Wasn't Love, Blondie

by little princess 15

AU: Flynn wanted to steal the princess' crown, he never planned for the Princess herself to tag along. One thing is for certain; no one messes with Flynn Rider, and he wasn't going to let this girl start now. He had to find a way to get rid of her, and losing his heart along the way wasn't an option. Of course, that was easier said than done.

5. Stowaway

Chapter 5: Stowaway

I want to thank all of those who left a review or a favorite/alert for this story in the last chapter. Sorry it took this long to update, but here it is! The newest chapter to WLB, and an extremely long one to compensate for the long wait. So for those who liked flirty Flynn in the last chapter, you're gonna love this one too.

Disclaimer: nope don't own anything.

---

Cause I can see that the candle you hold inside has a cloud around it.

How can a heart like yours be that high and dry, when it burns the brightest?

~Shout About It

---

"He smiled charmingly at the beautiful princess before him, and with a final wave of his hand he hopped onto his white stallion, promising the young maiden that he would return one day. And with that, Flynnigan Rider pulled at the reins of his magnificent steed, urging him forward and riding off into the horizon, ready for the next big adventure. The end." Eugene finished with a satisfied grin, chuckling lightheartedly at the chorus of disappointed exclamations coming from his young audience.

"Read it again! Read it again!" The small girl beside him pleaded, her pigtails flopping against her puffy cheeks as she bounced in her seat. The girl's pleading was followed by the sound of a dozen more voices asking him to read the story again. He was more than a bit amused by their eagerness.

"But I just finished reading it." He smirked, already knowing the answer he was going to receive. "Besides, it's already late."

"No, it's not!" Another boy exclaimed, his slightly long bangs falling over his eyes and smile missing a tooth. "We're not tired yet." The other kids exclaimed their agreement, even though he could clearly see their slightly dropping eyelids and more than one trying to hide a yawn behind pudgy hands.

"Please read it again, Eugene."

Eugene's smile softened. He wasn't close to admitting that he had a soft spot for the younger children, the ones with whom he shared half of the already few things the orphanage provided for them, with their wide innocent eyes and gap-toothed smiles, pudgy hands and puffy cheeks. They all shared one thing in common; they were alone in a world that was far too cruel for them. They had no one but each other.

Life at the orphanage was anything but easy. There were times where there wasn't enough food to feed the children, or not enough money to buy half-descent clothes for the winter. They all learned to share what little they had, and looked after each other given the fact that they had no one else to care for them but themselves.

And Eugene had somehow taken up the roll of older brother, the one who took care of them when no one else would, the one who cheered them up on particularly sad days, the one they went to talk about their problems to, the one they reached for on stormy nights trusting him to protect them from any harm. They looked up to him, trusted him. And in return, over the years he developed a characteristic protective side and a secret fondness for each and every one of his orphanage companions

But companionship was as far as it could go. Getting attached to anyone at the orphanage meant getting hurt in the end. He knew that all too well. Being the oldest kid in the orphanage meant watching all the younger kids grow up, share everything with them, look after them as if they were his younger siblings, and expect to say goodbye to them forever any other day.

But for the time being, who was he to deny them what little made them happy? He couldn't quite bring himself to say no to those wide innocent eyes. He heaved a dramatic sigh, rolled his eyes and raised his hand, successfully silencing the excited chorus of voices pleading him to read again.

"Okay, fine. But only half of the story." He conceded, already opening the old book in the first page. The kids barely had time to celebrate before their cheers were silenced once more.

"Absolutely not. You lot are already past your curfew!" Eugene winced slightly as the strong voice of Mrs. Hilda, the orphanage's headmistress, boomed across the room. He already knew what was coming; he would surely get in trouble for keeping the younger kids awake for longer than allowed.

He could see the disappointment clouding the kids' previously excited stares, but they knew better than to complain. Mrs. Hilda wasn't exactly a patient woman. "I want you all in bed in less than five minutes! And tomorrow I want you rise and shine by sunrise and in your best behavior. It's going to be Parents' Day."

That sure did it. Their slightly downcast mood instantly morphed into and excitement spree. Before he could even blink twice, they were all running up the stairs, cheering loudly and giggling as they went. Eugene on the other hand could already feel the dread pooling at the bottom of his stomach.

Parents' Day was the worst day in Eugene's opinion. At the early age of eleven, he was no longer naïve enough to believe that he would ever leave the orphanage nestled between the arms of a new family. He was already too old. Parents didn't want a grown up kid to be a part of their family. It was rare the days that a young couple came to the orphanage to look for a kid to adopt. And whenever they did, he could be almost certain that they would take any other kid but him.

He couldn't say that it hadn't hurt, waiting every year expectantly and watching as kids came and went, as his other companions would get picked but he would always remain in the end, wondering if maybe next time he would be lucky enough to leave the orphanage with a new family who wanted him. As the years went by that illusion had died little by little. Time and time again parents would come, and each time he would be left behind. Until eventually, he had stopped expecting anything else.

For him, Parents' Day meant he would have to say goodbye to a few of the younger kids, never to see them again, and yet he would remain in the dusty old room that he shared with the rest of the orphan children. He would forever be a reject, just as he'd always been. An orphan boy without a past and without a future to look forward to.

Twisting his mouth in a slight grimace, Eugene closed the book with a heavy sigh, mentally preparing himself for a long day tomorrow. Maybe he would go hide in the attic and spend his day reading books under the light of a candle. It's not like anyone would miss him anyway, the other kids would be way too excited to even notice his absence.

He was just about to leave the room when the voice of the old matron interrupted his line of thoughts. "Not so fast, Eugene. We need to talk."

Fighting the urge to roll his eyes in annoyance, Eugene whirled around to face the woman. "I don't believe I did anything wrong, Mrs. Hilda." He tried an innocent smile, maybe he would manage to convince the headmistress to assign him a less torturous punishment for keeping the younger kids awake without permission.

The plump woman raised an unconvinced eyebrow behind her half-moon glasses. "I never said that you did."

Huh, that was new. Usually he would get chastised for whatever shenanigans he was prone to commit. He had to admit he wasn't exactly an easy boy to deal with. He stared at the old matron expectantly, waiting for her to speak again and unsure if any comment from his part would be welcomed. He had been accused of being a far too cheeky and sassy boy for his own good.

Mrs. Hilda waited a few moments, as if searching for the right words, and then finally spoke. "I want you to pack up all your belongings and wait for me in the hallway outside the bedrooms."

That was all she said. If Eugene didn't know any better he would say the old headmistress was in fact avoiding eye-contact. He didn't have enough time to process the orders he had just received before the woman left the room. And once he did, he was assaulted by a mix of bewilderment and uneasiness.

Why would he need to pack his things? Was he being kicked out of the orphanage? The thought sent a shiver down his spine. Sure, he didn't exactly like the orphanage, with its old worn-out furniture, dusty windows and cold, dark rooms. But it was the closest thing he had to a home. It was the only thing keeping him from starving alone in the streets. What would he do if they kicked him out?

With a feeling of dread even greater than before, he slowly made his way upstairs, heading into his room. It didn't take him long to pack the very few belongings that he actually owned. The kids with whom he shared a room were already asleep. Taking Mrs. Hilda's orders very seriously, they had probably hopped in bed immediately after they went upstairs. He was slightly relieved by that, he wouldn't have to endure the interrogating glances and curious questions that would have headed his way had they been awake.

He moved as silently as possible and exited the room without making a noise. He was used to sneaking around after all. Years of experience sneaking out of the orphanage past curfew to take a walk throughout the village were coming in handy now.

He waited impatiently for Mrs. Hilda to come, and a few minutes later he finally saw her silhouette approaching from the stairs. The woman had barely rounded the corner before Eugene practically jumped over her.

"Am I getting kicked out?" He was mildly embarrassed by the note of panic clearly noticeable in his voice, but at the moment he had more important things to worry about, like where exactly was he going to spend the night if he had nowhere to stay and no money of his own.

Mrs. Hilda's eyes widened slightly in bewilderment before they settled over him again. Eugene could've sworn he saw a hint of pity behind those half-moon glasses. If the situation had been different he would've been quite annoyed by that. "No dear, why would you think that?"

Eugene almost let out a relieved sigh. "Well... why else would you make me pack my things?" He asked, still slightly confused as he followed the old headmistress up the stairs. The faint light of the candle in Mrs. Hilda's hand casted large shadows around the corners, making the hairs at the back of Eugene's head stand on end. He instinctively stepped closer to the old woman's larger body. "Either I'm getting kicked out or..." He trailed off, not really sure if he even dared to voice his sudden thoughts.

The way he saw it, there were only two reasons why any kid would have to pack the very few things they had in their possession. Either they were leaving the orphanage by getting kicked out... or by getting adopted.

Tomorrow was Parent's Day. And if he wasn't actually getting kicked out of the orphanage, that could only mean...

No. Could it be? After all those years of hoping and expecting and in the end being let down, could it be possible that he was finally getting adopted? A million questions ran through his head at the same time. Why hadn't they waited until tomorrow to tell him? Why would anyone want to adopt an eleven year old boy? Why was Mrs. Hilda leading him upstairs instead of downstairs?

Despite the fact of having told himself a thousand times not to get his hopes up and to always be prepared for the worst case scenario, all his good judgment flew out the window and was replaced by a rush of excitement at the thought of finally leaving the orphanage for a better place. No more cold slightly rancid excuses of meals far too insubstantial to satisfy anyone's hunger, no more worn-out hand-me-down clothes two sizes smaller than his, no more frayed old blankets too thin to protect him from the harsh cold winters. No more nights spent alone wondering if he would ever be good enough to deserve the love of someone.

He was so wrapped up in his own thoughts to notice the path Mrs. Hilda was leading him through up the rickety stairs. He almost crashed against the old matron's body once she came to a halt right in front of a familiar trapdoor.

"...What...?"

"Look, Eugene, I'm... really sorry about this-"

"What are we doing here?" He shamelessly interrupted the old woman, his elation instantly dying inside his chest.

Mrs. Hilda seemed to struggle for words for a moment. "Well... Eugene you're already eleven, you're not a little kid anymore and..." She sighed, rubbing her temples and closing her eyes, as if looking at him directly suddenly had become too much for her to bear. "I think it's time. You can't share a room with the other kids anymore."

He felt his throat close up for a second, his eyes widening as he tried to make sense of the situation. "B-But... I-I don't mind sharing a room. I'm sure the others don't mind either, why would I have to move?" He was sure his voice came out squeakier than he would've liked but at this moment he couldn't care less.

"I'm sorry Eugene, you're already too old to share a room with them. It's not about if you mind or don't, it's not appropriate anymore." Mrs. Hilda pulled at the old string of rope tied to the trapdoor's handgrip and a small frail-looking ladder came down from the new opening. Eugene swallowed nervously.

