Hamuel is flying in the sky, hanging onto Pascal's legs. He's actually upside down, though, Pascal holding out his arms. The two land right on Max's face as he's walking down a path in the forest. Pascal looks up to see his annoyed glare, and he smiles widely, waving. Daisy, from Varian's shoulder, shakes her head slowly at them, chirping. Max throws them off past everyone and they land right in front of a blue dress, which is Harmony who's holding a clipboard.
She sighs at the two animals, finishing with the inventory check to make sure nothing was lost or stolen. Hamuel caws at Daisy, dancing around her, but she just looks at him in annoyance. She wants nothing to do with him or acknowledge the fact that he has a crush on her...which is clearly unrequited. But he doesn't seem to be getting the hint that she is not interested in him, much to her chargin.
"Oop! Careful, you two," Rapunzel walks up to them. "We don't wanna break this stuff before we get to Neserdnia." She takes Pascal into her hand, patting the crow on the head.
"That's right," Kiera speaks up. "Cause once me and Catalina return this last sack of stolen loot, we will have officially put our thieving days behind us!"
"Oh, I can't wait to get my hands on a copper-plated alembic from the Neserdnian market!" Varian says in excitement. "Do you have any idea how many poly-alchemical substration tests I'll be able to run?"
Kiera looks up ahead in boredom. "Anyone wanna switch seats with me?"
"Kiera!" Harmony rolls her eyes at the girl. She stands up and joins Varian's side. "Anyway, I'm in it for the aluminum. I'm gonna need it for my next project: I'm gonna make a security system for my lab so that people can stop using it for themselves. AKA Lance," She glances away in slight annoyance. She has had it with him using it for his pad when he has somewhere to sleep in the castle. He's left food droppings everywhere, got smudges on her blueprints, and she didn't even want to get started on what he did to her latest prototype.
"Wouldn't steel be stronger?" He raises a brow at her, Kiera tapping her foot out of boredom. She loved them, but sometimes they could be a little...overenthusiastic about their hobbies.
"Hypothetically," She rubs her chin, kissing his cheek. "But as long as it does its job, I don't care."
Rapunzel hums slightly at the two. "We're happy to have you along, Varian," She tells him. "Plus, I'm hoping once Max and Ruddiger spend some time together, they can finally become friends."
They look up ahead to Max, who looks away with an annoyed whinny. "Doubtful, but not impossible," Harmony states to her sister. "But hopefully Daisy can play nice with Hamuel."
"I think it's cute he's got a little crush on her…even though she clearly doesn't like him in that way," Rapunzel smiles optimistically. "He's got a lot going for him, he's…um…" She can't really of anything good to say about him.
"I don't think Hamuel's her type," Kiera shakes her head.
Max looks up at a tree and sees an apple. He beams at it, and Harmony sees where his eyes landed. "Oh, I can get that for you, Max."
She turns around to get her quiver, but Ruddiger jumps off the wagon. He crawls up the tree and when Max goes for the apple, Ruddiger switches it for a pinecone. Max bites into that instead, and the wagon comes to a stop. He spits it out, glaring at Ruddiger, who waves the apple on his tail. Pascal facepalms as Daisy rolls her eyes. He crawls over to Max, gesturing for the horse to take it easy. Max tries to wiggle him off, jumping a bit towards the raccoon.
He mocks Max with the apple, angering him. The wagon jerks to the right slightly, knocking a sea shell pendant out of one of the bags.
"Whoa!" Rapunzel exclaims as both animals hold onto the apple. "What happened?"
"Ruddiger," Harmony warns him as Catalina goes towards the bags to see what fell. The animals turn to her.
"What is this?" Catalina picks up the pendant. "I don't remember stealing it. Mom, did you see this in the bag?"
"No, strangely," She raises a brow as she inspects it.
"Oh. Whatever it is, it's...beautiful," Rapunzel comments at the necklace.
"And I bet it's pretty valuable," Kiera adds in.
"Uh, gang, hi, hello, speaking of valuables? We might wanna stow the loot. We're coming up on Deadman's Curve," Varian points to the path up ahead. "Yeah, it's a hotbed of highway robbery." An owl hoots despite the fact that they're nocturnal. Someone runs past and Varian hides a bit behind Rapunzel's hair.
"Where was that bravery when you went to go rescue Mom from Trevor the 3rd?" Catalina giggles at him.
"Relax, V," Kiera smiles in amusement. "Real thieves don't waste their time on here. It's mostly for hacks and knuckleheads."
Someone lands in front of them. "Hand over the goods!" Dwayne points his sword at them.
"Or in this case, both," Catalina states at his appearance.
