AN: So the floating lights scene! I'm actually pretty happy with it, and I hope you guys like it. I just want to say again that I must have listened to/watched I See the Light a million times to get this right, and the screencaps were enormously helpful again. One thing I did notice was that they were only like three inches away from kissing (don't you love zoom?) and it's kind of like EUGENE! Why didn't you kiss her? even though I know why he didn't. And Rapunzel has the cutest freckles on her nose, and I couldn't help but write something about them.

Much love to you readers! You don't know how much your love of this story encourages me. :)

FL 6

Disclaimer: I do not own Tangled.

Chapter 11-Eugene vs. the Dream

Gold, for the instant, lost its luster in his eyes, for there were countless treasures of the heart which it could never purchase.

-Charles Dickens, Nicholas Nickleby

The most precious possession that ever comes to a man in this world is a woman's heart.
-Josiah G. Holland

Throughout the day, I had pondered where we should watch the lights. Most people would watch the lights from the shore, but somehow that didn't seem to be special enough for her, considering how long she had waited to see them. So I decided I would row her out to the middle of the lake- and give her the best seat in the house. After we finished dancing, I told her to follow me and although she seemed a little surprised, she came along with me willingly to the docks. Once we arrived there, I said that I was going to rent a boat for the two of us and asked her to wait for me. Of course I didn't tell her why I was renting the boat. Come on. If I did, then I wouldn't see that excited expression in her eyes that I was beginning to love. She waited patiently for me to come back after I had rented it.

"All right, Blondie," I said when I returned. "You ready to see the lanterns?"

She smiled. "Yes, but before we go in the boat, can you…uh…do something else for me?"

Something else? Was she hungry again? Well, whatever it was, I had a strong feeling I wouldn't be able to say no. "Yes."

"Can you buy some apples for Maximus?"she asked. "I feel a little bad that he has to stay here and wait for us."

Okay, so I know I hadn't smirked all day, but I couldn't help one then. That was just too odd….and so typical of her "Only you, Blondie, would feel bad for a horse," I chuckled. "But sure I'll get some for him. And while I do, you can wait in our boat, okay? It's that one right there."

Since I'm the narrator, and I know everything now- I know why she asked me to do that…kind of strange request. And since I'm a nice narrator, I'll tell you why she asked me that: she asked me to go get apples for Max so she could hide the satchel in the boat, because she wanted to give it back to me, but not until the right moment. So there you go. You're lucky that you have this inside knowledge, because otherwise this would have seemed pretty weird, now wouldn't it?

Anyway, I bought a bag of red apples and came back to her. "You all ready now, Blondie?" I asked her. "I mean, there isn't some other animal I need to buy food for, is there?"

She laughed. "Oh, no, not now," she teased. "But if there is, I'll let you know."

She probably would, and I'd probably say yes again. Oh, man, was I turning into a bumble of mush around her. I smiled as I went into the boat and pushed us off. As I did, I glanced back at Maximus who did look forlorn as he watched us go. Maybe Rapunzel was right about him. I tossed the bag of apples unto the dock. "Hey Max."

He gave me a very skeptical look, like you stole them didn't you. I laughed because for once I hadn't. "What? I bought them!"

He immediately began to gobble them up. I couldn't resist tormenting him. "Most of them."

Rapunzel looked back at me. "Where are we going?"

It was then that I noticed her frog on my shoulder. How he had managed to get there without my noticing was beyond me. I took him off and put him on the rear of the boat. Because, of course, although I would do almost anything for her, there was still a few that I wouldn't: and having her frog touching me was still one of them. "Well," I said. "Best day of your life? I figure you should have a decent seat."

As I rowed us out to the center of the lake, we were both silent But eventually Rapunzel broke the silence. "Can I ask you something?"

I hoped it wouldn't be another question about my mother, but it was her special day and so I couldn't deny her."It's your birthday."

"What do you know about the….lost princess?" she asked.

