A Hairy Tale

“Wolf, why don’t you ask Rapunzel our question?” I suggested loudly. But he didn’t hear me. It had just dawned on him that Rapunzel might be a princess. Why else the fancy holding cell? She was probably waiting for a dragon or white knight or something. “We need to find a name,” I sighed. “The name of a Manikin who goes by ‘R.’ Perhaps-” Before I could finish, Wolf snapped to. “You’re so pretty!” He blurted stupidly. “Why are you here? Why aren’t you in a castle somewhere?” I turned to him, sputtering in rage. “Not now, Wolf!” Rapunzel smiled wearily, as if she had been waiting for that question since we arrived. My head began to pound. Not another story. “We really don’t have time for this.” But I was outnumbered. “When I was born, I was given to a witch as payment for some deal my Mother and Father made before I was conceived. She was a kind mother at first. She gave me lessons on proper etiquette and sent me out to visit neighboring kingdoms so I might play with other children. But as I got older, the lessons and visits became less and less frequent. She became paranoid, always insisting I be back at a certain hour and not eat particular things while I was away. She wouldn’t even allow me to trim my hair! When I turned twelve, she locked me in this tower. She said it would be ‘safer’ for me. She visited each afternoon for tea and gossip, always using my long hair as her rope. It went on like that for years.” “One day a prince passed right beneath my window. He sang so brilliantly, I couldn’t help but call to him before he left my sight forever. Thus began our love affair. He visited me for a year, plotting ways to get me out. I should have known that eventually the witch would discover us. She came to me one morning, a sharpened knife in hand. I thought for sure she was going to murder me. But instead, she chopped off my hair.” Wolf and I stared at Rapunzel’s long braid in confusion. Despite my objection, even I had become interested in the tale. “But-” Wolf frowned. It didn’t dawn on Rapunzel what was vexing us. “You didn’t leave?” Wolf finally asked her. “Oh, I left! I even married that prince.” “Then why are you still here?” Rapunzel laughed. “Are you kidding me? This is the life! I realized four years after we married that I wasn’t suited for court living. How dull, always having to keep up appearances. Besides, the prince found he didn’t really love me after all. I think it was the chase that interested him. Then there were the twins-” “Did you say ‘twins?’” I blurted. “I left them with the royal nurse. Babies. Bah! Rotten little things. I thought they’d be better off. Then their no-good father gambled off his rights as king and got himself kicked out of the kingdom. The last I heard, he was living in some hovel in the woods with my brats and his new wife.” I stared at her, stunned. She took my silence as a cue to continue talking. “So what’s with the bubble? Is it the new fashion in wherever-you’re-from? It looks uncomfortable. How do you…? You know.” I blushed, stuttering over an answer. Wolf saved me from further embarrassment. I appreciated it, even if it wasn’t done out of kindness. “I’m a prince,” He announced proudly, puffing out his chest. Melchoir laughed from the corner. “Oh?” Rapunzel looked down her nose at him. “How… interesting.” I could see no one believed him. “I’ve heard the spell can be broken with a kiss from a princess.” He dragged the last “S” out like a hiss, his smile all teeth. Rapunzel tapped one pearly nail against the edge of her cup. “I’m flattered, really. Even if you are a bit delusional.” She slurped her tea. “I’m not what you’re looking for, honey. I’m not interested and I’m certainly no princess. At one time I was a Queen. Now I’m just a maid in a tower. I’d like to keep it that way. But I hope you find what you’re looking for.” Wolf’s shoulders hunched. “I see,” he murmured. I decided to save him the humiliation. “As fascinating as your story was, that’s not what we came here for. We need to know the real name of the Manikin R.” Rapunzel shrugged her shoulders. “How should I know?” My heart sank. “But I’ll tell you who does.” I resisted the urge to let out a whoop. “You can find her here.” Rapunzel leaned over to trace a map on the floor in the dust. “When I was young and still allowed to play within the court, there was a greedy little prince by the name of Anabar who came to power. About the time that I was imprisoned here, Anabar called upon a local miller about some taxation issues. The miller, trying to sound more important than he really was, spun a tale for the King that his daughter possessed a unique magical power. Anabar demanded to see this girl for himself. You see, the miller had told the King that she could spin straw into gold. Of course it wasn’t true. Whoever heard of superpower like that? So the girl was brought to the castle where she was locked in a room with a spinning wheel and a deadline of twenty-four hours. This is where your Manikin comes into play.” “He visited the girl and made a bargain to help her. At first the price was her jewelry. But on the third calling, once she’d run out of things to trade, his request was for her first born child. Cornered, the miller’s daughter agreed. One year later, after Anabar had married the girl, R came back to collect his payment. Of course by then, the Queen had forgotten all about her deal with the Manikin. She threw a fit and R was forced to give her a second chance. ‘I’ll give you three days to guess my name.’ He proclaimed. Then he left.” “Gee, that sounds familiar.” I grumbled to Wolf. To Rapunzel I said, “Did she figured it out?” Rapunzel nodded. “She did, although I don’t know how. You’ll have to ask her about the rest yourself.” I looked down at the map. “How far away from your tower is this town?” “It’s below my tower.” “Below? But, how are we going to get there?” “Hair extensions!” She proclaimed. Wolf blinked slowly. To emphasize her point, Rapunzel walked over to a large trunk on the floor. “You don’t honestly think I just let my hair grow out to any ol’ length, do you? Why, there’d be hair everywhere! I think that witch enchanted it to grow faster than normal. I have to trim it every six days.” From the trunk she pulled out rope after rope of blond hair. “Let me just weave this in and you’ll be out of here in no time.” I turned to Wolf, who still looked rather stunned. “Did you ever imagine?” I whispered. “Never in a million years.”