“Meet Eugish, they started life as a couple of capons, and I’m pretty sure we have less than a turn before they revert back to that form.”
Gwyneth blinks. “Flying capons? I mean, I always thought it was strange that they had wings but couldn’t fly.”
“I know, right?”
I coax Eugish over to a fountain and stand on the wall surrounding it to give me some height so I can launch myself onto their back. I grimace. “Fair warning, bareback riding is not good for your floof, but it’s still better than it being pummeled by Little Charming.”
Gwyneth follows my steps and sits behind me. “Anything is better than that,” she agrees. I grip Eugish’s mane, and Gwyneth wraps her arms around my waist. I squeeze my legs and Eugish runs through the courtyard as Theo and Charming spill through the door.
“Stop that maiden,” Charming screeches. Yikes, the dude could hit decibels a ten annus old girl would be proud of. Theo folds his arms and smirks as the other knights appear at his side.
Eugish huffs and picks up speed. Guards appear from everywhere. Holy Idols, were they waiting in the walls for an escaping female? “Fly,” I command.
Eugish beats their wings, except they do one, then the other, making us wobble left to right and slowing us down. “What is it doing?” Gwyneth grumbles. Eugish seems to understand the issue and flaps their wings in time, enabling them to take off into the air as the guards reach us. One guard lashes out and slices the end of Eugish’s tail. The white hair floats to the ground as we climb higher and higher and further from the kingdom.
“Where are we going?” Gwyneth asks as her chin sits on my shoulder.
“Initially, we are escaping The Hallows. The mirror man is on a mission to locate us a safe place until we can make a more solid plan for the next diurnal.”
Eugish flies fast for a capon-turned-horse, but we are running out of time. Each tempo brings us closer to the fact that my unique flying horse is going to shrink and split into two capons. They wouldn’t hold one maiden, never mind two.
We quickly surpass The Hallows. I recognize the castle belonging to King Arthur, and the sapphire ocean. We fly over a vast forest and I urge Eugish down to the ground, not wanting to be a pair of maidens falling through the air. Gwyneth dismounts with far more finesse than I could ever manage. I sort of slide and flop, but remain on my feet. Eugish makes a pitiful neighing noise before their body compresses and splits. Two capons bounce to the ground and scuttle away into the woods.
“Oh, you weren’t kidding,” Gwyneth says with wide eyes as she tracks them into the forest. “Don’t you need to stop them from escaping?”
I shrug. “They are free souls. Plus, they seem to keep coming back to me, so I’m not worried.”
My dress begins to float around me, the stars rising into the air and zooming off into the sky. The fabric tears into shreds and falls to my feet, leaving me in my undergarments. The mirror and lamp drop to the ground alongside a dagger that looks suspiciously like the one I’d taken from the king. Oh no, I took the stolen dagger.
Gwyneth blinks. “Did your dress self-destruct?”
I wave a hand. “Poor workmanship these days, you can’t get the right mice for the job.”
Her gaze falls to my feet, now covered in my worn boots. I’m a little sad the fancy footwear is gone. “Why did you keep your shoes but lose your dress?” she asks.
“I am not wise to the ways of the fairy godmother.”
“But it makes no sense.”
Hamish comes barreling from the dark forest, clucking like her life depends on it. A roar of anger echoes around us, making the branches shake. “Can we discuss my state of undress once we are safely away from the things that go bump in the night?”
I scoop up the mirror and the man wavers into view. “North of here is a cave. Frances informed me you would be safe there.” Well, let’s hope Frances is reliable, whoever she is. I grab the dagger and hand Gwyneth the lamp.
“Don’t rub it,” I tell her.
She pinches the bridge of her nose as I grab her hand and tug her along a slightly worn path. “The other north,” the mirror man says.
I scowl at him and spin around. He nods and I launch into the woods in the opposite direction. The growl gets louder and more insistent, making me worry for Hamish and Eugene. That sounds like a starving and angry beastie.
“To the right,” the mirror man instructs. I veer right. “No wait, my right is your left,” he says.
I roll my eyes and reverse direction. I’m panting a little now. Who knew running for your life involved a workout? There’s a niggling pain in my side that is growing in intensity. “How much longer?” I grumble.
“There,” the mirror man declares, as a dark hole set into the side of a big hill comes into view.
I slide to a stop, Gwyneth doing the same while we eye the ominous darkness. We glance at each other as another roar splits the air. We dive inside the hole, which is just tall enough to fit us in. Gwyneth is behind me as I feel around in the dark.
The wall to my left disappears, and I freeze. Not being able to see a thing is disorientating, and I have the distinct impression of a drop on my right side.
