Romance Fan Fiction / Other Fan Fiction ❯ Cassunzel Short Stories ❯ Sacrifice ( Chapter 10 )

Cassandra watched as the pinkish stone floated before her. It was almost nostalgic. Not so long ago, Cassandra watched as Rapunzel went to grab the moonstone. As she watched as Rapunzel was about to claim her destiny Cassandra decided it was her own. Then, no one knew what would happen to the person who reunited the two stones. Now, knowing what would happen to her, Cassandra found herself terrified. She knew she had to do this. So she could save her friends, her family, Rapunzel, and so many other innocent lives that were brought into this mess of dangerous magic. Everything she had been working for led up to this moment. And Cassandra was scared. She didn’t want to die. There was still so much she wanted to say, so much she had to do, so much she had to work up for and fix. So many things she wanted to say to Rapunzel. But she didn’t have a choice, did she? She never did. Destiny was a nasty thing. Destiny is not chosen by the person but is chosen by wherever life takes them.

She just got finished with saying goodbye to her friends, to Rapunzel, and boy it wasn’t easy. Seeing the look in her best-friends eyes, her long-time crush, had broken her even more. But she pushed on. Taking a deep breath, she was nearly there as she reached forward. Slowly, she moved towards the stone that was going to be her demise. Her fingers grazed the smooth edges when...

She was shoved out of the way.

She steadied herself as she looked up to see Rapunzel grasping the stone to her chest. What the hell was happening? “Raps, what are you-”

“I’m sorry, Cass,” Rapunzel responded, her voice broken as she looked at her best friend with pained eyes. “P-Please forgive me.” Her eyes were filled with tears.

“What are you doing Rapunzel? Give me the stone.” Cassandra demanded as she leaned her hand out. She was seriously confused. What the hell was she thinking??

Rapunzel only stared at her hand before looking up to meet her eyes, still tightly grasping the stone. “I can’t do that.” She whispered.

“Sunshine, please give Cass the stone,” Eugene pleaded as he stepped forward, his eyes wide with concern. He knew what she was thinking even before Cass did.

Rapunzel only shook her head. “No.”

“Rapunzel, give me the-” Cassandra seethed, the feeling of betrayal rising in her chest, but was cut off.

“No!” Rapunzel shouted. “I-I can’t lose you again, Cass, I just can’t.” The look in Rapunzel’s eyes was desperate and pleading as Cassandra finally realized what was happening. All anger dissipated from her face. “I’m sorry.” Rapunzel whispered as she prepared to hold the stone above her head.

“What? No!” Cassandra yelled and tried to launch herself forward but she was already too late. Rapunzel held the stone up as a powerful blast sent Eugene, Lance and Cass flying back. It had begun. Cassandra watched in horror as the magic from the stone of eternity started to intertwine with the moonstone and sunstone. Rapunzel’s short brunette hair morphed into her long locks she had before. Only this time, it wasn’t just blonde. Her hair was black, like the decay incantation, blue, gold and pink. But there was still time to save her. The moonstone and sunstone were still dark, the power within them wasn't activated yet. Only the stone of eternity was circling her best friend. She still had time.

She vaguely heard Eugene and Lance screaming Rapunzel’s name over the loud, ear-defining wind. She saw Eugene try to move forward, only to be pushed back once more. Cassandra wasn’t so easily deterred. She made her way forward, towards Rapunzel, as she held onto the railing of the palace for support. She made her way as close as she could get for the powerful wind that was caused by the stone wouldn’t allow her to get any closer.

“Rapunzel, please, let go!” Cassandra screamed over the howling wind. “You have to-” Cassandra’s eyes widened in horror as she watched the sunstone and moonstone awaken. All three stones were now circling her, inches from touching each other. She was running out of time. “Raps, please! Stop- You need to stop, please, I’m begging you!” Cassandra never begged but she had no choice. She needed Rapunzel to stop. She needed her to let go. She needed to save her.

