"Your Majesty, I don't think Rider should be allowed to roam the castle on his own," James said as he followed the King into the royal chambers.
"Oh?"
"He was asking quite a lot of questions about one of the portraits in the Guard hall, Sire. He could be planning on stealing it."
"The only thing he plans on stealing is my daughter's heart," the King said confidently.
"But Sire-"
"Which portrait was he eyeing?" The King asked.
"That of Dame Anne Fitzherbert," James told him. "It is one of the more well done portraits, I'm not surprised-"
"Nor am I."
"Sire?"
"James," The King said gently. "The boy's real name is not Flynn Rider. He told Rapunzel that his real name is Eugene Fitzherbert. He hasn't seen his mother since she died. stumbling across that portrait must have been quite the shock."
"Your Majesty...Flynn Rider is..."
"Dame Anne Fitzherbert's son," the King nodded in confirmation. "And he finished the job his mother could not; he brought our princess back." The King sat at his desk and leaned back. "I know what everyone in the castle thinks of his staying here, but he makes my daughter very happy, and on top of his heroics, his mother's good deeds deserve honoring. He's not going anywhere for the time being."
James struggled with that.
"You'll just have to learn to tolerate the boy."
The Queen stepped into the room and began taking off her jewelry. "Someone else telling us how dangerous Flynn Rider is, and that we should get rid of him as soon as possible?"
"Yes," the King replied as he went over some documents on his desk. "Of course."
"Hmm," the Queen nodded. "James, we'll need you to check with the archive tomorrow for any more portraits of Dame Fitzherbert. See if they have something small, that we can give to Eugene. He should have one of his mother."
"Sire...Your Highness...you're certain he is who he says he is?"
"James," the Queen said, a warning tone in her voice.
"Yes, Highness."
They had placed Eugene's room on the other side of the castle from the royal family, for obvious reasons; ones that Rapunzel had rolled her eyes at. She wasn't happy with him being so far away from her, and he could tell that even though a full week had passed, she was still worried that the magic from her tear would somehow wear off and he would drop dead.
Worried enough to sneak through the castle every other night and wake him up, tugging him out onto one of the balconies to talk and kiss and look at the stars and fall asleep before the sun rose.
He walked to his room, and stopped when he found Rapunzel sitting in the hall, across from the portrait he'd been staring at earlier. Next to her sat a basket of pastries.
"Blondie, what're you doin?" he asked, a little amused, letting his shoulder rest against the wall.
"Well," she said gently. "We had dinner with my parents, I thought maybe we could have dessert with yours."
the amusement fell from his face as he glanced at the portrait and then back at Rapunzel.
"I have muffins," she said, holding up the basket a little.
He grinned sadly and took a seat next to her, snatching a muffin up for himself and kissing her cheek.
She relaxed and smiled back, taking one too, and then looked at the portrait. "She reminds me of the amazons in some of my new books."
Eugene followed her gaze and nodded slowly. "She was definitely as strong as one. Knighted, raising a kid by herself, Captain of the Guard..."
"She was your hero," Rapunzel said.
"Her and Flynnigan Rider," He teased. "She would have hated that book."
"Really?"
"Oh, yeah. Rolled her eyes, and given me one with gallant knights saving princesses, which, let's be honest, boring."
Rapunzel laughed. "I didn't realize you remembered her so well."
"Burned into my brain," he said absently, and immediately regretted his choice of words. He took a big bite from his muffin.
"Do you think she would have liked me?" Rapunzel asked thoughtfully.
"Well, you are the princess..."
"I know, but...you know, as a person..."
Eugene thought about that as he chewed and swallowed, and tried to remember more about his mother, about how she reacted to people, and what she had been like. "I think...Yeah. I think she would have. Maybe a little freaked out by your endless amounts of excitement, but beating me up with a frying pan would have most definitely earned you a 'welcome to the family!'"
She laughed, delighted. "Really?"
He nodded and grinned widely at her. "I was a pain in the butt as a kid, and she always knew how to handle it. She always knew what to do. Maybe this is five-year-old Eugene talking but she could fix anything."
Rapunzel's smile fell. "My father said she was looking for me when she died..."
Eugene nodded. "She said she was getting close...that she'd have it figured out soon."
"It's nice," Rapunzel said. "That you got to finish her work."
He looked at her and grinned a little. "Yeah," he said quietly. "She woulda liked that."
"My parents want to knight you, you know."
"Me?!" he cried, bobbling his muffin a little in surprise. "They wanna knight me? I'm a thief I steal things I am not...I am not knight material!"
"Well, you did bring their daughter home," Rapunzel pointed out, poking his shoulder.
He let her tilt him a little with her finger and thought about that. "Me, a knight. Sir Eugene."
"You do know that means that Flynn Rider has to disappear," Rapunzel told him. "No more stealing, no more evading the law...no more life of derring do. At least not illegal derring do."
He glanced at her, and remembered that she knew nothing of the realities of living that life. How dangerous, and lonely it was; how many nights he went without food or a warm place to sleep during dry spells or while he was running from the law.
"I think I can handle it," he told her softly.
Rapunzel smiled and bumped her shoulder against his, and he leaned in, ready to kiss her when someone cleared their throat down the hall.
A tall, dainty woman with blonde hair and incredibly pale skin made her way regally toward them. She was Madame Veronica, the teacher the King and Queen had appointed to help Rapunzel learn to be a princess.
