Okay, so apparently there's no such thing as "bronze finished chrome" – but I can't think of another way to describe it so I'm just gonna use it. If you're wondering, it's really shiny metal with a bronze sheen.

This is the last chapter of the Corona Arc – but not the end of the story! It looks as though there will be another arc. XD

Meanwhile, enjoy!

Among The Stars

Chapter 16

Of the ten people on the landing pad, Rapunzel was the only one who didn't glare at him as he jogged up. Her expression was one of concern. He couldn't bring himself to look at her, and he didn't bother with the rest of them. Whatever scandal he had caused, as an (unofficial) emissary of Warren, he had as much right to be there as everyone else.

Though the black eye forming on Fel, and his own split lip, might have been what caused the disapproval.

He turned his attention to The Sleigh as it came in to an expert landing, bronze finished chrome almost blinding in the bright afternoon sunlight.

The silhouette had changed since the last time he had seen it five years earlier – no surprise since North was always fiddling with it. But the ship was still distinct, even if Fel's aide hadn't already confirmed that it was from Warren.

But he was trying to figure out why it was there. North had left Warren a few hours before The Night Fury with General Black. The New Empire had requested Black be returned to them for trial. Bunnymund had been reluctant to hand over a prisoner he regard as his own, but had agreed.

Two of North's ELF fighters landed on either side of the ship, their sleek bodies dark scarlet with bronze chrome detailing.

The Sleigh's landing gear hissed as they took the ship's full weight when the sublight engines powered down. The loading ramp lowered with the smooth whir of mechanics. And though Jack had known North was onboard, he was still stunned as his mentor came down the ramp. His sword were absent, but even in just a scarlet shirt and dark grey slacks, the large man was no less intimidating.

He watched from the edge of the landing pad while North greeted the royal family with a proper bow, speaking to Rapunzel with all the warmth of their initial meeting. She smiled, but even from the distance Jack could tell it was a little forced. Their eyes met when she glanced at him, and he felt the knife twist in his chest.

Taking a deep breath, Jack approached, aware that the two advisors behind the king glared at him. But as the unofficial emissary of Warren, he had every right to be there no matter what scandal he had caused.

Fel was introducing himself as Jack reached them, the ambassador doing his best to look dignified around his black eye. It was hard to be smooth when sore muscles around his chest made it difficult to inhale, though.

North nodded, glancing between Fel's black eye and Jack's split lip. Jack saw understanding in the man's keep blue eyes, but there was no other reaction in his expression – save for a small smile tugging at the corner of his mouth.

"We were not anticipating your arrival, Governor North," one of the advisors said, voice wary. "To what do we owe this honor?"

"I was returning to Warren and felt the need to pay respects," North said, with a warm smile.

"What about Black?" Rapunzel asked suddenly.

North's smile faded, his expression turned dark. "When I delivered him to the prison I was told execution was scheduled. I did not stay, but I believe it has been done."

"Good."

Adela gasped and looked at her daughter. "Rapunzel."

"You don't know what he did," Rapunzel said. "What he-" her voice broke, and she had to take a deep, steadying breath. Her brother touched her shoulder.

All Jack wanted to do was hold her, and remind her she was safe – to banish the shadows across her thoughts. But he could only bury his clenched fists in his pocket to hide the strain that turned his knuckles white.

"What about you, Jack?" North asked, turning to look at him fully now formalities were out of the way.

Jack's lips pursed, and he looked away. He couldn't lie and say he was all right. But he couldn't say the truth, either. Not at the moment.

#

It took Jack the better part of an hour to tell North everything that had happened in the past twenty-four hours, since Hiccup and Merida had plenty to say on the subject. Hiccup added important details Jack forgot (and there were a lot of them). Merida added her opinion, which occasionally got them all sidetracked.

About halfway through North had to ask exactly what 'the shower incident' had been, since Jack had forgotten he hadn't told him about the week and a half spent onboard The Night Fury. That took a good seven to ten minutes.

