Alrighty, here's your next update!

Anyway, I really enjoyed writing this chappie! I enjoyed the roundabout nervousness Eugene is experiencing, and I really enjoyed developing Mr. Seamus' character. :) I feel bad for poor Eugene, though. He goes through so much crap, eh?

Anyway, on to the chapter! A lot of research went into this chapter, because I had to read up on everything Prince Consort, and I found a lot of interesting information. Still, if I'm a little off, please forgive me. :)

Aaaaand I might as well say that while I'm pretty pleased with this chapter, it's long, it's ranty, it's redundant, but it's important in the building of the story, especially considering what happens next. ;) That should keep you on your toes! :D

I also had to cut this chapter in half because it ended up being too long...

Enjoy!

Chapter song: "Poker Face" by Lady Gaga (because for no determinable reason, I listened to this song most while writing this chapter...)

Disclaimer: MUST you remind me that it's not mine?

Smoke & Mirrors

A "Tangled" fanfiction

by doodlegirll

...oOo...

"Ouch!"

Eugene winced as yet another pin bit painfully into the skin of his torso, trying very hard to remain still. He wanted badly to be allowed to check the multiple tiny puncture wounds that could now be found dotting his body, but Mr. Seamus, the tailor, would hear nothing of it.

"Just a few minutes more, Mr. Fitzherbert," Mr. Seamus promised as he measured Eugene's outstretched forearm.

"You said that twenty minutes ago," Eugene complained as he felt another pinprick.

Mr. Seamus tsked under his breath. He was a difficult man to get along with, Eugene had soon found out. He was a tall, slender man in his mid to late forties with a long nose, a pointed chin, dark brown eyes, and a low, gravely voice. He never seemed to smile, and he had no interest in small talk, making Eugene's fitting session unbearably dull and long.

"Mr. Fitzherbert, this would be over a lot sooner if you would stop wiggling!" Mr. Seamus scolded. "You're making it hard to get accurate measures!"

Eugene sighed.

Today was definitely costing a lot more than it was worth in his opinion.

He stood perfectly still, albeit as best he could, for another ten minutes (which seemed to be more like an hour) before Mr. Seamus' assistant stood, brushing his hands off and nodding.

"Done." He said.

Mr. Seamus walked around Eugene, who had dropped his aching arms to his side, giving him a final once-over.

"Good. Very good." He said finally, nodding. He gestured with a sweeping motion to the full length mirror in the corner of the room. "Care to have a look?"

Eugene crossed the room, tucking his newly hemmed shirt into his pants, and looked into the mirror, admiring the cantankerous tailor's handiwork.

Mr. Seamus had certainly created an outfit fit for a Prince (Consort).

Eugene was now dressed in fine black pants and a breezy white linen shirt, gold cufflinks with the Corona sun embossed into them at the end of the sleeves. A black vest not unlike his signature blue one draped from his shoulders, not yet fastened, but in place of brass hooks, a neat row of shiny buttons trailed up the front. Polished black boots adorned his feet.

Eugene fumbled with the buttons of his vest as Mr. Seamus came up behind him in the mirror.

"Well, what do you think?" He asked.

Eugene turned to face him and smiled.

"Thank you." He said sincerely. "It's…it's great."

"Mr. Fitzherbert, I assure you, I only make the best, so of course it's 'great.'" Mr. Seamus said, offering a rare, small smile. "But I thank you, nonetheless, sir."

Eugene raised an eyebrow. "Sir?" He said. "You've never called me that before."

"In a few hours time, all of Corona will recognize you as our new Prince Consort, thus labeling you our future King, and as the royal tailor, I will address you formally, as from now on, I will serve you as I have His Majesty King Leander, and his father before him, King Rupert, for the past twenty years." Mr. Seamus said. He gave a respectful bow that made Eugene extremely uncomfortable. "I am at your service."

"You don't have to do that," Eugene said as Mr. Seamus straightened himself.

Mr. Seamus raised an inquiring brow.

