Note: Geez, another long update. Sorry, everyone. We've just been having a really hard time getting back in a writing mood recently. We're still definitely keeping up with this story, and now that the plot is picking up again, hopefully, we will be more engaged with it. We want to keep exploring Rapunzel and Cassandra's relationship in more interesting ways, so don't think that just because the secrets are out now, we've run out of things to talk about. We have plenty of more things to develop there. We hope you enjoy.

Rapunzel had been annoying Cassandra ever since she woke up. Granted, she had been annoying Cassandra for days now, with all of her love and caring about her and wanting her to be happy. But for the past hour, in particular, Rapunzel had been extra grating, and stuck on horseback together, Cassandra had no way of escaping it. The plains of grass seemed endless, and the blue horizon stretched out into infinity. She had nowhere else to go. At least Fidella was there to share her burden. Who was she kidding? She stopped listening ages ago. It was too hot to eavesdrop.

She and Rapunzel had never been quite on the same level when it came to enthusiasm. Rapunzel could talk for hours and hours, and in-between that talking she could paint and dance and sing and cook and do a trillion other things that Cass would find irritating. When Cassandra would just want to fall down on her bed and take a nap, Rapunzel would want to stay up all night telling bedtime stories like they were children. That was back then, though, and one of the strange benefits of this curse was that Rapunzel had slowed down somewhat. She hadn't necessarily become more patient—no, she was still jumping headfirst into danger whether Cass wanted her to or not—but she was softer. Timid. It wasn't really a benefit. In fact, thinking of it in any positive light felt plain cruel. She was slowing down because a curse was literally sapping her life away. She was dying. There was nothing good about that. But, if she had to find something positive about their current predicament, she thought that maybe, just maybe Rapunzel's temperament would cause her to let things go. Maybe she would be less willing to put up a fight on certain issues that Cass would rather be buried and forgotten.

But of course, it was still Rapunzel. She would never stop fighting to save her—even when that fight was already lost.

Cass kicked herself for telling Rapunzel the truth. She should have lied. She could have lied. She lied to Rapunzel plenty of times in the past. When she was planning on stabbing her in the back and claiming the Moonstone, she lied repeatedly to her face and the Princess never even noticed. All she had to do was not bring up that, and there was a chance that Rapunzel could let it all go. Sure, she had to confess her feelings for her, even though they didn't matter at all, and maybe she was forced into revealing some degree of self-loathing, though given what she had done in the past, no one would have batted an eye at her guilt. But no, she was so emotional, so overwhelmed that she had to let that one little piece of information slip right out of her mouth. And now, she was stuck. Rapunzel hadn't let go of her since then, as if the moment she let go, Cassandra would just sprint head-first off a cliff.

"Raps, for the love of…I'm not going to kill myself," she had told her. She said it at least three times. She was honest, too. That was what Rapunzel wanted out of her: honesty. She wasn't planning on suicide anytime soon. She didn't think she had the stomach for something that drastic, or the will to end her life just yet. Her bad thoughts were just that. Thoughts. Nothing more. But naturally, the one time she was forthright, Rapunzel doubted her. Why shouldn't she, after all? What had Cassandra done to earn her trust other than giving her more things to worry about?

"I always thought it was so cool how many weapons you had," Rapunzel said absentmindedly. Nostalgia was her newest weapon in the war for Cassandra's sanity. So far, it was quite dull. "I mean, I don't like swords, or axes, or halberds, or those sticks with chains that have those spiky balls on the end…"

"Morning stars," Cass said bluntly.

"Right, those," Rapunzel sighed, leaning into Cass's back and hugging her tighter. "I didn't like them, but you had such dedication to your training, and you were so knowledgeable about those things. It was like seeing into a whole new world. You taught me so much about things I never knew before."

Cassandra's lips curled into a frown. She remembered training Rapunzel, too, teaching her how to act like a normal human being instead of a weirdo who turned every piece of furniture she saw into a modern art piece. She remembered those possessions: the same ones she smashed and destroyed in a fit of rage after taking over Corona. Such happy, pleasant memories.

"Well, I hope you put that stuff to use," Cass said quickly, trying to brush past it.

"I've beaten Eugene in chess a lot more, if that's what you mean," Rapunzel said fondly.

"I can't imagine it was that hard in the first place."