While the woman was an expert on manners and etiquette, she seemed to have a hard time with things like sincerity and compassion.
"Hi, Madame Veronica," Rupunzel grumbled.
"Princess, we have talked about mumbling," Madame Veronica said.
Eugene felt the girl next to him flinch, just a little and he took her hand firmly.
"And it is most unbecoming of a princess to sit on the floor," The older woman pointed out. "On top of that, it is nearly time to retire for the night. Say goodnight to mister Rider, and follow me to your bedchambers, please."
"Fine." Rapunzel puffed up and then grabbed Eugene's vest, pulling him into a long, deep kiss.
Eugene's eyes widened and he held her arms. After a moment, he couldn't help letting his eyes drift shut and leaning into her. He knew this was probably not the time, but Rapunzel was incredibly hard to resist, even if she was using him to annoy her teacher.
"Princess Rapunzel," Madame Veronica snapped.
Eugene almost whimpered when Rapunzel pulled away and got to her feet. She kissed the top of his head and then followed Madame Veronica down the hall, taking her basket of pastries with her.
He watched her and stayed in the hallway for a few moments more before slowly getting up and wandering to his own room.
The King sighed and rubbed his eyes, as he looked down at the reports he'd been reading. His wife had retired for the night, and he was left with the quiet of his chambers, until the doors creaked open and his daughter peeked in.
He grinned and waved for her to enter, grinning.
She rushed in and climbed up to sit on his desk.
"It's late," he told her. "And you have lessons in the morning."
"I can't sleep."
"No?"
Rapunzel shook her head.
The King cleared his throat and leaned forward. "Would you like to tell me what's bothering you?"
She sighed and rested her elbows on her knees and then her chin in her hands. "Everything."
"That's a lot to weigh on your mind," the King said, smiling gently.
"I guess...I just...I mumble, and I'm not supposed to sit on the floor and Eugene's mother..."
"She was a very brave woman," the King said gently. "And very loyal."
"If you knew her and you knew Eugene why didn't you let Eugene live with you here?" Rapunzel asked.
The King opened his mouth and then closed it. He sighed heavily and got to his feet, pacing a little. "Because I was younger and more foolish, and I believed that that wasn't the way things were done."
Rapunzel frowned as she watched him.
He looked up at her and then walked over, taking her hand. "I am not perfect. I never have been. I have made mistakes. Letting Anne's son disappear was one of them."
She bit her lip and looked up at him, smiling a little. "What about hiring Madame Veronica?"
The King blinked and then let out a chuckle. "Give her a chance, Rapunzel. She has your best interests at heart."
"She's mean!"
"She's strict," the King corrected her. "There's a difference."
She huffed. "Why can't I sit on the floor? Why can't I kiss Eugene whenever I want to? Or mumble?"
"Rapunzel..."
"I lived in a tower for eighteen years, and I finally get out and there's...there's more rules and more things that I'm not allowed to do!"
"Rapunzel, we can't always do what we want," the Queen said from the doorway of the bedroom. "As adults, as rulers, we have to hold back sometimes."
The King sighed in relief. Not that he was happy to have woken his wife, but there were some times (most times) Rapunzel asked questions he floundered with. He hated telling her no, and he hated giving her unsatisfactory explanations.
"But why can't I sit on the floor, Mother?" Rapunzel asked, hopping down from the desk.
The Queen smiled. "I will talk to Madame Veronica and explain that when you are around the castle, relaxing, the floor is fine. But at dinner, at official events, and in your classes, you need to use chairs."
"Or my desk," the King said lightly, and both women smiled. "As for Eugene..." he cringed slightly, unsure of how to broach this subject.
Rapunzel rolled her eyes. "I'm not going to do anything foolish with him."
"Yet," the King muttered.
The Queen shot him a look and then turned back to her daughter. "Some people see your relationship with him as...well, as a problem. When in reality, had things turned out differently the two of you would have grown up together, and may have fallen for each other anyways. Just remember that discretion is the better part of valor."
The King blinked. Had his wife just really given their daughter permission to sneak around with a boy?
"Now," the Queen said, moving on. "What is all this about mumbling?"
Rapunzel looked away and fidgeted. "I...Mother...the other...Gothel..."
The King tensed up at hearing that name. Rapunzel had been hesitant to go into too much detail about what her life had been like. Of course, he knew that Gothel had kept Rapunzel in that tower, and he knew how things had ended. He made a mental note to talk to Eugene about what he'd gleaned from his time spent with her.
"She told you that you mumble?" the Queen asked gently.
"She hated my mumbling," Rapunzel said. "She...she would make...you know...never mind it's not...it's nothing. It's my fault."
The Queen took her hands. "We'll work on your speaking skills. It will all be alright. I promise. And I need you to remember two things: One, that nobody here hates anything about you, and two: it's not your fault. Do you understand me?"
Rapunzel nodded, but awkwardly pulled her hands away. "I'm gonna go to bed. Sorry to wake you."
"I don't mind," the Queen told her, stroking her short hair back. "I've been woken up for far worse reasons than talking to my daughter."
Rapunzel smiled, and waved, before slipping out of the room.
The Queen deflated and turned to her husband. "This is not going to be easy."
He nodded and wrapped an arm around her. "No one said it would be."
