A/N: This series has been mostly serious so far, but this one is pretty silly for a change. You don't have to read every piece in order, and I am also writing/publishing them out of order, but I'm rearranging as I go so everything should still be numbered consecutively if you choose to read it in order (if that makes sense).

Also, you don't have to read every piece but this one does happen after 'side effects' so I would say at least read that one for some context if you haven't already.

I'm also totally down for fic recommendations!

Summary: All Eugene has to do now is get Rapunzel to her room without alerting anyone that their beloved princess is currently wasted. Of course, the castle is a maze, and every hallway is being patrolled by royal guards. What could possibly go wrong? [sequel to 'side effects' aka Rapunzel's first hangover]


blame it on the alcohol


Eugene wraps an arm around Rapunzel's shoulders as he guides her out of the busy tavern. "All right Blondie, let's get you home."

The noise of the bustling party fades as they walk along the winding cobblestone streets of Corona.

The kingdom hasn't slept since their lost princess returned. The roads had been packed with partygoers earlier, and the remnants of them still wander the streets despite the late hour of night. Cheering and laughter can be heard inside every other tavern they pass, the citizens no doubt basking in the opportunity to celebrate all night long.

The sun had gone down hours ago, leaving a warm breeze in the night air. Glowing streetlamps line the path and the sound of the ocean waves crashing beneath the island are heard in the distance.

"I feel funny," Rapunzel says. She definitely isn't walking straight and Eugene wobbles too from the weight of her swaying underneath his arm.

"Yeah, alcohol will do that to you," remarks Eugene. He'll admit he feels pretty intoxicated himself, but a chugging contest will do that to someone. It wasn't his brightest of moments and he hasn't had that much in quite a while, but man does it feel good.

"I can't believe we did this!" Rapunzel squeals, laughing at the crazy night they'd just had, "This is so much fun."

"Glad you think so. However, what's not gonna be fun is avoiding the guards when we get back and god forbid, your parents," adds Eugene.

"Why would we hide from my parents?" she asks.

"Well, something tells me they won't take too kindly to me bringing their long-lost-and-recently-found daughter back drunk."

To be fair, Eugene had no intention of getting Rapunzel drunk. In fact, she did it all by herself. He'd only wanted to show her a good time, and that he did. Maybe a little too good, because as the night went on, he'd found it harder and harder to keep an eye on her, and with the excitement of her first party, well… let's just say she'd gone a little overboard with the drinks.

The last thing her reasonably over-protective parents probably want is to find Eugene bringing her home in such a state. The King and Queen may have accepted him into their home, but he's still trying to redeem himself from his old reputation. And this definitely won't make a good impression on the princess' parents.

"Ohhhhh…" says Rapunzel, "Well, you know what, Eugene? I th-think you're the drunk one out of the two of us," she jabs a finger against his chest.

He chuckles, unable to deny that fact, "You know, you're partially right there."

"How come you're normal right now? Normal's boring. I wanna be drunk all the time!" exclaims Rapunzel, shooting her arms above her head.

"Years of practice," he responds, knowing full well that everything she's saying right now is just the alcohol talking. His head is still swaying from earlier and his stomach feels warm, but he's always been good at acting sober when he's not. He can already feel the effects beginning to fade, anyway. The clear night air helps with that. "Besides, someone's gotta stay sober to keep an eye on this one," he points a finger at her mischievously.

"Pfffft. Okay," scoffs Rapunzel, clearly not buying that.

Eugene chuckles softly to himself.

"Why are you laughing at me?" questions Rapunzel.

"I'm not!" defends Eugene.

"Yes, you are. I saw you just now. You laughed."

He smiles, shaking his head and answering simply, "Because you're cute, Sunshine."

"And you're jealous!" Rapunzel playfully pushes him away from her, referring to earlier at the tavern.

Eugene pretends to be shocked at that accusation, despite knowing full well what she is talking about. "What? Me? Jealous? No way," he makes a waving motion with his hand, shrugging it off.

