 

Stan was about to defend the King but saw the argument going nowhere. He couldn’t just ignore an order from the Queen… even though the guards had been ordered by the King. This was a direct order to him. He knew he was going to get himself into something messy but the easiest way to get through was to just allow her to go. Stan sighed and rubbed his head in stress. 

“Just this once. Please be quick, your majesty. Follow me.” 

“Thank you, Stan.” She put on her black hooded cape and tried to cover herself up. 

***

As they entered Arianna kept her profile low. She knew she couldn’t have come during the day, too many guards. She needed to do this on her own. Her flats quietly clicked against the stone floor. Following Stan through a hall of cells with prisoners, he finally halted at the destination. Varian’s cell was right there. 

This is it. Varian’s cell. I have to do this. 

The air seemed to feel heavier than normal. Was it the stress she was under, or was it simply the dreary atmosphere? It smelled of damp mold throughout the prison. The place clearly had no one caring for it. She noted this. She took a deep breath, a step forward, and a glance inside. 

The cell was fairly small. Looked so…empty. It was just a small frail boy standing up, and a raccoon scurrying around. Arianna was reminded of when she was kidnapped. Remembering Varian’s house that seemed so…dark. His lab, his basement, everything seemed so devoid of life; similar to now. The big difference is that the cell did not house any actual objects. Varian’s house was trashed with papers and alchemy…because he was alone for so long. 

Varian was engraving something into the wall with a rock, self made into a makeshift sharp edge. Ruddiger was absentmindedly rolling a small stone on the floor, not a care in the world. 

Letting out a meek smile to Ruddiger; who didn’t notice they had a visitor. Turning attention back to the prisoner, Arianna gazed at his dirt and bruise covered frame. She mentally noted she had never seen Varian without his gear on. Which admittedly, she thought was odd to say the least. He looked bare, stripped of everything he had once loved. The boy stood in this cell with nothing but his demons…and a raccoon. 

He was engraving the rock into the wall with such force, you can tell he was furious inside. He scraped the rock on the wall with such focus. It was evident he had been writing on the wall for some time now.

Arianna knocked on the bar twice quietly. The small hum of metal echoed quietly. He didn’t react, he was hyper focused. She rolled her shoulders back and knocked louder this time.

Varian turned startled and jumped, dropping his rock. The shackles lay open on the floor, looking as if they had been forced off. The queen saw the cuts on Varian’s wrist from tugging the shackles off or…something else? He wasn’t supposed to be up and about, and definitely not out of his shackles. She noticed scratches on the shackles from the sharpened rock. Miraculously, he somehow managed to get the shackles off. 

Varian got so frightened he stumbled to the floor. He bumped his head against the cell wall, causing him to let out a small audible groan of pain. The boy rubbed his head and folded his body into a ball trying to contain his pain.

Ruddiger dashed over to his owner, coming to make sure wasn’t hurt. Ruddiger nudged Varian’s torso to get his attention. Eventually after struggling to push himself back, he propped himself against the cold wall. 

The boy looked up at the Queen, his eyes widened once he realized who it was. Within seconds of realizing his face dropped. It’s like Arianna could see everything the boy was thinking just by looking into his eyes. First shock, anxiety, sadness, pain, and then landed on an expression of fury. The boy scowled fiercely, almost making his stare feel like daggers. The Queen bit her bottom lip a little, then took a deep sigh of breath. 

She watched the boy’s eyes trace up and down the woman's body. Examining every inch of her again and again. He studied her closely.

Examining her outfit; a long black cape covering her body and flat shoes. This was an uncommon outfit for such a high class person. He squinted in suspicion, why is she dressed like this? 

He noticed lace fabric just barely showing on her neckline. The queen shifted, probably uncomfortably, and he saw a slither of silk fabric underneath. 

Her nightgown maybe? Varian had lost track of time in his cell. Only knowing it was morning when it was light out. He didn’t know how late in the night it truly was.

