Golden Angel

Part 4

As the purple smoke reached her neck, Rapunzel closed her eyes. Suddenly, she felt grass beneath her feet and heard the singing of birds. Opening her eyes, she discovered that she was in a forest somewhere. Not knowing where she was, she stood still for a long while and took in her surroundings. But there wasn't much else to see but trees that seemed to go on forever. She then decided to call out, thinking that maybe, just maybe, someone would hear her.
"Hello?" Rapunzel said. Then she stood still and listened. But nothing happened. She called out again, louder this time.
"Hello?"
Her shouting startled a raven which had been sitting on a branch above her. It screeched and flew off.
Upon hearing the screeching and flapping, Rapunzel, who had never been outside of her tower before, screamed and jumped. Then she started walking, hoping to come across a person eventually.
After walking for hours, she finally emerged out of the forest and saw someone in the distance. Despite being tired after walking for so long, she picked up the hem of her dress and ran towards the person, ignoring the pain in her feet. As she got closer, she saw that there were actually two people. One looked like a man, and the other looked like a woman. When she thought she'd be in earshot, she called out, "Hello!".
Both figures turned in her direction.
"Hello!" the woman replied. A few seconds later, Rapunzel reached the couple and came to a halt. She bent over, clutching her stomach as she fought to regain her breath.
"I don't mean to be rude," the man began. "but who are you?"
"My name. . .is Rapunzel." Rapunzel said between huffs of air.
"Where are you from?" the woman inquired.
"I don't know." Rapunzel replied as she stood up straighter. "I've been locked in a tower my whole life."
"How did you get here, then?" the man asked.
"My mother sent me here. I disobeyed her, so she sent me away."
"Who is your mother?" asked the woman.
"The queen. Regina."
The woman's eyes grew wide. "Did you say 'Regina'?"
"I did. Why? Do you know her?"
"I did." she replied, sounding distant. "And you're her daughter?"
"Yes."
"How old are you?"
"Almost seventeen."
The woman nodded.
"May I ask who you are?" Rapunzel asked. The man spoke up first.
"My name is Killian Jones. But you can call me Hook. Most everyone does." He reached out with his right hand and shook her hand.
"Why do they call yo-"
He cut her off by holding up his left arm. Where his hand should have been, there was a large hook.
"Oh."
"And I'm Cora." the woman said.
"Nice to meet you." Rapunzel nodded.
"Tell me," Cora said. "why did your mother keep you in a tower?"
"I don't really know." Rapunzel replied. "I asked her once, and she said it was because she wanted to keep me safe."
"Safe? From what?"
"I don't know." Rapunzel shrugged.
"Come with us." Cora said after thinking for a minute. "It sounds to me like you have nowhere to go."
"Thank you!" Rapunzel said.
As they walked, Rapunzel told them her whole story, Cora constantly interrupting with questions about Regina.
"Why are you so interested in my mother?" Rapunzel asked her when she was finished with her story.
Cora hesitated before responding. "She's my daughter."
"Whoa! So you're
my. . .grandmother?"
"Yes."
Rapunzel couldn't think of anything to say, so she just nodded her head. Then she asked, "What were you guys doing out here, so far from where you live?"
"I was casting a protection spell." Cora replied.
"What for?"
"My daughter is planning on casting a curse that will effect everyone. I don't know what it will do, but it can't be good. She never mentioned it to you?"
"No, she didn't."
"Oh. Well, here we are!"
They entered a small town.
"Where will I be staying?" Rapunzel asked.
"Here, I'll show you." Cora said, taking Rapunzel's hand. She led her to a cave and pushed her inside, slamming the barred door shut.
"What? What are you doing?" Rapunzel asked frantically.
Cora said nothing, but turned her back and walked away.
"Hey!" Rapunzel called after her. She grabbed the bars and shook them violently, but they were too strong. She sighed and rested her forehead against the cool metal. She was trapped. Again.

You see, Cora had done the math in her head and figured out that Rapunzel was not a child Regina had with the king. She was Daniel's.
It angered her to know that Regina had kept her pregnancy a secret. Not that she didn't understand why she did it. And knowing how much her daughter had loved the stable boy, she knew how much she cared for Rapunzel. Especially since she had gone to such lengths to protect her. She figured that Regina would want Rapunzel back eventually, and Cora wanted Regina back. So by capturing Rapunzel, Regina would have to come looking for her, and she'd finally have a chance to confront her daughter.