Rapunzel couldn't believe she was staring into the faces of her long lost parents. Even if she didn't have a picture of them, she'd know they were related to her. The resemblance was uncanny.
No one moved for a long time. Everyone just looked at each other.
And then finally, Rapunzel spoke. "You're… my parents."
Cass did a double take as she looked between Rapunzel and the two middle aged people. Eugene had seen the picture of her parents, so he knew what they looked like but even he still looked surprised.
The woman, Arianna, stepped forward. "We are."
"And you're our daughter," the man, Frederic, said. He stepped around Arianna and slowly approached Rapunzel. "I've been waiting twenty years to see you again."
And just like that – Rapunzel broke down into tears.
Frederic opened his arms, giving her the option to go to him. And she did. She wrapped her arms around her dad as he wrapped his arms around her. Rapunzel had always wondered what it would be like to be held by her father and now she knew. It was warm, and safe, and secure. All the things she had hoped for.
Arianna stood back as she watched them. After Rapunzel managed to compose herself, she pulled back from Frederic and turned to the woman who was really her biological mother.
Both women stepped towards each other and then stopped. Rapunzel didn't know how to do this. Gothel had been her mother for eighteen years.
And Gothel had treated her terribly.
Would Arianna be the same way?
"Hi," Arianna said.
"Hi," Rapunzel responded.
Arianna reached out and tentatively patted Rapunzel on the shoulder. The disappointment Rapunzel felt was immeasurable.
"So," Eugene cut in, "you're Rapunzel's parents. How did you find us?"
"I'd like to know that too," Cass said, picking up a rock. Rapunzel wanted to know why she did that. Why feel the need for a weapon when it was just her parents?
"We're time travelers," Frederic said. "Just like you. We've been searching for you for years, Rapunzel. We finally found you."
Cass eased up on the rock slightly. "I remember reading something about you two in the Society's archives but I didn't get the chance to really read it. Do you two work for the Society?"
"No," Arianna said quickly. "We just wanted to meet our daughter again."
Rapunzel wondered why Arianna just lied. She knew her parents founded the Society but she didn't want to ask them about that in front of Cass.
"I'm glad you found me," Rapunzel said. "I've been looking for you two."
"You have?" Arianna asked, sounding shocked. "I… didn't realize. I thought you wouldn't know who we were."
"I didn't. I grew up thinking… another woman was my mother." She flicked her eyes towards Cass and back to her parents. "But then I found out the truth. That you two are my parents. And you just saved us."
Frederic chuckled. "Well, we weren't going to let you get hurt by a bunch of angry Irishmen."
"Thank you," she said softly.
His eyes warmed. "You're very welcome."
Eugene cleared his throat. "Uh… hi. I'm Eugene."
"Oh, right," Rapunzel said, gently tapping her forehead. "This is Eugene, my boyfriend. And that's Cass, my… friend."
Cass did a double take when Rapunzel said that but otherwise, she didn't say anything herself.
Frederic stood up taller when he turned to Eugene. "Boyfriend? I didn't know my daughter had a boyfriend."
"Well you don't know your daughter," Eugene said. Rapunzel was surprised by his slightly snappish tone.
Frederic frowned. "You're right. I don't know Rapunzel. But she seems a little too young to have a boyfriend."
"She's twenty," Eugene said before Rapunzel could answer. "I think that's old enough to have a boyfriend."
"She can't even legally drink yet," Frederic replied.
Eugene crossed his arms. "That doesn't matter. And last I checked, you guys weren't around for her life. I get that it wasn't your fault but you don't get to come in here and act all protective over Rapunzel. I know Rapunzel. I'm the one who's going to be protective over her."
Rapunzel could only stare at Eugene. He sounded… possessive. She had heard him get possessive before but she never thought it would happen because of her parents.
"Well, I'm her father." Frederic towered over Eugene in height but Eugene didn't let that stop him.
"Her father who doesn't know her at all. Rapunzel is capable of having a boyfriend. She's capable of a lot of things."
"Doesn't seem she's capable of speaking for herself, since you're doing it for her."
Eugene jerked back and frowned as he turned to Rapunzel. "Sorry."