Rapunzel only turned to her and smiled. A sad smile with tears in her eyes. Despite the fearful look in her eyes, she still smiled. She was scared, terrified, but she still found a way to smile. To comfort her distressed best friend. “You’ve always protected me,” Rapunzel stated. “Now it’s my time to protect you. Please, take care of Pascal for me. And... them.” She directed her eyes towards the still struggling Eugene and Lance as they tried to reach her.

“No!” Cassandra yelled, tears pouring down her face. The reality of the situation was finally setting in.

Rapunzel turned to her one last time. Her strong facade fell, her smile dropping, as she looked at Cass, tears streaming down her face. “I love you, Cassandra.” Cassandra barely had time to react as Rapunzel raised the pink stone with a shout and it combined with the other two.

“NO!” Cassandra screamed and tried to push herself forward, to get to her, to save her, to reach her, to do anything other than let the most important person in her life die. She was pushed back as a sudden, blinding explosion took place. Everything was white. Dark. Blinding. Then everything went quiet. Slowly opening her eyes, she saw the destruction of the stones and the end of evil scumbags, but that wasn’t what she was focused on. As the stones, gone from this world and the next, Rapunzel was left falling through the air. Her long locks evaporated, leaving her short brunette hair. Cassandra quickly got to her feet and caught the descending Rapunzel before she hit the ground. She brought into a sitting position almost immediately as she held the unresponsive girl in her arms.

“Raps?” She asked, her voice small. “Rapunzel, please.” She tried again as tears fell from her eyes. “Rapunzel, wake up!” Nothing. Cassandra grew angry as she was blinded by her own tears. They flowed like a river down her face as she glared at the lifeless girl in her arms. “Stupid, stupid, stupid! How could you do that?! How could you be so selfish?! I was the one who was supposed to die, not you! You’re such an idiot! A selfless, selfish, beautiful, apathetic, wonderful, narrow-minded idiot!" Cassandra while panting in rage looked down at her beautiful idiot. All anger dissipated from her eyes as she brought Rapunzel closer to her chest and started sobbing into the girl's neck. "Please..." Cassandra muttered. "Please don't leave me... I-I love you, Raps, I love you so much.. Please come back to me.." She waited. For what? She wasn't sure. Maybe she hoped that wherever the shining princess heard her plea and would come back like she always did. She didn't. She didn't even twitch. Under Cassandra's hand, she felt that the once beautiful, shining, unique heart was nowhere. It had stopped. Cassandra had finally lost her. For real this time. Her sobs became increasingly louder as she pleaded over and over and over again. 

She felt a hand land on her shoulder. She looked up through her tears to see Lance standing above her, sorrow and something she couldn't quite place in his eyes. In the corner of her eye, she could see Eugene on his knees, staring in horror at his dead ex-fiance, his best friend, tears streaming down his face. 

Rapunzel was gone. And this time, there was no bringing her back. 

Cassandra at the open field, the wind rustling her hair. They had returned to Corona nearly an hour ago. It didn't take long to get back as it did to get there. A balloon was sent for them and it only took two hours of sorrow-filled silence for them to arrive back in Corona. The entire ride, Cassandra refused to let Rapunzel go. She didn't say a word. None of them did. Once they returned, Cassandra watched as Corona, it's people, fell to pieces upon learning what happened to their dear princess. Unable to take anymore, because this was her fault, she made a quiet exit. She didn't leave, of course, for she had promised Rapunzel that she would take care of them for her. So, she was going to do just that. 

Eugene appeared beside her and for a while, neither said anything as they both stared at the beautiful field that was Rapunzel's favorite place. Neither knew how much time had passed, but Eugene made an effort to help Cassandra. "You okay?" He asked.

Cassandra gave him a look as if to say 'what do you think?'. Eugene sighed. "Yeah, that was a stupid question." Cassandra just turned back to the flowing field. Eugene wanted to comfort her, even though he was in severe pain himself, but he found that he didn't know how to do so. What could one say in a situation like this? He decided to wait until Cass talked. After some minutes, she did.

"I shouldn't be surprised," Cassandra chuckled and Eugene turned to her in surprise. "I should've known she would have thrown herself blindly into a dangerous situation without thinking twice so she could save me. I should've known she wouldn't have let me go through with it. How can someone be so selfish yet so selfless?" 

