(Sorry in advance if this chapter isn't that great and for taking so long to post it. This is another chapter that gave me some difficulty. I can promise you that the next chapter will be better than this one.)


"You think they're alright, Pascal?" Rapunzel asked as she looked out her bedroom window. Pascal, who was sitting on her shoulder, could only shrug, indicating that he wasn't sure.

It had been a few days since Eugene, Cassandra, and their friends left Corona to go back to the Dark Kingdom. Although it had been only a few days, those days were lonely for Rapunzel. She knew she hadn't known them for long, but she quickly grew fond of them.

She found Lance to be fun and pleasant, even if his manners were in need of work. She enjoyed hearing Varian talk about the wonders of his alchemy. Although Princess Casandra seemed more serious than her brother, Rapunzel could see that Cassandra could be fun when she wanted to be.

And Eugene. If she was being completely honest, she missed him to most. While he was charming, fun, and clever, that wasn't why she missed him so much. She had so much in common with him, and he understood in her in a way that she believed no one in Corona could, not even her parents. They both loved sneaking out of the castle to escape from the pressure their titles placed on them for a night, they both enjoyed the simple joys their royal lives couldn't provide for them, and they both felt like prisoners to their crowns.

And she suppose she could admit he was handsome. Those all-telling and emotional eyes, that smile that could be dazzling or gentle. And those lips, that looked soft enough to-

A knock on her door pulled her out of her thoughts. "Enter!" Rapunzel quickly stated.

A maid opened the door. "You're Highness. Just wanted to let you know that lunch is ready. Your parents shall see you in the dining hall."

Rapunzel nodded. "Thank you for letting me know. I'll be there right away."

"Your Highness, are you alright?" The maid asked. "You seemed a bit flushed."

"I do?" Rapunzel asked. As the princess touched her face, she realized that her face did feel rather warm.

"Should I fetch a healer?" The maid asked.

Rapunzel shook her head. "No, I'm alright. Don't worry."

"Are you sure, Your Highness?" The maid asked again. "Your parents wouldn't want you to move around if you don't feel well."

"I promise, I'm alright." Rapunzel insisted. Then she walked out of the room. "I've been cooped up in my room all day. Getting out will be good for me."

"If you say so, Your Highness." The maid said as she led the princess to the dining hall.

Rapunzel was quiet as she walked, and she was a bit happy that the handmaiden and Pascal were quiet as well. It allowed her to think. And at that moment, she was thinking about what had made her face flush a moment ago. She hadn't realized her thoughts about Eugene had caused her to blush like that.

Then again, as she thought about it, she realized that her thoughts were taking...an interesting turn, to say the least. One moment she had been thinking about how much she missed the Dark Kingdom visitors and the next thing she knew, she was thinking about kissing Eugene.

"Wait, Kissing?!" Rapunzel tried not think about that. Thinking that wouldn't stop her face from blushing again and if anyone else say, they might get concerned or suspicious. So she tried to not think about that again. At least not until she was back in her room.


"There you are, Rapunzel." King Frederic said as he watched his daughter take her seat at the dining table. "I wasn't sure if you'd be joining us."

"Dear, the maid went to get her only a few moments ago." Queen Arianna reminded. "You can't expect her to arrive right away."

Rapunzel smiled. "Its alright. I was just talking to Pascal." The Chameleon, who had been on her shoulder, climbed off her and sat on the table beside the princess.

He quickly began to eat a bit of the food that was on Rapunzel's plate. Frederic didn't like it when he did, but Rapunzel never minded, so Pascal helped himself.

"It's just that you've been in your room a lot for some time now." Frederic explained. "I was almost about to send for a healer to check on you."

"I promise, I'm alright, Dad." Rapunzel assured her father.

Then family began to eat their lunch in a rather silent. Though, not a comfortable one for Rapunzel. Since Eugene and the others left, her father has seemed to get more uneasy. And he seemed to keep her on a tighter leash than he already had, with more guards around the castle, causing her to be unable to sneak out. Her mother tried to assure her that she would be fine and that she would try to speak her father, but it didn't seem like her mom was having any luck.

He was doing fine today, but Rapunzel wasn't sure how long that would last.

"Are you alright, Rapunzel?" Her father asked, trying to sound nonchalant, but Rapunzel noticed the familiar anxious tone. "You're awfully quiet at the moment.

Rapunzel forced a small smile. "I'm fine, Dad. I promise if something is wrong, I'll let you know." She said, hoping that would relax him. And it seemed to work, after she spoke, he did seem a bit calmer.

But then, Nigel entered the dining hall. "Your Majesty!" He called.

