Chapter 9: The Forbidden Tower

Harry and Draco watched the tower for nearly two hours. Draco insisted they wait until midday, that it'd be less likely for the Fairy or the prince to come upon them unexpectedly. Their plan, such as it was, was to climb the tower, convince Rapunzel to trust them, ask her about the spindle, and offer to compensate her in some way if she had it.

"And if she doesn't?" Harry asked as they removed their Disillusionment Charms and prepared to approach the tower. He couldn't help but be amused at Draco's detailed analysis of the situation. "What then?"

Draco simply raised one blond eyebrow and turned his flat gaze onto Harry. "You doubt my judgement?"

Harry shrugged. "It's a valid question. I'm just saying we should have an alternative strategy if it becomes necessary."

"Says the Gryffindor who spent seven years running into danger with a pair of school children as his backup."

"Says the Gryffindor who learnt what an idiot he'd been for running into danger with a pair of school kids as his backup."

"Says the enlightened Gryffindor. Got it," Draco conceded with a chuckle. "If she doesn't have it, we just go on the way we were previously heading and hope to make it to the village by tomorrow."

"But we'll leave her locked in a tower, all the while knowing her prince will eventually be discovered and blinded and that they'll spend years apart, miserable." Harry fastened Draco with a glare.

Draco rolled his eyes. "And get knocked up and have lovely babies and maybe run off to join his kingdom one day, yes."

"You suck."

"You suck. What if we change this and Rapunzel doesn't get pregnant and then she's miserable without her babies." He smirked. "How would we ever forgive ourselves?"

"What if she's already pregnant and just needs help to get to her prince's kingdom?"

"Fucking Gryffindors," Draco muttered. "Fine. We'll save the girl and help her live happily ever after. Are you happy?" Draco scowled, looking like a toddler whose sweets had been taken away.

Harry couldn't help but laugh. Taking a step closer, he nudged Draco's shoulder with his own. "Very. Thank you."

"Whatever," Draco growled, but Harry didn't miss the little smile that turned the edges of his lips as he led them to the tower.

The tower seemed even larger up close. The men approached from the back, out of sight of the window until they came to the base. Draco craned his neck to see the top.

"How high up do you think that window is?" Harry asked, his voice quiet.

"Sixty feet?" Draco guessed. "I don't suppose you have your broom hidden in that pouch, do you? This climbing thing suddenly sounds unappealing."

"I wish," agreed Harry, a frown on his face as he looked up at the stone stretching before them. "Will you do the honours, or shall I?"

"You're the one who seems to be charming the little girls and old women. Go for it."

Harry slanted him a look that reminded Draco of one Minerva would give to a group of first-years, and then he cast a Sonorus. "Rapunzel, let down your hair to me."

They waited, and Draco began to wonder if it'd work when a long, yellow, braided rope cascaded from the window and ended about two feet off the ground. Harry looked at the cord-like braid, then to Draco, then back to the braid as if it were a snake. Actually, not a snake, because Harry would probably just talk to that. He looked at it as if it were a sixty-foot braid of somebody's actual hair that they were supposed to climb. Because really, that was much more disgusting than a snake if Draco took a moment to think about it.

Which he wasn't going to do.

"Climb it, Potter. I'll be right behind you."

Harry took a deep breath, reached up, and grabbed onto the cord. It occurred to Draco, at that moment, that he was going to have to climb sixty feet. He was honestly disappointed with himself for having overlooked this detail, but he wasn't going to admit it to Potter. Instead, he cast a quick Feather-light Charm on himself, and then one on Harry.

Harry wasn't prepared for that, though. He almost fell off the rope—it was a rope, not hair, and Draco would keep telling himself that—at the change in apparent gravity. Draco held his breath as Harry scrambled to correct himself.

"What the fuck was that?" Harry called from his position about twelve feet up.

"Just helping," Draco said with a smirk, grabbing hold of the rope and beginning to climb.

He managed to catch up to Harry after a couple of moments, and they made good time. Even with the charm, though, about forty feet up, Draco needed to stop to catch his breath. He reached up to nudge Harry's foot and paused, momentarily stunned at the view above him: Harry's toned arse and muscular thighs and—

He tugged at Harry's foot to get his attention, and Harry looked down at Draco, then down at the ground. His face blanched.

"Right. Uh, what is it, Malfoy? I'm a little busy here?"

"Need a breather."

"Yeah, okay." Harry looked up to their window destination for a minute, and then back to Draco. "Merlin, how do you think the prince climbs this every day without magic?"

"The things men will do to get laid," Draco drawled.

Harry laughed.

"Stop that. You're shaking the rope."

"You mean the hair?"

