PrancerDancer- Oh my gosh! You made me feel so guilty after saying that because I forgot to apologize to the North Dakotans who are not like that.
Alice Gone Mad- How so?
Spanishchica- Wait those are just the minor steps. You will probably need to pick up a few steps to write like a novice author (because I am excessively amateur to give you tips). I would ask your language arts teacher if you are still in school or pick up a book from the library.
Jaynie- You guys ask THE most tough questions EVER!
FloraIrmaTylee- Thanks! I made sure to add my grandmammy's weirdness to these people.
Chapter 12Jack
Early in the morning, an awestruck gasp wakes me. I slide an eye open and flip my hood out of my eyesight. Rapunzel sits at the window, gaping at the view. We are still a long way from Corona, but you can see the ancient castle's tops. I smile at the blonde's amazed features.
I sit up and pull my blue hood over my head. The bus driver sits hunched over the wheel, barricading the traffic behind us.
A loud snore echoes out behind us and I guess it is either Bob or Sally Hopkins. We go over a bump in the road and the snore cuts off.
"The werewolves! They are surrounding the cabin! Get the silver bullets," I hear screeched out behind me. Yeah, that was Mrs. Hopkins. She juts her eyes between the bus chair and looks from Rapunzel and me. "My bad! My bad! I have been having those dreams since I read Twilight. What a scary novel." She shudders and I see Rapunzel holding back a laugh.
Mrs. Hopkins disappears from view and Rapunzel leans back from the window, "I'm going to need you to be my guide." She whispers. "I've never been to Corona before."
I smile and say, "Let me think about it." She elbows me and giggles. A responding "Shh" quiets her laughter. I glare in the direction of the shush-er. After a few minutes of silence, a buzzing noise comes from Rapunzel. She pulls her phone out of her pocket and frowns at the screen.
"Merida?" She whispers. She turns to me, "Sorry, I have to take this." I nod and she walks to the back of the bus.
I lean back in the seat and let out a breath. I shut my eyes and try to shut off my brain, which appears fruitless since the Hopkins stands up with the guitar and the xylophone set.
"Okay everybody, if you know this song feel free to sing along too," Sings Mrs. Hopkins. Moans reply to her declaration of song. "Okay a one… a two… a one, two, three, go!" Bob and Sally Hopkins start a chorus of various nursery songs.
I groan and lay a hand across my eyes. End me! End me now! I think desperately.
Rapunzel
As soon as I make it to the end of the bus, I tap the start button. The call goes through in a few seconds.
"Hello?" I say tentatively.
"Where are yoo?" A voice shouts through the speaker.
"Merida, what do you mean?"
"Ah went to yeh're house and yoo weren't thar!" The red head screams.
I sigh, "I'm heading to Corona right now, with Jack Frost."
"YEH'RE WHAT?"
"I'm going to Corona, right now," I state.
"Yoo turn yeh're ass aroond right now!" I hear a thump in the background, and guess she is stamping her foot.
"I can't, I'm on a public bus speeding towards Corona," I reply.
"Damn! How else well Ah get mah report dun on biology?" Merida says hopelessly.
I quirk a brow, "Shouldn't you do your homework, I don't know, on your own?"
"How exactly do Ah doo tha'?"
"Here right this down: Step one: Open science book. Step two: Read pages. Step three: Get a pencil. Step four-"
"Aright, aright! Ah'll do et!" Merida intones.
I smile a congratulatory smile, "Good!"
"But expect many phone calls!"
I smile ruefully, "I wouldn't doubt that."
I hang up the call and step out of the little passageway between the bathroom and the seats. As I walk among the aisle, I hear the Hopkins singing themselves hoarse. I scoot around them quickly only to be caught in Mrs. Hopkins' hand hold.
"Where are you going?" Sally Hopkins questions like it's totally obvious.
"Huh?"
She holds open her arms and the force nearly knocks out her husband, "Sing us a song, dearie! I'm sure you have a sweet little voice in that head of yours!"
I wave my hands frantically and make up a lie, "Nope, no singer in this head." I have really been singing since I was little. I even learned the guitar (But let's not tell them that).
She pulls the guitar off Bob and straps it onto my own shoulders. She motions for me to play something. I gulp and glance at Jack. He has his head back against the seat with headphones poking out from underneath his ears.
