"

"This is it," I said breathlessly my nerves taking over, "this is a very big day Pascal, I'm finally going to do it; I'm finally going to ask her."

I closed my paint box having finished with the touch-ups, the tower gleamed and dinner was prepared. I was scared out of my mind but I had to do it. "Rapunzel!" I heard mother yell, oh no I thought, she's already here.

I swallowed wringing my hands running to clean up and put the last things in place. "Let down your hair!" she sang up to me, I took a deep breath and looked over to Pascal, "Its time" I squealed my smile spreading across my face.

Pascal looked at me his eyebrows raised but his smile just as excited as mine, "I know, I know" I whispered. "Don't let her see you." I tucked Pascal under the curtain that was now covering my new painting of the lights; he immediately matched the indigo colour of the sky. Mother didn't know about Pascal, she couldn't. He was from outside, if she knew about him she might make him leave, or worse, I shuddered at the thought.

"Rapunzel!" She yelled again this time with an edge of annoyance. I hopped down from the ledge I had been sitting on and hurried over to the ledge dragging my hair with me. Quickly I wound it up and slung it over the hook. I don't know if I've mentioned it yet but my hair is long, like really long. In fact it's so long I can throw it out the window of our tower, our tower which is seventy three feet tall I might add, (I know this for a fact because I measured it once) and it will hit the ground and mother can still make it into a large loop to fit her foot through and there is enough left at the top for me to pull.

"I'm not getting any younger down here!" mother called, I could hear the smugness in her voice from her own joke. I rolled my eyes, "coming mother!" I slung my hair over the edge and got ready to pull.

Mother effortlessly made a hoop, fit her foot through and grasped a hold of the top of the loop of hair, she had done it a million times and was used to it, I on the other hand never seemed to get used to pulling a full grown woman up over seventy feet with sheer body strength alone.

Hefting as hard as I could I pulled and pulled and pulled almost building up a sweat until mother was at the window climbing in.

I huffed a sigh as the weight left my arms. "Hi," I breathed out still catching my breath "welcome home mother." "Ah Rapunzel" she said, "How you manage to do that every single day without fail, it looks absolutely exhausting darling."

I smiled because it was almost like praise, "oh it's nothing" I replied. She leaned in and scrunched up her face, "then I don't know why it takes so long," she smiled a little smile as if I was five years old and tapped me on the nose. I leaned back the smile slipping from my face.

Mother was always doing this, implying my inadequacy or how awful I was, I knew what came next. Right on cue she looked at me and laughed, "oh darling I'm just teasing."

Warily I laughed in response trying to plaster a smile on my face remembering my goal. Quickly I ran up to her. She was heading towards our gilded mirror, mother was a little vain, sometimes I worried she loved the mirror more than me.

"Alright, so, mother, as you know tomorrow is a very special day," she cut me off. "Rapunzel" she said softly, "look in that mirror."

I did as I was told, I saw us standing side by side.

There was me with my huge brown eyes, tiny little nose that didn't fit my face and lips that weren't quite straight and were far too wide for my liking. I also had way too many freckles over my face.

I am short and my body goes in and out, mother calls them "curves" and says I'm lucky to have them.

Then, of course, there is my hair; pure blond it cascade from the top of my hair in unruly waves all the way down my back across the room, through rafters, everywhere. Right now the tips of my hair were somewhere in the kitchen.

Of course there also was mother standing beside me, she is tall and regal with a mane of black curly hair that always stays put even though it looks like it shouldn't. Mother is thin and like me she has curves although she has more in the chest region.

She has a small but sharp nose and thin eyebrows which in combination make her look strict and mature. She has large grey eyes that look like the eyes of a cat and are never fully open. I looked up at her, mother is beautiful in an almost dark and hypnotizing way. Mother is all I have I realized with love in my heart.

Mother continued talking, "you know what I see, I see a strong confident beautiful young lady, "my smile grew, maybe this wouldn't be so hard after all..

"Oh look," she said losing the softness in her voice, "you're there too."

She burst out laughing at her own joke. Right on cue she said, "I'm just teasing stop taking everything so seriously."

I took a deep breath trying to keep a hold on my emotions and stay calm and happy looking so as not to upset her.

Mother started stretching her face and primping herself, she looked perfect I don't know what she could possibly think was wrong. She sighed now inspecting her age spots on the back of her hands. "Ok so mother," I began, "as I was saying tomorrow is," she cut me off for the second time.

