It's been a few days since Varian's arrest and the start of a new adventure for Rapunzel and her friends. Although he was being kept behind bars, he refused to remain that way no matter what.
But when his new neighbor turns out to be a criminal who really isn't a myth, he may have a faster way out besides using his wits.
(AO3 version)
He collided into the stone floor before hearing the familiar sound of a cell door slamming closed.
"Until the king decides your fate you're to remain behind bars," a guard with a handlebar mustache stated.
"Man. I still can't believe he's actually real," his freckled partner commented.
Pulling his hood tighter over his head, the thief watched them walk down the hall and waited for the inevitable echo of the dungeon door closing.
Letting out a small sigh, he glanced around as he readjusted his half mask. Well it was certainly brighter than he thought it would be aside from the torch lights and the barred window behind him.
But he felt watched.
His body stiffened as his eyes scanned the other side of the hall. There was no one in the cells across from his, but he could hear the movements of other prisoners as well as their murmuring. So either his nerves were getting to him or he had a neighbor.
He turned his head to the left to see a set of calculating light blue eyes through a small hole in the wall. A few seconds of silence went by before the voice of a boy spoke.
"So, you’re not a myth after all."
The criminal’s light jade eyes narrowed suspiciously at him.
“You don’t talk, do you?”
The criminal shook his head.
“Then I guess that makes things a little easier.”
He cocked his head in suspicion, and the boy’s eyes glanced to either side before gesturing with his head for his neighbor to come closer. Deciding against his better judgment, the hooded thief went to sit by the metal bed.
“Aside from the lack of materials, I could get myself out easily given a few days, but you—you’re a criminal,” he said lowly. “You’ll be out within a few hours with that reputation of yours.”
With a raised eyebrow, the thief rested his arm on the bed.
“With your skill and my alchemy, we could help each other out.”
He slowly drew his head back with narrowed eyes, and this thinned the boy’s patience.
“Look. We both want to get out, and we both have better things to do than rot here. Help me out, and I'll help you. Simple.”
The thief’s eyes held nothing but doubt in them.
“Don’t underestimate me, Mystery. I’m capable of things that you’ve never even dreamed about. Just keep your word and I’ll keep mine.”
Threateningly, the crook slowly leaned toward the boy with a menacing look in his eyes. The action nearly made the boy retract, but he managed to hold the thief’s unwavering gaze with his own.
The newly imprisoned criminal didn’t trust this boy one bit. Frankly he could break himself out with no problem, but now this kid wanted out, too with his help. But did he really want to go through with this? Did this kid really want to go through with this? Apparently so since he just proposed a deal to a supposedly criminal of myth.
And what was he in for, anyways? He was just a kid, but judging by the edge in his voice and his attitude he was more than that. On top of that the thief also sensed something in the kid . . .
Finally coming to a decision, he nodded.
“Good. Now let’s get started. I—”
The criminal held up his hand before pointing to the boy, his own eyes, and then himself.
“Hah, really? You want me to—”
He slammed his fist onto the bed, making the boy jump.
“All right, fine! We’ll do it your way.”
A group of three guards holdings trays entered the dungeon, and the duo of guards from last time approached the boy’s cell with a simple tray of food—if you could call it food.
“Been awfully quiet, Varian,” the taller guard pointed out. “You’re uh, not up to anything, are you?”
Varian, sitting on his bed, blatantly kept his attention on the wall across from him with a certain furry companion in his lap.
After waiting a couple seconds for a response, the guard carefully slid the tray into the cell and removed the two untouched ones before continuing on to his neighbor’s cell. “All right, here ya go—wha?!”
“He’s gone!” the shorter one exclaimed. “He-he couldn’t have escaped! The door’s still locked!”
“Okay just calm down, Pete.” The taller one fished for the keys to the cell.
“Ohhh no. Bad idea, Stan. He could be in there still.”
“What’s going on over there?” the third guard asked, approaching the duo.
“The Mystery just disappeared! He was in there a while ago!”
“And you’re letting Stan open the door?”
“It’s three against one,” Stan said. “If he’s still in there and he tries to escape we’ll catch him.”
Opening the door, Stan readied his spear and stalked inside. He swallowed to keep his nerves under wraps as he carefully scanned the cell.
Empty.
