It was a lonely breakfast.

Rapunzel could have ordered anything she wanted, but she asked for coffee and croissants. She didn't think there would be time for a big meal, given the way the staff was demanding her time. They were asking her to examine chronicles, make judgments, allocate treasury money--all things she shouldn't have been responsible for. But someone had to run the kingdom from day to day.

Gerda carried in a list of scrolls. "Here's the list of docket items today. Councilor of treasury." She put down one scroll. "Councilor of domestic affairs." Another scroll. "Religious affairs." Another. "War and warcraft." The last. "And wainwrights. Not bad for a Tuesday."

"Thanks," Rapunzel said.

"And don't forget to ask for help if you need it. We know this is hard, but we're all behind you."

Not long after, Kai entered with a tablet. "These are your sessions today. They take place after lunch. Two barons are requesting more land grants as a reward for their hard work. The infantry captain in the northeast is awaiting orders. And don't forget that tomorrow you are officiating the presentation of medals."

"A princess's job is never done, eh?" she smiled.

"Believe me, we all appreciate you. It's a great weight off our shoulders. Especially in these trying times."

As Kai left, Rapunzel looked into her coffee. Her reflection wobbled at her. "Is this how my life begins?" she asked. "I barely know my own country, let alone this one."

But she steeled her resolve. This was the sort of thing her mom and dad did on a daily basis. And they did it under the sorrow of a lost child, year after year.

After five minutes, in which she downed her coffee and croissants, Kai and Gerda poked their head into the empty dining room. "We're ready for you now. The first appointment is waiting in the throne room."

Rapunzel stood up. "Why don't we have it in the garden?"

Kai and Gerda goggled. "The garden?"

"It's a lovely day, even though everything's icy. I could use a walk. Better than spending all day sitting, right?"

"That's... not usually how the queen receives guests."

"If I'm to be ruler-in-stead, I get to make the decisions I want, isn't that right?"

They couldn't argue with that. Rapunzel spent the morning receiving guests in the garden. She discussed policies and grants and boundaries until one o'clock, the midday meal. No one joined her--Anna and Olaf were still in repose. Her meal was a small setting of broth and bread.

The evening yielded a much bigger feast. After an afternoon of reviewing military movements and supplies, new boundary revisions, and granting the blessing of marriage to one of the castle's knights, she prepared for the evening feast. Given the guest list of councilors and barons, it would be less about winding down and more about bending her ear.

Her dress didn't stray far from pink and purple, but it was much more elegant, with ruffled taffeta, lace, encrusted gold jewels, and some lovely ribbons across the shoulders. It was like her own favorite dress, but upgraded for a queen.

Kai held up his hand at the entrance to the dining hall. He opened the door and announced. "Presenting the ruler of Arendelle, Queen-Regent Rapunzel of Corona."

"Oh," Rapunzel whispered. "I don't know if I'm really the queen-regent."

"You're acting in place of Princess Anna. I thought it was the correct title."

Rapunzel met and greeted each member at the table. She sat at its head.

"Princess Rapunzel, if I might, where is Princess Anna?" asked Lord Augie, one of the barons.

"She is... indisposed at the moment." It wouldn't do for others to know their new queen had been an emotional wreck for days. "Luckily, I was here visiting so I've been taking on some of her duties."

The attendees nodded. A pallor of silence cast over the dining room, except for the clink of silver. Servers in white tunics moved wordlessly from station to station.

"All right, I'm just going to say it," said a man with a gray mustache and potato-like head. "What's with the hair?"

The already quiet room became more silent. Rapunzel touched her head. "Duke Werner, right?"

"Yes. Is it sorcery? Witchcraft? Some kind of magic wig? Do others in Corona have it?"

Rapunzel giggle. "It's my own hair. I was born with it. Surely you're no strangers to natural magic here?"

Werner looked away, ashamed. "I... I just... Then everything that happened today is true? You pulled a cart off of a person with just your hair? And then healed him with the same?"

