Title: Sleepless

Summary: Eugene can't sleep in the palace. Rapunzel decides to discover why.

Rating: T

Word count: 1716

Warnings: Tongue. Is that a warning? :)

Author's note: This one goes to my beta, KisstheRain14. Found her completely at random, but she opened her heart and helped me in a blink of an eye. I have now restored my faith in human kind.

Rapunzel was confused.

Well, that wasn't exactly a surprise, since she'd been confused a lot since coming to live in the castle.

Before this whole life changing turn of events, when she usually got into a problem, she approached it the only way she knew how and took the matters into her own hands.

Like that time when she wondered whether the blueberry that had appeared on her tower window was edible or not and it turned out to be wonderful. Or that other time when the blackened pastry was not.

But ever since coming here, to this strange place where people seemed to really like her, she hadn't been able to deal with things the way she would like to.

Take yesterday for example. She tried her best to fit in and dress like some of the older girls she saw in Corona's Port, but all she got was nervous stares from her mother and father as she came to breakfast in the morning. Her mother had tried to explain that was not common attire for a princess. But Eugene, after a second of complete bewilderment and a lost fork, got the smirk. The one he always wore when he knew something she didn't.

She used to be very annoyed with him when he got that look, as she'd seen it so many times in their small adventures. But now, she simply got excited. It meant that later she would get an explanation. And Eugene's explanations were always more interesting than anyone else.

"So you see, Blondie. The girls you saw at the deck where not exactly ladies. They usually dress like that to, hum, entertain the sailors as they come to our harbour."

"But, why do they need to dress like that to entertain? You always entertain me and most of the time you're not showing that much skin."

"It's a … more personal entertainment. I'll show you some day."

She still didn't get why he blushed and changed the subject so suddenly that day. But well, coming back to the problem at hand, she was again very confused and, this time, it had everything to do with Eugene.

The past month had sure been very tiresome with all the new discoveries, new people and new sights. However, she thought that after so much excitement they would settle into a more comfortable routine, enjoying eachother's company and trying as many new things as they could.

But currently, between her princess education and his knighthood training, in the few hours a day she got to be with him he was always so tired and sleepy that one could even say he was kind of grumpy.

She caught him dozing off a couple of times on her way to one of her etiquette classes, always at a random place like the arched window near the kitchens or the small corridor to the library. One time she even caught him sleeping in Max's stable house before the good horse decided to wake him up with a kick to the head.

So, after wondering for a while what could possibly be the reason for his behavior, she tried the most obvious thing and simply asked him.

"Eugene, why are you so tired lately?"

"Tired? I'm not tired." He yawned.

"Eugene."

"Blondie," he replied with a smirk. The smirk. "I'm just getting so handsome lately that I've had to extend my beauty sleep hours. You know how it gets."

She glared at him. "Eugene!"

"You know, Blondie. You seem like you slept quite well today. You're simply radiating," he said, taking one of her hands and sliding the other down her lower back.

"I.." Mumble. Silence.

Well, let's just say that her plan didn't end as, hum, well as she hoped it would. Eugene could be very distracting when he wanted to be. After the second, third and fourth inquiry ended up taking the same course of action (not that she complained much), she decided to skip the talking and simply stalk him one night.

Stalking is no easy task when you are known for stumbling over things and falling while simply standing still. But Pascal decided to help and went ahead distracting the guards and removing any smaller objects that might alert her presence.

Upon arriving on Eugene's chamber, she found it very strange that his door was not locked. She'd come prepared to use her new lock-picking abilities (acquired after some training with her favourite ex-thief) and was disappointed when she found she could just turn the knob and enter. Maybe he wasn't really worried that anyone would try to enter his bedroom unnoticed. Hum. She would keep that in mind.

The grey walls and the simplicity of the bedroom didn't surprise her as she had been here before. The first day after her father pardoned and thanked him, they came here and he started some nonsense about doing the right thing and leaving to let her start her new life as a princess without him as a burden. They'd argued, she'd cried, but in the end his leaving just wasn't an option. He was her dream. She was his. End of discussion.

