#glowamber

“Father is going to be mad when he finds out what you’re doing.” Princess Cassandra warned her older brother.

It was the middle of the night in the Dark Kingdom, with most of the castle staff in their rooms for the night. The 13-year-old Princess herself was just preparing for bed when she noticed her older brother, Prince Eugene, was out of his room, sneaking through the halls of the castle. Curious, Cass decided to follow the 16-year-old prince and see what he was doing. It wasn’t too hard to follow him with being noticed.

Eventually, she followed him to a large set of doors. She realized that those were the doors to the Moonstone Chamber. That’s when she finally decided to make her presence known, she couldn’t let him go into that chamber, their father, King Edmund, had strictly forbade the children from going in there.

The prince rolled his eyes. “He won’t find out. Besides, don’t act you’ve never been curious to see the Moonstone yourself.”

“That doesn’t matter.” Cassandra stated. “Our father told us that the moonstone is dangerous and we need to stay away from it.”

“Calm down, Cass, it’s not like I’m actually going in to touch it.” Eugene said. “I’m just going to open the door a bit and get a quick peak at the stone.”

The prince was about to open the doors, but Cass put her hands on the Moonstone Chamber door to keep him from opening it. The siblings glared at each other.

“I said no.” Cassandra declared. “Dad said the moonstone is dangerous.”

“Dad says a lot of things. But a lot of things he says doesn’t make sense.” Eugene countered. “He says that moonstone is dangerous, and that its our job to protect the Dark Kingdom and the whole world from it. Then why doesn’t he do anything to destroy it? Why keep it here? And why tell us that we need to guard it, but won’t let us just take a look at?”

“Its not that simple.” The princess tried to justify. She hated to admit it, but a lot of what her brother says makes sense. She did know that getting rid of the Moonstone wasn’t simple, but she had to admit that she wondered why her father doesn’t do more to try to get rid of it instead of guarding it.

“Maybe not.” Eugene admitted. “But I bet it isn’t as complicated as Dad makes it seem.” Then he moved Cassandra out of the way and opened one of the chamber’s door, just enough to get a look at the moonstone.

Cassandra groaned and looked away. Eugene made it clear that he wasn’t going to listen to hear. She decided to just go back to her room and go to bed.

“Whoa...” Eugene sighed as he looked through the door. “Cass, you have to see this.”

“No.” Cass shook her head. “You’re going to get in trouble for this and I won’t get in trouble too.”

“No one will know as long as neither of us say anything. I won’t say anything if you agree not to say anything.” Eugene argued. “C’mon, this could be our only chance to see it in a long time.”

Cassandra continued to look away, not wanting to disobey their father. But she eventually gave into temptation and joined Eugene. She moved him out of the way to peak into the Moonstone chamber the crack of the doors.

What she saw took her breath away. The room itself was huge, it also very empty and dark, which made sense since no one really goes into it. But in the center of the room, far from the door, stood the moonstone opal, encased in a cage of black stone. Cassandra had always imagine the moonstone as an ugly and dark chunk of rock. But as she gazed at the mysterious stone, she had to admit that it was not what she expected.

The moonstone was glowing brightly, shining a blue light in the dark chamber. It also was a perfect oval shape, and although she couldn’t tell, she imagined its surface was smooth without a single scratch on it. To think, this was the stone that their father had warned them against. How could something like this cause so much death and destruction?

Before Cassandra could ponder more, she felt a hand on her shoulder and pull her away from the door. She felt herself freeze as she realized who it was.

“Mother!” Cassandra gasped. “I can explain! I-”

“I don’t want to hear your excuses, Cassandra!” Royal Consort Gothel declared. “You know you shouldn’t be here! Your father has told you countless-”

“It wasn’t her fault!” Eugene defended, stepping in between Cass and Gothel. “I was the one who came to peak at the moonstone, Cass was just trying to stop me and I tricked her into looking at the moonstone with.” He added as he shielded his sister from Gothel.

Gothel looked at the two teens before taking a deep breath and giving Eugene a sweet, affectionate smile. “Eugene, dear, you know better than that. You really need to a set a better example for Cassandra. Not just as her older brother, but as the future king of the Dark Kingdom.”

