A rush of energy ran through her, encouraging her forward. In that moment, the weight of both her hair and her tired feet did not matter. She was so close to the kingdom; any second out of it was time wasted.

A few people around her chuckled. Some stepped away from her, and she had to be careful not to run into a few people as well.

"Rapunzel!" Flynn yelled. "Wait up for me!"

"Sorry, Flynn!" Rapunzel called back. "I need to get inside the kingdom!"

Pascal, who was sitting on her shoulder, made a squeak of agreement.

Does she know? Flynn thought.

He pulled the worn map from his pocket. The paper was yellowed and slightly torn. His attempts at mending it were laughable. As old as it was, he had been sure that he would be able to get them to Corona.

It seemed that he had been wrong.

Maximus whinnied. The white horse shot Flynn a glare.

"I hope you like traveling, buddy." Flynn sighed. "Because we are about to see somewhere new."

He had heard about Arrandelle during his travels, though he had never visited. The place was usually closed up tight, and never once had he heard an exact reason for why. There were rumors of course, but nothing seemed to hold much of a grain of truth. All he knew was that today the queen was getting crowned.

Maximus snorted.

"Hey, don't be angry. I don't like it any more than you do." Maximus probably knew about as much about the place as he did.

Flynn looked around the crowded market. He spotted a few people with blond hair, though none had as much as Rapunzel did. "I guess that we better go find her."

The thought of the crown and what it could buy him was his only comfort.

It wasn't that Anna hadn't been this entergetic before, it was that she hadn't had any way to release it. For hours, she would have to run around in whatever castle room was empty. Other times she would be jumping on her bed and the couch, at least until she got caught.

Today, however, she could do just about anything. Anna's feet couldn't move fast enough.

"Oh, excuse me!" She had to keep herself from running into an elderly woman. "I apologize!" She darted out of the way of a group of children. "I hope that you're enjoying the festivities!" She surely was.

Anna ran to a nearby food cart. The scent of freshly baked goods filled the air. Already, more than a few people stood with cupcakes or cookies in their hands.

"What will it be, my lady?" asked a dark haired woman, giving a slight bow.

"Chocolate," Anna said. "Chocolate, chocolate, and more chocolate, please."

"Well," the worker said, pointing to a wooden menu by a cart wheel, "we have chocolate cookies, chocolate cupcakes, brownies, chocolate fudge, fondue, and slices of chocolate pie. That is unless of course you would like to order a whole pie."

Anna's mouth watered. She did not even know what a brownie was, but it sounded wonderful. "I'll take one of everything!" She reached for her coin purse.

Today was a once in a lifetime opportunity; after this, the gates were going to be closed once again. She was going to enjoy it while she could. Besides, what harm would a little chocolate do?

Getting around the kingdom was a pain in and of itself. Flynn was about ready to collapse, and he probably would were it not for Maximus.

"Can I just take a quick break?" Flynn sighed. Sweat covered the back of his neck and arms. This was definitely one hot summer day. "I need to refresh myself." The thief wiped some sweat from his forehead. "This is really hard work."

Maximus rolled his eyes.

"Well, do you know where to find her?" From the outside, Arrandelle appeared to be a small kingdom. Flynn wasn't even sure if he could get to the castle if he went looking for it.

Maximus shook his head.

"See," Flynn said, "you and I have the same problem. There's no point in us getting angry."

A burst of pain suddenly ran through him.

"You did not have to kick me!" Flynn forced back tears; he was not going to give that beast the pleasure of seeing him cry. That was definitely going to leave a mark; he would just have to think up a reason for how it got there. Maybe he could say he got into a fight.

Yes, that was plausible! And he could say it was with a real horse of a man...

She had never been hungrier in her life, yet she could not decide what to eat. Flynn had loaned her some money, saying it was only to be used when she absolutely needed to.

"If it isn't important," he had said, "then just try and nab it."

She severely doubted following his last bit of advice, but he was right. There was only so much money...

Her stomach growled again.

Her eyes searched the surrounding area once more. Everything looked and smelled so good...

"Excuse me," said a voice, "are you alright?"