"Heh. Maybe you're right about that," Rapunzel admitted. Her tone became soft and hushed, and she nestled herself deeper against the fabric of Cass's tunic. "You know, he talks about you sometimes. I think he misses you, too. He never talked about you when you left the first time unless I brought it up. I think he knew how sensitive I was to it. But now? I feel like a day doesn't go by where he isn't talking about you."

Cassandra hid her surprise, resisting the urge to inquire further. Rapunzel kept talking anyway.

"I mean, it's mostly complaints. He can complain about you even when you aren't there. But I think he genuinely wants you back. Your banter kept him sharp if that makes any sense. I know it never seemed like it, but I always thought you two made a good pair."

That managed to get a laugh out of her. She didn't know if it was Rapunzel's intended reaction, but she felt the Princess nestle in closer.

"Yeah. I think Eugene's already got a match," Cass said, pretending to be flattered.

"I don't know about that. You've always been my stiffest competition," Rapunzel joked. "It seems like no matter what it is, you're always almost as good."

"Oh ho, hold on a second," Casandra laughed. "Almost as good? When did Snarky Rapunzel become a thing I had to worry about?"

"What can I say? You rub off on me," Rapunzel smirked.

Cassandra shrugged. "Yeah…" She didn't notice that she had just smiled until it was too late. She wasn't entirely sure how Rapunzel was able to force it out of her. Hell, as of last night, she wasn't sure if she was ever going to smile again. It didn't take Rapunzel long to crack her, even just a little. It was a natural ability the Princess had. Even without the Sundrop, she was still her shining light. Not that she would ever know that—actually, shit, she already knew that. That was maybe the weirdest thing of all. No more secret-keeping. No more hiding her wandering glances. No more pretending to be unhappy around her. Rapunzel knew she was in love with her. It would take a long, long time to get used to that. "Hey, Raps, can I say something?"

Rapunzel perked up. She wasn't expecting the best, but there was a degree of hopefulness in Cass's voice that she had been desperately missing the past week. "Yeah?"

"Just…thank you for not being disgusted by me," Cassandra said earnestly. Rapunzel wasn't really surprised, but she was still disappointed that this conversation had taken this turn.

"Why would I be disgusted by you?" she asked.

"You know why," Cassandra said bluntly. "I'm pretty sure most people would be grossed if they found out that I—"

"Yeah," Rapunzel said hesitantly. A brief flash of the Void's images reappeared in her mind, the first one in hours. She was surprised it took her that long. "I mean, it's still a lot to take in."

"And that's fine," Cassandra insisted. "Really, that doesn't bother me at all. It's better than it could be. It's just…" Cassandra gently squeezed Rapunzel's hands around her waist. "I don't think most people would be comfortable hugging me if they saw the things you did. The fact that you're even touching me is honestly more than I can ask for."

Rapunzel sighed, and then, as if to drive her point home even further, she squeezed Cassandra just a little bit tighter. Cassandra didn't realize how hard she was gripping Fidella's reigns until she felt her fingers go numb. God, it was hot outside.

"You don't have to thank me for doing what's right," Rapunzel said kindly. "If people don't want to accept you, that's their problem. They're missing out as far as I'm concerned. You're incredible no matter who you love. But you don't seriously think I'd be disgusted by you?"

She had a point. When was the last time Rapunzel was disgusted by anything? Bugs? Slimes? Smells? As if Rapunzel would get turned off by the idea of them passionately pressing their lips toge—

"No, not really," Cassandra said, quickly clearing her throat. "But you know…it's…it's weird, is all."

Rapunzel laughed nervously. "I guess you could say that."

"Super weird."

"Very, very, extremely weird."

"Yeah."

"Right."

"Right."

A thought rushed to the front of Rapunzel's mind, and perhaps it was the sheer boredom from their journey or the fact she was exhausted from barely a night's rest, but she didn't think very hard before the question came out.

"So…why girls though?"

Cassandra glanced back over her shoulder. "What do you mean?"

Rapunzel just shrugged innocently, her eyes drifting toward the patches of grass that passed by Fidella's dark hooves. "I just mean…girls? Really?"

"Uh…yeah," Cassandra shrugged back, far too confused to be embarrassed. "Really."

"Why, though?"

"I don't know," Cass said bluntly. "Why boys? Actually, scratch that—why Eugene? Specifically him. I've been trying to figure that one out for years."

"You know why him. Don't change the subject."

