Varian took a deep breath and shifted to a more comfortable position. He was trying to meditate. Adira had told him that calmly focusing inward and carefully considering all of his strengths and weaknesses was a good way of finding inner peace. She said it was the key to her inner power, and how she was able to find calm in the storm that was her life.

Varian hadn't paid much attention to her whole inner power thing, not because he didn't believe in it, but because he thought his inner strength was more the power of the mind, and his intelligence definitely didn't come from meditation. If anything, getting lost in his thoughts and thinking too much about something was how he spiraled out of control and dove into the depths of his own depravity. That was what happened after the blizzard when he'd lashed out.

Hector insisted that Varian had always had his connection to the moon, even before he'd taken the moonstone. He said that Varian had the power inside of him, he just had to figure out how to harness it. Varian had hoped that meditating would work, but he felt more bored and frustrated than enlightened. Meditation had helped him to confront his physical weakness and state of healing, but he didn't know how to use it to find his power.

He wished that Adira was here. She'd probably be able to help him.

"How's the meditation going?" Hector asked. He'd just gotten back from his patrolling of their small area where they had stopped to rest for the day. They had been travelling almost non-stop for the past few days, riding on Hector's rhino while his bearcats patrolled ahead and behind them to make sure everything was safe and they weren't being followed.

Hector had been on his guard the whole time, expecting to see Rapunzel, Cassandra, or King Edmund following them. It was only after several days of not seeing a sign of the others did Hector relax enough to stop for longer than just a few minutes.

It wasn't much of a break though. Varian had been working non-stop on figuring out how the moonstone worked. He hadn't made much progress. Hector told him that they could grab some scrolls from the Great Tree when they got back there, but Varian had hoped to figure this out for himself beforehand. He wasn't expecting to become a master, but he at least wanted to be able to willingly summon a black rock.

"Not good," Varian groaned. "I have no idea what I'm doing."

"I think you're overthinking this." Hector held out a hand to him and Varian took it, finally stretching his legs after sitting for so long. "You were born with this connection to the moon. It's probably something that'll come naturally to you."

"Then why can't I figure it out?" Varian asked.

Hector hummed slightly. "If it's instinct, it might be something that you've trained yourself to repress, without even realizing it."

"What am I supposed to do about that?" Varian said. "I can't just unrepress something when I don't even know what that something is."

"Why not?" Hector smirked. "It's just about bringing out your raw, primal nature. I can show you how to do that."

"How?" Varian asked.

"Well, first you've gotta stop asking so many questions." Hector said. "This isn't something you think about, it's just something you do." Hector adjusted the fur of his cloak, making it stand on end and surround his face. He then moved to Varian and pulled up the hood of his fur cloak. Varian didn't like to wear the hood. He appreciated the boar cloak a lot, but what he'd been trying to ignore about it was that its hood was made from the head of the boar, with the ears and snout still attached.

When Varian wore the hood and crouched on the ground, he could almost pass as a boar himself. He wasn't really unsettled with wearing the fur that noticeably came from an animal. Back in Old Corona they made do with what they had, getting as much use out of something as they could. It made sense to use the head of a boar just as much as the fur on its back, especially for warriors who had dedicated their lives to intimidating people, but that was exactly why Varian didn't feel like it suited him. He wasn't a strong warrior, or a frightening person. He felt like the boar head didn't suit him the way that it would Hector or King Edmund, or even his dad.

"I don't know if this suits me." Varian muttered as he adjusted the hood against his goggles.

"Don't be ridiculous." Hector grabbed Varian's goggles and pulled them down over his eyes, and then adjusted the hood so that it hung low over his head, almost obscuring his vision. "You make a great boar."

"...Thanks?" Varian tilted his head at his uncle. "Is that a good thing or a bad thing?"

"It's just a thing." Hector said. "Boars are social creatures and thrive in groups, though they're far from defenseless on their own. They're not the largest animal out there, but their fierce nature more than makes up for it." Hector tapped harshly at Varian's forehead. "Not to mention their big brains."

"Well, what about you?" Varian asked. "If you were an animal, what would it be?"

"A wolf." Hector said without hesitation. Varian blinked, shocked.

"But...you hate being seen as a dog." Varian said slowly. He hadn't forgotten what Aunt Adira had said about Hector's sensitivity to being compared to any animal, but especially a dog. Why would Hector make the comparison himself?

