The young woman with ridiculously long blond hair let out a tiny squeak. She was curled up on her couch, hugging one of its cushy green pillows tightly to her chest. She absentmindedly chewed on a few strands of her hair while the rest of it crept over the back of the sofa and winded haphazardly around the room. Her wide eyes devoured the scene playing out on her TV screen. Apparently, she was very invested. Suddenly, something that was half a wail, half a frustrated whimper escaped her. "Come on, Dean! Why don't you just grab him and kiss him already?!" she shouted at the TV.

Her eyes momentarily flickered to her Smaug clock hanging on the wall, then she did a double take. What was supposed to have been only a five minute break from cleaning had somehow turned into binge-watching the show for three hours. Clicking the TV off, she vaulted herself over the back of the couch and hastily set about finishing tidying up. In reality, there was not that much more to do, but she wanted everything to be spotless and perfect. Anything to tip the scale in her favor.

She ran around the room, dusting and sweeping and putting everything in its place, all the while skillfully managing not to trip over her own hair. Thirty minutes later found her meticulously arranging the baklava that she had lovingly baked herself onto a large platter in what she hoped was a pleasing pattern. The final piece was not cooperating with the rest of the presentation however as she kept fiddling with it. She turned it a centimeter to the right and scrutinized it, muttering to herself. "...no… still off…" Pivoting it half a centimeter back to the left, she looked up at the clock again and her face brightened.

His shift had started!

Abandoning her task, she dashed over the intercom next to the front door. Pressing a button on it, she chirped into it, "This is it! This is a very big day, Pascal!"

The intercom crackled. "And why do you say that, Miss Rapunzel?" a deep voice deadpanned through the speaker.

Pascal was the security guard that stood watch outside her door. Or rather, one of many, as surely it would be impossible for just one person to stand guard 24-7 year round. That person would have to sleep at some point! But Pascal was her favorite security guard. He was the only one who would talk to her. She had never seen him face-to-face, but had held many conversations with him via the intercom. She had the security rotation memorized by heart and so always knew exactly when he was on the clock so she would never miss a chance to converse.

She giddily bounced back and forth from the ball of one foot to the other. "Because today is the first time Mother will say yes!"

"Well, 'yes' is a difficult word to say. I'd be proud of her too," he responded in the same flat tone.

She giggled. "No, silly. I mean she's finally going to agree to let me go outside."

"Oh really?"

"Yes!" She nodded her head rapidly several times, forgetting that he could not see her.

"And what makes you think that?"

"Because," she said lifting her chin, "I have an ace up my sleeve."

"And that would be, Miss Card Shark?"

She shook her head. "Can't tell you. It's my secret weapon."

The intercom was silent for a couple seconds. "It's that tomorrow is your eighteenth birthday, isn't it?"

"No, that's n-" she cut herself off, cocking an eyebrow. "Actually, yes. How did you-?"

"It's my job to know these things about you, Miss Rapunzel."

"Oh." She shrugged, then a wide, hopeful grin returned to her face. "You think it'll work?"

"We're about to find out. Your mother is on her way up. Good luck."

Hardly able to contain her excitement, she trilled, "Thank you, Pascal!" She patted the intercom fondly before sprinting off into the bathroom. There she spent ten seconds doing her best to smooth out her hair (the first four feet of it anyway) and make herself look presentable. She then charged back out, grabbed the tray of baklava and carried it over to wait in front of the door, holding her posture high. Puffing both from all the running around and from anticipation, she waited.

For a moment, everything was still and quiet. Then the beeping, clicking, and scraping of various locks being unlocked could be heard from the other side of the door. Finally, the door burst open as a woman entered. She was tall and slightly tan, with thick, curly black hair that fell down her back. She wore a crimson dress that was both flattering and expensive-looking, with a pair of pumps to match.

"Darling, I'm h-" her sing-song was cut off as she jumped in surprise upon seeing Rapunzel. She sighed, "You nearly gave me a heart attack. Must you wait at the door like that? You're not a dog." She then grinned and pinched both of Rapunzel's cheeks and cooed, "Though if you were, you'd be the cutest wittle chubby-faced puppy ever!"

"Um... thanks?" Rapunzel replied hesitantly, pulling her face out of her mother's grasp. She then recalled what she held and with renewed purpose, said more confidently, "Welcome home, Mom! Look what I made you! Your favorite!"

Her mother gave a pleased hum as she daintily picked up a piece of baklava. She brought it to her mouth to take a bite, but then abruptly froze. Her eyes narrowed at Rapunzel. "You want something."

