Romance Fan Fiction / Other Fan Fiction ❯ Cassunzel Short Stories ❯ Part 1: Broken ( Chapter 8 )

Rapunzel ran through the darkening forest as fast as she could. She could hear the shouting men not far behind so she didn't dare stop. She was dressed in gray baggy pants and a gray shirt. Her legs hurt, she was exhausted, she was terrified and the gash on her upper felt like hell. But she didn't dare stop. Rapunzel eventually came to a dead end. Breathing hard, she started to panic. They would be there any second. She tried to climb the rocky mountainside but it was no use. She was trapped.

Hearing a snap of twigs behind her, she gasped and spun around. Her emerald green eyes searched the dark clearing but she couldn't see anything. She backed up as far as she could go, eventually hitting the rocky mountain that trapped her, and trembled. Hearing another snapped twig, she closed her eyes and awaited her doom.

"Rapunzel? Is that you?" Rapunzel knew that voice. It.. couldn't be. Slowly opening her eyes, she gasped. There she was. Dressed in warrior attire and a cape, just a couple feet away, she was looking at Rapunzel with worry and confusion. Did she get taller? She looked stronger, older, and absolutely breathtaking. Her hair was a bit longer but not by much and she had a scar grazing her cheek. She looked different but at the same time, she looked the same.

Rapunzel didn't say anything. She couldn't say anything. She was still terrified as she stared back at her long-time best friend. She still visibly trembled. Of course, she wasn't scared of Cassandra, she could never be. She was just shaken up after everything that happened.

"Raps?" Cassandra asked. She had no clue how Rapunzel got halfway around the world, but she could tell the girl had been through some hell. She had never seen Rapunzel look so terrified before. She had never seen Rapunzel tremble before. She looked like a deer caught in headlights. Prey being found. Hell, she had never seen Rapunzel in anything other than a dress. And she was sure as hell that the clothes she was wearing weren't in her fashion statement. She looked pale and a lot skinnier than she remembered. She was about to try to get her attention again, but that's when she noticed the dripping blood coming down from her arm.

Cassandra immediately rushed forward and gently grasped the girl's arm in her hand. "You're hurt!" She frantically searched for some kind of rag on her. Being up close, that's when she noticed the dark purple bruising around her neck. Cassandra snapped her eyes back to Rapunzel's as they darkened was untamed rage. "Who did this?"

Rapunzel looked like she was about to respond but she made a terrified whimper and hid behind Cass as the men she was running from appeared in front of them. They found her. Cassandra was a bit taken back by the sudden movement. Rapunzel was behind her, clutching tightly onto her shirt.

"Hey, you!" Cassandra looked up to see 4 men, all looking disheveled and very, very pissed off. "Move aside, she belongs to us!"

Cassandra stood more protectively in front of Rapunzel as she unsheathed her sword and held it up. "Excuse me? She belongs to no one, much less dirty creatures like you."

One of the men, the leader she guessed, scoffed. "You better be careful what you say, little girl. Move aside and we might not hurt you. We paid a good amount of money for that one and we aren't about to lose it."

Cassandra held her ground. "Who are you?"

"That's none of your concern."

"They're slavers.." She heard Rapunzel's small voice from behind her.

Cassandra's eyes widened. "Stay out of this, bitch!" She heard the leader say. Cassandra's eyes narrowed dangerously.

"Don't talk to her like that, you sick, twisted, no-good, son of a bitch!" Cassandra yelled. Normally, she wouldn't use such language in front of Rapunzel. But she was too mad, and worried, to care.

"I tried to warn you," The leader growled. "Get her boys." Three of the men charged. Cassandra could feel Rapunzel backing up but Cassandra held her ground. Rushing forward, she had the three men unconscious in a matter of seconds. Rapunzel's eyes widened. When did she get so strong?

Cassandra stepped over the fallen men and stalked over to the leader. Any one who was standing on the other side of her would say she looked absolutely terrifying. There was basically a dark, rage-filled aura surrounding her as she treaded forward. The leader started to back up but Cassandra punched him in the face then she grasped his shirt and held him up eye-length. "Who gave her to you?" Her voice was cold, lethal, and dangerous.

The man, with blood pouring down his face, started chuckling. "Maybe you should tell your princess not to walk along at night, hm? No matter, I had fun with her. Started off feisty and ended up pleading beneath me." The man smirked.

