A/N: Aurora purposely has no …I am forever forgetting what the term is (words like won't and can't) because I wanted her speech to be a bit more formal. I am in middle school and have not done an in-depth study of old English- thus, I don't believe myself to be qualified for thee and thou (you can imagine it in iambic meter if you'd like)(plus, that's just so cliché).

THEA ch.2

Rapunzel laughed as she rolled on the ground. Grass and dirt and flowers! She rolled onto her stomach and blew the fluff off a wishflower. Then, abruptly, Rapunzel stood up and started walking. If she was to get a suitable distance away from her tower, she needed to start as soon as possible.

…

…And that's how she ended up in a tree. She'd always wanted to climb one, having read about it in her adventure novels. She'd spotted the perfect one… Anyway, she decided to head back down…how did she get up here again? That was when her foot stepped on air and Rapunzel fell to the ground.

…..

Aurora was eating her mid-day meal (bread and apples) when something fell down and landed with a thud near her. The something had a lot of hair…and was blonde. Two green eyes popped from behind the curtain of hair and Aurora rushed over to check on the…person, yes, a girl.

"My dear lord(1), are you conscious?"

The girl stared back at her. Aurora noted this as confusion from the fall.

"…Yes. I'm Rapunzel. What's your name?"

"My name be Aurora. Are you alright? Do you have need of any bandaging? Are you bleeding in any bodily places? I have medicinal supplies among my belongings." Aurora got more panicked with each question.

Rapunzel stared at the first person she'd ever met (other than Mothel Gothel). 'These people talk too much.' "I'm fine," she wriggled all of her limbs in proof, then hoisted herself off the ground. Some parts are her legs were scratched up and bleeding, and there was an ache in her back but Rapunzel considered herself to be in pretty good shape for someone who fell out of a tree. She examined her elbow, a large portion of skin had been scraped off, while she voiced her question. "Are you traveling anywhere? If so, might I come with?"

Aurora, first startled by the directness, but considered the proposition. 'Having someone to talk to would be nice…and of course, it is much safer with two people.' "…I would very much enjoy that. Do you have a specific destination? I am heading to neighboring kingdom of Camorra. "

"No plans, anywhere is fine."

As they both got onto the horse, Aurora wanted to ask more, but decided it was rude and went with a different question.

"Pray tell, have you sighted any others?" 'Either my people are waking up, or I am nearing Camorra.'

Rapunzel fascinated by the horse, replied absentmindedly, "Not in ages. This creature…what is it?"

Aurora gave Rapunzel an odd look. "A horse."

Rapunzel nearly squealed in glee, "So, this is a horse! They're larger than I imagined." She then proceeded to get lost in thought, quiet except for the occasional delighted giggle.

Aurora led the horse, pondering the weird- peculiarity of her traveling partner. After a long period of silence, Aurora cleared her throat. "If I could inquire for what reasons you were coming from the forest for? Are you from Camorra?"

Rapunzel casually spoke, "I've been locked in a tower in the forest. Are we nearing Camorra?"

"A tower? We should be along the border of Lindora and Camorra."

"Lindora! Fascinating mention in history."

Puzzled, Aurora asked, "Whatever for? We have had no great wars and I do not believe documenting 178 new species of plants goes done as a huge accomplishment."

Rapunzel's smile broadened even more. "178 species, I didn't know that! I was talking about the legend of the sleeping beauty. It's only found in the older books, and there's nearly no information on the actual kingdom, other than their huge clothing industry, which is related to the legend, since the spindles were banished."

Aurora was a mildly surprised. "You have much information, considering your habitation of a tower in the middle of an abandoned forest…Sleeping beauty, was it?"

"Yes, the princess is supposed to be quite the beauty."

Aurora flushed at this, "I wouldn't say that…" Rapunzel tilted her head, indictating her question. "I…am the sleeping princess of Lindora, although I am very much awake at the moment."

Rapunzel's eyes widened as she burst into excited chatter. "Fantastic! You must tell me all about Lindora in your time period." (3) The two spent the rest of their ride in pleasant chatter.

…...

"How did it burn! I was boiling water!"

Snow White tried fanning her apron which only made the flames leap higher. If, she didn't put this fire out, the whole wooden house would fall down. That would really help her try to freeload off the dwarves.