Eugene gathered his thoughts before looking back up. "But isn't that what you were gonna do?"

"What?" Cassandra turned to him.

"Throw yourself into a dangerous situation to save her, to save us?"

Cassandra looked away and mumbled. "It's different."

"Why?" Eugene asked. 

Cassandra angrily snapped her head towards him. "It just is. She's a-"

"A princess?" He finished for her and Cass looked away. "Why does that matter? Royalty or not, your life, you, matter just as she does."

Cassandra was silent for a second before she let out a sarcastic chuckle. "Tell that to all of Corona. She is - was - the princess. The light in this town. Without her, everything is dark and stuffy. She brought life, she brought light, she brought joy into everyone's lives. Unlike me.. where I destroyed that joy. Time and time again. Even before the moonstone."

Eugene was silent for a long time and Cassandra started to believe that he had given up. "That's not what Rapunzel thought." She finally heard Eugene's quiet voice beside her. When Cassandra didn't respond, he continued. "She loved, loves, you so much Cass. Everything she did, she did for you. Everyday she thought about you. Talked about you. 'What would Cass do'? 'Was Cass okay'? 'I can't wait until Cass comes home'. She looked up to you, adored you, you were her hero, Cassandra. She loved you more than she loved me."

"Tch, yeah right." Cassandra whispered.

"I'm serious," Eugene replied. When Cassandra only hugged herself, he continued. "You didn't see her in the months you were gone after you took the moonstone." Cassandra didn't respond but looked at him. "She was so devastated. Not devastated because you betrayed her, devastated because she knew you were hurting and she knew that she was the cause of your pain. I watched as she went so many nights without sleeping, planning, trying, to figure out how to bring you back. To fix the stuff she did. She knew that there was nothing she could do or say, to fix it. But she still tried. Even when everyone else gave up on bringing you back, even myself, she didn't. She reminded the people of how amazing you were, she counted down every little thing you ever did for this town since the age you were brought here. She told the people that you weren't the monster they say but instead, someone who lost her way and needed to be brought home. She fought for you, time and time again. I held her many nights as she cried herself to sleep, or didn't sleep at all, because she was scared that she hurt you so bad that it drove you away; to insanity. She went back into everything that happened those couple months and tried to figure out everything she did wrong. She claimed she hated herself, claimed that you deserved better and that she needed to be there, even when you didn't want her too. Before you came to Corona disguised as Faith, that morning, Project Obsidian was authorized. She never wanted to authorize it. I.. asked Varian to build it in secrecy. She had no idea. Once she saw it, she wanted nothing more but to destroy it. But I told her that although she didn't want to hurt you, we had no idea if you were gonna hurt us. I didn't give her a choice. She had to choose. You, or the safety of the people. She signed it. But demanded that it would only be used as a very last resort. But she said it wouldn't come to that. When she walked away, arms around herself, I followed her in worry. Once alone, away from prying eyes, she broke down. I had never seen her so upset before. Never. After you nearly destroyed Corona, I watched as her eyes lit up in horror, I watched her break. Even when everything seemed hopeless and that you were really gone, she still refused to fall, still refused to let you go. She refused to give up. Even after the people yelled and screamed at her, even after they demanded that you were taken out once and for all, she yelled back. I had never seen her so angry before. And by the expressions of the people, neither had they. Before we went in for that final battle, she asked to go to the castle alone. I was hesitant. With the eclipse coming, I was worried. But she claimed that she would bring you back or die trying. She claimed that no matter how hurt you were, how far gone you were, how hopeless it seemed, that you would never, never purposely hurt someone let alone kill someone. I wanted to follow her, but she snuck out in the middle of the night. After you returned.." Eugene sighed. "..There's a reason why the people of Corona don't look down upon you, don't hate you, there's a reason why you're allowed to come back whenever you want and still call it home. There's a reason you aren't behind bars. She fought, Cass. She fought so hard. She fought against her father, she fought against other kingdoms, she fought to keep your name into something good and not bad. She fought so hard to show the people that you were a hero and not a monster. And eventually, they believed her. There's a reason you were offered a job on the guard, co-leader to me, there's a reason you were offered a place in Ingvarr. And while you were away... she made sure to keep your memory alive. She kept tabs on your father, checking on him occasionally. She always grew ecstatic whenever Owl arrived with a letter. She read every single one with glee. Some, she kept reading over and over again for hours. She has every single letter you ever sent in a box she labeled 'of utmost importance'. And all that's in that box, is stuff about you, from you, to you. Everyday, she thought carefully of what she wanted to send back. Sometimes, she took hours writing them, making them perfect. She would get aggravated and frustrated when she couldn't. She made it her personal goal to send you one everyday, with events that happened, so you wouldn't feel left out, so you would see you still had a home, a place where you belonged. She kept you updating on every single thing that happened. As years went by, I watched as she became more and more depressed, more and more not her. I could tell that being queen wasn't what she wanted anymore, that she didn't want it to be her destiny, and I could see her.. falling out of love with me. I'll admit, it hurt a lot when we split. She told me that she was in love with someone else. And I immediately knew who. When you returned, that was the first time I had seen her that happy in years. She refused to waste a day where she wasn't by your side, being with you, terrified and unknowing when you would leave again. When you asked us for help, she agreed, no questions asked. Her father demanded that she stayed, for if she would go, she would lose her freedom. But she still went. After you told us what.. would happen to you, that night, I had never seen her so distraught. She stayed strong for you, she smiled, laughed, all because she knew that you didn't like seeing her upset, especially if it was about you. As we neared the end, I saw how everything changed with her. Around you, she was Rapunzel. But around Lance and I, she was a mess. She was scared, Cass. Terrified. She didn't want to lose you again, she couldn't lose you again. Even if she hadn't taken the stone before you did... she still would've died with you." Eugene sighed and turned to her. "The point is, Cass, I have never seen anyone in my entire life fight so hard for someone. I have never seen anyone in my entire life love someone as much as she loved you. You meant everything to her, Cass. From day one. At the very last second, Rapunzel had no choice. You didn't listen to her and she wasn't going to sit back and let you take on a destiny that you believed was your own. So, she took it from you.. Because she loved you too much to let you go. So, yeah, what Rapunzel did was selfish. But so was what you were doing. In the end, all she wanted was to have her best friend, the person she was in love with, safe and for once, she wanted to save you, like you had done for her countless times before. I might have saved her from the tower, but you saved her from herself."

