Here you go! :D Everything's starting to speed up! I've already got a lot in mind as to where I want it to go, and it won't take but maybe two or three more chapters to get us there, maybe less, depending on their length. :) Pretty excited, but I will warn you, I cried a little, so keep your Kleenex close! If you thought particular parts of "Hangman's Noose" were bad...then these scenes may just kill you...(but don't kill me...that would be bad...)

Anyway! Here you go. Fandom favorite Conli makes an appearance! :D

CHAPTER SONG: "Not Now But Soon" by Imogen Heap

Disclaimer: Not mine. I tried stealing it but that...didn't end well. So! For now I write fanfiction.

Smoke & Mirrors

A "Tangled" fanfiction

by doodlegirll

...oOo...

Rapunzel had not been permitted to accompany Eugene to the prisons, so she had instead focused her energy on her latest mural on the walls of her bedroom. It allowed her, if only for a few, moments of peace and relaxation after the turmoil of the previous day's events, and the events yet to come.

She carefully spread the red paint across the wall, pressing onto the brush and swirling around to create the desired flowered look. Satisfied, she applied a purple center, and then tucked the brush behind her ear, grabbing the other as she did.

Pascal scurried up the wall to examine her work, accidentally stepping in green paint, and she giggled as he tracked a few little green footprints across the paint. He looked at Rapunzel and gave her an apologetic look, and she reached out her hand for him to step on.

"That's okay, Pascal." She said. "I can turn them into ivy leaves!"

Pascal seemed pleased, and she set him on the floor before fulfilling her promise. Finally she stepped back, and nodded in satisfaction.

"There!" She said. "Now that I've painted the entire garden, I can start work on the fountain!"

She crossed the room to the water basin in the corner, where she cleaned her hands. As she was drying them on a towel, there was a soft knock on her door.

"Come in!"

A few seconds later, a guard entered. He bowed to the Princess.

"Pardon me, Princess," he said. "But your presence is requested in the prisons."

"Is everything okay?" Rapunzel asked. "Is something wrong?"

The guard shook his head. "No, Your Grace, nothing is wrong. Your father the King as requested that you pay your visit to Mr. Fitzherbert before nightfall and asked me to escort you."

Rapunzel let out a sigh of relief and smiled. "Alright." She agreed. She stooped down and held out her hand for Pascal, and the little reptile eagerly scurried onto her shoulder.

She followed the guard out of her room into the hallway, and from there towards the prisons. She had walked this path many times before, she remembered dryly. A chill ran up her spine as the memories came flooding back all at once, and she quickly repressed them, shoving them and the emotions that came with them back into the furthest reaches of her subconscious. She had only just allowed herself to calm down; she didn't need the anxiety to win.

She was led out into the open autumn air, and as her bare feet hit the cool cobblestones, she shivered. She would have to remember to try on the boots her mother had had made for her…after all, when she had lived in the tower, she had never had to worry about shoes, and only wore socks in the cold months, but now, shoes were something she would have to get used to, especially with the snow winter was sure to bring.

As Rapunzel and the guard approached the door to the prison, two other guards standing at attention opened it for them, allowing them to step inside. The prisons were just as dank and horrendously dark as she remembered them from all those months ago, and the vile stench of the squalid conditions assaulted her nose all at once. Out of the corner of her eye, Rapunzel saw Pascal pinch the front of his face, and she giggled softly.

The prisoners made no attempts to get her attention as she walked past, as they had when Eugene had first been sent to prison. She supposed they had been warned against it, with the threat of punishment should they disobey. Rapunzel was grateful. She didn't know what these men had done to end up here, but she knew it couldn't have been good.

Ruffians, thugs…

The guard led her down a flight of stairs, torches lining the walls. She made sure to hold onto the railing that ran alongside the wall, as the cold stairs were wet with water from the earth above. Once they reached the bottom, Rapunzel followed the guard to a heavy wooden door, two guards flanking each side. At the top of the door, instead of bars, there was a tiny sliding hatch, and she noticed that many of the doors were covered with patches of moss from the damp conditions. The guard slid back the hatch.

