Rapunzel's face was scrunched into a petulant frown as she laid sprawled across her bed. She rested on her stomach, propped up by her elbows, the pen in her hand a blur as she wrote in a book. Her diary. It was the closest thing she had to a friend who she could tell all her secrets to. A confidant.

Oh sure, she had her mom, but that was different. Her mother was her guardian, her keeper. Besides, Rapunzel could not complain to her mother about… well, her mother. Then there was Pascal. True, he was always willing to lend her an ear when she needed it. But there was only so much she could tell him. He didn't know about her power, why she was locked away up here. He was paid not to know, only to guard. He wasn't even supposed to talk to her in the first place, just ignore her like all her other guards did. He risked his job every time he spoke to her. She wasn't about to make it worse by telling him more than he should know and risk losing him.

She had had another friend once, several years ago. An internet friend. Oh yes, Rapunzel had access to the web. She wasn't living completely under a rock. In any case, she had never told this online friend anything important, nothing about her little secret anyway. She hadn't wanted to. It was just nice having another person to talk to, someone new... someone that helped take away the loneliness, that made her feel just a little bit less isolated.

It had not taken long for her mother to discover her online acquaintance, however. And the day she found out was the last day Rapunzel had ever spoken to that person, for she never saw them log on again. Her mother refused to tell her what she had done, simply that she had "taken care of it." Ever since then, Rapunzel avoided forming online friendships, for fear of what would happen to them. Not that she thought Mother had hurt her friend...

...at least... she hoped she hadn't...

In any case, her faithful diary was the only thing left that she could turn to. Though it might seem strange in this modern day and age to be keeping an actual, physical diary as opposed to typing it all out on a computer, Rapunzel preferred it. There was something very cathartic to her about putting a pen to paper. Besides, this wasn't exactly the type of stuff you could blog about.

When she finally finished recounting what a disaster her talk with Mother had been, it was hours past lunchtime. She had yet to eat, but she didn't feel like eating anyway. She was too frustrated. She paused, frowning off into space for a moment, her eyes not particularly focused on anything. Finally, she decided to include one last sentence in closing to her latest entry.

When will my life begin?

Sighing, she dropped the pen and buried her face into the mattress.

Somewhere in the room, something fell with a dull clunk! Startled, her head shot up quickly. Her eyes scanned the room, but she didn't see anything out of the ordinary. Squinting, she lifted herself off the bed and began to inch towards the kitchen, which was where the sound seemed to have come from.

Stepping onto the linoleum floor, she scrutinized the area, but everything seemed to be in order. It wasn't until she was about half way across that her toes brushed against something cold, and she hopped away, hands flying to her mouth to stifle a squeak. She looked down to find a frying pan on the floor. Raising both eyebrows, she stooped to pick it up, muttering, "How did you get down here?"

Standing once more, she looked up at the overhead cupboard that the pan normally resided in. It was closed. Frowning, she began to reach for it. Her hand immediately snapped back to her chest when the cabinet door suddenly quivered, a noisy rustling sound coming from within.

What the?

Maybe… a mouse had somehow found its way into her condo and had taken up residence in her cupboard? It'd have to be an awfully big mouse, by the sound of it…

Steeling herself, she firmly held the frying pan in one hand and moved the other towards the cabinet once more. An inch before touching it, it shook again. She hesitated for a split second before grabbing the knob and throwing the door open to reveal…

Nothing. It was just dark inside the cabinet. Confused, she edged closer to it and raised herself onto her tippy-toes to get a closer look.

A white blur suddenly rushed out of the darkness and flew at her face. Yelping, she swung the frying pan, striking the thing hard and catapulting it several feet away. It skidded to a stop on the ground and it seemed the hit had made the creature woozy, as it staggered to regain its footing while lulling its head from side to side. This gave her the time to get a better look at it. It was pure white and human-like, long and spindly, and had no face, except for what appeared to be a zipper in place of a mouth.

Admittedly, Rapunzel's world experience was limited - small to nonexistent, really - but she was pretty sure that that wasn't normal.