Cassandra's blood boiled. With barely contained rage, without looking behind her, she said: "Fidela, get Raps out of here." She did not want to traumatize Rapunzel more than she already was. Fidela made a snorting sound and urged Rapunzel to mount her. Rapunzel did, still shaking.

"C-Cass.." Rapunzel said. She sounded so terrified.

Cassandra turned slightly and her eyes softened. "I won't be far behind, okay?" She said softly. Rapunzel only nodded. Now, that worries her even more. Rapunzel wasn't stupid, she knew what Cassandra was gonna do. The fact that Rapunzel didn't try to stop her from doing just that, worried her to no ends.

No matter, she'll tend to Rapunzel when they are taking care of. She nodded to Fidela as she rode off. Rapunzel tightly grasped onto Fidela's mane, her face buried in the horse's neck, as she heard the scraping of metal not far behind her. Then she heard a sloshing sound.

Fidela had taken Rapunzel to a hidden caravan. It wasn't a big one, not like what they had on their journey 5 years prior, but it was still a decent size. It was a misty black/grayish color with dark blue streaks. It must've been Cass's. Rapunzel got off Fidela and slowly walked towards it. It was then she heard another twig snap from behind her and her eyes widened as she quickly snapped around and held her hands up in defense.

"It's just me!" Cassandra held up her hands to show no harm. "..It's just me." Rapunzel visibly relaxed but before Cassandra could so much as take a step forward, she had a very distressed princess in her arms. Rapunzel was tightly gripping onto her shirt, her face hiding in her chest as she trembled. Cassandra worriedly wrapped her arms around the princess and gently brought them both to the ground as Rapunzel sobbed.

"I'm so glad to see you.." Rapunzel mumbled after some minutes; her voice hoarse and shaky.

Cassandra gently brought them both to their feet as she directed Rapunzel's head to look up at her with her hand under her chin. "Come on, let's get you inside and clean up, okay?" Rapunzel only nodded as Cassandra led them both inside her caravan. The inside wasn't much different from the outside. There were two rooms, a living room, and a kitchen. It was simple. It was all Cassandra.

Cassandra brought them to the living room to gently place Rapunzel on the couch before grabbing a first-aid kit. She then sat in front of Rapunzel and as gently as possible, wiped off the blood from the girl's arm. Rapunzel hissed and Cassandra gave her an apologetic look. Rapunzel gave her an appreciative smile before it dropped and she looked away. Cassandra inspected the cut.

"It's gonna need stitches," Cassandra stated simply. "But there's no doctors anywhere around here, so guess I'm just gonna have to do it." She pulled out some supplies. "This will numb your arm so it won't hurt as bad." She gently pushed a needle in her arm to deposit some numbing medicine. Once it took effect, she got to work.

Neither said anything for the entirety that Cass worked. Before Cassandra could mentally help Rapunzel, she needed to make sure she was physically okay. When she finally finished, she tightly wrapped a bandage around Rapunzel's arm then used a rag to wipe the blood off her hands. When Rapunzel stayed silent, her hair covering her face, Cassandra decided it was time to bite the bullet.

"I don't mean to pry, Raps, but what were you doing walking alone at night? You know how dangerous that is." Rapunzel didn't respond at first. Cassandra was beginning to think she wasn't gonna respond at all so she sighed and began to turn away to put the first-aid stuff away.

"I just needed a break.." She heard Rapunzel's quiet voice after some minutes. Cassandra turned back to her and sat on the couch in front of her again. Rapunzel slowly looked up from behind her hair to meet Cassandra's eyes. "....Some stuff happened and I was upset and overwhelmed. I went outside to get some fresh air, my guard was down and then.. everything went black. I woke up in a cage on a boat then was dragged from place to place before being dumped in some camp. I stopped fighting after a while..." Rapunzel shrugged and Cassandra stayed silent as she talked. "B-But after.." Rapunzel squeezed her eyes shut. She didn't continue on what that after was. "....I saw an opportunity to escape and I took it. Then I found you."

