AN: Okay so I know this chapter took forever, and I'm sorry :( I'm not completely happy with this one either, but I am SO sick of looking at it. Besides that, I'm going on vacation this week, and I won't probably update for a while again. I know this chapter has a lot of dialogue, but I hope it's okay.

As for the whole...where Eugene goes after he dies thing, well usually I can't separate my own personal beliefs from what I write, but when it came to death, I really couldn't separate the two. So yes. I DO believe in God and heaven. If that bothers you...I'm sorry. You don't have to read it. But i wasn't going to change this just because it might not be "PC". I'm not a very "PC" person. And when I thought about what to do after he died...this is always what I thought of.

Delilahgirl- yes, but she had to watch him die which I think is so much worse :(

Hawkeyesong- aw, it's okay :) I'm just glad it was sad. It's a sad scene, a tragic scene, and I'm happy that the sadness came through.

Paocg- No, it doesn't. I am too. He's just so loveable- I love my verison of him because he's still witty but he's nice too. :) Anyway, no, you're NOT weird. He's awesome. And thanks!

Kaydee-I'm guessing it was sad? :( It is such a depressing scene...I was depressed after I wrote it.

Overtheweather- Thanks! I wish he had time to kiss her too!

Unraisedclock- Thanks! Sorry it took so long :(

Crystal-ice-fire- Thanks :)

As always, much LOVE to you all. Thank you for reading!

FL 6

Disclaimer- I own a Rapunzel doll, a Tangled DVD, a frying pan, a Tangled soundtrack, and a copy of I See the Light sheet music, but other than that? I own nothing. :)

Chapter 15-Eugene vs. Death

"And to his eye

There was but one beloved face on earth

And it was shining on him."

-George Gordon, Lord Byron

As soon as I had let go, I felt the oddest sensation of falling- just falling, falling, falling into a seemingly endless dark , after falling down for a seemingly eternity, light started to shine. And then I found myself standing with a bunch of other men and women, standing in line. At the pearly gates- that were actually made of pearls and gold.

Amazing. And I thought it was just an expression. Who knew that the pearly gates actually existed?

"So," a man standing next to me spoke. "What brought you here?"

I couldn't help a sarcastic reply. "Um, I died?" Hello? No, sir, I just randomly decided to leave my love, and come talk to idiots. What do you think?

He snorted. "No really." Then he smirked. "Everybody here died, Socrates. I meant, how did you die."

Ah. "Well, I took a knife to the side…and bled to death."

He grimaced. "Pleasant."

Pleasant, my foot. I hoped he was being sarcastic- because bleeding to death was the worst way to die, in my opinion. The only upside to how I had died was I had been in Rapunzel's arms. "Completely. You should try it sometime," I said facetiously. Then I caught a glimpse of a pool of water with many people crowded around it. "What's that?"

He smiled a little. "Oh that? Whoever you carry in your heart, you can see them from here and how they are doing."

The person I carried in my heart…..was Rapunzel. Was it truly possible to see her? "Really?"

"Yes," he said. "Do you want to try it? I can tell you what your number is, so you'll come back when you're called. I'm 366, so you're 367."

"Thank you," I said, then I walked over to the pool and found a empty space. There was a girl next to me, but I stared at the water. I thought about Rapunzel: how much I loved her, how much I missed her already.

Suddenly the water rippled, and I could see her-her image as clear as if I actually was there again. I studied her: to me it looked like Rapunzel hadn't moved at all, because her hand was still cradling the back of my head, my body in her arms, just like she had been when I left. I wondered if time was different here, because it seemed to me that I had been gone for a very long time already, but it looked like it had been only seconds to her. I looked at myself. Hmmm. Don't take this the wrong way, but I thought then that I still looked good, even when I was dead. Hey, don't look at me like that. I did!

Poor Rapunzel, though. Her eyes were so sad that I thought she was about to cry. My heart started to ache with loneliness for her, and I wished that I could be there with her and hold her so she'd feel better. Please don't cry, I thought. Please don't cry, Rapunzel.

I heard a throat clear next to me. "Hello," said the girl. "I'm Jane."

