Note: Very sorry about the update delay. Time simply got away from us. November was a crazy month. Anyway, here's some Cassunzel angst. Enjoy.

"Rapunzel? Come on, Raps. Wake up. Please, wake up."

Opening her eyes felt like trying to lift a mountain. The same moment that the world began to come into focus was when a shooting migraine pulsed through her head and forced her eyes back shut. Something soft was beneath her, on her back. Something warm caressed her cheek.

"Come on, Rapunzel. It's okay. You're safe now. Get up."

Rapunzel groaned as she felt herself being pulled back into the abyss of unconsciousness. Clinging onto reality took every ounce of strength she had. She could feel the tendrils of sleep still clinging onto her shoulders, pulling her, teasing her gently ever downward back into the lulls of sleep. When she spoke, her mouth tasted like sand. "What…ow…"

"Take it slow. Please."

That voice. Rapunzel could at least recognize that voice. Cassandra? What was Cassandra…oh, wait. Yes. That was it. It was all coming back to her. They had been investigating that hive, and they had been discovered, and she had gotten so desperate that the Incantation…right. Of course. The Incantation. The Curse. It was all so familiar.

She remembered Eugene's arm and Pascal's withered form. She opened her eyes.

It took a few seconds for the world to properly align itself. Cassandra was hovering over her, scared and shaking in a way that Rapunzel had never really seen before. Her mouth steadily curved upward when she saw Rapunzel's eyes focus on her, but her darting eyes gave away her concern. They were located, well, somewhere. There was a roof over her head, plain and wooden and in need of repair, a couple of water stains lining its surface. The soft thing beneath her was a bed, which even stiff and non-fitting felt like heaven on earth. She tried to move, but her body very quickly decided that she wasn't going anywhere just yet.

"Where are we, Cass?"

"Somewhere safe. Thank God," Cass said bluntly. Before Rapunzel could say anything, Cass blushed and quietly pulled her hand away from her face. Cassandra hurriedly glanced away, stammering and clearing her throat. "Um, an inn, specifically. I found one a few hours away from that town. It is…I'm not sure. Maybe two in the morning? You were out for a long time. I had to carry you back and everything. I-I got some food, two. Bread and strawberries. I don't think you've eaten anything in a while."

A while? Rapunzel wasn't sure if she had a full meal since the dinner party. Yet, she could hardly consider herself hungry. She was far more tired than hungry. She hadn't gotten a decent night's rest either. All she had in terms of sleep were the prolonged periods where she was unconscious—something that was becoming a rather troubling trend for her. Did Cass have to carry her all the way back to Fidella? She really lugged her limp body all through that uphill, slippery walk back to the cave entrance. As if Rapunzel needed to put literal weight on Cassandra's shoulders.

Rapunzel gave up trying to stand. For a brief, horrifying second, she gave up trying to do anything. The previous day's failure stung worse than anything a wasp could do to her. She had never, at any point in her previous adventures, fail to accomplish something she set out to do. If there was an artifact that needed destroying, or a friend who needed serving, or a town that needed saving, she had always done it. Sometimes it was slow and sloppy, and it was almost always chaotic, but she had done what she set out to do. Every. Single. Time. But now, when she had the chance to prove herself, she fell on her face at the first hurdle. It was supposed to be simple. Help the town and stop the wasps. Instead, she almost got Cassandra killed.

And herself. She had to remember that, too. She almost got herself killed.

Cassandra could sense her trepidation, and acted quickly to cheer Rapunzel up. Rapunzel shut her eyes tight, but she could feel the air shifting before her as Cassandra waved something right in front of her face.

"Hey, take a look at this. This might make you happy."

"I'm not hungry."

"This isn't food. Unless you want it to be."

Rapunzel made herself look at the ting Cassandra was holding, and she was caught by surprise. Cassandra held a small, glowing jar of purified healing jelly daintily between her fingers; the very same jar that had been offered to them as a reward for clearing out the hive. Rapunzel didn't understand, though to Cassandra, it was the simplest thing in the world.

