Dawn was getting back on , she was still reeling a bit from last week's disaster, but she wasn't about to let that keep her down. Eugene was right, she wasn't a quitter. Just because she lost a game didn't mean she had to give up the sport.
Archie had been complaining all week about the leaky faucet. Normally she'd just hire a carpenter or someone who wanted extra money for a beer. That was not-trying-to-prove-herself-to-Eugene-Regina-and-the-world-Dawn. The new her was the opposite of that. No, she was going to fix the pipes, herself! With help!
Mr. Gold's shop probably should have been in a bigger city. At the moment, he had to sell anything and everything furniture related to stay afloat. After all, most people didn't buy antiques on a regular basis, especially in Storybrooke.
" Hello dearie. Do you already need life advice again? Perhaps you'd like me to set you up with another young lad?"
Dawn giggled and rolled her eyes. " Nope, I need advice, but on much more practical matters. How do you fix a leaky pipe?"
As Mr. Gold explained the many types of possible tape, Dawn couldn't help but feel her mind wander. Suddenly, her eyes caught upon a painting. Objectively it was nothing special. Yet, it drew her like a moth to the flame. It was a picture of a golden flower. Absolutely nothing was extraordinary about it, but the longer she looked at it the harder it was to look away.
" I just asked you a question Miss Dawn, care to answer?"
All of the sudden she was back in school, caught by a teacher paying attention to her lack of attention.
" Umm. Turn the water off?" She'd heard that, somewhere. Maybe it was right?
" Well, that would be an interesting way to prevent a leak, but your tenants might get a bit testy." Nope.
"Sorry. It's just," She hesitated a bit, he might not be pleased to hear her reason, "Your painting is just so pretty. Where'd you get it?"
Mr. Gold stiffened a bit, then smiled fakely. " Let's focus on your little problem for now." And they did. Yet, her eyes still lingered on the painting. It was like when she would come back to school, and would try to recite equations she'd learned the last year. She knew she knew it. She just couldn't quite remember.
" I take it that my lesson is so fascinating that you're stunned silent?" Yet again, she snapped back into reality. She winced and turned back to him.
" Sorry. Again." He shook his head.
" I'll tell you what. I'll sell you a book on plumbing. You might be able to concentrate better in your own house." As he handed her an old looking book, she looked back to the painting.
" How much is this?" The words tumbled out of her mouth before she could register them. Still, she didn't regret them. Mr. Gold simply pointed to the price tag. Despite the above average price, she happily brought it home.
As she walked home, everything felt more and less familiar. The people around her felt more like strangers, but easier to talk to than ever. Was it possible that she was drunk? Or had she been so stressed that she'd forgotten what it felt like to be actually happy?
Still, it just didn't look right. She wanted it. She didn't know why, but she wanted it. There had to be something she could do. Getting an idea, she pulled out her paint set. Without thinking, she painted a golden sun on the rim of the painting. It looked right. There was no other way to describe it.
For the next hour, she painted the same sun around the edge, never making a single mistake. Finally, she finished. The once dreary painting now seemed bursting with life.
Hardly thinking, she dragged out an old easel. Just the sight of it sent memories bouncing through her mind. She painted the sun again, except this time with her full collection of colors.
She added a spectator, a girl reveling at the warmth around her. Then there was a shadow, creeping behind her. If she was aware of it, she didn't see it. It ended up as a mix of
Once again, it felt so familiar, but so unknown. Oh well. Perhaps she didn't have to know why she felt any way she did. Maybe just being happy with something would be okay. At least for a little bit.
So, she went to sleep, dreaming under the painted suns.
Before the curse:
The night was cold and damp. Rapunzel shivered so much, any passerby would have assumed there was an earthquake.
Rapunzel tugged her dress through the brambles. Most of her friends assumed she would eventually stop wearing such long dresses. After all, she'd spent a bit of every day since she'd gotten out of her tower outside. Many servants had cursed the repairs they'd been forced to make to her dresses. Still, she simply felt at home in a gown. Perhaps it was because Gothel had her wearing them her whole life, perhaps because they reminded her of the paintings she worked tirelessly on, or perhaps because it reminded her that she was royalty. Royalty was worth caring about. Royalty wasn't locked up in a tower and deprived of contact for eighteen years. Whatever the reason, the dress stayed on no matter the circumstance. Besides, she started washing it herself after one of the servants quit.
" I know you're here." Her voice was swallowed up by the wind.
" I know you have a solution for me!" Only the darkness of the night and clouds answered her as her shout turned to a scream.
" I know you can help me." Rapunzel put her hands on a tree. This was her last chance. If this didn't work it was over. All her subjects would have to travel to nearby kingdoms. Many of them would starve on the way. Her entire family would likely be killed in a revolt.
" Please?" Whether she was speaking to herself or her last hope was anyone's guess.
A piece of paper appeared in her hand, rimmed with gold.
" For healing the land of drought and famine, you and your lover must sign yourself over to the dark curse. Three moons from now you will both cease to exist from this world. "
A spot for the signature was just below it.
