Chapter Text
“Hey kid, you wanna dance?”
Varian looked up in surprise to see Cassandra smirking down at him. He had never, in all his preparation for this night, expected to be asked to dance by Cassandra. At the very least, he figured he would spend a few hours working up his courage and then, if she was in a good mood, try to ask her himself; though even then the thought of a harsh rejection was enough to scare him away. He had spent most of the evening watching the others dance, saying congratulations to Eugene and Rapunzel, and catching up with Angry and Red about how life with Lance was going.
Only a few days before Rapunzel and Eugene's first-anniversary celebration, Rapunzel, who had been bouncing off the walls, mentioned in passing that Cass was traveling back for the party and a brief visit. At the mention of Cassandra’s name, Varian’s heart did an odd roll in his chest. A confusing mixture of excitement, nervousness, and apprehension had stuck with him for the next few days and he struggled to make sense of them. The night of the party arrived and Varian found himself stressing far too much about how his formal attire looked. His usual leather gloves were traded for a sleek pair of black gloves given to him by Eugene and he had spent nearly an hour trying to arrange his mess of black hair only to finally give up. All throughout these preparations, the image of Cass kept appearing in the forefront of his mind only increasing his nerves and excitement. It had been over a year since she left, over a year since he’d last seen her. He had no idea what to expect. He didn’t even know if she would talk to him which is why he was surprised when she now stood over him asking rather directly if he wanted to dance with her.
“Well?” She tilted her head questioningly.
Varian’s heart fluttered in his chest as he finally got out a stammered, “I-I’d love to.”
“Great!” And before Varian could process what was happening, Cass had taken his hand and led him onto the crowded dance floor. He gingerly placed one hand around her waist and used the other to grasp her hand in his (He'd have to remember to thank Rapunzel again for her life-saving dance lessons). The song was a lively kingdom waltz. As they kept up with the moderate tempo, Varian was surprised to find that he was now slightly taller than her and could look her directly in the eyes; her piercing, grey-green, beautiful eyes…
The voice of Cass punctured his thoughts, “You’re quiet tonight.”
“I-It’s just been…awhile. And last time I saw you was when…well…you know.” Varian avoided her gaze.
Cassandra grew somber, “Hey, Varian, I’m sorry. For imprisoning you, attacking you, for everything. My time spent traveling has really helped me come to terms with everything that happened, and made me value the friends I still have here.” Cassandra looked him directly in the eyes, “You're one of those friends, Varian.” Cass shifted uncomfortably (still ill at ease with sharing her feelings) as she offered her next words, “I just hope you'll forgive me.”
Varian felt the heat rise in his cheeks at her statement, “Of course, I forgive you Cassie.”
Cassandra’s eyes widened slightly at the old nickname and Varian realized the slip. He began to fumble over an apology but Cassandra stopped him, “Don’t worry about it. I said you could call me Cassie, that still stands.” Varian gave her a smile of gratitude.
“And, Varian?” A smile slowly spread over Cass’s face in response to his, “Thanks."
Varian was suddenly aware of how the tempo of the song had slowed and they had unconsciously slowed with it. The candle-light of the ballroom gave Cass’s hair a soft, elegant glow. He noticed her hair had grown longer in the past months and she kept it tied in a loose braid over one shoulder. “Your hair looks nice.” The words were out of his mouth before he could stop them. To Varian’s surprise, Cass received the compliment with an uncharacteristically soft “thanks.” In the dim lighting, he thought he noticed a light blush dusting Cassandra’s cheeks; maybe it was just his imagination.
A mirthful smirk pulled at Cass’s lips. Varian couldn’t help but smile with her, “What?”
Cass shrugged, “You’re being quiet again.”
“Guess I’m focusing,” Varian felt a little embarrassed, “Don’t want to step on your toes.”
“Varian, you’re a better dancer than half the guys here.” Cass chuckled, “Not that I’ve danced with many of them to begin with.” Varian ducked his head as the blood rushed into his cheeks at the compliment.
A comfortable silence fell as they let the sweet strain of violins fill the air between them. The mixture of dim candle-light and soft violins was teasingly romantic. Varian smiled softly at Cass as they revolved around the floor. It was hard to believe that not so long ago she had thrown him in a cage and had threatened to destroy all of Corona. Yet here she was, dancing with him of all people. How was this the same person? And then, he realized, that it wasn’t. Yes, Cassandra was still Cassandra, but she had changed so much. He had changed too. The dorky boy from a faintly-remembered science expo was gone. A wiser, young man had replaced him. While Varian still had his obsessive love of alchemy, he had matured and now possessed the wisdom that only comes with difficult experiences. He wondered if Cassandra could see the change. He hoped she would. With a final slow strain, the song came to an end.
“Um, Varian?”
Varian’s eyes were fixed on Cass with a glazed, faraway look, “Hmm?”
“The music stopped.”
Varian’s eyes widened when he realized that while the music had ended and they had stopped dancing, he had forgotten to let go of Cassandra. He quickly pulled his hands back in embarrassment, “S-sorry Cass.” He fumbled over his words, “I was d-distracted.”
“I noticed.” Cass's lips quirked upward in a smile that caused Varian’s heart to flutter in his chest. “So…” Cass took a step closer to him, “What’s distracting you?” Varian’s face was on fire and he had forgotten how to properly form words. Cassandra gave an amused eye-roll and decided to spare him, “Hey, thanks for the dance Varian. I enjoyed it.”
Varian pulled himself together to give what he hoped amounted to a confident replay, “The honor was all mine, milady.” He grabbed her hand and placed a light kiss on her fingertips. This time there was no mistaking the blush accenting Cassandra’s cheeks, “I’ll let you know if I’m in the mood for another dance.” Cass gave him a final smirk before heading in the direction of Rapunzel who was waving her down.
Varian watched her go, his brain still dazed from their dance, “It’d be my pleasure, Cassie.”