BEFORE YOU KEEP READING, AN IMPORTANT REMINDER:
Even if it's based on a TV Show, this fanfic isn't for children. It contains mature language, blood, violence, curses, deaths, abuse, and sexual advances.
Please don't read it if you're not used to reading these topics. Remember this is just a story and we don't support any kind of abuse.
Finally, we hope you like it.
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Our heroes, who have finished their rest, continued on their path - now they found themselves facing a new obstacle. In front of them was a deep pit which didn't seem to have an end, and there weren't any bridges or ropes to use to cross to the other side. Varian leaned out a little towards the pit, carefully observing and trying to find the bottom, but it was impossible. He straightened up and turned to face them.
"So, how are we going to get across?"
Ariadna looked around and found what they needed: hanging on the wall, protected by a crystal, was a very long, braided, golden-colored rope. A rope which seemed very familiar to the adults - it was Rapunzel's hair. Cassandra carefully approached it and took it in her hands. She remained silent.
"This has to be a joke," Varian snapped in horror. "This is..."
"Yes, this is Raps' hair." The lady answered in disgust.
Ariadna's face became tinted red in pure rage. She murmured a curse to Fredrick and Luzbel, and went to go look for a place to hang the braid.
"Perhaps this will help," Cassandra told her, and she offered her a bow and arrow.
"Thanks!"
The princess tied the end of the braid to the arrow and looked for a point to nail it to. When she found it, she released the arrow, hitting her target.
"Beyond this pit, you'll find Lilith. Please prepare yourselves." The little girl told them in a serious tone of voice.
Cassandra tied the other end of the hair, making sure it kept a firm grip. She inhaled deeply and exhaled through her mouth. She then went in front of them and held on to the rope with her hands to cross over the immense hole. Ruddiger easily ran over the rope and made it to the other side. Varian looked at the little girl.
"You wanna go first?"
"Alright..." The girl went in position and started crossing, closing her eyes.
Varian hung on and closely followed the little princess. He wasn't sure if it was just him, but it seemed as if she had a fear of heights. He decided to stay close. He didn't want any surprises.
When they made it across to the other side, they found themselves in front of a large iron door, with a five-pointed star engraved in the center. There was not any type of lock, but in the center of the star was a dagger, and a small stone basin that was completely empty.
Ariadna approached the door and took the dagger into her hands. She took off one of her gloves, and, shutting her eyes, she made a cut on her right palm. She let the blood fill the little stone basin. When it was filled, the door opened.
"...Okay," Varian said in a disturbed tone of voice.
"What kind of lock is this?" Cassandra frowned, her expression showing complete confusion and disgust.
"Come in..." A soft, feminine voice called out to them from behind the door. The brave souls began to walk in - though Cassandra stopped Varian.
"Hey, moron," she said, gripping the young man's shirt.
"What do you want?" He asked, clearly annoyed by the way she addressed him.
"Before we go in there and before what's about to happen facing those deadly monsters happens, I wanna tell you something."
"And well?" He frowned, waiting for a response.
Cassandra stood on her tiptoes and pulled him down, getting him closer to her. Then, she placed a quick and simple kiss on the young man's cheek. He instantly straightened up and placed his hand on the spot where the young woman's lips had touched. Without noticing, his cheeks began to color a bright red and his eyes widened in surprise from her action.
"What was -?"
"Thank you," she interrupted him. "Thank you for protecting Aria. I was terrified and I couldn't break free to help her and you protected her with your life. It really surprised me how a 'famous criminal' would go so far to protect a girl he barely knows. Plus, you protected the daughter of the person you hate most in the world. That's admirable."
Varian only looked at her without giving a reaction, his position remaining the same. She turned and walked towards the door.
"I believe there's still a heart hidden beneath that villainous mask..."
The woman went close to Ariadna and they entered the room, followed by a silenced young man. The courageous ones entered a large room, with white walls which were adorned with weapons of silver handles and black blades. Varian finally lowered his hand as he took in his surroundings, and he gripped on the handle of the sword he carried on his back. Cassandra raised her hand to stop him. He understood the signal and let go of the handle.
The girl stepped a little more forward and stopped when a figure began to appear deep within the room.
In the center of the room, sitting over a divan, was a beautiful woman with bright, golden eyes, her skin as white as snow, her lips the color of blood, and her hair was long and curly, black like ebony. She wore a lovely black dress with red details. She smiled widely.
"Welcome. My name is Lilith. I'm the first guardian of Luzbel and the weapons teacher of Princess Ariadna." She greeted as she bowed down.
