Dad is still encased.

Varian knew it too well. He hadn't talked with his father for a year and a half now. He hadn't even seen him-- stuck in the amber-- since they'd locked him away in prison.

He thought he'd heard the king say he would try to free Quirin, but they would've let him know if they'd managed to do it. Or Quirin would've come to see him. And . . . would've been disappointed in him.

Not proud.

Why WOULD he be proud of me at this point? If he were truly free, and saw everything I've done . . . well, he'd be ashamed.

The thought stung. Mainly because he knew 100% it was true.

No matter, he still loved his father and wanted to free him. Only . . . he no longer wanted to hurt anyone in the process.

Varian could still vividly remember the anger and hatred he'd felt towards Rapunzel for not helping him when he'd needed her most. He remembered his violent actions towards her, the Royal Family, and the rest of Corona seeming perfectly justified in his own mind. But now?

So much time had passed since it all. A year, to be precise. He only knew that because he'd been keeping track with a piece of charcoal under his bed on the wall.

No more hurting others. No more violence. No more revenge. No more thoughts of making Rapunzel and Corona pay. Time had helped him see the situation more clearly, to the point he wished he could erase everything he'd done. He actually missed being friends with Rapunzel. And Eugene. And Cass.

His heart ached. But they don't miss me. They'd never forgive me.

The plan? In the dead of night, send Ruddiger to cause a distraction in the halls outside the prison. Far enough to draw the guards away, but close enough so that the guards at the prison were the ones to try and catch him. In the minute or so of unsupervision, Varian would pick the lock using the scraps of metal he'd collected from around his cell. The other prisoners would most likely be asleep and not notice him, nor would they awaken at Ruddiger's distraction, since the little raccoon was too minor of a problem for the guards. Grab the cloak hanging on the hook by the door; it was most likely one of the guards', so he felt a little guilty about planning to steal it, but it was just a cloak. He needed a way to hide his face as he escaped, so no one in the town would recognize him. From there, he'd need to make it to the closest tower section of the castle, where he'd climb down the wall to the streets. Then he'd just need to make it out of the village and across the bridge to the mainland, avoiding the nightly patrols of guards, and he should be safe.

Moonlight shone through his tiny window that night. It was a half-moon, thankfully not full yet. Varian lay on the floor of his cell, half-pretending to be asleep and half-watching the moon rise in the sky. He knew where it would reach at midnight, so he had at least another hour to go.

One more hour here. Last hour in prison.

It dragged more than Varian would've liked, but eventually, the time came. He turned his head ever so slowly to Ruddiger, nodded once, and returned his gaze to the tiny square of midnight sky.

Immediately, his little friend scampered through the metal bars, ran for the door, and pushed it open. The guard slumped against the wall jolted upright in alarm, but then groaned in annoyance when he saw Ruddiger. There was silence for a few seconds. Varian watched the guard's shadow pause at his cell door, then move on to the next. He did this for all the cells and prisoners, evidently making sure they were all asleep and not going to try something.

A light crash sounded from further down the hall, making the guard jump. He paused once more, then hurried out of the room, whisper-yelling, "Pete! Help me catch the racoon that just ran loose!"

A muffled voice sounded from further down the outside hall, and the guard's footsteps faded. The moment it was quiet, Varian silently leapt to his feet, grabbed his piece of scrap metal, and set to work unlocking his cell. The moment it was done, he slipped outside, closed the door again as softly as possibly, snatched the cloak from its hook, and hurried out into the hall.

They're going to take Ruddiger outside once they catch him. I'll meet him there.

He pulled the cloak over his shoulders and tugged the hood over his head, enough to hide his face but up enough so he could see where he was going.

Most of the plan went smoothly and just as he'd imagined it. He made it to the tower, made it down the wall, made it to the streets, where he found Ruddiger. But as he was navigating his way through the town, he caught sight of two guards' shadows coming around the corner ahead of him.

True, it was dark, and he was wearing his cloak. But the guards would still find a mysterious figure like him suspicious, especially wandering around at night with no one else around.

Hastily, he ducked down behind a couple of wooden crates just before they rounded the corner, and waited tensely for them to pass out of sight and earshot. After a full minute of dead silence, he cautiously rose to his feet, his heart pounding.

Ohh, that was close.

