I know, I know. How dare I show myself here after so many weeks of not updating this story. D:

As compensation, this chapter contains 11.5k words. (This was originally planned to pan out in two chapters) I hope this doesn't come as a shock to the readers.

Thanks for everLastingTime for her insights about the chapter. You're awesome!

Status: Unbeta'd (Not proofread yet as to errors)

Warning: This chapter contains flashbacks and scenes that occurs simultaneously.

Disclaimer: I don't own anything.

Chapter 6

[Deceive & Forgive]

How did things go this way? Hiccup mused internally.

A tall man loomed over him, giving no space for escape. With his back pressed against the vandalized wall, Hiccup held up his arms and positioned them in a protective curl; hoping his twiggy arms were enough to cover him from expected blows.

"Why are you following me?" The man asked warily.

Despite his anxiety, Hiccup found the guts to inspect the man's features, starting from his dark brown hair, going down to his hazel eyes, lowering more to his smug lips, and only stopping at the man's chiseled jaw – whose pointed chin sported a neatly-placed stubble.

"H-haha," Hiccup laughed awkwardly, "…sir, I don't know what you are talking about. I'm just another person going the same route as you are."

"What a coincidence! I guess we both decided to walk around in circles, buddy."

Now that he mentioned it… Hiccup glanced around. His palm met his face, realizing that the two of them had passed this alley twice.

Nodding knowingly, the taller male raised his brow smugly, "So?"

"Okay. You caught me." Hiccup admitted, massaging his arm to soothe himself. "It's just that…someone sent me to –-"

(FLASHBACK - three weeks earlier)

The soft pitter-patter of the rain against the windows of Corona café broke the silence within the customer-empty shop. It was quarter to ten in the evening – a slow hour for any coffee-drinkers to pay them a visit, and decidedly, the two sole workers took a break, sitting on an empty table and sipping their self-brewed drinks – coffee for the boss, and orange juice for her subordinate.

Hiccup took this peaceful opportunity to interrogate, albeit implicitly, Rapunzel about her life; like a nosy talk show host, prodding on the privacy of their guests.

With Gothel's consensual nod, he began. "Rapunzel, I'm really amazed by your baking skills. These cakes are really delicious! Say, did someone taught you?"

With an obvious perk of her eyes, Rapunzel smiled as she answered humbly, "Thank you, Hiccup. And no, not really. I learned from observing my aunt as she bakes."

Hiccup glanced at Gothel and saw the adoring smile that embraced her usually-scorned face. Despite seeing the hideous decay in the woman's facial features, Hiccup was less scared of her after working in the cafe for a week, making his glances at the ghost comfortable - at least, in Hiccup's book. "I could see that she had influenced you quite well. You must have taken your sweetness and kindness personality from her." Hiccup tried not to snort as he complimented the ghost.

But instead of getting a thanks, Gothel chose to raise her brow, looking him up and down for any signs of jesting (which was the truth in this case, not that Hiccup would ever admit that, unless he wanted a heart-attack triggered by yours truly, Gothel). That better not be sarcasm, Hiccup. The ghost threatened facetiously.

Rapunzel, completely oblivious of the phantom presence behind her, nodded eagerly and chirped her agreement. "That's flattering, but yes! My auntie is the sweetest and kindest person I've ever met."

Yeah, of course. She never let you meet other people anyway. Hiccup wanted to roll his eyes so bad – the only thing that's stopping him was the thought of inappropriately offending the person (and the ghost) across from him.

"Though..." Rapunzel halted, drawing circles at the side of her cup.

"Though…?"

"She has serious trust issues."

Gotcha~ The answer I've been waiting for! Hiccup hid his smile and pressed onto the topic, "Trust issues?" Hiccup made his question sound curious at best, before he continued flippantly, "Like she's not allowing any employees inside the café?" Come on, Rapunzel. Talk more! I really need you to.

And the glimmer on her eyes showed he hit the bull's eye. "Wow. Good guess!"

"Oh, no way...really? " Hiccup feigned his surprise.

As a reply, Rapunzel only nodded before she sipped her slowly cooling coffee.

"You know...I'm just curious," Hiccup announced, making gestures with his hands. "Did it ever occur to you that…haha, how do I say this? That..." He cleared his throat, and then whispered, "...your aunt might be the one haunting the café?"

Silence took over them - a very unusual phenomenon if one were to have a chit-chat with the amiable blonde.

"Actually, I have." Rapunzel played with her hair, and sighed. "...and I believe that's the case here. She probably hates me."

Hiccup glanced at the motionless ghost behind her. "Hate you? Why would she hate you?"

::: A not so distant past :::

The sound of a hard slap resonated within the café's break room, safely soundproofing the noise from the customers outside.

"I knew it! You scum!" She said in fury, jabbing a finger on the tall man's shoulder – a violent touch that would surely bruise the accused man, not only physically but also emotionally.

"…auntie…p-please, stop." Rapunzel kneaded her hands around her infuriated aunt's arm, trying to calm her down. "…just let it go, please…"

But instead of soothing down, Gothel loomed and glared sharply towards her niece, and with a snarl, she growled defiantly, "You are still siding with this thief!?"

"N-no…of course not, b-but…!"

"But what!?" Gothel screeched to the fretful lady.

Caught in panic, Rapunzel opened her mouth but no words were said; neither defending the man accused, nor siding the woman accusing. Realizing that providing an answer would hurt either of the two people in front of her, Rapunzel chose to held her head down, silently wishing the pristine floor to swallow her whole.

"This is what I have been telling you! What did you really expect from dating an ex-thief!? Did you really think he would stop? Look at this," Gothel opened her knuckle, showing an authentic diamond necklace which Rapunzel's mother gave to her as an eighteenth-birthday gift. "He stole this from you – from his own girlfriend! And you are saying that I should just let him go?"

"Rapunzel, I swear I did not do this. I don't know why it was in my bag, I rea –," The man practically begged. His face was both in panic and shock.

Sadly, Gothel thwarted his dire chance to explain. "Silence!" She ordered at the top of her lungs. "Stop lying to her! You are already caught red-handed, you thief! After I trusted and offered you a job, this is how you are going to repay me? Dating my niece was already unacceptable, but lying and stealing from her crosses the line! You should be ashamed of yourself."

"No…Gothel, I swear..I-I," He stuttered over his words, confused to where he should start. Averting his gaze to Rapunzel, he uttered softly, "Rapunzel…please...believe me."

"…"

"…please…I-I did not do –"

Turning her back, Rapunzel still had her head low, "Just..."

"…blondie…"

"Please…just go, Eugene…"

The begging man pursed his lips and silently eyed the floor, awaiting for the miraculous words of faith from Rapunzel. But no matter how long he patiently waited, Rapunzel failed him by ignoring his entire presence off her mind and shutting his words of fraudulent pleads.

When Gothel deemed she had won, she did not waste any time to push the muted Eugene away from her niece. "You're fired. I won't rat you to the police but don't you ever come back here, or else, I'll have you locked up right away. You hear me!?"

Yes, he did. But he did not care about the threat at all.

The only important thing to him right now was for Rapunzel to say she believes in his innocence - which, unfortunately, did not happen, and was all the more painful for him when she did not spare him a single glance.

"Eugene." Gothel said the moment he was out the backdoor. "Don't bother my niece again." She finished, throwing his satchel on his toned chest.

Stunned beyond comprehension, Eugene did not bother to catch his bag, and just allowed it to bump and drop on the dusty ground. His mind only started working when the door slammed shut in front of him. And quickly, he snagged his bag and searched for his phone – there, at the screen, a message was shown.

Hastily opening it to know the sender, it showed the named he hoped to see – Rapunzel's.

Why?

The message said, leaving a bitter taste in his mouth.

