There was a blinding flash of light.

A violent, otherworldly wail.

A deep vibration ran through her bones.

And then, Rapunzel opened her eyes and saw…something.

That was honestly the best she could describe it.

Something.

There was no sky. Or was there? In every direction she looked, she saw a wall of kaleidoscopic crystals, infinitely collapsing and folding into each other. They stretched on forever and ever into the horizon—could it even be called a horizon when there wasn't a ground though? Rapunzel looked down past Fidella toward her hooves; they were standing upon a vast, impossible sea of white, so blank that it looked like they could fall through it. When the crystal sky met the pure white floor, they disintegrated into heavy shadows and ash, which flaked and floated through the air like snow. The entire Void smelled like…well, nothing actually. Nothing at all. It didn't even smell like what she usually smelled when she smelled nothing. It somehow smelled even less than that.

Cassandra took one look around the Void and huffed. "Honestly? Expected weirder."

Rapunzel thought about it for a moment and couldn't help but agree. It was hard enough to surprise a person with seventy feet of indestructible blonde hair, and that was before an adventure across the continent where she faced enough magical artifacts to fill up a collection—as well as a literal collection of magical artifacts. Once a person was inside the body of a monkey, or a bird, or another person, they couldn't go back. The Void was somewhat disappointing in that sense. So much promise of mystery only to see one interesting sky and a boring white floor. At least they wouldn't be in it for long.

From behind them, Rapunzel heard another horrible sounding wail, and then Max, Adira, and Delilah broke through the portal. The wall collapsed shortly behind them, and soon, they were all standing alone in the midst of the vast, endless Void.

"Hey, don't walk away when I'm talking to you," Delilah said with a grunt.

"Sorry," Rapunzel said. "We couldn't hear you over the portal."

"It was very whooshy and screamy," Cassandra said, looking around cautiously at the sky. "What did you want to say? Some kind of warning?"

Delilah sneered, scrunching up her nose. "Don't you people have a sense of caution? We are inside of another dimension. You can't just go barreling ahead into things."

Rapunzel just shrugged. "The last three years have basically just been us jumping directly into things without looking."

"I see how you can get cursed then," Delilah rolled her eyes and ordered Max forward. "Well, it's probably not something to worry about. Just keep up and do what I tell you. Fourth-dimensional travel isn't something to screw around with."

Cassandra grumbled, picking at the heavy rope tied around her waist, squeezing her so tight that she had difficulty breathing. "Not like we have much of a choice."

The Psychopomp ignored Cassandra's whining and took the lead, telling Max to go onwards. He promptly ignored her, dismissing her orders with a snarl and only agreeing to walk as she commanded when Adira lightly patted him on the side and told him the same thing. With the rope binding them together, the seven of them—the Princess, the assassin, the warrior, the freelancer, two horses, and one very determined owl—set off wandering into the space of the Void.

It was hard to tell if they were actually making progress though. Rapunzel could feel them walking forward, but in the empty space of the void, they didn't appear to be moving forward. Every click of Fidella's hooves against the white floor resulted only in strange, ripple-like distortions, a bit like a stone skipping across a lake. Nothing seemed to change around them. There were no landmarks to consider. No inhabitants to ask for directions. It was supposed to be something beyond space, correct? So how were they even moving through it? Better question: how did Delilah know where they were going? She had to some way of keeping track of where they were amidst the emptiness. Rapunzel considered asking her about it but instead realized that she would probably just get a snappy retort or a vague explanation like "I'm the Psychopomp. I always know where I'm going."

Adira, never the sort to leave things to chance, made sure to question the assassin thoroughly.

"How many times have you been through here?"

"At least two dozen."

"How long does it usually take to get out of here?"

"Depends. To get to Madrid, it's around a five-minute walk."

"Anything we have to worry about?"

"In five minutes? Probably not. That's what the rope is for."

"What were you going to warn them about?"

"Eh, we probably won't stick around long enough for it to matter."

