"All right," Luke calls the attention of the small group of tennis team officers. "One more thing before we end today's meeting. My SATs were rescheduled to the Saturday of the first interscholastic meet, so someone needs to take my place. Hiccup and Ruffnut are in the top 3 ranks, so they're automatically part of the team's representatives. Merida, who's the 4th, has a prior commitment on that day. That means that Eret is next in line. Everyone in favor?"

"Aye!" practically everyone present agrees. Ruffnut can't hold back an extra squeal. Her brother Tuffnut rolls his eyes at his sister's obvious crush on the sulky but skilled Eret.

"Can I make a suggestion?" Hiccup raises his hand. "Why don't we send Eugene too? I mean, this might be the perfect opportunity for him to show how much he has improved. It's not the official competition. It's just a semi-friendly meet with the other schools to kind of see what the competition is like. I train with Eugene during the weekends, and he's really good. The other schools know you, me, Ruffnut, Eret, Merida. They're expecting us to show up, but wouldn't it look better if we throw in some newbie who's really good? It'll show that all our members, down to the newest one, are really good players."

"Moving speech, Hiccup," Luke says, half-sarcastically. "Look, I know you really want Eugene to shoot through the ranks, and I will acknowledge that he has improved a lot since the beginning. Still, I don't think he's there yet. It's been our tradition to send our best players, so I'm sorry if I can't grant you this favor of letting your best bud sneak past Eret."

"It's not like that. You're not being fair!" Hiccup exclaims.

"No, you're not being fair," Luke says sternly. "We have ranks in this club, so if he hasn't even been able to make it to the top 10, why should he go? Majority voted. We're sending Eret with you and Ruffnut. Meeting adjourned."

Merida, who isn't an officer of the tennis team, is practicing her returns on the tennis court while waiting for Hiccup and Eugene. She waits in stance for the machine to launch another ball.

"Merida!"

The sudden call startles her. Her surprise causes her to whip around and carelessly swing her racket, which comes into forceful contact with the boy standing behind her.

"Ouch!" he exclaims as he rubs his head in pain.

"Oh my gosh, Hans! I'm so sorry!" Merida drops her racket and rushes to check if her swing had left any mark on the poor photographer's forehead. "I had no idea you were there. Are you okay? Do you need to go to the clinic?"

"No, no," he assures her with a weak smile, still rubbing his head. "It was my fault. I shouldn't've snuck up behind you."

"Don't apologize," she insists. "Were you looking for me?"

"No, I was just passing by and saw you, so I decided to say hi. I didn't think there was any harm in that. Guess I was wrong." The two laugh lightly at his joke. "Why are you here by yourself? The tennis team doesn't train on Mondays."

"Yeah, I was just bored waiting for my two musketeers to finish with errands and meetings. We're going to visit Rapunzel today."

"Oh right, that's why Hiccup brought his bike today. How is she? I haven't seen her since the funeral. Although I doubt it's any better given that everything just happened two weeks ago."

"She hasn't left the house in, like, a week. Her grandparents are staying with her for a couple of months, so at least she's not alone. I cannot possibly imagine exactly what she's feeling and going through right now. No one can. Still, we hope that, with our daily efforts of visiting and talking to her, we can help ease her back to some sense of normalcy."

"Yeah, you guys must feel kinda helpless about this, but she's really lucky to have friends like you."

"Thanks. So why are you still in school at this time?"

"I just finished taking photos of the swimming team for their upcoming meet. See?" He shows her a few shots he had just taken in his digital camera. "I was about to leave, but I saw that the lights here were still on. I thought that maybe it was Eugene since he seems to be training so hard all the time. I'm happy it was you, though."

Merida, fearing that her blush would give her away, walks to her bag to avoid facing Hans. "You want to walk together to the parking lot? I'm supposed to meet Hiccup and Eugene there. Is that also where you were headed?"

Hans nods and waits for Merida to finish packing up before heading to the parking lot together. When they reach the parking lot, Merida turns towards the designated bike area and sees the familiar silhouettes of her two best friends. Hans sees the headlights of his car and says a quick goodbye to Merida before walking briskly to meet it. Disappointed that he left so quickly, Merida watches him for a moment before sighing and walking towards her friends.

"Yo, slowpoke!" Eugene calls her from across the lot. Merida quickens her pace and jogs towards them.

"Was that Hans?" Hiccup asks, his gaze directed at the school gate. "I thought I recognized my car."

"Yup," Merida tells him. "We walked together from the tennis court."

"See? I told you guys to just hitch a ride with me. We could've gotten dropped off at Rapunzel's house before my car brought Hans home."

"Biking's fun!" Eugene says enthusiastically.

"Ugh, but it'll take so much longer to get to Rapunzel's than if we took the car," Hiccup complains.

"You know, for a star athlete, you're pretty lazy," Merida teases him.

"I'm just saying," Hiccup says defensively. "Why refuse a more efficient service if it's readily available? But fine, suit yourselves, let's get all sweaty and go to Rapunzel's. Oh, before I forget, sorry, Eugene. I tried to vouch for you, but the other officers voted for Eret."

"Can't say I'm surprised," Eugene sighs. "Why not you, Mer? Aren't you ranked higher than him?"

"Yeah, but I have a family thing that day, so I declined," Merida explains.

"When will they give me a chance to prove to them I've got what it takes?"

"You'll get there. Chin up, bud. So what did you do this whole time then?"