"Hi Dwayne," The girls say in unison.
"Oh nuts," He rubs the back of his neck awkwardly, waving. "Hello Princesses."
"Dwayne, what did we talk about last time you were caught trying to steal?" Rapunzel looks at him in disapproval.
"Don't do it..." He kicks away a rock. Honestly, it was like scolding a child rather than a grown man...or in this case, a child in a man's body.
"Dwayne, this is the third time we've seen you. And it's not the charm," Harmony crosses her arms at him.
"Huh?" He asks in confusion, not understanding what she's trying to say. She sighs, facepalming.
"You're basically busted!"
"I-I promise, I'll never steal again. In fact, I'm gonna look for an honest job right now!" He walks right past them as Ruddiger licks his lips at the apple in Max's satchel. "Nice running into you! Enjoy your trip!"
He disappears into the bushes. "One of these days, I need to mark knucklehead over him," Harmony shakes her head slowly, the two girls giggling. Ruddiger steals the apple, only to come face-to-face with Max. He runs off with it, and the horse chases after him. He runs up running around a tree, everyone but Kiera screaming in fear.
"Guys, cut it out!" Rapunzel yells at the two.
"Whoa! Down, Max!" Harmony manages to stand up, jumping onto the horse. She grabs the reins. "Easy, boy. Easy."
He doesn't listen as he jumps around and it honestly feels like she's trying to ride a bull as Max jumps around side-to-side. Her hair goes flying at his movements. He slides to a stop as Ruddiger smiles, gesturing to the apple.
"Ruddiger, get down here!" Varian orders him, Pascal appearing out of nowhere and taking the apple. He runs across the tree branch, only to trip from Hamuel. Daisy takes flight, snatching the apple, but Ruddiger grabs it, and the animals scramble around Harmony fighting over it. Max continues to shake, spinning the wagon again.
"Max! Oh, this seemed better in my heaaaaad!" Harmony hollers, and he finally throws her off. She goes flying and she realizes where she's gonna land. "No, no, no, no, no!"
She lands right into a mud puddle, sliding to a stop. The carriage stops as all four animals freeze, staring at the girl. Her whole upper body is in the mud, her face planted in it.
"Mom!" Catalina stands up as Varian jumps out of the wagon, running over to her. The girl sits up slowly, and he helps her up.
"Are you okay?"
"No, I'm not," She answers in annoyance, her entire dress, face, and hair covered in mud. She frowns as she looks at herself, Kiera bouncing up and down.
"Do that again!"
"Yeah, not gonna happen," Harmony dusts some dirt off her clothes, flicking some mud off her hand. Some of the flowers had fallen out of her hair. She glares up at the animals, who had started fighting again once they saw she was okay. "I've had enough of this." She whistles at them with two fingers and they stop in place. "Alright guys, line up."
They do so like soldiers, feeling a bit ashamed as they see her state. "Do you guys remember that this is a trip and not the time to be fighting? If you keep this up, someone might get hurt," She holds her sleeved arm, tugging down the sleeve to reveal a slight bruise she got from the fall.
"We are supposed to be there and back in 2 days time because the king and queen are still recovering their memories. So I expect you all to get along and get over your petty fights!"
They nod slowly and Hamuel grabs the pendant, having apparently ignored her. He throws it at the apple, and pulls it back to him. The animals start fighting for it again.
Harmony walks back to the wagon in annoyance, followed by Varian. He digs into his backpack and takes out a cloth, helping to clean up her face first.
"Ugh, I hate mud," She groans at her clothes. "I look awful."
"I dunno, you look beautiful to me," Varian murmurs while checking out her arm. She blushes a bit at the almost quiet comment. He reaches out to a bush and gets a white lily, breaking off the stem. He slowly puts it in her hair, caressing her cheek softly. "See? Now you look even more beautiful."
"Vari!" She giggles bashfully, blushing.
"ENOUGH!" Rapunzel shouts at the top of her lungs. They freeze in place, looking up at her. "Maybe it's time for you all to just shake hands and get along. I mean, shake hoof and tail...or beak and paw. Is that what raccoons have? Paws? I can never remember if it's paws or feet."
Ruddiger looks at his hands.
"It's paws," Harmony mutters as Varian bandages up her wrist.
"Thank you! Just shake what you've got and get on with it."
The sea shell pendant in Hamuel's mouth starts to glow, Ruddiger grabbing for the apple. The five stare at the necklace as it starts to glow, a yellow light going over to them.