"Rapunzel" she said as if just noticing my existence, "Mothers feeling a little run down would you sing for me dear, then we'll talk," although she said it innocently enough I knew it wasn't a question, I had learned that. I didn't mind it that much because she had said we could talk after.

I was slowly losing my eagerness and energy towards my goal but I reminded myself that this was the lights; I couldn't let mother's usual behaviour stop me. "Oh of course Mother," I said my smile still in place. I ran quickly grabbing the stool and pushing her onto the usual gilded cushiony chair she sat in while she brushed my hair. Quickly I gathered up my hair and found my brush.

This is right around the part where it will get weird, just warning you. There is one kind of crazy thing about me I haven't mentioned yet; my hair isn't just really, really, long. It also happens to have magical powers that can restore health to someone when I sing. Crazy right?

So, every once in a while mother will sit down and brush my hair while I sing. My hair has the ability to heal and rejuvenate youth, all I need to do is touch it the point of harm and sing. That's why mother looks so young and beautiful. I had been singing for mother as long as I can remember and I still don't quite understand it.

The one thing I do know is that it's the reason mother is so overprotective, she worries someone will try to kidnap me for my powers. Mother says that it had already happened once when I was young. An evil man had come and tried to steal my hair by cutting it, the one problem is that when you cut my hair it turns brown and loses its power. By the time he realized this mother had come in and was able to knock him out cold and then send him away. I don't remember this but that's because I was very young, a baby. I've had the little patch of brown hair for as long as I can remember.

Sitting down quickly I began singing the song as fast as possible, I wanted to get it over with so that mother and I could talk. "Flower gleam and glow, let your power shine, make the clocks reverse, bring back what once was mine," My hair was now glowing and mother was desperately trying to keep up with me forcing the brush into my hair trying to get one stroke through. "Wait!" she yelled desperately, I didn't wait. "Heal what has been hurt, change the fates design, save what has been lost; bring back what once was mine."

"Rapunzel!" she chastised looking at me in annoyance, although my excitement kind of made me look it over.

"So mother," I said leaning onto her chair eagerly, "earlier I was saying tomorrow is a pretty big day, and you didn't really respond, so I'm just going to tell you, it's my birthday!" (If you're wondering, I said that in one breath.)

Laughing I hugged her, my previous nerves and excitement having returned in full force. "Ta da!" I announced.

"No, no, no," she said pushing me away, "can't be." She smiled at me as if she was a hundred percent sure she was right. "I distinctly remember she attempted to correct me; your birthday was last year."

I barely held my smile. "That's the funny thing about birthdays," I said to her smiling through my teeth, "there kind of an annual thing."

I leaned in my joking manner slipping a bit, and then sighed and sat down on the floor losing my entire happy go lucky attitude. "Mother," I sighed, "I'm turning eighteen and I wanted to ask," I trailed off my shoulders slumping.

Scrunching up my nose I decided to just tell her and get it over with, "what I really want for this birthday, actually what I've wanted for quite a few birthdays," I muttered. "Ok, ok" she cut me off before I could tell her, "stop with the muttering, you know how I feel about the muttering. Blah blah blah blah blah." she said imitating me with her hand, "it's very annoying."

She leaned in smiling, "oh darling I'm just teasing your adorable." She started to walk away, "I love you so much darling." she was obviously done with the conversation.

My shoulders slumped; my well thought out plan was ruined. I glanced over to the sound of a high pitched squeak to see an angry Pascal glaring at me. He gestured with his front foot to go on.

"Ugh!" I yelled giving up on the happy face, "I want to see the floating lights!" I confessed looking over to mother, who was now placing the fruit she had collected today in a basket. The relief from telling her how I felt was almost instantly diminished when she paused for a few seconds not looking at me, "ha," she laughed looking over at me, "what?"

There was uneasiness and maybe even a little fright in her voice; it made me curious so I stored it away for later contemplation. "Oh," I continued hopping up on a stool, "well," I said, "I was hoping you would take me to see the floating lights."

I pulled back the curtain revealing my new painting.

"Oh," she said understanding and now a little bit of awe in her voice, "you mean the stars."