Jane! Jane was the plainest name I'd ever heard, though she wasn't actually that plain. Of course, Rapunzel was prettier. She was prettier than anyone. "Eugene."

"Pleasure," she said, then she gestured at the pool. "Is that you?"

"Yes," I answered, though everything that made me me was here (whatever and wherever here was), not there. Well, except my body that is. But Rapunzel would probably say that all my Eugene-ness was here, which was true.

She looked at the pool me thoughtfully. "You were handsome."

Before Rapunzel, I would have said something cocky or flirty to that. "I guess so," I said, thinking how much I hated the past tense: Like Rapunzel was my new dream, I was hers, I was handsome. Ugh. The past tense just was another reminder that I wasn't with Rapunzel anymore.

"Who's the girl?" she asked.

"That's…..that's Rapunzel," I answered.

"You loved her."

It wasn't a question. So, this girl was smart, just like Rapunzel was. No, like Rapunzel is. She wasn't dead. "Yes."

"Did she love you?"

Did she? She said I was her new dream, which probably meant that she loved me. Plus, she had almost destroyed her own life so I'd live. "I….I think she did."

She studied Rapunzel for a minute, then nodded. "She did, I can tell. Look how sad she is-like she's heartbroken that you're gone." She glanced at her again and she smiled at me. "You know, she's quite pretty."

Pretty! Rapunzel was more than just pretty. Rapunzel was beautiful, gorgeous, stunning…. "She's perfect."

She nodded slightly. "Bad hair cut though."

I smiled crookedly at that- because Rapunzel's hair was a little bit choppy in the back. I hoped that she'd be able to have somebody fix it after she left the tower because I really had butchered her hair. "Not my finest work, I have to say."

She just looked at me. "Oh, so you did that? I have news for you: never, ever, cut hair again."

I doubted that I would have a chance. "Really? Well, at the time I was dying and only had a shard of glass to cut with."

"Sit," she said.

"What?"

"Sit down. This sounds like one crazy story and I am so curious to hear it."

So I told her everything, from the frying pan to the last "You were my new dream." She was silent for a long moment afterward. Then finally she spoke. "That's truly tragic. I feel awful for Rapunzel."

"For…..Rapunzel?" Hello? Wasn't I the one who had died?

"Yes," she said. "When I died, I left my fiancée. I know it will be tougher for him-and your Rapunzel-because they were the ones left behind. They still have a lot of their lives to live- without us. And for somebody you were truly in love with, you don't want to even live one moment without them, much less a lifetime."

Jane was right about that. "I suppose."

"Besides that," she continued. "I don't know what your Rapunzel will do now, considering the only people she really knew were you and Gothel, and you're both gone. Where will she go?"

Where would Rapunzel go? I hadn't thought much about that back in the tower. All I had thought was…..free Rapunzel. But I guessed she could go look for her real family. "I don't know…I guess she could go looking for her mother, because it was obvious to me that it wasn't that woman."

"But she won't want to go anywhere without you beside her," she said. "The person who showed her the world."

It was a fact that Rapunzel was now alone in the world, but it felt like a smack in the face, even though Jane was absolutely right. Why hadn't I thought about that when I had cut her hair? I had felt terrible that I had left her, but now I felt even worse. If I had been smarter, I supposed that I could have cut her hair after she had healed me. Why hadn't I done that? Deep down, I already knew the answer to that: for once, I hadn't thought of what would be better for me, I hadn't thought of myself one bit. I had only thought of her, and thinking of her meant that I had sacrificed myself. "You know," I said. "You're not making me feel any better about this."

She flushed. "I'm…..I'm sorry. I know you must feel awful about this whole thing."

I would have answered yes, but then my number was called. I made my way to the front of the line and an old man with a gray beard sat in front of me with two books. "Name?" he asked.

"Eugene Fitzherbert."

He frowned. "Hmm." Then he turned to a page and his frown deepened. "Quite a record you've got here, Mr. Fitzherbert." He looked at me with narrowed eyes. "Or should I say Flynn Rider?"

I cringed. "Yes, I know."

