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Memories of the Fallen Tower

Rapunzel was dreaming.
She dreamt of a tall tower in the forest. It was her home, her castle, and all she knew of the world. It was also her prison, though she didn’t know it at the time.
Her days alone with her mother had been boring but peaceful. Rapunzel liked it. She sometimes wondered about the world she saw outside through the tower windows, but recalling her mother's advice that it was dangerous out there, and fearful of going against her mother’s wishes, she set her interest aside.
Rapunzel would lower her long hair to allow her mother to climb up the tower. She also sometimes helped her mother with her mysterious “experiments.” The experiments sometimes hurt, but she believed her mother's words, that it was all for Rapunzel's sake. Besides, Rapunzel and her mother were the sole occupants of this world.
Then one day, a strange visitor came to the tower. It was not her mother who climbed up her long hair; it was a strange man. He revealed that he was the prince of some kingdom and told her about the outside world.
She didn't fall in love with the man. Instead, she felt anger at her mother.
Her daily life was not normal at all. The things that her mother had done to her were not normal things every mother did; instead, she'd been treated like a test subject. Rapunzel found it hard to believe these things, but it answered the questions she'd held up to now.
When her mother returned to the tower, she confronted her about these things. Rapunzel wondered if her mother would admit her wrongdoing and asked for forgiveness. What if she got angry instead that she'd let a strange man into the tower? She waited to see how her mother would react.
“Oh, you’ve found me out.”
That was it.
Rapunzel was dumbstruck. This wasn’t at all the response she'd been expecting. Her mother simply trivialized all that had happened. She showed no emotion. It was as though she had no emotions for Rapunzel at all.
She was enraged. She tried to fight back. What Rapunzel didn't know was that her mother turned out to be a witch. Rapunzel was immediately pinned down by her mother.
And that was when she appeared.
Suddenly, in the blink of an eye, she was there in the tower with them.
She had pale skin and wore a big black hat and dress. The way she stood there in such a nonchalant manner made Rapunzel to think for a moment that she was a hallucination of some sort.
Rapunzel was at a loss for words with surprise as she was pinned down on the floor by her mother. Her mother, on the other hand, sounded calm.
“Who are you?”
“I am the Witch Queen.”
After introducing herself thus, she looked at the mother.
“I've come to see Madam Letters. Are you her?”
Rapunzel learned her mother's name for the first time that day. They had been the only two people in the world that she knew, and it hadn't occurred to her that her mother needed to have a name. Madam Letters. Rapunzel repeated the name in her mind. Letters looked at the Witch Queen.
“I've never seen you before. Where are you from?”
Rapunzel found the conversation a bit odd. They were obviously strangers, but her mother's reaction seemed to indicate that she'd been expecting this visit at some point, even waiting for it. The Witch Queen laughed at the question.
“I’m not from this story, Madam Letters.”
Not from this story?
Rapunzel couldn’t understand what that meant. Unlike Rapunzel, Madam Letters gave a broad smile at this. Not even Rapunzel, who’d lived with her all her life, had seen such a smile.
“Oh, is that right? So I was correct after all.”
“Yes. And I've come for you, since your wisdom is valuable.”
Witch Queen grinned at Madam Letters. She then turned to Rapunzel, who lay on the ground.
“Is this the famous Rapunzel?”
Rapunzel was surprised by the words. Famous? Her? Before she got the chance to ask, Madam Letters looked down at her and spoke without emotion.
“Well, yes. I guess she is more famous than I knew. Though she is nothing more than a failed experiment.”
There was absolutely no feelings in her words. There was no love for a daughter she'd raised herself. If there were to be any emotion, it would only be disappointment with a failed experiment. The shock of it made Rapunzel's head go blank.
She was angry that her mother had deceived her, but she hadn't expected to be treated this way. She'd considered Madam Letters to be her mother, and had expected her to think the same of her. She’d expected love for a daughter she'd raised, apology for deceiving her, or at the very least rage that her plans had gone awry.
But no. Rapunzel realized that she had never been anything more than a test subject. She didn’t know what the experiment was about, but that had been the only reason Madam Letters had confined her in this tower and raised her up to now. Rapunzel realized that her entire life had just been rendered meaningless.
“Well, I wouldn't say you failed just yet.”
While Rapunzel lay there in shock, the Witch Queen looked down at her.
