Tangled - l.s

Chapter 5

"Look this way." Harry tugged on his hair and angled the chair toward the mantle, but he pulled a little too forcefully and the chair fell over. Tommo's face collided with the stone floor but Harry was too distracted to notice. He hopped on top of the mantle and pulled back the drapes, displaying his painting.

"Do you know what these are?" He pointed to the floating lights in his painting.

Tommo grunted, staring at the floor. "Rocks."

"No, these." Harry pointed more aggressively to his painting.

Tommo squirmed, eventually managing to flip himself over to see what Harry was pointing to. "Oh. Yeah. Those lantern things they put up for the prince. Why?"

"Lanterns..." Harry breathed. "I knew they weren't stars..." He shook his head to clear his thoughts. "Well- anyway, tomorrow 'they' will fill the night sky with these lanterns. You will act as my guide, take me to see these lanterns, and return me home safely. Then, and only then, will I return your satchel to you. That's my deal."

Tommo shook his head. "Sorry, no can do. Me and the kingdom aren't on the best of terms right now."

"Why not?" Harry curled in on himself a little. "Cannibals? Snakes? The plague?!"

"What? Cannibals? What do you think outside is like? Hell?" He squirmed a little, trying to get his chair back up so he wasn't upside down. It didn't work.

Harry huffed and moved back over, yanking his hair to pull the chair upright again. He said, "Look, Tommo, I don't know what outside is like, and I don't know why you aren't on the best of terms right now, but really think about it. You're tied down in my tower with my hair, so you should probably just do what I ask you to do. Something brought you to me, fate, destiny, call it what you want."

"A very stubborn horse," he said dryly.

Harry ignored that last comment. "So I have made the decision to trust you."

"Truly bad decision, really."

"But trust me when I tell you this." Harry pushed the chair over again, catching it at the last second before Tommo hit the floor. He held the chair by its back and pulled Tommo's face close to his own, glaring with all the intensity he had. "You can do what you want with me, whatever you have the power to do. You can destroy my tower, rip it apart brick by brick and stone by stone. But without my help, you will never find your precious satchel or the crown inside it. You need me, and I just so happen to need you, too."

Tommo leaned away slightly, clearing his throat.

"Lemme get this straight. I take you to see the lanterns, bring you back... here, and I get my satchel back?"

"I promise."

Tommo raised an eyebrow.

"And when I promise something, I never, ever break that promise."

Tommo sighed. "I didn't want to have to do this, but you leave me no choice. Here comes the smolder." He looked down for a moment before looking up at him again, the strangest look in his eyes that was only upstaged in weirdness by his expression.

Harry curled an eyebrow. "Where is it?"

Tommo pursed his lips slightly. "This is kind of an off day for me, this doesn't normally happen..." he mumbled. After a moment more of staring at him with the weird look he leaned back, sighing. "Fine! I'll take you to see the lanterns."

"Really? Yay!" Harry let go of the chair and jumped up and down excitedly. The thud of Tommo's head on the floor brought him back. "Oops..."

"Hi..."