The Woods

Chapter 4 - Incarceration.

Leaves rustled around the two girls, the sky darkened the sun soon to disappear. Cinderella and Vesper lay on the floor, staring up at the sky through a clearing in the trees. They watched as the stars emerged, the sky was still light, but the stars grew brighter. As they lay the wind blew over their bodies, carrying the dust and dirt from the forest floor. Over the sound of rustling leaves, Cinderella and Vesper heard a thump, as though somebody had jumped from a height onto the soft, leaf covered floor. They both rolled over and looked in the direction of the noise, and saw an elderly woman walk from and stone tower. They pushed their bodies into the floor hoping not to be seen by the woman who was wrapped in a black cloak and holding a candle in her right hand to illuminate the way. A ladder of golden hair was also illuminated by the mellow candle light. Slowly the ladder began to move upwards. Vesper and Cinderella followed the direction of the ladder and as they looked further upwards they saw a young maiden, her long golden hair braided into a ladder. 

"Goodbye, Rapunzel' 

She stared out of the window, looking over a myriad of trees, sadness sculpted her facial features as she dragged her golden locks up the mossy tower wall. The witched hobbled through the trees, her light illuminating the dead leaves and soil before her. Vesper and Cinderella breathed quietly, trying to keep hidden from the witch. She was strange the woman hobbling through the trees, thought Cinderella, she felt scared by her set in features, and bright green eyes, which seemed to lead to danger. The witch faded from view as the young maiden began to sing, but not of the words, just notes. She sang, as though one was humming as no words could be made out. 

"Shall, we say hello?" pried Vesper, mischievously.

"It might not be safe, she might be..."

"Oh I'm sure she'll want some company being locked in there"

"Alright, but How do we get up?"

"Let's pretend we're that old woman" said Vesper grabbing Cinderella’s, hand and walking towards the tall tower. She then, cast her eyes upwards and spoke "Rapunzel, Rapunzel, Let down your hair to me."

And as though magic, the young maiden dropped a ladder, of weaved hair. The maiden didn't look down as she was naive and being locked away from the world she didn't realize the trickery of teenagers. 

"Mother you've just left. Why ever would you need to come back?" shouted a young voice out of the window above Vesper and Cinderella. They stayed quiet and continued up the ladder; Rapunzel became un-easy when there was no reply.

"Mother?" she shouted, worriedly. She turned from brushing her hair, and looked out of the window expecting to see the rugged face of her mother, but instead greeted by a flustered Vesper.

"Hello" said Vesper as though to a child. Rapunzel stared back at her dazed and confused by a fresh face. The room was basic, a chair, a door, a rug, and of course a pile of golden hair.

“You’re not my mother?” projected Rapunzel still staring at Vesper, delighted yet fearful. Vesper was still balanced on the last braid of hair, frozen in her position.

“Vesper, move you’re blocking the way” shouted Cinderella from further down the hair ladder. She pushed up forcefully causing Vesper to break her freeze and fall forward into the tower. Fortunately her fall was softened by Rapunzel’s golden hair.

“Hello, I’m Cinderella, sorry for” she looked down at Vesper “This” she said while gesturing to her friend sprawled across the floor. She awkwardly smiled at Rapunzel asking, “Are you okay?” after realizing that Rapunzel was staring at her, not glancing in any other direction, set on her.  She had pale blue eyes; her hair was delicate and cascaded peacefully from her head. She was of a slight build and seemed young compared to her physique. Cinderella walked across the floor towards her, she did not move, she stood still lost in the situation. She now refused to stare at Cinderella and so switched her gaze often avoiding eye contact but remaining aware. Vesper brushed off the dust and stood up watching as Cinderella took hold of Rapunzel’s chin, and brought her eyes to her own gaze. She didn’t struggle.

“Are you alright, I’m Cinderella and this is Vesper, we came to say hello” she spoke slowly and read every expression Rapunzel made. However, it seemed in vain, Rapunzel persisted to remain silent. However, she soon felt at ease and mustered the courage to reply.

“You may call me Rapunzel” she said slowly, confidently but still scared of the strange people before her.

“Why are you here? Why did you pretend to be my mother?” she questioned in a quickly paced utterance, gaining confidence.

“We thought you looked lonely” said Vesper from behind Cinderella.

“Who lives here with you?” added Cinderella, while dusting a wooden table, which almost disappeared in the darkness.

“Oh...no one, just me” she said happily.

“Does no one take care of you?” replied Vesper, worried for her well being.

“Oh…my mother comes every day” she spoke easily; she was comfortable with them and felt safe. Rapunzel was un-aware of humans, she had always been told to beware them but now she doubted what her mother had told her over the years.

Her mother was an odd creature, her face contorted, her stories wild. She used to sit on the window ledge and tell Rapunzel stories of lands far away with red skies and yellow lakes. Of monsters such as humans, who would bludgeon women like her mother to death and who killed the beautiful creatures of the wood.

Rapunzel’s favorite story was about a witch who lived in a small cottage, with a glorious and well-nourished garden. The witch’s neighbors were a handsome couple; they had a young boy and were expecting a young girl. However, the girl was temperamental and wanted greens of all sorts. So, to help his wife and baby girl, the man crept into the witch’s garden and stole a plethora of her greens. But, the witch was not stupid and had placed an enchantment on the vibrant garden of her own creation, so that if there was an intruder she would be notified.

She stood staring at the foolish man pulling up asparagus' and cabbages from her enchanted soil. In her head she debated what to do; he’d make a fine chair she thought, or an ornament that the birds could feed off in the winter months when little food was available. But, instead she decided to force him into a life of misery and so offered him a deal, that he could escaped with his life as long as she - the witch, received the baby that craved the greens. He obeyed, preferring his own life to that of his daughters.

Wailing, her muscles contracting, her cervix opening the women pushed hard relieving her body of its nine month imposter. The baby joined its mother in wailing, as a strange old women walked in through the open door. She watched as her husband turned his head away from the baby and looked out of the window. She knew something was wrong, the woman wore a tatty cloak and oversized cotton clothes. Her hands were like trees branches withered and crooked.

“I would like my daughter” demanded the woman, staring at the bundle of joy crying gleefully in her mother arms.

“She is my daughter not yours, leave us alone, go back to your garden: Witch” shouted the women, lying in white sheets stained with placenta and blood.

“Ah but she is, see your husband promised me the child, when he attempted to steal greens from my garden, now give her to me” she said plainly, while messing with the loose threads of black cotton that grew from her cloak.

“You liar, that is not true is it Jeffery, she is my child and mine only” she said looking at Jeffery un-easily, he did not turn around “it’s not true is it Jeffery?” she continued, as the witch lifted up her hand.

“Jeffery, Jeffery what have you done?” screamed the woman wrapping herself in the wet white sheets as the baby floated from her arms and into the witch’s before her.

“Jeffery, Jeffery, please she’s my child, please, please!”

The protests didn’t work the witch faded into the stone of the room, and the woman lay there in the sheets, her tears disappearing into the cotton she was wrapped in, her husband still staring out of the window. 

Rapunzel was un-sure why she grew so attached to the story, it was one of sadness, but she knew the baby would have brought so much happiness to the witch, and it taught her stealing and lying is sinful. However, what she didn’t know was that the stolen baby was herself and that her mother died a few weeks after the traumatizing child birth.