Disney’s new Tangled book gives Rapunzel the power to kill with her magical hair

Disney’s A Twisted Tale series reinvents beloved animated movies with a dark twist – what if, for example, Alice never saved Wonderland? Or what if Jafar took Aladdin’s lamp and left it in the Cave of Wonders? The latest version of the series is based on a new Disney movie, the one from 2010. Tangled up. Instead of having magical golden hair that heals and restores, in this version, Rapunzel’s hair is silver and drains life.

Written by author Liz Braswell, a veteran of the Twisted Tale books, What was once mine – a spooky title that comes from the healing charm Rapunzel sings in the movie – it’s based on Tangled upBut the life-draining hair isn’t the only twist. Rapunzel is locked up for the safety of the kingdom, and when she leaves the tower, she is joined by the wanted rogue Flynn Rider and a new character, Gina, a possible outlaw.

What was once mine: a twisted tale It will hit shelves on September 7. See an exclusive excerpt from the book below:

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Well, turning nineteen means I’m an adult. By any definition, ”Rapunzel continued, standing up as tall as she could. “Grown up, responsible, and… stuff.

“Which brings me to the next point: every year during my birthday week, there are those floating lights in the sky.”

“That?” Gothel asked, sounding honestly confused (or as if he was expertly faking confusion).

“You know.” He took his mother by the hand and led her to the painting he had made years ago, when he began to notice the annual regularity of the lights. It was not a technically sophisticated piece: just pretty golden orbs with faint auras rising into a night sky.

“Every year at this time, mysterious bright things float up into the sky in the west. This year should be especially bright because tonight is the new moon, which means the sky will still be quite dark in a few days, and … “

“And you want me to see them with you, dear,” Gothel said, curling his lips and squeezing Rapunzel’s hands. “How sweet. But -“

“No, I want to go see them. Myself. Ourselves. ”Silence fell over the room, which suddenly turned dark and dark as a dramatic cloud seized the opportunity to pass in front of the sun. The two women stared at each other, both in silence: one, now that they had finally spit out the words, with an embarrassing pause of hope, the other in disbelief.

Gothel pulled his hands out of Rapunzel’s. She spoke flatly.

“You know you can’t. Why you ask?

“But mother,” Rapunzel said, trying not to cajole or whine. “I am older now. I can control myself. I won’t see anyone or anything else. I won’t touch anything. You will come with me. You’ll take me there and make sure I don’t … “

“That you don’t kill anyone else, like your own mother and father?” Gothel hissed.

Rapunzel deflated like a tower that had an inferno rampaging through it a moment before. Everything burned; soot, smoke, and heat were absorbed back to where the fire energy came from. The ashes covered his nose; her body felt fragile, drained of its internal structure.

“Mother,” she begged weakly, looking at the ground.

“Mother indeed,” Gothel said, but it was not clear what he meant by that.

This was what Rapunzel had lived with for nineteen years. The silent secret that destroyed her inside when she wasn’t strong enough to stop him. What took all the color of his already tiny world, the light of the distant sun, the small amount of air that his lungs used.

Rapunzel was locked in a tower because she was a murderer.

Her beautiful and treacherous hair had killed her biological parents right after she was born, in a moment of childish rage.

The hair that she now tied, braided, knotted and tangled with charms to keep it under control.

He couldn’t even cut it; doing so would be his death.

So there it was: endless sparkling braids, knotted with charms and wishes, reminding her every day why she was incarcerated. How could he never be allowed to hurt anyone again.

“Look what I brought, for your birthday,” Gothel said coldly, bending down and opening the giant basket he had brought.

Rapunzel bent down miserably, guessing what it was, dreading what she would find.

A fat, beautiful old hen, her time to lay eggs is over. A yard bird of mixed feathers and heritage. The hen looked at her, blinked in the light, but made no sound.

“I was going to wring his neck myself,” Gothel continued. “Because I know how apprehensive my precious princess who lives in the towers is. But I think maybe it’s time for another lesson on why you are in this tower. “

“No …” Rapunzel pleaded.

“Do it,” Gothel ordered. “You need to. You need to remember why you are here.”

As if the silver-haired girl could ever forget.

The woman took her daughter by the arm and led her toward the closet, banging the basket on a table with more force than necessary, or nicely. The chicken squawked softly.

Rapunzel started crying.

He reached into the basket to pet the bird, not sure if that was a terrible lie or final goodness. Muttering softly, he picked up what was to be dinner. What a wonderful pet the old hen would have been!

But one look into Gothel’s big, cold, fixed eyes made Rapunzel forget even the idea of ​​asking.

She dropped, reluctantly pulling a small braid out of its knot. He put it on the neck of the chicken.

“Sorry,” he whispered.

He closed his eyes and reached out with his voice, humming a sad little meaningless song. His mind went blank. He felt an icy blackness run from his head through his hair to the ends, like ice water through a conduit. Her silver hair pulsed with an unnatural sheen, casting little shadows everywhere where they shouldn’t have been.

The bird relaxed … completely. First his feet changed color; his eyes rolled.

Died.

“You see it?” Gothel whispered.

“Yes, mother,” Rapunzel said in a muffled voice.

“Do you understand why you can never leave this tower?”

“Yes Mother.”

Gothel shook his head. He took the dead chicken in one hand and patted Rapunzel’s cheek with the other.

“Honey, you know I’m only doing this for your own good. You are too dangerous to be around other people. You will hurt them. “

“Yes Mother.”

“You see, you know I’m right.” He paused and narrowed his eyes.

“Mothers know what is best.”