Chapter 16

Eugene couldn't believe what he was looking at. His eyes darted from Rapunzel's face to Megan's, then back again.

"Now, wait just a second," Eugene frowned, looking at Rapunzel, "just who have I been meeting with all this time?"

"It's been me," Rapunzel said, walking over to him. "We sometimes switch off like that, since my parents found that Meg and I share a slight resemblance."

"Slight?" Eugene said, turning back to Megan.

Megan shrugged. "Almost everything except maybe the freckles, the height difference, the voice…."

"We're distant cousins, Meg and I. We've been doing this since we were 10 years old. It sometimes comes in handy."

"So this whole thing has been some kind of joke?" Eugene asked. He shook his head. "I've got to get out of here."

"Not so fast, Fitzherbert," a new voice piped up. Eugene turned around and found the King staring at him.

"You have a double as well, my lad. His name is Flynnagan Rider and he's been posing as you for close to four months."

Eugene frowned. "Are you sure about that? How do you know the difference?"

"I can't reveal my sources just yet, Eugene, but my daughter was wise enough to figure it out. We had to make sure that it was you who brought Rapunzel safely back to us when you were 8 years old."

"And you say this Rider looks like me?"

"Yes, the two of you are distant cousins as Meg and my daughter. Now I need to ask you a question, Fitzherbert, and I need a truthful answer."

"Go on," Eugene said, his eyes narrowing.

"Never mind what went on here, lad. We just needed to make sure who was who so that we can take the appropriate steps. Now, are you in love with my daughter or not?"

"I've wanted to meet her all my life," Eugene answered, staring at Rapunzel. "I wanted to know if she remembered me, I had no idea that my Meg would turn out to the Princess."

"You haven't answered my question, Eugene. Are you in love with her or not."

Eugene kept his eyes on the Princess. "I came here ready to announce my love for Rapunzel's Lady in Waiting, Majesty. I didn't expect that it would turn out to be the Princess herself."

The King stood by, waiting for an answer. He didn't utter a word this time.

Eugene grabbed her hand, shook his head and looked up at the King. "Yes, I love her and I hope she feels the same way about me."

The King smiled. "Well, daughter? Is this the man you've been telling your mother and I about?"

Rapunzel stared back. "Yes it is, Father."

"Well, then, we've got some work to do."

"What about the ball?" Eugene asked.

"Oh, that." The King smiled. "We're not finished yet, Fitzherbert. It will go on as usual. You were told to come here early for a reason, but as I've said before, I can't reveal my sources. Now let's all go up to study and get ready for the ball. It begins in 10 minutes time."

XXXXXX

"Well," Elvira said, smiling as she materialized in front of Gabe. "Mission accomplished."

"Don't be so quick to leave, Elvira. You're still needed here. Michael and I have been notified by Joseph to return to our posts, but we're sending another angel down here to help you out, should you need it."

"Don't tell me," Elvira smiled. "It's your daughter, isn't it?"

Gabe smiled and nodded. "Yes, my adopted daughter, Honor, if you could call her that. She's grown now, Elvira. You wouldn't recognize her."

Elvira shook her head, remembering the little girl she used to sit for. Could that much time have passed already? Honor was only 6 when they she had came join them.

"She's here now," another female voice broke in.

Elvira looked up to see Michael and another woman walking toward them.

Honor ran to hug her father, then embraced Elvira. "You're right, Gabe, she was so small when you adopted her. I couldn't even imagine how much she's grown."

"I can't believe it myself, "Michael chimed in. "She's beautiful. Are you sure she could handle it."

Gabe smiled. "Well, you all know that when children are taken early, they are given the chance to grow to a certain age. She's managed quite well on her own. And those karate and kung fu lessons didn't go to waste either. She's 22 now and capable of helping Elvira with whatever she'll need."

Honor smiled and nodded.

"But I want you two to stay invisible from now on. No materializing except when needed. You understand me?"

The two females nodded.

"I'm sure everything will be fine," Elvira said. "The hardest part is over. Now all we need to do is control things from our end."

Michael looked from one to the other. "If you need us in any way…"

"We'll handle it," Honor said, giving him a peck on the cheek. "I'll see you later."

Gabe and Elvira stared at the two, but didn't say anything. At least, not yet.

XXXXX

At the stroke of 6, every suitor for the hand of Princess Rapunzel was let in. The eligible young bachelors waited anxiously for the princess to make her first appearance. Many of them milled around and made small talk. Not Flynn Rider, though. He was just waiting to make his move and move he would. That big shot Fitzherbert wouldn't get away with this. This was his party, his time and his kingdom. He was sure of that. The curse was no longer valid, he had his proof. He had touched the shoe and nothing happened except a mild shock.

Rider took a quick look around and noticed that the Stabbington boys were not included in the suitor bunch. Where the heck were they? They were pretty unreliable weren't they? This was the last time he would ever consider using them again; he couldn't even imagine how the two had made it this far without getting caught.

Rider shook his head. This wasn't going to stop him, no nothing was; not tonight. He would survive this and he would claim the Princess and the throne for his ancestors, this was what it was all about. This was his goal, his commitment, his baby.

And nothing was going to stop it.

XXXXX

The rest of the ticket holders were let inside a half hour later. Still no sign of the Princess Rapunzel and no sign of the King and Queen either. Everyone was waiting anxiously for something to happen as the small ensemble of musicians hired for the occasion began to tune up their instruments.

Elvira and Honor stood at the back, invisible as they had promised the Starz brothers they would. And they would only act if necessary. This night belonged to Eugene, Rapunzel and the King and Queen.

Everyone held their breath as the the members of the Royal family entered the throne room. Rapunzel took her proper place on the Queen's left. She turned to her father who began to silence the crowd.

He was about to make an announcement.