Chapter 13. The opening to this gave me such a hard time, because I have such a hard time writing about politics. I also don't like writing large groups scenes. Someone always gets lost in the middle. (Poor Sandy...)

Okay. Anyone here who has read any of the Star Wars EU books (especially New Jedi Order and beyond), you may have noticed that, yes, I got a little lazy, and the ambassador's last name is from Jag Fel, the Imperial that Han and Leia's daughter married. I seriously couldn't think of another name, and it seemed to fit. We've been needing a Star Wars reference anyway.

I said this at the beginning of the story, but I need to say it again. This story is dedicated to Eva Maverx. Especially now, since she's been listening to me whine every time I've struggled with this story.

Among The Stars

Chapter 13

"How much of that chocolate did Cottontail give you?" Jack asked, quirking an eyebrow in amusement as Merida popped another chocolate egg in her mouth. It was something she had been doing regularly since they had left Warren. Not constantly, but regularly.

"It helps calm the mornin' sickness," Merida said. "An' whoever named that was a liar. Seems like the mornin' is the only time I'm not sick."

"The baby must not like hazelnut soup," Jack said. He glanced in the direction of what he guessed was the kitchen, judging from the smells coming from that direction.

Merida made what sounded like a grunt of agreement. "It's Rapunzel's favorite, apparently."

Jack nodded.

They sat on the railing of a patio adjacent to the dining room a servant had led them to a few minutes earlier. The royal family had yet to arrive, and the smells that already filled the room were too much for Merida's stomach, so they had decided to wait outside. Not that Jack was complaining.

Even if the cool breeze blowing off the sea didn't speak to him, it was still comfortable.

He looked down at the well-tendered flowers just below the railing, bordering the manicured lawn. Bright yellow lilies – the crest of the royal family.

"Do ya want one?" Merida asked, holding out the small drawstring bag of foil wrapped chocolates.

"No thanks. Bunny's good at guessing what kind of chocolate each person likes best," Jack said. "I'm guessing you got chile, or fire flowers or something?"

"Something about lava, too," Hiccup chuckled. "I got cinnamon."

"Yeah. So unless he gave you anything mint, I doubt think I'd enjoy it."

Merida looked into her bag of chocolate, as though trying to gather some kind of information out of it. But after a moment she shrugged and pulled out another. "I wonder why royals think they're allowed to keep us common folk waiting."

"We've only been here a couple minutes," Hiccup said. He looked over his wife shoulder and reached into the bag of chocolates, withdrawing one wrapped in red and black foil.

"Don't eat that, it's chile," Merida said, plucking it from his fingers. "And I don't care. I'm hungry."

She unwrapped the chile flavored chocolate and ate it.

"That can't be good for the baby," Hiccup muttered.

Merida rolled her eyes.

Jack leaned back against the wall of the palace, taking a deep breath and letting it out in an attempt to relax. His agitation about the coming dinner was making it hard to sit still, but he didn't have anything to do but listen to Merida and Hiccup banter. He didn't even pay attention to the words, jut their familiar voices.

"Of course, we probably shouldn't mention to their majesties that Jack took a shower with their daughter," Merida said suddenly, a smirk in her voice.

Jack rolled his eyes, without opening them. "It was not a shower. It was a cover up."

"Uh-huh."

"Seriously?" Jack asked, opening one eye to look at them. Hiccup was grinning as well. Traitor. "You're not going to let that rest, are you?"

"Nope. Nor the time I caught ya cuddlin' in the pool."

"She was crying!" Jack said. "And you're not making this easier."

"I'm just doin' what ye do best," Merida shrugged. "Ya know 'have a little fun instead.' Ya ain't said that in a while."

"It's too soon for that," Jack sighed.

"Maybe ye're right," she admitted.

Jack pointed to his own chest, over his heart, reminding her it was his feelings they were talking about – of course she was right.

Before any of them could break the silence that fell over them, it was broken for them when they heard someone coming through the door of the dining room. They couldn't see who was coming in. But exchanging quick glances, they stood and headed back inside (Merida tucking her chocolates into the pocket of her dress).

Jack had to blink, waiting for his eyes to adjust to the sudden lack of light. Despite the chandelier that hung above the long table, reflecting light off the crystals and the highly polished wood table, it was nothing to the bright sunlight outside.