"Want?" she smiled innocently. Choosing her next words carefully, she said, "But you take such great care of me, why would I ever want anything?"

She still looked dubious, eyes boring into Rapunzel as she took a slow, suspicious bite of the pastry. She chewed for a few seconds before stating bluntly, "You used too much sugar." Despite her words, she took two more pieces from the platter before turning and walking towards the dining table.

Not deterred in the slightest, Rapunzel hurriedly set the tray back on the kitchen counter before racing over to pull out a chair for her mother. She then scooted another chair over to be closer to her companion before taking a seat herself, eyes shining eagerly. "How was your trip?"

"Utterly exhausting and a complete disappointment," she sighed, before giving her a pointed look. "Kind of like you." There was a pause, then the older woman roared with laughter. "Oh sweetie, you know I'm only teasing! You're just absolutely precious."

She chuckled weakly. Mother's humor was definitely an acquired taste that took some getting used to. "I'm sorry your trip didn't go well. One of these days, you'll have to tell me what you actually do on those things."

"Oh, it's all business, positively dull. Nothing that would interest you," she said as she finished one pastry and moved on to nibbling the next.

There! Just the opening she needed. "Speaking of interesting, do you remember what tomorrow is?"

Her mother gave a thoughtful hum before snapping her fingers. "It's Flag Day."

Grin widening, she shook her head. "No, it's my eighteenth birthday!"

She seemed to consider the statement for a moment. "No," she mused, drawing the word out,"...no, that's not it. I'm certain it's Flag Day."

"I think I would know when my own birthday is, Mother," she asserted through grit teeth, fighting to maintain her grin.

"Oh, sweetheart," she guffawed, poking her daughter in the nose. "I was just teasing you again. Stop taking everything so seriously! If only you could see your face right now."

"Heh… anyway! Since eighteen is kind of a big one, I was kind of hoping we could do something special."

She tapped a finger to her chin. "You mean like letting you stay up past midnight?"

"I was actually thinking something a little more special than that," Rapunzel muttered.

The older woman perked up as she said, "Ah, matching mother-and-daughter tattoos!"

"...okay, something a little less special…"

"Eating ice cream and cookies for breakfast?"

"That's not-"

"Makeovers and getting our nails done? Or how about-"

"I want to go to the Starlight Festival!" she blurted out, then gasped and covered her mouth with both her hands. That outburst... had not been part of the plan. She had meant to be more tactful.

But there was no going back now.

Placing the half-eaten last piece of baklava on the table, her mother was silent as she massaged her fingers into her temples. "Oh," she said finally. "This again."

"Now, just hear me out," Rapunzel attempted to salvage the situation. "One, it'd only be for a day," she ticked off on her index finger, then moved onto the next finger, "Two, you'd be with me, so what could go wrong? Three, it's a way less expensive birthday gift than, say, a pony. Four, it's something I've wanted for, like, ever. Five, if you let me go, you'd be bestest, most amazing mother in the whole wide universe. Six-"

"Rapunzel," she cut her off, her voice low, but stern. "No."

She looked crestfallen. "...no?"

"No," she repeated, before adding, "But maybe next year, when you're older."

"But that's what you said last year! And every year before that!" she huffed. "Mother, I'm going to be eighteen tomorrow - an adult! And yet, I've never, not once in my life, stepped foot outside that door," she pointed at the secured entrance into the condo. "I'm old enough to drive, to vote, to buy cigarettes - not that you'd let me do any of that stuff even if I wanted to. How much older do I need to be? What, are you waiting for me to be able to collect social security?"

"Sweetie, how many times must we go through this? It's not safe for you out there. There are ruffians and thugs everywhere that would just be waiting to take advantage of you. And then there's your hair… let's overlook for the moment that it would drag for, at the very least, ten blocks behind you, entangling every rock, twig, vermin, and small child in your wake. But what if someone were to find out your secret?"

"What secret? You mean the secret where my hair lights up and gains magical healing properties when I sing? Here's a kooky idea, I could just, you know, not sing. There, problem solved."

Narrowing her eyes, her mother said, "It's not as simple as that. We don't know for certain that that's the only thing that can cause it. What if something else out there in the world triggers it? What then, hm?"

"Then we'll figure it out! Just for one day, I want to go to the Festival, to be outside, to have some human contact!"

"You have plenty of human contact," she insisted, patting her on the cheek.

Her eyelids drooped. "I mean besides you."

She rocked back in her seat a bit, splaying a hand out over her own chest, bottom lip quivering. "Are you saying I'm not enough?"