Rapunzel nodded.

"That hair must be strong as steel," Werner said.

"Well, you braid anything right, the tensile strength increases. Even rigging ropes are just strings upon strings upon strings."

"And you decide to wear it down," said Councilor Tora, a short woman with thick glasses. "Is that the style in Corona? How long does it take to brush?"

"That's part of the magic actually. Nothing clings to it. Even dragging on the ground, it never picks up dirt."

"Speaking of magic, any progress on figuring out this ice storm?" asked Councilor Helene, a large woman in a purple dress and buxom breasts. She nipped at a sardine on her tiny fork.

"Still working on it. But at least the ice harvesters are doing a good job chipping it away," Rapunzel said.

"You can't chip away the clouds. I haven't seen the sun in days. It's so depressing. Even my cat is feeling it, she's sleeping longer than usual," Helene said.

"There's dark magic at work, I know it. My left toe bone starts tingling when weird things happen. It happened last summer," Tora said.

"We're all trying to figure something out," Rapunzel said. "It sky might be gray, but we can always look at the colors of the town."

Lord Bjorn, a fat man with glasses, interrupted. "Princess Rapunzel, this inconvenient weather is merely distracting from real issues. Could we please address the topic of rent prices? You recently passed a law stating that prices could be no higher than a percentage of the yield."

"I did?"

"Well, your predecessor did."

"I'm not going to repeal any of Elsa's decisions. She knows the country better than me, and I'm sure her actions had a reason."

This seemed to satisfy the lord, but he added, "If you do serve in the long-term, then I wish you would consider revisiting it. At least the numerical values."

"Sure. That'll give me time to see how it's working."

Councilor Helene jumped out of her seat. Her hair stood on end. "What is that?" she shrieked, pointing with her tiny fork.

Pascal sat on Rapunzel's plate, eyeing the food. "Oh, don't worry. That's Pascal."

"It just crawled out of your hair."

"Yeah, sometimes I forget he's even in there anymore. I've been so busy." She handed him a lettuce leaf. "Sorry, buddy. Crickets are kind of scarce in this weather. I'll find you something soon, I promise."

Councilor Tora leaned forward. "I've never seen one before. Do you keep other exotic pets?"

"He's not a pet, he's my friend. He's been with me through thick and thin, always cheering me up when I needed it. You've never seen one?"

"I think it's too cold in the winter for much reptilian life," Tora said.

"We certainly don't keep the little beasts in our homes," Helene said.

"That's a shame. You'll never meet a more loyal friend. And he can change colors. Pascal?"

Pascal gave her a look like "you expect me to show off for these people?"

"Please?" Rapunzel asked.

Pascal stepped onto the center of her plate and turned an egg-shell white. The dinner guests gasped.

"How charming," Duke Werner said.

He stepped onto the burgundy tablecloth and morphed into the same bittersweet color. The dinner guests held up the sleeves of their mauve and chartreuse dinner jackets against him.

"Do me next," someone near the end of the table shouted.

"Ahem," Lord Bjorn coughed. "Yes, yes, the lizard is cute-"

"Chameleon," Rapunzel corrected.

"Whatever. But we're here to discuss policy, are we not?"

"You're right," Rapunzel said. She ushered Pascal back onto her plate.

"One of the problems we have yet to address is law enforcement," Lord Bjorn continued. "This ice storm's going to force people into desperate situations again. It won't be long before food shortages lead to dissatisfaction with the government. And that leads to rebellion."

Duke Werner raised his thumb. "He does have a point. Yesterday alone, two stores were robbed. It's not that the storm gave them more favorable circumstances do so. It's that they're worried about having enough food. And after that you get black markets, corrupt guards, officers accepting bribes."

Bjorn interjected. "I recently proposed a new motion to the council--a task force made up of elite soldiers. The toughest, most merciless guys there are. They'll patrol the streets, letting others know that even in these desperate times, crime will not be tolerated."