But as soon as he could see clearly again, he wished he couldn't. His throat constricted painfully as he saw Rapunzel being led in by the Imperial Ambassador. Her hair was expertly braided and twisted to be as out of the way as possible, but it still dragged on the floor behind her. A jeweled tiara now rested amidst the braids, and she wore a floor length cream and purple silk dress.

He wasn't sure how much pain his heart could take before it gave out on him. All Toothiana and North's lectures on the resilience of the human spirit were being called into question at the moment, because he wasn't sure how he could survive this, let alone recover from it.

Jack flexed his right hand – not thinking about the wind, but imagining how satisfying it would feel the punch the ambassador. It was the Imperials who had kept her locked in a tower while she was mentally abused, and yet somehow he was allowed to escort her?

"I hope we didn't keep you waiting," King Tomas said, looking between them.

"Not at all," Hiccup said, before Merida had a chance to reply.

Jack couldn't have spoken even if he wanted to.

"I hope your rooms are adequate," Queen Adela said, offering them a warm smile. Her daughter looked just like her, despite the difference in hair color. Like Rapunzel her hair was braided expertly, the way Rapunzel had kept her hair up before Warren, and the ends still only brushed the floor.

Jack started to think again how ridiculous it was, even if it was a sign of nobility (he noticed the men's hair was fairly short), but then remembered he had resolved never to think badly of Rapunzel's hair again – and that extended to her mother, and the rest of her people.

"Absolutely," Hiccup said. "Thank you."

"It's the least we can do," the king said. "After all you've done." He hugged Rapunzel to his side and kissed the top of her head. She giggled in response.

Jack had to look away.

It was her father. So why was the knife twisting again? And what had he done to deserve this fate?

A servant announced that they were ready to serve dinner and they all began to take their seats.

He was seated higher than Hiccup and Merida (apparently someone had actually taken his rank seriously), but still lower than the Imperials (the ambassador and his guard).

He was also several places down from Rapunzel, so he couldn't talk to her, or even really look at her. Maybe he was paranoid, but he wondered if that moment on the landing pad had made her parents wary, or even before they has stepped onto the balcony.

Jack sighed inwardly. He was starting to wish he'd agreed to let Hiccup and Merida cover for him. As it was, he was thinking about excusing himself right then. But it seemed too late, so he took his seat.

He stared down at the place setting in front of him, fingering the handle of the butter knife.

Needing to focus on anything other than the situation, he examined the room, the way Bunnymund and North had taught him.

Eight liveried guards, there as much for appearance as protection he guessed. The ambassador was probably armed, as well as his guard. Three doors: the doors to the balcony, which overlooked the balcony; the door that led to the hallway (and the palace he didn't know the layout of); then a third door, which led to the kitchen, if the servants coming through it with the salad course were any indication.

The salad course was set in front of them, and they all began eating. From the corner of his eye he saw Merida pushing aside a few ingredients with a grimace.

"Governor Frost."

Jack looked up halfway through a bite of salad and over at the ambassador, a couple seats down and across from him (next to Rapunzel – which set him on edge). He spare a glare towards Merida when she snorted.

"We weren't properly introduced earlier," the man said.

And I don't want to be, Jack thought. The man certainly wasn't getting any points calling him "Governor". Even on Warren no one actually used their titles – especially not his. He probably would have laughed as well, if it weren't for his inherent dislike of the man.

"I'm Ambassador Emil Fel."

"Jack Frost," he said. "The 'governor' isn't necessary."

"Actually, we've met before."

"We have?" Jack frowned. He looked more closely at Fel, trying to recall if he had ever seen the man before. He didn't think so. But he was fairly nondescript – a few inches taller than Jack (a lot of men were), with dark blond hair and green eyes.

"We were at the Academy together," Fel said.

"Ye knew Frostbite when 'e was at the Academy?" Merida asked – with decidedly too much interest in her voice. When he glanced over at the red head, her eyes were darting between him and the Imperial, her grin threatening mischievous.

Jack noticed Rapunzel had looked up as well.

"We weren't friends – we never actually met, to be honest" Fel said, looking at Merida. His extreme civility made Jack roll his eyes. "But he's hard to forget, with that hair."

