It's been forever and a day since I posted Chapter 4, so quite probably no one remembers this story or anything about it. Fortunately, it's part of a novel, so you can refresh your memory.
Adrian touched the hilt of his sword for the fourth time that day, as if to assure himself it was still there. He was feeling much less confident than his brother.
"An armed guard? Ha!" Armand twirled his sword so the sunlight sent fiery reflections running down the blade. "That witch will have to do better than that to keep me away from Rapunzel."
Adrian silently guided both of their horses through the forest as Armand waxed eloquent about Rapunzel's beauty, charm, perfection, etc. His own thoughts were of Rouge, though he never would have admitted it. Perhaps she wasn't beautiful in an obvious sort of way, like Rapunzel; but she was still lovely to him. Her dark eyes had a force of gaze that bespoke intelligence and a strong personality. He imagined that, behind her shy smile and quiet voice, she was a force to be reckoned with.
I wonder if she liked my rose, he thought dreamily.
He came back to earth with a start when his horse reared and whinnied. The phoenix was back. While Adrian was still attempting to calm his horse, Armand took another paper from the bird's beak and read, "If you insist upon coming back, you must get my wand for me. You will find in on the third floor of Gothella's castle, down the hall of mirrors, in the last room on the left. But watch out for Gothella. She has a remarkable talent for showing up at the worst times."
Adrian gulped. "Well, that makes things a little more complicated."
"Complicated, indeed," Armand scoffed. "I thought we were men, not little girls."
Adrian figured they were somewhere in between, but thought it best not to say so. He shrugged. "If it's what we have to do."
"A lady's request is my command," Armand said in his most annoyingly grown-up voice. "Even if she is but a rag beside the beauty of Rapunzel."
Adrian wheeled his horse around. "You watch how you talk about her!" he shouted, a little surprised at his own vehemence. "You wouldn't know a thing if it hit you in the face! Immediately he regretted his words. Rapunzel was a little flighty, but he could tell she truly loved Armand. "I'm sorry," he said, shaking his head. "I'm not myself today."
"I'm sorry too," Armand said magnanimously. "You're right; I shouldn't have said that. After all, it's only partially true."
Adrian rolled his eyes.
Gothella's castle was a pretty foreboding place, even in the daylight. Ivy overran the stone walls, which were crumbling in some places. Nothing but darkness could be seen through the barred windows. A heavy silence hung in the air.
Armand ran lightly to a tree in the courtyard, then waved Adrian over.
"How are we gonna get inside?" Adrian whispered, nervously eyeing the decaying statues that surrounded them.
Armand studied the courtyard carefully, then said, "Well, the front door's right there."
"Yeah, why don't we just go ahead and ask Gothella if she'll have us in for tea?" Adrian replied.
"Well, I am getting kind of thirsty--" Armand began.
"Listen to me, you idiot: if Gothella finds us, we're dead. Yes, you too. We'll have to climb. Now, for once in your life, see if you can follow my lead." Adrian pulled a coil of rope from the bag strapped to his back and tied one end to a grappling hook. He swung it over his head a few times, then hurled it onto the sloping roof. It caught on one of the stone gargoyles. He gave the rope an experimental tug. "All right, come on."
Climbing came naturally to him, and he was at the top in no time. The same could not be said of Armand. It took him a good five minutes to get up, with a good deal of help from Adrian.
"Now we've got to find a window we can get through," said Adrian. He stepped forward, then yelled as the roof collapsed beneath him. He and Armand fell about ten feet and landed in a tangle of arms and legs on very hard floor.
"Nice going!" Adrian snapped. "Now get off me!"
Armand rolled away and glared at him. "That was your fault."
"We both know you weigh more," Adrian replied, staggering to his feet.
"That's muscle," Armand said haughtily as he dusted himself off with much pomp and circumstance.
They were standing in a long, dark hallway with a dead end. Adrian glanced around, then started at the sight of his reflection staring back at him. He turned around. Armand had also found a mirror and was painstakingly fixing his hair. In fact, the whole hall was lined with mirrors of all shapes and sizes.
"This is it!" Adrian whispered excitedly. "Let's go!"
The last door on the left was not locked, fortunately. The room was full of potion bottles, dusty books, and mysterious little boxes. And on a table lay a silver wand about eighteen inches long. Adrian snatched it up and stowed it in his bag. "Now let's get out of here," he said.
They made it outside and back on solid ground without incident. It was only when they were quickly crossing the clearing toward the woods when someone behind them said, "Prince Armand and Prince Adrian, as I live and breathe."
They spun around. The speaker was the black-robed woman they had seen going up to the girls' room.
"Gothella," Armand whispered.
She must have heard him, because she laughed a silvery little laugh and said, "So you're heard of me. Well, you must think I'm going to turn you into frogs or some such thing."
"Back up slowly," Adrian said out the corner of his mouth.
"Don't worry," Gothella said, her voice as smooth as silk. "I'm not going to hurt you. In fact, I'm going to let you go freely to the tower." She lifted her hands. "Though I still wouldn't advise it."
Adrian didn't trust her, but there didn't seem to be anything else to do, so he began backing up cautiously, pulling Armand with him. When Gothella was out of sight, they both turned and ran as fast as they could toward the tower.
But when they came to the clearing, they both froze. There was an armed guard around the tower, all right. About three hundred of them.
~