"Mr. Fitzherbert, Princess Rapunzel is here to see you." He said. He then produced a key from his pocket and put it into the lock, yanking the heavy door oven with a single, swift motion, motioning that it was alright for her to enter.

"Blondie, we have got to stop running into each other like this." Eugene joked as she entered the surprisingly well-lit cell, a grin on his face. Rapunzel didn't waste a moment rushing forward into his arms. It felt good to be near him. She pulled away from him for a moment and poked him in the chest.

"Then you need to stop getting yourself into trouble, Mr. Fitzherbert." She returned the humor.

"Can't help it; I'm a trouble magnet." Eugene said before kissing her head.

Rapunzel looked around the cell, and noted that this time, Eugene's accommodations, despite their location, were much better than the ones he had been given three months prior. There was a cot in the corner instead of a mound of hay, complete with a pillow and warm blanket, and two torches warmed the area as well as lit it. A book lay discarded, its spine up, on the bed, and Rapunzel smiled when she saw that it was the castle's copy of The Tales of Flynnigan Rider. The walls of the cell, like the doors in the hall, were patched with moss, and Rapunzel reached out a hand to touch the plush green plant. Pascal crawled from her shoulder onto the wall and prodded it with his tail suspiciously.

"It threw me off a little, too." Eugene said. "Some kind of wallpaper."

Rapunzel nodded. "I like it, though." She said. "It sort of represents life in the darkest and strangest places."

Eugene smiled at her, and wrapped his arms around her. She gratefully accepted the embrace, laying her head against his chest. While a part of her knew that she should enjoy this moment as long as possible, as it might be the last time it happened for who-knows-how-long, she somehow couldn't find it in her to be anxious. Rapunzel knew, if she knew nothing else, that Eugene would always keep her safe.

They stood there for many moments, enjoying each other's company.

"I wish you didn't have to go." Rapunzel finally said softly. "I'm going to miss you so much."

"I know." Eugene said. "But I'll write! Every day if I have to. It's not for forever, Blondie. I could never be away that long. I promise." He leant his forehead against hers, his eyes aligned with hers. "And when I promise something, I never break that promise. Ever." He added softly.

Rapunzel gave him a small grin. "I love you, Eugene." She said.

"Love you, too, Blondie."

Rapunzel stepped away from his warm embrace and glanced around the small cell. "I didn't bring anything with me…" She said. "I wish I could have grabbed my sketchbook or something." She peered over his shoulder at the book on the cot. "How far are you in your book?"

"Just started it." He said, walking over to the bed and picking up the beloved novel. "We could read it together, I suppose." He patted the cot next to him as he sat down, and Rapunzel made her way towards him, scooping up Pascal in the process. She plopped down next to him, and he snaked his arm around her waist, and she laid her head on his shoulder. He positioned the book on his lap in front of them, and she helped balance it.

Eugene began to read.

"Chapter one. Vincent…"

...oOo...

By the time one of the guards brought Eugene his dinner and another came to escort Rapunzel to her own, they were already done with the book, and laughing as they discussed the book's content. Eugene had laid himself down on the cot, his hands behind his head as he gazed up at Rapunzel, who had her legs drawn up to her chest as she sat with her back against the wall.

"No, really! When I was a kid, I thought Henrik was pronounced Hen-reek, so I always assumed the guy smelled bad!" Eugene said. Rapunzel laughed and shook her head.

"It's Hen-rick, Eugene." She said. "But if it makes you feel any better, I feel like Henrik really is stinky. He's not exactly the nicest person and he lives on a skunk farm."

"Yeah, not the most glamorous job, I'll admit…"

The guard, who they both recognized as being named Baris, entered the cell through the opened door. He bowed.

"Princess, your parents are requesting your presence at dinner. I am here to escort you there."

"It's time for dinner already?" Rapunzel asked as she set her feet on the floor.