"I'm under the impression that you were already waiting for us and that you even know our names, so I'll skip the introductions," Cassandra declared.
The lady ignored the warrior woman's comment and steeled her eyes at Varian. "You are the person my master spoke to me about...The person who's important to the queen..." Her eyes flashed intensely.
"Important to the queen? You're probably a little confused. Actually, really confused."
"Oh no!" She sighed. "You definitely are! If you weren't, she would've never made a pact with King Luzbel; My lord promised that woman to give her the solution for the terrible situation regarding your father - in exchange that she completely give up her free will..." She told him, observing the shocked expressions on the faces of the group.
"There's no way!" Varian yelled. "Why would she do something like that? And most importantly, why would she do it for me?"
"That doesn't make any sense! Don't tell me that all she had gone through was because of -" Cassandra began.
"Don't you dare say it was my fault!" He interrupted her. "I never asked her for something like that!"
"You don't believe my words, young alchemist?" Lilith got up from the divan and approached the man. "Then, allow me to demonstrate," the beautiful woman told him, and she locked her eyes at Ariadna. "Princess, please, help me reveal the truth to this young man..."
The little princess nodded in silence. Varian backed up a few paces, looking at the girl and then at the woman. He swallowed, feeling a lump in his throat. Reveal to him? How? What were they planning to do?
Lilith took out a crystal ball from between her clothes. She then made a signal to the girl to tell her to come closer, at which the little girl obeyed. The older woman then asked her to make a cut on her wrist. As the blood flowed from her wound, the woman held the crystal ball underneath the princess' wrist, in a way that Ariadna's blood would fall over it. The blood barely touched the crystal before the ball turned a black color; then, it began to grow in size, and formed a sad scene.
There, Luzbel and Rapunzel could be seen. The queen was kneeled by the feet of the alchemist.
"What do you want, my traitor?" He asked the woman, looking at her with disdain.
"My lord. I came to beg that you listen...I would like to make a deal with you..."
"What kind of deal?" The king now watched her with interest.
"My lord, for all this time, the guilt has destroyed me from within...But now I know that you can fix what I've destroyed... I know that you can break that damn amber...Please, I know that my actions can't be forgiven and he doesn't have a reason to forgive me...I don't expect him to...I don't deserve it, but..." Rapunzel bent over and placed her forehead against the floor. "I implore you! My life in exchange for Quirin's!"
"Your life for a peasant? All for the wellbeing of someone who hates you?" The king laughed belligerently. "Why do you want to go to such extremes?"
"Because Varian is my friend, because he believed in me...He came to me, he implored for my help and I couldn't do it...I couldn't help him...That's why his life fell into pieces...His whole life became a living hell because of me! If there is anything I could do to bring him a little bit of light, I'll do it. I don't care if he hates me...I don't care if he wishes me dead...I made him a promise, I promised him that everything would be fine...And yet after all these years, I want to fulfill it..."
"You're a faithful friend..." Luzbel bent down until he was at her height. "Fine. I accept your deal." The king abruptly lifted her off the ground, revealing her already advancing pregnancy, and kissed her forcefully.
The scene dissipated in an instant, leaving everyone except Lilith deeply affected. The silence was nearly enough to devour them.
"Mom..." The little girl murmured, her head lowering. Varian backed up a few steps more - a horrified expression on his face and his eyes wide open.
"W-what? B-but she..." His breathing became erratic. Cassandra looked at him and then at Ariadna.
"What the hell were you thinking, Raps!?" The lady exclaimed in a whisper.
"And that was not even the worst part...young man...Do you want to know the real reason why she didn't go see you after the storm?" Inquired the one with the golden eyes, her gaze locked onto Varian.
In an instant, Varian turned to find the golden eyes of the woman. There didn't exist a single doubt in them, and that disturbed the young man. He was so impacted that he didn't even realize he began to yell.
"She didn't go because she didn't want to! That was what happened!" The young man took a few more paces back.
If what the woman was saying was true and there really was a reason for why Rapunzel didn't go see him, everything he had believed and everything he had felt until then was wrong. Was he really mistaken this whole time?
"You're wrong." The lady told him in a serious tone, and again took Ariadna's blood to activate her contraption.
The scene showed Rapunzel, who was found inside the king's chambers, her father standing in front of her. The princess looked desperate, and the king looked furious.
"Father, please...Let me see Varian..." Begged the maiden.
"Rapunzel! I already told you no! That boy is dangerous!" Spat out the king.
