Chapter 9: Breaking Point

Hello my lovely readers! Okay, I know I'm late, I have to admit this chapter really gave me a headache. I just didn't want to make it too depressing. Anyway, here it is and it is long to compensate my lateness. Thanks a lot to my lovely reviewers, you know you're the reason I keep writing this!

So, without further ado, I present you the chapter where Rapunzel will finally have some action with Elizabeth. Anyone else excited, or is it just me?

Disclaimer: If I owned Tangled… I would be having a lot of fun with the characters right now. There would definitely be a second movie with some Frozen characters thrown in there. how awesome would that be?


Rapunzel's POV

I slowly came back to consciousness, I tried to fight the fogginess out of my mind as I felt a warm breeze hitting my face, I could detect the beam of sunlight behind my closed eyelids. I slowly opened my eyes and squinted as the light streaming down my window burned my unfocused eyes. I moaned faintly as I stirred a little, feeling the beginning of a headache and my neck hurting because of the weird angle I had fallen asleep on the night before.

I almost gave in the urge to fall back asleep, just to stop feeling like this. But I was snapped back into focus by the sharp knocks on my bedroom doors. It didn't take long for the usually melodic voice of Mother Gothel to follow.

"Good morning, my flower. Time to wake up and get ready for your day."

I groaned as I straightened and tried to focus. The world swirled around me and I felt slightly dizzy. I stood up and shakily made my way to the door, stumbling clumsily over my drowsy feet. Mother Gothel's knocks on the door became sharper and more pressing.

"Rapunzel? What are you waiting for, dear. Open the door now!"

"I'm coming!" I said and hastily opened the door to reveal a slightly annoyed Mother Gothel waiting impatiently on the other side. She sighed in exasperation as if I had made her wait years before I decided to open the door, and entered my bedroom with her usual graceful confidence. I fought the urge to roll my eyes. Mother Gothel could be a very impatient woman most of the time.

"Seriously Rapunzel, what took you so long?" She asked as she spun around to face me. She regarded me carefully, inspecting my appearance with uncomfortably calculative eyes. I fidgeted nervously under her scrutinizing stare. "Goodness, you look horrible, Flower!" She finally exclaimed as she approached me and held my chin up with one of her delicate, but strong hands. Her grey eyes bore into mine as she inspected my face, apparently searching for something.

"Have you been crying?" Mother Gothel asked with a hint of concern in her voice. I winced and turned my face away from hers, avoiding eye contact as I approached my vanity table. I really didn't want to talk about anything that had happened last night. How I had cried myself to sleep as I slowly ran out of tears to shed. I looked at my reflection in the enormous mirror and almost gasped in surprise. No wonder Mother Gothel had noticed my disheveled appearance. I really did look horrible! My face looked grayish, the ghostly pale skin made the light freckles on my nose stand out more than usual. My eyes were sunken and bloodshot, they looked empty and had lost their usual twinkle in them. And there were bags under my eyes, purpling circles already framing them. I knew there was no way I could fool Mother Gothel looking like this, but I still tried to dismiss it.

"I'm fine, I just had a rough night, that's all." I tried not to wince as I heard myself speaking. Even my voice sounded different, defeated, rough and throaty. She would never believe me, not after this.

As I expected, she eyed me skeptically, not even a little convinced. "Does this have anything to do with that boy?" She asked with a hint of disdain in her voice, her grey eyes turned to steel, cold and unforgiving, so different from the usual caring love I was used to see in them.

Even though she never mentioned a name, I knew who she was referring to. She didn't need to say his name, her hateful gaze said enough. And I was slightly grateful that she didn't pronounce the single word that I dreaded to hear right now. I was sure that if I heard his name, I would collapse again in a sobbing fit. It was enough thinking about him, and now that Mother Gothel mentioned him, I couldn't help my eyes from watering a little. Apparently this was the only answer that Mother Gothel needed. She sighed as she approached me, the sympathetic look on her face was enough to make me want to cry my eyes out all over again. The last thing I wanted was her pity.

She held me gently in her arms as she stroke my hair affectionately, her embrace was comforting, but it didn't make me feel any better. "I tried to warn you Rapunzel, I really did. I always told you he was going to hurt you eventually. But did you listen? Of course not. And now look at you, this was exactly what I was trying to prevent."

I single tear escaped my eyes, if she was trying to make me feel better, she was failing miserably. The 'I told you so' look on her face wasn't making me feel any less foolish. But she was right, she had been right all along. I just decided to ignore her and give my heart to a man that would never give me his in return. But I really couldn't blame him for anything, it was all my fault for letting my hopes up.

I sniffled miserably as Mother Gothel kept talking. "But don't you worry, Flower. There's no need for you to keep feeling this way. He's not worth your precious tears." She wiped my tears away with her long fingers and smiled encouragingly, for some weird, inexplicable reason I felt like her smile was more delighted than it was sympathetic.

"What do you mean?" How could I stop feeling this miserable when the man I loved was apparently in love with someone else?

"What I mean, darling, is that there's a simple, easy way for you to be happy once again." She said as she walked around me to the vanity table and gazed at herself in the mirror, as always, inspecting her appearance and fingering some faint wrinkles in her almost perfect porcelain skin.

"And what is it?" I asked curiously, walking over to her until I could see myself in the mirror once again. I was right beside her, our appearances contrasting enormously. While Mother Gothel looked strong, beautiful and graceful, with a magnificent confident stare in her grey eyes and the elegant way with which she held herself, I looked weak, pale and barely a woman at all. I looked more like a young teenage girl with deep emotional issues and maybe a strong depression.