"I take it, then, that you are not yet accustomed to such?" He asked.

Eugene shook his head.

"You could say that," he said. "To be honest, Mr. Seamus, I never expected any of this." He swept a hand above his head, indicating the castle. "I never expected to ever hold a title other than thief."

Mr. Seamus studied him for a moment.

"I can see that you are haunted by your past, Mr. Fitzherbert," he said quietly. "It is written plainly on your face. You do not feel that you deserve any of this."

Eugene couldn't have said it better himself. Mr. Seamus had hit the nail on the head in one clean motion.

"I believe, Mr. Fitzherbert," Mr. Seamus said after a moment's silence. "That you are far too hard on yourself."

Eugene looked at the tailor, and opened his mouth to speak, but Mr. Seamus held up a hand.

"If I may," he said. "I believe that you do not give yourself credit where credit is due. You do not believe yourself worthy of the honors set before you due to your thieving past, and you do not feel that you are anyone of importance, nor do you feel that you will be accepted by your future subjects, again due to the past life you have set against your record."

Eugene nodded, once again at a loss for words.

"You underestimate yourself." Mr. Seamus went on. "And on the other hand, you underestimate the innate forgiveness we humans tend to possess. You do not believe that the people of Corona will be able to forgive you for your past, am I wrong?"

"No." Eugene answered.

"And you do not believe that they will see you a proper match for their beloved Princess?"

"Yes."

"And thus you believe that they will deem you an unfit future ruler and shun you completely?"

"I believe that not all of them will feel that way," Eugene admitted. "But I don't exactly have a good reputation to back me up, do I? I stole from these people. I cheated them. I lied to them. What reason do they have to believe that I won't do it again, or that I'm not just after the glory? That I'm only here for all the wrong reasons?"

"You returned our Lost Princess to us." Mr. Seamus answered him calmly. "And for that, this kingdom is indebted to you. Without your act of heroism, where would we be? We never gave up hope that she would return to us, but you must understand that all of us had to face the reality that she might never return at one point or another. And then, two days after the Lantern Festival on what would have been her eighteenth birthday, you escape from prison and return with this young woman who could be the mirror image of our own Queen! You didn't just return our Princess to us that day, Mr. Fitzherbert, you returned our future. The King and Queen had tried for years to produce another heir after the Princess disappeared, but they were unsuccessful, and in a way, it felt wrong that another child should replace the one the kingdom had loved so much."

"I'm not a hero," Eugene said softly. "I brought her back because she deserved to know her real parents, and she deserved a life of promise." His amber eyes met Mr. Seamus' brown. "She was willing to give up her freedom so that she could save me, me, a lowly thief with no one in the world to turn to and without a home. She had never known the love of true parents, parents that loved her for her, not for her hair, and she had never known freedom, and she deserved that. And then she was willing to give all that up again to save me from the gallows three months ago. So if anyone is a hero here, it's Rapunzel."

Mr. Seamus nodded at this, acknowledging his agreement.

"Princess Rapunzel is a brave young lady." He said. "And you, whether or not you choose to believe it, are a hero. And I believe that you deserve the honor of which you will receive today."

"Thank you." Eugene said.

"I believe you will make a great king one day." Mr. Seamus said. "And believe me, that means a lot, coming from me."

Eugene laughed.

Maybe Mr. Seamus wasn't so hard to get along with after all.

The tailor looked down at the pocket watch he had produced from his coat pocket.

"It's nearly two o'clock." He said. "You'd best be meeting the King and Queen. Your debut is in but an hour's time."

Eugene nodded, and stuck out his hand.

"Thank you again, Mr. Seamus." He said as he shook the tailor's hand. "For everything."

"I'm pleased to have been of service, sir." Mr. Seamus said.

With that, Eugene quickly left.

...oOo...

He found Rapunzel quickly, or, rather, she found him. She had been anxiously waiting outside the throne room, pacing back and forth, wringing her hands. For the life of him, he couldn't figure out why she was so jumpy; after all, hadn't she just told him today would be a good day only a few hours before?