"Whoa!" They all shout as suddenly, they're thrusted through a portal, landing on various pillows inside the necklace! The animals move away as the pendant glows pink, with the humans nowhere to be found on the wagon. They stare at the apple and pendant. Ruddiger goes for it, but Max stops him. Ruddiger shakes his fist with a glare, taking off with both the fruit and the necklace. Max chases after the raccoon, and when Ruddiger runs past a flower, the necklace's chain gets stuck. It's released from the apple, flying past Max. He looks over his shoulder to see it land on the grass. Unfortunately for him, he gets stuck into a small space between the tree trunk and the branch. The wagon is released from him as he tries to get free.
The five inside the necklace sit up to see Hamuel's eye staring down at them from the jewel. "Okay...either we've somehow been magically shrunk down and imprisoned inside the shell pendant..." Rapunzel doesn't finish her sentence.
"Or...?" Catalina asks curiously.
"Or...yeah, sorry, I was hoping I'd think of something more positive-sounding by the time I finished that thought, but I've got nothing."
The two girls give a look of sadness. "It's okay, it's okay. We'll find a way out of here," She gets onto her feet. "We have been in much worse situations...definitely not weirder, but worse."
"I'm covered in mud, I got bruised, and now we're stuck inside here. Worst. Day. Ever," Harmony narrows her eyes in annoyance. "But really, sis? We've been stuck inside a mirror, turned into birds, got stranded on an island for 6 weeks with tiny leaf people-"
"Okay, yes, all of that happened to us," Rapunzel agrees with her sister.
"Wait, what?" Kiera asks them in confusion.
"Long stories, haven't gotten that far yet," Harmony waves it off for them to discuss it another time.
"What have I ever done to deserve this?!" Kiera asks in agony.
"D-Didn't you steal from...you know, dozens of people?"
"Vari!" Harmony scolds him slightly.
"Oh, right...we're doomed," She throws a pillow at his face, causing Harmony to laugh. He catches it and is about to throw it when Rapunzel takes it out of his hands.
"Chin up, guys. I get Max and the others are already on their way to get help," She smiles softly at the girls. "I'm sure we will be free in no time."
"If they don't tear each other apart first," Harmony whispers to Varian. Max is trying to get free from his spot, Hamuel flying into the tree. Daisy flies over to him, trying to pull him out, but he's a 1,200 pound horse...
Hamuel caws again to get Daisy's attention, a rose in his mouth as flamenco music plays. She stares at him blankly as he hops closer to her, and she pushes him away.
Ruddiger chitters in laughter over Max's situation, Daisy chirping at him in anger, blaming him for their situation. Max tries again to pull himself out, Dwayne arriving back.
"Say, Princesses, do you think I could catch a lift back into-" He sees the pendant on the ground, looking towards the animals, who are too distracted to notice him. "Aha..." He takes it into his hands, grinning widely.
Max, with some struggle, finally manages to get himself out, landing right on Ruddiger. Daisy chirps in laughter, pointing to the raccoon. The horse looks around and sees that the shell pendant with their friends inside is now gone.
He sits up and walks off, Pascal and Ruddiger squished onto his bottom. They land on the grass, looking to the spot where the necklace was. Max and Ruddiger start sniffing around to locate them, the horse finding some footprints heading forward. He whinnies, pointing in that direction. He turns to Pascal and they both smile. Pascal looks to Ruddiger, who finds footprints from his end, pointing in the other direction. Max looks to the raccoon, who insists on his way. The chameleon looks to the horse, who whinnies for them to go his way. Pascal and Daisy look between the two, conflicted on where to go as the two point to their way.
The horse and raccoon storm up to each other, butting heads over it as Pascal and Daisy push them slightly apart. Max whinnies and goes his way. Ruddiger crosses his arms stubbornly, Pascal shrugging and pointing forward. Max can literally track anything with his nose, so it would make sense to go his way...
Daisy flies after them since it was better to be a team than to be split apart and get lost. Ruddiger chitters in surprise that they're not following him. He chitters in defeat, following after them with a deep frown on his face.
But it turns out that Ruddiger was correct as Dwayne is in his direction. He's wearing the pendant as he chuckles.
"Swiped it from right under their noses. Stupid animals. Serves 'em right. I hate animals." He comes face-to-face with a vulture, cringing. "Not birds, though. I love birds! Especially giant, scary birds," He shakes a bit, the vulture screeching. He runs away from it.
Rapunzel is standing at the bottom as Varian is standing on her shoulders, then Kiera on his shoulders, and finally Catalina. It's already enough for her to reach the top, and if Harmony joined, she'd be pressing against the ceiling. The teenage girl is standing next to her sister, looking up at the small chain.
"Well? What can you see?" Rapunzel asks Catalina, who's looking out the gem.
"Um...it looks like we're moving."
