A fellow Cassarian shipper hosted a Cassarian Month in August 2023, and I decided to turn my entries for it into a month of different AUs! So here they are, along with short stories to go with the art!
AU: Soulmates have half of a matching tattoo appear on their skin when they meet.
As usual, it is a busy morning for Cassandra. Being Rapunzel's handmaiden, she must wake up early, put on her dress, then head to the princess's room and help her prepare for the day. Which is a lot more difficult than it used to be, ever since Rapunzel's long blonde locks grew back... It's still a mystery as to why that even happened.
After helping Rapunzel get ready, Cassandra also has duties to attend to around the castle. Mopping, dusting, laundry... And today, she must take a trip to town to run a couple errands for her father.
"Excuse me, pardon me, coming through!" She says, pushing her way through the crowd. She does her best to avoid eye contact, because she knows the rules... When soulmates' eyes meet for the first time, half of a tattoo appears on each of them. The tattoos can be of anything, and are one-of-a-kind. They can only be whole when placed next to the half your soulmate possesses.
Rapunzel is extremely proud of her and Eugene's matching tattoos. Each one is a half of the Corona sun symbol, with beautiful and intricate swirling designs. They appeared on each of their arms when the two met in Rapunzel's tower, and the tattoos glow a brilliant yellow when Rapunzel and Eugene put them together. The princess always giggles giddily whenever they do this.
But Cassandra doesn't have time for a soulmate. The whole idea makes her queasy. She knows everyone supposedly has a soulmate, but she hopes she never has to meet whoever hers is. Walking around with half a tattoo on her arm for the rest of her life? No, thank you!
Frustratingly, she still has to make eye contact with a few people in order to carry out her errands. Once they are finished, she hurries back to the castle. When she meets back up with the princess, Rapunzel is still upset over her recently-returned hair... and the fact that Cass won't let her tell Eugene about the events that led to it growing back.
Sitting with Rapunzel under the gazebo, Cassandra says: "Maybe there's a way we can discreetly try to get some answers, just the two of us. I might know someone who can help."
"I still think you're being unfair about Eugene," Rapunzel says. "But, um, who is this friend of yours?"
"His name is Varian, and he's some kind of wizard," Cassandra replies. "Very little is known about him, and what is, isn't good. Some say he's dangerous."
"But if we want answers, he's our best bet. Right?" The princess asks.
Cassandra nods, and before long the two of them are off to see Varian!
Once they arrive, they are surprised to discover that Varian is, indeed, not a wizard, but rather an alchemist. And a kid, at that. But he is willing to help figure out the mystery of Rapunzel's hair, and keep it quiet.
"Let me make something clear," Cassandra threatens, jerking the kid up by his shirt to look him directly in the eyes. "What happens here stays here, you got it?" The boy looks slightly frightened, but also intrigued.
After a whole misadventure due to a malfunctioning invention of Varian's, that sadly kept them from getting the answers they needed about Rapunzel's hair, Cassandra and Rapunzel (along with Eugene, who showed up in the middle of it), have to head home as Varian is left with his father to clean up the mess he made. Back at the castle, Cassandra heads to her room for some much-needed relaxation. But as she prepares to hop in bed, she feels a sudden urge to push up her sleeve. When she does so, her heart sinks at what she sees...
A tattoo. Or, half a tattoo, to be exact. The other belonging to her supposed soulmate, whom she met sometime today.
"Oh, great!" She moans. "This is just what I needed! Ugh... Who could it have been?" Someone in town this morning, no doubt... Not that she actually cares who the universe thinks she should belong with. She would just like to know who she has to murder for causing her to have this monstrous thing! What is it, even? It kind of looks like those black rocks that chased her and Rapunzel, but what is that on top of them...?
A mystery she'll never know unless she puts her tattoo against her soulmate's half. Something she plans on never doing.
Meanwhile, back in his village, Varian is finishing cleaning up after his machine. He can't believe this happened... again. All he wants is to make his father proud, but it seems like the harder he tries the more he screws things up.
"What am I gonna do?" He thinks aloud. "I want to use my inventions to help the village, but I just seem to make things worse..."
That's when he notices a tiny bit of something black peaking out from under his sleeve. He pushes his sleeve up, and gasps:
There, plain as day on his arm, is half a tattoo. A soulmate tattoo! It seems to be of those weird black rocks that have been appearing in the village, and... possibly half of a crescent moon?
"B-But how?!" He stammers, unsure whether to be excited or terrified. "I'm only fourteen! Who could it be?"
As he ponders this question, he thinks back to all the people he interacted with today. His village is small, so he already knows everyone he talked to today who lives here. But the princess also visited... And she and Eugene already have their matching soulmate tattoos.
So that just leaves...
...Cassandra. The beautiful, raven-haired handmaiden who saved his life today. Could it be... they are meant to be?
Varian suddenly finds himself smitten. He smiles as he relives his interactions with Cassandra in his mind.
"I... I have to do something for her!" He realizes. "Something to impress her! It's the only way I might have a chance of winning her over."
He remembers hearing about the Science Expo that will be held at the castle in Corona soon. He could invent something to show off at it that would blow the crowd's minds! And Cassandra's, too. He just has to figure out what it'll be...
"I'll impress her, one way or another," Varian says. "I have to! I'll be hers one day. And she'll be my Cassie."
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