"I told that bartender lady that we killed all the wasps. She shrugged and gave this to me as a reward. Figured we could use it, given well…" Cassandra trailed off, and her subtle smile turned bitter. "Well, that's the bad news. Your scars…"

Rapunzel snapped to attention. Her scars. The curse. She remembered now. All of it. She spoke the Incantation again. Willingly. Forced it out. She forced the curse back unto herself. Of all the things that could have made her situation worse, she had to perform the worst one. She was fearful when she found the strength to raise her arms. Cassandra's face was enough to tell her that things had gotten worse. The only question was how much. The latest version of that incantation was so powerful. So intense. Summoning her courage, she lifted her hands over her face, and stared at them lifelessly from the bed.

The scars had grown. Massively. Previously limited to the backs of her hands, the two scars that marked her flesh had extended down along the backs of her forearms, stopping just above her elbows. They seemed deeper than before, and the blue they glowed was darker, hinging on purple as tiny streaks of corrupted tissue spread through her skin like veins from the wounds. With a groan of pain, Rapunzel clenched her fists; half to make sure that she could still use her arms, and half to make sure that it was actually real. Cassandra sighed, and in an act of solidarity, took one of Rapunzel's hands into her own, embracing it with the tender black flesh—her own personal scar from the same cursed Incantation.

"I'm sorry," Cassandra stated. She gave the only comfort she could find. "It gets easier to live with."

When Cassandra recommended a bath, Rapunzel half thought she was joking. After all, Cassandra was the one who demanded they keep a fast pace. A long, relaxing bath was pretty much the exact opposite of what Cass had wanted. But it seemed like the incident in the cave had tempered Cassandra's expectations, and her scars were getting too much to bear without proper treatment—and hell, maybe Cassandra just realized that neither of the had bathed in a very, very long time, and there was no point in continuing on if they were going on if they were going to be so disgusting. Fortunately, there was a tub in the room, and a well from which to draw water from slightly further in the inn, and Cassandra, in her infinite wisdom, carried around some basic soap and shampoo in her traveling bag for such occasions. It was nothing compared to the limitless products that Rapunzel had back in her castle in Corona, but it would do under their current constraints. Once the bath was drawn, the hardest part was actually getting Rapunzel out of her clothes. How things had changed since Cassandra left Rapunzel's side some sixteen months ago. Everything became far more complicated, and the clothing was no exception. The strings and fastens on her royal dress were far more complicated than Cassandra was used to, and freeing Rapunzel from her garments seemed more like solving a puzzle than anything else. Cassandra even considered grabbing her sword and cutting the dress off completely, though she stopped herself once she realized that Rapunzel would have literally nothing else to wear for the rest of their journey. That probably wouldn't be good for many, many, many reasons.

Rapunzel was hesitant to help remove the dress. Not because of nakedness. Cassandra had seen her naked plenty of times. As lady-in-waiting, it was Cassandra's job to help bathe and dress her every day, something which Cassandra complained endlessly about yet never ceased to do without question or fault. Rapunzel was afraid of seeing the scar that she knew had been opened up on her stomach. Each blue, lightning-shaped wound drained her emotionally, and she didn't need to know that things were worse than they already were. When Cassandra finally managed to slide the dress free from Rapunzel's body, the Princess did not look down at herself. When the rest of her undergarments were removed, Rapunzel stepped forward immediately into the tub, and sank herself beneath the surface of the dark water, hiding her body before she could look at it. Her arms wrapped around the edges of the tub, and she leaned her head back, trying to get comfortable. It was about as easy as fighting the wasps.

Cassandra soaked a washcloth within the water, and then, with the patience and deft touch she mastered over months of servitude, placed the tip of the cloth against Rapunzel's neck, and gradually drew the cloth down her shoulder and along the smooth surface of her arm, taking care not to press too hard against her scars. Rapunzel breathed deeply, trying to relax, though Cassandra could see her muscles tensing up as she continued to wash her.