She spotted him almost as soon as he had rounded the corner, and her entire face had lit up like one of the lanterns. She smiled and rushed to meet him, throwing herself at him and embracing him in an enthusiastic hug, but Eugene knew her well enough to recognize a sort of urgency in her grip as well, and he quickly gathered her in his arms, picking her off her feet and swinging her around.

He sat her back down on the floor and gave her a quick kiss on the lips.

"Hey, Blondie." He greeted her.

"Hello." She said, grinning at him.

Eugene couldn't help but notice that she looked beautiful in her chosen attire for the day's events. Rapunzel was dressed in a pale yellow dress that went to the floor, covering her undoubtedly bare feet. Ribbon crisscrossed across the bodice, coming together in the back in a larger, elegant bow, the ends hanging down her back, while tiny stitches came together in delicate patterns all down the skirt. Her pixie cut brown hair was spiky as usual, her crown poised atop the chocolate locks.

"You look beautiful, Blondie." He said.

Rapunzel smiled. "You look handsome yourself." She said.

He stepped back to allow her a better look.

"Thank you." He said. "Mr. Seamus…did a good job."

"Yes, he did." Rapunzel agreed. "You look great. It's perfect for today."

"Yeah…" Eugene trailed off. "About today, Rapunzel…"

"Aren't you excited?" Rapunzel asked, concerned.

"Well…" Eugene fumbled for the right words. "I guess I'm just…apprehensive is all."

Rapunzel smiled and took his hand, giving it a reassuring squeeze, as if passing on some of her optimism through the simple gesture of affection.

"Today will be fine, Eugene." She promised. "You don't have anything to worry about!"

Eugene opened his mouth to speak, but the doors opening behind the two of them cut him off abruptly. The King and Queen emerged, both smiling jovially.

King Leander clapped a hand on Eugene's shoulder.

"Well, my boy, it looks as though Mr. Seamus did a fine job in the design of your debut outfit!" He said. "An outfit fit for the future ruler of Corona!"

Eugene cleared his throat, uncomfortably.

"Yes, well, uh…"

Rapunzel sensed his distress and came to his rescue almost at once.

"Mama, Daddy, I was wondering," she said. "Would it be alright if, while we're out, Eugene and I stopped by the paint shop in the village? Pascal accidentally knocked over my jar of white paint, and without it I can't mix the colors I need for my next mural."

"Of course you can, sweetheart." The Queen answered. "I don't see why not."

Rapunzel gave a squeal of delight and gave her mother a quick hug around the middle.

"Thank you, Mama!" She said. She took Eugene's hand again, and began to pull him down the hall. "Eugene and I are going to go ahead and meet Maximus in the stables! We'll meet you out on the balcony in a few minutes!"

She dragged him away from her parents quickly, and he stumbled quite a few times as he tried to keep up with her. As soon as she was sure they were alone, and no one could hear them, she quickly pulled him into a small corner.

"Alright, talk." She said, stepping back and crossing her arms.

"What?"

"Talk." She repeated. "You're hiding something! There's something you're not telling me. You've been acting strange since you woke up this morning."

"Ah. That." Eugene ran a nervous hand through his thick hair. "It's just, well…I'm not so sure about this."

"What do you mean?" Rapunzel placed her hands on her hips.

"I'm not so sure about this, Rapunzel." Eugene repeated. "What if I'm not cut out for this?"

"Why wouldn't you be? You've taken all the classes, all the lessons! You've studied the history, the politics, everything!" Rapunzel cocked her head to the side, confused.

"It's not about that, Blondie." Eugene attempted to explain his reasonings. "It's…today, I go up in front of the entire kingdom and your father announces that I'm the Prince Consort, and that I'm courting you, and that means that one day, I'll be the King. And I'm just not convinced that everyone's going to exactly be thrilled at having a former thief as their future monarch."

Rapunzel's face softened, and she reached out a hand to gently touch his cheek.

"Eugene," she said. "That's what all this has been about?"