Baris nodded. "Yes, Your Grace."

Rapunzel chewed her lip. "Can you give me a moment to say goodbye to Eugene?" She asked.

Baris bowed, respectfully. "Of course, Your Grace. Take the time you need." He then turned on his heel and left the cell.

Rapunzel slowly rose to her feet, and Eugene did the same.

"I don't know if I'll see you again, before…you leave." She said softly. She met his eyes, and he smiled at her, gently pressing a kiss to her forehead. She threw her arms around him. "I don't want you to go, Eugene!" She said, tears welling in her eyes.

"Hey, it's going to be okay." Eugene whispered as he drew her back and took her face in his hands. " We'll get through this."

She placed her hand on his wrist as he used the pads of his thumbs to wipe away a stray tear that fell. "You won't forget me, will you?" She asked in a small voice.

Eugene looked into her big green eyes, and saw the fear brimming there. She was absolutely terrified that if he went away, he would never come back.

"Hey." He said, snaking one arm around her waist and pulling her close, while grasping her hand in his free one. "Listen. I'm not going anywhere, Rapunzel. This isn't forever. And no matter how far away I am, I am always going to love you. I will never forget you. Eventually this will all be behind us, and I'll come back. I promise." He captured her lips with his, gently and urgently. They remained there for several minutes, allowing the other to say as they needed without words.

Eventually, they pulled apart, and Eugene held her close.

"I love you." Rapunzel finally whispered.

"I love you, too, Blondie."

She laced her fingers with his, and he held out his hand for Pascal, who remained on the bed, allowing the lovers their moments alone without his colorful interference. He placed him gently on Rapunzel's shoulders.

As she exited the door into the hallway, she squeezed his hand tightly.

Come back to me, Eugene. I need you.

He squeezed back, and let go.

And with that, Baris quietly led her through the damp, chilled hallways of the prison dungeons, and towards the dinner hall where her parents waited.

...oOo...

Eugene didn't sleep much that night.

It wasn't that he was concerned about the trip to Lunaria; in fact, that was the least of his worries. He was worried about Rapunzel, his Blondie, and how anxious she had been as of late. She had not returned after Baris had come to take her to dinner with her parents, just as he had predicted – while he had no window or clock to help him discern time, he knew it had been fairly late in the evening by the time she had left – but he still hadn't let go of the hope that she would find a way to meet with him in the morning before he left, however unlikely it seemed.

He thought, very briefly, about the fact that this entire situation revolved around: someone wanted him dead. And they had gone to extreme measures in the square two days ago to try and ensure that their will be done.

Eugene sighed and shook his head, pulling the warm blanket he had been given up to his chin, rolling onto his side. He closed his eyes and concentrated on trying to get some sleep; tomorrow was a big day.

He was awoken by the rapping of a fist on the door of the cell.

"Mr. Fitzherbert," he heard a voice call through the thick wood. "The transport is almost here."

Eugene groaned and rubbed his eyes, yawning. He pushed himself up on the cot. He got to his feet and walked to the bucket in the corner, where he splashed ice cold water on his face. He glanced out of the corner of his eye at the door, and then looked at the foot of the cot, where the clothes he had been instructed to wear to avoid suspicion were neatly folded. He quickly peeled off his white cotton shirt, and replaced it with the cold, grey shirt. He decided against the brown pants, and instead kept his black night pants, and pulled on his familiar, worn boots. He picked up the copy of The Tales of Flynnigan Rider, and he mentally reminded himself to have one of the guards return it to the library.

After a few moments, there was another knock on his door, and Eugene turned towards it. Three guards came inside, the first being the tetchy Captain of the Guard, who held a pair of iron manacles in his hand. Eugene glanced at them in disdain; he hadn't exactly enjoyed his last encounter with them.

"Have a nice nap, Rider?" The Captain asked.

"Well, yes, actually, thank you." Eugene replied. "Although, the scenery from the window could have been nicer."

