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Being a king, despite popular belief, is not a privilege. There are few, if any good days. Oh, there have been miracles – they've been blessed with the Power of the Sun; the queen and their unborn child had been saved; their daughter had returned to them, unharmed, after nearly eighteen long years – but the trouble with miracles is that they are coveted by others.
"Please, enjoy the refreshments," Prince Banale says to both the king and the queen of Corona. "I'm sure your daughter will be joining us soon, but there's no need to stand on ceremony. She won't mind so long as you save something for her, I'm sure."
With a smirk, the prince pivots smartly on his heel. The king glowers at his back, wishing the bruise on the man's jaw – courtesy of Rapunzel's admirable skills with her frying pan – prevented him from speaking. The door to their dark, gloomy room closes with a resounding thud! An iron lock is engaged. Only after that does the king reach for his wife. She comes into his arms, tears at the ready.
"I'm so foolish!" she hisses into his velvet vest. "Eugene tried to warn me but I did not heed him!"
The king pets her hair, taking comfort in the fact that they are together and their daughter is safe. "Rapunzel will have reached the castle by now. Everything will be all right."
"Yes, Eugene will look after her."
The king cannot deny that. "Yes, I know." His wife is not the only one who feels foolish. How silly he'd been to assume that a prince or a lord would look after Rapunzel, would treasure her properly. Clearly, not all of royal blood or privileged status can be trusted.
"Rapunzel is safe and the guard will respond to this treachery," he counsels her.
The queen nods, takes a deep breath and straightens. What is to come will be the hardest part and they must be strong. The king wipes away her tears and kisses her gently on the forehead. Now, they must wait and hope for silence, for with every silent hour that passes, they will know that Rapunzel is still out of Banale's reach.
xoxoxoxo
"Are ye sure ye don't want me men to come with ye?"
Rapunzel smiles sweetly at the captain who, despite his roguish exterior, is nearly as tenderhearted as Hookhand. She wishes she could invite some of them along on the adventure, but she and Eugene had already discussed the idea of them showing up with these ruffians to save her parents. It was decided, much to Rapunzel's disappointment, that it was best for all parties involved to not involved Bigbeard or his men. "We'll be fine, but thank you." She leans forward and gives him a soft peck on the cheek.
Catcalls sound around her.
"Come on, Blondie," Eugene says, pulling on her arm.
"Ye'll be needin' these." Bigbeard holds out a lit lantern, which Eugene takes. He then gestures for a deckhand to come over and squat down a bit. Pulling out the lacey handkerchief and a stick of charcoal, the captain places the square of linen on the man's back and begins to sketch. "Ye'll need this," he explains as he works, "as well as that lantern to find yer way through the secret entrance into the castle."
"There's a secret entrance?" Rapunzel responds, nearly busting with intrigue.
"Well, there was…" The captain pauses, takes a moment to consider the issue, and then says, "But I'm supposin' it innt too secret now that we know about it." The man gives Rapunzel a wink. She giggles. Eugene looks longingly at the shoreline just a short boat ride away. She bites back a smile.
"There ye be. Ye'll be comin' up into that castle right under Banale's bumbucket, if ye'll pardon me French, so douse that lantern like so—" He demonstrates as Eugene holds the light aloft. "—or he'll clap peepers on ye."
"I understand," she promises, accepting the map on the used handkerchief. "Thank you, Bigsy." Out of the corner of her eye, Rapunzel sees Eugene roll his eyes. This time, she has to hold in a bubble of laughter.
Then it's into the boat with two oarsmen. As Rapunzel swings over the railing of the ship, a battered pirate stops her and, grinning a cracked-tooth smile, hands her back her fry pan. "Frying pan," he grunts. "Now that was a surprise, ma'am."
"I'm sorry about your…" She gestures eloquently to her own jaw and cheek.
"He's seen worse," one of his fellows reassures her.
"Now, I think ye look a mite better this way, Rupert."
Rupert, the battered sailor grins and helps Rapunzel into the boat. Eugene is already there waiting for her with one hand braced on the edge of the boat and the other reaching out to steady her. Rapunzel takes her seat and Eugene accepts the lantern back from the crewmember he'd elected to hold it for him and they're on their way. The captain and his crew lean over the edge of the ship to watch their progress. Many wave goodbye. The farewells continue even after the boat has been lowered into the water and reached the shore. Eugene, of course, doesn't notice. He's a bit busy breathing deeply and grinning like a man who has encountered his very first crème brulee.
