*AN: So, yeah... given what happened in the S2 finale of "Rapunzel's Tangled Adventure"... certain elements of my previous Tangled story are thoroughly debunked. It is officially cancelled, unless and until we get Cassandra redemption. In the meantime, please enjoy!*

Rapunzel looked upon her best friend in horror. Before her eyes, she had been transformed by the moonstone into someone completely different, someone with turquoise blue hair and eyes, and clothes which looked as if they had been made from the black rocks themselves. Cassandra's eyes relayed pure rage and hatred.

"I tried to warn you, Rapunzel," she said through malevolent laughter. "You have to be careful who you trust."

"Cassandra, I don't understand," Rapunzel cried. "Why are you doing this?"

"Of course you wouldn't understand," Cass hissed. "Why would you? You have everything. A family who supports you. Your true love. A throne to ascend to."

"I-"

"If you had touched the moonstone and gained the ultimate power," she went on. "You'd be regarded as a hero for the rest of time, while I would still be left to be your pathetic, overlooked maidservant for the rest of my life. I would never get the chance to prove myself, or earn glory defending the crown the way I am meant to. Now, I have my chance, and there's only one thing in the way of my destiny; one thing that could take my power away from me."

"Not a chance, Ice Queen," Eugene growled, letting go of Rapunzel to stand between her and Cassandra on the bridge.

"And what exactly are you going to do, Fitzherbert?" Cass sneered. "Or should I call you prince now? In case you haven't noticed, you're unarmed. Maybe you should have listened to your father and destroyed the moonstone while you had the chance."

Cassandra raised her hands, which glowed the same blue as her hair and eyes. Pointing towards Eugene, she released a stream of some sort of energy from her fingertips. After only a moment's hesitation, Rapunzel tossed her hair in front of her, creating a barrier to deflect the ray.

"Cass," she called. "Stop it. This isn't you. Please, just talk to me!"

"Not happening, princess."

Cassandra released more magic from her hands. Standing, Rapunzel willed her hair into a ball-shaped shield around herself and Eugene. The couple felt tremendous vibrations as the energy from the moonstone met the shield. Rapunzel dropped it slightly to see the rebound effect knocking Cassandra down, forcing her over the edge of the bridge and into the void below.

"Cass," Rapunzel cried. Her hair fell back around her shoulders as she reached out towards her friend. "No!"

"Rapunzel," Eugene shouted, grabbing both of the princess's hands. "That blast will have wrecked whatever strength this place still had. It's only a matter of time before it falls right down on top of us. We need to go now."

"But, Cass-"

"Now!"

Not waiting for a refusal, Eugene pulled Rapunzel by the hand to the door they had entered from. Having heard some of the commotion from outside, King Edmund, Adira, and Lance had again raised the statue fragment in front of the door to let them out. Once in the larger corridor, Eugene waved for the others to follow him.

"Let's go!" he called.

"But, what about Cassandra?" Lance asked.

"There's no time!" Eugene insisted. "We've got to go now."

The crumbling structures around them left little room for argument. King Edmund led the group back through the castle to the front entrance. They had barely made it to the gondola landing when debris began to fall from all sides. Rapunzel used her hair to draw everyone close to her, then activated her hair shield once more. Before long, the dust settled, and Rapunzel felt safe to let down her hair once more. She turned and, where there was once a proud, foreboding castle, there remained only rubble. Cassandra… Her knees suddenly felt weak. They shook and gave way beneath her. Eyes filling with tears, she wrapped her arms around herself. Cass… She barely registered Eugene placing an arm around her shoulders as he crouched beside her.

"What happened in there?" Lance finally asked. "What happened to the moonstone? And where's Cass?"

"Cassandra betrayed us," Eugene spat. "She took the Moonstone for herself and… merged with it."

"Merged with it?" King Edmund wondered. "I didn't know such a thing was possible."

"The only thing that should have been able to come into direct contact with the moonstone is the sundrop," Adira confirmed. "The fact that Short Hair was able to draw such power from it…"

"Not that that matters much anymore," Rapunzel sniffed. "Now that Cass is…"

"You may want to look before you draw any conclusions, Princess." Adira pointed out into the distance, beyond the rubble of the palace, where a stocky, blue-haired figure could just be made out.