"Let's see, multiple charges of stealing, lying, taking advantage of people, cheating people, breaking out of jail…."

I cringed again. "I know."

His expression changed. "…..yet it says here the last thing you did was give up your life so that a girl could live freely."

"Yes," I said. Rapunzel's lovely face appeared in my mind. "Her name was….was Rapunzel."

His eyes softened. "Rapunzel…."

"Yes," I said again. "She was the most wonderful girl I'd ever met."

"So what did you do?"

"It's kind of long story," I said. "But her mother stabbed me because she was….a….horrible woman, and then Rapunzel offered to use her magic healing hair to save me in return for going with her mother. But I couldn't let her do that, so I cut her hair. And so I died."

"Why did you do that?"

I thought for a minute. "Well," I said finally. "It sounds weird because I'd only known her for a few days, but I did it because…..because I love her."

He nodded. "I understand."

"Really." Did he?

"Yes," he said, then looked distracted. "Can you wait for a minute, Eugene?"

I shrugged. "Why not?"

He walked away for a few minutes, but then he came back-with a big smile on his face. "I have good news for you, Eugene."

"Yes?"

"You're going back," he said.

"I'm…what?" Did he really say what I thought he did? Going back….to Rapunzel? To Corona? Really? Did that mean I'd live again?

"We're sending you back," he said. "We never do this, but we've granted an exception in your case."

I blinked. Maybe I was just delusional….Again. "Are you really telling me what I think you are? I'm going back….to Rapunzel?"

"Yes. Make the most of your second chance, Eugene," he said. "And say hello to your love."

Suddenly I felt myself falling again, back through the light, back through the dark, and back to the tower, where Rapunzel still sat-as if she still hadn't moved an inch- with my lifeless body in her arms, her hand still cradling my head. I fell into it, and I opened my eyes."Rapunzel?"

"Eugene?" she whispered tentatively, as if she wasn't sure if it was me or not.

Well, I could easily solve that by saying something only I would say. "Did I ever tell you I've got a thing for brunettes?"

Sure enough, all her doubt vanished. "Eugene!" she cried, and threw her arms around my neck. I pulled her gently onto my lap and buried my head in her shoulder, wrapping one arm around her as close as I could- because I never, ever wanted to let her go. It felt so wonderful to be back with her, to know that I would never have to leave her.

Soon she looked at me, and almost laughed, I guessed, because she was just so happy. I smiled back at her, so glad to see her beautiful face again. Then she pulled me by my collar and kissed me-kissed me very earnestly. I have to admit to you that I was surprised at first, because I didn't expect her to just initiate a kiss like that, but after my surprise left….Well, I returned the kiss, even deepened it, because kissing her? Wow.

You know how there are some things that you see people do, and think that might be fun? And then you actually do it, and you're like oh, ugh, why did I want to do that, it wasn't nearly as fun as I thought it would be?

Well, kissing Rapunzel wasn't like that: It was just as fun as I thought it would be, and even more. It's fantastic, really (especially that one-our first, and before we had thought we'd be parted forever). In fact, it's so fun that I don't know why we don't do it all the time (though I doubt her parents would appreciate the lapse in her princess duties). Besides that, I don't know why I'm standing here, talking to you, when this story is nearing the end, and I could go kiss my fiancée (aka Rapunzel).

Oh fine. You're right, there is more to come. I still want to go kiss her now, but I'll finish the story anyway.

Sadly, she pulled away soon after that. She had the biggest smile on her face though, so I couldn't be too upset. "Did I do that well?" she asked. "I've never done that before, and I hope I wasn't….you know, bad at it."

Did she do that well? Oh lord. And her bad? Everyone should be as "bad" as her. "No, Rapunzel. You were amazing," I assured her.

She smiled again. "Oh, good."

Suddenly I had a wonderful idea- we should kiss again, and again, and again….."In fact, you were so good that I have a stupendous idea."

"Yes?"

"Let's do it again."

She laughed. "Okay…but I have a question for you first."

"Yeah?" I have to admit that I was day-dreaming about kissing her again then, and didn't pay much attention to the fact that she was going to ask me a not-so-fun question.

