So Season 3 is finally out. I plan start watching it (at least what's already out) later today, but I'll assume that nothing I'm writing here actually happened haha. Oh well, I'm having fun with this AU, so that's all that matters.

Fanfictionmakermachine: I'd say both of them are feeling some heavy self-doubt (Cass doubting her goals and Raps doubting her relationships) but we'll see how they deal with all that. And seriously, I'm trying so hard not to just go full-on M-rated writing, it's killing me! lol

Gracie Wiser: Sorry to make you wait :weary:

Before today, Cassandra hadn't done much killing. It was odd for a solider not to kill, but Cassandra hadn't usually been put in situations where it was necessary. She always found herself punching out her enemies or, at her most desperate, hitting them with the blunt side of her sword. But actually slashing at them? Drawing blood? She hadn't done much of that.

Before today, that is.

For the first time in forever, her blade was stained with drying blood. The sword itself was a dark stygian black color, which only made the crimson stains more striking. It was a new sight for Cassandra, but she didn't have much time to dwell on it as she ran through the woods, huffing heavy breaths as she pumped her legs to escape the growling horde behind her.

The air around no longer smelled like crisp vegetation: it reeked of oxidized blood and the pungent stench of werewolf fur. As she ducked behind a tree, pressing her back to it to lean on while she tried to catch her breath, she could hear the howls of the monsters in the distance, and the sounds of their claws scraping the ground as they chased after her.

"I can't… keep fighting them," she wheezed. "I have to… put a stop to this… now."

But how?

A hulking werewolf jumped out of the brush with a roar, forcing Cassandra to roll to the side to dodge, then get back on her feet and keep running. Her sides were killing her, and the muscles in her legs screamed to her to stop. The frustration and anxiety made her grit her teeth angrily, so she spun in place and pointed to the ground at the monster's feet.

A black rock shot out of the earth, its pointed tip spearing the beast in its chest and emerging from the other side. The werewolf spat up froth and blood as it uselessly struggled to break free.

One final twitch, and it moved no more.

Cassandra wasted no time. She knelt to plant her palms on the ground, muttered an incantation under her breath, and watched as another black rock, angled at an obtuse degree, sprouted like a tree underneath her feet and carried her up into the air, away from the ground where the werewolves could get to her.

She fell to the ground, gasping for air. The sword dropped from her hand and began to slide. "Damn," she hissed as she reached to grab it.

At least I'm safe up here, she thought. She peered down over the thin edge of the rock and saw several large shadowy werewolves many meters below her, staring up with their hauntingly blue eyes. Their claws scratched at the mystical rock to make jagged marks. Their mouths gnashed, spraying spittle everywhere. Cassandra's grip on her sword's hilt tightened, but she knew it was useless. She wasn't going to win if she fought them. What she needed to do is what Matthews suggested…

"It's something to do with my powers," she said.

With that in mind, the young woman closed her eyes and began to meditate.

Pascal crawled onto his mistress' arm as she lay in bed. His tiny legs carried him right to her shoulder, where he made a small clicking noise and nuzzled Rapunzel's cheek. The princess turned her head to the reptile and smiled lightly, reached to cradle him and hold him closer to her. "At least you're not giving me grief like the others," she said to him.

She kissed the top of Pascal's little head, and placed him in her hand. She held him outwards, so that they could meet each other's eyes. "Pascal, I..." She trailed off, not knowing what to say. He cocked his head to the side, confused, and Rapunzel sighed. She giggled, then said, "Okay, let's try that again… Pascal, I've been thinking about… Cassandra a lot."

The lizard hissed at the sound of her name.

"I... guess that's the right response," Rapunzel said uncertainly. "It's just that I… I know that Eugene and the others are expecting a fight with her. I think that she's also going to do the same. But Pascal, I… I don't want to do it. I'm scared of that. If it really did come down to a fight between me and her… I don't know if I could fight her."

She then laughed, but it was a humorless laugh.

"And I'm not just saying that because she actually is a better fighter than me."

Pascal whined softly, sympathetically, and Rapunzel leaned in for the lizard. "What do you think, Pascal?"

He made a few soft clicks, and the young woman sighed again. "Yeah, I thought so. Still, I just don't… I don't think that..."

Another heavy exhale heaved from her breast. She thought back to every moment she had spent with Cassandra. Aside from Eugene, her lady-in-waiting had been the first friend she had ever made since leaving Mother Gothel's tower. She was her best friend, and every moment they had spent talking and laughing and fighting and arguing and protecting each other… it was too real, too vivid for Rapunzel to throw away.

