Apples and Princesses (The Tales and Princesses Series Book 2) Page 4

  I nodded but still wasn’t sure if I was ready to take on the challenge. My nerves started making me feel sick, but then I thought of the hospitality the boys had been showing me for the last while. Soon my nervousness was replaced with determination to be good at what the boys had taught me. I wanted to prove myself.

  My eyes found a young woman, most likely of noble blood, walking among the booths showcasing expensive jewelry. She was careful not to stand near anyone of lower rank and turned her nose up in the air at anyone who came closer than a foot. I smiled. Taking a long string out of my pocket, I tied my long hair back out of the way, then moved in the woman’s direction.

  As I came closer, I began to pretend an interest in a small pair of earrings a vendor was selling at the booth next to where the woman was shopping.

  “How much?” I asked the seller.

  The pudgy man folded his tattooed arms and looked me up and down in disgust.

  “Not for you,” he huffed.

  I chuckled on the inside. These people knew dirt poor when they saw it. I pretended offense and tried to move away quickly, purposely bumping into my target.

  “How dare you— you cretin!” she cried, clutching at her chest. She stank strongly of perfumes and face powder.

  “I’m so sorry, m’lady!” I reached my arm out to stabilize her but really slunk my hand down into the large side purse at her hip.

  “Don’t touch me!”

  Her shrill voice made my ears ring, and I watched as she trotted away in a fury. I grinned, fingering the coins I stole from her in one hand, and the earrings from the vendor who had rudely turned me away in the other. I shoved them in my pockets before anyone could see.

  I found myself giggling as I walked back towards Arnold. I was surprised, but stealing gave me a sense of thrill that I grew rather fond of— a feeling that I never felt until I gave my father that pie. The sense of danger and the burst of adrenaline put a grin on my face and made my heart pound at speeds that excited me.

  Before I moved to head back to Arnold, I heard two young girls, neither much older than twelve, giggling not two feet away from me. Each had blue, silk ribbons tied into their hair, and they wore bright pink dresses of expensive make. They were most likely daughters of a lord, or count, and their nearly matching clothes helped me deduce that the two were sisters.

  The girls were saying something about the Queen and a ball to celebrate her coronation.

  Queen Margaret? Wasn’t she crowned Queen before I was even born? I thought.

  I inched closer to eavesdrop on their conversation, pretending to look at some books on display at the stand next to them.

  “Mother told me that Queen Dalia is quite the beauty,” the elder, taller one said.

  Her sister’s eyes widened. “Oh, I wish children were invited to her coronation ball!”

  My thoughts were spinning. Queen Dalia? How much had I missed? What happened to King Rory and Queen Margaret? I was always under the impression that our monarchs were good people that ruled fairly and justly. At least, that’s what I told myself since I never had much opportunity to learn of the politics and the various happenings within Edristan. But how would Queen Dalia be as a ruler? Wasn’t she only eighteen?

  I tucked the thought away and continued on my path back to Arnold. But then, directly in front of me, I saw a tall man carrying an open satchel at his side. It was calling to me. Just grab something and get away quickly was all I needed to do.

  I moved with the flow of the congested crowd and slid my hand into the bag, making sure the man's face was turned in the opposite direction. I gripped something cold and was about to scamper away when he grabbed my wrist and yanked me around to stand in front of him.

  “What do you think you’re— Snow?”

  I gasped, yanking my arm out of Nick’s grip.

  “You’re— you’re still here?” I stammered. The shock at seeing him froze me in place.

  “More like you’re still here! I’ve been looking everywhere for you! I was worried someone kidnapped you and threw your body into a river, or something!”

  It took me a moment to find words, but after processing what he said, I found it hard to appreciate the sentiment.

  “I’m fine,” I said. “Why do you care, anyway? We hardly know each other.” I didn’t believe in his concern. If he really had been looking everywhere for me, we were bound to have found one another before the boys took me in.

  He set his jaw. “I don’t like bad things happening to people. After a couple days of searching, I had to leave to hunt for more food, but I’ve kept coming back.” The look he gave me was intense. “You were just a helpless girl I found in the woods, and I felt responsible for you.”