"W-Where is Max taking us?" Varian couldn't help but ask. Catalina moves her eyes upwards and groans at the sight.
"Max isn't the one carrying us." She knows it's him because of his nose and hair. "Dwayne is."
"...Ugh, nooo," Harmony pinches her nose at this news. Out of all of the people they got stuck with, it had to be him...
He reaches the river and a raft, standing onto it. "Hey, Catalina? Do you think you could push that jewel out of its setting?" Rapunzel calls out.
"Oh yeah, good idea, good idea," Varian agrees with her. "If you can, you might able to squeeze through that opening."
"I can try," She tries pushing it. "It's in there pretty good!"
"Do you have your arrows?" Varian looks to Harmony, who shakes her head no.
"No, I left those in the wagon when we got sucked in."
"Maybe you could use your black rocks to pierce through it," Rapunzel turns to the girl. She frowns a bit in worry, crossing her arms.
"But that could be dangerous to use inside a small space!" She looks up at the girls, not wanting to hurt them as she holds her left hand protectively.
"You can at least try!" Kiera turns her head around.
Max follows the footprints, the chameleon and raccoon trailing after him. Both of them look exhausted since it was a long path, but Daisy doesn't since she has wings. They continue forward, looking towards the horse as he points past the bushes. He pushes past them, expecting to find the thief, but he only finds a boot. They inspect the shoe, and it starts moving on its own. Hamuel emerges from it, cawing as he hops forward...making the same footprints they've been following.
Daisy turns red in anger for him wasting their time, swooping after him. She tackles him onto the ground, the other animals cringing as they look on. Smacks are heard and then Daisy sweeps her hands, leaving a beat-up Hamuel and the boot tied all over his body. However, he seems to like her even more.
Ruddiger starts arguing with Max, since he thinks it's his fault. Pascal follows the path, finding the river. He also finds Dwayne with the pendant!
He squeaks at the three, trying to get their attention. They see the pendant and Max throws Ruddiger onto his tail, running down the path to follow Dwayne. Daisy takes off after them in flight. He doesn't see them because his eyes are closed. Max runs onto a rock, landing back on the grass. He jumps over a bush as he speeds up, crawling underneath a branch. He suddenly skids to a stop as he reaches a different path from the river...which Max can't cross on his own. Dwayne ends up going to the right and they could only stare.
Max narrows his eyes in determination.
"Alright...Catalina, duck your head as much as you can," Harmony instructs and the red-haired girl tilts her head out of the way. She takes a deep breath and focuses her power to create a black rock from the ceiling to touch the glass, causing it to tilt up a little. "I did it!"
"Great job, Harmi! Catalina, can you fit?"
"I'll try," She smiles, reaching out her hand. However, it's human-sized fingers that go through the jewel. Dwayne notices it and stands up in alarm, the pendant flying off his neck and landing behind him. Catalina moves her hand back and he slides back, thinking it was gonna attack him.
Catalina looks at her fingers and then at the jewel. Dwayne stares down at the pendant.
They sit around in boredom, Varian having wrapped himself in the curtain. He lands near Harmony upside down and sees a plaque in front of him.
"Guys, look!" He gets onto his feet, helping his girlfriend up. "Wow, t-this appears to be some sort of ancient chirography. Yeah, Minotion, perhaps? No, no, maybe early Saporian?"
Rapunzel eyes the words, slightly leaning on his head. "Uh, you're looking at it upside down."
"...Oh. Right. Of course."
Harmony giggles at him and he blushes in embarrassment, the girl joining her sister's side. "You are now prisoner of the shell. To escape its curse, you must return it to the briny deep of the sea, or remain inside it evermore."
"Uh, how can we return the shell to the sea when we're stuck inside of it?" Catalina asks in disbelief.
"If someone else got trapped in here for them to make a plaque, then it doesn't necessarily mean the sea," Harmony points at the inscription, rubbing her chin. "I think what happens is we just have to put it in a body of water, and that'll free us!"
"...I've said it before, and I'll say it again. We're doomed!" Kiera cries out the last two words.
"Hey, don't forget that doom upside down is whoop! And while you think about that...think about this!" She stands up bravely. "Our friends are still out there. Max is the best tracker in Corona. And he's probably on Dwayne's trail as we speak."
"And Pascal is really, really, smart," Catalina adds in, smiling.
"Plus Ruddiger can be surprisingly resourceful," Varian jumps onto a pillow.
"And Daisy is the only girl, she wouldn't let that stop her," Harmony shrugs a little with a small smile.
"Are you sure?" Varian chuckles at her in amusement.
"Well, you're the only boy in here," She smirks, crossing her arms and earning a small pout in return.