"You know, I never thought I would be doing this again," Cassandra confessed. "Bathing princesses isn't exactly what you sign up for when you become lady-in-waiting. I mean, I knew I would be doing the cleaning, but I thought the thing I would be cleaning was something that wasn't…well, you."

"Right," Rapunzel said. She seemed distant, lost within her own thoughts, and Cassandra bit her lower lip and tried to keep her distracted as she worked to remove the dirt and grime from Rapunzel's skin.

"Honestly, the weirdest thing about it was how you acted like it wasn't weird," Cassandra admitted. "Do you remember that? At first, you were hesitant, but you got over the awkwardness way too quickly. You were practically jumping into those baths. Then again, when your pampering someone every single day—feeding them and dressing them and bathing them—you get used to it petty quickly."

Rapunzel let out a breathless, reflexive laugh. "I never realized how much you hated those moments."

Cassandra smiled fondly. "Well, I wouldn't say hated. Though…okay, actually, yeah, I hated it. Having to brush all of that stupid blonde hair; it drove me crazy. I much prefer this actually."

Cassandra ran her fingers along Rapunzel's scalp, combing through the short brown locks. Despite them having long lost their golden luster, they remained soft to an almost frustrating degree. It seemed like no matter what happened to Rapunzel, whether it be curses or assaults or just plain bad luck, she always seemed to stay perfect and beautiful, like she was protected by her pure genetic splendor. If Cassandra cared more about her own physical appearance, she would have been rather jealous. Instead, she just got the opportunity to marvel once again at how the Princess was better than her, even in one of the lowest moments of her life.

"You must be happy then to be gone," Rapunzel said wistfully, and all at once, Cassandra's fond smile dimmed into a slight scowl.

"I mean…yeah," Cassandra said carefully. "It is for the best that I'm on my own now."

"I'm sure it's great," Rapunzel sighed, "now that you don't have me to hold you back anymore."

Cassandra brushed the washcloth down Rapunzel's arm, scrubbing it carefully to clean off the accumulated mud and grime that had splashed onto her during their long journey. She focused more intently on her work, dabbing the cloth between each of Rapunzel's fingers and gently squeezing her hand tight within the damp fabric, and she hadn't realized that she had gone completely quiet until Rapunzel tapped the side of the tub with her opposite hand, loudly trying to distract herself. Her tapping was aggressive, rigid, and out-of-synch, enough to jog Cassandra back to reality and trigger in her an innate sense of danger.

"I'm sorry," Cassandra said, pulling away the cloth and letting it hang by her side. "Were you trying to make a joke there?"

"Hmmm?"

"That thing about you not holding me back. Was that a joke?" Cassandra pursed her lips. "You don't do sarcasm very well, and I legitimately don't know if you meant that. Because I don't think that about you."

Rapunzel frowned, sliding down the tub until her chin dipped below the water. "You used to think that."

That she did. And Cassandra hated that memory. "Well…that was old me," she tried to explain. "New Cassandra doesn't think that about her friends."

"I suppose," Rapunzel sighed. "Though we are falling back into old habits now, aren't we?"

Cassandra crossed her arms, her frustration and curiosity getting the better of her sensibilities. "Okay, what's your problem? Because I get that things aren't great, but we got the healing stuff, and we're well on our way to Madrid, and honestly, I didn't sign up for sad, mopey Rapunzel. If something is wrong, I'd prefer it if you just told me."

The comments seemed to strike a nerve. The otherwise lethargic Princess suddenly stirred and rolled over in the tub, pushing herself up on its edges and rising to meet Cassandra's eyes. Her gaze was stern and bitter, and there was a deadly fire in her green eyes that Cassandra could never recall seeing before. It pierced her long before Rapunzel's words ever did.

"My problem," she said pointedly, "is that I almost killed you, Cass. My selfishness and my weakness nearly got both of us murdered. Yes, that upsets me. Why is that hard for you to understand?"

