Betrayal and Trust Part II (different writer) - AU fanfic

Guilt.

***

The sound of chirping birds and an annoyingly bright beam of sunlight, shining through the small window of the caravan, slowly started to make it impossible for Varian to make himself believe he was still asleep. He groaned and opened his eyes, still a bit drowsy from whatever was in that strange drink Adira had given to him.

Nope, wrong decision. The light immediately blinded him. Well then, if fate wanted have its way like this, who would he be to disagree. He lay still and quietly reminisced over the dream he'd had. He had dreamt about his father, back in Old Corona. But Quirin had been free... and his mother had also been there. She had the most wonderful voice and a bright smile, and she was proud of him. Varian wrinkled his nose in frustration since, no matter how hard he tried, he could never remember his mother's name or face whenever he'd dreamt about her. Maybe, when he got back, he could finally find enough courage to ask his father about her...

Oh, wait.

The truth came once again crashing down on him and made his blood feel like it'd turn to ice. The thought he might never be able to speak to his father again always crushed Varian completely and ruined whatever mood he was in. Once more, it made him want to curl up and cry until he had no more tears to cry, and then hopefully fall back asleep again and go back to his peaceful dreams. He wanted to forget everything.

But it was not meant to be. He would be reminded of it for the rest of his life, carrying it as an invisible burden.

He sighed deeply and looked up at the ceiling. He had to get up. He'd do anything to distract himself from thinking anything at all. He didn't want to be alone with his thoughts. His body felt numb and stiff, but that wouldn't stop Varian. Probably. While he was still gathering the willpower to do so, he was startled by a loud knock on the door. And so was Rapunzel, who had fallen asleep on her shift to watch over Varian. She was seated in a chair next to the bed, leaning her head against the wall. She yawned silently and rubbed her eyes, not completely awake yet.

When he didn't answer, the door slowly opened and someone entered the room. Varian couldn't see who it was, for that he'd have to tilt his head and he felt too tired to do that.

"Varian."

A sudden rush of adrenaline caused Varian to bolt upright. "YOU." The sudden movement and usage of his voice caused a tremendous pain in his back and chest as well as a sudden coughing fit. He doubled over in pain, and tears sprang into his eyes when he gasped for air, but no air filled his aching lungs. Just like in his nightmare, it felt like he was drowning.

But this time, Rapunzel was there. He hadn't noticed her presence until he felt her hand on his shoulder. She'd quickly picked up some extra pillows and put them behind his back, and now gently pushed him back into them. In this position, Varian was able to breathe more freely. He carefully leaned into the new pillows a bit. Sitting upright for the first time in... what was it? Days? a week? He couldn't tell. It made him feel a bit dizzy, but that feeling would subside. Suddenly feeling cold, he reached down to pull the blanket up higher again. It had slid down when he'd bent forward and now revealed his chest. It was fully bandaged. The dressing seemed fresh, it wasn't soaked in blood and had only a few red spots (growing larger as he watched though, so he quickly averted his eyes). He was really thankful for that, otherwise he'd have fainted too. Still though, the thought of anyone touching him while he was asleep was a bit unsettling. But he guessed it would hurt a lot  if they tried to change the bandages while he was conscious. Not to mention the blood. So it was okay for now. But he did hope he'd be healed soon.

Disoriented from the sudden pain, Varian had momentarily forgotten what was going on around him. Right, someone had come into the room. And that someone was the Captain.