Chapter 30: Out of the Sick Room

Back with a new chapter. I hope people are doing well around. I can't believe I have spent so many chapters on a single day. I'm glad you liked Caterpillar's pow, singertobe, I couldn't help myself. Pete and cat. I just love how they portrait animals in this series. You know AiLinhD, you might have given me an idea for later. Hope you guys enjoy this part as well.

Arianna weren't able to hold back a moan when she finally reached the doors to the Physician's quarters. Her heels were killing her, and she found she was rather exhausted, both in mind and body. Handling Varian in the garden alone had been a strain by itself, but trying to distract their sudden guests and please the distressed niece of hers had been such a task for her that she wasn't sure how she had managed at all.

On her way she had met several other guards and informed them that there were no longer necessary to search for Varian as he had been found, and the guards were relieved to learn this. Of course this took it's time as they were eager for details, but since she had none to give, she just ordered them to find the Captain and tell him to come to the physician's quarters as fast as he could. But it wasn't the easiest task as the Captain could be anywhere in the Castle by now, looking for Ruddiger. Then she had to give the information to servants passing by, who had heard many confusing news about Varian's escape. It sent shivers down her spine to think of how a rumor could spread this fast and cause confusion.

But now, standing by the door, she suddenly realized the reason she was here. And that very reason itself made her freeze of pure fright. If Varian really was on the other side... According to the young maid Karen, Phineas had been treating a wounded boy, and as she had seen Daniel unharmed, it was rather obvious who the other boy had been. She found herself struggling just taking the handle of the door. If Varian was the wounded boy, and he was under treatment, it would mean that he was less likely to mean any danger. On the other hand...

You're a horrible mother...

She gasped as the voice from her dreams strafed through her memory at sudden, and made her take a step back from the door, losing her shoes on the floor in the process. Panting at sudden, she grabbed a hold on the bodice of her dress and cringed it a moment.

She sighed heavily, upgiven by her own fear. Deep inside there was a part of her that felt deep pity for the boy after everything he had gone through, and she realized at sudden that equally being afraid of him, she was dreadfully worried for him. How bad was it with him really? If it was so bad that the physician were allowed to treat him, it would certainly explain why Daniel had been near him without being harmed. But the thought that he had been harmed this much made her heart beat faster. Rapunzel would never forgive them if something happened to him. For deep inside she didn't want to hurt him, but she had been so scared of him that...

Her thoughts were disturbed by the sound of someone approaching from her left. It was like she heard it from far distance, lost in thoughts as she were, but they were getting closer. She immediately recognized Nigel's voice, and the other one sounded like Violet. They were arguing, and at first Arianna rolled her eyes, but then their words caught her attention, and she turned to face them.

"Nigel, I am more convinced than ever that you are in dire a holyday." Violet's determinant voice said.

"How dare you even persuade that?" the slender advisor said insulted while frowning as they walked. "What I am giving you here is pure fact."

Violet stopped and put her hands on her hips while giving him a glare. "I refuse to believe that Varian is that dangerous prisoner you've been chasing all day. Just the thought itself is completely ridiculous."

The advisor returned the action and gave him a steady look back. "Well, it happens to be that he is, as well as the same person who attacked the Princess, sent that monster on the Castle, kidnapped the Queen AND almost had her murdered. And I hope you can assure me that he is still in the sick room where you left him."

"Phineas is taking care of him, and you know how he is with patients. And I doubt he has been able to walk by his own if he tried."

"We must act fast! We must put up guards outside the door to the physician's quarter. We cannot take any risks."

"Aren't you overreacting now, Nigel?" Violet rolled her eyes. "I told you, the boy is no danger, least of all in THAT condition. I..." It was then she discovered Arianna by the doors. "Oh, Your Majesty!"

"My Queen!" Nigel were about to hurry over to them when Arianna came first and raised her hand towards them. Nigel almost stumbled when he stopped.

"Try not to make such commotion. Let me hear what this is about! Violet..." She turned to the maid. "What is it you're talking about?"

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As soon as Fredric opened the door and peeked through it, the sound of sore sobbing made them all silent. He spotted the young maid weeping into the old Blacksmith's comfortable embrace as he stroke a hand over her back.

"Karen!" Varian almost whispered, as he caught the sound of her crying from the bed. Ruddiger looked at him, recognizing her voice, and the boy and the raccoon exchanged desperate looks.

Fredric hurried to close the door gently again and looked back at the Physician.

"I bet Xavier has made her aware of the danger of what we just spoke." Phineas said. "And I wouldn't be surprised if she got terrified of Varian's reaction earlier. She's a sensitive little girl, so... one or the other."

"Oh no..." Varian bit his bottom lip and clenched his hands. The thought that he was the one who had made her cry made him feel horrible, and he forgot all about his condition and hunger. Ruddiger placed a par on his arm to comfort him, but he barely noticed.

"I will go and see what the problem is." Fredric said and was about to opened the door again when Varian spoke again.

"Eh... Your Majesty, wait!"