Maybe Cassandra could. Rapunzel didn't know how easy or hard it had been for Cass to make up her mind about betraying her, and it stung her just thinking about it. But regardless of how she felt when she threw their friendship away, Rapunzel knew she couldn't do the same. If she ever saw Cassandra again, she felt like the first thing she would do is curl up into a ball and cry as the former guardswoman stalked over to her with a giant obsidian blade, ready to kill…

Why did she have to be the traitor? Why couldn't it have been someone, anyone, else? Why couldn't it have been Adira? Assuming everything with Adira even happened. At this point, I don't even know what's real and what's just this weird house playing tricks on me.

"Oh, Adira was real. She's around… somewhere. I'm not quite sure."

Rapunzel screamed from the surprise. "Matthews!"

It was indeed Matthews, standing by the curtain with a bored expression on his face. His clothes were a scarlet color that blended in perfectly with the walls. If she hadn't been made aware of his existence, she would never have been able to guess he was there.

The Frenchman smirked at her. Taking one long stride towards her, he maintained an oily grin. Before she even knew it, Matthews was towering over her by her side. Rapunzel held her breath, afraid of what he was planning to do. Noticing the hints of fear in her eyes, he rolled his. "Come now, Sundrop, if I wanted to do you harm, you and the three stooges you brought with you would be lying dead at my feet. I simply want to show you something."

"Show me something?"

He nodded, still smirking as smugly as ever. He may not have wanted to do her physical harm, but even someone as naive and trusting as Rapunzel knew that a grin like that could only mean bad intent.

So she surprised herself when she found herself pushing the blanket to the side and standing up. She didn't feel like she was standing of her own will; it felt like magnets pulling her up. The image of a small Coronan child playing with dolls came to her mind, and she hitched a breath as she thought about some invisible force playing with her limbs like she was their personal toy.

Matthews held out his hand like a gentleman. "Come with me," he said. "What I plan to show is something you would not wish to miss."

He made his way to leave the room. Rapunzel, with reluctance in her every step, followed after him.

Stepping into the hallway, she felt a current of air flow past her, chilled and biting. Her teeth immediately began to chatter. Matthews raised an eyebrow at this. "How odd," he muttered. Removing his glove, he licked his finger and raised it to meet the rushing cold winds. "I don't believe I've left a window open. Though this air does seem to be of supernatural coldness. Perhaps the door to the Ice Room has been opened."

"I-I-Ice Room?" Rapunzel asked.

"Mhm. A world of pure cold and ice hides behind that door. Sometimes I open it and see large shadows in the distance. I wonder if they might be yetis."

"Yetis? Yetis are real?"

"Not in this world," he said with an even tone.

As he slipped his glove back on and continued forward, it started to really dawn on Rapunzel that, when it came to Matthews and this house, she had no idea what she was dealing with.

Hoot.

"Not now, Owl." Cassandra tried to wave the bird that was distracting her meditation away, but Owl kept swooping back to her shoulder to peck at her face and hoot in her ear. Cassandra knew that her well-trained bird only behaved like that when he was trying to warn her about something, but given his recent behavior, she doubted it was something she wanted to hear.

Owl managed to maneuver past her flailing hand to perch himself right on top of Cassandra's head. His talons, thankfully, didn't dig into her scalp, instead lightly placing himself right on top of her glowing curls. He bent downwards and nipped a strand of blue hair, and Cassandra hissed. It was more out of annoyance than actual pain.

Great. I'm on top of an uncomfortable black rock in the middle of the night, with werewolves ready to tear me to pieces, and now this bird's biting my hair. I swear, I knew I should've made him into a roast.

"Okay, that's… really cruel. Even for me," Cassandra found herself saying.

She sighed, then swatted at the bird again. He flew away, and a few thin strands of her hair fell into her palm. Cassandra was about to brush them off her glove when she noticed something strange happen…

The thin filaments of hair glowed brightly for a few moments. Then the beautiful blue light began to dim, and within seconds, her hair had returned to its natural brunette color.

"Huh. So my hair does the same thing Raps' hair does when it gets cut."

She blew the hairs out of her hand, then looked back up to Owl, who circled over her head. She scratched her head, wondering what her pet bird was trying to tell her.