"What is it, Nigel?" Her father asked, a bit annoyed.

"Forgive the intrusion, Your Majesty." The advisor said. "But something important has come up." Then he whispered into the king's ear. While Rapunzel couldn't hear, but she noticed that her father's eyes grew slightly wider, so she figured it was something important. "I'll handle it right after lunch. Please let the captain know."

"Of course, Your Majesty." Nigel said as he walked out of the dining hall.

"What's going on, Dad?" Rapunzel asked.

"It's nothing you need to concern yourself with, Rapunzel." Her dad insisted.

"Is it about those black rocks?" She asked.

She saw her father go still. "How do you know about that?"

"I heard you mention them when you kicked out Eugene, Cassandra, and their friends." She thought. She never forgot what she heard him say the day the Dark Kingdom visitors were basically thrown out of Corona. But she decided not to say that, knowing her father wouldn't like to know that his daughter was spying on him.

"There has been a rumor going around the castle about the black rocks." She answered instead. Which wasn't a lie. The castle staff and guards, while loyal, were never particularly good at keeping things hidden. Gossip would spread around here like wildfire.

Her father forced a smile. "I assure you, dear, everything if under control. There is nothing to worry about. Corona is safe."

"You're lying!" The Princess thought. How could her father sit there in lie to her? She heard everything, she spoke to Eugene and Cassandra. She wanted to believe him, but she couldn't ignore the facts.

But she forced herself to smile and nod. "Okay, Dad. I trust you." She really wanted to. She wanted to believe that he really was taking care of the problem, that he was starting to see reason. But she couldn't. Though now was not the time to confront her father about that.

The King gave a more sincere smile. "Thank you, Rapunzel."

Then the royal family continued their lunch, though there was a hint of tension that was noticeable.


After eating, The King immediately left the company of his wife and daughter and went to the Throne Room.

"Rapunzel, I was about to head to the library." Her mother called to her. "Would you like to join me? I had new books brought in yesterday, and I thought you might like to see if any of them interests you."

"I'd love to." Rapunzel admitted. "But there was something I wanted to take care of first. I'll come join when I'm finished. It shouldn't take too long."

The Queen nodded. "Alright, Dear." Then her mother went off, most likely to the library.

Rapunzel then began to walk to the throne room. Pascal made some noises at her as he rode on her shoulder.

"I know I shouldn't spy on my father, but I don't have a choice." She whispered to her chameleon friend. "He's not going to tell me the truth, so if I want to find out what's going on, I'm going to have to do this."

Pascal didn't seem happy about this, but nodded at her and remain on her shoulder, joining her.

She eventually went to the same entrance she went to spy on her father when he exiled the Dark Kingdom visitors. There she saw her father sit on his throne with Nigel at his side.

Then she saw some guards enter. With them where two men she didn't recognize. They were both, tall, red-haired, and honestly intimidating. Once had an eyepatch while the other had sideburns.

"You two have been causing a lot of commotion in Corona for the past few days." Her father declared as they approached the throne.

"We mean no harm." The one with Sideburns insisted. "We've been sent on an errand and as soon as that's complete. We didn't realize it would cause so much trouble in Corona."

"You have been going around, demanding the Sundrop." The king stated, Rapunzel knew he was trying not to yell at them. "As you can probably understand how that can cause commotion."

"We assure you, its not for us." Sideburns added. "We were sent to retrieve it for someone else."

"And who sent you?" Her father asked.

Sideburns didn't answer. "If we tell you, will you keep us out of your dungeon?"

Nigel looked outrage. "Sire, you have no reason to negotiate with these ruffians! Personally, I say just send them to the dungeons and-"

"Tell me who sent you and I will allow you and your brother to leave Corona without trouble." The King declared. Nigel stared at the king in shock and the guards whispered among themselves for a moment.

Rapunzel herself was shocked at her father. "What is he thinking?" She whispered to Pascal, who could only shrug.

"Deal." Sideburns said and the two thugs smiled at the king.

"Only if you answer honestly." Frederic replied. "Who sent you here?"

"A woman." Sideburns said. "Pale skin, grey eyes, long black hair. Think she was part of the Royal family in the Dark Kingdom, maybe the queen or something."

"The Queen?" Rapunzel thought. They must've been taking about Gothel, King Edmund's wife.

"Are you sure this woman was from the Dark Kingdom?" Her father asked.

Sideburns nodded. "We were in the Dark Kingdom when she gave us the task."

The throne room was quiet for a moment. Then the king finally spoke. "Thank you for your cooperation. You both may leave."