As the thing finally managed to steady itself long enough to stand upright, Rapunzel held up the pan defensively between her and it, gripping the handle tightly. She wasn't about to attack it again, not just yet. Perhaps the creature had sprung at her just because it was cornered and scared. Gulping, she said in a soothing, if somewhat shaky, voice, "There, there. No need to be afraid. I won't hurt you, and you won't hurt me, okay?" The thing cocked its head to one side at her and began to lazily sway from side to side. Emboldened, she took a step towards it.

"That's right. Nothing to worry about. Nice…" she paused, not quite sure what to call it, since she didn't have a clue what it was. There was that zipper. What had zippers…? Clothes! Clothes had zippers! Come to think of it, the thing did kind of look like a small, pale jumpsuit. Or a onesie… like footie pyjamas! Yah, that was what it reminded her of. "Nice pyjama monster! Good pyjama monster! How'd you get in here? Are you just looking for some place safe to stay for the night?"

It started hopping from one foot to the other, taking long leaps. It almost seemed to be... dancing? She took another careful step towards it, frying pan still in front of her but beginning to lower a bit. "Huh. Does that mean you're happy, pyjama monster?" Another step.

The creature suddenly stilled and began convulsing. Its shaking was violent, as if it were eager, practically champing at the bit about something. Then it lunged at her.

Now, maybe it just wanted to cuddle, and Rapunzel did tend to be the trusting sort of person. But she wasn't that trusting. She gasped and swatted her skillet at it. This time it seemed to be prepared as its body simply snaked around her weapon, bypassing it completely and shooting straight for her. She ducked barely in time, feeling the thing brush against her scalp as it went over her head. Then she took off running, yelling over her shoulder, "Bad pyjama monster! Bad!"

She heard it crash into something - the fridge or the stove, judging by the noise of the collision. She spun around, attempting to brandish her cookware once more, but the creature was faster. She felt something brutally smash into her chest, knocking her off her feet and onto her back. With a groan, she looked up and found the thing perched on top of her. Its tentacle-like arms reached for her face as its "mouth" unzipped, revealing razor sharp rows of teeth set in a eerie smile. It was making a sound that, while rather unique, could only be described as a growl.

Yup, definitely not friendly.

Struggling, she managed to pull her legs up and get them between her and the monster. Kicking both feet out at once, she punted it off her and then rolled over, propping herself up on her hands and knees. She looked up and first thing she saw was her front door on the far side of the room. And, more importantly, the intercom. If she could get to that, Pascal would be in here in a flash to take the thing down.

Her face hardened. No. She wouldn't take the easy way out, screw that. This was her chance to prove to her mother that she could take care of herself! Then mother would have to let her go to the festival, or let her do whatever else she wanted! But first, she would have to subdue this strange critter… capture it. Glancing around, the first thing her eyes fell on were her wardrobe.

Perfect.

Bounding to her feet, she made a beeline for the armoire. The monster was chasing her. It moved silently, so she couldn't so much hear it as she could sense it in the form of an itch in her spine. Shuddering, she pushed herself harder to get to her destination faster. Almost there and-

Her foot caught on something and she tumbled to the floor, just inches short of her wardrobe. A loud bang boomed overhead, and she looked up to see the creature had collided with the exact piece of furniture she had been aiming for. It seemed her nose-dive, though accidental, had been perfect timing. What had she tripped over anyway?

Having the brief second to spare while the creature was dazed, she looked back at her foot to see it had gotten tangled in her own hair. Well that was unexpected. She was so used to the ludicrous length of her own hair causing it to be everywhere that she never tripped over it.

Then again, she also never had been chased around the condo by a strange monster either.

She turned her face forward and from her position on the floor, looked up at the thing, which had recovered. As it prepared to strike once more, she looked from it, to her hair, then back again. Then she smirked.

Years of playing make believe as a sheriff in the lawless west were about to pay off.