"B-But... You can't make me stay there!" He exclaimed. He could already feel a hint of panic settling deep in his belly. "It's cold and dark a-and full of cobwebs and..." And he wasn't about to admit that he was slightly afraid of spiders. And the attic was full of them, lurking in every corner. Just the thought made him shiver in disgust.

"Oh, it's gonna be okay." Mrs. Hilda waved him off, clearly not finding his arguments worthy of consideration. "You'll see, it will be exciting to have a whole room for yourself. You won't have to share it with anyone!"

"Yeah, except all the boxes and broken furniture and all the things no one wants and get thrown in there..." He muttered snidely, crossing his arms in annoyance. Oh yeah, and the spiders. He would also have to share the room with the spiders. He would gladly share a room with a thousand other kids any day.

"We'll make more room for you when we have the time." The old headmistress said in a fake cheery voice clearly meant to calm him down a bit. It was not working at all.

"Something tells me that's not gonna happen any time soon." The thought alone of spending the night in the dark dusty room was enough to set his nerves on edge. He turned to the old matron, his eyes wide and pleading. "Please don't make me stay there. Please!"

"I'm sorry Eugene, but we have no more room. We have nowhere else for you to stay." To her credit, Mrs. Hilda did seem slightly sorry for making him stay in the attic. Although clearly she wasn't sorry enough to change her mind. "But it's okay, you won't have to stay there for long. Once you get adopted you'll have a room especially for you."

His jaw almost hit the floor in that moment. That practically meant he would have to stay in that godforsaken room for as long as he stayed in the orphanage. "I'm never gonna get adopted!"

Mrs. Hilda's eyes widened for a moment. She regarded him carefully as Eugene swallowed the pitiful lump in his throat, blinking back the telltale stinging behind his eyelids. "I'm sorry Eugene."

That was all she said. With one last pitying look sent his way, the old headmistress made her way down the stairs, leaving him alone in the darkness of the hallway with only one choice at hand; climb up the ladder to his new 'room', or spend the night in the corridor. Neither seemed too appealing anyway.

With a feeling of dread he finally climbed up the ladder, his old worn-out satchel containing the very few things he actually owned clutched in one hand. Once his head had crossed the trapdoor's entrance he was engulfed by darkness, his eyes adjusted to the shadows around him, barely making out the faint silhouette of the bed casted aside in the far corner of the room. There was a small window next to the bed, the pale silvery moonlight barely illuminated the room enough for him to make his way around dusty boxes and broken furniture. His nose itched slightly as puffs of dust swirled in the air with every step he took, and he couldn't quite adjust to the musty, stuffy atmosphere that engulfed the entire place.

Eugene let out a strained cough as he flopped lethargically over the thin mattress. In hindsight, he really should've known better than to expect anything else. Of course he wasn't about to get adopted, who in their right mind would choose him over all the other younger kids? He mentally kicked himself for his naivety as another thought invaded his mind. What would the other kids do once they noticed he was no longer sharing a room with them?

He knew he really had no reason to worry, but he couldn't help but think about them. What would Ginger do if she woke up from one of her usual nightmares and went over to Eugene's place, as she usually did, only to find that his bed was empty now and there was no one there to comfort her? Who would Eddy talk to when he couldn't sleep at night and there was no one else willing to stay up with him until he fell asleep? Who would come up with Sarah's goodnight stories or tuck little Timmy in bed every night? No one else would do those things but him.

He sighed heavily, coughing against the lump stuck at the back of his throat, his already obscured vision blurring slightly with tears he still stubbornly refused to let slip down his cheeks. He had not felt this lonely and incredibly unwanted since the day he had arrived at the orphanage, with no one else in the world to care for him but himself. Not since his mother had tragically passed away after a whole week battling between life and death when she got sick with the plague. He had been no older than five when that had happened. It didn't surprise him that his luck hadn't quite changed since that day. Why would he even think anyone would adopt him when not even his own father had wanted to take him in? No, his dear old father was out there, living the life of a king while he let his own son rot away in the attic of an old orphanage.

He should really be used to it by now. He would forever be a reject, a poor little orphan boy with nothing but a silly impossible dream and a knack for getting in trouble. The world had no room for people like him; a worthless bastard, that's what they liked to call them.

Eugene ran his hands over the worn-out cover of his favorite book, the one he had brought with him since the moment he had finished reading it to the younger kids. He trailed the already fading golden letters of the title: The Tales of Flynnigan Rider. Opening the book in the very last page, his eyes landed over the illustrations decorating the paper.

He had once had a dream, a silly little dream; he wanted to grow up to be just like his favorite hero, Flynnigan Rider. A swashbuckling rogue, a rich man, adventurous, charming, with a bright future ahead of him and a crowd of people always cheering him wherever he went. He wanted to explore the world, live the most exciting adventures, and maybe he'd leave all the romance with princesses out of the story cause that wasn't really of his interest anyway.

He was a lonely boy with a dream far too big for his realistic expectations. Who was he kidding anyway? He wouldn't live up to be the swashbuckling charming hero of his favorite book. He was doomed to stay alone and forgotten in the corner of a musty old attic in an orphanage no one even noticed in the poorest part of the village. He would forever be poor orphan Eugene Fitzherbert.

Heaving a deep shaky breath, he closed the book with a snap, tossing it aside as he curled himself over the mattress. And if that night he finally let a string of tears past his tightly closed eyelids, and a broken sob escaped his throat more than once as he cried himself to sleep, he would never admit it. There was no one there to watch him, no one would even care anyway.

Unbeknownst to him at the time, that night would be the night he finally decided he was tired of being just poor orphan Eugene Fitzherbert. He wouldn't shed another tear in many years after that, he wouldn't even stay in the orphanage for much longer. A few years later, he would be leaving his old life behind without ever looking back and adventuring into a life he never thought he would have. A few years later he would be burying the name of Eugene Fitzherbert and everything it entitled in the deepest corner of his soul, only to become a twisted version of what he'd wanted to be. It wouldn't be much longer before the world forgot who the poor little orphan boy was, and instead Flynn Rider took over his persona, becoming the most wanted, and most successful thief in the realm.

But for the time being, he let himself break down for the last time, crying for the life he'd never have, the love he would never receive, and a bunch of dreams that would slip away along with his tears.

---

Flynn woke up with a start, chest heaving as he blinked back the grogginess still clouding his thoughts. He tried to adjust his eyes to his surroundings, wondering for a moment just where he had managed to land himself last night. He let out a soft grunt as his vision finally focused, shaking his head to get rid of the last remnants of the memories of his fuzzy dream. It had been quite a long time since hazy memories of his past came to haunt him in his dreams. Needless to say he wasn't exactly fond of them. Flynn Rider had absolutely no time to spare to the memory of softie Eugene Fitzherbert. That was a part of him that would forever be locked away in the darkest corner of his very soul. He had more important things to do than to duel over the past.

It was still dark, but by the telltale shade of indigo flooding the room through the window he could tell it was just a few minutes before dawn. Flynn stretched his stiff limbs across the floor, finally realizing just exactly where he was and what he was doing there. He almost wanted it to be a particularly unpleasant dream. Groaning slightly, he finally stood up, rubbing a crick in the back of his neck and cracking a few bones while he stretched his stiff muscles. He was suddenly acutely aware of how much he hated sleeping on the floor. A mistake he would be sure never to repeat again.

Stifling a tired yawn, Flynn's eyes finally landed over the lump on the mattress nestled comfortably under the covers of the bed in front of him. He didn't know whether to be bitterly amused or annoyed by the irony of his whole situation. Here he was, dreaming about his past and the hopes he'd had when he had been a naïve little boy and coming to the realization that none of the things he had hoped to be had exactly come true now. Sure, he was a rogue indeed, in every sense of the word, but he was also a thief, the most wanted criminal in the kingdom to be exact. He was a charming guy of course, and quite the attractive catch according to more than a few ladies he'd met over the years, but he couldn't exactly be labeled as swashbuckling. He wasn't rich, although he had come quite close to fulfilling that particular goal if it weren't for the girl currently sleeping soundly in the bed before him. And how ironic was it that he had indeed met a princess, but she was anything but a demure lovely maiden and was actually the bane of his existence as of now.

All in all, things had not turned out quite like he'd planned. He didn't own an island of his own, he hadn't built a castle, and he was as close to making his dream come true as he was to getting rid of the stubborn princess accompanying him, which was a whole other problem he had to deal with. He wondered briefly when exactly had his life turned out to be such a bittersweet irony as he carefully made his way towards the young woman sleeping comfortably under the dusty covers of the small bed.

He was surprised to find the image before him quite a bit amusing. Rapunzel's hair was a mess of tangled blonde locks haphazardly curling all over the place. She had one arm tucked comfortably under her head while her other hand hung over the side of the bed, her fingers curling limply around the handle of her frying pan. Half of her face was squished against the pillow, her mouth slightly open as her soft breaths blew at the strands of hair falling messily over her face.

He rolled his eyes, remembering the last time he'd had to wake her up and the outcome of said situation. Holding himself at a safe distance, he leaned over and poked her cheek. "Hey Blondie."

Rapunzel's nose twitched in a way he could only describe as adorable, safe for the fact that he wouldn't admit that he found the gesture cute not even to himself. She groaned softly and curled her legs closer to herself, snuggling comfortably under the thin blankets. Flynn twisted his mouth in annoyance as he attempted to wake her up a second time, now shoving her shoulder in a gesture that was much less gentle. "Blondie, wake up!"

Rapunzel's eyes fluttered open, she only focused on him for a moment before she jumped in surprise, letting out a slightly panicked squeak and scooting as far away from him as the tangled sheets would let her, clutching the frying pan now in both hands. "Did I not tell you to stay away from my bed?"

Flynn rolled his eyes. "Then how do you suppose I'd wake you up? Throwing a pillow at you?" He paused, considering the option a second time as the princess' eyes narrowed. "Actually that doesn't seem like such a bad idea now that I think about it."

"Why would you wake me up in the middle of the night?" Rapunzel rubbed her eyes sleepily, suppressing a yawn as she seemed to relax a bit.

"Sorry to break it to you, Blondie, but it's almost dawn." Flynn answered bluntly as he turned his back to her, padding across the room in search for his doublet and boots, which he had removed the night before. "And much to our inconvenience, we've already overslept. So you better get yourself ready, we should live preferably by sunrise."

He vaguely heard her grumble something under her breath, and then the faint sound of her weird lizard hissing something in return. He ignored both as he adjusted his old boots back on his feet. "Why must we leave so early?"

Flynn turned back to her with a slightly exasperated sigh, fiddling with the few buttons of his shirt he had managed to unbutton the night before. "Because, Princess, the sooner we leave, the sooner we'll get to MistHaven, and I'd rather not delay our journey more than absolutely necessary."

