Tangled: The Series is the cannon here folks.
When I read this over I realized Eugene is bipolar asf. He's just got so many intense emotions. Sorry not sorry. Also he cries a lot.
The boy stared at his reflection as if it were foreign to him. He called himself a boy, when in reality he was twenty-nine. He sure felt like a boy in this situation; he had no idea what to do. He sighed and shifted his glare to the bed- their bed. He sniffled, his eyes red and puffy, and made his way over to the mattress. The man slowly sat down and breathed in deeply. Eugene Fitzherbert, formerly known as Flynn Ryder, was having the worst day of his life.
Eugene wasn't one to cry, and especially not in front of others but considering the circumstances, he didn't feel any less masculine letting it all out.
"Blondie…" he whispered to nobody but himself. He already hadn't seen her in weeks and now…
Now she was most likely dead, and it was partially his fault.
Eugene let the tears well up in his eyes. He wasn't used to crying over anything, and while it made him feel vulnerable, there was nothing about the tears he shed that he felt wasn't proper for a man his age.
Rapunzel had offered to allow his presence on this trip- in fact, she suggested he come to show her parents that he was ready to start acting like the royal he was by marriage. He remembered remarking how bored he already was attending royal events. He remembered what he said next with perfect clarity, "maybe next time Blondie." The prince of Corona rubbed his temples, rested his tear-soaked face on his palms, and took another deep breath. He always told her "next time" when there never was a next time. He should have been with her on that carriage. They could find someone else to temporarily run the kingdom while the royals were gone.
Maybe she was alive. This was all too much for Eugene to take in. Her and her parents' carriage had never arrived in Corona and was three days overdue. He had already been told that there was probably no going to look for them as Corona had been hit with a huge snowstorm. They wouldn't survive for long in it if they were trapped.
They had gone missing before the snow started and he knew Rapunzel to be a very intelligent person who could devise a plan in a pinch if need be. He held onto a little bit of hope that Rapunzel was okay and that they had found shelter.
There was a knock at the door. Eugene sniffled and wiped his nose on his sleeve.
His voice cracked, "w-who is it?" he asked, wondering how the royal family did with such little privacy.
When he was met with no reply the boy took another deep breath and gained his composure. Eugene opened the door a crack to receive whatever message was important enough to bother him for. The captain of the guard stood outside.
"Prince Eugene," he said, "I don't know how to tell you this but I believe it would be better if we waited until this storm let up to send out men looking for the royal family," as if Eugene were not a part of the family by marriage. Taken aback and slightly offended Eugene paused for a moment.
"You know I'm part of the royal family too right?" he said, finding the distraction of what tribe he belonged to take his mind off the seriousness of the situation for a moment, "I mean come on, Rapunzel and I have been married for almost a year."
The captain was taken aback at Eugene's seeming lack of care for his princess and her parents. Eugene recognized this.
"I mean what do you mean you can't go out and find them? Every minute you don't is another they spend in the cold. This is your king and queen we are talking about here, not to mention the princess whom this kingdom has already lost once." He realized he was being a little aggressive with the captain, "look, isn't there something you can do? Send a few men down the path they were supposed to return on? I'm not asking for a whole battalion here buddy."
The captain mistook Eugene's desperation for optimism, but still didn't seem convinced.
"Look cap, Rapunzel is a smart girl and I'm sure her and the king and queen found shelter and are doing fine," he lied. Eugene felt the lump in his throat swell. If he spoke any more he was worried that he would be drawn to tears
The captain removed his helmet and ran his fingers through his hair. He was frustrated with Eugene but after a few seconds of pondering he agreed with the prince that it would be a good idea to send out a few men and a carriage.
"T-thank you," Eugene told him and quickly shut the door. He couldn't help but burst into tears. He leaned up against the door and let himself slide down, sobbing all the way. He had a gut feeling that something was wrong. He knew it. Rapunzel wasn't okay.
Eugene pulled out a piece of paper from his pocket and carefully unfolded it.