"What, like a brute squad?" Rapunzel asked.

"I... I wouldn't call it that."

"Security used to be horrible in Corona's castle. A baby was kidnapped. A gang of thugs broke out a criminal before he was to be executed. And someone stole the princess's crown with nine guards in the room. But our new captain of the guards invented some new practices that really helped. Like strength training and daily meetings so everyone knows what's going on and they can bring up any obstacles they're running into. The best new thing is this break-in game. We separate everyone into two teams, aggressors and defenders. The aggressors try to infiltrate the castle and it helps find where the holes are."

The others at the table nodded. "How innovative. Maybe you could write to him and ask if he has any ideas?" Councilor Tora asked.

If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

"Or better yet, send for him to come here." Councilor Helene said. "First-hand training for the regiment. The whole kingdom could benefit from his presence."

"I don't know. He has trouble staying upright in boats. He's a horse."

Everyone at the table stared.

"Sorry. Did you say... he's a horse?" Lord Bjorn asked.

Rapunzel nodded enthusiastically. "Maximus. He used to be the captain's steed.."

"What a promotion," Duke Werner said.

Rapunzel smiled. "I've never met any guard or soldier as dedicated or brave as him. As long as you treat him with respect. I think the fact that he's different has gone a long way. He's thought of things no human ever would."

Duke Werner coughed. "Um... if you don't mind my asking... how did a horse become your captain of the guards?"

"It's a long story. I met him while he was trying to capture my husband."

Lord Bjorn almost spit out his wine. "I'm sorry. He was trying to capture your husband? Was he a criminal?"

"Like I said, it's a long story," Rapunzel said.

"I'd like to hear it," Councilor Tora said.

"Me too," Werner and Helene said. All others murmured in agreement. It didn't look like she was going to get out of this without telling the tale.

Rapunzel described everything from her tower to finding her parents again. She answered follow-up questions and discussions about Arendelle's status throughout. Everyone stayed enraptured as each course was served. When someone remarked on the lateness of the hour, Rapunzel noticed how much the mood had lightened. She hoped that would trickle down to their constituents, to the citizens. There was hope after all.

----------------------------------------

Elsa was starting to get annoyed with Ariel.

She couldn't stop grinning at her new legs. After climbing back up the hill, she skipped and jumped along the dirt road through the marketplace. Shopkeepers held out necklaces and sugared fruits. Wool, grain, and scented oils blended into an aromatic stew, made tangy with the sea breeze chill.

At one point, Elsa lost Ariel in the crowd. But thanks to her red hair, the queen spotted her right away. She had meandered to a lutist using an over-turned washtub as his platform. He was crooning a romantic sonnet to the small crowd--mostly ladies--acting in such a way so each girl could think it was about her.

> My lady left me once again

> Left me in her prime

> A paramour which I'd not contend

> The suitor known as time

>

> The grains of sand are falling

> The sun is setting low

> What loves have I lost

> What riches did I pass

> Lost in the endless flow

>

> Set by cruel rhyme and runic meter

> Forced forward without a sound

> So many paths and routes untaken

> Yet ne'er the right one found

>

> The grains of sand are falling

> The sun is setting low

> What loves have I lost

> What riches did I pass

> Lost in the endless flow

>

> I liv'd the life of a fool

> Made choices by envy or fear

> Slung arrows that I can ne'er take back

> Dally and dawdle as fate draws near

>

> Every leaf's a separate life

> But no tree lasts forever

> When the final tide washes on the shore

> My wasted life to sever

>

> The grains of sand are falling

> The sun is setting low

> What loves have I lost

> What riches did I pass

> Lost in the endless flow

Elsa dropped a coin in the man's case. She had to tug Ariel's arm twice before she would accompany her. "That was amazing," Ariel said. "That... twang-a-ma-jigger."

"It's just a lute."

"But the way he played it, it sounded amazing. I've never heard that kind of music before. And I try and see all the traveling musicians that come through."

