Author Note: Surprise! I couldn't wait until Tuesday! I'm back and all moved in for the second semester of freshman year! :D Howdy! I'm not quite sure I like how the campfire sequence translated into writing—I think the movie just does it so nicely that it looks ill-fitting anywhere else… but I gave it my best shot so I hope you all enjoy it! The Gothel part though took an incredibly annoyingly long time to do, which I suppose can only give me more reason to dislike her :) kingdom dance sequence next! *scurries off to write*

Soli Deo Gloria

Disclaimer: Disney owns Tangled, its story, and its characters

Thomas glared, "That rotten ha-," he stopped at the look on his father's face, and hastily finished, "-I mean—that good for nothing old lady."

Ginger looked at her father, "I don't understand… what's the bad lady doing?"

"She's setting a trap for Flynn and Rapunzel, sweetie. She wants to use Flynn's bitter partners as a way to separate him from her magic flower. It was a cruel trick—as you will later see. Now, back to the heroes of our story-."

"That's Rapunzel, right?" Ginger brightened.

Her brother shook his head, "No, Gin', it's Flynn!"

Annabelle sighed, "Oh, come on, guys, can't you see it's both of them?"

Eugene smiled, "Your sister is right, kids. Both Flynn and Rapunzel share the same responsibility of heroism. They just—perform it differently—but they compliment each other quite well."

Thomas frowned, "What's that supposed to mean?"

"It means that they are a team. Or, at least, they became one."

"Like you and Mommy?"

His grin broadened, "Yeah—just like your mother and me."

"Okay, so, what happens next, Dad? Did the mean old lady find them?" His son asked, looking at his father expectantly.

Eugene yawned slightly, "Well, like I said, by the time Flynn and Rapunzel had washed up onto the riverbank, it was sunset. They moved away from the stream, going back into the shelter of the forest trees. Flynn gathered firewood and built a fire next to an old log. He was still thinking about how Rapunzel's hair had glowed in the water, and he had trouble calming himself down. Finding a girl with preposterously long hair was one thing—but now finding a girl whose hair glowed when she sang? That was earthshaking.

"This girl, the one who had so captivated his thoughts, was walking uncertainly around the clearing. She had never been outside at night before, and she marveled at hearing crickets chirping and the frogs croaking loudly by the gurgling river. Rapunzel gazed at the dark trees beyond the ruddy firelight, her hair trailing behind her in the soft grass and forming graceful loops around the campsite. She was still unsure whether or not she should tell Flynn her full secret… he didn't need to know, after all. But—while at the beginning of the day he was snide and concerned only about that silly crown—she felt he had changed during those intense minutes in the cave. Maybe it was the simple fact that she knew his real name, but she saw him differently now."

Ginger, cradling a sleepy Pascal in her hands, asked, "Different?"

Her father nodded, "Yep. She saw him as a friend rather than a thief. And, when you think about it, he was the only other person she knew aside from Gothel and Pascal. So Rapunzel turned to find that Flynn had taken a seat on the log, examining his hand in light of the fire. He was wincing as he poked at his palm, and she remembered that he had cut himself while trying to escape the cave. Thoughtfully, she sat down next to him, noticing that he scooted back a few inches. Flynn rubbed at his stinging hand absently, trying to think of something to say. Finally, he asked, 'Um, just out of curiosity, what did you mean when you said your hair doesn't just glow?'

"Rapunzel wordlessly pulled a lock of her hair up until she reached the end. Then she gently took Flynn's hurt hand in both of hers. "Let me show you." She said, her slightly calloused fingers cradling his rougher, thicker hand. Flynn half-shrugged, grinning uneasily as he replied, "Okay." Then the girl did something he had not expected, and began to pull her hair carefully over his hand as if it was the most normal thing in the world. Her hair had dried incredibly fast in such a short time, and it was now quite soft.

"'So,' the thief muttered nervously, 'you're being strangely cryptic as you wrap your magic hair around my injured hand.' Suddenly, he felt a sharp pain in his palm as her finger brushed over the fresh cut, and he gasped. Rapunzel grimaced, 'Sorry.' She finished wrapping Flynn's hand, and added, 'Just—don't freak-out, okay?' Flynn frowned. Don't freak out? He had been freaking out all day, so why should now be any different? But, the look on her face made him nod hesitantly."

Eugene looked at his kids, "Do you remember that song I told you about—the one that makes Rapunzel's hair glow?"

They nodded silently.