“There will be many more tests you can perform where we’re going.”
Rapunzel didn't understand, but Madam Letters did.
She grinned.
Rapunzel woke from her dream at the sound of footsteps.
“Is it time for another test?” she said, her eyes closed. She knew who it was that had come for her, and what for. It was obviously Madam Letters' subordinate witch that had come to take her, and the hateful woman would once again conduct some painful experiment on her.
How much time had passed since her dream?
She couldn’t be sure. It certainly had been a very long time, however. This life that alternated between a sunless prison and the lab wasn't very conducive to keeping track of time. Could this even be called a life?
“Another test?”
The voice did not belong to a witch. It was the voice of a young man, one that she'd never heard before. Rapunzel opened her eyes wide in shock and turned her head.
She saw a stranger through the bars. He seemed to resemble the prince that she’d once met. It was a young boy dressed in white. He was looking at her with a look of surprise on his face.
Rapunzel considered that he seemed to resemble someone, but the resemblance soon faded away in the back of her mind. Rapunzel got up, on guard.
“Who are you? How did you get in here?”
She could tell from the way he was dressed that he didn’t belong to this place. Only witches dressed in black frequented this place, the lab and jail created by the Dark Moon Witches of Umbra.
“My name is Snow,” the boy replied. “Who are you? Why are you imprisoned here?”
“What did you come to this place for? Are you also with Umbra?”
“No, I'm one of the people fighting against it. I’ve come here to investigate,” Snow said, shaking his head.
Rapunzel couldn't believe him. He was fighting to stop Umbra? He was here to investigate?
If so, why had he only appeared now? Where had he been all this time?
Snow seemed to notice Rapunzel's hateful gaze. He showed both of his palms as if to say that he had no intention of fighting. His voice was gentle.
“I know you find it hard to believe me, since you're stuck in this place. Even so, please trust me. Who are you? You mentioned a test. That means you've been imprisoned here, right?”
“Ha. Trust you?” scoffed Rapunzel.
How could she trust anyone?
I have no one I can trust. That was what Rapunzel truly believed.
After Rapunzel learned the truth and met the Witch Queen,
Madam Letters had locked her up in this tower again. She was treated differently this time, however. Her body was wrapped in chains, and she'd been locked in a real cell with iron bars. She was no longer a pretend daughter; she was a test subject in the truest sense of the word.
The tower had been remodeled. The room where Rapunzel was stuck no longer had windows, and magic torches lit the space instead of sunlight. She could no longer know how much time had passed. She could only tell from how much she'd grown that a long time had passed.
At a certain point, Madam Letters had stopped coming for her herself. Instead, it was other witches who came to get her for the experiments. From that, she could conclude that there were at least several witches in this tower.
That wasn’t the only thing Rapunzel had learned.
Rapunzel also realized that she, Madam Letters, and the tower moved to a completely different world. She learned that Madam Letters wasn't her real mother; she had been a fake that had acted the part according to the plot of the story. Rapunzel came to know what the Witch Queen had meant when she'd said “she wasn't from this story.” Rapunzel had been the protagonist of a story.
And Rapunzel now knew that everything about her life had been a lie.
“I can’t trust anything.”
Snow backed away unconsciously at the cold words and the emotions in her eyes. Rapunzel glared at Snow from the shadows, her eyes flickering. Snow stood there for a while, silent.
Snow brought out a sword. It was only a handle, but when he pressed a switch it became a sword made of light. Rapunzel lowered her stance, preparing for a fight.
“Ha, of course. Finally, you pull out your sword instead of your lies!”
Rapunzel's voice was dripping with enmity. Her ankles were in chains and she was locked up in this tiny space, but Rapunzel had no intention of going down easily.
Snow swung his sword.
Snap, clank...
With metallic noises, the bars that had imprisoned Rapunzel fell away.
Rapunzel had been ready for a fight. Her eyes went wide.
“Stop moving for a second,” Snow said, approaching her past the bars that had been cut. She did as she was told. Snow bent down and used his sword to cut the chains away from her feet.
“What are you up to?” asked Rapunzel sharply, still suspicious. Snow smiled.
“If you won’t take my word for it, the only other way is let my actions prove it. Can you trust me now?”
Rapunzel did not reply to Snow’s words, but Snow could tell that Rapunzel no longer had any wish to fight. Snow questioned Rapunzel once more.