Dear Eugene,
I wish you could be here. Being outside of Corona is lovely and there are so many exotic things along the way to the kingdom. We even met a woman who sold little boots for dogs! Oh you would love it on the road, although I'm sure you already have some experience with different cultures, seeing as you're mister "I've been everywhere". All is good. I'm looking forward to seeing you again soon
I love you
-Rapunzel
The letter had arrived a few days before they were supposed to get home. It comforted Eugene to have it on him. It made him feel like he had a little piece of Rapunzel with him even though he didn't know where she was.
The next thing Eugene knew, it was morning. He had fallen asleep in his clothes again, as he often did when Rapunzel wasn't around. He had nobody to impress with his chiseled body, so he didn't bother taking his clothes off.
He reminded himself that he had to get up to take care of himself, and more importantly that he had a kingdom to run. His heart sank when he realized that this might be the start of his rule. He knew he wasn't ready, but he also knew he might have to be ready.
He yawned as he arose from bed and stretched his arms out above his head. He was going to have a busy day on top of attempting to locate his wife and her parents. First, he had to work out problems among commoners, which was not the easiest task when it came to sitting on the throne.
After breakfast, he solved the arguments of person after person until he was smacked in the face with the question of when the rest of the royal family would be returning.
In his typical Eugene-like fashion, he attempted to avoid the question by throwing off the words of the commoner, but when he realized that half the room was focused on his answer, he decided it would be easier just to fess up.
"The King, the queen, and the princess are all missing," he finally told the crowd, "We've sent men out to find them but they should have been back four days ago…" Eugene felt the lump in his throat swell again but this time he pushed it off with a deep breath, "until they return, I am running this kingdom."
There were murmurs and gasps and all types of other noises from the audience. Eugene wondered if he had made the right decision.
Eugene spent his days filling in for his in-laws and his nights wishing that she were there. She was the biggest part of his life- she was his dream. He wasn't ready to let go of his dream. He was slowly starting to lose hope that they would ever be found.
Weeks had passed, and in his typical manner, Eugene had stacks and piles of kingly work that he had put off to do. He wasn't fit to be king. He knew one day that he would be but he wasn't ready.
He had sent out men a week ago looking for his lover and in-laws and they still hadn't returned. Things were starting to get hectic around the kingdom without their guidance. Eugene didn't care. He was worried about Rapunzel. He wondered how good an insulator hair was. At one point, deep in his thoughts, he considered becoming Flynn Ryder again but now he was so well known he knew he couldn't pull that off.
She was the light to his life. She brought excitement to him that only thieving had before. He didn't know if he could live without Rapunzel and he definitely didn't think he could rule the kingdom without her.
Suddenly his door burst open. Quicker than he could get his robe on the captain said "We've found them!"
Eugene was even quicker to respond, "Are they alright?" His heart pounded in his chest and he feared the worst had happened to the love of his life. He was sure that the captain was going to be telling him about arrangements for funerals.
"Well they're alive…" The captain said.
"But…" Eugene added.
The captain furrowed his brow, took a breath, and softly said, "They're being held for ransom by some bandits. They want 20,000 gold pieces."
Eugene knew this game because he used to be on the other side of it. He didn't deal only in property when he stole things. He had kidnapped a few people in his past, although purely for business.
"Well, let's give it to em'!" Eugene exclaimed as if it were the obvious answer. He knew how cruel bandits around here could be. He had had numerous run-ins with them and he knew that if they didn't play their cards right somebody was going to get hurt or even killed.
"Yes sir," said the captain. They agreed that Eugene could come with as the bandits' hideout was only a few hours away. Corona would be fine for that long. He walked away presumedly to go out and fix the mess that the whole kingdom was in.
As soon as Eugene shut his door he was jumping for joy. Rapunzel was alive and he was going to see her as soon as these bandits were given their money.
Soon he would see his love again. It was all he could think about. Knowing that Rapunzel was okay gave him the biggest feeling of relief he had ever experienced. He sprayed some cologne on the clothing he had been wearing for a week and sprinted down the hallway. He hated being the last one on the carriage because it made everyone wait for him. In fact, as was the case now, he was usually first there.
The trip there was uneventful. It was a hut not too far off the beaten path. Pinewatch, the bandits called it. Eugene wondered if they should just try to take out the guards, as there couldn't be that many in such a small building.
Men came piling out and he mentally redacted any thoughts about taking out the guards. There must have been a huge basement because there were many more guards than could comfortably fit into the building.