After they finished, the suite's common room fell into a strange silence.

Hiccup and Merida sat on the couch they had wordlessly claimed as theirs. Jack sat on the back of the second couch. All three watched North while he sat in the arm chair, clearly thinking about everything they had just told him.

Eventually Jack had to look away, hands still in his hoodie pocket to hide the way his fingers flexed nervously, waiting for whatever reprimand he was about to receive.

After what felt like a life time, North let out a long breath, drawing all eyes back to him. "You never were the type to do things the easy way, eh Jack?"

"It's not like I try to mess things up," Jack muttered. He pushed his bangs off his forehead. "It just happens."

North chuckled. "I know, Jack. Hard is not impossible, though. We will find way to make this work. Just as we always do, yes?"

Jack looked away again – not wanting to admit he didn't really have faith that there way anyway for this to work.

"We have a pretty good track record, too," Hiccup reminded with a grin.

Jack rubbed the back of his neck. A whisper in the back of his mind told him it was still hopeless… but he looked at his friends, and thought about everything they had accomplished – both in his time on Warren and his time onboard the Night Fury.

The corner of his mouth started to tug in a grin. Doubt still nagged at the edges of his mind… but there was a little hope now.

#

Jack did his best to stay out of politics – he always had. But no one had allowed him to avoid this. North said he was willing to do the talking, but Jack still had to be present. Though when he and North left the common room, Merida had lightly informed him that if he said anything stupid she would rip his tongue out.

"Nothing like having people who love you," he had muttered, shaking his head as he followed North out of the suite.

That was how he found himself in the living room area of Fel's suite, on the second floor of the guest wing. The room was decidedly nicer.

The Imperial scowled at Jack before turning to pour himself a glass of Corona's fire flower wine.

When the glass was full, and he had taken a long, slow sip, he turned back to face them. "Why would I consider retracting my proposal?"

That stupid, stupid, word. Jack grimaced at the way it scraped inside his ear.

"Why is it so important to you?" he asked.

"Jack," North murmured, cautioning.

Right. Nothing stupid. He'd like to keep his tongue in his head.

Needing something to distract himself, he reached into his hoodie pocket and withdrew one of the chocolate eggs wrapped in green foil. Jack hadn't bothered asking why there was a supply of mint chocolates onboard The Sleigh (especially since North didn't like the flavor), he was just glad they were there.

He unwrapped the egg and tossed it into his mouth, focusing on the way the peppermint oil in the brown and green swirled chocolate chilled the inside of his mouth.

"Jack raises good point," North said. "Corona is small planet. What is benefit of alliance?"

Jack's conversation with Thomas the night before was fresh in his mind, but he wanted to know why Fel would go to the trouble. Especially one that would require so much of him. Corona was mostly a farming and mining planet, it's main exports were produce and precious metals, and the fire flower wine Fel was currently drinking. Occasionally fish and some meats were shipped to other planets in the system. But it didn't seem like enough to draw so much attention. He could write off the blockade as Gothel's insanity. But the New Empire's attention made little sense.

"Corona isn't much of a political player at the moment," Fel said slowly. "If Rapunzel became a senator as the council originally suggested, that could change. That won't happen, however. But it's the corner stone of this system. All the nearby planets exist in some level of dependence with them. You control Corona, you control the system."

"Keep Corona in the Empire, you keep the system," Jack frowned.

Fel nodded. "The next few years are going to be tumultuous, despite my father's best efforts. We would prefer to avoid any unnecessary unrest. Rapunzel is loved by her people, but has already been passed over for the throne. She's an ideal candidate."

"And she can only make you look better," Jack muttered. He realized that could be regarded as "stupid" and ducked his head.

"We're trying to establish a democratic empire – that's why I'm an ambassador, not a prince. My father can't name me his heir right now – I'll have to win public approval. And a beautiful princess at my side can only help that. And considering her history with Gothel, it will be a gesture to assure people this is a new era."