She scoffs again, deepening her voice as if mocking his own, "Okay there, tough guy."

"What? I'm not!" defends Eugene.

"You told that man who was talking to me he smelled bad!"

"Hey, I— Okay, yeah, I did do that." He'd forgotten about that tiny detail up until now. In Eugene's defense, the arm wrestle had nothing to do with it either. "But you know what? Let's just focus on getting you back to the castle. Then we can both just sleep this off and… probably do it all again tomorrow now that I think about it." Eugene groans, slapping a palm against his forehead and dragging it down his face.

It isn't that he is opposed to the idea. Eugene will probably never say no to a drink if someone offers him one. But he knows they haven't been able to escape a single event or party in almost a week and they will probably find themselves in the middle of one again tomorrow night, considering the current state of the kingdom.

Well, he supposes they'll just have to cross that bridge when they come to it.


They somehow make it into the castle without running into anyone they don't want to run into – specifically Rapunzel's parents.

The building is dark and completely silent, with all the residents fast asleep by now. Now all Eugene has to do is get Rapunzel to her room without alerting anyone that their beloved princess is currently wasted. Of course, the castle is a maze, and every hallway is being patrolled by royal guards. What could possibly go wrong?

Eugene guides Rapunzel by the hand as he attempts to navigate through the halls that all look identical to each other. The fact that they can hardly see where they're going through the darkness doesn't help their case either.

Just as they round a corner, Eugene spots a guard crossing in front of them at the end of the long corridor, staring blankly ahead as he walks.

Panicked, Eugene shoots am arm out in front of Rapunzel and retreats behind the corner, their backs now pressed against the wall.

As they wait for the sound of the guard's footsteps and the rattling sword on his hip to fade away, Rapunzel covers her mouth as she starts giggling to herself.

"Shh!" Eugene tells her.

"Sorry," she whispers next to him.

When Eugene is sure the guard is gone, the two tip-toe out from behind the corner. Just as they do, Rapunzel walks completely into the wall and stumbles away from it. "Ow," she mutters.

Eugene turns back to her, keeping his voice low, "You okay?" He would've laughed at that if he weren't sweating so nervously right now.

Rapunzel takes a moment to regain her balance. Well, if she couldn't see clearly before then she definitely can't now. "Yeah. Yep. I'm fine," she lies to herself.

They continue to sneak through the castle without a sound. Finally, Eugene spots the closed doors to Rapunzel's bedroom just a couple rooms down. Though, he notices a light has been turned on at the end of the hallway and he freezes in his tracks.

A moment later, approaching footsteps reach their ears, becoming louder by the second. Then to Eugene's absolute horror, King Frederic of all people saunters around the corner, walking directly toward them.

With his heart jumping out of his chest, Eugene shoves Rapunzel behind the wall, hiding her from view as she lets out a squeak of surprise.

"Your Majesty!" Eugene exclaims suddenly, shooting his arms into the air dramatically. He parades down the corridor with a wide grin, meeting Frederic in the middle who looks startled to say the least. "Fancy seeing you here in your own… house," Eugene clears his throat awkwardly. "So nice to see you right now on this wonderful evening."

"Eugene," The King stops a few feet away from him, holding his hands regally behind his back. "How was your night out?" the man asks in a level tone.

The two haven't personally known each other for long, nor have they spoken much, so in this moment Frederic convinces himself Eugene is just… a very enthusiastic, talkative person.

"Great! Yeah. I'm just…" Eugene scratches the back of his neck. "I'm just going for a walk now, you know. Gotta clear the ol' noggin and all that," he taps his finger against his head as if to prove his point.

"Where did you end up going?" Frederic asks pleasantly.

So, Eugene had asked them if it was all right he take Rapunzel out to town tonight. However, what he'd managed to leave out was the specifics of where exactly that meant and what it might entail.

"Oh, you know, to the… fountain," Eugene winces.

"I see," nods the King. "Well. I just wanted to make sure you two got back all right." He looks over at the doors of Rapunzel's bedroom that happen to be right next to him. "Did Rapunzel have fun?"

