Disclaimer: I only own this plot, Edith, and anything else you don't recognize, though I would love to own Tangled.

MQMQMQMQMQMQMQMQMQMQMQMQ

Chapter Two

For a long moment, Edith didn't know how to react to this announcement. For twenty-two years, her father had done nothing to acknowledge her existence. Why now of all times? Blinking a little, she glanced back into the house before she stepped out onto the front step and closed the door behind her. Crossing her arms over her chest, she met the man's gaze evenly.

"Why does my father wish to see me now, after so long of trying to ignore me?" she demanded, a little caustically.

The old man didn't even blink at the acid in Edith's tone. If anything, she was the only one startled by how biting she was being. Apparently she had more of Eugene's personality than she had previously thought. Setting her jaw firmly, she continued to meet the man's gaze, silently demanding that he explain himself right away.

"Your father has become very ill, Miss Baker, and in his last days, he wishes to speak with his children," the man said.

Edith didn't by it for a moment. Her father was not the sort of man who would wish to see her. She was the illegitimate daughter of a filthy whore, after all. Meeting the older man's gaze for a moment, she finally turned away to open the door again.

"I'm sorry," she said, glancing back at the man. "You can tell my father that neither I nor my brother has any interest in speaking with him at this or any other time. Good evening."

Closing the door in the man's face, Edith leaned against the door, resting her forehead against the rough wood for a moment to catch her breath. Sighing heavily, she rested her hands against the door and pushed away, making her slow way to the dining room. The children didn't seem to notice how distracted Edith was, but Mrs. Ferris certainly did. The older woman gave Edith a concerned look, but Edith didn't respond, simply staring down at the tabletop in front of her.

Once dinner was completed, she had all the older children and teenagers take care of putting the younger children to bed while she went to her own room and sat heavily on the bed. Reaching up to run her fingers through her hair, Edith sighed heavily and glanced out the window. Maybe she should send word to Eugene; let him know what had happened. Yes…that would be a good thing to do.

Standing up hastily, Edith made her way over to her desk and began writing out a letter to Eugene. At first, she had no idea how to tell him anything. Then, the words just seemed to start flowing out of her pen as she wrote. Once she had finished the letter, she sent one of the teenaged boys with it to the city to be delivered to her brother. Now all she could do was wait.

MQMQMQMQMQMQMQMQMQMQMQMQ

The letter arrived first thing in the morning, waiting right beside Eugene's usual place at the breakfast table. This was a little strange, as Eugene had never gotten a letter before in all his time at the castle. Exchanging confused looks with Rapunzel, he picked up the letter and opened it carefully. He couldn't begin to guess who it was from until he spotted the name at the bottom of the letter.

"It's from Edith," he said in an undertone to Rapunzel, grinning a little. "She misses me already."

Rapunzel smiled back as he began reading the letter, watching his facial expression carefully. When his expression became serious, she leaned over in concern and placed a hand on his shoulder. "What is it?" she asked.

"Here, take a look for yourself," he murmured, handing her the letter.

For a moment, Rapunzel was surprised that he was allowing her to read a letter from his sister, but as she read it, her surprise was replaced by concern.

Dear Eugene,

I'm at a loss about what to say…especially since I'm writing to you so soon after seeing you for the first time in eighteen years. Where do I start…?

Someone came to the orphanage today. Someone from our father's estate. He said that our father is ill and wants one last chance to redeem himself to you and I. I didn't know what to do…so I told the man that neither of us wanted anything to do with our father. Was that the right thing for me to do? I need to know what to do. If our father is trying to make amends now…what does it all mean for the both of us? And why now of all times?

I'm sorry if I sound paranoid and suspicious about nothing, but I had to tell someone about this. Please…let me know what you think I should do about it, and I'll do exactly what you say.

All my love,

Edith

Rapunzel stared at the letter for a moment or two before she spoke. "Maybe your father really does want to make things right…" she suggested, trailing off at the look on Eugene's face.

"Twenty-six years," Eugene said with a sour expression on his face. "Twenty-six years, and all of the sudden he wants to make things right now? I don't think so, Blondie. The man never wanted anything to do with me or Edith. I'm not about to let him try and weasel his way into my life just because he's sick."

Both the king and queen had watched this exchange silently, but now curiosity was getting the best of the queen. Clearing her throat a little to remind Eugene and Rapunzel that they weren't alone, she calmly met Eugene's gaze.

"I couldn't help overhearing," she said with a touch of humor in her tone. "But…might I ask who your father is, Mr. Fitzherbert?"

Eugene's ears turned a brilliant shade of crimson as he cleared his throat slightly. "Er…I'd rather not talk about it, Your Majesty," he said in a low voice. "It's not something I'm very proud of."