Rapunzel's eyes turned serious. "What happened to you last night?"

My happy mood evaporated. I should have known she'd ask me that-sooner or later. Looks like it was sooner. I didn't want to tell her what happened, but I knew I would anyway. She deserved to know.

"You said you'd be right back." Her voice was calm and neutral but her eyes looked….hurt.

"Rapunzel….I'm sorry," I said. "I thought I would be, I promise."

"Why didn't you?" Her face looked so crestfallen that if I hadn't felt bad enough yesterday for not returning I felt even worse now.

"Um, well…" I said. "There in lies…the tale. Um, after I left you, I went to give the crown back to my partners, the Stabbingtons, because I didn't want it. All I wanted was to be with you. But…"

"But?" she asked softly.

"But they didn't want it. They wanted you instead."

"Me…." Her voice trailed off.

"Yeah," I told her. "They wanted you- and sell you as some kind of…I don't know, healing slave. Well, I couldn't let them do that to you. So I told them I wouldn't let them, and to get to you they'd have to go through me first."

"Let me guess," she said sarcastically. "They were really persuaded by that, and then you sat down with them, held hands, and sang Kumbaya."

I laughed in spite of myself. "No. Thor-he's the smarter of the two, you see- said something burly like that can be arranged, and they knocked me out."

She frowned. "With a frying pan?"

"I don't know," I answered. "I don't think so." Actually, it could be that Thor might have just smashed his fist in the back of my head. I mean, it would have been just as effective as a frying pan, considering how big and heavy it is.

Her expression cleared. "Good. That's my secret weapon."

I laughed again. She was so cute. "Of course it is, Rapunzel," I said. "Anyway, after that they tied me to a boat…." I couldn't help but notice that Rapunzel frowned again, but I continued. "….and tied the crown to my hands. Well, as you might guess, the guards found me, arrested me and threw me in jail."

Rapunzel chewed nervously on her lower lip. "And then?"

"Well….this morning I was going to be hung," I said. She looked stricken then, and sad, but not surprised. I hated seeing her sad, so I tried to make a joke. "Jolly story, right?"

She didn't smile or laugh. "No, Eugene," she said firmly. "It's a horrible story. Why are you trying to make it funny? Am I supposed to laugh that you were almost executed?"

Brutal honesty, that's Rapunzel….and when she put it that way, my joking did seem silly. "No," I said slowly. "I just…I don't know. I hate upsetting you."

She sighed. "I know, but I need to know…."

She did, even though I hated telling her this story. It was a horrible story, just like she said. "So…I was walking to my…doom, when the Snuggly Duckling thugs broke me out. Max had told them what happened, can you believe it?"

Her eyes started to lose some of their sadness. "Actually, I can," she said. "I always thought he was a good horse."

Of course she did- she had said he was nothing like a big sweetheart. And she was right. "Well," I said. "I'll admit reluctantly that he is- and he's a really fast runner too. He got me here in record time. And you know everything after that. So what happened to you last night?"

She sighed again. "I waited for you for what felt like an eternity, and then your partners came to me and said…."

I finished her sentence for her. "They said that I told them about your hair, ran off with the crown, and left you, didn't they?" She was silent, but I saw a solitary tear trickle down her cheeks. I knew that meant they did, and she thought I had betrayed her. I took her hands. "Rapunzel, I'm so sorry."

She looked like she wanted to cry, but somehow she didn't. "I know, Eugene. It's not…it's not your fault."

She was sweet to say it wasn't, but it was my fault. It was totally my fault. It was my fault that the Stabbingtons had learned about her, it was my fault that I had let them knock me out and they had almost captured her…. Everything bad that happened to her over the past few days had been my fault. I didn't know how to tell her that.

But Rapunzel was still talking. "She….knocked them out though, and we came back here," she said. "Eugene, can I ask you something else?"

"Of course."

"What would you have done if they hadn't knocked you out?"

Okay, now this was an easy question to answer, even a fun one. I got to tell her what I wished had happened last night. "Well, I was going to come back to you…"

"And?" she said.

