Once Upon a Curse (7 page)

"It's in my hair!" screamed a voice so close it hurt my ears.

I struggled to free myself until someone started slapping me. Covering my head with my wings, I shut my eyes, curled up into a tight little ball and tried to think of a way out of the mess I was in without using something as conspicuous as magic. If only the woman would stop screaming!

"Got it!" said a triumphant male voice as a hand closed around me, pulling me out of the woman's hair.

My eyes popped open. The florid face of a young man with light brown hair was staring down at me. "Watch this," he said to someone behind him. "I can kill it with one hand!"

My response was automatic, but even if I'd thought about it, I probably would have done the same thing. I bit him squarely on the thumb.

"Aargh!" he shouted, and I was free.

I didn't think I'd bitten him hard enough to do any real damage, although I checked my teeth with my tongue just to make sure. The aftertaste was awful.

Eadric had been trying to reach me, but another young man was chasing him, struggling to trap him in a woven basket. When Eadric saw me, he changed direction and followed me to the window where Li'l was waiting for us on the ledge. Before I followed her into the sunshine, I stopped to look back and was surprised to see that everyone had fled the room.
So much for being
inconspicuous,
I thought.

Seven

D
id you have to fool around like that?" asked Li'l. "I thought you were right behind me."

"We were, but those people had other ideas. We need to go outside and.... Oh!" Eadric's jaw dropped as he stared past us out the window.

Even during my short excursion through the castle, I had noticed differences from the way it was in my time. The furniture was sparse, the people's clothing simpler. However, the biggest difference was outside. Unlike our time when flowers were forbidden on the castle grounds, I saw them blooming everywhere. I recognized the roses climbing the walls and growing in massive hedges, having seen the rose-covered cottages at the Old Witches' Retirement Community, but I didn't know the names of most of the rest.

Vines dripping with purple blooms covered the castle. Dark blue flowers nodded at the edge of the moat while small yellow flowers and broad, green pads floated on the water. Trees heavy with pink-and-white blossoms stood like rows of soldiers waiting to be inspected on either side of the road leading away from the drawbridge. Although I didn't know much about such things, it seemed odd that so many plants should bloom at the same time.

"Why would anyone plant flowers around the castle?" asked Eadric. "They make it harder to defend."

I tapped him on the wing and pointed to the other side of the road where hedges of deep pink roses grew in an intricate maze. "That will be perfect," I said, hopping off the ledge.

Li'l and Eadric followed me as I flew to the maze, dodging droning bees and butterflies intoxicated with nectar. "Perfect for what?" Eadric asked.

"For turning back, of course."

"Already?" asked Li'l. "But we were just starting to have fun!"

When we passed the drawbridge, I was shocked to see that vines twined around the chains and threaded through the portcullis. Eadric must have seen it, too, because his wings faltered, and I heard him mutter to himself.

Reaching the maze, we skimmed the rosebushes until I found a secluded niche invisible even to someone looking down from the higher tower. I settled to the ground and used my usual spell to turn us back into humans. No sooner had I smoothed my gown over my hips and adjusted my hem, than I heard voices coming through the maze of shrubs. Eadric heard them, too, and set his hand on Ferdy's hilt, but I shook my head and he took his hand away.

"Why does Millie need a new gown, Mother? It isn't her birthday," someone whined.

Startled, Li'l slipped into a dense section of the hedge where even I couldn't see her.

"I'm sorry, my darling Hazel," a sweet voice replied, "but you want her to look her best for your party, don't you? We wouldn't want her to embarrass you in front of your guests."

"Really, Mother," said a softer voice. "I don't need another gown."

"Nonsense," said Hazel. "Mother is right. You'll get a new gown, but it won't be nearly as nice as mine. Will it, Mother?"

"Of course not, dear. You are the birthday girl, after all."

"And don't forget, Millie," said Hazel as they rounded the hedge, "stay out of my way when ... goodness, who are you?" she asked, spotting us for the first time.

Hazel was lovely, but not what I'd expected. She looked like a flower herself, with her porcelain skin, pink cheeks and delicate features. Her thick blond hair reminded me of my mother's. Her lips were the same deep pink as the roses and her eyes a deeper blue than the sky. She didn't look anything like the Green Witch in the tapestry decorating my chamber at home.