Eugene nodded, almost guiltily.

"Why didn't you tell me you were so uncomfortable with today?" She asked. "I'm sure we could have talked to Daddy, arranged something less…extravagant."

Eugene shook his head.

"So much as gone into today." He said. "And your father has seemed pretty well set on my having a public debut since I was pardoned."

"Well, they're going to have to find out sometime, Eugene!" Rapunzel pointed out. "And I'm sure they already know. How could they not, what with all those wanted posters? It was announced at the ceremony, er, celebrating my return at the beginning of the summer that Flynn Rider had brought me back."

"But that was different." Eugene said. "They were just saying who had found and brought you back. They weren't announcing that Flynn Rider was the future king."

Rapunzel sighed, moving in to envelope him in another hug.

"But you're not Flynn Rider." She said. "You're Eugene Fitzherbert."

"But they don't know that."

"They will today." Rapunzel gave him a hopeful smile.

"But what if it's not just that I'm going to be the future king someday? What if they don't think I'm fit to be courting a Princess, even if I am a Prince Consort?"

"Well, then they'll have to take it up with me and my frying pan." Rapunzel said. "They can't dictate who I can and cannot court, and they certainly have no say in who I am allowed to be in love with. You're a hero, Eugene. You're my hero, at least."

"Please stop calling me a hero," Eugene said. "I'm…I'm not."

"Don't say that!" Rapunzel said. "Of course you are!"

"But I – "

Rapunzel silenced him with a finger pressed to his lips, and he seemed to relax a little as he gazed into her shining green eyes.

"Today is going to be great, Eugene, you'll see." Rapunzel said. "They might surprise you."

Eugene wasn't sure what else he could say at that point. No one seemed to understand his apprehensions surrounding the day's events, and he wasn't sure how to explain them any better than he already had. So instead he smiled, put on a brave face, for Rapunzel, if not for himself, and pulled his princess in close for a tender kiss.

He let his lips linger on hers for a second before he gently pulled back, their eyes meeting. Rapunzel smiled and took his hand again.

"Come on." She said. "We'd better get out to the stables and hurry to meet Mama and Daddy. We don't want to be late!"

...oOo...

Fifteen minutes later, Eugene found himself hanging back at the far wall of the balcony overlooking the kingdom, pressing himself against the cool stones as he watched the King and Queen make their way forward to face the crowd of people that had assembled below. He felt Rapunzel's cool hand find his, and she smiled at him before she made her way to stand next to her parents.

"People of Corona!" The King bellowed, raising his arms to solicit silence. "Today is a very special day indeed! Today is the day I present to you your Princess Rapunzel's suitor!"

The crowd below cheered, and Eugene felt himself begin to grow even more nervous. Despite the cool breeze, Eugene felt himself growing extremely hot as tiny beads of sweat began to form in his hairline. He wiped them away quickly on the back of his hand. If he had to do this, he wanted everyone to think he at least had some level of composure.

The King went on, "This man has proven himself a man of honor, and I believe that one day, he will make an excellent King Consort of Corona. He is noble, and kind, and just. He is a hero, for he returned our Lost Princess to us, and I consider him my own son." King Leander turned to face, Eugene, and he held out a hand as he stepped aside, allowing for an empty space at the edge of the balcony. "It is my greatest pleasure to present to you Princess Rapunzel's chosen suitor, Eugene Fitzherbert!"

Eugene took a deep breath, and stepped forward, making his way towards the balcony where he came to stand between Rapunzel and King Leander.

For a moment, all he could hear was the blood pounding in his ears from his raging heartbeat, and the slow, steady breaths he took to keep himself calm. As he looked down at the crowd, most of whom, if not all, he knew would recognize him as the infamous thief Flynn Rider, he couldn't help but think, 'Here comes the silence.'

But to his surprise, as the world around him began to pour back towards his eardrums, he was met not by silence and utter disgust that a common thief was courting the beloved Princess, but by applause. Astounded, he looked down at the hundreds of people below as they smiled up at him, clapping and yelling in glee.

