Rapunzel and the Menarche
Twelve and a half year old Rapunzel was sitting in her her beautiful bed with the curved posts and she was terrified.
She was under her covers whispering the healing song, her hair glowing, trying to hide it from Mother. She was bleeding and hurting she didn't know why and her special gift wasn't fixing it.
She was scared because her hair always healed things before.
But what was worse was that Mother would Punish her if she hurt herself. Mother had many punishments, just yesterday she had had to sit quietly on her stool for an hour with her eyes closed in the middle of the room because she had talked back to Mother. She wasn't sure why she did that.
That had nearly driven her crazy. She could hear Mother moving around the tower, doing things, ordinary things probably, but it was so hard to keep her eyes closed and not ask what Mother was doing. She had looped her nearly 50 feet of hair into a pile by her feet. She didn't want Mother doing anything to her with her hair.
She was scared because the Punishment for hurting herself was terrible and it was worse then the bleeding.
Mother didn't punish her for most accidents, she let her heal herself without a problem or comment. But if she hurt herself on purpose the Punishment was so terrible.
She had put the kitchen knife through her arm. Mother had made a terrible face at that. She never wanted to see that face again. Mother had given her a new punishment she called lashes. She had used her leather belt on her bottom, back, feet and hands. It had hurt so much, she thought she was going to die. It had been so hard to see the clock at the end, she could only see a small bit of the clock, and it had been so hard to sing the healing song, panting it out. But it had worked, though she had screamed out the last few words, as the pain went away, it felt so good.
Rapunzel never forgot that Punishment and never wanted to go through Punishment again. While she did many things that Mother might consider daring and even risky, Rapunzel made sure to not do them when Mother was around.
She didn't hurt herself on purpose, but she wasn't sure if Mother would believe her. But Mother might know why her hair wasn't working.
But there was no choice but to go to Mother. She was already late getting out of bed, too, which would be punished as well. It's just getting worse and worse. She got out of bed and walked slowly down the stairs, her 50 feet of hair making more noise then her bare feet.
It was a hot late summer day and Mother was making a cold breakfast of fruit. Rapunzel stood before her, her large green eyes looking at the floor, worrying a strand of hair near her shoulder. "Mother, I think something is wrong with my hair, it isn't healing me like it should."
Gothel's eyes got very large, "What?" She rushed to the large standing mirror and looked in it. "Rapunzel, get ready to sing for me."
Rapunzel got Mother's red chair and her own stool and the brush and waited patiently.
Gothel had found a liver spot and a few grey hairs, and then she sat in her chair, Rapunzel shakily put a loop of hair in Mother's lap, gave her the brush and began to sing, her angelic voice marred by a slight frightened quaver. In moments Gothel was looking completely young again, who rushed back to the mirror to inspect the results.
Rapunzel's belly began to hurt again and she began rubbing it with one hand as she continued to hold the brush in the other. Gothel, after a few minutes of admiring her young self in the mirror, relieved that the magic, golden hair still worked on her, turned back to Rapunzel, and noticed Rapunzel rubbing her lower belly.
"You are still hurting, pet?"
"Yes, and bleeding, too."
"Bleeding? Where?" Gothel said with some alarm.
"From here." Rapunzel pointed to the place where her legs came together.
"And you didn't hurt yourself?"
"No." it was a plea.
Gothel put the back of her hand on Rapunzel's forehead, checking for a fever, but she was fine.
She looked hard at Rapunzel, more then she had in some time. Rapunzel was bigger, how quickly she was growing up.
Gothel cocked her head and added up the irritability, the pain and bleeding and came up with, a rueful smile.
Gothel put it all together in her head. Rapunzel was a woman now. Her period had started for the very first time.
She could twist this, use this against Rapunzel to punish her every month, make her even more malleable.
But she remembered what her own mother had done for her, oh so long ago. This was special, once-in-a-lifetime special. It had to be okay, just this once.
Gothel decided.
…
Rapunzel was getting worried, Mother was thinking for a long time and the emotions running around her face were odd. Was something terribly wrong with her? Was she broken? Would she die? or worse was she going to be Punished?
Finally, a great big smile lit up Mother's face, it was the biggest smile she'd ever seen on Mother.
"My flower, you are beginning to bud. You've taken the first step to becoming a woman. I'm so proud of you."
Rapunzel was confused as Mother picked her up and gave her the biggest hug ever. It felt so good, it had been two weeks and 3 days since their last hug and she drank it in as she put her own arms around Mother.
"Oh, I have to do something special for you. Oh, oh, I know hazelnut soup. and something else. Something? Yes, how about some fabric for a new dress. Now let's gather up all the candles we can so I can get you that fabric for a new dress. "
Mother was being enormously generous, this must be wonderful. "Could I have some red fabric. please?" Rapunzel had always wanted red, because Mother wore it most of the time, especially when she went Outside.
Gothel stopped, and looked serious, "I said you are beginning to bud, not in full flower, my dear." Rapunzel was worried again.
"You are not grown up yet, but you have taken a big step. How about a good pink, you know what pink is right." Gothel said with a slight smile.
"Red and white." Rapunzel said excitedly.
"You've still not ready to wear red or go outside, but you are closer now then you were and I am proud of you." Mother said gently with a smile.
Gothel crushed the question about going outside before it came, she didn't want to do that, but better to do it before her flower asked, she needed to be kept safe and protected and the tower did that so well. Rapunzel looked so hopeful but a little sad about the red fabric and not going outside.
Gothel ran her hand over Rapunzel's hair. Looking at the precious hair as it meandered around the room. Then she remembered something. She had something that she could use as a gift for this occasion that would make Rapunzel very happy.
"Oo. I just remembered, I have a gift for you that I can give your right now. Sit in your chair and close you eyes." Gothel said excitedly.
Rapunzel gave her a look, but dashed over to her chair and sat down primly and very deliberately closed her huge green eyes.
Gothel dove for her closet and rummaged around in it looking for a box. Ah, there it is. Then she went over to Rapunzel and dragged her chair next to her flower and put the box in her lap and said, "Tada. Open you eyes."
Young Rapunzel opened her eyes and looked at the box. She put her hands on it and looked at Mother.
"Go ahead, open it." Gothel said.
Rapunzel opened the box and looked inside. Her large eyes go all huge and her mouth made an O of astonishment. It was red ribbon.
"You might not be grownup enough for a red dress, but you are grown up enough for some red ribbon for your hair." Gothel said proudly.
Gothel had intended the red ribbon for her next dress, she hardly ever found the right shade of red ribbon to went best with her skin, but Rapunzel deserved it more. She had taken such a big step in her life.
They tied the hair every foot or so with the precious red ribbon. Then they gathered up the extra candles, knitting and a few other things Gothel could use to trade for fabric and they moved to the window.
"I love you, very much." said Gothel sitting on the edge of the window, waiting for Rapunzel to throw down her hair so she could climb down.
"I love you more." said Rapunzel with tears of joy in her green eyes and the red ribbons in her sunshine gold hair.
"I love you most. I am proud of you. This is going to be wonderful." Gothel finished their ritual of love with a warm smile
Author's Note: This one is for prince_zaire and her Wicked Witches series on DeviantArt.
Is it out of character for Gothel to do something nice for Rapunzel? I don't think so.
But what do you think?
Review please.