“I...I know, Gothel.” Eugene nodded. Eugene had to keep himself from vomiting as Gothel kissed his forehead.

Gothel wasn’t Eugene’s mother. When Eugene was a very young, his mother, King Edmund’s first wife and the Queen of the Dark Kingdom, died. His father never told him how she died, for the topic of Edmund’s first wife is always difficult for him. When Eugene was a toddler, his father had met and married Gothel, and soon, she gave birth to Cassandra, Eugene’s half-sister.

Eugene tried to get along with Gothel, for his father’s sake, but Eugene hated the woman. His father may have been blind, but the prince could see Gothel for what she really was: Manipulative, selfish, deceitful, and ridiculously vain. She would present herself as loving and doting to him and Cassandra, but Eugene knew better, he knew she was acting like that for her own selfish gain.

“Alright. I won’t tell your father, I think you both learned your lesson.” Gothel gently said. “Now, off to bed you two. Its getting late.”

“Yes, Gothel.” Eugene said.

“Yes, Mother.” Cass quietly said.

Eugene was the first to leave the chamber, with Cassandra quietly following. But once Eugene was gone, Gothel put a hand on Cass’ shoulder, and whispered into the child’s ear.

“I hope you’re proud of yourself, Eugene had to lie to defend YOUR actions.” Gothel harshly whispered. “I better not hear him do that again, I won’t have his future jeopardized because of you.”

“Yes, Mother.” Cass quickly whispered. Then Gothel let go of Cassandra and the princess immediately ran out of the Moonstone Chamber.

Cass runs back into her room and immediately jumps into her bed and cries into her pillow. It wasn’t fair! Going to see the Moonstone was Eugene’s idea, yet her mother blames HER! And doesn’t even believe him when he tells her it was his idea! Why did her mother always blame her for when Eugene does something wrong?

“Cass?” A familiar voice whispers. Look up from her bed, she sees Eugene standing outside her bedroom door.

Cass sits up and quickly wipes her eyes so her brother wouldn’t see she was crying. “What do you want?” She snapped.

“I wanted to make sure you were okay.” Eugene says. “Gothel didn’t hurt you, did she?”

“Why do you care?” Cass argued. “Once again, she blamed me for what YOU did!”

“I’m sorry.” Eugene said. “I didn’t think she of all people would catch us in the Moonstone Chamber. And I told her it was all my idea and that you were trying to stop me.”

Cassandra scoffs. “She didn’t believe you. She thinks its all my fault. She never thinks you, her favorite child, could do anything wrong.”

“Don’t call me that.” Eugene states, sounding disgusted.

“Why not? It’s true.” Cass says, feeling more tears form in her eyes. “No matter what I do or how much trouble you get into, Mother prefers you. Its not fair.”

Eugene sighed and sat beside Cass on her bed. “You know I don’t like this anymore than you do, Cass. I don’t try to get you into trouble, and I certainly don’t try to be Gothel’s favorite. I don’t care about that. What I care about is making sure that witch doesn’t hurt you. You don’t deserve to be treated the way Gothel treats you.”

Cass starts to cry again. She tries to wipe her eyes again, not wanting to cry in front of Eugene. Then she felt Eugene’s arms wrap her in a hug. She tried to push him away, but eventually, she allowed herself to cry into his chest as he continued to hug her.

“It’ll be okay, Cass.” Eugene promises. “I won’t let Gothel treat you like that.”

Then he feels Cassandra push him away and off her bed. She glares at him. “I don’t need you to protect me!” She snaps. “Its your fault Mother treats me like that at all. If you just stay away from me and not get me into trouble with you, everything would be fine!”

Eugene wanted to speak, but Cassandra continues to push him out of her room and slams the door when he’s finally out.

Eugene tries to open the door, but its locked. “Cass, open up!” He says. But Cassandra doesn’t respond or unlock her bedroom doors.

Realizing that she is mad at him and doesn’t want to speak to him anymore, Eugene decides to leave her alone for the rest of the night. With a sad sigh, Eugene leaves and goes to his room for the night.