Jack's fist clenched in his pocket. He could almost say Fel was asking for his eyes to match, the way he was talking about Rapunzel – but decided that wouldn't hold up as a defense. So he bit his tongue and forced himself to remain in his seat.

The room was quiet for several long moments, Jack doing his best to subtly glance between Fel and North, waiting for one of them to say something.

Finally North broke the silence. "If we could garauntee Corona's loyalty, as well as Warren's promise to stay out of the New Empire's affairs-"

"Can you do that?" Jack asked, looking at North. Decisions like that were supposed to be put before all the governors – and Bunnymund was opposed to any deal with Imperials (Jack doubted New Imperials would be any different).

"Hush," North said under his breath.

They both looked at Fel, whose interest was visibly piqued.

The Imperial set his glass down with unnecessary care before looking back at them. "Warren has always been a wild card. You're not located on any of our charts, and there are more rumors than facts. One of those facts, however, is that your navy is a great risk to us."

Jack wasn't good at politics. But he was good with people. And Fel's body language spoke before he did.

"You can guarantee?" Fel asked, looking at North.

The older man nodded. "Yes."

Fel glanced at Jack briefly, clearly debating if this deal was worth losing to him again.

A tense moment passed, Jack's heart pounding against his ribs until he was sure the sound echoed off the walls.

Finally, Fel nodded. "You have a deal, Governor North."

#

"Why should I agree to this?" Thomas asked, looking more at Jack than North and Fel, though Jack hadn't said a word while Fel had retracted his proposal and North had presented his offer.

Jack was staying back from the politicians, leaning against a bookshelf while the others sat on the couches and arm chairs set up in the center of the library, where the meeting had been called.

Adela and Augustus sat on one of the couches. North, Fel and Thomas had both taken arm chairs.

Hiccup and Merida were on another couch off to the side – watching, but clearly not included.

Rapunzel sat between her mother and brother, looking down at her hands while she worried them in her lap. He had to fight back the urge to walk over and take her hands to still them. Every so often they would glance at each other, eyes meeting. But both looked away, afraid to hope this might work in their favor.

Thomas's question hung in the air, waiting for any of them to speak.

Jack looked at North, hoping he had an answer. He knew his answer – "because I love her" – wouldn't work. So he had to leave it to his mentor.

But it wasn't North who spoke.

"Maybe the question should be: why wouldn't you?"

Jack blinked, turning to look at Augustus, who had leaned forward in his seat, closer to his father. Rapunzel looked at her brother, green eyes wide. Jack saw her lips move, but was too far to hear whatever it was she whispered.

"The way I see it, Rapunzel has to marry either Frost or Fel," the prince went on. Jack was so stunned he barely registered the prince's words. "I may not be especially fond of either, but we know which one she wants."

Jack and Rapunzel glanced at each other, and he saw in her eyes the same hope he was starting to feel. If they had been holding hands, their grips would have tightened simultaneously.

He tried to quell his hope and looked at Thomas.

The king was staring at his son.

"Augustus, are you forgetting—"

"Rapunzel says nothing happened," Augustus said quietly. "Since when have you ever had reason to doubt her?"

"And I will vouch for Jack's integrity," North said.

Jack ducked his face into his hand, blushing at the very public discussion of his and Rapunzel's virginity. When he glanced through his fingers, he saw she was blushing as well, gaze fixed once more on her hands as though her fingernails were suddenly the most fascinating things in the universe.

Thomas continued to stare at his son.

"It's politically advantageous to both us and the Empire," Augustus went on. "And, as her brother, I would rather she be happy. But if anything did happen, it's all the more reason to insist he take responsibility."

Merida snorted.

Jack wondered why they were even there as he shot her a glare.

"Not helping," Hiccup muttered.

"Sorry."

Jack rolled his eyes, looking back at the man about to decide his and Rapunzel's fate.

Thomas turned to his wife, clearly searching for another opinion.