The Captain smirked, but said nothing more. He handed the iron cuffs to one of the other guards, an anxious, thin man named Conli.

"Conli, cuff him."

Conli nodded and walked towards Eugene.

"Sorry about this, Eugene." He said quietly. "But we've gotta make it look real."

"No hard feelings." Eugene said, allowing Conli to fasten the shackle his hands, then another set to his ankles, allowing room for him to walk, but nothing more. Another guard came up and pulled a black bag from his belt.

"So if anyone's watching, they won't see your face." He explained when Eugene lifted an eyebrow. He placed the bag over Eugene's head, making sure no distinguishable features were able to be seen, and then took his upper right arm in his hand.

"Let's get this over with, Rider." The Captain muttered as Eugene was led past him.

Eugene allowed them to lead him – albeit roughly – down the hall, and Conli made sure to let him know when they reached the stairs so that he didn't trip, which he was grateful for. The last thing he wanted was a tumble down the stairs.

The bag over his head was beginning to get hot and stuffy, and he found that he was having a bit of a hard time breathing. He supposed that was its intended purpose: to not only make your trek of shame irretraceable, but also to make you as uncomfortable as possible. He could feel the cool autumn breeze as it hit his hands, and it wasn't long before the guards told him to lift his leg. When he did, his foot came into contact with a rung, like on a ladder, and he stepped up, and he felt one of the guards duck his head and push him back onto what felt like a wooden bench. He heard a door slam shut and the carriage – or whatever it was – lurch forward, and he rolled his eyes. Great. He would actually have to make the entire trip to Lunaria with his arms and ankles cuffed and a stupid bag over his head. Just wonderful.

No sooner had the thought occurred that he felt someone reach out and grab the bag, removing it slowly and gently. He blinked against the light that flooded into the carriage through small, barred windows toward the roof at the hooded figure sitting on a similar bench-like seat in front of him. As his eyes adjusted, he made out the face of a smiling girl in the shadows.

"Rapunzel?" He whispered, confused.

Rapunzel smiled at him, throwing her arms around his neck excitedly and hugging him close, nearly cutting off his airway as she did so.

"They said I can come!" She said. "I can come to Lunaria with you! They told me last night at dinner and they sent a massager to Lunaria to let Aunt Colleen to let her know!"

"Thanks great, Blondie." Eugene croaked. "But…"

"What's wrong?" Rapunzel asked.

"I can't…breathe!"

"Oh!" Rapunzel released him quickly. "Sorry!"

"It's alright." He said after a moment of catching his breath. "I'd hug you, too, but, uh…" He rolled his shoulders.

"Oh!" Rapunzel quickly reached into the pocket of her pale blue dress and produced a key. "The Captain of the Guards gave me a key so I could unlock the cuffs, but I forgot I had it." She leant forward and unlocked the cuffs around his boots, then the ones on his hands.

Eugene let out a sigh of relief. "Thanks, Blondie." He said.

Rapunzel smiled at him, giving him a quick kiss on the check, then, sat back. Pascal crawled into view from underneath her cloak, and she glanced at him. "We're on our way." She said. She frowned. "How long does it take to get to Lunaria, Eugene?"

"About a day." Eugene answered as he put his feet up on the bench Rapunzel sat on and put his hands behind his head. "I hope you brought entertainment. It's going to be a long trip."

Rapunzel nodded and reached underneath her seat to produce a bag. Reaching inside, she brought out three books, a sketchpad and some charcoal pencils, her trusty frying pan, a ball of green yarn and some knitting needles.

"I think I'll be fine." She said, her eyes twinkling. "Oh! I had the Captain grab The Tales of Flynnigan Rider from your cell. I thought you might want to bring it with you." She reached back into the bag and pulled the volume from it.

Eugene chuckled as he took the book from her. "I forgot all about getting someone to grab it for me." He said. "Thank you."

Rapunzel nodded, and replaced all but one of the books she held, and flipped it open to where she had gently folded down the upper right corner. She angled herself on the bench seat to where the sun was shining directly onto the pages so that she could see, and Eugene set his feet near hers, opening his own book, smiling contentedly.