The two stared at each other in silence. Each watching the other’s movements and expressions. Arianna felt this was…awkward. She didn’t like the young prisoner’s calculating face as he watched her. She couldn’t tell what exactly he was thinking or planning, but she knew it was something…

Why is she here? It’s night. Looks like she came here so no one would see her visiting… but why? Has she come here to tell me my prison sentence? What is she here for?

As Arianna thought to herself, her eyebrows furrowed. She tried to comprehend her racing thoughts. 

Those bruises…those cuts…they haven’t been cleaning his wounds or giving him time to shower. Since when did this happen? Fredric said he was going to help him.. looks like he hasn’t been checked on in days. 

She halted her thoughts from overtaking her mind. Varian looked horrible, and she couldn’t bear to see a child that hurt and dirty. His wounds seemed to be scabbed and picked at. She winced at the thought of the wounds being purposely picked at. The queen mentally noted to ask Stan about the shower schedule, and why Varian hadn’t gotten new clothes yet. Fearful that maybe he wasn’t being looked after on purpose.

After what seemed to be an eternity (which was only a minute of awkward staring), The queen urged herself to speak up. Deducing it would probably be a long time before Varian decides to engage in a conversation and stop analyzing the woman. Letting out a giant gust of a sigh, she began.

“Varian, I’m afraid we need to talk about a couple weeks ago..” Her voice shook a sliver, but she composed herself. 

Varian replayed what she had just said. She sounded like..like…her daughter..

This made his blood boil. The way she nervously rubbed her hands together, the way she tried to seem put together. Royalty always did this. Varian clenched his teeth behind his closed mouth. His muscles tensed, making him look even more furious. 

“I have been informed that..” She took a breath. “I do not know the whole story..” She looked down at the prisoner with pain. 

“May I ask you some questions?” She rubbed her palms to keep calm. 

Are you kidding? Varian’s mind hissed, he felt the urge to lunge at the woman. His mind raced through all the horrible things he wanted to do to her. Overwhelmed with anger he couldn’t stop himself from having these intrusive thoughts. 

She wants to ask me questions?! What could I possibly say that she doesn’t already know? Everything she “knows” has been twisted and warped into fiction by her daughter and the kingdom. I’m sure she is just here to laugh, call me a liar, and get me imprisoned longer in this hell hole. 

The logical side of his brain ached. He wanted to tell her off, he wanted to curse her out…but he knew, logically, that wouldn’t help his situation. He remembered that if he played his cards right, maybe he could get out sooner, but that was highly fanciable. Nothing he did mattered. 

“Varian, you were a talented kid with great potential. What caused you to go against Corona?” Arianna asked.

She watched his visible battle of dealing with his emotions. Rapunzel told her once that Varian was an overly emotional kid even before everything. In honesty, Rapunzel mentioned that he seemed emotionally younger than his age, like he couldn’t control his excitement from spilling out. Arianna wished she had seen this boy before all of…this happened. She wondered what it would be like to see a bubbly awkward alchemist laugh with her daughter and their friends. She knew that’s why Rapunzel took him in as a friend, because he didn’t have any back home.

Varian bit his lip and felt a rage well up inside of him. Like lava rising in a volcano, his emotions could never be contained. He was known for a 0-100 range of emotions. If his dad were here, he could attest to that. 

Varian instinctively opened his mouth,

“Your daughter RUINED my life.” Varian raised his voice. He shut his mouth quickly trying to not let any more information slip. He kicked himself that he could never control anything. His emotions, his actions, all of it. 

Arianna was taken back, “W-What do you mean? I thought you were friends...What happened?” She asked with great concern. 

“Wouldn’t you like to know.” Varian scowled, crossing his skinny arms like an immature child. Jerking his head away from the visitor, he grumpily protested to her. Focusing his anger on the stone wall. Varian rolled his shoulders back, trying to sit up straight against the wall. Stretching out his legs straight, burning the muscles in his hamstrings from being cooped up for some time. 

Glancing down next to him, Ruddiger had brought over a small pebble to Varian. The prisoner picked it up and tossed it for the raccoon to run after and retrieve. Varian watched his companion bring the pebble back, and Varian tossed it again. Arianna watched but decided to break the silence, again. 