"We'll be seein' ye soon," Bigbeard shouts.
Rapunzel waves back grandly, hoping the man can see them at this distance and in the light of the setting sun.
"Land, at last," Eugene sighs happily. "Here, Blondie. Show me the map." He hands her the lantern and stretches out the square of linen within its circle of light. "Right, so—"
"Aren't you going to congratulate me?" she butts in.
He pauses and looks up at her in mock affront. "Why on earth would I tell you how amazing that was and that we're all—" He says this with a glance at Pascal. "—still alive because of you?"
"Because it's true?" she ventures.
"Hm. I don't think your ego needs to hear it." Despite the words, he leans forward and gives her a gentle kiss on the lips. "But thank you," he murmurs.
She shivers.
"Cold?" he asks, frowning slightly with concern.
This is not the time or the place to inform him of the amazing sensations his voice inspires in her, especially when he uses that tone."Where are we on the map?" she asks instead, referring to the rocky and desolate beach.
"Ah, well, if this scribble is the shore and this smudge is the ship, then we're here so we should head…" Eugene looks up and nods in a northerly direction. "That way." The going is slow in the dwindling light and the jagged rocks give way to burr-infested forest. In the distance, the ominous growl of thunder rolls. Rapunzel peers up through the gnarled and half-dead tree limbs and sees dark, foreboding clouds looming overhead. She smiles widely.
Eugene, who now seems to be fully recovered from his seasickness, steps up next to her and observes quietly, "That's an unusual reaction to stormy skies. Especially while they are directly above us."
She clasps his arm. "It means that Banale hasn't discovered the crowns' true power. If he had figured out how to use my parents' crowns, these storm clouds wouldn't be here." She glances down at Eugene's satchel and muses, "He must still think that my crown is the only one with power." Again the thunder rumbles, perhaps grumbling with reluctant agreement. She releases Eugene's arm and pirouettes in the narrow space. "We still have time to save my parents!"
Eugene doesn't seem as convinced as she is. "Well," he shrugs, "that's one way to look at it. But, I wouldn't be so sure about the number of eggs in the basket just yet, Blondie."
As soon as she words leave he mouth, he winces. Rapunzel recognizes that look; it's the one he gives when he thinks he has just said Too Much. "Eugene..."
He tries the Flynn Rider method of ignoring her. Back straight, eyes narrowed, self-important oozing from his pores, he gestures grandly and declares, "I think we should get under those trees. It looks like the skies are gonna open up any minute."
He should know better than to try that! It has never worked on her before and it's not about to work now! She crosses her arms and stops walking. "We're not going anywhere until you tell me what you mean."
Pascal scurries out of the safety of her collar to her shoulder. She can see him give Eugene his most intimidating look.
"Fine," he huffs. "I recognized the man who came to talk to your mother about your engagement to Prince Banale." Eugene nods in the direction of the castle, which they have yet to catch a glimpse of. "Lord Rein was the interested buyer for the crown, er, your crown, three years ago."
He crosses his arms as if to say There, happy now?
She frowns at his confession. "Didn't you tell Momma this before she left to go with that man?"
Eugene sighs deeply, running a hand through his hair and thoroughly tousling it. Rapunzel actually prefers it this way. "I tried. I just didn't try hard enough, obviously. The fact of the matter is, when it comes down to it, it's still hard for your parents to trust a former thief." He fidgets with the map in his hand. "Not that I blame them."
Rapunzel doesn't know how to reply to that. She can't rush in to reassure him that what he thinks isn't true because she's not sure of it herself, especially after her conversation with her father on the first day of the tour. She reaches for his hand and gives it a squeeze. "I believe you."
He offers her a thin-lipped smile. "I know you do, Blondie. And that's enough for me."
"Come on," she says, pulling on his hand. "I can't do this by myself and they need us."
"Us?" he checks with a halfhearted smile, falling into step beside her. "Your grand speech on Bigbeard's boat didn't mention anything about an 'us'."
"I should have mentioned it. It's true. And after we rescue them, things will be different, Eugene. I promise."
His response is another squeeze of her hand.