"Doesn't that distract you from duties?"

"I can't resist. There's always something new to hear. Or plays or games or sports or books or... all those things they don't even have names for. Like the smell of rain hitting the ground and mystery stories and the swishy sound ball gowns make and fuzzy sweaters and..."

"Okay, I get it. Even after a year of being human, there's still a lot new to you."

Ariel nodded.

"But you're not the only one in this. The sooner we get back to Arendelle, the sooner we can start fixing this. We can't let ourselves get distracted by every little thing."

They descended from the marketplace down to the docks. Elsa pointed out Captain Gunhild, standing at the top of the ramp. Again she reminded Ariel that she was going under a false moniker.

"Lady Idun. It's a pleasure to have you on board. I hope our preparations didn't delay you," Gunhild said.

"We had some... errands to attend to first," Elsa said.

"And some shopping," Ariel laughed again.

"This is my companion, Ariel. I mentioned she'd be traveling with us."

"Indeed." Gunhild kissed her hand. "Please, follow me." The captain led them up the ramp to the main deck.

The crew was not like the gold-tanned roughnecks Ariel was used to. Each tossed their ropes and swung around poles with a smile on his face. They were like happy whales starting the migration again. Then Ariel noticed the hooks and harpoons. Wooden crates and metal cages were tied down all around the deck.

"This is a fishing vessel," she said.

"Yes, but we're heading to Arendelle first. We'll only haul out what we can find on the way," Gunhild said.

"Thank you," Elsa said.

Gunhild called out to look lively, they'd be shoving off. Sailors heaved rigging and pulled up anchors while Ariel and Elsa headed to the front to stay out of the way.

"How come you get a secret identity and I don't?" Ariel whispered to Elsa.

"Because you aren't well known as a queen who can decimate entire kingdoms."

Ariel couldn't stop staring at the labyrinth of ropes and chains wound around the cracked wood. Rusted hooks and reddish stains stained the deck as in a torture chamber. Fish fins and dismembered crab legs hid in the corners.

"Something wrong?" Elsa asked.

Ariel shook her head. "No, nothing." She turned her attention to the other clippers and galleons dotting the horizon. Were they all fishing vessels too? Were they out providing food and money for their families?

"What ho! Look down there," Captain Gunhild called out. "Seems we do have a bit of fortune after all."

Below, a herd of dolphins cruised alongside the boat, leaping with rhythmic precision in and out of the wake. Ariel and Elsa grinned. They watched for a while, glancing between the calming sea and their followers below, until they reached cruising speed.

"Could we see our cabin now?" Elsa asked the captain. She'd had as much of the ocean as she could take for a while. A craving for an intimate, enclosed space gnawed at her.

"You'll be using my quarters. I'll bunk with the men for the journey." Gunhild escorted the girls to sterncastle and held open the door for them. The captain's quarters held naught but a table with a navigator's map and a single bed.

"My apologies for the conditions. I assure you, it's the best I have to offer."

"This is more than adequate. Certainly more than I could ask. You've already done enough allowing us on your ship."

"Oh no, ma'am, it's my pleasure. If there's anything else, let me know, but now I need to return to my duties. I'll make sure no one bothers you."

"Thank you," Elsa said. Gunhild closed the door on them.

Ariel fell onto the bed. "I can't believe how tired I am. I just realized we've been up for more than day."

Elsa scooted out the chair. "You can nap. I'll read." The captain's desk had a small row of tomes, with navigation equipment as bookends.

"Are you sure? I can squeeze over."

"No, I'll be fine. I'm not that tired anyway." The truth was, Elsa wouldn't be able to sleep no matter how many beds there were. The only person she could sleep in the same room with was Anna. But with quietude and a book to dive into, she could reach a close approximation to sleep.

Ariel pulled up the sheets and, after a few good squeezes, nuzzled into the pillow.