"I actually rushed home to get something. It's a little something Rapunzel gave me when my dad died, so I thought I could loan it to her since it helped me get through that tough time."

"That's really sweet," Merida beams at him. "I guess we should start heading there before it gets too dark."

They hop on the bikes and make their way to comfort their mourning friend.

Rapunzel is lying on her bed, staring at the wall, her mind racing but with no concrete thoughts. She vaguely hears the doorbell. Her phone rings with the tone she assigned to her closest friends. After a few deep breaths, she finally gets up and makes her way downstairs to the door.

"Hey, Rapunzel!" her friends greet her warmly as they take in her disheveled hair, puffy eyes and enlarged eye bags. They bring in the takeout they bought for dinner.

"Are your grandparents here?" Merida asks and hugs her best friend. She feels Rapunzel shake her head against her shoulder. "It's a good thing we came here then. Wouldn't want you to be all alone the whole day."

"They went back to their farm to fix some stuff," Rapunzel expounds. "They'll be back this weekend. They asked me to come with them, but I told them I can't leave because I'm going back to school."

"Really?" Eugene asks in mild surprise. "Not that that wouldn't be great, but I just didn't think you'd decide so suddenly."

"Yup," Rapunzel assures them. "I told myself that I would only mope around and cry for one more week after the funeral, then I'd have to pick myself up and sort out my life. Tomorrow is the fresh start I dread but need to get through."

"That's really brave of you, Punz," Hiccup commends her.

"Thanks, you guys. To be honest, I don't think I would have been as strong if you weren't always here for me. I'm not completely okay yet. At this point, I don't think I'll ever be, so I'm still going to need you a lot. But really, just be honest and tell me if I'm being too needy or clingy. I know you guys have lives too."

"Please," Merida shushes her. "Don't ever feel the need to apologize. I'm your best friend, and I will be here for you 24/7 if you need me."

"Me too," Eugene and Hiccup agree simultaneously. Hiccup finishes transferring the takeout into separate plates, and they gather around the kitchen island and start digging into their dinner.

"So, were you all right today without your grandparents?" Hiccup asks.

"Honestly? I love my grandparents, but they make me feel like a child. I actually feel lonelier because they remind me so much of my parents. I don't know if they're trying to act like them on purpose, or just their being here makes me think of my parents more, but I'm a little relieved to have the house to myself for the next few days."

"What did you do today then?" Eugene asks in turn.

"Like most days so far, I basically stayed in bed the whole day. Although, I did try to go into my parents room to try and sort some of their things. Obviously, that didn't go very well."

"Aww, Punzie," Merida sighs. "I can't imagine you being here all by yourself for how many days. Do you want me to sleep over?"

"You don't have to," Rapunzel says. "I'll be okay. You visit me everyday already. I really appreciate that."

"Oh, here," Eugene takes out a few leaves of paper from his bag. "Your daily subscription of photocopied notes from class."

"You're the best, Flynn," Eugene smiles fondly at her usage of his childhood nickname. "Thank god, we have the same classes. Now, you're forced to pay attention and take notes. You must really love me."

"Hey, I just want to make things a little easier for you. Wouldn't want you to stress out over missed classes or anything."

"You're really sweet," she beams at him.

"So, what did your grandparents say when you told them you were going back to school?" Hiccup asks.

"We actually argued about it because they initially told me that I'd be moving in with them. They said that they can't leave me here on my own. All my close relatives live in different countries, so they're the closest ones I have. Thing is, they live way up north on their farm. It's not exactly the best place to go to school. So after a lot of discussions and arguments, they agreed to let me finish high school here."

Rapunzel stands up and takes the plates they had eaten from and loads them into dishwasher as she continues her narrative. "They said that when I graduate, they'll sell this house while I go off to university. Whenever I need to go home in the future, I'll go home to their ranch. So for the rest of high school, they'll hire a housekeeper to do the chores, cook, and keep an eye on me. We'll visit each other on the weekends. I agreed to that arrangement."

"Well, at least you get to stay until graduation," Merida says. "I'm still not too sure about you living alone. I'm surprised your grandparents gave in to that."

"I make a good case," Rapunzel tells her. "Anyway, I'm perfectly capable of looking after myself and keeping house even without a maid. And this gives me the perfect reason to have you guys over. You wouldn't want me dying of loneliness or boredom, would you?"

The friends laugh for the first time during the visit and swear to come over as often as possible. Hiccup extends the invitation to have her over to his place, as well, since Merida and Eugene usually hang out there. Rapunzel smiles and graciously accepts the offer. Her heart lightens a tiny fraction at the happiness her friends' visit has brought.

They look at the time and decide that it's time to go. She walks her friends to her front door before pulling them into a group hug.

"I honestly don't know what I'd do without you guys," she tells them, not holding back tears. "You're my family now."

Hiccup and Eugene each pull her into a tight embrace before going through the door. A few minutes after leaving, Eugene realizes that he hadn't given Rapunzel the gift. Instead of going back, he makes a note to give it some other time.

Meanwhile, in Rapunzel's house, Merida hasn't left. She sheepishly shows Rapunzel her packed clothes and asks if she can spend the night. Rapunzel tears up again at her best friend's ability to read her needs and hugs her tightly in response.

As they prepare for bed, Rapunzel asks Merida to distract her from her thoughts and catch her up with the latest gossip in school. They laugh and giggle like old times over Merida's news until they fall asleep.