Jack's hand flew to his white hair. He often forgot how unique most people in the galaxy thought it was – North and Nightlight both had white hair as well, after all.

"Was 'e really top o' the class?" she asked.

Jack should have known that was what she was looking for. She had always made it clear she doubted he was being honest whenever he bragged about that.

"He was, actually," Fel said, glancing at Jack. "It was extremely frustrating, but that's why I recognized his name while going over the reports about the princess. I can tell you how frustrating it was. I went into the Academy, the son of a high ranking officer, expecting to be top of my class. And yet, every time the scores were posted, J. Frost glared at me from the top spot."

"Told ya," Jack said, offering Merida a halfhearted smirk.

Her lower lip pressed out in a small pout, but she rolled her eyes. "Ya still got kicked out."

"I still graduated," Jack said. "They just didn't make me an officer."

"But you didn't actually attend graduation," Fel said.

"I was off planet by then," Jack said.

"I had planned on introducing myself on graduation," Fel said. "I resented you during training. But once I had my place on my first ship, I found it wasn't as big a deal as I thought. I can't tell you how surprised I was to see you on the security footage from Imperial Tower." He looked at Rapunzel. "But I must admit, your highness, I was not surprised to realize he was the one who managed to bypass the Tower's security to rescue you. Though, considering the Tower is supposed to have some of the best security in the Empire, I have to ask: How did you manage it, Frost?"

Jack took a drink from his glass of water. "Trade secret."

Did Fel actually expect him to tell the truth on that?

"Will you at least tell me how you managed to hide her onboard The Night Fury?" he asked. "According to General Black's report, the search was quite thorough – and you were taking a shower?"

Rapunzel let out what sounded like a squeak – and everyone looked over to see her blushing furiously, her eyes fixed on the salad she was poking at with her fork.

Jack grimaced, knowing what was about to come. So much for not mentioning that.

When he looked around the table, Hiccup was shaking his head, Merida was smirking, Queen Adela was looking between Jack and her daughter, while the king and prince looked about ready to sign a warrant for his execution.

"I hid her in the shower unit," he said. "The steam from the shower covered her body heat from the sensors."

"And you were in the shower unit with her?" Thomas asked, his voice dark.

Jack rubbed his forehead with his fingertips, wondering if Fel had walked him into this one on purpose – as if he needed another reason to dislike the ambassador.

He still knew it was a good idea – the best, even if it hadn't been the only one. And it had worked. But when he had been throwing his clothes on the floor, he certainly hadn't imagined he would have to explain it to her parents. And he certainly hadn't expected to have to explain it to the parents of the girl he had fallen in love with.

It had kept her safe, he reminded himself. It was worth whatever King Thomas decided to do to him.

"Yes."

"Daddy," Rapunzel said. All eyes turned on her. "Jack never..." she looked at him, and he knew what she was about to say was, technically, a lie. "He never touched me."

Right. If he had never touched her, she wouldn't be burned onto his lips.

He really wished he hadn't kissed her.

"I was fully dressed," she added.

"And you?" Thomas challenged, looking at Jack.

"I had my boxers on," he said. He kept a hand over his face, trying to hide his burning cheeks.

"Daddy," she said again.

"I woulda killed 'im if 'e did anythin', Ye're Majesty," Merida said.

Jack looked over at her, thanking her with his eyes.

"You tried to anyway," Hiccup chuckled.

Well, if he'd ever hoped maybe he and Rapunzel still has a chance, it was gone now, judging from the look on her father's face.

"So, Ambassador Fel."

Jack looked at Merida, relieved at the change of topic. She was rolling a piece of what looked like dried cranberry between her fingers (the fruit no doubt pulled from her salad), watching Fel with what anyone who knew her would recognize as a thinly veiled glare.

"Yes, Mrs. Haddock?"

It took all Jack's strength not to laugh.

"Merida," she said, scowling. She had picked up a warm roll of bread from a basket on the table and she tore it in half while she spoke. "We haven't heard anythin' 'bout the coup on Pallash. Considerin' we were just on Pallash II, it seems kinda sudden."

"On the outside, perhaps," Fel chuckled. "But it's been in the works for years. Gothel was hardly a responsible ruler, by any stretch of the imagination. The military has been working on a coup that would allow for a seamless take over."

