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No, Varian... I AM your mother-

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"Then how come my mother is looking at the both of us?"

"Wait- hold up Varian. CUT." Eugene interrupted, angrily pointing his finger at the sky. "So NOW you update this story, huh? Why the FUCK did we have to stand here and wait for your lazy ass for four months straight!? You really had the audacity to get writer's block when the suspense is at its highest? The FUCK, AVERY?"

"Eugene, shut the fuck up" The author, Avery, said from the heavens. "Just follow the damn script, and go along with whatever I tell you to. Varian, you may try again, thank you."

[A/N: But seriously tho guys, I'm really sorry for the long wait.]

Varian cleared his throat. "Then how come my mother is looking at both of us?" 

Your feet were stuck to the ground. Your heart was pounding a hundred miles per hour, and your eyes were locked on Ulla. The woman you owed your life to. 

You tried to speak. You tried so desperately to explain to Varian that this wasn't what it looked like. You wanted so badly to come up with a lie, that could explain this whole situation. But not a single word could be formed. You couldn't speak, you couldn't breathe, couldn't think. You couldn't feel. 

"(Y/n)!?" Rapunzel cried out, as she backed away from the Cassandra-look-alike as if her life depended on it. "T-The puddle is closed. Y-You have to-"

Her voice drowned out, and you were suddenly on the ground gasping for air, as Ulla came closer to you and Varian who kneeled at your side. 

Stand up. Stand up dammit. GET ON YOUR FEET, DO SOMETHING! A voice in your head screamed at you, but you couldn't do anything. For the first time in many years, you were completely and utterly helpless. A feeling you had sworn you would never feel again, ever since you left home. 

Eugene quickly took action, once he realized that he was the only one in a state of mind to do so. He took his spear, and-

You didn't look. You weren't going to witness Ulla die once again. Her red-brown hair, her eyes, face, heck even her clothes. It was just how you remembered it. But then you heard the screams from three women. One of them sounding exactly like the one Ulla had made when she fell to her death.

 "It's over. You can open your eyes." You heard Eugene say from very very far away. Was he speaking to you or Rapunzel? Were your eyes even closed? You couldn't tell. 

You kept gasping for air, and now you were crying as well. You couldn't help it. Varian had just seen his mother again. The mother, that you had taken away from him. He hadn't seen her in forever, and here you were being the dramatic one. You were pathetic. 

"I-I-I'm s-sorry..." You gasped in between heavy inhales. "I'm s-so sorry."

"Hey, hey, hey." You heard Varian's voice in your ear. "Relax, it's okay. I'm right here. They're gone now."

Your whole body was shaking. Here Varian was, comforting you, even though it was his mother he just had seen for the first time in eleven years. 

What have you done? What were you doing?

Even though Varian's voice was calming, the darkness still took over. You lost consciousness. 

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When you woke up with a gasp, you immediately sat up. Your eyes were swollen, but you could easily tell that you were around a campfire with Varian, Rapunzel, and Eugene - you, who had just been in Varian's lap. 

"(Y/n)! You're awake!" Rapunzel exclaimed. You couldn't tell if she was happy or not. "Are you okay?"

You nodded weakly. They were all staring at you, waiting. You remembered what happened right before you passed out, and you gulped. Curse you and your weaknesses. 

Eugene sat across from you, with crossed arms and legs. "I think you owe Varian an explanation. And us."

Varian looked at you. His face was calm. He didn't seem angry or sad. He just looked like a confused puppy. 

His hand was quite sweaty in yours- wait, what the fuck, he was holding your hand?!

"I, uh" you started, pulling your hand slowly away. Your voice sounded very thick and unrecognizable. What should you do? Lie? You were a pretty good liar, you could easily come up with something believable and get away with it. They were all very naive after all. You could say that Ulla just looked like someone very familiar or something. 

But then you looked at Varian again, and his big blue eyes that always melted every piece of ice inside of your body. You couldn't lie to him. Not about this. 