“Varian, why did you take me as a prisoner?” Ariann finally asked. Rapunzel had told her parents here and there about the situation but clearly didn’t like talking about it. Before Rapunzel had left she had been occupied with planning her trip she never really told her mother why. 

Varian’s eyes darkened.

“What do you want me to say? I am an evil ‘bad guy’ who just wanted to take you away? No. You were an easy target, and could be a good decoy. If I wanted to use someone as a decoy, I’d need to make sure they weren’t too heavy. Let’s just say; I’m not exactly strong enough to carry his royal heaviness” Varian spat a little while mentioning the king. 

Arianna let out a small stifled laugh. Varian looked up with wide, confused eyes at the queen’s response. 

Why was she laughing? How could she laugh at anything right now? Varian watched the queen skeptically, squinting his eyes. 

“Rapunzel told me you have a funny sense of humor, she was right.” Arianna tried to lighten the mood. There was a genuineness in her voice that made Varian’s eyes soften for a split second. The boy shook his head immediately, giving a retort back;  

“Did she mention how dangerous I am ? How I’m the town freak?!” His voice raised, then he paused. 

“How I… destroy everything I touch?” His face dropped sadly, but as soon as his face dropped he shook himself back to anger. 

“What else did she tell you? Oh, Please tell me.” Varian sarcastically quipped, raising his hands in the air. 

“She did not say any of those things. In fact, that’s why I’m here.” She took a breath. 

“I have never heard one bad thing about you before all of this. I am here to ask you what happened. What happened to fuel all of this —this…anger?” She asked sadly. 

Varian thought for a few seconds in silence. Arianna watched him mentally battle himself to figure out what to say. 

“You want a story? Fine, I'll give you a story.” The teenager rolled his eyes. 

“The…black rocks were destroying Old Corona. Which wouldn't have happened if only our precious king stopped the rocks.” He sulked. 

“But, as you know, he didn’t do anything to help us. And I decided to study them, because of course no one understands the power of science but me.” He gestured a hand to himself with pride. 

“I conducted experiments—Rapunzel asked me to help her figure out what her connection to the black rocks were — I obviously agreed because heck it was the PRINCESS asking ME to help her.” He smiled slightly, reliving his disbelief and overjoy. 

“So, I tried to research and test them…and then, then—“ His eyes trailed off, visibly reliving his memories. He shook himself back to the story with a deep breath.

“My father lied about the rocks to you. We came to tell you Old Corona was in terrible condition. He lied. I don’t know why…we were in trouble and he didn’t tell you. He— then he got mad at me. He told me to stop ‘playing’ with the rocks, even though I was experimenting. I was just trying to help everyone! He—then he—M—my solution—“

Varian stopped. He looked down, blinking tears away and gulped. 

“The.. amber, that is what encased your father, isn’t it? That w—your—your solution.” Arianna pieced together hesitantly. It made more sense now, at least so far. Varian was trying to experiment with the rocks and it backfired. Somehow Quirin got caught in the amber.

Varian opened his mouth to speak, nothing came out. He just sat on the cold stone floor speechless. Deep down he knew it was his fault. He was the one who created the amber. He probably killed his father. He shook that thought away, which kept resurfacing ever since that day. His face started to clam up, and his eyes were starting to form tears. 

Arianna saw the young alchemist was starting to get emotional, so she tried to change the subject. 

“How did you get out of your chains?” 

Varian looked up at her confused, wiping his eyes quickly. He turned his attention over to the opened shackles..Ah, crap. A realization dawned on his face. He hid the shackles behind his back. 

“What chains?” Varian playfully asked.

Varian opened them behind his back and then placed them on his wrists. 

“These?” He held up his chained hands and smirked at the Queen. 

“Very funny, Varian.” Arianna playfully glared, “So, you used that rock, right?” Arianna smirked, waiting for the boy’s reaction. 

