Chapter 13
Foresight
The air was odd tonight, for just about everyone.
Varian suspected it was just because he stayed the night in the building.
Cassandra thought it was just the weather changing mixed with her hate for her job.
Kiera and Catalina didn't care, but did take notice to it just the same.
The truth was, it wasn't actually, psychically, the air.
"What do you mean, Xavier?" Rapunzel raised a brow at the blacksmith.
"Precisely what I have spoken. The air is cold, but not with weather change. Something is going to happen, and not for the good. It doesn't matter to who, good or bad, as it'll affect them all just the same." Xavier dusted off the anvil that he made swords and halberds on.
Rapunzel frowned, but Eugene only rolled his eyes; "I don't believe all these foresight tricks, Blondie. And you shouldn't either, they just give people fears that shouldn't even exist to start with." Eugene sniffed. "I know... It seems a little strange and unusual... Xavier, is all this true?" Rapunzel agreed and disagreed all at the same time.
Eugene only slapped his forehead and let Rapunzel talk to Xavier.
"It's what I feel, Princess. Be wary of what tonight brings." Xavier nodded.
"I definitely will be, Xavier. Thank you..." Rapunzel stood up off of the stool, "I have to get going, be safe Xavier." She curtsied and then walked off, Eugene slowly following after her...
Varian was used to having Ruddiger be a little unsure of everything, but he was starting to feel this feeling now and he didn't like it, because he never really had this feeling. Except when he was breaking into houses, in-which he wasn't doing at the moment.
"Ruddiger, maybe... Maybe we should head back? I'm not liking the vibe in the air today." Varian held his own arms. Ruddiger nodded and agreed... He turned around and then headed back the way he came, he was afraid and that wasn't good.
Cassandra lifted the last log into the small wagon and was getting ready to bring it to the castle to put in the fireplace when she noticed the change of air around her. She always had that lingering suspicious of everything and was ready to attack at any moment, but this was a different type of suspicion, not for herself per se, or not for anyone else. It just... sticks there.
"Perhaps I should talk with dad and see if there are more guards that can stay near the castle..."
She muttered to herself, grabbing the handles and wheeling the wagon towards the door...
"Catalina, I'm sure everything's fine. Stop worrying!" Kiera shook her head.
"But..." Catalina began to speak, but Kiera shook her head again, only more aggressively.
Catalina turned silent, "Right..." She crossed her arms in an attempt to comfort herself in a hug.
Catalina wasn't worried about herself, she wasn't sure who she was worried about, but it wasn't her, she knew. The air had something sinister to it, and she hated that feeling, even if she had never felt it before in her life until now, recently.
Varian was almost at the building when he had noticed a snowflake fluttering down to him, followed by various other snowflakes. "Ruddiger, look!" Varian looked around himself, seeing the snowflakes falling down. He looked up and noticed the Corona skies were slowly being coated with snow clouds. Ruddiger watched in amazement, it had distracted both Varian and Ruddiger.
"Perfect timing." Lady Caine muttered underneath her breath with a smirk, easing herself out from behind the crates outside the building. Varian didn't even notice, because he was too busy watching the snow, but Ruddiger did and panicked, tugging Varian's hair.
"Ow, what is it, Ruddiger?!" He looked in the direction Ruddiger was pointing, and then saw Lady Caine. His eyes suddenly widened and he stepped back in alarm. "Hello boys, haven't see you two in a long time." Lady Caine smirked. "Go away, Lady Caine!" Varian backed up.
"Now, now, you should be nice and address the others too, y'know?" Lady Caine shook her head. Varian was getting ready to speak, asking her what she meant, until he realized that there was a bunch more thieves behind her. Varian, he kept backing up, but they all grew closer.
Ruddiger hissed and held out his claws at them, but they didn't seem afraid of the raccoon.
"Don't think I'll let you get away with not only stealing my money, stealing the vase, and then breaking the vase I paid for; in my face!" Lady Caine was closer than anyone else was to him.
"Now!" Lady Caine demanded the thieves, pointing at Varian.
Varian went to run off, but realized he was in the alleyway where the building was, which had a dead-end. Varian went to try and climb to the window, but Lady Caine pulled him down forcefully and he landed hardly on the ground, Ruddiger being knocked off of his shoulder.
Ruddiger scattered away, hiding behind a crate, while the thieves all piled onto Varian. Ruddiger panicked and didn't know what to do, he was so small compared to the men and women attacking Varian... Ruddiger had only fought those naughty kids that abused Varian...
Varian was screaming in-fear, "Stop it! Stop it!"
Something that Ruddiger hadn't heard from Varian, even with the kids hurting him.
This hurt Ruddiger, not psychically, no; much like the air Xavier rumored about, and Ruddiger was terrified that he couldn't do anything this time. It didn't help that, usually, Varian was shouting because he was worried about Ruddiger, but this time he wasn't.
Lady Caine only watched with a cruel, disgustingly dubious look on her face. She was pleased that she was finally getting revenge on the alchemist who scammed her... Even if Lady Caine was the one that scammed him first, by trying to say the vase was fake.
Varian tried to reach for Ruddiger, his arm and hand shaking, "Ruddiger!" He cried; there were tears rolling down his face, blood running down his nose and bruises already appearing on his cheeks and on one eye. Ruddiger chattered, but couldn't bring himself to help.