“How in the . . .”
Before the other guards had any chance to speak, a navy blue blur instantly dropped down and knocked out Stan. Light eyes locked onto the rather pale guards, and they immediately dropped the few remaining trays and bolted.
The criminal shot forward at top speed, and right before they could sound the alarm, his feet slammed into Pete’s head. Landing perfectly, the Mystery snatched a fallen spear and threw it in front of the third guard, who was a foot away from the door. On a dime he stopped and whirled around, and the last thing he saw was a fist hurtling towards him.
Slightly intimidated, Varian watched the Mystery briefly study the unconscious bodies before he dragged Pete and the third guard to where Stan was.
With all three guards taken care of, the Mystery locked the door and darted to where his weapons would be held.
“Hey! We’re supposed to be working together.”
Varian’s voice made the criminal stop in his tracks. If he ignored the kid he could get back to what he was here to do. He could leave Varian to whatever fate he was to have. He could be one less obstacle to deal with.
But he was just a kid, despite the dark look in his eyes. And he wanted to know what that special thing in Varian was.
With an eye roll, he whirled around and freed Varian.
“Let that be the last time you—”
“Hey you! Mystery!”
Both of them looked to a scowling woman with a tattoo in a cell further down the hall. Along with her, several other hoodlums near her had their eyes on the Mystery, including a black horse.
“Mind lending me the keys? I’ll make it worth your while,” she bribed.
The Mystery studied her. He had never been in Corona long enough to know who the woman was, and frankly he didn’t want to. Nor did he care.
Ditching the keys, he grabbed Varian by the wrist and tugged him along as the woman and the other crooks yelled after them. Odd squeaking jerked the Mystery’s attention to Varian, and suddenly there was a raccoon on the boy’s shoulder.
Biting back a yelp, he yanked Varian’s glove off and prepared to shoo the raccoon away.
“I’ll take that.” Varian snatched his glove back. “And you’re not getting rid of Ruddiger. He’s staying.”
The Mystery let out a frustrated growl and jerked the kid forward. Much to his contentment Varian didn’t snap at him.
Bolting down the hall, they nabbed their weapons and gear before heading out the door. And strangely enough (at least to the Mystery), no guards were there.
One less problem to deal with, he thought.
Varian shoved open the door only to be greeted by a group of guards, who unanimously looked to the trio.
“You!?” a guard snapped. "How did you get out of your cells?"
“Get them!” another shouted.
The Mystery took a step forward with readied fists as Varian merely plucked three glass balls out of his pocket, catching the thief’s attention.
Precisely aiming his ammo, Varian threw the balls at the feet of the men. Instantly they stopped to assess the threat, but within seconds they were glued to the floor with a pinkish goo. This earned the Mystery’s full interest in him.
“Now let’s get moving,” Varian ordered, and took off for the door.
“Sound the alarm! The prisoners are escaping!” a guard shouted.
The duo hurried up a flight of spiraling stairs with Ruddiger grappling onto his owner’s shoulder.
“That, is what you call alchemy, Mystery,” Varian stated arrogantly. “There’s way more where that came from. Believe me.”
Noting the alchemist’s tone and glare, the thief kept an ear out for more guards over the echoic pounding of their feet. So far reinforcements hadn't shown up, but that didn’t lower his guard for one second.
Finally they reached the floor that would lead to the rest of the castle, and the fugitives kept running. But a trio of guards turning a corner caused them to stop. Thinking quickly, the Mystery grabbed Varian by the back of the shirt and jerked him back down the stairs.
“Would you stop—”
He planted his hand over the kid’s mouth as the footsteps of the guards came closer, ignoring Varian's squirming. His eyes remained focused on the wall in front of him, and he inched further down the stairs as they drew nearer. The chatter amongst them continued, and soon the footfalls faded out.
Varian yanked the Mystery’s hand off of him with a huff. “They’re gone. Now can we—”
“Over there!”
Both of them turned around to see more guards coming their way, and this time Varian pulled the criminal forward.
“Get behind me.” Once again he pulled something out of his pocket, and he threw the object in front of the stairs. Instantly deep magenta smoke exploded from the glass, clouding the men's surroundings and causing them to cough.
Wasting no time, the Mystery grabbed Varian’s wrist again and leapt through the closest window.