Varian jerked his head over to the stone next to him. He didn’t know she had seen the rock, or at least hoped she didn’t.  He turned back quickly and scowled, annoyed he had been caught. 

“What was it you were writing on the wall before I knocked?” Arianna gestured to the cell wall covered in illegible cravings. 

“Nothing!” Varian countered quickly. 

“Okay. It certainly looks like a whole lot of nothing.” Arianna teased trying to egg him on. 

Varian ignored her banter as he reread the cravings. He sighed, what does it matter if I tell her? It’s not like she’ll do anything anyways. 

Varian was honestly tired of trying to fight his way through conversations right now.  

“It’s a chemical compound I’m thinking of using to..free my father. It—it’s a rough draft, I highly doubt it would work. It’s chances are 1.75% but even that is pushing it.. But I needed to write down my thoughts.” Varian shrugged.

Arianna loved how over talkative the boy was about his experiments or just explaining things. He brought so many, usually unnecessary, details to a story. It made her laugh to herself mentally. 

“Do you need something to write on?” The Queen asked.

“Huh?” 

“Do you want me to bring you something to write on and write with?” She rephrased. 

“W-what?” Varian tilted his head, blinking in disbelief. 

“You might need a more efficient way to get your calculations out. You need something to write on if you want to come up with more.” She suggested. 

Varian scanned the woman in front of him. No signs of malicious intent. Varian had always been very good at analyzing people. Though he sometimes overstepped on social cue barriers due to excitement or hyperfixation, he always realized after the fact. Varian’s last couple of months had been more “analyze them to see if they’ll kill you, lie to you, or if they even care”. 

He was sadly more paranoid than a normal 14 year old should be. 

“Are you…are you trying to help me?” He stuttered. 

“I mean, as your queen, I can’t excuse the things you have done. That being said, I am the queen, and I have to look out for the safety of all my subjects. Quirin is one of my subjects. Even though what you did was…wrong, your father is still trapped, and we need to save him.” 

Varian bit his lip as his eyes darted back and forth thinking of what to say. His eyebrows furrowed and he clenched in anger. 

“Why? Why would you help me? To make yourself feel better for locking me up? So you don’t have to live with guilt?” He cocked an eyebrow. 

“If you really wanted to ‘help me’ you would get me out of this cell and let me free my father! What would you do to help me anyways? Like—like the queen is gonna give me, a ruthless criminal, my equipment back? The same equipment I used to attempt to kill you with? The chemicals that make me a threat? Ha! Nice try. You don’t even care if I live or die.” 

Anger rose within him and he raised his voice more,

“You are JUST like Rapunzel! You’ll make promises you know you’ll NEVER keep, and throw me out like trash. That’s what SHE did! You just hope your little RaPUNziE, your precious princess with STUPID GOLDEN HAIR is safe. P.S THE STUPID HAIR DOESN’T EVEN WORK! IT COULDN’T EVEN FREE MY DAD!” Varian slumped down and pulled himself into a ball. 

He didn’t care what he looked like. He didn’t care if he lost his temper. He didn’t care if he looked childish. His anger burned his body, and his pulse throbbed. He was so worn out mentally and psychically, he didn’t have the energy to keep up his tough exterior. He rocked himself back and forth trying to shut out the world. 

“I care about you, Varian. Maybe, just maybe, if you actually behave yourself or at least make some improvement.. I might actually think about figuring out a way to give you your equipment back.” Arianna stated calmly. 

Varian stopped rocking back and forth, and perked up. 

“I mean with supervision of course.” She gave Varian a knowing look. Varian rolled his eyes and slumped over again, assuming it was all a lie. 

“I have to go, Varian. We will continue this conversation tomorrow.” Arianna took a step back. Varian was stunned. 

Come back tomorrow? Why is she doing this? Is she serious? She can’t be…could she? 

Arianna gave a faint smile at the boy slumped over on the floor and pulled her hood over her. Varian watched, speechless. 

Arianna walked away. As she was walking she sighed from relief.

 Maybe there was still good left in that kid after all. 

———-