Why..? Eugene read the word in silence, stabilizing the unwanted pain in his chest. Giving the door one last look, he hoped Rapunzel would come out - just for him to see her face or possibly explain himself. However, he was given another heart-staking pain in his chest when no golden-haired girl appeared from the door.

Emotionally maimed, he left with a disheartened sigh.

Unbeknownst to him, Rapunzel was just right behind the door. If he had waited for a minute more, he would have seen Rapunzel staggering out despite Gothel's roar.

Days had passed, and Rapunzel have yet to receive her answer. Every single day, she would glance at her phone, and sometimes stare at the café's front door, obviously awaiting his return.

Her niece's lingering behavior was not left unnoticed by the ever-so-observant Gothel. Sharp as her eyes may be, the cold her heart could be. Because although she knew she could help fix what she ruined, she chose to keep a blind eye on the matter.

During the course of two months, Rapunzel's mood brightened, albeit slowly, and her lingering feelings slightly lessened. Thinking her waiting was fruitless, Rapunzel figured that Eugene neither have the courage to walk inside that welcoming door, nor the the guts to call her accessible phone. Therefore, she accepted the fact that she better give up on him.

Until one day…

We could really use some extra help in the shop. Rapunzel uncharacteristically sighed. Yes, ever since Eugene was fired, the work inside the café had been hectic for only two women to handle. She had suggested they hire new workers, but Gothel was hell-bent against the idea, feeling that another unwanted relationship would occur between her niece and employees.

If only she could say that, Don't worry about the new workers and me having any relationship…because I still love Eugene. Then everything would be less stressful for the two of them.

It was around ten in the evening and no customers were around. Bored, Rapunzel glanced around for something to do, and her eyes landed at the nearby monitor, showing the live-feed of the security cameras inside the café.

She stared at each room shown in the videos: three for the dining area, two for the counter, one for the kitchen and another one for the break room. It was a bit excessive for a small café to say the least, especially when the cameras were placed in areas without great need for them – like the kitchen and the break room.

Rapunzel lost count of the minutes she spent staring at the live security feed. However, the time spent was not wasted when an idea clicked inside her mind. Her curious hand hovered over the keyboard, searching for the recorded video two months ago inside the break room.

Replaying the events of that day, she saw the answer to a question she had never asked.

It was not a "why?"

It was a "did you?"

Rapunzel stood on her feet, stomping with a fury she never thought she had. Going up the stairs, she abruptly opened the door of the second floor which contained their humble home – a simple residence with a living room and two separate bedrooms.

She saw her aunt lounging on the couch, busy accounting their bills. Gothel lifted her head upon the sound of the loud bang, and gave her niece a curious once over.

"Dear, is there something wrong?"

Rapunzel felt like she was going to be sick. She couldn't believe the woman before her could do something so vile and cruel; manipulative even. Lifting her chin, she approached her with stomping feet. "I know the truth."

Gothel stared at her through her reading glasses.

"Eugene never stole my necklace."

"…" Gothel sat in silence, sighing and letting go of the papers on her hand.

"You…you se –"

" –set him up?" Gothel removed her glasses then stood, height matching her niece's.

"I saw it. The security video captured how you planted –"

" – the necklace inside Eugene's bag?" Gothel supplemented chillingly.

Rapunzel stood silently, whereas Gothel moved from behind her desk to the back of Rapunzel. Her hands made their way on Rapunzel's shoulders and she spoke to her ear. "Do you hate me for it?"

"Apologize to him." Rapunzel refused to answer her question, scared that by answering, her real feelings would be invoked.

"You see," Gothel let go of her shoulders. "Apologies shall be done with sincerity, dear. I am guilty but I am not sorry."

"..then." Exasperated, Rapunzel spun on her heel to face Gothel. "…don't let me make you feel sorry, aunt."

While receiving a scrutinizing stare from Rapunzel, Gothel went back to her desk and informed. "He's a lost cause, Rapunzel. He had been convicted for a robbery not so long ago."

Taken aback, Rapunzel felt the back of her neck tense. Deep inside, she hoped the information was just a product of her aunt's ploy.

Gothel, on the other hand, held up a finger. "For once, I am not lying. It was not even a year and he's already teaming up with people to do crimes. He may not have stolen from you, but at one point or another, he would."

"I don't believe it."

"As cliché as this sounds, it's always the truth that's hard to believe, my dear."

Rapunzel sat on the chair across Gothel, her eyes were painstakingly wide with tears brimming on the sides. "I can't believe it."

"…"

"All this time…."

"I know, shush, honey, stop crying." Gothel held her hand. "He promised to never do such horrible things, but thieving is his second nature, dear. You should be grateful I saved you from someone like him."

"I always thought y-you were…" Rapunzel shook her head, and then wrenched her hand away. "…I-I can't believe how rotten you are! Eugene…he…he promised. I know he would do as he promised me…you just had to rub his faults to his face!"

Gothel stood abruptly from her chair, her cool façade was long gone. "I'm rotten!? I did that because I was worried about you! You're too naïve, you trust people too much. Leaving you to a scum like him, I just knew he would hurt you one day!"

Rapunzel stood as well, meeting her aunt's infuriated gaze. But as piercing as her gaze may be, her voice exuded coolness which was absent in the heated voice of her aunt, "Between the two of you. You were the one who hurt me."

"Where are you going!?" Gothel said as she saw Rapunzel stormed off.

"I'm going to find him and apologize…"

"You are doing no such thing!"

"Stop dictating me what to do! I want choose for myself and act for myself. Stop controlling everything." She heaved. "I..after I found him…I'm going to live with mom and dad overseas..I don't care if I'll have to travel forever with them. I'm not staying with someone like you."

Perhaps that was too much on Rapunzel's part. But she was so disappointed and infuriated that she could not stop her mouth from saying the words. She just wanted to be away from the woman who practically raised her as much as possible.

But as Rapunzel was about to leave the room – a loud thud behind her was heard. She had every intention to just storm off and clear her head down the café for a while. Probably, take back the words she said about leaving at a later hour. She knew how her aunt fear the idea of being left alone…and in this world, all Gothel had was her and Rapunzel's mother.

She did not wish to look back, but the sound was too hard not to bother.

Horrified – that's what she first felt when she saw Gothel, lying on the ground and clutching her chest.

Rapunzel did not remember how she held her aunt in panic, how she ran to the phone for help, how she waited outside the emergency room. All she could remember was her in front of Gothel's tombstone with her parents on the side.

She internally thought. You know…I don't hate you, right?

::: End of the distant past :::

"…that's what happened." Rapunzel said with a heavy sigh.

Hiccup actually heard the brief narration of the story from Gothel. It was during their talk inside the men's restroom. The ghost of Gothel looked solemnly at her niece – an expression which Hiccup dare not believe to be of hate.

With a bitter chuckle, Rapunzel continued, "This is probably why she was haunting me."

"I'm not so sure about that, Rapunzel. If…she was indeed haunting this shop, I believe it was to keep an eye on you…you know, to keep wrong people at bay."

"Despite the things I said?"

Hiccup drank the last bit of his juice. "Do you hate her?" He blurted out, perhaps, a bit too straight forward. Too bad, he realized it too late when he saw how Gothel and Rapunzel's eyes widened simultaneously.

"No…I never hated her. I was disappointed, I was…I was just mad." She heaved a sigh. "But I couldn't find it in me to hate her despite the things she did. I love her like my own parent."

Hiccup watched Gothel, a sincere smile graced on her face. "I believe she felt the same. At that moment, she could have been disappointed and mad at you as well. But I believe she never hated you."

"I hope so." Rapunzel smiled weakly.

"Say. Did you find this guy, Eugene?"

"No. I tried to contact him…or search some of the prisons around but I never saw him again."

"How about his home?"

"When we were together, we never went to his house. We didn't see the need for it."

Hiccup hummed once again, and eyed Gothel. "Would you still like to see him?"