Varian and Ruddiger yelled as the air rushed past them, but to the criminal this was second nature. The Mystery instantly grabbed the kid's waist and yanked out a whip to latch onto a spire. To his amusement, Varian attached himself to the Mystery with eyes glued to the ground.
“There could’ve been a logical and safer alternative to this!” he exclaimed, his voice cracking.
The Mystery nudged him and glanced to the ground.
“You want me to go down?! Are-are you crazy?!”
He jutted his chin at Varian.
The boy looked down unsurely at what was probably six inches of footing. Maybe even less. But if he wanted to make his father proud, he needed to do this.
Steeling himself against the obstacle, Varian nodded to the Mystery. Gradually, the Mystery lowered the boy down to the ledge. The instant Varian’s feet touched down he plastered himself to the dome, and the Mystery followed after him. He gestured with his head to follow, and together they picked and swung their way toward the ground.
As they moved, the Mystery noticed Varian was already gradually and subtly taking control of where they were going to end up. In other circumstances he would’ve yanked their path in another direction. But since the kid probably knew the kingdom better than he did, the Mystery decided to let him lead.
The heel of his boot slipped off of a ledge, and the Mystery strained to regain his balance. Panic froze his limbs, and he couldn’t reach for his whip. This was it. This was how he was going to go—a miserable fall in a miserable place.
Well it was nice knowing everyone, he thought.
But suddenly a hand grasped his wrist.
The Mystery was barely balancing on his heels, and he was now completely at the mercy of Varian. The alchemist, seemingly surprised by the notion, locked eyes with the Mystery for a few moments. But eventually he pulled the criminal back to safety before shoving the act aside. The only person he needed to finish what he had been doing was himself. The Mystery was just a tool, and he didn't care what the guy could do to him.
Finally they reached solid ground, but it wasn’t where the Mystery expected.
He placed his hands on his hips with a stern glare.
“You expected to sneak out of the town?” Varian questioned. “Uh, no. That’s not going to work. If we’re getting out, we’re getting out fast.”
Rolling his eyes, the Mystery briskly walked after him. The smell of hay entered his nose as Varian hurried off, which made the Mystery wonder if being this deep within the castle perimeters would be a problem. Especially since the castle would probably be going on lockdown soon. Luckily for them, there were some horses available to make things a little easier.
“Ahem.”
Varian turned around, and the Mystery roughly gestured to the horses as he jutted his head forward with raised eyebrows. “I know what I’m doing. Now come on.”
The horse that he chose seemed to recognize him, but once the Mystery came around the horse reared up.
“Wooaah woah woah woah! Calm down!” Varian growled a bit before continuing. “He’s a friend. He won't hurt you. Right?”
With an eye roll, the Mystery held his hands up in surrender.
“See?”
After a few more moments, the horse settled down, and the boy completely ignored the saddle hanging on the wall. The horse patiently waited for him to get on, and watching him struggle was precious time wasted for the Mystery.
Biting back a scoff, he mounted the horse himself and pulled Varian on. When he whipped the reins, Varian frantically grasped onto the Mystery’s waist with a yelp as the horse sped off.
“I’ll give the directions. Just keep going,” Varian said firmly once he got his bearings together. The Mystery shot him a glare over his shoulder before leaning over the horse’s neck, pulling his hood even tighter over his head.
As they sped through the castle grounds under Varian’s commands, multiple people were caught by surprise by the rogues now running loose. Exclamations rang out as routines were rudely interrupted, and servants and guards hurriedly dove out of the way.
“That was the Mystery! And Varian!” a guard shouted. “We have to go after them!”
The trio pressed forward as other guards tried to stop them. Most of the spears and bolts were aimed at the Mystery, but there were more than a few close calls with Varian.
Several turns later, the fugitives were nearing the second half of their escape route.
“Go left!” Varian shouted.
The horse sharply turned left, and the archway leading out of the courtyard instantly came into view.
“Stop them!” an authoritative man ordered. “We cannot let them escape!”
The Mystery whipped the reins again as more guards scrambled to block the entrance. But just as they reached them, the fugitives shot right by them and broke into the town.
Citizens exclaimed in surprise as they sped by, and snippets of sentences were barely caught by them.
“. . . The Mystery?”
