Author's note: Well, here's the new chapter. I was actually at a lose while writing this but please enjoy my failure.

Songs are all used up.

Reviews = love.

Disclaimer: Yup, I don't own Portal or Tangled because honestly, if I did, this wouldn't be posted here.


Chapter 7

Their kiss had only lasted moments. Both parties sat with blushing faces and Wheatley held a loopy kind of smile. Chell, however, fidgeted uneasily in her seat on the boat. "What's wrong, luv..?" he breathed out slowly, rubbing his thumb in circles over the back of her hand.

Chell bit her lip softly and looked to her concerned companion with her own worrying look. "I've kind of been... keeping a secret from you..." All movement from the man stopped as his brow drew up in confusion. "I'm the lost princess, Wheatley..."

No ramble erupted from the man, no visible reaction either. His face softened and almost looked sad. His hand slowly slid away from Chell's as he straightened his back. He slowly began to row the boat toward the shore as he spoke uncharacteristically soft. "Well, you must be excited to finally going home..."

The silence was tense and awkward the rest of the way to the docks. Chell hugged herself uneasily in the night air, looking to Wheatley for any hint of the previous warmth he once displayed toward her. Instead his gaze was cold, not even looking at her. Insecurity settled in her gut, causing her to hug herself tighter.

Wheatley had helped her off of the gondola and assisted her in mounting the waiting stallion. Chell looked down to the man that guided the horse through the town. He reached into his pants and pulled out a small leather holder, flipping it over to show his badge. People looked in wonder to him, clearing themselves from in front of him so that Rick could pass with their long awaited princess. All the witnessing townspeople seemed to understand who she was right away and bowed deeply as she passed.

Chell thought when she was revealed as the princess that it would be happy and joyous like the earlier festivities, not this sad and dark parade toward her palace. No one smiled, no one cheered. People that she had already passed slowly followed her on her journey. Chell looked back down to Wheatley, hoping for the shy smile from before but was only met with his indifferent gaze as he stared ahead.

No one in the palace seemed to believe that their princess had returned. Guards stood with gaped mouths as the horse was lead into the throne room. Wheatley helped the girl down from Rick but didn't keep his contact with her. Both Rick and Wheatley stood back as the king bounded into the room. His breathing uneven and his eyes wide in shock as he stared at his long lost cousin. "Chell..." He choked out as he scooped her lithe body into a tight hug. "Your alive.. your alive.." he cried against her shoulder.

After several minutes, she was finally released. Laughter erupted from the king as he began to ramble incoherently about how much things would change now that Chell had returned. The girl rubbed her arms gently as she watched the mad king walk away from her. Her eyes slowly trailed over to Wheatley, who stood silently in the back of the room. "Thank you..." She said slowly.

"Your welcome, your majesty."

Chell winced at his tone. "You know, I'm still Chell.." she began. "I'm still the same person from before.."

"I know" A small look of pain crossed his face. Chell stepped to him, reaching for his hand hesitantly. "We can still-"

"No we can't." Wheatley took a step back away from her. "You might not understand this yet, but I'm not allowed to see you again. I'm a commoner. You may be the same person but no one else is going to care about that. You're a princess and I-" His face fell, his voice going quiet. "I shouldn't have kissed you.. I'm sorry..."

Wheatley grabbed the reigns of his stallion and reared it to turn around. "Forget about me Chell..." Her breath hitched, and her eyes burned as the man began to walk away.

She didn't know what she was suppose to do about something like this. The guards had led her to her new room, then left her. Even the king had only been with her for a moment, long enough to place a glittering crown on her head before leaving. Completely alone, Chell fell to the ground.

0W0W0W0W0W0

"I'm a moron..." Wheatley muttered aloud. Rick made no correction to the depressed man who continued to talk. "Bloody hell, Rick..." he groaned a little. "I really really liked her too... and then she had to be the bloody princess..."

The man's hands let the stallions reigns go and buried his face in his hands. Rick stopped and looked back to his friend. "I wanted to be with her..." Wheatley muttered through shaky shoulders. "I- I knew I didn't stand a chance even before but now... Oh, with her being so pretty.. so beautiful... Princes and ari- aristocrats and other fancy rich..." He rubbed tears from his cheek as he gritted his teeth to hold back a sob. "What was I.. even thinking when I kissed her..?"

A small sob finally broke it's way from his throat as Wheatley continued to rack his brain. He liked her. Hell, he would go as far as to say he loved her despite the amount of time they've known each other. Then she had to ruin it by telling him that she was the princess. Now he knew that even the slim chance that a moron such as himself could ever successful court and marry a girl like Chell was completely out of the question. It's been a law in the kingdom, as much as any kingdom, that commoners and royalty simple didn't co-exist, let alone have romantic relations.

The sheer thought of all this, however, wasn't what was bringing the poor man to tears. He was happy for Chell, she finally had a family, however small. She had all the money she would ever need and she had millions of servants to do with as she pleased. Soon, she would have friends like her, rich and royal. Then, the thought that shattered any good feeling toward the situation arose. Chell would met new men, better men, and would forget him like he told her to.

A sensible thing to do, his mind told him, would be to forget about her as well. Yet the sharp pain in his chest reminded him that doing so would be impossible.

Rick trotted behind that man and nudged him toward a store front. "Wha-what are you..." Wheatley's breath hitched as he saw what kind of store he was pushed in front of. "But, I can't!" He looked to Rick through watery eyes. "I'm not like her, I can't. I-" Rick gestured to the window again. "Well, if I did do that I would be but..."