The idea that just two days ago I had looked so much different in comparison was almost unbelievable. Where was that young beautiful woman that had stared at herself in the very same mirror just two nights ago, who was terrified of going out and greeting the people of her same social class? Where had that girl with the magnificent purple gown gone? Maybe she was gone since the moment her heart had been broken. Maybe she was lost now that she didn't have anything worth to make her want to feel beautiful and confident again. Was I ever going to look that way again? The thought was ridiculous now. There was no way this mess of a girl that was staring back at me through the mirror, with puffy red eyes and sickly pale skin, would ever look as pretty as the girl that she once had been.

Mother Gothel gave me a deep meaningful stare, looking at me through the mirror. I had almost forgotten that she had been talking to me a few seconds ago. What was she trying to tell me, again? "Forget."

That was all she said. One single word was all the explanation that came out of her mouth. I looked at her with confused eyes. What did she mean by that? She seemed to notice my confusion as she turned to face me completely, grabbing my shoulders in an attempt to make me focus my thoughts solely on her. "Forget about him Rapunzel, forget about everything that you and him ever did together. The faster you forget, the easier it will be to recover. You'll see, in a few months you'll be happy once again, you won't even remember what had made you so depressed in the first place."

I looked at her bewildered. I wasn't sure she was quite right. She made it seem so easy and simple! Forgetting about Eugene and all that we ever did together would be harder than facing the truth and getting over it. I mean, you just don't forget about the person whom you have shared your whole life with! It would certainly take much more than a few months, maybe I'll never be able to forget at all. I would be wiping away my most precious childhood memories, all my teenage years spent with him, the majority of my life! Ten years of friendship, love and trust are hard to forget! I had spent more years with Eugene than the time that I had spent without even knowing him. I couldn't forget about all that, I couldn't just pretend that my whole life didn't happen at all and leave my past behind me.

But I wasn't in the mood to discuss this with Mother Gothel. She was just trying to help, and maybe for her it was easy. Aside from me, I didn't know about any other person that she cared about. Maybe she had shut herself away from the world to prevent anyone from hurting her. Was that what she had been trying to do with me too? Perhaps that had been why she had kept me locked up in that tower the first three years of my life, so that no one would ever hurt me either physical or emotionally. For a moment I wondered if she would have been able to prevent this. A heartbreak so painful that I felt physically ill. But then again, I didn't regret a single moment I had spent with Eugene, in fact, I would do it all over again. He was the only one able to make me feel alive.

Mother Gothel apparently mistook my prolonged silence as a sign that I was mulling over her suggestion. She continued to talk in a very serious tone as she looked at me with a penetrating stare. "The only way to do that, Rapunzel, the only way you could forget about all the damage that he has caused to you, is to stop seeing him altogether."

She spoke with finality. I gasped and whirled around to face her, my eyes wide with disbelief. "I... I can't do that." I croaked out. I sure wasn't going to face him any time soon, the mere sight of him would be too much to handle right now. But to never see him again? That was a bit extreme, I wasn't sure I could ever do that.

"You need to. How can you expect to get over him when you keep seeing him almost every day? This will only hurt you more, Rapunzel. For once, just follow my advice." Mother Gothel looked at me straight in the eyes and I almost flinched away at the intensity of her gaze. I didn't want to discuss this anymore, all I wanted was to be left alone for a few more hours before I was ready to face reality once again.

I nodded shakily, and that seemed to be enough to satisfy her for now. "Okay, I'll try." The answer came out of my mouth as a broken whisper. Mother Gothel just smiled in satisfaction. "Good. Now stop looking so sad, if it wasn't meant to be, there's no use on dwelling on it."

'Easy for you to say...' I thought, but wouldn't dare to say those things out loud. Mother Gothel wouldn't like that, she would be awfully offended. She seemed to sense my discomfort and heaved what seemed a rather exasperated sigh, but I discarded the thought as she pulled me in for a tight hug.

"I love you very much, dear." She said tenderly as she stroke my hair.

"I love you more."

"I love you most." She slowly drew away, still holding a few strands of my loose hair gently between her fingers. She then patted my head affectionately and her gentle smile brightened. "Now, why don't you sing for me, Flower? That will certainly distract you a bit."

Mother Gothel took the elegant brush that she usually used to brush my long golden locks. I nodded and sat down, but I couldn't shake away a strange feeling forming in the pit of my stomach. She seemed to instantly forget about my heartbroken state of mind as soon as she suggested me singing for her. As I sang the usual song that made my hair glow, the voice of Eugene resonated inside my head.

"She's just using you, Rapunzel. That woman seems to be awfully interested in your hair."

I couldn't shake his words out of my mind.


A few hours later, I decided that it had been enough grieving for today, maybe even for my entire life. I dragged myself out of my bedroom and tried to hide my misery as I walked down the hallways of the castle, walking like a haunted soul with a far off look on my face. I desperately needed a distraction, something, anything to take my mind off of Eugene and the love that he would never feel for me.

I decided that some fresh air probably would help my depressed state of mind. I made my way to the palace gardens, taking in the floral scent that the wind seemed to carry away. I had always liked to take long strolls through the royal gardens, enjoying their natural beauty, the bright colors of the different exotic flowers and plants decorating the place, and the feeling of the soft grass and dirt beneath my feet.

I sat bellow the shadow of a big willow, taking a deep breath and trying to calm my erratic heartbeat. It seemed to work very well, and as I closed my eyes, the fresh breeze blowing in my face soothed my thoughts. I relaxed against the trunk of the enormous tree, forgetting just for a minute about everything else. It felt like forever since I had had a moment of peace like this, and I was quite enjoying it. That is until I heard approaching footsteps coming my way.