The creature leapt at her and she rolled out of the way. Hopping up to her feet once more, she started gathering handfuls of her hair into loops around her knuckles, like coiling a long rope. Then, working furiously, she fashioned her locks into a golden lasso, whirling it over her head a couple of times before hurling it at the creature as it charged at her once more. The thing didn't even try to dodge, so she ensnared her target easily. She tugged her hair taut, tightening the loop around the monster, before using all her might to swing it into the wardrobe.

It would have helped if the wardrobe's door had been open.

It hit the wood with a sickening thud before collapsing into a heap on the floor. She winced, then narrowed her eyes at creature. It didn't move. Maybe it was knocked out? She picked her frying pan up off the floor, where she had dropped it when she had toppled over. Holding her weapon ready, she tip-toed closer to the beast. It remained still. Gingerly, she disentangled the thing from her hair. Then she opened the door.

As she turned back to it, she found it shakily, almost drunkenly, rising to its feet. Without hesitation, she cracked her skillet across the thing's skull (did it even have a skull?) which sent it flying inside the armoire.

Okay. Now it was knocked out.

She slammed the door shut, pressed her back against it, heart racing, eyes wide and shifting around rapidly, searching. They fell on one of the dining chairs. She dashed over to it, dragged it back to her wardrobe, and shoved it under the handles to ensure her captive would not be able to bust free.

She then leapt backwards, threatening the large piece of furniture with her pan, just daring the thing inside to try and escape. The wardrobe remained still. She squinted at it a minute more, poised like a cat ready to pounce. Then her muscles began to relax as all that had happened sunk in.

"I… I did it…" she whispered, in awe of herself. Then she laughed and looked into the mirror on her vanity. "I actually did it! Who's has two thumbs and is a badass?" she asked her reflection. Then she jerked both thumbs up to point towards herself. "This girl. That's right. That's-"

A loud bang made her jump, squeak, and run for cover behind her bed.

Nothing happened. After a few seconds, she cautiously peeked out from behind the canopy. It turned out what had made the noise had just been a baseball bat she had left leaning against the side of the wardrobe. It seemed all the activity that had just occurred around the armoire had shaken the piece of sports equipment loose and caused it to teeter over.

Rapunzel chuckled as she got out of her hiding place. "I knew that," she brushed off as she propped the bat up once again, ensuring its stability before turning to reach for her smartphone. Unlocking it with a few swipes, she tapped the only number listed in her contacts: Mom. As she pressed the device to her ear and listened to it ring, she mumbled to herself, "Starlight Festival, here I come."

Rapunzel's mother sat primly in her chair as she waited. She was currently seated in an empty reception area of a well furnished and sophisticated looking business office. Her hands were neatly folded in her lap, with one finger tapping on top of the other as she eyed the grandfather clock across from her. She had been waiting for some time now.

She started when a buzzing sound suddenly came from her purse. She opened it up and pulled out her phone, which was vibrating. Looking at it, she discovered she had a call coming in from Rapunzel, indicated by the picture on the screen of a five-year-old girl with very long blond hair and a huge, gap-toothed grin. An old photo of Rapunzel from when she was much younger.

She smiled down at her smartphone. Rapunzel was probably wondering where she was and what was taking so long. "My daughter," she said by way of explanation to the receptionist, who just gave her a stiff, polite smile in response. "Dear, sweet child," she went on, still looking at the phone, "So completely and utterly lost without me."

Swiping a finger across the screen to accept the call, she held the phone up to her ear and said, "Hi, darling. I know I told you I would be home by now, but errands are taking a bit longer than expected and-"

Rapunzel's voice impatiently cut her off, causing her posture to go rigid. "Yeah, yeah, I don't care about that. Mother, I-"

"Excuse me, young lady?" she asked, narrowing her eyes.

She heard Rapunzel make a small, somewhat strangled noise. She had realized her mistake. "Ah… what I meant to say was… I understand how busy you are, Mother! So while I do love you and, um... miss you terribly while you're gone, it doesn't bother me if it takes a while for you to return because I know you have important stuff to do and will hurry back as soon as you are able!"

Rapunzel's mom smirked. "That's more like it."

"Now, Mother, I-"

"So what do you want for dinner tonight?" she asked, crossing her legs. "I was thinking hazelnut soup."

