"So, how it go?"

Rapunzel sat down on the floor. On the other side of the cell door, Varian sat. That was how it had been for weeks, after his arrest. The young alchemist's crimes had been enough for execution, but the queen and princess had begged.

So, it was life in prison.

"He refuses to let me follow the rocks."

Varian nodded, face blank. "I'm...sorry, your Highness."

"It's not your fault."

He shrugged. "Maybe. Maybe not."

They talked for a few more minutes- about the weather, how his raccoon was doing- before Cassandra knocked three times. That was the signal that Rapunzel's time was up. She said goodbye, receiving a nod in return.

That was how it was.

Varian hummed that evening as he unlocked his chains. He considered the lock before carefully placing the pin that he had hidden in his clothes in the opening. After a few minutes, it clicked open. He pushed the door open and walked free.

He needed his stuff, and a place to hide.

And Rapunzel.

The only way to free his father was to figure out the mystery behind the black rocks. Sure, it would mean helping the kingdom that had turned their backs on him, but it would mean he could find a way to fix his mistake. Rapunzel and the mysterious reappearance of her hair was connected to these rocks. This was their best chance.

He walked in silence, turning a corner...

To be met with a frying pan.

Rapunzel dragged Varian into a closet. Rudiger chattered nervously as she set the bags down, starting to pat his master's cheeks. Slowly, the alchemist woke with a groan. His hand came to rub his forehead. "Did you hit me-"

"Be quiet." she hissed.

He nodded, glancing down at the bags. Pascal and Rudiger waved at him. "What are you doing?"

"Following the rocks." she said, pushing the bag she had packed his stuff in towards him. "And you're coming with me."

Varian opened the bag to be met with his goggles and gloves, as well as his journal and several chem balls. He looked up at Rapunzel. "You beat me by an hour."

"What?"

"I broke out of prison to follow the rocks and was planning on asking you to come along."

Rapunzel blinked at him, before smiling. "So...we're good?"

He stared at the pack, considering his options. The fight between him and the princess had been caused by the lies of their fathers. Now, Rapunzel had been lied to, ignored, and locked up by her father. To set them both free...

Varian grabbed the pack. "We're good."

The next morning, Eugene would enter Rapunzel's room. He would find it empty, except for a note with five words: I need to do this. The guard that brought Varian his food would find the cell empty as well, with unlocked chains and door.

But they wouldn't find them.

The princess and the alchemist would follow the rocks. What they would find at the end, they didn't know.