It was only then that he noticed Rapunzel's slightly transfixed gaze. Her eyes widened and he noticed her pale cheeks coloring a bright shade of pink as she stared fixedly at him, or rather his hands hastily buttoning his shirt and slowly covering what little had been left exposed of his chest. He raised a curious eyebrow, his lips slowly curling into a mischievous smirk.

"See something you like, Blondie?" The teasing remark instantly snapped her out of her stupor. She blinked a few times, averting her eyes as a deep blush colored her cheeks.

"Hah, you wish." Rapunzel scoffed indignantly, her eyebrows furrowing as she tried her best to avoid his teasing gaze. "I'm just amazed by how little modesty you seem to have."

Flynn chuckled amusedly, her flustered behavior clearly giving away her uneasiness with the whole situation. "Well, it may have something to do with the fact that, unlike you, I wasn't raised in a castle." He adjusted his vest over his shoulders, not missing the fact that Rapunzel seemed intent on setting her eyes on anything but him. "Besides, it's just a vest and a few loose buttons. It's really not that big of a deal."

"Oh, I beg to differ. This whole situation is inappropriate enough to begin with." She hopped off the bed with a swift move, her hair cascading in a mess of blonde curls down her back and trailing behind her as she walked towards the cloak she had left over the hook in the wall next to the door. "For starters, you should have never spent the night in my room."

Flynn couldn't deny he was enjoying the princess' mild discomfort with their current sleeping arrangements. For the rebellious girl she had initially seemed to be, she was far too concerned with her pristine reputation. "You know what? You're totally right. This whole situation is far too scandalous for a princess to be involved in." He smirked, noticing how Rapunzel's eyes instantly narrowed in suspicion. "But this is just the start of our journey. If you are already this concerned, perhaps it's best to turn and head back to the tower-"

"No!"

One corner of Flynn's mouth slowly lifted into a sly smirk as Rapunzel tried to arrange her slightly panicked expression into a less hysteric and seemingly unconcerned demeanor. "I mean, no. I can handle this. If you want to continue with your intrusive and completely indecent behavior, then go ahead and do it. I couldn't care less."

"Hmm. Sure."

"Ugh! Let's just go already." She grumbled moodily. Rapunzel haughtily opened the door of the room and stepped into the hallway, already moving ahead of him and towards the stairs. Flynn followed behind her with a snigger, swinging the strap of his satchel over his shoulder and closing the door behind him.

As they crossed the deserted hallway in silence, he tried to ignore the reasonable voice in his head telling him to just ditch the crazy princess and run as fast as his legs would carry him away from her. Someone else would find her, she would become someone else's problem. He could always pull other stunts, steal countless other valuable things, forget about the stupid crown, the princess and everything that had come with them after he had gotten himself tangled in this mess. He really should just leave Corona and everything behind, he had enough problems with his life as it was, he had no need to add another even greater mistake into the pile of the many regrets he had in his hardly satisfactory life. And yet, there was something inexplicable tying him to the stubborn girl walking before him.

Maybe it was the fact that stealing that crown had become his recent obsession since the moment the plan had come up into his mind. Selling that single piece of invaluable worth would grant him a world of possibilities that had never been an option for him. With the money he would receive after selling the crown, he could finally fulfill the fruitless dream that had fueled him on during all those years. An island of his own, maybe a castle for himself, piles of money and no more worries for the rest of his life; that was the life he'd always wanted. But the only way to get that was by helping Rapunzel fulfill her rebellious whim, and he had absolutely no desire to get further involved with the stubborn princess' problems.

He was suddenly snapped out of his thoughts by the sound of Rapunzel's pet lizard hissing. His gaze traveled to Rapunzel's shoulder, where the frog pointed and accusatory tail at him, eyes narrowed and a suspicious look on his reptilian features. Flynn tried to shake off the uneasy feeling that the frog knew exactly what had been going on in his head a few seconds earlier.

It wasn't long before they had traveled down the stairs, and before Rapunzel could step into the dining hall, Flynn hastily pulled the hood of her cloak over her head while she made an effort to collect her hair once more into her arms and hide it perfectly beneath her cloak. Once they were sure her identity was perfectly concealed, they made their way into the dining hall, which was considerably empty considering it was barely dawn.

Flynn had every intention to make a beeline towards the bar, to the same spots Rapunzel and him had occupied the night before, when an all too familiar voice interrupted him. "My my, why, is it not Flynn Rider?"

Flynn stopped dead in his tracks, grimacing slightly as he recognized just who the owner of the particularly melodic voice was. He turned around, ignoring the inquisitive glance Rapunzel threw his way under the cover of her cloak.

"Scarlet. Fancy seeing you here." He smiled, although his voice lacked any kind of enthusiasm. He'd have to admit he was quite hoping the barmaids wouldn't be working yet, at least not this early in the morning. He wasn't exactly pleased to find out he had been wrong.

The young woman's blood-red lips parted into a wide smile, her perfectly white teeth seemed to be shining in the dim light of the tavern. "It's been a while since you granted us with your presence, handsome." She winked, her hands resting over her perfectly defined hips. "What have you been up to lately? You've left me quite lonely these past few months."

Flynn tried to ignore the fake pout Scarlet sent his way, and instead made his way through the haphazardly accommodated rows of tables, Rapunzel silently following behind him. "Oh, you know... life's been busy."

He'd hoped his curt answer would discourage the young barmaid, but instead she followed him across the dining hall, clearly intent on having some answers. "You could've at least dropped by and pay me a visit. I've been waiting for you and you never come."

He could practically feel Rapunzel's eyes digging a hole in his head, and he didn't quite like the fact that Scarlet had more than likely piqued the princess' interest. "You know I'm a busy man, Scarlet." He shrugged dismissively, more than a bit exasperated when he was intercepted by the young barmaid now standing on his way, arms crossed over her chest in an indignant gesture. He didn't fail to notice her new posture only served to enhance the view of her already prominent cleavage. Flynn fought the urge to roll his eyes, he didn't have time to deal with this now.

"Well then I sure hope you have some time to spare right now. It's been a while since you've told me any of your stories." Scarlet's lips lifted into what could only be described as a suggestive smile, her blue eyes diverted towards Rapunzel for a second, and seemingly disinterested by his new companion, they soon settled over him once more. "How about you tell me more about the adventures you've had lately?"

She trailed her index finger down his arm, clearly oblivious to Flynn's apathetic demeanor. He noticed Rapunzel beside him inched closer to him, whether if it was out of interest or just to help him make the other woman take a hint, he wasn't quite sure. Either way, they were luckily interrupted by Gustav's booming voice echoing throughout the dining hall.

"I ain't paying ye to be Rider's only audience girl!" The bartender hollered from his spot behind the bar in the corner of the room, making Scarlet roll her eyes in annoyance. "Get back to work!"

"No need to shout Gustav!" She complained moodily, sighing as she picked up the rag she had previously been using to clean the tables. "Well, hope to see you soon again, handsome. Maybe then you can tell me all about your latest adventures."

With one last flirty wink sent in his direction, the young barmaid went back to work, crossing the dining hall with swift strides while moving her hips enticingly as she walked and finally disappeared behind the doors leading to the kitchen at the back of the tavern. There was a moment of awkward silence that Flynn gladly took to continue making his way through the rows of tables scattered in no apparent order all around the tavern while Rapunzel trailed beside him. However, much to his annoyance, it wasn't long before she broke the silence.

"So... who was that?"

"I don't see why that's any of your business."

"Is she your girlfriend?"

Flynn sputtered in surprise, not quite sure how to respond to that kind of suggestion. "What on earth would make you think that?"

Rapunzel shrugged. "Don't know. It seemed to me like she could be."

"I don't have a girlfriend." Flynn scoffed, completely appalled by the suggestion. "I'm not exactly boyfriend material."

Rapunzel seemed to consider his response for a few seconds. "Why not?"

"Dunno." Flynn shrugged dismissively, not quite liking the direction this conversation was taking. "I never really liked the idea of being attached to anyone. Feels more like a burden to me."

He could clearly imagine Rapunzel frowning at his reply, even though he couldn't exactly see her covered under the shadow of her hood. "If she's not your girlfriend, then who was she?"

Flynn sighed, running his hand across his face in a thoroughly tired gesture. "Let's just say she's... a lady friend."

Rapunzel snorted. "Lady friend? What exactly does the term 'friend' cover for you?"

"Why the sudden interest?" Flynn raised a questioning eyebrow, the corner of his lips lifting in a characteristic teasing smirk. Rapunzel rolled her eyes.

"No reason." She sat as gracefully as her oversized dress would let her on the stool before the bar. "Just want to make sure I can avoid the unfortunate situation of you ever calling me that. I mean, clearly a 'friend' means something much different to you than it does to me."

"Oh, believe me Blondie, we are anything but friends." Flynn flopped tiredly on the stool next to her. "Let's just say we're... partners in crime. We are merely keeping the ends of our deals and nothing more. No strings attached." He liked the idea of defining his weird relationship with the princess as merely a means to an end. Whatever contact he had with her would soon be over and he would continue with his life as it was and forget he ever made the mistake of kidnapping a princess and then letting her blackmail him. He had absolutely no desire to label their treatment with each other as anything else.

Rapunzel didn't seem exactly satisfied with said label though. "Partners in crime? Excuse me but I am not helping you with whatever crimes you like to commit, Flynn." She huffed indignantly.

"Oh puh-lease! Don't flatter yourself, Blondie. You are a sly, deceitful little thing and you know it."

He could imagine the appalled look she must have had under the cover of her hood if the indignant exclamation he received was any indication. "Oh now I'm the deceitful one? How dare you accuse me of such a thing!"

Flynn pretended to consider her reply for a moment, resting his hand over his chin in a fake thoughtful gesture. "Hmm, let's see. You strike a deal with a thief, you're currently traveling with a criminal, you tricked said criminal into helping you for your own rebellious, selfish reasons, and you're deceiving the whole kingdom into thinking you were kidnapped."

Rapunzel sputtered for a moment, apparently too peeved to form a coherent answer to his accusations. "I was kidnapped! I'm not deceiving anyone, you very much kidnapped me! If anything I'm merely making you pay for taking me away from my home against my will."

"Call it what you will." Flynn shrugged dismissively, enjoying the way he'd managed to rile up the princess. He could almost bet she was now flushing red, her cheeks puffing in anger. He'd seen that very same look more than once over the last few days. "I like to call it blackmail."

"I-I didn't-" Rapunzel was suddenly interrupted by the large bartender's voice making his presence known to the arguing pair.

"I thought ye'd be gone by now." Grumbled Gustav, clearly not liking the idea of housing one Flynn Rider in his tavern for longer than absolutely necessary. Flynn's smirk widened.

