Happy reading!
Imaginary Friend: show
Rapunzel was looking outside at the pretty grass and trees around her. She had always wondered what it would be like to walk in the grass and climb the trees. She had asked her mother if she could go outside once, but her mother just started the same old speech about how the world is a cruel place and will want to mistreat her because of her hair, and that she should stay up in the tower where she'll be safe.
Rapunzel sighed and looked on the windowsill to find something there that wasn't there before. She reached out and touched it, and then jumped back in surprise when it came alive.
"Rapunzel! Are you alright?" Mother Gothel asked.
"Yes, Mommy. I'm fine," she said. When there was no response or footsteps heard, she turned back to the hiding creature. "You're really good at that," she commented. "I wish I could do that. Maybe I could escape this boring place if I could hide like you." She lowered her hand for the creature to walk on it. It didn't though, and instead took a couple steps back. "Don't worry. I won't hurt you."
The creature looked at her hand, then up at her, and then back down. He did this a few times before finally walking on her hand. Rapunzel laughed.
"Your feet feel weird," she stated. She walked over to her bed with the animal in her hand. While he was in her hand, he was his normal green color, but as soon as she set him down on the bed, he turned purple to match the bedsheets. "Ooh. That's what we should play! Hide-and-seek!" she exclaimed. "We have to stay up here, though. I don't want my mother to find out I brought an animal in here."
She looked around her room for ten seconds. "Yep. There should be plenty of hiding spots in here," she stated, turning back to him. The animal was no longer there, though. "Oh. Have we started already? Alright. Ready or not, here I come!"
Rapunzel walked around her room, looking behind every little object she could think of. "You really are a great hider," she commented as she continued looking for the little animal. She got down on her hands and knees and crawled under her bed, looking for him. She crawled back out and sighed.
"This is harder than I expected," she said, sitting down on the bed. She looked over at her bookcase and smiled when she saw a little movement. She quietly walked over and started moving objects out of the way. She dropped some of the books on the floor, making a thudding sound as they made contact with the floor. Mother Gothel heard the noise and started walking up the stairs.
Rapunzel finally found the chameleon hiding behind one of her dolls.
"Aha!" she exclaimed. "I found you!"
"Found who? Rapunzel, what are you doing?" Mother Gothel asked, walking into the room.
"Playing hide-and-seek with my new friend," Rapunzel replied, looking under her bed for the animal. Mother Gothel sighed.
"Come here, my little flower," Mother Gothel said. Rapunzel stood up and walked over. "Rapunzel, be honest with me. What were you really doing?"
"I was playing with my new friend," she repeated.
"What new friend? I don't see anyone," her mother said.
"That's because he's a really good hider. He can blend in with his surroundings," Rapunzel said.
"Rapunzel, no one can find us here," Mother Gothel said. "We're in a well-hidden spot. Somewhere that no one can find so that they don't take you away."
""But-," Rapunzel began. Mother Gothel raised her hand as a sign for her to be quiet.
"Rapunzel, darling. Listen to me. Having imaginary friends like you do right now is very dangerous," she began. "We often imagine people to be much nicer than they are, so when we do meet other people, we are often greatly disappointed. The world is very harsh. All they ever want is power. They don't care about anything or anyone else. And a girl with magic hair? People would kill to have something like that. That's why I keep you up here, away from all of those cruel, abusive people."
She walked over to the window and closed the curtains. "I don't want you looking out of this window ever again until I say you can. Understand?" The little girl nodded. "Good. I'm going to go out and buy you some new pastels, since that seems to be the problem here. I'm going to buy you new ones, and I don't want to ever hear about these imaginary friends ever again. Understand?" Rapunzel nodded again, this time keeping her gaze on the floor. Mother Gothel sighed and walked over to her.
"I love you very much, dear," she said. "I hope one day you understand that the only reason I ever did these things was to protect you." She kissed Rapunzel's hair. "I'll be back soon," she said before walking out of the room.
Rapunzel waited until she heard her mother leave before moving anywhere. She walked over to her bed and laid on her back, looking at the ceiling. She saw two eyes looking back at her and smiled.
"I found you again!" she exclaimed. The animal walked down and sat down next to her on the bed. "And I think I just figured out the perfect name for you: Pascal!" The chameleon smiled, obviously liking that name. "Come on. Let's play another round. This time, I'm hiding, and you have to try and find me. Since Mom is gone, we can use the whole tower. Count to twenty while I find a hiding spot."