Finally getting an idea, Snow White grabbed a thick piece of kindling and used it to tip the scalding pot over. The remaining water rushed over the fire, putting it out with a loud crackling sound. (4) Snow White sighed. 'So, now what do I make for dinner…Soup! You just boil water and throw ingredients in.' She started another fire (5) and was about to throw the vegetables into the pot of boiling water, when she remembered the food she ate was in smaller pieces.

'…Cut! I need to cut the vegetables. Knife, knife, where is a knife?'

And that's how the dwarves found Snow White clutching a bleeding hand dripping onto to the floor, sitting surrounded by piles of butchered carrots and onions. She glanced up as they entered.

"Cooking is hard."

…..

"We've passed this tree five times." Rapunzel gestured toward said tree.

Aurora groaned. They'd been riding for what seemed like hours, yet no matter what direction they went in, they kept ending up at this tree. Rapunzel sniffed at the air.

"I've been thinking this for awhile, but doesn't it smell like gingerbread?"

Aurora suddenly noticed the smell as well. "…and sweetmeats, as well." Her stomach grumbled in response. Aurora's face flushed, while Rapunzel snickered. "Let's head toward the smell."

….

"It's….wow…now, I'm really hungry." Rapunzel licked her lips. She and Aurora were standing in front of a large gingerbread house, windows frosted with royal icing, shutters made out of thick chocolate shavings, and decorated with peppermint candies and gumdrops everywhere.

"I despise peppermints, yet for some reason, I have the desire to eat one of those." Rapunzel nodded in agreement. They looked at each other, then ran to the house and pulled off a piece of frosted gingerbread. Rapunzel looked at her piece of gingerbread oddly.

"Does the house look kind of glittery too you? Especially along the iced edges. It smells different than before too."

Aurora inspected the house then shook her head. Rapunzel regarded the cottage one last time, before stuffing her face with gingerbread and chocolate.

…

"How are you darlings? Full? Would you like some soup?"

Rapunzel jumped a bit at the voice. Aurora glanced at the gumdrop she was holding and tried to stick it back onto the cottage with a bite taken out of it. They both turned to face the voice. It came from an old lady with a wrinkled face, pleasant smile, and squinty eyes. Rapunzel thought that the lady also had a bit of a glittering air around her.

Aurora's gumdrop fell to the ground. Rapunzel and Aurora glanced at it, then back at the old lady whose gaze had never left their faces. There was an awkward silence. Aurora decided to speak.

"We, that is, I am Aurora and this is my companion, Rapunzel. We…were traveling and were very hungry and are greatly apologetic for…eating your home."

The old lady smiled, "It's alright, dearies. This happens all the time. Would you like to come inside for some soup?"

Rapunzel and Aurora looked at each other. Then, they both followed the lady into the house.

…..

The soup was disgusting. The lady had baked the house herself, but it was very apparent that she only good at making sweets. There was also a pair of young siblings eating dinner with them. The brother was 10 and the sister had proudly announced she was turning 8 in two months.

They both had brown-blond hair and blue eyes. The girl had a light dotting of freckles across the bridge of her nose that, she reported, she hated. Their names were Hansel and Gretel, and the old lady had also found them gnawing on her cottage after they were near starving from being lost in the forest.

Everyone at the table choked down the soup while the lady prepared dessert, which was highly anticipated. Aurora inquired about the siblings' circumstances while Rapunzel looked at her soup suspiciously.

"Why were you in the woods?"

Gretel seemed to do all the talking for the two. "Our dad got remarried to a real witch. Well, she couldn't do magic; I meant she was really mean. And she really hated us. We're really poor, and she always said that we take up a lot of the money. So, she told daddy to throw us out. He told her "no" a couple of times and they'd fight until daddy bought her a ribbon or piece of lace. Then, one day daddy gave us two loaves of bread and told us to go to the forest. He finally got rid of us." Gretel was near tears by the end of her story. Hansel laid a hand comfortingly on hers.

Aurora was shocked at their parents' cruel treatment while Rapunzel was shocked at the speed the girl spoke in a single breath. "How awful."

The girl brightened again, "Well, it's been better since we came here; we only got here three weeks ago. The food's bad but the sweets are yummy. Plus, Hansel and I don't have to do so many chores, anymore." Hansel smiled at his sister's cheerfulness.

