Rapunzel's POV
My spirit seemed to flicker like a candle in the wind as I walked down the hall. My muscles trembled and my bones cried out in agony. It felt as though oil filled my veils. My thoughts were sluggish and murky. I felt dizzy and fell flat on my face. Hiccup, who had refused to leave my side until we found the others, had tried to catch me, but I passed straight through him. I collided with the maroon carpet in a heap of transparent limbs and hair.
"Rapunzel, are you alright? I'm so sorry!" Hiccup exclaimed, trying to help me up; his hands swiping though my body as if it were made of mist.
"I can't get much worse, so…" I replied.
Our eyes met, the light and shadow swirling together in his irises. His eyebrows were all scrunched up with worry.
"Can you make it to the others?" he asked.
My head pounded despite the fact that my heartbeat was barely a flutter. "I-I don't think so Hiccup. I can't…"
"It's alright," He said. "I'll be right back with the others." Hiccup ran down the hall with extreme agility for a guy with a fake leg, and disappeared around a corner.
"I'm not going anywhere." I said, trying to fake a laugh. All that did was send my lungs into a fit of coughs.
After an extreme struggle, I managed to prop myself up on the wall. My breath was labored and darkness crept into the edges of my vision. The darkness kept advancing, taking over more and more of my sight.
With a jolt, I realized that the darkness creeping up on me was real shadows stalking closer and closer like jaguars. Silent and deadly. I desperately tried to get up, but my body burned with such intensity that I slumped back down. I tried to scream, to yell, to do something, but no sounds came out. I was mute and unable to stand.
A black tentacle leapt out of the wall. Its insides swirled like ink. With movement as fast as lightning, it wrapped around my throat, binding me to the wall. Smaller tentacles lashed onto my wrists and ankles. Despite their size, the shadows held me in an iron grip.
In all the commotion, I found my voice. "Help!" I screamed. Another tentacle wrapped itself around my mouth, stopping any sound from escaping my lips.
The shadows crept over every inch of surface like a thick soup. They crawled over the windows, blocking any light and covered the doors, my only hope for escape.
I struggled with the blackness that surrounded me, until a single flare lit up the night. It was a small candle, slowly dripping wax onto the handled tray that held it.
Slowly, a hand extended from the shadows, pulling a tall thin body with it.
"Hello, Rapunzel. Fancy meeting you here." Pitch said. His voice, like fingernails on a chalkboard, sent shivers up my spine.
He reached down and brushed away a strand of hair that had fallen in front of my eyes. I desperately pulled away from him, but the tentacles held me in place. All I could do was close my eyes.
"Oh, dearest." He cooed. His breath was rancid, like rotting meat. It stuck to my skin. "Be afraid." He gripped my face in his bony hand. Fingernails like daggers dug into my cheeks. I felt a warm trickle run down them.
Just then an enormously loud bang filled the eerie silence that had surrounded me before, and the door flew open. The shadows reeled away from the light that streamed into the hall. Three silhouettes stood in the door.
In one swift motion, I was scooped off the floor and forced to stand, my back pressed against Pitch's billowing cloak. Shadows still bound my wrists and ankles, but now Pitch's hand clenched my throat. He gripped my esophagus with such strength that I could hardly breathe.
"One move and I break your little flowers neck." Pitch screamed, sounding slightly like a pherydactill.
"Get away from her." Jack said, surprisingly calm. He stepped forward, "Take me instead."
"I have a better idea," Pitch growled. "Two for one." He shoved me forward with strength hidden by his slight form.
Jack caught me in his strong arms and held me close to his chest so that I could hear his heart beating. He smelled like wind and peppermint. A scent I had come to relate with love. For a moment our eyes met. His expression said it all. Tear stained cheeks and baggy eyes.
Our eyes were torn apart when Pitch's growled "Now for the best part." he thrust his thin arms out from his body, and a stream of darkness shot from the folds of his robe. Jack and I clung to each other desperately, as the shadows enveloped us in a swirling sphere of evil.
The wind tore at my hair and clothes, but Jack held onto me. I could hear muffled shouts from the outside, but they were altered and twisted by whatever surrounded us.
Eventually, I heard Merida signature battle cry loud and clear. A moment later, the shadows melted away and deposited me on the floor. Jacks hand was still tightly wrapped around my own; I could feel his cool skin against mine.
But when I sat up, his icy blue eyes stayed closed.
So sorry for the long wait, school had begun. Unfortunately, I won't be posting as often as I did over the summer, but never fear. I haven't abandoned this story. It will come to an end. I promise.
REVIEW! I love hearing from you guys. your comments really do matter. I read all of them, and love you guys for them
