Rapunzel (Faerie Tale Collection) (7 page)

JONATHAN WEARILY DROPPED FROM his horse, ready to take a much-needed respite after a long, hard ride that morning. So when he came to a brook he could not recall ever seeing before, he immediately stopped to catch his bearings and consult his map. After taking a long drink, he sat down and unwrapped the portion of dried meat and bread he had in his pouch and began to munch while he poured over the detailed map in his hand.

Where was he?

He had found many places that had yet to be located on the map he had, so he was not too overly surprised. However, it was an odd thing to find an actual water source that was not shown. Just as he was skimming past the last known ridge he had come across, he thought he heard a sound. A faint noise, like singing.

It resonated much like the melody of a nursery song Rapunzel used to sing. If he closed his eyes, he could imagine his friend singing down from her tree house, her long, flowing locks of hair tumbling over the edge.

It was the most vivid memory of her he had to date—her singing like this. So soft and sweet, as if the world were perfect. Almost as if she was real. As if she was there by him.

And then the singing got louder.

He dropped the map and sat up straight.

Was that giggling he heard?

JONATHAN QUICKLY JUMPED UP on the horse and followed the sound, praying that the girl would not stop singing until he found her.

As they made their way closer and the sound increased, he was amazed at how much it really did sound like Rapunzel. It was too good to be true—it had to be! Turning toward a cluster of shrubbery where the sound resonated the most, he slowed the horse and picked his way through the overgrown vines and patches of the forest greenery. Suddenly he pushed aside the last of the fronds and stumbled into a large clearing with a tall, exceptionally high, tower.

How long had this been hidden here?

Jonathan could make out a small window high above, but no Rapunzel. However, her singing was most definitely prevalent. He glanced around the meadow, looking for danger before cautiously slipping from his horse and tying the reins to a nearby branch where it could remain hidden in the foliage. Then, in a flash, he ran to the tower. His heart raced as he slowly made his way around the base, not certain if the witch would appear or not. After several moments when he could clearly hear Rapunzel speaking, he came to the spot directly beneath her, where her voice was the loudest.

He looked up and could only see the underside of what appeared to be a balcony. It was harder to understand what she was saying, below her as he was, but he could tell she was happy.

His hammering heart paused a moment at that thought. Thank heavens she was safe and happy—alive!

Now to rescue her.

The sing-songy tone of her words made it seem as if Rapunzel was talking to herself. He waited to hear if anyone was responding to her, but could only make out her playful sounds. Slowly, he crept away from underneath the balcony and out more into the meadow. Just a few steps, only enough to see her elbow resting on the curve of the balustrade. Her words were a bit clearer now.

“. . . If you were a frog, all of this would be much easier for me . . .”

He tensed and waited to hear someone else speaking, but could not.

After a few minutes of his own rigid stance, he eventually decided to brave it all and shout up at her.

Holding his hands to his mouth, he called, “Rapunzel, Rapunzel, let down your hair that I may climb the golden stair!”

He heard her gasp and watched the movement of her arm before she peered down at him.

“Jonathan!” she shouted in glee. “It is you. You have come!”

Her smile, her joy, her laughter. How he had missed her. “Of course I have come, you moppet!” he chuckled. “Did you give up on me, then?”

“Nearly! Stay right there. Let me get my hair for you!”

“Your hair?” He laughed as she disappeared from sight. What was she on about? “I was merely jesting, you mad princess,” he shouted up at her.

All at once, a long, thick braided rope of hair fell from the tower. How in the world? He tugged upon it and saw that it was attached high above him. Good heavens, that was a lot of hair!

Her bright face popped above. “It is all right now, and secure. You can climb up.”

“Seriously?” he asked as he tugged upon it again. It seemed secure enough.

“Of course! Hurry up. I cannot wait to hug you!”

Jonathan needed no more encouragement than that. In a trice, he found himself up the long mass and standing before her. Without a moment to truly say anything remarkable, she was already in his arms and murmuring her own joys at having him so near.

It was all incoherent. His heart was hammering so loudly that nothing was making sense. It was as if he were experiencing a dream of some sort. The long rope of hair, the happy chatter. Could she really be standing in his arms? Could all of this actually be happening? Or would he awaken in a short while to find himself near that brook, exhausted and hoping to achieve the impossible?

Then a fraction of her babble began to seep through his consciousness.

“I never ever thought I would see you again. I have been so worried. My mind has been frenzied. What if the witch had destroyed your family too? What if you were turned to stone? What if I was truly all alone forever?”

Jonathan pulled back just enough to see her face as she prattled on about her fears. My heavens, she was beautiful. More lovely than he had remembered seeing her all those years before. Even with her eyes shimmering in tears, he had never seen a more divine creature in all his life.

Gently, he brushed a lock of hair from her cheek and leaned down and kissed that ever-moving mouth, hoping to silence her for just a moment.

Rapunzel gasped and then kissed him back. There was so much more she wished to say, but this—this was a thousand times better!