An extra loud snarl rose from below. Cassandra looked back down at the monstrous pack, and watched as one thin, limber werewolf dug its claws into the rock. It began to climb, smashing its sharp nails into the stone to use as a harness. It didn't get far before it lost grip and fell back to the ground with the others, but the sight still made Cassandra's heart beat with terror. They can climb? she thought. I'm not as safe up here as I thought I would be. It won't be too long before they manage to get up here, and I don't think I'll be able to fight them all off. Come on, Cassandra, there has to be something you can do…

And just like that, an idea hit her.

Cassandra gasped, then reached up to her luminescent hair and, with some strained difficulty, plucked a few strands. She watched as, again, the blue color died down into natural tones. Her eyes shot upwards to the sky, to the large black blanket that enveloped the Earth…

The large, black, moonless blanket that enveloped the Earth.

"That's it!" she declared, pounding her fist into her hand. "It's my hair! Werewolves only stay as wolves if there's a full moon, so if my hair is glowing like the moon, then that's what's keeping the werewolves in their wolf-form. Great. Now all I need to do is to turn it off or something like that."

An angry bark echoed from the ravenous werewolves, as if one of them was agreeing with her.

The young woman squeezed her eyes shut as she began willing her hair to dim. She opened her eyes, but found her head still shining like a beacon. "URGH!" she cried, scratching at her head. "Stop glowing, will you?!"

She paused and froze as she heard clawing on the rock. She peeked over the side again, and found another werewolf, covered in fresh scratch marks and obsidian black fur, with a slobbery tongue falling out of its mouth and eyes narrowed on Cassandra with both rage and hunger burning within them, climbing up the rock.

But this one wasn't falling. In fact, it had climbed halfway.

And it didn't look like it was going to slow down.

"I believe you remember this room from your 'last visit', non?"

Rapunzel looked around the familiar room, her smile growing with each passing second. "Ooh, this is the one where everyone got turned into cute kids. They were a handful, but they were so cute!"

Matthews seemed to grimace. "I was hoping you would be more afraid of what other magics would be lying in this room."

"Oh, right… I mean, oh no, the horror! The dreaded room that turned my friends into adorable, sweet little babies! Gasp, what dastardly works lie waiting for me here?" Rapunzel said over-dramatically. Even Pascal had to roll his eyes.

Truth be told, once the adorable memories of her friends' child-selves passed, Rapunzel did feel a looming sense of cautious curiosity. The room was filled with strange toys; some were scattered about messily while others were stacked into piles that spilled across the floor. Matthews hummed to himself as he and Rapunzel walked through the maze of playthings, his eyes locked straight forward to the object of his desire. His eyes did waver slightly at one point, falling on a stuffed teddy bear seated atop a small pink chair.

He sighed to himself. Were I younger, this room of playthings would have been my paradise. Curse that my youth was taken from me.

He tried not to think about it. He had trained himself not to think about it. But even the best of us slip up sometimes.

The trio came to a rickety shelf on the wall. It was poorly made; splinters jutted from the boards and the nails that held them in place were crooked and rusted. It seemed odd in a place that was otherwise clean and fancy, so Rapunzel could only assume there was a reason behind it. Maybe it was a last minute addition?

Matthews' hand swept over the shelves in one swift, smooth motion. He turned back to face her, and within his gloved palm was a round, clear crystal ball. It was hardly the size of an orange. It was also really dusty, until Matthews rubbed the dust off with his mitts.

"It's come to my attention," he started slowly, "that you do not wish to confront your former friend Cassandra."

"What? H-How do you-"

"I thought we've been over this before. Everything that happens in this house, Sundrop, I know of. Every wasted drop of water that drips to the puddles on the floor, every buzzing fly that bashes itself into walls as it uselessly tries to escape, every thought that races through your head… although there aren't too many of those to listen to." He stifled a cold, mocking laugh. "But let's not make this about me. This is about you. You and Moondrop."

"I-I don't want to fight her," Rapunzel admitted. She took a shaky step back and repeated, "I don't want to fight her." On her shoulder, Pascal let out a soft whine of sympathy.

"I know. Which brings us back to here," said Matthews, holding up the crystal ball to the luminescence that seemed to naturally flow from the walls and ceiling. He marveled it like it was a valuable, precious stone… because it was one. But this particular stone was more valuable than an emerald twice its size.

He brought the crystal ball to her, and Rapunzel timidly opened her hands to receive it. "What does this do?" she asked.

"My dear Sundrop, it does what every hack and fake claims their crystal ball can do: it can show you the future. But unlike their balls, mine is potent."

Rapunzel couldn't be sure, but she thought she saw the sides of his mouth twitch upwards.

"So what am I supposed to use it for?"