"And I was going to kiss you…" I continued.

"Like you just did?"

I smiled at her. "Yes. After I kissed you, I was going to tell you how much I cared about you, and then…" I hesitated- because last night I was going to ask her to come away with me. And we could now. But would she want to? I didn't know why she wouldn't…"I was going to ask you to come away with me." Her eyes widened. "We can still do that, if you want to."

She just stared at me for a second, then she sighed. "Eugene….I'd love to."

"Really?" She would go off with me? We could go off and be together, forever? Really? Just like that? It sounded to good to be true (and of course, like most things that sound too good to be true, it was).

"Yes," she said. "But while you were off in prison, I learned something about myself."

Hmm. I wonder what she had learned. Maybe that Gothel wasn't her mother? "Okay….so tell me."

"You have to promise you won't freak out," she said, giving me a wary look.

I supposed she was thinking about the last time she had said that. But that had been her hair! I assumed she wasn't about to show me that another part of her could heal- maybe it would be her hands this time? "Rapunzel…of course I won't."

She sighed again. "Eugene….I'm the lost princess."

I just looked at her like it idiot, then let out a strangled laugh. Rapunzel, my sweet Rapunzel…the lost princess? Now that was funny.

She frowned. "Eugene, why are you laughing?"

I shook my head, and stuck my finger in my ear. Maybe I had heard her wrong- like she had said I'm the frost incense (Yeah. I had thought the same thing when she said her hair glows. You would think that I'd have learned by now that the crazy things she said were always true, no matter how weird they sounded). "I'm sorry, it's just I think I have some cotton in my ear or something-because I thought you said that you were the lost princess. But that can't be right," I said. She was quiet. "Can it? Rapunzel?"

She stared at her hands for a long minute. "It's true, Eugene. I am the lost princess."

Suddenly I knew she was the lost princess, because she would never, ever lie to me. And in some weird, twisted way her being the lost princess….did kind of make sense. I mean, before her birth, the Queen had been sick, a golden glowing flower had saved her...it was possible that the power of the flower had gone through the Queen and into her baby girl. That would explain Rapunzel's magic hair. Besides that, Rapunzel was the same age as the princess, even had the same birthday, had been drawn to the lanterns just like the King and Queen had hoped their daughter would be. And since I had cut her hair, Rapunzel started to look a lot like the Queen. Now it was so obvious to me that I felt stupid for not figuring it out. Rapunzel was the lost princess of Corona, I knew it for sure.

But that didn't mean I liked it. I hated the thought of it, actually. I mean, I loved the thought of her finding her family, but let's be realistic: Princesses don't marry commoners, especially not common, wanted thieves like me. Deep down, I had this horrible feeling I would lose her again-because why on earth would her parents want her to be with Flynn Rider? They'd probably want her to marry some prince, a prince who was probably everything I wasn't. Part of me selfishly wanted to take her as far away from the castle as possible.

But that would be wrong. I knew what the right thing was: take her back to Caermoor so she could reunite with her family. They deserved their daughter, she deserved her family, and Corona deserved its princess. Rapunzel would be an amazing princess, too.

"Eugene?"

Rapunzel interrupted my thoughts. "Hmmm?"

She looked at me again, a concerned glint in her eyes. "Did you…did you hear what I said?"

"Yes," I said numbly. "You're the lost princess."

She nodded slowly. "Right."

"So we should go back to Caermoor so you can meet your…parents," I said. "Right now." Before I decided to take you the complete opposite direction….

Rapunzel looked at me carefully. "Are you sure?"

"Yes," I said, even though I didn't feel sure. At all. Wasn't there the possibility that I could be executed if I went back? "We can go, just as soon as we get this cuff off me."

She blinked. "Right," she said. "She put the key in her bodice, I think. I guess….I guess I'll go down and get it." She stood up and walked off before I could say anything. I suppose it was because it would hurt her and make her sad to see the dust of the woman she had thought for so long was her mother.

I wished with all of me that I could go down and do it instead, but I couldn't.

All I could do was wait.

I hated waiting.