"It's ok," she said, rubbing his arm. She noticed that both her parents' eyes followed her hand. "But my fa… Frederic is right. I can speak for myself." She faced her father. "And Eugene is right. I am more than capable of having a boyfriend. I've been through a lot in twenty years. But I appreciate you being concerned for me. It warms my heart."
Frederic conceded with a nod. "I understand. But we're here now. Your mother and me. We want to be a part of your life. We missed out on so much." He sounded so sad that it made Rapunzel forgive him for thinking she wasn't old enough for a boyfriend.
"I know. I missed out on a lot too. But we're together now. Let's focus on getting to know each other."
Frederic smiled. "I'd like that."
Throughout this entire exchange, Arianna hadn't said a word. Rapunzel was so curious about the woman who was her biological mother and yet… there was a part of her that didn't want to know Arianna at all. Thinking of mothers only made her think of Gothel, which always caused her so much pain.
"Not to be a Debby Downer," Cass said, "But we have a tapestry to decode and a monster to defeat. I'd like to continue with that."
"What tapestry?" Arianna asked.
"And what monster?" Frederic added.
"Maybe we should get out of here," Rapunzel said. "Long enough to figure out the tapestry. That way we won't have to run into MacSweeney's men again. And… it would give me a chance to get to know my parents a little bit better." She ducked her head as she said it, feeling suddenly shy.
"Let's do that," Frederic said. "Our time machine is just over there." He pointed towards what looked like a small castle that was hidden behind some trees. It was a lot different to the Doe Castle. The castle her parents time traveled in was a lot more elaborate and colorful.
"That's your time machine?" Eugene asked. "And here I thought Blondie and I were traveling in style."
Frederic raised an eyebrow. "Blondie?"
"Eugene's nickname for me," Rapunzel cut in before Eugene could get into more trouble with her father.
"What an original nickname," Frederic muttered, sounding very sarcastic.
"Lets go before those men come back," Arianna said.
Eugene leaned in close to Rapunzel as they all began to make their way towards her parents' time machine. "I don't think your dad likes me very much."
"He doesn't know you like I do."
"He doesn't know me at all. And he doesn't know you," he gently reminded her.
"I know. But he'll learn. Soon. And so will my mo…" She cleared her throat. "So will Arianna."
"Your mom, you mean?" He raised an eyebrow. "You don't want to call her that, do you?"
She smiled sheepishly. "How did you know?"
"Because I know you."
She leaned into his arms as they walked. "I love you, you know."
"I know. But I appreciate the need to remind me."
"I just wanted to say it because… I don't know. Things might be a little different now, getting to know my parents. It's been you and me for a long time. Now we have a whole group with us."
"And I hate it," he muttered.
Her parents walked ahead of them but Frederic looked back and frowned when he laid eyes on Rapunzel in Eugene's arms. She felt the sudden need to pull away from Eugene, like she would get into trouble otherwise.
Cass walked behind them, carrying the tapestry and keeping to herself. She had a pensive frown on her face that worried Rapunzel.
They reached the castle-inspired time machine. Frederic opened the door for them. "After you."
Rapunzel walked into a room full of utter elegance. It was a large ballroom with a dining table in the middle. Statues of armored knights lined the walls. A door at the back of the room probably led to the rest of the time machine. Rapunzel was so curious to see everything but she didn't want to intrude.
Eugene whistled as he looked around. "Impressive."
"I know it is," Frederic said. Arianna gave him a curious look before approaching Rapunzel.
"I'm glad you're finally with us," she said.
Rapunzel smiled. "Me too."
Arianna opened her mouth to speak and then shut it before opening it back up again. "You can… call me Mom, if you want."
Rapunzel didn't know how to answer. She stared into the eyes of her mother – eyes that were so much like her own. All she wanted was to tell Arianna that yes, she was her mother. They could be mother and daughter.
But… Rapunzel couldn't force the words out. "Arianna is fine," she said instead.
Arianna frowned. "If you insist."
Rapunzel quickly turned to Frederic. "I'd love to see more."
"Then let me give you the tour," Frederic announced, wrapping his arm around her shoulders. She leaned into him, appreciating his warmth.
The room beyond the ballroom was an office, where a computer, similar to Rapunzel's, rested on a desk. "This is where we time travel," Frederic told her. "And through there" – he pointed at another door – "leads to the bedroom and bathroom and kitchen."
