Entangled ~ Lams Rapunzel

Chapter 2: The Crown

"What has my life come to?!"

"Shut up! Just...just tie up his hands!"

"Why is this my life?!"

"Madison! Get a grip, we're not going to kill him?"

"Right, someone breaks into our house, so we pull up a chair, tie them to it, we should spice it up! Ever wanted to try sacrificing? Maybe if we burn him alive you'll be allowed outside"

"...don't tempt me"

A few minutes later John and Madison stood back looking at their rushed handiwork, the man bound to the kitchen chair with thick strands of John's hair. Madison was pacing back and forth nervously thinking out loud all the ways they could move forward while John was smiling softly leaning over the stranger taking a closer look at the man's face.

"M-maybe you can lower us and I'll leave him in the woods somewhere and hope he just forgets this place? No...No he'll definitely try to come back, we...we can't kill him, can we?"

John scoffed "No! We are not killing anyone Madison, we'll just...ask him some questions? We'll see what he's here for, if he's good we can let him go and..if not then..we'll cross that bridge when we get there?" He offered shrugging nonchalantly, not offering much comfort before turning back to study the man.

Madison groaned knowing John was right and turned his attention to the bag the stranger had with him. His eyes went wide as he pulled out the cold metal of a crown raising it out of the bag only to drop it like it was burning hot. Madison panicked trying to grab for it but John was already picking it up looking at it with such curiosity.

The large band had spirals of gold, creating patterns like flowers forming around emblems of turtles. In the middle was a lion. John turned the band a couple of times admiring craftsmanship before trying to slip the large band onto his wrist like a bracelet "Huh, maybe it's a bracelet for trolls" John teased the very tense Madison. "Or maybe a giant's ring, I can probably slip my whole body through it" He placed it on his head pausing and looking at the mirror to see it sitting perfectly fitted onto his hand. For a moment he looked at himself in the mirror before breaking out into a snort "Yeah, definitely a troll's, I wonder why someone would carry something like that"

Madison let out the breath he was holding before looking back in the bag and gasped pulling out a crumbled wanted poster "Oh my god! We have to get rid of him!"

"Why?" John looked over and couldn't help but laugh "okay that might look like him but what is with that nose? I mean the proportions are all over, maybe this is just his ugly twin brother or something."

Madison shook his head "John, I wouldn't take this lightly if anyone has a poster like this in the outside world it means that they are wanted because they do really bad things! He could be like..like the bad people Mr. Jefferson warns you about." He hated using Thomas's manipulation against John, but this could be a dangerous situation if this Lin Miranda guy was a murderer or something.

"So...what you're saying is...he is in a way...at our mercy?"

John smirked saying it in a way that made the hairs in Madison's neck stand up as he looked over "John, whatever you are thinking stop it right now!"

John grinned already forming an idea "what if..."

"no"

"We make a deal that he takes me out of the tower..."

"No"

"And returns me before Dad comes back..."

"NO"

"And in return, we don't let whoever's looking for him find him?"

"JOHN! Listen to yourself! Do you really think a criminal is just going to take you out of here and return you with no problems whatsoever? It's kind of hard to hide with you with your hair dragging 50 towers behind you"

"Well, okay, so we carry it or put it up or something, but think about it Madison! We can finally spend some time out of here! See something other than just outside the tower, maybe I can see a real turtle!"

"We?! No, no no no no NO, do not get me roped into this mess. You are not doing this John! It's...it's madness! If Jefferson ever found out..." John came over placing a hand on Madison's tense shoulders

"But he won't...look, I understand if you don't want to go, I understand. But you get to leave sometimes...you're not trapped here...you made it very clear you don't want to show me, but he got up here on his own, he'd have to be strong to do that. This could be my one and only chance to see the world outside of this tower...please Madison...I promise to be back before Dad comes home and he won't ever have to know! It could be our secret!"

John begged with such pleading eyes, a look that tore Madison apart. It really wasn't fair to have John cooped up in this tower all of his life, maybe just a few days outside wouldn't be so bad. It wasn't so much John leaving that had him anxious, it's the repercussions if Thomas ever found out.

"..."

"Please Mads"

"...I have some conditions"

John instantly beamed with excitement wrapping his arms around Madison in a tight hug "thank you thank you thank you!"

Madison hugged back a little holding John back out at arm's length looking at him sternly "Yes if he is willing to do this then you must swear to me absolutely no one, not even him can know about your dad, the tower, or your powers especially."

John bounced excitedly nodding "yeah, yeah, I know, no dad, tower, powers got it!"

"I mean it John, and we'll keep the uh...we'll keep the bag for security so that you're returned safely.

"Okay!"

Their conversation was cut short when they heard a groan come from the man in the chair as he started to come to.