  Ignoring his words, I turned on my heel and continued towards Arnold, who still stood in the corner, mouthing the words, “Come on!”

  Nick followed me, noticing who I was headed towards.

  “Who’s that?” he demanded.

  “A friend! Really, Nick. I can take care of myself.”

  He continued to follow me as I continued to shoot back glances at him, eyes narrowed, but he was unfazed by it. He seemed curious and determined to see what I was up to. I found it annoying. We had only known each other for a few days. It wasn’t like we were even remotely friends. He had helped me when I needed it, but I had barely thought of him since I ran off.

  “Snow,” Arnold said as I approached, “why is this guy following you?”

  Nick stepped up to the much smaller boy and puffed out his chest. “I’m a friend of Snow’s. Just wanted to make sure she’s okay.”

  Arnold didn’t even flinch, giving Nick a smug look. “Don’t worry, she’s safe with us. We’ve been helping her.”

  Nick barked out a laugh. “What can a little boy like you do to help her?”

  Arnold pushed Nick out of his face, wiping the bits of spittle that had been spat on him during Nick’s remarks. “My brothers and I have our ways.”

  Nick folded his arms, trying to process the boy’s words. I sighed heavily, getting frustrated by the wasted time.

  “Really, boys,” I said. “Nick, I am capable of making my own decisions. And Arnold, don’t we have somewhere to be?”

  I grabbed Arnold’s scrawny arm in my hand and pulled him away from the busy market. Nick didn’t try to stop me, but I felt his sea-green eyes burning into my back as we sailed away through the crowd.

  “I thought you were from ‘far away,’” Arnold said, breaking the silence. “How do you know someone in Bothar?”

  “I met him on my travels,” I said, dropping his arm.

  “Are you guys… close?” Was that a hint of jealousy I heard in his voice? Couldn’t be… I was three years his senior.

  I shrugged. “We barely know each other. I think he just feels a little protective of me.”

  We walked in silence again, moving further and further away from the most congested parts of town. I found myself scanning the area more than I had before. The stonework of the streets and walls were old. Even the paint on the buildings scattered around us was peeling off. But the place was huge. Nothing in my wildest imaginations could have pictured the outside world having so… much. And I hadn’t even seen a fraction of it!

  I glanced at Arnold. His round face was angled away from me, probably studying the various passersby for possible pickpocketing opportunities. What was it with him and his six brothers? What was their story? Arnold seemed to have taken on a fatherly role, acting much older than his actual age, and the others were able to hold their own pretty well, too.

  “Arnold?”

  He looked up at me. “Yeah?”

  “What happened to you and your brothers?”

  His face went dark, and my curiosity peaked. They had obviously been through more than most boys of their ages.

  “I don’t see why you have to know,” he said, keeping his eyes on our path. The sun was already setting, so he sped up his pace, most likely wanting to get home before dark.


  I shrugged, matching his strides easily, for my legs were much longer. “I don’t. Just want to know. You’ve gotta admit it’s pretty weird to find seven orphan boys living in a secret hideaway and stealing to survive.”

  “Hush!” Arnold darted his eyes about nervously, then wrenched my shoulder nearly out of its socket as he pulled me into a dark corner at his right, far from any people.

  “There’s a reason we’re in hiding,” he hissed.

  “And what’s the reason?”

  He rubbed his face with his hands, inner turmoil in his expression. What was so secret that he didn’t want to tell me?

  “Fine,” he finally said. He lowered his voice even more than before. “Have you ever heard of the dwarf race in the Lurid Kingdom? Very far west of here.”

  I found myself laughing. “Dwarves are just a myth.”

  Arnold’s face turned red, and he seemed offended by my words. “Something most people have come to learn about this world, Snow, is that things aren’t usually myths.”

  I thought back to the witch Bavmorda, and the apple that poisoned my father. A lot of things about her had seemed somewhat mythical. If magic was real, why not dwarves?

  “Okay,” I said. “What does your history have to do with the dwarf race in Lurid?”

  Arnold continued to scan the area for any listeners.

