Author: Hadrien
Fandom: Tangled
Rating: T
Summary: *Alternate Timeline* No longer bound by the walls of her tower, her only prison now is duty and obligation. Three months away from her wedding, she meets Corona’s most nefarious outlaw. “His ring is on your finger, but my heart is in your hands.”
Author's Notes: I just found the whole "what if he never found her?" premise very interesting and wanted to explore it. I've pretty much got the entire story mapped out, save for a few details that I may change or tweak along the way.
Rapunzel faced her own reflection as she sat deep in thought, letting her maids attend to their arduous nightly task. She watched almost mesmerized as the little wisps of steam danced and twirled away from her cup of tea. She hadn't yet touched it, and not because it was too hot. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn't shake him from her mind, she couldn't stop thinking about those honey brown eyes and the strange warmth and secrets behind them. He was a felon, a repeat offender with a seemingly long list of trespasses, convicted and now rightfully being sentenced to death for his crimes. So why did this bother her so much?
Her unnaturally long blonde tresses flowed down her back and cascaded across the room like a giant golden tapestry, spilling across the laps of her attendants, who every evening before bed carefully brushed their Princess' hair and wrapped it into a protective braid. Rapunzel enjoyed the company and greatly appreciated the help, as before she would have to do all this herself.
"Lysette," Rapunzel began, addressing the girl closest to her right with the fiery red curls that fell just past her shoulders, "What do you know about the prisons?"
Continuing her brushing, Lysette separated out a larger section and set to working out the tangles. "Our prisons, your Highness? Well, they're pretty relentless around here. Corona has a kind of 'hang first, ask questions later' policy. Crime in any form is not tolerated, my lady."
Rapunzel bit her lip and nodded, hesitant to ask her next question but entirely too curious not to.
"Do you know anything about the one called Flynn?"
Lysette paused her brush midstroke, looking up into the vanity mirror to see her mistress' face.
"...Flynn Rider?" she asked, her face turning almost as red as her hair. "Oh, my lady, Flynn is a notorious thief, wanted for all sorts of heinous and unsavory deeds."
"What all has he done?" It couldn't be that bad, right?
The girl scoffed, running her fingers through the silky strands she'd just finished. "What hasn't he done? You name it, he's stolen it. He's been a thorn in the Kingdom's side for years. So much so that even the Captain of the Guard has a personal vendetta against him. He's pretty much made it his life's mission to see him hang." Leaning in close to Rapunzel's ear, Lysette dropped to a hushed tone, "I heard that he slept with the Captain's wife."
"I heard that one time he fought off a hundred of the King's best guards with nothing but his boot," an excited voice chimed.
"I heard that he narrowly escaped capture by wrangling a shark and riding it all the way from the island to the mainland," yet another girl added.
"Well you know how they finally caught him, right? I heard they got a tip that he was in some brothel, and when they found him they dragged him out, naked as the day he was born."
The petite blonde named Marris sighed. "Isn't he wonderful?"
"Absolutely dreamy," the short-haired brunette agreed.
"I've seen him," quipped the raven haired maid idly combing out the ends. Everyone promptly stopped what they were doing and turned to gape at her in disbelief. "Well," she admitted, "I haven't actually seen him, but his posters are pretty handsome."
"Anna said she ran into him once, outside the stables." Marris began, vigorously working her brush through a rather stubborn kink. "She turns the corner and there he was, plain as the nose on your face. He invited her into one of the stalls, and of course she followed him. Said she couldn't sit down for a week!"
This sent all the girls into a riotous fit of giggles. Rapunzel just wrinkled up her nose in confusion.
Long after she had dismissed them for the night, Rapunzel lay in bed, eyes wide open, staring at the ceiling. The room was silent save for the soft purr of Pascal who lay snuggled up beside her, already fast asleep. She smiled, running a finger lightly across his back. The arch of his brow, clear amber eyes. He was obviously in prison for good reasons. But why would someone so young just throw their life away like that? A flash of teeth, the angle of his jaw. She didn't understand. He just didn't seem like that kind of person. Maybe they had him mixed up with someone else? Broad shoulders, the curve of his back. Her stomach was turning in knots but she couldn't remember eating anything especially upsetting. Pascal twitched and rolled onto his back, and Rapunzel absently began rubbing his belly.
Her eyelids were beginning to grow heavy even though her mind was still racing. Something was pulling at her, something that needed to know more. How could someone captivate you with just one look? Instantly she bolted upright, struck with a sudden epiphany, and consequently flung Pascal onto the cold floor. Pleased with her plan that would surely satisfy her burning curiousity, she sheepishly plucked her friend up and whispered a quick apology. She lay awake for a few more moments, silently working out the finer details of her plot. Finally she smiled to herself. "Goodnight, Pascal." A little snore was her only reply.
This is really intriguing. Look forward to seeing how this turns out.
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