Rapunzel suddenly turned to her, her eyes frantic and horror-filled. "It was horrible, Cass. Woman being beaten and treated like.. like a slave. Children were ripped away from their families. The boys being sent to the coal mines and the girls..." Rapunzel took a shaky breath, unable to say it. "...I-It was hell. I had never seen anything like it. I-I tried to save them but I.. I couldn't. I was too scared and I ran. I left them there, to die, to be used, to be beaten, to face a life of pain and misery.." Rapunzel hugged herself. Cass's eyes softened as she placed a hand on top of Rapunzel's.

"Hey, it's not your fault, Raps, so don't let that get into your head. You're safe now and that's all that matters. We'll figure out what comes next later." Cassandra gave her a reassuring smile. Rapunzel gave her a sad appreciative smile. It was then that something dawned at Cassandra. "Raps, they didn't..." Cassandra started, hoping Rapunzel would understand the question she was asking. Rapunzel's face immediately dropped as she looked away and held herself tighter. That told Cassandra all she needed to know. Her worst possible fear in this whole scenario, the fear that she was hoping to god Rapunzel wasn't put through was true. Rapunzel was raped.

Cassandra's expression immediately turned dark as she stood up. "I'm gonna kill them." Her voice was venomous, dark and it promised death to whoever stood in her way. Clenching her fists, she turned towards the door.

Rapunzel's eyes widened as she launched herself forward and grabbed Cassandra's wrist. "No!" Cassandra stopped and took a chance to look back at her with the same pissed off expression on her face. She wished she hadn't. The fear in her eyes, her frantic breathing and frantic eyes, the tears in her eyes, the begging, it all broke Cassandra's heart. "Please don't leave me." Rapunzel begged, her voice broken and shaky.

Cass sighed and slowly turned back around and walked over to sit next to her. She gently pulled the terrified girl into her embrace. Rapunzel clung on to her like a terrified child, her body still trembling. Remembering she needed to check her princess for any more injuries, she pulled away. "Raps, are you hurt anywhere else that I should know about?" Rapunzel's face said it all before she nodded. "Where?" Cassandra asked, her voice barely above a whisper.

Rapunzel seemed to hesitate for a second before she pulled back away from Cassandra and gently pulled up her baggy shirt then threw it on the floor. Cassandra couldn't hold back her gasp. Her once fair skin was covered in bruises, cuts, marks. There wasn't a spot that wasn't black and blue, there wasn't a spot where there wasn't some kind of cut, big and small combined. Cassandra's blood boiled. She could see the bite marks and bruises on her breasts even with the binding that covered them.

Rage filled her like never before, not even when she had the moonstone. It only heightened as she watched her best friend wrap her arms around herself in embarrassment and looked away. Cassandra knew Rapunzel wasn't embarrassed by her lack of clothes, Cassandra had seen her plenty of times shirtless when she was her lady-in-waiting. She was embarrassed of the scars itself. She was ashamed. The younger girl looked so small, so vulnerable, so frightened, so broken, so not Rapunzel. The fire and light that was once in her emerald pools was gone. Finally, someone succeeded in breaking Rapunzel, completely. Cassandra didn't know if this was something she could rebound from.

Swallowing her rage for now, because Rapunzel needed her, she gently pried her hands away from herself. "You're still beautiful, Raps, don't feel ashamed." Rapunzel only shook her head.

"M-Maybe if I had just sat there and listened, they wouldn't have been f-forced to-"

"Hey, no, don't do that. I know where this is going, Rapunzel. Those men are horrible, horrible people. None of this is your fault, okay? So don't do that whole 'it's my fault' because it's not." Cassandra responded sternly but also softly. Rapunzel could only nod before her eyes filled up with tears. Cassandra saw it coming a mile away as the girl wrapped her arms around herself and started sobbing. The dam had broken. Cassandra was by her side in a second. "Hey, hey, come here..." Cassandra pulled the girl into her arms as she sobbed. 

"W-Why?" She heard Rapunzel's weak, broken voice ask. "Why did this happen...? I know I've messed up a lot but.. surely, I don't deserve this." Rapunzel pulled back to look Cassandra in the eye. "Do I?" She sounded so lost.

"What?" Cassandra asked in disbelief. "No, of course not!"

"Then... why?"

Cassandra sighed and pulled the girl into her arms again. "....Sometimes bad things happen to good people." 

"B-But... I hurt you."

"Don't focus on that, Raps."

