A/N: OH. MY. GOSH! Seriously, people? I am so happy right now! I have 5 reviews, 4 follows, 3 favorites, and 126 views on my story. It hasn't even been up for a day! THANK YOU GUYS SO MUCH! (Now if I could just get that much on my FictionPress story… that's been up for, like, a month…)

Thank you to "Guest" for your review!

In case anyone didn't know… I don't know own Tangled :(

Chapter 2

"Eugene, I can't believe you're alive!" Rapunzel had been smiling non-stop since they had left the tower. "I just can't believe it!"

"Trust me, Blondie, I can't believe it either," Eugene replied. "I guess I need to come up with a new nickname for you, now that your hair's brown."

"No! I like it when you call me Blondie!"

"Rapunzel, your hair isn't blonde anymore…"

"So? It'll be our private joke, sort of."

"Alright… Blondie," he said with a smile.

"Eugene, I just realized something. Mother told me that you had been arrested, and that you were to be hanged. How'd you get escape the castle?"

"Maximus saw me get arrested, I think. Then he went and found those guys we met at the Snuggly Duckling. Somehow, they got inside and busted me out. They came just in time, too. I was being escorted to the noose when they showed up."

"We need to go thank them!" she exclaimed, clearly excited about getting to see her favorite pub thugs again. Eugene, on the other hand, didn't seem that thrilled.

"Rapunzel, we don't have any clue if they made it out or not. They might have gotten arrested for freeing me."

"The least we can do is go and see if they're there." she was adamant. They were GOING to the Snuggly Duckling. He could see Pascal glaring at him from her shoulder.

"Alright," replied Eugene, caving to the love of his life, and her terrifying frog.


Thankfully, all the pub thugss had made it out of the castle. In fact, few had even been injured. They were all very happy to see Rapunzel again, though they were curious as to why her hair was short and brown now. She tactfully evaded their questions, still shy about the subject of her magic hair. As the thugs told of their exploits at the castle (a lot of it in song), and of how Max had had to play charades to get their help, they began to notice how Rapunzel and Eugene (as they had been told his name was) were treating each other. They were acting like a lot more than friends, often losing themselves in the other's eyes.

"Rapunzel, how was your dream?" asked the thug with the big nose. "Did you enjoy the lanterns?"

"They were amazing! They were floating all around us, and Eugene even brought a couple for us to send off. It was so sweet of him." She proceeded to describe how the lanterns had reflected off the water, and how she had "rescued" one that was falling. "I even got to find out what my new dream is," she finished, turning toward Eugene again, a smile gracing her face. No one bothered asking what the new dream was; it was extremely obvious that she and the thief-turned-hero were in love.


As the afternoon turned to evening, and the evening to night, the various "pub thugs" began heading home. Rapunzel and Eugene eventually left, as well. As they walked away, Rapunzel noticed that Eugene was taking a route that would lead them to the tower.

"Where are we going," she asked, though she already knew.

"Well," Eugene started, guessing that she knew perfectly well where, "since we don't really have a place to stay at the moment, I thought it would be best if we just stayed in the tower. All that really needs done is getting rid of the hair, the broken mirror, and the chains."

"Okay," Rapunzel knew that this made sense. Where else could they go? "But I want to get out of the tower as soon as possible."

"Ra—Blondie, I completely understand. But, I'm wanted by the kingdom, so we can't just move anywhere. We might need to stay in the tower until the kingdom forgets about me a little bit. Hopefully, they'll calm down soon, but I can't guarantee anything."

She hadn't even considered that. The kingdom was after Flynn (Eugene), because of everything he'd done. And now, he'd escaped prison and a death sentence. She wondered if things would ever calm down. "Could we start spreading rumors that Flynn Rider died? It wouldn't be lying, because you did."

"That might help some," Eugene said. He began considering that. If he didn't steal anything ever again, and Rapunzel and the pub thugs started spreading rumors that he had died somehow, that might speed up the process.

They continued on their way in silence, both thinking hard about ways they could help the kingdom forget about Flynn Rider. Eventually, they came to the tower. They went up the hidden staircase that Gothel had tried to force Rapunzel down, just a few hours previously. Rapunzel gathered up all the hair, and carefully braided it, making sure to get every strand. She didn't really want to get rid of something that had been a part of her for her whole life. When she finished the braid, she stuffed the hair into the green closet she had hidden Flynn in two mornings ago. She smiled, remembering how excited she had been to show the unconscious man to her mother, thinking it was decisive proof that she could handle herself out in the world.

Meanwhile, Flynn swept up all the broken shards of glass. He placed them in a small basket, thinking Rapunzel could use them in her artwork later. Then he moved the mirror's frame into Gothel's bedroom. Neither of them were willing to use the old crone's bed. Finally, he gathered up the chains and moved them to Gothel's room as well. He realized then how exhausted he was. He went back out into the main room. "Hey, Blondie?"

"Yes, Eugene?" Rapunzel turned to him. She was grinning from ear to ear. Pascal was smiling to, still perched on her shoulder.

"What are the sleeping arrangements going to be? I mean, I'm not comfortable sleeping on your mother's bed, considering she killed me and all…" he trailed off, waiting for her response.

"We could share my—"

"No! That… we're not sharing your bed, Rapunzel."

She seemed to understand, suddenly, what that implied. Her cheeks turned crimson-red. "Oh. Well, you could sleep down here on the floor, I guess. We could start a fire, though it isn't that cold out, and you could use a couple of the extra quilts I've got."

"That'd be great, Rapunzel."

"You don't mind sleeping n the floor?"

"Nah, I'm used to it. Life as a thief…"


The next morning, Rapunzel woke him up at the crack of dawn. He realized that she must be a morning person; she was completely awake, dressed, her hair had been brushed, and he could smell breakfast cooking.

"Good morning, Eugene!"

"Morning, Blondie… What time is it?"

"7. I overslept today; I guess we stayed up kind of late last night."

"Wait. You get up before seven… everyday?" he was shocked. He never got up this early, unless he had to for some scheme he was pulling.

"Yeah," Rapunzel said, looking confused. Didn't everyone get up early? Carpe diem? "Doesn't everyone get up early?"

"Not really, Blondie… maybe if their job requires it, but a lot of people sleep past 7am on a regular basis."

"Oh," she said, sounding very surprised.

"Speaking of jobs, by the way, how are we supposed to get food and other necessities? It's not like I'm going to be able to go to town, but we'll need to get food." He had gone to the table, and was sitting down as he spoke. She brought two plates from the kitchen. He could smell the eggs and bacon.

"Well, I think mother might have had a garden nearby. I don't think she had a job, and she must have gotten all the vegetables and things we ate from somewhere…" she trailed off, thinking. "If we needed money, we could always sell her furniture. We don't want it, do we?"

"No. The only problem is how we're going to get them out of the tower and into town," he answered, taking a bite of eggs. They were delicious.

"We'll think of something. In the meantime, we need to look for the garden. It's probably in this valley, though I'm not sure where."

He looked at her from across the table. She looked so cute when she was thinking. She was lightly biting her bottom lip, her eyebrows were slightly scrunched together. She was staring at the table, completely oblivious to his gaze. Her hand was resting on the table, and he reached out to take it in his own. She looked up when he touched her, a soft smile on her face. "I am so happy that you knocked me out with that frying pan."

She beamed at him, "Me, too."

A/N: You like that ending? This chapter is a couple hundred words longer than the last one. I'm going to try and make each chapter 1000-1500 words. More reviews would be SO amazing!