"It's spacious," Rapunzel said as she walked through the door and saw the large bedroom, and then kitchen. Everything was a million times bigger than the rooms of her tower.
"We designed it after our own home," he told her.
Rapunzel did a double take. "Your own home? This is… where you used to live?"
"Something like it. We owned a mansion. When it was time to design our time machine, he modeled it after that house."
Rapunzel looked between her parents. Her parents who used to live in a mansion while she was raised in a cramped tower, kept against her will. She knew it wasn't her parents' fault. Gothel was the one who kidnapped her - who forced her to live in that tower. But it still stung that she could have had the chance to grow up in a real home with parents who loved her.
Gothel took that from her.
"So, you guys are rich," Eugene said, crossing his arms.
Frederic huffed. "Is something wrong with that?"
"No. Just making a statement."
"Well, I don't appreciate your statements," Frederic fired back.
Rapunzel could sense the tension between her father and Eugene and she hated it. Things were supposed to be going perfectly and yet, they weren't. "Having money is not a character flaw," Rapunzel said. "But Eugene didn't grow up with it, which also isn't a character flaw."
Frederic frowned. "I guess not. So, Eugene, how did you grow up? What do you do for a living?"
"I grew up an orphan in foster homes."
That made both Frederic and Arianna look taken aback. For once, Cass smiled.
"And," Eugene continued, "what I did for a living… well… I was a thief."
Rapunzel felt her stomach drop to her feet. Why did Eugene have to say that? She could tell instantly that her father disapproved.
"A thief?" Frederic asked. "What do you mean by that?"
"I mean, I broke into people's houses and I stole shit from them."
"But he doesn't do that now," Rapunzel said quickly, placing her hand on Eugene's arm.
Frederic furrowed his brow. "What does he do now?"
"We time travel together, saving people," she explained. "Eugene has saved me on more occasions than I can count. He's no longer a thief. He's a changed man."
"They all say that," Frederic said. "Believing you can change a man. Well, you can't."
Eugene stood up straighter. "With all due respect, I am a changed man. I've grown a lot. You can't even imagine the things Rapunzel and I have been through together. You don't get to judge me."
Frederic scoffed, rolling his eyes. "I think I do. My daughter is consorting with a thief!"
"The daughter you didn't raise," Cass said, surprising Rapunzel. She was still holding onto the tapestry. "Because it was my mother who kidnapped her."
That made Frederic go quiet. Both he and Arianna turned to Cass, giving her stunned expressions.
Without explaining more, Cass walked out of the room and headed back into the ballroom.
"Let me go talk to her," Rapunzel said. "Don't argue."
"I won't," both Eugene and Frederic said at the same time.
She only looked at them before going after Cass. She found Cass studying one of the suits of armor. The tapestry was lying on the dining table. "Why did you tell my parents about… your mother?"
Cass sighed. "Because it's the truth. It was my mother who kidnapped you. She's the reason you didn't get to grow up with all of… this." She spread her arms out to encompass the room around them.
"I never needed wealth, Cass. I just wanted to grow up with love."
"I know. And I blamed you for my mother kidnapping you. What kind of shitty friend was I?"
Rapunzel slowly walked closer to Cass. "So, you don't… blame me for that anymore?"
She slumped against the wall. "I never really did. I was just angry. Angry at the Society for keeping secrets from me. I took it out on you."
"It hurt, you know. When you turned away from me. When you ruined our friendship. You were my best friend after Pascal died." Rapunzel sniffled, wiping at the tears that had formed in her eyes. "And you walked away from me and blamed me for not telling you about Gothel when she was the one who hurt me every day of my life. You really hurt me, Cass."
Cass's eyes softened. "I know I did. And I'm… sorry, Raps. I'm so sorry."
Rapunzel wanted to run over to her and hug her but she didn't want to push things too hard. Cass had a tendency to run away from mushy, gushy things.
"You found your parents," Cass said. "Finally."
"I did."
Cass frowned, a hardness forming back in her eyes. "Something doesn't make sense to me though. How did you know what they looked like?"
"What?" Rapunzel felt her heart beat out of her chest.
"I mean, you've never seen them before. The Society told you they knew your parents but they never told you where they were. I remember you telling me back at the Academy that you had never seen them but that you wanted to find them someday. So… how did you know what they looked like? You took one look at them and knew they were your parents. How?"
