𝔽𝕠𝕣𝕘𝕖𝕥 {𝕍𝕒𝕣𝕚𝕒𝕟 𝕩 ℝ𝕖𝕒𝕕𝕖𝕣}

-Chapter Twenty- Let's Kill Tonight

/fate will play us out/ with a song of pure romance/ so stomp your feet and clap your hands/ let's kill tonight!/ kill tonight!/ show them all you're not the ordinary type!/

-let's kill tonight, panic! at the disco

There were very few days that Y/n hated more than Rapunzel's birthday.

Actually, scratch that. There weren't any. It was literally the worst day of the year.

Even before Rapunzel had returned from the tower, the day had always been miserable for Y/n. Every day, she had to deal with her parents thinking of nothing but Rapunzel- but once a year, the entire kingdom fell into that trap, releasing thousands of lanterns to "guide their princess home".

Y/n never released a lantern of her own. She would merely wait in the shadows, watching with bitterness as every star in the night sky was blotted out by a river of false sunlight that poisoned the darkness.

But, this year, in a few short days, she was going to make Corona pay for all of that.

They would never forget her again.

─── ⋅ ∙ ∘ ☽ ༓ ☾ ∘ ⋅ ⋅ ───

Of course, dramatic statements like that were far more entertaining when the plan didn't involve two days of waiting.

Varian and Y/n now rested on the roof of one of the palace's towers for their plan to begin. They waited in the shade of a much larger tower, Y/n curled by the peak of the roof and Varian leaning on a chimney, Ruddiger sprawled out between them.

Y/n peered down at the scene below them. A huge festival had been set up in Rapunzel's honor. The festival would last three days, all to celebrate her sister... but the princess was nowhere to be found. She had predicted this- Rapunzel would be so shaken by what Y/n and Varian had done, she'd be unlikely to even leave the palace.

Luckily, the huge crowds of Corona's citizens had made it easy for Varian and Y/n to sneak in with their carts full of "presents". Coats pulled up high to obscure their faces, the two had spread the false gifts all across what had been designated the "present room".

It made Y/n's blood boil. She'd worked herself to the bone her whole life, and the most recognition she had ever received was some polite, strained applause at royal events. Her sister, however, could return triumphantly, disturb supernatural forces, nearly destroy the kingdom and cause severe damage to a teenager who needed her help, and what did she get? A present room.

Still, the boxes were all in position. Every piece was wrapped but the timing cylinder, which sat on a carved bronze stand that would fit into the automaton's back. The cylinder waited on a table in a pile of gifts, next to a handwritten note from Y/n- Wind Me.

Now, they just needed to wait nearby for their plan to work. The automaton would activate on its own. Once it was defeated, the king would get scared and confine Rapunzel to her tower, and then her entourage would launch some foolhardy attempt to rescue her. Once they were out of the palace, Y/n and Varian could act.

For now, though, it was just an awful lot of waiting.

"Y/n?" called Varian from where he was leaning on the chimney. Y/n tore her gaze away from the festivities below to see Varian pulling something out of his satchel.

"Sandwich?" he asked, pulling two from his bag.

"Yeah, thanks." she replied. Varian tossed a sandwich to her, and she caught it, tearing off a bit of bread and throwing it to Ruddiger.

Varian walked over to Y/n and sank down into a sitting position, taking a bite of his own sandwich.

"How long do you think until this automaton activates?"