“How about we start over from the beginning? I’m Snow. As I said, I’m here to investigate Umbra. Who are you?”
“Rapunzel.”
Snow looked relieved to finally hear her name. It meant she was at least eased enough to tell him her identity.
Rapunzel looked at Snow with harsh eyes.
“And I’m locked up in here as a test subject for the Dark Moon Witches.”
“The Dark Moon Witches...”
Of course. Snow looked grave at this confirmation of his suspicions.
The Dark Moon Witches. It was a secretive organization within Umbra, which not many people even knew the name of. Snow had also considered it to be nothing but a rumor once. They were an organization kept strictly hidden.
The leader of Umbra, the Witch Queen, was designated the queen of the witches like her name. Witches in stories were mostly evil beings. They did not hesitate to swear fealty to the Witch Queen, and they hid behind rumors as they studied their evil magic and communicated with each other.
“So this is the lab of the Dark Moon Witches?”
Rapunzel nodded.
“The witch in charge here is Madam Letters. She's the one who raised me... and the object of my revenge.”
Rapunzel's eyes seemed to burn as she spoke those words. Snow almost went rigid at the fire in those eyes.
Madam Letters, whom she’d thought of as her mother for the longest time, continued to torment Rapunzel.
Rapunzel learned that Madam Letters had suspected that their world belonged to a story. When the Witch Queen appeared, it was a confirmation of her conjecture, a “joyful moment” for her as a researcher.
Madam Letters was a witch to the core who wanted to continue to study and improve her magic. Madam Letters wanted to communicate with witches from other stories to learn new techniques and theories to improve her own research. She regarded the Witch Queen's appearance and the Library World as an opportunity to turn her ambition to reality. Madam Letters turned her tower into a lab for herself and the Dark Moon Witches, and in it she learned magic from witches from other stories or taught them.
“It seems I’m not the only test subject. But I don’t know who or how many. The only time I leave this room is when they perform experiments on me.”
While she'd been locked away for who knew how long, Rapunzel had been able to figure out from how often she was called that there were other things or people being used as test subjects as well. They were probably being subjected to painful experiments just like her. But such things did not matter to her. She was in no position to worry about others.
“It's all because of those witches, Madam Letters, and their leader, the Witch Queen!”
Whenever she recalled their names, Rapunzel felt her body heat up as if it was burning. She could still feel the pain of the experiments she’d been through. She instinctively brought her arms to her body as if writhing in agony.
“I can never forgive them... I must have my revenge.”
There was a certain ghostly air about her that instilled fear in Snow.
And at that moment, sudden noises could be heard around them. The magic torches that had been burning blue on the walls began to blink and change color. Both Snow and Rapunzel knew what that meant.
“Have they detected us?”
“It's because you acted so rashly,” Rapunzel scoffed at Snow, who was grinding his teeth. Rapunzel tapped the chains Snow had cut away with her foot. She casually said, “It’s because you cut these. It must have set off an alarm.”
“This way!”
Snow quickly grabbed Rapunzel's arm to try to escape, but Rapunzel swatted his hand away.
“Take your hands off me!”
“We shouldn’t be standing here like this!” shouted Snow urgently.
“If we wait here, the Dark Moon Witches will have us! If we don't hurry up and run away...”
“Run away? Why would I run away?”
Snow didn't know what to say. Rapunzel was grinning. Snow thought it odd. She’d been locked away for so long that she’d lost count of the days. Shouldn’t she be afraid of being entrapped again now that a chance for freedom had finally come? Why did Rapunzel seem as if she had been waiting for this to happen?
“You know nothing, Snow.”
Rapunzel turned away from Snow and approached the inner wall of her cell. Snow began feeling nervous. Rapunzel had said she couldn’t trust Snow. He'd just realized the same could be said of her. Rapunzel had said that her mother, Madam Letters was the leader of this place. Could this have been a trap? Perhaps Rapunzel wasn't really locked up here.
“Ha…hahaha!” Rapunzel began to laugh hysterically.
She was loud and sounded like she was really enjoying herself. Snow tried to compose himself and watch out for any eventuality. Rapunzel turned and looked at Snow who was fiddling with the grip of his sword.
“Run away? You said run away? Don't be stupid. Do you know how long I’ve waited for this day?”
“You've been... waiting for this day?” asked Snow cautiously. Rapunzel’s eyes resembled those of a wild beast. Her eyes burned with fire. She gave a malicious smile.