Rapunzel turned. "I should be asking you the same question." She giggled. "Do you need a little help with that?"

She could not make out the face of the figure before her, and only barely could she make out the color of her dress. Her arms were loaded with chocolate of all kind. Rapunzel's mouth watered at the sight. Chocolate was a treat, something her mother only brought on the most important of days.

"Oh," the figure responded, "yes, thank you."

Rapunzel took a few treats from her. Once she could see her, she smiled. The girl before her was certainly pretty. "Why were you even worried about me?"

"You looked a little lost."

Rapunzel chuckled. "I was trying to find a stand to buy food from."

"There's no need," the girl responded. "You can have some of that chocolate since you helped me."

"What? That's quite kind of you, but..."

She couldn't think of any way to end the sentence.

"Thank you!" Without thinking, she grabbed a piece of chocolate, then quickly took a bite of the treat. "This is fabulous!"

He had never tried to steal ice before. Maybe today would be a good time to try...

Maximus whinnied once more.

"Max, I'm trying to focus!" Flynn's eyes turned back to the cart full of ice. It was attached to a slay. The worker, a blond man, seemed busy trying to sell it. If he could just get some while his back was turned...

It was certainly risky, but Flynn knew that if anyone could do it, it was him.

Maximus gestured with his hoof around the area.

"Yes, I know that we need to find Rapunzel. Just give me a moment."

The horse simply shook his head, then trotted off.

"Hey, stop!"

"You have some chocolate on the side of your lip!" Anna said. Quickly, she leaned forward and wiped it away.

Rapunzel's cheeks went red. "Oh, I hardly noticed."

The two stood by the door of a bookshop, though it was closed for the day. It truly was a shame; Rapunzel had always liked books, though her mother hardly ever kept any around. She would have gladly looked around, even bought a few.

"So, Rapunzel," Anna said. She looked to her shoulder, pointing her finger to Pascal. "You never told me your pet's name."

Pascal slowly moved forward.

"You don't need to be afraid of her, Pascal."

Taking her word, he leaped from her shoulder and onto Anna's arm.

"Oh, he's so cute! Pascal is such a nice name!" Anna grinned. "May I pet him?"

Rapunzel nodded. "Do you have any pets?"

"Do paintings count?" Anna frowned. "My parents never got me a pet, and my sister would surely yell at me if I got one."

"That's terrible!" Rapunzel scooped Pascal back into her hands. "My mother doesn't know that I have a pet, either. She always told me that animals were dirty creatures. Still, when this little guy wondered in on me, I had to have him."

"Your mother?"

"Oh." Rapunzel looked away from her. Oh, why had she brought her up? "You see, she doesn't know that I'm here. She would be really, really angry if she found out. And when I say angry, I mean angry."

"Don't worry, Rapunzel." Anna stepped forward, then leaned her arm out to her. "It's not like I'd ever tell her. Now come on, we still have some more things to see!"

It didn't take nearly as long to find Maximus as Flynn had originally thought that it would. Rather than looking for Rapunzel, he had started to make contact with another of his species, or at least one of his cousins (probably twice removed).

He stood in front of the ice cart next to a reindeer. The ice vendor seemed to not mind the horse, going on with his business.

Well, there was no way that Flynn would be stealing any ice now.

With a heavy sigh, he stepped forward. It was time to get back to their mission.

"You mentioned paintings earlier," Rapunzel said, skipping forward. "Do you paint?"

Anna shook her head. "I tried once and I was terrible at it. Mostly I just talk to the paintings." She flushed red.

"I paint." Rapunzel looked to the sky, a whismical look crossing her eyes. "I've always loved doing it."

"You paint?" Anna put her hands together. Oh, she really sounded like a fool!

"Yes." Rapunzel closed her eyes. "Painting comes to me naturally. It's something I can do right."

"I can't really say that I have any special talents." Anna thought for a moment. "Actually, is there a record for the most chocolate consumed within a day?"

Rapunzel laughed. "Maybe."

"You're a princess?" Rapunzel's jaw dropped. She straightened herself up, pulling her hair behind her back. "Oh, I had no idea!"