Suddenly I feel the need to play a song that I hold dear to my heart. I start strumming the guitar to tune it. Jeez, have they ever heard of a tuner? I ask silently. When all the strings are set, I strum a few notes just to get the key right.
"Hold on to me as we go, as we roll down this unfamiliar road.
And all though this wave is stringing us along,
Just know you're not alone, 'cause I'm going to make this place your own.
Settle down, it'll all be clear,
Don't pay no mind to the demons they fill you with fear.
The trouble, it might drag you down.
If you get lost, you can always be found.
Just know you're not alone, 'cause I'm going to make this place your own."
As I go into the "oohs" I look up to see Sally Hopkins gaping as I go on each pitch, Bob Hopkins looking at my fingers with each chord, Jack peeking an eye open and looking across the aisle at me, and all the other bus attendants either grumbling or staring in awe.
"Settle down, it'll all be clear.
Don't pay no mind to the demons they fill you with fear.
The trouble it might drag down, if you get lost you can always be found.
Just know you're not alone, 'cause I'm gonna make this place your home."
"Aaah ah ah ah ah ah ah ah… Aah ah ah ah ah.. Aah ah ah ah ah ah ah ah aaah… Aah ah ah ah ah ah ah ah… Aah ah ah ah… Aah ah ah ah ah ah ah ah aah."
I sing the last part again and afterwards, everyone claps, even those who grumbled at my singing.
"Oh my goodness! You have quite a voice!" Mrs. Hopkins said as she elbowed me. I stand up and hand her the guitar. "I would dare say that it's better than mine."
I smile and laugh politely then take a seat next to Jack.
He pulls out an earplug, "What was that about?" He leans closer to me so that I can see every fleck of dark blue in his eyes.
"Uhm... what?" I say distractedly.
He smiles, "When did you learn to play guitar?"
"A few years ago," I smile at the memory. "I used to dance around my room and sing what I was doing."
The bus drivers suddenly calls out, "Corona is five minutes away." I gasp and whirl around to see it. The towers of the ancient castle stretch far above the puny bus. The main land broke off and the small bridge branched onto the small island. The bus parked in a parking lot about a block from the bridge. Jack and I wait on the bus while everyone else rushed to the door. After the mass exodus ended, Jack and I stood and pulled our suit cases from below our seats.
Outside, the air was almost steaming, and I pull off my jacket. I feel a pull toward to the island, but Jack pulls me away.
"The hotels are on the main-land," Jack states. I glance back at the island then follow Jack on the side-walk.
We walk one after the other, until I break the silence, "So, where did you leave here?" I hop over the curb and we cross the street.
"On the north side of the island," Jack replies in front of me.
I glance back at the castle, "How old is the castle?"
"Over three hundred years old," Jack slows down so he's next to me. "The most memorable time of it's era was when a princess was lost for eighteen years and they released lanterns every year on her birthday."
My mind clicks with remembrance of this, "Oh yeah, I remember learning that. Only, that was a few years ago." We keep walking down the street in a sketchy part of town. I skirt a few bits of trash in the sidewalk.
Jack begins telling me the story about a girl who was stolen as an infant and taken away for eighteen years and the lanterns' background.
"Why did they let the lanterns go when she was born and not after she was stolen?" I asked.
Jack shrugs, "I don't know, maybe to lift the spirits of the people after a hard winter?" He keeps the story going and finishes it when we reach a hotel. Jack checks us in and helps me with the bags. We set them onto the bed and immediately start exploring the city.
When we cross the bridge, I race ahead and turn only once to hold my face and mouth 'wow!' I stare at the towers and hop with each step. I work my way around the people and stare at the streets in awe. Cars are too big to fit on the tiny roads so bikes and walking are the biggest transportation. I take a step forward, and nearly am run over by a speeding bicycle. I jump back, hair covering my eyes, and run into plenty of people.
"Excuse me! I'm sorry! Excuse me!" I lose my balance and Jack straightens me.
A couple auburn haired girls notice my knee length hair and pull me to a fountain where we create a braiding train. I do the youngest girl's hair and twist it up above her head.
When they finish I stair at it in wonder, It's now reaching just above my waist and is thick as my hand. The girls also wove flowers into the braid.
"Thank you!" I say, twirling.
