Chapter Fourteen

Madeline knocked carefully on the door of the mansion. “Varian?” she whispered, as if she could only summon him using the smallest amount of force possible. “Vee?” she said hushingly.

She could swear she heard heartbroken sobs inside, but it soon cut off and the door was opened. His eyes were hard and red, from lack of sleep or crying Madeline did not know. Probably both. He was scowling, fists clenched, and Madeline automatically took a step back.

His eyes softened ever so slightly when he saw her. “Maddie,” he said, “you shouldn’t have come.”

She tenderly placed a hand on his shoulder. “I’m not leaving you. Let me see.”

“Maddie-”

“Please,” she whispered. “I need to know.”

He opened the door, letting her step in. Walking across the room, he pulled a blanket off a large, yellow, crystalline structure. Madeline gasped and burst into tears.

“I know,” he whispered. “I covered it up because it was too much to look at.”

Madeline crouched down, placing her hands on the amber encasing her godfather. “So it did consume him,” she whispered.

He nodded sadly. “I couldn't stop it. And it's all Rapunzel’s fault!” he yelled.

She jerked up, wiping her tears. “Raps? Why?” she asked.

“I went to her for help, she refused, had her guards drag me out-”

She grabbed his shoulders. “Vee, please!” she begged. “Start from the beginning.”

He took a deep breath. “I ran for help, through the snow… I made it to the palace. I begged Rapunzel for help, she had promised-” He broke off, crying. She put an arm around him.

“It’s going to be okay,” she whispered.

“It’s not, it's not-”

“Shh,” she said. “You’re not thinking straight, you need some sleep.”

“Maddie, there’s something I have to tell you-”

“Sleep, first,” she said, taking him upstairs to his bedroom.

Once he had laid down, Madeline went back downstairs. A workbench caught her eye- on it was a sketch of the princess. It had some yellow powder smeared over it- and the powder seemed familiar to her, drawing her to it. Something golden and crumbled to the left caught her gaze, and she picked it up. Somehow, she knew they were the remnants of the Sundrop flower- the flower that was supposed to be locked in the royal vault.

She scanned the room, desperate for a sign. She laid eyes on his journal, and picked it up. She grew only more horrified as she went through the book, until she stumbled backwards into a table covered in beakers. They were empty, thankfully, but they hit the ground with a clash.

Seconds later, Varian rushed into the room. “Maddie!” he yelled, helping her up. “Are you okay?”

“No,” she said, holding up the journal. “I’m not.”

“Where did you-”

“How could you?” she asked. “You put dangerous truth potion in cookies, you tricked the princess- the one person who could’ve help you, by the way- you stole one of the most powerful objects on the planet, and now-” she threw the diary at him- “you’re planning to kidnapped the Queen in revenge?”

“Madeline…” he said, “I’m doing what I have to.”

“No,” she said, stumbling backward into the table again, sending a few more beakers to the floor. “No…”