Fredric stopped and looked back at him.

"Please don't be mad at her! It was my fault alone, and she doesn't deserve to be punished because of me!" He got on his knees on the bed and folded his hands, looking at him with huge, blue begging eyes. "Please don't be mad at her, don't give her any trouble?! I swear, I'd never forgive myself!" He begun biting his bottom lips, making his huge front teeth visible and make him look younger than he was.

For a moment Fredric lot a bit lost looking at him, and it struck him once again how innocent he appeared now compared to what he had been during lunch. Was this really the same Varian he was looking at? Before he had blamed every single being around him for his misery, and now he was begging for the innocence of someone he barely knew? But he kept his thoughts to himself and gave him a calming smile.

"Why, of course I won't give Karen any trouble at all. After all, it was merely an accident, and nothing to make any commotion about. And I shall tell her myself, so don't worry."

Varian let out a heavy sigh of relief and put his hands down. "Alright, I... I guess I should trust His Majesty."

Hearing these words made Fredric feel moved, and he had trouble gathering himself as he was about to turn away again. "I... I am glad you do. And you!" he looked at Ruddiger while pointing at him. The raccoon got a bit disturbed for a moment, but then the King spoke. "You make sure he stays in bed till he's well! Can I rely on you?"

Ruddiger immediately responded by standing up straight at his back paws, and gave the King a short salute with his right paw and made a short croon. Varian arched an eyebrow at him, finding his friend's behavior peculiar, while the raccoon found it rather satisfying that the King put his trust in him.

Fredric on his side felt a tad more relieved. Perhaps there is hope after all, he thought as he turned back to the physician. "Phineas, I will send for you once I... get the time. There are many things I have to discuss with you."

"Alright, Your Majesty." The old man folded his hands and bowed humbly to him. "But with His Majesty's permission, I insist on finishing what I have started." He discreetly pointed with his eyes towards the boy in bed.

"Of course!" Fredric nodded back. Then he opened the door again and went walked into the reception room, followed by Lars, who gave Varian an encouraging smile as he left.

"What was that about?" Varian asked the old man once they were alone.

"Oh, nothing. I have been gone for quite a while, and I need an update at things here." Then he sat down at the bed next to him. "Now that we're alone, let's have the rest of you properly examinated, just to be on the safe side, what?"

"Eh... If you say so." Varian blushed and bit his bottom lip again.

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Xavier sat on one of the wooden boxes he had brought in and held his huge arms around the young maid as she cried into his chest. At this moment she was completely inconsolable and her hitched sobs were the only sound in the room.

"I...I didn't mean... I didn't know I made it worse..." she sniffled and gasped over eachother.

"Now, that's alright, lassie. You couldn't know." the old man said with deep, soothing voice. "There there now." He looked up as he became aware of the door opening, and saw the King and Prince Lars enter through it. "Oh, Your Majesty..." it slipped out of him in surprise.

Karen suddenly got all stiff and rose and turned around, covering her running nose and twisted mouth while bowing her head to hide her red, still watery eyes.

"Now, is everything alright?" His Majesty asked gently as he looked at her with concerning eyes. "Karen, dear?"

The girl sniffed behind her hands and tried to swallow before stuttering. "I'm sorry... I didn't mean..." her voice broke, and she gasped deeply before trying again. "It was all my fault! I hurt him so bad and then..." The words came out louder than she intended, and shamefully she lowered her head and hid her face in her hands again.

Lars stepped over to her smiled gently. "Listen now, dear. Varian is feeling allot better now. Phineas took care of it, and all he's safe now. And he's very sorry for scaring you. But we shouldn't try to force him to remember anymore. He just needs a break, that's all."

"I'm really sorry... I didn't know I made it worse..." Karen weren't able to stop her sobs or her shoulders from shaking.

Poor lass, Fredric thought to himself. She has been facing a dangerous criminal without even being aware of it, and now she feels bad for making him forget and cause him pain. Suddenly he got the picture of his daughter weeping before her departure, a memory that still haunted him, and now he felt so bad for the young girl that he did something that no one could ever expect a King to do. He knelt down and pulled her into an embrace and begun stroking her back, letting her cry on his shoulder. Lars and Xavier exchanged looks and smiled at the sight, none of them wanting to interfere.

When Fredric spoke at last, he was calm and soothing. "Karen, listen. None of us knew how bad it was with him, so we're not angry at you at all. And neither is Varian. He was so sorry for scaring you like that. He feels so bad you can't imagine."

"But I didn't mean... I didn't know I did something wrong..." she were barely able to utter the words.

"No, you haven't done anything wrong, my dear." Fredric said and got rather thoughtful at sudden. "On the contrary... I think you might have done us a favor..." The King were mumbling more to himself now, and made the young maid rather confused, as she wiped her nose and looked up at him.

"What?"

Fredric coughed and looked up, meeting her questioning eyes, but he responded by wiping her cheek with his fingers before he stood up, lifting her chin to make her face him. "Never mind, dear. But try not to worry now. Everything is going to be fine. Dry your tears now, that's a good girl. Didn't Jonas give you a handkerchief?"