The old lady returned with large slices of berry pie that was eagerly gobbled up. When they were finished, Rapunzel noticed a very large and purple bruise on Hansel's forearm when his sleeve slipped down as he handed his plate to the old lady. Rapunzel opened her mouth to inquire, when he shot her a look. She closed her mouth. Neither Aurora nor Gretel noticed their silent exchange.

…..

Aurora and Rapunzel had stayed for two days when they announced they would be leaving soon. Gretel burst into tears, "No! You should stay with us! Do you not like me anymore?" Aurora bent down to face the girl.

"Of course not, we just need to go some-" She was interrupted by Gretel tackling her with fierce squeeze. Rapunzel sighed. "We can stay a few more days." Gretel instantly hopped back up and stopped crying. She then proceeded to dragging Aurora back to playing dolls. Hansel and Rapunzel were left mystified. They looked at each other.

"Want to make mini gingerbread houses?" Hansel nodded. The two spent the rest of the day creating a gingerbread castle with a chocolate moat and candy cane dragons. They ate it for dinner.

…

Rapunzel yawned as her foot slipped. She tumbled down the stairs. As she was removing her face from the floor, Rapunzel heard a muffled cry. It came from below the floor boards. Drowsiness won over curiosity and Rapunzel slowly shuffled her way back to bed, after getting a drink of water.

…..

In the basement, the old lady poked at the now unconscious Hansel. He was bound by ropes to a chair with iron locks around his wrists. "Still not plump enough. She waved her hand around until she found the needle she was looking for. "Curse this eyesight. It's used to be so much easier when I could see. Now I have to resort to potions; I prefer my children organic."

She poked the needle into a fleshy piece; she wasn't sure whether it was an arm or leg. At the sudden prick, Hansel woke up and tried to pull away from the needle. The old witch felt this and smacked at where she thought his face was. Her hand hit his ear and neck, leaving a red mark that would turn blue in the morning. "Brat! I already warned you! Or do you want to see your sister eaten in front of your eyes?" Hansel furiously shook his head, even though he knew the witch couldn't see. The witch injected the rest of the serum into his arm and left the room.

Hansel could only protect his sister from getting eaten if he was still alive. Hansel had hope though; he'd convince the nice older girls to take Gretel with them when they left. Then she'd be safe. Hansel saw the room going black. This was the best part, falling asleep. He hated the mornings; waking up and throwing up quietly from nausea, careful not to disturb his sister's sleep.

…

Aurora was helping Gretel pull a cookie jar out when a thick book toppled out with the jar. Aurora's eyes widened at the title, greatly alarmed. Gretel wiping cookie crumbs from her mouth looked confusedly at Aurora. "Ahrowa(6)? What does the book say? I can't read."

Aurora smiled reassuringly but didn't answer the girl. She ran to get Rapunzel.

…..

She found her drawing pictures with Hansel. Rapunzel was as fond of Hansel as Aurora was of Gretel. Rapunzel thought Gretel spoke too much and was too excitable, in complete contrast to Hansel, whose voice she had never heard. Aurora thought everything about Gretel endearing and adorable.

Rapunzel handed Hansel another sheet of paper. The boy was quite good at drawing and had several pieces of paper covered with dragons (7) and various things around the garden. They looked up at the same time as Aurora arrived loudly, with Gretel at her tail.

"You need to see this." Rapunzel followed Aurora without a word. Hansel gave Gretel a look. Gretel shrugged.

…..

Rapunzel looked at the book incredulously. "101 ways to cook children? Are you sure this isn't a joke book or something?" Aurora shook her head.

"I found several like this in her cabinets."

The old lady in question, chose that moment to show up. "Hello, dearies. What are you talking about?"

"You have a lot of books…what are they about?" Aurora turned to Rapunzel shocked at her blatant question. Rapunzel motioned for her to keep quiet. The old lady frowned. "Why do you want to know?"

"Oh, I see them everywhere. None of us can read, so I was just wondering." The old lady's smile returned as soon as heard this. "They're just some old cookbooks. I'm practically blind as a bat now, so there isn't much use for them. Some have recipes for sweets like my lovely little house, and others are for…special ingredients. Now, I have to tend to my carrots. Goodbye darlings."

Hansel and Gretel showed up after the old lady left. Rapunzel remembered something from a few days ago…and suddenly grabbed Hansel by the arm and pushed back his sleeve. Half of his entire forearm was green and black with puncture holes everywhere. Gretel looked from his arm to his face, shocked. Hansel glared at Rapunzel. Rapunzel decided to improvise.