Rapunzel's eyes perked. "Yeah. I'm still hoping."

"Then, please don't think this is weird." Hiccup fidgeted and smiled sheepishly. "…but, would you like me to help you search for him? You know, just in case I stumble on him or something."

"Sure –"

"Great!" Hiccup exclaimed, standing up.

"Uhh, Hic –"

"Well, it's really late so…I'm gonna go clean this up and go home," Hiccup said, taking the empty cups. "I'll finish the work myself, so just go up and rest."

Rapunzel just blinked as Hiccup moved fast, watching him disappear behind the door of the kitchen. Tilting her head, she thought curiously. "He doesn't even know what he looks like."

(END of FLASHBACK)

"Sent you?" The tall man repeated.

Hiccup opened and closed his mouth like a fish pulled out from the waters. "Uhh y-yeah s-sort of –"

The man raised his brow before he changed his expression to that of realization. "Oh wait, are you the new recruit of the Stabbington Brothers? Man, I thought we'd meet up at the mall?"

"…"

Patting him on the back, the tall man continued. "Don't worry, man. Don't be shy. I think they informed you that this is my first robbery as well. I –"

"Wait..! Robbery?" Hiccup inquired with eyes widened. "We're going to rob?"

"Oh yeah, I heard you don't like violence. Truth is, me too. But don't worry it's not really robbing, it's more like house thieving." Taking a piece of paper outside his pocket, he handed it over Hiccup.

Hiccup only stared at the paper, not making any moves to take it.

"I know. Why use paper, right? when you could just text it." The man shrugged and suggested, "Just ask the Stabbingtons when you see them."

Taking the piece of paper, Hiccup observed Eugene as he stepped away from him.

"Oh yeah, have a lot of rest, we'll need it tomorrow. I'm Flynn Ryder by the way. You are?" He introduced.

"…Flynn?"

The man nodded.

"But isn't he named Eugene." He muttered under his breath.

Giving him an incredulous once over, the so-called 'Flynn' asked. "What…? Did you say your name is Eugene?" Perhaps, the coincidence was too much for him.

Hiccup made the longest sound of, "Uhhh…" And started to weigh down his choices. Would it be good for him to say the truth or lie?

Why did I have to learn about this? He internally sighed. Saying no and admitting of his innocence could cause him either of the two possible scenarios: left alive with few bruises or murdered with his body found floating in a dirty creek.

This was supposed to be an easy task. He planned to simply introduce himself as Rapunzel's friend, and use his convincing skills to persuade (or force) him to visit and reconcile with Rapunzel.

Not this!

Although, Hiccup gauged Eugene to be the non-violent kind of guy who would nonchalantly let a poor guy like him go, Hiccup could not risk the chances of being found out. It's a criminal he was dealing with after all. It's not just a matter of being caught lying (not that he intended it to happen), but it's about knowing whether he would live to see the day tomorrow (if he was stupid enough to admit of his innocence).

Ending up with a decision, Hiccup closed his eyes then lied through his teeth, "Yes."

"Right…Anyways, we'll meet up at ten in the evening, alright? Don't be late. I don't think the Stabbingtons would like that." Eugene, alias Flynn, said before leaving Hiccup alone.

Hiccup stood there, frozen, and leaned back against the wall. Thumping his head lightly, he unfolded the paper and read the scribbled address with his eyes.

Isn't this around the rich part of the town? Man, he's in for the big time, huh…

Huhuhuhu…huack…hik… The sounds of crying and vomiting resonated close to Hiccup's left side. Help me…hel-p m-e…HELP me!

Taking that as his cue to leave, Hiccup briskly ran away.

Sorry! Can't deal with you right now!

::: A few hours later, a frosting wants something sizzling hot :::

Jack was lost in bafflement.

What was the exact reason why he was at this place? Was it the craving for a nice and freshly-brewed coffee? Or a taste of those tantalizing cakes? It would be safe for him to say yes. But one had to wonder, why would he drive twenty minutes just to drink coffee when there were dozens of more known cafes five minutes away from his office building. Besides, did he need to buy the coffee himself when there were dozens of (almost worthless) workers he could order to make or buy the drink for him?

Turning off the engine of his car, Jack checked the time from his phone, learning it was just ten in the evening.

His fingers tapped the steering wheel as if he was playing the piano. Decidedly, he sighed and muttered. "Why do I have to over-analyze this? I'm just simply here for a cup of coffee and a slice of cake…" He went out the car with that mindset, walking as he stared at the starless sky.

Standing in the middle of the patio, his eyes locked to the front door of the humble little shop. Pulled out of his focus when -

"What should I do, Toothless?"

Facing to his right, Jack saw a man perched behind a tree, anxiously talking on his phone and curiously peeking inside the cafe. When Jack followed his line of sight, he learned that the man was watching the girl by the counter, which he remembered to be the owner interviewed in the show.

"…I don't know. Should I alert her about this..?"

Jack paced closer in silent strides, looking at the man up close. It is him… He fully confirmed.

"What did you mean I should call the police? He'll go to jail."

"…"

Holding the bridge of his nose, Hiccup thumped his head against the bark of the three. "Tell her I can see ghosts?"

Silence.

"Yeah, remember how that went last time?"

Silence.

"Yeah, yeah, go on, laugh at me. Ugh, Toothless, sto – alright, I'll tell her about what I see…should I go ask Torch or Gothel to convince her?"

Jack narrowed his eyes. I don't like where this is going… He thought and before he knew it, he had already blurted, "You're going to freak her out, you know."

Hiccup quickly faced him in surprise. "…"

"…"

"…why are you here..?"

"Coffee." Jack quipped immediately.

"…T-Toothless, uhh…I'll call you later. Y-yeah, yeah, alright. Okay, no, no, I'll explain later. Yeah, okay. Ugh, shut up." Beep – goes his phone. "Hey..." Hiccup said, making nervous gestures with his sweaty hands. "You heard that..?"

With a raised brow, Jack nodded. "So, you're involved in something illegal now, huh?"

"…i-illegal? Of course not," Hiccup laughed dryly, doing an oh-please motion with his hand. But when he realized that he could not mislead Jack at all, (which was really surprising because Hiccup took pride in his (lame and utterly bullshit) acting) he sighed and slouched his back, "Ugh…do you really think I would freak her out if I tell her about the ghosts?"

"I thought my reaction was enough proof of that." Jack answered, making Hiccup wince.

Groaning in distress, Hiccup wiped his face with the palm of his hand. A minute had passed and Hiccup expected the man to leave. Failing his expectation (once again), the white-haired man stood there tall, carefully watching him. "What are you still standing there for though?" Hiccup asked.

A question that made Jack's eyes narrow. "..."

"If coffee is what you're looking for, it's definitely not out here. Go on." Hiccup shooed with his hand, calling Toothless' phone. The problem in his mind was putting him on edge, and seeing Jack's cool façade pissed him off for a reason he could not deduce.

"Aren't you working here?"

"How did you know that?"

Jack weirdly felt his collar get tighter around his neck, and he quickly placed a finger to loosen it. "Lucky guess."

"Saying you can read minds is more believable to me." Hiccup snorted.

Jack raised his brow, saying, "Just so you know, the reason why I'm here doesn't have anything to do with y–." He had every intention to explain himself. However, Hiccup did not pay him anymore attention, raising a hand and motioning Jack to shut up as he placed the phone back to his ear.

"What? Oh, who was I talking to…?" Hiccup glanced at him for a moment, before he averted his eyes back to the café.

"…"

"Nothing important, just some dude with personality disorder…yeah? What? Bud, it's going down tomorrow. We have no time for that."

Jack felt his left eye twitch. Dude with personality disorder…?

"But what if she hates him? That's not going to finish Gothel's mission. Ugh – what? No…this is bad."

