From Your Tower ➛ OUAT

Chapter 17

"Stop it-"

"Peter, since he is the king of this Neverland, hears every single thought that everyone has."

Rapunzel shakes her head at the thought, but her not answering was enough to allow Gothel to go on with her story time.

"Neverland had thoughts of its own, though, when it cursed Peter into the life of only being able to completely have himself. Which made his shadow, his alter ego, possible. It made Peter Pan. He is Peter and his shadow is Pan."

Gothel looks at Rapunzel for her input, but she only looks at her mother with narrowed eyes, so the woman went on.

"The shadow has been with Peter since the beginning. Since he had made Neverland, he is basically the sole image of it. The shadow is Peter's dark side. As long as he remains as good and pure as he is as Peter, Neverland will be the happy place in stories where dreams are made. But if he let's the darkness- his shadow- take over, Neverland and all of its inhabitants will all go corrupt."

"How would you even know about this all?" Rapunzel asks.

"Captain Hook told me."

Her blood runs cold at word of him. Of course it was him. Who else would go to such extremes of finding her mother to break her completely?

"If you don't believe me, why don't you ask Peter himself?"

Gothel's gaze was behind Rapunzel, so she turned around to see Peter there, standing in front of Tink and a red hair. He looked at Rapunzel with such desperation, though she wasn't sure what for.

"Is this true?" She asks him jokingly, just so her mother would leave them be.

"I... Um, I-" Peter fumbles for his words.

Sickness rushed to her stomach in realization. "Oh gosh... it is, isn't it?"

"Rapunzel-"

"Why didn't you tell me?" She asks, trying to keep calm. She wasn't mad at all, just... scared and maybe a little upset.

"Rapunzel, please let me explain."

But she just shook her head, shocked at the whole thing. She felt such remorse for him, for what he has to deal with- and hatred to herself for not noticing it sooner. "Please, just give me some time to process." She looks at him, begging for permission. He has saved her so many times before, she had no right to be so rude to him.

Peter reluctantly nodded, but his eyes begin to look glassy. To ease part of his trouble, she kissed him quickly on the cheek. "Just give me twenty minutes, then find me back at the cabin. Okay?"

He nods, keeping his eyes to the floor to not look into her eyes.

"Hey," She says softly. "Look at me."

Slowly, he brings his green eyes up to look into her blue. It broke her heart to have have him look like this- so broken, so lost.

"Everything will be okay."

He opens his mouth like he wants to say something to her, but closes it and looks away from her.

"Twenty minutes." She says again, then steps away from him. She then looks over to her mother, who is looking at Peter with an unreadable look. "If you touch him I will make you wish you hadn't."

"Oh, I have no doubt you will, my girl."

"I am not your girl. Just go back home." She breathes in, preparing for the next words she will say. They might break her mother's heart, but she might also deserve it. "I'm not going with you. This is my home now."

Before her mother could protest, she gave one glance to Peter, then walked off into the woods.

❧

She decided to take a detour when walking back to the cabin, to take her time, just to reminisce on the island beauty that she has come to love so much. Flowers and trees of all shapes and sizes, she found herself stopping at times just to look.

The rustling in the bushes didn't scare Rapunzel. It just annoyed her, if anything. So she just sighed and called out into the woods, "Come out, Hook!"

But the person who came out of the bushes wasn't Hook.

Two people, actually.

It was Tinkerbell and the red girl that was with them. She was thankful it was not Hook, yet she was upset she could no longer think in the silence she required.

"Hey, R." Tink says softly and walks towards her, bringing her arms around her in a hug. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you. I was- I was..."

"You were?" Rapunzel presses.

"I was hoping you would help him choose Peter."

It was such a strange thing to say. Strangely worded, if anything. If she had not heard the truth between Peter and Pan, then she would have been severely confused. But she knew. And it scared her.

"He was planning on telling you, I promise. He just needed time. He was afraid you would run away screaming if you told him the truth right away."

"I understand." She whispers.

But she didn't. She didn't understand any of this. Why is a shadow able to have it's own emotions, it's own darkness? How is it possible that once one boy goes corrupt, a whole island will as well?

Will she go corrupt along with them?

"Hello." The red hair speaks up. Her smile is so bright, it lit up her whole face. Rapunzel would have smiled as well if it wasn't for the fact that once again, she is numb. "I'm Ariel."

It clicked something in her head. Ariel. Little Mermaid. The story she had read over and over in her free time. "But... you have feet." She says out loud.

Ariel laughs. "Yeah, I do. I have them until the fairy dust wears off."

"That's awesome." Rapunzel admits.

"Yeah." Ariel's smile remains when she looks to Rapunzel. "You love him, don't you?"

"What? That's ridiculous. We've known each other for eight days."

"So? Love knows no time. Love at first sight, how romantic!"

Rapunzel looks to Tinkerbell for help but she just smiles amused at this all. "I wouldn't say that."

"Oh, I would! Tinkerbell, you see it as well, don't you?"

She narrows her eyes to Tinkerbell, sending a silent message not to play along with Ariel in her silly games.

"Yes, absolutely! It is not just her though, do you see the way he looks at her?"

Rapunzel groans and walks faster then them, trying to get away from them having a session over the way they love Peter and Rapunzel, and how it is true love.

He could never love someone as pathetic as you.

Could he not? She was so sure that it was actually something, that she actually had a chance that one day he may love her.

He is incapable of love, Rapunzel.

No matter how much she knows that Gothel is manipulative, she couldn't help but think the words over. Was it not possible for him? If so, how that would break her heart.

Maybe she did love him.

The cabin was already occupied when she got back. Peter quickly stood up and looked at her with wide and scared and maybe a little hopeful eyes.

"I want to talk to him." Rapunzel breathed out. She wasn't sure exactly when she made the decision, maybe when she was thinking of his incapability to love her because of him.

"Who?" He asks confused.

"Pan. I want to talk to your shadow."