"Wolves aren't dogs." Hector scowled. "Dogs are domesticated, weak, tamed. I'm nobody's pet." Hector aimed this last part to a nearby tree, but when Varian checked there was nothing there. Hector continued to glare at the tree for a long moment before he turned back to Varian.

"And there's a fine line between me connecting to animals on a personal level, and complete strangers taking one look at me and deciding that I'm nothing but a foul beast that would be better off put down."

Varian felt a pit in his stomach as he stared at his uncle in slight horror. "D-did someone actually say that to you?"

"Only one person dared to say it to my face." Hector said darkly. "The others were too cowardly to say it, but I could see it in their eyes. They don't see me as human."

"Then why do you…" Varian trailed off and bit his tongue. That question was beyond rude, and he didn't want to upset his uncle. Hector just raised an eyebrow at him.

"Why do I act so much like an animal sometimes?" Hector asked casually. He didn't sound upset or angry. Varian nodded almost shyly. Hector gave him a small smile. "Because I like it. It's fun, and it's relaxing. Animals don't have the kind of worries that humans do, or the same social expectations. Animals don't judge me for who I am, and if they do then they don't let me know.

It sounded odd, but Varian thought he could actually relate. He felt similarly about his alchemy. Varian knew that his interest in alchemy had made him an outcast in Old Corona. It had made people see him as an outsider and a threat, even when he meant no harm. He still did alchemy though, because he liked it.

"I may not be as smart as you are, but I know that humans are just fancy animals." Hector said. It wasn't exactly how Varion would phrase it. "So we're going to try to ignore that fancy part for a bit and just embrace our inner animals. Let the beast come out, and get used to following your instinct. When you're used to following your instinct, maybe you can recognize the instinct to use the moonstone."

It was worth a try. It wouldn't be any worse than the meditation, which really hadn't gotten him anywhere at all. "Let's do it." Varian said.

"Great!" Hector grinned excitedly and kicked his shoes off. "Time for a hunt."

"Oh?" Varian tilted his head at his uncle. "What's the prey?" Varian had never gone hunting before. There were a lot of hunters back in Old Corona, but Varian's dad had never been one of them. He preferred to buy his meat when he could, and Varian, who fainted at the sight of blood and didn't want to hurt any animals, was only too happy to follow his example. Even now he didn't want to kill an animal for sport, but maybe when Hector said hunt he didn't mean to kill them, just to find or catch them.

Hector's grin broadened almost predatorily. "I was thinking wild boar." Hector gave Varian a small push while the boy just stared at him. "I'll give you a minute head start.

"You can't be serious." Varian frowned. Hector just chuckled.

"One. Two." Hector gave him a meaningful look. "Three." Ruddiger bit Varian's ear, snapping the boy into action. Varian dashed off, stumbling over his own feet as he tried to move too quickly. He eventually found his balance and was able to run off.

Varian didn't know whether to run to the trees, or to the cliffs where there might be some caves he could hide in. He even considered crossing a river to throw Hector off his trail. He was trying to plan things, but as he thought he found himself running blindly as quickly as he could. It was about forty five seconds before Varian remembered that the whole point of this was to not overthink things.

Varian pushed his plans to the back of his mind and focused just on running. He adjusted his hood, obscuring his vision more than was probably safe, but he kept his eyes glued to the ground anyway.

All too soon Varian heard a howl that sounded like a mix between human and bestial. Varian felt a shiver go down his spine and he picked up the pace.

Between the running, the adrenalin, and the way that his body was still not fully recovered from all the months of abuse, Varian was already starting to find himself out of breath. Still, he continued running, ignoring his uncertainty.

Varian soon heard the sound of rushing footsteps behind him. He swallowed thickly and looked over his shoulder to see Hector dashing towards him. His uncle had a wild, almost feral look in his eyes. He looked like he was having a lot of fun, and it was absolutely terrifying to see. Varian would never be able to outrun him, so he decided that he didn't want to exhaust himself by trying. He had to do something else.

Varian suddenly stopped in his tracks and turned. Before Hector could react Varian ran back towards him, tackling him with all the force he could muster. Hector lost his balance and they both fell to the ground. Hector immediately tried to pin him down, but Varian squirmed and wiggled so much that the man struggled to get a proper grip on him. When Hector was finally able to get a solid hold on Varian's arm the boy reacted without thinking. He bit his uncle's hand.