Adira hardly took that as reassurance. It was bad enough that she had to place her trust in an assassin, not to mention a literal child. She thought it was bad enough to have to place her faith in Rapunzel during their original journey together. It was only happenstance that the flower-child princess who never wore shoes happened to be pretty good with a frying pan and had the soul of an angel. This kid? All of her instincts were telling her that she was being led to her death. It wasn't like she had a choice anymore. She was trapped inside another dimension and literally tied to the assassin's waist. The most she could do was begin plotting for the inevitable betrayal. They were heading to the heart of a witch's coven, which meant unpredictable magic and a lot of attempted murder. She would have her work cut out for her.

Rapunzel carefully leaned forward, resting her head against Cassandra's spine. She wrapped her arms comfortably around Cass's belly, hugging her tightly for support as they were silently led through the Void. She kept her eyes vaguely focused on the strange, shadowy horizon, letting her mind wander as aimlessly as they were wandering themselves. Without anything urgent occupying her thoughts, and with Cassandra currently wrapped in her arms, she could return to focus on something that she was struggling with earlier in the day. Cassandra's grief was burdensome. Understandable. But it wasn't the only thing that was consuming her. She had been looking for excuses to come back to visit her, and when Rapunzel reflected on everything Cass had told her up to that point, it seemed, on the surface, fairly obvious.

And she had to admit, the constantly collapsing pattern of the sky did bring a certain peace to her mind.

She took a deep breath before deciding to approach the topic one more time—although from an angle that would hopefully be more introspective.

"Cass…would you like to come back to Corona?"

The question admittedly came out of the blue. Poor Cass probably wasn't ready to have to face those emotions yet again in such a short period of time, but Rapunzel needed to know soon. The last time she had let things go unsaid between them…well, they both know how well that turned out.

"Come back? You mean, like, live with you again? Lady-in-Waiting and all?" Cassandra asked. Her voice was tinged with something that could have been interpreted as disgust, which seemed to answer the question rather quickly. Yet, Rapunzel needed to be sure.

"Not necessarily as Lady-in-Waiting. We could install you to the Royal Guard, or as an advisor," Rapunzel suggested. "Or, you know, you wouldn't have to work for us at all. You could just live in the town on your own."

"Yeah, because the people of Corona will be so glad to see me again," Cassandra said with a dry laugh.

Rapunzel frowned. "That doesn't answer the question. Whether or not they would be happy has nothing to do with what you want."

"Doesn't it?"

"I don't know. You seem like you aren't happy with your life right now. I know you weren't exactly happy then either, but we could work on that. We could do a lot to make you more comfortable."

"I'm fine, Raps," Cassandra insisted. "No one in Corona needs me walking around making them nervous. It's better that I'm gone."

And there it was again. It was fast becoming a pattern that Rapunzel was all too keen to start worrying about. First, it was her behavior in the wasp cave. Then, it was the conversation by the bath. Next, the lack of sleep. Now, this. A lot of it was accidental, and if Rapunzel wasn't specifically looking for it, it may have flown right over her head. But losing Cass the first time taught her to hone her relationships and try to understand people better than before. She hated to assume—the absolute last thing she needed was Cassandra getting frustrated with her and shutting herself off again. The consequences of that would surely be disastrous. But she could gently nudge her in the right direction. She'd prod and cajole what she could to keep her friend safe. Rapunzel tenderly squeezed Cassandra closed to her, and spoke very softly, trying to keep their conversation private from the two warriors on the horse just ahead of them. She could feel the heat from Cassandra's back, but also a different kind of warmth, slowly creeping up the back of her neck. It was rather strange to describe, and she tried her best to ignore it.

"Hey, Cass. You know that you can tell me anything, right?"

Cassandra stared straight ahead into the Void.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Nothing, really," Rapunzel sighed. "It's just that…if there was something you felt uncomfortable about or something that you wanted to tell me, we can always talk about it. You don't have to, of course, but I'd like to know so we can work through it."

