❀ 01

[truffulacide]

A. [ACTION: 917 BILKO BOULEVARD]

[before the Once-ler even opens his eyes, the first thing that immediately occurs to him is how fresh the air is.

even when he's straddling the border between the waking world and his dream world, it's immediately apparent. sleeping, such as it is, isn't easy to accomplish anymore. it's always fitful and restless and not really sleep at all; light napping would be more accurate. once, all he had to do was bury himself under his quilt and concentrate on the steady rhythm of his heartbeat to lull himself into unconsciousness. it's a little more difficult now. his breathing isn't so steady anymore; it's hoarse and when he coughs it feels like his throat's splitting apart. the air's too sour and smoggy to inhale without launching into a fit of hacking and spitting, but like most things these days, he's gotten used to it. you didn't even need willpower to force yourself to accept things anymore - all you had to do was give up.

he's lived in the valley long enough for his body to grow accustomed to the air, so naturally it senses that something is very wrong here before his mind even registers the fact. buried under his blanket with his legs sticking out in uncomfortable directions (and wow, did he outgrow his bed or did it somehow shrink?), he yawns and smacks his lips together noisily, a little trickle of drool hanging out of the corner of his mouth. he really must've been exhausted because, gosh, he can't remember sleeping this well since - well, since -

since the trees were still -

...wait. waitwaitwaaaait - was it sunny?

the Once-ler's eyes flutter a little before wrenching themselves open completely and he confirms within the rough span of five seconds that, yes, it is sunny and no, he isn't in his room. and this DEFINITELY isn't his bed, it's smells like fresh soap and cotton and it's way too cramped like... like...

what. the. heck.

he slowly turns over on his side and all it takes is the sight of the woman's blond head for him to bolt upright in bed and shriek at the top of his lungs.]


B. [ACTION: 917 BILKO BOULEVARD]

[lovely day, ain't it? maybe you're on your way to work. maybe you're a girl scout making your rounds. maybe you're just out for a walk, looking to stretch your legs and take in Mayfield properly before the powers-that-be go nuts and end up putting a damper on what could otherwise be a very nice week.

if you're expecting a relaxing morning, you definitely shouldn't pass 917. really, you shouldn't.]

- Hey!

[this is why.

even if you don't hear it the first time, that single word is repeated with a little more urgency (and a little more whining) until you give in and follow it to the source, which just happens to be the mail slot of this particular house.

the slot is open and a pair of blue eyes are peering out, looking straight at you.]

Yeah, you! Get over here!

Comments

[truffulacide]

[that's not really apparent to him right now, sry2say. all he sees is a stranger - a possibly deranged but definitely unfamiliar face. who knows how long they slept in the same bed together? he's never even been this close to a girl before!

instead of accepting her hand, he just scoots back more and more until he feels his back hit the wall, then he sort of scuttles up from there and presses himself against it.]

Well, I asked you second! Is this your house? Did - [his eyes skitter around the room, trying to take his new surroundings in whilst simultaneously attempting to piece two and two together.] Did you kidnap me?

[hairflyingheartpounding]

Did I kidnap--

[What? Really? Really? This is...

Well, perhaps confirmation that he doesn't know about her hair, which is good. Really, she can't see what he'd have to gain from acting this frightened.

Not going to stop her from getting frustrated, though.]

Of course not! I thought maybe you-- Did you?

[truffulacide]

[he makes a noise that's a cross between a snort and a highly exasperated sigh.]

Yeah, totally. Going through a load of trouble to abduct some girl I've never even met is my idea of a fun Wednesday morning. Obviously.

[he's creeping along the wall, trying to edge his way towards the door.]

Get real. I'm a lot of things, but sick isn't one of them.

[hairflyingheartpounding]

[She notices him nearing the door, and begins scrambling in that direction herself. She doesn't want him leaving her without any answers.]

Fine! If you didn't take me away, who did? And... Where are we?

[truffulacide]

[clever girl.]

- How should I know?! Wherever it is, it sure doesn't look like my valley!

[that much is apparent just by taking a look at what's outside the window. he can see leaves and branches scraping against the glass, and that alone speaks volumes of their location and how very far away it must be from where he lives.

the idea that this is some sort of perverse form of justice (curse) crosses his mind and, ready to start wrestling her for the doorknob, he raises his hand.

and he gasps.]

...Oh, man. You've gotta be kidding me.

[hairflyingheartpounding]

Wh... What is it?

[truffulacide]

[he doesn't say anything at first; he just waves his palm - and by proxy, the wedding band on his finger - in front of her face. then, just to make sure that she knows where he's getting at here, he grabs her wrist and holds her own hand up to her face.]

What's wrong with this picture? [three guesses, the first two don't count.]

