The sound of ringing bells pulled my attention away from Eugene and Maximus. I had played with bells when I was younger after mother had brought one home to entertain me so I recognized the sound, but these bells, these bells were far more beautiful than the ones I had played with as a toddler. They were deep and loud with over lapping cheerful melodies that reverberated through the air even though I could tell the sound came from far away.
I followed the sound pushing through some bushes and slowly picking up my pace as I became more excited.
Finally I broke away from the forest and onto a paved path that led into a long stone bridge. I froze for a moment my eyes glued to what was in front of me.
The bridge led towards what had to be an island right off the main shore. The island was a large hill which was speckled with varying houses made out of yellow brick and sloping roofs. The town was gorgeous and charming and everything I had ever dreamed of, and to top it all off there was a towering castle on the crest of the hill its spires reaching towards the heavens. Something told me these towers actually had stairs.
Never had I ever seen something so wonderful in my entire life.
I started walking towards the path slowly as if in a trance, I began to realize what was happening.
I was in the kingdom, I was in the kingdom! I jumped up and down squealing with delight.
There was so many things I could do, so many adventures to be had. I could try eating something made by someone other than me, I could go and talk to other people, I could go and dance in a square I could... I couldn't even think I was so excited, my mind was in overdrive the mere thought of wow echoing in my mind on repeat. I turned back towards Eugene and said that thought aloud, "wow!" I exclaimed jumping up and down like I used to whenever mother told me she had brought me something from the outside wold, except this wasn't just one little piece of the outside world, this was the outside world.
I walked forward trying desperately to take everything in on all sides, everything was new to me. I could barely walk normally as I progressed across the bridge a slight, ok maybe not so slight, bounce to my step.
There was water under the bridge we were crossing, well obviously there was but to me it was amazing walking on water like that.
The water was a light turquoise colour, the sea, I realized with awe. I looked forward and noticed I was almost across the bridge.
I could see where the bridge led to; the stone path continued on winding forwards and off in different directions, although I could not see that far because of the abundance of people. There were bodies everywhere moving in different directions in different ways, each of them unique in their own way. The path which I realized was a street had short stone buildings on either side many with signs offering services or goods.
There was a soft lilting music coming from an unidentified place and the cheerful music seemed to match the amazement I felt at that moment.
Everything was so unique in its own way and yet the people here acted as if it was perfectly normal.
There was just so much going on, everyone had a purpose, everyone had somewhere to go. The people were talking and chatting and the town was filled with the gentle thrum of happy chatter. I looked around me trying to take it all in, there was so much I wanted to do!
I started to run forward just wanting to see more but was immediately cut off by a man rushing past me, when I twirled around I found myself being yanked backwards by my hair. I gasped pulling it towards me, unsettling some ducks which quacked and squealed, I scurried away only to run into another person.
"Sorry." I said tentatively spinning away again only to be yanked backwards as several people stepped upon my hair.
I bent down and began to pull it towards myself realizing it was a hazard in such a busy place, I noticed no one else had hair even a quarter the length of mine, in fact a couple people were standing and gawking at my unusual locks. My cheeks flushed red and I quickly pulled my hair towards myself faster.
Eugene had noticed the hazard and started helping to pile my hair into my arms. We managed to get most of it but there was too much for me to carry, Eugene paused and looked around us. Suddenly his head drifted towards the sound of high rambunctious laughter, I watched him nervously worried we wouldn't be able to do anything in town.
I followed his line of sight to four red haired girls sitting on a fountain doing each other's hair, at first I thought I was seeing double for the girls all looked nearly identical, but I soon noticed the slight differences in their hair, outfits and size.
They were sisters, I realized with a jolt and a strange feeling of longing. I realized that I looked nothing like mother, I could not see myself in her at all.
I was brought out of my contemplating by Eugene whistling loudly through his teeth to the girls whose laughter stopped as they looked towards us. They stared at me and my hair in shock, I realized that not only was having this much hair unusual, it was completely unique.
Eugene gestured down to the hair in our arms with a shrug and the girls all gasped in unanimous excitement.
Dropping the hair they were working on they rushed over towards us and stood at our feet looking up at us in awe.
The smallest of the girls had her hair done in five braids on various places on her head and had chubby cheeks that had a slight blush to them, she was staring at me her mouth slightly open.
She blinked once, twice, three times and then said simply, "you're really pretty." Then I was the one blushing, "oh," I said bashfully, "thank you, but really, look at yourselves!" they looked at me then themselves and started giggling.
The tallest of them, obviously the eldest, stepped forwards and reached out her hands towards my hair before drawing them back quickly. "c-c-can we…" she said her voice trailing off.
"Oh please do!" I told her offering her my hair. The girls all straightened up and took on a more grown up, or more precisely, a mock grown up aura.
"Sit here." The one with two high braided pigtails told me gesturing to an empty spot in the street. The girls then took my hair and pulled it out behind me stretching it out flat. I glanced back to see them conversing amongst themselves in a huddle.
They then broke apart and began dividing my hair into three sections. I looked forward waiting patiently while they skipped over my hair braiding it and doing other little things here and there.
The youngest, the one with the multiple braids approached me, and without a word took the hair at the front of my head and French braided it to my scalp running from one side of my head to the other. I giggled at the feeling of her tiny little fingers brushing my scalp and the serious look on her face, she glanced up and gave me a big crooked smile revealing she had lost her two front teeth.
After finishing that she went back to help her sisters, I soon noticed that the weight on my head was becoming heavier but I didn't mind because I knew it meant my hair was coming closer to my head. It took them a while to finish braiding my hair but I didn't mind because it felt nice and I got to watch Eugene.
He was pretty funny to observe and he was watching me too, every once and a while he would do something to make me laugh, but I noticed there was something different.
It took me a while to figure out but I soon got it, he was looking at me differently, more calmly and more… caring. As if I meant more to him now. I smiled softly at the idea. I realized that I finally new who the real Eugene was.
Flynn Ryder was disappearing before my eyes and the kinder more human Eugene was taking his place.
The girls scurried away and I looked back to see an elaborate braid trailing down from my head and across the ground, I pushed myself and stood up. Miraculously my hair only brushed the ground slightly.
The four redheads came running back bunches of tiny colourful flowers piled in their hands.
"Sit down!" they squealed laughing with joy. I immediately complied with my little hair dressers.
Carefully they pulled at my hair tucking the flowers into my braid in different places, I smiled watching Eugene as he relaxed against a low wall that separated the street from the square we were in. I smiled at him as he talked casually with Max.
Suddenly a patrol of guards passed behind him and he ducked down low a worried expression darkening his features. My smile slipped from my face as I watched him slowly regain his breath.
He glanced towards me and noticed my worried expression, casually he shrugged giving me a wink while straightening himself back up.
A light tug on my hand pulled my attention away from Eugene and back to the giggling redheads who surrounded me.
"Please stand up." The littlest girl instructed while pulling on one of her own pigtailed braid.
Carefully I stood up afraid to let any of the flowers fall out from where they were tucked.
Twirling around, I watched as my hair swayed from side to side. It was gorgeously done with flowers intertwined in various different places and multiple different forms of braids twirling around one thick braid in the center.
"Oh thank you, thank you, thank you!" I laughed gleefully grabbing the little girls in a hug.
They all giggled and then ran away laughing to do their own hair.