On Trial

The Former Captain

Cassandra held her head in her trembling hands. Tears were slipping through her tightly squeezed eyelids, as sobs racked her body.

The taste of the disgusting slop, they called food, lingered in her mouth, as did the feel of the unforgiving, sharp-tasting, metal spoon.

Every inch of her skin was covered in bruises, from where she had been held down. The worst ones had spread right across her jawline and stung, prominently, even when she wasn't touching them.

At that moment, she was so far gone in her pained state, that she didn't notice anyone coming into the room, until they placed a hand on her aching shoulder. It was then, that she forgot about the no-talking rule.

"No!" She screamed, scrambling to get away, nearly toppling off the bed she was perched on, "no, no, no, no! Get away from me! I don't want anymore!"

A soft, but sinister chuckle sounded from beside her.

"Don't worry, you're not being fed, you stupid girl. This is much more exciting," her guard sneered, shining a candle in her direction, "you are getting a bit of an upgrade."

Cassandra tilted her head, narrowing her eyebrows, attempting to show that she didn't understand.

The guard merely smirked, reaching into his pocket and pulling out a pair of handcuffs, connected to a chain that had to be hang on the wall.

"The King has advised that you wear these, until you learn not to fight back at meal times."

He quickly lunged and grabbed hold of her right wrist, positioning the cuff over it.
She tried in vain to kick him away, which only caused him to twist her wrist, sharply and hold it there.

"Tell me, beautiful, do you want cuffed wrists or broken ones?" He hissed, spitting in her face.

Cassandra let her legs relax, as he tightened his hold, even more, producing a cry of pain.

"Good choice."

Freezing, metal clicked around Cassandra's wrists.

The mid-length chain was hooked onto the wall by her bed, preventing her from coming within a meter of the door.

She felt like an animal in a cage.

"I'm afraid that I will need to let the King know that you talked earlier."

Cassandra didn't react, she just stared down at her barely-visible feet.

"You know, you're very close to having your tongue taken away, so I'd stick to using your pretty eyes to emote, if I were you."

The door slammed and locked. Cassandra was left yanking against her restraints, on the verge of screaming.

Saying that Cassandra's dad , Harold, was angry, when Eugene and Rapunzel told him everything, was a complete understatement. He was furious.

"He wouldn't do this to the Stabbingtons or Lady Caine!" He ranted, his face bright red.

"That's what I don't understand. Why is he doing this to Cass, when he's never done it to anyone else before?" Rapunzel questioned, raising an eyebrow.

"It's because he hates Cass." Harold muttered, "he always has done and always will, especially after everything that's happened."

There was a long-winded silence. Eugene was completely speechless, for once, while Rapunzel was blinking back shocked tears.

"Wha—what? Why?" She finally stuttered, her voice cracking, "why would he—-hate her?"

Harold sighed, biting his lip.

"Because she's Gothel's. He wanted me to dump her to an orphanage when she first arrived, because of that fact alone. Thankfully your mother convinced him to let her stay, but he treated her coldly throughout her entire childhood." He explained, "Cassandra noticed it, of course and was pretty tense around him right up into adulthood. But I never said or did anything because, I was worried that I would get fired from my position, and I would lose everything, including her."

Rapunzel put her arm around his shoulders, wiping tears from her face.  

"I'm so sorry! If I'd known, I would've..."

"No, Princess, you have absolutely nothing to be sorry for," Harold said, "you, Eugene, Lance,  Varian and Queen Arianna, all except her for who she is on the inside, you don't care where she's come from and I can't thank any of you enough for that, especially you, Rapunzel, after everything that woman did to you."

"Cass is my best friend, I don't care who her mother is. Never have, never will. It doesn't define her." Rapunzel sniffled, "I just wish my dad could see that, too."

"Same here, but you know how he can be, immovable."

Eugene grumbled something, under his breath, which he thanked the heavens above didn't reach the ears of his girlfriend.

"Then, we'll just have to try and make him moveable. I'm not just going to sit back and let Cass suffer like this."

Harold groaned inside his head. Rapunzel had managed to win many battles with her father before, but this one, he knew, she was not going to win.

He just knew it.