#been a while since I made a text post on theories/HCs I missed it lmao

[birb-tangleblog]

Pardon me if I'm stating the obvious, or if this has been discussed before, but I've been thinking about the S2 finale and Cass taking the moonstone again, and I really like the idea that maybe the moonstone responds to will?

I remember when Destinies Collide aired, there was a lot of speculation about how Cass was able to grab it- she reached for it w/ her withered arm so she wasn't harmed, Rapunzel was nearby so its defenses were down, etc.- but the more I think about it, the more I like the idea that the moonstone simply responds to intention.

The moonstone blew Edmund's arm off b/c he wanted to destroy it, the black rock cage around it dissolved b/c Rapunzel reached for it, and Cass was able to seize it because she wanted to make her own destiny. (Maybe you could get spicy and headcanon that the moonstone's cage wasn't even responding to Rapunzel, if she still had any doubts at that point- perhaps it was reacting to Cass' presence?)

It solves the big question mark of why the Brotherhood would devote themselves to guarding a magical item that needs no protection, and why Edmund feared it could be used for evil in the wrong hands. Maybe past DK kings and queens were even able to use the moonstone to build and protect their kingdom, and that's why the DK grew around it.

I feel like the show had the bones for themes of destiny and free will vs. determinism (see: "Crossing the Line" lyrics). The moonstone allowing anyone w/ the capacity to wield it while Rapunzel is imbued with the sundrop from birth seems fitting. And it's true that anyone who sings the incantation can also use the sundrop flower- but as far as we know, the power itself can't be bonded with in the same way, only passed down and inherited.

It parallels Cass and Raps' circumstances- Rapunzel being born into royalty, with her powers, at the center of a prophecy, while Cass has to makes her own way even before she takes the stone.

And I like that as far as AUs go, any character with strong enough motivation and willpower could take the moonstone instead. It jives with how in moon!AUs, the character who takes it often has something they want to make right or something they desperately want to change about their life.

Again, might be too obvious, but I think it's a more interesting/compelling explanation or theory than Cass stealing the moonstone b/c of a window of opportunity or a fluke/loophole.