mother knows best

[powershines]

Rapunzel doesn't sleep well, and she does wind up wrapped up in her hair overnight like a golden-cocooned butterfly. She's still dozing fitfully when the sun comes up.

Comments

[hisowninvention]

"Well... from what I know about her, my first guess is that she's going to try something like hiring some people to pretend to be the kind of people she warned about and kidnap you away from me, and she'll have some arrangement with them so she can 'rescue' you afterward. She might not be that terrible, though, or she might not be able to find anybody - it's hard to just run across somebody like that unless you already know exactly where to look, and I don't know if she does. So the other thing she might do is go ahead of us to the city and get the Royal Guard and have them arrest me the minute I show up. The problem is, there's only the one bridge into the city, so whatever she's planning, we can't really go around it. We could try looking for a boat, but sometimes the Guard searches boats coming into Corona City, and if they search me - " He hefts his bag and shrugs wryly.

[powershines]

"I suppose I could wear the crown if it comes to that. The idea being that it's mine."

[hisowninvention]

"Well, that would be one way to do it, yeah. It might even work. Do you want to try a boat, then?"

[powershines]

"Maybe. Is there any other reason to prefer the bridge?"

[hisowninvention]

"There's no guarantee that we could find a boat someone was willing to let us use, and I'm not sure what you'd think of stealing one. And it could take a lot of time and walking to find one. On the positive side, that time would be spent walking away from where she expects us to go. And I guess we're not really in a big hurry anymore."

[powershines]

"I'd rather not steal a boat."

[hisowninvention]

"Somehow I guessed you might say that. But do you want to look for one? To be legitimately borrowed or paid for?"

[powershines]

"Can you afford one?"

[hisowninvention]

"Yeah. Well, there are boats I can afford and boats I can't afford. If we find one of the second kind, we can pass it by or you can put on your crown and ask to be taken to see your parents."

[powershines]

"Do you think random - boat - people - will think that I'm the princess if I suggest it?"

[hisowninvention]

"I think they might, and that even if they don't they might be unsure enough to want to take you into the city and see. There's some risk that they'll just go 'aha, the missing crown' and send us both to be arrested, but - well - we're risking that no matter which way we turn, at this point, unless the way we turn is 'back the way we came and on into Orimere'. And if we get arrested of course I'll say you had nothing to do with stealing the thing, and explain as much of the situation as they'll let me."

[powershines]

"Okay. Let's try a boat."

[hisowninvention]

"All right."

He adjusts their course accordingly, so they won't come out of the forest too close to the bridge.

[powershines]

"Do you know how to - boat?"

[hisowninvention]

"Yes. I learned how after the wheelbarrow incident."

[powershines]

"Ah."

[hisowninvention]

[powershines]

"It'd probably just make it easy for someone who we don't want to find us to find us if I started singing. Or got out my piccolo. Wouldn't it."

[hisowninvention]

"Yes," he says.

[powershines]

"Okay."

Walk walk walk.

[hisowninvention]

Considerable walking, yes.

[alicornucopia]

Slightly more observantness would be required to detect the approach of the next... visitors.

[hisowninvention]

Well, Rolan is paying more than slightly more attention.

"I hear something," he murmurs. "Could be people, could be nothing."

[powershines]

Rapunzel hugs her hair bundle tighter and moves a little closer to him.

[alicornucopia]

Why, look.

It's Rolan's old friends.

They have large blunt weapons and vengeful expressions.

"You can step back from the girl, now," suggests one, "less you want her to get hurt."