Elsa pulled out a handbook on basic mapmaking. The author had written well enough to give any reader a firm grip on the basics. After finishing it, she bet she could do as well as any swabbie. She finished one more book on nautical navigation and astronomy, perused the captain's log, and then opened an old favorite--"Homer's Odyssey" Halfway through, she drifted off in the chair.

A knock at the door woke them both. "Begging your pardon, ladies, but we and the crew are about to start dinner. We ain't got no fancy royal feast, but there's hard tack and cheese in the galley for ye."

"That's just fine," Elsa said.

Ariel stirred and sat up. "Can't be worse than the last thing I ate," she said, thinking of the crimson potion.

"Er, I could bring ye each a plate up, so'sn ye wouldn't have to interlope with the roughnecks in the galley."

"Ooh, could we go down to the galley?" Ariel asked. "We've been in this room all day. I could use the company."

Elsa closed her book. She'd spent enough time by herself that she could endure others. The two of them followed Gunhild down the stairs to the mess. The crew was sitting at the table, elbows in the cheeks of their mates, reaching over for condiments.

"Oh, uh... forgive us for the smell. We don't entertain naught but ourselves down here," Gunhild said.

"We've been through far worse lately," Elsa said.

Elsa and Ariel sat on opposite benches at the end. A salty man with a white, scraggly beard and liver spots scooted over. "They say that having a woman on board is bad luck, but I think you're the exception," he said. "Between those dolphins and the calm seas... I can't put my finger on it, but there's something special about you two."

You have no idea, Elsa thought.

Captain Gunhild coughed for attention. "Crew, mind your manners. You are addressing a noblewoman. Lady Idun and Ariel."

"Won't we have a story to tell tomorrow morning," a broad-chested man said. "The boys at the harbor were must have thought we were the flagship in a grand procession." The men's laughter punctuated his joke.

Captain Gunhild set plates in front of Elsa and Ariel--a hard biscuit, dry salt pork, cheese, and raisins. "Apologies again for the state of the meal. I wasn't prepared to have more on board. Not nobility certainly."

"It's fine. You don't need to keep apologizing," Elsa said.

"Tomorrow, we'll have Cookie make our famous fish stew. We usually have it the night before we return to home dock, but this is a special occasion. It... well, it won't blow your mind, compared to what you're used to I'm sure. But it warms you up."

"Freshest fish you'll ever taste," the white-haired man, presumably Cookie, chimed in. "It's got tuna, haddock, lobster, clam juice, garlic, tomatoes-"

"And too much pepper!" someone shouted, making the crew laugh.

"And don't forget the secret ingredient." This elicited some faint chuckles from the crew, as if they weren't supposed to laugh.

"What's the secret ingredient?" Ariel asked.

"Whiskey," Captain Gunhild said. "Of course, it all depends on what we can haul in."

"Oh, I feel it in my bones," Cookie said. "It'll be a good catch this round."

"You always say that," one sailor said.

"How is the fishing these days?" Elsa asked.

The crew mumbled over their hard tack and water.

"We can't complain," Gunhild responded. "The problem is the other ships in the fleet. We're starting to get a reputation for pulling in less than the others, making shorter hauls, coming in late. It's almost as if the fish are getting smarter."

Elsa looked at Ariel. She raised her eyebrows as if to say "don't look at me, it's not my fault."

"And that stagnant wind didn't help," Gunhild added. "Last outing, we spent two days at sea longer than we should have. A quarter of our catch went bad."

"What if you started harvesting seaweed? Do you think people could learn to eat that?"

Gunhild laughed from the belly. "If I thought they would, I'd catch it. I can't even get my son to eat his carrots."

"Oh, there's lots you can make with kelp. Pasta, cookies..."

Gunhild gave her a condescending smile. "It's a good idea, but the vegetables and fruits on land all taste a sight better. From what I hear, farmers work hard enough as it is. I complain, but it's a good life."

"If you can find the ocean, there's always something to eat," Cookie said.

"Keeps a roof over our heads," someone else interjected.