Cassandra tried holding her ground, feeling immense pressure to defend herself from Rapunzel's judging glare. However, even though her tone was strict, she reminded herself to convey as much positivity and warmth as possible.

"Look, we survived, didn't we?" she reasoned, trying to ease Rapunzel back into the tub. "Things like this happen. They happen all the time. It's best to just focus on the small victories and move on."

"Move on?" Rapunzel said, her words laced with disgust. "How can I just move on from this? I knew it would be dangerous for you to come with me. I knew how insanely stupid and dangerous it would be to bring you with me, and I still let you come with me because I was selfish. And look at what happened: not even a day has gone by, and you almost died. I can't just move on from that, Cass. I'm not like you. I can't just forgive myself that easily and pretend like it doesn't matter."

Cassandra spoke bluntly. "Okay, first of all…I was coming whether you wanted me to or not, so there's no point in blaming yourself for that. Second of all…" Cassandra placed her hands on Rapunzel's shoulders, and with the slightest of effort, managed to force the Princess back beneath the water, much to her chagrin. "I get that these last few days have sucked. I really get it. But the last thing either of us need right now is for you to get consumed in self-doubt. Would Eugene want you to be beating yourself up like this?"

It was a mistake to mention Rapunzel's husband, because the moment she did, Rapunzel grimaced and turned away from her, curling up into a ball inside the tub and sheltering her mind off from the rest of the world. It was all at once pathetic and heartbreaking; a child-like reaction from a free spirit who wasn't used to so much of the world crashing down on her shoulders. It did more work to shatter the illustration of Rapunzel that Cassandra had perfectly painted in her mind than any betrayal or misdeed. Cassandra knew Rapunzel as a fighter; maybe an unconventional one, but in the noblest and most courageous manner, the comparison was clear. Rapunzel never gave up in the face of the most hopeless quest. When Cassandra had taken the Moonstone, turned her back against the world and joined Zhan Tiri, there was Rapunzel, still kind and true and desperate to get her friend to return to her. They fought time and time again, hurt each other in unimaginable ways, and yet Rapunzel's convictions never wavered. Not once.

Now? All it took was a single word, a name that had brought so much joy and passion to Rapunzel's life, to bring the Princess back to tears.

Cassandra looked down at her own hands, clammy and coarse and half-dead. They were hands that weren't fit for the delicate work of a handmaiden, yet she washed and cleaned and stitched Rapunzel back together with them more times than she could count. They were the hands that summoned black rocks from the ground and nearly tore Corona apart, and yet in sum total, they had also healed more than they hurt. But no matter how little damage she had truly caused, every time she would look down at her hands, she thought they were the hands of a monster. Guilt was a powerful trickster, luring one in with promises of repentance and poisoning the mind before it could find its peace. It had taunted her for months, creeping in her thoughts, pulling at her heartstrings, whispering in her ear that she wasn't worthy of her second chances, that the people of Corona hated her, that she was worthless to the world and that she would never make anything right ever again. It did that despite her being forgiven by those she harmed, despite her saving the world from Zhan Tiri, despite everything she had done so that she could look at herself in the mirror once again. It was crippling—and now, it was coming for Rapunzel. It scarred her body all the same, clouded her vision, no doubt filling it with memories of Eugene's pitiful, wounded form. And Rapunzel, the ever-loving, always free spirit, was ill-prepared for its crushing allure.

But Cassandra knew guilt better than anyone. She clenched her fists. She wasn't going to let Rapunzel fall. Not like her.

Rapunzel felt Cassandra's hands on her shoulders, and she instinctively tried to fight them off, sniffling and shuddering and wading further away in the tub to escape her friend's touch. Even the slightest physical contact set her off, but Cassandra held firm. She crawled to the side of the tub on her hands and knees and leaned over the edge, closing in to where Rapunzel could not escape her. She took the Princess's forearm in her grasp, and despite Rapunzel's best efforts, she couldn't resist it when Cassandra pulled her in close and tucked her head into the nape of her neck. Rapunzel tried to pull away, but Cassandra simply wrapped her arms around Rapunzel's shoulders and just…held her there.