"Cassandra," Rapunzel exclaimed. "Cassandra!"

Rapunzel stood to run towards her friend, only to be held back by Eugene.

"Let me go," she begged, struggling against his grip on her wrist. "I have to-"

"You don't know what she'll do to you if you get close," Eugene argued.

"Fish Sk- er, His Highness is right," Adira agreed. "And, besides…"

Looking again, the group saw that Cassandra had turned away, and was now running in the opposite direction of them.

"Cassandra!" Rapunzel cried again. "Where could she be going?"

"There's little telling," King Edmund answered. "Like I said, the moonstone can get into your head, let you think you're in control, give you ideas… and that's when it's not fused with your body."

"Your Majesty." Rapunzel turned to face the king. "Please, tell us everything you know about the moonstone. How do we change Cass back?"

"I'm afraid I don't know," Edmund admitted. "An event like this is unprecedented."

"There has to be something we can do!"

"Why are you so concerned about her, anyway?" Eugene asked. "After what she just did!"

"It's Cassandra," Rapunzel reminded. "Remember? Our friend? We owe our lives to her who-knows-how-many-times over?"

"Believe me, I know. I care about Cass, I do, but, right now, your safety is more important to me."

"I know she just tried to, well, kill us, but I don't think that was her. The way she acted, how she looked at me… that wasn't our Cass. We have to help her."

"I'm with Rapunzel," Lance interjected. "The Cass I know would never do something like that."

"I have to agree," Adira nodded. "Short Hair and I may never have seen eye-to-eye, but I never once doubted her loyalty to the princess."

"All for one and two for tea!" Shorty chimed. Max and Fidella whinnied their agreement, chroused by a nod from Pascal.

"So, are you with us?" Rapunzel asked.

"Okay," Eugene finally nodded. "Let's help Cass."

"Woohoo!" Rapunzel cheered.

"The question is how, though," Lance reminded.

"The fact still remains that the only thing capable of counteracting and neutralizing the moonstone is the sundrop." Adira said.

"So, I still have to touch it," Rapunzel translated.

"Like Cassandra will let that happen," Eugene refuted. "You saw her just now; she'd sooner kill you than let you get close enough to touch the moonstone and neutralize her new powers."

"His Highness does have a point," Adira agreed. "We need a plan."

"Ok, seriously, Adira," Eugene scoffed. "Enough with this 'Highness' stuff, it's weirding me out."

"It is just as strange to me, believe me," Adira rolled her eyes. "But, like it or not, you are the prince. As such, I have to address you with formality."

"No, no you don't!"

"So, you'd rather I call you Fish Skin?"

"No! Why can't you just call me Eugene?"

"Eugene?" Edmund wondered. "I thought you went by Flynn."

"That was my thieving name," Eugene explained. "I go by my real name now."

"Your real name according to the orphanage, maybe," Edmund refuted. "But certainly not your given name."

"Wait, what?" Eugene did a double-take. "What is my given name, then?"

"We hadn't had a public christening before I evacuated the palace," the king explained. "But your mother and I wanted to name you after my father, Archibald."

"Archibald?" Rapunzel raised an eyebrow. Behind her, Lance was struggling to hold back a laugh.

"Yeah," Eugene rolled his eyes. "Cause you're one to make fun of names, Arnwaldo."

"Hey!" Lance cried. "Not in front of Adira!"

"As fascinating as this all is," Adira cut in. "It isn't getting us any closer to a solution to the problem at hand."

"Adira's right," Eugene agreed, eager to change the subject. "Let's find a way back to the mainland, salvage what we can from the caravan to make camp, and regroup. It's been a long day, and we'll all think better with full stomachs."

"But, the farther we get away," Rapunzel argued. "The farther Cass gets away."

"The moonstone is inherently attracted to the sundrop," Adira explained. "One way or another, it will lead Cassandra to us, or us to her. Right now, it is best we prepare for when that happens."

There were no further arguments. Silently, the group split up to assess their situation and find a way to get back to the other side of the chasm between them and the rest of the world.