Chapter 3

Far off in the distance as the sun was just beginning to peek from the horizon, a lone rider atop a chestnut-brown horse gazed at the kingdom of Corona. A smug smile crossed his face and he chuckled under his breath at nothing in particular. He gave his horse a swift kick in the ribs, causing him to leap forward in a burst of speed. The young man urged him faster, unable to keep his patience. He had waited twenty-one years for this, and it had not come a day too soon.

"Pascal, you need to hold still!" Rapunzel chided gently as she leaned over her easel.

The little green chameleon raised his eyebrows with a grin before his long tongue shot out, stealing the paintbrush in Rapunzel's hand and frolicking with it along the white brick wall she had been trying to sketch him on. He ran a few lizard-sized steps before turning around with a playful look in his eyes.

Rapunzel giggled. "Pas-callll, come on now, I'm almost done!" She stood up and put on hand on her hip, holding her palm open with a smirk on her face. After a pause, Pascal shot the paintbrush out of his mouth and back into Rapunzel's hand before striking his former pose.

"Thank you." Rapunzel sang sweetly. Before she could sit back down, she heard a voice behind her.

"You know, you don't sketch me nearly as often as you sketch the frog." Flynn said in a tone of mock-hurt.

Rapunzel turned to face him, clasping her hands behind her back as she smiled. "Well, Pascal is an exceptional subject. He really knows his facial expressions."

Flynn's mouth fell open in shock. "But he's no match for my Smolder! No one can resist it."

"I resisted it pretty well." Rapunzel replied, raising her eyebrows.

Flynn scoffed. "I wore you down eventually."

Rapunzel giggled before raising her paintbrush and dabbing a small green spot in the middle of his forehead. "Whatever you say."

Flynn grinned as he wiped the paint away and then felt something scaly climbing up his arm. He raised it to look at Pascal, who was smiling happily at him. "Well hey, little guy," Flynn said in greeting. "You ready to come to work with me today?"

Pascal nodded before zipping up Flynn's shoulder, making a little noise of agreement.

Rapunzel laughed. "Wow, looks like I've been replaced!"

Flynn shook his head. "I think he just likes sleeping by the fire while I work on the swords. Don't frogs like that kind of thing?"

Rapunzel leaned in to give him a quick, unexpected kiss that left Flynn a bit dazed. "I don't know about frogs, but chameleons love warmth." She grinned at his expression before he caught himself and regained his composure.

"Right. Well… I guess I should head down to the Smithy."

Rapunzel pouted. "Don't go. Please?"

Flynn smiled at her childlike tone. He leaned in to give her a hug as Pascal switched shoulders. "We'll spend some time together this evening. I promise."

Rapunzel nodded with a little smile. "Alright. Pascal," She said, directing her attention to the chameleon. "You better watch out for Eugene."

Pascal nodded and raised his little hand in a salute.

Flynn kissed her forehead, resisting the urge to let his secret out right then and there. He forced himself to turn around and walk away, Pascal lightly bobbing his head in time with Flynn's footsteps.

Be patient, Rider. Flynn said to himself. You just need to be patient.

Rapunzel marked the page where she had finished reading in her book and closed the cover with a little sigh. She hadn't realized just how much there was to learn about being a princess and learning how to rule the country one day. She was eighteen years behind on her schooling, which wasn't her fault of course. Still, the magnitude of the job was enough to give her cause for worry every once in a while.

She leaned against the pillows of her massive bed, gazing idly at the mural of paintings on her walls as she thought to herself. Could she really rule a country some day? How would she know what was right for the people or not? What if she made a colossal mistake that would destroy the entire kingdom? How would she even know if she would make the right decisions? She closed her eyes and rubbed her temples, feeling a headache coming on.