"That's fine, Mom, but what I really wanted to talk to you about-"

"I mean, I know how much you like it. It's your favorite, is it not?" she pressed.

A sigh. "Yes, that sounds great. You're simply the best mother in the whole wide world. Now, remember our talk earlier about how you think it's too dangerous for me to go outside?"

She frowned. "I vaguely recall… something about a Streetlight Fiesta…"

"Starlight Festival," Rapunzel corrected her. "Well, I've been thinking and you need to know that I'm a lot more capable than you realize, and just now, I-"

"We're not going through this again," she said, pinching the bridge of her nose.

"Please, let me finish. So, here's what happened. I was writing in my diary and-"

"Oh, I know what you write about me in that diary of yours," she interjected with a roll of her eyes.

"Mom," she dragged the word out, "I don't write anything bad! And that's not the point. So anyway, I was writing and all of a sudden there was this-"

She rose from her chair. "The point? The point is that my decision is final and you will do as you're told." She raised an index finger to the secretary to signal that she'd be right back in a moment, then stepped out of the waiting room into the hallway.

"But- but if you will just listen, you'll see that-"

"No, you will listen to me. I am your mother and I am the one in charge here," she snapped as she shut the door to give herself a bit of privacy.

"Oh, come on! Please just-"

"Rapunzel!" She was beginning to raise her voice.

"This is so unfair! You never listen to me! Can't you let me-"

"That's enough!" she roared, and all arguments ceased on the other end of the line. Clearing her throat, she said more softly, yet sternly, "I don't have time for this right now. We'll talk about it later. I'll be home around dinnertime." Then she ended the call before her daughter could say anything else.

She just stood there for a moment, staring at the device in her hand with a scowl. She then released a small huff, returned it to her purse with a shove, regained her poise and stepped back into the reception area.

"Ms. Gothel?" the secretary asked as she re-entered. "Mr. Tyrann will see you now."

"Thank you," she responded as she fluffed her hair. She then moved past the front desk and into the appropriate office.

The room was large, filled with expensive furniture that just oozed with authority and control. Every piece practically screamed that a very successful business mogul worked in this space. Behind a glossy desk that could have been mistaken for a small aircraft carrier, sat a man signing some contracts. He was well dressed, with brown hair and a neatly trimmed beard and mustache. A thin streak of grey hair that looked rather stately ran just over his ears. His blue eyes were hard, his face chiseled.

Without making a sound, Ms. Gothel approached the desk and delicately took a seat in the cushy armchair opposite of the man. He did not look up right away nor do anything else to show that he was aware of her presence, just continued to scrawl his signature across more papers. She waited without saying a word.

After a few minutes, he finished the last page and put it aside as he finally looked up at her. He laced his fingers together on top of his desk and broke the silence with, "Ah. It's that time of year again, is it?"

She did not respond. Just stared at him, her demeanor aloof.

"Very well," he sighed, opening a drawer in his desk and pulling out a checkbook. He flipped it open to one and dated it. "How is she?"

Again, she said nothing, her expression as stiff and unchanging as a statue.

Mr. Tyrann wrote a number on a check that was followed by more zeroes than a hunk of Swiss had holes. He signed it, ripped it out and held it up her. He began, his voice softly pleading, "Zoe, I-"

She snatched the check out from between his fingers, rose and began to walk out.

"This can't go on forever, you know," he said to her back, stopping her in her tracks. "I will find her."

She gave him an icy look over her shoulder. "Dream on," she growled. And then she left, the door quivering as it slammed shut behind her.

Author's Note: So that wee lil Nobody that we saw briefly back in the prologue/ch1 has finally come out of hiding! And Punzie may have been a bit more than it bargained for xD What do the Nobodies want with our dear sweet Blondie, hmmm? And what shady business is going on between Gothel and this "Mr. Tyrann" at the end, hmmmmmmmmmm? You'll just have to wait and see ;D

Special thanks and much love to everyone who has shown support this quirky little story! Thank you all for reading, hoped you liked it, please leave a review and let me know what you think! See ya'll next week :)