What's Not Fair

Rapunzel was pacing. She had always been known to be jittery and worrisome ever since she left the torture tower she once called home. She had also become very cautious about her husband because of his prior death, but she wasn't so worried about him right now—Eugene was safe, watching her in her edgy state, a little amused and worried about his wife.

"Where is he?" she asked herself. "He should be here by now."

"Rapunzel, calm down."

"No, Eugene!" she shouted. "I will not calm down!" Eugene backed off. It didn't seem like she was going to stop her ranting; he just walked into dangerous territory. "I will not calm down until they find him and bring him here where he's safe and sound! He knows that he's not supposed to be out yet he goes against my rules! He's old enough to listen yet he continues to pull these shenanigans! I swear, Eugene, once he comes through those doors, I'm gonna—"

"Your Majesty." The queen turned around to see two guards holding up her eldest son by his arms. His feet hovered over the floor. "We found your son in the marketplace, again."

Rapunzel took a deep and tidied her dress. "Thank you, Lance. Reginald. You may set him down and return to your posts."

"Yes, Your Majesty." The men set down the crowned prince and went back to their duties.

As soon as they were gone, Flynn knew he was about to face hell. But he couldn't let his parents see his fear. So, instead of shuttering under his mother's stare, he faced his parents confidently and said, "Well, I guess I'll just go to my room now—"

"Flynn." His mother's stern voice made him stay put. He didn't want to deal with a devil woman right now. "I've told a thousand times to stay in the castle and what do you do? You go off and run around town. And now thanks to your tomfoolery, you're late."

Flynn raised his eyebrow. "Late for what, exactly?"

"Late for meeting Julia. She's been waiting to meet you all day." His mother took his elbow and dragged him to one of the gardens. Under the deck in the shade at one table was a young lady dressed in blue. Her brown hair glided down her back, which was facing them. Flynn pulled his mother behind a pillar.

"Who's Julia?"

"She is the daughter of the duke of Orae," she answered while she fixed her son's vest.

"Mom, I hate the duke of Orae. You know I hate the duke of Orae! Why would you have me meet his daughter of all people?"

"Because she is a nice young lady, and I've heard she's had an eye on you for a while." She tied a cravat around his neck—one that she conveniently pulled out of nowhere—and checked him one more time. "Now go out there and be nice!" She pushed her son into the garden and quickly went back inside. Flynn fell on stomach with an oomph. He quickly stood up before anyone noticed. The noise caught Julia's attention and she smiled when she saw the prince.

"Hello, Flynn," she greeted him. He was already beginning to hate her. Her voice was so smug; it sounded like she already had him in her grasp. "It's nice to finally meet you. I heard you were very handsome. That was clearly an understatement."

Flynn gave her a bitter-sweet smile. "Thanks, I guess."

"How about we sit down?"

The prince shrugged. He really didn't care what they did, as long as they did it quickly.

As soon as they sat down, Julia began to jabber. The conversation immediately became disinteresting to the young prince. She droned on about Oraen pearls when his cravat suddenly began to itch—man, how he hated cravats. Suddenly, Flynn felt something heavy on his foot. He glanced down quickly to see his favorite little chameleon. "Pascal," he whispered. "What the heck are you doing here?" Pascal stuck out his tongue. He looked back at Julia, who was still babbling on about pearls, before picking up the little chameleon and putting him in his pocket.

"Did you say something?" Julia suddenly asked.

"No, of course not." It's not like princesses ever pay attention to anything but their jewelry, he thought.

"You haven't told me about yourself, Flynn. So what's it like living in this glorious castle?"

"Well, I…" He saw a green blur pass one of the teacups. He felt his pocket to find that Pascal escaped. This was going to be a disaster if Julia discovered him.

Then again, it could be really entertaining.

"Flynn, are you okay?"

He nodded quickly. "Yeah, yeah, yeah. I thought I saw something. Anyway, I don't really want to talk about myself. Why don't you just keep telling me about those pearls or whatever. It sounds real interesting."

She smiled eagerly as she continued her less than interesting story. Flynn continued his search for Pascal and finally found him lounging in a teacup. Seeing as it was Julia's teacup made it very comical, and she didn't even notice as the chameleon swam around in her Earl Grey.

He chuckled suddenly. Julia glanced at him.

"What's so funny?"

"Nothing," he replied quickly.

She eyed him suspiciously. When she reached for her teacup, he began laughing again. "It's considered rude to laugh at your guests, Flynn."

He stopped abruptly. "Sorry, I wasn't—"

Her cup stopped a few inches from her lips, exactly at the point where Pascal's head almost touched her chin. "You were saying, Flynn?"

"… It's not important."

"Humph. That's what I thought." She closed her eyes and took a sip of her tea.

Pascal chirped in alarm and jumped onto the young woman's face, and the prince continued to snicker under his breath as he watched the scene. Julia looked up when she heard him laughing again and saw green. She pulled her cup away to see a little green creature crawling up the bridge of her nose.

"They look like they're getting along nicely," Rapunzel observed.