"...Anybody wanna say anything nice about that crow?" Kiera asks after a few seconds. The others look away awkwardly, Varian whistling to break the silence, but it does nothing to help...
Dwayne is still drifting down the path, Max still on him. He looks up ahead and sees a vine, getting an idea. He whinnies and grabs onto it, pulling it from the tree. He sees Dwayne going past and speeds up. He pulls the vine with his mouth, sending Daisy, Pascal, and Ruddiger to a branch on the other side. Daisy jumps off as the two land face-first into the tree, sliding onto the grass. They turn around to glare at the horse, who simply pulls. Daisy joins the two as they pull at opposite sides. Dwayne's foot touches it, but the three animals are not strong enough to get him into the water. They're pulled along with the rope and land face-first into a rock, sliding into the water.
The three come out soaking wet, annoyed looks on their faces.
"Who's the guy who stole from the Princesses?" Dwayne sings a little song to himself as he's making a fire. "It's Dwayne, yeah! It's Dwayne?"
Rapunzel sighs as they're exploring the room. "No trapdoors, no secret passages, not even a hidden compartment." She scoffs at this. "What kind of enchanted talisman is this?"
"The kind where people can't escape it on their own," Harmony rolls her eyes.
"Looks like we're gonna be here for the rest of our lives," Kiera turns to everyone.
"I call this couch!" Catalina jumps onto an orange couch. "Hey, maybe it won't be that bad after all-" She pulls out a bird skeleton from behind her back. "Ew." She smirks as it fits right in her hand and she holds it out to Varian's face. "Hi, roomie! My name's Scully! I got a bone to pick with you!"
"Catalina," Harmony chuckles at this.
"Let me try!" Kiera runs up to her.
"Why? You wanna tickle everybody's funny bone?"
"M-Maybe don't play with the disgusting skeleton," Varian holds up a finger.
"He's just pessimistic because of that one time he saw a skeleton in the underground tunnels of the castle," Harmony smiles in amusement.
"Hey, in my defense...it was a skeleton in a dark tunnel."
She snickers towards her boyfriend, Rapunzel shushing them. "Scully, shh. Do you hear that?"
"Who's gonna steal the necklace for a fortune? Dwayne is! That's me. I say D-w-a-n...uh, I mean, D-w-a-y-n-e!" He sings as he's heating up a sausage. It's now gotten dark as the stars and moon are out.
"What kind of nitwit spells his name wrong?" Harmony shakes her head at this. "Can't believe we're even listening to this…"
"Oh brother..." Kiera drags a hand down her face from the singing.
"Guys, don't you get it?" Rapunzel smiles, walking up to the couch underneath the jewel. "If we can hear him, he can hear us." She bends down and picks up a megaphone. "We just need to make our voices louder. Hello!"
Dwayne freezes in place at the voice, looking around in fear. "Is someone there?"
"Listen, you bone-headed weasel!" Kiera says into the megaphone next.
"Angry, give it back," Rapunzel orders her.
"Who's Angry? Give what back?" Dwayne demands, but they don't hear him.
"We are not going to get him to bring us to the sea by insulting him," Rapunzel states to the girl.
"Kiera," Harmony says in a warning tone.
"Wait..." Dwayne replies slowly as he remembers what Rapunzel said. "Insult who?"
"Yeah, something tells me he's not gonna do it if we ask him nicely either," Varian tells the others.
"You're right," Rapunzel agrees with him. "DWAYNE!" She says his name in a spooky voice and he thinks it's from the sausage. "This is your subconscious."
"S-Sub...what now?"
"You're gonna have to dumb it down for him. It's Dwayne," Harmony whispers to her sister.
"Oh, right, right. Your subconscious...you know, your inner-most self? That little voice in your head?"
"I don't understand," Dwayne answers in confusion.
"Just listen!" Rapunzel yells at him and he moves his head away in fear. "You need to drop the pendant into the sea..."
"Well, why?!" He looks at the necklace. "This thing is worth a fortune."
"Not gonna steal again my behind, the liar," Harmony huffs, crossing her arms.
"It is...uh, but it's a, uh, a magic pendant! If you throw it into the sea, it will grow...uh, ten times as big, and be worth SO much more."
"Uhh, I don't know," He looks at the sausage skeptically.
"Uh, might be time for some reverse psychology," Rapunzel whispers to the others.
"I don't think forward psychology would work on this dimwit," Kiera gestures to the gem.
"Harmi, did you know Dwayne when you were in the castle?" The blonde turns to her sister.
