[Books of Bayern 1] The Goose Girl by Shannon Hale Read Free Book Online Page B

a week into the forest, Falada woke Ani, saying, Mad wolves. Coming toward the camp.
    "Wolves! Rabid wolves!" Ani crawled out of her tent, shouting. The night guard shook himself awake and kicked the bodies of the best archers. They rubbed their eyes and strung their bows.
    "Where?" said the guard with sleepy incredulity.
    Falada told her, and she pointed. Other horses were prancing and testing the ropes that held them. The commotion woke the camp, and all sat up in their bedrolls and looked into the distance that was neither near nor far in the absolute dark. Out there, something moved, shadow sliding on shadow.
    It leapt. The dying fire picked out eyes and teeth. Then, with a whisk of wind, a pale shaft pierced him through the throat. He fell to the earth at the first archer's feet. His two companions were similarly downed with the hard, sharp whip sound of arrows in the dark, and in the long silence that followed, someone sighed in relief.
    The next morning, Ani noticed how many of the guards now looked at her with the same wariness that marked their eyes when they contemplated the dark profundities of the forest.
    I thought they would be grateful, said Ani.
    Falada snorted and idly pawed a stone. In his opinion, people never made sense.
    Ani scolded herself. Just because they had left Kildenree did not mean these companions would feel any better disposed to her speaking gifts than had the sour-skinned nurse-mary. A brown-speckled forest bird whistled at her passing. Ani looked down and refused to listen.

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Some days later, Ani felt the tension finally ease. Spirited conversation and laughter returned, mostly centered around Selia. Many of the guards sought to ride near her, and Ungolad most of all. Ani observed that he often rode by her side and seemed to find reasons to touch her, reach out to pick a pine needle from her skirt or examine a scratch on her hand.
    Ani hoped a romance might make the journey worthwhile to her faithful lady-in-waiting.
    Ani had been lagging behind, talking with Falada, but at the sound of wild laughter she trotted forward to join the lively group. As soon as she neared, the laughing ceased. No one looked at her.
    "Did I miss a good joke?" said Ani.
    "No, not really," said Selia.

    One of the guards said something to Ungolad that Ani could not hear. No one else spoke.
    "The days are certainly warmer now," she said.
    "Yes, Princess," said the guard Uril.
    "Well, that breeze is pleasant, isn't it?"
    "If you say so, Princess."
    "Mmm."
    Ani, confused, looked at Selia. Her lady-in-waiting glanced up briefly and gave a subtle shrug that said, What do you want from me? Coolly, she set her gaze at the passing trees as though Ani did not exist.
    Ani scowled, scraping her memory for everything she had said and done that day. Had she inadvertently offended Selia and half the members of her escort guard? They could not possibly still be upset just because she knew the wolves were coming before they did. No reasons made sense to her, and the silence became unbearable. At last she flicked Falada into a trot. Once she left the group, conversation resumed behind her and Selia's lovely laugh rang out. Emotion caught in Ani's throat, and she hummed quietly to ease the tightness.
    As always, Talone rode at the front of the company, his ardent gaze sweeping about as though he expected a bandit attack any moment. Ani asked Falada to slow to a walk beside him. His silence made her wonder if what she had done to affront the others also included Talone, but soon he spoke.
    "I don't know if you recall, Princess, but we have been alone before." His stoic face relaxed a little as he raised his eyebrows in an amused query.
    Ani tried to remember. She had so rarely been alone.
    "It was about ten years ago, I think."
    "Oh," said Ani, "was that you who took me from the shore of the swan pond?"
    "Well done. You were very young. It scared me how the fever chills racked your tiny body. And