Leaving the lanky man behind, Jack went inside the café with a stomp, causing a stir to the customers inside. And some of the nearby girls giggled as he passed.

"Isn't he hot?"

Jack heard one of them whispered to her friends. Going straight to the table away from the windows (so he wouldn't see the sissy man outside) and other nosy customers, he waited for the blonde waitress to walk towards him with a menu on her nimble hands.

Taking it, he skimmed the menu half-heartedly. "I'll take this and this."

"Is that all?" She smiled.

"Yeah." Jack smiled back, looking outside to see the Hiccup still perched behind the tree and talking on his phone. (So much for searching a seat away from the windows, huh?)

When Rapunzel came back with his order, Jack did not even notice when it was served on his table.

Rapunzel, seeing his customer's attention outside, followed Jack's line of sight and saw Hiccup with his phone. Averting her eyes to Jack, Rapunzel stared at the rare platinum-hair of the man. Then the memory clicked on her head.

"Do you know Hiccup?" She asked, making Jack glance at her.

"No." Jack quipped, smiling right after.

"Oh..." Rapunzel said incredulously. She was eighty-percent sure that the guy in front of her was the same guy Hiccup went with to this café before. Besides, if Jack did not know Hiccup, he would have asked who the guy was first, right? Not downright answer her with a no. "Well, enjoy." Spinning on her heel, she stopped when Jack called for her.

"Wait."

"Yes?"

"Do you mind if we talk for a bit?"

"…"

"It's regarding…Hiccup." Because Jack knew he was already figured out by Rapunzel. Well, her face said it all.

"So…you do know him."

Sighing in defeat, Jack nodded. "Please, have a sit?"

Rapunzel looked around, checking if any customer is in need of service. Seeing that she was clear for now, she sat across Jack. "You were the one he's with the first time he went here, right? You know the one who abandoned him?"

Jack winced visibly. Feeling that her words were far bitter compared to the coffee he ordered. He abandoned it and went to grab a bite of his chocolate cake, relishing on the sweetness of it.

"But, visiting him is really nice of you." She said sweetly.

Her sentence suddenly made the sweetness of the cake unbearable, putting down the fork to take a sip of his coffee. "Right…how long had he been working here?"

"A month."

Jack nodded with a smile. "You know, he's pretty weird.."

Rapunzel blinked. Weird…? The only weirdness he noticed of the man was his odd bouts of startled shouts and minutes of talking to the air. That's not that weird. She thought. Is this guy here to talk bad about Hiccup? Her face started to contort in distaste.

"..but he's a good guy." Jack continued, surprising Rapunzel.

"Yeah, I believe that."

Jack smiled then continued to eat his food, glancing outside, he saw Hiccup made his move to enter the café. "So..as a...friend" He cleared his throat, not wanting to dub himself as Hiccup's friend, "...whatever he would say, no matter how odd or hard to believe it is. Please trust him." He smiled.

Rapunzel just sat there blinking, not noticing Hiccup as he got close to them.

"Uhh…hey." Hiccup interrupted.

Jack did not look up, continuously eating his snack.

"Hiccup –" Rapunzel blurted but interrupted by Jack.

"I guess our discussion has to end, miss…" Jack looked at her nametag, saying, "…Rapunzel. Though could you keep my comments a secret?" He faked his embarrassment, "It's a bit embarrassing for a guy to compliment confectioneries that way."

"Sure…" Rapunzel furrowed her brows, quick to realize the hidden request of not telling Hiccup about their conversation. Though, she did not understand why Jack would not want Hiccup to know about it – Perhaps, he was embarrassed, she thought.

"Do keep what I said in mind though," Jack winked.

"Will do." Rapunzel stood up and said, "Enjoy."

"…what?" Rapunzel's whisper echoed within the now-closed café. "…you can…see ghosts?"

I told you that this is a bad idea. Gothel shook her head, standing in between the two.

You shouldn't have listened to jelly pants. Torch seconded, clutching the back of Hiccup's shirt and hiding from Gothel. It had been a month already but Torch still feared the older ghost, even up to the extent of avoiding the shop unless Hiccup calls for him.

The medium glanced at the two ghosts beside him before nodding. "I know this is absurd…Oh! Rapunzel," he side-stepped when he saw Rapunzel tried to make a run, "P-please, don't freak out…"

"Hiccup…this is not a good joke."

"Rapunzel, you know I'm not really a joker."

But your whole presence is a joke. Gothel mocked. And for the first time, Hiccup found the guts to glare at her – an action caused by the by-product of a pressured and stressed Hiccup.

Rapunzel followed his line of sight, paling. She glanced around and wrapped her arms around herself. "You're really freaking me out, Hiccup…"

"I know, I know..I'm sorry." Hiccup sighed. "I always feel like that when I see them. But I'm really telling the truth. I can see things that no normal person could. It happened after I woke up from coma years ago..You remembered when you asked me why I got scared after I saw you the first time?"

Rapunzel nodded apprehensively.

"It's because I saw the ghost of your aunt...actually she is here with us."

"…"

"I haven't seen your aunt in any pictures, right? Nor have you described her to me…I could not give a full detail of her appearance but she has curly black hair, she's around five foot and five inches tall –"

"…this is too a bit too hard to believe."

"I know. How about this…uhm, I'd ask her to move things, is that okay?"

Rapunzel nodded incredulously. A second did not even pass when the kitchen utensils started hitting each other. A few casserole and plates floated around them.

Rapunzel felt her feet wobble and Hiccup was quick to catch her. He supported and guided her to a nearby stool, taking the glass of water that Torch handed to him then offered it to Rapunzel.

"I know this is too much for you to take."

"Can you…really see my aunt?" She asked, looking around in search for her aunt.

"Yes, she had been watching over you since the day she died. So now, you could believe me when I say she doesn't hate you…"

Rapunzel nodded, "Why didn't you tell me right away? Why did you have to admit this all of a sudden?"

Hiccup, Torch and Gothel looked at each other.

This is up to you. Gothel said, while Torch nodded, running to the back of Hiccup when he realized he was already beside the older ghost.

"Okay, here is why…"

By the time Hiccup finished explaining, the clock had chimed the stroke of midnight. He told about Gothel's unfinished business, his mission to help her, his search for Eugene, and his discovery of Eugene's…dangerous new job.

"He…went back to stealing?" Rapunzel muttered weakly.

Gothel rolled her eyes. What do you expect?

Hiccup shook his head at Gothel. "About to." He pointed out.

"What do you mean..?"

"The Stabbington Brothers are notorious twin criminals, who are popular for their successful streak of high-class condominium and small-scale apartmen thievery. They never went for big houses. And this.." Hiccup pulled out the paper Eugene gave. "..is an address within the richest residences in Burgess. Bigger houses meant the need for bigger crew. I believe they hired Eugene and another guy, he thought was me, for extra hands."

"I don't see why you had to tell me these things…I thought you wanted me to reconcile with Eugene. You're making me feel more disappointed right now."

She has a point, Hiccup.

"Not helping, Torch." Hiccup muttered behind his back, facing Rapunzel again. "That was not my intention, Rapunzel. I just wanted you to knock some sense into his head before it's too late. And I know it's only you who could. I'm just a stranger who was blurting nonsense after all."

The four of them were all quiet for a moment until Rapunzel spoke.

"..So, what's the plan?"

::: Tomorrow night at ten o'clock, two humans were hiding by the road's well-tended shrubbery :::

"That is your plan!?" Toothless shouted against the receiver. "Come on, Hiccup! This is real life…that's going to put you in danger!"

"Hiccup, are you okay?" Rapunzel asked, seeing the way Hiccup winced at the loudness of Toothless' voice.

"Wait…is the girl with you? You brought her with you!? Are you fucking nuts!?"

