Princess in Disguise Read Free Page B

for yourself. They’re in here.”
    Annie led the way into the room, stopping so suddenly that the maid bumped into her from behind. The two princesses were seated in chairs in front of the window, gazing at each other in bewilderment. They had rashes, but they weren’t like any that Annie had ever seen before. Bright green splotches moved across their faces, drifting from chin to cheek to forehead and back again, making one pattern after another.
    â€œCreeping rashes?” Annie murmured out loud.
    â€œIs that what they’re called?” asked Snow White. “Then you’ve seen them before?”
    Annie shook her head. “No. Never. But they have to have been magically induced. Nothing that looks likethat could be natural. Just a moment and we’ll know for sure.” Annie approached her friends with her hand outstretched. At her touch, the rash disappeared from Snow White’s fair skin, reappearing when Annie took her hand away. “It’s magic all right. Aside from holding your hands, there’s nothing I can do about it.”
    â€œHas anyone seen Annie?” Liam asked as he stuck his head in the still-open door. “I just … Oh, there you are. You’re needed in the great hall. Something about the rushes and the flowers. Say, what happened to you two?”
    Liam was staring at the two princesses when they both burst into tears. Annie sighed and hustled her groom out the door, closing it firmly behind her. “What is this about the rushes and the flowers? Are the rushes moldy? Are the flowers wilting already?”
    â€œNothing like that,” Liam said, following her down the corridor. “They look fine, and you don’t notice that they aren’t at first. It’s just that they seem to be infested.”
    â€œWith what? Aphids?” asked Annie.
    â€œNothing so ordinary,” Liam said.
    Annie began to hurry. This day was going from bad to worse and she dreaded finding out what was next. She was hurrying down the spiral staircase closest to Eleanor’s room when she passed an arrow slit and glanced outside. Lightning flashed near the north tower, a jagged streak of brilliant blue that left amatching streak behind her eyelids when she blinked. She stumbled and nearly fell, but Liam reached out and caught her. After that, she ran down the stairs without looking outside again.
    The voices near the great hall were so loud that Annie heard them long before she and Liam reached it. They had to push past the people standing in the doorway to see what everyone was talking about. Even then, Annie didn’t see anything wrong at first. The rushes on the floor were fresh and fragrant. The flowers filling the bowls and vases looked just-picked and smelled wonderful. It wasn’t until she bent down to examine the rushes that she saw that they were crawling with ladybugs. The peach-colored roses on the closest table were exquisite, until the petals shivered, revealing one big, fat bumblebee after another.
    â€œThose bugs weren’t there when we put down the rushes, Your Highness,” a young maid said, her lip quivering. “I swear it!”
    â€œI’m sure you’re right,” said Annie. “No one blames you at all.”
    When she heard the sound of laughing, Annie stepped into the great hall to see who was there. It was Squidge running across the floor, kicking at the rushes. The moment he spotted Annie, he dashed down the hall with clouds of ladybugs flying up around him.
    â€œThis is great!” said the sprite when he reached Annie. “Your wedding guests will have fun with this.”He kicked at the rushes again. Ladybugs flew everywhere, landing on the hem of Annie’s skirt, Liam’s boots, and the table pushed up against the wall. The people in the doorway behind them moved back as if ladybugs were dangerous.
    â€œDon’t be foolish,” Annie scolded them. “Ladybugs can’t hurt