She held her there for a long time in a somber embrace.

Rapunzel never fully broke into tears, but her words were hoarse and ready to break.

"It's…it's like a nightmare, Cass." Rapunzel nuzzled into Cassandra's neck, trying to find some solace in her friend's arms. "I don't know why this is happening. I don't know why you've all had to suffer because of me."

"We aren't suffering because of you," Cass assured her, though whether or not Rapunzel accepted her words as true was beyond her. "I chose to follow you through the good and the bad. I know what I'm getting myself into. If Eugene was here, he would say the same thing."

"I know. I know, I know," Rapunzel insisted. "But it's all just so much. I just…I've never wanted to be anyone else's burden. I've always wanted to be able to take care of myself. I wanted to help people. It seems like every time I try to do the right thing, it just all goes wrong."

Cassandra held Rapunzel firm, gently stroking her hair in a pleading attempt to calm her. It was hard having to comfort someone who was so often the shining example out of all of them—even harder considering how long they had been apart. It had been almost sixteen months of the two constantly separated, and despite their banter and their warmness towards one another, it was impossible for her to know if the bond between them really remained as strong as it used to be. She had one thought to test it, however, and that digging deep inside of herself to come clean about something she hadn't been able to admit for a long time.

"I haven't been able to help anyone since I left Corona."

To Cassandra, the truth came out naturally. To Rapunzel, the blunt admission seemed like it came from nowhere. She pulled away Cassandra to look her friend in the face, where a saddened smile had crossed her features.

"What?"

"I, um…" Cassandra said awkwardly. "I've just been roaming around aimlessly these past four months. I haven't managed to save a single person."

"But," Rapunzel stammered, "those stories you told me. All those good deeds."

"Yeah…I lied," Cassandra said shamefully. She looked away, not able to handle what would happen when Rapunzel began to judge her. "Oh, I tried to be a hero. I tried to go to other Kingdoms and take up jobs. Most people remembered what I had done with the Moonstone, though, so I couldn't do anything there. I had to stick to small towns where news can't travel quickly, and even then, I haven't been able to find anything noble or heroic or, hell, just plain decent. I've basically been living off of odd jobs."

Rapunzel shook her head, more surprised than outraged. "I don't understand. Why did you lie to me?"

"And admit that I'm a failure? Please," Cassandra sighed, accepting her fate. "You put your faith in me to do good. You were willing to forgive me for everything I did so I could find my destiny somewhere else. What was I supposed to do? Tell you that my destiny is to do nothing? I haven't done a single damn thing with your forgiveness except waste everyone's time, and honestly, the more days go by, the more I'm sure that I would have been better off if you just kept me locked up somewhere. At least then I couldn't disappoint myself."

"Don't talk like that," Rapunzel said firmly. Cass simply ignored her.

"I had one chance to redeem myself, and I blew it. I'm not a hero, or a warrior. I'm just a person who made too many mistakes and doesn't have a chance to undo them. The truth is, Raps: this is the first thing I've done in months that gives my life any meaning. Being in your life, serving you…it turns out that's the only thing I'm good for. So, don't beat yourself up over me. Getting caught in the crossfire with you is the best thing for me."

Rapunzel didn't know how to respond. She had been so blinded by her own angst for the past several days she hadn't even begun to think about what Cassandra had been going through. Her friend's words tore through her heart like a dagger. She had no idea how much pain she was still carrying around with her. In hindsight, it all made sense. It was foolish of her to assume that Cassandra would be able to forgive herself as easily as she did. She had turned against everyone she cared about, nearly destroyed their homes and tarnished her legacy all in the pointless pursuit of destiny, and the idea that a simple hug would be able to wash down all of the anguish was something of a fantasy. She also couldn't bear to think of how draining the past four months of Cassandra's journey had been. Wandering the unknown by oneself was a surefire way to drown in one's thoughts if not too careful, but Rapunzel had always assumed that Cassandra was strong enough to make the journey alone. She didn't realize just how dangerous the concoction of less-than-perfect luck and a lifetime full of bad decisions was to a person whose mind could only be occupied on the past.

