Hey guys! Here's Chapter 3. The next chapter may take a while to come in, what with exams and all. Reviews mean the world to me guys.
Enjoy!
Chapter 3
By the time Rapunzel, Lance and Shorty were done setting up the camp for the night, it was nearing sundown. Rapunzel was concerned. Eugene and Cass still weren't back. If they didn't come back with food, they would have to go to sleep hungry, and then keep moving. They couldn't waste any more time here.
Suddenly, she saw Eugene and Cass walking back with a carcass in between them, and she breathed a sigh of relief.
Lance walked over to stand next to her. "About time they showed up. This big boy is STARVIN'!." She looked over at him with a smile, and saw that he was squinting at them. "Looks like they brought a third with them, too."
She strained her eyes, and saw that, they did in fact have a third person walking with them. Rapunzel marveled at Lance's ability to see from this far. She chalked it up to his time as a thief, always on the lookout for guards and potential hiding spots.
She turned her attention back to the mysterious third person. By now they were close enough to see clearly. The third was walking with Eugene and Cass, sticking closer to Eugene, who was talking animatedly to him. He was listening intently, hair falling into his face so it was hard for Rapunzel to really see him. He was tall, just slightly shorter than her boyfriend, but he was a lot thinner. His clothes, Rapunzel was saddened to see, were old and patched up.
Eugene spotted Rapunzel, and his face glowed. "Blondie! We found dinner! Get ready for a classic Fitzherbert recipe, courtesy of yours truly. Lance, you're helping me out. Oh, by the way, Blondie, this is Argus一sorry, Aris! He helped me hunt the deer一alright, alright! He helped Cass hunt the deer, so we're giving him a place to sleep for the night."
He and Lance carried the deer away, bantering amiably, and Rapunzel turned to face Aris. She smiled warmly, and stuck out her hand. "Hello, Aris."
He smiled back, a little shy, and shook her hand. "Hi."
Rapunzel was eager to meet a new person, and wasted no time in giving him a tour of the camp, introducing him to Lance, who was excited to learn that he could reuse all his old jokes, and Shorty, who thought Aris was his mom. By the time she was done, Eugene and Lance came out to present the dinner for the night.
Eugene sauntered forward, ladling some of the broth into a bowl for each person. "Bon appetit, ladies and gentlemen."
Rapunzel smiled her thanks as she received her bowl, and took a small sip. The stew was tangy with hints of mint and berry, and the meat chunks were nice and firm. Rapunzel was astounded. She never knew Eugene could cook so well.
"Wow you guys, this is amazing!"
Aris nodded in agreement, mouth full of the delicious broth. Shorty was slurping it down faster than humanly possible, and even Cass had nothing negative to say. The ex-thieves took a bow, arms around each other. Lance smiled. "What can we say Princess, when you're on the run 24/7, you tend to learn a thing or two."
Aris choked. "Wait a second, Princess?"
Rapunzel wasn't naïve, she knew that going around telling everyone she was, in fact, the Princess of Corona, was not safe at all, and it was for this reason that she hesitated. She had a feeling though, a gut instinct, that she could trust Aris. She glanced at Eugene to see if he mirrored her feelings, and she was relieved when he nodded encouragingly.
Rapunzel twirled her hair around her finger. "Yeah, you probably wouldn't know, but I'm kind of the princess of Corona."
She watched Aris for his reaction. He looked fascinated. "Wow, I'm really talking to royalty. I'll be honest, I would never have guessed. You are the least princessy princess I have ever seen."
To most royalty, that would have been an insult, but Rapunzel couldn't help but feel pleased. She hated being known as "the princess" or "the Sundrop". Those were responsibilities, and responsibilities made her feel dizzy and scared. For 18 years of her life, she was just Rapunzel, and all of a sudden these responsibilities were shoved in her face. Sure she was grateful for all the things she had been given, but she was also glad that to others, she could still be just Rapunzel.
Aris leaned forward. "So why is a princess out here so far from her kingdom?"
Cass smirked. "Long story, kid. Probably too long."
Eugene, who Rapunzel could tell was already quite fond of Aris, rolled his eyes. "Oh come on Cass, we've got nothing but time! Plus, this story is a fun one to tell."
And so they spent the next hour or two narrating the events of the past year to the wonderstruck teenager, everyone butting in to fill in the missing gaps.
Aris was a wonderful listener. Whenever anyone spoke, Rapunzel noticed, he would train his full concentration on them, and listen, wide-eyed and attentive.
They left out details they thought should be kept confidential, at least for a while, such as Rapunzel's magic, the scroll, and Zhan Tiri. By the end of the tale, she could tell Aris was having trouble taking it all in, but nonetheless very entertained.
Rapunzel was more than willing to stay up late to keep talking, but Cass, level-headed as usual, stood up.
"As fun as this conversation is, we need to get some sleep. We're leaving first thing tomorrow. But we need to make sure of something first." She turned to Aris, who did his best to look nonchalant, but couldn't hide the flash of fear from his face. Rapunzel couldn't blame him. Cass could be very scary at times.
She faced him. "We are leaving tomorrow. The kid could be useful in getting food. Should we take him with us?"
Rapunzel realized this question was directed towards her, and spluttered out, "It's Aris's choice, not ours! But he's more than welcome to join us."
Aris looked amazed that he even had a choice. "There is no way I am missing out on something like this. I'd love to join you RapunzelーI mean, your Highness一should I call you that一I mean technically I shouldn't because you're not in your Kingdom一but wouldn't it be rude not to call you your Highness一"
Rapunzel laughed at his antics "Aris, relax! Rapunzel is fine."