Draco's stomach turned. "It's a rope. Shut up and climb the rope, Potter. Let's finish this."

Harry snorted and turned back, pulling his way to the top. As they approached the window, he waited for Draco to catch up. "I'll go first, but cover me."

"Like with the werewolf?" Draco asked.

Harry grunted. "Merlin, I hope it goes better than that did. Are you ready?"

Draco pulled out his wand. "Let's go."

Harry peeked through the window, expecting to see a young woman attached to the hair under his hands, but the bright autumn sun blinded him to the dim interior of the single-window tower.

"Right," he muttered, and pulled himself over the ledge, landing with a thunk on the hard, wooden floor. A noise caught his attention, and he looked over, squinting in the darkened room.

"Prince," a female voice said. "You have come. I've been waiting for you."

"Wait. What?" Harry asked. Surely the girl would know he wasn't her lover.

"You have taken what is mine." The voice grew more assertive, and Harry's eyes began to focus on the form still holding the golden hair over the windowsill. "What have you to say for yourself?"

Harry's eyes adjusted and found a beautiful woman standing in front of him. She was tall and lean, with flowing red hair hanging loose about her shoulders. Her dress was a pale colour Harry couldn't identify. It wasn't pink, or blue, or yellow, but it also seemed to be all those shades at once. He could make out small flowers embroidered across the neckline, and down the sleeves, and flowing over her skirts. Except, then they weren't, and the flowers were withering and changing into simple greenery, and then again it was covered in the blooms of every flower Harry had ever seen.

It was stunning. She was stunning. And then he saw her face, and he was speechless. Her eyes seemed to reflect the same blooms as her dress, but they were crystal blue and terrible. Harry had seen power before, but he'd never seen anything like her.

"Can you not speak, Prince?" she asked, her voice harsh.

"Prince, indeed," came a drawling voice from the window.

Harry and the woman—could he call her a woman? Draco had said a Fairy kept the girl here, so surely she was the Fairy. Harry and the Fairy turned to see Draco sitting on the ledge, his legs crossed as if he hadn't a care in the world. He smiled when he saw her and hopped down, giving her a bow like something out of a Victorian-period romance movie. Not that Harry watched those or anything.

"Madame," Draco said with his prissiest accent. "We are looking for this prince as well. We followed him this way and lost the trail, but finally tracked him to this tower. Are you saying he's run away with something of yours?"

The Fairy narrowed her eyes and looked between them. "You are wizards."

Draco nodded. "Indeed. I am Draco, and this is Harry. We are seeking a magical item that the prince stole from us. We heard him boasting of hiding it in this tower when he came to seek his lady."

The Fairy's eyes softened slightly. Harry concentrated on looking harmless and trustworthy, and also not like he was completely flying by the seat of his pants in regards to Draco's story. They'd expected the girl, not the Fairy, so had nothing planned. Or, well, Harry hadn't—stupid Draco and his Slytherin secret plans that might actually be saving their stupid lives.

"Perhaps we can come to an agreement, then, wizards."

Another Fairy deal. Great.

Harry wanted to sigh, but instead, he managed to arrange his face into a proper, I'm-so-intrigued-please-tell-me-what-you-have-in-mind expression. Draco should be impressed.

He chanced a look at Draco—who did not look impressed, the arse—and saw the man smiling congenially. "Perhaps, Madame. What should we call you?"

She arched an eyebrow, looking remarkably like Narcissa Malfoy. Perhaps Narcissa was part-Fairy? That would explain a lot.

"Fee," she said. "You may call me Fee." She dropped the rope of hair, leaving it hanging in place, and twirled, her skirts flaring around her as she conjured a chair and sat down. "Please, gentlemen. Join me."

With a look at Harry, Draco nodded his head towards Fee, gesturing for him to join her, so Harry Conjured a chair nearby. Draco did the same, making his chair fancier than Harry's basic wood armchair, but not as elaborate as the Fairy's. Ponce.

"What is it that you propose?" Draco asked.

Fee continued to watch them both closely. "I shall help you search this tower for the hidden item you seek, and in return, you shall tell me all you know of this prince you've been hunting and his associations with my child."

Harry waited for Draco to make his move. It was kind of fun to watch him work.

"We shall agree with one stipulation. We shall not help you hurt the prince. We are not violent men; we simply want the item promised to us."

"Deal," the Fairy said, and clapped her hands, sealing the agreement with a puff of magic. Harry felt it settle upon him like an Unbreakable Vow and wanted to kick Draco. Trust. I need to trust him.

Fee stood and looked around the tower room, finally allowing Harry to do the same.