The oldest one steps forward from the giggling quartet of girls, "Are you in town to see the lanterns?"
"Lanterns? I though that was on the lost princess' birthday," I say.
The oldest holds her hands behind her back, "They do the lanterns on every holiday… well except for Halloween and Easter. This time it will be tonight, the Winter Solstice."
I notice Jack in the corner of my eye, "Well we have to go, thank you for the braid!"
A chorus of 'you're welcome' replies to me. We walk through a market and I speed along and show Jack a beautiful green fruit before pulling him along to other booths. We finally stop at a bread booth where Jack and I stand in line. I turn to look beside us and a beautiful marble mural stands on the wall. A golden haired baby and a king and queen stand tall in royal clothes.
Beside it are the same king and queen but a girl with chopped brown hair and a man with wavy brown hair. Below the first mural is a young girl and her mother.
The girl picks up a flower and sets it below the mural, "It's for the lost princess."
I look at the two murals one last time before the trill of a clarinet pulls me away. The music legatos into a fast beat and my feet dance to the beat. I glance at Jack's face and he's seems surprised to see me dancing around the square.
I move to the edge where I pull the boy into the mix laughing as he keeps up with me. I pull a girl with a green dress on and a pink bandana by circling my elbow into hers. I grab a man's hand and his friend laughs. I pull a few more people in and everyone starts to clap.
We dance all in a circle, me at the beginning of the line that we formed. My breathing came out peaked and I wanted to dance faster. Jack joins at the edge of the circle and I motion for him to join. He waves his hand with a weird look on his face. Luckily, someone else pulls him in.
I think about the other things that I want to do while here. I do know that we have to find my parents, but after all, You Only Live Once. We could go to the big Corona library, or get one of those flags of Corona that I saw displayed on the streets, or tour the amazing castle. The possibilities were endless.
My thoughts are interrupted when a few people and I break away to kick high into the air. The audience shouts in admiration. I notice Jack in my peripheral vision trying to get away from some girls. I feel a flare of jealousy and dance my way to where Jack is. I loop my arm into his elbow and smile up at him. He looks down thankfully. The dance continues and I pull away from Jack to dance with a little girl.
The music speeds until, with a final note, Jack and I stop, right in each other's arms. We stand there in shock for a moment before separating. The audience claps and whoops before dispersing.
I blush and look at the ground, "So… uh… I was thinking that we… uh… go to the… uh… place?" I stutter.
"How about we just walk around?" Jack asks. We turn and walk around the other streets around us. We did go to the library and I was amazed by the atlases that they had. We stopped at a cupcake café that Jack swore had the best in town. They were not.
I stopped in a small square to draw with some children. I drew a sun with purple vines curving out of the rays. The flag that I paid for helped a bit.
Finally, it turned dark and a voice echoed out onto the streets, "To the boats!"
I turned to Jack, who was looking at fruit, "That's right, the lanterns are tonight."
He nods, "I haven't been to one in a while."
From my vantage point on the street, I can see people paying for boats and stepping into them. I motion for Jack to follow and we walk to the harbor.
The clerk holds out a bag and I drop a few coins in and Jack helps me in. He jumps in and catches an oar. We float out a couple hundred feet before we break the silence.
It only begins because worries are nagging at me, "What will they be like?" I whisper.
Jack pauses rowing, "Who?"
"My parents, will they be kind? Or caring? Will they listen to me and believe me?" I stare at the skies uncertainly.
The white haired boy presses his hand upon mine, "If you be yourself, I'm sure they'll love you."
I look down at the water, "But what happens after I meet them?" I hold my breath. "Will I have to stay here?"
Jack's voice whispers into my ear, "You get to find a new dream."
I'm about to reply when a blinking light draws my attention. I stare at it through the rippling water, hardly daring to breathe. I look up and see it glow. I leap from my seat and jump to the front of the boat, not even noticing Jack cry out. Thousands more lanterns flow out from behind the leader. The boats around us release their lanterns and they join the others. I stare at the floating lights around us, absorbing their glow.
I look behind me, and Jack sits behind me, smirk planted on lips, lanterns tethered to hands. I smile and sit in front of him. He hands me a lantern, but before we let go, Jack speaks.