"Bud, calm down." Hiccup requested. "You told me to tell her about this…"

"Yeah, I fucking did! But I thought I told you to just make the girl talk to Eugene before the burglary happens, not while it is happening!"

Hiccup held the phone away from his ears, "Bud, if we had a choice, we wouldn't even do this."

"You have a choice! Call the cops then let Rapunzel talk to him –"

"But that's already behind bars!"

"It's better than the two of you inside a coffin! I would hate to arrange your funeral, Hiccup! Your dad would make me follow you right away."

"Wouldn't you love that, bud? Even in death, we're together. We should have gotten married when we had the chance."

"Hiccup! Don't do it. Let the cops handle this!"

"I have two ghosts with me, bud."

"What? You mean Satan's wife and son?"

Hiccup rolled his eyes, "That's offensive, you know."

The meaningless conversation was cut off when Torch appeared behind them. We're in.

Ugh, thank God for this heavenly salvation. Hiccup prayed, fearing his ears would bleed if their call kept on for another second. "I'll call you back, Toothless."

"Wai –," Hiccup ended the call, turning his phone off.

Facing Rapunzel, he said, "Now..we wait till they make their move."

Rapunzel nodded her head, "My hands are shaking so much…"

Hiccup smiled weakly, his voice squeaked as he answered back, "Same."

::: In another part of the vicinity, the three burglars waited for the fourth :::

"Where the fuck is that guy? He's late!" The eye-patched Stabbington complained.

"Flynn, are you fucking sure that you gave the address to him?" The no-patched Stabbington asked in irritation.

"Yeah, I promise, man. I even told him not to be late."

"Well, he sure is taking a hell of a time getting his ass over here!"

"Well, fuck! Let's just start this without him. Get everything ready."

"Alright, man. Chill." Flynn supplied, pursing his lips immediately when the two glared daggers at him.

And the three went into action, grabbing their tools to start their crime.

::: Tick-tock, tick-tock :::

"You know, it's against the law to use your phone while driving."

"Being righteous on me now, huh?" Jack smirked. "Don't worry, man. I have both of my hands on the steer. Phone is on the side."

"Uhuh. So which club should I pick you up later?"

"The home club."

"Home clu –…wait, hold up. You mean you are already going home? I think my watch is broken, it must be three hours late."

Jack rolled his eyes, smirking. "Yeah, yeah. I'm going home too early and your watch only says eleven. I get it."

Jamie snorted, saying, "What did you eat?"

"Nothing really. It's probably why I'm like this."

"Ha! Anyways, which home?"

Taking a turn, he finally entered the area where colossal houses were built. Each house was designed in a modern way; with their notable structure of see-through glasses, scattered lights and box-like structures. The place almost looked like a subdivision with only one house design.

"The one in Leo Valley."

"Eh? Don't you usually sleep in your condominium on Wednesdays..?"

"That's when I'm drunk and have you as my driver."

Jamie blew air through his nose. "It's the closest. I need my sleep too you know. Maybe if you went home before midnight next time, MAYBE, just maybe, I'll try to drive you to your real house." Jack may not have seen it, but he knew Jamie rolled his eyes.

Seeing the flambouyant houses, it was only justifiable that the accessories were on par with the area's extravagance. So, imagine the way Jack's eyes narrowed at the out-of-date black van, parked a house away from his own.

"Ha…" He said.

"What's up?"

"Just saw this odd van that I'm sure pedos use to kidnap kids."

"You mean a cheap one."

"You know it." Jack said as he finally reached the gates of his home. With a click of his remote, the gates automatically opened. "Alright, Jamie. I'm home. Let's just talk tomorrow."

"Okay." Jamie said then dropped the call.

"Aww, he did not even say goodbye." Jack parked his car, taking his stuff from the unoccupied front seat then closed his door. Fixing his hair when he saw his reflection within his car's shiny exterior, he walked straight to his front door, not sparing his surroundings a second glance. All that he wanted to do was to strip, shower, dress, and then sleep.

But when his eyes landed in one of his windows, all thoughts of tidying and resting perished from his mind.

"What the…" He murmured. "…why are the lights on?"

Did I forgot to turn them off? Jack contorted his head in thought, trying to remember whether he forgot the switch. My house couldn't be…trespassed, right? Because if it did; a call from the security company would alarm him if anything or anyone opened the entrances outside.

Clearly, he did not get any. And in faith, he believed his house was safe, that he was safe.

Shrugging it off as his mistake in leaving the lights on, Jack input his code then waited for the keyhole to be shown. Once revealed, he did not waste a minute to twist the door open.

[Door unlocked] The computerized voice said.

"Home at last." Jack breathed, heading upstairs tiredly to take a quick shower.

But the lights (he thought he neglected to turn off this morning) disappeared, shrouding his home in an unexpected blackout.

"…the heck is going on…?"

::: An hour earlier – before Toothless' call :::

"Torch…"

Yeah?

"You awfully knew too much about this house…Is there something you're not telling me?" Hiccup inquired.

Torch shrugged.

"Torch…" Hiccup called to get his attention. "How did you know the alarms would go off if doors and windows were opened outside..?"

Another shrug was his answer.

"…and how did you provide us with this?" Hiccup waved the house's internal design, drawn in a piece of paper with the use of red crayon. "Shrug one more time and I would let Gothel babysit you."

The shrug, Torch was about to do, stopped. If ghosts could turn any paler, Torch would be as white as flour by now. I've been to this house before.

Hiccup raised his brow.

It's that liar's home.

"…"

You know, the one with old man's white hair?

"…Jack?"

Torch nodded.

"…"

What? You asked me.

"You've got to be kidding me…" Hiccup exasperatedly sighed. "…out of all the houses…"

Gothel appeared right beside Rapunzel then faced to inform Hiccup. It's a lost cause. You can't get near Eugene, the Stabbington Brothers had a close watch on him.

"Gothel, did they indicate if this is the house they are going to attack?" Hiccup pointed towards the large estate in front of him.

Positive. That is the one.

Told ya~ Torch sing-songed.

Hiccup facepalmed. "This is bad…"

Gothel and Rapunzel raised their brows and asked simultaneously, "Something wrong?"

"…this is Jack's home."

"..who?"

"You know, the one with the old man's white hair?" Hiccup copied Torch's explanation, making the boy snicker.

"Oh him!" Rapunzel said in smiles then turned darkly, "Oh wait…that is bad. Are we still going to do this? He's your friend after all…"

Hiccup looked at Rapunzel, sighing. "Well…Eugene is a friend to you too, right?" Well, Jack and I were not exactly friends…but still, I have inconvenienced the guy more than enough. "We'll…just do as planned. Scare them till they leave."

Are you sure this would work? Gothel asked incredulously.

"It has to work. If it doesn't, Eugene would commit a crime and go to jail, worse, we'll be accompanying him inside." Hiccup shivered. He had never ventured in prisons before but he was sure thousands of unrest souls were in there.

"…"

…

Why don't you two just stay here and we'll do the scaring? Gothel suggested, glancing at Torch for confirmation. The latter cowered behind Hiccup.

I don't want to be left alone with her, Hiccup. But it's fine if it's only tonight… He whispered to his ear, sending goosebumps all over Hiccup.

Ugh, I hate it when ghosts do that. It's creepy…

"Are you guys, sure?"

The two ghosts nodded. Hiccup proceeded to inform Rapunzel of the new plan.

"Okay, but what if Jack comes?"

"…"

...

…

"Then we go in." Hiccup said.

::: Back to Jack, Jack in black :::

Jack used his phone to illuminate his way to the fuse, wanting to check if this blackout was caused by it mysteriously clamping down. Jack was never scared of the dark; however, it never made him the least bit comfortable, especially, if you had to wonder why the lights of your house were left on earlier.