"Eight years?" Jack guessed, taking a roll of bread from a nearby basket on the table.

"Yes, actually," Fel said, blinking.

"Since she cut the military budget," Jack said, tearing the piece of roll in half. Delicate ribbons of steam wafted into the air.

"Uh, yes," Fel said, his smooth tone faltering, at least for a moment.

There was a moment of awkward silence, and exchanged glances, everyone focused on their salads and bread rolls.

"So will it be a military empire?" Hiccup asked, breaking the silence.

Fel shook his head, visibly glad to be once more in control. So he wasn't as smooth, or skilled, as he seemed. Even more than feeling smug about that, Jack filed it away carefully. "No, we feel there's a difference between soldiers and politicians. We just felt that the current regime was no longer in the best interest of the people."

Or in the soldiers' financial interest.

"The coup was led by General Fel – my father. He has given up his military rank to become emperor."

Jack, Hiccup and Merida exchanged glances, and he could see in their eyes that the same alarm bells were echoing through all their minds.

"We're establishing a senate – that way every planet will have a representative in all decision making."

"Rapunzel," Augustus said, drawing all attention to the royal family at the head of the table. "The council is considering making you Corona's senate. I know it's not the crown, but it will be of even greater importance, as you'll be impacting galactic politics, rather than just those here at home."

Jack bit his tongue, to keep from either laughing or saying something it most decidedly wasn't his place to say.

Rapunzel's eyes widened, her mouth opening slightly as she glanced between her brother and her parents. Her eyes darted to Jack, then back to her plate. "I-"

"Actually, there's another... proposal, to consider," Fel said.

Jack didn't like the sound of that – either the words, or the tone. And the word 'proposal' scraped the inside of his ears until he felt like they would start bleeding.

"I confess, I haven't spoken with your parents about this, but I have spoken with my father – and I feel it should be your choice."

"Don' tell me," Merida whispered. And Jack saw her fist tighten on the table.

At least, this time, it wasn't just his mind rushing to the worst case scenarios.

"I propose-" there was that word again, Jack was tempted to check if there was blood coming out of his ears yet "-an alliance between Corona and the New Empire."

"What kind of alliance are you proposing?" Adela asked.

What had he done to deserve this? Really?

"A traditional one, actually," Fel said, with a polite laugh. "A marriage, between her highness and myself. It would-"

Jack couldn't listen.

As he stood up his hand knocked his glass of water off the table, his gauntlet knocking against the crystal with a musical chime. The tumbler fell on its side, water pouring around his plate and utinsles, to fall off the edge of the table like a waterfall.

But he didn't notice any of it as he was already at the door, opening it with more force than necessary. He vaguely registered that several people called out his name, and he heard someone get up to follow him. But he slammed the door shut behind him.

He didn't know where he was going, just that he couldn't stop moving. He wanted to fly, to have the wind pick him up and carry him anywhere. He really didn't care at the moment. But there was no wind in the hall. And even if there was, it wouldn't have listened to him.

He was about to start running.

"Jack."

Her voice pulled him up short.

"You should go back in," he said, not turning back to look at her.

"No," she said. "Not until you tell me what's wrong."

Jack laughed darkly. "You have to ask."

"I don't mean that," she said. "Why- Jack, I don't understand."

Jack closed his eyes, trying to fight back every instinct that was forcing him to turn around. But when he heard her voice break, he knew he had already lost the fight. His shoulder sagged as he turned to look at her.

"What don't you understand?" he asked. "This is your home, Rapunzel. And I have to go back to Warren. I shouldn't have left again – but I promised I would keep you safe until I got you home."

She met his gaze, her eyes once more pleading with him. But he still didn't know what they were pleading for. She took a few cautious steps forward, closer to him.

"I couldn't take it anymore," he whispered.

"What?" she asked. "Did you think I would say yes?"

"I don't know!" he snapped, rubbing his forehead, trying to think. "I told you, I love you! But I-"

He didn't get a chance to finish the sentence (he wasn't sure what he was going to say anyway), because two things happened at once.

The first, was that Rapunzel grabbed the collar of his vest and pulled him down until his lips smashed against hers. And his hands were on her waist before he had a chance to think, closing the distance between their bodies.

The second was that the door of the dining room opened.

"Rapunzel?"