"I feel like you're trying to say something," Cass said, eyes straight as ever. "You might as well just say it, because there's no point in being vague."

Rapunzel nestled uncomfortably against Cass's spine. That strange heat became more prominent. More cold. "Well…"

"You know I'm allowed to keep some things to myself, right?" Cassandra said defensively. "Like, if there was hypothetically something I wanted you to know, I would have told you."

"I know, it's just—"

"Because you have been prying a lot recently," Cassandra grumbled, gripping Fidella's reins tighter in her palms. "I thought last night we were making progress in understanding each other, but all this morning and this afternoon, you keep trying to get something out of me that isn't there."

"I just want to make sure you're all right," Rapunzel stated. "Last night, we were both really vulnerable and open with each other. If something was to linger—"

"Linger? What could linger? We worked through it and now it's done. I don't know why you are lecturing me when you're the one who's been making all the bad decisions."

That…that came out of nowhere…

Rapunzel was taken aback, and pulled away from Cassandra, quick to distance herself. At first, she thought she must have misheard her, but what else would Cassandra even be saying? Cassandra just kept on staring straight out ahead of her, seemingly unaware of any effect that her comments had.

And the kaleidoscopic sky kept turning, and turning, and turning...

"Uh, Cass? Is there something you'd like to say?"

"Pretty sure I just established that there isn't."

"Well, it certainly sounds like you want to say something," Rapunzel said, pursing her lips.

Cassandra rolled her eyes. She could feel Rapunzel's glare tightening against the back of her skull, but she didn't bother turning around to give her the attention. That was what Rapunzel was seeking, of course. Attention. She always had to be at the exact center of attention. Everything revolved around her, didn't it? Magic and curses just happened to find their way to her as if she was a magnet for such ludicrous things. Cassandra just brushed the questions aside until Rapunzel prodded her again.

"Cass. Don't ignore me."

"I'm not ignoring you."

She was trying to ignore her. Big distinction.

"You want to ask me about my decision-making skills?"

"Well, I'm just saying," Cassandra shrugged. Their voices were starting to rise, and slightly ahead of them, Adira noticed their conversation and cautiously looked back at them. "What have you been doing this week? You ran away from home when you were in barely any condition to walk. You jumped headfirst into a cave full of giant wasps despite me explicitly telling you not to. And, oh yeah: about twelve hours ago, you decided to team up with the assassin that literally tried to stab your eyes out."

Rapunzel felt the heat rising in her chest. She straightened out, bringing a little more fight into her voice. "I thought we were working on that together."

"Yeah, to get information out of her," Cassandra said pointedly. "Not form a special partnership."

"She is helping us, Cass. Do you not want her help?"

"I want you not dead," Cass clarified. "She wants you very dead. That's a really hard gap to cross."

"She promised not to hurt me."

"Ah, so she's a delayed murderer. That makes me feel so much better."

Rapunzel sneered. "Well, at least I know when Delilah is going to hurt me."

Cassandra's eyes went wide, and all at once, she pulled back on Fidella's reins, causing them to come to a dead stop. The rope became taught and caused the others to come to a standstill as well, and they looked back with confusion as to what caused them to pause. Cassandra felt herself shaking, stone-faced and stagger-breathed as she finally gave Rapunzel what she was looking for: a simple look in the eye.

"Excuse me?"

"I'm just…I'm just saying," Rapunzel said bitterly, "maybe it's better to know that the person has the knife out before you get stabbed in the back."

Cassandra seized up. Something jumped through her veins, dashing through her muscles, permeating her bones lighting up something fierce within her like lightning. Rapunzel's gaze sharpened, and just like that, she completely forgot where they were or what their purpose was. All she could focus on was the Princess sitting behind her—and how fucking furious she was.

"Oh…is that so?" Cassandra said snidely. She casually slid herself off Fidella's back. She unclipped Owl from her hand, and the bird hovered above her, watching his master with keen focus.