The older woman who walked beside Hazel wore a simple gold circlet to secure the veil covering her hair. Shorter than Hazel, she was plump and had worry lines etching her forehead. Her eyes were green, although not as dark as mine, and I could see our family resemblance. However, the face that really surprised me was that of the young girl peeking from behind her shoulder. Except for her dainty, freckled nose and the carrot-red shade of her hair, which was much brighter than my auburn, I might have been looking in a mirror.

"I said, 'Who are you?'" Hazel repeated.

I curtsied and said, "Emma." I wasn't really sure how I should explain my presence since I'd never intended to meet the royal family. I had hoped to talk to one or two people about the curse and leave.

"You must be one of Aunt Frederika's daughters," said Hazel. "There are so many of you; it's hard to keep track."

"Are you settled in, dear?" asked the queen, smiling at me kindly.

"Not really," I said. "I just—"

The queen frowned and shook her head. "Don't tell me that my steward didn't assign you to a room. I'm so sorry. With all our guests, we simply don't.... I know. Millie," she said, turning to the girl behind her, "you have ample space in your chamber. Your cousin can sleep there. I'll have the steward see that a pallet is brought up before supper."

The redheaded girl behind her smiled shyly at me and nodded.

The queen turned to Eadric, who'd been staring at Hazel with obvious admiration. "And you are . . . ?"

Eadric blinked and cleared his throat. "I'm Prince Eadric, a friend of Emma's."

Hazel smiled at him coyly. "Another prince? How nice. Do you come from very far away?"

"Farther than you can imagine," he said. I could have sworn I heard Li'l giggling in the bushes behind us, but no one else seemed to notice.

"Ah," said Hazel. "That explains your unusual clothes. Perhaps one of the other princes could lend you something more becoming. You can share a room with them. We'll have to find a way to fit in one more pallet." She looked me up and down, her eyes lingering on my gown. "Send a tunic and surcoat for her, Mother. That
thing
she's wearing is most peculiar. One of your ladies-in-waiting should have something that would fit her."

"I'm sure we can find her something—-" the queen began.

"She is tall, though, isn't she?" Hazel said, brushing past me on the path. "And I can't imagine where she got that nose."

"We mustn't be unkind to those less fortunate, dear," I heard the queen say as she hurried after her daughter. I could feel the heat rushing to my cheeks, and I knew that I was blushing—something I hadn't done in a very long time. When I glanced at Eadric, he was staring after Hazel with a dazed look in his eyes.

"Don't pay any attention to her," said Millie, patting my shoulder. "My sister is like that with everyone."

"Your sister?" No one had told me that Hazel had a sister, older or younger. It was a shame that so much of our family's history had been lost.

Millie sighed. "I just turned thirteen, so she's only three years older than me, but she acts twenty years older. Come with me. I'll show you where you're going to sleep. I'll have one of the pages take Eadric to meet the princes."

"How many princes are there?" Eadric asked.

"Five," said Millie. "That room is going to be crowded."

I glanced around, hoping to see Li'l, but she must have still been hiding in the bushes. I resolved to come back and find her as soon as I could. "It's awfully kind of you to let me stay in your room," I said, following Millie through the confusing maze.

"Oh, I don't mind," she said. "I'm surprised they didn't put someone in with me sooner. Mother tends to forget about me, and as for Hazel—well, sometimes I wish she would as well. I shouldn't complain, though. You come from a big family. I suppose it's even worse for you."

"Big family? I don't...." I stopped, remembering that I was supposed to have a whole gaggle of sisters. If my long-ago relatives wanted to believe that I was one of Aunt Frederika's daughters, I wasn't about to try to change their minds.

"The drawbridge is this way," said Millie, leading us between two banks of heavy-headed roses that looked exactly like all the others we'd passed. We had left the maze and were passing the first of the flowering trees when Millie exclaimed, "Oh, look, there are your sisters now!"

Any hope of passing myself off as one of the cousins died the moment I saw them. A cluster of six or seven girls—ranging from a few years older than me to a toddler clinging to her mother's hand—turned to look at us. Like their mother, each one was petite and finely boned; even the oldest girl was fairly short. Although their mother's hair was dark brown, all of the girls' hair was red, but none of them had my high cheekbones or distinctive nose. I wasn't sure what to do, so I waggled my fingers at them in greeting and hurried past, spurred on by their puzzled expressions.

