“Ra-Rapunzel! I need a doctor!” Varian shouted between breaths as he bust into the castle, Ivory still unconscious in his arms. The royal family rushed up to the boy, concern weighing heavily on their features. The queen ordered a guard to take Ivory up to her room, just as she sent another guard to go to the village to find a doctor. Meanwhile, Rapunzel stopped a worried Varian from followed the guard who had Ivory, by placing both her hands on his shoulders.

“Varian, what happened? We've looking looking for you two for the last few hours.” The princess asked, her brows furrowing as the panting boy tried in vain to look over the blonde’s shoulder to make sure Ivory was alright. “Varian.” Rapunzel said once again, a bit more demanding this time. The teen’s light blue eyes snapped to focus on the girl’s emerald ones. “I-I don’t know. She wanted to show me something in the garden, and when we got there, a-a net flew towards us and-and--” The queen stopped Varian’s rant by sitting him down in a nearby chair. “Calm down, Varian. Take a deep breath and slow down your words." She said softly, her green eyes twinkling in worry.

The alchemist did as she asked, nodding slowly as he did. “Ivory took me to the garden, and a net of chains flew out from the forest. She pushed me out of the way, but then someone pushed me to the ground when I tried to help her out of the net. Th-Then we were in a carriage being taken to who-knows-where when Ivory bit down on my chains and broke them, before she pushed me out of the cart and into a river!” Rapunzel and her mother shared a glance as Varian took in another breath while he paused for a moment. “I-I followed the tracks to somewhere in the forest by Corona and saw them hurt her and I….I….” Varian’s bottom lip trembled as he clenched his fists, the sound of Ivory’s wing breaking played over and over again in his mind. “I got her out of there, and ran back here.” He finished quietly, his light blue eyes downcast as he stared at his gloved hands in his lap.

“You did well, Varian. You saved her. She’s alright now.” Arianna smiled softly, patting the boy on the back before she got up to go tell her husband what happened. Rapunzel sat with Varian for a moment longer, trying to talk the boy down from going to Ivory’s room.

“Varian, there you are.” The boy in question looked up to see his father standing there, looking down at him. “Come, I finished my talk with the king. Let’s be on our way home.” Quirin said, making the alchemist stiffen. “But…” He started, biting his lip softly as his father lifted one brow, waiting for his son to talk back. Varian hung his head in defeat and sulkily stood up, waving farewell to Rapunzel before following his father out of the castle. He gave one last glance to the stairwell he had seen Ivory disappear into before turning his head to the ground and making the trek back to Old Corona with his father.

*****

Ivory opened her eyes with a soft groan. Taking in her surroundings, she found herself to be in Rapunzel’s room, laying on her dog bed on the ground. She sat up slowly, holding a hand to her head, when a sharp pain ran up the base of her spine, coming from her wing. She gasped as she turned her maroon eyes towards the source of the pain.

Her wings were wrapped in a tan cloth, the fabric forced her wings to be pressed against her back so as to not injure them any further. She quickly checked the rest of her body, but upon finding no further injuries, she let out a breath of relief. Her ears perked up when she heard the door to the room opening, and she watched as Rapunzel walked in, worry clear on her face.

The princess’ emerald eyes lit up in joy as they saw the young teen looking up at her. “You’re awake! Finally!” She sighed out softly, happy her friend as alright. “‘Finally’? How long was I out?” Ivory asked, slowly standing up before she made her way over to the nearby window. It was nighttime. “You’ve been out for nearly four days.” Rapunzel whispered, her voice sad. Ivory froze at the news, her bright yellow eyes wide with shock. “F-Four days?!” She squeaked. Rapunzel nodded in response.

A thought suddenly occurred to the shapeshifter. “W-Where’s Varian?” Her voice came out panicked as her eyes swirled into a stormy gray due to her concern. Rapunzel smiled softly and let out a small chuckle. “He’s fine. He wasn’t harmed in any way. His father took him back home after he brought you back here.” She revealed, making Ivory’s shoulders slump in relief, her eyes changing into a golden color.

Rapunzel’s face turned slightly smug as she smirked at the young girl, who looked at her in question. “You know….” She started, walking over to the shapeshifter. “He was really worried about you.” She said, dragging out the words, watching the way Ivory stiffened as she spoke. “Shut it.” Ivory growled, glaring at the blonde, who merely giggled in response.

*****

Ivory stared out the window of the castle, concern for the alchemist running through her head. I know the princess said he’s fine but…..I should just make sure…. She thought, biting her lip softly as she made her way down to the castle gates. Slipping out of the door behind a guard, she made sure that she wasn’t seen as she ran through the quiet town of Corona in the dead of night. I know it’s late, but as long as I see him uninjured, I can put these worries to rest.

The moon was high in the sky as it lit the road for her, making it easier to see where she was headed.

Ivory made it to Old Corona in record time, and she took a sniff of the air as she sorted through the scents to find the one she was looking for. As she caught the scent, she smiled slightly. So, he was the smell from the other day in the castle. The one I liked. A faint blush rose to her cheeks as she remembered the vanilla scent wafting through the castle.

Following the scent, she ended up coming across a small cottage with a half-built tower in front of it. She gulped slightly as she walked up to the door, and upon noticing the door was ajar, her eyes narrowed into a red glare.

Slowly pushing the door open, she quietly walked into the house, noticing immediately that the home seemed more like some sort of lab than anything. Her eyes danced around each corner, her guard up as she thought the worse had come of the alchemist.

A pair of hands on her shoulders made her freeze up as she was forcibly turned around to face two big blue eyes. Her nose twitched at the scent, before her body relaxed at the sight of the alchemist who stood before her, slightly astounded she was there.

“I-Ivory?” Varian whispered out, disbelief clouding his eyes. The girl in question smiled slightly and nodded confirmation. Relief then swirled in the boy’s gaze as he pulled her close to him and hugged her tightly, mindful of her wings. “You’re ok.” He whispered out, grinning as he hugged her. Ivory’s bright yellow eyes were wide with shock, before her eyes shifted to a golden color as she hugged him back. “‘Course I’m ok. You saved me.” She chuckled into his soft hair, secretly inhaling his captivating scent.

Varian’s eyes widened as he cleared his throat awkwardly and backed up, apologizing for his behavior. Amusement filled Ivory’s now gray-blue eyes as she waved his apology off. “Friends hug each other all the time, don’t they?” She asked, looking up to him as he looked down at her in shock. “W-We’re friends..?” He asked hesitantly.

Ivory’s eyes shifted to blue as she second-guessed herself. “A-Aren’t we..?” She muttered out, grabbing her tail with her hands and gently wringing it out, out of nervousness.

Varian’s light blue eyes softened and a small smile spread across his face before he answered her question. “Absolutely.”