Ravishing Rapunzel

Chapter 1 - Into the Woods

Rapunzel ran through the woods to the little clearing. It wasn't too far from their cottage deep inside the forest. That's the only reason her mother let her come to play here — because it was so close by and there were no people who came here. Most days, Rapunzel had to stay inside. Rapunzel, unfortunately, was very ill, and exposure to air too polluted by people made her very sick. It was why Rapunzel rarely got to go out. And when she did, it was always some place far from people.

Today was a special day, the kind Rapunzel looked forward to that more than anything. It was one of the few that her mother let her roam free from their home and play nearby. Rapunzel loved being out and about with the sun on her face. She loved to have butterflies land on her and to see the lady bugs cling to flowers and then flutter away.

Oh, she loved everything about the outdoors. It was a pleasure to be here. She almost had a hard time believing her mother that the outdoors were bad for her. That anything about the fresh air and grasses and birds could make her ill. When she ran about, her heart sang with joy. But she'd stayed out too long before, and the next day, after one of her mother's chastisements, sure enough, she was ill. So, Rapunzel had come to accept the reality of her illness and enjoy the rare occasions that she could go out.

She sighed as she sat in the grass, deciding to banish the thoughts of her little cottage and concentrate on her day of freedom. Well, more like a few hours. Mother let her go at midday, and she had to return before the sun set.

It was a long, luxurious amount of time, and Rapunzel adored it. Normally, mother would have come with her, but Auntie Giselle had come to visit, and auntie had insisted that Mother Gothel give Rapunzel space to play. So, today, she was on her own.

Rapunzel had only come this far once before, and mother had told her this was the absolute limit of how far she should travel from their cottage. "People occasionally come here, and we don't want you with people."

"What's wrong with people, Mama?" Rapunzel had asked, even though she knew the answer. She just, somewhere deep inside, hoped it would change.

"You know what's wrong with them, dear. They're dangerous and cruel and your sensibilities, dear, don't allow you to be near them. Just as you can only go out once every couple of months, interactions with people are dangerous to you."

Rapunzel had nodded, but a little part of her had always hoped her mother was wrong. Or that a cure for this illness would present itself to her mother. That's where her mother went on her long absences where Rapunzel was locked in the cabin. She was off searching for remedies that might cure Rapunzel. Only, none ever came.

A butterfly landed on a flower next to Rapunzel, and she grinned. It was beautiful. Big purple wings speckled with yellow.

It fluttered slightly as it stood on a flower. Rapunzel breathed as softly as she could, and lay in the grass as still as possible, making sure she made no movements to startle it. She expected it would grace her with its presence so long as she was kind and gentle to it.

A loud thrashing and yell broke the silence, and the butterfly took flight. Rapunzel grimaced and looked toward the far edge of the clearing, where the leaves of the trees swayed and branches crackled.

Rapunzel marched angrily turned toward the source of the disturbance, but before she got to the woods, a boy emerged. He was running full-tilt, a huge grin on his lips, and almost smacked right into her, yelling, "Got you." But then he did a double take, stuttering to a stop and staring at her, as if he was completely shocked to see her.

The boy looked about her age, twelve, but he was taller than her, wiry in build, and had brown hair tied in a ponytail behind him.

He looked around the clearing, as if searching for another person, and then he said, "Who are you?"