Okay, that was not what I was expecting at all- and I wasn't sure how much I could tell her. The only thing I knew about the lost princess….was that she was lost, and had been for eighteen years. I didn't even remember what her name was, because she had vanished before her christening (besides that, I had only been four then). I guess I also did know that she was blonde (which wasn't all that common in Corona) and today would be her birthday. "I don't know too much about her," I said. "But I do know that she was taken away by somebody when she was a very young baby. King Ostwalt and Queen Guinevere had their guards search all over the kingdom, but they never found her."

"How awful," she murmured, and I could hear the sadness in her voice. How very like Rapunzel to feel sympathy for our King and Queen. But you know? I felt bad for them too, they were kind people and they had waited so long for their princess- even for her birth. And besides the whole wanting to lock me up in prison thing, I had no complaints. They were good rulers, and had kept Corona in peace ever since their ascension.

"Yeah," I continued. "It is a pretty sad story. But they never lost hope in someday finding their daughter, and they send up your floating lights every year on the princess' birthday, hoping that she'll see them and come back."

"Hmmm," she said thoughtfully.

After that, silence resumed once more between us, but it wasn't a bad silence by any means. In fact, it was almost companionable. She lost herself in her own thoughts, and as she did, I thought about her-and the lost princess as well. Something about the Queen, the lost princess, and Rapunzel, was niggling at my brain, but it was one of those things where you are on the verge of knowing something or remembering something or figuring out something….yet it's just out of your reach. She let out a big sigh. I glanced over at her, and was surprised to see her eyes completely filled with anxiety. What? Wasn't she excited to finally see the lights? Immediately I grew concerned about her. "You okay?"

"I'm terrified," she whispered.

Terrified….well, that's no good. I wanted her to be ecstatically happy. But maybe if she told me, I'd be able to make her feel better. "Why?"

She was quiet a moment, before she answered."I've been looking out of a window for eighteen years, dreaming about what I might feel like when those lights rise in the sky. And now all I can think is what if it isn't all that I dreamed it would be?"

Ah, now I understood. She was scared that the dream she'd cherished for so long wouldn't live up to her expectations. Well, I'd seen the lights at least ten times, and they were beautiful. I was sure it would be just as wonderful as she'd always dreamed. "It will be," I assured her.

She glanced over at me. "And what if it is?" she asked. "What do I do then?"

I thought for a minute. If she lived her floating lights dream, then….I suppose she could go looking for another one. Thought what that would be-when she would likely return to her tower-was beyond me. Still, telling her to chase after another one seemed like a good answer. "Well, that's the good part, I guess," I said with a small smile. "You get to find a new dream."

"Hmmm," she said.

We were both quiet again, and she stared at the water. I glanced down at the bottom of the boat, and noticed a few small flowers there that must have fallen out of her braid. I picked them up, and held them out to her. She took one of them from my hand, and gently put it onto the water. I watched her as she did, but suddenly she scrambled to the rear of the boat and I tumbled head over heels off my seat. It took me a minute to realize (after I rubbed my head for a while and stabilized the boat) that she had caught a glimpse of the first lantern and wanted to see them as best she could.

Then, of course, all the other lanterns started to fill the sky and it was….pretty (watching her excitement at seeing them captivated me more though). But I have to admit to you that there was only two that concerned me. While I had rented the boat, I had also picked up two lanterns of my own, and I was going to give them to her so she could send one up herself. So I lit them and held them out to her when she looked back at me after watching the lights. I smiled at her and she sat back down across from me.

"I have something for you too," she said. Something for me? Really? Honestly, I had no idea what it could be, which I guess in hindsight was kind of stupid of me, because there was really only one thing that it could be. She offered something out to me and it ended up being my satchel, the satchel with the crown, the crown that would have given me the means to fulfill my dream. The crown that had once meant everything in the world to me.

I stared at it, and all I could think was I had completely forgotten about it. Because I didn't want it.

"I should have given it to you sooner," she continued. "But I was scared. And the thing is, I'm not scared anymore. You know what I mean?"

I pushed the satchel away. "I'm starting to."

As soon as I had, a huge smile spread across her face. I gently handed one of the lanterns out to her and we both sent ours up together.