She closed the door quietly, leaving Pascal to patrol outside. The night was hot and Eugene had left the window open, the light breeze moving his curtains. She got closer and blushed as it was obvious that he was sleeping shirtless. Her blush didn't last long as she perceived that his sleep, although deep, was entirely restless.

He tossed, turned and mumbled incomprehensible words. She slowly reached for his forehead and, as her fingers slightly brushed it, she felt that he was burning up. She let her hand lie next to him, but before she could even process his wake his eyes suddenly opened.

"Rapunzel!" he exclaimed disoriented.

"It's me. It's me. I'm sorry. I shouldn't have come." He was trying to sit, slowly becoming aware of his surroundings.

"It's okay. I'm sorry. I shouldn't have shouted." Fully awake, he passed his hand through his untamed hair, his look tired as the unspoken question floated between them.

"I was worried. I knew you weren't sleeping well and you just wouldn't tell me why. It was hard seeing you like that and not being able to help was killing me."

"I know." He sighed. "I should have said something but, you know, Flynn Rider never depended on anyone to overcome his fears." His voice took a light joking tone.

"You're not Flynn anymore," she said without thinking.

"I know." His tone got darker. "I've been dreaming about him." He paused.

"In most of them I'm just Flynn Rider again, thief extraordinaire, running away with a great stolen treasure off to a hidden island."

Rapunzel's head started swimming. She had been keeping him locked. She should have known he wouldn't want to be stuck in a castle doing boring chores.

"I'm... I'm sorry... I... I shouldn't have stopped you from leaving. You just wanted to go, but..." Tears sprang in her eyes.

"No, no, you don't understand!" He pleaded for her attention with his eyes.

"It's not that part of the dream that's been getting to me." His hands started travelling up and down her arms. She shivered.

"Usually when I get to the island everything is sunny and warm, but then I remember you." He gazed into her eyes.

"I remember you and I realise that, if I'm still Flynn, you must still be in the tower and every time I go back but I can't find it!" He was shaking. "I can't find you!"

"Oh Eugene," she says softly as she hugs him. "You found me. You found me. We are together and there is nothing they can do to take you away from me. Nothing. Unless, of course, you want to leave..."

"Never." He returns the embrace. "I guess I'm just overwhelmed by all these changes and with so much going on I still don't feel like you are safe."

"I'm safe right here." She snuggled closer.

He felt the smoothness of her cheeks, the flowery scent of her hair, and couldn't help but whisper.

"Love you".

She suddenly stares at him, and before she could utter a word his mouth descended upon hers.

The kiss was unexpected and it took a moment for her to respond. She was surprised by his assertiveness as they had never been so close or so... alone like right now.

One of his hands traveled from her shoulder to her lower back and the other kept her head in place, pushing and pulling lightly, teaching her his pacing.

They had kissed like this before. The way his mouth moved from up to right and the way he nipped her lower lip was already familiar. But, regardless of their previous experience, she still got surprised when the tip of his tongue asked for entrance.

She moaned. Her hands roamed around his naked back. She shifted a little and, suddenly, she was on top of him.

He stared at her hungrily and she started feeling a dizziness she'd never felt before. She lowered herself to take his lips again but he stopped her.

"We have to stop," he said, somewhat painfully.

"Why?" she asked, the dizziness making her entire body tingle.

He smirked. The smirk. "I'll tell you someday, Blondie. For now, let's just say I'm pretty tired."

She hated him for a moment, especially the smirk, but she accepted it. She wouldn't really know what to do with these new feelings, anyway.

After a few minutes, silence reigned over the bed. Rapunzel sighed happily as Eugene slept, snoring softly at her side.

'We'll continue tomorrow,' she thought. 'Tonight I'll just enjoy his quiet company and let him rest.' They hadn't even discussed their sleeping arrangements. He shifted to the left side. She stayed.

But now, in contrast to Eugene's peaceful form, Rapunzel was not exactly sleepy. After so much stalking, talking and, hum, cuddling, she didn't feel like she could simply doze off. Her mind started to wander and, after a look at Eugene's chest she pondered:

'Maybe he will show me that different kind of entertainment now that he's not wearing a shirt.'

She smirked. She might wake him earlier than she thought.

Yes. She just might.

- The end