Hands sweating, Jack's large ears perked at the sound he swore echoed from behind him. Brushing it off as the product of his imagination, Jack continued his way down, not wanting to look back. When he reached the door leading to his basement, he quickly went down, lighting his way to search for the fuse.

"It is down. How…?"

Wrenching it up, Jack watched the house be shrouded with light. "Much better." He said, observing the cleanliness of his basement.

"Wait!"

Jack hoped what he just heard upstairs was a neglected stereo system. Because he swore he would call the police already. The only thing that was holding him back was his refusal to be called a paranoid, or the discovery that another ghost was there to haunt him.

I knew I shouldn't have visited that café. He's bad luck.

Cautiously opening the door outside, he observed his surroundings. But not a soul was in there.

I'm not Hiccup…so how would I know that there's no soul in here. He thought warily. Shaking his head, Jack laughed to himself, "I'm being paranoid." He said, tucking his phone into his pockets.

"What the hell was that!?" A voice echoed within the house, followed by incessant sounds of things breaking.

Jack's eyes widened. "Shit." He ran on quiet feet then cautiously made his way to see three men upstairs, busy ransacking a bag which was hoisted out from his room. "Fuck, thieves.." He whispered, quickly dialling for the police.

"911. What's your emergency?"

"I want to report a burglary at thirty-second house in Leo Valley. Come, A.S.A.P."

"May I inquire who this is?"

"Jackson Overland. I'm the owner of the said house."

"Mr. Overland, if possible, try hiding or getting out of the house as stealthy as you can. Do not approach the thieves. We'll send help right away."

"Thank you." Jack turned his phone off, waiting for the right moment to bolt out of the house. While the three men were busy, rummaging through a shelf, Jack warily walked in long, but quiet strides. Everything's going great, not until the unthinkable happened, his phone blared a phone call. The three men spun on their heels then glanced downward and saw him standing in the middle.

Shit!

He was about to bolt for the door, when suddenly the shelves flung books towards the two hulking men. It managed to stump his intruders, unfortunately, he stumped him as well.

"What the fuck are you standing there for!? Get him!" One of the big two said to the less bulky man. The other shrugged before running down the stairs.

Jack internally cursed his tight security system. Not only did it fail to alarm him (the same goes to the security company) about the thieves, it was also hard to get out because one had to input another code to open the door even from the inside.

Knowing about his chances of getting out through that door was low, Jack bolted to the kitchen, hoping to get out from the windows, laughing internally when the guy, that was supposed to be in pursuit of him, stumbled down, looking like he tripped from something invisible.

However, when he opened the doors to the kitchen, he collided into something and toppled down.

"Agh!" He groaned aloud, feeling a jolt of pain at the sudden impact of his body down the ground. He still had his eyes closed, trying to clear his spinning head.

When he opened his eyes, he saw a face that he did not expect to see.

"You!" He blurted aloud, only for his mouth to be clamped shut by the man who was sitting and straddling his chest. " whm mhamm mmo mmmmng mm mmmere," he said under the hands which the collide-r translated in his mind as, "What the fuck are you doing in here?"

Hiccup kept a hand on his mouth, shushing him before letting go of his mouth. The huffs of the tired burglar got closer; Hiccup looked back and saw the tall man with a cover in his head.

"You!" The man said, pointing a finger at him. "You're late."

Bang! The sound of metal hitting a head echoed through the kitchen. His limp body fell down, revealing Rapunzel with a pan on her hand.

"Damn," Hiccup and Jack muttered. That's one hell of a pan…

Out of his daze, Jack rolled over, taking the other in surprise, and reversed their position. He held the other's wrist and stared him down. "What the fuck is going on here!?" He asked in a hard voice.

The crashes outside got louder. "I'll explain later." Hiccup said in panic. "But we really need to go!"

"Guys, they are getting closer."

Jack then stood, pulling Hiccup with him. Quickly striding to the window atop the sink, Jack opened it then supported Rapunzel to get out first.

Hiccup! Faster, we can't hold them off anymore. Torch shouted from the hallways, a few meters away from the kitchen.

That's one thing that sucks about being a ghost. People thought that supernatural beings had supernatural strength. Unfortunately, that was not the truth. Because when a person dies and their spirit roams free, the strength they had would just be equivalent to the strength they used to have as a living human – with the few exceptions for evil spirits – which was not the case for the two ghosts with them.

Yes, Gothel was scary, but she was notevil enough to qualify. Proof? She had pure attachments to others, namely her niece. For a spirit to be considered evil, they would feel no remorse or love for anyone, not even to themselves.

Knowing the guy could not possibly lift himself fast with a fake leg, Jack held Hiccup by the waist then lifted him up easily. "Go!" He ordered, snapping the other from his momentary gaze.

Yup, not the best time for him to blush, but what could he do? It was a spontaneous reaction from being held that easily. Hiccup nodded, scramming out of the window. His thanks could wait later when they are safe.

When it was Jack's turn to leap out, a meaty hand stopped him in his tracks. The next thing he knew, he was turned to face the owner – a fist collided in his jaw, then another, and another came.

Jack did not even have the time to retaliate, seeing stars at each blow.

He was far from wimp, but realistically, two against one was not a fair fight at all, especially, when both men were twice his size.

Eugene woke up with a groan. He touched the back of his head then watched the Stabbington brothers kick the guy he was pursuing.

"So nice of you to join the party." Eye-patch said.

Eugene stood quickly, pushing the twins off the beat up man. "Hey! Stop it! We agreed that no one is getting hurt."

The twins looked at each other then simultaneously smirked evilly.

"You're right." Non-patch said.

Eye-patch held out a gun, pointing it towards the now-standing, Jack. "We can just end his life fast without much pain."

Eugene held up his hands, motioning his hands to put the gun down. "Come on, dude. We did not agree to this. We're burglars, not killers."

"Shut up, newbie." Eye-patch retorted. "It's either you get to our side…"

"Or you die with him." No-patch continued, now aiming a gun towards Eugene.

Eugene gulped. "Oh come on, guys. Don't be like this."

"So?" Eye-patch slurred. "Which side are you on?"

Eugene glanced towards Jack who was busy wiping off the blood on his lips.

"…man, I'm a thief, not a murderer."

"Then prepare our welcoming party in hell, Flynn." No-patch said, about to pull the trigger. The ghosts, who were pestering them earlier, recovered and appeared just in time to pull down the hands that held guns, making the burly men waste their bullets in cracking the pristine floors.

Jack did not even waste a second to punch the eye-patched twin. Flynn followed by attacking no-patched. Gothel helped Flynn by pulling on eye-patch's hair, while Torch assisted Jack by biting on no-patch's ear.

The twins did not allow themselves to be manhandled easily, exchanging blows with the less muscular males. Eugene received a huge blow to his jaw, making him hit the sink. Looking up, he saw the face of Rapunzel beside the window, peering worriedly at him. "Blondie..?" I must have knocked out…man, I'm seeing Rapunzel.

Then before he knew it, Rapunzel shrieked then threw her pan towards Eye-patched, hitting the burglar's head hard.

Eugene glanced back and saw Eye-patched dizzy on the ground. Looking back to Rapunzel, he said. "Nice aim!"

"Thank you." She said, smiling.

Jack, on the other hand, was busy dodging no-patched's punches, until his lower back met the sink.

Hiccup, being an annoying little hitch that he was, peered close to the window and bothered Jack, "You sure you don't need my help Jack?"

Huffed then dodged to the right, "Pft! What would –," Another dodge then hit back. " – would you do? Knock the gorilla with your twiggy arms?"

And because of the distraction, Jack received a blow to his right jaw, not strong enough to knock him out but strong enough to take him off his rhythm. Wiping his lip, Jack shield himself for the expected right hook – an attack that never came because an unknown item hit No-patch at the right side of his head, twice, followed by another at the crown.

Jack watched No-patch go limp down to his knees, clutching his head in agony.