"Well, Rapunzel began to sing this song in her clear, beautiful voice. While she sang, Flynn watched her hair. A shining stream of light spread from the top of her head and crawled down its length, turning the normal, blonde mane a gleaming river of golden luster. He gazed around, seeing blonde hair change into gold as bright as a sunray. It was—amazing… Then, he spotted Pascal standing next to this ribbon of light, and saw that the reptile was pointing at his tiny foot and smiling.

"Flynn glanced down at his own hand, apprehensively seeing the hair about it flash golden. Then his hand grew hot—really hot except it didn't hurt," Eugene gazed at his own hand. "When Rapunzel reached the end of the song, her hair stopped glowing and returned to its normal color and luminosity. She looked up at Flynn, watching as he carefully pulled away the hair wrapped about his hand. The thief's eyes grew large as he stared in numb disbelief at the healed, flawless skin where a minute before had been a deep gash.

"He glanced at Rapunzel and then back at his palm, switching between the two as though he couldn't decide which scared him more. Flynn started breathing hard, his mind racing in terror. This should not have happened—this shouldn't be real! Flynn opened his mouth, ready to scream, when Rapunzel held out her hands and pleaded, 'Please don't freak-out!' Flynn, his mouth open, felt the scream die into a whine and he hastily folded his arms, muttering quickly. 'Uh—I'm not freaking-out, are you freaking-out? No, I'm just very interested in your hair and the magical qualities it possesses and how long has it been doing that, exactly?'"

"Why is he scared?" Ginger asked.

Her father smiled, explaining, "Because, Ginger-snap, people don't normally have magic glowing hair that heals when sung to. As a man of the world, Flynn had thought he had seen everything. But this girl was slowly shaking his confidence in what he knew and believed in. After all, if this was possible, what other far scarier things lay out there?"

She moved closer to him, whispering, "Are there scarier things, Daddy?"

Eugene put his arm around her, "Yeah. But with a good frying pan and me, you'll be safe, Ginger-snap."

His daughter giggled slightly, "Okay."

He continued narrating, "Anyway, Rapunzel shrugged and smiled, answering, 'Um, forever, I guess?' And then her face grew more pensive as she continued, 'Mother says that when I was a baby, people tried to cut it. They wanted to take it for themselves.' She reached back and pulled her hair aside, revealing the back of her neck and a short, brown piece of hair, 'But, once it's cut, it turns brown and loses its power. A gift like that—it has to be protected…' Flynn watched as Rapunzel stroked at her hair, murmuring, 'That's why Mother never let me-,' she sighed, '-that's why I never left and…' she stopped talking and looked away. Flynn finished her thought, muttering quietly, '-you never left that tower?'

"Rapunzel turned to him, her green eyes meeting his. Flynn asked, 'And you're still going to go back there?' Rapunzel frowned, 'No—yes?' She put her face in her hands, mumbling, 'It's complicated.' The thief watched her, remembering the inner-struggle she had experienced upon first leaving the tower. Most of the time, Rapunzel had been so full of happiness and life to the point of being annoying—but whenever she thought about Mother Gothel, her guilt overcame her. It touched his heart, making him feel sorry for the girl. For years he had never felt sorry for anyone but himself but now… now it seemed that things were changing. Then Rapunzel asked him about his life—his name, Eugene Fitzherbert, and what it all meant."

"What does it all mean?" Thomas asked, looking up at his father through unkempt bangs.

"It meant that there was once a young boy named Eugene Fitzherbert, and he was an orphan. His parents had died from an illness that had swept the land, so Eugene was sent to the local orphanage to be taken care of. When he got old enough, he ran away from the orphanage and became a thief. But Thomas, do you know why Eugene decided to change his name to Flynn Rider?"

He shook his head.

"Well," Eugene gazed at the wooden floor in front of him, "There was this book—one that you should know very well since I've read to you a hundred times. It was called the The Tales of Flynnigan Rider and was about the swashbuckling adventures of said rogue. This was Eugene's favorite book, and every night he used to read it to the younger kids at the orphanage. He would tell them about Flynnigan Rider's daring swordfights, of his untold riches, and how he rescued damsels-in-distress. But, then the matron of the orphanage would give the order for bed, and Eugene remembered about how he didn't have anything. He couldn't fight, he didn't have money, and he didn't care much about girls at that point. But, something struck a chord in him and he promised himself he would be Flynn Rider one day—and eventually, his daydream became true.

"But then, before he knew it, Flynn had told Rapunzel all of this. All about his dreams and how he had become a thief because of them… all about what he had ever wanted…" Eugene's voice died, and his eyes grew distant.

Tentatively, Ginger asked, "Why did he tell Rapunzel that?"