Rapunzel suddenly shot back, her eyes frantic. "Why not?! You can't deny it Cass, I hurt you, bad! In more ways than one! I-I neglected you.. I tried to push you beneath more.. I stopped treating you like a friend and more like a follower, a servant! And I couldn't see it! Even after you took the moonstone, I still didn't understand! I... I was so focused on 'bringing you back', that I didn't even think about why you were doing what you were doing! You tried to tell me, time and time again, but ignored it! You nearly were killed because I didn't listen to you, didn't put my trust in you! Despite the fact that since the beginning, you put your full trust in me, your full protection, your full.. everything! And I treated you like someone.. who doesn't deserve the world. I-I never even properly apologized.. I was so hurt when you took the moonstone, that I tried to think of every excuse in the book.." Rapunzel hugged herself tighter before saying quietly: "You gave up everything for me and I... I treated you as if you were nothing when you're EVERYTHING.. What could a person turn their back on someone they called 'their bestfriend'? Not a good one. S-So maybe all of this... is just karma coming back to hurt me.. like I hurt you." 

To say Cass was rendered speechless would be an understatement. She stared at Rapunzel in disbelief. Not disbelief because Rapunzel finally realized what she made her feel in the past, but disbelief that she was blaming herself like she was the one that nearly killed hundreds of people. Cass sighed. "Raps," She started and raised her hand to the girls cheek, forcing her to look her in the eyes. "You're right, you did hurt me. But I hurt you too. Rapunzel, I nearly killed hundreds of people. I nearly killed you. I wanted to kill you. So if you're a 'bad person', then I'm the worst kind of person." Rapunzel looked like she wanted to argue but Cass continued. "But you know what?" She gently ran her thumb over Rapunzel's cheek. "Despite everything that I did, that I said, you still realized that... that wasn't me. You fought for me, you fought against me, and you never gave up on me. You knew I was in pain, though you didn't understand it, but you still made an effort to try and understand; to try and help. Even after I destroyed Corona in a fit of rage, you saw right through it. You found a way to forgive me. Though, I never understood how you did. And... you let me go. You knew I needed to leave and despite knowing it was gonna hurt, you let me. Because that's just the kind of person you are, Raps. You never give up on anyone no matter what they do or say. You fight for them with all your soul and heart and don't stop until you see a true smile on their face. I-If... all of that is what's labeled as a 'bad person', then I don't know what a bad person is." 

Now it was Rapunzel to be rendered speechless as she stared at her best friend. Growing nervous under Rapunzel's stare, Cassandra shifted nervously. "Why are you looking at me like that?"

Rapunzel, snapping out of her daze, quickly shook her head. "Sorry.. it's just.. when did you start to have such a way with words?"

Cassandra chuckled and shrugged. "Being out here, alone, gives you a lot of time to think and self-reflect. Besides, when you have an over-enthusiastic princess sending you letters every other day, you tend to learn how to respond to them accordingly." Cassandra winked at Rapunzel and Rapunzel let out a little giggle. That's what Cass was trying to do.

"Anyway," Cass started again. "We should get some rest if we wanna get you to Corona in record time. My approximation is that we should get there in 8 months if we don't take many stops. Of course, you should write to the kingdom to let them know you're okay. And- "

"Wait," Rapunzel interrupted. "You're gonna... take me back yourself?"

Cassandra looked at her like she was crazy. "Well, of course. What'd you think? That'd just leave you out here with no way home?"

"No, of course not but.. Cass, you don't have to go through all that trouble. I can just take a horse-carriage thingy back."

"No, absolutely not. I don't trust you on your own right now, especially after what's happened, and I'm most certainly not gonna depend on a stranger to get you home. It's no big deal, Raps."

".....I don't want you to stop everything to get me back.. again.. Seriously Cass, I'll be fine." 

"Out of the question. You aren't burdening me at all, because I know that's what you're thinking, and you aren't ruining anything nor are you stopping me from getting anywhere important. Besides, if I did send you away, I would be worried about you the whole time anyway."

"But you always stop everything to help me; with whatever it may be. I'm a big girl Cass, I can take care of myself and make sure I get home safe."

Cass raised an eyebrow. "Says the one who let her guard down and got kidnapped." Rapunzel opened her mouth then she closed it, knowing Cassandra was right. As always. 