I sighed, a little annoyed at the interruption and cracked an eye open, just to see a very familiar young man approaching me. "What do you want Stephan?" I almost growled, not exactly in the mood to deal with him right now. Upon seeing our little private moment of slight friendship, my parents decided that it was a good idea to invite Stephan's family to stay at the palace for a month as special guests. I was sure they were expecting our rare moment of friendship to grow into something bigger. I sure wasn't looking forward to a whole month with Lady Verina as constant company.

"God, you look horrible." Stephan deadpanned as he looked me over.

I narrowed my eyes in an attempt to seem threatening, but I could tell by the slightly amused look on his face that it wasn't working at all. "Thank you for pointing that out." I wasn't usually snarky but this guy always seemed to get on my nerves.

"What happened to you?" Stephan asked curiously as he sat beside me, leavening a rather large space between us. I didn't know whether this was because he didn't feel comfortable getting any closer or because he was actually cautious to get near enough to me to get punched.

"That's none of your business." I snapped. I knew there was no use in trying to make him go and leave me alone, so I decided that it would be best to ignore him until he got bored.

"I take it that yesterday didn't went exactly as we planned." He said cautiously and as much as I tried to ignore him, I couldn't help but look at him more than a little astounded. Was I really that predictable, or did he just managed to read my expressions like an open book? I felt a little pang of annoyance and bitterness inside me. Of course things hadn't gone as planned yesterday! I entered the smithy with the intention of telling Eugene about my feelings for him and with the immense hope that he would feel the same, and I left feeling devastated at the shocking news that I received from him instead. This whole thing wouldn't have happened if I hadn't been naïve and stupid enough to hope for something impossible. And it also wouldn't have happened if I hadn't followed Stephan's stupid advice.

"This is all your fault!" The accusation came out of my mouth faster than I could register. Before I knew it, I was red-faced and glowering at Stephan, accusations tumbling out of my mouth without me being truly aware of it. "You had to go and make me believe things that were impossible since the beginning! Why did you do it? To make me feel like a complete heartbroken idiot?! Do you really hate me that much?!"

Stephan looked stunned, his bewildered wide blue eyes looking at me with surprise. "W-what?" He stuttered, confusion clouding his face.

"You know perfectly well what I'm talking about! If it weren't for you, I wouldn't have gone and nearly made a fool out of myself confessing my undying love to a man that clearly didn't feel the same!" I knew I was being unreasonable, and the look of genuine shock and confusion in Stephan's eyes made it clear that he hadn't entirely done this on purpose. But I was hurt, disappointed and angry at myself. I needed someone to take my anger out on, someone to blame other than myself. And Stephan was the only one I could come up with that could have been guilty enough to be in the receiving end of my wrath.

Realization seemed to hit him as his bewildered look changed into one of understanding sympathy. Great. I turned away from him, I didn't want his pity either, I could deal with this myself.

"Rapunzel, I really didn't know that. I'm sorry." His voice seemed genuine, but I just wanted to be left alone right now. I could deal with him later, when I wasn't as emotionally unstable as I was at the moment. But I knew better than to expect him to leave. As usual, Stephan kept prying on the issue. "What happened?" He asked gently, but I could detect a hint of curiosity in his voice. He would never leave me alone until I told him what had happened, I knew that.

"He is apparently in love with someone else." I said bitterly, fighting back tears that stubbornly welled up in my eyes.

"How do you know that?"

"He told me himself." I resisted the urge to snap at him again. How else could I have known about Eugene's feelings? It's not like I had suspected it and still decided that maybe if I told him that I loved him he would change his mind and prefer me instead. I was still trying to get over the initial shock. Eugene had never really shown any romantic interest in anyone before. How could I have known that he would suddenly fall in love with a complete stranger?

"Did you tell him about your feelings for him?"

This time I couldn't help it. I rolled my eyes and looked at him with incredulity. Was he really that dense? "Of course not! How could I have told him after finding out that he loves someone else?"

Stephan seemed to be deep in thought. He didn't say anything for a few minutes. I tried to enjoy the peaceful silence for a minute, but it was proving to be really difficult. After what seemed like hours, he finally turned to face me with a serious look. "So, what are you going to do about it?"

I furrowed my brow in confusion. What did he mean by that? There wasn't much I could do other than to accept reality and attempt to move on. I knew I would never be able to get over Eugene, but at least I had to try. I thought about Stephan's question for a moment, trying to come up with a good enough answer for him to be satisfied and finally leave me alone.

"Nothing, I guess." I said simply. And it was true, I wasn't going to do anything about it because there was nothing I could do to stop Eugene from loving that woman. "I know I'm being selfish. I should be happy about Eugene finally finding someone to love. Someone that makes him feel wanted and loved. There's really not much I can do about it but try to be happy for him. That's what a good friend should do." And I was really going to try it, even if it killed me, I was going to be happy for him. That's all I ever wanted for him anyways, if he was happy I could be happy too.

"So that's it?" Stephan said incredulously. "You're just going to sit there being miserable and putting on a happy façade so he won't notice that you're hurting? You're just going to pretend that you're happy for him when you're truly dying on the inside? Are you really going to do absolutely nothing about it?"

"Well, what do you expect me to do? I'm not going to pretend I have a chance when I clearly don't!" I raised my voice a little, trying to make my point clear but Stephan would have none of it. He regarded me with and intense stare, as if trying to come up with an answer hidden in my face.

"I never thought you would be one to give up so easily." He said after a moment. His comment rubbed me the wrong way, and I instantly lashed out at him.

"I'm not giving up! I am just accepting the truth! I can't keep thinking that maybe he will feel something for me if I keep waiting for him to realize it!" I was practically shouting now, my face flushed with anger and my cheeks puffing up like they normally do when I get angry enough.