Quickly, she tried to remember everything that her mother had taught her about royalty. Most of it had just been about how royals were cruel, caring little for their subjects and wasting their wealth. But Anna was different, nothing like the stories her mother had told her. She hadn't even looked like a princess!

Anna laughed. "I am." She shrugged. "I've never been one to care for the title though. It's my sister that everyone cares about anyway."

"Does anyone know the way out of here?" Kristoff roared.

"Hey, we're all searching for that, buddy." Flynn threw his hands in the air. "Some of us have people to look for."

"You think you're looking for someone important?" Flynn couldn't remember how the red head had gotten caught with them, but he was now a member of their ragtag group. "I was sent here to look for the queen and princess. You would think that they would be easier to find."

"You know," Rapunzel said, leaning against the base of the clock, "this is the most fun that I have ever had."

Anna looked out to the kingdom below her. It was certainly true. "Rapunzel, can I tell you some things?" Her eyes flicked back to the girl. She certainly was not normal, at least by Arrandelle standards. Anna could hardly care about that though. For the first time in her life, for the first time in forever, she finally had someone who listened to her. The servants grew tired of listening to her, Elsa acted like she didn't exist, and her parents were always too busy for her. Rapunzel never seemed bothered by her.

"Of course." She ran her fingers through her golden hair. "I'm all ears."

"And hair," Anna added.

Rapunzel chuckled, then returned her eyes to her hair.

"I've never felt closer to anyone before. It's weird, but I swear that it's true." She sighed. "All my life, I've lived in the shadows of others. Doors have been slammed in my face countless times, and I am so sick and tired of it." Anna took a piece of chocolate from her pocket, unwrapped the thin paper around it, and popped it into her mouth. The chocolate simply melted in her mouth, the taste bland, bringing no comfort.

"Anna, can I confess something?"

Anna nodded. She wanted to say more, but could only stare off into the distance. Why would Rapunzel want to hear more?

"I haven't told you that much about my mother..." Her eyes never left her hair. "She's always worrying about me. Really, she's more than just overbearing."

"What do you mean?"

"Well," Rapunzel said, "before I met you and another friend of mine, mother was the only person that I knew."

"How?"

"Well, you see, I had one door always closed on my face. I live in a tower, always have, and if mother has her way, always will."

Anna gasped. "Oh, that's awful!"

"I agree. As much as I worry about what mother will think, I needed to do this." She turned to Anna. "I need to be here with you. What she said about the world, about people being cruel and heartless, well that just isn't true. Well, at least not with you."

Anna smiled. A burst of courage ran through her. "I promise that I'll let you do whatever you want."

"You mean I can stay with you?"

"Of course!" Anna ran forward. "There will be no more doors shut in our faces. You can stay here with me. It won't matter that everyone else is cold to me because I'll have you. And it won't matter what your mother thinks because this is your life!" She took a deep breath. "Can I ask you something really, really serious, Rapunzel?"

"What?"

Anna leaned forward. "Will you marry me?"

Rapunzel silenced, her eyes turning to the ground. "And can I say something serious, too?"

Anna nodded. "Of course..."

"Yes!" Her shriek was so loud that Anna was sure the entire kingdom could hear it. Rapunzel leaned forward, wrapping her arms around Anna's waist. "I would love to!"

"Well," Anna said, a grin forming on her lips, "I guess that we should go tell the queen that."

She was going to have her own life. It didn't matter what her mother thought. What was her mother against a princess? And it didn't matter what Flynn thought either. He could take his crown; Rapunzel didn't care.

She could see her life ahead of her. There would be the coronation. Maybe she could help Elsa and Anna warm up again. A few changes would come to Arrandelle of course. In between that would be wedding preperations. There would be pretty dresses and huge feasts, most of the food sandwiches and chocolate.

"Elsa!" Anna called, rushing past the other people in the party. Her hand was firmly around Rapunzel's. "Oh, Elsa, I have something to tell you!"

"Elsa!" Rapunzel joined in. "Your sister has great news for you!"