This was the moment Rapunzel could tell Cass the truth. Her parents had founded the Society and she knew that from the book she had found in Egypt. There had been a picture of her parents in the photo. She could tell Cass everything.
But then… Cass would turn away from her again and Rapunzel wasn't sure she could handle that. She hadn't told Cass that she knew Gothel because it hurt too much to talk about the woman who had kidnapped her and raised her in captivity.
And she wouldn't tell Cass about her parents now because she knew it would hurt too much to lose her friend all over again. There was also a possibility she could lose the parents she just got back and there was no way she was risking that.
"I just knew," Rapunzel finally said. "Arianna and I look exactly alike. I saw how similar her eyes were to me. And I knew my parents were out there somewhere. The Society told me as much. So, I just guessed, hoping I was right. And I was."
Cass stared at her for a moment before nodding. "All right." Rapunzel felt some of the tension leave her body. But then Cass spoke again. "How did they know you are their daughter?"
"Well, they're time travelers, just like us. Maybe the Society showed them a picture of me."
"I guess you're right." She shook her head. "But… something doesn't feel right."
Rapunzel frowned. "What do you mean?"
"Your parents are time travelers, which means they work for the Society and we know the Society has been sending assassins after you lately."
"Wait… Cass, you're not suggesting my parents only found me to kill me, are you?"
"I hate to say it, Raps, but it was my first thought."
It was like all the air was sucked out of Rapunzel's body. No. There was no way her parents could be the new assassins coming after her. The thought was too painful to even consider.
"Well, you're wrong," Rapunzel snapped.
"Raps…"
"No." She held up a hand. "No. My parents found me because I was kidnapped when I was a baby. Surely, they just wanted me back. We've finally found each other, after twenty years. Don't ruin it for me." She turned away from Cass but before she could even take a step, Cass spoke again.
"Just be careful."
Rapunzel squeezed her eyes shut. She wouldn't cry. Her parents found her to be with her again. Not to kill her. Cass was wrong.
With a deep breath, Rapunzel left Cass standing alone to rejoin her parents.
When Rapunzel came back into the office where her parents and Eugene were, she ignored the slight jabs her boyfriend and father were making to each other and instead, focused on observing her parents.
So far, they seemed nice. They had suffered a tragedy in losing Rapunzel when she was a baby. They truly seemed happy to find her again.
But now, Cass's words were in her head. Were her parents the assassins the Society sent to kill her? There was no way she could ask them that without possibly ruining the burgeoning relationship she had going with them.
"There you are," Arianna said, interrupting Frederic and Eugene before they could get into a fist fight with each other. She smiled at Rapunzel. "I was wondering what was taking you so long."
"Cass and I had to talk," she explained as Cass entered the room behind her.
"Is everything ok?" Arianna asked.
Rapunzel glanced at Cass before turning back to Arianna. "Everything is ok. So, I was thinking we could get to work on deciphering the tapestry." She nodded towards the ballroom. "If that's ok with everyone."
"Fine by me," Eugene said, hurrying over to her side. "Thanks for saving me," he whispered into her ear. "I think your dad was about ready to punch me."
"What did you say to him?" she whispered back.
"Just that I thought he could take that stick out of his ass and stop judging me."
Rapunzel could only stare at Eugene. "You… said that?"
"Blondie, I tried not to but he's driving me up the wall."
"Try to get along with him. For my sake."
Eugene sighed, his shoulders slumping. "I'll try."
"What is this tapestry you're talking about?" Frederic asked as he walked over, pointedly getting between her and Eugene.
"It's in here." Rapunzel led them to the dining room and to the tapestry on the table. It was opened, revealing the man standing by a doorway, a dead monster at his feet.
Arianna frowned. "What is this for?"
"It's to find the Society's headquarters," Cass explained, leaning over it.
"Why would you want to find the Society's headquarters?" Arianna asked.
Cass exchanged a look with Rapunzel. For once, she looked uncertain, which surprised Rapunzel. Cass was always so self-assured. "Because we want to meet the people in charge," Cass finally said.
Maybe Rapunzel was imagining it, but she felt Frederic tense just slightly beside her.
"Why do you want to meet the people in charge?" Arianna asked.
"You sure do ask a lot of questions," Cass said, causing Arianna to step back in surprise.