From nearby, Adira's eyes shot back and forth between the two younger women, startled by what was developing right in front of her. "Uh, Princess? Short Hair? What are you—"

"Yeah, it is," Rapunzel stated, jumping off Fidella's back. Even the poor horse quickly scurried away from them, not wanting to be caught in the brewing storm. Delilah, flabbergasted, did a double-take and screamed at them.

"Hey, idiots! What do you think you're doing? Get back on your horse."

Their words went ignored. Rapunzel felt something strange in the back of her mind. It was a bit like someone had unlocked the door that had been holding back everything buried within her subconscious, and all of the normal courtesies and dignity that would have kept them subservient seemed to get sucked into the black hole that was gradually expanding within the pit of her stomach. Cassandra's lips trembled, stretching out into a keen snarl, and Rapunzel could actively see her trying to hold back against her worst instincts.

"That's just so interesting," Cass noted, crossing her arms. "Because I could have sworn I heard you tell me that there wasn't any bad blood between us. I didn't realize you became so good at lying."

"So now I'm the one who's lying here?"

Cassandra's hands balled into fists, and Adira watched with growing worry about what was transpiring. She would never hurt Rapunzel. She had been so protective of her earlier that even an off glance drew her ire. What the hell was going on between them? She couldn't come up with any rational explanation.

And then, Adira looked around at the kaleidoscopic sky all around them, and the vast white floor that seemed to stretch out into oblivion. She had a horrible thought.

"Assassin," Adira asked quickly. "Would sudden mood swings be a side effect of the Void?"

The Psychopomp nervously watched as Cassandra began walking slow circles around the Princess, who was standing firm like a statue.

"I mean, probably," she concluded. "This place does all sorts of weird stuff to your head. But it's been what? One, two minutes? This shouldn't be happening so quickly…"

Cassandra spoke venomously, oblivious to the others' concerns. "I mean, aren't you? What was it you told me last night? Oh, Cass, you're trying your hardest. That's good enough for me. I mean, what a load of crap, right? Of course, you're disappointed in me. Everyone is. You're just so obsessed with trying to do the right thing that you can't learn how to rip the bandage off."

"I'm sorry, are you mad that I wasn't cruel enough to you?" Rapunzel said with frustration. "Heaven forbid I try to make you feel better about yourself. No, no, no…you just have to be absorbed in this mentality where you are the worst possible thing and no one can help you."

"Didn't you just jab at me three seconds ago?" Cass scoffed. "What was all that about? Make up your mind. Are you mad that I betrayed you, or are you playing this self-gratifying forgiveness game?"

"That's not it at all. Why are you acting like this?"

"Why are you? Always prodding and pulling at me. You don't have to worm your way back into my life, you know. I chose to leave Corona on my own. I chose to face my demons on. My. Own. That bothers you, doesn't it? It bothers you so much that you couldn't be the one to help me, so now you have to act like you're my fucking therapist."

Rapunzel groaned, rubbing her temples. "There is literally so much projection going on here."

Adira nervously shouted at them. "Rapunzel. Cassandra. Stop this."

They did not listen.

"Just admit it!" Cassandra cried. "Just admit that you hate me. It would actually be so much easier for me to deal with if you just told me that you hated me. Your dad hates me. Adira hates me. The whole Kingdom hates me. You are literally the only one pretending that what I did is okay, and it just pisses me off, so why can't you just be honest?"

"I don't hate you, Cassandra—"

"Oh, there we go. Cassandra this. Cassandra that. Here comes the fucking lecture."

Delilah's mind raced for possibilities. Cassandra raging—she could understand that. Rapunzel? The sweet one? No way. The Void was doing something to them, but what would cause it to react so violently? The curse? No. That wouldn't explain Cassandra. Both of them were slipping further and further in mere seconds. She needed to learn what was wrong with them. Screw that, actually; she needed to get them out of there. Immediately.

"I'm telling you I don't hate you!" Rapunzel said forcefully. "What I hate is—"

"What? What I've done?" Cassandra challenged her. "As if I needed another goddamn excuse to think about that."