"I'm not changing the subject."

"You kind of are."

"Is this an interrogation?"

"No," Rapunzel said, pleading ignorance. "I've just…I've never met a woman who was only interested in women. This is a learning experience. I'm just curious what makes you find other women…you know, attractive?"

Cassandra thought about it carefully, struggling to come up with an answer that would satisfy the inquisitive Princess strapped to her back. "I don't know. I mean, I guess they're like…pretty or something?"

"Pretty? Okay."

"Yeah, I mean," Cassandra reasoned. "Boys are just kind of dicks, and I don't really like their faces or their muscles or stuff. It's all just blurgh to me. Girls are just soft and stuff. They're…shaped better, I guess. I find them sweeter and nicer generally…and they tend to smell a lot better, and maybe they're more reliable, and it's really nice to feel how soft their skin is, and—" Cassandra suddenly shook her head and snapped backward, her cheeks flushed a heated shade of red. "Hey, what am I telling you this for? It's none of your fucking business, okay? I like them because I like them. Got it?"

Rapunzel didn't look up at her. She kept her cheek firmly pressed against Cass's spine. The embarrassed rage in Cass's voice was more than enough to get to her, and Cass loathed that sly, almost smug smile that crossed Rapunzel's face as she stared out at the road.

"Oh no, I understand. I totally get it," Rapunzel said simply. "You definitely don't like me because my skin is soft. Point taken."

Cassandra growled, turning back toward the plains in front of her. "S-Shut up…"

Rapunzel's grin widened, though she couldn't help but feel a pang of guilt. Wasn't she technically exploiting Cass's feelings by stringing her along like that? She wasn't one to mock someone's feelings, especially not with how genuine and pained they were expressed. Cassandra spent so long having those emotions bottled up inside her? The logical thing to do was nurture them, give them room to grow and be healthy. And yet, she couldn't exactly argue with results. She had tried being nurturing and kind. She tried respecting Cassandra's boundaries and letting her be. Cass made it explicitly clear she didn't want that. While she may have been flustered and bitter, there was some level of jest buried beneath her emotions—and hell, at least they were emotions. She had gotten so used to angst and misery that she thought maybe that was all Cass had left to show her. It felt strange, like taking a peek at something she wasn't mature enough to see, but if she could get back in Cassandra's good graces…if she could just let themselves act naturally around each other, maybe it wouldn't be so bad.

Still, she had to be careful. Snark was never her strong suit, and Cassandra's burdens wouldn't go away from a simple joke. Pushing boundaries might have resurrected Cass's spirit. Crossing those boundaries could kill it for good.

Cassandra and Rapunzel were wrapped up in their conversation, but they weren't the only ones traveling along the plains to Madrid. Adira was riding Maximus and following several yards behind the pair, keeping a careful eye on the Princess she was sworn to look after. She wanted Rapunzel to ride with her, but at the Princess's insistence, she was to be kept in Cassandra's care. It wasn't Adira's place to argue with her. Apparently, Rapunzel's desire stemmed from an altercation she had with Cassandra last night. She didn't notice. While their argument was loud enough to wake up all of Spain, Adira slept soundly through it. Years and years of practice taught her to sleep through almost anything that wasn't about to stab her. As such, she wasn't fully aware of the gossip, though she could guess what was going on. Delilah tried telling her the juicy details; for all of her training and otherworldly experience, the assassin was still a teenager, drawn to drama like a moth to a flame. Adira resisted. She didn't particularly care. It wasn't that useful. The only relevance it had was that it forced her to share a ride with the Psychopomp, who was doing everything she could to be as annoying as possible.

"How are you not affected by this heat at all?" Delilah asked with a groan. Her mask was dangling from her fingers, and her cloak was removed and wrapped around her waist, letting her mocha skin bake in the sun. Adira sat up straight, unmoving and unperturbed by her surroundings. She just kept her eyes directly in front of her as she bobbed up and down to the rhythm of Max's steps.

"Focus," Adira stated calmly. "It's something that you could learn."

"I know how to focus," Delilah countered. "It's just really hot."

"And you don't focus during the heat?"

"I focus whatever temperature it is. But usually, I'm focusing for a purpose. If I'm just riding around, what's the point?"

Adira huffed. "The point is that you never know when someone is going to pull something on you. You have to be aware at all times for the absolute worst."

Delila snickered in turn. "I guess I wouldn't know what that's like."

