The Wide-Awake Princess (8 page)

“I’m sorry,” said Annie, “but I can’t possibly stay with you. It’s urgent that I get to Shimshee as soon as I can. I need to find Prince Digby and bring him back to my kingdom. I’m a princess, and my task is as important to me as yours is to you.”

The bear, who’d begun to look like a man again, shook his slightly less shaggy head. “You’re a princess? I thought you were a boy.”

Annie took off her cap, letting her long hair fall around her face.

“Even so,” said the bear prince, “you don’t look like a princess to me. You look so… ordinary.”

Annie sighed. “I know. Magic doesn’t work on me, remember? That includes all the spells that would have made me beautiful. I’m from Treecrest, and my sister, Gwendolyn—”

“I’ve heard of Princess Gwendolyn. She’s said to be even more beautiful than most princesses.”

“That’s her all right. She’s one of the people I’m trying to help. I’m sorry I can’t make you turn back permanently, but I was wondering if you could do something for me. I helped two children escape from an old woman who I think was a witch. The children are wandering in these woods now, and I haven’t been able to find them. If you come across a boy named Tomas and his little sister, Clara, could you take them to the cottage of that kindly old widow and keep them safe?”

Beldegard’s nostrils flared. “Children shouldn’t be alone in these woods! But don’t you worry. I’ll see if I can find them and when I do I’ll take them to the widow’s cottage. I love children. I can’t wait to have five or six myself.” Taking Annie’s hand with his not-quite paw, the prince pressed a kiss on her palm and said, “Even if you can’t stay with me, I’m glad I was able to feel partly human again, if only for a little while. I’ve been a bear for so long that I was beginning to worry that I might lose touch with my human side.”

“Your Majesty, I want you to slowly and carefully
back away from the monster,” said a voice from behind Annie.

Annie peered toward the direction of the voice but couldn’t see a thing.

“You don’t look like a monster,” Prince Beldegard whispered to her, “so whoever that is must be talking about me.”

“Who is that?” Annie called into the dark. “I’m not in any danger; you needn’t do whatever it is you have planned. This is a prince who’s been turned into a bear.”

“Right, and I’m a tree who’s been turned into a man.”

“Really?” asked Annie. “I’d like to see that.”

“No, not really!”

“This is funny,” said the bear prince, “because she’s a girl who looks like a boy.”

“Your eyesight must have been affected. She doesn’t look anything like a boy. What’s your name, Prince?” the voice asked.

“I’m Beldegard, heir to the throne of Montrose,” called the prince, who was looking more and more like a man every minute. By now his ears had moved down to the side of his head and his teeth were only slightly too big for his mouth.

“A greedy dwarf cast a spell on him,” Annie called, then turned to Beldegard and whispered, “That isn’t the dwarf’s voice, is it?”

The prince shook his head just like a bear might have done. “The dwarf sounds a lot whinier than that.”

“Are you all right, Princess?” said the voice. A figure stepped out of the darkness into a patch of moonlight. Annie could see it was a young man with his cap pulled low over his forehead. Even though he was talking to Annie, he kept his sword pointed unwaveringly at Prince Beldegard.

“Do you know this man?” asked the bear prince.

“I don’t think so,” said Annie, “although his voice is kind of familiar.”

“Don’t worry. I’ll keep you safe. A prince-turned-bear can still have enough honor to protect a fair young maiden, even if you aren’t as beautiful as your sister.”

“Thanks, I think,” Annie said, pulling her hand away.

“That was rude,” the young man said. “You should never tell a young lady that she isn’t as pretty as her sister. Now, about that dwarf... He wouldn’t happen to have a long white beard and a mustache that looks like it’s growing out of his nose, would he? I saw one by the creek back there carrying a leather bag that jingled when he dropped it.”

“That’s him!” roared Prince Beldegard, pushing himself to his feet. “Just let me get my paws on that knobby-headed little...”

Annie didn’t hear the rest of what he planned to do, as his words were lost when he crashed through the underbrush. “So much for keeping me safe,” she muttered, listening to the bear prince’s passage through the forest. Glancing up at the young man, she decided that
she was too stiff and sore to stand. “This has been a very long day and I’m too tired to even think about running. Are you going to whack me with your sword or are you going to put it down?”

“Huh?” said the young man. “Oh, this!” He moved the sword to the side so that it was no longer aiming in Annie’s general direction, then yanked his cap from his head and bowed. “It’s me, Your Majesty. It’s Liam. You do remember me, don’t you?”

FORGETTING ALL THE LESSONS in decorum she had ever received, Annie shrieked, jumped to her feet, and threw herself at Liam. Surprised, the young man staggered and dropped his sword in the dirt.

“I am so happy to see you!” Annie exclaimed, wrapping her arms around him.

“Uh, yes, I’m happy to see you, too.” Liam didn’t seem to know what to do. He stood there, stiff and uncomfortable, looking down at the princess’s face beaming up at him.

It took a moment for Annie to notice just how uncomfortable he looked. Suddenly self-conscious, she let go and took a step back, grateful that it was too dark for him to see the blush reddening her cheeks.

“How did you find me?” she asked, straightening her rumpled clothes.

“I came across your trail in the woods outside the castle.”

“So you came after me?”

Liam nodded. “I have a knack for tracking. I couldn’t just let my princess go wandering around in the woods all by herself.”

“I’m
your
princess now?” Annie asked, a warm feeling starting in the pit of her stomach.