"I know of him. If you're gonna get him to do what we want, you have to trick him into it. He was probably the least sharpest in the shed according to Papa. Here's what you gotta say," Harmony leans in towards her sister and starts whispering into her ear. Rapunzel nods in agreement as she listens to the brunette.
"Got it. You're right, Dwayne. Don't do it. Let the lucky crook you sell it to do it. That way, he can get rich."
"Why, that back-stabbing jerk!" Dwayne grits his teeth. "No one double crosses Dwayne!" He storms off, tossing the sausage into the fire.
"Huh. That actually worked," Varian comments slowly, glancing to his girlfriend. "How'd you know that he'd fall for it?"
"A friend...used to tell me stories of when the guards back in Corona tricked him using methods like that," She rubs her arm awkwardly. "They aren't exactly hard to pull off with someone of his intelligence."
By friend, she meant Cass…
"Sorry about your clothes, though," Rapunzel frowns at her dress.
"That's okay," She sighs at her still-dirty attire. "I have spares in the wagon..."
"Can we at least do something about that hair, though?" Kiera points to Harmony's wild-looking and mud stained hair.
"Come on, girls," Rapunzel pushes her away. "It's time we give her a makeover. We might as well do something for her while we wait."
"Oh boy..." The girl sweats a bit.
Max is still tracking Dwayne and the pendant, Hamuel resting on his saddle. Ruddiger, Pascal, and Daisy join the two as they see Dwayne up ahead. He stops at the edge of the cliff, taking off the pendant.
"That's it, Dwayne. You're almost there," Rapunzel encourages the petty thief and since the animals can't hear her, they think he's going to throw it in willingly. And unfortunately, they're not aware of what will happen when the pendant goes into the water...
Max turns around to the sand. He draws out a plan with his hoof that involves him using a vine from a tree to kick Dwayne over the edge, leaving the pendant to them. It also ends with the three animals praising him for his 'brilliant' plan. Ruddiger pushes him out of the way and erases the last part. He adds him stomping on Dwayne to get the pendant.
Max neighs in disapproval, stomping on the drawing. Pascal draws him and Daisy being annoyed as their cross their arms, both in drawing and in real life. The trio walk away from Max, eyeing Dwayne from the distance. The water is just below the cliff as he raises a hand.
"Oh! He's actually doing it!" Catalina exclaims as she and Kiera finish with Harmony's dress. Rapunzel moves away from her hair to reveal a shiny, clean dress and Harmony's hair in a nice, side-swept braid. Varian looks at her in amazement.
"Thanks, girls," She smiles, hugging her surrogate daughters. Rapunzel smiles at everyone as Dwayne is about to drop it when the three animals rush up to him. Max is still trying to come up with a plan when he notices them and whinnies. Hamuel caws nearby, Pascal crawling up Dwayne. He turns invisible and lands on it, sliding down the chain. He peeks through the gem.
"Oh! Be careful, Pascal," Rapunzel warns him, but Dwayne had heard her.
"Pascal? My name's Dwayne." He stares at the pendant. "I'm becoming to think you're not my sub...my sub...t-that thing you said."
Pascal reveals himself sheepishly and the man freaks out. He tries to shake the chameleon off and finally throws him onto the stone. Ruddiger runs up to him, grabbing onto his arm as Daisy flies around him. He pushes them onto the ground and Max huffs in annoyance. He runs up to Dwayne, who moves out of the way and jumps on rocks from the cliff. Max stares down at the rock, which he can't jump on.
He turns around and whinnies angrily at Ruddiger for not following his lead. The horse runs onto the grass and gets onto lower ground. Dwayne is hiding behind a rock as the horse notices. He steps up slowly, using his nose to follow the scent.
Ruddiger, Pascal, and Daisy come in, bumping into him as they were planning on rolling into Dwayne. The thief runs off with a laugh.
"That's right," He holds up the necklace. "No dumb animal is ever gonna catch Dwayne!"
Daisy chirps at him furiously, about to attack when the vulture from before swoops in and grabs him. The bird flies off with Dwayne and the pendant.
"Wow. Did not see that coming," Rapunzel comments to the others.
"Serves Dwayne right for hating on animals, but...I really wish we didn't get stuck with him," Harmony closes her eyes as she sits up, crossing her arms.
Max turns to the shocked animals, Daisy taking off after them. However, she quickly loses sight of them about 2,000 feet in the air. She flies back to the others dejectedly. Max snorts at the two, and they start arguing, even though they're not speaking. They start blaming each other for everything that's happened until they've decided they've had enough. Max walks off in one direction, Pascal and Ruddiger going off in the other. Daisy blows a raspberry towards them, flying off in the last direction. Hamuel flies in and hits the ground.