"No, you are giving up on him, because you're not willing to fight for a chance." Stephan said with his usual annoying calmness. My eyebrows knitted again with confusion and annoyance.

"What is that supposed to mean?" I huffed and looked at him expectantly. Stephan shrugged, nonchalant as always, his blue eyes boring into mine.

"What I mean is that you can't just give up and let him go. If you really love him that much, you have to try and gain his attention back. There's no use in sitting here and drowning on your own misery if you're not going to at least try to do something about it." He said firmly with a determined expression on his face. I looked at him baffled. I certainly hadn't expected him to be this encouraging and comforting. I thought back to Mother Gothel's advice, so much different than the one that Stephan was giving me, but it seemed much more helpful.

I was still uncertain and depressed, but suddenly a silver of hope seem to make its way through my sadness. "What am I supposed to do?" I asked, desperately trying to find a solution for my problem. A solution that Stephan seemed to have.

"Fight for what you really want." He said simply, a very serious look on his face. "Go there and make him realize what he is missing, make him realize that you really are what he needs. Be there for him the whole time and don't let whoever he's apparently in love with take your place. You're still his best friend for what I can see, and that's something that she can't take away from you." He seemed determined to make me see his point, and I was still skeptical to follow his advice, since the last one had clearly not worked at all. "So what if he's with another girl for now? You still can be there for him and make him happy like you've always done. If you stay here all depressed and grieving you'll only thrust him further to her, he will seek her company to replace yours because you're not there. There's no use on grieving for someone whom you haven't completely lost just yet."

I thought for a while of what he had just said. Apparently I had two options, both almost as unpleasant as the other. It was either accept the truth, move on and forget, or fighting for a chance to be with him, even if it would probably still be impossible. What would hurt more? Forgetting or having faith and risk getting my hopes crushed once again? Both seemed terrible to me but somehow the later seemed a little less cruel. At least I could keep dreaming for something, as impossible as it seemed, just to keep me going.

I turned to look at Stephan, he had a far off look on his face, as if he was reminiscing on something, his blue eyes focused on a scene that wasn't there. I frowned a little, trying to think of an answer to the question that I wanted to ask him and coming up with nothing. "Why are you doing this?" I finally asked. He seemed a little startled, almost as if he had forgotten I was there.

"Hmm?"

"Why are you trying to help me?" It seemed ridiculous to me that he was trying to be helpful and giving me advice on how to gain Eugene's love when he really should be trying to woo me into marrying him. Furthermore, he never really seemed to like me that much, so why was he trying to help?

Stephan regarded me carefully, a gentle but nostalgic look on his blue eyes. "Because I don't want you to go through the same thing that I went through. I wouldn't wish that on any one. For me it is too late now, but you still have a chance to fight for him. Just don't give up, not yet."

I was shocked by his statement. But before I could ask him anything about his cryptic comment, he raised from his pose next to me and gave me a parting glance before walking back to the palace. I was tempted to chase him and make him tell me exactly what he meant by this, but I decided against it. If he really wanted to tell me he wouldn't have left so suddenly, and I wasn't one to pry. But I couldn't shake his last words out of my head, now I was really intrigued about Stephan's past. Had he really been in love before and had lost his special girl? How had this happened, what had he done? Had he given up on her like I was planning to do with Eugene?

One thing was for sure, the look that I had seen flicker in his eyes for a split second was painfully heartbreaking. I didn't want to look at myself every morning in the mirror and be faced by the girl that I had seen today. I didn't want to look depressed and heartbroken for the rest of my life, I wanted to be the girl that I had been just a few days before; bright, cheerful and lively, whit a big hope and an even bigger dream. That girl that still believed in love and wishing upon stars. I could be naïve, yes, and maybe a little gullible and stupid and too innocent, but I knew that I preferred that than to be a sullen empty shadow of what I had been before. Stephan was right, I wasn't one to give up so easily, and I was going to fight for the love of Eugene. If at the end the result was the same, then I would try to move on, but I had to try, just for the sake of having something to wish for, something to pull me forward, something to look up for every morning. I had to try and I wouldn't give up just yet.

But right now I was still hurt and shaken, I knew I wouldn't be able to face Eugene for a while. I had to get a grip of myself first, I had to recover from my emotional breakdown before I was able to start fighting. There was so much more I needed to think, so many wounds that needed to heal before I faced Eugene. If I went to see him now, I would sure break into sobs, and crying in front of him wasn't something I was planning to do. I was still depressed, but a surge of determination now clouded my grief and desperation. I needed time to heal and focus on myself and forget for a moment about my current situation with Eugene, but I wouldn't give up. I was going to fight for him, even if it killed me in the end to see that my efforts had been futile. I was going to fight for the man I loved.


Third POV

The kingdom of Corona seemed to be bustling with activity that morning. As usual, the town square was the busiest part of town, with people walking around hurriedly, doing their daily chores. It was really an all to ordinary day, nothing seemed different. People scurrying to do their tasks, mothers buying groceries in the market, vendors selling their products to the eager villagers in the town square and children playing around happily in the warm summer day. The day was perfect, and if anyone who wasn't a citizen of Corona saw the picturesque town, they would think everything was perfectly normal. Except it wasn't.

During the past few days the people of the kingdom of Corona knew something was... off. There was only one thing that wasn't common in this little scene; the lack of a well known young couple walking around the village, talking happily and fooling around. Over the last few days, the people of Corona didn't fail to notice the absence of their beloved princess sprinting through the town square and happily making her way to the smithy. There was no more bubbling giggles, no more happy laughter, no more sprinting footsteps making their way through town with the only purpose of entering the town's smithy.