"And I was on my way, believe me. Just thought we might as well stop for a quick breakfast." His eyes suddenly took on a sly glint as he regarded the bigger man, all previous humor leaving his features. "Also, I might need a little more information before I take my leave."

Gustav's large eyebrows furrowed displeasingly. "What makes ye think I'll give ye any kind of information fer free."

"I figured the price I paid for a single room for the night was more than enough to cover any other expenses. Including the information I need." Flynn raised his eyebrows to emphasize his suggestion. Gustav, however, was having none of it.

"Well ye were wrong. I ain't giving ye nothing fer free." The bartender snapped, his gruff voice sounding more like a growl. This didn't bother Flynn in the slightest. He was used to having his way, he could easily convince anyone to give him whatever he wanted if he played with their minds in just the right way. The older man wouldn't even know what hit him.

"Suit yourself. But I have a little piece of advice for you; I didn't gain the reputation of the best thief in the kingdom for nothing." He could already see the doubt and skepticism clouding the larger man's thoughts as his eyes narrowed suspiciously. "One of these days I might decide the room you gave me last night was way too overpriced. Then I'll want my money back." Flynn let the bartender consider his words as he examined his nails in a seemingly disinterested gesture. "And then you may or may not wake up to find out the vault you keep hidden in the back of the broom closet has been completely emptied."

Gustav's eyes widened in surprise, probably wondering how the hell Flynn had managed to find out just where exactly the bartender kept his savings hidden. But Flynn was no fool; years of experience had taught him how to deduce this kind of things. That was partially how he managed to get his hands on whatever valuable object that captured his attention. He knew he had Gustav cornered. It was only a matter of time before he caved in.

"Come now, Gustav. You know I can leave you penniless without you even noticing my presence." Flynn smirked smugly, instantly noticing the slight worry behind the bartender's brown eyes. "Why don't we both make things easier?"

"What do ye want to know?" The burly man grumbled moodily. Flynn's lips lifted into a triumphant grin.

"I want to know with detail whatever information you have about the guard's patrolling routes."

"I already told ye that last night!" Gustav snapped, his patience clearly wearing thin.

"We both know you didn't tell me everything." He waited patiently for Gustav to swallow his pride. It wasn't long before the bartender was speaking again.

"They're headed to MistHaven. Probably'll get there by sunset. A large search party was sent there with the orders of inspecting every ship, vessel and boat that either enters or leaves Corona, from what I've heard. It's not exactly the best time to travel abroad." Gustav explained while busying himself cleaning a stained-looking glass with an even dirtier rag. "Many 'ave been complaining. At this rate it'll be easier fer the guards to intercept any smuggling arrangements and illegal stowaways then finding the Princess in any of those ships."

Flynn could feel Rapunzel tensing up beside him. He tried to quell his own sense of panic as he considered the new information. How on earth would they manage to leave Corona unnoticed now?

"Do you know if Vlad is still on the business? I need to seek passage outside Corona now, I can't spare any more time in this godforsaken kingdom." Gustav raised a curious eyebrow, his eyes flitting towards Rapunzel for a moment before they settled back on him.

"Why the sudden urge, Rider?"

"I'm the most wanted criminal in the kingdom, what do you suppose is my urge?" Flynn snapped back, not having the patience to discuss his personal reasons with the bartender. His curt reply didn't deter Gustav, who's eyes regarded him suspiciously.

"The guards ain't 'ave time fer wanted thieves at the moment. They're much more concerned with the whereabouts of the Princess." Flynn didn't miss the way the bartender's dark eyes drifted back to Rapunzel, who was doing her best to remain as imperceptible as possible.

"Which is precisely why I need to seize the moment and get the hell out of Corona before they do have time for wanted thieves." Flynn grumbled through gritted teeth, clearly stating that he was done discussing this with the bartender. He didn't exactly like the suspicious glances Gustav was shooting them.

"In that case, I know of a man who can help ye. Fer a considerable price, he can secure ye a letter of transit to grant ye passage outside Corona."

"Where can I find him?"

"He 'as a place near the docks, the man works with all the documents needed in transportation of merchandise, exported and imported goods and the like."

Flynn smirked, now he had exactly what he needed. All they needed now was to avoid the guards up until then and make sure no one recognized Rapunzel on the way. He just hoped that wouldn't prove to be as difficult as he imagined.

---

Rapunzel sighed as she finally took a deep breath of fresh air. She was beginning to feel a bit enclosed in the stuffy atmosphere the tavern provided. After a quick meal that could hardly be considered breakfast in her opinion, consisting of a small piece of stale bread, cheese and an apple, they finally made their way out of the tavern. She noticed the sky above was tainted a combination of red, orange and pink hues that were slowly replacing the last remnants of purple left from the previous night. The air was crisp and slightly chilly, the smell of fresh pine and the characteristic scent of fresh soil invaded her nostrils, intoxicating her senses and enticing her spirit. Never in her life had she had the opportunity to experience this; the feeling of finally being free. A smile graced her lips as Pascal squeaked from his usual spot on her shoulder, apparently experiencing the same feeling of freedom.

"I know Pascal. It's exciting, isn't it?"

"Yes, yes, very much exciting. We don't have time to marvel at nature, let's go." Flynn interrupted her pleasant thoughts, taking a hold of her arm as he guided her to the back of the old tavern. She scowled, shaking her arm off his grip albeit still following him to wherever he was taking her. It wasn't long before a small stable came to view, if it could even be called one considering it only consisted of a dilapidated roof made out of molding wood to protect the horses from the rain and wind and a set of weak-looking stakes that served to separate each stall. A feeling of uneasiness settled inside her as she ran over the options of why they would possibly go to the stables. It wasn't exactly hard to come to a conclusion.

"Oh, no, no, no." She came to a halt as she watched Flynn make a beeline for a particularly big horse resting pleasantly in one of the stalls. "We are not stealing a horse!"

"You're right, Blondie. We are merely burrowing it." He answered dismissively while working on untying the rope that secured the horse to a peg in the corner of the stall.

Rapunzel scoffed "Without permission? I think that pretty much still counts as stealing."

"Whatever. If we want to get to MistHaven before that party of guards headed there, we'll have to allow ourselves the luxury of taking this horse." Flynn patted the stallion's strong neck in an appreciative gesture, taking the reins in his hand and carefully leading the horse out of the stall.

"Gustav is going to be furious when he finds out." Rapunzel argued. She didn't exactly like the idea of adding a list of crimes to her already guilty conscience. It was already bad enough to be causing the entire kingdom to worry about her unnecessarily, she didn't want to add the guilt of leaving someone horseless for her own selfish needs.

Flynn didn't seem even slightly worried about the idea, though. "To the hell with Gustav, it's not even his horse anyway."

"It still belongs to someone else. This is not right."

"We don't have much of an option, do we?" Flynn heaved an exasperated sigh, clearly not having the patience in him to argue with her. "We are wasting time, so if you want to get to MistHaven before dusk, either you hop on the horse or find yourself another guide to bribe."

Rapunzel bit her bottom lip nervously, considering her options and coming up with only one apparent solution. She exchanged a glance with Pascal, who was intent on shooting daggers at Flynn whenever he could. Sighing regretfully, she finally conceded, stepping closer to the awaiting horse.

Flynn offered her a helping hand, which she promptly swatted away with the excuse of knowing perfectly well how to mount a horse, thank you very much. She struggled for a moment with the oversized skirt of the dress she was currently wearing, which was doing nothing to help her climb onto the back of the horse as gracefully as she would've liked. She was sure she was quite likely making a fool of herself as she swayed and struggled to keep her balance once she hoisted herself up, and she would've preferably liked to avoid the complicated situation of arranging her skirt over her legs in a way that wouldn't end up making her fall off the horse once they started moving.

She could almost swear she heard Flynn softly clearing his throat in an attempt to hide his barely contained laughter. Once she was finally settled over the back of the horse, Flynn wasted no time in climbing up himself. With one swift movement much more graceful and agile than what she could've ever managed -much to her embarrassment- he hopped onto the horse and settled himself in front of her, seizing the reins in his hands and preparing to leave.

"Now hold on tight, Princess. It's gonna be a long journey." He called over his shoulder, waiting for her to follow his instructions. She hesitated for a moment, not quite liking the idea of coming in close proximity to his body. She wasn't about to admit that any physical contact with none other than Flynn Rider made a slight shiver run down her spine that wasn't exactly an unpleasant sensation. She much preferred to keep her distance and avoid any awkward situations. However, seeing as there wasn't much of an option, she hesitantly put her arms around his torso, making a point of keeping a loose grip and a safe distance that allowed her front not to even remotely touch his back.

Her efforts pretty much went out the window as soon as Flynn urged the horse forward, digging the heels of his boots into the animal's sides and snapping the reins with an encouraging sound, which made the stallion immediately break into a full gallop. Rapunzel let out a startled cry. The sheer force of the horse's hurried pace had her clinging tightly to Flynn's body in an effort to keep herself from falling off the steed. After the initial surprise wore off, she found herself having to adjust to the awkwardness of the whole situation. She decided to give up on her efforts of keeping a somewhat decent and respectable behavior for a princess. After last night's unfortunate events, what else could be possibly worse for her pristine reputation? A princess wasn't even supposed to have any contact with a criminal like Flynn, and yet here she was, holding tightly onto his body to the point that her front was embarrassingly pressed flushed against his back and she was pretty sure her arms where squeezing too tightly around his waist. She tried not to think about her etiquette tutor, if the woman could only see her right now she would probably have a stroke out of scandalization.

So much for not caring about how she was supposed to act...

After a while of swiftly traveling across the woods at full speed over the back of a stolen horse, Rapunzel found herself slowly relaxing. She loosened her grip and leant as far away from Flynn's body as the movement of the horse would allow her, which wasn't much to begin with but at least now she wasn't almost pressing her cheek against the back of his neck. She didn't know how long they kept traveling in silence, with no sound other than the stallion's hooves hitting the ground to make them company. It could've been minutes or maybe even hours, but to her it seemed like an eternity.

There weren't really many interesting things to do when she couldn't even enjoy the view of the vegetation they passed as they traveled through the woods. Everything was a blur, which was starting to make her feel a bit dizzy. Pascal wasn't exactly much help at the moment either. The little reptile clung to her hair in an almost fierce embrace in his effort to keep himself from flying off with the force of the wind. Needless to say the poor thing was probably not in the best mood to talk with her.

"So... How long do you think it will take us to get there?" Rapunzel asked amicably for the sake of striking up a conversation with her reluctant guide.

"Well, at this rate it won't take us that long, actually. Maybe two or three hours at most." She was mildly surprised by the honest-to-God answer she managed to elicit from Flynn; no snarky remarks or sarcastic comments. Encouraged by his light tone, she decided to continue making small talk. Perhaps that would help pass the time.