"Why not?" Adira asked. "Aren't you used to a dangerous life?"

"I am," Delilah stated, "it's just that usually I'm the danger. The hawk never has to worry about what is flying above it, you know?"

"Actually, I don't," Adira said with a shrug. "Nor do I want to."

That caught Delilah off-guard. She leaned to the side, trying to catch a glimpse of Adira's face. Yet, all she saw was the same tight, expressionless woman that had been a thorn in her side ever since she agreed to help Rapunzel.

"Really? That sounds like a lie."

"I don't lie."

"That sounds like another lie," Delilah claimed, squinting as she examined the warrior for any signs of a breakthrough. "I mean, you're a strong woman. Smart. Brave. You've probably been fighting all your life, right? Born into the fire. Dedicated decades to hone your craft. You have probably studied and prepared for every possible encounter, mastered every weapon, trained day in and day out to take on any opponent—and you're stuck babysitting a Princess with serious mental health issues. That doesn't seem kind of odd to you?"

"Whatever you are getting at, you're wrong," Adira said with finality, but Delilah ignored her attempts at dismissing the conversation. The assassin had been trying to figure out the Dark Kingdom's protector all day; not merely because information was the key to survival when she was surrounded by enemies, but because the older woman fascinated her. She had met plenty of fighters in her checkered past, men and women alike. They all tended to echo each other. Bold. Arrogant. Always wanting more. The warrior's spirit was untamable. Even in that black-haired woman, she could see the embers from that flame. That spirit may have been snuffed out within her, but she could tell from her posture, her loyalty, her tenacity and more, that she once had that same drive to ascend higher into the echelons of glory. But Adira didn't burn at all. She was like a river…or maybe more like a pond. Even her brief moments of anger were waterlogged and constrained. She wasn't like any of the others she had met—at least, not in the moments before she snuffed out their lives.

"Why her?" Delilah asked straight to the point. "There are higher callings out there than this. What's so valuable about this?"

"I swore an oath," Adira said simply. "I'm keeping it."

"But why swear it in the first place?" Delilah questioned her further. "What do you want? Knighthood? Knights only serve men. Wouldn't you want to serve something greater than yourself? A woman of your talents could do a lot of good in the world."

Adira was almost amused. Almost. "I didn't realize the Psychopomp was religious."

The assassin, however, shook her head. "I never said anything about God. There are a lot of different ideas to commit yourself to."

"Like murder?"

"I never said that either."

"But that's what it is."

"I mean…yes."

"Not interested."

"Are you seriously telling me you've never killed someone before?" Delilah said doubtingly. "Come on. The way you swing that sword…that's the technique of a killer."

Adira's face didn't change. She didn't alter her posture, or give any hint that she was upset or annoyed. Yet, she suddenly pulled on Max's reigns, and the horse stopped dead in his tracks. He glanced up at her, confused at her change of pace, but he was only met with a weary, distant stare. Fidella noticed the sound of Max stopping, and she quickly came to a halt as well. Rapunzel and Cassandra were brought out of their conversation by the distraction, and for the first time in maybe hours, they were forced to pay attention to someone's struggles other than their own. The line of Adira's mouth fidgeted, nearly bending into an imperfect shape several times, but she kept her shoulders straight and took a deep breath, and spoke normally—if not with a hint of anger buried in the back of her throat.

"I have done a lot of things to protect my Kingdom," Adira said bluntly. "Bad things. Unspeakable things. But I am nothing like you. The things I did were in defense of the people that I had sworn to protect, and I swore to protect them for reasons that a child like you could never possibly understand. I don't revel in this. I don't enjoy this. If I could end conflicts without having to hurt people, it would make my job dramatically easier. You are merely a blade for hire. Anyone could appease you. Anyone could set your price. I could have the Dark Kingdom behind and made a living attacking people like you, but unlike you, I have a conscience to deal with. Don't mistake me for someone you can empathize with, Skull Face. The only thing we have in common between us is that we're riding this horse together."

Delilah paused for a moment, letting Adira's temper settle before rebutting with a smirk of her own. "Did I touch a nerve?"

"No," Adira said plainly. "But you got too close for someone already on thin ice."

"I'm just calling it as I see it," Delilah shrugged. "You know, it might seem like I hate you—and I kind of do—but I was taught to respect my elders. There are some things you know about more than me. Some things, sure, but that's still more than most. All I want is to make sure that your potential is being used to its fullest."