Rapunzel couldn't stand the sadness any further. She placed her hands on Cassandra's shoulders, taking on the role of counseling that she had assumed far too often for such a young life. She willed herself to be strong, and even though she was miserable and naked and soaking wet in the tub, she somehow managed to find enough conviction to steady her wavering voice.

"Cassandra," she said, drawing the older woman's eyes back to her. "I will never be disappointed in you. You chose to break away from Zhan Tiri and be a better person. The simple fact that you are even trying to do the right thing means the world to me. You're on the right path. I promise you, you are. I'm sorry things haven't been going like we thought they were, but you just need to hold out a little longer. You are absolutely worthy of a better future, one where you don't have to feel like you depend on me to be worth something. You are strong, and brave, and talented, and amazing, and…and I am so sorry that I haven't been able to tell you that sooner."

Cassandra lost herself in Rapunzel's green eyes. Her words were so soothing that they broke through Cass's tough exterior and ceased her doubts all at once. It was remarkable the effect that Rapunzel had over her. A few words, a loving stare, and a simple touch were all it took bring Cassandra up from any spiral she threw herself into. It was those same gestures that she had taught herself to hate when she took the Moonstone. She had told herself then that those feelings had made her weak, and she had done so much to burn those sensations out of her that even accepting them now felt wrong. She convinced herself that those emotions were evil, and that Rapunzel was her enemy, and no matter how stupid and wrong those feelings were, she also knew that their opposite was just as dangerous. Letting Rapunzel seep her way back into her mind was another toxicity that she couldn't let herself sink into. Even if she wasn't driven by her lust for power any longer, she knew she couldn't give into those feelings. There was too much at stake. Too many things that could go wrong and sour the precious remaining bond they had.

And still…those eyes lured her in. That careful little smile melted her heart. It wasn't even the salaciousness of the moment that did it for her. Sex hadn't even crossed her mind. It was the plain notion of Rapunzel caring for her so deeply that consumed her every waking thought. Her barriers had been shattered, and her mind was at ease, and in that one single moment, she nearly blurted out the other thing she had desperately tried to keep hidden—but she stopped herself. Like she did every time before. She found restraint at the last possible moment, even with Rapunzel so tantalizingly close to her. She would preserve what little they had for just a little bit longer. Just a bit.

She flashed an awkward smile, trying to deflect those intrusive thoughts away. "Shit…wasn't I the one who was supposed to be comforting you?"

"We look out for each other," Rapunzel said warmly. "That's what sisters do."

Cassandra's smile faltered for just a moment, but she hid it well. "Right. That's what sisters do."

Rapunzel sighed, then smirked wickedly as she tried to keep the mood light. "Though, if I'm not mistaken…I think you were actually supposed to be giving me a bath?"

Cassandra rolled her eyes. "Oh, here we go."

Rapunzel flopped back into the tub, stretching out her limbs into the water. "I'm just saying."

"Yeah, yeah, I heard you," Cassandra said, groggily rising to her feet and grabbing her belongings from her bedside. She snatched up the tiny bottle of healing jelly from the mattress and held it firmly in her hand. She had to stay focused. The little diversion was revealing and all, but they had a task to do. Get Rapunzel to Madrid as fast as possible. If that jelly helped make travel easier than it was for the best that she apply it as soon as possible. Obtaining that was the one good thing that had happened to them so far on their journey, and she was hoping to finish cleaning up Rapunzel, get a few decent hours of sleep, and then keep up their positive momentum in the morning.

They wouldn't.