"So how is it?"

"How is what?" Flynn's voice carried a hint of confusion. She wished she could actually see his face in order to gauge his reaction. Either way, she had discovered over the last few days she had spent with him, he wasn't exactly an easy guy to read.

"MistHaven, how does it look like? Is it nice?" Rapunzel could barely hide the excitement in her voice. She was reluctant to admit that she was actually dying out of curiosity. She supposed she had an excuse for her behavior; this was after all, the first time she was traveling outside the capital.

"Well, it is...- wait, wait, you mean to tell me you've never been to MistHaven?" Judging by the tone of his voice, Flynn couldn't quite seem to believe her. She blinked a few times in surprise.

"Um... Nope?"

"Never?!" Flynn loosened his grip on the reins in surprise. Rapunzel noticed the speed of the horse's gallop slowing as they traveled. "It's Corona's most important port, and you're telling me you've never even seen it?"

"W-well... I... um..." She had forgotten for a moment that Flynn actually didn't know this was the first time she was traveling outside Corona's capital. Ever.

"At least you've actually been to other villages in Corona, right?" He addressed her over his shoulder, his face turning in an effort to look at her expression. Rapunzel bit her lip, a pathetic little sound the only thing that managed to slip past her mouth. Apparently, that was enough response for Flynn. "You haven't? How is that even possible?!"

Rapunzel's eyebrow furrowed slightly. "I don't think that's any of your business." She snapped a bit defensively. It wasn't really her fault her parents were too overprotective to let her leave the protection of the palace. And she certainly had no desire to explain her parents' overprotective issues to Flynn, of all people.

"It's not." Flynn answered with a dismissive shrug, picking on her slightly miffed tone. "I just think it's strange for a princess not to have travelled throughout her own kingdom even once."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"I mean, you're going to be Queen of Corona sooner or later, right?" Flynn continued. She wasn't exactly sure she liked where he was going with this conversation. "How can you rule an entire kingdom when you barely even know it?"

"I do know my kingdom!" Rapunzel didn't know whether to be offended or embarrassed by his suggestion, either way she didn't like his judging tone one bit. Or the fact that he had managed to strike a nerve with that simple comment.

"Right." Flynn snorted derisively, making her eyebrows furrow into an affronted scowl as she unconsciously curled her fingers into fists. "You mean you've probably studied every corner from the safety of a map, I suppose."

She was stunned into silence by his surprising - and slightly disturbing- accuracy. His ability to read her so easily made her slightly uneasy to say the least. "I don't see why there's anything wrong with that." She mumbled moodily.

"Forgive me if I give you my opinion, Blondie, but you can't really claim to know your own kingdom if you've only ever seen the places it spans in a sheet of parchment." Although his tone wasn't exactly hard-edged, there was a hint in his voice that made her feel slightly uncomfortable. She couldn't quite put a finger on it, it wasn't as if it was reproachful, but it was something close. And for some reason, that made her feel a bit guilty. "It's not the same studying the territory the kingdom expands than to actually see it with your own eyes."

"Well, yeah, of course I know that. I just don't see what's so bad about it." It's not like she was refusing to explore and get to know her own kingdom, quite the contrary she was doing all this for the very same reason. She was tired of being cooped up in a castle being taught how to be a proper lady, perfectly protected and isolated from the world beyond the walls of the palace. But Flynn would never get that and she had no desire to explain it.

"Well, how are you supposed to get to know your subjects, or the villages you are supposed to rule over? How are you going know they are receiving what they need, or if they are in good enough conditions if you never visit them?" Flynn argued. She was surprised by the insight in his words and the genuine concern he seemed to transmit. Up until that moment, she was convinced he was a selfish criminal who had no care in the world other than his own wellbeing. She never would've thought he would be interested in this kind of social issues. And the most surprising part was that he was totally right. How was she supposed to rule a kingdom she barely even knew?

"Well, that's why we have earls, lords and dukes for. They are put in charge of small territories, it's their responsibility to look for the wellbeing of the villages they rule over and see that the people get what they need." Rapunzel explained, desperately holding onto the belief that she wasn't doing everything wrong with her position as princess of Corona. At least she knew enough about politics to know that, right?

Flynn, however, didn't seem to agree with her. "Oh please, if they barely even have the decency to take care of their own family, you think they'd care about the wellbeing of the peasants they see so unworthy of their respect?" He scoffed snidely, his voice taking on a much darker and cynical note. "Don't kid yourself, Blondie. Noble men are nothing but selfish, entitled pricks. They care for no one but themselves and their own fortune, they see us as nothing but scum so beneath their worth. They're not worried about improving the lives of the people that depend on them, they're much too busy drowning in their own riches."

She was left speechless for a second as she detected the hint of undeniable loathing in Flynn's voice, something she hadn't heard in the short time of knowing him. "Royals are quite the hypocrites, if you ask me."

"Hey!"

"What? It's the truth." He shrugged nonchalantly, as if he hadn't just offended her by extension. She pursed her lips in frustration.

"Why the sudden hatred towards royalty?" She asked, genuinely curious to know why his voice had suddenly changed so drastically in demeanor. She couldn't see his face, but she was quite sure that the usually carefree or occasionally annoyed glint in his eyes had darkened considerably over the course of their conversation.

"It's not sudden, and I'm merely speaking the truth." He answered curtly. But Rapunzel was no fool, she could see there was clearly something more that he wasn't telling her. No one spoke with such conviction and that note of -dare she say it- loathing if they didn't have a very good reason. There was something behind his snide words that she was quite curious to find out.

"I think there's more to it than just that, Flynn." She pressed, carefully hinting that she was interested in knowing why exactly had this subject affected him in such a way. Of course, she should've known better than to expect an answer from him.

"And I think there's more about the fact that you clearly haven't left your precious palace in quite a long time, and there must be a damn good reason behind it." He retorted, making her eyes widen and her body stiffen at his words. Oh god, she should've known better than to press for details that he clearly didn't want to discuss. How exactly did this man have the cleverness to corner her with such accurate assumptions of her life in order to avoid discussing matters of his own? Either way she had no desire to discuss the reasons behind the fact that she had never traveled further from Corona's village ever in her life. Much less with Flynn. Which was probably exactly what he had assumed since the beginning.

"I think we can both agree to leave this particular subject alone, don't you think Blondie?" If she was not mistaken, she could swear she could practically hear the smirk in his voice. She huffed grumpily in response.

"Ugh, and here I thought we could have a pleasant conversation." Rapunzel muttered under her breath, to which Flynn chuckled amusedly. She could feel his stomach clenching with his laughter, and she wasn't even going to admit she was slightly impressed by the feeling of the taut, perfectly defined muscles of his abs beneath her hands, clearly it was not like she was copping a feel and she shouldn't even be thinking about it. Plus she was annoyed with him, like usual. Ugh, why was this man so frustrating?

"Fine, fine. How about we start over?"

"With our conversation or with the whole instance of meeting each other?"

"I think both could've gone quite better."

Rapunzel could feel the corners of her mouth lifting into a reluctant smile. "You think? You could've tried avoiding the whole kidnapping incident for starters. That would've made things much easier."

"Very well then; Hi, the name's Flynn Rider. How you doing?" His voice turned back to that teasing, slightly flirty quality. Even though she couldn't see his face, she could clearly imagine the cheeky grin and that mischievous sparkle in his eyes that he surely must be wearing. She could barely hold back an amused giggle.

"Rapunzel." She patted his arm as an introduction, seeing as she could hardly shake his hand in a friendly gesture.

"Gesundheit." Not one to ever miss the chance to tease her, Flynn decided now was the perfect time to ruin their start-over meeting.

"Flynn!" Her friendly pat turned into a soft slap, which only seemed to amuse him even more. He let out a carefree laugh, one she hadn't heard in the entirety of her brief time knowing him. Somewhere deep in the corners of her brain, she thought she quite liked the sound of his laughter when it was as light and carefree as this.

Pascal squeaked suspiciously from his spot on her shoulder, he didn't seem to understand the sudden change in their behavior. That, and he wasn't exactly fond of Flynn to say the list. Surprisingly enough, for the first time since the unfortunate incident of her kidnapping, there wasn't an underlying feeling of uneasiness or worry lurking beneath her veins.

Perhaps she could really make this situation work in her favor.

---

"There it is; MistHaven."

"Finally!" After hours of traveling at breakneck speed over the back of a horse that to her seemed like an eternity, they'd finally made it to their destination. Rapunzel was quite glad to say the least, after the first hour and a half of traveling, she could swear she could no longer feel her butt. And finally here they were. The busy port village could be perfectly seen from their spot over that cliff. It was considerably larger than what she'd had imagined, with stone buildings that looked less picturesque than the ones in Corona's capital, people busily hustling through the streets going over their business, and of course, the harbor at the edge of town, which appeared to be the busiest part of the entire village. The vastness of the sea ahead could be appreciated from their spot. Large vessels and ships were carefully docked at port while others were clearly preparing to leave. The large waves of the ocean splashed majestically against the cliffy shore, and the wind blew strongly against her face, making her skin tingle with the feeling of the marine breeze against her cheeks.

With each passing hour she was even closer to her freedom.

"It's beautiful." She whispered with a certain hint of awe in her voice.

"Huh, it's not that great up close." Flynn shrugged, directing the horse towards a path to the left side that led them down the cliff. "Now comes the difficult part; avoiding the guards and getting those letters of transit to get the hell out of Corona, preferably by sunset."

They rode in silence as they approached the village below. Once they were close enough, Flynn decided that it would be better to go by feet from then on, according to him that would attract less attention to them and would allow them to blend more easily in the busy crowd.

Flynn dismounted with an agile move, not having the slightest difficulty in hopping off the large horse. Rapunzel, however, was quite dreading the idea of her skirt tangling between her legs. If it had been hard enough to mount the horse, she couldn't even imagine the struggle she'd go through to dismount it. She hesitated, exchanging a worried glance with Pascal, who was probably thinking along the same lines.

Flynn seemed to notice her slight distress and once again offered her a helping hand, a gesture she decided not to dismiss this time. She would probably end up falling face first into the muddy ground below if she dismounted by herself. With a certain difficulty, she managed to untangle one of her legs from between the folds of her skirt, she passed it over the back of the horse, ready to dismount as gracefully as she could manage while accepting Flynn's outstretched hand gratefully. Everything was going alright until the small heel of her slipper caught in one of the horse's stirrups, making her stumble on her way down with an undignified squeak. Flynn managed to catch her just in time, his hands going to the sides of her waist, his strong grip preventing her from falling rather ungracefully off the horse. Rapunzel barely had time to process the whole situation. She was just about to request Flynn to take his hands off her waist as he carefully lowered her to the ground when the godawful sound of fabric tearing interrupted her train of thought.