“Yes, this day. The day of revenge!”
With those words, something came to life behind Rapunzel. Startled, Snow backed away. It shone a golden color, looked like a whip, or a flail, and appeared as if it had a will of its own. Snow managed to figure out what it was.
“Hair?”
Something occurred in Snow's mind. He’d heard the name Rapunzel before. It was a famous story of a girl with long hair. He’d never heard of her hair moving like a living thing, however. Rapunzel snickered, as if Snow's shock was trite.
“Yes, it’s a loving gift from my beloved mother, the result of her experiments.”
To Snow, however, her laughter didn’t sound truly glad. He could sense the hate and anger in her voice. Rapunzel’s hair was also rippling and waving in the air as if reflecting its owner’s rage.
“It was terrible and painful... but I trained so that I could get out of here one day and have my revenge. And you, Snow, hastened that day!”
Rapunzel's teeth were bared with rage.
Rapunzel's story was famous, and that fame was power in the Library World. Rapunzel's hair possessed no magical properties like some stories told, but Madam Letters had guessed they might be hidden away and succeeded in drawing them out through her experiments.
Rapunzel's hair could be controlled as freely by her now as her own hands. And that was not all there was to the magic. Between experiments, Rapunzel had seen her own abilities, and honed them. When she started to control her hair even to the individual strands, she began forming any shape she desired. She could form a blade for revenge, or a flail to pass judgment, and so on.
“I will bring this tower down and have my revenge against Madam Letters! And one day I’ll get to the Witch Queen too! No one can stop me!”
“Hey, wait!” shouted Snow. He was too late. Rapunzel was already swinging her magical hair. Her long hair had clumped together to form something resembling a mace. Crash! When her hair hit the wall, it crumbled and a sunset revealed itself in the horizon.
She hadn't seen the sky for so long.
It was not the same as the sky she'd seen through the tiny window in her tower as a child. This sky was vast. It was her first time seeing such a large sky. Rapunzel couldn’t help but pause and stare at it. For a moment she forgot about Snow, who stood behind her in shock, and of what might happen next.
“Don't move!”
She heard voices behind her, and footsteps. Rapunzel couldn’t fail to recognize to whom those belonged to. She turned a little and found the assistant Dark Moon Witches and Snow, who had pulled out his sword.
“Oh my, are you trying to help?”
“I can't run just away by myself.”
Rapunzel snickered at his reply. She hadn’t known that her escape and revenge would come about this way, but this wasn’t so bad. In any case, she could have them faster than she’d expected. And Rapunzel had never expected to fight together with anyone. It was an unexpected situation, and joyful. Because up to now, Rapunzel's life had always been full of surprises for the worse.
“Now then, it’s time for revenge.”
Rapunzel smiled, baring her teeth.
Rapunzel was gazing up at the vast sky.
The sun was disappearing beyond the horizon, and the sky farther away was turning purple.
Rapunzel sat on the rubble, and Snow simply watched on, unable to say anything. The top of the demolished tower floated about in the ocean in the sky of the Library World, and the hardly intact base of the tower had been shattered into a thousand pieces.
What in the world? Snow gazed at the demolished tower, at a loss for words.
Rapunzel had single-handedly razed the tower to the ground. Her power shocked Snow. It was not a matter of fighting skill or technique. She had probably let loose the rage that had built up inside her. Snow tried to think of it that way, but it was still beyond him how she'd destroyed a huge tower all by herself.
“Rapunzel.”
Barely regaining his composure, Snow finally spoke. Rapunzel had been gazing at the open, cloudless sky. She turned to Snow.
“What will you do now?”
“Isn’t it obvious?” she replied with a laugh.
She was like a beast after its prey. Her smile was a mixture of joy and ferocity.
“Madam Letters was not in this tower. She was probably away. It’s too bad I can’t get my revenge just yet, but it doesn’t matter. I would have been disappointed if things had ended so simply.”
Madam Letters hadn’t been in the tower, only her subordinate witches were. When the tower had fallen, those who had been fighting Snow and Rapunzel had scattered in confusion. Snow had expected Rapunzel to chase after them immediately, but Rapunzel let them go as if she was interested in no one else but Madam Letters.
“That means...”
“I need to find her. Wherever she runs to, I’ll find her. And I will have my revenge.”