Gunhild nodded. "When it's good, it's really good. I haven't seen my family in a month, because I've been trying for a big haul. And when I do, I don't have to worry when the door knocks."

A crewmember at the end pointed a pork bone at Gunhild. "Remember that time we stayed on shift the entire day. Surf was so high, wind was so cold. But we kept pulling them in, one after another. It was like they were jumping into our boat."

While the sailors related their stories about big catches, little catches, and practical jokes they played on each other, Ariel quietly stood up from the table and walked away.

"Hagar pulled out a perch that was fifty one pounds. He dragged it around the deck, saying he was going to marry it and have fish babies. Wouldn't let it go until each one of us kissed it."

Unlike the rest of the crew, Elsa noticed Ariel had gone and excused herself. For the most part, the main deck was empty. Ariel stood at the forecastle and stared into the ocean.

"What's wrong?" Elsa asked.

"I just... I don't know. I'm so confused. I think I might have done a bad thing. But I didn't really do it, or... I don't know."

"Okay, calm down. Start at the beginning."

"I... there's only a few people who know I was a...you know... besides Eric. His advisor, the head maid, a few others. Just important people. Close people. But everyone else knows me as the prince's wife. We... Eric... he cares about me, you know. He wanted me to be happy."

"What did he do?" Elsa asked, biting her lip.

"He... we... passed an ordinance that banned all fishing. For any vessel in the kingdom."

Elsa's eyebrows shot up. As a queen, she knew what impact that would have. Any prosperous kingdom had to have access to a port of water. Part of the reason Arendelle regained so much in the past year was a bountiful ocean harvest.

"But it's not like we banned boats or anything. There's still trade, there's transportation," Ariel stammered.

"But people have to eat. They need fish meat and whale oil and salt and sponges. These are big items in times of famine."

"I know! I don't know what to do. I see places and people like this and my kingdom's struggling to keep food on the table. The treasury's draining so much it'll be gone in a year and a half. But what if one day I see someone that I used to say 'good morning' to."

"You ate the chowder last night. At the inn."

Ariel swallowed. "No, I left the fish pieces. I was too hungry not to eat the rest. But even then it tasted weird. I felt like a lamprey. I just... I couldn't."

"Don't fish eat other fish to live?"

That was true. They still ate along the food chain. Shrimp ate microbes. Spotfish and sunfish ate shrimp. Mackerel ate those. Tuna ate mackerel. And sharks ate everything. Even without the apex predators, crabs and seagulls ate other ocean-going creatures, and they were her best friends.

"Yeah, I suppose. But what if someone tries to serve me Sebastian? He opens the dinner tray and it's Flounder staring up at me with lifeless eyes."

Elsa presumed these were friends of hers. "No one's asking you to change. But you're human now. Your people need you to be a human. They're depending on that. The sea's not your home anymore. At least that's what you told me, right?"

"Right."

"When I was a kid, I saw a fox chasing a squirrel. I ran to try and save the squirrel. Before I knew it, a big icicle stuck out between them. The squirrel got away, ran into the bushes. But the fox... it just looked at me. It sat there and stared, like it was blaming me. Even though I might have saved the squirrel, I was letting the fox starve. Both were doing what they could to survive. And I interrupted that."

"But isn't there another way?" Ariel asked.

"Humans use natural resources to survive. The ocean is part of that. We can't keep going without it. A kingdom's ruler has one job: keep the kingdom going. Your people are looking to you to for that. You've got to do what's best for them. You can't use your authority to impose your own beliefs."

Ariel stood still.

"You know what I mean?" Elsa touched her shoulder. "Ariel?"

"That ship..." She pointed across the horizon to one of the sailing ships nearby. "That ship is still there. I don't think it's moved. I mean, it's moved, but..."

Elsa cupped her hands around her eyes. It had a red finish and dirty sails. "Is it moving with us? I remember it from this morning."

The flag atop the crow's nest lowered. A black skull and crossbones replaced it.

"Uh-oh."