"Oh no." Her eyes widened as a particularly unpleasant feeling settled on her stomach. As soon as her feet hit the ground she whirled around rather frantically, lifting the back of her cloak with quick trembling hands. Her breath caught in her throat at the sight awaiting her.

"Oh God, no! My dress!" Her trembling fingers trailed over the large tear in the back of her skirt, which unfortunately enough extended up her legs until it almost reached the middle of her thighs. She made a mental note to thank her lucky stars for the fact that it wasn't as if she was completely exposed, thankfully her underskirt hadn't suffered any damage, which was enough to leave her legs decently covered and sheltered from prying eyes. Either way, she wasn't exactly fond of the idea of having her petticoat exposed for the entire world to see. "It's ruined! I can't walk around the village like this!"

"What happened?" Flynn's eyebrows furrowed as he leaned over to inspect the damage. Rapunzel let out a startled cry as she jumped out of the way before Flynn could even catch a glimpse of the situation currently bothering her.

"Don't look!" She squeaked out, promptly covering the offending tear in her skirt with the back of her oversized cloak. Flynn raised his hands in a surrender gesture, instantly leaning away from her.

"Geez! What's wrong?"

"There's a huge tear at the back of my skirt." Rapunzel moaned pitifully, her hands going up to cover her face in embarrassment. "I can't possibly wear this anymore! What am I going to do?"

She was way too embarrassed to chance a glance at Flynn, who stayed silent for a moment too long in her opinion. "Can't you cover it with your cloak or something?"

"Well... Yes but that doesn't erase the fact that the huge tear is there!" She mumbled through her hands. She didn't exactly like the idea of walking around in a torn up dress slightly covered by a cloak that may or may not leave her petticoat exposed. The sole idea made her stomach twist in utter humiliation.

She heard the sound of Flynn sighing, whether it was out of exasperation or pity she couldn't quite tell. It was only a moment before he spoke again. "I... might know of a place we can go to get you something else for you to wear." He muttered. From the sound of it, he didn't seem exactly thrilled about the idea of going to whatever was this place he knew of, but she was grateful nonetheless. Honestly, anything was better than wearing a torn up dress that left her underskirt exposed. At this point she was willing to wear anything else.

They wasted no more time in making their way towards the village. They walked in a rather awkward silence as they ventured into the busy streets of MistHaven. Rapunzel was far too worried about the incident with her dress and the huge mess in her skirt to be able to appreciate the sights surrounding her. Pascal noticed her distress and tried to console her with a reassuring squeak, gently rubbing his face against her cheek in an encouraging gesture. She managed a small smile as she gently scratched the little reptile's head. She followed silently behind Flynn while they walked through the bustling streets of the village. He seemed to know exactly where he was going as he guided their stolen horse by the reins and made himself room through the bunch of people crowding the streets. She was thankful everyone seemed too busy running their own errands and minding their own business to even notice them.

After a few minutes later they finally stopped before an old, two-story building. The green paint of the door was chipped and faded with age and there was a battered wooden sign hanging from the small overhang of the roof above the entrance that clearly indicated the small place was a dressmaker's shop. It was then when she finally noticed the small, slightly opaque shop windows displaying a pair of finished simple gowns. Flynn raised his hand, ready to enter the shop before he hesitated for a second, letting out a sigh as his fingers curled into a fist, clenching and unclenching a few times before he finally pushed the door open.

The telltale tinkle of a bell signaled their entrance as they passed through the threshold. As her eyes slowly adjusted to the dim light inside the small shop, she noticed it seemed to be a nice, albeit small place. There were various rows of haphazardly accommodated racks where countless varieties of dresses and gowns were messily hung. Others were displayed individually, carefully shown off in mannequins, and there was a counter in the far corner of the shop, where ribbons and pieces of cloth in different colors were scattered over the surface in messy piles.

She was a bit startled by the sudden sound of a voice coming from the right side of the room. "Who's there?"

A tall, thin woman emerged from behind a curtain probably leading to a storage room. She took a quick look at them, her eyes lingering on Flynn for a moment before recognition lightened her features. "Oh boy, look at you! It's been years!"

Flynn nodded politely in greeting, a small smile lifting the corners of his lips. "Mrs. Maldine, it's good to see you again."

The woman approached them with cautious steps, carefully making her way through the piles of clothing scattered all over the place. Upon closer inspection, Rapunzel noticed the sporadic grey hairs adorning her brown locks tied up in a bun were the only thing betraying the woman's age, seeing as her fine features had barely a trace of a wrinkle.

"Oh dear heavens, you've grown so much since the last time I saw you!" She seemed to be having a hard time believing he was really standing in her shop. Rapunzel wondered briefly what kind of relationship they maintained, the middle-aged woman had a far off look in her eyes, as if she was reminiscing on past times long since gone. "How long has it been? Ten years?"

"I believe eight since the last time I came."

"You were barely a teenager." She whispered with a look akin to motherly affection. "And now look at you, all grown up!"

"And you look as lovely as always, ma'am." Flynn grinned back with that characteristic cheeky glint in his eyes. The woman laughed heartily.

"Always the charmer, I see." She patted his cheek affectionately, her eyes now trailing towards Rapunzel, who had remained silent through the whole exchange. "And who's your companion?"

Rapunzel tried a friendly smile before she remembered the woman couldn't see her face anyway from within the protection that her hood provided.

Meanwhile, Flynn's eloquence seemed to have suddenly left him. For the first time since she met him, he seemed to be struggling for words.

"She's... um... she's a... we're kind of-"

"Eleanor." She cut him off with the first thing that came into her mind before he could make a bigger fool of himself coming to terms with labeling the nature of their weird relationship. "My-my name is Eleanor." She extended her hand towards the older woman in a friendly greeting, making a point of ignoring Flynn's sideway glance. She wasn't exactly lying per se, royals tended to have at least three more names to accompany their first. It was like a tradition to give the new members of a long respectable royal House the names of various admirable ancestors. Eleanor was indeed her second name, and had been the name of her grandmother before her. However, no one aside from her family, tutors and other members of nobility even knew she had a name other than Rapunzel. The middle-aged dressmaker wouldn't suspect a thing this way.

The older woman smiled softly as she took her hand, gently squeezing in a greeting gesture. "What brings you here to MistHaven?" She asked, her eyes now giving Flynn a significant look. "Not that I'm not glad to see you again, my dear, but now is not exactly the best time for you to be here."

"We have some matters to attend to." Flynn waved her off, not giving much importance to the reason why they were visiting the port village.

"Well, what can I do for you?" The dressmaker asked, all business now that it was apparent that Flynn wasn't exactly here to make small talk. Her eyes trailed towards the entrance door, a look of slight uneasiness settling in her previously pleasant features. "I'm afraid Greta is not here at the moment, but if you wish I could send someone for her..."

"No, that won't be necessary Mrs. Maldine." Rapunzel didn't miss the way Flynn's face suddenly lost all trace of easygoing humor. A shadow she couldn't quite place clouded his eyes at the mention of that other girl's name, his eyebrows lowering and the corners of his lips turning down almost imperceptibly. She was quite curious why he'd suddenly acquired such a downcast demeanor. "Actually, we're here to ask for a favor."

"We'd like to know if you have anything for... Eleanor here to wear." Flynn's eyebrows furrowed slightly at the foreign sound of her second name. "We had a mishap on the way here and her dress... well..."

"It got torn at the back, I can't wear it anymore." Rapunzel explained, while the other woman approached her.

"Oh, but of course I must have something." She took a measuring tape from the top of a shelf near the counter and turned back to Rapunzel with a smile. "Just let me take some measures and I'll set to work. If you'd be so kind as to remove your cloak, dear-"

"No!" Both Flynn and Rapunzel cried out in unison, startling the poor woman just as she was about to lift Rapunzel's cloak. "I'm sorry, she's a bit shy. Perhaps you could find some dresses that would approach her size?"

Mrs. Maldine raised a suspicious eyebrow, her eyes shifting between Flynn and Rapunzel with a hint of skepticism. "Okay... I might have something in the back that could work. I'll be right back."

With one last lingering glance, she turned around and disappeared behind the curtain in the corner of the room, leaving both Rapunzel and Flynn alone in the front of the shop.

Both let out a sigh of relieve as soon as the older woman was out of earshot. "Phew! That a close one. And... Eleanor? Where would that come from?" Flynn raised a questioning eyebrow as he turned to look at her.

"It's my second name." Rapunzel shrugged noncommittally. "And what is it with you? Do you know everybody in every place we stop to visit? How come she didn't call the guards the moment you entered?"

"She's an old friend, and she kinda owes me a favor." Flynn answered bluntly, not nearly satisfying her curious need for a more elaborate answer.

"What kind of favor?"

Flynn heaved a heavy breath, his hand rubbing the back of his neck uncomfortably. "It was a long time ago. It really doesn't matter anyway."

But her curiosity had been piqued and she wasn't giving up on getting some answers out of him. She had many questions to ask. And there was a particular one that was barely restrained at the tip of her tongue. "Okay, well then who's Greta?" There, it was out, she'd said it. She hoped Flynn wouldn't react too badly to her prying curiosity.

He stiffened at her question, his eyes widening for a second before he averted his gaze. "She's... Someone."

Well duh. "I take it she's one of your lady friends?" She insisted, not quite prepared for the slight twist in her stomach when she mentioned it. Flynn shook his head, his hand coming to rub the bridge of his nose.

"Well... Sort of... Not exactly." He let out a sigh, his mouth twisting in contemplation. Finally he settled for a simpler answer. "She's Mrs. Maldine's apprentice."

"Oh." She waited a moment, pretending not to be too eager to find out more about that story. "So, how did you meet them?"

"Like I said, it was years ago." He didn't seem too eager to share the story with her, but she waited patiently for him to continue, staring intently at him in a way that clearly stated she was waiting for more than just that simple answer. Flynn let out a regretful sigh. "I was sixteen at the time, I wasn't even a thief back then. I actually had just managed to get a job, and my boss sent me to MistHaven to run some errands for him. However I didn't quite get there. I got ill on the way over here and passed out in the middle of the pathway just before I got to the village."

"Mrs. Maldine and her apprentice found me. They took me in and took care of me while I recovered, even though they barely had enough for themselves. Back then Mrs. Maldine was struggling to make ends meet. The business wasn't exactly doing good and she had no money to pay the taxes needed to keep her shop. And even so, she still took me into her home and let me stay until I got better." Flynn scratched the side of his ear in a somewhat embarrassed gesture. "So I decided to help them. I had some money at the time, and I gave them all I had, which was just about enough to help them cover the debt to save the shop. Later on they found out the money wasn't exactly mine, but my boss's. That was the money I was supposed to use to buy the material needed in the smithy I worked in back then. Needless to say I lost my job, and my good name."