"By assassinating people?" Adira said distastefully.

"By following your line of reasoning to its logical conclusion," Delilah said instead. "I don't hunt innocent people. The truth is that every person I've killed, I've killed because they are more dangerous to keep alive. That's all self-defense is; protecting yourself from those who want to hurt you. The only difference between us is that I'm not just protecting one Kingdom, and I'm not stupid enough to wait for them to draw their sword. I've made the world a better place. I don't know why you're mad for me wanting you to do the same."

Adira had a thousand different responses to that. Delilah's philosophy was one she expected from someone so young. It was brash and ineffective, blind to the minutia of the lives of those around them. She could have listed plenty of reasons why the Psychopomp didn't make the world a safer place. She could have just pointed to Rapunzel: clear and simple proof that the assassin's cause was misguided. After all, what kind of just person would ever willingly bring harm to the Princess? She was a selfless woman who was forced into terrible circumstances by her destiny and her kindness, and here was Delilah, a smile on her face and backed by all the confidence in the world as she bragged about how she would gladly take the Princess's life. She could claim that she felt remorse, and she could preach all she wanted about higher causes, however vague and meaningless they turned out to be. Adira saw through her. For all of the teenager's unique and deadly talents, motive was not one of them. She could pick her type out of the crowd: selected, likely from birth, into being a fighter. Forced through a relentless training regiment to strengthen her resolve. No mother. No father. A single survivor out of many who couldn't quite make the cut. Raised with only a single, unflinching philosophy on the righteousness of their cause, but too culturally inexperienced to process it. Victim turned victimizer, fighting to thrive despite her training—maybe even to spite it. The chip on her shoulder was the size of a mountain.

Assassins, criminals, monsters: They were all pretty much the same to Adira. She couldn't accept their concepts of innocence and guilt, and even her soul would grow heavy with the amount of blood weighing down upon it. Maybe it was true that at some point in her life, she wanted to go down a different path. It was true that she had spent decades waiting, watching, guarding nothing while the world turned without her. It was true that ever since the Moonstone and the Sundrop were reunited, she had been somewhat purposeless. Dreaming of rebuilding her Kingdom was far less satisfying than actually building it. But Delilah's offer—even the mere, indescribable shadow of it that was given to her—sat rotten in the pit of her stomach. She refused to acknowledge it. She had a duty to Rapunzel. That wasn't meaningless. The thought of her questioning that, especially at the taunting of a child, should have made her laugh.

Still…

"Hey, we need to get moving," Cassandra called to them.

Adira shook her head, spurred back to the real world by Cass's words. Delilah rolled her eyes and leaned back on the saddle, bowing out of the conversation before she could pester Adira any further. She pushed up her chin and gazed toward the sky, her sight narrowing as she focused on something high up in the clouds.

"My apologies," Adira said. "I just got distracted."

Cassandra grumbled with discontent, but Rapunzel couldn't help but nod. "It's okay. I know the feeling."

"Yeah, well, we can all argue later," Cassandra said fervently. "It's too hot and we wasted a lot of time yesterday. How much longer do we have to ride in this heat?"

Suddenly, Delilah spoke up. "Don't worry. I think we're really close."

Rapunzel tilted her head. "What makes you so sure?"

"Well…probably that," Delilah stated.

She pointed straight up into the air, and everyone's eyes turned up into the sky, trying to find what caught the assassin's attention. The sky was bright blue, nearly empty save for a few whisps and the burning ball of light that nearly blinded them. Rapunzel cupped her hands over her eyes, trying to focus on anything that wasn't blue. Cassandra spotted it first, letting out a surprised, "Oh, shit," before Rapunzel quickly caught sight of it.

High above, just barely bigger than a speck, a black shape sped along through the blue emptiness. Its shape whipped in the wind, leaving dark streaks behind it as it traveled in the same direction as they were headed. Rapunzel strained her vision, trying to get a clearer picture of what it was. It came into focus parts at a time, but eventually, Rapunzel saw it for what it truly was.

There was a witch, dressed in a cloak of black, riding on a broomstick across the air. Rapunzel felt an immediate rush of relief. Witches. Madrid. They were close. It was maybe expected, though, that her relief quickly turned to dread. She rested her hand on her chest, trying to still her anxious, fluttering heart.