Chapter 1

Next Stop, Alfea!

Rapunzel's stomach was full of butterflies this morning. She could barely finish her breakfast! Today was a special day. She was reminded of how she felt when she opened her acceptance letter to Alfea, school of magic! That excitement was nothing compared to what she felt now, on the very morning of move-in day. What would college life be like? Would she get along with her roommate? Would they start learning spells right away? Did she have enough notebooks for her classes? What kind of food would they serve at the cafeteria? Her head swam with all the stories she had heard during her time in high school. She had read online about Bloom, and Flora and Stella, Tecna, Musa, Layla! All incredible fairies that had done amazing feats during their years at Alfea. Rapunzel wanted to be just like them, fighting monsters and saving the world. Her imaginary revelry was interrupted by the soft voice of her mother.

"You're not going to finish, my little sunburst?"

She looked down at the toast she had been pushing around on her plate, then back up to her mom. She had the most stunningly beautiful green eyes, her thin face framed by golden-brown hair that was always falling out of its loose bun. Rapunzel could see the pride in her mother's smile. Ever since she was little, her parents had always told her that she could be anything she wanted to be. Well, what she wanted most was to make her parents happy and proud, with a side of adventure, and here she was doing just that!

"I'm too excited to eat!" she proclaimed. She was practically buzzing with anticipation.

"Then let's get going!" her father's voice boomed as he walked into the room, leaning down to give her a peck on the cheek before whisking the dirty dishes away with the flick of his wrist. "Did you pack everything? Don't forget we can swing by a store after you get settled in to stock up your pantry, and-"

"I got everything, dad," she said, playfully rolling her eyes.

The tall man smiled with a shrug of his broad shoulders. "Just checking," he said to no one in particular.

Pascal popped his head out from his hiding spot in Rapunzel's hair, letting out a yawn before taking his usual perch on the blonde fairy's left shoulder. He butted his head lightly on her cheek and gave her a look that said let's get this adventure started! She smiled, her excited energy burning off as a soft light from her skin. "I couldn't agree more," she whispered to her green companion.

~.~.~.

Merida was overcome with nerves as she took in the gigantic building in front of her. It seemed to go on forever in either direction. She felt like a crushing weight had been set upon her, a weight of responsibility that threatened to squeeze the very life out of her. She turned back and waved goodbye to her parents, watching as her three little brothers looked up at her in awe. She should be feeling proud, but instead all she felt was fear. So many things could go wrong! She could forget about a class and fail, she could accidentally turn someone into a frog, she could bump into the wrong person or look at someone the wrong way and get a one-way ticket to the land of embarrassment.

She looked down at the paper in her hand and re-read the name of her roommate. Rapunzel? Well, it was a strange name, but she had heard stranger. She shrugged her backpack closer to her and began the search for her dorm building.

The feeling of dread and doom lifted a little more the further she walked around campus. There were so many different kinds of fairies! She saw girls with blue and purple skin and long flowing green hair, the merest hint of gills on their necks and scales on their shoulders. She saw petite fairies that couldn't have been taller than four feet, with hair so red it rivaled even her own! She also saw fairies so tall she wondered why they even needed wings, towering over her with their strong, broad shoulders and powerful arms and thighs. She passed by one girl who seemed fairly ordinary, only to be taken aback when the girl turned to her and Merida saw that her eyes had no pupils, just deep pools of light that seemed to be every color and no color all at once. She was a little spooked, but mesmerized all the same. All the new sights and sounds were doing a wonderful job at distracting her from her nerves.

She looked up at the building in front of her. "Evergreen Glades", she read aloud, her Scottish brogue thick, "looks like this is it." She sighed as she double checked the floor number. She saw some other fairies show their wings, long glittery things that trailed behind them as they flitted up to their dorm rooms, entering through the floor-to-ceiling windows. As much as she dreaded 26 flights of stairs, she didn't want to risk getting in trouble by using magic on her first day. With any luck, her roommate would be some bookworm who just wanted to go to class and get good grades. Merida would be able to buckle down, lie low, and get through these next few years with little incident.

~.~.~.

Rapunzel barely heard the tentative knock on the door. She opened it ever so slightly and was met face to face with a timid looking girl, with bright blue eyes and a mess of red curls heaped upon her head. She gave a shy smile.

"Hi!" Rapunzel smiled cheerily, "you must be Merida!"

Merida nodded and took in the other fairy's appearance. Standing a little taller than herself, Rapunzel had an elegant look about her. She wore a cropped buttoned shirt, dark purple with light purple pinstripes that made Merida think of an office assistant. A dark purple cropped vest and matching capris completed the look. The fairy shook her blonde hair loose of its bun and Merida marveled at how it fell long down her back like golden waves. In fact, it was so long it trailed behind her for a foot or two on the floor as she walked. Rapunzel gave her a curious look and she blushed, realizing that she was staring.

"Sorry," she mumbled. "It's nice to meet you," she said politely, "you must be Rapunzel."

The blonde beamed, and it was like another light popped on in the room. "Which side do you want?" she asked, and Merida noticed the cardboard box of decoration at the girl's feet. She looked so excited, Merida felt a little guilty about dragging her feet and taking so long to get here. It was nice that she was letting her pick, though, because she knew which side she wanted right away- on the left, by the massive windows that she had seen the fairies entering and exiting earlier. She began setting up and peeked over at her new roommate, making the most of her tall bed by turning the lower area into a nicely lit alcove.

Merida felt terribly awkward, tugging at the hem of her dress. She wanted to strike up some sort of conversation, but the other fairy seemed pretty intent on her decorating, and she seemed to be talking to herself. Merida sighed. Well, her roommate couldn't get them into trouble if she kept to herself so much.