Rapunzel's voice was firm.
Rapunzel could not forgive Madam Letters.
She’d filled Rapunzel's life with only lies and pain.
She was not Rapunzel's mother, as she once believed; what she’d thought of as a peaceful life had been an experiment; and after she'd learned everything, there had been nothing but pain. She couldn’t just ignore the things that had happened or dismiss them as simply unfortunate.
“I will not forgive Madam Letters or the Witch Queen. Ever. I’ll make them feel the same pain I've felt, and more.”
With her hate-filled words, her hair formed blades and began swishing about like a whip. Snow knew that this was an expression of the rage overflowing inside her.
“Why don’t you come with me, then?”
Snow said, reaching out towards her. Rapunzel looked at him with surprise.
“As I told you earlier, I’m fighting against the Witch Queen and Umbra. And I’m looking for companions to join me. Rapunzel, if your goal is also to fight the Witch Queen and Umbra, won't it be easier if we work together?”
Rapunzel looked at him without speaking. Snow took a step towards her.
“With the technology of my company, 7D, I’m sure we can put together better equipment for you. And you’ll be able to recover from your long imprisonment. Wouldn’t that be better for you?”
“That sword. I noticed it was special.”
Rapunzel pointed a long finger at the sword at Snow's waist. Snow nodded.
“A prototype developed by my company. It’s called KISS, or the Kinetic-less Interference Sword System. It can cut through any matter. I can make equipment like this for you as well, Rapunzel.”
Rapunzel thought for a moment. She did not desire such fancy equipment. She never even considered working together with anyone for her revenge before. Rapunzel's only relationship in the world had been with Madam Letters. But now, Rapunzel came to think that Snow's suggestion wasn’t so bad. It wasn’t just that her revenge would be easier with some help. She felt she'd finally met someone she could trust.
Snow took a step closer to Rapunzel.
“Just as you've experienced, the Witch Queen is a threat to the entire Library World. I want to stop her. If you’ll join me, I'm sure we can do that together. Will you come with me?”
Rapunzel recalled what she'd heard of her original story. Her original fate was to be rescued by a prince who came to her tower. A prince that has come to my rescue, ha. Rapunzel laughed as she looked at Snow.
Snow had come up to her and was holding out his hand. She couldn’t say that she felt no fear. Rapunzel had always been betrayed by others. Though it had been a short encounter, what she'd seen of Snow made her think it might be worth a shot to trust him.
Rapunzel hesitated, then reached out to take his hand...
“Look what you've done to the tower, Snow.”
Snow and Rapunzel turned towards the voice.
She was standing a little to the side, looking just like the first time Rapunzel had seen her.
She couldn’t forget her voice, the way she looked.
She had pale skin and wore a big black hat and dress. This time, however, she was not alone. She had a whole group of witches behind her. To one side there were gigantic wolves, and to the other was Madam Letters.
“The Witch Queen! Madam Letters!”
Rapunzel shouted, grinding her teeth. As usual, Madam Letters showed no response. The Witch Queen also ignored Rapunzel and spoke to Snow.
“It’s been a while, Snow.”
Snow seemed to hesitate.
“It’s been a while, sister.”
Sister?
Rapunzel's eyes widened with shock as she looked at him. There was tension in his face. That tension told her that what Snow and the Witch Queen had said was true.
“To have destroyed a tower that my Dark Moon Witches treasure is quite impressive. Are you trying to get in my way even in this world?”
“Please don’t ask the obvious. I will stop you no matter what.”
The Witch Queen truly sounded like she was talking to a younger brother, and Snow did not hide the fact that they were siblings though his tone was firm. This was a shock to Rapunzel. The Witch Queen ignored Rapunzel and scoffed.
“Yes, right. But this time things won't go as they did in the story. I’ll take this as a declaration of war, Snow. It won't be this easy from now on, however.”
The Witch Queen was about to turn away as if she was done. Rapunzel shouted quickly.
“Hold it!”
The Witch Queen paused. The Witch Queen looked sideways at her without turning, as if provoking her to say something. Rapunzel grew even more furious. She turned her hair into a sword and prepared to fight.
“I’m the one who destroyed this tower!” she shouted. “You ruined my life. I’ll repay you for the pain you’ve caused me!”
The Witch Queen simply stood there listening to the vicious shouting of Rapunzel. A brief silence followed. The Witch Queen finally spoke.