True to her word, Millie called to the first page she saw and had him escort Eadric to the princes' chamber. After that, Millie didn't say another word until we reached her room. Closing her door behind us, she plunked herself down on her narrow bed and turned to me with a determined look in her eyes. "We need to talk," she said, patting the blanket beside her.

I climbed onto the bed. "If it's about Frederika—"

"Don't worry," Millie said. "I understand perfectly. You aren't really one of her daughters, are you? I didn't think you were."

I searched her eyes, hoping she would understand. "When Hazel said—"

"Hazel is wrong more often than she's right, but you'd never get anyone else to admit it." Millie drew her knees up to her chest and hugged them. "You can tell me the truth. I'm very good at keeping secrets."

I shook my head. "You wouldn't believe me if I told you."

"It doesn't matter. I think I already know. Aunt Frederika isn't your mother, but I bet Uncle Markus is your father, and he made his wife take you in and raise you as one of her own. She resents it, doesn't she? The look on her face said it all. Don't worry; it happens in the best of families. I'm right, aren't I?" Millie said, looking very pleased with herself.

"You're too clever for me," I said, delighted that she'd found her own explanation.

Millie sighed. "Not really. It's just that every family has secrets. Some are easier to figure out than others."

"Don't tell me that you have a secret, too."

Millie turned her head away. Something was troubling her, but I couldn't blame her if she didn't want to tell me about it. After all, we'd only just met. I was about to apologize for being nosy when there was a knock on the door and a pair of chambermaids came in carrying a pallet and an armful of clothes. It didn't take them long to arrange everything to their satisfaction. They were leaving when one of them glanced at my shoes and frowned. As the door was closing, I heard her say to her companion, "Did you see that girl's shoes? They looked like a dog chewed them."

I tucked my feet under me, hoping Millie hadn't heard her. My shoes were scuffed and dirty from tripping in the dungeon, but I didn't think they looked chewed. Certainly none of my father's hounds could have done it, and as for King Grunwald's.... When I thought about it, I hadn't seen a single hound since I'd arrived, although they always seemed to be underfoot in my own time.

"Don't your parents allow dogs in the castle?" I asked.

Millie shook her head. "Not anymore. It's not my parents' idea, though; it's Hazel's. She doesn't like dogs. I suppose she's afraid they'll dig up her precious plants."

"She does have a lot of influence, doesn't she?" I said. I didn't know anyone who could make my father get rid of his favorite hounds.

"Hazel usually gets what she wants. It wasn't always that way, just since she discovered that she could do magic. My parents are afraid of her now, and they do everything they can to make her happy."

I was shocked. The only people in my family who had tried to use magic against a relative had been under the influence of the family curse. The thought that someone might
want
to do it.... "Has she ever used her magic to hurt anyone?"

"Not so far, but she's always dropping hints that she could if she wanted to. Even the threat of withholding her magic is enough to get people to do what she wants. Before she came into her abilities, the kingdom's crops were failing. Hazel turned all that around. I just wish she'd left it at that."

"Then she hasn't actually done anything to anyone?"

"I wouldn't say that. After she figured out that she could do magic, she experimented all the time, and she wasn't always nice about it. She used to have vines tie me up just for fun. Sometimes she'd grow prickly plants on my chamber floor during the night so I'd step on them when I woke up in the morning. She doesn't bother me so much since I learned to stay out of her way and let her think she's getting what she wants."

"But she doesn't always get what she wants, does she?" I asked, seeing a hint of defiance and something I couldn't quite name in Millie's eyes.

"No," she said, a secret smile curving her lips. "Not anymore."

"Doesn't she use her magic for anything productive besides growing crops? What about protecting the kingdom or helping your parents?"

"If only she would! Everyone likes to pretend otherwise, but Greater Greensward is in trouble. Werewolves have been raiding the outlying villages, and I overheard my father talking to his men about vampires. What's even worse is that a dragon has moved into a cave near here. Father sent knights after it, but we never saw them again. He finally stopped sending people, although I know he's been hoping one of Hazel's suitors will kill the dragon for us. It's not going to happen, though. All they want to do is eat our food, drink our wine and flirt with Hazel. Although there is one suitor...."