Free Sleeping Beauty, the One Who Took the Really Long Nap by Wendy Mass Page B

I saw him hesitate, but I flashed him a wide smile and he hurried to grab a saddle from the shelf. Sometimes being beautiful wasn’t such a bad thing.
    He helped me up, gave me a few pointers, and then tapped the horse gently on the rump. The horse began to head slowly out of the stable and onto the lawn. Very, very slowly. Honestly, I thought I could walk faster than this horse was moving. So I dug my heels in lightly, and he picked up the pace to a slow trot. This was great! I loved seeing my familiar surroundings from a whole different perspective. The gift of gracefulness came in handy, because I was very at ease as I bounced up and down in rhythm to the horse’s movements.
    I was about to enter the woods to take the riding path when I heard shouts coming from behind me. Papa was running toward me, waving his arms. Behind him was Mama, with her long skirts hiked up and her face red, followed by Sara in the rear, who scowled at me. They were all yelling at me to get down, it was too dangerous.
    â€œI am fine, truly,” I called out to them. But they kept getting closer. The horse was starting to get a bit jumpy and was shifting his weight from leg to leg. I wanted to tell them to stop yelling, but it was too late. The horse had enough and took off. I yanked the reins like the stable boy told me, but the horse did not stop. If anything, he went faster. He veered into the woods and began jumping over fallen logs and between trees. It was all I could do to hold on. Before I could duck, a tree branch was directly in front of me. I hit it with my head and was instantly unseated. The fall to the ground seemed to take forever.
    I am sure I fell very gracefully, though.
    As I hit, my vision seemed to turn in upon itself. I saw bits and pieces of my life. The last image I saw was of the old fairy, smiling wickedly and pointing to the hourglass.
    Then all was dark.

“Why did you follow me?” I was furious. Of all people to discover the castle! I should have thought to hide my tracks in the snow. It must have been easy to follow my exact route.
    Percival shrugged. “I had nothing better to do. What are you up to? Seeing who is stronger, you or a bunch of vines?”
    I opened my mouth to reply, but shut it again as I realized he couldn’t see the building! All he saw was a mess of leaves and vines, the same things I saw when I first got here. “Um, yes, you caught me.” I slowly started stepping away from the castle walls and began swinging my ax at the regular bushes. As I had hoped, his eyes followed me. “I am trying to build up my strength,” I continued. “These vines are tough, so they afford an excellent challenge.”
    â€œWhy did you not tell me this back at the castle?” he asked.
    â€œI was embarrassed,” I replied readily. “You are so strong and fit. I did not want you to judge me poorly.” I could not believe the words coming out of my mouth. It was worth it, though, if it would keep him away from here.
    He clasped me on the shoulder. “I see I arrived at your castle not a moment too soon. We shall start an exercise regimen tomorrow morn. We’ll have you fit as a fiddle in no time. Now shall we get back? It is bitter cold.”
    I desperately wanted to stay, but I could see no way without making him more suspicious. I left the tools where they were and reluctantly followed him back to the house. I planned to return the next day.
    It was a full WEEK before Percival let me out of his sight long enough for me to run into the woods. I had begun to suspect that Father may have included watching me as a condition for his stay. Even though Father had not admonished me in years, I knew he did not like it when I disappeared for days or weeks at a time. After all, I was the heir to the kingdom.
    The snow had stopped, and I had hoped the warmer weather might have loosened the vines’ hold. But no. If anything, the vines were tighter. I pounded