"Listen, Rapunzel, I… I know your parents," Jack says, eyes closed. My mouth falls open. "I wanted to keep it quiet, but I hate keeping this from you. I was just scared that you would get angry… you know what I mean?"
I lean closer and smile, "I'm starting to." Together we let the lanterns go and they swirl around each other until we lose sight of them.
Jack
I look down from the flying lanterns and look at Rapunzel. Her mouth hanging open happily, she points at a lantern close to the water. She leans over the rippling surface and pushes the lone lantern back into the sky where it melts in with the glowing shapes.
I reach for her hand and she smiles at me before giving mine a squeeze. The glow illuminates her face with a pinkish orange-ish light. We lean closer and closer until we are inches apart. I lift my hand to tuck a stray piece of hair behind her ear. I place my hand on her jaw and our lips meet. After a moment, we pull back. A smile seems permanently stuck to my face.
Rapunzel looks behind me to the forest. Her eyes open wide and she takes the oar from the side of the boat and begins rowing there.
I stare at her, "What is it?"
She doesn't look at me, "I… I saw something there."
We land on the sand and I help pull the boat up, "What is it, Rapunzel?"
"Nothing!" She sighs and looks confused. "I'll be right back." I watch her walk along the sand, head down, braid unraveling, until she turns out of sight. I sigh and sit on a rock a few feet away from the boat and wait for Rapunzel.
Rapunzel
As I walk along the beach, I see a flashlight beam come from the forest and head that way. I saw her, I'm certain it was her. A yellow flashlight had illuminated her face and she had stepped back into the forest. I burst through the bracken to find an abandoned fire. I stared at it until I heard a voice behind me.
"Well, I've been here for ten minutes where have you been?" The voice called. I turned to see Mother behind me.
"Mother?" I stared in shock. She looked ten years older, with wrinkles, gray hairs, and red-rimmed eyes.
"Hello dear," She purrs taking a small step forward.
"But I-I-I- don't... how did you find me?" She pulls me into a hug.
She taps my nose, "Oh, it was easy, really, I just listened for the sound of complete and utter betrayal and followed that." I pull away.
"But it was you who betrayed me," I state.
"We're going home, Rapunzel," She reaches for my wrist but I snatch it away. "Now."
I step away, "But I'm so close to my parents. I need to find them. And I can't leave Jack, he's waiting for me."
"Right the juvenile delinquent, I'm so proud," She says sarcastically. "Come on Rapunzel." She gets a good grip on my hand and pulls me to the other edge of the woods.
"I think he really likes me. Loves me, maybe."
Mother turns, scorn in her eyes, "Loves you? Please, Rapunzel, that's demented."
"But Mother I-"
"This is why you never should have left," She walks in front of the fire. "Dear, this whole romance that you've invented proves that you're too naïve to be here." She circles around me. "Why would he like you? Now, really, look at you, you think that he's impressed?" She flips my braid in my face and I cough out stray pieces of hair. "Don't be a dummy; come with Mommy, Mother…"
"No!" I shout.
"No? Oh I see how it is," Her eyes become dangerous slits and I take a step back. "Rapunzel knows best, Rapunzel's so mature now, such a clever grown up miss." She pats my head as she sings. "Rapunzel knows best, fine... if you're so sure now let me just see you miss!"
"What?" I breathe.
"You're not why he's here. Don't let him deceive you. Don't give in to what you see!" She walks to me with angry eyes. "Trust me my dear," She snaps her fingers. "That's how fast he'll leave you. I won't say I told you so!" She circles me and I watch my breath coming quick. "No, Rapunzel knows best!" She leans up against me and rolls her shoulders. "So if he's such a dream boat, go and put him to the test!"
She strolls away and I reach my arm out, "Mother wait!"
"If he's lying don't come crying …Mother knows best!" She disappears from the clearing. I hold my face and even my breathing. When I've calmed down, I walk back to the beach where Jack stands.
"Hey, so what were you…" He trails off when he sees my face. "Are you okay?"
I nod and we get back into the boat and paddle our way back to the harbor.
Yeah! A week in the making! I made that especially long on porpoise. Also I edited the song so that it fits the story a bit better, because I think Rapunzel would be a little confused if Gothel suddenly threw her a crown worth millions in cash… yeah… I would be too. See you by next Sunday. Sorry to those peeps who are ahead of my time zone. Get on my level, thuglife!