It was no secret that the young princess of Corona and the blacksmith's young apprentice frequented each other, much less the fact that they had a very close friendship. Most people believed that they had a secret romance going on between them, rumor had it that they where in fact secretly dating and that sooner or later they would elope, given the fact that a commoner couldn't court a princess. But the people of Corona had never seen any displays of affection between the young couple. Either way, no one failed to notice the close relationship between the young princess and the kingdom's most famous bachelor.

So of course it was a surprise for all of them when all of a sudden the princess stopped visiting the smithy, and instead, the blacksmith's apprentice seemed to have a new common visitor.

And there it was, the odd thing that didn't seem to fit in the otherwise normal day in Corona. A young woman strolling around the village. She was different from any other citizen in every sense of the word. From her platinum blond hair that seemed to reflect the sunlight, to her unnatural beauty and charm. Elizabeth Johnson, the young woman that most people knew as the most attractive female in the village, was making a beeline to the town's smithy. She had a new bounce in her step, a new radiant smile that no one was used to see. And the weirdest thing was that she seemed unnaturally gleeful for some reason.

Elizabeth was well known in the village, either it was because of her remarkable beauty or for her trademark attitude. The young woman was impetuous, overconfident and above all things, she was incredibly demanding and temperamental. She was independent and stubborn, never did a single thing unless she wanted to. She couldn't be forced to do anything, and neither could she be denied anything. Her bittersweet attitude toward people and her tendency to lash out when upset or slightly unpleased made people cautious to approach her. She had a temper that no one could control, and although she had her fair share of suitors, she wasn't an easy woman to approach.

Therefore, of course it came as a surprise to everyone when people starting noticing that the kingdom's most known bachelor had started hanging out with this weird but incredibly attractive girl. Well, almost everyone was surprised.

Gothel watched as Elizabeth approached the smithy with a malicious smirk. She was waiting for her hidden in the very same alleyway where they had first talked, where the old witch had given the young woman the source of her sudden happiness. That love potion had certainly served its purpose. Gothel knew, since the moment she saw Rapunzel a few days ago, that Elizabeth had successfully given Eugene the love potion. Nothing could have masked the pain in Rapunzel's eyes. It was as obvious as Elizabeth's gleeful smile. It was as if the young woman had sucked every source of happiness from the young princess and was now gloating in the feeling of finally having what she wanted.

And indeed she was. Elizabeth could feel every single stare, she could hear every single comment, and nothing could make her more happy than the attention she was now receiving. Either good or bad, she knew that you weren't someone until everyone started talking about you, and either people liked it or not, she was now the only girl that Eugene Fitzherbert had his eyes on. She loved to see the jealous stares of every young woman in town, she rejoiced in the whispers of people rumoring about her possible relationship with Eugene. And the best part of it all, was that every single comment was noting but the truth. Elizabeth had successfully gained the attention of the most attractive man in the whole kingdom, and now said man couldn't take his eyes off of her. Sure, it had been with the help of a love potion, and sure, Eugene didn't really love her like she would've liked, but she had his entire attention nonetheless.

As she pranced around the village with that confident stare and the delicate seductive sway of her hips, she failed to notice a pair of cold grey eyes spying her from the depths of a dark alley. And if it hadn't been for the bony hand that suddenly seized her by the arm and pulled her into the alleyway, she would've stayed blissfully unaware of her predator.

Elizabeth, completely startled by the sudden attack, whirled around and came face to face with the woman that was the responsible of her success with Eugene. Gothel, was staring at her with a glint in her eyes. It made Elizabeth shiver. This woman was incredibly cryptic and she knew she was dangerous too.

"Why, hello dear. It's been a while, hasn't it?" Said Gothel smiling pleasantly. For some reason, this didn't calm Elizabeth's nerves.

"W-what do you want?" Elizabeth stuttered trying to sound as confident as possible and failing miserably. Gothel's evil smile widened a little. It didn't help that Elizabeth still didn't know the identity of the mysterious woman with the steely eyes and malicious smile.

"I told you we would meet again soon, didn't I?" Gothel replied casually, while walking around Elizabeth as if examining the young woman. Elizabeth's eyes dawned with realization, she had completely forgotten about it, but Gothel was right. She had indeed told her that they would meet again soon so she would know that Elizabeth had successfully given Eugene the love potion. How could she have forgotten? She had been so distracted with the idea of finally having Eugene all to herself, that she hadn't considered the possibility that she would meet again this woman. But apparently, the mysterious woman hadn't forgotten about that.

Elizabeth wasn't able to do anything but nod dumbly. Gothel smirked delightedly. She had the young blond woman wrapped around her bony finger. "Judging by the rumors that I've heard, and Rapunzel's tragically depressed state, I'd say you were successful in the task I gave you."

Elizabeth was at loss for words, she stammered for few seconds before finally coming out with a straight answer. "I did, I gave him the potion, just like you said." She confirmed trying hard not to crumble under the older woman's penetrating stare.

Gothel smiled satisfactorily. "And how would that come out?" She asked as if she needed the answer to that, but she had to make sure. She had to be certain that the fool that had been planting those dangerously suspicious ideas in Rapunzel's mind was distracted enough not to notice her surrogate daughter for a long, long time. She needed Eugene Fitzherbert to be separate from Rapunzel at all costs, otherwise sooner or later he would make Rapunzel realize what Gothel had been doing with her all along. And that could never happen, not if Gothel was there to stop it.

Elizabeth smiled now, completely proud of her doings and not making an effort to hide it. "I'd say it came out just fine. He hasn't eyes for anyone but me."