Adela, in turn, looked at her daughter, touching her hand. "Rapunzel, is this what you want?" She glanced at Jack. "Is he what you want?"

"Yes!" Rapunzel said, without hesitation, a hint of exasperation in her tone, as though she didn't understand why they were asking.

"This isn't a choice to be made lightly," Thomas said.

"The council can insist I marry Fel three hours after I've met him – but I can't trust my own heart after everything Jack and I have been through?" She stood up, shaking her head before turning to her father. "I wish I could have told you differently, but I made my choice already."

"Rapunzel." Her name escaped his lips before Jack could stop it. Not that he wanted to, though he wasn't sure if it was his own emotion at her words, or if he was trying to comfort her obvious agitation.

She glanced at him, then turned back to kneel in front of her father, touching his cheek. "Daddy – please understand. I want your blessing. I don't care about the throne, or rank – I just want this. I want him. Please."

Thomas sighed. "I want what's best for you, Rapunzel. That's all I want."

Jack looked away and closed his eyes, exhaling. Whether or not he was the best person for Rapunzel was still up for debate in his mind – and he wasn't sure he could fight back if Thomas said no on that grounds. He was an orphan with no memory, but with attitude and an inability to say the right thing at the right time – and the ability to create snow and ice. He wondered if Rapunzel remembered that his body temperature was going to drop as soon as he got back to Warren.

"You have my blessing."

Jack's heart stopped as his head jerked to look back at father and daughter.

Rapunzel looked back at him over her shoulder, standing up slowly.

Their eyes met, and his heart started to beat again. It felt strange for a moment, as though his heart had managed to escape his ribcage, there was a sense of freedom. It took him a moment to realize that the knife in his heart was gone, and all the muscles of his chest had finally relaxed.

He pushed away from the bookshelf and met her as she rushed toward him, throwing her arms around his neck. Catching her he wrapped his arms around her waist, lifting her off her feet and spinning with her.

#

"Well, that was anticlimactic," Jack said, looking out at the pond as he leaned back to brace his hands in the cool grass.

Rapunzel sat beside him, almost touching his side.

"What do you mean?" she asked.

Jack chuckled and looked over at her. "Think about everything we've been through: escaping the Tower, space battles, an Imperial search, a battle with a Nightmare King, not to mention I almost died – and yet being together didn't require some epic battle, it came down to politics."

Rapunzel giggled. "Well, you did get into a fight."

"Huh?"

She touched the corner of his lower lip gently, though he was still confused until he felt a the slight twinge of pain that reminded him of his split lip. It was now little more than a thin scab, but the nerves were still sensitive.

"If we were on Warren I could heal it," she murmured, fingertip tracing the scab.

"It's a split lip, Rapunzel," he chuckled, taking her hand as he sat up. "I've had a lot worse."

"I know."

"It'll be gone in a few days." He squeezed her hand. "But we do need to talk."

She met his eyes, and he saw nervousness flash in her eyes.

Reaching over he touched her cheek, his thumb brushing over her soft skin. After a moment she closed her eyes, leaning into his touch. The sight elicited a smile from him, despite the twinge from the scab on his lip.

"I love you," he whispered.

He felt her tense slightly and she opened her eyes. "But?"

"I have to go back to Warren," he said. "But I won't make you go with me."

She pulled away, and his hand fell back into the grass.

"Why not?"

"Because this is your home," he reminded, glancing at the palace grounds around them. "And I want you to be happy – I won't make you leave your family."

"I want to go," she said. She touched his cheek, the same way he had touched hers a few minutes earlier. "Jack, I want to be with you. You are my home. And if I don't go with you the council will make me marry someone eventually."

Jack closed his eyes, sighing in frustration as he felt his resolve slip.

"Do you not want me with you?" Her hand faltered on his cheek.

"I do!" He opened his eyes, taking her hand and threading his fingers through hers. He wanted to just accept that she'd said yes – but his conscience demanded his full disclosure. "Rapunzel, it's all I want."