She ran out of her room and looked around the tower for a great hiding spot. And so the game continued for thirteen years. The little chameleon never left her even when she gave it the chance to, and Rapunzel was thankful for that, because now she had a true friend.
Rapunzel sighed and looked on the windowsill to find something there that wasn't there before. She reached out and touched it, and then jumped back in surprise when it came alive.
"Rapunzel! Are you alright?" Mother Gothel asked.
"Yes, Mommy. I'm fine," she said. When there was no response or footsteps heard, she turned back to the hiding creature. "You're really good at that," she commented. "I wish I could do that. Maybe I could escape this boring place if I could hide like you." She lowered her hand for the creature to walk on it. It didn't though, and instead took a couple steps back. "Don't worry. I won't hurt you."
The creature looked at her hand, then up at her, and then back down. He did this a few times before finally walking on her hand. Rapunzel laughed.
"Your feet feel weird," she stated. She walked over to her bed with the animal in her hand. While he was in her hand, he was his normal green color, but as soon as she set him down on the bed, he turned purple to match the bedsheets. "Ooh. That's what we should play! Hide-and-seek!" she exclaimed. "We have to stay up here, though. I don't want my mother to find out I brought an animal in here."
She looked around her room for ten seconds. "Yep. There should be plenty of hiding spots in here," she stated, turning back to him. The animal was no longer there, though. "Oh. Have we started already? Alright. Ready or not, here I come!"
Rapunzel walked around her room, looking behind every little object she could think of. "You really are a great hider," she commented as she continued looking for the little animal. She got down on her hands and knees and crawled under her bed, looking for him. She crawled back out and sighed.
"This is harder than I expected," she said, sitting down on the bed. She looked over at her bookcase and smiled when she saw a little movement. She quietly walked over and started moving objects out of the way. She dropped some of the books on the floor, making a thudding sound as they made contact with the floor. Mother Gothel heard the noise and started walking up the stairs.
Rapunzel finally found the chameleon hiding behind one of her dolls.
"Aha!" she exclaimed. "I found you!"
"Found who? Rapunzel, what are you doing?" Mother Gothel asked, walking into the room.
"Playing hide-and-seek with my new friend," Rapunzel replied, looking under her bed for the animal. Mother Gothel sighed.
"Come here, my little flower," Mother Gothel said. Rapunzel stood up and walked over. "Rapunzel, be honest with me. What were you really doing?"
"I was playing with my new friend," she repeated.
"What new friend? I don't see anyone," her mother said.
"That's because he's a really good hider. He can blend in with his surroundings," Rapunzel said.
"Rapunzel, no one can find us here," Mother Gothel said. "We're in a well-hidden spot. Somewhere that no one can find so that they don't take you away."
""But-," Rapunzel began. Mother Gothel raised her hand as a sign for her to be quiet.
"Rapunzel, darling. Listen to me. Having imaginary friends like you do right now is very dangerous," she began. "We often imagine people to be much nicer than they are, so when we do meet other people, we are often greatly disappointed. The world is very harsh. All they ever want is power. They don't care about anything or anyone else. And a girl with magic hair? People would kill to have something like that. That's why I keep you up here, away from all of those cruel, abusive people."
She walked over to the window and closed the curtains. "I don't want you looking out of this window ever again until I say you can. Understand?" The little girl nodded. "Good. I'm going to go out and buy you some new pastels, since that seems to be the problem here. I'm going to buy you new ones, and I don't want to ever hear about these imaginary friends ever again. Understand?" Rapunzel nodded again, this time keeping her gaze on the floor. Mother Gothel sighed and walked over to her.
"I love you very much, dear," she said. "I hope one day you understand that the only reason I ever did these things was to protect you." She kissed Rapunzel's hair. "I'll be back soon," she said before walking out of the room.
Rapunzel waited until she heard her mother leave before moving anywhere. She walked over to her bed and laid on her back, looking at the ceiling. She saw two eyes looking back at her and smiled.
"I found you again!" she exclaimed. The animal walked down and sat down next to her on the bed. "And I think I just figured out the perfect name for you: Pascal!" The chameleon smiled, obviously liking that name. "Come on. Let's play another round. This time, I'm hiding, and you have to try and find me. Since Mom is gone, we can use the whole tower. Count to twenty while I find a hiding spot."