"I insist, Mr. Fitzherbert."

Again with the tone that was both commanding and not all at once. Eugene just hoped that Rapunzel never mastered that tone of voice, or he'd never be able to keep another secret again as long as he lived. Looking down at the table pointedly, Eugene sighed in defeat. "Lord Herbert Morris," he said in a biting tone. "That's who my father is."

There was a long pause as the king and queen exchanged amazed looks with one another, silently gesturing towards Eugene and then to one another. Eugene frowned a little at this and wondered what sort of unspoken conversation the king and queen were having about him. He glanced at Rapunzel as though he hoped she could offer some explanation or translation, but the Princess looked as lost as Eugene, shrugging apologetically at him.

Finally, the king and queen turned their attention once more to Eugene and Rapunzel, both looking rather serious about something. Eugene suddenly felt very self-conscious and wary as the rulers of the kingdom of Corona stared at him fixedly. After what felt like an eternity, the queen spoke again.

"It would appear, Mr. Fitzherbert, that you are your father's only heir," she said quietly. "That must be the reasoning behind his wishing to make amends. It would not do for all his property to be inherited by a son that he himself did not acknowledge as legitimate."

"Yeah, well, I don't care about getting his money," Eugene said, and to his surprise he meant it. A year ago, he would have still hated his father for all the years of neglect, but he wouldn't have turned down inheriting the guy's money. Glancing at Rapunzel, Eugene didn't regret what he had said at all. He didn't need his father's money while he was with the gorgeous brunette sitting beside him.

The queen arched an eyebrow at this and cleared her throat daintily before she continued. "Nevertheless, Mr. Fitzherbert, that is the case. Or should I say…Lord Eugene," she added with a slight quirk of her lips.

Wait…what? Lord? That…didn't make sense. In fact, pairing his name up with the word Lord just made it sound even worse than he had ever thought it sounded when he was a kid. Wincing a little at the sound of it, Eugene gave the queen a questioning look.

"But…I don't want to be a Lord," he said, and it was only after the words left his mouth that he realized how childish they sounded. The queen only smiled a little at him, and he could tell that she also knew just how stupid he was being. Still…at least she didn't make it a point of conversation. That much Eugene was grateful for.

"Perhaps we should discuss this at another time," the queen said simply, arching a delicate eyebrow. "In the meantime, I believe you should think about how best to reply to your letter."

With that, the king and queen returned to their meal, leaving Eugene to ponder over his new-found status and how best to tell Edith what he thought she should do about their father.

Eugene had never known his father very well, but he knew the rumors surrounding his father well enough. You'd have to have lived under a rock to not know all the gossip about Lord Herbert Morris, especially if you grew up in the little village that was built just beyond his large manor and grounds. Everyone in the village knew that Lord Herbert was a womanizer and a bit of a drunk, which had only gotten worse since the death of his father, Lord Alfred. There were even rumors, in the years after Eugene ran away from the orphanage, that the reckless Lord Herbert was getting heavily into debt after becoming an obsessive gambler. Eugene never found out if that particular bit of gossip was true, but he couldn't care less.

While he never sought out a meeting with his father, Eugene had been by the manor house once or twice in his later teen years and early adulthood, as though just standing on those huge lawns would alert his father to his presence. It hadn't worked, of course, but Eugene had managed to convince himself over the years that he didn't care. Now, with the possibility of finally facing his father, Eugene realized that he did care very much. All his life, he'd never had a father figure to look up to. In his early years as a kid alone in the kingdom, he would look at the various paintings and portraits of the king and queen and wish they were his parents.

How ironic, he thought to himself, glancing at the king and queen with a slightly sarcastic smile.

But the question still remained…did he really want to face his father? Oh, sure, he'd faced his father, but never actually spoken to or confronted him. Was that something that he, Eugene Fitzherbert, could do? Glancing over at Rapunzel for support, Eugene smiled a little as she laced her fingers through his, beaming up at him as though he made the world go round.

No, he decided. He wasn't about to face his father. Not now, at any rate.

MQMQMQMQMQMQMQMQMQMQMQMQ

Author's Note: Hey guys! Sorry it took me a while to update this story. Currently, The Tales of Eugene Fitzherbert is eating up all my muse's concentration, but I've managed to divert it long enough to crank out this chapter. I'll try to be more consistent with updating this story in the near future, but we'll see what happens. Just a warning, I've decided that the vast majority of this is going to be very Edith centric rather than focusing on Eugene and Rapunzel. After all, I focused entirely on them in Flower Glow and Eugene has his own story being written as we speak. So from now on, most of the chapters will focus on Edith, though don't worry, I won't forget about Eugene and Rapunzel. Trust me, they're going to be very important to the plot. Well, enjoy your new chapter, my dears!