Cassandra sighed and stood up. She walked over to the deflated princess, bent down on one knee and placed her hands firmly on her shoulders without hurting her which forced her to look Cassandra directly in the eye. "Look, you've been through hell the last couple months. Not that I don't trust you, but I don't trust that you'll get home safe in your condition. You can barely move without trembling." Cassandra gently moved a stray hair out of Rapunzel's face. Cassandra's eyes softened as she said much more softly. "I'm not gonna let anything happen to you ever again, Rapunzel. I've already made up my mind. And stop thinking that you're a burden to me, cause you're not. It wasn't your fault what happened, not even close. Honestly, I am seriously glad I found you before... it got worse. I'm taking you home. End of story." With that, Cassandra stood up. Rapunzel never heard Cass be so demanding before. 

"Okay.." Rapunzel said weakly. 

Cassandra suddenly turned back to her and gave her a sweet smile. "Besides, we haven't seen each other in 4 years! We can use this time together to catch up!"

Cassandra's plan worked, only slightly, as Rapunzel's eyes lit up at the idea. She knew that would get her. Rapunzel let out a small giggle. "I've basically filled you in with all those letters."

"Maybe, but it's not the same. I really missed you a lot."

Rapunzel smiled at her best friend. "I missed you too, Cass. And... I'm glad I found you. I don't know what would've happened if I..." For a second, she forgot about what happened and how she got there. Suddenly remembering, she shivered, her expression horror-struck. "...hadn't found you."

Cass's eyes softened as she gently placed a hand on her shoulder. "We don't have to worry about that, or even think about that, you're safe."

Rapunzel smiled and placed her hand on top of Cassandra's. "Yeah, my knight in shining armor always comes to my rescue. Honestly, I call it... destiny... that we were brought together."

Cassandra smiled. "I'll always come to your rescue, Raps." If Rapunzel wasn't imagining it, she thought she saw Cass blush. Cass suddenly stood up and lent a hand out to her. "Come on." Rapunzel smiled and grabbed as Cass pulled her up. Rapunzel winced at the sudden movement. Cass brought her to a spare room. "You can stay here, k? If you need me, I'm right across the hall." Rapunzel only nodded. Cassandra gave her a final smile before she left the room. Rapunzel sat on the bed as she looked around with a sigh.

Cassandra stirred awake as she heard faint footsteps. What time was it? It had to be high hours into the night. Cassandra turned and in the dark caravan, she could make out the silhouette of a certain skinny princess. "Raps?" She asked sleepily as she rubbed her eyes and moved to a sitting position. 

"I-I'm sorry, I didn't mean to wake you.."

"Don't worry about it. What's wrong? Are you okay?" She asked worriedly. 

Rapunzel opened her mouth for a second, deciding whether she should continue. "C-Could I.. sleep with you tonight?" Her voice was small, almost fearful. Fearful of rejection, perhaps?

Cassandra stared at her in surprise. She bit her lip before gently moving aside to make room for Rapunzel. "Yeah, yeah, of course."

"Really?" Rapunzel asked hopefully. 

"Mhm." She shot Rapunzel an inviting smile. Rapunzel beamed slightly as she walked over to Cassandra's bed and made herself comfortable next to her. Cassandra pulled the blanket over the both of them once she got settled. Rapunzel knew Cassandra wasn't a touchy-feel cuddly type but she couldn't help herself as she cuddled into Cassandra, her face buried in her chest. Surprised and very flustered, Cassandra wrapped her arms around the princess protectively. Cassandra noted how small she looked, how small she was, in Cassandra's arms. She's really gonna need this girl to gain some weight again. 

Being seriously flustered was worth it when Rapunzel snuggled against her more and let out a contented sigh. Cassandra smiled, bent down and gently placed a kiss on her forehead as she felt Rapunzel rest into peaceful slumber. She rested her head on top of Rapunzel's and pulled her closer.

"I will never let anything bad happen to you ever again and that's a promise." Cassandra said quietly to the sleeping Rapunzel. If she wasn't imagining it, Rapunzel smiled and cuddled even closer. With that, Cassandra slowly fell asleep into peaceful slumber herself.

Hey guys! Like I said, this one was a little dark. This one is actually gonna have a part 2 and maybe even a part 3 depending on how it goes. Thanks for reading!