Eugene: The crown prince of the Dark Kingdom. He would’ve grown up with all the privileges and riches a prince would have, though he wouldn’t be that happy about it, since the honor of being a prince comes with a lot of responsibilities that he wouldn’t like. He would be unpopular by other nobles, but with the peasant-class of the Dark Kingdom, he would be very popular with them, especially with kids. Due to him being the most approachable of the Royal Family, I imagine he would a “Prince of the People” and would try to get involved in improving the lives of the people, as well as being a fun guy. He would find his royal life dull and the pressure to be the perfect prince and future king to be too much for him, so he would often sneak out, dress like a commoner and just do what regular people would do, going to pubs, attending parties, etc. He would go under the name Flynn Rider, as a way to separate himself from his royal life. He loves his father and sister, but the relationship with them would be tense, especially with Cass. His relationship with his father would be tense because he thinks his father is trying to shape him into being someone is not and force him into a role he doesn’t really want. Cass always calls him selfish and lazy, and Eugene tries to get her to understand that he never asked for any of this and that he would happily give her the throne. He tries to civil with Gothel when others are around, but he doesn’t like or trust her and he is one of the few people who know how emotional manipulative she really is. He would probably be the one person in the Royal Family she can’t get to do what she wants. He wouldn’t be thrilled about his arranged engagement to Rapunzel at first, seeing this as losing some of his freedom, but would come to genuinely fall in love with her.

Cassandra: The daughter of King Edmund and Royal Consort Gothel, younger half-sister to Eugene.She would be more popular among nobles than her brother, since she is more serious and more dedicated to her role as princess than Eugene would be. She would work hard to try to be the perfect princess the people of the Dark Kingdom expects her to be, but, much like in the Canon show, her people skills are in need of some work. She would care for her subjects and has a strong sense of justice, but she can often come off as a bit aggressive and intimidating towards the people, so the citizens are often wary of her, she doesn’t mean to appear like that. She would be an excellent fighter and would often train and study to be the best princess she can be, but she would often push herself past her limits because she would feel that she’s not doing enough. She desperately wants to prove herself to her family, especially to her parents that she is just as worthy, even more, of their love and attention as Eugene. She loves him, but would definitely feel jealous that the people seem to like him more and that their parents spend more time with him than her. Deep down, what she desires more than anything is to just get out of her brother’s shadow and have her moment in the spotlight.

Rapunzel: The Princess of Corona and fiancee to Prince Eugene. She would still have the power of the Sundrop and her long blonde hair at the beginning. When her parents realized the power she held in her hair, they were worried what could happen to her if she loses that power, since it was the healing powers that healed her mother and allowed her to be born healthy. So they would keep her hair long, though they wouldn’t tell her and anyone else in the kingdom of Corona about it’s power, to protect her. So Rapunzel would be unaware of the power of her hair or why her parents won’t let her cut it, but wouldn’t question them about it. Because of her power, the King would keep her on  tight leash, not allowing her to leave Corona and assigning guards to stay with her whenever she leaves the castle, so this will cause her to have the same desire for freedom and see the world like in the movie and show. Her engagement to Eugene would be arranged, and she wouldn’t like it, she would try to make it work, for her parent’s sake. But much like with Eugene, she would eventually fall in love with him.

King Edmund: The King of the Dark Kingdom and the father of Eugene and Cassandra. He would be much like he was presented in the first episode of season 2: Serious, dedicated to his duty as King and Protector of the Moonstone, and a bit paranoid at the dangers of the Moonstone. He would love both of his children equally, but like a lot of parents, would have some difficulty balancing the amount of time he spends with him. As a King, he would be very busy managing the Dark Kingdom, and since Eugene is his heir, he would spend a bit more time with him than with Cassandra, which he would feel bad about. He would also have difficulty with Eugene because although they love each other, he can get frustrated at Eugene for not taking his role as Prince of the Dark Kingdom and Heir to the throne seriously enough. As for his relationship with Gothel, he would be polite and civil with her, but he wouldn’t really love her, at least not as much he loved his first wife, Eugene’s mother, and he would still be mourning her death. Unfortunately for him, he would still be manipulate by her from time to time. He would confide in the Brotherhood about his frustrations towards Eugene and his guilt about not being able to spend as much time as he wishes he could with Cass.