It was going to be a long trip, but at least he had company.

...oOo...

They had been on the road for a few hours, and judging from the way the clouds grew more and more dense outside the little windows and the tinking of rain on the hood of the carriage, the weather had grown stormy and rainy. A low clap of thunder rumbled in the distance, and Eugene sighed. It had grown too dim in the little cabin to read anymore, so Rapunzel had resorted to napping, her head resting on his feet, which remained propped up on the bench, which neither looked nor felt extremely comfortable on his side of the bargain, but he couldn't bring himself to wake the peaceful Princess, so he mentally told his legs to quit protesting and shut up. She obviously hadn't gotten enough sleep the night before if she were this tired.

Eugene shut his eyes, hoping to find a nap of his own. Just as they did, however, he felt a jolt underneath the carriage, and his eyes shot open, and Rapunzel awoke.

There were murmurs of confusion from the guards outside, and then a large ruckus as the carriage came to a very sudden halt, and Rapunzel was thrown from her seat towards him, and he caught her before she could fall.

"What was that?!" Rapunzel asked. "Why have we stopped? Are we in Lunaria already?"

Eugene shook his head. "I don't think so. We've only been on the road for a few hours…"

Just then, shouts erupted from outside, followed by the angered whinny of Maximus, who had been pulling the carriage with one of his companion horses. A key fiddled in the lock of the door, and it swung open, rainy wind gusting in as it did so.

Outside stood a figure that was most definitely not one of the guards. It was a man, somewhere around Eugene's age, with sandy blond hair with a scruffy beard and narrowed green eyes. Eugene quickly stood to his feet, his legs achy, and faced the stranger, placing himself between him and Rapunzel, shielding her from view.

"Who are you? What do you want?" He asked, his mind whirling with possibilities. A thief maybe? But why would he be attacking a prison transport wagon?

The blond grinned menacingly, and tossed his head over his shoulder.

"We've got him!" He yelled to someone that Eugene couldn't see. "He's here!"

Before Eugene had any time to react, the man reached in and grabbed him by the shirt, pulling him out of the carriage into the rain, where the two wrestled for a moment, Eugene's survival instincts kicking in. The blond man finally raised his leg and kneed Eugene hard in the gut, and he doubled over, clearly in pain, and the man kicked his side, and he fell to the muddy ground, defeated. Rapunzel squeaked, and tumbled from the carriage to go to his aid.

"Eugene!" She said. She looked at the man. "Let him go!"

The blond man turned and looked at her, and she saw his green eyes grow wide.

He cursed. "Burks, we have a problem!"

A man with dark hair and eyes ran up to him, and looked at where his companion was nodding. He, too, cursed.

"It's the Princess!" He said. "He never said anything about the Princess being with him!"

"Don't hurt her." Eugene gasped from the ground. "Do whatever you want with me, but don't hurt her!"

"Shut him up!" The dark haired one, Burks, said. His blond friend nodded and kicked Eugene in the head, and Eugene went limp, unconscious.

"Stop it!" Rapunzel yelled, looking around for one of the guards. It was then she saw that all five of them had been knocked unconscious as well, laying haphazardly in the mud. She gasped, her green eyes wide, and looked back at the men in front of her, backing herself against the carriage.

"What do we do?" The blond one asked as his friend bent down and hoisted Eugene's comatose body from the ground.

"Knock her out!" Burks said. "We're not after her! We're just after him!"

The blond man nodded, then advanced towards Rapunzel, who quickly realized she had nowhere to run.

"Who are you?!" She demanded. "What do you want with Eugene?!"

A hand connected with the back of her neck, squeezing it at the base, and Rapunzel felt her knees go weak just before the world went black.

I need a name for Burks' friend. Any suggestions? Hope you enjoyed! :D Can't wait to share the rest with you all soon!

EDIT: Noticed a few typos.