Varian moved swiftly for the rest of the race to the bridge, his heart still racing. There was another patrol that would be passing here as well, so he had to pause again and hide out until they'd come and gone. That was fine, he needed a chance to catch his breath, anyway.

As he sat there waiting, it started to click in his mind that this was actually happening. He was outside. Breathing the fresh open air for the first time in a long time. Relief coursed through him, and he couldn't help smiling a little.

Once the patrol had crossed the bridge and walked on past Varian's hiding spot, he slipped out and swiftly raced across the bridge, keeping his head low. It was a lot longer than he remembered, and he had to pause halfway over to catch his breath.

The moment he could breathe a little easier, he continued running, and didn't stop until he'd reached the other side.

Still no alarm bells from the castle. Had they still not realized he was missing?

No matter if they did or didn't. He was free now, and he intended to keep it that way. He'd been in prison for long enough. They hadn't said how long his sentence would be, but he'd had enough. He'd learned his lesson, and he wasn't going to cause any more trouble. Wasn't that the point of prison, anyway?

Even though he still had a ways to go, he walked the rest of the way to Old Corona. There were no guards to avoid out here in the woods. He couldn't see well, but was no longer in a hurry, so it didn't really matter.

Memories of desperately racing along this very path all those months ago clouded his head as he walked. The biting snow, the stinging winds, the bitter feeling of betrayal and the dread in his heart. How could the princess have broken her promise to me?! She PROMISED! Aren't I her friend?!

Disturbed, Varian shook away the harsh memories and the bad feelings accompanying them. The past was in the past. No more revenge.

He hadn't slept since late that morning, and he was beginning to feel it. Still, he refused to stop for another rest; there were too many sketchy people out in the woods. He'd once been one of them.

Another hour had passed by the time he finally reached his old town. Panting, he paused by a tree and surveyed the little houses, his eyes eventually landing on his own home. It still bore the damage from his last battle with Rapunzel, the spiky black rocks still impaled the roof and other houses as well, and the massive break in the border wall still remained.

Varian stared at his broken house with a sad smile, having missed the familiar steps and tall roof. He could fix it. But for now, he was just happy to be home.

Even though . . . he was still an orphan. His father frozen within the amber would still haunt him every day. He was back to having no friends, and instead had gained the entire kingdom as enemies. Well, he was their enemy. He no longer held anything against them, but they sure had a reason to hate him. He'd still have to hide.

Eh, nothing he wasn't used to.

With a deep sigh, Varian cautiously made his way to his house, glancing around here and there to make sure no one was watching. An odd sensation of someone's eyes on him made him uneasy, but he dismissed it as paranoia.

He made it safely indoors, closed the door behind him, then turned to face the hard truth.

The mass of amber was still there. His father still inside. He'd known it the whole way here, but still felt crushed.

He tentatively reached towards the amber for a moment, but then withdrew his hand and lowered his gaze to the ground in sad disappointment. He'd already driven himself mad trying to find a way to free his father. He wasn't sure there was anything else he could do. Unlike Rapunzel, he had no connection to the stupid rocks.

. . . Would it have been better if he'd stayed in prison? Accepted his fate as an orphan? Would things be any better now that he was free, but had to scavenge for his food and hide from the world? Having to see his worst mistake every day, be reminded of his lost father every day?

As he stood there, lost in his uncertain and depressing thoughts, the door creaked open behind him, and the faint moonlight from outside dimly illuminated the room. He started in sudden dread, then braced himself and turned around, ready to face the guards and be arrested once again.

Only . . . it wasn't a squad of angry guards that met his eyes.

Instead, he found himself staring at the familiar silhouette of a young woman in the doorway. A small opal glowed light blue over her heart. She slowly walked closer to him, her short hair lightly bobbing as she moved. He knew her, he knew her well. It had been so long since he'd seen her, but she looked still the same, still so beautiful, and yet so different.

Her hair, once dark brown, now was a light blue that matched the opal on her chest. Her eyes were the same fascinating shade. And she wore a peculiar armor, black streaked with dark blue patterns, and decorated with small black rocks.

Despite the changes, it was her. And she was smiling, not a cruel smile, not a brave smile, just a gentle one.

Thirty seconds went by before Varian found his voice again.

"Cassie?"