Eugene shrugged, replying quietly, "I guess—I guess he told her because, for the first time in his life, someone was willing to listen. This beautiful, talented, brave girl was willing to listen to him speak about who he really was. And she didn't make any comments or excuses for him. She just listened. It was nice, having someone listen to him—someone who cared, and whom he cared for."

Eugene glanced up, "Anyway, Flynn told Rapunzel not to tell anyone about his secret. After all, it would ruin his whole reputation, and as Flynn said, 'a false reputation is all a man has.' Rapunzel laughed, her happiness seeming to make the night brighter. Flynn gazed at her, and, realizing he should probably look away, he mumbled something about getting more firewood and started to leave the firelight. Rapunzel called him back, 'Hey.' He turned around to see her still sitting on the log, her hair all around her. She smiled, and said, 'For the record, I like Eugene Fitzherbert much better than Flynn Rider.' The thief smiled in return, muttering, 'You'd be the first but—thank you.' Then he left to get more wood, rubbing his recently-healed hand as he went.

"Rapunzel watched him go, his tall form disappearing into the surrounding darkness. She smiled, breathing in the sharp smell of smoke from the campfire and the delightfully crisp odor of the grassy earth. She thought about the way he had looked at her during their conversation—and how he had asked the one question she had been trying to answer all day. Was she really going to go back after all this?"

"Well, is she?" Ginger asked.

Eugene grinned, "Not if Flynn Rider kept looking at her like that, she wasn't. After all, he was pretty handsome. Remember that his nose was like a Grecian-."

"Dad." Annabelle said, frowning at him.

Her father laughed slightly, "All right, Rapunzel still wasn't completely sure about Flynn. But she did trust him, and that meant a lot, especially since he had trusted her in return. Then, as she was mulling everything over, a voice spoke out of the black trees behind her: 'Oh, I thought he'd never leave!' Rapunzel turned around, completely stunned as she exclaimed, 'Mother!'"

Thomas scowled, "Mother? As in-?"

"Yep, as in Mother Gothel, the same wicked witch who stole Rapunzel to leech off her hair's powers."

"Is Flynn going to beat her up now?" Thomas asked, sounding hopeful.

Eugene shook his head, "Flynn's not around, remember? No, this confrontation was just between Gothel and Rapunzel. Anyway, after searching all evening, Gothel had found out where the thief had taken her magic flower. She waited until Flynn was gone, deciding to fall back on her old guilt tricks to make Rapunzel come back home. So Gothel revealed herself to her adopted daughter, and Rapunzel saw that she had aged some since they had last seen each other. Gothel's smooth skin was beginning to wrinkle, and her hair had tinges of grey in it like someone had dusted her with chalkboard erasers. To accompany her frightening visage, Gothel summoned thick fog to cover the ground, turning the warm, forest night into a nightmare.

"Sweeping over to Rapunzel, Gothel crushed her in tight hug as the girl stammered, 'How—how did you find me?' Gothel replied back with an evil smile, 'Oh, it was easy, really. I just listened for the sound of complete and utter betrayal and followed that.' Rapunzel sighed and tried to speak, but was interrupted by Gothel telling her that they were going home. Rapunzel shook her head, protesting, 'Wait—you don't understand! I've been on this incredible journey! I've seen and learned so much…' She smiled, remembering Flynn, 'I've even met someone.' Gothel rolled her eyes, replying sarcastically, 'Yes, the wanted thief, I'm so proud. Come on, Rapunzel, let's go home.' She seized Rapunzel by the wrist and began tug her away from the campsite, but the girl jerked her arm from her grasp. 'Mother, wait!' Rapunzel said, trying to get the chance to explain her thoughts. 'I think—I think he likes me.'

"Gothel scoffed at this idea, her words painfully dismissive as she pranced around the foggy clearing. She claimed there was no way that the thief could have ever cared about a girl like Rapunzel. 'Look at you—you think that he's impressed?' Gothel asked her flower, intending to crush her spirit like she had done so many times before. All it would take would be a little more of her cleverly-worded insults, and the girl would be back in Gothel's cruel clutches."

Eugene clenched his fist, his face darkening at the memory. His children watched him apprehensively, unused to seeing such pain in their father's eyes. Ginger lightly slid her tiny hand into his, and he smiled at her.

"You don't like this part?" She asked quietly.

He shook his head, "Not really. But you have to know about it otherwise the rest of the story won't make any sense. Anyway, Gothel continued to try to convince Rapunzel to go back, using her cunning lies and deceit." Eugene held up a finger, "But what she didn't know, was that Rapunzel's spirit had strengthened within the past few hours. Steeling herself, Rapunzel shouted a bold 'NO!' at Gothel's suggestion to 'come with Mummy.' Gothel stopped—then her eyes narrowed as she realized that she was too late. The thief had corrupted her flower! And that meant she had to ruin him by any means possible.

