A/N: Hey again! I told myself I'd be done writing Tangled fics yet here I am with a brand new action-packed, complex adventure story up my sleeve. This is going to be a slightly darker, longer (hopefully) sequel to Sun and Moon. Please read that for context first if you haven't already!

It is set 2 years after Sun and Moon, and 1 year after the epilogue, making Rapunzel 20 years old. Enjoy!

Summary: Some only know Rapunzel to be the lost princess of Corona, missing for two years since she'd become a runaway in the dead of night. Others know her as a fugitive, or even better as - Flynn Rider's mysterious thief partner - which in a way, makes her just as wanted as him.

Chapter 1

Eugene pants for breath as he bounds through the woods.

He hops over boulders and fallen logs, dodging leaning trees and hanging branches that dip into his path. He sprints as fast as his legs can carry him through the rough terrain, the bright afternoon sun beaming onto the forest floor.

The sound of galloping hooves are becoming louder in the distance. Without slowing his pace, Eugene peers behind him at the figures currently racing toward him on horseback.

There are four of them – thugs holding bows and swords raised above their heads, and angry expressions on their faces. It's a sight Eugene is all too used to seeing, but the thrill of running for his life from men who want him dead never manages to subside.

Somehow, they haven't yet caught up to him, Eugene having had much practice with these situations. But the whinnying horses are gradually trailing closer behind him by the second, and it leaves his heart racing and his mind exhilarated.

Despite the circumstances, it all feels like a mere playground to him, and he almost wants to laugh at how ridiculous they all look right now.

Just when Eugene least expects it, another horse – tanned in color with a pitch black mane - gallops into his peripheral vision, emerging from the trees and now running alongside him.

"Eugene!"

"Oh, hey, Sunshine!" Eugene calls out to its rider, instantly beaming at the sight of Rapunzel and her short brown hair. "What brings you here?" He shouts to her over the noise of hooves galloping through the dirt.

"Saving you, it seems!" she calls down to him, leaning forward as she grips the reigns.

"Who, me? Saving? Ha!" Eugene laughs sarcastically, somehow managing to keep up with Rapunzel's horse.

"Just shut up and get on," she nods toward the back of the saddle, the danger not far behind them clear in the front of her mind and causing her to panic slightly.

Though, of course, he would say something like that in a time like this. The threat of death has always been the most fun thing in the world to him.

"Go on without me," Eugene decides, his tone serious now. "I'll draw them off!"

"Are you insane?!" exclaims Rapunzel.

It isn't that she lacks faith in his abilities to get himself out of any tough situation, but there's no way he'll be able to outrun four thugs on horseback, not while he's alone on foot.

Then again, this is Flynn Rider they're talking about, the same man who'd dodged an entire force of royal guards for years. Well… besides that one time he got arrested.

"They're after me, not you." He ducks at the sound of an arrow whizzing past his head and puncturing a tree trunk, which Rapunzel winces at too. "Just trust me!" he shouts.

Though Rapunzel could argue they are also after her for being a fugitive, none of them are actually aware she's the missing princess. All she is to the seven kingdoms now is Flynn Rider's mysterious thief partner – which in a way, makes her just as wanted as him.

Though, these particular ruffians had recognized him immediately along with the hefty reward money that comes with his capture, therefore she supposes he is right.

For a moment, Rapunzel is surprised at Eugene's ridiculous idea before remembering that everything he does is always to protect her. She curses his tendency to always be the heroic one.

They don't have time to argue anyway. She supposes she has no choice but to trust him.

Without another word, Rapunzel gives him one worried look, resisting an eye roll, before whipping the reigns and steering her horse to the side.

"I'll find you!" Eugene promises as she retreats into the trees, soon disappearing entirely.

Eugene doesn't look back as he rounds a corner and runs to the opposite side, with more determination to outrun his pursuers than before.

Then like a beacon of light, he finds his escape route.

Directly in front of him, far in the distance, is a rift in the forest floor. The steep edge cuts off his path entirely, but there's another rockface across the gap.

Beyond the cliff, there's no where left for him to go. No where except across.

He can make this jump.

Eugene judges the distance as he sprints closer toward it, brushing away his doubts. It'll be a stretch, but considering the enraged thugs and their huge horses following close behind him, he has no other choice but to make it.

He pulls the dagger from the holster on his belt, gripping the handle tightly.

With one breath of final courage, Eugene leaps off the edge and soars into the air.

He collides with the opposite cliff a few moments later, just barely pulling himself up onto the ledge on the other side of the gap.

However, his foot slips against the rockface and pebbles plummet into the ravine below.

As he loses his grip, Eugene jams his dagger into the side of the rockface, stopping himself from falling. The blade scrapes down the wall as he grunts, Eugene holding onto it with one arm.

Another arrow darts past him, piercing the cliffside just a few feet away from his head.

He hears the hooves have stopped now and the voices of the men are shouting at him in the distance, their deep voices sounding enraged and very determined.

When Eugene peers down, he sees a flowing river below, far in the distance and nestled between the two steep rockfaces. There's a shore not too far down the water.

He tells himself he's survived bigger falls, though the heat of the moment makes it difficult for him to recall anything.

He hears another arrow plummeting next to him, causing pebbles to fly from the impact. He feels the wind of it this time though is unable to see it.

Eugene can sense his palm gradually losing grip on the handle of his blade. There's no way he'll be able to start climbing without getting shot within the next second.

With one last look below, Eugene releases the dagger and lets himself fall.

Eugene coughs as he pulls himself onto the shore.

The current of the river pushes him in one direction, and his weak limbs are shaking. His exhaustion tells him to completely give in to the force of it, but he manages to climb completely onto the rocks despite choking on water all at the same time.

Once his lungs are mostly clear and he comprehends the fact he is in fact, still alive, he takes a few moments to catch his breath as he lies on his stomach, propping himself up with his elbows.

All Eugene can hear anymore is the calming sound of the running water behind him, and the birds of the forest chirping deep within the trees. It's completely silent otherwise, without anyone nearby, it seems.

Slowly, he pulls himself to his feet and runs his fingers through his soaked hair. He shakes out his dripping wet hands and brushes down the front of himself as best he can.

When he looks up, all he sees are more trees that look exactly the same as the rest. The cliff he'd jumped from isn't as high up as the drop had felt, but with all the brush and uneven terrain, it's difficult to see a way back up there at first glance.

Though, he's not sure how great an idea that is if those ruffians are still up there looking for him. Hopefully they'd given up and assumed him to be dead instead of following him.

He supposes he'll find out sooner or later.

All he has to do now is find Rapunzel. Without time to waste, Eugene begins to walk.