Hello, everyone!

So recently I was rereading "Hangman's Noose," as I needed to back up some of the points made in it whilst writing the newest chapter of "Smoke & Mirrors" (which is on it's way; bear with me), and I thought to myself, "Whoa, hey, some of this could have been better!"

And then I thought, "Eh, what the heck. Write a rewrite!"

Thus, this was born.

You won't see a horrible amount of differences, but you will see very obvious tweaks, certain scenes change in terms of content, dialogue, and perhaps even emotion. I'll be adding some scenes, adding some actions, adding some words. I feel like "Hangman's Noose" could have had so much more, and so I'm giving it to you without compromising the original. Think of it as an extended edition, if you will, with deleted scenes! :D (So yes, it will be slightly longer.)

I hope everyone enjoys!

I would, however, like to dedicate this redux to two people: Sakiree, for her beautiful comic edition of "Hangman's Noose," and Danielle (welcometoasgard) for her undying support. :)

CHAPTER SONG: "Renegade" by Styx (it's fitting, if I do say so myself!)

Disclaimer: I own nothing. Just the idea. Bwahahaha!

Hangman's Noose: Redux

A "Tangled" fanfiction

By doodlegirll

...oOo...

Chapter One: Flynn

There was not a sound to be heard except the click click clicks of the soldier's boots on the cobblestones beneath their feet, and the soft rattle of keys at one man's belt. He supposed he could count the thundering beat of his heart in his chest and the pounding of blood in his ears as definitely a sound, because to Flynn, it seemed that it was deafening, bouncing off the stone walls around him as he was marched down the corridor of the prison towards the outside, where he would then be taken before the King and Queen of the kingdom of Corona. Outside these prison walls and bars, his fate awaited him. A fate that he could not escape.

Judgment day had finally caught up to Flynn Rider.

And as far as he could tell, it wasn't going to end well. No amount of wit, cleverness, cunning, or good looks were going to get him out of this, not like they had in the past. Even his infamous smolder was broken, of no use to him here.

Not even the weather seemed to want to cooperate with him. The rain fell from the sky by the bucketful, drenching everything. The guards seemed unfazed as they shoved him through the door at the end of the hallway out into it, so hard he stumbled forward into a mud puddle that came up to his ankles, nearly falling flat on his face had he not found some sort of stability from an unknown force. The cold rain soaked his clothes and skin, his hair sticking to his head and forehead. He kept his eyes downward, unable to bring himself to look at anything but the wet ground before him as his boots sloshed through the murky puddles.

Villagers lined the curb, all wrapped in shawls and cloaks for protection against the elements. A few whispers were spoken as the condemned criminal was marched forward through the streets. Some people watched him in solemn fascination as he passed, while others jeered and pointed at him; mothers glared, holding their children close as though to protect them from being snatched up and whisked away like some priceless treasure. He couldn't say that he blamed them. He was, after all, a thief. One man stuck his leg out, and Flynn, failing to notice it in time, fell forward onto the cobblestones of the street. The man laughed and spit at him, thankfully missing.

The guards bent down and grabbed his bound arms, yanking him to his feet and pushed him onwards, the magnificent castle looming overhead as they neared it. Flynn glanced nervously around him, and he took in slow, deep breaths in an attempt to calm himself, savoring each and every one, unsure if he would ever taste fresh air again.

They led him, shivering, into the inner wall of the castle and into the towering building itself, dragging, pushing, shoving him ever forward as they did so, their grips on him never lessening, and Flynn was sure he would have bruises where their fingers had dug into his flesh in the morning.

If he ever even saw that afternoon, that is.

He was shown to a massive corridor, where two gigantic doors stood tall ominous ahead of him. More guards stood at every corner, their faces straight and serious, but Flynn could hear the snickers and see their triumphant grins at having finally brought the infamous thief Flynn Rider to justice. They were reveling in his downfall.

Flynn did not want to go in that room. Not one bit.

Two of the guards standing at attention opened the huge doors as they neared them, and Flynn found himself inside the royal throne room. At the far end of the room sat the King and Queen atop their mighty velvet chairs, stoic and menacing looks upon both of their faces. And at the King's right sat the newly discovered Princess Rapunzel, her pretty face still and cruel. Her green eyes were cold and hard, and Flynn choked back a whimper of defeat.

Those were not the eyes he knew.

Off to the side of the room, the royal courtsmen whispered among themselves as they stared at the man in question, and Flynn winced as they did so. He could feel the animosity floating in the air, and the hair plastered to the back of his neck from the rain suddenly stood on edge. He felt like a tree about to be struck by lightning.

The two guards holding his arms pressed their hands firmly against his shoulders, forcing him to his knees before the King and Queen. The Captain of the Guard stepped forward, bowing to the royal family. He gestured dramatically to Flynn.

"Your Majesties," he said. "I have brought Flynn Rider, as you ordered."

The King nodded to the Captain.

"Very well, thank you, Captain." He said to him. Then, in a louder voice, he addressed Flynn.

"Flynn Rider." He said.

Flynn swallowed hard, stealing at glance at Princess Rapunzel. Surely she would stick up for him! They had been through so much together...he had rescued her from the woman who had kidnapped her as an infant for her hair, which used to be a beautiful blonde and held magically qualities, and shown her the world outside that miserable tower where she had spent eighteen long years completely ignorant of her royal blood. Together they had embarked on the adventure of a lifetime, and somehow in the midst of it all, he had fallen in love with her.

And not long ago, just before he brought her to the kingdom for the second time to be reunited with her long lost parents, those green eyes had sparkled and shone with what could be nothing else but love for him as well.