Eugene glances worriedly toward the princess' bedroom, praying Frederic won't go in there for whatever reason and see that she is in fact, not in there. "Oh, yes. Yep, too much fun. She is fast asleep right now. Best not to wake her up though. She will get angry, believe me. It is not a pretty sight."

Frederic blinks twice at that warning, "All right then," he decides, supposing he should listen to the man. "Well, I'll see you bright and early for breakfast, then."

"Yep." Eugene calls out to Frederic who has already turned around and begun walking away. "Sounds good. Bright and early, just what I like to hear!"

Eugene's expression drops completely as he watches the King disappear down the hallway. He sighs heavily, relieved he had somehow slithered his way out of that situation. Man, he is so tired.

Suddenly remembering Rapunzel, he rushes back to the corner he had shoved her behind. Of course, when he peers around it, the princess is no where to be found.

"Blondie?" he whispers, searching all around him, "Rapunzel?" Oh man. Okay. She really could be anywhere right now, can't she? Why is this castle so big?!

Feeling mildly stressed out and forcing himself to remain somewhat calm, Eugene paces back down the corridors in search of his very drunk, easily distracted girlfriend who clearly shouldn't be left unsupervised right now. "Oh, dear god, why do I do this to myself?" he mutters while nervously running a hand through his hair.

After a minute, he hears the piercingly loud sound of glass shattering followed by a small voice saying, "Oops."

As Eugene rushes around the next corner, the first thing he sees is Rapunzel standing there with a guilty expression of her face, and a broken vase at her feet.

He stares at her in disbelief with his jaw hanging low, wondering how on earth she had managed to knock that off the table when these hallways literally have so much space to walk in.

"Wh—how did you—oh, forget it!" Eugene whispers aggressively while throwing his arms everywhere, his voice raising in pitch.

Feeling panicked and finding no other option, Eugene quickly kicks the broken glass underneath the tablecloth of the dresser against the window. Perfect. No one will ever notice. That is, if they didn't already hear glass breaking two seconds ago. Eugene doesn't want to stick around here to find out.

After what feels like an eternity, the pair finally make it back to Rapunzel's bedroom without getting caught again. He doesn't let go of her wrist for the entire journey, fearing she might try to run away from him again.

Once inside, Eugene is careful to close the heavy doors behind him without a sound. With his palms pressed against them, he sighs with relief and bows his head contentedly, "Okay. We made it." Suddenly it feels like he can breathe again for the first time tonight.

Rapunzel giggles from somewhere within the room.

He turns over his shoulder, finding her stumbling toward her bed through the darkness and holding her arms out for balance.

Eugene rushes to her side, "Whoa, slow down there, princess." He holds her hand, helping her walk with only the moonlight to guide them.

When they reach her bed, Rapunzel heavily plops down onto it on her back. She nearly brings Eugene down with her in the process, and he ends up hovering over her with his hands propped on either side of her hips.

Rapunzel stares up at him, tilting her head to the side. "Is there… is there supposed to be two of you right now?" She can hardly keep her eyes open from the dizziness.

"Not unless you brought another guy home who looks exactly like me," Eugene remarks before standing up straight again.

Rapunzel only laughs at that. The sound of it is absolutely enchanting to Eugene. She reaches for one of the many pillows above her head and hugs it to her chest. She curls onto her side, closing her eyes and humming contentedly.

Eugene grins softly at the sight of her peaceful, sleepy figure. "Good night, Rapunzel."

Just as he turns to leave, he feels Rapunzel grab his hand again and yank him back toward her.

"Waaaaait…" she whines.

Eugene only chuckles at her ability to sound like a child and the fact that she clearly isn't going to let him leave. He must say he is very amused by it. Despite his confusion at what else she could possibly need right now, Eugene lets her pull him down toward her as she cups his face in her hands, kissing him softly.

"Stay here," murmurs Rapunzel.