"Please, Mother," Rapunzel pleaded softly, reaching for her other hand. "I can't stay cooped up here forever. It's not normal. It's not healthy. Give me one day, just one. Let me go to the Starlight Festival. The way it's held every year on my birthday… somehow, I feel like it's meant for me. That I'm meant to be there. I need to be there. Please."

She seemed to consider her words and for one brief second, Rapunzel thought she had gotten through to her. But then her face hardened as she stood abruptly. "I said no."

"But-"

"End of discussion," she said firmly, holding up a hand to silence her as she walked away. "Now I must run out to take care of a couple errands, but I'll return shortly."

When she didn't hear a response, she turned to see Rapunzel's downcast face. She sighed, "I know you're disappointed, but trust me, pet. Mother knows best. Now come here." She held open her arms, and Rapunzel trudged into her embrace. "I love you very much."

"I love you more," she mumbled.

"I love you most." She kissed her daughter on the forehead before releasing her and leaving, closing the front door behind her.

Shoulders slumping, Rapunzel turned and leaned her back against the security door, colliding into it with a loud thump! Slowly she slid down into a sitting position on the floor, hugging her knees to her chest.

The intercom buzzed a few seconds later. "Didn't go so hot, I take it?" came Pascal's voice.

"...yeah…"

"Ah," Sora sighed contentedly as he exited the café, patting his belly. "Those flapjacks really hit the spot."

Axel came out right behind him. As he held the door for Elsa, he snorted, "I'd hope so. You ate like fifty of them."

"Don't exaggerate," Elsa smirked. "It was more like thirty... forty, tops."

The trio picked a direction and began meandering down the busy sidewalk. Scratching his cheek, Sora mumbled, "It wasn't that many."

"It was enough to make me wonder where you pack it all away. I-" Axel stopped mid-sentence as he turned his head and realized Sora was no longer walking beside them. The boy had come to a halt a few feet back, his eyes wide as they darted around, searching for something. Exchanging a glance with Elsa, Axel called, "Yo, what's up?"

"I thought I saw-" His mouth snapped shut and he shook his head. "It's nothing." He took a step towards them, then hesitated as he glanced back over his shoulder. Then he snapped his fingers. "...you know what? Let's split up."

She tipped her head to one side. "Split up?"

"Yeah, to look for the Keyhole! I mean, this city is huge. We probably won't even cover a quarter of it if we stick together. But if we split up, we'll be able to check twice as many places in the same amount of time. Doesn't that sound like a good idea?"

"Well, I guess, maybe... but-"

"Great!" Sora exclaimed with a smile. "Alright, fan out and find that Keyhole! If one of us finds it, text the others. Otherwise, meet back in this spot at sunset. Got it?" He didn't wait for an answer. "Good! See ya!" And with that, he broke out into a run, quickly disappearing into the sea of bustling people.

The other two just stared after him, blinking a couple times. Finally, Elsa said, "Okay... was it weird that Sora just took off like that?"

Axel clasped his hands behind his head as he turned and started walking in the opposite direction of where Sora had gone. "I don't know… maybe?"

She took a quick second to note the building they were standing in front of so she'd remember where to meet later. It was currently closed and seemed to be a nightclub of some sort. Then she caught up with Axel and fell in step beside him. "Do you think we should be worried about him?"

"Worried that he'll get hurt? Nah, he's a big boy, he can take care of himself. Worried about his mental health? Now, that's another story. After all, he's a kid that swings a gigantic key around while chasing after things that go bump in the night." He tapped a finger to his ear with a grin. "Plus, he hears voices in his head, which is never a good sign."

Snorting, she asked, "Oh yeah? Well, if he's nuts and we're following his lead, what's that say about us?"

"Oh, we're way more cracked than he is. Our straight jackets are being prepared as we speak."

She laughed. "Right. Anyway, about the Keyhole…"

"What about it?"

"How are we supposed to track it down?"

He shrugged. "What're you looking at me for? Your guess is as good as mine."

Eyebrows shooting up, she said, "But you've been at this so much longer, what with being in the Organization and all."

"Guess how many Waypoint Keyholes I saw before Prom Night."

"Uh…"

"Nada. Zilch. Zip. Nil."

"You mean the one at Arendelle High was your first one too?" she asked.

"Bingo!" he nodded. "Maybe Organization XIII knows all about Keyholes, but if they do, they keep it on a need to know basis. And I didn't need to know."

Elsa's eyes fell to watch the sidewalk as they continued along. "So we're both completely clueless about this. Where do we even start?"