While he was trying to catch his breath, Jack glanced at Hiccup and saw the smugness on his face.

"My arms don't help much but my kicks are pretty good." Hiccup winked and waved the prosthetic leg in his hand.

Jack snorted then chuckled, "I don't think it's the best time to joke." He winked back.

"I don't see the burglar laughing."

Jack rolled his blue eyes then smiled once again.

And as the six tied the two, Jack finally heard the sirens he had been waiting for.

"Damn, we could have been dead already." Jack said, shaking his head and watched the two burglars who were out of their wits. Then his eyes turned blank in thought when the third burglar offered his wrists to be tied.

"Try not to make it too tight, alright?"

Rapunzel and Hiccup watched Eugene and Jack. And saw the platinum-haired man look at the other coldly, despite having the same towering height, Jack was still able to look down at the other, whose head was hung low.

Jack grabbed crown of Eugene's head, grabbing the cloth of his face cover.

Eugene closed his eyes, bracing himself for the blow. But the only feeling he got was the sudden coolness on his face when the bonnet was wrenched from his head.

"Huh?" Eugene, Rapunzel and Hiccup said at the same time. While the man questioned threw the bonnet in the trash.

"Put your hands up!" The police said.

"I'm the one who called." Jack informed coolly, while the other three humans and two ghosts narrowed their eyes in question, watching him.

::: An hour later :::

Jack just finished his statement regarding the home thieves. The officer, who identified himself as Maximus, was highly incredulous of his statement, not that he did not believe the two burglars to be innocent; it was just that he was highly convinced that there were supposed to be three burglars to apprehend.

Jack inquired him why but the man said it was confidential.

Confidential, my ass. I'm the one whose house was almost robbed. Jack just nodded his head. If that's the case then they would only receive half the truth of my statement. The rest is fucking confidential.

However, when the twin burglars began blurting that Eugene was one of them. Jack was quick to explain that Eugene was a friend who saved him along with the lanky man and little woman. And even if they took Eugene, he would not press charges against the man for Jack owe him his life.

Unconvinced, Maximus was about to cuff Eugene.

Rapunzel, however refused to give up and somehow managed to coax the egotistic and righteous officer not to apprehend his friend and instead gave Eugene a two-month long community service.

Talking bout' convincing skills. The three men thought. Despite his relief, Eugene still had a scowl on his face. "A two-month community service? That's like prison work, just without free food."

"Stop complaining." Rapunzel quipped. "This officer is already being nice."

Maximum ordered a little chat with Eugene first before the officer go away to put the two burglars in prison. Jack, Rapunzel and Hiccup just watched them walk away in silence.

"Excuse me, sir. Please follow me to the ambulance and allow us to tend your wounds." The medic said to Jack, and the two rescuers saw the discoloration on the man's face.

"He did take a lot of punches."

"Yeah…"

Bleh, wimp. Did you see me bite off that man's ear!? Torch said. It tasted horrible.

Hiccup patted his head.

Few minutes passed, and Eugene came back with an unreadable expression on his face.

Curious of the man's blank expression, Hiccup asked. "What did he talk to you about?"

"I can't, man. That douche said it's confidential. All that I could say is that you ruined their plan but still helped with the operation somehow." Eugene said to Hiccup. The latter only replied with a shrug.

"You were quick to assume the burglar was me…" Hiccup said warily.

Eugene shrugged. "I've had my doubts…You – no offense, but I expected someone menacing as the fourth recruit, but you know, it was too much of a coincidence that day so I thought you were indeed the new recruit."

Hiccup smiled.

"Since you guys…planned some kind of rescue…or whatever that is. What kind of traps did you guys set? If I was out of my mind, I would think there was a ghost inside that house." Eugene joked, making Rapunzel and Hiccup look at each other with pursed lips.

"…wait, is it?" He furrowed his eyes.

"I'll leave this to you." Hiccup stepped back slowly. "Oh wait, Rapunzel."

Rapunzel whipped her attention to him. "Yeah?"

"She's watching." Hiccup smiled knowingly. "Careful." Then he ran away fast.

"Who's watch – Ow!" Eugene held his slapped cheek. "What was that for?"

Rapunzel just pouted with her arms crossed. "You! I haven't seen you for a year and when I did, I would learn you were stealing!"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa," Eugene motioned for Rapunzel to keep her voice down when he noticed the policemen looked at them in alert. "She meant stealing hearts." He finished with a smolder that women would swoon for. The alerted policemen just rolled their eyes, thinking it was just another lover's quarrel.

And a kick to his shin was received. "Ow! That…hurts, you know."

"It's supposed to!"

Eugene scratched the back of his head, sighing, "Look. I couldn't face you after I was fired from the café, alright!" He groaned. This is too damn annoying to admit.

"Because?"

"Because I got hurt that you didn't believe me, alright. I didn't do anything! I waited for you to come out the door and let me explain…but then, you texted me, asking me why. Blondie, I thought you at least believed that I wouldn't," He paused, whispering the next words, "steal again."

"I'm sorry." Rapunzel blinked the waters, welling in her eyes. "I found out the truth a bit too late."

"…"

"My aunt –"

"I know."

"What?" Rapunzel narrowed her eyes; the tears still welled in the corners.

"I know that she set me up." He looked at his feet blankly. "I'm not cunning for nothing."

"…then, why did you not say it?"

"I'm an orphan, blondie. I never knew what having a parent was like. And Gothel, who was like a mother to you, I can't bear to be the reason for the two of you to fight..." Eugene said, uncomfortable at the situation.

"But I at least hoped you wouldn't believe I stole it. Uh ah," Eugene wagged a finger when she saw Rapunzel open her mouth to speak. "I know. How would you believe I'm innocent if I had no valid excuse and stuff? Ugh, I just thought you had faith at me."

Rapunzel pursed her lips, "I'm really sorry…I wanted to apologize to you but…"

"You couldn't contact me? Yeah…I've been riled up with my old pals. I swear, I didn't join them in stealing but I was living in the same quarters as them. Apparently, there was a raid…I was just wrongfully accused."

"Then how do you explain this? Really? House thieving?"

Eugene winced. "About that…" He leaned closer to her ear. "Please, keep this a secret. I'm actually working with…that dude over there."

"Maximus?"

"Shhh, keep quiet. Not much knows about it. Yeah, I've been a run-around boy for some of their operations, you know. Maximus said I give off the aura of an asshole fit for doing bad things. I'll fit right in the spying job, he said. And just in case, you were thinking, this kind of work started three months after I left the prison a year ago."

"…"

"So yeah, I'm not really stealing. Just a fake thief…or fake drug dealer or –"

"So this was a set up to catch them?"

"Yeah. They wanted to gather enough evidence to keep them inside the jail for a long sentence without chances of parole. The brothers were a duo backed up by a larger syndicate so…"

"…why did the rescue take that long?"

"That's what I don't understand myself." Eugene groaned. "I asked Max, all he said was," He copied the dignified posture the cop always had, "That's confidential. But I'm guessing they just miscalculated things and he just won't admit because it hurts his humongous pride."

Another kick to the shin made Eugene groaned. "OW! You've grown violent since the last time I saw you." He said, hopping. "What was it this time?"

"What entered your mind and you joined a job like this? Didn't you think that you could die!?"

Eugene held her by the arms, feeling her shake in both fury and worry. "Chill, Blondie. It's okay. I'm still alive in breathing, aren't I?" He breathed deeply as a joke. "I know…this is a rather dangerous job, but you know, I'm not sure if I would still fit working as a waiter or anything of that sort, knowing that I'm a convict once. I don't think anyone would trust me t –"

"Then work for me."

Eugene blinked twice. "Huh?"

"Work for me."

"I don't really respect your aunt for what she did but I'm respecting that she doesn't want me on he –"

"Would you do it or not?" Rapunzel crossed her arms.