"The Society," Rapunzel explained, "kept things from us. We just want answers. That's all." She knew she could ask her parents about why they founded the Society and why it's now full of secrets but she couldn't ask them that in front of Cass. She'd have to wait until she was alone with them. Rapunzel also noted that Cass wasn't offering up the information that she wanted to reach the Society's headquarters because she wanted to take the organization down. It was clear to Rapunzel that Cass did not trust her parents one bit.
And maybe Rapunzel shouldn't trust them either.
"Well, maybe we can help," Frederic said right as Arianna opened her mouth to speak. She snapped it shut.
"That would be great," Rapunzel said, though for her, she didn't need to reach the Society's headquarters anymore. The only reason she was searching for it was to find her parents and now she had found them.
But she knew how important it was for Cass and she wanted to do something good for her friend.
They all leaned over the tapestry. Eugene got close to Rapunzel and she noticed how Frederic looked annoyed with that. Both Arianna and Cass were fixated on the tapestry and didn't seem to sense any of the tension in the room.
"We know there's a monster in the lake," Cass said, pointing to it on the tapestry. "But we don't know how to call it forth. It's guarding an entrance that will lead us to the next clue. We don't know how to reach it. There's got to be a hint in this tapestry. I'm just not seeing it."
"That's because you're not smart enough, Cassandra," Eugene said.
She scowled. "Not one of your smartest comebacks."
"Oh, so you admit I can be smart?"
That made Cass scowl even more, if that were possible. "Can you just be quiet?"
"Now, see, Cassandra, that wasn't a smart comeback at all."
Frederic looked between Eugene and Cassandra. "Is this normal? All this bickering?"
"Yes," they both said in unison, though Eugene said it cheerfully and Cass said it miserably.
"That's highly immature, don't you think?" he asked.
"I think it's fun," Eugene responded.
"And I hate it and agree with you, Frederic," Cass replied.
Arianna looked at all of them. "Let's just focus, shall we?"
"Your mom sounds just like you," Eugene said, startling Rapunzel. Did she? She was usually the one having to keep order around here. And she and Arianna looked almost identical except for Arianna's brown hair.
Arianna was her mother after all, Rapunzel had to remind herself. It shouldn't have been surprising that they'd have things in common. She still had to get used to that.
They all stared at the tapestry for a while, no one speaking.
Finally, Eugene cracked. "I don't see anything. This is pointless."
"You give up easily," Frederic muttered.
"There," Rapunzel said, pointing at something on the tapestry and drawing everyone's attention to her before Eugene and Frederic could kill each other. "Just faintly, there looks like words in the tapestry. It's hard to see but they're there. It could be the clue we're looking for."
"I have just the idea," Arianna said. She ran from the room and came back with a magnifying glass. "It's always handy to have one lying around."
"I agree," Rapunzel said. "I have one too."
Arianna smiled and it warmed Rapunzel's heart. She placed the magnifying glass up to the tapestry, revealing the letters. Stitched into the tapestry, it said – At sunrise, the beast awakes.
"That's it?" Eugene asked, squinting at the tapestry. "Nothing else?"
"Well, we know at sunrise the monster will show itself," Rapunzel said. "We just need to wait until then and hopefully, it will give us the next clue to get through the portal."
Eugene glanced outside and sighed. "So, we're going to be here for a while?"
"All night," Arianna said. "We have spare rooms if you want them."
Rapunzel nodded. "That would be great."
Her parents showed them to the extra rooms. Three specifically. Rapunzel and Eugene headed for one of the rooms together.
"Where are you going?" Frederic asked.
"We're going to share a room," Rapunzel explained.
He opened his mouth to object but Arianna placed a hand on his arm. "We'll see you at sunrise," she said, leading Frederic away. "We'll be in our own room,"
Cass headed into one of the rooms while Eugene and Rapunzel went into the other. The room was large and elegant with a huge queen bed in the middle.
"That was awkward," Eugene muttered.
"I need to go talk to them," she said. "While Cass is gone. I need to ask them about being the founders of the Society."
"I'll go with."
She hesitated. Eugene sighed, nodding his head. "You don't want me to go with."
"It's not that. I just can't have you and Frederic getting into more fights. I need to talk to them alone."
