This is bad. This is really bad.
 
Maybe it had been too much to hope that their escape from the castle dungeon would go flawlessly, but Eugene had thought that – after everything Rapunzel and her family have been through, from her childhood captivity to their kidnapping – Fate owed them a favor or two.
 
Yeah. That’s clearly not gonna happen.
 
"Moving. We need to keep moving!" urges Eugene, resisting the impulse to push the king to make him run a little faster.
 
"We are doing the best we can, Mr. Fitzherbert," pants the queen.
 
Rapunzel turns toward him, her eyebrows knitted in confusion. "Was it a left or a right?"
 
Eugene has absolutely no idea. He had dropped the map is probably in the pile of discarded Trist army uniform on the floor of the cell that had held Rapunzel’s mother and father. Details, Rider! Details! Eugene reluctantly admits that he must be a bit rusty at thievery after all. Well, at least he still has the satchel. Of course, he’s not going to actually admit to botchery of any sort at this juncture. Blondie would probably want him to stop and ask for directions or something.
 
"To the left!" he declares, grabbing her wrist.
 
"We need to hurry!" Rapunzel yells as they continue making their way through the maze of tunnels beneath the castle.
 

They take another left – Yes! That rock looks exactly like one he’d banged his knee against on the in-bound trip! – and the tunnel floor levels out a bit. From the sounds of it, the king and queen are running as fast as they can.  Unfortunately, the slippery moss-covered rocks don’t make escaping a dungeon easy and Eugene suddenly finds himself on the ground with the king lying on top of him awkwardly.
 
"Daddy!" Rapunzel cries.
 
"Oh," Eugene says, his face still smashed into the muck covering the floor of the tunnel, "don’t worry about me. I’m doing just fine. Never better, in fact."
 
The queen pointedly ignores him.
 
"Sorry, Eugene. We’ll be right with you."
 
She and her mother reach for the king’s flailing arms. As he attempts to stand, he lurches forward and cries out in pain. This time Eugene rolls out of his way before he finds himself giving a repeat performance of an unwitting safety net. But, his concern is for naught; Rapunzel is quick to grab her father around the waist and offer him support.
 
"I am afraid my foot has been injured," he says, looking at his precious women sadly. "The three of you must leave and find safety."
 
Rapunzel shakes her head. "We are not leaving you, Daddy." She looks at Eugene meaningfully. "Right?"
 
They hadn’t had the time and resources to come up with a contingency plan for this. Why can’t even one thing go off without a hitch? Clearly, Fate is trying to tell him something here.
 
Eugene swallows down a sigh of frustration. "Of course not we’re not leaving you, sire. We don’t do half rescues. That’s not our style." He almost throws in a joke about having to refund the client’s money in that case, but under the circumstances he doubts the humor would be appreciated. He moves to the side of the king and allows the older man to lean on him. "It’s not much farther." At least he hopes it isn’t.
 
It’s slow going. Painful, uncomfortable and nerve-wracking for all. After what feels like hours, they manage to stumble into a the large alcove that looks familiar. Eugene spies the rock Rapunzel had hurled at Witzig and lets out a sigh of relief. Nearly there! Maybe Fate is smiling on them after all...
 
But…
 
There’s always a ‘but’, Eugene observes silently as the sounds he has been dreading since he’d swiped the key to the dungeon cell fill the air: masculine shouting echo toward them from the direction of the castle; the hoof beats of racing horses thunder toward them from the tunnel entrance. They’re surrounded.
 
Fantastic.
 
For the second time today, Eugene feels failure laugh in his face. They aren’t going to make it out of here. Banale’s going to toss the king and queen back in his dungeon, threaten Eugene’s life to force Rapunzel to marry him and then, after the deed is done… well, Eugene guesses Flynn Rider really will be a legend. He’s be history, at any rate. 

So much for Fate.

The cave entrance is too far. The horses are too fast. The king can’t fight, can’t run. There is nowhere to hide. Only one frying pan between all of them and a single rock. They’re never going to see Corona again, and, more disturbing to him, Eugene will never have a chance to propose to the woman who he loves more than anything in the world.

It’s now or never, Rider!

And ‘never’ is a frightening word. He’d felt its power aboard Bigbeard ship as their lives had hung in the balance and he’d never wanted to feel this terror again! Frantically, he reaches around the king and grabs Rapunzel’s wrist. Then, before his usual panic has a chance to gain a foothold, he squeezes his eyes shut and blurts out, "RAPUNZEL-I-LOVE-YOU-AND-I’M-GONNA-ASK-YOU-TO-MARRY-ME-SO-PLEASE-SAY-YES!"

He’s pretty sure the king and queen both gasp louder than the thunderous clamor of the oncoming army at his unexpected question, but he hears nothing from Rapunzel.

He opens his right eye a slit and finds her looking at him, her eyes wide. "Eugene?"