Then I started to think about what I had done: I had basically just told her that I didn't want the satchel, which was true because I didn't. I didn't want the crown either. Because the more I thought about my island dream, the more I thought I was an idiot. It was as if I'd been blind for ten years, and now I was seeing what a complete moron I was. What had I been thinking? Alone, surrounded by money? Really? Money was just a thing, and it was as my mother always used to tell me-things can never replace people. How could money compare to what I had found with Rapunzel? Money couldn't talk to me, money couldn't see my innermost secrets and still care about me anyway, money couldn't laugh with me, money couldn't smile at me, or make my heart soar. And money couldn't encourage me to be Eugene, to be the person I was with my mother again. It was just a thing- a cold, callous, lifeless thing, an unfeeling thing that would never bring the happiness that I thought it would.

Actually, chasing down money as my lifelong dream was probably one of the stupidest things I had ever done. I had thought that being Flynn Rider would make me special. But truthfully? All it had given me was a bunch of wasted years with a couple of chases and prison visits thrown in the mix. And it hadn't brought me what I had thought it would. In reality, money couldn't make me important or somebody. And I decided then that being Eugene Fitzherbert was okay, because he was somebody to someone: Rapunzel. And that's really all that mattered.

As I watched Rapunzel stare happily at the lights, my own words came back to me: you get to find a new dream. I soon realized that I had: Rapunzel. Was there any girl out there that would better than her? She was everything that you would want in a girl. In fact, she was one of those girls that you always dreamed of, but convinced yourself didn't actually exist. But she did exist, and she was here, next to me, like we were supposed to be here together. There was nowhere else I'd rather be either. In that instant, I knew I was more than half in love with her-because no girl that I could ever even imagine would be better than Rapunzel, and nothing in the world would make me happier than being with her. She was more beautiful than any island ever would be, more valuable than any crown ever could be. She meant everything to me.

And it was about time she knew it. As gently as I could, I reached for her hand. She turned toward me, a surprised look in her eyes, but she let me take her other one. I took a deep breath-what to say? "Rapunzel, I-…" ….think you're amazing, beautiful and wonderful, think that I can't live anymore without you, think I'm in love with you.

"Say it again," she whispered.

"What?" Had I actually said all that out loud?

"My name," she said quietly. "Say it again."

Ah, so she'd noticed that wall I'd created before by calling her Blondie, and that same wall had come down now that I'd called her by her name, her beautiful name. I smiled at her. "Rapunzel."

"Again," she said as a happy smile spread across her face.

"Rapunzel," I repeated. I began to draw her hands even closer to me, overwhelmed with the desire to kiss her. However, I wasn't going to do it unless she wanted me to, even welcomed it. I had taken advantage of her sweet nature long enough, and I was determined that I would never do it again.

But when she gazed at me then, all I could see was…affection for me (how is that possible? I know I act all cocky a lot of the time, but the thought of this amazingly kind and wonderful girl…caring for me was slightly surprising to me) in her eyes and excitement- a little nervous, maybe, but still excited. But the thing that got me the most was the profound innocence she had, and trust- like she knew that I would never do anything to hurt her. Which I wouldn't.

Still, I felt the slightest twinge of hesitation. If I did kiss her, it would change everything between us and she and I both knew it. She wasn't one of those girls who you'd kiss and then just walk away-like it didn't mean much to either of you. No, she was a girl who would only kiss a man if she cared about him, if it meant something special to her. So if I did kiss her, it would be…..like a sign that I wanted to be with her, and our deal meant nothing (which it didn't. Why would you want a crown when you could be with Rapunzel?). Besides that, this would be her first kiss; I could tell from the look in her eyes, and I wanted to make sure it was something she would always remember. Well, when in doubt, I went back to Flynnigan's old standby: touch her face somehow, and if she seemed okay, you kiss her.

So I reached out and gently tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear. "Rapunzel." She smiled slightly again, so I gradually started to bring her face even closer to mine. As I did I could see every single freckle on her nose. Were all freckles that cute, or was it just Rapunzel's? Her eyes drifted shut, as if she couldn't wait for me to kiss her. Well, that would make two of us.

However, before my own eyes could do the same, I noticed something on shore.

Something that wasn't good.