"I understand. And it's probably for the best. If I have to listen to Frederic insult me one more time, I'm going to lose it."
She gave him a peck on the lips. "Thank you for not fully losing it yet."
He smiled. "Hurry back. We have a whole room to ourselves."
A flash of arousal hit her at Eugene's words but she pushed it aside. Now was not the time to focus on her boyfriend. She really needed to talk to her parents.
"See you in a bit," she said, then left the room.
The nerves coursing through her body made it hard to knock when she reached her parents' door. This would be the first time Rapunzel was alone with them. The first time she'd really get the chance to talk to her parents.
With a deep breath, she knocked.
It was Arianna who answered. "Oh. Rapunzel. Hi."
"Hi. I was wondering if I could talk to you and Frederic."
"Of course. Come on in." Their bedroom was exactly like the one she and Eugene had chosen but just bigger and grander. "You know," Arianna said, "you can call us Mom and Dad."
"I know. I'm… still getting used to it."
"Understandable," Frederic said, walking over and placing his arm around Arianna's shoulders. "Call us Mom and Dad whenever you're ready."
Rapunzel wasn't sure she'd ever be ready but there was no use in telling them that. It would only hurt them. "There was something I wanted to talk to you about."
"Go ahead," Frederic said.
She let out a sigh. "I know you two founded the Time Traveler's Society," she blurted out.
They both looked taken aback before Frederic nodded. "You found the clues."
"Yes. It was in a book about the history of the Society. You guys were in it. The book said you had founded the Society. Why didn't you say anything earlier?"
Frederic and Arianna shared a look before Arianna said, "We weren't sure what you knew. And we don't know your friends. We just wanted to be careful."
"Careful? From what? If you founded the Society, then surely you run it. You can't be in danger from anyone."
"Actually…" Frederic said, "we can."
"I don't understand."
He sighed deeply. "We founded the Society, yes. But we don't run it anymore. We haven't for a long time. New people are in charge. They're the ones sending people after you."
"Assassins, you mean." She felt bad saying it but she needed to know the truth.
"Yes," Arianna said. "We never sent those people after you. Actually, we're the ones who sent you a warning."
Rapunzel frowned. "A warning?"
"The sun symbol. It signifies safety. We were trying to warn you about the assassins after you. We hoped that if you saw the symbol, you'd know to leave and get out of harm's way."
"So that's why I kept seeing that symbol. It was always you?"
Arianna smiled. "Yes. It was. And clearly it worked because you're safe."
"I didn't know what the symbol meant but I'm glad you were looking out for me. That means… so much."
"Of course," Frederic said, walking over to her and placing his hand on her shoulder. "We're your parents. We only want to see you safe."
"So, if you're not in charge anymore, who is?"
"A man named Agent Tom."
Rapunzel jerked back. "Agent Tom? He was the one who brought me into the Society in the first place. I didn't know he was in charge."
"There's a lot of things you don't know," Arianna said. "Agent Tom has twisted what we stood for. We founded the Society to help people, not hurt them. Whereas he's not opposed to hurting people."
"Is that why you found me? To make sure I was safe?"
Frederic smiled down at her. "We found you because we wanted to know our daughter."
Rapunzel had to fight the tears forming in her eyes. "Are you going to try to get back in charge?"
There was the tiniest flinch in Arianna's eyes that made Rapunzel just the smallest bit uneasy though she wasn't quite sure why. "I'm not sure," she said. "Right now, we're just focused on getting to know you. I've missed twenty years. I don't want to miss anymore."
"How come you guys never found me? If you could time travel, why not go back in time and keep me from getting kidnapped?"
"Because it was an event set in stone," Frederic said, squeezing her shoulder. "There was nothing we could do about it. And that woman kept you hidden. We could never find you."
"You had things of mine. You couldn't track me?"
Arianna stepped forward and grabbed Rapunzel's hand. "The only thing that belonged to you that we could use to track you with was your blankie and that was gone too. There wasn't anything we could do. Trust me. If there was, we would have done it."
Rapunzel thought on Arianna's words and knew in her gut that her mother was right. "Ok. I understand. I don't want to dwell on all the years we didn't get together. I want us to make new memories."
"And we will," Frederic said. "By starting with defeating that monster in the lake."
She nodded. "Well, I'll leave you for the night."
