Secrets of an Alchemist

King Pascal: Part 1

(Me: Can I pleeeeeeeease skip the Tirapai Island episodes? My brain: No. So here we are! Also I totally didn't forget the "guy in a hood" conversation at the end of the last chapter. Welp 🤷🏻‍♀️. The video is not mine, I just put it there in case any of y'all forgot what Varian's music box sounds like.)

Rapunzel quietly opened the door to the caravan, stepped outside, and stretched. She let out a huge yawn, then closed the door, ready to get a start on the day. She opened her eyes and turned toward the fire pit... and gave a small yelp when she saw a figure sitting in a tree. Then, light shone through the trees and onto the figure, and Rapunzel recognized him.

"Oh, hey, Varian," she said, giving a small wave and turning back towards the fire pit. Then she stopped and turned to Varian. "What are you doing in a tree?" She asked, confused. He gazed up into the light, sitting comfortably in the crook of a branch.

"I felt the need to commune with nature, and appreciate the small gifts it gives us day by day-" he started.

"Cassandra kicked you outside, didn't she?" Rapunzel interrupted.

"Yeah."

"Why?"

"She said that she couldn't sleep with a 'backstabbing traitor' in the next room," Varian replied. He could see the pity in Rapunzel's eyes, so he quickly waved his hand in dismissal. "It's fine, I know not everyone trusts me yet, and I'm used to sleeping out here, anyways. And I'm used to waking up super early to get things done," he reasoned. He gestured towards the fire pit, where there were signs of a recent fire and a plate full of food.

"You made breakfast!" Rapunzel said excitedly. "Thanks!" Varian rubbed the back of his neck, slightly embarrassed at the praise.

"It was really no problem..." he said.

Oh, I should probably tell her the bad news now, he thought.

"By the way, we're coming up on the sea," he warned. Rapunzel's eyes went wide.

"I've never been to the sea before!" She said excitedly. Then, she noticed Varian's concerned expression. "Wait, is there a problem?" Varian untied the rope around his waist that was keeping him from falling and hopped down from the tree.

"The problem," he explained, untangling his rope from the tree, "is that we have no way to cross it. And that's exactly what we'll have to do to stay on the path of black rocks."

"Oh." Rapunzel's face fell for a moment, then brightened again. "I'm sure we'll figure out a way to cross it! You're good with engineering, right? I mean, you built the..." She trailed off, but Varian knew exactly what she was going to say.

"Compared to building the automatons, finding a solution for this should be a breeze," he said, walking over to his backpack to put the rope away. As he opened the bag, a small music cylinder fell out. "Crap," he said quietly, reaching for the cylinder, but Rapunzel had already picked it up.

"What's this?" She asked. She then started winding the crank, and a haunting and all-too-familiar song began to play. Rapunzel immediately gasped and let go of the handle. "This- this is..." she gasped.

"Yeah," Varian replied quietly. "It's an automaton timing cylinder. All of them were destroyed in the Battle of Old Corona... except for one. I don't know why, but I just kept it." He took the cylinder back from Rapunzel, trying not to be too rough. He quickly stowed it back in his bag, along with the rope. He closed the bag, hesitated, and then opened it again and pulled out an apple for Ruddiger. He tried not to make eye contact with Rapunzel as he stood up and placed his bag next to the tree. Why had he kept the cylinder? It would only remind Rapunzel and the others of everything he had done... which was the opposite of what he wanted. He started to walk toward the fire pit, apple in hand, but Rapunzel stood in front of him, forcing him to stop. He kept his eyes trained on the ground.