Rapunzel was stunned into silence. When she'd asked she hadn't exactly been expecting a story like this. She was more than a bit amazed, to say the least, by the fact that Flynn had somehow managed to find a new way to surprise her again. Huh, so by the looks of it, he wasn't exactly as selfish as he appeared to be.

She wasn't sure what to say to that, so she settled for something simple, hopefully that would manage to lift the heavy atmosphere that had suddenly settled between them. "Huh, you seemed like a nice guy back then. Whatever happened to you?" She smiled teasingly to which Flynn responded with a smirk of his own.

"Life tends to be a bitch, Blondie. You'll find out along the way." He bumped his shoulder against hers playfully, which she promptly returned.

"Oh, I think I already did."

It was that moment that Mrs. Maldine chose to reemerge from the depths of the back of her shop, carrying a bunch of dresses in both of her arms as she approached her with hurried steps.

"I'm sorry it took me so long, I wasn't sure what size would fit you dear, so I took a bunch of different dresses in different sizes for you to try and see which fits best." The woman smiled kindly as she directed her towards the left side of the shop, nodding towards a small screen and floor-length mirror in the corner. "You can change in there and see for yourself which one you like best." Mrs. Maldine gingerly placed the bunch of gowns over the side of the screen for her to reach easily and stepped back.

"Well then, I'll leave you to it while I go look for more dresses at the back. I'm sure I have a few more that you may like in the storage room." With that, the dressmaker disappeared once more behind the curtain, leaving Flynn and Rapunzel to fend for themselves once more.

Rapunzel coughed awkwardly, looking around and thanking her luck that the shop was empty save for Flynn. "Well... I'll just..." She pointed towards the changing screen and practically jumped behind it before the situation could get any more awkward. She let out a soft sigh as she exchanged a look with Pascal, who seemed slightly amused by the whole exchange. She lowered him onto the stool placed in front of her and shrugged off her oversized cloak, carefully hanging it over the side of the screen next to the pile of dresses the dressmaker had previously placed there. She tried not to think about Flynn's silhouette, which she could clearly make out from across the screen, as she gingerly removed her torn up dress, letting it fall disgracefully to the ground around her feet. She stepped out of the pile of now useless cloth and selected the first dress her hand made contact with. It was a simple lavender summer gown, with short sleeves and a skirt that didn't appear to be too big. She carefully slipped inside it, having no difficulty in doing so up until the point where she realized it was laced at the back.

Rapunzel let out a soft grunt as she tried to take the ends of the laces in her hands. Perfect, now was the perfect time to try on a dress that couldn't be laced at the front. She spent a few agonizing minutes trying to find the minuscule eyelets in to which to insert the lace without success. Finally giving up on the task, she decided to leave this particular gown out of the question and go for another one, otherwise she'd spend the rest of eternity trying to lace up her own dress. Her heart seemed to skip a beat as an unpleasant feeling akin to dread settled deep inside her when she realized the next gown was, much to her misfortune, also laced at the back.

Rapunzel tried to calm her own frantic breaths as she slowly came to the painful realization that each dress she took was equally laced at the back. Not a single one from the dresses Mrs. Maldine had brought for her had the laces at the front. She mentally kicked herself for the fact that, in all her years, she'd never had the need to lace up her own dresses. Her lady in waiting had always helped her into her elaborate gowns, helped her lace up her painfully tight corsets and then tied the intricate set of ribbons and laces at the back of her dress. This time, however, it wasn't as if she could ask Mrs. Maldine for help, considering she was currently not wearing her cloak and there was nothing helping her hide her true identity.

She bit her lip anxiously, coming to terms with the fact that she had no other option but to do this on her own and succeed, or else she would end up walking out the store in the same torn up dress she had come in. Bracing herself for a frustrating task, she set to work, carefully feeling for the painfully minuscule eyelets at the back of the dress with one hand while taking a hold of the too-thin laces with the other.

Minutes ticked by, and while she'd actually managed to insert one end of the laces through one of the eyelets, she was making absolutely no progress at all. After much struggling and a perpetual numbing pain that was now throbbing over the length of her arms, she had only managed to make a huge mess out of the laces, which were now tangled into what felt like a horribly huge knot.

Grunting in frustration, Rapunzel tugged forcefully at the ends of the laces in vain. The knot only seemed to tighten instead of loosening a bit. Oh wasn't this just perfect? The last thing she needed was to make an even bigger mess out of her already complicated predicament. She genuinely wanted to cry out of sheer desperation.

Pascal shot her an apologetic look as she felt her eyes widen in distress. What was she supposed to do now? The laces were tied into a terrible knot and she could neither attempt to lace up the dress nor take it off. She couldn't possibly ask Mrs. Maldine for help and she couldn't exactly waltz out of the shop with the laces of her dress half done.

That only left her with an excruciatingly horrible option that might as well be as terrible as the other possible outcomes for the situation. She slapped a hand to her forehead, squeezing her eyes shot as she stomped a feet against the floor in frustration. How could this be happening to her?

"Oh, God nooo!" She moaned pitifully as she tugged at the ends of the laces in vain. The knot was not coming off no matter how hard she tried.

"Everything alright there?" Flynn's voice asked from the other side of the screen. He had probably been listening to her incessant struggle as if she had actually been fighting with the dresses instead of trying them on. It was all she could do not to burst into tears out of frustration.

"No!" She whined pathetically, finally giving up and slumping against the adjacent wall, arms hanging limply at her sides in defeat.

Flynn seemed to hesitate for a moment before answering. "Need any help with that?"

Even though she couldn't see anything but his shadow awaiting at the other side of the screen, she could hear the unmistakable hint of that trademark teasing smirk in his voice. He clearly wasn't expecting to receive a positive answer.

"No!" Rapunzel grunted, refusing to even remotely accept the idea of her only other option to save herself the humiliation of walking out the dressmaker's shop wearing a half-laced dress. She gave another sharp tug at the laces, and felt the knot at the back of the dress tangling even more. She lifted her hands up to her face, covering herself out of utter embarrassment before mumbling out her change of mind. "...yes."

There was a moment of silence, and then; "...what?"

She let out sigh, bracing herself for the utter and imminent end of her dignity. "Could you maybe... come here and help me with something?"

There was no response for a moment as Flynn apparently seemed to hesitate with his answer. "Um... I guess..."

There was a shuffling sound as his shadow seemed to grow with every step he took closer, until he cleared his throat awkwardly right before he crossed the screen. "Um... May I...?"

Rapunzel merely grunted in response, far too humiliated to utter a single word. She avoided eye contact as soon as he stepped across the changing screen. "So... what's wrong?"

"I have a little... problem with the laces of my dress." She muttered, turning around to expose the apparent problem to him. She almost wished the ground would open up and swallow her whole in that instant.

Flynn let out a low whistle. "Good Lord, Blondie, how would you even do that?"

"Do you mind?" She could feel her cheeks heating up in what surely must have been a bright crimson blush. Flynn didn't answer, but merely stepped closer to her until she could practically feel the heat of his body radiating off of him.

Her shoulders tensed up as she felt him already working on untying the tangled mess she'd made out of the laces of the dress. Surprisingly enough, it didn't take him long to manage to work out the huge knot she had previously made, and soon enough he was busying himself with carefully tying up the laces up the length of her back.

She could feel his quick dexterous fingers working on the laces with an easiness she found slightly surprising. He was in such close proximity she could actually feel his warm breath against the skin at the back of her neck, making goosebumps appear in her flesh and a shiver run down her spine that she couldn't quite manage to suppress.

She found this whole situation embarrassingly humiliating and painstakingly enticing at the same time. Somewhere in the back of her mind she was well aware of the utter inappropriate and scandalous nature of her current predicament, yet there was a secret part of her brain -which she was trying her best to ignore- that couldn't help but find the idea temptingly... interesting.

Her breath suddenly caught in her throat as she felt his fingers accidentally brush against the skin of her back while he finished tying the last part of the laces just below her shoulder blades. She would forever deny her heart actually skipped a beat at the feeling of the warm skin of his hands making contact with her back.

"There. All done." Flynn stepped back as soon as he finished, his hands never lingering a bit longer than absolutely necessary over her body, never taking advantage of the situation. She was mildly surprised by his chivalrous behavior, which contrasted heavily with that roguish vibe he gave off and his usually flirty demeanor. But then again, there was apparently a whole other facet of Flynn's personality that she was slowly beginning to discover, like finding the pieces of a large complicated puzzle that she couldn't quite solve yet.

"Thank you." She slowly turned around, her cheeks still warm as that same feeling of embarrassment lingered in the pit of her stomach. Her courage seemed to have left her along with her dignity, and she found herself unable to look at Flynn in the eyes again. She settled for setting her eyes over a particular spot in the wall across from him. "So... What do you think?"

She caught a glimpse of his crooked smirk as he answered. "Well, it certainly does look much better than the one you had before."

Rapunzel felt the corners of her lips lifting up in a small smile. "Really? You think so?"

"Why don't you look for yourself?" Flynn set his hands over her shoulders and gently turned her around to face the floor-length mirror, allowing her to glance at her own reflection. She felt her smile widen at the sight awaiting her.

The dress was simple enough, soft and light and everything she could have never worn back in the palace. She allowed herself to twirl in front of the mirror, loving the feel of the skirt easily moving in perfect sync with her. For the first time in what felt like forever, she actually felt completely comfortable and at ease with her outfit. No more long heavy skirts that made her legs feel like lead whenever she walked, no more uncomfortably tight corsets that squeezed the air out of her lungs, no more extravagantly elaborate gowns too large for her to move comfortably around.

For like the first time ever, she was completely free.

And she was intent on making the most of it for as long as it lasted.

---

Rapunzel had to admit she had been worried for a moment that her freedom would actually last the entirety of a single day. When Flynn said the difficult part would be getting those letters of transit, she hadn't actually thought it would prove to be that hard.

After exiting the dressmaker's shop not before having a much heated augment with one stubborn Mrs. Maldine, who refused to accept any form of payment for the dress Rapunzel had acquired despite their continued insistence, they finally set on their search to find the man Gustav had told them about.

Finding his small workshop near the docks hadn't been the difficult part, they actually stumbled upon it pretty easily. No, no, the hard part proved to be convincing the man of giving them the documents needed to grant them passage outside Corona. Needless to say they spent at least two hours arguing with the stubborn man.

Angus was his name, and Rapunzel was convinced she had only ever met people as stubborn and infuriatingly disagreeable as him when meeting the members of Corona's Royal Council. The man just wouldn't agree to a single one of Flynn's proposed deals, which was surprising on itself considering Rapunzel had seen Flynn's skills in action and she could tell there were only a few counted people that managed to resist his well-thought arguments and intricate manipulative skills. Angus, however, found a fault in every single proposition Flynn threw his way, from the destination he could provide for them to the kind of boat they would be traveling in.