When he released her, she could feel the flush on her cheeks and asked, “Why did you do that?” Instantly, she berated herself for being so forward. Clearly she was not rational enough to ask proper questions at this time. She blushed again.

He grinned and then sighed, his eyes sparkling at her. “I have missed you too.”

She searched his now stronger, more defined features and smiled. “Good.”

“Let us not do this again, you being captured and taken away. I do not feel my heart could bear it.”

“No. Please, let us not.” She could feel her lips quiver as she attempted to hold her smile in place.

He clung to her then and she eagerly rested her head against his larger chest. He had grown so much, was greatly altered from how she remembered him. Like this, he almost looked like his father, almost resembling a man. “Are you for real?” she whispered, “Is this really happening?”

She felt his hands rub her back, their warmth and comfort seeping through her weary bones.

“I do not know if any of this is real,” he said. “But I vow to enjoy each moment with you until I awaken to reality once more.”

WHEN JONATHAN PULLED BACK again, this time he noticed Rapunzel’s cropped hair. It came just to her shoulders. “But I do not understand.” He glanced behind and saw the long rope he had climbed up hooked upon the wall. “Was all of that really your tresses? And the witch cut them?”

“No.” Rapunzel chuckled. “She had put some sort of spell on my hair and created that massive length. The weight of it hurt so much, I was actually grateful when it was cut and used as her ladder.”

He shook his head, barely hiding the words that choked against his throat. How could anyone treat this girl so cruelly? To force her to live up here, cutting her locks and—Just then she moved, and he noticed the shackles at her feet. Incredulously, his eyes traced them from the balcony into the room to the wall where the large chain was mounted. “Are you suggesting she felt the need to harness you in here? As if being feet above the world was not enough, you are now chained like an animal as well?” His voice had risen with each word, and he made an attempt to calm his mounting temper.

She grinned and let out a long breath. “You have no idea how much I have missed you.”

“And you have no idea how long I have searched for you.”

She raised an eyebrow. “Let me guess . . . eight months?”

“Minx.” He winked.

She laughed and hugged him again. “It feels so good to see you.”

His arms immediately went around her. It would seem he could not fathom anywhere else his hands should be but holding her. “We have to get you out of here.”

Her voice was so quiet, he could barely hear her. “Do you not think that I have tried just that for all these months? Why do you suppose I am shackled? It is because I would not stop attempting to leave. It was her last effort.”

“And why have you not succeeded?”

She stepped away from him, and he watched as those heavy chains dragged when she walked further into the room. Her back was to him as she fiddled with the few utensils on the kitchen counter. “There is another spell placed upon this tower, that if I am to leave, Lady Vactryne knows it immediately and comes to halt my progress.”

“Well, that would seem more logical. How else could she keep a girl with her own ladder within this tower?” He stepped into the room with her.

She still would not meet his eyes. “Jonathan, it had gotten so bad that recently I have had very morose thoughts.”

He took another step toward her. “What do you mean?”

She shrugged and would not say, so he waited until she finally gave in to the silence. "Not long ago, I had even planned to take my own life.”

“No,” he whispered, his gaze taking in her blonde hair and dainty frame.

She nodded, her eyes then meeting his, bright, shining with unshed tears. “Yes. It was better than be a prisoner here.” She held out her arms.

For the first time, he saw the quaint little room, prettily decorated. But beneath the beauty that was portrayed, he could feel the great ache of sadness here. Of lifelessness and misery. No matter how beautiful a room, if one felt trapped, it cannot be loved. They cannot feel comfortable enough to enjoy it.

“We need to get you out of here this instant before you do something foolish.” He walked over to the mounted chains and inspected them. “I can purchase tools necessary to remove these. It would take me but a few hours to locate a blacksmith. I could be back in the morning.”

“No!”

He glanced over his shoulder. Her distraught features nearly did him in. “What is it?”

“Do not leave me, please.”

“Rapunzel, I promise to return.”

She shook her head. “No. Not yet. Tarry with me a little longer. Can we not wait until nightfall, when the witch returns?” She approached him and clutched his arm. “Please do not leave me alone again—not when I have just been reunited with you. Give me a few hours more.”

“But time is of an essence. We really should not waste another moment.”

“Jonathan, I have been here for months. Do not go away quite yet. I need you. I need you to stay.”

Those words, the unshed tears, the downturned mouth. She was desperate for companionship. For him. And his heart swelled at the feelings of insecurity and fear he saw within her. He could not deny her anything she wished. “I am here. I will not leave you. I will remain as long as possible.”

She lunged for him then, her tears exploding upon his chest. And for the first time in their short moments together, she began to sob in earnest, as if finally she understood he was really there. As if she could allow herself to hope of his reality.

“You must think I am the silliest goose,” she muffled into his waistcoat after a few minutes.

“No. Not silly, but maybe a goose, yes.”

She sniffed and swatted him. “Monster.”