"I knew your mother." You said holding your breath, waiting for a reaction. 

Varian's expression didn't change one bit. "Yeah, that much I've already figured out."

They all kept looking at you, waiting for further information. 

"Uhm, when I was around five years old, I met her in my village. I was there with my abusive excuse for a mother, whose bad behavior towards me got noticed by Ulla. She was a complete stranger, and yet she offered to help me. So she asked where I lived. She came to visit when my mom wasn't home, and then one day, when I showed her- you know, my scars and stuff..." 

You couldn't believe you were telling them this. You couldn't believe you were actually opening up. But now you had started, it felt easy to continue. "She decided she would take me away. Away from my mother. She planned a date an evening my mom wasn't home, and we would ride away on her horse." You looked at Varian. "Back to you. We were on our way back to you."

Varian's eyes winded. You stared at how they reflected the fire in front of the two of you. His mouth hung slightly open. 

Your heart was beginning to sting, but you kept going. "But then... There was this huge gitch, and... We jumped off the horse to take a look. And then-... Then someone pushed her in. I think" 

For a long time, there was just painful silence. Only the sound of the burning flame kept you from losing your sanity. You hated silence. 

The tears in Varian's eyes started falling uncontrollably. But it was like he didn't sense it at all. He still had a blank expression on his face. You couldn't read him at all. 

You were waiting for him to stand up in anger, yelling 'YOU KILLED MY MOTHER!', but he didn't. Which was kind of a shame, cause then you would've been able to pull off a great Star Wars reference; 'No Varian... I AM your mother.'

You mentally slapped yourself. Now was not the time. 

The point was, that Varian didn't do anything. He just stared emptily into the darkness.

"You think?" Eugene asked. Both he and Rapunzel both looked very carefully at Varian as if they were just waiting for him to finally snap. Truth is, you were too. "What do you mean about, you think someone pushed her."

"I-... It was... I mean, I think I-" You began. Stumbling over your own words was very weird for someone who usually always know what to say. "I saw a shadow run off into the woods. At least, I think I did. It was dark, and it was a very long time ago. So I'm not entirely sure." 

You turned to Varian, reaching out for his hands. But then you stopped mid-act, gulping. "I tried to save her, Varian." You tried desperately, your own eyes tearing up as well. "I really did. But I was so young and weak, and- she told me to let her go. I know, it should've been me instead. That thought has haunted me ever since. If I hadn't dragged her into my miserable life, she wouldn't have died. Then you would have a mother. The mother that I took away from you, and I'm so sorry. She had so much to live for, and I didn't. It wasn't fair, and I should've- I should've known that-"

"It's okay," Varia said with a sad smile, confusing you. OOOoookayyy, he's a sociopath, you couldn't help but think when he took your cold hand.  "All this time, I thought that the reason for she didn't come back, had something to do with me. My whole life, I've thought that it was my fault because she didn't want to raise me anymore." He was smiling at you. A genuine and comforting smile. The tears on his cheeks had dried out, but there were still a few fresh ones in his eyes. "The possibility of her dying had crossed my mind. But- But if she died trying to save you, then it's not half as bad. The disappearance of my mother was probably the worst thing that has happened to my family... But you're one of the best things that have happened to me too." 

And right then and there, you stopped working. 

You - you were one of the best things that have happened to Varian? You? 

And then you completely broke down. The girl with the oh-so-tough facade, completely dropped her guards and broke her walls down, all to this one boy who was the only positive thing that has ever happened to her. You fell into Varian's open arms, shaking and crying, as you wondered just how this boy had forgiven you just like that - you, a criminal with a dark background, major trust-issues, and internal scars. You, who had just said were the reason for his mother's death. 

And just like that, the burden that you had carried for eleven years, simply disappeared. 

And you couldn't stop crying. 

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Update: You had stopped crying. 

You felt so embarrassed and happy at the same time, as you sat right beside Varian, his hand in yours (it'S nOt LiKe yOu LikE hiM oR aNyTHinG-), in front of a very emotional Rapunzel and Eugene. 