[hairflyingheartpounding]

[Now, Rapunzel doesn't get out much, and Mother doesn't wear a ring, but she's read about this in Mother's books.]

...Oh dear.

[Forgive the low-key reaction, but -- if her wide eyes and general stunned expression aren't enough to tell you -- she's kind of in shock.]

[truffulacide]

Yeah.

[he's already taking his off, and he's perfectly prepared to do the same for her if she's too shocked to do it herself.]

Do you remember anything at all from last night? If we were forced into this, then technically - and this is a BIG "technically" - it shouldn't count as a real marriage.

[he allows himself a hopeful little smile.]

Right?

[hairflyingheartpounding]

I don't know! [And yes, definitely too shocked to take it off. And... He can try his luck getting it off her hand, which is now buried in and clinging to the hair atop her head.] I-- I don't... I don't know! [She was with Eugene, she knows that deep down, but her frazzled nerves seem to put everything in question.]

[truffulacide]

[great, now he really is gonna have to wrestle it off of her. he tries being gentle at first, but her hand's practically glued to her head. then it just gets frustrating.]

Hey, stop it. Pull yourself together or we'll never get this figured out. Then what's gonna happen to us, huh?

[he sounds rough, but actually? he's just as afraid as she is. maybe even more.]

[hairflyingheartpounding]

[She tries to push him away with her free hand, and speaks out in her strongest voice... Which is quite a bit stronger than it would have been a day ago.]

Let go of me!

[...But he's making sense. Darn. She takes a deep breath, though she doesn't move her hand.]

A-Alright... I'll calm down.

[truffulacide]

[that'll do it. he releases her wrist abruptly, then holds his hands out in front of her.]

Alright, fine. You do it.

[well, at least it's a start. he's trying to force himself to calm down, too. gotta approach this logically, think of it the way a detective would. that'll get things done.]

You wanted to know who I was? Okay. I'm the Once-ler. [introducing himself like this feels a little weird. shouldn't she know him already? everyone knows who he is. his tone sort of reflects that, but his expression isn't smarmy or condescending in the least.]

And if you keep digging into your hair like that, I'm gonna have to start calling you Hairball. [he forces an awkward smile. IT'S A JOKE, LAUGH WITH ME.]

[hairflyingheartpounding]

[She lets go of her hair, slips off the band and nods, offering her own shaking smile.]

Rapunzel, actually. You're... The Once-ler? [That seems odd, but... She nods again.] Alright. The Once-ler. Do you have any idea how we got here?

[truffulacide]

Yeah? [he scratches the side of his head, awkwardly.] That's not a problem, is it?

- Um. No. [he slaps his fist into his open palm.] But the best way to figure that out is to look for clues! People mess up and get sloppy, especially when they're up to no good.

[he walks away from the door and goes straight to the closest, throwing the door open.]

So start looking!

[hairflyingheartpounding]

Not, it's not.

[She looks a bit uncertain at his explanation's start, but as he sets to looking... Well, it's hard not to have some hope.

She starts poking around, but she's not finding much...]

What kind of clues are we looking for?

[truffulacide]

Anything and everything that looks even remotely suspicious or sinister. [it's said as he starts throwing clothes over his shoulder.] Anything out of place.

[although that's easier said than done. to him, everything looks out of place. to make things extra weird, all of the clothes in here look to be his size. carefully, he unhooks a gray suit from its hanger and inspects it carefully. it looks relatively expensive, but even so, it's so...outdated. Once-ler makes a face and, just as carelessly as he had done with the others, threw it somewhere across the room.]

[hairflyingheartpounding]

[Rapunzel looks over at him, only to don an expression of confusion and walk over, picking through the clothing.]

Isn't... All of this pretty suspicious? I mean, I've never seen clothes like these.

[truffulacide]

They're pretty old looking, yeah. These kind of clothes haven't been in style since... [he thinks about it, tapping his chin.] ...Man, since I was really little. Maybe our kidnapper has a thing for vintage.

[hairflyingheartpounding]

But Mother has really old books, and... And nothing like this is in them.

[truffulacide]

...Right. Maybe your mom lives under a rock.

[he opens a shoebox and finds a fancy pair of dress shoes inside. nothing he'd wear, though he can recognize how expensive they must be. he tosses them at the wall behind him, one after the other.]

Where do you come from?

[hairflyingheartpounding]

[Well, not exactly, but... Heh.]

I live... In the woods. Near the kingdom.

[truffulacide]

[he stops to glance over his shoulder, giving her the oddest look.]

Kingdom?

[hairflyingheartpounding]

...Yes?

[truffulacide]

[his blank look should tell you all you need to know about how much he understands what she's saying.]