Hector yelped in pain and pulled his pain back. Varian tried to get up, but Hector growled and sat on his legs and pinned him down. Varian couldn't get away. Eventually he stopped trying. As soon as he did Hector laughed joyfully.

"Oh, that was great." Hector said cheerfully. He looked happier than Varian had ever seen him. "It's been far too long since I've done this kind of thing." He grinned down at Varian, who was starting to feel a little uncomfortable in the awkward position he was pinned down in. "How're you feeling?"

"Tired." Varian said. He couldn't have been running for more than a few minutes, and yet his body felt like it was ready to shut down on him. As though to prove it, Varian's chest tightened and he couldn't help but cough harshly and somewhat painfully. It wasn't nearly as bad as his coughs had been when he was still sick, but Hector immediately looked concerned anyway.

Hector muttered a curse that Varian didn't understand, but he still knew that his dad would get mad at him if he ever dared to repeat it. Hector quickly got off of Varian's chest and helped him to sit up. "You alright, kid?"

"I'm fine." Varian said with one more cough. Hector didn't look completely convinced. Varian gave him a small smile. "Really, I'm fine, just a little sore."

"If you say so." Hector gave him one more concerned look before that excited gleam returned to his eyes. "But that was great. The tackle, and the bite! Where'd you learn that from?"

Varian laughed as he rubbed his chest. "I don't know, it just kinda happened. I didn't really think about it, I just did it."

"See? I told you you just had to let yourself go." Hector said. "Next time maybe you'll bite hard enough to break the skin." Hector sounded excited, like making someone bleed with his teeth should be Varian's ultimate goal.

"And then I'll just end up fainting." Varian pointed out. "I don't do blood, remember?"

"Right," Hector nodded. "I guess I'll have to teach you how to cause as much pain as possible without actually making them bleed. That's fine, we'll just have to get creative."

"I don't want to cause any permanent damage either." Varian said. He didn't really want to hurt anybody at all, but he knew all too well that if he didn't defend himself then he might really get hurt.

"You won't have to." Hector assured him. He gave Varian an odd look. "Did your dad really not teach you any of this stuff? No self-defense? No following your instincts?"

Varian shook his head. "When I was little I asked him to teach me how to fight, like all of the other kids were, but he refused. He told me to learn how to fight with my words instead of my fists."

Hector looked confused. "But what about using your survival instinct? Did he not talk about it either?"

"Not really." Varian said. "Me and Dad didn't really talk that much. Sometimes he would tell me that I needed to think before acting, but I don't think he ever told me to trust my instincts." Sometimes Varian felt like his dad had actively tried to discourage him from following his gut feelings.

Hector frowned. "That doesn't sound like the Quirin I know."

"It doesn't?" Varian asked. "What do you remember my dad being like?"

Hector leaned back and stared at the sky. "Quirin was the one who encouraged me to do this kind of thing. Adira and Edmund used to always tell me to act more normal and not give people any reason to distrust me. Quirin on the other hand accepted me just the way I was, feral and animalistic nature and all."

Hector's eyes grew sad as a bittersweet smile slipped onto his face. "You know, your dad was the one who found me in the first place."

"Found you?" Varian frowned slightly. Where had Hector been before he'd met the others?

"I didn't trust him at first." Hector chuckled to himself. "Not at all. But still, he never gave up on me, no matter how many times I gave him reason to."

Varian stared at the ground. "He didn't give up on me either." Varian had nearly destroyed their home dozens of times, burned himself more times than he could count, and accidentally caused more trouble for Old Corona than he should have. He gave his dad such a hard time, and the man deserved so much more than that. He had every reason to give up on Varian, and yet Quirin never stopped defending him from the people of Old Corona and encouraging him and his alchemy..

"At least some things never change." Hector said. He stood up and stretched before suddenly freezing. "Do you hear that?"

"Hear what?" Varian asked quietly. He took off his hood and closed his eyes, focusing on what he could hear. The only sound that stood out was the cawing of a large bird. Varian opened his eyes to see a black bird, possibly a crow or a raven, flying overhead. Something about its flying was awkward and a bit unnatural.

Hector scowled and glared up at the bird. He got to his feet. "Hamuel." The bird cawed before flying off.

