Stuck With You- Part 2

Chapter 1- The Sake of Science

A/N: This wonderful art is made by https://www.tumgir.com/starringbaguette 

"What do you guys say to one last day in Vardaros?" Eugene asked the group. Everyone, except Cass and Hex, cheered. Rapunzel was a bit quieter, still shooting confused glances at Varian. When she had shook Hex's hand, he laughed. What was that about? Eugene's voice cut through her thoughts and she snapped to attention.

"Hey, Sunshine, are you alright?" he asked worriedly, putting his hand on her cheek. She leaned into the touch and smiled.

"Yeah, I was just a bit distracted, is all." she answered. He pulled away and looked around.

"Well, what should we do first?" he asked. Varian rolled his eyes and turned his back on the pair. She probably wants to find the nearest frying pan store, he thought. But her answer surprised him.

"What if... we go to the science shop?" Rapunzel asked quietly. Varian raised his head and turned around to face them. Eugene seemed to also be surprised. But he quickly shook it off

"Science shop it is!" he said and turned to Vex. She had overheard the entire conversation so she pointed down an alleyway without looking at Eugene.

"Down that alley, take a left, then a right. Should be on the left-hand side." she deadpanned.

Eugene half-heartedly saluted her and turned back to Rapunzel. They hooked arms and started going down the alleyway. Varian was still surprised, and just floated along behind. Although it wasn't as far behind as when they had first gotten to Vardaros, Rapunzel realized with a smile.

It only took them about four minutes to find the shop. It was small, so that didn't help, as it blended into the surrounding buildings. Varian had snapped out of his stupor and ran forward to the shop, accidentally going right through Eugene. He shuddered and followed Rapunzel as she started to walk faster. Varian, slow down!! She thought, not wanting to talk to the air out loud. Varian skidded to a stop and flipped around.

"Did you just speak to me through your thoughts?" he asked quietly. Rapunzel nodded subtly.

Did you just hear my thoughts? she asked, through her thoughts to test it out. She didn't need an answer as Varian's eyes widened. He glanced at Eugene.

"Let's figure this out later." he said, then turned and floated through the door. Rapunzel looked up at the small sign on the door.

"'The Sake of Science. Selling Alchemy Materials Since 1389'" Rapunzel read out loud, then pushed the door open. Eugene followed and shut the door quietly behind him. The shop was quiet, except for a few vials that were filled with different colored liquids that were bubbling softly. The bell above the door rang as it shut and there was a clatter behind the curtain that was near the back of the room.

A tall woman emerged from the curtain. She had short brown hair in a pixie style haircut. Her eyes were also brown and the glasses on her nose were askew. Her outfit was plain, just a simple combination of short sleeved shirt and pants. She had several shawls and bandannas tied around her wrists and waist. She quickly adjusted her glasses and smiled at the pair.

(A/N: Art by yours truly [this is an updated version so other art throughout this fanfic may be different])

"Welcome welcome! I'm Maya and if you need any help finding anything, I'm always here!" she said, sounding somewhat nervous. Rapunzel felt a tug on her waist and saw Varian trying to look around, straining the connection as far as it could go.

"Uh, thank you!" Raps said while Eugene gave Maya a suspicious look. Rapunzel hurried towards Varian so he could look around more. Sure, she wanted to see stuff too, but this was mostly for Varian. Rapunzel spotted some colorful crystals and stopped to look at them, while Varian was further up, looking at the books on the shelf. The store was small but cozy, a complete opposite of the city it was in. The vials, books, and ingredients were all organized and neat. It was very clean and not a speck of dust could be seen.

Eugene had wandered off and found a door, slightly hidden by another bookshelf, near the back. He turned the handle, and, when he found it was unlocked, glanced around before slipping inside.

Maya had come out from behind the curtain and watched Eugene enter the side room. She looked towards Rapunzel again and saw a flash of black. "Hmmmm" she hummed to herself and kept a closer eye on the princess.

Rapunzel came up behind Varian and whispered very quietly, "Whatcha looking at?"

He jumped slightly before glancing over his shoulder. Then he turned back to the books. He had a skeptical look on his face and pulled out one of the books.

"She has copies of Demanitus' work." he said, flipping the book open and pointing to the page. On it was a sketch of the same device Rapunzel used to push the blizzard out to sea. She took the book out of his ghostly hands and flipped through a few more pages. Sure enough, there were records written by Demanitus. But most of it was coded.

"Ah, I see you have found my Demanitus Texts."

The two flipped around to see Maya coming up to them. She smiled and put her hands up. "Don't worry, you aren't in trouble." She came to a stop in front of them and looked at Rapunzel, then the book, and she glanced so quickly that, if Varian hadn't been looking, he would have missed it, but she glanced at him. But her gaze went right back to Rapunzel.

"Can I speak to you in the back room, your majesty?" she asked quietly. Rapunzel hesitated.

"Rapunzel, say yes. Maybe we can learn more about this." Varian said, looking pointedly at the book. She tried hard not to smile when he said 'we' instead of 'you'.

She looked up and met Maya's eyes "Um, sure." Raps said nervously. Maya smiled kindly.

"There is no reason to be nervous, your majesty. I assure you, I simply want to ask you a few questions." she said calmly "And, I've heard you are a skilled fighter with a frying pan." Maya glanced at Rapunzel's bag, where the handle of her frying pan was sticking out. Rapunzel smiled and followed Maya behind the curtain. She tried not to gasp.

Behind the curtain, the room was completely different. It was dark, but not pitch black, and there were candles glowing from many hanging lanterns. The floor and walls were covered with fabric and silk. But right in the middle was a table with a deck of Tarot cards. There were three chairs sitting around it, with two on one side and the other on the far side. Rapunzel heard Varian groan.

Maya walked over to the table and sat in the far chair. She gestured to Rapunzel to sit opposite to her and she complied. Varian followed slowly and sat in the second seat, favoring that instead of floating awkwardly. Maya leaned forward and folded her hands.

"As you can see, I am also the owner of the magic shop here in Vardaros." she said, still smiling. Varian slid down in his chair. Perfect. The one place I thought would be amazing turns out to be a magic shop. He thought angrily. "I am a woman of the unexplainable and the explainable. That is why I wanted to talk to you, Princess." Rapunzel winced slightly.

"Oh, Rapunzel is just fine." Maya nodded sagely and continued.

"So, Rapunzel, do you know why it is important that I am a part of both worlds?" when Rapunzel shook her head, Maya continued. "It means I have a third eye. A.K.A. I can see things others can't." she leaned back in her chair. "Which brings me to my question." her gaze shifted and, this time, Maya looked directly at Varian. His eyes widened.

"Rapunzel, are you aware of the ghost following you?"

A/N: Hope you guys enjoyed! Updates are going to be a bit slow so please be patient :)