Eugene smirks, wishing he could do just that. "I shouldn't," he tells her, his face inches above hers.

"You have before."

"—Which your parents don't know about, and I'd like to keep it that way, so…" With that, Eugene attempts to stand up once more before Rapunzel stops him again.

"They're not gonna know," she says, then gazes up at him with wide eyes, "Pleeaase…"

Eugene would sleep next to her every night if he could, but her parents are literally the King and Queen, not to mention the guards already don't trust him and seem to be watching him even more than they normally would. Rapunzel really isn't making the situation easier for him right now.

But… considering the number of drinks he'd consumed tonight and how affectionate Rapunzel is being, Eugene wants nothing more than to take advantage of that and nestle into her side until morning. Which is why it doesn't take much convincing for him to change his mind.

Whatever repercussions might come with this… well, Eugene figures he'll deal with it in the morning. He only watches her as he sighs, "You know, it's amazing, the influence you have on me."


Rapunzel's hair tickles Eugene's nose as his eyes flutter open.

The morning sun is nearly blinding as it's light cascades through the sheer curtains of Rapunzel's window. It is entirely silent within the room aside from the faint chirping of birds outside and the princess' soft breathing.

With Eugene barely awake, he finds her sleeping still in his arms. He lazily kisses under her ear and nestles further into her backside. She stirs softly, humming at the feeling of his arm wrapped tightly around her.

Eugene swears he has never slept so comfortably in his life. He could get used to this.

Just as he begins to drift back into a deep sleep, the sound of loud knocking on the door jolts them awake.

"Rapunzel, darling? Are you up?"

They both perk their heads up toward the door. Then they look to each other with wide eyes, suddenly remembering Eugene isn't exactly supposed to be in here right now.

In a panic, he frantically leaps out of bed and tumbles heavily to the floor.

"Eugene!" Rapunzel bolts fully upright. She peers over the edge of the mattress with a worried expression.

A moment later, the bedroom door swings open, "Oh," Queen Arianna stops in the doorway. "Still in bed at this hour?" she says, a hint of a smirk on her lips. Somehow, she hadn't managed to catch the man falling and crawling under the bed just now. "You must have had quite the night."

It isn't until now that Rapunzel realizes how utterly exhausted she feels and the fact that it's incredibly difficult for her to even be sitting up right now. It feels like she didn't sleep at all. "Uh… yeah," she stutters, momentarily squeezing her eyes shut from the pain in her head.

"Have you seen Eugene?" Arianna asks, "Breakfast is about to be served."

Rapunzel's heart stops in her chest, staring dead ahead at her mother, "Nope. No idea."

"Hm. Your father said he was acting quite strange last night. I hope everything is okay," ponders Arianna. She looks away momentarily, then focuses on Rapunzel again, "Anyway… get dressed quickly. Your father and I will be waiting downstairs."

Rapunzel smiles with forced enthusiasm, "Sure thing, mom."

Arianna flashes her a loving grin before turning and pulling the door closed.

After she's gone, Rapunzel groans and heavily falls back down onto the pillows, which practically swallow her whole. "Uggghh, my head!" She covers her face with her hands, running them painfully over her eyes before dropping them by her sides. "I feel like I got hit in the face by a brick or something," she says, staring up at the ceiling.

Eugene rises into view next to the bed, brushing off the front of his shirt, "Well… I've definitely woken up less… abruptly before," he comments in a sarcastic tone. "Remind me to lock the door next time."


Somehow, Rapunzel musters up the motive to actually get out of bed and get dressed, much to Eugene's encouragement.

They'd thought about making up some excuse for her to just stay in bed because it's all she wants to do right now, until Eugene brought up the fact that they are already so far into this lie that he isn't sure how much longer it can go on.

His logic is that if they pretend everything is fine, her parents will believe that to be so.

So, as Eugene and Rapunzel are seated at the dining table opposite the King and Queen at a painfully early hour of the morning, Eugene realizes that, okay… maybe this wasn't such a good idea.