"Then why—"

"I need you to understand what you would be agreeing to," he whispered. "How could I was that night on Warren – that's how could I will always be. I only have so much control over it. I-" he sighed, rubbing the back of his neck. He would have preferred to avoid what he was about to say next, but didn't see the point. "I don't know if I'll be able to make love to you, because I'm afraid of hurting you. So we may not be able to have children. And I can accept that – I just want to make sure you understand that before you make your decision."

Rapunzel looked out of the surface of the pond, and while Jack was terrified of losing her, he was glad to see she was truly giving through to his words. Having her say no now was better than her regretting her choice later. That was something he wouldn't be able to live with.

"That's part of why you said you would never marry, isn't it?" she asked, looking back at him after a while. "Merida told me. I think she was trying to warn me when she saw I was falling in love with you."

"What was that?" he asked, curious.

"O-on The Night Fury."

Jack quirked an eyebrow, waiting for a little more detail.

She blushed, biting her lip for a moment before she spoke. "Do you remember that night at dinner when you and Hiccup were talking about the repairs you were making to the ship."

"When you asked about the stability?"

She nodded.

Jack's brow rose a little higher. That had been several days before the search on Krash.

"When did you…" she trailed off, biting her lip.

Jack chuckled. "You might hate me."

"Why?"

"I think it might have started sooner, but I started to notice when we were in the shower unit," he admitted, averting his eyes as he ran a hand through his hair. "When you started crying, I realized all I wanted at that moment was to protect you."

"Really?"

He nodded. When he glanced over, he saw she was smiling.

"But that's why, isn't it?" she asked after a while. "Why you said you said you wouldn't marry?"

Jack picked up a nearby stone, turning it in his fingers. "Yeah, kinda. It was also because I'd never met a girl I was interested in, and that was my reason after I left Warren." He aimed and threw the rock, and watched it skip three times across the surface of the pond before it sunk down. " But… yeah. I completely forgot about it after I met you – until we went back to Warren."

They both looked at the water, and the fading ripples left by the rock.

"You were really never interested?" she asked. "All those girls who met on The Night Fury?"

"Nah." He chuckled. "They all had a really bad habit of getting me hurt."

They both laughed, glancing over at each other. Jack felt more relaxed than he had in a while. But he knew the conversation wasn't over, though they had managed to escape the serious topic for a few minutes.

"I won't make you do anything you don't want to do, Rapunzel," Jack said. "I don't want you to look back and regret being with me – whether it's because you had to leave Corona or because we can't have children. I'll accept whatever choice makes you happy."

Rapunzel rose to her knees, turning so she faced him. Jack met her eyes and didn't look away as she rested her hands against the side of his face again. Her other hand gently brushed aside his bands (though they fell right back into place).

"Let me be with you, Jack – that's all I want." She traced the scar over his eyebrow.

"Then I need to do this right," he whispered.

"What?"

Taking her hands, Jack stood up and she followed, looking at him curiously.

"I recently discovered that I have a profound dislike for the word 'proposal' – so I have a proposition."

She giggled, and Jack smiled.

"I've lived around Hiccup and merida long enough to know I can't promise we'll never fight – but I promise I'll love you no matter what happens, good or bad. I'll do everything in my power to be the best I can for you. All I have to give is all I am. Can that be enough that you'll agree to marry me, Rapunzel of Corona?"

Rapunzel giggled. "For someone who doesn't like politics, you can be awfully diplomatic."

"When it's important," Jack shrugged. "Not many things are. But this is my heart on the line."

"You say that as though you thought I could say no."

"Well, you still haven't answered," he pointed out.

She smiled. "Yes, Jack. I'll marry you."

Jack smiled, ignoring the pain in his split lip as he pulled her into a hug.

"One thing, though," he said, when he pulled back. "No more showers or sharing a bed until we're married – I'd like to avoid any more scandal."

Rapunzel rolled her eyes, but still giggled.