Gothel considered the situation for a moment before speaking. "Good. Now all you have to do is keep it that way. I have Rapunzel under control for now, she won't be approaching Eugene for a while. But you have to make sure that the man keeps his interest solely on you. The longer he stays under the effect of the love potion, the more obsessed and dependent on you he will grow." Gothel explained while passing around the alleyway, frowning in concentration. "There will come a time where he won't be able to stay away from you for too long, his thoughts will be completely occupied by you. He will get addicted to your presence, and if that happens, it will be almost impossible to break the spell of the potion. However, the effect of the love potion doesn't last forever." Gothel warned as she turned to look at Elizabeth with a meaningful stare.

Elizabeth's eyes widened at the revelation. "What will I do then?" She asked completely horrified by the idea of Eugene realizing that he wasn't really in love with her.

"You'll have to either make sure he believes that he is really in love with you by the time the effects of the potion wears off, or make sure he isn't able to get away from you even if he wanted to." Gothel replied with a nonchalant shrug. She didn't really care what happened after the spell of the potion was broken. By the time this happened, Gothel would have made sure that Rapunzel had completely gotten over Eugene Fitzherbert. She would separate them completely, of that she was sure.

"How would I do that?" The young blonde woman asked confused. Gothel rolled her eyes exasperatedly. Must she explain absolutely everything to this girl?

"Marry him before this happens." She replied as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

Elizabeth looked bewildered for a few seconds before replying. "W-what?! But... how can I..."

Gothel interrupted the young woman's stuttering as she whirled around to face her. "Look, that's really not my problem. You just make sure to keep that boy away from Rapunzel if you know what's good for you. I already told you, if he realizes that he felt something for the princess, the spell will be broken." Gothel's cold glare intensified as she eyed Elizabeth with a warning stare."And if that happens, you'll regret it dearly for more than one reason."

With that, Gothel walked away and was ready to leave the alleyway, but before she disappeared completely, Elizabeth's voice stopped her in her tracks. "Wait! I still don't know who you are. I should at least know who I am talking to! Why are you helping me with this?"

Gothel turned to face Elizabeth with a mysterious smirk. "That's for me to know and for you to find out." Without another word, the dark-haired woman exited the alley, leaving a very confused and weirded out Elizabeth behind.


Flynn's POV

Two weeks. Two weeks had passed since I had last seen Rapunzel. Granted, to anyone else it wouldn't seem that much time. I mean, two weeks wasn't exactly all that long, but I couldn't fight the anxiety that was steadily building up inside me. I tried to calm myself every passing day, trying to convince myself that Rapunzel was probably just really busy with all her princess' duties and tutoring lessons. But Rapunzel had never spent this long without visiting me. I almost had the feeling that she was avoiding me for some reason.

I racked my brains, trying to find a legitimate answer as to why Rapunzel would try to avoid me for this long. Had I done something to upset her? Was it something I said? Whatever it was, it sure had to be something pretty big, because Rapunzel wasn't one to avoid her problems. We had had arguments before, but she had never been that upset as to avoid me, she always confronted me right away if I had done something that she didn't like. So why hadn't she come and told me by now?

A nagging feeling started forming at the pit of my stomach. What if it hadn't been me who upset her? What if that old nanny of hers had done something to her? I never really trusted that woman. As much as Rapunzel tried to defend her, something didn't seem right with the way she possessively tried to manipulate Rapunzel. Almost as if she didn't want Rapunzel to leave her sight at all. What if Rapunzel was in trouble? I had half a mind to sneak into the palace again and find out for myself what exactly was wrong with Rapunzel. But then again, I had been lucky enough not to have been caught the last time I did that. I didn't want to test my luck and risk getting caught while sneaking into the princess' bedroom. I was pretty sure that could be considered a crime, and although I had considered once being a thief, I didn't particularly like the thought of being caught and sent to prison.

These thoughts kept surging in my head, making me even more anxious by the second as I half heartedly pounded the metal on the anvil. Although it had been two weeks since I had seen Rapunzel, I still had the hope that she would come today. She hadn't given me any explanation as to why she had suddenly decided to stop seeing me. Not a single note, or message. Not one short visit just to tell me that everything was okay. Nothing, absolutely nothing. This made me slightly disgruntled and almost offended. I deserved an explanation, she couldn't just leave me completely clueless! But the feelings of apprehension and concern were far more predominant in my heart.

She needed to come today, I just knew she would. She couldn't just let today pass by. Today was that day of the month, it was special. It had always been special since the day we met. Every once in a month, we would visit the town's orphanage and donate things to the orphan kids and spend the entire day with them, playing and telling stories and just making them have a day that they could remember. A day of the month that they could look forward to. It was the third Wednesday of the month, and today was the day when we would go to the orphanage, it was almost like a special tradition between us. She couldn't just forget about that and leave me to go to the orphanage all on my own. She knew this was important.

But as the minutes passed, my hopes that she would come were slowly decreasing. Something had definitely happened, and she wouldn't tell me what was wrong. I was her best friend, we trusted each other, we told each other everything. The idea that she was hiding something from me and, furthermore, that she was refusing to come near me was more than disappointing. I actually felt a little hurt by her actions. Didn't she trust me anymore? What had I done to her to deserve this kind of treatment?

I pounded the metal with my hammer a little more forcefully, taking my annoyance and anxiety out in the steel of the sword that I was trying to fix. This was the last straw, if Rapunzel didn't cross that threshold any minute now, I would personally go to the palace and force her to tell me what exactly was happening with her. The uncertainty was killing me and I was not willing to wait any longer for her to show up.

I was so concentrated on these thoughts, and the sound of the metal crashing against metal was too loud, that I didn't hear the door at the entrance of the smithy opening and closing behind me. Nor did I notice the light footsteps approaching me. However, I did notice the pair of delicate hands covering my eyes from behind me. I was startled for a split second, immediately dropping the hammer that I had been using and covered the hands that were resting against my eyes with my own. My heart pumped faster against my ribcage and I felt slightly excited.