“You became my princess when I took an oath as a royal guard. Nothing can change that,” said Liam. “What happened back there, anyway? I’d gone into town on an errand for Captain Sterling, and by the time I came back a thicket of roses had grown up around the castle. I tried to hack my way through, but it was impossible.”

“It was Gwendolyn’s curse. She touched a spinning wheel even after we were so careful to keep them out.”

“I thought it was something like that. From what I could see, the guards weren’t patrolling the parapets or standing by the gate. I don’t know much about roses, but those were obviously the magical kind. Were you inside when it happened?”

“I was in the room with Gwendolyn and her ladies. Everyone is fine, but unless we can break the curse, they’ll be asleep for a hundred years.”

“You’re still awake because of that whole thing about you and magic, aren’t you? The other guards were talking
about it after you found that witch with the spinning wheel. They said that magic can’t touch you.”

Annie sighed. “No, but it was awful seeing everyone else fall asleep. I didn’t know what to do, so I woke my mother long enough to ask for her advice. I’m on my way to Shimshee to get Prince Digby. He just needs to kiss Gwennie and everyone will wake up.”

“You do realize that you’re nowhere near the road to Shimshee?”

“I was afraid of that. I got lost yesterday and came across a cottage where this horrible woman lived.” Annie yawned, covering her mouth with her hand. She was so tired that her eyes were watering.

“You need to rest,” Liam said. Shrugging out of the straps that held a sack on his back, he pulled out a thin blanket and spread it on the ground.

“There were two children,” Annie murmured as Liam led her to the blanket. “And a rat. The old woman thought it was a dog. And then there were fairies...”

“In the cottage?” asked Liam.

Annie curled up on the blanket and tucked her hands beneath her cheek. “No, in the ring,” she mumbled. “And then they got mad and the bear came …”

“And then what happened?” Liam asked as he settled on the ground with his back against a tree and his sword on his lap.

Annie didn’t answer; she’d fallen asleep, feeling safe
for the first time since her sister had touched the spinning wheel.

When Annie woke the next morning, Liam was sitting with his back against the tree with his eyes closed, a knife in his hand, and the sword balanced on his knees. She sat up and rubbed the grit from her eyes, pleased that he was really there and hadn’t been a dream. Although she hadn’t known Liam for long, he was someone from home and therefore familiar. His presence made Annie feel more secure and a little less worried about her trip to Shimshee.

Moving as quietly as she could so she wouldn’t wake him, she tiptoed away from the blanket, looking for privacy behind some shrubs. She hadn’t gone far when she thought she saw something glinting between the leaves of a river birch. Only a few steps farther and she saw a lake with the early-morning sunlight sparkling on its surface.

After making use of the shrubs, Annie went down to the lake to splash water on her face. She was still bending over the water when the reflection of a horse appeared behind her. Annie sat back on her heels, surprised that she hadn’t heard the animal approach. When the beast pawed the ground, Annie jumped up and backed away. It was a handsome animal with a long, curved neck and a well-shaped head, but its eyes had a fierce look to them,
and she could just make out the faint twanging sound of unfriendly magic.

The horse reached toward her with its head and bumped her on the shoulder. Annie took another step back. The sound had grown louder with the horse’s touch, and Annie knew that it was trying to use its magic to make her do something. “Oh, no you don’t,” Annie said. Her gaze fell on a big stick and she reached for it even as the horse took another step toward her, its ears flicking with interest. Brandishing the stick in front of her, Annie walked away from the lake, careful to keep her eyes on the horse.

When it saw that she was getting away, the horse put its ears back and trotted after her. She dodged out of the way when it opened its mouth and lunged, trying to bite her. In that instant, Annie saw that its teeth weren’t blunt like a horse’s, but sharp and pointed like a carnivore’s.

“You’re not a horse!” Annie exclaimed, wielding the stick. “You’re a kelpie! I’m not going anywhere with you. Get away from me, you nasty beast. You’re not carrying me to your lake to drown me!”

“Annie, is that you?” Liam called from farther in the forest. “Stay right there. I’ll come to you.”

The kelpie’s head swung around at the sound of Liam’s voice. Afraid that the beast would try to go after the young guard, Annie shouted and ran at it with the stick. The kelpie reared and struck out with its forelegs so that she had to back away, then galloped past her, moving
between the trees as easily as if on an open road. Annie chased after it, dodging branches and roots. By the time she got there, the kelpie was already facing Liam.

“Don’t!” Annie cried as Liam reached a hand toward the kelpie.

Before she could get closer, the animal knelt beside the young man. In one smooth movement, Liam vaulted onto the kelpie’s back.

“Liam, no!” Annie shouted, still running toward him.

Liam grinned and offered her his hand. “Come here, Annie, I’ll help you up. I have a ride for us. We’ll get to Shimshee in no time now.”

“Get off, Liam!” Annie shouted as the animal wheeled around and started back toward the lake. “It’s not a horse. It’s a kelpie!”

Startled, Liam looked like he was trying to dismount, but before he could swing his leg over the kelpie’s side, the beast began to gallop. Annie started to run after them and tripped over something on the ground. Liam’s pack was lying where he’d left it, along with his sword and knife. He was defenseless, and unless she did something fast, he was going to drown.

Ignoring the lash of the twigs on her face, Annie followed the kelpie to the lake. She ran as fast as she could, but the kelpie had already entered the lake when she arrived. Galloping through the shallow water, it began swimming once the water reached its chest. Annie could see that Liam was still struggling to get off. The kelpie’s
magic was holding him on, however, and both man and beast had begun to sink beneath the surface.