The room appeared more extensive than it should have been, resembling a small, open flat. A sleeping area with a large canopied bed lay next to a beautiful sitting area with various activities set around for the girl to enjoy—the harp, in particular, caught Harry's eye. To the rear of the room was a massive hearth set for baking and to the right of that, a bathing alcove.

After a moment of examination, Fee put out her hands and began to turn, muttering under her breath. Magic flooded the room. It tasted of sunshine, and a summer day after the rain, and of lavender and rose and honeysuckle. A smile formed on Harry's lips before he could stop it, the pleasure of the moment overwhelming his senses.

Draco wore a similar look, though he did a better job of hiding it. Harry probably wouldn't have noticed if he hadn't been studying the other man's expressions so closely lately. Not that he'd been studying Draco, just that he'd noticed. Things. Sometimes.

Several movements around the room drew Harry's attention away from not-watching Draco, and then a tugging at his throat and a twitch in his pocket had him jumping in alarm. The Fairy's laughter twinkled, and she clicked her fingers, making Harry's trousers settle down, but it did nothing for his nerves. It'd felt like his wand was trying to go to her, as was the pouch around his neck.

"My apologies, gentlemen," she said, her voice sounding as though she were still laughing, though her face looked merely pleased. A small collection of items floated through the air to her, landing and creating a pile at her feet. "I merely asked the room for any magical item, and it tried to provide yours, as well."

"No apology necessary, Fee," Draco said, his face mild, but his attention now focused keenly on the pile of items before them. "So many items. Is your child magical?"

Fee shook her head. "No, she's not, but she's well used to my magic, and I'll admit that I do tend to spoil her." Her voice turned irritated at the end of her statement, and Harry reminded himself of the story. She'd see the girl's actions as a betrayal.

Draco, ever the Slytherin, gave her a sycophantic smile. "You've been a kind and charitable mistress to the child, Madame." He gestured to the pile. "May I?"

Fee sat in her chair and leaned back, giving a regal wave. "Only the device you've come for."

Draco met Harry's eyes and raised his eyebrows. "Can you help me?"

Harry nodded and approached the cluster of items. There was a strange assortment to rummage through: a tea kettle, a set of knitting needles, a dishcloth, a shawl, and some slippers. Draco set aside what appeared to be a jewellery box of some kind before picking up a long, pointy piece of wood with a bulb on one end to hold it by. He examined it and pointed to the engraving of a star at its end. "It's as she described," Draco muttered. "This is it."

Fee held out her hand, expecting Draco to turn it over. Draco stood, passing the device to Harry, and whispered, "Put it in your pouch. Now."

Harry didn't hesitate; he simply turned so that the Fairy couldn't see and put the spindle away, hoping Draco had a plan. He turned back as Fee stood. She was pissed off.

"You defy me? I made a simple request. Let me see the item. I must know that you are not stealing from me, that this is not an item I have provided for the girl."

"That was not part of the bargain, Fee," Draco said calmly. "You've ensured we got what we came for, so now it's up to us. Let us tell you now what we know of the prince."

The Fairy's face flushed, her eyes darkening. Her red hair began to lift, and Harry was nearly certain he saw sparks of static flashing through it. "No, you are thieves. Honest men would show me what they've taken."

She gathered her magic around her, and it was nothing like before. Where that had felt like the greatest pleasures of summer, this felt like the wrath of every midsummer storm—like a cyclone, the air buzzing with electricity, the wind churning and battering Harry's face. Draco grabbed Harry's arm.

But nobody expected the interruption. All three of them should have, Harry would later observe. Fee had been waiting for it before Harry and Draco had arrived. Harry and Draco knew the story. There was no excuse for it; not for any of them.

Still, distractions of magic and angry Fairies would do that. So, when the voice trailed in from the window, they all froze and slowly turned towards the handsome man now hanging over the windowsill.

"Rapunzel?"

Meanwhile…

Prince Henry stares at the spectacle before him.

When he arrived at the tower, eager to see his lady, he was surprised to find her hair already waiting. He smiled, thinking she must be as enthusiastic today as he. As he approached the top, however, he felt the gathering of a summer storm. The air changed, crackling with energy, despite the clear skies. Lights flashed in Rapunzel's window.

Whatever was happening, it was inside with his love. He climbed faster.

But he couldn't have expected this. His mind barely registers the two men standing in the periphery, though he does notice their strange clothing and the stick each holds out like a sword.

His focus is on the threat, and that is the woman.

Her red hair would likely reach her waist when calm, but now, it swirls about her enraged face as if pushed around by the winds of a storm. Which, now that Henry realises it, is likely what's going on. She seems to be the source of the storm, ready to attack.

But he's not afraid for himself. He has only one concern.

"Rapunzel?"