It was surreal. She stood at the edge of the forest, gazing at the tower she had once called home. When she left it for the final time, she hadn't given it a second glance. She had clung to Eugene, smiling slightly as she buried her face into his arm. She was heading towards the new, leaving the dark behind. And now she was back.
She slowly walked forward, her sense of apprehension growing as she neared the tower. It loomed out against a magnificent white sky. When she got close enough her heart began strumming frantically in her chest. She examined the trail of vines crisscrossing all around, the random burst of flowers growing in the cracks. She breathed in that familiar smell, whose origin she did not know. Now, after all had happened, she realized how much of a prison the tower was. She had always questioned the absence of a door, but Gothel had assured her it wasn't necessary.
"I want to keep you absolutely safe my flower. No one can ever get in, except me. A door would only put you in danger."
A shadow of a smile crossed Rapunzel's lips as these words echoed in her mind. No one could get in; no one could get out; except Gothel of course. But someone did get in; Eugene. And he had climbed the length of the tower and found her. There were only two memories she treasured from this prison; when she first met Eugene (masquerading as Flynn Rider then) and when her tears had brought him back to life.
She took a step back, surveying how best she could reenter the tower. Could she climb up? But how? She gazed upward at the small door, which was still thrown open. "Rapunzel, Rapunzel, let down your hair," she sang softly. How had Gothel managed to get in and out each day before Rapunzel's hair grew long enough?
A couple of hazy memories swam forward in her mind. She was young, and the golden blonde hair fell past her waist. Gothel brushed it tenderly every morning and night as Rapunzel sang the special song. Then the hair would glow, filling the tower with light and warmth. Through time she grew accustomed to it, but when she was old enough to notice that her hair was so unusual, she questioned Gothel about it.
"You were born with it dear. It's what makes you special."
Without thought, the older Rapunzel raised a hand to her hair now; no longer blonde and impossibly long, but pixie short and brown. She liked this hair better. It was a mark of her freedom. It was a reminder as well of what it had cost to get it. Also, Eugene had told her he liked brunettes. He didn't care about her hair though, and neither did her parents.
She wished she had known all those years ago that it wasn't her hair that made her special. But maybe she had always known? Just as she yearned for life outside the tower, so she yearned for something else to define her. Is that why she felt such a need to draw and create? To bring the tower to life by splashing it with color and art? She'd wanted to create warmth. Those memories, of constantly creating artwork, were dear memories to her as well. She understood now that it gave her something to do; it was a blessed release from being confined to a single space for so long. But Gothel gave it all a passing glance. She'd pat Rapunzel on the head and tell her she did a good job, but that was it. When Rapunzel was younger and first started using the walls as her canvas, Gothel would return home tired and she always came through…a trapdoor!
Rapunzel cast her eyes wildly about the tower. Where did the trapdoor come from anyway? That is how Gothel came and went before she started using Rapunzel's hair as her own special harness.
Of course. Part of the stones in the tower had been torn out, revealing a dark crawl space of sorts. It was here that she and Gothel had come the night of her birthday when she thought Eugene had left her, taking the crown with him. It was here too that Gothel tried to forcibly lead her as he was slowly dying.
"We are going where no one will ever find you again!" the woman had exclaimed, tugging on the chains she had bound the girl to. Rapunzel closed her eyes, remembering. Sometimes the chains visited her in her dreams. She took a deep breath and crept inside.
Darkness pressed in on her. A dank smell filled her nostrils. She groped around until her hands found the short ladder. She eased her foot onto the rungs, climbing until her head hit the trap door. "Ouch," she muttered, massaging her head. She pulled open the trap door and climbed inside the tower. Her wide green eyes traveled around, taking in the art on the walls, a thin layer of dust coating it all. Rapunzel was slightly out of breath. Something here made it difficult to breathe almost. The air was stifling.
"My prison," she said aloud. But what a bright, happy prison! She had been happy here, she supposed. Gothel had been clever. Her lies were easy to tell; easy to believe.
"Why did you come here?"
A chill stole over Rapunzel. She whipped around and a sharp gasp escaped her throat. Gothel was standing by the window, white haired and ancient. She was transparent. The smoky gray pallor of her body was a stark contrast to the glaring sunlight. Her eyes were hollow as she gazed at Rapunzel.
"Why did you come here?" she asked again.
Rapunzel wasn't sure why. A strange feeling overcame her as she and the woman looked at each other. It wasn't anger. It was pity.
"I don't know," she answered.
A dark mass caught Rapunzel's eye. It was her hair. The brown locks spiraled around the floor, like some kind of miniature maze. Looking at it all was enough to make her head feel heavy. She didn't miss it.
"You must have a reason for coming back," Gothel said.
"I lived here for seventeen years."
"You were happy."
"No, not really. I was just..." Exactly what she was, she didn't know. Maybe she was happy, but there had always been something else she was yearning for. Part of it had to do with the lanterns, the other part with her need to see the world and live in it. She knew she wasn't meant to be hidden, despite the warnings about the outside and all the cruel people who ruled it. But she suppressed that feeling because Mother Gothel had her best interests at heart. That was the biggest lie of them all.
"I kept you safe."
"You lied to me."
"I protected you."
"How? By stealing me from my parents and lying to me all my life?"
Gothel's empty eyes searched the young girl's face. "I did your parents a favor."
Rapunzel started. "What?"
"Anyone could have and would have kidnapped you. They would have used your power as I did. But I kept you safe. No could harm you as long as you were here."
"The only thing you did for my parents was cause them pain. You were selfish. My powers could have healed anyone. You did no one a favor."
Gothel's eyes remained empty and deadpan.
"In all that time, you never cared for me, did you? You…you never loved me."
The old woman looked as if she might disagree. Then she said: "Why should that matter now? Don't you have what you want? Aren't you happy now?"
"Yes." The word rang out through the tower, truthful. She was happy. She had a real family now. She was loved.
"I wanted to save you," Rapunzel added. "When you fell from the tower. But I guess aging was the worse fate for you."
"Perhaps someday you'll understand. When your mother and father begin to comb white hair, when that thief does, when you do. The time you had will slip through your fingers. Death will be so much more real to you. Then you'll see why I tried to avoid this. Dying and aging are good friends. One day they will greet you. And there'll be nothing to keep you from them."
They stared into each other's eyes for some time. Rapunzel's bright green ones were filled with pity and confusion. Gothel's didn't betray a thing. Slowly, the young girl turned without a second glance and descended through the trap door.
The air felt cleaner and fuller as she emerged outside from the tower. She breathed in the sun, the grass, the flowers; it was all so poignant, a reminder to never take it for granted. Dying and aging are good friends. So what if they were? She would not be slaves to them as Gothel had been. She would embrace her old age, if she was so lucky. Seeing her parents grow older in their love, being able to do the same with Eugene, it would be an adventure. Rapunzel turned to look at the tower for one last time. It was Gothel's prison now. She raised her hand in farewell before moving on, thinking only of home.