I do not own Tangled the Series, the characters, or the picture. Thank you.

________________________________________________________________________________

The Present 

As if playing hide and seek, building tops peeped their heads through the clouds and hid behind them again, but Lance recognized where they were. The journey had gone by slower than he had anticipated. Whether it was his sadness for the betrayal or for abandoning Adira that slowed time, he couldn't say. It was early morning, and the birds were still in the process of waking, so there weren't any sweet melodies or songs being sung to greet the weary gang. The sky was still dark, and the sun was no where to be seen. The balloon slowly landed on one of the barren fields. The descent was surprisingly smooth - Ulf was better at ballooning than Lance had thought. 

Glancing at his best friend, Lance winced to see the deep amount of concern in Eugene's tired eyes. The former thief had not left the princess's side. Her growing optimism was delusional, yet no one called her out on it. Everyone felt a great deal of respect and appreciation for the blond princess, and no one wanted to see her in pain; however, it seemed as though Eugene was suffering more than Rapunzel herself. He had dark circles under his eyes, his normally confident pose was drained, and his shoulders were slumped. His hair, which was probably the most alarming feature awry, was unkempt and messy. Eugene always fiddled with his hair. He took great pride in his handsome looks, it was one of the blessings he had relied on since he was a child, but right now, it didn't seem important to him. In fact, Lance couldn't remember ever seeing his friend look this way. 

Once his feet were planted, Lance felt like kissing the ground. His stomach didn't take to air travel very well. 

Rapunzel, leading the way, turned towards Ulf and too cheerfully said, "Thank you so much, Ulf! We can walk from here back to the palace." 

Ulf and Shorty stayed with the balloon, as the rest of the team continued towards Corona. Lance was very grateful that the automatons were all picked up and that the countryside was relatively clean. The shadows of the past were seemingly gone. The population in Old Corona had definitely decreased since the battle, since any citizens with damaged property either moved to the land that Quirin received from the king or to the capital.

The group made their way through the village swiftly. Lance didn't feel like talking to any of the citizens, but Rapunzel greatly welcomed any distraction from whatever she was facing in her mind. She called some of the villager's names out joyfully and chatted with them. This only made Eugene more nervous. Pascal glanced at Eugene to make sure he never left Rapunzel's side. Pascal was steadying Rapunzel by gripping her shoulder tightly and allowing his scaly tail to wrap around the back of her neck. 

After some time had passed, two guards came into view. When they saw that the princess had returned they rushed over to her. "Princess, should we send word to the king to be expecting you?" 

"No, it's fine." She smiled so wide her adorable dimples showed, "I'll be home before you could get the word out." In the rush of things, Rapunzel was unable to let her parents know she was returning. Since Cassandra left, her owl - who was the only way to send messages - went missing. 

Before the gang continued on, something caught Lance's eye. Even though the world was still dark and halfway asleep, he was able to recognize the building that the two guards were watching. It was the only building that had noticeably not been touched or cleaned up. 

It was Varian's home. 

Lance had never entered the place, but he was well aware of the horrors that took place inside the lab in the basement. In all truthfulness, Lance was surprised to see the building still standing. Why were there guards? More than likely to keep any thieves away from any of the chemicals, formuals, or dangerous weapons and explosives inside. It would be dangerous to get rid of it all - who knew if any of the materials were toxic - but it seemed strange to just leave everything as they were. 

What if? Lance's pulse jingled like a rattle snack, What if  the kid ever escaped prison? What would stop him from returning to his lab. All of his belongings are still in there; he'd be incredibly dangerous. That's probably another reason why those guards are here. His anxiety slowly started to decline until he realized, Rapunzel had been staring at the building with wide eyes. Oh no. His heart sunk like a rock in a fountain, This is the last thing she needs to see. 

Noticing the princess's vacant expression, Eugene carefully wrapped his hand around her shoulder, "Hey Blondie," His voice was so quiet, as if speaking too loudly would cause her to shatter. "How bout we head home, okay?" 

Eugene tried ushering her away from the awful memories of the building, but Rapunzel absentmindedly asked the guards with her eyes still staring at the house, "Is he still in the amber? Did Xavier find a way to get him out?" Her whispering voice sounded empty and broken, as if all the light had been drained from her. 

"Unfortunately, no, Your Highness." One of the guards spoke up, his eyes sad, "I heard that Xavier had tried everything, but nothing worked. I'm sorry." 

Rapunzel was quiet; this disturbed Lance. He watched as Eugene still attempted to gently lead her away from the house. Finally, Rapunzel's hushed voice came to life again, "Eugene! The decay incantation! It could shatter the amber!"

Before Rapunzel could continue, Eugene interrupted, "Uh, listen Sunshine. I'm all for trying to save Quirin, but let's think about this reasonably, now." 

"What do you mean?" Rapunzel's unsteady eyes blinked rapidly. 

"First off, we don't know if that incantation will even work. Second - "

The princess cut him off, "Well we don't know until we try!" 

"About that," Eugene sighed, "I don't think you should. Last time you did the incantation, bad things happened. I know you want to make things right, Blondie, and I do too, but the consequences are too severe. We'll find another way." 

It was rather ironic that Eugene was the one talking about safety. Lance hadn't realized how much his friend had grown. 