"You don't want to stay?" Arianna asked. "We could talk some more."
"I'd love to but… I'm feeling tired. Today has been a lot."
"For all of us," Frederic agreed. "We'll leave you to it. But," he added when Rapunzel turned away, "be careful of that boyfriend of yours. I don't trust him."
Rapunzel laughed before she realized Frederic was serious. "You can trust Eugene. He's the best man I know."
"How many men do you know?"
"Not many," she admitted. Frederic nodded like he was right which annoyed Rapunzel. "But Eugene is a good man. He's the reason I'm alive today. He found a loop hole to save me. You should be thanking him - not getting into arguments with him."
Frederic frowned. "I haven't gotten into arguments with him."
She wanted to object but she didn't think she was going to get anywhere that night. "I'm going to sleep. Have a good night." She hurried out of the room before anything else could be said. For a moment, she leaned against the wall, collecting her thoughts.
One: her parents were good people. They weren't the ones sending assassins after her. And two: they wanted to be there for her and get to know her. That warmed her heart almost more than anything else ever had. The exception being when Eugene told her he loved her for the first time. That took first place in her heart but her parents were a close second.
She had the chance to be with her parents and she wasn't going to lose it. She just had to hope that tomorrow morning, when they all set off to deal with the monster of the lake, that things wouldn't change too much. Rapunzel couldn't bear the thought of losing anyone – Eugene, her parents, even Cass.
She was going to make this work, one way or another.
With a determined nod, she walked back to her bedroom to spend the night with Eugene.
When she slipped back into the bedroom, she had been expecting to find Eugene awake and ready to spend the night with her but instead, what she found, was her boyfriend fast asleep on the bed.
With a smile, she laid down and snuggled into his side and fell asleep herself.
"That went better than expected," Frederic said the moment Rapunzel left.
Arianna gave him a dubious look. "You mean by lying to our daughter?"
"We didn't lie. We weren't the ones who sent those assassins after her."
"We're the assassins now, Frederic," she hissed. "We're supposed to kill her or bring her to headquarters. Either way, we're supposed to hurt our daughter. I convinced myself we had to do it, for our freedom. But now that we've met her…"
"We're not going to hurt her. We're going to take care of her. We're not going to bring her to headquarters."
"Frederic, she and her friends are literally trying to find headquarters." She slumped onto the bed. "We can't stop them without drawing suspicion onto ourselves."
"I never said we couldn't go to headquarters. I just think we need a new plan. Instead of doing what Agent Tom wants-,"
"Which is our daughter dead," she muttered.
"- we go to headquarters and we take back our rightful place as rulers. We're supposed to be in charge. We founded the damn thing after all."
"So, you suggest we fight back? How? We have no power here. Agent Tom will kill Rapunzel the moment she steps foot through that door. But we can't stop her or we'll make her suspicious and she'll go to headquarters anyway."
Frederic sat down beside her and placed his hand on her knee. "Which is why we will go with to protect her."
"But we'll be giving up our freedom to do so. We'll never get the chance to be rid of the Society."
"I think my life is worth it for my daughter's. Don't you?"
Arianna wanted to give a definitive answer. She wanted to scream, "Yes!" at the top of her lungs. That yes, she'd always choose to save Rapunzel's life over her own.
But… she saw the hesitation in Rapunzel's eyes. Saw the way Rapunzel warmed up to Frederic over her. Rapunzel wasn't comfortable around her and Arianna knew why. It's because Rapunzel grew up with a mother and it wasn't her. And she's not sure if she can ever be a mother to Rapunzel now. If Rapunzel even wants her.
Can she give up the chance to have freedom for a girl who doesn't even want her as a mom?
Arianna wasn't sure. But she knew Frederic was waiting for an answer, so she said, "Of course."
He nodded like all was settled and got ready for bed. "Can you believe our daughter is dating a hooligan like that boy? Ridiculous if you ask me." He continued venting about Eugene but Arianna tuned him out.
She couldn't stop thinking of the war going on in her mind. Give up her life for Rapunzel or sacrifice Rapunzel for her own life?
It should have been an easy answer and it pained Arianna that it wasn't.
There was no way she was going to get an answer tonight, so she got into bed and eventually fell asleep, even as Frederic continued complaining about Eugene for the entire night.
Until Sunday!