"HOW MANY TIMES DO I HAVE TO TELL YOU!? VARIAN IS NOT DANGEROUS! That boy is the only one who wanted to take care of the kingdom...Which is more than I can say about you." Rapunzel looked at her father with scorn.
"Enough!!" Frederick threw a harsh slap against the princess with the back of his hand. "You don't disrespect me that way! I said that you won't go and you won't! I'm the one who gives orders here! I am the king!" The woman stayed standing, without looking away from her father.
"And what will you do to stop me?! Lock me up?!" She challenged.
"If it's necessary, then I will! You're not going to defy me and act as if it were nothing! Captain!" He yelled, and the captain of the guard appeared in an instant.
"Sir!"
"Take the princess to her tower and lock her in. She doesn't have a right to leave, no matter how much she pleads. Put bars on the windows and guards at the entrance. She won't leave the castle if I do not permit her."
"...Yes, sir!" Cassandra's father hesitated, but they were orders. Four guards took a hold of the princess.
"I damn you...I DAMN YOU UNTIL THE END OF YOUR DAYS!" Bursted the young woman, her eyes burning with rage.
"Do it! Go ahead! Either way you won't escape! You're not going with that problematic boy! EVER!"
The scene changed once again, this time the maiden was found inside her tower, holding a little dove, with a letter in its claws. The blonde took the small animal and held it through the bars of the window - but before the creature could escape the castle, it fell, mortally wounded by an arrow.
"NO!" Rapunzel's hands flew to her mouth. Suddenly, she felt a hand on her shoulder.
"That also isn't permitted, Rapunzel. I don't want you to communicate with that boy. Forget him, he's only a simple commoner and you are a princess, understand this at once," Frederick told her. He walked towards the door, but before he could leave the chambers of his daughter, he warned her. "Whatever creature that tries to carry a note will be hunted down. Including your chameleon."
The king then forcibly slammed the door behind him. The poor princess let herself fall to her knees as she bitterly sobbed.
"Varian...I'm sorry...I'm sorry...I'm sorry..."
The scene changed again: this time the young woman was found chained in the very same dungeons of the castle. The blonde had her back filled with scars from whiplashes, but her green eyes flashed with incredible intensity. The king looked at her with disdain from above.
"You disappoint me, Rapunzel. One simple commoner is not worth all of your suffering. Keep trying to escape, and you'll keep hurting yourself over and over again."
The young woman glared back, defiant.
"But he would do it a thousand times more."
The scene changed once again, and the princess, after a lot of effort, managed to escape the castle and found herself at last in Old Corona, in front of Varian's home.
The maiden was terribly pale and thin, but even so, she continued walking, with a big smile on her face; She was now less than two steps away from the home of her friend...
All of a sudden, as if it was all a nightmare, her father came out of nowhere and grabbed her arm.
"Rapunzel!" The king forcefully reprimanded her. "I told you clearly that you're not allowed to see him! I told you one and a million times!" Frederick started to drag her to a carriage. He threw her inside and closed the door. "Besides, it shouldn't matter now. Look at the house." Her father pointed at the destroyed and isolated home. "He won't even be found there. As we can see, he left."
With such news, and due to how weak she was, the princess fainted. For the first time in her entire life, Rapunzel wanted to die...
The projection finished. Ariadna was crying an ocean of tears. Cassandra went close to the girl and rubbed her back, trying to find a way to console her. It must be very painful to see your mother suffer so much and in the hands of someone who was supposed to protect her. She remembered those days, and how Nigel told her that another lady in waiting would accompany the princess...That Rapunzel would be safe and sound...Such a lie! This is what really happened...
Varian's legs gave in and he fell on his knees to the ground. Cassandra wanted to catch him, but she couldn't get there on time. Varian was looking at that sphere, heavily breathing and with widened eyes.
No...He thought. This can't be true...She...she actually tried. She tried over and over again...She tried and she ended up hurt for trying, but her father...He was the one who prevented her...
In Varian's mind, flashed all of those moments in which he had felt alone, abandoned, forgotten. He remembered his cries of pain, he remembered his fury, his rage...His hate towards the princess because she didn't go with him. But she tried. She had tried with every fiber of her being.
All that he had done and how much he had hurt her, he justified because she didn't look for him, because she had abandoned him. But she never had done that. Then, after all the young man had done, why did he have to do that? Why hurt her so much? Why kidnap her mother? Why try to kill her? And the queen? And Cassandra? ...Varian felt his world begin to crumble. What would've been his purpose this whole time then? What justification does he have now for all of his actions? It wasn't her fault. It was the king, only the king...
"And now...what?"
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Chapter Art
Art By: Kaede02mangaka