They weren't rebuking him as their future King; they were welcoming him!

He felt a small, warm hand enter his, and he turned his head to find Rapunzel beaming up at him, her green eyes wide with excitement, and he smiled at her, squeezing her hand tightly. King Leander set a firm hand upon Eugene's shoulder as he once again addressed the crowd.

"As you know, this man was once known to you all as the thief Flynn Rider. I would like to make it known that this man has been pardoned of all crimes against the Kingdom of Corona, and that he has taken the necessary steps and lessons to earn the title of which he will be presented with today. He has changed his ways, and I know that he truly, truly cares for Princess Rapunzel. He was willing to die for her, not once, but twice. He will make a wise leader, and I bid you all to welcome him."

The crowd below gave another great cheer, and Eugene began to feel the anxiety slowly melt away.

Maybe today would end up being a good day after all. Maybe Rapunzel and Mr. Seamus had been right, and that people would be willing to look beyond his past and accept his future.

And, maybe, he would be able to do the same.

King Leander held up a hand for silence once more. He turned to face Eugene.

"Eugene Fitzherbert, would you please kneel?"

Eugene stole a glance at Rapunzel, and she gave him an encouraging nod. He then stood to his full height and slowly dropped to one knee before the King.

"I, King Leander of the Kingdom of Corona, son of the late King Rupert the Third, hereby bestow upon you the honorable title of Prince Consort Eugene Fitzherbert, suitor of Her Royal Highness the Princess Rapunzel."

Eugene expected something along the lines of a sword to gently touch his shoulders, as he had read about so many times in books when someone was knighted, but it never came. Instead, something slightly heavy was placed gently upon his head, and it took a moment to register that it was also made of cool metal.

It was a crown.

"You may rise."

Below him, the crowd began cheering again, and he turned to face them, and he gave them all a grin before raising his hand in greeting. Another round of applause erupted, and he smiled.

After a few moments, Eugene stepped back and faced Rapunzel. She beamed at him as she gave him a quick hug around his midsection.

"Congratulations, Eugene." The Queen said, coming close.

"Thank you, Your Majesty." Eugene said, bowing respectfully.

"Eugene, my boy, I daresay today has been quite the adventure." A smiling King Leander held out his hand to Eugene, who shook it.

"I have to agree, sir." Eugene said. "I have one question though…" He gestured to the crown on his head for lack of words.

The King smiled.

"Ah, yes. I was quite fond of that crown in my youth." The King said. "But I believe it suits you well, don't you think?"

"This was your crown, Daddy?" Rapunzel asked, clutching at Eugene's hand.

"Indeed it was." King Leander said. "I know that it's not customary for a Prince Consort to receive a crown on his public debut, but I'd say this is quite an exception. I believe it to be in good hands."

"Thank you, Your Majesty." Eugene said sincerely. "I don't know how to thank you enough."

The Queen smiled.

"You can thank us by going out there and enjoying your day," she said. "After all, I'd think it best to get to know your future subjects, don't you think?"

Eugene opened his mouth to agree, but he was cut off by Rapunzel seizing his hand.

"Ooh, Eugene, it's Hook Hand! He's out there on the pavilion playing the piano!" She said. "And there's Big Nose!"

With that, the two headed for the double doors behind them that would take them to the kingdom below, and for the first time that day, Eugene felt at peace.

Just so you know, I may not update again for a little while, as I'm pretty much set for the rest of this month. I work the next six days (from noon to nine, I might add) and then next weekend, I'm headed to Tennessee with my bestie and boyfriend to go whitewater rafting. :) And then, a week after I get back, I have to start my second year of college. :) So yeah...

Also, I did my research on Prince Consorts (A LOT of it!), so I know that they don't usually get crowns, but...Eugene is an exception. ;) I'm like, "Well, you know what? The Queen got a crown for being Queen when she's technically the Queen Consort, so why can't Eugene?" (That's going off my headcanon, though, that the King is the born heir of Corona...) :D