Flynn proposed getting them a merchant vessel, Angus said the most he could grant them was a relatively small trade boat. Flynn wanted their destination to be the kingdom of Cygnus, Angus argued there were no trips headed there until next week and the most he could offer them were the letters of transit that allowed them passage to the island of Helleria, a few miles away from Corona -actually so close to the kingdom that it was often confused as Corona's territory. Flynn suggested -through gritted teeth- leaving preferably by sunset that very same day, Angus said it was impossible, there were no more ships setting sail until the next morning at dawn.

How Flynn had managed to figure out Angus' game, she would never know, but after at least an hour and a half of arguing and the man constantly dismissing their every suggestion, Flynn had finally caught onto the fact that what the infuriating man wanted was a considerably larger sum of money. A quite large amount that, unfortunately, they didn't possess. That was at least another half hour of Flynn haggling and attempting to hustle the man into giving them exactly what they requested for a much more reasonable price, to which Angus wouldn't concede. Eventually, she had finally grown tired of their seemingly endless discussion and proceeded to take matters into her own hands.

She still had one last remnant piece of her life in the palace. She figured it might as well come in handy now that they needed it. After all, they would be far more useful for this than for pettily adorning her ears, so she carefully took off her earrings, which were made out of precious sapphire stones and a pattern of little diamonds surrounding them, and offered them to the greedy man before them.

Flynn's eyes almost popped out of their sockets when he realized just what she was offering in exchange for those transit letters. Angus, quite obviously, instantly accepted the offer without a second thought, already preparing the documents needed to grant them passage outside the kingdom, however Flynn argued that those earring were worth far much more than what Angus could ever offer them. Unfortunately, after seeing what Rapunzel was willing to offer, Angus refused to accept any other form of payment. That had been the beginning of a whole other discussion.

Finally, after much arguing and discussing Flynn managed to find a way to convince the man to give them the transit letters for another price that weren't Rapunzel's very expensive earrings. He offered Angus the horse they had stolen earlier in the morning, and additionally a small sum of money, and warned the man that either he accepted the deal or he would pretty much be left with nothing, after all Flynn was the best thief in the kingdom, he'd surely find a way to get those letters of transit without Angus' permission anyway.

The man reluctantly accepted the payment they offered, and now here they were, finally exiting Angus' shop with the much needed letters of transit clutched triumphantly in between Flynn's fingers.

"Oh my god, I can't believe we did it! We have passage outside Corona!" Rapunzel bounced excitedly on the balls of her feet as she regarded Flynn with a huge smile on her face. "We're finally leaving the kingdom!"

She couldn't hold back the elated squeal that left her lips, and before she knew it she had her arms around Flynn's waist, squeezing him into an excited hug. She hadn't even processed what she had just done until he felt him stiffen uncomfortably beneath her arms.

"Oh! Sorry." She jumped away, her cheeks burning in embarrassment as she nervously curled her fingers around a lock of hair. "I got excited for a second."

Flynn's face was a perfect mask that betrayed no emotion, however he blinked his slightly widened eyes a few times as if he had just realized what exactly had occurred in the past ten seconds. His lips lifted into a partially awkward half smile as he waved her off dismissively. "We should get ready to board our ship, actually. We're leaving just before sunset, better get going."

After a quick meal at the local tavern near the docks, they were finally preparing themselves to board the ship that would take them far away from Corona. The sky was slowly tainting a variety of pink and orange hues as the sun slowly made its descent over the horizon. Rapunzel talked excitedly with Pascal about the experience of their first trip outside Corona ever while Flynn carefully examined the information on the documents Angus had provided for them with their fake identities. Apparently, they were a young newlywed couple traveling abroad to visit some relatives in the kingdom of Cygnus. Edward and Elaine Sinclair were their fake names, which Rapunzel supposed where easy enough to remember. To grant them passage aboard the huge merchant vessel Flynn had requested for, Angus had manipulated the information with the pretense that Mr. Sinclair was one of the employees in charge of overseeing the safe transportation and trade of the vessel's cargo. Everything had been meticulously planned for their success.

Rapunzel felt a slight twist in her stomach that she couldn't quite place as either anxiety or excitement. Her heart beat a frantic staccato against her ribcage as they slowly approached the imposing merchant ship. She watched curiously as sailors worked tirelessly loading the large vessel with enormous boxes of different sizes, walking hurriedly across the gangplank that communicated the ship with the dock while carrying various boxes or large bags. She noticed a pair of men overlooking the work, strategically standing on each side of the loading entrance with a parchment in their hands as they seemed to be examining a few documents with great care.

Flynn and Rapunzel walked across the gangplank side by side as inconspicuously as possible, trying their best to blend in with the crowd of sailors and remain relatively unnoticed. However, they were still stopped by the two men standing guard at the very end of the plank.

"Excuse me, sir!" One of the men called out just as they were setting foot on board. "Documentation, please."

She felt the breath leave her lungs, her nervousness getting the best of her as the two men approached them hurriedly. Flynn's face was, as always, a mask of perfectly calm nonchalance.

"Right." He smiled pleasantly as he handed them the fake papers, as if they weren't trying to stowaway. "Here."

One of the men snatched the letters of transit hastily off Flynn's hand and examined them carefully while the other traced his eyes over them with slight suspicion. "Names?"

"Edward Sinclair, and this is my wife, Elaine." He gestured towards Rapunzel. She didn't know if it was her own paranoia, but she could swear one of the man's eyes lingered over Flynn's features. "Wait a minute, you seem familiar."

She felt her heart almost stop in her chest as the other man currently checking the letters of transit snapped his head up, his eyes narrowing skeptically.

"Well, I'm sorry, I don't think we've ever met." Flynn answered not missing a beat, his voice not betraying even the slightest hint of uneasiness.

"No, you're right. He does seem familiar."

"He kinda looks like that guy in the wanted posters." One of the men commented. Rapunzel's heart leapt to her throat when the other sailor nodded in agreement. "Yeah, Flynn Rider, isn't it?"

"Oh, for heaven's sake, that's ridiculous!" Flynn scoffed, perfectly making the part of the offended innocent citizen being confused by a wanted criminal. "You really think if I was, I'd have perfectly legal documents stating that my name is clearly not the one of a wanted criminal?"

This seemed to successfully throw off the two sailors, who exchanged a contemplative look as they examined the letters of transit once more. "Look at the name! Edward Sinclair, you daft pair of incompetent idiots."

"Yeah, I think he's telling the truth." One of them mumbled with a hint of embarrassment clearly evident in his voice. "Besides, his nose doesn't look anything like the one in the wanted posters."

"The nose?" Flynn's eyebrows furrowed in confusion. The other man pointed towards something over their shoulders as he nudged his companion, trying to direct his attention towards whatever he was pointing at. "See? Over there, his nose is nothing alike."

Both Flynn and Rapunzel whirled around, looking over at the direction the sailor had previously pointed at. Rapunzel caught a glimpse of Flynn's completely appalled expression out of the corner of her eyes as her hands flew up to cover her mouth in an effort to restrain her laughter. There, hanging right in the middle of a large stake at the dock was a perfectly visible wanted poster depicting none other than the infamous Flynn Rider. The sketch provided a detailed accuracy in his features, all but with the exception of his nose.

"You're right. That poor Rider fella sure has one hideous nose." One of the sailors commented as they all regarded the wanted poster. She hadn't seen Flynn look more offended in the brief time she'd known him.

"That's...!" Flynn whirled around to face the two sailors, suddenly cutting himself off as he seemed to realize he had virtually no right to be offended by the wanted posters. "That's right. Clearly my nose isn't that horrible. I've never in my life been more offended."

Rapunzel had a feeling he was not exactly talking about the two sailor's apparent confusion. They both looked apologetically at him as they handed him back the transit letters.

"We're deeply sorry for the inconvenience, sir." Flynn snatched the documents with an air of petulance, his eyes distractedly drifting back towards the offending wanted poster. "Welcome aboard the Ocean's Song."

Rapunzel thanked them with a polite nod of her head, quite surprised by the two sailor's gullibility, while Flynn walked further over deck, his mouth pursed in a disgruntled frown. She followed silently behind him, waiting until the two sailors standing guard at the base of the gangplank were safely out of earshot. "Well, those wanted posters certainly do you justice."

Flynn rolled his eyes in annoyance. "They just can't get my nose right!" He crossed his arms over his chest in a childlike gesture, like a kid throwing a tantrum. "You'd think with the amount of money they have, they'd at least hire a decent artist to paint the most infamous criminal's wanted posters, but nooo!"

Rapunzel couldn't hold back an amused giggle. Flynn shot her a dirty look, clearly offended by her amusement, and opened his mouth ready to retort when the shout of one of the sailors interrupted his reply.

"Unfurl the sails and weigh the anchor! Get ready to set sail!" At the command, a stream of prepared sailors instantly set to work, each deftly taking up their assigned tasks without hesitation.

Rapunzel's breath caught in her throat, her stomach feeling up with butterflies as she saw the sails unfurling and blowing up in the wind. The sea breeze blew against her cheeks, the salty air filling her lungs as she inhaled deeply.

"We did it, Flynn. We are finally leaving!" She squealed excitedly, this time preventing herself from throwing her arms around him in her excitement. Flynn's lips lifted into a small smile, although she had the feeling he was more amused by her own elation than excited about their imminent voyage.

Pascal squeaked happily from his spot on her shoulder and she lifted the tiny chameleon in her hands, softly stroking his tiny head as she gave him a radiant smile. "This is it, Pascal. We're finally free!"

As the marine breeze blew against her hair and tiny droplets of salty water brushed her cheeks, she let out an excited giggle. She could feel it in her bones, rushing through her veins and brushing her skin; the feeling of freedom she had longed for her entire life. So this was it, this was how it felt like to be rid of her past, her noble title and her obligations as a crown princess, this was how it felt to be free of the clutches of the Council's decisions and the judging stares of her tutors, if only for a little while. Here, in the vastness of the world beyond Corona, she was finally able to be Rapunzel, just Rapunzel. A girl with a dream she was intent to conquer.

This was when her life finally began. And she could not wait to live it to the fullest, no matter how little it lasted.

---

So, we finally got a few glimpses of Eugene's persona hiding somewhere in there, and a bit of interesting backstory. Anyone else interested about Flynn's mysterious past?

Also, we seem to have a slight improvement in Flynn and Rapunzel's relationship. Guess we'll have to wait and see how they interact along the trip abroad the kingdom.

As always, I'd love to see what you think about this chapter, so don't hesitate to leave a review with your opinion and any predictions you might have about the next chapter. I'm always glad to receive feedback.

I'll try to update as soon as possible but my schedule is a bit tight, so please bear with me and I assure you, you'll have another good chapter soon enough. Until next time :)