A/N: So this chapter might bother a few people. I don't want to give it away but it does involve Flynn's past and some things that he did wrong. This is primarily a flashback, and probably my most favorite chapter I've written. I really hope you enjoy it, and a big thank you to those that have followed the story and kept reading this far, even though the first few chapters were a bit slow. -Lillie

Six Months Previously

"Hey Blondie, I need to talk to you." Rapunzel looked up from her book and gazed at Eugene from across the library. He looked uncomfortable, shifting around in his silk vest and breeches. He'd been an official guest at the castle for the past six months, and the king and queen had made sure he had anything he could have wanted. It was the least they could do for the hero that rescued their daughter. Unfortunately he still had to adhere to the strict dress code that had been politely forced upon him. But Rapunzel recognized the look on his face. He was seriously upset about something. She set her book down and turned her full attention to him.

"Rapunzel, I'm leaving tomorrow."

"Are you going on a trip?" Rapunzel asked anxiously. She didn't like where this was headed.

"Kind of. I'm going away, Rapunzel, and I'm not coming back. I'm sorry to have to spring this on you, but I've been thinking about this for a while."

"I don't understand… Did I do something wrong?" her voice wavered and she felt tears come to her eyes.

"No. You didn't do anything wrong," he sighed, "Rapunzel, I'm sorry. Look, I can't do this 'royal king and queen married life thing'. Okay, that's not who I am, that's not who I was… I can change my name and wear this fancy clothing, but in the end it doesn't change who I am inside. I'm Flynn Rider, I always have been."

"Eugene, please can't we work this out?" Tears streamed down her face, the whites of her soft green eyes tinted pink. She shook in her chair, pulling her knees up to her chest. Eugene looked away uncomfortably. He couldn't see her cry.

"Listen, Rapunzel, I don't want to explain it anymore. I can't be with you anymore. That's it. It isn't your fault, but in the end we're not good for each other. That's all. You're a princess, and I'll always be nothing but a no-good-thief. I'm surprised that you've loved me this long anyway. Rapunzel, I don't love you. I can't love anyone, don't even begin to argue with me. Do you get it now?" She could hear the wavering anger in his voice. A small noise gathered in the back of her throat. He stood up from his chair and made his way to the doorway of the library, leaving Rapunzel stunned in her seat. He stopped briefly at the doorway and turned back to the small whimpering girl.

"I didn't want to have to do this. Not like this. Honestly, I was hoping that eventually you'd see the kind of person I was and you'd start to think of me as your friend, not your lover, or whatever. I'm sorry for leading you along like this. I still feel close to you, we can be friends, okay? I love the person you are, but I don't love you." He sighed, looking briefly at her before bringing his guilty eyes back down. It was a lie, every bit of it, but he could see in her naïve face that she believed every word. He couldn't tell her that though. He couldn't tell her about the note he found on his bed that morning.

Flynn (or should I say Eugene?),

I imagine when you became the shining gem of the kingdom you got all sorts of letters from "family" and "friends" asking for help. I'm neither. I'm here to collect on an old debt. It was seven years ago that my wife died giving birth to your dead child. It was six months ago that you set out on a heist with my twin sons that "couldn't fail!" as you said. I suppose in the end, it worked out fine for you, but it was two months ago that the only family I had left had to face the gallows for their crimes. And who got off with a pardon? None other than Flynn Rider. You couldn't even pass along a kind word about them to the king and queen. Up until six months ago I always welcomed you into our lives. You wouldn't be in your cushy castle without us. You owe me, Rider. And I'm here to collect. I know things from your past that you wouldn't want your beloved princess and her parents to know. Especially with the wedding so near. Pack up tonight, leave tomorrow. You'll know where to go. Make sure no one knows where you're going or why you're going. I look forward to seeing you.

Cormac Stabbington

Eugene had swallowed heavily. He knew exactly where to go. Back in his thieving days, he and the Stabbington brothers had used the house as a base of operations. Those were the days when he wasn't Eugene, but Flynn Rider. The father of the twins was welcoming to him back then. He hadn't originally been so keen on inviting this new kid to their close-knit group, but when he saw his raw talent and quick feet, he learned to accept Flynn Rider as part of his clan. Flynn was grateful at the time. It was his start. It was shortly after they accepted him that he met Isabella.

She moved with the grace of a queen, but had the charm of a courtesan. She kept her long brown hair in a neat bun, which complemented her intelligent face. Her green eyes, verging on yellow, would pierce through your skin. She was Cormac's second wife. Martha had passed on many years previously, just as Bartley and Braydan came of age. Isabella worked as a nurse in town. She noticed the twins coming in frequently with twisted ankles and broken arms. Concerned with their health, she confronted Cormac, fearing that perhaps their father was beating them to the point of broken limbs. As she stood her ground, a full 5'6, Cormac could barely stand. Her headstrong personality and un-faltering grace had charmed him completely. Isabella, while not unfeeling, knew she was getting older and running out of prospects for marriage. When the day came, she calmly accepted and was made his wife. She wasn't a cold woman. She was practical. She took care of the boys and Cormac and turned the other way when they brought home armfuls of stolen goods. She was as good a wife as any. Then came along Flynn Rider.

He was good-looking, certainly. Still young and fresh, only eighteen. His pick-up lines laid a lot to be desired, and his charm was certainly not at its height. Nevertheless, she noticed him. And she noticed how he looked at her. He spied her with curiosity, not lust. It was a welcome change.