Eugene blinked, thinking. "…well, I got to talk to Ma –"

Rapunzel tiptoed, grabbing his shirt then pulling him down for a kiss. It was sloppy but it was sweet.

"So?" She breathed close to his lips.

Eugene cleared his throat. "That's a bit unfair."

Rapunzel shrugged, letting his shirt go.

"Okay, I guess, I could talk to Max. But I'm telling you my fee is pretty high."

"I think I can manage." She smiled saccharinely, spinning on her heel, and then walked away.

Eugene, on the other hand, watched her as she sashayed and smiled to himself. "I did miss her." His daydream was cut off though when a hard hit to the back of his head happened.

"Ow!" He looked around, searching for the culprit. Shaking his head when he failed to see the perpetrator, Eugene shrugged his shoulders then followed Rapunzel.

The person, rather the ghost, he was searching for saw and heard everything. Stupid boy. Still smooth with words, isn't he? She smiled genuinely.

::: The time Hiccup left the two lovebirds to themselves, he searched for someone to kill time with :::

"Hey.." Hiccup greeted, sitting beside Jack who just finished being treated.

Jack just nodded his head in return, looking at his reflection in the hand mirror.

"Is it going to scar?"

Jack looked at him with raised brow. "Nah. But it would be swollen for days."

Hiccup winced before he nodded. Looking down his feet, he swayed them like a kid would do in a swing. "I…I just wanted to say thank you."

"Don't thank me."

Hiccup glanced towards him. "Oh?"

"Because you're going to fix all the things those ghosts and thieves ruined inside my house. You had something to do with it, so you take responsibility. And trust me, when you're done, you would wish you didn't thank me."

Hiccup could not believe what he just heard. Exhaling an angered breath through his mouth, he closed his eyes and relaxed. Well, he is right anyway. I'm responsible. "Don't worry. I would have without you saying anyway. I just wanted to thank you, that's all."

"Good." Jack smirked to himself. "Oh yeah…"

"What?" Hiccup quipped.

"You already called your boyfriend about this?" Jack inquired, looking at him.

"Boyfriend?" Hiccup asked with a raise of his brow. The scene of his bestfriend, claiming they had something other than friendship entered his mind. "Ohh…"

Jack furrowed his brows.

"Nope, I haven't." Hiccup replied, looking everywhere but Jack.

"You should. Dude might be worried." Jack dropped the mirror down, looking ahead at the blue and red lights of the authority's vehicles.

Hiccup. A voice behind the clairvoyant said.

"Ahhh!" Hiccup jumped away from his seat, startling Jack from his thoughts.

"What happened?" He asked in panic, looking to where Hiccup was looking at.

Clutching his chest for dear life, Hiccup breathed hard, stilling his fast heart beat. Hiccup observed the woman in front of him, seeing the familiar curly hair and calculative smile. "Gothel..?" His eyes widened, because like Torch, the ghost's decaying state healed, looking almost like a live human, if and only if, she did not have the gray color in her features.

"…You look…"

Beautiful, I know, young man. You just didn't notice it before. She sat where Hiccup was sitting earlier with the poise of a regal queen.

Jack just stared at Hiccup, observing him as he talk.

I just wanted to say something.

"…" Hiccup nodded.

Just before I go. Gothel continued solemnly.

"Oh..." Hiccup felt the pang of sadness in his chest. Hiccup had already gotten used to the presence of Gothel (though, not as comfortable as he was with Torch) and he had accepted the woman as his friend (even if the ghost herself did not do the same).

If you were to remove all the scares and threats Hiccup received, the old hag had been nice to him in certain ways.

But for every finished business comes the real departure.

And, this is their goodbye.

Thank you. She said and smiled sincerely. If it wasn't for you, I will still be incapable of trusting anyone. Thanks to you, I learned of what my niece thought of me. It lifted my feelings when the two admitted they don't hate me, and that is more than enough for me.

Hiccup nodded. "It's nothing. I'm happy that I helped you."

Are you tearing up? Don't get chummy on me, dear.

Hiccup blew air through his lips, doing weird gestures with his hands. "I'm not tearing up! I'm a man with the strength of a thousand Vikings." He said, flexing his twiggy arms.

Jack laughed, making Hiccup look at the rolling-in-laughter snowman by the side.

"Try not to choke on your spit." Hiccup deadpanned.

"Haha.." Jack alternated between laughing and inhaling air, "…that was haha so good."

Hiccup rolled his eyes. Way to ruin the moment.

Such a shame, he's childish. He's good looking too.

"Good thing he can't hear you. He'll probably take both comments as compliments."

Gothel hummed, standing then started to walk away. Hiccup followed her as she walked, saying, "We'll miss you!"

A nearby policeman blinked at Hiccup, pointing at himself. "Are you talking to me?"

Jack, who just recovered from his earlier burst of laugh, started snickering again.

Hiccup smiled but his face was annoyed. "No.."

Gothel looked at him and raised her brow. Why? Are you resigning at the café already?

"No, I don't think I can find work that would accept me anyway." He said, ignoring the weird gaze he was receiving from the policeman.

Then why would you miss me? You'll still be seeing me every day.

The ghost and medium must have been standing for a minute without saying anything. The only sound present was the fuzz of the policemen around.

"What!?"

Oh wait. You thought my business is finish already? Gothel laughed mockingly. I just wanted to thank you because I finally figured out about my final business. It's just that…it would take years for that to happen. So don't miss me too much. Gothel sashayed.

"…" Hiccup was left there standing. Like a zombie, he went back to sit beside the now-quiet Jack.

"You okay?"

"Yeah…I guess, I just had a long-time new ghost friend on my list."

"I thought you were afraid of them."

"I am." Hiccup shrugged.

"I don't get you, really." Jack stood and stretched, "Oh well, get up. Let's go."

"What?"

"You," Jack pointed at the lanky man who was in obvious confusion. "…do you have anyone to take you home?"

"…oh." Taking out his phone, Hiccup saw that it was almost one in the morning. "Shit, I should be going." Hiccup stood abruptly, pocketing his phone.

"Wait."

Hiccup looked back and faced Jack. "Yeah?"

"I'm driving you home. The nearest bus stop is two kilometres away from here."

"Oh no, no, it's okay. I'll just go ask the co –"

"You wouldn't wanna give the police a scare with your weirdness, alright? Just follow me to the car." Jack said nonchalantly, passing by Hiccup who was frozen to his spot.

Well, what do you know…guy is not that much of an asshole after all.

"If I passed the gates and you're still there. My offer turns invalid." Jack said icily.

Hiccup shook his head, smiling. Limping on his feet as he followed and reached Jack, "For a snowman, you got quite the temper."

Jack looked at him, his left eye was twitching, "A snowman…"

Hiccup smiled mockingly.

"Said the scarecrow who is scared of the crows." Jack retorted with a smirk.

Hiccup narrowed his eyes, saying, "If you wanted a comeback, you didn't have to try so hard."

"But you're as thin as a scarecrow, as weird looking as a scarecrow…" Jack shrugged nonchalantly. "If you tried hard enough, you could scare the crows away." Pointing his hands towards Hiccup, Jack said mockingly.

"They are not, I assure you. If they were, I would never have bothered you."

Jack stopped and Hiccup had five steps ahead of him. When Hiccup noticed his companion had lagged behind, he looked back and saw Jack, watching him.

"Jack…? Is there something wrong?"

Pulled out of his thoughts, Jack blinked then started walking again. "Nah, I was just thinking."

Hiccup raised his brow in puzzlement. "What was that about…?" He asked then shrugged his shoulders then followed Jack in silence.

Thank you for continuously reading this series! I appreciate it. :D

Hopefully, you guys weren't confused by the pacing at all. Phew~

Good day, everyone. Stay awesome! :)