Nigel and the guards were hesitant, but they followed the king's orders and allowed the two red-haired men to leave. The two smiled at each other, wickedly Rapunzel noticed, but then they left the throne room.

Then her father spoke to Nigel. "Have our soldiers make sure they leave Corona."

"Yes, Sire." The advisor said.

"And make sure our borders are closed to the Dark Kingdom and lands affiliated with them." The king added. "I don't anyone from the Dark Kingdom setting foot in Corona."

"You can't do that!" Rapunzel shouted as she stormed in to confront her father.

"Rapunzel! What are you doing here?" Frederic asked.

"How can you take the word of those two?" She accused. "They could be lying to protect themselves!"

"They proved that the Dark Kingdom has been conspiring against us!" The King declared.

Rapunzel seemed to get angrier at her father the more he spoke. "That's not true! Even if they did send someone here, they only want to the Sundrop! Just hand it over to them and all of this can be over!"

"I can't just hand it over to them!" Frederic shouted. "It is much more complex than that, Rapunzel."

The blonde shook her head. "No, Dad, it isn't. Both our kingdoms are in trouble and you are endangering both Corona and the Dark Kingdom by not giving them the Sundrop!"

"Corona wouldn't be endanger if they hadn't sent those rocks here." Frederic countered.

"Do you hear yourself?!" Rapunzel asked. "How could they possible have control of something that is destroying their own kingdom?! Why won't you just help them?! If not for them, then for Corona!"

"Enough!" Frederic glared at his daughter. "I am the King of Corona, nothing is more important than safety of this kingdom and my family. I will not have you, a child, lecture me about that." Then he turned to the guards. "Take her to her room. She is to remain there until she remembers her place."

Rapunzel stared at her father in shock. The guards were in shock as well. They all stood still until the king shouted. "Now!"

Then the guards reluctantly approached the princess. "Sorry about this, Your Highness." One of the guards, Stan, whispered to her.

Rapunzel glared at her father with tears forming in her eyes. "I hate you!" She shouted at him before allowing the guards to take her to her room.


Rapunzel laid on her bed, crying into her pillows as Pascal sat beside her, trying to comfort her to the best of her ability.

"What am I going to do, Pascal?" Rapunzel asked him.

Pascal wasn't sure how to respond to that. He hated seeing Rapunzel like this, seeing her cry so much and feeling helpless. But he wasn't sure what he could say or do to cheer her up.

Then he heard something crash on the door to Rapunzel's balcony. Looking at the door, Pascal saw a raven lying on the balcony floor. He got up from his place on the bed and went to the raven. The door was opened enough Pascal was able to slip through. Pascal wasn't sure how the raven hadn't been able to go through the opening.

Then the raven stood up, seemingly unfazed by the crash. its disheveled appearance gave Pascal an idea that this kind of thing happened a lot.

He was about to shoo the bird away when he noticed a letter tied to its ankle. It had Rapunzel name on it. Pascal untied the letter from the bird's ankle and took the letter. He went back inside and onto the bed. He showed the letter to Rapunzel.

"What's this?" Rapunzel asked as she took the letter. "Its from Eugene!" Then Rapunzel began to read the letter.

"Dear Rapunzel,
I know it hasn't been long since we last saw each other, but I wanted to check up on you and see how you were doing. I also thought you should know that things are getting bad here in the Dark Kingdom due to the rocks, and I imagine that it will get bad for Corona as well. But don't lose hop, the thought of you losing that optimism and bright smile of yours would be painful to witness. Not just for me, but for anyone else who has the honor of witnessing it. That didn't sound weird, did it? The point is, don't lose hope. I promise that while we are apart, I will do everything I can to help you. If you have any questions about the situation, or just want to talk to me, feel free to send a letter. I will always make time to write to you. I'll also try to use find better bird for delivering our letters.
Your friend, Eugene."

Rapunzel was moved by the letter. She actually felt a bit better after reading it. While she was worried about what was going on, she felt...special that Eugene had taken the time to write her this, and that he would always make time to write her. To some, writing a letter wasn't a big deal, but to her, she thought it was an incredible thing for Eugene to do for her, when it would've been easier for him to ignore her and Corona and focus on the Dark Kingdom, especially after being exiled from Corona for a while. It made her feel things she never felt before.

But it also sparked a fire in her. A reinvigorated determination to help not just the Dark Kingdom, but Corona as well.

"We can't sit around and do nothing, Pascal." She declared. "We're going to find the Sundrop, and we're going to help the Dark Kingdom."


(Sorry if the letter doesn't seem like something Eugene would actually write. I tried my best.)