She ran out of her room and looked around the tower for a great hiding spot. And so the game continued for thirteen years. The little chameleon never left her even when she gave it the chance to, and Rapunzel was thankful for that, because now she had a true friend.
His Love: show
The lightsaber felt heavy in his hand. The deed was done, yet the anger still boiled within him. They killed her. All he’d wanted was to see his mother after all these years. He’d wanted to see her okay, but instead he’d found her… like this… had watched, helplessly, as the life drained from her, what little was left by the time he’d arrived. She faded away and he was consumed by sorrow and anger. Anger at the sand people and anger at himself. He shouldn’t have left without her all those years ago, he should have convinced Obi-Wan to let him come back to see her sooner. He should have been there, he should have been able to prevent this! He was a Jedi, was he not? And Jedi are supposed to help people.
The rage and sorrow transformed itself into blind aggression and he’d slaughtered them all mercilessly. He’d drawn his blade and spilled their blood, the Force powering his overwhelming fury. It wasn’t enough. It was never enough. He’d cut and cut and cut, taking it all out, sending lifeless corpses to the ground, yet he felt no better for it. The anger threatened to swallow him entirely. It wasn’t fair! This wasn’t supposed to happen! Why couldn’t he protect her? Why couldn’t he ever have helped her? It was too little, too late. He’d never done enough.
Anakin left the scene of the massacre a broken man, his already frustrated and angry heart heavily weighed down by the loss of his mother and the egregious deed he had committed. He’d gone to Padmé in a state of distress. He didn’t know how to feel, just that she would make him feel better. She certainly hadn’t condoned his actions, he had not expected her to, but she did make him feel better. She always made him feel better. The aggression welling up inside was tamed in her presence.
He felt almost at peace, even in the wake of this tragedy. He loved her deeply. He couldn’t imagine losing her.
She was kind and understanding, intelligent and mature, and she clearly cared for him. She didn’t treat him the way the Council did. She didn’t treat him like some child—she treated him like the man that he was, and she treated him with the respect others denied him. When he was with her, the anger in his soul dulled into the background, the suffering and hatred very nearly vanished. She had a soothing and calming influence over his troubled heart and mind, she made him feel something that was almost happiness. He wasn’t sure how she managed to make him smile with little acts, small things that should have no real effect on someone—a simple comment about anything, no matter how trivial, a slight glance in his direction, a shift in her posture… He wasn’t sure how she managed to make him feel the way that she did.
How did her voice, no matter the tone, saying, “oh, Ani,” soothe the darkness that was stirring within him? He knew there was a potential for a great monster to be born out of his hurting, out of his immense grief and rage, he knew that it was dangerous, but he found it difficult to tame by himself. He wasn’t a bad person… he wanted to help people, didn’t want to let his dark emotions take over him, but the fear… the fear of being helpless, powerless, the fear of losing those he loved the way he’d lost his mother, the fear of being unable to prevent or put an end to their suffering… It wasn’t something he could ignore. It threatened to completely envelop the young Jedi.
He wanted to fight it, and he was keeping it at bay, for the most part, for now… but it was so much easier when she was around. Her voice, the things she said, the way she looked at him… Everything about her was beautiful and everything about her had the ability to quiet the thundering storm within him, the positive feelings she generated acting as a buffer against the rising darkness. He wasn’t okay, and he was very well aware of that, to be sure. But he also knew that he was better than what others saw him as. He knew that he deserved the respect and caring that only she showed him.
Other people cared, he wasn’t foolish enough to think otherwise. Obi-Wan, though strict with him and sometimes infuriating to deal with, cared deeply for him. He knew this. Others on the Council did as well. But they were not Padmé, they did not ease his uneasy thoughts. Only she made him feel as if it were truly possible to experience peace and serenity. Now that his mother was gone, only Padmé could help him to control the demons he struggled to keep contained.
He made a vow, a silent vow that he would never lose her the way he’d lost his mother. He’d never lose anyone else he loved, but he would certainly never lose Padmé. He’d let nothing and no one take her away. He couldn’t afford to try living without her. He couldn’t have known that the vow he was making was actually a contract with the demons he battled. He couldn’t have known that his love, pure and all-encompassing, would be his downfall. He couldn’t have known that his love would destroy her. He couldn’t have known that it was his love, his vow, himself that would steal her away from him.