How would Ruddiger, a tiny raccoon, defend himself and Varian from these ruffians; the raccoon thought to himself. He couldn't, at least, he thought so.
"Leave him alone!" Two girls' voices were heard.
Lady Caine turned around and saw Kiera and Catalina, "Oh great, more brats." She rolled her eyes. "Stay out of this." She snapped at the two girls. Kiera and Catalina exchanged looks and then they began trying to defend Varian by fighting the bad guys and trying to get them off of him. Ruddiger climbed up to the window, which scared a murder of what appeared to be seven; crows, off of the wall. He hoped that Kiera and Catalina would be alright too...
Cassandra walked by the alleyways, debating on whether she should stay out or go back to the castle, when she heard screaming and crying. So she headed into the alleyway to try and figure out what it was, to discovered a gang of thieves attacking three children.
"In the name of the Daughter of the Captain of the Royal Guards, stand down or else!" Cassandra shouted, pulling out her sword, which made Lady Caine raise a brow. "Cute." She muttered quietly before pulling out a dagger and tried to attack, but Cassandra was quick on her feet and dodged it and attacked her right back, cutting a bit of Lady Caine's hair off.
"Call off your men, or your face is going to be a lot more bloody than it already is." Cassandra hissed coldly. Lady Caine shook her head and kept on attacking, until finally Cassandra had to cut right across Lady Caine's eyes. Lady Caine screamed and dropped her dagger, which alarmed the thieves and they stopped trying to hurt Varian and fend off the two girls.
Kiera and Catalina ran off, since they had heard the word 'Royal Guards', but Varian was too weak to even stand up at this time, not to mention his head was pounding...
Lady Caine scrambled to find her dagger, blood pouring down her face, coating it with a fresh, bright carmine. Cassandra grabbed a hold of her arms, spun her and managed to get her arms put behind her back so she couldn't try and attack anymore.
"Let go of me!" Lady Caine shouted, blood dripping out of her mouth, as it had definitely ran into her mouth from her eyes as it was a lot of it. "No!" Cassandra growled and dragged Lady Caine out of the alleyway since Lady Caine refused to move.
Cassandra took Lady Caine to the royal guards, and told the guards to search for the thieves, then headed back to the alleyway. She walked slowly, and quietly, not to alarm Varian, who had passed out from the attack done by the thieves and Lady Caine.
She knelt down to the ground and looked closely at who it was... "...Varian?" Cassandra said quietly, her eyes softening; it was Varian; was he okay? "Varian, wake up." Cassandra shook him gently, hoping to wake him up. Varian batted his eyes slowly, one of them slowly because that one had been bruised, then realized that Cassandra was watching over him.
Varian's face turned a bright red, if that was even possible since his face was pretty red to start with from the fact he had been hit so many times and there was blood all over his face.
"...Cassie?" He reached for her.
"Varian, are you okay? What happened?" Cassandra didn't raise her voice at all.
"They attacked me..." Varian whimpered. "It's okay, I'm here... Do you need me to take you to the infirmary? There's one in the castle, and-" Cassandra asked, but Varian interrupted; "No! I mean- Yes! I- Owwwww..." Varian tried to say no, but realized it sounded suspicious, so said yes, but then realized he didn't mean that either and couldn't think of a response.
He could definitely think about his pain though.
Cassandra stared for a moment, then gently picked him up into her arms. "Look, that's okay, but... Do you have a place you live that I can take you to? And do you have any supplies that I can help you with?" Cassandra asked, stroking Varian's bangs out of his face, that had been coated with blood; specifically and luckily (lack of a better word) where his blue stress-streak was.
"I...don't really...I... I stay up there in that building." Varian wanted to lie, but he had no choice.
"That place? Are you...homeless?" Cassandra realized that this was the case, and it made sense.
She began remembering all the words that Varian had said to her in the past.
"I was...looking for...directions!"
"I have 41 silver pieces and 15 bronze pieces."
"Uh, no I haven't! I think I'll get that..."
"Thank you again, for... everything. The directions, the paying, the hot chocolate."
"I wanted to give this to thank you for the other day..."
"I couldn't help but find something to give you in-return."
"It took a very long time and a lot of time...searching...for the materials"
"You...made a impact on me back at the bakery..."
Cassandra frowned, but she carefully climbed to the window and got Varian into the building where he'd rest. "I think I have some supplies with me, if you don't have any." She said, gently laying Varian down on the floor. Ruddiger scurried out from behind a barrel and nuzzled Varian sadly. Cassandra dug around in the bag around her waist and pulled out some bandages and rubbing alcohol. "It's going to sting, a lot, but this is how to keep it from getting infected."
"Because you know how disgusting those crooks are." Cassandra joked with a wink. "Yeah..." Varian smiled sadly; he wasn't mean about his thieving, but... he still was a thief...
After a few times of Varian fainting at the sight of blood, he was finally all bandaged up and cleaned. Cassandra had to head back to the castle, so she said goodbye; (heck, she even gave Varian a kiss; it was on the forehead as a friendly gesture, but Varian didn't care) and headed back, leaving Varian and Ruddiger to heal... But Cassandra still had to wonder...
If he was homeless...
Was her thought about him being a...
No, no...
That's silly...