"What I hate is that you won't talk to me!" Rapunzel shouted, throwing her arms up in the air in exasperation. "You know something. I know that I didn't do enough for you back then. I know I wasn't listening to you, and I was treating you wrongly. I'm sorry that I never realized how I was hurting you. But you know what? I tried, Cassandra! I actually, really tried to help you. I tried comforting you, and…and talking through it, and right before—I swear, right before you turned your back on me, I specifically tried to make you feel better. I decided to trust your plan and keep you by my side. I hugged you, and I held you, and I thanked you for being such a good friend, and during all of that—despite all of that—you were planning on betraying me. How am I supposed to feel about that? I know we could have done something if you just gave me the chance, and you couldn't even do that!"

Adira grunted, hopping of Maximus's back and rushing to get between the two of them before they said anything else. She managed to squeeze between them just as Cassandra was closing in, pushing her away from the Princess before she did something she was going to regret.

"That's enough! Both of you!" Adira said sternly. "You need to calm down. We need to get a move on."

"Fuck off, Adira." Cassandra shoved Adira off of her, and the older warrior stumbled back in surprise, nearly crashing into Fidella. Cassandra turned her attention straight back to Rapunzel. Her heart was pounding. She felt her sweat building up beneath the fabric of her shirt. The kaleidoscopic sky was giving her a massive headache, and all she could think about was how much of a pain in the ass Rapunzel was being. Not just that, but a pain in the ass with a point. Of course, she had to have a point. She wouldn't be so damn infuriating if every time she opened her mouth she wasn't prying all of the worst thoughts out of her. She closed her eyes, trying to get those damned intrusions out of her mind when Adira grabbed onto her and pushed even further away. The rope snagged, leaving them only a few yards apart, but the brief separation was enough for Rapunzel to formulate her anger once again into something palpable.

"Do you know how hard it is to trust you again?" Rapunzel said, trying to fight back her own tears. "I know…I know you are trying to be better. I know in my heart that you're fine, but now you're holding things back from me again. You have no idea how worried I am that I am missing something important, that you are slipping away from me without me even knowing about it."

"Then stop caring!" Cassandra shouted back. "You didn't even want me here anyway! All of this stupid shit of you trying to protect me, trying to watch over me like I'm your responsibility. Why can't you just decide I'm not worth it then?"

"Because I love you?" Rapunzel said like it was obvious. "Because you're my friend? My sister—"

"Oh, for the love of," Cassandra shook her head. "We aren't fucking sisters! I've always hated when you called me that! There's no blood, there's no…just, fucking nothing. Hell, we haven't even been friends in over a year. I wish you would just learn to let go of me! I don't want to go back to Corona! I don't want to anything to fucking do with you!"

The comment was meant to be biting. Adira was stopped dead in her tracks. Max and Fidella stared at her in shock. Delilah went silent, trying to predict just how deep the wound would go. Even Owl seemed to understand the cruelty of the comment. All of their focus turned to Rapunzel, standing there amidst the white sea. They watched her face, waiting for it to crack in a million different possible ways. She just stood there, though, for what felt like an eternity, staring just as hard at Cassandra as the other woman was at her.

She barely seemed to feel anything.

Finally, she spoke, not with anger or malice, but with crystal clarity.

"You know I don't believe that for a second," Rapunzel said, not even mustering enough strength to be disappointed. "And the sooner you realize that you don't believe it either, then maybe you can…you can…"

Rapunzel's voice slowly faded out. Her gaze became unfocused and distant. Cassandra leaned in expectantly, waiting to hear what she would have to say next.

She didn't say anything.

"What? Maybe I can what?" Cassandra asked, annoyed. God, her head was killing her. She needed Rapunzel to say something, but the young Princess just seemed to grow more and more expressionless. Her arms dangled loosely by her side. Her shoulders slumped. And she just…she just stared blankly out into the shadowy horizon.