“Who are you?”
Rapunzel was at a loss. The Witch Queen sounded genuinely puzzled. It was Madam Letters who replied.
“It’s my test subject. Rapunzel.”
“Oh.”
Madam Letters spoke without emotion, as if she was stating a dry fact. The Witch Queen seemed to have recalled who she was. However, the Witch Queen did not show any emotion, either. It was the last straw for Rapunzel when she saw them act this way.
“AHHHH!”
“Rapunzel, wait!”
Burning with rage, Rapunzel ignored Snow was trying to stop her. She ran towards the Witch Queen and Madam Letters. Before Rapunzel could reach them, however, the Witch Queen conjured an oddly shaped mirror in front of her. The mirror shone with a bright light, and Rapunzel and Snow covered their eyes.
When they opened their eyes again, they were already gone. No one was standing there any longer, and they could hear the Witch Queen’s voice in the air.
“I'm glad that you finally have a friend, Snow. I’ll see you around. We shall meet when I finally emerge victorious against fate.”
“Come out here right now! I’ll tear you to pieces!”
Rapunzel shouted into the air as she thrashed her hair-blades against the spot where the Witch Queen had stood, but nothing happened. A silence fell as a breeze blew. The sun had set completely, and darkness fell upon the ruins where Rapunzel and Snow stood.
“Rapunzel…”
“Stay away!”
Snow reached out to console her, but with her shout, he felt a pain in his hand. There was a cut on his hand, and blood was flowing from it. Snow looked up again at Rapunzel, who was standing atop the ruins as she brandished her hair, keeping distance between Snow and herself.
“You... you’ve tricked me, too!”
“Rapunzel…”
Rapunzel's voice was full of enmity, and Snow could say nothing. He knew what Rapunzel meant. Rapunzel did not try to mask her anger.
“She's your sister? The Witch Queen? And you want me to fight with you against the Witch Queen and Umbra? How dare you say such a thing?”
“It’s true I’m fighting to stop the Witch Queen. But it’s also true that I need your help. I’m sorry I didn't tell you she was my sister. But...”
“Yes, so you're trying to just stop her, right? And not kill her?”
Snow found himself unable to speak again, interrupted in his efforts to persuade her. Rapunzel laughed, as if she'd gotten her answer.
“Tell me, Snow. Let's assume for a moment that I fight alongside you. Will you help me to defeat her, to kill her? If I said I wanted to rid the world of her, would you still be willing to help me?”
“...”
Snow didn’t reply. It was as Rapunzel had expected. She laughed.
She wasn’t angry because Snow was the Witch Queen's brother. She herself was Madam Letters' daughter, after all. It was not a problem that he hadn’t told her. What made her angry was how Snow didn’t seem to hate the Witch Queen as she did.
Snow’s goal was “stopping” the Witch Queen, and no more. It wasn’t revenge, which was what she wanted. If the Witch Queen were to admit to her defeat and ask for forgiveness, he would forgive her. Unlike Rapunzel.
What if Madam Letters had done just that when Rapunzel rebelled for the first time in her story? What if she’d admitted to her wrongs and asked for forgiveness?
The Witch Queen showed at least sisterly affection for her brother. Although one couldn’t be sure if it was genuine, one thing remained true; there was a relationship, human emotions between those two. But it was not so with Rapunzel and Madam Letters.
And this was the reason why...
Rapunzel swallowed her next words and backed away.
She backed away towards the edge of the smashed story island, towards the cliff. Snow reached out with his injured hand, trying to stop her.
“Rapunzel…”
“I said stay away!”
Snow stopped again. Rapunzel continued backing away towards the edge of the cliff, never keeping her eyes off Snow.
“You asked me if I would work with you. I refuse. I will achieve revenge on my own, with my own strength. I will return the pain to the Witch Queen and Madam Letters. And if anyone tries to get in my way, I will not forgive them.”
Snow said nothing. Rapunzel backed away another step, throwing herself into the sky ocean behind her.
“Goodbye, prince.”
“Rapunzel!”
Snow ran towards her despite Rapunzel's warning. He ran though he knew he was too late. Rapunzel did not fall downward. Instead, she formed wings with her hair and flew upwards.
“I’ll forgive you once. But never again.”
Rapunzel didn't wait for Snow to reply. She disappeared into the night sky of the Library World.