Rapunzel was aching to do something right. Cassandra's betrayal relentlessly burned through her heart, but what made it worse was that Varian's betrayal left a scar inside her as well. Desperately wanting to find some sort of relief, Rapunzel realized that she couldn't fix what happened with Cassandra right now, but Varian might forgive her if she kept her promise and freed his father. 

But of course, that would be too good to be true. 

Surprisingly, Rapunzel's usual stubbornness faded, and she allowed Eugene to steer her away from the barely standing house. "Pascal," She said softly so only her little chameleon friend could hear, "I can't wait to go home." 

                                                                                     ******

Six Months Ago 

Nigel read off the charges with a gleaming smirk on his lips. He couldn't be happier. The little brat in front of him was obviously irritated with him. Nigel was appalled when Varian had entered the palace during the snowstorm. He was disrespectful and rash. The child had no boundaries and needed to be taught a lesson. Nigel's dislike for the boy boiled into hatred when he heard of what the alchemist had done to the royal family. Nigel allowed his anger to get out of hand and took a sticky, sweet pleasure in seeing the boy suffer. Oh, you haven't seen anything yet, boy. Nigel mused. 

Once he had finished reading, Nigel looked up to see the boy clenching his fists and glaring holes into Nigel's head. If looks could kill, Nigel would be a pile of ashes. "Well?" His extravagantly fake accent picked at the air. 

"Well what?" The boy dropped his quiet facade; he was far too aggravated to stay silent. 

"Do you consider yourself lucky? I mean the king actually wants to give you a trial, and after the crimes you've committed, I think it's a miracle and outstanding act of grace." 

"What do you want me to say? 'Thank you for locking me up?'" The alchemist's sassy attitude had returned. 

"I wouldn't go disrespecting the king." Nigel's eyebrows raised as he anticipated his first blow with glee, "If it was up to me, I'd have you executed." 

Varian's blood went cold. He couldn't die! He still had to save his father! Swallowing the fear that edged at his throat, the boy's icy blue eyes reached the adviser's "You can't execute a minor. You should know that! I can't believe the king would pick someone as unintelligent as you. And my, my your disregard for the rules is a bit concerning." He mocked. 

"'Disregard for the rules?' Ha!" Nigel laughed, "That's funny, coming from you." Suddenly, the adviser's demeanor changed to a very intense and menacing aura, "Let me assure you, boy," He spat the word, "You're not out of the woods yet. There's a good chance you'll be kept in prison till your eighteen. Then you'll be executed. That's almost better, isn't it? Instead of waiting a few days to be hung, you get to wait four meaningless years." Then he added very quietly, "I personally prefer that you suffer longer." 

This rattled the boy. He tried to keep calm, but his breathing was becoming difficult to control. No. Not another panic attack. Not in front of this man. Get it together, he screamed internally. Ruddiger noticed this change in his boy, so he hopped onto his lap and dug his face into his master's chest. 

During this whole conversation, the Captain watched the two. He listened to Nigel threaten and shake the boy with his words, and yet did nothing. The Captain had a severe dislike for the boy as well. He had heard what happened on the battle field with his daughter. That was unforgivable.

"Do you have anything to say to me?" Nigel asked the boy expectantly. He wanted Varian to know who was in command. That he had control over the boy's life and that the young alchemist should behave if he didn't want his situation to get even worse. Varian, however, was to obstinate. 

"Yeah." Something haunting fogged Varian's vision. Behind his eyes, something shifted inside him. His voice was spine-chilling and sinister, "When I get out of here, you will be the one suffering."

Nigel would be lying if he said the boy's words and change in manner didn't unnerve him to some degree, but he kept his expression neutral. Never breaking eye contact with the boy, he spoke calmly as if his life had not been threatened, "Captain, we're done here." 

The Captain nodded and left the room to get the guards, in that short time an unknown force stirred in Nigel as he swiftly rose from his seat and grabbed the boy's chin with a tight squeeze, forcing the off-guard alchemist to look at him, "Listen very carefully, boy," Nigel smiled as he watched Varian's eyes widen in fear, "You are not going anywhere, just like your miserable father you murderer." 

Very abruptly, Varian took in a sharp shallow breath. Ruddiger fell to the floor and growled at the man. Nigel pretended not to notice. 

"I know you killed, your father." Nigel used his other hand to grasp Varian's hair, yanking the poor boy's head back, "And once the king and queen are convinced you are a killer, you'll be hanged. An eye for an eye. Now, if you know what's good for you, you'll be a good boy and behave. You may not now, but before your death, you will learn to respect me. You'd be surprised what can happen in prison. I can turn you into a punching bag for the prisoners. I can make you suffer in ways you can't even fathom. And I can break you into becoming my own personal slave." Releasing his grip on Varian's chin and neck, the adviser backed away, petting the boy's head. Nigel's voice curled eerily into one filled with "concern."

"I control everything down here, so you don't want me to be your enemy, understand?" Varian's terror was too great, and he reluctantly succumbed. The boy could not speak, so he nodded shakily, his eyes filled with dread. 

"That's a good boy." Nigel patted his head and walked out the door just as the guards entered. 

________________________________________________________________________________

Thank you for reading! Feel free to comment :)

~SophieRose