Cassandra didn't really understand what she was seeing. Her temper started to cool without the direct conflict, and she suddenly felt a pang of powerful guilt and worry rush over her. The gazes of the others turned soft and frightened, each of them wondering the same thing. Rapunzel didn't move. She didn't think. She didn't react. She just…she just stood there.

Delilah carefully drew out her sword, adjusting her position on Max's back. Owl circled above her, trying to get a different angle. Adira cautiously took a step toward the Princess.

Then, it clicked—and by then, it was too late.

Rapunzel's head drooped forward. Her entire body slouched over. And from her lips, a quiet, dead mantra flowed freely.

"Wither and decay."

A shock hit them all. Wait. Now? Right now?

"End this destiny."

"Raps? Raps!" Cass shouted in fear, and she instinctively reached out toward Rapunzel. Yet, just before she could touch her, Adira grabbed her from behind, holding her back.

"Don't touch her!" Adira warned, keeping her at bay. Cassandra struggled against her, trying to get to Rapunzel's side as fast as possible. The Princess repeated the mantra, staring lifelessly at the ground as the words came out of her mouth in an endless, stoic ramble, dripping like rainwater from a shutter. It was the first time Cassandra had seen the curse with such clarity. The first time, it had been in the dark and in a tremendous storm. The second, it was forced out under Rapunzel's own wishes, slaughtering the wasps. But it was only now that Cassandra could see the true horror of the curse forcing itself onto Rapunzel's body—draining the life out of her skin, her eyes, and turning her sweet, heartfelt voice into something dull and cracked like the jagged blue markings on her skin. Cassandra's fear bubbled up inside her, and she fought even harder to break free from Adira's grasp, desperate to reach her despite the danger.

Delilah was the only one among them who had any quick sense left within her. Without wasting a single moment, she jumped off of Max and hurried toward Rapunzel, her short blade swinging by her side. She knew she needed to act quickly. She raised her sword high in the air, and with Cassandra and Adira holding themselves back several yards away, she knew she had a clear line of attack. Cassandra was inexorably helpless to watch as Delilah, fulfilling her duties, brought down the sword as hard as she could—and severed the rope that was connecting them all together.

She only noticed Cassandra's fearful expression after she was finished. Delilah couldn't help herself but briefly flash a knowing smirk.

The rope was severed just in time. The rope, having been pulled taught by Adira's efforts, snapped back toward Rapunzel upon its release, and the simple laws of physics caused it to rebound toward her hands. The frayed edge of the rope barely connected with the tip of her finger, yet that was all it took. The rope turned black, and a trail of rot quickly ran its way down the hemp and easily devoured it. The rope disintegrated within moments, and Cassandra didn't dare think about what would have happened to them if they had been connected to her while it had happened. With Rapunzel cut free, Delilah returned her sword to its sheath, staring at the chanting, indoctrinated Princess from a safe distance.

"Well, that crisis was averted. You can thank me—"

"Gyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaoooooooooooooooooooooooooooooommmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm."

Delilah suddenly went silent. All at once, Cassandra and Adira stopped struggling and ceased moving.

What…what the hell was that?

"Gyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaoooooooooooooooooooooooooooooommmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm."

There it was again. Loud. Screeching. Coming from everywhere all at once. The kaleidoscopic sky suddenly stopped turning. The ash became still in the air. The only other sound was Rapunzel's dull, monotonous Incantation. Delilah's smile dropped like a stone and she quickly looked around the horizon, stopping only when, off in the impossibly far distance, she saw…something.

"Oh, no," she muttered.

The others looked out to where her gaze met the distance, and they saw it, too: a vague, amorphous shape that seemed to be growing larger as it grew closer.

Cassandra asked the obvious question. "Uh…what is that thing?"

Delilah laughed nervously. "Remember when I told you that there was something that we probably didn't need to worry about because we wouldn't be around for too long?"

"Yes?" Adira nodded.

"Uh, yeah," Delilah said fearfully. "We may have stuck around for too long."