"So, pulling out Flynn's satchel from beneath her cloak, Gothel withdrew the crown and tossed them both to Rapunzel. She screamed that the crown was the only reason Flynn was still there. She dared Rapunzel to give the crown back to him, warning her that after he had gotten it, he would leave her. Rapunzel defiantly replied that she would give it back, refusing to believe that Flynn would do anything to hurt her. But Gothel could see a faint doubt in her adopted daughter's eyes, and she knew she had done her job well. Raising her cloak about her, the wicked witch turned and disappeared, taking the fog and Rapunzel's cheerfulness away with her."

"Dad, when is she going to get beaten up?" Thomas groaned impatiently.

Eugene smiled, "Just wait, Thomas. The bad people always get their just preserves in the end."

"It's 'just deserts', Dad." Annabelle reminded him.

Her father grinned, "Sorry. I was just thinking about dinner tonight. Your mother's cooking, do you know that?"

She rolled her eyes, "Yes, Dad, we all know how excited you get when Mom cooks."

He smiled, "Why not? She's a great cook! But, as much as I would love to talk about your mother's cooking, I should probably get back to the story. Okay, so when Gothel had gone, the night returned back to normal. The crickets started chirping again as the stream murmured in the distance. Rapunzel just stood where Gothel had left her, trying to decide what to do about the satchel in her arms. Eventually, she heard Flynn's approaching footsteps, and Rapunzel hastily shoved the satchel under a bush. Understand, she still wanted to see the lanterns, and what Gothel had said about Flynn made her too scared to give him the crown. So, nervously smiling, she watched as he came back with an armload of firewood, her mind still filled with Gothel's warnings.

"After a while, Flynn and Rapunzel settled down to sleep. Flynn took the ground on one side of the fire and Rapunzel took the other, using her hair as a great blanket. Rapunzel gazed up at the stars above her, thinking about everything that had happened that day in contrast with what she had been told all her life. The world didn't seem to be as horrible as Mother Gothel had told her. In fact, it was quite amazing. Sighing, Rapunzel glanced at Flynn, studying his strong features and wondering if Gothel was wrong about him as well. She hoped she was.

"Eventually, just as Flynn was about to fall asleep, he heard Rapunzel ask him, 'Eugene, what are we doing tomorrow? Aside from the lanterns—that is.' The thief groaned, wanting nothing more than to go to sleep. However, he knew that Rapunzel would probably keep asking until he answered, so he replied, 'It's only a few minutes' walk to the city from here. Then, we'll wait until night when they set off the lanterns, watch them, and head back home.'

"His eyes were closing again when Rapunzel asked, 'What's the city like?' Flynn shrugged, answering, 'Big, lots of people, nice when you're not on the run.' She urged him, 'Go into detail.' He rolled his eyes and said, 'It's a city, you live in it. Not much to tell.' There was a soft noise to his left, and he looked to see that Rapunzel had rolled over and was now pouting at him in such an-," Eugene smirked at his son, "-absolutely adorable way, he had to respond."

Thomas sighed.

His father continued speaking, "Flynn said, 'Blondie, I'm telling you, there's nothing really great about the city. About the only significant thing that happens there—aside from the gold and jewels—are the lanterns they set off for the princess.' Rapunzel frowned, and she asked, 'Princess?' Flynn nodded, 'Yes, princess. I don't know the whole story, but apparently when the king and queen's daughter was a baby, someone stole into the palace and kidnapped her. In order to find her, the whole kingdom sent floating lanterns up into the sky, hoping she would see them and come back home. They keep doing it every year, though I honestly don't know what they're expecting. After all-,' Flynn laughed, 'it's not like some heroic prince charming is going to pop out of nowhere and bring the princess home.'"

Annabelle smiled as her father winked at her. Ginger watched them suspiciously, her green eyes narrowing. Thomas, meanwhile, was still pouting about his hero's new love of the word 'adorable'.

Eugene shrugged, "Anyway, Rapunzel turned back to gaze up at the heavens. She remembered sneaking down to the tower window at night and pushing open the shutters so she could watch the glowing lights rising in the sky. The girl smiled, replying quietly, 'Well, I don't know about any lost princess, but they make me feel special.' Flynn laughed again, responding, 'Good for you, Blondie. Now let's get some sleep. Tomorrow will be a long day.'"

Eugene smiled, "And it definitely was a long day, I can tell you."