Cormac and the boys had left. It was one of their heists. They'd planned it out for a while, and decided against taking Rider, who they determined was not yet ready. With a look of disappointment on his face, he watched the trio ride off into the sunset. He was left out, once again. But his time would come, he was certain of it. He brushed the hair out of his face and paced the small living room of the cottage. Isabella sat upstairs in her room as she often did, listening to his steady footsteps. She got out of bed and looked downstairs at the poor boy. She watched him silently. His fine-tuned ears didn't pick up that she was there until her dress brushed against the staircase railing. Flynn looked up, face flushed red.

"I'm sorry ma'am. I hope I wasn't bother-"

"Isabella."

"What?"

"When my husband and his children aren't around, you may call me Isabella."

"Right, well, like I was saying, I hope I wasn't bother-"

"I think maybe you should come upstairs with me."

"What?" Flynn sputtered, barely believing what he heard.

"I think maybe you should come upstairs with me," she repeated. A glimmer of laughter bounced through her eyes. There was more to this boy than he let on. She offered out her hand. Hypnotized, he climbed up the stairs. She smiled her classic sly smile that she only offered to the luckiest people and led him away. She was the first woman who whole-heartedly offered herself to him. He took the offer.

They spent the night together, teaching and talking and laughing. She taught him how to make a woman happy, and in return she discovered what a fast learner he was. He told her of his dreams, and learned that she was a good listener. There were no bad feelings at all. He didn't feel guilty, she didn't feel used. More importantly neither of them felt like it was love. Just a really close friendship. They shared that special bond over the next few months. Every so often the men would leave town for a night or two and the pattern would continue. They talked about everything. They talked about their hidden desires and the secrets that they kept from the world. One particular night the subject of names came up.

"Flynn what's your real name?" Flynn looked down at Isabella, her head resting on his lap. He paused for a moment before answering. He had gotten this question a few times before, but he always played it off like it really was his name. But he couldn't lie to Isabella. It wasn't that he wouldn't but he literally couldn't lie to her. Those intelligent eyes would see the lie on his face in a heartbeat. So he decided to give her the truth.

"How did you know?"

"I'm sorry, but what kind of fairy tale name is 'Flynn Rider'?" she asked, smirking up at him.

"Okay you've got me there. Honestly I'm surprised no one's caught me yet. You know I came from the orphanage, right? Okay, well, there was this book there. I read it to the younger kids all the time. It was 'The Tales of Flynnigan Rider'. I just admired this guy, you know? He had everything, and I had nothing. I guess I just wanted to be like him. I made it out of the orphanage a few years ago and started going by Flynn Rider."

"Ah, but you haven't answered my question yet," she responded.

"Please don't laugh."

"I wouldn't dream of it."

"Eugene Fitzherbert," he admitted, looking embarrassed. Isabella looked thoughtful for a moment, as if she was considering whether this was the truth or one of his infamous lies.

"Okay Eugene Fitzherbert."

No one would call him that for another eight years.

The trio soon started letting Flynn in on their adventures. He saw Isabella less and less. The few times he did happen to catch a glimpse of her, he noticed her belly getting rounder and rounder. He saw Cormac embrace his wife, happy to have another child on the way. Flynn felt his stomach drop every time he saw the two together. Cormac soon declared himself a family man, stating that he would stay home with his pregnant wife and keep close watch over his child when he or she was born. Of course, Bartley and Braydan still invited Flynn along on each new heist. As time went by, the notorious Flynn Rider slowly built up a reputation.

They were out of town for a few weeks when it happened. It wasn't uncommon. A complication of birth, it happened a lot really. But no one ever expects it to happen to their wife. Cormac hunched over his beautiful dying wife, her face getting paler by the moment. He had only taken his eyes off of her for a moment to glance at the dead baby boy that had taken so much effort to push out. The light faded from her eyes as she used her last breath to pass along one more message to Cormac.

"Eugene Fitzherbert… He's the real father." And with that she was gone. The loveliness was drained from her face. The rage slowly bubbled up in Cormac's body as he realized what she just said. Whoever this Eugene was, he wasn't going to be alive much longer.

Cormac checked at every bar within a fifty mile radius. No one had ever heard of "Eugene Fitzherbert". His sons had never met anyone named Eugene, and Flynn swore up and down that he'd never heard it before either. He managed to keep that charade up for years. Slowly over time, Cormac forgot about his lovely wife and focused instead on his life of crime.

But Eugene never forgot. Every time he thought about her, he stopped being Flynn Rider, even for just the briefest of moments. She had been so kind to him; she was a friend when he needed one more than ever. He mourned her secretly. He mourned the loss of her child. Their child. Sure, he definitely wasn't ready to be a father to anyone, but the loss still hurt. Time healed the wounds, and certainly nights of alcohol and sex (in that particular order) helped him out too, even if only temporarily.

Then he met Rapunzel. He made a promise to himself. Not only would he never walk down that pathway again, but he'd do everything in his power to protect her from his past. He spent nights thinking about the monster he had been, asking himself how it could have possibly made him happy. He couldn't count all the women he had hurt. He didn't want to either. Rapunzel was his life now. When he found the note, his mind filled with fears and thoughts and ideas. For once in his life he didn't have a plan. The only thing he could do was protect Rapunzel from the truth. If that meant he had to break her heart, then so be it. Even if it was only temporary while he came up with another idea while working for Cormac. Standing at the front gate of the castle, Eugene made one more promise.

I'll return to you Rapunzel, as soon as it's safe. I won't let you get hurt by the ghosts of my past.