Quirin: Obviously, he would be The Chief Adviser to King Edmund. He would also serve as a tutor to Prince Eugene and Princess Cassandra, teaching them about politics and proper court etiquette. He would also be the number one person King Edmund would confide about his frustrations involving his family, his job as king, as well as his anger and paranoia towards the Moonstone, which hasn’t cause any trouble at this point, but will in the future. Quirin would try to offer as much support as he can, and would try to keep his king as calm as he can, but there is only so much Quirin can do, since although he understand the difficulty of raising kids, he would know that there are some things the king is going through that he can’t help with, no matter how much he wants to. He would serve as a secondary father-figure towards Eugene and Cassandra, trying to be there when Edmund can’t be, because of this Eugene will sometimes listen to him more than he would listen to Edmund. He and Varian would’ve lived within the castle of the Dark Kingdom and he would of course love his son dearly, but would have difficulty with him as well, mainly with his son’s alchemy as well as Eugene and Lance dragging Varian into trouble. Quirin would also try to subtle warn his king about Gothel’s true nature, while acting respectful towards her when she’s around, but he would not like her at all.

Adira: After thinking for a bit, I think being The Captain of the Dark Kingdom’s Guard was best for her. She would also be the one to train Lance on being a guard, especially as one that would personally protect the prince and princess of the Dark Kingdom. She would also be the closest thing to a positive mother figure to Eugene and Cassandra, although Cass would be frustrated by that, stating that she doesn’t need Adira to babysit. Eugene would act annoyed at times, but would deeply appreciate Adira and would be grateful to have her around so he won’t have to deal with Gothel, he would even confide in her. She and Gothel would hate each other, with Gothel accusing her trying to manipulate the kids while Adira would know that Gothel is not good and knows that she the real person trying to control the kids, especially Eugene. She would be more blunt and direct to the king about Gothel not being good, but her words often fall on deaf ears.

Hector: He would be the one who taught Eugene and Cass how to fight. He would be formal with the prince and princess, but he wouldn’t really interact with them, he would either be with Quirin and Adira or with his bearcats and rhino. He would be a strict and aggressive teacher towards Eugene ad Cassandra, so some of their training sessions would leave bruises on them, despite Quirin and Adira telling him not to be so harsh. Though he would be a very effective teacher, a lot of Eugene’s and Cassandra’s fighting skills come from him. Eugene thinks he’s crazy and is a bit scared of him because he knows Hector is a deadly man. Cassandra would spar with him a lot, trying, but failing, to beat him every time, amusing Hector, though he would admire her determination. He thinks Eugene is lazy and will get himself killed, but admits the prince is resourceful.

Lance: He would be training to be Eugene’s and Cassandra’s guard, but I imagine he would drag Eugene into trouble more often than getting him out of it. He would be an orphan and he and Eugene would befriend each other as children when the Royal Family, except for Gothel, would visit the Orphanage Lance would be living in at the time. Lance would’ve been the one who guided Eugene around the town when the Prince first started to sneak out of the Castle and encouraged him to adopt the Flynn Rider persona, and he around this time, he adopts the persona Lance Strongbow. Once he reaches the proper age, and with a recomandation from Eugene, he begins ton train to be a royal guard under Adira. He would, of course, have a crush on her.

Varian: The Unofficial Royal Alchemist, a title Eugene gave him, though no one would really take it seriously, but Varian would hold it with pride and aspire to become the First Official Royal Alchemist of the Dark Kingdom. He would be close friends with Eugene and Lance, being a little brother figure to them. He would follow them on their adventures, even if it lands them into trouble, though there are moments where he tries, though mostly fails, to be the voice of reason among the group and encourage them to not get into trouble with their families or mentors. He would still be an alchemist, with Eugene and Lance assisting him in his work at times, though like in the show, he goes through some trial and error, but with Eugene and Lance, it probably wouldn’t be as bad as it was in the first episode. He would have a crush on Cassandra and would often try to befriend her and impress her. Cassandra thinks he’s strange but is appreciate that he wants to spend time with her and would see him as a kind and smart kid.