Cassandra's eyes were wide with disbelief. She had no idea.. Well, of course she didn't. She never paid attention long enough. So focused on herself.. Maybe she was the selfish one. No, they were both selfish. Rapunzel shouldn't have taken the stone, but she shouldn't have expected her to be okay with letting her die. She shouldn't have expected Rapunzel to forget about her, to stop loving her suddenly, and let her go. Cassandra really did give her no choice. Just like that, the dam broke. Cassandra fell to her knees, arms wrapped around herself, and started sobbing. Eugene kneeled down next to her and pulled her into his arms. She buried her face into his uniform and sobbed like her life depended on it. 

She lost her best friend, her life, her light, her everything because she thought that dying for her, for everyone, was the answer. She didn't listen. She never did. She was still so angry. So mad at herself, so mad at Rapunzel. But she just wanted her back. She wanted to hug her, to tell her that she loved her then kiss her. She wanted to have a family with her, to explore the world with her, to be with her. But she knew that it would never happen. She was too late. She waited too long and the cost was huge. 

Cassandra decided that she would live for Rapunzel. She would smile for Rapunzel. She would pick up the broken pieces of her friends, her family, Corona. For Rapunzel. She decided that she would never hesitate or wait ever again. She decided that for the rest of her life, she will help people all over the world, because she knew that's what Rapunzel would have done. 

The most kind, most amazing, pure soul, pure heart, pure everything was torn from them that day. Was torn from all of them. As Cassandra stood up, composed herself, and with a determined look, looked towards tomorrow she could have sworn she felt warm arms wrap around her and soft, warm lips pressed against her cheek. The dark, gloomy, horrible day suddenly turned bright and warm.

And that's when Cassandra knew....

...That Rapunzel would be with them, with her, for all of eternity.