As they wait in silence for the servants to bring out breakfast, Eugene nervously fiddles with his own fingers underneath the table.

It feels like the King and Queen are just watching him suspiciously, all while Rapunzel struggles to keep her eyes open next to him.

The tension between the four of them couldn't be more present in the room, and Eugene wonders if maybe they do know Rapunzel is clearly hungover and also the fact that he slept in her room last night… again. Also, that they were sneaking around the castle and may or may not have caused some destruction in the process. Okay, and Eugene may have lied to the King about all of it, but he probably doesn't remember that happening, right?

"We heard the festivities were quite excitable last night," Arianna breaks the silence. Her voice echoes within the enormous dining hall. "Even more so than the night before, it seems."

Eugene looks over at Rapunzel, who has her elbow on the table and is tiredly resting her face in her hand. She clearly has no intention of responding to that and no one is even sure if she heard it, so Eugene throws himself into the conversation in an attempt to save her.

"Yes," he beams in an overly enthusiastic voice, "It was, uh… quite the fun little celebration, wasn't it, Sunshine? Fireworks, dancing, the whole shebang, you name it."

"Sounds lovely," comments Arianna, her hands folded neatly in her lap.

Rapunzel's head only melts further into her hand as her eyelids begin to fall closed. Her parents glance over at her with confusion before King Frederic clears his throat.

Rapunzel perks up in her chair, suddenly jolted awake.

"So…" Frederic begins in a booming voice, deciding not to comment on that, "One of the handmaidens found some broken glass under a table this morning." He peers between Eugene and Rapunzel across the table, "You two wouldn't happen to know anything about that, would you?"

Rapunzel and Eugene glance over at each other wearing guilty expressions.

"Must have… been the wind," suggests Eugene, before chuckling awkwardly. Yep. Good one, Eugene.

As if his prayers are answered, just at that moment, the doors burst open and the servants shuffle in with breakfast.

He sighs with relief, thankful for the distraction. However, when everything has been set on the table and a full plate of food is placed in front of Rapunzel, she looks absolutely repulsed by it.

It is in that moment that Eugene realizes their mistake.

Minutes later, when the servants have left and everyone has awkwardly begun eating, Arianna notices that Rapunzel hasn't touched her food. "Is something wrong, dear?" she asks.

"Huh? Oh, um… I just—I'm not really hungry right now," says Rapunzel. She can't even look at it without feeling her stomach turn, and the vibrant smells of all this food suddenly in front of her doesn't help either.

"Oh," says the Queen, surprised. Rapunzel has never passed up a meal before. She glances at Frederic, then back at her daughter, "Are you sure?"

The three stare expectantly at the princess who may as well be turning green. She's clearly trying to answer, but the words become caught in her throat. She grips the table uncomfortably, breathing heavily, "I'm sorry, could you excuse…" Before she can even finish that request, Rapunzel clamps a hand over her mouth and bolts out of the room.

After she's gone, everyone stares after the door that slowly swings closed behind her. They are all left completely speechless, including the guards that are positioned nearby.

Eugene drops his head into his hand, wincing.

"Perhaps someone had a little too much fun last night," observes Frederic calmly, continuing to take a bite of his food.

Eugene doesn't bother making up an excuse for that one.

The silent question lingers of whether they all just continue with their meal and pretend that never happened. Eugene doesn't want to appear rude by leaving and the King and Queen are simply too stunned to do or say anything more. In the end, they all find it best to leave the girl be.

When the most awkward meal they have ever experienced is finally over, Arianna politely excuses herself to go check on Rapunzel.

A minute later, Frederic begins to leave too before Eugene rushes after him. "Hey, listen, Your Majesty," he follows the King into the hallway, who stops and turns to face him, "About Rapunzel… I didn't mean for—"

"I know, son," Frederic holds out a hand to stop him, closing his eyes painfully, "I know." He peers down at Eugene, somehow appearing completely regal and composed despite what just happened. "We won't be speaking about this again." With that, the King continues down the hallway.

And they never did speak of it.