The foolish, angry, and vulnerable Jedi could never have known that he would be his own undoing, that what he perceived to be his greatest strength was actually his greatest fault. The poor boy loved too much, and his love corrupted everything it touched, crumbling his world around him, and taking anything and anyone who tried to help him down with him. All of his enemies fell, and so too did his allies, until at long last, Anakin Skywalker, left broken and destroyed, a husk of his former self in every sense, was completely alone, without even his own body.
His love had destroyed everything he held dear, and had destroyed him.
The rage and sorrow transformed itself into blind aggression and he’d slaughtered them all mercilessly. He’d drawn his blade and spilled their blood, the Force powering his overwhelming fury. It wasn’t enough. It was never enough. He’d cut and cut and cut, taking it all out, sending lifeless corpses to the ground, yet he felt no better for it. The anger threatened to swallow him entirely. It wasn’t fair! This wasn’t supposed to happen! Why couldn’t he protect her? Why couldn’t he ever have helped her? It was too little, too late. He’d never done enough.
Anakin left the scene of the massacre a broken man, his already frustrated and angry heart heavily weighed down by the loss of his mother and the egregious deed he had committed. He’d gone to Padmé in a state of distress. He didn’t know how to feel, just that she would make him feel better. She certainly hadn’t condoned his actions, he had not expected her to, but she did make him feel better. She always made him feel better. The aggression welling up inside was tamed in her presence.
He felt almost at peace, even in the wake of this tragedy. He loved her deeply. He couldn’t imagine losing her.
She was kind and understanding, intelligent and mature, and she clearly cared for him. She didn’t treat him the way the Council did. She didn’t treat him like some child—she treated him like the man that he was, and she treated him with the respect others denied him. When he was with her, the anger in his soul dulled into the background, the suffering and hatred very nearly vanished. She had a soothing and calming influence over his troubled heart and mind, she made him feel something that was almost happiness. He wasn’t sure how she managed to make him smile with little acts, small things that should have no real effect on someone—a simple comment about anything, no matter how trivial, a slight glance in his direction, a shift in her posture… He wasn’t sure how she managed to make him feel the way that she did.
How did her voice, no matter the tone, saying, “oh, Ani,” soothe the darkness that was stirring within him? He knew there was a potential for a great monster to be born out of his hurting, out of his immense grief and rage, he knew that it was dangerous, but he found it difficult to tame by himself. He wasn’t a bad person… he wanted to help people, didn’t want to let his dark emotions take over him, but the fear… the fear of being helpless, powerless, the fear of losing those he loved the way he’d lost his mother, the fear of being unable to prevent or put an end to their suffering… It wasn’t something he could ignore. It threatened to completely envelop the young Jedi.
He wanted to fight it, and he was keeping it at bay, for the most part, for now… but it was so much easier when she was around. Her voice, the things she said, the way she looked at him… Everything about her was beautiful and everything about her had the ability to quiet the thundering storm within him, the positive feelings she generated acting as a buffer against the rising darkness. He wasn’t okay, and he was very well aware of that, to be sure. But he also knew that he was better than what others saw him as. He knew that he deserved the respect and caring that only she showed him.
Other people cared, he wasn’t foolish enough to think otherwise. Obi-Wan, though strict with him and sometimes infuriating to deal with, cared deeply for him. He knew this. Others on the Council did as well. But they were not Padmé, they did not ease his uneasy thoughts. Only she made him feel as if it were truly possible to experience peace and serenity. Now that his mother was gone, only Padmé could help him to control the demons he struggled to keep contained.
He made a vow, a silent vow that he would never lose her the way he’d lost his mother. He’d never lose anyone else he loved, but he would certainly never lose Padmé. He’d let nothing and no one take her away. He couldn’t afford to try living without her. He couldn’t have known that the vow he was making was actually a contract with the demons he battled. He couldn’t have known that his love, pure and all-encompassing, would be his downfall. He couldn’t have known that his love would destroy her. He couldn’t have known that it was his love, his vow, himself that would steal her away from him.
The foolish, angry, and vulnerable Jedi could never have known that he would be his own undoing, that what he perceived to be his greatest strength was actually his greatest fault. The poor boy loved too much, and his love corrupted everything it touched, crumbling his world around him, and taking anything and anyone who tried to help him down with him. All of his enemies fell, and so too did his allies, until at long last, Anakin Skywalker, left broken and destroyed, a husk of his former self in every sense, was completely alone, without even his own body.
His love had destroyed everything he held dear, and had destroyed him.
