Twisted Destiny

Invite

Varian sighed heavily as he looked in the mirror the next morning. Yes, he was still Cassandra's captive, his stupid hair was stuck permanently glowing, and he was wearing a circlet he couldn't remove. Which, of course, meant the rest of the night was real, too. He groaned and leaned his head against the glass with a groan.

Marriage? To Cassandra? When he was fourteen, he might've been excited at the idea. But now, with everything they'd been through and how he felt about her now? It was the worst. Nevermind the fact that he was still underage and no matter what Zhan Tiri or whoever seemed to think, this was illegal! Yes, there was a "can get married at sixteen with parents' permission" thing but, last he checked, his dad didn't say Cassandra could marry him!

Dad...he sighed, running his hands over his face. The last time he'd seen him was when he'd finally told him the truth. Varian was so sure that the Moonstone would just...go to him, but apparently things weren't so simple. Because of course they weren't, it never was simple with magic.

Magic. Talk to fourteen-year-old Varian that never met Rapunzel and tell him that he was magical and, yeah, he'd look at you like you're crazy. His father was right, he wouldn't have believed it until he was brought to the blasted rock.

He ran his hand through his glowing bangs and straightened up. Today was the eclipse and his...wedding, right after. He groaned and hung his head again, gripping the dresser his mirror was resting on. "This can't be happening..."

"Moaning and groaning doesn't make reality any less real, little bird."

He looked up and sighed heavily, seeing Lucas leaning on his doorway. "I'm surprised you're not objecting to this."

"Heh, don't worry about me." Lucas walked into the room, but Ruddiger got up and moved in his way, letting out a low hiss and moving his hands aggressively. "Wow, okay, rude. Anyways, Your Highness, your bride-to-be wanted me to come and get you for breakfast."

Varian sighed. He couldn't put this off, who knew what she'd do if he kept her waiting. He dejectedly turned and walked over to the door. "Fine. Let's go."

He chuckled and patted his shoulder as he led him along, Ruddiger following right behind. They stopped at a door and Lucas knocked twice before it opened and Faith stepped out, looking terrified and not in her maid outfit but a pretty blue dress. She moved to Varian's side and Lucas nodded before they walked on to the dining room.

--

Cassandra was waiting for them when they arrived, Zhan Tiri and the others already all gathered around the table. At Lucas' direction, they took seats next to each other and Varian made a point of not looking at Cassandra.

"Did you sleep well?" She asked him cheerfully.

He glanced at her coldly. "Well enough, all things considered."

"Hey, you agreed to the terms. It's not my fault you were dumb enough to fight a battle you couldn't win." Cassandra cut into her meat. "You still eat meat, right? I know the Saporians don't, so..."

"Yeah." He sighed and started to eat.

"So, Zhan Tiri and I were talking earlier, and we've decided it would be so much more romantic and perfect to have the wedding during the eclipse." Varian started to violently cough. "Don't choke on your food, baby."

"Why?" He looked at her in disbelief.

"Because it's perfect." Cassandra grinned. "And don't you want our wedding to be perfect?"

"I don't want it to happen at all!" Varian set down his fork. "I agreed to stay with you, not to marry you!"

"Well, see, I have my reasons for this. Hear me out." Cassandra set her fork and knife down and laced her hands together. "The way I figure it, the only way I can get full control over every piece of the Moonstone is by...well, merging with you, in a way. And I figured we could get married first."