  “There’s no one near us,” I snapped.

  “If anyone hears what I'm about to tell you, my brothers and I will be in serious danger.”

  The severity in his tone shocked me. I nodded, eager to hear what he had to say next.

  “My mother was a noble in the Lurid Kingdom, but she was cast out after falling in love with a dwarf, my father. They ran away together to Edristan and started a family.”

  I guffawed. “What? How does that even work? He had to have been at least two feet shorter than your mother.”

  He gritted his teeth and clenched his fists. “So?”

  I thought of the unusual shortness of the seven boys as I looked down at the top of Arnold’s head.

  “But that doesn’t explain why you’re in hiding.”

  Arnold cleared his throat, wringing his hands together. “People don’t take kindly to those who are different. My father was ridiculed by the people of Edristan, not to mention my mother was persecuted for marrying a dwarf. We moved around a lot until Father found the secret home in the alleyway, previously inhabited by thieves. But one day, when picking up some food, Mother and Father were caught up by a mob about three years ago, and—” His voice broke as he tried to hold back tears.

  The image of Arnold’s parents’ deaths by an angry mob turned my stomach upside down. Those poor boys. Then realization struck me like a chord.

  “If people learn of yours and your brothers’ parentage,” I said, “ the same might happen to you.”

  Arnold nodded, shifting his teary eyes away from mine. “People don’t like anything or anyone different.” He wiped at his eyes and straightened his back. “One day, we’re going to get enough money and pay for passage out of here.”

  “Where would you go?” I asked.

  “Where do you think? The dwarves are our best bet for acceptance and…” He paused for a long time. “And for family.”

  I put my arms down at my sides, twitching as I tried to decide if I should rest a hand on his shoulder in comfort. I wasn’t very good at those types of things. And then I had an idea. Maybe I could help Arnold and his brothers.

  “Arnold,” I said, “what do you know about royal balls?”

  Chapter 9

  “Larry, pass the potatoes!”

  “I’m still getting some, Marv!”

  “You already filled half your plate with some! I need to eat, too! Jacob, you’re close to him. Flick his ear, will ya, and pass the stupid potatoes?”

  I was starting to get used to the noise. Surrounding me on every side were the boys as we sat for dinner late that night. Arnold sat at the head, yelling at one brother after another not to throw food around the room. Ben, the next eldest, shoveled his juicy chicken into his mouth without ever coming up for air. I quickly learned in those few days why he was chubbier than the others. Larry, scrawny in comparison to Ben, especially noticeable as he sat next to him, pulled the glass dish of mashed potatoes to his chest.

  “If you want the potatoes so bad, go ahead and take them from me,” Larry teased.

  Marv leapt from his old, wooden chair, nearly throwing it to the floor, and tackled Larry. Jacob leaned to the right in his own chair, avoiding the fight as he continued reading the thick book in his hands.

  “Hey!” the twins Paul and Phil shouted. “You’re getting potatoes on our knives!” The twins had brought their impressive collection of sharp knives to the table, cleaning them with great love and care.

  I sighed, carefully reaching my hand to the middle of the table to grab a cob of corn. The table wobbled under my arm, precariously standing on its uneven legs. It was a table that had seen many rough days. Scratches and gouges were all along the wood, but that wasn't surprising considering the group of people that ate around it every day.

  “Larry, Marv! Sit down, or I will smack you silly!” Arnold said, threateningly pointing a drumstick at his wrestling brothers.

  No, the noise didn’t bother me so much, but as I looked to the kitchen area and beheld the mess of dishes and food covering the walls and floor, that’s what bothered me. I was used to order and cleanliness, having been forced to attain such things all my life, but my roommates probably didn’t even know what “clean” meant.

  I looked down at my chipped plate, noticing the stains from yesterday’s meals still gleaming on its glass. When was the last time they really cleaned this place?

  I chewed at my own food and remained silent among the chaos, lost in my own thoughts. Seeing Nick again was strange— I didn’t think him to care enough to stay in town to look for me. But the idea made me more frustrated than glad. If he really had been looking so hard, he would’ve found me!