"Don't worry Gretel; Hansel and I were playing with some paints earlier. I just wanted to check if it was still there…I'll paint a butterfly for you later. Go pick out the colors you want." Gretel, satisfied, walked off to find the perfect shade of pink and purple. Hansel gave a sigh of relief while Aurora and Rapunzel loomed over him. "Explain, now."

…

They looked at him, horrified (8). Hansel shifted uncomfortably. Rapunzel's mouth was open. "You mean she's been slowly marinating you?" Hansel nodded.

"I don't know what she uses. I always wake up to the room spinning really fast and it makes me really dizzy. She hits me if I don't let her put it in. Said she'd eat Gretel first if I don't let her. You have to take Gretel with you when you leave!"

Rapunzel nudged Aurora. "Planning time." They sent Hansel away with the guarantee of escape for all of them. The rest of the afternoon was spent in whispered voices, formulating a general plan.

…..

Snow White stared out the window. The dwarves were still letting her stay with them even though she couldn't do anything for them. She was decent at wiping dust off things, but broke all the dishes she washed and Uriah, the head dward, hadn't let her try cooking since the knife incident. She wished them well as they left to go to the mines. Snow White was determined to find something, anything that she was good at.

This led to the ribbon accident ("I was trying to sew a dress when the length of ribbon I was using, suddenly had the desire to choke me.), the comb occasion ("I have no idea what happened, I was trying to dress my hair by myself when…I'm still not sure exactly what just happened."), and the apple affair ("I swear I wasn't trying to poison you with pie! (9))

The dwarves returned home and Uriah and Iliad started preparing tonight's dinner. Over the sound of chopping carrots, Uriah asked Snow White, "So, how'd it go today?"

"Sewing. Which I found out is much different from embroidery. The shirt is now a new pillowcase for you. I stitched carrots and onions on this one." Snow White was finding the only things she excelled at were what the palace governesses had taught her. Embroidery and flower arranging and dancing, which were great and all, but nothing she had been taught was useful here.

"Tomorrow, I'm going to try to carve something." Uriah looked sharply at her at the idea of her holding a knife again.

…..

Uriah tried not to laugh but a chuckle came out. Snow White shot a glare at him. "So…what is it?"

"It was going to be a tree, but as you can see I changed my mind and made it a potato."

Quess shouted for everyone to come in for dinner. Uriah and Snow White got up from the swinging bench they were sitting on and headed inside, where sounds of hungry dwarves and metal utensils were heard throughout the cottage.

…

"Gretel, we are playing a new game, 'How quiet can you be'. Be as silent as possible or you lose!" Aurora played off the girl's competitiveness. Gretel immediately shut her mouth and fiercely held her lips together. Hansel looked impressed. Rapunzel glanced around the corner. "We're good."

The girls had already gotten Aurora's horse prepared with a cart, telling the witch they were leaving today. Hansel and Gretel curled up under the huge mound (purposely arranged so) of belongings in the cart attachment. Aurora and Rapunzel went to say good-bye to the witch, though it sickened them to do so. The witch waved them goodbye with a kindly smile but her face had a rapacious look to it.

Rapunzel was just about to mount the horse when the witch spoke, "Have you seen Hansel and Gretel? I haven't seen the dears all morning."

Aurora froze. Rapunzel tried to keep her voice casual. "Gretel kept telling me how she was going to pick flowers to make a garland. I think she's in the forest gathering wildflowers." Gretel poked Hansel with a questioning look at the lie. Hansel put a finger to his lips, indicating silence. The witch frowned.

"Oh, is that so, I hope she doesn't wander too far. The forest can be very dangerous, and so easy to get lost." Here, the old witch mouth widened to a leer. "I do hope you have a safe trip."

Aurora mounted the horse and she called out, "I thank you for hospitality. Goodbye!" She set the horse at a walking speed. The witch disappeared into the house. Rapunzel took one final glance back at the gingerbread house.

The witch was coming back out, holding something wooden. Rapunzel squinted trying to get a better look. Sunlight glinted on a small part of it. Suddenly, Rapunzel shouted for Aurora to go as fast as possible. "Go, go, go!" Just as the horse started galloping, a small arrowhead pierced the tree, right where Aurora's torso had been. Aurora urged the horse faster. "What just occurred!"

