You Say Jump

Chapter 5: Cassandra

"–and that is why I concluded that steel is superior to iron," Varian says, fingers of one hand splayed on his chest, feet swinging back and forth contentedly beneath the table.

Quirin smiles as he sets a plate in front of his son, then another for himself before taking a seat. They both bear ham sandwiches.

"It sounds like you're being very productive," the father teases, "since the capitol must've been desperate for an answer to that query."

"Heh, yeah well, I still have time in between helping Rapunzel. The Demanitus scroll is amazing, Dad! Oh, did I tell you? I finally cracked his code for the third incantation! It would give whoever possesses the Moonstone complete control over the black rocks. But there's more– it says that there's even a fourth incantation, not three! I just can't seem to find it anywhere on the–"

"Varian," his father nudges fondly. "Eat."

Varian laughs, not minding the order in the slightest as he takes a bite. "But really," he says around his mouthful. "Dad, I'm kind of in disbelief that you were a part of the order who protected the Moonstone and actually had one piece of the scroll all this time." He swallows. "Did you know that it said all that?"

Quirin's smile abruptly fades. "I knew it had information on it about... those things."

"What was it like?" Varian asks, leaning forward. "Rapunzel went to the Dark Kingdom and she's told me some about how it is now , but it's like– tha-that's where we're from, right? Was I– born there?"

His father sighs, not meeting Varian's eyes. "You were a baby when we left. That was a long time ago."

Gentle as it is, it's a dismissal. Varian is familiar with his dad's discomfort surrounding saying much about the past, but after everything– after it drove a wedge that caused the amber disaster, after his dad claimed to be proud of him all along– it hurts that he still apparently didn't trust him with much. Varian wilts.

Seeing this, Quirin opens his mouth as if to amend his rejection into something kinder, but father and son flinch as a crash shatters the air. Varian's heart jumps to his throat, frame flinching badly at the loud noise, and Quirin gets to his feet.

"What on earth?" the man mutters, striding quickly to the room where the crash had come from. He comes to a stop with a quick intake of breath, then his heavy footfalls are out the door with an indiscernible shout of anger.

Varian stumbles into the room his dad just left, confusion giving way to dread at the sight that greets him: glass shards litter the entryway to their home as well as a heavy-looking green rock in the middle of the wreckage, thrown through what used to be their front window. Swallowing dryly, he picks through it and kneels to turn the rock over. It slips through his suddenly-shaky fingers as he sees the word Betrayer written in bold red scrawl. It's then that he recognizes the mineral as one from the mines around Corona.

"Oh," Varian says.

Quirin swings the door back open. He's scowling, muttering furious threats under his breath about the vandalizer who got away. He brushes his hands off on his vest with a huff and makes eye contact with Varian.

Varian wishes he could turn intangible and melt into the floor.

Being back in his dad's arms after Rapunzel freed Quirin was the safest Varian felt in forever. He had spent a year imagining everything his dad's return would mean to him; had churned with guilt at the possibility of him witnessing his son's mistakes. In the happiness of their reunion, he hadn't thought about that. The disconnect was short-lived, and then his dreaded imaginings became real.