The Dark King

The Princess and The Vagabond

So sorry for the two weeks break guys! I had to finish up my Masters degree. That's all over now so back to weekly updates.

Chapter Text

"Will there be a tour, oh a party? Maybe a little parade? Oh... I know that they sometimes get the school children to sing welcome songs. I'd love that. Oh, and the library, I must see the library! I read in one of the history books that they used to have the most books in all the kingdoms and they hired scribes who constantly copied out the old books so they wouldn't be lost when they got old and started to disintegrate a bit. You said he reads books, at least we'll have something in common."

Rapunzel was practically skipping as she turned to Varian, stopping speaking for the first time in almost twenty minutes.

Varian glanced nervously over at Cassandra.

"He reads?" Rapunzel said, her eyebrows furrowing. "I mean... it's not a deal breaker. Why are you looking like that? What's the matter?"

Cassandra looked at Varian, it was true, over the last few weeks he had been growing increasingly anxious. Right now, as they walked through a large flat landscape that hadn't changed in days, he even looked like he was about to throw up, all pale and clammy.

Cassandra sighed. They had been looking for the right time to bring up Varian's concerns, but Rapunzel had been unusually quiet for the first few days of their trip, and then... well, she'd been even more unusually vocal.

"Uh... Rapunzel, there's something I think you should know."

***

Rapunzel's parents looked shocked as she threw the door of their carriage open and swung herself up through the door, landing in a huff half on half off the seat next to her mother.

"Dear, you should have got the driver to stop the horses. That was unnecessarily dangerous." Her mother admonished.

"Has the dark kingdom called off my engagement?"

Rapunzel was expecting shock, maybe even confusion. But all she saw was her parents faces harden into a strange calmness. There was no rebuttal, no asking her to explain what she meant or why she asked. Their silence told her everything she needed to know.

"Then why am I travelling all the way to the dark kingdom?"

"The Prince Regent Hector called off your engagement, but as it was set by the king then I did not see that he had the authority to do so. Rapunzel, there are many things you don't understand." Her father explained slowly.

"Because you've never let me understand them. You always ask me to follow what you say without question, and I've always done so, but my whole life you have told me that I have to marry Prince Eugene because it's mutually beneficial to our countries and it would protect again Saporian attack. But, if the engagement was called off years ago then why.."

"I told you Rapunzel, the wedding was not called off in an acceptable way."

"Rapunzel." Her mother said gently. "We want you to make a good match, one that you'd be happy with too, but your father is right, and you were never released properly from your engagement, meaning that you could not become engaged to another. The Prince Regent Horace was supposed to be a caretaker governor until prince Eugene came of age and could take his throne, he didn't have the power to make the decision to end an official engagement, but he tried to. We've been in limbo all these years. We expected the answer to come when Prince Eugene was officially crowned, as actual King he could make the decision and you would be free to marry, but that was supposed to happen three years ago, and we don't know why it didn't. All our letters asking for updates on the situation have been returned unopened. We have been left with no choice but to confront Hector and Prince Eugene to try and get a legally binding dissolvement of your engagement or... "