Free Princess in Disguise by E. D. Baker

him under control and they sped along the edge of the path, kicking up clods of dirt and mowing down wilddaisies and buttercups. When Otis finally slowed to a walk, Liam patted his neck and praised him.
    â€œYou know,” said Liam, “Otis isn’t just a cart horse. I think he was once a gentleman’s horse. He has a lot of heart and is very well mannered.”
    â€œAnd he can gallop with the best of them,” Annie said, slightly breathless herself. “Look, there are the minotaurs. And there’s someone on this side of the fence. Maybe he’ll know something about Moonbeam!”
    Otis seemed to be too tired to notice the minotaurs, and plodded toward the man with little urging. Liam called out “Hello!” as they approached him.
    The man looked up from scratching the nose of an adolescent minotaur and glanced at Annie and Liam. He nodded at them before turning his attention back to the young half man, half bull.
    Annie tried to ignore the man’s rudeness. “We were hoping to ask you a question.”
    â€œI figured there was a reason you stopped,” said the man. “Don’t get many strangers out this way. What do you want to know? Yes, they are minotaurs. And no, you can’t pet them. Big Daddy back there would be happy to gore anyone who touched one of his youngsters, except me, of course.”
    Annie looked toward the trees where most of the herd was resting. The big male minotaur was watching them and she remembered how agitated he had become the last time they approached his fence.
    â€œWhy do you have minotaurs?” Liam asked. “What do you raise them for?”
    â€œPeople like to have them guard their labyrinths,” said the farmer. “You’d be surprised how many people have labyrinths these days.”
    â€œWe didn’t really stop to ask about your minotaurs,” said Annie, “although they are very interesting. We were hoping you could tell us how we could find the fairy Moonbeam. She isn’t in the Moonflower Glade and we don’t know where to look next.”
    â€œNow, I don’t know the answer to that one. I’ve never had much to do with Moonbeam. She keeps to her side of Rainbow Creek and I keep to mine. The one you should ask is Footrot. He takes care of the glade when she isn’t around. I expect she tells him where she’s going and when she’s going—if she tells anyone, that is.”
    â€œAnd where could we find this Footrot?” asked Liam.
    â€œIf he isn’t in the glade, he’s probably in Gruntly Village. Spends most of his free time in the tavern.”
    â€œWhich tavern would that be?” asked Liam. “I seem to recall that there are two, both with birds on the signs.”
    â€œThen it would have to be one or t’other, now wouldn’t it?” the farmer said, looking at Liam as if he weren’t too bright. When the farmer turned back to the young minotaur, Annie and Liam knew that they’d been dismissed.
    Within minutes of leaving the farmer, Annie and Liam rode into Gruntly Village. It was much as Annie remembered it, with tall buildings, strange angles, and windows in odd places. There were two taverns—one at either end of the only street. The first tavern had a sign that bore the picture of a duck lying on its back with “X”s over its eyes and the words THE DEAD DUCK underneath. Annie and Liam were about to dismount to go inside when they noticed a small sign nailed to the door. CLOZED FOR REPARES, read the sign in thick black letters. Battered and dirty, it looked as if it had been reused more than once.
    â€œAt least we won’t have to look for Footrot in both taverns,” Annie said as they continued on.
    When they saw that the other tavern was open, they slipped off Otis’s back and tied him to a post. The horse pinned his ears back and lifted his leg as if to kick the ogre walking toward them. Seeing this, the