"That's the thing," I replied, "I've charted stars, and they're always constant. But these, they appear every year on my birthday mother, only on my birthday." I looked at her expectantly daring her to brush it off, when she didn't I went on leaning on the ledge. "And I can't help but feel that they're meant for... me. I need to see them mother," I insisted passion entering my voice, "and not just from my window, in person. I have to know what they are!" I explained desperate for her understanding.

I looked over to see she had walked away, over to the window. She glanced over bored and confused, "You want to go outside?" she asked, "uh," she exclaimed, "why rapunzel, look at you as fragile as a dainty flower, still a little sapling, just a sprout."

She was now singing to me, I leaned back apprehension entering me. "You know why we stay here in this tower," she gently crooned. "I know," I tried to interject; she cut me off again, "That's right. To keep you safe and sound." she murmured stroking my long blond hair.

She hurried over to the window dramatically striking a dramatic pose against the window. "Guess I always knew this day was coming," she despaired her head pressed to her forehead in pain that seemed a little bit false.

Spinning away she passed in front of me after closing the curtains with a snap, the room was gradually getting darker and the shadows were gathering.

"Knew that soon you'd want to leave the nest." she slid in front of me walking towards the stairs. Leaning over the railing she smiled at me, "soon but not yet," "but," I tried to cut in but she placed her finger over my lips shushing me.

" Shhhh" she whispered "trust me pet."

"Mother," she belted, "knows best!" she pulled the lever that closes the window on the ceiling and the room was cloaked in darkness.

"Mother knows best, listen to your mother. It's a scary world out there." I had attempted to shed some light on the room by lighting a candle but it did little to help, I soon realized she was trying to scare me into not wanting to go outside." Mother knows best, one way or another something will go wrong I swear."

She grabbed me from behind scaring the daylights out me while effectively putting my candle out. Out of nowhere I was pushed into a little circle of light in the center of the room, the whole thing felt planned, choreographed even, perhaps she wasn't kidding when she said she knew this would happen.

"Ruffians! Thugs! Poison ivy! Quick sand!" Each she intoned with some sort of shadow puppet that appeared near me n the floor, I jumped away from the terrifying images scared suddenly of what could happen in the world outside, and yet I still wasn't swayed.

"Cannibals and Snakes! The plague!" Twirling around me she acted each new horror in a different way, far too effectively.

"No!" I cried trying to make her listen,"yes!" She retorted before I could continue. "Large bugs! Men with pointy teeth! And stop no more you'll just upset me," at this point I was huddled on the floor with a new candle wrapped in my hair which was strangely like a comforting blanket.

"Mothers right here" she patted my hand smiling, "mother will protect you, darling here's what I suggest," she twirled away disappearing again.

"Skip the drama stay with mama, Mother! Knows! Best!" She had briefly reappeared on the stairs to cry that line out but she quickly disappeared again.

"Mother understands, mothers here to help you."

"All I have is one request!" I ran to her now standing in the light in the center of the room hugging her hard around the middle scared out of my wits, and yet also slightly sad, I had lost hope, and hope had been such a beautiful feeling to have.

Mother loosened our embrace slightly to look down on me.

"Rapunzel," she asked.

"Yes," I answered.

Suddenly all love in her expression was lost for a few horrid moments, "Don't ever ask to leave this tower again." The way she said it... her eyes went big and she bared her teeth squeezing my shoulders so hard it hurt, it made me wonder about our relationship and almost, for a moment, my safety.

My shoulders slumped as I looked away from her face my dreams cracking in two.

"Yes mother." I replied in a dead voice.

She sighed tilting my head up with the tips of her fingers, the evil I had glimpsed in her was now gone.

"I love you very much dear," she crooned.

"I love you more," I replied, this was a sort of thing we did ad then as per usual she replied; "I love you most."

Hearing her say it brought a bit of warmth into my heart although her affections felt a little off.

Smiling warmly she kissed the top of my head with affection that was slowly becoming more and more legitimate, maybe it was just me.

Tapping me on the nose she softly sang; "don't forget it, you'll regret it," spinning behind me she prepared for what obviously was to be her big finale.

"Mother! Knows! Best!" Taking my hair in her palms she glided away from me into the dark corners of the room, and then opened the window my hair still in her hands.

Not looking back she swung herself over calling up "Ta ta I'll see you in a bit my flower." I smiled softly clutching my stomach to hold the pain in.

"I'll be here," I murmured looking down from the top of my tower as I let my hair slip through my fingers as she reached the ground.