But as he searched her beautiful face, he could see no love in those big green eyes. She didn't even pretend to recognize him for who he knew he really was. She hated him; he could see it written across her features.

He swallowed the lump at the back of his throat.

"Flynn Rider," the King boomed, "You are brought before this court found guilty of several accounts of robbery and evading arrest."

"Y-Yes, Your Majesty." Flynn said, forcing himself to sound and appear as calm and steady as possible though he felt his stomach lurching, threatening to spill the meager contents within any second, and all the more his heart pounded against his chest like the beat of a drum.

The King eyed him. "Do you have anything you'd like to say before we announce your sentence?"

Flynn took one more look at the princess, but she looked back at him with cold indifference. He sighed, and looked down at his chained hands, then back up at the King.

"Your Majesty," he began. "What you say is true: I am a thief. I've been on the run for years, dodging soldiers and flying arrows and densely populated areas. But I appeal to you today to allow me the chance to redeem myself."

The Queen threw her head back, laughing harshly.

"Redeem yourself?" She spat. "How could a lowly criminal such as yourself possible redeem yourself?"

Flynn chewed his bottom lip, searching for the right words to aid him in this. She was right, of course, but somehow Flynn had to find a way out of this.

He said softly, "Allow me to go free, and I'll pay back every debt I owe you and your kingdom."

The King, eyes still narrowed at him, said nothing.

"Please, Your Majesty," Flynn begged. "Allow me one last chance."

The King shook his head, much to Flynn's dismay.

"You will repay your debts, indeed, young man." He said, no warmth in his voice at all. He turned, looking at the princess. "I do not believe that releasing you is the way to do so. How are we to know that as soon as you were released you would not run off again?"

"I wouldn't run." Flynn said, quietly. "I would stay and do whatever it took to repay my debts."

The King shook his head, and Flynn felt his bravado failing him.

"Ah, but your reputation precedes you, Flynn Rider." The King said.

He turned to his daughter.

"Rapunzel, what do you think we should do with this man?" He asked her.

Rapunzel turned and looked at Flynn, and he implored her to remember the events that had lead up to this moment, silently begging her to love him the way he had thought she did, the way he did her. Her green eyes flicked, and for a moment, Flynn thought he saw something akin to sympathy, but it was gone in a second, replaced by the icy, emotionless expression she wore before.

"His debts are far too great for him to repay in any way other than death," She said coolly, simply, as though she had been rehearsing for this moment her entire life.

Her father nodded and turned back to face Flynn as he stared at the princess, his heart breaking nearly in half at her harsh words, his amber eyes wide in disbelief. Again he searched for the right words to defend himself.

"Your Majesties, surely returning the Lost Princess is commendable enough for you to consider a second chance!" He said desperately.

"Not enough for you." The King said. He stood to his feet, and in a loud voice said, "Flynn Rider, I hereby condemn you to death via hangman's noose immediately following this meeting. May God show you more mercy than I."

Flynn's heart did a flip in his chest, shock ringing through his entire being as though he had just been struck down by a bolt of lightning. The guards quickly grabbed his arms, and pulled him back to his feet, his knees nearly giving out from underneath him as they began to haul him backwards towards the doors.

"No!" He said as he tried to wrestle away from them, twisting his body in every direction. "NO! Please!"

The King paid him no heed, and Flynn turned his attention to the Princess, the girl he loved with every fiber of his being, the woman who had just sealed his fate with no more than a second glance.

"Rapunzel, please!" He begged her, finally pulling himself away from the guards. He stumbled towards her. "You know me! Please remember! I love you!"

She stared at him for a moment before looking away in disgust.

"I could never love a thief." She sneered.

The guards roughly spun a stunned Flynn around to face the door, dragging him away from Rapunzel. He dug his heels into the plush rug laid out on the polished marble floor. If he was going down, he wasn't doing so without a fight.

"No!" He screamed. "Please! Rapunzel!"

The guards pushed him along the corridors out into the plaza, where the rain continued to pelt against his face, the cold drops stinging his face and eyes. It was almost as if the weather carried the pain his heart now felt, while at the same time it came as a deliberate mockery of him and his defeat.

They marched him to the gallows that stood at the center of the city square, where people had lined up to watch as a silent warning to all those who dared defy the law.

Silence once again overcame the earth, and he heard whispers from the villagers around him. The guards led him to the base of the steps as he continued to struggle, and he looked up at the gallows, the noose awaiting him patiently, and he looked back over his shoulder, where he caught sight of Rapunzel and her parents standing behind the crowd. Her face was blank, carrying no emotion at all, her father's hand on her shoulder. The King's other arm was around his wife, and he glared at Flynn as he nodded at the guards.

Flynn was forced to make his way up the short steps to the gallows platform. The guards led him to the center, where he could see the square of wood he knew to be the trapdoor, just big enough for his body to drop down through.

One of the guards held him in place as the other grabbed the noose and placed it around his neck, tightening it to the point where Flynn wondered if he would die of suffocation before they even had the chance to pull the lever...

He looked one more time at Rapunzel and her parents, pleading with her to look him in the eye. If he was going to die, he wanted her to know that he truly loved her first.

And for a moment, their eyes did meet. And in those eyes, despite being more than twenty feet away, Flynn saw nothing. Not a shred of love for him. Nothing but cold, hard contempt.

One of the guards reached for the lever, and pulled.

So as you can see, I've made a few changes from the original. :) Not bad changes, and not really all that big, but changes all the same.

Expect more obvious and somewhat bigger changes in the chapters to come. :)