"Crossbow! (10)" Rapunzel held tight as they made their escape, the arrows hitting a few trees off in a wide spread.

"I thought she was blind in the eyes!" Aurora shouted over the loud clamor of the horse and cart bouncing behind them.

"Her aim is way off! I think she's just shooting at where she hears us!"

As they rode away, they heard the witch cackle, "Run, run! This is a magical forest! All roads lead back here!"

…..

Gretel munched on her apple quietly. Aurora had already lifted the silence game after declaring Gretel the winner, but she was still strangely silent. Hansel was getting worried. Rapunzel watched the two of them and sighed. "Okay, what's wrong?"

Gretel looked up with wet eyes. "Why did we leave? I liked it there." Rapunzel mentally smacked her head. 'Of course she doesn't know.' She got up and pulled Aurora from where she was sitting along with her. "Aurora and I are going for a walk. Hansel will explain."

When they came back, Gretel was hugging Hansel gingerly, cautious of his bruises, and sobbing into his shirt. Hansel looked up mouthed for help. Aurora shook her head and phrased her words carefully. "Those are happy and sad tears. Sad because of how you were treated and happy because you did it for her. Sad again, because she didn't want you to go through that for her."

That night, the siblings slept huddled together with Gretel still clutching at Hansel's shirt. Rapunzel looked at Aurora and sighed. "So, what are we going to do with them? And where are we going now? The witch said we'll keep going back to her house."

"Then, we merely have to ride out of the forest."

…..

"We've passed this tree five times." Rapunzel gestured toward said tree.

Aurora groaned. They'd been riding for what seemed like hours, yet no matter what direction they went in, they kept ending up at this tree. Aurora sniffed at the air.

"I have been thinking this for awhile, but does it not smell like gingerbread?" (11)

Hansel and Gretel looked up alarmed. Rapunzel poked Aurora in the back. "Don't scare the kids."

Aurora groaned in exasperation. "I am going to rush in one direction and see where we end up at. Perhaps, we can outrun the enchantment, it must take awhile for it to completely reroute us all the time." She turned around and warned the siblings to hold tight to the sides of the cart and make sure all the belongings were secured. Then, Aurora snapped the reins and they sped forward with a jolt.

…..

Snow White was picking flowers for making a wreath to decorate the cottage.

POP!

Snow White looked around confused at the noise. It sounded like someone broke a very large bubble. Then, a horse came out of nowhere. Snow White shrieked in surprise. Two girls sat on the horse. One of them, tucked her golden hair behind her ears as she spoke.

"This looks like a different forest. And that accursed tree isn't here." Snow White stared at them.

Gretel noticed her first. "Who's the pretty person?" Aurora hurried down from the horse while Rapunzel stared at Snow White then at Aurora, the siblings, then back at Snow White. She voiced her thoughts out loud. "Considering the people I've met, I was thinking that everyone was blond. Dark hair is attractive too." Snow White looked at Rapunzel oddly while Aurora mentally sighed.

Aurora moved towards Snow White. "It appears to be a tad late for greetings. I am Aurora and this Rapunzel, Hansel, and Gretel," she gestured to each one in turn, "It is a pleasure to meet you."

Even more side comments from me (like you aren't sick of them already):

Not religious, I meant the lord that rules over an estate and vassals. I know religion was a huge part of the medieval times, but this is fairy tale land and I can make it however I want- so no religion. I'm atheist.

No, Aurora's not allowed to be so rude as to call someone weird…You realize I'm being sarcastic, right?

Notice how Rapunzel is completely ignoring the part about Aurora having slept a 100 years…what, no one else finds this funny?

I was playing with a candle the other day. Water droplets on a flame make a really loud crackle/pop sound, not really a sizzle.

Seeing as Snow White's not great with flames, I thought I should explain this. There's always a small fire going in the dwarves' fireplace, so she just has to light a piece of kindling from there.

Gretel mispronounces Aurora's name.

Anybody notice that Hansel is very fond of dragons?

Isn't it funny how many ways you can say shocked?

Snow White made apple pie…the rest is self-explainatory.

Rapunzel's seen them in her books. People will include pictures of weapons but not horses because horses are considered common knowledge.

This should sound familiar. Parallel episodes!

So, all the main characters have met each other now. This thing is 11 pages long on Word. That's almost 3 times as long as my first chapter.