It starts to rain as it seems hopeless that the animals will work together to save their friends...Thunder strikes as Max looks up to the sky. He brings his head down to look at his reflection through the puddle, his ears drooping. He walks past the puddle, slowly stepping past the water dejectedly.
Ruddiger is in a tree, soaking wet as an apple hangs nearby. He looks up at it, remembering what happened earlier before their friends got stuck. Raindrops fall onto the apple to give off the image of a horse...it quickly fades away and Ruddiger covers his eyes with his tail.
A raindrop falls from a leaf, falling onto the leaf umbrella Pascal was using. He's attempting to block the rain from him as the raindrop falls onto the small fire he had made, leaving him essentially without cold. He turns blue in sadness.
Daisy is in the grass, walking around sadly. It's almost similar to where she lost her mother...she looks up at the water, frowning sadly with a chirp. Her tiny webbed stop as she looks behind her, recalling everything that had happened today. She ducks her head and kneels, laying down in the mud like Harmony was covered in.
Hamuel has his beak open as he stands on a branch, filling his whole body up with rain water for...some reason. The rain suddenly stops and he closes his beak, waddling onto the branch with his body jiggling from the full belly. Nearby Hamuel, Dwayne is in a vulture's nest.
"Don't eat me! I'm probably all gristle!" Dwayne tugs at his glove. He looks at the nest and sees a bunch of vulture babies. The vulture mother coughs up a worm...for the human to eat. "What? You want me to eat that?"
She nods at him, offering the worm again. "Thanks, but I-I'm not really a worm guy..."
"Looks like we can officially count the animals out of our rescue plan," Kiera comments as she's at the top now.
"Guys, my sister and I have been in a lot of situations like this. Well," Rapunzel chuckles a little. "Not like this. I mean, how often does a person get stuck inside a trinket? But...the important thing is we can never give up hope on our friends."
Max looks at the water sadly.
"Max is a top-notch guard. He just needs to learn that a great leader has to listen, as well as give orders."
He lays down sadly on the guards. He looks up and notices beavers working together at their dam.
"In other words, he has to learn how to play well with others. They all do. Each one of those guys has something special about them."
Max smiles as he realizes that he needs to learn about teamwork.
"Pascal may be small, but he's mighty."
Pascal has the leaf over himself, frowning. "And...also adorable."
He hears a whinny, looking up to see Max landing in front of him. He smiles at his friend, licking his face. Pascal smiles at the contact, turning green again. Max wags his tail and lets Pascal crawl onto his head. He runs off to go find the others.
"And Ruddiger is cunning, and loyal."
Ruddiger is hanging from a tree as he looks up ahead and sees them arriving. Max kicks the tree to get two apples down instead of just one. Ruddiger chitters happily at Max, and the three have officially made up. Pascal waves for him to climb on and he does so. The raccoon gives the horse an apple, and together, they eat one. Max runs up onto the grass.
Daisy is looking at the water.
"Daisy is brave and optimistic. She's feisty, and never leaves a friend behind."
She hears Max, turning around as he slides to a stop. He nuzzles her cheek and she chirps happily, hugging his snout with her wings. She flies up to Pascal, giving him a high five before landing in front of Ruddiger.
"If they could just come together, they would be unstoppable!"
Max runs up ahead, jumping over a rock.
"I couldn't help but notice you forgot to mention the crow," Kiera points out as Varian jumps off Rapunzel's shoulders.
"Oh, I didn't forget!" She smiles sheepishly.
"But Princess, even if those guys got their acts together...how would they find us all the way up here?" Catalina looks around.
"We lost them back there with the vulture, there's no way Max could track that," Harmony gestures to outside.
"You're right..." She looks around at the curtains, examining one. "Did you say your finger was normal-sized when it was outside the shell?'
Catalina nods, wiggling her finger.
Max sniffs the ground, the other three keeping an eye out. The horse looks up, wondering where he'll find them...
"Great idea, Princess!" Varian lifts up his goggles, holding a make-shift lantern with vials attached to it. "Nothing like a little alchemical pizzazz to get their attention." Harmony walks up to him and holds the other side of the lantern. He looks up at her and smiles. She smiles back and together, they release the lantern, just like Eugene and Rapunzel had done when she first saw them.
"Aww," Rapunzel places her hands on her cheeks. It's as if she's reliving the moment, and yet seeing it at the same time. Varian wraps an arm around Harmony as they watch it leave the gem (Harmony propped it open again).
I ship them so much!
The lantern turns normal sized, joining two others as they explode into fireworks.
They hear the sound and look up to see the sight. Ruddiger adjusts his hands to zoom in, seeing the lanterns are coming from the pendant. He beams and moves his hands so that Max can see. He whinnies, taking off with the three. They reach the pendant as it's above their heads.