He brought a long, lanky finger to tap on the ball. A few whispered words passed from him to the crystal, and it began to glow. Rapunzel winced as she felt it heat up, but rather than scalding her, the temperature stabilized at a comfortable level. Peering down at it, she saw flashes and ribbons of color flowing through it in the form of long waves. The ribbons began to melt into each other, and Rapunzel watched as they created a scene. A tower here… a stable there… a large wooden shield bearing a familiar coat of arms…

Rapunzel gasped: the ball was showing her Corona.

It looked nothing like she remembered it. The large castle and its many tall towers was decrepit. What once shone with golden color now lay dusted and dark. Large spires of the familiar black rock shot out from the stony walls, and hanging from them were putrid vines, blacker than the starless sky that hung above.

The scene transitioned with a rough blur to the street. Gone were the Coronan people that bustled and hurried through the streets, and gone were the bakeries and masonries and homes. Rapunzel's pupils narrowed, searching for any sign of life. In the corner of her vision, she found it: a little girl with dusty cheeks and shredded clothes, who seemed terrified of something, fleeing through the streets. The princess watched in horror as horde of strange creatures she did not recognize suddenly materialized and gave chase to the child…

"NO!" she cried when the monsters caught up with her.

Her grip on the crystal ball was tight as the final scene played for her. The ball revealed the throne room of her castle, but sitting on the throne – which was now littered with spikes – was not her father. Instead, Rapunzel's eyes widened as she saw Cassandra, hair glowing brighter than a full moon, grimly sitting on the throne.

"Cass… wh-what is this?"

"That, Sundrop, is the future," Matthews muttered as he snatched the crystal ball from her, ignoring her attempt to snatch it back. "Or one of many potential futures. In this future, Sundrop, you refused to defeat your opponent, which led to her taking your kingdom for herself."

"All of those awful things… that was Cassandra?"

"In fairness, she didn't deliberately destroy the nation," he stated matter-of-factly. "But when it comes to rulers, the world is strict with who leads. Cassandra is not of the same lineage as you. And bad things happen when false queens take the throne. But in addition to that, of course, she didn't hesitate to take some vengeance on Corona."

"I… I can't believe-"

"Then believe, Sundrop," Matthews uttered harshly. "Believe or all you know and love will be gone. The Moonstone Opal will change the world as you know it. It spread its darkness over the lands. It will trap and ensnare people with its jagged stones. It will bring decay and death to the living. How much longer will you refuse to confront this evil?"

"She's not evil! She's… Cass..."

The man frowned. A very deep frown. But he inhaled calmly, then placed his hand on the princess' shoulder. Rapunzel flinched, but she didn't brush him away. She tentatively, hesitantly, looked into his eyes.

The truth was there: she would have to fight Cassandra. It didn't matter if her former friend was evil or misguided or hurt or anything else… she would have to fight her. She was the Sundrop. Cassandra was the Moondrop. It was inevitable.

That didn't stop it from hurting.

Rapunzel didn't notice Matthews leaving. She didn't notice anything as she retreated into her thoughts. Memories of her friend flooded her as they always did, but they felt emptier now… more hollow.

Pascal chirped on her shoulder. He licked her cheek; his own way of giving a comforting kiss.

Rapunzel barely felt it.

"Blondie?" she heard someone say after some time had passed. She turned and saw Eugene standing at the door, with both Lance and Shortie peering over his shoulder and from behind his leg.

Moments passed before she said, "We're going to find Cassandra," in a voice that was as confident as it was afraid.

Cassandra spoke to the energy of the Moonstone Opal that resided within her breast. She pressed down on it, grit her teeth, and willed it to do this one thing for her. Make my hair stop glowing. Turn it off. Just stop working!

Owl, as he hovered over, watched as the brightness of her hair began to slowly dim. The werewolves also seemed to notice it; they became less aggressive, less snappy. Slowly but surely, through her huffed breaths, Cassandra managed to restore her hair to its normal color. She opened her eyes, peered down below, and watched as the pack of monsters began to revert back into their normal forms. Fur turned to hair, claws into nails, fangs into teeth, paws into hands, and maws into mouths. The painful sounds of bones cracking and men screaming echoed through the dark forest, and Cassandra could only watch as the werewolves became men again.

Once the mob of humans disbanded, returning back into the thicket from whence they came, Cassandra descended from her spontaneous spire. When her feet gracefully hit the ground, she found Matthews standing there, a sly smile on his face.

"Danger makes fast learners of us all," he said, a twinkle in the corner of his eye.

"You're the worst," she said in return.