I'll have Mother and Father to help me of course. Rapunzel thought to herself. And I have plenty of time to learn everything there is to know about ruling. Maybe this won't be as hard as I think. Rapunzel had a generally optimistic personality and tried to be a happy, bubbly person - especially now that she had found her true parents and home. However, this didn't mean she was always happy. There were still nights where her dreams were plagued with Gothel and her betrayal, the thoughts of happier times with the woman she had believed to be her loving, caring mother. To learn the truth had been a devastating blow to Rapunzel's self esteem. Gothel had never really loved her most, the way she'd always said she did. Gothel had only loved her for the magic in her hair that had kept her young and alive. She hadn't meant anything more to her than that.

Rapunzel tried to push the dark thought from her mind. That was all in the past now. She was home, she had a real family, and she had Eugene.

Eugene… Rapunzel thought to herself. She flopped backwards so that her back hit the soft bed and let out a low moan of frustration. She wished she knew how to name the feelings she had for him. She'd read all the great love stories, she recognized the love her parents had for each other and for her as well, so why did it feel like she knew nothing about it at all?

How do you know if you love someone? Rapunzel flipped onto her stomach and put her head in her palms. She loved Pascal, her only friend growing up in the tower. She had loved Gothel, but that feeling no longer existed. She knew she loved her parents, although she hadn't actually told them out loud yet… Rapunzel suddenly felt the familiar guilt creep into her skin. She had real parents who loved her more than life itself, and yet she couldn't tell them she loved them back? Why?

She knew why. Gothel. She had betrayed her, and the betrayal ran deep. How could she give her love away again after such an event as the one she had endured? And if she couldn't say those three words to her own mother and father, how could she say them to Eugene?

She pictured his face in her mind's eye. She loved being with him. She loved his personality and the way he could always make her laugh. She loved how patient he had been this whole time, never pushing her or forcing her to do or say anything she wasn't ready for. Rapunzel was almost certain that Flynn loved her. And yet… the doubt Gothel had left in Rapunzel's heart was just enough to make her pause.

"Why would he like you? Come on now, really? Look at you. Do you think that he's impressed?"

A sharp rap at her door brought Rapunzel back to the present. She stood quickly, smoothing out her dress. "Come in!" She responded.

The door opened and her maid, Margaret appeared looking slightly frazzled. "Princess Rapunzel, the King and Queen wish to see you."

Rapunzel watched as Margaret's eyes flickered back and forth. "Is everything alright?" She asked with concern.

Margaret paused. "They… just wish for you to meet them in the Throne room immediately." The look in her eyes told Rapunzel that she knew more than she was letting on. Nevertheless, Rapunzel followed her to the Throne room wondering what could possibly be so urgent.

Rapunzel opened the doors to the Throne room and cautiously peeked through the crack before entering. "Mother? Father?" Rapunzel looked up at her parents, who both wore matching expressions of distress on their usually happy and loving faces. She had never seen them like this before, and it worried her.

"What's going on?" Rapunzel asked as she nervously twisted her hands together.

King William cleared his throat before he and his wife rose from their thrones and went to stand in front of their daughter. Rapunzel welcomed their soft touches upon her shoulders, but it only worried her more.

"Rapunzel, there's something we need to talk about. Something… well, something we hadn't expected to happen so soon." Her mother said as she took Rapunzel's hand in her own.

Rapunzel met their eyes, confused. "Yes?"

William sighed, looking upset and yet trying to put on a brave face for his daughter. "Rapunzel, what do you know of our neighboring countries?"

This wasn't what she had expected. "Well," She thought. "I remember learning that there are four countries surrounding Corona. I… I don't quite remember the names though."

"Yes, there are four countries in close proximity to ours. They are Armetla, Dulen, Rosinthor, and Tamarac." Her father said. "Out of the four, two princes are in line to take the throne." He paused, glancing at the Queen for help.

"Dear," Victoria said uncomfortably. "Our law states that when a princess is born, princes from neighboring kingdoms have the right to court her first and foremost before others may have the opportunity."

"Out of the four, two kingdoms have a prince in line for their throne. The prince in Dulan is still a young child, and is not of proper age for courting. However…" He paused again, rubbing his hand against the back of his neck. "The other prince, Prince Darin of Tamarac… he has requested to court you."