"Rapunzel?" My voiced sounded more hopeful than I had expected but at the moment I really didn't care. There was only one person in the world that greeted me that way. And it had been far too long since I had last seen that person.

I felt the hands covering my eyes stiffen and immediately let go. I turned around and was surprised to see the blonde woman standing in front of me, but it wasn't the blonde girl that I had initially expected to see.

"Elizabeth!" I exclaimed, feeling slightly disappointed but that feeling was instantly replaced by a sudden overwhelming desire to hold Elizabeth in my arms and never let her go. This was a little unnerving, and I still couldn't understand why every other thought seemed to slip my mind as soon as my eyes landed on Elizabeth. Was that some side effect of being in love? "I wasn't expecting to see you."

Elizabeth was standing in front of me looking slightly upset, if the light frown on her face was any indication. "Why would you think I was Rapunzel?" She asked with an accusatory glance.

"She always used to do that when we were younger." I replied casually, not really paying much attention to anything else but her perfect aqua colored eyes. "She sometimes still does it, so I just assumed you were her."

Elizabeth looked satisfied by my answer and her frown was replaced by a beautiful radiant smile. "Well, since you told me you had the rest of the day off from work, I thought we could spend the day together." The gleeful look in her eyes captivated me completely, and as much as I sometimes disliked it, I always found myself unable to say no when I looked into her wonderful blue-green eyes.

The thought of spending this special day with Rapunzel was completely discarded the moment I saw Elizabeth standing just before me, and I wasn't able to do much but nod dumbly at her suggestion. Somewhere in the back of my mind, a still reasonable part of me was screaming at me to get a grip and stop acting like a lovesick moron, but I wisely decided to ignore it. Elizabeth smiled brightly, her seductive smile almost as alluring as her crimson red lips. She walked closer to me with a sultry glint in her eyes, and I immediately understood what she wanted. She was now close enough to me that I could feel her warm breath brush against my face, our noses almost touching, and just as I was about to lean in and capture her lips, we were interrupted by the sound of the front door creaking open.

I looked behind her shoulder to see a familiar blonde girl with bright emerald eyes, looking at me with an expression that I couldn't quite read. Her impossibly long golden hair was tied up in an elaborate braid, as usual, but some hairs were falling out of it and hanging on her face. She looked as if she had run all the way from the palace to here. My eyes widened in surprise and I couldn't hide the small smile that formed on my lips. "Rapunzel!"

I immediately stepped away from Elizabeth and made my way to the younger woman. She looked uncertain and hesitant for a moment before a tiny smile appeared on her pink lips. "Hi, Eugene."

I stopped just in front of her and took in her appearance. She looked... different. But I couldn't quite tell why. Everything was just the same but at the same time it was completely different. Maybe it was her hesitance, maybe it was the guarded off look in her eyes, or maybe her not-so-genuine smile. I didn't know, but at the moment that was the least of my worries. "Where have you been! I haven't seen you in ages and you never sent any messages, not a single note to tell me what was happening. Are you alright? Did something happen? Did I do something wrong?"

All the questions that had been disturbing me for the past few days tumbled out of my mouth without me able to stop them. This only served to make Rapunzel look a little more nervous. "No, nothing's wrong. Calm down!" She exclaimed trying to soothe me, but for some reason, her gentle gaze wasn't enough to calm me anymore.

"Do you know how worried I've been! I was starting to wonder if you were avoiding me." I could tell that she could see every emotion that was trying to pour out of me just by looking at my eyes. Her face softened and she rested her hand gently on my shoulder.

"I'm sorry. I have been really busy this past two weeks." She said gently, smiling that soft smile that had always been able to soothe me in an instant. But I didn't miss the fact that she hadn't denied that she had been avoiding me.

"Couldn't you have sent me a message or something? Anything to tell me that you weren't upset with me for some unknown reason and that everything was fine?" I wasn't letting this go so easily. She really had me at the verge of a panic attack not ten minutes ago!

Rapunzel looked slightly ashamed for a moment, but before she could reply, a soft cough interrupted our little reunion. I turned around to face a rather peeved Elizabeth, looking at us with her arms firmly crossed over her chest. "Excuse me, am I missing something?"

I looked over at Rapunzel, and was surprised to see something flash in her eyes before it disappeared a second later. He expression was tense but unreadable, and I was surprised that, for once, I couldn't tell what she was thinking just by looking at her. Something really had changed.

"I'm sorry, I haven't introduced you yet." I chuckled nervously, trying to ease the tension. "Rapunzel, this is Elizabeth, my... my girlfriend." I gestured to Elizabeth feeling slightly awkward at the mention of our current status. I had never really addressed someone as my girlfriend before, and saying it out loud made it rather official. For some reason, it made me a little uncomfortable. "Elizabeth, I'm sure you know who she is already but anyway, this Rapunzel, my best friend."

Rapunzel hesitated a little before smiling brightly and extending her hand towards Elizabeth. But I knew Rapunzel better than I knew myself. Her smile didn't reach her eyes, giving the indication that either she was just not in the mood right now or she was completely faking her smile. Somehow I felt like the later option was the most accurate. Elizabeth on the other hand, didn't make the slightest effort to hide her discomfort. Maybe she was upset that I had kind of ignored her a few minutes ago, and in any other situation I would've been outraged that she was looking at Rapunzel with a hint of disgust. But for some reason that I couldn't even begin to understand, I just wasn't able to be upset with Elizabeth not even for a minute. Somehow that worried me a little.