Karen felt rather confused, but found it better to get a grip on herself and turned away to find said handkerchief and wiped her face as best as she could. Then she cleared her throat and looked carefully up at His Majesty. "B-but... he's going to be alright... right?" she asked with horse voice.

"Of course he will." he smiled encouraging at her. "And you, my dear..." he said as he placed a hand on her back, leading her gently towards the doors. "I think you need to go and rest a bit. I give you the rest of the day off, you have done more than enough, and I see no reason to put you through more stress."

"But... Grandma and Aunt Millicent will get furious if I... I mean, the dinner for the guests and..." she turned to Lars and feared a moment he would question her, realizing that she might have given away that things might not be done according to expectations. But the red haired Prince remained calm and smiled.

"Oh, don't you worry, lass." Fredric said and turned to Lars. "You might understand, Lars, that today, nothing has gone according to plan."

Lars gave a dry laughter back and smiled. "Welcome to my world, Your Majesty."

"Hm?" Fredric arched an eyebrow.

Lars followed them as Fredric grabbed the handle at the door. "I owe you an explanation, and I think you will find..."

He stopped as the trio from the reception room became aware of the trio outside. The Queen, Nigel and Karen's Grandmother Violet were in a heated discussion that was impossible to catch the content of. Fredric and Lars exchanged looks before Fredric cleared his throat loudly to get their attention. All tree went silent and turned towards them.

"KAREN!" all three of them cried out loud.

The poor girl got startled and jumped back, instinctively hiding between the King and Lars. She quickly seemed to realize what she did and gave Fredric an excusing look, but he smiled and raised and hand towards the trio that threatened to interrogate her.

"Leave her alone. She doesn't need this right now!"

"Fredric..." Arianna begun.

"Your Majesty, the prisoner..." Nigel begun, but Fredric coughed, making the advisor silent on the spot and his wife freeze in confusion. Arianna too knew this meant he weren't to be argued with.

"Everything will be explained, but not now!" he said in his demanding tone while he lowered his brows and the tune in his voice at the last words. Then he turned to the red haired Prince. "Lars! Bring your brother and meet us in the library as fast as you can! Tell him that I owe him an explanation."

"At once, your Majesty!" Lars said and bowed before he left.

Then Fredric turned to the maid. "Violet, take Karen to her room and let her have the rest of the day off. No further questions! And make sure some leftovers from the lunch is brought to our patient in there."

"Eh... Yes, Your Majesty. " Violet's voice were shaking as she laid a trembling hand around the young girl's shoulders.

"If Your Majesty will excuse me..." Xavier said as he approached behind him and bowed. "I have Phineas' luggage to attend to. I am afraid my poor horse has been standing out there for too long."

"By all means, Xavier. Although, we might need you here for the day, so if you will be available later on, I would be grateful. I'll see to that your horse will get food and water."

"Thank you, Your Majesty!" The blacksmith made another bow before he too took his leave.

"Let go of me, I can walk by myself!" They heard Karen's cross voice respond to the older maid's grip as she was about to lead her away.

"Now young lady!" Nigel crossed his arms. "Is that a way to speak to your grandmother?"

Despite the King's insurance, Karen's day had been dreadful as it was, and now she felt it become too much. She turned back at Nigel, clenching her fists as she cried out loud with a force in her voice no one was used to, not even herself.

"SHE'S NOT MY GRANDMOTHER!"

The sudden outburst made them all silent, and Karen once again broke into tears as she ran away from them, leaving the group of royalties and servants just stand and look after her as she disappeared.

"What was that?" Arianna mumbled and exchanged looks with Nigel, who were a little in shock over her reaction and found himself unable to reply for once, only shrugging back.

"Hm?" Fredric looked after her before turning towards Violet. "What on earth..."

Violet lowered her gaze and sighed. "I... I'm afraid that..."

"FIRE!"

All four turned around to look at Pete, who came running towards them. "The kitchen is on fire! We need water!" He stopped at sudden as he spotted Violet. "Oh, and the Captain want's you back there right now; everything is boiling over!" Then he bowed shortly to the Majesties before he kept on running in a hurry.

"Pete, where are you going?" Arianna cried after her.

"Get water for the fire, Your Majesty!" he cried back and disappeared behind the corner.

"Oh no..." Violet clapped her cheeks with her hands before she lifted her skirts and ran towards the direction of the kitchen, forgetting to bow her way off to the Majesties.

Arianna looked like she was about to faint and Fredric let her lean on him to prevent any potential harm. Nigel gave a loud moan and touched his forehead in a growing headache. "Can this day get any worse?" he lamented.

"I am afraid it can, Nigel." Fredric said.

Arianna looked up at him with questioning green eyes. "What do you mean, dear?"

Fredric cleared his throat. ""Well, where do I begin? I..."he stopped himself as he looked down. "My dear, aren't you wearing any shoes?"