She left the garden and went inside to watch her son and Julia with her husband. As the king, Eugene did have more important things than to watch his son socialize with some young woman he just became acquainted with today. But he had to watch his wife in case she did something drastic and/or unnecessary.

"Rapunzel, don't you think we should give them some privacy?"

She sighed. "I guess you're right. Flynn doesn't look like he's doing anything he shouldn't—"

An earsplitting cry broke out from the garden, and the royal couple turned back to see the table turned over, Julia running around like a lunatic, and Flynn laughing hysterically. They knew he had something to do with it, but they didn't see what made her so upset until they saw something green stuck to her face. Eugene stifled a laugh and Rapunzel frowned. She should've known Flynn would pull a trick like this. It was more disappointing that he used Pascal.

Rapunzel and Eugene ran into the garden to try and settle the commotion. The queen ran to the young woman and quickly plucked Pascal off her face. "Calm down, dear. Everything's alright now."

When she put a hand on her shoulder, Julia stopped screaming and shoved it away. "No, it is not alright! Your son is absolutely vulgar!" She smoothed out her dress and fixed her hair before facing the queen again. "I'm sorry, Your Highness, but I don't think this is going to work out!" Julia stormed off in flurry.

"Come back soon!" Flynn said in a not so serious tone. He heard her say something very unladylike before she left the garden. Flynn couldn't stop laughing after that. But when he saw his mother's glare, his hysterics ceased.

"Flynnigan Frederick Fitzherbert…!"

"I'm sorry, Mom! But it's not my fault!"

"Oh really? It wasn't your fault that Pascal somehow wandered onto Julia's face?"

"He was in my pocket. I didn't think he would escape and—"

"What was he doing in your pocket in the first place?"

"He wandered onto my foot. I wasn't just going to leave him on the ground."

"I wonder how he got in the garden in the first place," Eugene said. He thought of his youngest son, but he didn't say anything as mother and son continued to argue. He didn't want to get caught in the middle of the storm.

"It doesn't matter what I do or say, they don't interest me at all! I'm not going to keep meeting some girls who don't have any chemistry with me! I'm tired of you setting up dates for me!"

Rapunzel paused for a moment. She didn't want to keep arguing with her son, but he needed to understand that she was only protecting him. "Flynn, I know we do doesn't seem fair—"

"'We?'"

She ignored Eugene. "—but you have to understand that I'm only thinking of what's best for you."

"What's best for me? You thinking picking out my bride is what's best for me? Picking out someone who I'll spend the rest of my life with? You think that's best for me?"

"Well—it's better than having you run around and getting abducted by strangers! How do you think I'd feel if you just disappeared and never came back! I don't know what I'd do…" She put a hand on his shoulder. "The power you possess is something that needs to be kept hidden. You can't just go off in town and—"

Flynn shrugged her hand away furiously. "That's what this is all about? My power?" The queen drew back. "If anyone was after my power, they would've gotten me by now, don't you think? I can defend myself, Mom. I would've thought you'd know that, I thought you could trust me to protect myself, but I guess I was wrong about that too, wasn't I?" He stormed off to his room before his mother could say more.

As soon as he was in his room, he went out to the balcony. Flynn was so steamed, only the fresh air could cool him off, if only a little.

He knew he wasn't going to be able to get his mother to listen. She always kept him inside away from the rest of the world. Why she was so strict about it, he had no clue. But one thing was for sure—he may never leave this castle as long as he lived.

"Flynn!" a little voice cried. He turned to see his teary-eyed little brother holding his hand. "Flynn!"

"Calm down, Teddy. What's wrong?" Teddy showed him his hand. There was a small cut that began to bleed. "How'd this happen?" The little boy shrugged and whimpered as the air stung his wound. "Don't worry, squirt. I'll fix this up in no time."

Flynn took his younger brother's hand in his two larger ones and sang:

Flower, gleam and glow,

Let your power shine,

Make the clock reverse,

Bring back what once was mine,

At this point, Flynn's hair began to glow a shimmering gold. His eyes were closed; he was deeply enthralled in the song.

Heal what has been hurt,

Change the Fates' design,

Save what has been lost,

Bring back what once was mine,

What once was mine.

When the song was over, his hair stopped glowing, returning to its regular blonde color. Flynn took his hands away to reveal that Teddy's cut was completely healed.

"Thanks, Flynn!" Teddy wrapped his arms around the older boy's neck.

"No problem, squirt. I don't want to hear about anymore accidents from you, okay?"

"Okay!" Teddy flew out of the room mostly likely getting into more mischief, Flynn figured.

He laughed at the thought. He wished he had more freedom like Teddy. Even though he was the youngest, he could basically do whatever he wanted and only got away with a small warning. Flynn knew his powers were precious, but he still didn't think it was fair he couldn't leave the confines of the castle.

Flynn sat on his bed and heard another squeak. "Pascal!" He picked up the little chameleon. "You need to stop hiding in my bed or I might accidentally crush you to death." He tickled the little lizard and he gurgled in pleasure. Pascal jumped out of his hands and climbed up his arm. His little paws tickled the prince. He caught his little friend by the tail before he could get inside his shirt.