"Yes."　 He resists glancing back over his own shoulder in the direction of the approaching soldiers.

"Did... did you just ask...?"

"Yes!"　 He manfully refrains from glancing past Rapunzel's shoulder toward the roar of the imminently arriving infantry.

"Are you sure...?"

"YES!"　 And, anyway, isn’t this supposed to be her line?

She boggles at him. Bites her lip. Swallows. Eugene thinks he might just die from the suspense before Banale even get the chance to make good on his threat.

She says, "I—"

"Your Majesties!　 We've found you!"

Eugene blinks as two armies round the corners at each end of the tunnel, every single soldier dressed in the livery of the Kingdom of Corona.　

They've been saved.
 
Well, mostly.
 
Eugene turns his attention back to Rapunzel who is still looking at him in disbelief. He wonders how soon he can release the king to one of his guardsmen so he can go find a rock to crawl under. So much for the suave moves of Flynn Rider.  
 
The captain of the guard rushes to the king. "Are you alright, your Highnesses?"
 
To his surprise, the monarch lets out a low laugh. "I couldn’t be better!"
 
Eugene is still trying to figure out what he means by as the captain motions for two of his men to assist the king. Eugene relinquishes his hold and, with things back to staus quo – mostly! – he moves out of the way, into the shadows. The shadows seem to welcome him back into their realm of anonymity. He never should have left, he realizes now. He never should have dared to stick his neck out and ask…
 
But he had.
 
Do or die, Rider.
 
Yeah. Except it ended up being more like ‘do and then die.’
 
He barely registers the queen giving Rapunzel’s hand a squeeze before accompanies her husband toward the entrance of the tunnel. Eugene barely notices the passage of the army, their report of success: Banale has been subdued; Rein is locked in the dungeon awaiting trial; the King and Queen of Trist are once again in power. All’s well.  La. Dee. Dah.
 
Eugene glares at the floor of the tunnel, contemplating the muck on his boots, his breeches, his tunic. His nose itches. Probably because there’s moss adhered to it or something. Gah! What had he been thinking asking Rapunzel that question while he’d looked like a cesspit diver?
 
Things cannot get any worse.
 
A horsy head butts him in the back and Eugene glares over his shoulder at Max. The stallion’s large, brown eyes ooze with pity. Sympathy from a horse. Fantastic. Eugene feels so much better now.
 
The sound of a feminine throat being cleared echoes in the nearly empty tunnel. Surprised, Eugene looks up and realizes that Rapunzel is still here and all of the guard, with the exception of Max upon whom Pascal is seated, have departed.
 
The Princess of Corona moves to stand in front of him, her eyebrow raised expectantly. "You know, I’ve imagined saying yes to your proposal in a lot of places, Eugene, but never once did I think you would finally ask me in the middle of a dragon’s den."
 
Wait. She has imagined saying yes to his proposal?
 
"You know me, always doing the unpredictable."
 
She grins in reply to his sheepish admission. And then she waits.
 
"Er…"
 
"You said you were going to ask me," she reminds him softly, swaying back and forth, her hands behind her back as if she has to restrain herself from… from…
 
From throwing her arms around you, maybe?
 
Hope doesn’t blossom within his chest. It bursts forth like a super nova.
 
"Rapunzel," he begins softly, pitching his voice low. His reward is a very visible shiver of delight that runs through her entire body. "Would you…?"
 
She bites her lip to hold back a brilliant smile. Her eyes twinkle with laughter. "Would I…?" she prompts.
 
Their gazes lock and Eugene shares a moment of perfect accord with her. Over the last few months (Or has it been years? It’s certainly felt like it!), Eugene has struggled to get past those three words: "Rapunzel, would you…?" And now here they are. It’s the biggest moment of his life. Strange. He’d never expected it to be. Yes, very strange, but also wonderful.
 
He takes a deep breath, smiles softly, and allows all the other possible request he could make – shoes and safety and satchels – fade from his thoughts. Mind finally at peace, he murmurs, "Rapunzel, I love you so much. Would you marry me?"
 
And there. Her smile illuminates the gloom of the tunnel. "Yes!" She launches herself into his arms and pulls him down to kiss him. Slimy cheeks, mucky chin, mossy nose and all.
 
He runs a hand through her soft, short hair as his other hand moves to her hip, urging her closer. He’s pretty sure that the king and queen are both watching him and Rapunzel, from just around the corner, but he doesn’t care. (If they aren’t he doesn’t doubt Max and Pascal will find a way to give full reports later.) And, if Rapunzel’s eagerness is any indication, she doesn’t seem to mind the audience either.
 
As their lips move against each other here in this dank, gloomy corridor, Eugene relishes the elation that fills him.  The day has been saved, the king and queen have been rescued and – finally – his most precious treasure has agreed to be his, and he hers, forever.


Epilogue