Blinding Moons //Moonstone Varian AU//

Chapter One

With a loud sigh, Varian laid his body down on the rough prison bed. He stared up at the brick wall in front of him, then at the metal bars on the side. How long have we been in this cell? Couple days? Weeks? No, it must have been about a month.

Ruddiger had jumped up next to him and curled to lay on his lap, closing his eyes. The raccoon began to soundlessly sleep. As he breathed there was the slight show of ribs along his chest. Varian raised his eyebrow. There wasn't much food that was handed out in the cells, and they both have gotten thinner because of it, though Ruddiger didn't need to stay in the cell with him.

Varian gently started to stroke Ruddiger' neck. Ruddiger chattered happily as Varian's hands scratched his back.

"Ruddiger, this isn't fair. For you I mean," Varian took his hand off Ruddiger and placed both hands on his face, groaning slightly. "You shouldn't be hungry like I am. You should be running around on grass and eating apples, or whatever."

Ruddiger looked up from his nap, meeting Varian's eyes with his own. What is he thinking? Varian thought as he held the raccoon's gaze.

"Why don't you just squeeze through the bars? It's not like you don't fit." Varian asked Ruddiger.

Ruddiger chattered again and padded off Varian's lap and over to his side, calmly rubbing his pelt to Varian's shoulder, showing affection.

"You wanna stay? You are always too loyal to me. I don't deserve it." He wrapped his arm around his raccoon and closed his eyes.

"So, the princess is going to follow the terrifying black rocks to find what?"

"To find her destiny, Stan!"

"Sounds dangerous. And the King is letting her go?"

"Yeah, sounds like it. Lucky for her. Now she gets to explore like she wanted."

Varian opened his eyes, hearing the two guards's conversation at the entrance to the prisons. He sat up, walking to the bars of his cell to hear better.

"The princess has surely been through a lot. Maybe hoping in a caravan and following mysterious black rocks will be good for her." said a guard named Pete.

"It'll sure keep her mind off of all that happened with Varian," answered the other guard, Stan.

Varian huffed, crossing his arms. Rapunzel better not forget me!

Sitting back down on his bed he looked at Ruddiger who was trying to catch a bug that scattered on the cell floor. His tail swayed back and forth like a stalking cat as he pounced, only missing a hair and landing awkwardly on the floor with a thud.

Varian got up, carefully picked up Ruddiger, and set him down on his stone bed. He gave him a small pat, "Careful, Ruddiger. Don't want you breaking a paw. Not when we're stuck in this hell," he said with a sigh.

"Hey, quiet down in there!" that was Pete as he appeared outside Varian's cell, peering in with a stern face. "Stop talking to yourself!"

"I'm not. I'm talking to Ruddiger."

Ruddiger squeaked, growling at the guard.

With narrowed eyes, Pete walked away, "Good thing those two are locked up!" he muttered as he took back his post next to Stan.

Varian looked from Ruddiger, to the small window on the opposite side of the bars. His fists clenched as Ruddiger climbed on his shoulders.

"I won't be much longer."