Rapunzel turned then, and Merida caught a glimpse of the green animal on her shoulder, hopping from one foot to another and pointing animatedly at the paintings she was hanging on the wall.

"Is that a chameleon?!" Merida said, unable to control her outburst. Rapunzel's smile widened and her face lit up.

"Yes!" she squealed, "his name is Pascal! Isn't he the cutest thing? He likes to bake cookies with me and play hide and seek!"

Merida always had a soft spot in her heart for animals. She thought longingly of her horse, Angus, back home. He was a little too big to bring to school with her, but she lost herself cooing and fawning over Pascal, and he seemed appreciative of the attention. Without warning, he jumped on top of her head and turned bright red to match her mane. She caught her reflection in the mirror and starting laughing until she let out a snort, eliciting more giggling from Rapunzel. Finally, Merida felt like she could relax a little. She took in the dorm room a little more and noticed that there was a small kitchenette in the corner, an alcove along the wall down from her bed, and the ceiling seemed a little higher than she was expecting. In all it was a really nice place, and her roommate seemed alright.

Rapunzel followed her gaze to the kitchenette and a mischievous grin swept across her face.

"Have you ever made gooseberry cupcakes before?"

~.~.~.

The dorms were filled with the sounds of laughter. New friendships being made alongside old friends reuniting for the first time since the beginning of summer break. On the 26th floor of Evergreen Glades in room 19, Rapunzel and Merida were making cupcakes for dinner and talking about everything from their favorite movie to which class they were most excited about.

Merida stuck her hand out and held her palm upwards, a small orange flame bursting to life between her fingers. Rapunzel's eyes went wide with shock. She had seen fire magic used before, but never this close. Merida had been regaling her with tales of her home, getting into trouble with her brothers and taking care of Angus.

"Doesn't it hurt?" she asked, worried for her new friend's safety.

"Nah, jus tickles a bit." Merida's brogue really shone through after she got comfortable with Rapunzel.

The blonde mimicked Merida's hand movement and a shining ball of light appeared. Merida extinguished her flame and shielded her eyes from the brightness.

"Ah guess we're not too different then," she giggled.

"Just wait- watch this!" Rapunzel exclaimed. She closed her eyes and let her loose hair fan around her, and then she began to sing. It was the most beautiful thing Merida had ever heard! It sounded like fresh crisp apples, blue skies, and the wind rushing past her when she rode her horse back home. It sounded like summertime, sweet strawberry jam, and the feeling you get when you laugh too hard and your sides burn, small happy tears rolling down your cramping cheeks. Merida opened her eyes to see that Rapunzel's hair glowed as she sang. The light faded as she stopped, looking at Merida expectantly.

"Ah, that…Ah mean, that was," she began, unable to put the feeling to words.

Rapunzel only smiled knowingly. "My mom is a fairy of light," she explained, "and my dad comes from a family of musical fairies. So I guess I'm a little of both then," she shrugged.

Merida took another bite of her gooseberry cupcake, marveling at how it melted in her mouth. "These are amazin'," she said between mouthfuls, "who taught ye how ta cook?"

"My mother isn't much of a cook, and neither is my dad," she said, "my grandmother taught me the basics and I raided the library for cookbooks the moment I got the chance."

"Ah'd like to meet her," the redhead replied, thinking of all the recipe books her mother had at home.

"She passed away a few years ago," Rapunzel admitted. She was sad because she missed her grandmother so much, but she didn't let it get her down. She didn't get to see her often anyway, they mainly saw each other during the holiday seasons. When she thought back she realized that Merida and her grandmother would have really gotten along well. They both had fierce personalities and a knack for adventure.

Rapunzel cut through the awkward silence that hung in the air around them. "Can I tell you something?"

Merida nodded in response.

"I'm really, um…I'm really scared," she continued. "I know this is weird since we've only just met but when I told my parents goodbye today it just felt so…"

"Real?" Merida asked, completing the sentiment.

"Yeah!" Rapunzel exclaimed. "Like, this is it, this is really happening!"

Merida nodded. "Ah felt the same way," she assured her new friend. "Even more so that, well…"

"Go on," Rapunzel encouraged.

"Ah guess yoo may not understand it, but, well, Ah have ta set an example. Fer my brothers," she added, "they are so young but all this pressure falls on me ta be tha perfect older sister, ta graduate an' get a job an' make a livin', an' it jus' feels like if Ah fail then they're doomed ta follow in mah footsteps," she said hurriedly.

Rapunzel took a moment to take it all in, chewing her cupcake thoughtfully. "That's a lot of pressure," she conceded. "I'm sorry you have to go on feeling like that, but I think you might be putting a lot of this pressure on yourself," she added.

Merida thought about that for a moment. "Ah know," she finally said, "Ah know logically tha' my brothers are who they are, an' I can set a good example but Ah'm not responsible fer their actions. It just feels that way sometimes."

Rapunzel put a hand on her shoulder. "Well, we're in this together," she said brightly, a smile lighting up her face once more. "We have mostly all the same classes, we can study together and hang out together!"

Merida gave her a puzzled look. "Yoo want ta hang out with me?" she asked. It wasn't a tactic to fish for a compliment or put herself down- she was genuinely confused as to why a virtual stranger would want to waste her time with someone she barely knew. Especially since they'd be rooming together all year. They'd be seeing enough of each other as it was.

"That's what friends are for!" the finality in Rapunzel's tone left no room for arguments. Merida drifted off to sleep that night with a smile on her face, and a warm thought in her mind. Day one and she had already made a friend. Perhaps college life wouldn't be so bad after all.

Rapunzel's thoughts mirrored her new friend, but it didn't stop her from having some strange, dark, fear-filled dreams that night.