You hated crying in front of people, as it was a sign of weakness for you. But it wasn't all that bad, cause you felt like you had gotten closer to them somehow. And you were so happy, that Varian had acted the way he did. Apparently, he meant much more to you than you had thought. 

But considering what you may have to do tomorrow, that could end up being a big problem...

No one really said much around the campfire, and Eugene was of course the first one to break the silence. "What, uh. What happened after?"

"I was completely changed. That day..." You said, looking into the fire, which wasn't nearly as warm as Varian's hand in yours. "That day I swore two things. That I wouldn't let her death be in vain. She died, trying to turn my life around - to get me away from my mother, who values rules, money, and behavior over anything. My mom lived by following, and loved making them even more. So I started breaking every single one. From that day on, I slowly became the exact opposite of her."

"A criminal." Rapunzel finished, and you nodded. 

"Breaking the rules, stealing things... It kind of became a coping mechanism for me. When I was on the run, I completely forgot everything about how I used to be.  And before I knew it, the criminals sort of took me in and made me one of their own. For the first time, I felt like I was a part of something - where there weren't any rules, or mothers who burned the hell out of their kid's flesh as a hobby."

Rapunzel and Eugene gasped. Varian brushed his thumb over your hand knowingly. 

"It sorta got out of hand. Suddenly I was ranked as the second-best criminal, and I was like, holy damn, how the fuck did I end up here." You laughed dryly. "I just accepted that that was my new life now. But then I heard about what Argo was planning, and I knew I had to do something. And so then I met you guys." 

They all smiled at you - Even Eugene. 

Damn. You couldn't even recognize yourself anymore? Were you turning soft? 

"What was the second thing?" Rapunzel gently asked tucking a brown lock of hair behind her ear. 

"I swore to keep the promise I made for Ulla." You said and looked at Varian, who was looking as beautiful as ever. For a moment you completely forgot that you were in a forest full of demons luring in the shadows. "To protect you." 

"So that's why you insisted on taking him with you on the mission!" Eugene said, proud that he had the brain cells to put the pieces together. "I must say (Y/n), there's nothing safer than to take him right into the criminal base, and into a dangerous dimension full of demons, where we soon will stand face to face with the highest-ranked criminal, who's trying to awake even more demons. Well done."

Varian laughed, as you shrugged. "I know what I'm doing." 

"I'm very glad you're helping us, (Y/n). We couldn't do this without you. You're a nice person, and I'm so incredibly sorry for what you've gone through. I hope I can help you in the future." Rapunzel spoke softly, looking at you with her big, green eyes. 

You smiled. Genuinely. "Thanks, Rapunzel."

"Yeah." Varian said. "You've changed a lot since we met you. I know you like acting tough and all, but we're beginning to see the true things you're living by. I'm proud of you."

Your cheeks reddened. You weren't used to handling compliments.  Or was it just because they were coming from him? "Things I live by? I only live by one thing, and that's this quote; Be savage, not average."

"Stop ruining the moment." 

"Okay." 

Varian gave your hand a squeeze, and you absolutely hated your heart for doing a backflip. 

Everyone looked at Eugene, waiting for him to say something nice as well. "Oh, seriously? You think it's my turn? You gotta be kidding me-"

Rapunzels death glare changed his mind. "FINE! Fine! Geez. (Y/n), I think that-"

"Don't bother, I wouldn't be able to take you seriously anyway." You laughed, waving a hand, while Eugene was completely losing it. "We have to get going. The world doesn't save itself, now do it? Besides, we've spent way too much time here."

You stretched, standing up, not letting go of Varian's hand. "Argo's weird ritual will take place on that mountain, so we better get our asses over there. Be on guard, I don't think the demons want us to have a safe trip." 

And so you all began heading towards your goal, as one big happy family. 

And for once - you were extremely happy. 

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Too bad happiness doesn't last forever. 

And in this case - not even a day. 

At least not in one of Avery_Spokeens' stories.