"Thanks, Pascal. I know you're trying to cheer me up." The little chameleon purred. Flynn petted his friend. "Even though I can't go outside, I still have you and Teddy… and Rosemarie, I guess."

Selena ran through the house preparing a little surprise for when her sister returned home. She wanted to convince her that she was old enough and responsible enough to go out on her own—with the exception of Lupe. And the only way she could do that was to prove it.

"Are we ready, Lupe?"

The wolf barked in affirmation.

"Selena!" the peculiar voice sang.

"She's here!" Selena ran to the front door to greet her sister again. Her wolf companion joined her. "Get ready, Lupe!" She quickly ran to her position for their little presentation.

As soon as Ambrose entered through the door, she embraced her sister. "I have a surprise for you, dear sister!"

"I have a surprise for you, too," she sang back quietly.

"Me first!" Ambrose set down her basket and unveiled the handkerchief covering her items. "I've saved enough money to buy that cinnamon raisin bread you love so much! We can eat it tomorrow for your birthday! Surprise!"

The younger sister smiled weakly. "Thanks."

"Only the best for my little sister!" She patted her head before unpacking her basket. "Now, what's your surprise?"

"Actually, it's not as much of a surprise as it is a request." Selena cleared her throat before explaining to her sister, "As you know, tomorrow's my birthday—"

"Of course! How could I forgot?"

"—and I'm turning eighteen, so I wanted to ask… what I really, really, really want for this birthday—actually, what I wanted for a few birthdays…" She began twirling her hair nervously. Ambrose eyed her suspiciously. She wasn't sure if this was going to work, but she couldn't quit until she broke her sister. She looked to Lupe for support. She gave her a look that told it was either now or never. She closed her eyes and exhaled before she finally burst out, "I want to go outside and see the flowing flowers!"

Her sister stopped what she was doing and looked at her sister. At first, Selena thought she had upset her sister, but when she heard her sister laugh, she became concerned. "The what?"

"You see, I've been wanting you to release—I-I mean, let me outside and see the flowers that flow in the river. They glow at night and…"

"Oh! You mean the stars that reflect in the water."

"That's the thing. You see…" Selena cued for Lupe to pull out one of her creations that showed the constellations. "I've charted stars in these flowers patterns, and they're always constant. But these, I'm certain, are actual flowers. But I can't recognize them; I can't tell if they're daffodils, or dandelions, or anything like that. I just know they shimmer and glow and flow in the river every year on my birthday. Only on my birthday, though. And I can't help but… feel that they're meant for me. I don't want to just see them from my window. I want… I need to see them in person—to see where they come from. I have to know what they are."

Ambrose tapped her chin lightly in consideration. The ashen-haired girl twiddled her fingers, anxiously. She looked at Lupe. She also looked nervous.

Maybe this could work, she thought. Maybe. Just maybe…

Her sister's sudden laughter startled her. "You want to go outside?"

"Yes…? I just said—"

"Selena," she pinched her cheeks, "You're just as fragile as those flowers. You really think you can possibly make it out there in the real world?"

"Well, how do you I won't unless you let me outside?"

"Because I know you, little sister. You don't know the dangers out there. Dangerous thugs, harmful bugs, the plague—there's so much out that you couldn't handle—"

"But you've never let me out there before." Now Selena was getting mad. She never felt so enraged by her sister before. But now that she thought about it, keeping her in this little hovel all day, everyday, 24/7/365 was suffocating. "I'm growing up, Sis, and tomorrow's my birthday. The least you can do is let me go outside. I think I can handle myself."

"I know you think you can handle yourself, but you're just not strong enough."

"You think I'm not strong enough."

"Oh, I know you're not strong enough to handle yourself out there."

"But if you just listened—"

"Selena, we're done talking about this."

"But Sis—"

"Selena…"

"Oh, come on—!"

"Enough about the flowers, Selena! You are never leaving this house! EVER!"

Selena backed away from her sister. Ambrose never yelled at her like that before; of course, this was the first time she ever talked back to her. It really stung when her sister shouted at her.

Tears suddenly brimmed at the corners of her eyes. Ambrose sighed when she saw this. "Great. Now I'm the bad guy."

Selena quickly wiped her tears away and held back the ones that threatened to fall. "N-No, it's okay. I-I-It was too big of a request. I'm sorry if I asked f-for too much." She quickly retreated to her room before her sister said anymore.

When she was finally in her room, the young woman fell forward onto her bed and wept like she hadn't before. Her canine friend put her muzzle on the comforter, whimpering next to her master. Selena drew back from the bed and petted Lupe. She needed someone to comfort her, and Lupe was always there for her when she was upset.

"Thanks, Lupe," she said. "We tried, but I think I'm stuck in here, forever." The wolf rested her head on her shoulder, giving Selena the opportunity to her hug. "At least I still have you."

A/N SPOILER Alert: In the movie, anyone who made contact with Rapunzel's hair and sang the song was healed or became younger.

I decided instead of having people touch Flynn's hair, he just had to make contact with other people. His blonde hair just shows how much power he has. It would be weird if they touched his hair all the time, anyway. I mean, what if someone broke their ankle? You know how weird that would be if they put their foot on his head? Ew!

R&R!