His shoulders bobbed in another shrug as he said, "We could just explore. See what happens."

She chewed her lower lip. "But what if it only shows up if the Keyblade is around?"

"Then we just have fun aimlessly wandering around an exotic, new city. I could think of worst ways to spend a day." He slung an arm around her shoulders and threw her a wink. "It'll be like we're on a date."

Her eyes widened and she stumbled. She cleared her throat as she gingerly removed his arm and did her best to mask her awkwardness behind a wry smirk. "My, how forward. Pardon me if I don't exactly go all weak in the knees."

"Ooh, feisty. Come on, I'll treat ya real nice. Open doors for you, pull out your chair, the works."

"Wow, how gentlemanly," she laughed.

"Yup. I'm a real class act."

Shaking her head, Elsa said, "Alright, Romeo, back to the matter at hand. We have a lot of work to do if we want to scour through all of this." She spread her arms wide in both directions, gesturing to the entire city.

"Well, look what we have here," she heard Axel say, then felt his fingers wrap around her wrist and tug her hand closer to his face. Quirking an eyebrow, she looked at him and mentally cursed when she realized what had caught his interest: her gloves. She had forgotten she was wearing them. As she snatched her hand back from his grasp, he said, "Someone's been naughty. I didn't see that coming, you seemed like such a goody-goody."

She lifted her chin slightly. "Is it a crime now to take back something that was stolen from me in the first place?"

"No, but we both know you shouldn't have those."

"I know no such thing."

His arm suddenly shot out in front of her and came to rest against the building on her other side, barring her path. She stopped in her tracks and turned to face him as he put his other hand out towards her, palm up. "Hand them over."

"They wouldn't look good on you," she retorted somewhat petulantly.

"Cute," he smirked. His hand was still outstretched expectantly. She looked at it, then back up at his face as she crossed her arms. "Elsa," he warned in a low voice as he loomed over her.

His arm may have been blocking her way forward, but the way back was wide open. She abruptly slipped out from under his scrutiny and began walking back in the direction they had come from. "Ya know, Axel," she began, spinning around to stroll backwards while she talked to him, "I think Sora had the right idea about splitting up. More ground is covered that way."

"Elsa," he repeated sternly, but she ignored him.

"So why are we sticking together? We're wasting time and manpower. So you keep heading that way, and I'll check out this direction, and we'll meet up later. Sound good? Good!"

She turned on her heel to point forward again as she continued walking, but mid reversal she ran into something. Into someone actually, judging by the grunt she heard from whoever she had collided with. "Oh, I'm so sorry, I wasn't paying attention, I-" her embarrassed apology died in her throat as she looked at the person she had blundered headlong into and came face to face with Hans' older twin brothers.

Don't go near him, you psychotic freak!

I always knew there was something off about you, you… you monster!

As their words and the events of Prom Night came rushing back to her in an instant, panic seized her chest. Her hands flew up and ice shot out of them. It struck the ground between where Elsa and the twins stood and ice spikes formed and jutted upwards. They grew large and sharp before slowing to a halt. An icicle stopped just short of one of the brothers' chest, while a second one uncomfortably poked the tip of the other brother's nose.

All three stood rigidly still, staring at each other over the jagged frozen barrier, no one daring to move for a second. Then, as if some sort of enchantment had been lifted, one of the twins suddenly turned and bolted, barreling through the crowded sidewalk. The sound of his thundering footsteps seemed to shake his sibling out of his stupor as well as he stumbled backwards slowly before chasing after him.

Elsa released a breath she had not realized she had been holding. Eyes wide, she looked down at her shaking hands.

Her shaking gloved hands.

Why? her mind whispered. How did my powers slip through?

She suddenly became of aware of how quiet it was. Far too quiet for the daytime on a busy city street. She looked up and around. Everyone-

Everyone was gawking at her.

Author's Note: Oh noes! Elsa's done it again and gone and made a spectacle of herself! How is she going to get out of this one? And just what was up with Sora, hm? Where'd he go galavanting off to? So many questions, so little time xD

Hoped you liked the Rapunzel bit too! Don't worry, KH is gonna start creeping into her bit of the story sooooooon! It's coming!

Special thanks and much love to everyone who reviewed, faved and followed my quirky little story! It's really truly wonderful seeing many of you who followed Ice Breaker are back for Book 2, and so nice hearing from you all again! It really makes me happy :) Thank you all for reading, hoped you liked it, please leave a review and let me know what you think! Until next time, hope you all have an amazing week! ^^