𝓕𝓸𝓻𝓰𝓮𝓽-𝓜𝓮-𝓝𝓸𝓽 (Varian x Reader)

Chapter 67- Plus Est En Vous (Part II)

Zhan Tiri throws her head back and begins to laugh maniacally, clearly proud of her accomplishment. Rapunzel, safe from the incantation due to her magic, stares at the ancient demon in horror. Her emerald green eyes only depict valleys of pain, vast and seemingly unending. "W-What have you done?" She softly asks, her normally confident voice breaking.

Zhan Tiri turns to the princess. "I'm fulfilling my promise to Demanitus and destroying Corona." She snarls.

Before she can get in another word, Rapunzel chucks her hair at the monster, whipping her across the face. Zhan Tiri winces and her eyes narrow. My sister charges at her, screaming at the top of her lungs. As I watch the two battle it out, I realize that I can't recall a time when my sister has ever been this upset. If there is one thing I know for certain about the lost princess, it is that fighting is always a last resort for her. Rapunzel without fail, always attempts to make peace with her opposition before resorting to violence. Today she's proved me wrong.

Today, nothing will stand in her way.

Wrapping her hair around one of Zhan Tiri's horns and slamming her to the ground, Rapunzel quickly rushes to Eugene, who is lying on the cold ground in pain. She quickly takes his hand into her own. "Eugene!!!" She cries.

Even through the excruciating pain, Eugene forces his arm into the air and cups her cheek in his palm. "Sunshine..."

Zhan Tiri is back on her feet in seconds and looks over the two. "Do you honestly think you can stand up to my power?"

"I am not backing down." The princess assures through gritted teeth.

And this begins a battle for the ages. The two superpowers in a final showdown, in a matter of life and death for an entire nation. As Rapunzel and Zhan Tiri begin fighting back and forth, the two seem pretty equally matched. I notice that even though Zhan Tiri has insanely more power than Rapunzel, the princess is still able to put up a fight from sheer adrenaline alone. The demon also has size on my sister, but Raps uses that to her advantage as it makes her much more nimble.

Guilt stabs me as I wish I could help my sister and defend my kingdom. What kind of princess am I if I can't even protect my people?

After what feels like ages, Zhan Tiri backs Rapunzel into a corner, and worry floods over me. I squeeze Varian's gloved hand as we watch.

Suddenly, a huge clanging sound echoes throughout the courtyard and the monster falls forward. "Frying pans. Who knew?" My heart practically stops as I watch Cassandra...my Cassandra on Zhan Tiri's back, swinging a frying pan in her hand.

"Cass?" I weakly mutter, staring at the woman. Her once teal hair is back to its normal inky black color, and her eyes have returned to hazel. Even her signature Cassandra smirk has returned to her face. If it weren't for my current state I'd be sprinting over to her and tackling her into a hug.

Not wasting a moment, Cassandra rushes to one of Zhan Tiri's wrists and grabs it. "Quick! Get the other hand!"

Rapunzel obeys and dashes to the arm with the sundrop stone.

"Remember what Adira said about the moonstone and sundrop coming together?" Cassandra asks.

Rapunzel, catching her drift, grins. The two women grab Zhan Tiri's wrists and slowly but surely begin pushing them together. As the sundrop and moonstone grow closer, I watch in awe and the two begin flickering and sparks fly between them.

"Incredible..." Varian whispers.

Just as the stones are inches away from each other, Zhan Tiri comes to and swiftly throws Cassandra and Rapunzel off of her. I wince as Rapunzel flies into the stone ground. "She's too strong!" Cassandra cries.

"You're right." The princess admits. "What did you say the number one rule of combat was?"

Cassandra's eyes widen in realization. "Turn your enemy's strength into a weakness!"

The two nod in agreement and charge toward the ancient demon. Rapunzel tosses her flickering hair over to Cass, who quickly begins wrapping it around Zhan Tiri's wrists. Once her wrists are immobilized, the two women run in opposite directions, stretching the demon's hands out. As Zhan Tiri cries out in pain, they pull her to the ground. "Is it your plan to keep me here forever?" She sneers.

"No," My sister answers. "But that's kinda the point.

Pulling the monster's arms back as far as they can, I realize their angle. "It's a slingshot."

"They're going to store elastic energy in her hair to catapult her arms together," Varian concludes weakly. "Genius."

Grabbing a shard of black rock, Rapunzel chops off her hair in one slash, releasing the slingshot and causing the sundrop and moonstone to collide.

Within instants, a magical explosion of teal and golden light erupts from the stones. The force of the blast is enough to completely obliterate Zhan Tiri and put an end to her tyranny.

And just like that it's over.

Varian and I watch in awe as the magical lights dance across the sky, painting a rainbow of light across the shadow-covered kingdom. As the black rocks dissolve into oblivion, so do our fears. The light brought a newfound relief that brilliantly shone across our home. I believe that each of the seven kingdoms saw our light.

Moments later, I hear Rapunzel's voice cutting through the air. "Chance the fates design...save what has been lost...bring back what once was mine."

As she utters those words, waves of golden light shoot through the air, healing all that it touches. I feel my heart and my spirit lift as my body heals, and I laugh with pure joy. "We did it!!" I exclaim as I turn to Varian, who is also recovering. "Corona's safe!!" I quickly tackle him into a loving embrace, and we tumble to the ground, both our laughter and our tears filled with joy. As I stare into Varian's beautiful blue eyes, nothing but love for him surges through me. His face, though scared, is still the same one I've loved all my life. The twinkle in his eyes is my North Star, the red in his cheeks is enough to keep me warm on the darkest nights. Our love is unmatched.

Before I can do it first, Varian grabs my cheeks in his hands and pulls my lips to his. As our warm lips mesh together perfectly, I gently run my fingers through his tangled black hair. Sweet and sincere, he tastes like home.

And I'll never leave.