Max looks to his right and sees a tall tree with no leaves or branches. He drops the three so that he can draw a new plan. He'd jump onto the log with the two on it so that they can reach the nest. Daisy would fly to the pendant while Pascal and Ruddiger would be a distraction. If she flew up there now, the vulture would notice and attack her.
Ruddiger erases some of it so that Max would jump off a ledge instead, which would guarantee them to land near the pendant. He smiles, nodding in agreement at the plan. He kicks the tree so that it lands on a rock, acting as a seesaw. Ruddiger jumps onto it, Pascal joining him. Pascal gestures for them to sit straight, leaving Ruddiger a little skeptical. Daisy gives Max the signal to jump and he does so. The two are sent flying, landing right in front of the pendant.
"It's Ruddiger and Pascal!" Rapunzel exclaims happily.
"Hey!" Varian cheers at this.
"Yes!"
Ruddiger reaches out to grab it, noticing Dwayne with the vulture family. Which was something they hadn't expected in their plan...
"Oh thank goodness. You gotta help me, burglar cat!" Dwayne reaches out to them. The vulture flies out of the next, screeching at them. Ruddiger tilts, falling off the edge.
"No! Ruddiger!" Varian shouts, the two sisters gasping. The vulture smiles...until Ruddiger arrives with Hamuel flying him, to her shock. Ruddiger looks to the bird, who caws. He blows a raspberry to the vulture, and they guide her away from the next.
"Oh, we're doomed..."
Pascal, who was disguised as a rock, comes out of hiding, crawling up the branch. Daisy lands in front of them. "Varian, wait! Wait, wait. This is part of their plan." Pascal holds up the pendant to his eyes, Rapunzel laughing in relief. She gasps at someone behind him. "Dwayne..."
Daisy notices him trying to get the pendant, the babies holding him back. The duckling flies up and pecks at him. He howls in pain from her sharp beak, falling onto the edge. Pascal falls off, Hamuel flying over to him, but the vulture chases them away. Daisy looks over the edge, and unfortunately, she's not fast enough to catch him...
Suddenly, Pascal stops in place before he could hit the rock. "Nice shot, Rapunzel," Kiera calls out.
"I gotta admit, that was pretty close," Rapunzel comments as her hair is gripping onto a rock above. Pascal and Max hug in relief, looking up to see the other three animals to see their dilemma. Daisy is chasing after the vulture, who's chasing Hamuel and Ruddiger. He notices the log and quickly gets an idea.
Hamuel dives down, Ruddiger looking over his shoulder. Daisy bumps into the vulture, who smacks her away. She chirps in alarm, stopping in place and looking up ahead. Hamuel narrows his eyes at the vulture for what she did, circling around it. Max neighs to get their attention, and they turn to see Pascal flashing yellow rapidly. Max points to him and Ruddiger looks down to Hamuel. He caws in understanding, turning around and heading backwards. He flies through the log and the vulture falls for it. They emerge from the other side as Max kicks the log so that the vulture hits rock instead.
She falls onto the floor and gives up, flying away. Daisy joins them as Ruddiger lands on the horse's saddle. Hamuel emerges with the pendant in his beak. Daisy nuzzles him in thanks for his bravery and he caws bashfully.
...Then he leans in for a kiss from her and she smacks him away.
Max finally reaches the water again, the pendant in his mouth. He tosses it into the water and it it's the bottom. The necklace glows as light emerges from the gem, releasing Rapunzel onto the water first. The others follow, Varian landing on the water as they all smile. Max neighs happily, running around them in victory.
"You did it!" Rapunzel hugs them, followed by Harmony. Daisy chirps happily at her friend and Harmony giggles, poking the duckling's belly.
"I missed you too, Daisy."
"Wahoo! I knew this trip was gonna be good for you guys," Rapunzel smiles at the animals. They nod in agreement, Ruddiger covering Max's mouth. He smiles sheepishly as Max shakes his head. The raccoon holds up an apple and the horse smiles as they give off into a playful chase. Hamuel follows after them.
"Well, it looks like it was a happy ending for everyone," Catalina states as the five follow. "Right Scully? You can say that again!"
"Catalina, you are not keeping that thing," Harmony tells her. The red-haired girl just giggles.
"By the way...anyone see what happened to Dwayne?"
They stop walking, turning to each other. Harmony sighs slowly as she starts walking in the other direction, sagging her shoulders.
"Come on, let's go get him..."
It turns out that he's still stuck in the vulture's nest, with no way to get down safely. "So...you gonna finish that worm?"