"Yes, I know exactly who she is." Elizabeth said with a small frown on her lips. She didn't even acknowledge Rapunzel's extended hand, and instead curtsied stiffly. "Pleased to meet you, Princess." Her statement couldn't be more fake, and I knew that Rapunzel had noticed it too. Fortunately for all of us, Rapunzel was far too gentle and sweet to act on Elizabeth's cold demeanor. She just decided to brush it off with a very fake smile, but I still could detect that glimmer of dislike in her eyes.

"Please, call me Rapunzel. And the pleasure is mine, I'm glad to finally meet... Eugene's special girl." If I didn't know Rapunzel any better I would say that she was being incredibly sarcastic. This whole meeting was starting to get incredibly awkward, so I decided that it was time to step in, in what could possibly be described as an almost glare contest.

"So... are we going to the orphanage today?" I asked hesitantly, glancing and Rapunzel and half expecting her stunning green eyes to blaze directly at me. Surprisingly enough, she seemed unnervingly cool and collected.

"Of course! Why else would I be here?"

I didn't know if I should take offense on that question. Was that the only reason she was here today? Just out of obligation? But before I could voice my thoughts, Elizabeth decided that it was the perfect time to interrupt once again.

"You're going with her to the orphanage? I thought we were going to spend the rest of the day together!" She exclaimed indignantly. I was tempted to silence her with a rather snide comment, but I couldn't bring myself to do so. No matter how hard I tried, I couldn't be anything but sweet and gentle with Elizabeth. Maybe I loved her that much, but it still was weird that some of her attitudes would really upset me but there was this numbness in me that prevented me from getting even slightly angry with her.

"Look, Lizzie, this day is kind of special for Rapunzel and me. We always spend this day at the orphanage together since we were kids. I really hope you understand." I patiently explained as if she was a young little girl that needed me to talk to her with a sweet gentle voice or else she would get upset. But honestly, with Elizabeth and her unpredictable temper, I felt like I was always walking on eggshells.

I saw Rapunzel fidgeting and bite her lips out of the corner of my eyes. I was sure she was restraining herself from making another comment, and I really appreciated her efforts. Elizabeth's cheeks flamed an alarming red for a moment before she smiled with fake sweetness. "Of course I understand." She turned to face Rapunzel, with that fake smile still stretching on her lips. "And I hope you can understand that Eugene is my boyfriend, and that we sometimes need time with each other."

Rapunzel frowned slightly, and I couldn't tell whether this was out of confusion or anger. "Were those two weeks not enough for you?" She asked with an edge in her voice that I had never heard before. Well, I hadn't been expecting that at all. This was slowly taking a turn for the worse and I didn't like it one bit. "Besides," Rapunzel continued, her eyes flashing again with something I still couldn't recognize. "This day had always been important for us, we always spend this day of the month together. And unfortunately for you, that's not gonna change anytime soon." Rapunzel said with finality. In any other circumstances I would be really proud of her, but not when I could easily feel the tension building up between my girlfriend and my best friend.

Elizabeth's eyes narrowed slightly, but that sweet smile never leaved her face. "Okay then, I hope you don't mind if I join you." She turned to look at me expectantly and suddenly I felt really awkward and uneasy. I was sure I looked like a deer in the spotlight. Something told me that I really shouldn't let Elizabeth barge in our special day, but as I looked at her, I found myself unable to deny her anything. I looked at Rapunzel for a second, whose emerald eyes were wide and disbelieving, but Rapunzel was far much more compassionate than Elizabeth, she sure would understand, right?

"Umm... fine, if you really want to..." I conceded hesitantly, but the bright smile and delighted squeal that came out Elizabeth's mouth was enough to calm my uneasiness. She bounced happily toward me and wrapped her arms tightly around my neck and kissed my cheek repeatedly expressing her happiness. And once again, the whole world revolved around her. I almost forgot about everything else but then I caught sight of Rapunzel, who was standing a few feet apart with and incredulous look on her face and her mouth wide open in shock.

"Y-you don't mind, do you?" I asked, almost fearing her answer. Rapunzel's mouth snapped shut, and her intense stare almost made her wide green eyes glow. She fixed me a cold glance, almost making me feel incredibly guilty for letting Elizabeth come with us, and walked stiffly towards the entrance of the smithy.

"I'll be waiting for you outside. The carriage will take us to the orphanage." She said curtly before exiting the place. Somewhere deep inside me, I knew I was making some big terrible mistake. But then I looked down at Elizabeth, who was still clinging to me with that delighted spark in her eyes, and I instantly forgot about that uneasy feeling. Still, I couldn't shake the idea that today wasn't going to go exactly as I had anticipated. I just hoped the outcome wouldn't be too bad.


So, I don't know about you, but I enjoyed quite a bit putting Eugene in that really awkward and uncomfortable situation. Guess the tension is picking up guys! Do you think there will be a confrontation between Elizabeth and Rapunzel anytime soon? And who is this mysterious girl that Stephan had been in love with? And what about Eugene's weird, small realizations that something isn't quite right with him? Do you think he'll snap out of it sometime soon before the potion takes a more powerful effect on him? Let me know what you think in a review!

Oh, and for the ones who are interested in a sweet, fluffy chapter while you wait for this to be updated again, I decided that I'll post that one shot that I mentioned in the last chapter. The one about the stargazing flashback. So for anyone who's interested, it'll be called 'What The Future Holds' keep checking for it! it will probably be out next week.

And finally for anyone who´s interested, I created myself a Tumblr account. I don´t post anything but if you have any questions about this or any of my other stories, you can send me an ask and I'd gladly answer any of your questions regarding this story. Maybe I would even post some sneek peaks for my stories sometime in the future, I don't know. But if you are interested my username is starlightandmagic.

Hope you liked this chapter guys, and don't forget to review! I'd love to know what you think about this! And the next chapter probably won't take that long to be posted so keep cheking for more updates!