  And the seven boys’ story hit me hard. The idea that our kingdom’s inhabitants would be so cruel and ignorant to people and things that were different infuriated me. Why was there cruelty in the world at all? I found myself clutching at the metal fork in my hand, knuckles turning white from the tight grip.

  “Whoa, Snow,” Ben said next to me. “You’re going to bend our silverware!” Ben placed his chubby, dimpled hand on mine and forced me to set the fork down.

  “What’s got you so mad, Snow? You always seem so angry,” Marv said through a mouthful of potatoes that he finally got from Larry.

  I relaxed my clenched fists, trying to process his words. He was right: I was angry all the time. But why not? Life was unfair, and no matter how much someone might claim to be, no one was a good person.

  “I’m fine,” I muttered.

  No one questioned me further.

  “Boys!” Arnold shouted over the noise. “I have a very important announcement to make.”

  That’s right, I thought to myself, the anger dissipating. I had told Arnold about the upcoming ball in celebration of Queen Dalia’s coronation. After a shocking revelation from Arnold that King Rory and Queen Margaret died in a tragic carriage ride accident, thus explaining the crowning of Princess Dalia, I proposed an idea. A crazy idea. But he liked it. And even I started feeling excited about it.

  The six other boys quieted after a minute or two and looked at their elder brother expectantly.

  “First of all, Snow was brilliant today.” There was a round of enthusiastic applause, and I grinned. I really did do well. Arnold held up a hand for more silence. “Anyway, not only was she a model thief, but she proved to be quite the informant and proposed an idea.”

  All the boys leaned forward in anticipation. I found myself bouncing up and down in my seat, eagerly awaiting their reactions.

  “Snow learned of a ball that’s supposed to be held in Queen Dalia’s honor. After further prodding and questioning arou
nd town, we learned it is an open invitation event to adult nobles from all over.”

  I noticed the confused looks on the other boys’ faces. They looked disappointed that the ball was the announcement.

  “What does that have to do with us?” Jacob asked, pushing his spectacles up his nose in annoyance.

  Arnold held up a finger. “I’m getting to that.”

  Jacob looked as if he was about to protest, but he shut his mouth.

  “This ball provides us with an opportunity of a lifetime. Especially with Snow here. We are too young to attend the ball, but Snow is not. And look at her, she can easily pass as a noblewoman.”

  Arnold gestured to me, and I flushed slightly as fourteen eyes studied me curiously.

  “She has agreed to infiltrate the ball,” he continued with a big, goofy grin on his face. All his brothers began bouncing in their seats, excitement replacing confusion as they realized what Arnold was getting at.

  “Hundreds of nobles and loads of royalty will be there partying and dancing,” I chimed in. “The perfect opportunity to waltz, flirt, and steal a thing or two.”

  “Now we just need to teach you how to be a noblewoman,” Arnold directed to me.

  That might not be as difficult as you think, I thought to myself. Though I lived more as a servant in Father’s household, I had been around enough of his noble friends to learn a thing or two.

  I left my half-eaten chicken breast, potatoes, and corn on my plate, too wrapped up in the thoughts of the ball to finish my meal. The boys began to slow down with their own eating, and I sat in silence as one by one, they got up and left more of a mess.

  “Snow, aren’t you gonna go to bed?”

  I glanced up at Arnold, eyes narrowed. “Aren’t we gonna clean up the mess?”

  Arnold yawned and shrugged his bony shoulders. “I don’t really feel like it. Maybe tomorrow.”

  I rolled my eyes as he traipsed away after his little brothers.

  I might as well get started, I thought.

  There were no windows in the boys’ hideaway to show me the darkness of outside, but my weary body was enough to tell me how late it was. It was at least past midnight. The boys’ schedules for eating and sleeping were so skewed, but who was I to complain? I had nowhere else to go, and I honestly preferred having the same place to rest my head every night rather than trudging through the woods with Nick. I quickly learned that I was not the outdoorsy type as I slept on the hard ground night after night and tried to tune out all the ominous noises that surrounded me in the forest. The hot and sticky summer air was not very helpful, either.