Cassarian friends to lovers arc
Post-Series, post-VAT7K, Cass comes back to Corona.
Cassandra at the end of TTS left to discover herself and pursue her own destiny. And she got all that many times over in the years she's been away from Corona.
But over time, she felt like more and more of her services and skills were only taken for transaction----a slain beast for gold, a found treasure for new gear, a party escorted for money. She lost a bit of faith in people and being a hero because she's seen people's kindness and generosity stop as soon as the quest was over.
That's why she returns to Corona. She's looking for the people who actually care about her unconditionally: her father, Rapunzel, Eugene, Lance, and Varian.
When Cass returns to Corona, she is initially skeiptical of Varian doing nice things for her because she, as a seasoned merecenary and adventurer, is used to companions only staying with her for gold and glory. Eventually, she accpets Varian's sincerity. Still, she struggles with reciprocating kindness.
Varian, on the other hand, sees Cass as a battle-hardened hero who has earned back her place in society after the Moonstone and her adventures, and he thinks she deserves some nice things in life that don't require quests or contracts. Couple that with Varian's desire to help people and make their lives better through his inventions or sheer brain power. Varian is, essentially, her golden retriever boyfriend.