“But he’s a myth!”
“. . . That wizard boy!”
“. . . Just what this kingdom needs.”
Whinnying drove Varian’s attention behind him. Racing after them on horseback was a group of four armed guards.
“We need to go faster!” he demanded. “I refuse to be held back again!”
At Varian’s command the Mystery further urged the horse to run at its top speed.
“Stop them!” the leading guard ordered. "But don't hit the boy!"
Barrels were let loose in an attempt to slow them down, but the horse easily leapt over and went around them. Cupcakes were even thrown by Attila only to be evaded with swift turns. Bolts from behind were fired, and the Mystery weaved side to side away from them.
A bolt skid across Varian’s arm, and he yelped at the tear in his sleeve close to his shoulder. Angrily looking behind him again, he fished out another ball to chuck at the guards. The horse in the back was instantly fastened to the ground, leaving three left and going strong.
Suddenly a large man wearing a Viking helmet stepped in their path, and the Mystery narrowed his eyes at the man. Lurching the horse to the right, he directed it onto an angled plank of wood and prompted it to jump off the end. Varian managed to catch the look of surprise on the bearded thug before the horse was redirected back onto the street.
The chase broke over the bridge, and the Mystery bared his teeth as the wind rushed past them.
“Straight ahead, and don’t stop!” Varian ordered. “I have one more trick up my sleeve.”
Getting out a dark green vial, he eyed a fast approaching tree and glimpsed behind him before throwing the vial at it. The tree splintered and cracked as vines armed with thorns clawed their way out. The startled whinnies of horses stole the Mystery’s attention, and the vines attached themselves to another tree, forming a spider web of vines the guards couldn’t get past.
“Easy,” Varian mocked. “They never stood a chance.”
The thief's eyes glanced to the alchemist, and he forced himself to look forward. What did I get myself in to?
[So I’ve had this for a while now and I thought I’d share this little mini story here. Not sure if this might end up as part of something but, here it is anyway.
If you’re curious about my OC in this, here’s the link to their story. Hope you like it, and I hope you enjoyed this! 😊]
This is really late, so I’m not sure anyone with take note of my little thoughts but...
Wow. I felt things. Like genuine, I’m on verge of tearing up, feelings.
I’m starting to get familiar with these characters and even starting to recognize background Coronans (Coronians?)
Lance’s hopscotch story was hilarious and sad, if I think about it. I loved him and Eugene getting stuck with taking in that one thief. Twice.
It was nice to see what Lady Caine was up to. I suppose they put her back in prison.
But what really stuck with me was Max’s emotional struggle. The sense of trying to be agreeable and then having to deal with a pushy intruder who everyone loves and who gets you into trouble. I just...I felt for Max.
(Also the Captain is growing on me. Honestly, I love how the Corona guards, or at least Stan and Pete and the Captain are being portrayed. Like actual people. It’s really refreshing after the Aladdin Series.)
And watching this right before “The Way of the Willow” made me realize that this one (like “Pascal’s Story”, I think) didn’t have any subplot.
Anyway, really liked this one, even if it took me forever to get around to watch it.
Old Lady Crowley, Freidborg, and Faith. All the staff work very hard, they’re just 3 I’ve always noticed being busy. I also like and appreciate the palace guards.
Possible spoilers; I don’t talk explicitly about what happened but I do talk about my feelings on the episode.
Okay, I really loved this one. I don’t know if it was having the thugs in an episode, or the struggle between others’ perception vs their dreams, or Rapunzel kind-hearted gumption, or Atilla’s defeatism about how some dreams aren’t meant to happen… Probably a mix of all of it.
Likewise, I was really invested in the story. Even if I knew who the culprit was as soon as the evidence of “two puncture wounds the width of Attila’s horns” was exhibited.
It was also nice that the guards and the Captain and even her dad took Rapunzel seriously. She didn’t have to go up against prejudice against her. (As Aladdin probably would’ve had to do in a similar situation.)
And I like the world they’re building: a little quirky, a little magical, a little dangerous. In the quirky sense, I’m thinking of everyone’s confusion about who Rapunzel’s witness was.
And I am REALLY looking forward to the next episode: baby Pascal and Rapunzel! I’m a sap for Disney leads and their animal friends meeting.
