From the Heart
Set post-movie so obviously contains movie spoilers, please do not read if you do not want to be spoiled 3
Here's one of those quirky little Rapunzel things that Eugene has still not quite gotten used to - besides the fact that she prefers him as Eugene, no amount of time is ever going to really get him to adjust to that- she's a princess who cannot be wooed with jewels and expensive gifts.
Not that he'd try, but he remembers her first birthday in the palace; when dignitaries from all over unloaded so much swag that Rapunzel couldn't even sleep in her room for a week. She ended up donating most all of the trinkets and baubles to the city surrounding the castle.
Still, it's a thought that continues to baffle and elude him. She appreciates practical gifts; a new pair of walking shoes, or paint brushes, or a frying pan even though she has been banned from the kitchen approximately thirty seven times by the castle cook. But what she loves...well that's a little harder to come by.
Eugene is running late, which is a terrible thing for the guy who is supposed to be meeting the love of his life for a special evening together. He might employ a few thief techniques; scale some walls, walk across some roofs, to get there in a relatively decent time. He checks on the present, safely guarded inside his satchel, and sees it's still in perfect condition (except for one corner, but it's been like that, so hey).
Rapunzel is already waiting for him, a blanket spread out in front of her while she pulls a ridiculous amount of food from a wicker basket at her side. She sees him and her entire face seems to light up.
"Do you want to do presents now, or after we eat?" She bites at her lip and squirms a bit in her seat, obviously excited.
Eugene smiles, it's a dopey smile that only Rapunzel could love and that's fine with him, "now?"
She squeals, dives into the basket and withdraws a prettily wrapped...something. "We exchange them at the same time, okay? So we'll both be happy shocked together, that makes it better."
He laughs and agrees to her demands, passing off his gift to her and accepting hers to him. It's rectangular and not too entirely heavy.
"On three," Rapunzel counts down quickly, twisting her finger against the wrapping in that cheat kind of way that makes most of it fall off without tearing it into tiny shreds.
Eugene has to struggle a bit, he's never been good at opening things, but Rapunzel's squeak of happiness has just died out as he makes one of his own. The Adventures of Flynnigan Rider stares back at him, all the same words he remembers reading over and over again as a child.
It's not a manufactured copy though, the letters are all hand written and the pictures...the pictures are different. Drawn in a familiar style that he would recognize anywhere (heck, it's all over his bedroom wall, the castle, the city), the devilishly handsome Flynnigan Rider bears a striking resemblance to one Eugene Fitzherbert this time around.
He looks up in time to see Rapunzel flipping through her own present, The Adventures of Rapunzel and Eugene Fitzherbert and his own messy drawings stare back at him.
"I'm sorry," he says, "I can't draw as well as you can. This...this is beautiful, Rapunzel and-" he's cut off when she throws herself at him, locking arms around his neck in one of her exuberant hugs.
"You must have spent so much time on this, Eugene." She kisses him quick at the corner of his mouth, "it's perfect, Thank you."
He's smiling at her again, the dopey just for Rapunzel smile. "Hey, wanna start working on the sequel?"