Rapunzel: Retold (Book 1)

Chapter 1

There once lived a man and a woman who had long been married and wished for a child. They hoped in vain, though the woman prayed to The Gods every evening and every morning, as the sun rose and set. She would kneel at the altar her husband had built for her, clasp her hands and bow her head, before saying the prayers that went so long unheeded. Her husband, a practical man and getting on in years, counselled his wife to stop wasting her time.

"Give thanks, woman," he would say. "We are blessed by the Gods in so many things. Can you not be satisfied with what you have?"

Yet, the woman continued to ask for a child. Her faith was undiminished, fed by the aching in her belly, that ache the void of an empty womb that she knew her husband would never know or understand.

Behind the humble house in which the couple lived lay a splendid garden. The garden was full of the most beautiful flowers and herbs, even in the depths of winter, for no storm or snow or frost seemed to touch it. The garden had no wall nor gardeners, yet no one dared set foot in it, not even the starving poor or the passing thief. This was because the garden's owner was an Enchantress, one of those who served the Mage Emperor at his Court. The Enchantress had great Power and was feared by all. None dared trespass onto her property.

One morning, after finishing her prayers, the woman rose and stood at the window. Looking down into the garden, she saw a bed planted with the most beautiful rampion. The herb looked so fresh and green that she was taken with a sudden longing. She began to pine after it, and soon, began to look pale and miserable.