He wiped some of wetness from his eyes as he looked at the white garments behind the glass. "Would she want to-" Rick snorted and made a crude kissy face to the man. Wheatley blushed deeply, looking away from the stallion to the marvelous palace in the distance.

0C0C0C0C0C0C0C0

Chell looked down at the things she had received that day. A broken piece of chalk that a child told her to keep so she could draw where ever she went. A coupon a vendor gave her, claiming it would reduce the price of what she bought next. A card that a librarian gave her so she could take book from the building. The crown the king had given her as proof of her royalty. Lastly, the small flag Wheatley had bought her as a memento to the fun they had together.

She should have listened, she thought to herself. GLaDOS was right, he left her there by herself. Alone. Her brow knitted together and her eyes stung at the thought. She trusted him enough to guide her to the city, trusted him enough let her guard down around him, trusted him enough to kiss him back on the gondola. She covered her mouth as she swatted the items away from her.

Chell frowned heavily as her eyes drifted back to the flag. Her heart ached painfully as images of the man's shy smile crept into her mind. His accented voice offering her protection from the water, the warm glow of his artificial eye, the warmth of his body as he hugged her by the fire. She found herself hugging the small flag to her chest. She shouldn't miss him as much as she did, but should couldn't help it. She was lonely and wanted so desperately to see him.

Suddenly, a weak breeze lifted the curtains to her balcony and a familiar yellow shone through before it was covered again by the fabric. "GLaDOS..?" Chell whispered out.

"Yes, I'm here." A voice replied from outside.

The girl lifted herself onto wobbly legs and stepped toward the window, kicking her crown on her way. "Why are you here..?" she asked quietly again. No answer came, even after she pushed passed the curtains to view the brunette android sitting on the railing of the balcony. GLaDOS let out a sigh as she slipped off the railing to stand in front of the girl. "I suppose we could just stand here, staring at each other until-"

Chell gripped the woman in a tight embrace and cried softly. GLaDOS looked down at the girl, the warmth in her chest returning. Another sigh passed her lips, this one softer, as she patted Chell's back gently. "Please..." the girl mumbled through weak sobs. "Take me home..."

The irritating warmth spread to more of GLaDOS' body as she stared down at her adoptive child. The once strong and mature girl was now reduced to a weak, sobbing, heartbroken thing. Her brow knitted together in pity for Chell, her pats becoming a firm hug. Any snarky remark she had for the situation died in her throat and became a soothing hum.

0W0W0W0W0W0W0

Wheatley found himself running toward the giant castle, his speed faltering ever now and again as his more powerful robotic leg seemed to hit the concert harder then the other. Rick galloped next to the man, half attempting to bring the man onto his back. Wheatley didn't seem to notice, all he wanted was to get to the palace, get to her. "This is p-probably a terrible idea..!" he gasped out. Rick whinnied out a laugh, pacing himself to gallop next to the man.

Both of them slid to a halt as palace guards stopped them. "Detective?" one asked lazily.

"Let me in there! Quick! I got to ask Chell-"

"Wow wow wow, cool it there sparky. King has made strict orders that no one is allowed to see the princess until she is familiar with the castle," the guard waved to him. "And, even after that, you're not going to be getting in there anyway. His majesty said he will send your payment to you. People like you have no business in-"

Wheatley growled out in frustration. "I need to see her!" he shouted to the guards. "I... I love her..." he breathed out slowly.

The other men looked to each other for a moment, before bursting out in laughter. "So does everyone else that seen her today buddy." Wheatley gritted his teeth as he was pushed back gently. "Forget it kid-"

Wheatley fumbled into his bag for a moment before he pulled out Chell's portal gun, aiming it at them. Both guards back away instantly. The man pointed the gun away before fumbling with it's triggers, managing to successfully launch a blue portal onto a balcony wall. He grinned in triumph before pulling another trigger which caused him to fall into the orange portal and onto his destination.

A gust of wind blew the curtains of the window inward, signaling to Wheatley that it was open. He walked into the room with caution, unsure if it was the right place. The sight that met him tugged violently at his heart. Sat against a far wall was the king, who stared into a small pile of things in the middle of the room. "You're late..." he said hoarsely.

Wheatley's eyes widen as he recognized the things skewed a crossed the floor. Each item was something that Chell had received that day. "She left..." the king muttered again. "She seemed so hurt and confused last I saw her..."

Nothing was out of place in the room, no sign of struggle evident in his surroundings. Wheatley mused that the girl had left on her own accord. He walked a little closer to the items on the ground. The chalk, the coupon, the library card, the crown... His brow came together in mild confusion. The flag was missing.

For the first time in his entire pathetic life, his brain seemed it wanted to work quickly. Realization dawned on him as he stared down to her portal device. It was his fault that she was gone, that was the only explanation. Forget about me, Chell... His free hand slowly slid up his chest, resting above his heart. She wasn't going to forget about him if she took the flag. Wheatley looked back to the window. He imagined how she must have felt, his brain seemed to be working in over time. Her only friend left her alone in a big and unfamiliar place, expecting her to be fine on her own. He would have left to, he thought. Would go somewhere where he felt safe...

Wheatley squeezed the portal gun, dropping his other hand to cradle it. Slow steps turned into a light jog as he began his journey back to her tower.


Author's note: Sorry about all... blah about this chapter. Was seriously unsure of how I was going to convert it from the original, but I promise that there will be some action in the next one.

Little illustration for a scene of this chapter

http : / fav . me / d41tzpk