The Truth Behind Rapunzel (Gothel)

Chapter 10- Hedgehogs and Peril

"Now Rapunzel, remember to stay right next to Geoffrey at all times," I instruct Rapunzel, "I will be helping to search for the various hedgehogs that reside around here along with you two. Together, we can try to figure out the relative populations of the two types of hedgehogs contained within this swamp."

"Can't you use your magic to gain those numbers instantly?" Rapunzel questions.

"Of course I could, but you know I'm a firm believer in doing things by hand in order to not turn lazy," I tell her.

It seems that she has started to question things more often lately. 

"I don't see why. This seems pointless." she pouts.

I am about to reprimand her, when Geoffrey chimes in, "Your mother wants you to be able to do things on your own so that when you get older, you don't need to rely on her for everything. Since you have no magic, you won't be able to rely on it for the rest of your life." he tells her, "I have no magic, and I spend most of my days working hard on tasks that seem pointless at times. Please will you help me find the hedgehogs?"

Rapunzel's demeanor changes almost at once. "Alright.," she answers.

Geoffrey winks at me and then the two of them begin wading around in the swamp. I begin looking for hedgehogs myself. As time wears on, no one has found a single hedgehog and I am about to use my magic to locate the hedgehogs so that we know where to look when I remember my earlier words to Rapunzel. I take a deep breath and decide to continue looking for a bit longer. Even if we find no hedgehogs, Rapunzel will learn a valuable lesson.

All of the sudden, a flash of brown catches my eyes. I couldn't see exactly what it was, but it looked like some kind of small animal. In the next moment, I am crawling underneath a bush. Suddenly, I feel something dig into my arm. I look down to spot a snake stuck to my arm.

I quickly crawl out of the bush. The snake continues to remain attached to my arm and I begin to feel dizzy. I can't even make out the type of snake it is, much less use magic to heal myself. Collapsing to the ground, the last thing I think about is how I was an idiot to lower my protection barriers around myself in order to be unable to sense the hedgehogs so I had to actually search for them.

"Mother?" Is the last thing I hear, and the last thing I think is, Please let me live, for Rapunzel's sake.

***

Groggily, I open my eyes and notice a figure looming above me. "Rumpelstiltskin?" I croak out, wondering how he could be here.

Blinking my eyes again, I realize it's not Rumpelstiltskin above me, but rather Geoffrey.

 "Mother!" Rapunzel exclaims, and instantly hugs me.

I look around at my surroundings and realize that we are still in the swamp. "What happened?" I ask.

"You got bit by a highly venomous snake," Rapunzel tells me. "A kind that shouldn't even be in this part of the world. Geoffrey told me that this kind of snake is very rare and that if he knew there was such a creature around here, he would never have brought me here."

"Alright. How am I awake now?" I question, still feeling like there is a fog over my brain.

"Geoffrey saw you collapse and came running over at once. He was able to remove the snake from your arm and use it to make the antidote." Rapunzel tells me, and then bursts into tears, "I thought you were going to die!"

"It's alright." I comfort her, hugging her tighter, "I'm tougher than some snake." 

Rapunzel continues to sob, and Geoffrey stands to the side, looking quite awkward. Once I have gained enough consciousness back to teleport us back to the tower, I do. I talk to Rapunzel about how there are many dangers in the world, and not all of them can be avoided, but more often than not, it's worth taking some risks in order to get farther in life. After all, we can't all live in bubbles. She nods her head to what I'm saying but seems unconvinced. "Well, I think that swamp is too big of a risk to be worth the benefit." she says at last, "I am never going there again."

I frown. Today wasn't supposed to instill a new fear into Rapunzel. Against my intentions, I believe Rapunzel was forced to grow up a little bit today. I hope she doesn't have to grow up too quickly. I don't mind if she stays under my care for a great many years. As soon as I'm sure Rapunzel is sleeping, I go to seek out Geoffrey. He is sitting in his room, correcting some of the worksheets Rapunzel filled out for before the trip.

Upon my entrance, he pulls off his glasses and looks up at me. 

"Thank you." I tell him, "If I had died, I dread to think of what it would have done to Rapunzel."

"I only did what anyone would." he informs me, "The whole incident was partly my fault for insisting on going to the swamp in the first place."

"Don't blame yourself!" I burst out, "It wasn't anything anyone could control. I want you to know that you continue to have my trust. Please don't hesitate to ask me for anything."

Geoffrey stands up at this. "I'm sorry if I come off as too forward, but I've noticed that something seems to have been bothering you from the first time I came here. You seem unrelaxed, like there is something weighing on your mind. Do you mind telling me what the matter is?"

His sudden words take me by surprise. I find myself speechless for a minute. "If it's something too personal, you don't have to tell me." he quickly amends, "I was just thinking that it might help if you told someone about your worries. I know you are doing your best to shelter Rapunzel, so you act strong at all times."

I don't even realize I'm crying until I taste the first salty tears rolling down my cheeks. For so long, all I've wanted to do is go after Rumpelstiltskin. For so long, I've at least wanted to be able to tell someone about my worries for him. "I'm sorry." I choke out, "I don't know what's gotten into me."

Instead of saying anything more, Geoffrey steps forward and pulls me into an embrace. "Whatever the matter is, it will be alright," he tells me.

"It's one of my friends." I say after I've regained my composure, "He left many years ago and refused to tell me where he was going, or what he had to do. The only contact I've had with him was a single letter sent around a year ago."

"I'm sorry to hear that, but if he has given you no way to contact him and has asked you to allow him to solve his own problems, there is nothing you can do about it. Trust in him. I'm sure he will be back one day." Geoffrey assures me, "I know little about this friend of yours, but from what I've seen from you, I'm sure that anyone who is worthy enough to be your friend is more than capable of taking care of themselves."

I nod my head, feeling slightly less tense. "Thank you," I say and then leave his room.

Once I get back to my chambers, I entertain the thought of what it would be like to be in love with someone like Geoffrey. He's smart, caring, and a great teacher. He knows how to read people, and how to interact with others. If I were to fall in love with someone like him, I think that I could live a happy life.

As I go to sleep, I feel even more confused. I thought with age, wisdom was supposed to come, but I still feel completely lost.