"Who's Hamuel?" Varian asked.

"King Edmund's bird." Hector said seriously, all sign of his enjoyment from their short run was gone. "We're about to have some company." Hector grabbed Varian's arm and effortlessly pulled him to his feet. "Let's go see just who we're dealing with." Varian was more than a little scared.

King Edmund wasn't the one that Varian was worried about. He liked the king of the Dark Kingdom, and he felt much safer around him than he ever had around the royalty of Corona. Even if King Edmund was upset that he had taken the moonstone, Varian didn't think that he would hurt him.

However, Varian had no idea if King Edmund was here by himself. What if he had come with Rapunzel or Cassandra?

Hector nudged Varian's arm gently. "Relax, kid. I'm not going to let anybody hurt you."

Varian took a deep breath and fiddled with the fur of his cloak. "I know."

"Just stay close." Hector said as he flicked his wrist and brought out his blade. He started making his way back to where they had come from, towards where the bird had flown off to. A few minutes later they found themselves back at the site they had stopped at for camp, and they found company waiting for them there.

King Edmund was sitting on the back of a white horse with a black mane. He looked furious and serious. Next to him was Eugene and Lance. Varian relaxed slightly. Rapunzel and Cassandra were nowhere in sight.

"Kid," Eugene gave him a shaky smile, though Varian didn't miss the anxious look he gave to Hector. "You doing okay?"

"I-I'm fine." Varian muttered. He was a little unnerved about Eugene's concern. He knew that the man had been trying to be more sympathetic to him, but Varian had thought that would go away after he had taken the moonstone, the whole reason why Rapunzel had come all the way out here in the first place.

"That guy didn't hurt you, did he?" Lance asked nervously. Varian stared at him, shocked at the very suggestion.

"Of course not." Varian said. "Why would Uncle Hector hurt me?" Varian trusted the man more than he trusted most people right now.

Eugene and Lance both suddenly looked nervous and uneasy. They looked like they were wanting to say something, but neither of them said a word. Varian had no idea what was going on. He looked to King Edmund, hoping that he would clear things up a bit, but the man's cold expression stopped Varian's words before he could even think about getting them out.

"Hector." King Edmund said. He sounded distant and far too much like a furious King Frederic for Varian's comfort. "A word?"

Hector stared at King Edmund for a long moment before his expression hardened. Still, he gave a small incline of his head. "Of course, your majesty." Despite the respect in his tone, Hector's tone and body language screamed discomfort and caution.

King Edmund dismounted his horse and stormed over to Hector. Varian quickly got out of his way.

Hector gave him a reassuring look. "I'll be back in a bit, kid. If either of them try anything, tap into your inner boar." Hector sounded unconcerned about leaving Varian alone with Eugene and Lance for a moment, and that made Varian feel more comfortable himself. He watched Hector and King Edmund begin to walk off to get some privacy. As soon as they were out of sight Varian turned his attention back to Eugene and Lance.

Varian frowned and crossed his arms, trying to make himself look as intimidating as he could. "Alright, what's going on? Why are you so nervous, and why would you think that my uncle would hurt me?"

"It's a long story." Eugene grimaced. That wasn't good enough for Varian.

"Give me the abridged version." the boy said. Eugene looked conflicted for a moment before he sighed.

"Alright, alright, fine." Eugene said. "Do you know who Demanitus is?"

"Of course." Varian said. What kind of alchemist would he be if he had never heard of the greatest alchemist of all time? "What about him?"

"Well, have you heard about Zhan Tiri?" Lance asked.

Varian raised an eyebrow. "I've heard some legends." He knew that some sources said that a sorcerer named Zhan Tiri had been involved with Demanitus in some way, but he hadn't paid much attention to those parts of the stories. At the time he hadn't thought that magic was real, so he had no reason to really care about a so-called sorcerer.

"Unfortunately, those legends might be more true than we would like." Lance said uneasily.

"Kid, I think your uncle's got himself caught up in something dangerous." Eugene said. "And I don't want him to pull you down with him."

"He won't pull me down." Varian said confidently. Ever since he'd met Hector the man had done nothing but lift him up when he'd been at his lowest. He had done so much for Varian. The least that the boy could do for him was to stay by his side to help him with whatever trouble he'd found himself in. Even if that trouble involved so-called sorcerers that Varian didn't truly believe in.